But remembering the wrong name on the marriage papers and the promises they had made, Tyler dropped his hold on her waist. "That was a mistake. I'm sorry." He turned and started walking back toward town.
Evie stayed where she was. He could ride off into the darned sunset and kiss his horse for all she cared. She wasn't following him. He knew where to find her when he missed her.
* * *
The following Saturday, Tyler watched as Hale came headed for the cafe as he always did at noon. As long as he was hanging around town, he might as well put himself to good use. His gut feeling was that the sooner they found out about Evie's parents, the better off they all would be. He wasn't certain where the relationship between the thieves and Evie's abductors and her unknown past might be, but he had a suspicion a few clues were locked away in the lawyer's office.
Nodding at Ben lingering in the shadows, Tyler strolled down the alley behind the office building. He had examined the territory earlier. The office had a back entrance. And that entrance led to interior stairs. He didn't have to use the outside ones where all could see.
He was inside Hale's office within minutes. The man didn't believe in locked doors. Admittedly, few buildings around here even had locks, but the secrets held in this office should have required a minimum of caution. Hale either had nothing to hide or he had hidden it well.
Tyler started with the huge oak filing cabinet. Most of the files inside were coated with dust and yellowed with age. Cryptic notes made it impossible to determine the file's contents without examining them. Tyler cursed and looked for some pattern. There didn't seem to be any that he could discern. Old wills for one family were intermixed with mortgage deeds for another. Scribbled notations fell out of files without any clue as to whom they applied. Hale didn't need a key to open his secrets; he needed an interpreter.
Giving up in disgust on that source, Tyler turned to the mahogany desk. He'd seen one like it over in Georgia during the war. That one had been over a hundred years old and shipped from England. Chances were good that this one had come across the Sabine with some Hale ancestor with respect for his past.
Tyler found the secret drawer that all these old desks had, but there was nothing in it but fifty-year-old dust, some old coins, and a ledger with meaningless entries from years ago. He could almost swear that Jonathan Hale didn't know the drawer was there. It probably hadn't been opened since his father died.
Evie's lawyer might be honest, but he was a nitwit.
Scowling, Tyler scanned the papers littering the top of the desk. There were a few legal briefs, some deeds in the making, an assortment of ancient books, and the usual tools of the trade. He didn't want to disturb anything that might be noticed, but curiosity had him lifting the large blotter in the desk's center. He could remember his father shoving papers he referred to often under there.
A thin file lay beneath the heavy blotting pad. Holding his breath, Tyler eased it out, attempting to leave the rest of the desk contents undisturbed.
The first paper inside was a yellowing copy of the last will and testament of one Cyrus Howell. Not taking the time to read it yet, Tyler flipped to the next document. A trust agreement entered into by Elizabeth Howell Harding. Tyler glanced over it swiftly, finding the name Evangeline Peyton Howell almost immediately. He wanted to grab the file and run, but Hale was certain to miss it.
The last document in the file was the will of Randall Harding. Tyler frowned. Hale's filing system left a lot to be desired. Maybe Evie had the right idea. Daniel could clean this place up with one hand behind his back. Unfortunately, those stairs outside presented a certain obstacle to a man with only one good leg.
A sharp whistle from the porch below caused another curse. With regret, Tyler shoved the file back where he found it, checked to make certain he hadn't left anything out of place, then slipped to the door. He heard footsteps coming up the back stairs.
Tyler cast a quick look around. There was no place to hide. His gaze fell on a door down the hall. It had no transom or window, so he suspected