Dutch realized it had been too many days since he’d last seen Ab at the mine. They’d been working together on some things since Archie had met his demise. Dutch had sent Ab on an errand, and he’d yet to return. He’d have to send a telegraph to Durango if he didn’t hear from him soon. His boss in New York was waiting, and Pete didn’t like waiting.

Dutch rode up the mountain hoping that Ab would be at the office waiting. He really didn’t want to have to hunt him down. Hunting never turned out well, but there were too many moving parts to this thing and they were too important to let someone that was incompetent ruin it. Ab hadn’t seemed incompetent though. He’d been Dutch’s go-between with the Condon Brothers. Pistol Pete had sent him to Creede to retrieve the Dobbs sisters and thought that while he was there he could solidify their business dealings.

Dutch had made really great progress, but then Archie had died, and he’d had to start all over. He was sort of relieved at the time though. He’d gone to Arthur and had him send word back to New York that there’d been a change in leadership. Pete had responded that he should abandon his first objective and focus on the second.

Dutch enjoyed his time in the morning riding from town up to the shack they called an office for the Bonanza Claim Mine. It was a rocky and rough ride, but it allowed him to think more clearly with his heart already subtly racing. All he’d been able to think about was his journey since he’d arrived in Creede though. He was running through all his memories trying to see if he could spot the girl from the scuffle the night before somewhere, anywhere in the background.

He remembered being very happy to receive word from Pete and know he could leave the girls to their lives. They’d already lost so much, their father and their home. He may not have been excited to marry Nessa, but he did care about her. Her father had wanted them together. Thought that Dutch would be strong enough to protect her, even from herself. Her father had been very worried about that. Dutch had never understood it.

“She was different then.”

Dutch nearly tumbled from his seat atop his horse as the old man popped back into view, walking up the side of the mountain right beside him.

“Do you have to do that? Can’t you warn me or something?”

Holden was chuckling, but he nodded. “That’s all I really come for…to warn you.”

“But you just said something about Nessa.”

“Ya. And? Can’t a man ask after his daughter?” He paused and looked up to the top of the mountain, staring. He stared so long that Dutch started to look for whatever was so interesting.

“Yeah, but…”

Holden cut him off. “None of this matters. I was assigned to you.” He trailed off into a grumble that Dutch could only understand pieces of, “Wife got to… my girls… no sense… Idiot,” before he finished what he’d started telling him. “Anyway… I’m not here about or for them, though I’d appreciate you lookin’ out for them, even if you’re not going to be marrying Ness.”

Dutch wasn’t sure what to say as the old man stared through him. He’d never said he wasn’t going to marry Nessa. He’d promised Holden he would before he died.

“Yeah, I know you did, kid, but the truth is that was for me. Not you and certainly not her. You both have different paths.” He shook his head. “Now, could you shut up for a second? I’ve got somethin’ I’ve got to tell ya.”

Dutch wasn’t sure he was completely following. Holden informing him that he wouldn’t be marrying Nessa had just flipped his world. He’d been promising to marry her for years now. Hadn’t really thought about anyone else to fill that role until… As soon as Holden thought it, the girl from the night before pushed to the forefront of his mind, which then started to wander back to trying to figure out who she was and why he’d not seen her before.

“Boy! Are you even listenin’ to me!”

Dutch shook himself and his head. “No. I’m sorry, I wasn’t but I am now. You said you were here to warn me?”

Holden nodded. “Yes, boy. Later this morning, you’ll hear an odd noise. When that happens, you need to get as many people away from the mine shaft as possible.”

Dutch thought about his words for a moment. “Wouldn’t it be better if I just sent everyone home before I hear the noise?”

Holden shook his head. “No. They’re watching. No one can know.” He paused and did the staring thing again. “About this or about me. Understand?”

Dutch had so much he wanted to say, so many questions he wanted to ask, but before he had a chance to respond, Holden had vanished once again, leaving Dutch on his own with his intrusive thoughts.

