The journey back to Willow Creek that evening was quiet. Evelyn kept her father's letter tucked safely inside her blouse, while the leather-bound book rested in a locked wooden case beneath the wagon seat. Caleb had arranged for trustworthy helpers to accompany them, and they traveled slowly over the uneven road as the final light disappeared behind the mountains.
Halfway home, Evelyn noticed that Caleb had barely spoken.
“Are you frightened?” she asked.
He glanced toward her. “Of Harrow?”
“Of what happens next.”
Caleb looked toward the darkening valley. “I'm frightened he'll try to hurt you through the things you love. He's had years to make people believe the ranch belongs to him, and men like Victor don't surrender power because someone finds a piece of paper.”
Evelyn studied his rugged profile. The scar across his jaw caught the last pale light, and his hands remained steady on the wagon's reins despite the worry in his voice. She had begun to recognize the difference between Caleb's silence when he was peaceful and his silence when something troubled him deeply.
“Then we'll be careful,” she said.
He nodded.
“And Caleb?”
“Yes?”
“You don't have to protect me by keeping secrets.”
His expression tightened.
Evelyn continued gently. “My father trusted me with his accounts when I was a girl. He trusted me to understand a hard truth. I need you to trust me that way too.”
Caleb looked at her for a long moment before turning back toward the road. “You're right,” he said quietly. “And I'm sorry.”
She rested her hand against his forearm. He covered it briefly with his own, and they continued home beneath a sky filling with stars.
The next morning, Whitcomb sent a telegram to a legal acquaintance in Laramie requesting assistance locating Samuel Pike. He also submitted requests for certified copies of the mortgage, the supposed foreclosure papers, and the instruments by which Victor Harrow claimed ownership. Evelyn began preparing a complete accounting of every discrepancy she had found, using separate columns for original entries, later alterations, and documents requiring verification.
Caleb helped by identifying the ranch hands who had worked for Henry during his final years. Some were dead, some had moved away, and several still depended upon Victor for employment. Evelyn understood why those men might hesitate to speak, but she refused to confuse their fear with dishonesty.
Five days later, a reply arrived from Laramie.
Samuel Pike was alive.