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“Jake,” she said quietly as she approached.
I stared at a nick in the side of the big red barn.
“Jake, please.”
Her hand on my arm was a balm on my wounds. I looked down at her, finding peace in the bottomless brown of her eyes whether I wanted to see it or not.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry they did this to you. To the farm. The only thing to thank them for is keeping you here so I could find my way back to you.”
My throat tightened. I pulled her into my chest so she couldn’t see my face, too tired to put on the mask.
“I believe you,” she said after a minute. “I think we should make sure the police know who we think is interfering.”
A dry laugh. “You forget the Pattons run this town. Every corner of it, the sheriff included. Won’t do any good.”
“We’ll figure something out,” she promised. “Get some outside help. Find irrefutable evidence. I have to believe it’s going to be okay, Jake. It has to be. I don’t … I don’t know how we’ll …” Her words dissolved into tears.
But I knew one thing she’d said was true—she needed to believe it was going to be okay. And I might not have been able to do much, but I could give her that.
“You’re right,” I said before kissing the top of her head. “We’ll figure it out.”
And it was on me to figure out how.
25
Deal with the Devil
OLIVIA
A hundred twenty sick cattle.
Thirty-two dead in three days’ time.
Kit’s face was drawn as she finished arranging the basket piled with sausage biscuits I was to take around to the crew.
“Miguel should hear something on the tests today, right?” she asked, her eyes on her hands.
My heart sank even lower than it already was. “He got them this morning. Nothing.”
“I just don’t see how that’s possible,” she huffed. “These labs don’t know what they’re doing. They’re supposed to be giving us answers, not a bunch of zeros. Somebody has to help, and they’re the professionals.”
“I know. But all they can do is give us data, and the data doesn’t show anything. Miguel’s running another round of mineral and toxin tests on the stock as well as the water, hay, feed. The FDA was here yesterday, for God’s sake. We’re in danger of being shut down, so we’ve got to figure it out—and soon. We’ve checked the fields for any signs of interference, but it could be anything, Kit. Somebody could have tampered with the soil, planted something in a corner that’d hurt the herd to eat. Put something in the water that we couldn’t detect with our own tests. Let’s just hope this round turns something up, because no one seems to be able to work out what’s going on.”
“I’m just so mad,” she said, her voice trembling as she used too much force to stack the little sandwiches. “And scared. After everything, now this. It just all feels too big, too hard.” She sniffled and pushed the basket in my direction.
“I know,” I said with my insides in pieces as I walked around the island to give her a hug.
She held on to me like she’d fly away if she let go.
“What are we gonna do, Livi?” she asked quietly. “How are we going to survive?”
“We’re going to keep on trying,” I said with hope. “We need money to replace the cattle we lost and keep ourselves up and running, and we haven’t tried the one place that happens to have a safe full of it.”
“The bank?” She leaned back to meet my eyes. “Livi, are you going to try to take out a loan? Mortgage the farm again?”
“I already applied. I have an appointment this afternoon to find out if we got it.”
Her eyes widened with hope. “Do you think they’ll give it to you?”
“All I can do is cross my fingers.”
“Then I’ll cross mine too.”
“Oh, and Kit—don’t tell Jake.”
She gave me a look.
“It’s not like that. I just knew he’d say no. If I get it, I’ll tell him. If not, he’ll be none the wiser.”
Kit drew a long breath and let it out in a sigh. “I hope you can pull it off. If anybody can, it’s you.”
The banker across the desk wore an expression of pity as she pushed my folder of financial paperwork back at me.
“I’m sorry, Ms. Brent. But on looking at your statements, returns, and debts, there’s no equity to draw off of. There’s no collateral.”
“There has to be something we can do,” I insisted. “Our farm has to be worth something.”
“Given your outstanding debt, we can’t in good conscience lend you the kind of money you need. I really am very sorry. Your farm is a staple in this town, and your grandfather was a cornerstone in our community. But at the end of the day, the math has to work out. And I’m sorry to have to be the one to tell you that in this case, it just doesn’t.”
