Carter pulled up to Nowhere’s town hall just before eight o’clock. The case was scheduled for eight thirty in the morning and was the judge’s first of the day. There were a few people wandering around outside of town hall, and a woman juggling a stack of ledgers opened the door for them. Carter led the way through a narrow hallway into a large room.

It reminded Dorothy of church, because there were many benches set up all facing the front of the room. There was a place for the judge to sit, and a few desks next to it looking out at the rest of the room. In between those areas were two desks. Carter set the papers he’d brought with him down at one of the desks, and Dorothy did the same. Mr. Parrish began to pace around the desk.

“Don’t worry, Mr. Parrish. I’m sure the judge will be fair today. He has to be.” Dorothy tried to assure the nervous man. Carter shook his head at her.

“Maybe you’d be more comfortable in the hallway.” Carter stared at Mr. Parrish, and the older man nodded and went back into the hallway. Carter turned his gaze back to Dorothy.

“I never say things like that to a client. I don’t have any control over the judge, and I can’t predict the future.” Dorothy had never heard Carter sound so angry with her. She looked at the floor, then squared her shoulders and looked him right in the eyes.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Reeves. I won’t make the same mistake again.”

Carter nodded dismissively, but Dorothy detected a small expression of approval. She only had a few more hours as his employee, and she was as determined as ever not to let her feelings for him interfere with her work.

A large older man with a bushy beard and booming voice walked in. Two younger men who looked closer in age to Carter accompanied him. The big man introduced himself as Mr. Billings, the opposing attorney. Mr. Drake’s relative was with them. He looked like he was having a hard time standing upright, so one of Mr. Billings’s assistants helped him to a seat in the gallery.

Soon, a small man wearing glasses and a long black robe entered the hall. He took the judge’s seat and banged a gavel on his table, which was higher than everyone else’s.

“I am the Honorable Justice Harold Evans, and I will preside over today’s dispute.” He had a soft voice, and Dorothy strained to hear him. It was hard to imagine him voicing an opinion on anything. She had no doubt that if Cletus were elected town judge, he’d rule over a much more colorful—and decisive—courtroom.

Dorothy crossed and uncrossed her legs below the desk as Justice Evans reviewed the papers Carter and Mr. Billings placed before him.

“You may proceed.” The judge nodded, and Carter stood up and took his place at the front of the room. Dorothy looked away, focusing on the judge.

“Your Honor, my client, Robert Parrish, is the rightful heir and owner of the Drake land in Nowhere. The boundaries are clearly designated on the map I’ve provided. We will show today— beyond a shadow of a doubt— that the late Mr. John Drake did in fact have a son, Robert Parrish, and that Mr. Parrish should inherit the land as the closest blood relative of the deceased.”

Carter sat back down at the desk and Mr. Billings began his opening statement.

“I will prove here today, in this court of law, that the plaintiff, Robert Parrish, is a liar! His claim to the land in question is no more than yours or mine.” Although Dorothy hadn’t been to any courtrooms before, it sounded like Mr. Billings was simply raising his voice, and not saying much of anything.

After the opening arguments, Justice Evans asked to see the logbooks over the period of years surrounding Robert’s birth. Carter turned to Dorothy, and she felt her face flush. She knew by heart which book contained those dates, and retrieved it quickly. She walked to the front of the room and handed it to the judge.

Carter tore his eyes away from Dorothy and focused on the papers in front of him. He had to put his personal feelings aside, at least for a few more hours. Carter wiped sweat from his brow with a handkerchief and waited for Judge Evans to say something. But the man simply continued to read through the logbooks.

Dorothy could tell that both Carter and Mr. Parrish were getting nervous. She flashed Mr. Parrish her brightest and biggest smile, hoping to set him at ease.

Finally, the judge spoke. “Very well, Mr. Reeves. You may proceed.”

“Thank you, Your Honor. As you have seen in the Exhibit, Mr. Drake kept records of his meetings with Mr. Parrish’s mother, Miss Louise Parrish. They show that Miss Parrish brought her young son with her—and that Mr. Drake acknowledged that he was the father of the child.”

“Your Honor, Mr. Reeves is spouting off nonsense that can’t be confirmed.”

“It seems to me I’ve got a book that confirms what Mr. Reeves is saying, Mr. Billings. Do you have any exhibits to introduce?”

Mr. Billings’s face turned purple and he balled his hands into fists. “Not at this time.”

“This seems like a straightforward case to me. Robert Parrish is John Drake’s son. By county law, that land is rightfully his. I don’t need to hear any further arguments on the matter.” The judge tapped his gavel on his desk and exited the room. Dorothy could hardly believe it.

“I’m so happy for you!” Dorothy exclaimed to Mr. Parrish, who was still seated in the audience wearing a shocked expression.

“Thank you, Miss Sanders. And thank you, Mr. Reeves. Thank you both for believing in me and fighting for me. I won’t forget it.”

“Only doing my civic duty.” Carter shook Mr. Parrish’s hand. On the other side of the courtroom, Mr. Billings and his assistants were shouting at one another. “Maybe we should get out of here.”

They stepped outside into the dry heat of the late morning.

“I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done for me. I think I’ll set off now and start unpacking my things. If you ever need anything, you let me know.” Robert could not contain his huge grin. Dorothy wished him the best of luck and shook his hand formally. Carter did the same.

When it was just the two of them standing outside the town hall, Dorothy had no idea what to say. She knew she’d never see Carter again, and that got her feeling all mixed up inside.

Carter had no idea how to say goodbye to the pure, kind, and honest woman in front of him. He was still hurt by her refusal, but he also understood where she was coming from. He had seen the way she and her family acted around each other. They may have been a little—or a lot—odd, but they truly loved one another.

He decided to be as direct as possible. “Do you have a way home?”

Dorothy thought for a bit. She had hoped he’d give her one final ride in the wagon. “I could walk home.”

“All right, then. Thank you for your hard work, Miss Sanders.”

Carter gave her a brief, firm handshake and walked over to where his horses were hitched to a post. Dorothy’s eyes filled with tears. She blinked them back and set out on the long walk home to the Sanders residence.

As Carter pulled away from the town center, he watched as Dorothy slowly picked her way through the street. He wished more than anything that she could be sitting in the wagon with him.