Nessa loved working at the bank. Beth had become one of her dear friends, and Byron was very sweet. The best boss a girl could ask for. He was flexible with their hours, and he had even hired security. She settled into her spot behind the iron-barred window and fished her story out of her bag. They weren’t very busy on some days, so she’d found she had plenty of time to read. It was nice, though she ended up spending far too much having Toria order them for her from New York.

Things had gotten worse in Creede lately. To everyone’s surprise, Archie running things had actually kept away some of the more nefarious folks. A lot about his business dealings had been uncovered, but there were so many drifters and other new men in town, it was hard to keep track of who should be there and who shouldn’t. People were nervous. They rarely went out after dark anymore, the women especially.

They’d all not been very surprised when it had come out that Archie had been buying and selling females for use in various brothels. He had deals with several henchmen and owners. The goons would grab the girls and turn them over to the owners for a fee, Archie ending up on the winning side of all of those transactions.

He’d had legitimate business dealings though too. Nessa had more knowledge of those since she’d been helping Beth and Byron sort through all the information for the town lawyer, Bernard Newell. The mining operations as well as the Golden Nugget were on that list. They’d shuttered the Nugget, and last Nessa had heard, Celeste had taken in the girls that had wanted to try to have different life. She’d been helping them discover their skills and find work. There had been a few that had gotten on the train and headed to Durango though.

She’d gotten to know a few of the girls. She liked Celeste and had been over a few times to help out. Some of their stories weren’t that different from hers and Kara’s, the stand out being that they’d had some money when their father had died. If he hadn’t shown Kara that hiding place, she wasn’t sure where either of them would be right now. If they’d stayed in New York, who knew what Pete would have done with them, but they wouldn’t have had the money to get on the train West. They’d have been completely at his mercy.

“Excuse me.”

Nessa’s train of thought was interrupted by a soft voice at her window. A young girl with light brown hair and dark eyes was looking at her through the bars. She wasn’t familiar, so Nessa sat up a bit straighter. “Yes, I’m sorry. How can I help you?”

“I’d like to open an account.”

Nessa smiled. “But of course. I’ll just need a bit of information.”

The girl nodded. Nessa tried to place her. She had a trustworthy face. One that could blend into a crowd and yet was pretty and got prettier the longer you looked at her. She got out her ledger and started to fill in the necessary information. “Name?”

“Rachel Denton.”

Nessa knew she’d never heard of Rachel Denton before, but the name did nag at something in the back of her head.

“Do you reside in Creede?”

The girl shook her head. “Not really. We’re more between Creede and Topaz. Is that a problem?”

Nessa looked up. The girl’s eyes were wide. She looked terrified. Like a critter that knew it was about to become a meal. Nessa shook her head. “Not at all, dear. Mr. Cromwell just likes to be able to know where to find folks should the need arise.”

Rachel nodded and seemed to relax as they went through the rest of the questions. She gave Nessa a small sum to start the account. “I’ll be having more soon. I’ve found a position with Doctor JT.”

This was news to Nessa. News often ignited the former-debutante gossip in her. Her chest got warm, and she started to squirm in her seat. “I didn’t realize he was looking for help.”

Rachel smiled. She really looked innocent and young. “He wasn’t really. He’s been caring for my father. Checking in on us and whatnot, like neighbors and doctors do. He saw that I have some medical aptitude, and when he suddenly found himself in need of help more often than Hannah can come to Creede, he asked me if I was willing. It’s very exciting!”

“But I thought Nora was working with him at the clinic.”

Rachel shrugged. “Nora is wonderful, and the children are so fun. She does work with him, but I think it’s becoming too much. The children are more demanding, and she’s been tired.”

Nessa stared at the girl, listening to every word. She had a feeling Nora’s experience wrangling young ones was about to get deeper. “How old are you, Rachel?”

The girl brightened. “I just turned twenty two days ago.”

Nessa smiled. “Happy Birthday.” She was older than she’d thought. Nessa couldn’t help but see a little of herself in the girl. She realized that maybe it wasn’t youth she was seeing in her, but lack of life experience. “Have we met before?”

