The riders stopped near the hidden entrance. Cole could hear men talking outside, trying to determine where the tunnel led. One voice said they should search every passage. Another ordered the others to find the documents before they could escape. Cole held his rifle tightly.
Tomas whispered that the chamber had another exit, but it had not been opened in many years. They searched the stone walls. Ara discovered a small carving shaped like the same symbol on the medallion. Beneath it was a narrow stone opening. Cole pressed against it.
Nothing happened. Then Saurin noticed a small circular space in the wall. The medallion fit inside. Cole turned it. A hidden mechanism moved beneath the stone.
A section of the wall slowly opened. Cold air rushed through the passage. The group moved quickly. They entered the narrow tunnel just as the men outside began forcing their way into the chamber. Cole was the last to leave.
Before following the others, he looked back at the boxes of records. He realized that taking everything would slow them down. Instead, he took the most important documents and placed them inside his coat. The group hurried through the hidden passage. After several minutes, they reached another opening high above a rocky valley.
Cole looked down. The riders were still searching the first entrance below. They had not discovered the second exit. Tomas explained that this route had been used by his ancestors when they needed to protect important people and records. Cole finally understood why the place was called the hidden shelter.
It was not simply a hiding place. It had been built to protect the truth. The group rested briefly. Tomas opened the document they had recovered. It contained the names of several settlers who had signed the original agreement.
It also included a detailed description of the land boundaries and a warning that the agreement must never be destroyed. At the bottom was the signature of Cole's father. Cole stared at it. His father had not merely known about the agreement. He had protected it.
Another page revealed something even more surprising. Cole's father had written that several powerful men had discovered the location years earlier and had tried to force him to reveal where the original records were stored. He had refused. That explained why his father had always been secretive. He had been afraid that anyone close to him could be threatened.
Cole suddenly felt the weight of everything his father had hidden. Tomas placed a hand on his shoulder. He told Cole that his father had kept the promise made to their families. Now it was Cole's turn. But before Cole could respond, Saurin noticed movement below.
The armed men had reached the valley. They were searching the rocks. The group needed to move again. They followed the mountain trail until they reached an abandoned ranch several miles away. There, Cole found an old wagon.