Chapter 14
With Talbot disarmed and tied securely to a sturdy pine trunk using his own saddle reins, Eli and Clara continued their rapid climb up the final stretch of the high pass. The wind howled fiercely across the open ridge, but the morning sun had finally burned away the mist, revealing the sweeping expanse of the green valley below and the distant, glistening spire of the federal courthouse in the county seat just twenty miles south.
They reached the summit by noon, breathless and exhausted, the heavy iron lockbox resting securely in Eli’s arms. They didn't stop to rest; they headed straight down the southern slope toward the main wagon road where a passing freight stage was scheduled to pick up travelers heading toward Cheyenne.
As they reached the edge of the timberline near the road, the familiar sound of a galloping horse echoed behind them. Eli whirled around, raising his rifle, but lowered it instantly as a single rider broke through the cedar trees.
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