The board's first decision arrived in a letter.
The estate would pay back my deductions, reimburse the clinic visits, and provide a copy of my employment contract. Peter was placed on leave while an outside accountant reviewed the repair invoices and medical account. The greenhouse heating would be inspected every month for the rest of the year.
The letter did not offer me my job back.
I read it at Tessa's kitchen table.
"They paid you," she said.
"They promised to."
"That's a start."
"It's not everything."
"What is everything?"
I folded the letter. "I don't know."
The next week, I found work at a small garden center outside Bellweather. The owner, Mae Waller, offered me a part-time job and a heated back room for storing my tools. The pay was lower than the estate's, but the term
