They entered.
Inside the mine, darkness swallowed them.
Lanterns burned in the distance.
Then they heard Hale's voice.
"By sunset, this entire mountain will belong to me."
Cody stepped forward.
"No."
Hale turned.
He was a handsome man in his forties, dressed better than any miner had a right to be.
He smiled.
"Cody."
Cody's eyes narrowed.
"You know me?"
"I know everyone who lives in this territory."
Hale drew his revolver.
"You have caused me considerable trouble."
Cody raised his rifle.
"You're finished."
Hale laughed.
"You don't understand the world."
"I understand enough."
Hale nodded toward Elena.
"She is the problem."
"No," Cody said.
"You're the problem."
Then the shooting began.
Beneath the Mountain
The gunfight echoed through the tunnels.
Cody fired from behind a wooden support.
Apache warriors moved through the darkness.
Hale's men were trapped.
One by one, they surrendered.
But Hale disappeared.
Cody followed.
The tunnel became narrower.
Then he saw dynamite.
Dozens of sticks had been wired together.
A fuse was burning.
Cody's blood ran cold.
He cut the fuse.
But another one was already burning farther inside.
Hale stepped from the shadows.
"You cannot stop all of them."
Cody raised his rifle.
"Watch me."
Hale fired.
The bullet struck Cody's shoulder.
Cody fell.
Hale ran.
Elena arrived.
"Cody!"
"I'm fine."
Blood soaked his shirt.
"You are not fine."
"Later."
They followed Hale.
The second fuse was nearly gone.
Cody reached it.
The flame was inches from the powder.
He grabbed it with his bare hand and crushed it against the stone.
Smoke filled the tunnel.
For a moment, nobody moved.
Then the mountain trembled.
A distant explosion shook the walls.
Cody looked at Elena.
"That wasn't one of ours."
Hale had detonated another charge.
The mine began collapsing.
"Run!"
The Collapse
Stone fell from the ceiling.
The men ran through smoke and dust.
Elena stumbled.
Cody grabbed her.
"Keep moving."
Behind them, the tunnel collapsed.
They reached the entrance just as another explosion erupted.
The mountain shook.
The ground split.
A cloud of dust rolled across the valley.
When it cleared, Cody saw Hale standing outside.
He had escaped.
He mounted a horse and fled.
Cody started after him.
Elena grabbed his arm.
"You'll die."
Cody looked toward the fleeing man.
"He killed people."
"And if you chase him alone, he'll kill you too."
Cody stopped.
For the first time, he realized he was exhausted.
He sat on a rock.
Elena knelt beside him.
"You saved my people."
Cody shook his head.
"We haven't saved everyone."
She looked toward the mountain.
"What do you mean?"
"Hale will return."
The Last Ride of Victor Hale
Hale rode south.
He believed the mine explosion had solved his problem.
But he had made one mistake.
He had left witnesses alive.
The Apache warriors followed his trail.
So did Cody.
They caught Hale two days later near an abandoned trading post.
Hale had gathered his remaining men.
There were twelve.
Cody and the Apache riders surrounded the building.
Hale stepped outside.
"You think this changes anything?"
Cody answered:
"It changes everything."
Hale laughed.
"You are one man."
Cody looked around.
"No."
Elena stepped beside him.
Then Tomas.
Then twenty Apache warriors.
Hale's smile disappeared.
"You cannot arrest me."
A voice came from behind him.
"Oh, yes, he can."
The sheriff of Red Creek stepped forward.
He had brought six deputies.
Hale looked stunned.
"You?"
The sheriff shook his head.
"I should have listened sooner."
Cody lowered his rifle.