Solomon believed he could obtain control through altered records and pressure.
When three mine workers discovered the issue, they threatened to inform Bell.
Samuel remembered the men.
Daniel Sutter.
Elias Rourke.
Benjamin Hale.
They were ordinary workers.
Not wealthy.
Not politically connected.
But they understood what was happening.
They'd seen extraction activity on land the company didn't lawfully control.
They knew the men in charge were hiding something.
And they wanted to report it.
Samuel's voice trembled when he described the day they died.
He hadn't been standing beside the diversion channel.
He didn't claim to have witnessed everything.
But he had seen the overseer receive urgent instructions before the operation began, and he'd later observed documents being removed from the office.
Nathaniel told him he'd seen the water released and heard the order that preceded it.
Samuel recorded that account at the time.
He also preserved a copy of a company memorandum directing work at the channel despite objections from the men below.
The memorandum alone didn't establish every element of intentional killing.
But combined with witness accounts and other records, it raised serious questions about whether the deaths had been knowingly caused or recklessly disregarded.
Samuel looked toward the window.
For several seconds, he was silent.
Then whispered, “They called it an accident before anybody had finished searching.”
Caleb lowered his head.
The old man continued.
“Nathaniel tried to report it.”
His eyes filled.
“And the next day, the bridge broke.”
Eleanor felt cold.
She looked toward Caleb.
His hand tightened around hers.
Samuel continued.
“Afterward, Solomon told people Nathaniel and his son had fled because they were guilty of interfering with the mine.”
Caleb stared.
The old man shook his head.
“I knew it was a lie.”
For several seconds, he struggled to breathe comfortably.
Ruth helped him rest.
When he was ready, he continued.
“I tried to find Nathaniel.”
Caleb leaned forward.
“What happened?”
Samuel closed his eyes.
“Somebody followed me.”
He took a breath.
“Then the warehouse burned.”
Eleanor stared.
Samuel looked toward Ruth.
“My daughter was a little girl. I wasn't going to let them take her too.”
He swallowed.
“So I left.”
Caleb nodded slowly.
Samuel continued.
“I changed my name. Moved from town to town. Worked wherever I could.”
He looked toward the notebook.
“But I kept the records.”
For several seconds, nobody spoke.