Then she answered quietly, “The discrepancy is real.”
Victor's smile disappeared.
“Leave the papers.”
She placed the ledger on his desk.
Then turned toward the door.
Before she reached it, he spoke again.
“And Evelyn?”
She stopped.
“Yes?”
“Your position here depends upon my goodwill.”
For a moment, she stared toward the wall.
Then nodded.
“I understand.”
She left.
Outside, Caleb was standing near the porch.
He'd been bringing a list of feed requirements to the study when he heard Victor's raised voice.
Evelyn nearly walked past him.
Then he spoke.
“Miss Hart.”
She stopped.
Her cheeks were wet.
She quickly turned her face away.
Caleb's expression tightened.
“Are you all right?”
She nodded.
“Yes.”
He didn't believe her.
But he didn't press.
Instead, he held out a folded sheet of paper.
“These are the actual feed deliveries for February. I thought you might need them.”
Evelyn stared.
For a moment, she couldn't speak.
Then she took the page.
The numbers were written carefully.
Date.
Quantity.
Supplier.
Driver's signature.
Everything needed to verify the disputed invoices.
She looked up.
“You kept these?”
Caleb nodded.
“I keep records of anything that enters the barn.”
Evelyn studied him.
Then asked, “Why?”
He gave a faint smile.
“Your father taught me.”
Her eyes filled again.
For several seconds, she held the sheet against her chest.
Then whispered, “Thank you.”
Caleb looked toward the study window.
Victor was visible inside.
He lowered his voice.
“Be careful what you leave on that desk.”
Evelyn frowned.
“What do you mean?”
For a moment, he hesitated.
Then answered.
“Make copies.”
Before she could ask another question, he returned to the barn.
Evelyn stood on the porch staring after him.
Something about his warning frightened her.
But it also awakened a suspicion she'd carried since her father's death.
Perhaps she hadn't been wrong to question the accounts.
Perhaps someone had wanted her to stop asking questions long before she understood why.
By March, Evelyn had begun keeping her own notebook.
It was small enough to fit inside the pocket sewn into her skirt, and she carried it whenever she worked.
She recorded discrepancies.
Missing invoices.
Unexplained adjustments.
And the names of people who might be able to confirm the figures.