2026-10-21 00:01:05For five long seconds, nothing moved as the mud and shale held the heavy timber fast against the stone arch. Derick's muscles burned across his shoulders, and he pushed harder with his legs, refusing to let the mountain win. Suddenly, with a loud sucking sound like a boot pulling out of deep mud, the butt end of the hemlock log broke free from the stones.
"She's moving! Keep the power on her, Sam!" Pete shouted from the top of the bank, waving his wool cap in the air.
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Chapter 218
The train engineer leaned out the open cab window and tipped his blue cap. Derick raised his right arm in return as the black caboose rattled by and vanished into the green pine trees.The heavy rumble of the boxcars faded away until only the sound of the wind was left. A flock of gray mountain jays fluttered down to pick at the crumbs scattered near the flatcar."She didn't jump an inch," Bill said, leaning against the rail with a proud grin. "That iron sits as flat and calm as pond water on a Sunday morning."Old Pete wiped his grease-stained hands on a red rag and began gathering the stray bolts. He tossed them into the wooden tool crate with a series of loud, hollow thumps."Good steel will stay put if you treat it right," Pete grunted, nodding down at the ties. "The mountain knows when a man cuts corners, and it knows when he does honest work."Derick walked the length of the new timber once more, checking each bolt with his eye. Every plate sat flush against the rock, tight and
Chapter 217
The first gray light of morning crept across the cabin floorboards. High up on the ridge, the long horn of the dawn work train blew twice, rolling across the quiet valley like thunder.Derick threw back the heavy patchwork quilt and set his bare feet down on the boards. The chill in the room bit at his ankles, but his body felt rested and strong after a full night of deep sleep.He pulled on his thick denim trousers and laced his heavy boots tight against the cold. After lighting the small iron cookstove, he set an enamel pot of black coffee on the iron plate to boil.Before leaving the cabin, he paused by the dark cedar box on the mantelpiece. He picked up Jackson’s watch, wound the little stem until it was snug, and slipped it safely into his front pocket.Outside, white frost sparkled on the pine needles like tiny grains of salt in the sunrise. The engine of the new green truck roared to life with a steady purr, sending white smoke into the mountain air.He drove down the winding g
Chapter 216
He reached down and unlaced his heavy leather boots, pulling them off one at a time. The thick wool socks felt good against the cool floorboards. He stretched his feet toward the open hearth, letting the dry birch heat soak deep into his toes. His shoulders were still stiff from the heavy iron pry bar, but it was an honest ache, the kind that came from hard work done right.The cabin was quiet, so quiet he could hear the tiny, steady clicks of Jackson's watch ticking away on the mantelpiece. Beside the watch, the cedar box sat dark and solid, and the broken brass key caught the firelight like an old gold coin. Derick leaned his head back against the tall wooden slats of the chair and closed his eyes.Pictures from the long day moved behind his eyelids. He saw the brown water bursting out through the stone arch, cleaning the mud and timber from the ditch in two minutes flat. He saw young Bill Morris leaning out of Engine Seventy-Two, blowing the whistle twice with a grin across hi
Chapter 215
For five long seconds, nothing moved as the mud and shale held the heavy timber fast against the stone arch. Derick's muscles burned across his shoulders, and he pushed harder with his legs, refusing to let the mountain win. Suddenly, with a loud sucking sound like a boot pulling out of deep mud, the butt end of the hemlock log broke free from the stones."She's moving! Keep the power on her, Sam!" Pete shouted from the top of the bank, waving his wool cap in the air.The motor car chugged slowly forward along the rails, dragging the huge hemlock log up and out of the water ditch like a giant dark fish. Without the main log holding the dam together, the second tree trunk shifted sideways under the heavy pressure of the backed-up pool. Derick and Tom quickly reset their iron bars against the second log and gave one final, mighty heave together.With a booming crash of rushing water, the entire pile of brush, mud, and brok
Chapter 214
Derick pulled back on the throttle lever and eased the motor car to a stop beside the switch. The big steam cranes from the division yard had worked all day Saturday and Sunday to haul Jackson's wrecked engine and the twisted tank cars back down to the flatlands. The gravel bank was torn up where the heavy engine had plowed into the earth, but the main track and the bridge were completely untouched.Derick stepped down onto the ballast stones and walked over to the switch stand. The broken automatic lock that he had forced open on Thursday night was still hanging crookedly from the iron chain, its steel casing split where he had hit it with the wrench. With big Tom helping him, Derick used a heavy iron wrench to unbolt the broken company mechanism and lift it off the wooden ties.They set the brand-new manual switch stand in place, driving four thick iron spikes deep into the creosoted oak timbers to hold it steady. Pete connected the heavy
Chapter 213
Derick nodded once and walked across the frosted cinders toward the yard office. He wiped his boots on the iron scraper by the step, turned the brass doorknob, and walked inside. A tall man with gray hair and a heavy brown tweed coat was standing by the wall map, holding a steaming cup of coffee.When the door opened, the man turned around and looked at Derick with sharp, friendly gray eyes. Unlike Mr. Vance, this man wore mud-stained leather boots that showed he had spent plenty of time walking real railroad tracks. He set his coffee cup down on the desk and walked forward with his hand outstretched."You must be Derick Cole," the man said in a deep, clear voice. "I'm Arthur Henderson from the state railway commission. Judge Higgins sent me a full report of Friday's hearing by telegraph, and I came out on the first train this morning.""Good morning, Mr. Henderson," Derick said, shaking the inspector's hand firmly. "My
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