The Iron Horseman (11 page)

Once
her feet were secured solidly on the ground, she took a small step backward.

Levi
cleared his throat. There were pressing matters that needed his attention. He
would deal with his growing attraction toward Miss Walker soon enough.

“James,”
Levi called out to the conductor as he ran toward a groaning man, “what
happened here?” Levi asked, fearing escalation between the railroad and the
natives. He threw his hands through his hair and briefly closed his eyes to the
all too vivid memories of battle.

The
conductor shrugged, his arm bleeding through a tear in his shirt sleeve. “It
looks like we hit a barricade. You there,” James called to one of the seemingly
uninjured crewmen, “take this man over to that tree. We’ll need to collect all
of the wounded together.” He turned to Levi as he started toward the engine.
“I’m heading up to the front. I don’t know what we hit, but Buck should be able
to tell us what happened and there’s bound to be more injuries up there.”

James
was as close to a medic as they had on board. Those who’d suffered injuries
would be better in his hands than any other here.

Levi
looked down to where a man leaned against an uprooted railroad tie, a bone
protruding grotesquely from his leg. Suddenly, the magnitude of what had just
happened hit him and he dropped his hands to his knees, gasping for air.

The
distant noise of cannon fire echoed in Levi’s ears, penetrating that moment
where memories collide with reality. It was out of place, but Levi ducked out
of instinct. He shook his hung head, desperately trying to rid his mind of the
painful battle where he’d lost so many good men.

“Mr.
Redbourne?” Someone called to him from a distant place.

The
rhythmic thumping of Levi’s heart blocked out all other sound. His breathing increased
and he began to pant heavily as he watched in his mind’s eye as soldiers under
his command fell one by one to the earth, soot-stained and weary. Dead.

“Mr.
Redbourne?” The voice grew louder.

He
clenched his fists, willing the vivid recollections of his past to vanish.

It’s
not real.

As
his sight regained focus, a woman’s dark brown eyes snared his, drawing him
back to the present. Her lips repeating his name over and over.

Snap
out of it, Redbourne.

Levi
held Cadence’s searching eyes, his vision clear. She was scared. He grabbed her
shoulders. “Are you all right?” he asked urgently.

She
took a deep breath. “No. Are you?”

“Why
don’t you go sit down over ther—” he glanced around, realizing that there was
nowhere for her to go that would remove her from the devastation that
surrounded them. Mounds of rubble and debris, splintered off from the train,
extended across the tracks and down both sides with shocking devastation. The
first few cars appeared to have taken the brunt of the damage. One of the supply
coaches, the livery car, and the caboose were still coupled together and sat
only at a slight angle off the tracks.

Through
the haze, he could see horses, cows, and sheep littering the countryside, running
amuck in the background. It had been wise for someone to let the animals out to
prevent further damage. It looked as if the remainder of the train might tip
over at any minute.

“I
don’t want to sit, Mr. Redbourne,” she said. “I can help. Let me.”

Levi
nodded. “Go find James. He headed up to the locomotive to check on Buck, the
engineer.”

Cadence
ran straightway toward the head of the train.

Levi’s
stomach turned at the acrid stench of burned flesh. Smoke burned his nostrils
and stung his eyes. He wiped the back of his hand across his face to clear the
haze-induced tears. Bodies lay prostrate amidst the ruin of supplies that had
been scattered from the lead cars. Battered and bloody, those men who were able
carried the others to the shade of the cluster of trees where James worked to
bandage the vast amount of injuries caused by the wreck.

A
deep, agonizing moan caught Levi’s attention and he rushed to the side of a man
whose hand extended into the air, reaching out for something. Someone. He took
the man’s hand in his and knelt down beside him.

“Mr.
Redbourne?” It was the kid who’d been talking to Cadence in the dining car. “Am
I going to die?”

Levi
ignored the bleeding gash at the side of the young man’s head and the heavy
soot streaked across his face and clothes, and bit back his fear for the boy’s
sake.

