Chapter 48 - Blood Beneath the Engine
Before Clara could answer, a thunderous explosion rocked the rear of the train.
The munitions car erupted in a catastrophic blast of orange fire, tearing the sky wide open. The force of the detonation blew out the velvet-draped windows of the parlor car, showering the room in flying glass and splintered mahogany.
Cole lost his footing, stumbling sideways into a heavy oak credenza.
Clara didn't hesitate. She threw herself across the desk, grabbing the black ledger and the deed. As Arthur raised his shotgun, she lunged forward, driving the heel of her boot directly into his shattered knee—the old injury from his supposed 'death' a decade ago.
Arthur roared in agony, collapsing against the chair as the shotgun blast tore harmlessly through the ornate ceiling.
Outside, gunfire erupted in deafening cascades.
The door to the vestibule was kicked off its hinges with a sickening crash. Caleb burst into the room through the billows of smoke, his revolver spitting fire. The bullet struck Cole squarely in the shoulder, spinning the giant around.
Cole bellowed, charging Caleb like a wounded bear, tackling him through the shattered carriage wall and out onto the iron observation platform.
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The two men crashed against the cold steel railing, trading brutal blows in the blinding snow and smoke. Caleb took a heavy fist to the ribs, feeling bone groan, but swung his rifle barrel upward into Cole’s jaw, knocking the giant backward over the iron coupling.
"Caleb!" Clara screamed from inside the smoke-filled car.
