The Forest Ranger's Christmas Read Online Free Page B

core.
    “I’m sorry, Josie. The ranger’s right. I can’t read. Not a word,” Frank said.
    “Gramps!” A look of incredulity washed over Josie’s face and she clapped a hand to her mouth in disbelief.
    All the sadness of the world filled Frank’s gaze, a lost expression Clint had frequently seen in Karen’s eyes.
    “Why do you think after your mom died your grandma and I pushed you so hard to do well in school?” Frank asked Josie. “We didn’t want you to end up like me. Can’t even read the daily newspaper. Uneducated and stupid.”
    “You’re not stupid, Gramps. You’re the smartest man I know,” Josie objected in a passionate voice.
    Clint agreed. “Definitely. You’re very smart, Frank. Being able to read has nothing to do with a person’s intelligence, believe me.”
    But a sick feeling settled in Clint’s gut. He took no delight in revealing the truth. He’d suspected for a long time that Frank couldn’t read. Too many clues had led to this conclusion. But now, Clint’s heart tightened with compassion. He couldn’t forget how Frank and his wife had lovingly provided child care for his daughter when they’d first moved to town three years earlier. Even when Clint had been called out overnight to fight wildfires, Frank and Viola Rushton had tended his little girl as if she were their very own. And look how Clint repaid them. By revealing a secret Frank had kept hidden all his life.
    The elderly man lifted his gaze to Clint, his eyes filled with uncertainty. “What gave me away?”
    Clint smiled warmly, trying to lighten the tense moment. Trying to show an increase of love toward this good man and his irascible granddaughter. After all, it was the Christian thing to do.
    “To begin with, you held the hymnal upside down at church once. I’ve also noticed you can’t seem to orient yourself in the scriptures. You flip through the pages and quote them from memory better than anyone I know, but you can’t find a specific verse when the Sunday school teacher calls on you. And I’ve seen you at the power company, paying your bills in person, with cash, instead of paying online or mailing in a check, like most people do.”
    Josie narrowed her eyes. “How would paying with cash indicate he can’t read?”
    “My wife did the same thing. She always paid our bills in cash because she couldn’t write a check.” Clint had been proud of Karen’s accomplishment when she’d learned to read, but he didn’t like talking about her now. Even after seven years, the pain of how she’d died was still too raw, the guilt over her death still too fresh.
    “I don’t understand,” Josie said.
    Clint released a deep sigh. “Let’s just say I recognized the signs. You fake it quite well, Frank. And today, when you claimed you hadn’t read the tree permit signs up on the mountain, it all added up. Those signs are too large for anyone to miss, unless you can’t read them.”
    And Clint knew firsthand what it was like to cope with illiteracy. Karen had been highly defensive about her disability and had found ways to hide it from other people. She’d constantly feared someone might find out and make fun of her. That, coupled with the physical abuse she’d endured as a child, had left Karen with no self-esteem whatsoever. Even after they’d married and she’d learned to read, she’d never gained much confidence. And no matter how hard Clint tried to convince her, she’d never really believed that he or God loved her.
    Clint had failed to make Karen happy, but he was determined to make a difference for Frank.
    “What now? Will you have me arrested anyway?” Frank asked, his bushy brows arched in misery.
    Josie gave a sharp inhalation and Clint inwardly cringed. It was bad enough to reveal Frank’s secret without worrying about Josie’s disapproval. At least her concern for her grandfather appeared genuine. But Clint wished once more that she wasn’t here to complicate the issue. Then again, maybe