"Where is it?" Caleb asked.
The old woman looked at Elena.
"You know where."
Elena shook her head.
"No."
Her grandmother smiled sadly.
"You were twelve."
Elena froze.
Memory returned.
A summer afternoon.
Her mother kneeling beside a tree.
A small iron box buried beneath the roots.
Elena whispered:
"The old church."
Caleb looked at her.
"What church?"
"The mission near the river."
"Is it still standing?"
"Not for long."
They left before sunrise.
But Caleb noticed something.
Elena was crying.
He stopped.
"What?"
"My mother made me promise never to go there."
"Why?"
"Because she knew someone would follow me."
Caleb touched her shoulder.
"Then they will have to get through me."
She looked at him.
"You don't understand what you're risking."
"I do."
"No."
Her voice broke.
"You could leave."
Caleb shook his head.
"I've been leaving things behind my whole life."
He looked into her eyes.
"I'm not leaving this."
Elena stared at him.
Then she kissed him.
It was brief.
Unexpected.
And enough to change everything.
When they separated, Caleb whispered:
"That was a mistake."
Elena smiled.
"Probably."
Neither of them moved away.
The Mission
The old mission stood abandoned beside the river.
Its walls were cracked.
The bell tower had collapsed.
Grass grew through the floor.
Caleb and Elena searched beneath the old oak tree.
Nothing.
They dug deeper.
Still nothing.
Elena became desperate.
"It was here."
Caleb examined the tree.
"Maybe your mother moved it."
"Why would she?"
"Because she expected someone to look here."
Elena stepped back.
Then she noticed a stone beneath the church wall.
There was a small symbol carved into it.
The same circle and crescent.
Caleb moved the stone.
A narrow opening appeared.
Inside was an iron box.
Elena reached for it.
A gunshot shattered the silence.
The box fell.
Caleb pulled Elena down.
Men surrounded the church.
Six.
Maybe eight.
And among them stood Thomas.
"Give me the box," he shouted.
Caleb looked at Elena.
"What now?"
She whispered:
"There is a tunnel."
"Where?"
"Under the altar."
They crawled through the ruined church.
Bullets struck the walls.
Caleb kicked open a wooden panel.
A dark tunnel appeared.
They entered.
Thomas shouted behind them.
"Run all you want!"
The tunnel led beneath the river.
Water covered the floor.
Caleb held the iron box above his head.
Elena followed.
Halfway through, the tunnel collapsed behind them.
They were trapped.
Caleb examined the walls.
"There's another way."
"How do you know?"
"I don't."
Elena laughed despite herself.
"You're terrible at reassurance."
They moved deeper.
Then they saw light.
A small opening led to the other side.
They crawled out.
Caleb opened the iron box.
Inside was the original treaty.
And a letter.
The letter was from Elena's mother.
Caleb read it.
If you are reading this, the war has already begun.
Do not trust the army.
Do not trust the council.
And above all, do not trust the man who says he wants peace.
Caleb looked at Elena.
"Who is she talking about?"
Before Elena could answer, a voice came from behind them.
"I think she meant me."
They turned.
General Hawthorne stood there.
General Hawthorne
Hawthorne was older than Caleb remembered.
His uniform was immaculate.
His boots were polished.
His silver hair was neatly combed.
He looked like a gentleman.
That made him more frightening.
"You have something that belongs to me," Hawthorne said.
Caleb raised his revolver.
"You killed my father."
Hawthorne smiled.
"Your father killed himself."
"How?"
"He refused to understand how the world works."
Caleb's finger tightened around the trigger.
Elena stepped forward.
"You murdered him."
Hawthorne looked at her.
"You are your mother's daughter."
"And proud of it."
Hawthorne sighed.
"Your mother was a troublesome woman."
"You were afraid of her."
"No."
"You killed her."
Hawthorne's expression changed.
Only slightly.
But Caleb saw it.
Elena saw it too.
Hawthorne continued.
"Give me the treaty."
"No."
"Then many people will die."
Caleb laughed.
"You'll start the war anyway."
"Perhaps."
Hawthorne looked toward Elena.
"But your father will be blamed."
Elena's eyes narrowed.
"What do you want?"
"The land."
"And the silver."
Hawthorne smiled.
"At last, someone understands."
Caleb stepped forward.
"You won't get it."
Hawthorne drew his pistol.
Three men appeared behind him.
Caleb knew they couldn't win.
So he did something unexpected.
He dropped his gun.
Elena stared at him.
Hawthorne smiled.
"Wise."
Caleb raised his hands.
"But you made one mistake."
"What?"
"You came alone."
Hawthorne frowned.
A gunshot came from the hill.
One of Hawthorne's men fell.
Then another.
Warriors appeared among the trees.
Red Elk stood at the front.
Thomas was beside him.
But Thomas wasn't holding a rifle.
He was bleeding.
Hawthorne looked shocked.
"Thomas?"
Thomas stared at him.
"You promised me my brother would live."
Hawthorne's face hardened.
"You believed me?"
Thomas lowered his head.
"I was a fool."
The battle began.
Caleb grabbed Elena.
They ran.
Behind them, rifles thundered through the valley.
Blood in the Snow
They reached the Black River camp at midnight.
The war had already begun.
Smoke rose from the western ridge.
Several cabins burned.
The army had arrived.
Red Elk gathered the warriors.
Caleb stood beside him.
"You can't win this by fighting."
Red Elk looked at him.
"Then what do you suggest?"
"The treaty."
"We have it."
"And witnesses."
Elena stepped forward.
"The names in the box."