Inside was a leather pouch.

She removed it carefully.

Cole noticed that her hands were shaking.

She opened the pouch.

A faded photograph fell into her palm.

It showed a man standing beside a wagon.

Thomas.

Cole recognized him from descriptions.

"Your husband?"

"Yes."

She handed Cole another object.

A folded document.

"Read it."

Cole opened it.

It was a land transfer agreement.

But something was wrong.

The signatures were inconsistent.

The dates didn't make sense.

Cole looked up.

"Forgery."

Eliza nodded.

"Thomas discovered dozens of them."

She explained everything.

Across Colorado, poor settlers had been losing their farms.

They were told that their land titles were invalid.

Some had supposedly signed agreements they had never seen.

Others had supposedly sold property for debts they didn't owe.

The same names appeared repeatedly in the paperwork.

One name appeared more than any other.

Graham Voss.

Cole knew that name.

Everyone did.

Voss owned warehouses, cattle interests, mining claims, freight companies, and large sections of valuable land.

He was wealthy enough to influence judges, politicians, sheriffs, and businessmen.

"He stole farms," Eliza whispered.

"Thomas found the evidence."

"What happened to him?"

Eliza looked toward the fire.

"I don't know."

Cole stared at her.

"You think Voss killed him?"

"I think Thomas knew too much."

"And the documents?"

"Thomas gave them to me before he disappeared."

"Why?"

"Because he believed I was the only person he could trust."

Cole folded the papers.

"Does Voss know you have them?"

Eliza looked at him.

"That's why those men are here."

Cole's expression hardened.

"You should have told me."

"I didn't want you involved."

"You already involved me."

"I know."

Cole looked around the cabin.

The tiny room.

The rough walls.

The small corner where Eliza had begun preparing a place for her baby.

"You can't stay here alone."

"I know."

He looked at her.

"So do I."

Eliza frowned.

"What does that mean?"

"It means you're not alone anymore."

The words hung between them.

Eliza looked away.

For years, she had believed depending on someone meant surrendering control.

But Cole wasn't trying to take control.

He didn't tell her what to do.

He didn't demand gratitude.

He simply stood beside her.

The next morning, Cole rode to the nearest settlement and spoke to a man he trusted.

A sheriff named Samuel Hart.

Cole didn't tell him everything.

Not yet.

He only asked questions.

By sunset, he returned with troubling news.

Graham Voss had been asking about Eliza Morgan.

More importantly, Voss had recently hired several armed men.

Cole returned to the cabin after dark.

Eliza was sitting beside the fire.

"You were right," he said.

She looked up.

"About what?"

"They're coming."

Eliza placed one hand over her stomach.

"When?"

Cole looked toward the door.

"Soon."

Outside, the wind began to rise.

Neither of them slept much that night.

The storm arrived three days later.

Snow fell so heavily that the mountains disappeared behind a white curtain.

Cole wanted Eliza to leave the cabin.

She refused.

"This is my home."

"They'll find us."

"They already know where I am."

"Then we leave before they arrive."

Eliza shook her head.

"And go where?"

Cole had no answer.

She continued.

"Running is how I ended up here."

Cole looked at her.

"You think staying means you're brave?"

"No."

"What does it mean?"

"It means I'm tired of running."

Cole understood.

He began preparing the cabin.

He reinforced the doors.

He moved supplies inside.

He checked his rifle twice.

Eliza watched him.

"You expect a fight."

"I expect trouble."

"There's a difference?"

"Sometimes."

That evening, they sat beside the fire.

For a while, neither spoke.

Then Eliza said, "Why do you help me?"

Cole stared into the flames.

"Because someone should."

"That's not an answer."

He sighed.

"My brother died."

Eliza waited.

Cole rarely spoke about Samuel.

But that night, something changed.

"He was younger than me. He believed everyone was good until proven otherwise."

Cole smiled sadly.

"He trusted people too easily."

"What happened?"

"A cattle accident."

Eliza lowered her eyes.

"I'm sorry."

"I spent years believing that if I'd been there sooner, I could have saved him."

"Could you?"