She said the refund was important, but the public acknowledgment mattered too.

For years, she had felt foolish for being afraid of a letter from the association.

Now she understood that the letters had been designed to make people afraid.

I told her she had done nothing shameful by protecting her home.

She shook my hand and asked whether the Mustang was still running.

I said it was.

She smiled and told me to drive it while I still could.

Chapter 46: The Day Daniel Testified

Daniel testified in a proceeding connected to the historical vehicle investigation after receiving advice from his attorney.

His testimony was not broadcast, and I did not attend.

He later described the experience to Rebecca and me during a quiet dinner at her house.

He said the hardest part was not answering questions about Victor.

It was admitting how much he had hidden from the people who loved him.

He had to explain why he left Pennsylvania without telling his sister where he was going.

He had to describe the threats he remembered without exaggerating them.

He had to admit that some details had faded after more than two decades.

The attorneys asked him about dates, locations, and documents.

When he did not remember something, he said so.

He refused to guess even when a guess might have made his story sound stronger.

Rebecca told him she was proud of that.

Daniel said he had spent years believing that telling the truth required having a perfect memory.

He had finally learned that honesty sometimes meant admitting uncertainty.

I asked whether he had seen Victor during the proceeding.

Daniel said he had.

Victor looked older and less certain than the man Daniel remembered from the restoration shop.

The sight did not erase Daniel’s fear immediately.

But he had been able to answer questions without leaving the room.

That was something he once believed impossible.

Later that evening, Daniel walked with me to the garage.

He asked whether I ever thought about selling the Mustang and leaving the entire history behind.

I said the thought had crossed my mind during the worst weeks.

Then I told him why I had not done it.

The car belonged to my father before it became evidence in anyone else’s dispute.

It also belonged to the years when I learned to solve problems with my hands.

I would not let Victor or Karen decide what those memories meant.