John Brawn, a Lumberjack

A secret held by J. Brawn

John Brawn, a Lumberjack ©
By Artemis Quill 3.14.25
John Brawn, a man carved from the very wood he felled, lived a life as predictable as the sunrise. Each day, the rhythmic thud of his axe echoed through the towering pines of the Cascade Mountains, a counterpoint to the chirping of unseen birds. Evenings found him by the crackling fire in his humble cabin, the scent of pine and pipe tobacco mingling with the elegant words of Keats and Shelley. He was a man of simple pleasures, content in his solitude. Or so it seemed.

But John harbored a secret, a past as shadowed and deep as the forest itself. He wasn't always a lumberjack. Before the axe, before the poetry, there was something else… something he desperately tried to bury beneath the comforting routine of his life. A past that threatened to shatter the carefully constructed identity he had built.

One day, a stranger arrives, a man with eyes as cold as the mountain streams and a knowledge of John's past that chills him to the bone. This stranger, a bounty hunter named Silas, is relentless in his pursuit, forcing John to confront the truth he'd buried so deep. The quiet life John had painstakingly crafted begins to unravel, revealing a web of deceit and danger that stretches far beyond the familiar trees of his home.

As Silas closes in, John must decide whether to run and continue hiding from his past, or face it head-on, risking everything he's built to reclaim his true identity. The journey will lead him through treacherous landscapes, both physical and emotional, forcing him to confront not only his past but also the very core of who he believes himself to be. The twists and turns of fate will test his resilience, his courage, and ultimately, his very soul. Will he find redemption, or will his past finally consume him? The answer lies hidden within the heart of the wilderness, waiting to be discovered.