the way she spoke when she was on the county clock.
“I need to check the parcel index on the north forty,” I said. “I want to make sure the lien release from two years ago got recorded right.”
Rachel pulled open a long metal drawer that screeched on its rollers. “That release was recorded in August of twenty-two. Nothing new has been filed on your acreage since the culvert easement.”
She leaned closer over the oak counter, dropping her voice half a octave. “Unless you are asking about that certified query from the firm out of Des Moines that came through last Thursday.”
“What firm?” I asked.
“Vance and Associates,” Rachel said. She tapped her pencil against the ledger page twice. “They asked for a verified transcript of parental status records for your township. I told them county policy does not allow informal disclosures, but they had a file
