Carolyn came to the cabin the following afternoon with the earlier drafts of our easement. Since the recorded deed listed me as the surviving owner, she said we could prepare a new easement for me to sign. The land trust’s board would still have to review it, but the appraisal and much of the other work had already been completed.
“Four weeks, if everything goes smoothly,” she said.
Dale’s thirty-day deadline was intended to frighten me; it had no authority behind it. Still, I wanted to protect the land before he found another way to pressure me. Carolyn and I worked through the remaining steps at the same table where he had placed his quitclaim deed.
Two days later, a deputy arrived carrying court papers. Dale had filed a lawsuit claiming Luke had promised to return the inherited forty acres to the Tolliver family. His attorney had also recorded a notice of the dispute against the property.
I called Carolyn. She explained that the board could not proceed with the easement while ownership was being challenged in court. I understood why, but the delay gave Dale time he hadn’t previously had.
That evening, I read through his lawsuit. Attached was a photocopy of a handwritten letter, supposedly signed by Luke in September. It promised the forty acres to Arlene and Dale “when the time is right.”
