Logan nodded again. He had suspected that all along. “What else?”
“Most other things wouldn’t be obvious to a layman. They could be cutting down trees that are endangered, failing to properly care for the undergrowth, skimping on replanting, illegally labeling what they’re removing in type, size, or quality. The list is long.”
“I see.” Logan cringed. “You’re right. I’d never be able to see that.”
“You aren’t planning on going out there, are you?”
“Hell no,” Logan lied. “But I’ll pass this information off to my brother.”
“Ah, perfect. Oh, hey. I do have something that might help.” Jackson snapped his fingers and turned around, motioning for them to follow. When they got to his kitchen, he pulled out a folded map from his briefcase and opened it up. He shook it out, spread it across the table, and pointed to a spot. “Is this where you came across it?”
“Yep. That’s the place.”
“Perfect. Let me draw you a circle around what they were permitted to remove. It might be difficult to tell if they breached the sides, but it’s always a possibility if they were extraordinarily greedy. Usually that isn’t the case, though. They can easily skim an extra few feet all the way around and make a shit ton of money without anyone being the wiser. In fact, they can also say they had no idea they’d done it. It’s difficult to prosecute. Not all loggers are underhanded and sneaky, but when they are, they cover themselves well.”
“Thanks.” Logan took the map when Jackson had it folded back up.
“Yeah, thanks for your help,” Sawyer added.
Amanda smiled. “We appreciate it.”
“No problem. You have my number. Call me when you know more. This site wasn’t on my radar for tomorrow originally anyway. My visit can wait, but not forever.”
“Thank you.” Sawyer held out a hand, reminding Logan they hadn’t been very friendly when they’d arrived.
Jackson glanced at each of them, one at a time. He schooled his face, but Logan knew he had heard rumors and suspected precisely what was indeed the truth. The three people in front of him were romantically involved with each other.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The drive back to the condo was quiet.
Amanda said very little, letting her men think. They both looked like they needed it.
When they were safely back inside their living room, Logan locked them up as if it were a fortress.
She noticed the three locks on the front door for the first time and then the panel to the right of the door where he set an alarm.
“At least we know we won’t get attacked in our sleep,” she said, trying to lighten the mood. “You think someone’s likely to break in and kidnap us or something?”
“It’s happened.” Logan nodded toward the front window. “All the windows have sensors on them. They can’t be opened or broken without an alarm going off.”
“Why on earth are you so paranoid? I mean, you didn’t install all this today.”
Logan took her hand and lured her down the hallway. She felt Sawyer at her heels.
“Someone broke in last year, from the Church on the Hill actually—the place your sister used to attend—and tried to kill Laurie, Zach, and Corbin by filling the place with natural gas.”
Amanda halted her steps. “You’re serious?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Sawyer set his hands on her hips from behind as they stepped up to the bed. “Racism. Bigotry. You name it. They didn’t approve of our living arrangements, and they intended to chase us out of town.”
“Oh. Jesus. I didn’t know that. Were any of them hurt?”
Logan turned around to face her. “No. Thank God.”
“So that’s why my sister left the church. She never really explained.”
“Well, that and she’s gay.” Logan chuckled.
She shoved his shoulder. “Don’t make fun.”
“I’m not. Just saying. I don’t think she could have continued the ruse much longer. In fact, she stayed longer than she intended to in order to spy on the parishioners when they started plotting against our families.”
“Why would they do that?”
Logan shrugged. “Like I said, they didn’t approve of our lifestyle, so they wanted to run us out of town. They could be doing that again now. I’m not ruling out the possibility that the notes are intended for you and not me.”
“They have racial issues too,” Sawyer added as he leaned in to pull her hair off her neck and nibble a path to her ear.
“And they aren’t the only ones. There are a lot of people in both towns who would rather not see the Natives and the whites mixing blood. Both shifters and humans. It’s a mess. It’s difficult to figure out who the enemy is half the time. Everyone has their own agenda, and we’re talking about six groups of folks—white and Native humans, white and Native shifters, and mixed humans and shifters.