“Not
if James has anything to say about it,” he said in a voice he hoped portrayed a
level of reassurance. “What’s your name, kid?”

He
didn’t respond.

Levi
closed his eyes briefly and opened them again, relieved when the youngster
swallowed and squeezed his hand, however weakly.

“Barrow,
sir,” he choked out gruffly. “My name is Barrow.”

“Well,
Barrow, how did you come to be on this adventure with the railroad?” Levi had
to keep him talking.

“My
family…,” he swallowed again, “needed the extra mon…” his speech slowed and
Levi’s stomach knotted as the boy’s eyelids drifted shut.

“Barrow,”
Levi shook the kid lightly on his shoulders and his eyes twitched as if trying
to open them.

“Tell
them…,” he licked his lips. The kid tried to sit up, straining against his own
skin.

Levi
looked up. His eyes locked on Cadence who had joined James in the shade with
the other patients. “Water?” he called out to anyone who would listen. “Does
anyone have water?” He looked back down at Barrow.

“Tell
them,” he grunted as he collapsed back against the dirt, “where…to send my
pay.”

Levi
could feel the boy’s strength draining from his near lifeless form.

“Hang
on, kid. You can tell them yourself.” He couldn’t stop the single tear that
escaped his tired eyes and trailed down the side of his face. He felt
helpless—something he’d only felt a few times before, mostly during the war—and
he didn’t like it one bit.

Barrow
needed something to drink. Levi looked around again. Everyone was busy
attending to others. It was up to him. He hadn’t wanted to move the kid, but
there was no other choice. He wished, not for the first time, that he’d paid
more attention when his brother, Rafe, had gone on about medical treatments,
trying to educate his family about medicine and the discoveries he’d learned in
med school.

Levi
stood up.

“Don’t
go,” Barrow said with strained breath.

Levi
reached down and pulled the youth into his arms. He needed to get him to the
shade, to where James attended the others. When he looked to the small cluster
of trees, Cadence was no longer standing there. He scanned the disheveled yard
and with each step, his worry grew.

Steam
blew a storm of smoke from the engine chimney. Levi’s breathing sped up as it
became more labored. He tripped over a large wooden plank protruding from the
ground, but was able to keep himself upright with his substantial load. He
stepped more quickly, working to avoid the massive amounts of debris that
cluttered the ground in front of them.

“Where
is Cadence?” he asked with desperation as he reached the tree and laid Barrow
gently on the ground in the tall grasses growing there.

“She
went to retrieve some water from one of the barrels in the tender car,” James
nodded to an upturned car that had all but splintered apart and Levi wondered
if the barrel would still be intact.

“How
many have we lost?” Levi asked.

The
conductor pushed his spectacles up higher on his nose, stopping only long
enough to give him an update. “I’m not sure. I’ve only made it this far down
the cars. Most of the men I’ve encountered are bruised and battered. But Buck
is hurt real bad. He’s burned pretty seriously on his face, arms, and back. His
leg looks mangled. I doubt he’ll ever walk again. I’m headed back that way
now.” He held up a piece of material that Levi recognized as curtains from the
dining car.

“Where
is he?” Levi asked, his heart hurting for the man he called friend.

The
conductor nodded his head toward the east side of the tracks and turned to go.

“James,
stop. I’ll bring him to you. You’re needed here.” Levi motioned to the kid.

“Mr.
Redbourne,” James’s voice was quiet. His face twitched slightly as if his thick
mustache had tickled his nose. “I’ll join you.”

“But…”
Levi looked down at the short conductor who’d been working tirelessly to patch
up those who’d been hurt in the wreck. James shook his head and looked at the
ground.

It
took a moment, but understanding suddenly worked its way through Levi’s mind.
His gaze darted to the spot where he’d laid the kid. The color had drained from
his face, now ashen against the dried streaks of dark red blood.

