They could force Crowe's horses into the mud.
They could cut off his escape.
But they needed to reach the outlet.
And it was beyond Crowe's camp.
Daniel looked at Elena.
"Stay here."
"No."
"Elena."
"I know this land better than you."
"It's dangerous."
"So is staying home."
Thomas picked up his rifle.
"I'm coming."
Daniel shook his head.
"No."
Thomas looked at him.
"You promised."
Daniel remembered.
Yes.
He had promised to stay.
And now he realized staying didn't mean hiding.
It meant standing beside people when the road became dangerous.
"All right," Daniel said.
They left before dawn.
Three riders.
One wounded man.
One woman.
One cowboy who had forgotten how to run.
They crossed the ridge.
Below them, Crowe's camp was visible.
Six men.
Two wagons.
Ten horses.
And Silas Crowe.
Daniel whispered:
"Wait for my signal."
Elena nodded.
Thomas gripped his rifle.
Daniel crawled toward the water gate.
He reached it.
Then a voice spoke behind him.
"You always were a stubborn bastard."
Crowe.
Daniel turned slowly.
Crowe had a gun pointed at him.
"You should've kept riding."
Daniel smiled.
"I tried."
Crowe laughed.
"You think these people matter?"
Daniel looked toward Elena.
Then Thomas.
"Yes."
Crowe shook his head.
"That's your weakness."
Daniel replied:
"No."
He looked at the water gate.
"It's yours."
He kicked it open.
Water exploded through the channel.
The valley began to flood.
The Last Stand
The flood reached Crowe's camp within minutes.
Horses panicked.
Men shouted.
Wagons tilted.
Crowe fired at Daniel.
The bullet grazed his shoulder.
Daniel rolled behind a rock.
Elena fired from the ridge.
Thomas fired beside her.
Crowe's men scattered.
The valley became chaos.
Water surged across the ground.
Crowe tried to reach his horse.
Daniel tackled him.
They crashed into the mud.
Crowe struck him across the face.
Daniel struck back.
They fought without weapons.
Years of anger seemed to pass through every blow.
Crowe shouted:
"You're nothing!"
Daniel hit him.
"You don't know me."
Crowe tried to draw his knife.
Daniel caught his wrist.
"People like you always think fear is power."
Crowe laughed.
"It is."
Daniel shook his head.
"No."
He forced the knife away.
"Fear is what men use when they have nothing worth protecting."
Crowe stared at him.
For the first time, he looked afraid.
The marshal arrived just after sunrise.
Thomas had reached him earlier through a second trail.
Crowe was arrested.
The sheriff was arrested two days later.
Samuel Ward's journal became evidence.
The land was protected.
The water rights were placed under a public agreement.
And the valley finally had water.
But Daniel nearly left.
He stood beside Boone that morning, packing his saddle.
Elena watched from the porch.
"You said you would stay."
"I said I'd stay through the fight."
"The fight is over."
"Yes."
Thomas stepped outside.
"You promised."
Daniel looked at him.
"I did."
Thomas frowned.
"So?"
Daniel looked toward the road.
Then toward the house.
Then at the valley.
He could leave.
The road was open.
No one was stopping him.
For eleven years, that had been exactly what he wanted.
But now something felt different.
The road no longer looked like freedom.
It looked empty.
Elena walked closer.