The younger woman nodded.
"Thank you."
They sat beside a wooden desk covered with folders.
The attorney began explaining the estate.
The farmhouse.
The land.
The ponds.
The remaining equipment.
And the outstanding obligations that would need to be addressed.
The woman listened carefully.
She had expected debts.
Her father had spent years repairing drainage systems and paying for water testing.
But the actual records were more complicated than she imagined.
Some obligations were ordinary operating expenses.
Others concerned work on the pond embankments.
There were invoices for aeration equipment, monitoring systems, water testing, and repairs to an underground water distribution line.
The daughter frowned.
"He was still spending money on the ponds?"
The attorney nodded.
"Yes."
"How much?"
The older woman turned a page.
The amount shocked her.
Over several years, her father had invested tens of thousands of dollars in the restoration.
Not all at once.
He'd saved.
Performed repair work for neighboring farms.
Sold unused equipment.
And applied nearly every available surplus dollar toward the water-management project.
The daughter stared.
"Why didn't he tell me?"
The attorney's expression softened.
"He knew you were worried about him."
The younger woman looked down.
"I offered to help."
"I know."
"He always sent the money back."
The attorney nodded.
"He was proud."
The daughter laughed bitterly.
"That doesn't even begin to describe it."
The older woman smiled sadly.
Then she placed another folder on the desk.
"There's something unusual."
The daughter looked up.
"What?"
"Your father established a restricted account for the pond restoration."
The younger woman frowned.
"Restricted?"
"Money set aside for specified expenses under an agreement with the hatchery and a local agricultural services trustee."
The daughter stared.
"For fish?"
The attorney nodded.
"Among other things."
The young woman's confusion deepened.
"But the ponds are empty."
"They were when the account was established."
The attorney opened the folder.
It contained an agreement dated nearly two years earlier.
The father had committed funds toward a phased restocking program.
The plan required independent confirmation that the water conditions met specified thresholds before fish could be delivered.
If those conditions weren't met, the agreement allowed postponement or other arrangements described in the contract.
The daughter stared.
She had no idea the agreement existed.
Her father had been preparing for fish even while telling everyone the ponds were still being repaired.
She looked toward the attorney.
"Did he think they'd recover?"
The older woman nodded.
"He was very hopeful."
The daughter looked down.
Then asked quietly, "Did he know he was dying?"
The attorney hesitated.
"His health was declining. But the original agreement was made well before his final illness."
The daughter swallowed.
The older woman continued.
"He later arranged for the estate to receive his instructions if the final conditions were met."