Chapter 18 - The Train
They escaped through the bank basement.
A freight train waited nearby.
They boarded before dawn.
Their destination was Fort Apache.
But Vane had anticipated their route.
Halfway through the journey, gunmen appeared along the tracks.
The train slowed.
Mercer looked outside.
"Ambush."
Elias grabbed the evidence.
"Where can we hide?"
The conductor pointed toward the cargo car.
They moved.
Gunfire cracked outside.
Nia remained calm.
"How many?"
"Too many," Elias said.
The train began moving again.
A gunman climbed aboard.
Elias knocked him down.
Another appeared.
Mercer intervened.
The struggle ended quickly.
They reached the rear car.
The tracks curved toward a bridge.
Vane's men had blocked the route.
The engineer braked.
The train stopped.
Elias looked at Nia.
"Can you ride?"
"Yes."
They jumped from the train.
Three horses waited near the river.
Mercer pointed.
"Those are ours."
They mounted.
As they rode away, Elias looked back.
The train remained behind them.
Smoke rose over the tracks.
But they had escaped.
For now.
That evening, they reached Fort Apache.
An elderly Apache scout named Tomas greeted Nia.
He recognized the photograph.
"Mateo."
Nia nodded.
"He told me to come here."
Tomas looked at Elias.
"Your father came here once."
"When?"
"Twenty-five years ago."
"What did he say?"
Tomas hesitated.
"He said if Nia ever came looking for the truth, I should tell her one thing."
Nia stepped closer.
"What?"
Tomas looked toward Elias.
"Your father didn't hide the evidence."
Elias frowned.
"Then where is it?"
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Tomas pointed toward the mountains.
"He hid the person who could prove it."
