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“Whenever the loan officers called hi, they’d offer more money and he always took it He’d put up a piece of land here, , they had the whole place standing good for his loan”
“Hon, it’s 2013 Your daddy has been gone two years You must’ve made ends meet somehow if you’ve made it this far”
“Yes, but I’ that ridiculous payment Do you have any idea what it’s like to work three jobs and fare? Even then, I’ht from the start” She sounded defeated “Besides, I don’t want to pay a debt that isn’t mine”
He rested his hands on her shoulders “Linds, listen towhat he did He was a strong standing reputation for roping in a good far him all thethe squeeze on hi
“Nohat’s done is done You need to get that fire back Show them the determined woman and hold your head up Then, take a few days and decide how you want to deal with your father’s decisions You’re at a crossroads, hon As much as I hate to say it, there’s no easy fix here, but there’s a way to salvage this place Just be strong and we’ll come up with a workable plan”
“Strong?” She whipped around and faced an open closet “See that computer over there? Old-ti more than a dated computer It was the death of a farmer That’s what it was In the last years of his life, all Daddy worried about was trading futures He loved playing the stock market He used to be happy out there in those fields He liked working cattle and boarding horses In the end, he eak and only wanted to sit in front of that machine and predict the future of processed meat!”
Seth had heard the stories Newt Leland had indeed been known for his ga proble market that would eventually turn around for the better
On his deathbed, when he should’ve been telling his daughter howhe knew about trading pork bellies The real irony came a few months after her father’s death in 2011 That’s when the Chicago Mercantile Exchange delisted pork belly futures
“Lindsey, how much do you owe?”
“Me?” She balked at that “This was Daddy’s farh he isn’t here anymore, it’s still his debt I tried to work out a payrazing horses, too I’ lessons and…”
“I’d love to hear how you plan to turn this thing around, but I don’t think the sheriff and his boys will give us that luxury Do you?”
“My debt, my business,” she snapped stubbornly “I didn’t ask for your help, Seth”
“I’ that you don’t have time to keep your business to yourself If you don’t pack up and leave, they’ll take you out of here kicking and screa Is that what you want?”
She shrugged “I’ht”
“You’ll get one, Linds You have to vacate the preo see To” Leonard and Associates were the best attorneys in town They had to be In their part of the South, the cattlemen kept them in business If it wasn’t one crooked deal, it was another