"No."
"That letter is private."
"So is the truth."
Rourke's jaw tightened.
Caleb unfolded it.
"I can read it aloud."
Rourke looked at his men.
"Don't."
It was the first time Caleb had heard him say that word like a plea.
The women noticed too.
Sani smiled.
"Read it."
Caleb began.
The letter described the valley.
The underground water.
The traditional use of the land.
And a warning from Rourke's father that taking the valley would create a conflict that could last generations.
When Caleb finished, nobody spoke.
Rourke stared at the ground.
Then he laughed.
Quietly.
Bitterly.
"My father."
Caleb lowered the paper.
"What about him?"
"He was a coward."
Awan frowned.
Rourke continued.
"He had everything."
He pointed toward the valley.
"He could have taken this place."
"But he didn't."
"Because he was afraid of what people would say."
Rourke looked toward the mountains.
"I wasn't."
Caleb understood.
"You wanted to prove something."
Rourke's expression hardened.
"I wanted to finish what he couldn't."
"By destroying their water?"
"By owning the valley."
"Why?"
Rourke looked at him.
"Because water is power."
Caleb said nothing.
Rourke continued.
"Do you know what happens when a drought lasts long enough?"
He looked at the women.
"People sell."
He looked at the ranches beyond the ridge.
"They sell cattle."
Then toward the town.
"They sell land."
Then at the road.
"They sell themselves."
Rourke's voice became almost philosophical.
"Whoever controls the water controls who survives."
Caleb stared at him.
"And that's what you want."
"Yes."
"Why?"
Rourke answered without hesitation.
"Because I never want to be powerless again."
For the first time, Caleb saw the man behind the money.
A poor boy.
A frightened son.
A man who had decided that wealth would protect him from ever feeling weak.
And somewhere along the way, protection had become obsession.
Caleb looked at the valley.
"You already had enough."
Rourke laughed.
"Enough is a word poor men use to comfort themselves."
Sani answered:
"No."
She looked at him.
"Enough is a word wise men use to stay human."
Rourke turned away.
"Tomorrow morning, I will return."
Awan asked:
"For what?"
"The valley."
He mounted.
"And if you refuse?"
Rourke looked back.
"Then I stop asking."
He rode away.
The twenty-two women remained silent until the riders disappeared.
Then Mara spoke.
"What does he mean?"
Caleb looked toward the darkening sky.
"He means war."
Taza checked his rifle.
"Then we prepare."
Caleb nodded.
But inside, he knew something else.
Rourke wasn't going to attack the camp immediately.
He was too careful.
Too calculating.
He would attack something else first.
Something they needed.
Water.
Food.
Horses.
The road.
Or perhaps the evidence.
Caleb looked at the women.
"We need to get to Dry Creek before he does."
Awan nodded.
"Tomorrow?"
"No."
Caleb looked toward the stars.
"Tonight."
The women exchanged glances.
Then began preparing.
Twenty-two witnesses.
One cowboy.
One old chief.
And a valley that had suddenly become the most valuable piece of land in the territory.
They would leave before midnight.
But none of them knew that Rourke had already anticipated their move.
And waiting on the road to Dry Creek were six armed men.
Among them was Deputy Marshal Wade Crowley.
And this time, Crowley had been given permission to kill.
They left the valley at eleven minutes past midnight.
Caleb remembered the exact time because the moon had just disappeared behind the western ridge when the first horse moved.
There were twenty-two women.
Awan.
Taza.
Nokan.
Caleb.
And nine children who were being taken farther south for safety.
Nobody spoke loudly.
There was no reason to.
Everyone understood the danger.
The valley behind them looked peaceful.
The new well had been covered with a wooden frame.
A small lantern hung beside it.
The light moved in the wind.
Caleb looked back once.
Then turned forward.
He didn't know why.
Perhaps because he already felt that the place had become something more than a temporary stop.
Perhaps because he knew that once they returned, nothing would ever be the same.
They followed a narrow trail through the hills.
Caleb had chosen the route because it avoided the main road.
The trail passed through Black Rock Canyon.
A dangerous place.
Two steep walls.
A narrow floor.
No room for a large group to spread out.
Caleb hated it.
He stopped at the entrance.
Awan noticed.
"What?"
"Too quiet."
Taza looked around.
"It's always quiet."
"Not like this."
Nokan dismounted.