Rachel shook her head. “I don’t think so. I’ve been home a lot, and we haven’t lived here long.”

“You should come to the house on the hill for dinner. I’d love to have you meet my sister. We’re always looking for new friends.”

Rachel’s smile widened. “Now that Pa is back working, it would be lovely to make some friends.”

“It’s settled then. How about tomorrow you come around for supper?”

Rachel nodded.

“We’re the big white house on the hill just as you leave Creede headed into Bachelor. You can see it from the main cart path.”

Rachel nodded. “Thank you…” She trailed off while looking at Nessa expectantly.

“Oh! I’m terribly sorry.” She stuck her hand through the iron bars. “Nessa Dobbs. It’s great to meet you, Rachel.”

“Likewise.” The girl took her hand and shook it softly before dropping it, turning, and leaving the bank. Nessa couldn’t help but hope that she’d done the right thing. She had barely asked the poor girl much about herself. Hopefully she wasn’t tied to any of the drifters in town. She had mentioned her father but nothing about her mother. She sighed and picked up her story. Either way, they’d find out tomorrow at supper.

Dutch arrived at the shack and exhaled in relief as Ab came stumbling out. “Where have you been?” he asked as he swung himself off his horse.

“Things are getting complicated.” Ab looked around, checking out the miners, making sure no one was too close. He leaned forward. “We’ll have to talk about it later.”

Dutch nodded. Some things were best left until the opportune moment. Holden’s words rang in his ear. “They’re watching.”

“Let’s make our rounds, then?”

Ab didn’t look like himself. He was jumpy, and his eyes were darting back and forth. It was making Dutch uneasy. He nodded, and the two of them set off out of the shack and up the hill to the entrance of the mine.

Holden’s words never far from Dutch’s thoughts as they neared the mine, he made a split-second decision. He found the foreman at the entrance, told him to gather all his men and get them back to their homes or other pursuits for the day. Ab was so preoccupied that he didn’t even balk at giving more than half the staff the day off. Dutch shook his head as he watched Ab looking for things that didn’t seem to be there.

They sat and watched as the miners filed out of the mouth in the hillside. Dutch was surprised by just how many of them there were and how the foreman stayed until he’d counted each and every one of them. He waved farewell and marched after his men down the hill. The moment they were out of earshot, Dutch stood. “What happened? Where have you been?”

Ab’s eyes finally found some focus. They narrowed in on Dutch. “Things didn’t go as planned in Durango.” He shook his head. “Archie gettin’ run over was something most folks, including me, wanted, but now that he’s not here the chaos he was controlling has unraveled.”

Dutch had noticed. The whole town had. He nodded.

“I’d been sent to Durango for a meet. Simple. But this wasn’t. It didn’t happen as planned. The Condon Bros. aren’t stepping back, and we’ve not been able to make any headway at getting them to back off.”

Dutch knew it was important to keep those fellows in Durango. The men that Ab worked for, the ones that he’d come to Creede to secure a relationship with for Pistol Pete, they were mean and they had goals. The Condon Brothers couldn’t be allowed to interfere. “So we send a message. One that isn’t easily forgotten.”

Ab stood and started to pace. He shook his head a lot, making Dutch’s own head spin with the confusion of it. “We’ve tried.” He looked Dutch square in the face. The man was haunted. Dutch had seen it before. His cheeks were hollowing out, and the whites of his eyes were starting to gray. Something had happened on that trip.

Dutch went to Ab and grabbed him by both his arms. “What happened in Durango?” Ab’s eyes got wide, and he started to open his mouth. Dutch eagerly waited for the man to tell him what horror he’d experienced that had caused him to be so sunken, but he never heard the words because next thing he knew his ears were ringing and he was flying through the air. He was thrown back against a tree, the wind crushed from his lungs. He gasped for breath as another blast went off, this one closer and more powerful. Three dark shadows came from behind a tall formation of rocks. Dutch could just see them out of the corner of his eyes as shock began to register, but he hadn’t caught his breath and the world faded out.