James
stood and reached a hand up to Levi’s shoulder. “He’s gone, my friend,” he said
with a pat before turning to go find Buck, his limp highly noticeable. “Oh, and
Levi,” he added, turning back toward him, “the lad makes four so far.” James
tsked, then hurried off toward the hissing steam engine as fast as his injured
leg would allow.

Levi’s
stomach clenched as if he’d just been kicked in the gut. He glanced over at the
other man lying next to Barrow and realized he too was dead. Images of dead
soldiers, both friend and foe, flashed through his head. He needed to sit down.
Whoever was responsible for this…

He
didn’t want to think about that right now.

Levi
spotted Cadence nearby speaking with the man who’d broken his leg. Levi
recognized him as one of the other passengers on the car—a possible Pinkerton.
He squinted his eyes against the brightness of the rising sun. The man handed
Cadence a leather tube that resembled a carrying case for maps, which she
promptly strung over her head and across one shoulder.

She
did know the man. But why lie about it? Curious.

Moments
later, she disappeared behind the tender car and reemerged holding a wooden
bucket tightly against her bosom he guessed was full of water. The engine
rattled back and forth, then started to violently shake, steam hissing from the
chimney. Cadence’s current path cut directly in front of the upturned engine
that Levi feared might blow at any moment.

“Run!”
he screamed as he bolted forward toward her.

She
can’t hear me!

Giant
puffs of smoke erupted in a cloud above the engine.

“Cadie,
get down!” Levi yelled again, running as fast as he could. He threw himself on
top of her, shoving her to the ground. He covered her head, and his, with his
arms as best he could.

BOOM!

Waves
of heat rushed above him, caressing his back with its scorching warmth. Just as
Levi lifted his head, flames shot wildly from the engine and a shower of coal
and small chunks of wood fell to the ground. It appeared that everyone else had
been clear of the explosion.

“Mr.
Redbourne,” Cadence said quietly from beneath him.

He
looked down at her.

“I…I
can’t breathe.” Her face was flushed a light red.

Levi
pushed himself off the ground and into a standing position. “I beg your pardon,
ma’am,” he said, extending his hand to her.

Her
bosom heaved with the much needed air. She clapped her hand against his,
allowing him to pull her from the ground.

“Well,”
she cleared her throat and dusted off her dress, “I’m afraid we’ll have to go
collect some more water.” She lifted the now empty bucket from the ground,
scanning the area as if searching for something else. Without missing a beat,
she discreetly picked up the tube he must have knocked off of her when they
fell and she headed back toward the tender car.

“Nothing
to worry about. Our locomotive just blew up. All in a day’s work,” Levi
muttered under his breath as she retreated.

“Is
everybody all right over here?” James hobbled to his side.

“Nothing
more to add to your load today, James.”

Cadence
returned in just a few moments and handed the full bucket to the newly
appointed medic.

“Thank
you, Miss Walker.” James nodded as he took the bucket from her. “Mr.
Redbourne.”

Levi
spotted a small group of half a dozen horses running just on the other side of the
tracks along the rail line and he whistled when the familiar gray came into
view. “Come on, boy,” he called for his horse. When Apollo saw him, he neighed
and pranced before changing direction toward them, leaving the others behind.
Levi scrubbed at his muzzle. “You all right, boy?”

Apollo
lifted his head and nickered as if telling him everything that had gone wrong
with the day.

“There
are still three men unaccounted for,” James reported as he turned back toward
the suffering engineer.

Levi
lifted his brows as he ran his hands across Apollo’s flanks and neck. “I’ll
take a look around,” he said, leading Apollo away from the conductor and
groaning engineer.

Together,
he and Cadence made their way back toward the sleeping car. She’d thought she
might be able to gather some of her things and he’d agreed to help. He didn’t
miss the way that she kept touching the tube slung across her back, as if
reassuring herself it was still there and he briefly wondered at the contents
of the long, slender cylinder.

