The middle-aged woman was the head of the serving staff, one of the first to come here with Sean. She looked around at the carnage. It was a nightmare. Only a dozen women were left alive, and there were so many bodies… If they didn't dispose of them quickly, the wild animals would come down from the mountains by nightfall.
That morning, Henry had locked himself in his office. He laid out a couple of thick blankets on the floor and began the grim task of looting the bodies of the guards he had stored. Aside from their weapons, he only recovered $462.80.
Fortunately, Sean's hidden safe had contained another $8,639. It made sense; with so many men to pay and no banks in the immediate vicinity, Sean would have needed to keep at least three months' worth of operating cash on hand.
The greatest prize, however, was the twelve 100-ounce gold bars. At the current price of $20.67 per ounce, they were worth $24,804.
Considering the handsome profit, Henry decided to forgive Sean for taking his own life. A ruthless opponent like that was better off dead sooner rather than later.
With his inventory complete, Henry went back to work on his explosives. In addition to the smaller 5 and 10-pound charges, he now assembled ten 20-pounders and ten 50-pounders. The 20-pound charges were set with 5-second fuses; he had to be sure he could get clear in time. The 50-pounders, powerful enough to bring down a three-story building, were set with 15 and 20-second delays.
He focused on making more of the 5-pound charges. He could easily throw one thirty meters, and its five-meter blast radius was more than enough. With his LV 4 Throwing skill, he was confident he could place a charge within centimeters of his target.
His original plan had been to leave a few outlaw bodies at the manor to stage a bandit raid, but with Marshal Duncan out of town, there was no one to fool. So he had simply stored all the bodies. Twenty-seven corpses took up less than two cubic meters of space. It was the perfect crime. No bodies, no evidence. Not even Sherlock Holmes could solve a case like that.
He worked until noon, then ate a quick meal from his supplies and went home to catch up on his sleep.
Around 2 PM, Commander Tom at the smelting plant was woken by one of his men. The messenger, Jimmy, had been gone for over five hours. Something had definitely happened.
Tom considered his options and decided to hold his position. He had a silver shipment to escort to Georgetown the next morning. He was already down nine men from the first attack, and if Jimmy was gone, that made ten. Against an unknown enemy, it was better to be cautious. Half of his men would return after the escort mission and scout out the manor then. He knew Dwyer Manor had dozens of well-trained guards and several Gatling guns; they should have been able to handle any threat.
In Mayor William's study, Raphael was giving his report. "I've instructed all the mining camps to increase their prospecting efforts. The family's own teams have also shifted their search area."
William nodded. "The McKinleys' actions tell me they've found something big, and it's on land we already have the rights to. I want you to focus all your efforts on this. Find out what they found, and keep it quiet."
The Mining Act of 1872 allowed any man who discovered a mineral deposit on public land to stake a claim and gain the rights to it for a mere $2.50 an acre, with a commitment to spend at least $100 a year on development. The great mining tycoons had already used this law to claim vast tracts of land across the West. William suspected the McKinleys had made a new discovery on land that was technically already his.
"What about Henry?" William asked.
"Yesterday at noon, he killed Billy the Kid in a duel. That afternoon, he left town in a carriage driven by Thor and returned alone on horseback around 9 PM. We don't know where he went."
"This morning, he left town again around 4 AM and returned three hours later. The sentries reported hearing three large explosions from the direction of Dwyer Manor during that time. Old Whitey at the armory confirms that Henry did not take any dynamite from the department's stores."
"Furthermore, no one from Dwyer Manor has come to the telegraph office today, and they have failed to pick up their regular supply orders from the local merchants."
"If they don't pick them up by tomorrow," William said, "have one of the merchants send a man to the manor to see what's going on."
"Understood," Raphael replied. "They've never gone two days without picking up supplies before. The merchants themselves are likely already worried."
"What's taking Duncan so long?" William asked, a note of concern in his voice. "He's been gone for nearly ten days."
"'Black Caesar' Ed Masterson is a dangerous man," Raphael said. "He may have fled into the Arizona desert."
William sighed and gave a slight wave of his hand. Raphael bowed and left, passing the butler, Pierce, on his way out.
Pierce hurried to William's side and handed him a telegram. It was from a nephew, Richard Mellon, a rising star in the family who managed their mining company. He wanted to visit in the next few days.
"Send a reply to Richard," William said. "Tell him he is welcome at any time."