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His lips forry line

"What did your brother do, Jackson?"

"He beat the shit out of me"

Her eyes ider than Frisbees "What?"

"He beat ht hook or a kick to the nuts He busted ood--two black eyes, split lip, broken nose, sprained wrist, three fractured ribs"

Mia was agape "Oh God"

"My dad heard the commotion and rushed into the barn--he had to wrestle Shane off me My folks wanted to call an ambulance, but I refused, so Dad carried me inside and my mama cleanedbefore the sheriff showed up, but before he could step foot in the house, Casper’s truck was speedin’ up the drive again This ti time she showed up"

"Apparently Casper had co charges, and she knew she couldn’t let the lie go on She caht there in front of everyone My folks, Shane, the sheriff I realized later how difficult that roup of people that she’d asked me to tie her up and fk her in the ass--and that she’d enjoyed it"

"Difficult for her? Did she even stop to consider how difficult it would be for you to be accused of rape? What a…a…bitch!"

A weak smile lifted Jackson’s lips He found Mia’s fury on his behalf oddly sweet, but still he had to argue, "She wasn’t acting out of malice She panicked, pure and simple"

"Don’t you dare defend her Tiffany Griffen is a first-class bitch for doing what she did She could’ve destroyed your entire life!"

"She did," he said ruefully "No h she recanted her story, the dae had already been done I was beaten to a bloody pulp, things between Shane and me could never be the same after what he’d done And then there was the people in town…"

Mia narrowed her eyes "What about them?"

"Let’s just say the folks of Abbott Creek aren’t the forgetting type They like to whisper and gossip and spread shit around that ain’t true I couldn’t go into town after that without folks staring and pointing at , or how many times Tiff admitted that she’d lied, some people still believed I’d done it I think Shane secretly believed it too, because he never apologized for beating on me"

"Please don’t telltone