Clara stepped closer. When? They'll be here before dawn. Ethan's expression hardened. What does Briggs want with me dead?
Daniel looked at Clara. He doesn't. That answer changed the room. Clara's face tightened. What does that mean?
Daniel pulled a folded paper from inside his coat. I work nights at the telegraph office. Briggs sent this message yesterday. He handed it to Ethan. Ethan opened it.
The message was short. Property owner unlikely to sign. Female leverage arrives Thursday. Apply pressure. Hold her if necessary.
Ethan read it twice. Then slowly looked at Clara. Her face had gone white. Daniel continued. Briggs never sent you here because he thought Ethan needed help.
Clara said nothing. He sent you because he knew. Ethan's eyes sharpened. Knew what? Daniel looked from one to the other.
That you two were in love once. Silence filled the kitchen. Clara tightened her grip on the revolver. Daniel stepped closer. There's more.
He pulled out another wire. This one carried the railroad company seal. Ethan read the first line. His blood turned cold. The southern pasture was not merely part of the proposed rail route.
A mineral survey had found a massive silver deposit beneath the valley. Briggs had known for months. The land he wanted for almost nothing could make a man rich beyond imagination. Clara read the paper over Ethan's shoulder. So this was never about the railroad.
No, Ethan said. It was about what's under the ground. A sound came from outside. Not one horse. Many.
Daniel's face drained. They're early. Ethan blew out the lamp. Darkness swallowed the kitchen. Clara moved beside him.
Outside, riders spread across the field. Eight shadows. Maybe more. Then a voice carried through the night. Ethan Cole.
Not Briggs. A stranger. You have 1 minute to send the woman outside. Ethan raised his rifle. Clara touched his arm.
He looked at her. In the darkness, her face was calm. Too calm. No, he whispered. She leaned closer.
They want me because they think you'll trade the land for me. You're not going out there. I know. Clara. She held his gaze.
But now we know what they're afraid of. What? She lifted the railroad wire. The truth. A shot shattered the front window.
Glass sprayed across the floor. Daniel dropped behind the table. Ethan pulled Clara down beside him. Another bullet struck the wall. Then another.