“Are
those the three?” Cadence stopped, leaning up against Levi and pointing to
three men walking in a line toward them, guns raised. They pulled two horses
along behind them.

Levi’s
hand shot to his hip, but he’d taken off his holster when he’d tried to get comfortable
last night, attempting to sleep in the hallway.

Damn
.

“Well,
if it isn’t Mr. Redbourne, the Iron Horseman himself, I presume,” one of the
armed men taunted.

“Am
I supposed to know you?” Levi asked, one eyebrow raised—his voice a low
threatening tone. The nickname for him had caught on a little too well. He took
a step in front of Cadence.

“Naw,
I suppose not. But I’m very interested in getting to know the perty little lady
yer protectin’ there, Redbourne.”

Levi
pushed Cadence farther behind him. “What are you boys looking for?”

“Well,
you see,” the man in the middle turned and spat into the dirt, “word has it
that there is something mighty valuable in your cargo.”

Levi
didn’t recall having seen any of these men on board.

“What
kind of valuables are you looking for? You realize this is a supply run? There
are just grains and wares back there, I’m afraid.” Levi jutted his chin toward
the damaged cargo hold. But he had dealt with too many ruffians to believe they
would go to all this trouble for something that simple.

“We
come looking for something that traitor, Abraham Lincoln himself, had
commissioned for the railroad.”

Levi
flexed his jaw.

Traitor?
How could anyone say that
? This man was the obvious traitor to the newly combined
union.

“And,
why would such a valuable be on
my
train?” Levi’s hands balled into
fists, his fingers itching for a trigger.

“Yer
a Yank, ain’t ya? I heard you knew the
Pres-i-dent
personally.” The man
spat into the dirt again. “You got what I came for?”

“Yes,
I knew the President. He was a great and noble man. Decent and caring. You
would do well not to defame his good name again.”

The
man guffawed. “And just what is you gonna to do to stop me?” He cocked his gun
and took a step toward them.

Levi
glanced from one man to the next. They looked like they would enjoy a good
round of fisticuffs. But now, he had Cadence to think about. Eamon would kill
him if anything happened to his daughter.

“We’re
not looking for any trouble, so you can have whatever you want, but there is
nothing on this train that…fits your description.”

“We’ll
just see about that. And don’t worry about looking for your Pinkerton,
Redbourne. We took care of him first,” the man said with a wry grin.

Cadence
gasped.

Levi
glanced over toward the man who’d spoken earlier with Cadence. He lay
motionless on the ground, his arm and head strung across a small crate at an
awkward angle. Dead. From here, it looked like they’d broken his neck.

His
jaw flexed again.

“Clive,”
one of the other riders whined. “Let’s just get on with it. Stop playing
around.”

“You
two,” Clive motioned to those with him, “go gather the others. I’ll be waiting
right here.”

The
two ruffians mounted the horses behind them and with pistols in hand, they rode
to opposite ends of the train. Levi couldn’t think of how he could warn James,
but the conductor was a smart man and he knew how to handle himself. He hoped
that was enough.

“Now,”
Clive said as he took another step toward them, spinning his gun, a lecherous
smile tainting his face, “why don’t you introduce me to the lady, Redbourne?”

Levi’s
stomach turned when the vile man licked his lips.

Cadence
took a step behind him.

Clive
seemed pretty steady with that gun, each spin completely controlled, but one
little distraction could turn the tides in an instant to their favor. Levi had
already noted several places where he and Cadence could take cover.

The
man took another step closer and Levi slapped Apollo’s rump. Before Clive
realized what was happening, the gelding reared at their attacker, throwing him
off balance to the ground and Levi shoved Cadence behind the railing of an
overturned train car.

