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“So you thought this stuff was going to improve people’s lives? Because you got that all wrong.” Davidson smiled toward the two-way mirror and pushed the baggie forward. “You know why your pot plants look so shitty and woody?”

  Ellis was apparently smart enough not to defend them and claim the plants as his own. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “No? How much did you pay for these plants? Or maybe you bought them as seeds, I don’t know. But you don’t strike me as a guy with a green thumb. So, where’d you get the plants?”

  Ellis stared down at the table.

  “I only ask because I’m concerned about you. Maybe you paid too much. Maybe you got ripped off. Because, Ellis...” Davidson leaned forward, his fists on the table and a grin on his face. “The reason your plants look so shitty is that you didn’t buy marijuana. What you have going is a thriving hemp farm.”

  Ellis’s head snapped toward Davidson. “What?”

  “Not a drop of THC in them. Or not enough to show up on a field test, anyway. You could smoke every one of those plants, and all you’d get was a sore throat.”

  “That’s not true,” Ellis said, aiming a pleading look at Davidson.

  “No? Bet you got a great deal on them, huh? Something special just because you’re a nice guy? Did you even know the man when you handed over the cash?”

  “You’re lying. He wouldn’t—”

  Davidson shrugged. “This interview is being recorded. I’m not allowed to give you false information about your case.”

  Nate rolled his eyes. That wasn’t true, but apparently Ellis believed it, because his gaze slid to the baggie as the tips of his ears turned red. “He said...”

  “Who?”

  “A guy named Frank. We were friends. I thought we were friends. He wanted to help me out. He—”

  “Frank who?”

  Ellis hung his head, dropping his forehead into his hands. “I can’t believe any of this is happening. Victor said no one ever went out there. I only had two hundred dollars left to my name. Everything else was gone. I just needed a new start. A way to make enough money to get in on a new landscaping business.”

  “And Frank?”

  “Frank had a truck full of plants. He said he’d give me the ones that weren’t doing so well. Two hundred then and another two hundred a month later. I picked up a little work. It was working out fine.”

  “Yeah, real fine,” Davidson snapped. “You were running a drug operation in my county.”

  Ellis raised his head, a flash of hope relaxing his mouth into something that was almost a smile. “But it isn’t pot! So I’m good, right? I can go?”

  When he stood, Davidson guided him back down to his chair. “Not so fast, Stone. There are still a few good charges in there, starting with destruction of federal forest.”

  “What?” he asked blankly.

  “The field you were working on in back? That’s federal land. So there are still charges that can be brought. But maybe they’d go away if you decide to cooperate. I need the names of everyone involved.” Nate felt a moment of sharp fear for James and Jenny, but Ellis only looked confused.

  “Everyone involved? I saw you putting Victor in a car. And I already gave you Frank’s name.”

  “What about the woman?” Davidson pressed, and Nate’s shoulders tightened to rock.

  “What woman?” Ellis asked.

  “I believe she’s your wife,” Davidson said dryly.

  “Jenny?” Ellis shook his head. “Jenny had nothing to do with this.”

  “Come on. We know she’s involved.”

  “No way.” Ellis swallowed and his eyes shifted away. “Look, I admit, I asked if I could store a few boxes at her place, but it was nothing illegal. Just hoses and irrigation stuff. That’s all. And I already moved those boxes, anyway. She didn’t know anything.”

  “Right. That’s why she was heading out to the cabin to visit the operation.”

  “Dude, I thought you said you couldn’t lie.” Ellis laughed and shook his head. “That’s bullshit. Jenny didn’t know anything.”

  Davidson dropped it. “All right. Tell us more about this Frank.”

  But Nate wanted to rush in and grab Ellis by the collar and shake more information about Jenny from him. He ran a hand through his hair, aware of how hard his heart was beating, because...because Ellis had seemed sincere. And his story backed up what Nate himself had witnessed.

  Was he telling the truth? Or was he holding a flame for Jenny and just trying to protect her? Nate had to find out. The need to know the truth twisted inside his gut. It felt like life or death somehow. Ridiculous, of course. He knew what it was like to face a real life-or-death situation. This wasn’t life or death or even danger. It was just...his heart.

  He scowled at the ridiculous, maudlin thought, not even realizing Davidson was done with his questioning until the deputy appeared in the doorway. “Can you believe this idiot?” he howled. “Hemp! Jesus Christ, he almost had enough plants to make himself a pair of those hippie sandals!”

  On another day, Nate would’ve laughed, but this time he could only manage the strength to nod.

  “Anyway, I think I know who this Frank is. We’ll put out a description and hopefully track him down, see if he’s carrying the real deal. But as for this genius...he’s probably going to walk. I don’t know how your cousin will feel about that.”

  Nate shrugged. “He’ll just be happy it’s done and taken care of. And he’ll get bonus points with the wife if her nephew isn’t sent to prison, I suppose.”

  “Yeah, I’ll say.”

  “Hey, do you mind if I ask Stone a couple of questions just to satisfy my own curiosity?”

  “Knock yourself out. We’ll probably let him go before nightfall, anyway.”

  The cameras were still running, but at this point, Nate didn’t care. Hell, even if the drugs had been real, he wasn’t sure he would’ve cared. Ellis’s arrest wasn’t going to make a damn bit of difference in this community. But walking away from Jenny when she’d been in need? That was going to affect Nate’s life in a hell of a lot of ways.

  He opened the door. “Ellis,” he said flatly.

  “Hey!” Ellis said brightly, as if he were relieved to see a familiar face.

  “How’s it going?”

  His smile vanished. “Not great, man.”

  “I see that.”

  “Shit,” he muttered. “Did Jenny send you in here to kick my ass? Tell her I’m sorry, all right?”

  “Sorry for what?” Nate asked, taking a seat and bracing himself for the answer. Actually, that wasn’t true. No matter what the answer was, it was going to tear through Nate like a blade. Because either she’d made a fool of him or Nate had done it all on his own.

  “Dragging her into this.”

  “Well, she’s pretty pissed that you got her arrested.”

  “I swear to God I don’t know what she was doing out there! Where did she even come from?”

  “That doesn’t make any sense. There’s nothing out there. She didn’t just run across you.”

  Ellis slumped. “She must have followed me. She was suspicious about what I was doing and worried I was in trouble.”

  “You’re really saying she didn’t know anything?”

  “Are you kidding? She thought I was doing landscaping.”

  “In the middle of winter?”

  “I told her I was working the plows and signing contracts for the spring. I mean, I am picking up a few shifts here and there. And hey, I was kinda doing landscaping, you know?” Ellis’s laugh sounded like a broken toy.

  Nate felt sick now, remembering the way he’d looked through her as he’d passed. “So she wasn’t lying,” he murmured.

  “Jenny? No way. She’d never have anything to do with drugs. Hell, whenever I came home smelling like pot, she’d make me sleep on the couch. That shit with her mom, you know?”

  No, he didn’t know. He didn’t know a lot of things about Jenny, because he’d been t