Billionaire Buys a Failing Farm in Secret, Then the Farmer’s Daughter Refuses His Only Offer
Chapter 6
The accident report listed Claire Vale’s death as a single-car collision.
No witnesses.
Wet road.
Mechanical failure.
Case closed.
But Adrian wasn’t satisfied.
He hired an independent investigator.
Within a week, they found inconsistencies.
The vehicle had no mechanical defects.
The road wasn’t unusually slippery.
And the accident scene had been moved before police documented it.
Emily read the report.
“Someone changed the scene.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“To make it look accidental.”
Henry sat silently.
Adrian looked at him.
“You knew.”
“I suspected.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
Henry’s eyes filled with tears.
“Because I was afraid.”
Adrian nodded.
He couldn’t blame him.
Not completely.
Fear had controlled the Carter family for years.
Then they found something unexpected.
A witness.
An old gas station attendant named Walter Briggs remembered seeing Claire’s car that night.
“She wasn’t alone,” he said.
Emily leaned forward.
“Who was with her?”
“I couldn’t see the face.”
“Car?”
“Black sedan.”
“Plate?”
Walter shook his head.
“But I remember the driver.”
“Who?”
Walter looked at Adrian.
“Martin Hale.”
Silence.
Adrian stood.
“Are you sure?”
“I knew him.”
“Why didn’t you tell the police?”
Walter looked away.
“They told me to forget what I saw.”
“Who?”
“The sheriff.”
Thomas Hale.
Martin’s brother.
Adrian clenched his fists.
Now they had enough to reopen the case.
But before they could, Martin made his next move.
A court notice arrived.
Martin was suing Carter Valley Farm for illegal water use.
Emily stared.
“They’re accusing us?”
“Yes.”
Adrian read the filing.
The complaint claimed the Carter family had stolen water from Martin’s property for twenty years.
It was absurd.
But Martin had expensive lawyers.
And a corrupt county office.
The judge scheduled an emergency hearing.
Emily looked at Adrian.
“What do we do?”
“Win.”
“We could lose the farm.”
“I know.”
“And the legal fees?”
“I’ll cover them.”
She shook her head.
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because I won’t owe you.”
Adrian smiled.
“You really don’t like owing people.”
“No.”
He looked at her.
“Then don’t.”
“What?”
“Consider it family.”
That stopped her.
“You barely knew me a month ago.”
“I’ve known your family my entire life.”
She looked away.
“That’s different.”
“Maybe.”
They prepared for court.
Emily testified.
Henry testified.
Walter testified.
The independent investigator presented evidence.
Then Martin’s lawyer produced old documents.
The room went silent.
The documents appeared to show that Claire had transferred her water rights to a holding company before her death.
Emily stared.
“That signature is fake.”
The judge looked serious.
“Do you have proof?”
Emily looked at Adrian.
He nodded.
“Not yet.”
Martin smiled.
Then Adrian’s attorney stood.
“We do.”
He placed a sealed envelope on the desk.
Inside were the original water records recovered from a bank archive.
The transfer document was dated three days after Claire’s death.
It had been backdated.
The signature was forged.
The room erupted.
Martin’s lawyer protested.
The judge ordered an immediate investigation.
Martin’s face turned pale.
But then Adrian noticed something.
One page was missing.
The page containing the name of the person who had authorized the original transfer.
Without it, the chain of fraud couldn’t be fully established.
The judge gave them forty-eight hours.
Adrian leaned toward Emily.
“We need that page.”
“Where?”
He looked at Henry.
“Maybe your father kept it.”
Emily frowned.
“My grandfather died twenty years ago.”
“Then we search his records.”
They returned to the farm.
And in an old wooden desk, behind a false panel, they found a letter.
The missing page was inside.
But there was also another note.
From Claire.
And one sentence stopped Adrian’s heart.
Martin did not act alone.
