“Leave.”
Nora stepped beside her.
“You heard her.”
Vale's expression hardened.
Then he withdrew papers.
“The sale to Mercer has been challenged.”
Caleb's stomach tightened.
“By who?”
“Me.”
“You sold it.”
“Under duress.”
Eliza laughed.
Vale's eyes flashed.
“I was experiencing financial pressure.”
“You stole livestock.”
“Prove it.”
“We can.”
His smile returned.
“Can you?”
Caleb stepped down from the porch.
“What are those?”
“Petition to void your deed.”
“On what grounds?”
“Improper consideration. Fraud by bank officers. Mental incapacity during transfer.”
Eliza stared.
“You're claiming insanity?”
“Temporary distress.”
Caleb almost admired the audacity.
Almost.
Vale continued.
“If my transfer is void, title returns to me.”
“And the cooperative?”
Vale smiled.
“Invalid.”
Nora whispered, “Of course.”
“All of it?”
“Yes.”
Eliza's eyes hardened.
“Then what exactly were we?”
Vale looked at her.
“Employees.”
Claire's face changed.
Nora swore.
Caleb felt something dangerous rise in him.
Eliza's hand touched his arm.
He looked down.
She shook her head once.
Not yet.
Vale noticed.
His gaze shifted between them.
“Interesting.”
Caleb took one step forward.
“You have thirty seconds to leave.”
Vale's two companions adjusted their coats.
Caleb saw gun belts.
So did Eliza.
Vale smiled.
“You cannot threaten the legal owner.”
“I can remove trespassers.”
“Caleb.”
Eliza's voice.
He stopped.
Vale folded the papers.
“A hearing is scheduled in five days.”
He mounted.
Before leaving, he looked at Eliza.
“I hope you've enjoyed playing farmer.”
Eliza stared back.
“I hope you've enjoyed spending stolen money.”
Vale rode away.
The next morning, they traveled to Red Hollow.
Judge Henry Larkin agreed to review competing claims.
Bank president Cole looked terrified.
That pleased Caleb.
The problem was evidence.
Vale claimed he had sold under financial duress and had never transferred the women's contributions into ownership.
Caleb's deed remained valid on paper, but if Vale proved the bank knew the title was disputed and facilitated an improper transfer, the court could potentially unwind it.
Eliza's contract remained weaker.
Unless they could prove Vale treated it as ownership elsewhere.
Then Claire remembered something.
“The insurance.”
Everyone turned.
“What insurance?” Caleb asked.
“The barn fire.”
Nora frowned.
“That was before you came.”
Claire nodded.
“A small fire near the north stall.”
Eliza went still.
“The policy.”
Caleb looked between them.
“What?”
Eliza stood.
“When Silas insured the property, he listed beneficiaries.”
“Who?”
“All of us.”
The insurance office was in Helena.
Three days away in winter.
Too far.
Then Nora said, “Thomas Greene's brother works there.”
Caleb looked at her.
“How convenient is your friendship with Thomas?”
Nora turned red.
“Not relevant.”
Eliza smiled despite the crisis.
“It might be extremely relevant.”
Thomas sent a telegram.
The response arrived one day before the hearing.
A certified copy of the insurance application followed by courier.
There it was.
Silas Vale's signature.
Ownership interest declared:
Silas Vale, 25%.
Eliza Hart, 25%.
Nora Bell, 25%.
Claire Avery, 25%.
No future managing partner.
No household husband.
No Caleb.
The truth became clear.
Vale had altered the cooperative agreement later.
He had used the women's ownership when applying for insurance and bank financing.
Then erased it when selling.
The hearing filled the courthouse.
Black coats.
Wet boots.
Whispers.
Vale sat beside an attorney from Helena.
Caleb sat with Eliza, Nora, and Claire.
Judge Larkin reviewed the papers.
The bank clerk testified.
Cole testified.
Poorly.
Vale's attorney argued that the women's contributions constituted wages exchanged for future opportunity, not ownership.
Then Eliza testified.
She was magnificent.
Caleb had never wanted her more.
She explained every deposit.
Every loan.
Every sale.
Every false entry.
Vale's attorney attempted to interrupt.
She corrected him twice.
The judge corrected him the third time.
Then the insurance document appeared.
Vale's face changed.
His attorney requested a recess.
Denied.
The application was entered.
Judge Larkin read the percentages aloud.
Silence.
Vale stood.
“That application was preliminary.”
Eliza looked at him.
“Under oath?”
“It was not—”
The judge interrupted.
“You signed a declaration that the listed ownership interests were accurate.”
Vale sat.
Then Caleb testified.
The attorney asked whether he had developed a romantic relationship with Eliza.
“Yes.”
Eliza looked at him.
The attorney smiled.
“So your financial interests are intertwined.”
“No.”
“Mr. Mercer, you sleep under the same roof.”
“Yes.”
“You expect this court to believe—”
Caleb leaned forward.
“I expect this court to understand that Miss Hart's body has nothing to do with the acreage description.”
A few people laughed.
The judge did not stop them immediately.
The attorney reddened.
“Are you benefiting from this arrangement?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“I eat better.”
More laughter.
Eliza covered her mouth.
Caleb continued seriously.
“I also work the land. Miss Hart keeps the accounts. Miss Bell runs dairy. Miss Avery works and teaches. None of us owns another.”
The attorney frowned.
“But the original contract contemplated intimate relations.”
“A later altered contract did.”
Caleb looked at Vale.
“And if Vale wrote that the moon belonged to him, I assume the court would still ask for proof.”
Judge Larkin hid a smile.
The decision came two days later.
Vale's petition was denied.
More importantly, the court recognized the insurance declaration, original investment records, and bank capitalization statements as evidence that Eliza, Nora, and Claire possessed equitable ownership interests.
Caleb's deed was not voided.
It was reformed.
The property would be divided equally.
Twenty-five percent Caleb.
Twenty-five percent Eliza.
Twenty-five percent Nora.
Twenty-five percent Claire.
Caleb stared at the judgment.
Exactly the percentages Vale had once promised.
But without him.
Without a designated husband.
Without bed clauses.
Without hidden control.
Eliza looked at Caleb.
“You're disappointed.”
“No.”
“You paid for all of it.”
“I paid Vale.”
“Yes.”
“He stole from you too.”
Caleb folded the judgment.
“I came here wanting land.”
He looked toward the courthouse steps.
“I got land.”
Eliza smiled.
“One quarter.”