Loretta had read that provision several times after Abigail died.
But Pritchard repeatedly told her the estate's debts made it meaningless.
She'd believed him.
Now Elias studied the pages.
He pointed toward a paragraph.
"What's this?"
Loretta leaned closer.
It referred to the mining company supplying certain goods in exchange for meals provided to its workers.
Elias read carefully.
Then he frowned.
"Does this say the company can charge you for meals you've already served?"
Loretta shook her head.
"No."
He looked at her.
"Then why does Pritchard's statement treat the kitchen as owing those amounts?"
She stared.
For several seconds, she couldn't answer.
Then she whispered, "Because he said the account worked that way."
Elias looked toward the papers.
"Let's ask someone who isn't being paid by him."
They returned to Samuel Fitch.
The clerk examined the agreement and explained that the company might have valid claims under its actual supply arrangements, but it couldn't invent ownership rights or ignore the estate's continuing interests.
The property questions needed confirmation through the county records and the estate representative.
Samuel offered to send inquiries by telegraph where possible and prepare copies for the appropriate offices.
Loretta listened carefully.
For months, she'd felt as though Pritchard controlled every possible answer.
Now she was learning that other people could read the same documents and reach very different conclusions.
When they left the records office, Elias looked toward her.
"How do you feel?"
She considered the question.
"Angry."
He nodded.
"Good."
Loretta looked surprised.
He smiled faintly.
"Not because I want you fighting with everyone. Because you've been carrying blame for problems you didn't create."
She stared toward the street.
Then she whispered, "I've spent so long wondering what I was doing wrong."
Elias looked at her.
He wanted to say something comforting.
But he understood that a few kind words couldn't replace the money, time, and peace she'd lost.
So he simply walked beside her.
And Loretta found that his silence, when it wasn't used to dismiss her, could be a kind of comfort.
Pritchard arrived at the Copper Pot that evening with two company men.
He carried a written demand and claimed authority to remove the equipment the following morning.
Loretta was prepared.
The copy of her operating agreement lay on the counter beside the kitchen ledger.
Thomas, Daniel, and Walter Boone stood nearby.
Elias remained at the end of the table.
Pritchard looked around.
Then smiled thinly.
"Quite a gathering."
Loretta nodded.
"We wanted witnesses."