He crouched.
"Tracks."
Caleb joined him.
Fresh horse tracks.
Six horses.
Maybe more.
Caleb stood.
"Turn around."
Awan nodded.
Before anyone could move, a rifle cracked.
A horse screamed.
The bullet struck the ground.
Another shot followed.
Caleb shouted:
"DOWN!"
The canyon exploded with noise.
Women pulled children from saddles.
Men moved toward the rock walls.
Caleb dragged Mara behind a boulder.
"Stay here."
She grabbed his sleeve.
"What about Eli?"
"He stays with you."
Another shot.
Caleb looked upward.
Six men.
Maybe seven.
They had the high ground.
Rourke had planned this perfectly.
Caleb crawled toward Awan.
"We're trapped."
Awan nodded.
"How many?"
"Six."
Nokan pointed.
"Seven."
Caleb looked.
Another gunman appeared on the ridge.
"Great."
Taza fired.
One man ducked.
Caleb grabbed his shoulder.
"Don't waste ammunition."
"We need to fight."
"We need to get out."
"How?"
Caleb looked toward the canyon wall.
There was a narrow crack.
A dry wash.
Maybe thirty yards wide.
It led upward.
"That."
Taza frowned.
"Impossible."
"Maybe."
Caleb smiled.
"That's better than certain death."
They moved the women toward the wash.
A rifle cracked.
The bullet struck the rock beside Caleb's head.
He didn't flinch.
Mara pulled Eli close.
Caleb shouted:
"Move!"
One by one, the women climbed.
The children went first.
Then the older women.
Then everyone else.
Caleb stayed behind.
Awan noticed.
"You go."
"I'll follow."
Awan shook his head.
"No."
He handed Caleb his rifle.
"You lead."
Caleb took it.
Then heard something.
A horse.
From behind them.
He turned.
Three riders were entering the canyon.
The trap had a second side.
Crowley rode in front.
He raised his rifle.
"Mercer!"
Caleb stared.
Crowley smiled.
"Give me the papers."
Caleb didn't answer.
Crowley pointed toward Mara.
"Or I'll shoot the boy."
Mara froze.
Caleb felt something inside him become very still.
He had experienced fear.
He had experienced anger.
But this was different.
This was the moment when a man had to decide what kind of person he was.
He stepped into the open.
Crowley smiled.
"Good."
Caleb raised his hands.
"I have the papers."
"Throw them."
Caleb reached into his coat.
He pulled out a packet.
Crowley watched.
Caleb threw it.
The papers landed in the dirt.
Crowley dismounted.
He approached.
He bent down.
Picked them up.
Then smiled.
"Smart."
Caleb looked at him.
"They're copies."
Crowley's smile disappeared.
Caleb pulled another packet from inside his shirt.
"The originals are with the judge."
Crowley raised his rifle.
"You think that saves you?"
"No."
Caleb looked toward the canyon wall.
"It saves them."
He whistled.
Taza understood.
A rock came crashing down from above.
Crowley jumped back.
The other riders panicked.
Caleb ran.
He grabbed Mara's arm.
"Move!"
They climbed.
Rifle fire erupted behind them.
One bullet struck Caleb's shoulder.
He stumbled.
Mara grabbed him.
"You're hit."
"Later."
Blood spread across his shirt.
They reached the top of the wash.
The women were already moving toward the southern trail.
Caleb followed.
They rode until sunrise.
Nobody stopped.
Not even when Caleb's shoulder became soaked in blood.
Finally, they reached an abandoned trading post.
They dismounted.
Mara forced Caleb to sit.
"Let me see."
"It's fine."
"It is not fine."
She cut the shirt.
The bullet had grazed him.
A deep wound.
Painful.
But not fatal.
Mara cleaned it.
Caleb winced.
"You should have been a doctor."
She smiled.
"I prefer people who listen."
Caleb laughed.
Then became serious.
"Crowley knows."
"Knows what?"
"That the original survey isn't with us."
Mara looked at him.
"Where is it?"
Caleb smiled.
"With Samuel."
"At the courthouse?"
"No."
"Where?"
Caleb pointed toward the road.
"The judge took it."
Mara understood.
"Then we need to reach him."
Caleb nodded.
But before they could leave, a rider appeared.
Samuel.
He was exhausted.
His horse was nearly collapsing.
He dismounted.