Chapter 4: The Sheriff Makes His First Mistake
Arthur did not rush to the courthouse.
He knew that a frightened child could be telling the truth and still misunderstand parts of what had happened. He also knew that a powerful official could use the club's reputation to turn a legitimate concern into a public-relations disaster.
If Iron Hollow appeared at the courthouse in a large group, Sheriff Voss could claim that the bikers were threatening law enforcement.
That would give him an excuse to ignore Eli's claims.
Arthur had no intention of handing him that advantage.
Instead, he called a lawyer named Margaret Ellis.
Margaret had represented several small businesses in Red Creek and had earned a reputation for refusing to be intimidated. She was in her early forties, wore practical clothes, and had a habit of asking questions that made dishonest people uncomfortable.
Arthur explained the situation.
He did not exaggerate.
He did not speculate about the sheriff's motives.
He told her what Eli had said, described the documents, and asked her to help determine whether Daniel Carter was being lawfully detained.
Margaret listened carefully.
"Do you have the original documents?"
"I have the letter Eli brought with him. I haven't examined everything in his backpack."
"Don't alter anything. Keep the documents together, and don't send photographs of them to anyone you don't know."
Arthur glanced at Eli, who was eating a sandwich at the kitchen table.
"What about the boy?"
"Keep him somewhere safe. I'll meet you at the shop in thirty minutes."
Arthur ended the call.
Marcus approached.
"What did she say?"
"She's coming here."
"And after that?"
"We find out where Daniel is being held."
Marcus rubbed his jaw.
"I don't like this."
"Neither do I."
"The sheriff has been looking for a reason to shut us down for years. If we get involved, he'll use this against us."
Arthur nodded.
"That's possible."
Marcus looked surprised.
"You agree?"
"Of course I agree. This could put the club under pressure. It could cost us money, bring investigators to the shop, and make every mistake any member has ever made look relevant."
Arthur paused.
"But a child came here because he believes his father is being punished for telling the truth. If we send him away because helping him might be inconvenient, then we're not the people we claim to be."
Marcus looked at Eli.
The boy had finished eating but was still holding the sandwich wrapper in both hands.
Arthur continued.
"We will do this properly. We will not threaten anyone. We will not interfere with evidence. We will not take the law into our own hands."
He looked around the room.
"We'll make sure the truth gets heard."
Margaret arrived twenty-five minutes later.
She examined the letter and asked Eli several questions. She did not pressure him to answer quickly, and she made certain he understood that he was not in trouble.
After reviewing the information, she contacted the county courthouse.
Her first request was simple.
She asked whether Daniel Carter had been formally charged with a crime and where he was being held.
The clerk said she could not provide the information without authorization.
Margaret then contacted the sheriff's office directly.
A deputy told her that Daniel was being questioned in connection with an ongoing investigation.
"Has he been charged?" she asked.
The deputy said he would have to check.
"Is he free to leave?"
"I don't know."
"Has he been allowed to speak with an attorney?"
The deputy placed her on hold.
Several minutes passed.
Then the sheriff himself came on the line.
"Margaret. What a surprise."
"Good afternoon, Sheriff. I'm representing Daniel Carter's interests. I need to know whether he has been charged and whether he has access to legal counsel."
"Mr. Carter is being questioned in connection with a serious financial investigation."
"That doesn't answer my question."
Voss sighed.
"He has been detained while we review the evidence."
"Under what authority?"
"That's an internal matter."
"No, Sheriff. The legal basis for detaining a person is not an internal matter."
There was a pause.
Voss's voice became colder.
"I suggest you be careful about involving yourself in something you don't understand."
Margaret wrote the words down.
"Are you refusing to confirm whether Mr. Carter has been charged?"
"I'm telling you that the investigation is ongoing."
"Then I will request an immediate review of his detention."
The sheriff laughed.
"You can try."
Margaret ended the call.
Arthur looked at her.
"Well?"
"He is either refusing to answer basic questions or deliberately trying to avoid creating a clear record of what he's doing."
"Can you get Daniel released?"
"I can challenge the detention, but I need more information. And if the documents Eli brought are genuine, we may be dealing with something much larger than an ordinary arrest."
Arthur nodded.
"Then let's find the information."
Margaret looked at Eli.
"Your father was right to preserve those records. But from now on, you shouldn't have to carry this responsibility alone."
Eli looked down.
"Are you going to help him?"
"Yes," she said. "I'm going to do everything I legally can to make sure he gets a fair hearing."
The boy nodded slowly.
Then he asked a question that silenced the room.
"What if the sheriff doesn't care about the law?"
Margaret did not give him an easy answer.
"Then we make sure there are other people who can examine what he has done."
Arthur looked at the lawyer.
He knew she understood the seriousness of the situation.
The sheriff had made his first mistake by assuming that Daniel Carter could be frightened into silence.
His second mistake had been underestimating the child.
And his third was about to become the most expensive.
He had assumed that Arthur Kane would react like the man the town believed him to be.
He expected anger, threats, and a confrontation that could be used to justify further action against Iron Hollow.
Instead, Arthur was preparing to build a case.
That was something Sheriff Voss could not easily dismiss.
Chapter 5: The Hidden Room
Eli had one more piece of information.
He had not mentioned it earlier because he was afraid the sheriff might somehow discover it.
The letter from his father described a storage room beneath an abandoned repair shop on the eastern side of town.
Daniel had rented the small building for several months while repairing equipment for a local property owner. It had a narrow basement where he kept old tools, spare parts, and boxes of paperwork.
Eli remembered visiting the building with his father.
He also remembered Daniel saying that if anyone ever tried to take the records from their house, there was another copy hidden somewhere else.
The boy believed the copy was still in the basement.
Arthur called Margaret.
She advised him not to enter the property without permission, particularly because the location might become relevant to an investigation.
They contacted the building's owner, a retired carpenter named Walter Briggs, and explained that they needed to retrieve personal documents belonging to Daniel Carter.
Walter was reluctant at first.
He had heard rumors about the arrest and did not want to become involved in a dispute with the sheriff.
But when Margaret explained that they were asking to recover property with the owner's consent, he agreed to meet them.
The group traveled to the building in two vehicles.
Arthur drove Eli and Margaret.
Marcus followed in his pickup truck, while Luis remained at the garage in case anyone needed assistance.