Alden leaned closer to the screen, his glasses fogging in the damp air of the car.

“Twelve million is nearly double what the land is worth on the open market,” he whispered.

“Look at the closing date,” I said, pointing to the bold text near the signature line.

The closing was set for tomorrow at noon.

“The same deadline Graham just tried to force on you,” Alden observed.

“And look at this clause,” I said, scrolling down. “The buyer requires an immediate waiver of all pending zoning objections, to be filed with the county clerk by nine o’clock tomorrow morning.”

The public hearing for the re-zoning of Blackthorn Ridge was scheduled for Thursday.

If the waiver was signed tomorrow morning, the hearing would be canceled.

“They are trying to buy my silence before the public can weigh in,” I said.

“It’s not just Marisol,” Alden said, his eyes scanning the corporate names listed at the bottom of the page. “Look at the funding entity.”

Underneath Marisol Keene’s signature was the name of a secondary partner: Crestwood Horizon LLC.

“What is Crestwood Horizon?” I asked.