Chapter 4 - The Ledger Beneath the Floor
Eli Mercer survived the night.
Barely.
The bullet had passed through his shoulder, and Silas cleaned the wound while Cora held the lantern.
“What are you?” she asked afterward. “Hunter? Doctor? Soldier?”
“Hungry.”
“That wasn't one of the choices.”
Silas ignored her.
At dawn, Eli explained what he knew.
Thomas had worked briefly as a bookkeeper for Vale's freight operation before buying his ranch. Over the years, he discovered records showing bribery, stolen mining claims, illegal land transfers, and at least two suspicious deaths.
“He copied everything,” Eli said.
“Why?” Cora asked.
“Insurance.”
“Against Vale?”
“Against everybody.”
Silas leaned against the wall.
“Then why steal the original ledger?”
“Because Vale found out about the copies.”
Cora looked sick.
“My husband brought this danger to our home.”
Eli shook his head.
“He was trying to get you out.”
Silas asked about the numbers.
Eli knew only that Thomas used a simple measuring code.
Four boards.
Seven inches.
Twelve nails.
Silas examined the cabin.
The answer took nearly an hour.
Four floorboards from the stove, seven inches beneath the edge of the bed, he found a plank held by an unusual pattern of twelve nails.
He pried it loose.
Beneath it lay an oilskin package.
Inside was a thick leather ledger.
Cora stared.
Thomas had told her nothing.
Silas opened it.
Names filled the pages.
Payments.
Dates.
Land descriptions.
Beside several names appeared a small black cross.
Eli's face tightened.
“Dead men.”
Cora covered Hope's ears instinctively, though the baby could understand nothing.
Silas turned more pages.
Then stopped.
One name appeared repeatedly.
Sheriff Amos Bell.
Cora stared.
“The sheriff?”
“Apparently Vale owns more than saloons.”
Silas closed the book.
“We can't take this to Bell.”
“Then who?”
“Federal marshal in Helena.”
Eli shook his head.
“Vale controls the roads.”
“Not all of them.”
Silas knew another route.
An old trapping trail across the western ridge.
Dangerous in winter.
But possible.
Cora looked at him.
“You're taking us?”
Silas met her eyes.
“I said I wasn't leaving.”
Before noon, they prepared.
Eli could ride slowly.
Cora and Hope would use the sled until they found another horse.
Silas wrapped the ledger beneath his coat.
They left the shack.
Cora looked back once.
The miserable little cabin had nearly become her grave.
Instead, it had become the place where Hope entered the world.
“Ready?” Silas asked.
“No.”
“Good enough.”
They traveled.
Snow reached Silas's knees in places.
Hours passed.
Near sunset they reached a narrow canyon.
Silas suddenly stopped.
“What?” Cora asked.
He crouched.
Tracks.
Fresh.
Horses.
Five, perhaps six.
Silas looked toward the ridge.
“Vale's men.”
Eli swore.
“How close?”
“Close.”
They hurried.
Darkness arrived quickly.
Silas found a shallow cave hidden behind spruce branches.
They sheltered there without a fire.
Hope began crying.
Cora panicked.
“They'll hear her.”
Silas removed his coat and wrapped it around mother and child.
“Keep her warm.”
Voices appeared in the distance.
Men.
Lantern light moved through the trees.
Cora held Hope against her chest.
Silas crouched near the cave entrance with his rifle.
The riders came closer.
A voice called out.
“Whitfield!”
Cora froze.
Another man laughed.
“We know you're alive, Mrs. Whitfield!”
Silas's jaw tightened.
“Give us Vale's book and we'll let you keep the baby!”
Cora's eyes widened.
Silas turned toward her.
She whispered, “They're lying.”
“Yes.”
“How do you know?”
“Because men who intend kindness don't announce it from behind rifles.”
The riders approached.
One passed within twenty yards.
Hope stirred.
Cora held her breath.
The baby opened her mouth.
Silas looked back.
For one terrifying second, Hope seemed ready to cry.
Instead, she settled.
The horsemen continued past.
Silas waited another hour before moving.
Near midnight, they reached the western trail.
Eli suddenly slumped in his saddle.
His wound had reopened.
Silas caught him.
“We need shelter.”
“I know a place,” Eli whispered.
“Where?”
“Two miles.”
“What place?”
Eli looked toward the dark ridge.
“Thomas's ranch.”
Cora stared at him.
“My ranch is twenty miles east.”
Eli shook his head.
“No, ma'am.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Thomas bought another property six months ago.”
Cora felt as though the mountain shifted beneath her.
“My husband didn't own another ranch.”
Eli's expression said otherwise.
Silas looked at Cora.
Another secret.
Another lie.
May you like
And somewhere ahead waited a house her husband had never told her existed.
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