Rowena had made an appointment for them to see their lawyer in the city next week. At least then they might get some answers but it posed another problem. How was he going to explain a trip to Adelaide? He really didn’t want to go anyway. There was too much to do here.

He rubbed at his forehead. He’d thought Tom had reached the stage where he could be left in charge for a day but the way he was going at the moment, Dan wasn’t so sure. The farm had become too big for him to manage on his own. He needed Tom full-time now and if it wasn’t for Ted’s help with the sheep he wouldn’t have been able to branch out like he had. He just hoped it didn’t end up causing Ted any more grief.

Dan turned off the road and stopped in front of the closed gate of the Harvey place. Perhaps he shouldn’t have expanded. It had all made sense at the time and it was more cost effective. It would all be irrelevant anyway if it was no longer his.

He put his hand on the door, then stopped. The paddocks stretched out in front of him. What an idiot he was. He’d totally forgotten this land wasn’t all Wood Dell’s anyway. Originally he’d gone halves with Katherine, his ex-girlfriend, but Paula had used her own money to buy out Katherine’s share. Half of Harvey’s place was his but the other half was in Paula’s name. Dan pushed open the door and bounded up to the gate. He hoped that meant it couldn’t be included in any claim his cousin might make.

The knot across his shoulders no longer felt as tight and seeing the lawyer next week was looking much more positive.

* * *

Paula lurched the tray top to a shuddering halt at the side gate and sighed. She still hadn’t mastered smooth gear changes but that wasn’t the reason for the sudden dip in her mood.

In front of her, two other cars were parked by the fence. One was an immaculately kept old green EJ Holden belonging to Uncle Gerald. Uncle Gerald lived in town but arrived for a cuppa from time to time. It turned out he wasn’t actually Dan’s real uncle, but an old friend of the family who liked to keep up with what was happening on the farm. He was a nice old bloke and Paula didn’t mind making him a cup of tea. But beside his car was Rowena’s. Rowena rarely called in for chats. There was always a purpose for her visit.