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his career over such a minor matter? That’s what’s got me wondering about your accusation.”
    Matthew remembered what Worthy Brown had told him. “Caleb Barbour might risk everything to win this case if he felt that losing it could cost him your business. Farber’s claim isn’t frivolous, but Barbour convinced you it was. He gave you bad legal advice. That’s why he bribed Pike. He doesn’t want to look bad to you.”
    Gillette mulled over Matthew’s answer, and Matthew was certain he’d scored a point.
    “Would Mr. Farber be willing to settle his case?” Gillette asked.
    “He might. I would certainly advise him to do so if the sum you offered was sufficient.”
    “Then I’ll settle for the amount of your demand plus your attorney fees on the condition that Mr. Farber agrees to keep the settlement secret and you agree to let this bribery allegation die. Your accusations have tarnished my reputation as well as Caleb’s, and I want the matter buried.”
    Gillette’s offer was far more than Matthew had expected, but he did not show that he was surprised.
    “I’ll talk to my client,” Matthew said.
    GLEN FARBER WAS JUBILANT WHEN Matthew told him what his conference with Gillette had accomplished. Matthew was as elated as his client. The attorney fee would go far toward digging him out of the financial hole in which he found himself.
    With Farber in tow, Matthew followed Benjamin Gillette to the inn. When they were almost there, he noticed Worthy Brown tending Barbour’s horse and a mule he guessed was the servant’s mount. Matthew was tempted to send a signal of gratitude to Brown but wise enough to do nothing that would put the Negro at risk.
    Inside the private dining room, Benjamin Gillette told Justice Tyler that both parties wanted the matter of Farber v. Gillette settled. Matthew avoided looking at Caleb Barbour, who stood apart from the others, scowling angrily, his arms folded tightly across his chest.
    “Do you plan to pursue your accusations against Juror Pike and Mr. Barbour?” Tyler asked Matthew.
    “Mr. Farber and I see no reason to go any further with the matter now that the case is settled.”
    Matthew thought the judge looked relieved. The Oregon legal community was small and tight knit, and Matthew suspected that Tyler had not been looking forward to conducting an inquiry into the honesty of one of its members.
    “Very well, Mr. Penny. Will you prepare the papers?”
    “I’ll get on it as soon as I’m back in Portland.”
    Tyler stood. “I’ll tell the jury that the case has been settled. There’s no need for you gentlemen to accompany me.”
    “Thank you, Judge,” Gillette said. “I’m giving Miss Hill a ride back to Portland, and I know she’s eager to continue her journey.”
    WITH COURT ADJOURNED FOR THE DAY , Harry Chambers’s bar was packed. Glen Farber stood Matthew to drinks at the inn to celebrate their victory, and several others customers who had been thoroughly entertained by the afternoon’s proceedings also treated the jubilant attorney. By the time Farber left for home, Matthew was tipsy and it was too late for him to start for Portland.
    Matthew ordered dinner and settled in a corner of the barroom while Harry fetched his meal. His lack of sleep had caught up with him now that the adrenaline that had kept him going in court had worn off. He closed his eyes and rested his head on his arms, snapping to when Harry waddled over with a steaming bowl of stew.
    “This meal is on the house,” Harry said as he set the bowl on the table. “We were all rooting for Glen.” Harry laughed. “You sure showed up Barbour. It’s all anyone’s talked about since you backed down that coward.”
    “I did, didn’t I?” Matthew answered with a smile, which vanished as soon as Harry turned his back. Matthew had been elated after his rout of Caleb Barbour and the settlement he’d won for Glen Farber, but he suddenly remembered Clyde Lukens and the injustice the salesman