Chapter 5 - THE OLD LAND CASE
Arthur did not deny the photograph.
“I represented both families.”
Emily stared at him.
“You represented the Blakes?”
“Before I represented your grandmother.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because it had nothing to do with Ryan’s fraud.”
“That isn’t your decision.”
Arthur nodded.
“You’re right.”
He opened an old filing cabinet.
The original dispute began in 1989.
Grant Blake’s father, William, claimed Emily’s grandfather had tricked him into signing away a large portion of Miller’s Ridge while William was facing bankruptcy.
Emily’s grandfather claimed it was a legitimate sale.
The court sided with the Calloways.
“But?” Emily asked.
Arthur looked uncomfortable.
“But one document was never introduced.”
“What document?”
“A side agreement.”
Arthur handed her a photocopy.
It promised the Blake family fifty percent of future mineral proceeds.
Emily stared.
“Why wasn’t this in the estate?”
“The original disappeared.”
“Convenient.”
Arthur accepted the accusation.
“Yes.”
“Did Grandma know?”
“She found out years later.”
“And?”
“She tried to settle privately with Grant.”
“Did he refuse?”
“No.”
Arthur looked at Emily.
“Someone stopped them.”
“Who?”
“I never knew.”
Ryan stood near the window.
“Madison told me the Calloways stole everything.”
Emily looked at him.
“And that made using me okay?”
“No.”
“Then stop explaining betrayal as context.”
Ryan nodded.
Fair.
Emily examined the agreement.
“If this is real, Madison’s family might actually have a claim.”
Arthur said, “A claim to mineral proceeds. Not ownership of your land.”
“Which means Madison is taking more than she’s owed.”
“Yes.”
Ryan said, “She believes the original agreement was broader.”
“Because?”
“She says she has another version.”
Emily looked at him.
“You’ve seen it?”
“No.”
“Yet you risked our marriage, our house, and my identity?”
Ryan’s face tightened.
“I made terrible choices.”
“You made profitable choices until they stopped being profitable.”
He had no answer.
That evening, Emily returned to the farmhouse.
The front door was open.
She froze.
Inside, drawers had been emptied.
Floorboards ripped up.
Someone had searched the winter room.
The metal box was gone.
Emily had moved the recorder.
But the old deeds and photographs were missing.
She called police.
Then Arthur.
Then she noticed one thing the intruder had left.
A white cloth lay in the center of the floor.
On it was a handwritten message:
May you like
THE RECORDING ISN’T THE EVIDENCE.
THE BABY IS.
