Page 100 of Hard Knock Hero

Sawyer stared. His lips trembled.

“It’s called shatter,” I announced to the people gathered in the gym.

I’d figured it out a couple of hours ago. Yesterday, when we had been on the phone with my brother Jake, he had explained the different kinds of marijuana concentrates that were easiest to transport. Shatter was formed in thin sheets and was a golden-brown color. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t made the connection before.Thathad been the smell in the truck. It had been faint because the illicit packages were wrapped in plastic and surrounded with actual candy, which helped to obscure the scent.

“It’s a highly concentrated form of cannabis,” I went on. “It’s produced using flammable solvents, and manufacturers employ liquid nitrogen to keep the volatile mixtures under control. But those methods aren’t foolproof, as Dale and his crew found out on Refuge Mountain. That’s where they’ve been cooking up this stuff underground in the caves. Jessi and I felt an explosion there a few days ago from a cave-in, probably after some of those solvents ignited. You grew the marijuana plants on the national forest land over the summer, right? Relying on the fact that it was rarely patrolled. All of which makes this one hundred percent illegal, especially if you’re shipping out of state. Which I’m sure you are.”

The murmurs in the room increased. Shocked glances and angry faces.

For a long moment, Sawyer just stared at the golden-brown shards. Then he pushed the candy box away. “I’m as shocked as you are. I had nothing to do with any of this. Even if there happened to be illegal substances on my delivery trucks, you have no evidence that I was involved with it.”

Now, Owen came forward. “Actually, we do, Uncle Sawyer.” He nodded, and Deputy Marsh entered the room, along with Theo Rigsby. Dale’s youngest son. Chester and Mitch’s younger brother. He had helped them harass Jessi, but it had turned out he was the weak link in their operation. He hadn’t known about his family’s plan to blow up Refuge Mountain, and for him, that had been a step too far. He’d agreed to confess everything he knew. Including his uncle Sawyer’s involvement in every aspect of the scheme.

“Theo is going to testify that you were in charge of the whole thing,” Owen said.

Sawyer scoffed. “That’s ridiculous.”

Then he suddenly broke for the exit.

I grabbed hold of his coat, while three state police officers descended on him. They wrenched his hands behind his back and slapped cuffs on his wrists.

“You’re under arrest, Sawyer,” Owen said. “For conspiracy. Distribution of illegal substances. Attempted murder for the plot to blow up a bomb on federal land. And who knows what else. I’m going to let the state and federal prosecutors figure that part out.”

The state police led Sawyer away, reading him his rights.

Owen went forward, holding out his hands to calm the crowd, while the mayor stood sheepishly by his side. While Owen and the mayor answered questions and tried to calm everyone down, Jessi rushed over to me.

“Hey, sweetness,” I said.

I hugged her, spinning her around before we made our way outside. At the curb, Sawyer was trying to argue with the police officers, who were pushing him into a cruiser. But we turned our backs on him. He had received enough of our attention.

Jessi put her hands on my face and pulled me down to kiss her. “What do you say? Should we try to make it to Steamboat and get things back on track for the wedding tomorrow?”

“You want to?” I asked.

I was sure the whole investigation and prosecution of Sawyer and the other Rigsbys would take a while. They had a ton of evidence to gather and witnesses to interview. I was going to do my best to stay out of it as much as possible. Well, except for Jeremy. I couldn’t wait to testify against his ass. He would be heading back to prison, hopefully for much longer than two years.

The stab wound to his thigh? Once again, self defense on my part.Clearly. Jessi would back me up on that.

It was still possible to make it to Steamboat before the wedding. But Jessi had been through a lot today. If she didn’t feel up to travel, I would understand.

She frowned at me disapprovingly. “We can’t disappoint the bride and groom.”

Scarlett and Trace had just stepped through the gym doors onto the sidewalk, and they’d overheard. “You should go,” Scarlett said. “Don’t let the Rigsbys screw up your plans. We can help Owen with everything here. Not that he needs us, considering that Hartley is swarming with state police. And probably the DEA will show up soon enough, from the sound of things.”

I nodded at Trace. “Are you going to dive back into the fray? Owen deputized you. He’s hiring more permanently, too. You’ve got an inside track.”

“Hell, no. I’m done playing deputy. I don’t have a clue what I’m doing with my life, currently. But joining Owen’s department isn’t going to be it.”

“Then that makes two of us.” I turned to Jessi. The stunningly brave woman that I got to call mine. “I’m up for getting on the road again. If you’re with me. I’m not going anywhere without you.”

She laced our fingers together and gazed up at me. “Then we’d better go. I don’t know about you, but I have a lot of cooking to do when I get there. I hear the head chef for the wedding didn’t even show up, and that’s just not right.”

“You’re going to swoop in as their hero, huh?” I asked.

“It’s the kind of thing I do.”

My face hurt from how much I was smiling at her.

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