Hester could not return for it, but she knew the household bookkeeper, Mr. Phelps, made duplicate entries for tax accounts.
She also knew he kept the duplicates inside a trunk in a rented room above a cooper’s shop in the county town.
Sarah contacted the cooper through a church acquaintance.
The man confirmed that Phelps had rented the room for twelve years and rarely visited except near the end of each quarter.
Benjamin offered to seek the copies through a lawful request connected to the trust review.
Marian Cross agreed to examine the request because the trustees were already considering conflicting records.
She asked Phelps to bring the relevant ledgers to a meeting at the county courthouse.
Phelps arrived carrying two books and an expression of resentment.
“I have kept these accounts faithfully,” he announced.
Marian asked him to turn to the winter of Clara’s confinement.
The page showed a payment to Voss, followed by a notation that did not appear in the summary submitted to the trustees.
“Child received, name reserved pending instruction.”
Phelps tried to close the book.
“That entry concerns an old private matter.”
“The private matter is part of the current settlement,” Marian answered.
“And the court can preserve the book while its relevance is determined.”
Phelps looked toward the door as though expecting Voss to appear.
“If the family loses its property because of this, I shall be blamed.”
“You are not being asked to decide who inherits,” Marian said.
“You are being asked to explain what your records say.”
The statement seemed to unsettle him more than a threat.
He admitted that the summary submitted by Voss omitted the entry deliberately.
He did not know where Clara’s child was sent, only that the payment had been made from a restricted family account.
Marian arranged for a certified copy to be kept with the trustees and another copy sent to Benjamin.
When Caleb heard the news, he thought of how many people had known a piece of the truth while others suffered for lacking the whole.
The papers would not free him by themselves.
But they made it harder for Voss to erase Jonah with a smile and a sealed box.
Chapter Thirty: The Choice at the Crossing
A final encounter with Captain Pryce came at a rural crossing south of the Pennsylvania line.
Caleb, Amos, Ruth, Miriam, Ada, and Delia’s family traveled in two separate groups to avoid attracting attention.