It
took only moments for Clive to recover from the brief shock. When he came up,
gun waving around, ready to shoot the first living thing he saw, Levi already
stood above him, fists raised. He quickly disarmed the man, but didn’t have
time enough to collect the piece before he took a blow to his jaw. He stumbled
backward and fell onto the earth.

Splitting
pain shot up his face and into his ear. He looked up. Clive pulled a large
steel blade from his belt and with murderous intent gleaming in his eyes,
started toward him. Levi pushed himself up as far as he could, his hands still
behind him, and he crawled backward, trying to gain his footing as his heels
slid against the dirt.

“You’re
not such a big fella now, is ya, Redbourne? And I’d be willing to bet you isn’t
made of iron.”

Levi’s
hand hit up against something smooth and hard. He wrapped his fingers around a
cool steel bar and, without hesitation, shot up off the ground, ready to swing.
The man grinned wickedly, then lunged at him. He was too close for the bar to
do any good, except maybe deflect the blade away from his body.

CRACK!

Clive’s
eyes grew wide with surprise and blood pooled in his mouth, oozing out of the
corners as he dropped onto his knees and fell forward. Levi rolled out of the
way.

What
the hell?

Levi
scanned the immediate vicinity, unable to see from where the shot had
originated. He looked back to make sure Cadence was all right. She’d stepped
out from behind the railing of the train car, a gun in her hand with smoke
swirling a light grey cloud around her.

Couldn’t
be. Could it?

Cadence
stood out in the open, gun drawn, staring at the fallen form of the man she’d just
shot. They’d told her she would always remember her first kill with perfect
clarity, but for her, every shot that had hit its mark haunted her. She knew
she’d never forget the look of shock and resignation that had cursed Clive’s
features just before he’d landed, face-down in the dirt. Scoundrel or not, his
blood was on her hands.

“He
was going to kill you,” she whispered aloud without looking at Levi. She knew
he would have questions, but there was no time to explain or commiserate. The
other two riders would have heard the shot and would be back at any moment.

“Cadence?”
He scrambled to his feet, collected Clive’s gun from the ground, and reached
toward her. “Are you all right?”

“Let’s
go,” she said, this time meeting Levi’s eyes head on. Her jaw flexed. There was
no time to explain or consider the ramifications she’d experience later. They
had to get to the others. Too many people had died today and they needed to act
before any more followed.

Cadence
pulled her gun up to her shoulder and hunched low behind the cars and debris.
Levi was right behind her, following closely. They ran along the overturned
rail cars, stopping only at the large gaping spaces that had once been wooden
cargo holds. She kept ahead of him, peeking around the cars in anticipation of
the enemy, not wanting to provide Levi the chance to talk to her.

Once
they reached the engine, Cadence looked around the sunken chunk of metal. The
conductor knelt in the grass next to the older gentleman lying prostrate on the
ground. Clive’s partner sat astride his horse, gun aimed at a small group of
men, some looked to be gravely injured, that had been gathered together. It was
strange that one weasel-like culprit with a gun could bend the others so easily
to his will.

The
longer they waited to get the men back their guns, they ran the risk of the
other rider discovering his dead friend and alerting this one. She moved to
stand up, but Levi set his hand on her shoulder. He crouched up close to her
and whispered in her ear.

“Give
me a minute to get over there.” He pointed to the cowcatcher that now sat
cockeyed from the front of the engine. “He’ll be outnumbered, and outgunned.”

Was
that appreciation in his voice?

She’d
expected him to try to stop her. To think her a simple female.

“Hear
that gunshot fellas? Sounds like one of ya already got outta hand.” The man
waved his gun, but didn’t take his eyes off the men he guarded. “My guess is
Clive shot your
Iron Horseman
dead in his boots and is ‘bout to take up
with that little piece of tart back there.”

Cadence
lifted her skirt just enough to pull the pistol she tended to sleep with. “Your
guess’d be wrong.” She said in a loud voice, standing up straight, her revolver
in one hand, her pistol in the other, both pointed directly at the man’s chest.