season, too. She might even do lessons online. We’ve got a nice website up and running,” he added proudly.
“We’re not dabblers or dilettantes,” Ellie insisted. “ThoughI guess I understand Justin Ridley’s point of view. He thinks we’ll get bored here. Or the business will fail and we’ll sell out to developers. I’m sure he doesn’t think we’ll last until the end of the year.”
“Has he ever said anything like that to you directly?” Dana’s tone was gentle and even curious. But Lucy could see what she was getting at, trying to sort out the facts here from the hyperbole and accusations.
Ellie shrugged. “We’ve rarely spoken to him. We only see him once in a while. We catch sight of him walking through the woods. Or if we’re in the meadow where the llamas graze, we sometimes see him on the other side of the fence, on his land.”
“I’ve had words with him,” Ben piped up. “He’s said some nasty things to me. Language I wouldn’t repeat to ladies. But Ellie has the gist. We’re the city slickers and he’s Nature Boy.” Ben laughed harshly. “I work harder in one day around here than he does on his place in a month. You tell me which one of us is carrying on the great farming tradition. Which one is preserving the pristine beauty of the environment?”
Lucy saw the conflict very starkly—the urbane Kruegers, with their fine wines and vegetable pâté, clashing with their country neighbors, born and bred in this community. One neighbor, in particular.
“I can understand why you don’t want to stir up trouble with your new neighbors. Or give the business bad publicity. But this attack on your livestock was more than a harmless joke.” Maggie spoke in a quiet but concerned tone. “Aside from the injuries to the llamas, you may not be able to use much ofthe fiber on the llamas that were hit with that paint. Not until they’re sheared once or twice,” she added knowingly. “I have to confess, I don’t understand why you and Ben are so reluctant to call the police this time. Aren’t you afraid that if you don’t find the person who did this, it could happen again? Maybe something even worse?”
“And it is a crime to harm livestock,” Dana reminded them. “You might be putting yourself at some legal risk by not reporting it.”
Dana’s husband, Jack, was an attorney and had been part of local law enforcement for many years before going back to school to earn his law degree. Dana was savvy about legal matters and made a good point, Lucy thought. One she hadn’t even thought of.
Ellie and Ben shared a glance. Then Ellie turned to look at Maggie. “I guess I am a little worried now. Ben and I will have to talk this over more. Weigh the pros and cons. But you’re right, Maggie. This was the worst harassment so far. Whoever is behind it really raised the bar.”
Ben stood up and shook his head. “Whether we tell the police or not, we’re not leaving. We’re not playing into their hands, running off like scared rabbits. Ridley would love that. That’s just what he’s hoping for.”
Lucy glanced at Ben. She didn’t know what to say. He clearly thought of his neighbor as the opponent, even the enemy, and this was a conflict only one could win. Was that a masculine characteristic, to think in terms of a win-or-lose contest?
“What about security? Do you have any?” Dana asked.
“We put a system in a few weeks ago. There are alarms onthe corral gates and barn. And we even put up a few surveillance cameras. But with all the people here for the festival, we decided to shut the system off for the day,” Ben explained. “We usually only put it on at night anyway.”
“But now we’ll put it on in the daytime, too, I guess.” Ellie shook her head. “We moved out of the city to get away from all that. I had some starry-eyed fantasy that we wouldn’t even worry about locking doors anymore . . . poof! There goes that one.” She laughed, trying to make a joke of
“We’re not dabblers or dilettantes,” Ellie insisted. “ThoughI guess I understand Justin Ridley’s point of view. He thinks we’ll get bored here. Or the business will fail and we’ll sell out to developers. I’m sure he doesn’t think we’ll last until the end of the year.”
“Has he ever said anything like that to you directly?” Dana’s tone was gentle and even curious. But Lucy could see what she was getting at, trying to sort out the facts here from the hyperbole and accusations.
Ellie shrugged. “We’ve rarely spoken to him. We only see him once in a while. We catch sight of him walking through the woods. Or if we’re in the meadow where the llamas graze, we sometimes see him on the other side of the fence, on his land.”
“I’ve had words with him,” Ben piped up. “He’s said some nasty things to me. Language I wouldn’t repeat to ladies. But Ellie has the gist. We’re the city slickers and he’s Nature Boy.” Ben laughed harshly. “I work harder in one day around here than he does on his place in a month. You tell me which one of us is carrying on the great farming tradition. Which one is preserving the pristine beauty of the environment?”
Lucy saw the conflict very starkly—the urbane Kruegers, with their fine wines and vegetable pâté, clashing with their country neighbors, born and bred in this community. One neighbor, in particular.
“I can understand why you don’t want to stir up trouble with your new neighbors. Or give the business bad publicity. But this attack on your livestock was more than a harmless joke.” Maggie spoke in a quiet but concerned tone. “Aside from the injuries to the llamas, you may not be able to use much ofthe fiber on the llamas that were hit with that paint. Not until they’re sheared once or twice,” she added knowingly. “I have to confess, I don’t understand why you and Ben are so reluctant to call the police this time. Aren’t you afraid that if you don’t find the person who did this, it could happen again? Maybe something even worse?”
“And it is a crime to harm livestock,” Dana reminded them. “You might be putting yourself at some legal risk by not reporting it.”
Dana’s husband, Jack, was an attorney and had been part of local law enforcement for many years before going back to school to earn his law degree. Dana was savvy about legal matters and made a good point, Lucy thought. One she hadn’t even thought of.
Ellie and Ben shared a glance. Then Ellie turned to look at Maggie. “I guess I am a little worried now. Ben and I will have to talk this over more. Weigh the pros and cons. But you’re right, Maggie. This was the worst harassment so far. Whoever is behind it really raised the bar.”
Ben stood up and shook his head. “Whether we tell the police or not, we’re not leaving. We’re not playing into their hands, running off like scared rabbits. Ridley would love that. That’s just what he’s hoping for.”
Lucy glanced at Ben. She didn’t know what to say. He clearly thought of his neighbor as the opponent, even the enemy, and this was a conflict only one could win. Was that a masculine characteristic, to think in terms of a win-or-lose contest?
“What about security? Do you have any?” Dana asked.
“We put a system in a few weeks ago. There are alarms onthe corral gates and barn. And we even put up a few surveillance cameras. But with all the people here for the festival, we decided to shut the system off for the day,” Ben explained. “We usually only put it on at night anyway.”
“But now we’ll put it on in the daytime, too, I guess.” Ellie shook her head. “We moved out of the city to get away from all that. I had some starry-eyed fantasy that we wouldn’t even worry about locking doors anymore . . . poof! There goes that one.” She laughed, trying to make a joke of
Similar Books
