Bram laid the deed on the clinic table with the copied boundary facing up.
He had not brought a dramatic secret. The purchase was available at the public registry, stamped and entered with the other transfers, and the clerk who had helped him find it had charged the ordinary search fee. That made Eli want to turn the paper over, as if the useful truth must be on a hidden side.
“Rook bought it before the warning,” Bram said.
“How long before?”
Bram pointed to the recorded date. It preceded the public flood notice. The filing date was later than the agreement date, and he had copied both rather than choosing the one that made the purchase look most deliberate.
Kellan spread the local map beneath it. The table was too short for both sheets, so he weighted the curled edge with an empty cup. His finger followed the ridge above the projected flood line, then stopped at a narrow strip running downhill.
“That’s the equipment road.”
Eli leaned closer. He knew the main service entrance from the postponed inspection. This smaller approach came around the opposite side, joining the maintenance area above the water.
