Madame Frost's intelligence lands on Gunnar's workbench at dusk: six Syndicate operatives are already at the High Pass trestle with explosives in place. The supply train from Millston — carrying medicine for the influenza outbreak in Coalridge, seed grain for spring planting in Hawk's Nest, and winter provisions for the families of Upper Blackwell — is scheduled to arrive at 10:43 tomorrow morning.

Gunnar calculates everything: distance, speed, margin, probability. He gets 76.4% odds if they leave by 7 a.m. Dutch objects — this is direct confrontation with Syndicate operatives.

Vesper objects harder — the Rail Marshals have spent months building a case and a single intervention could unravel all of it.

Gunnar's answer is three sentences: these aren't abstractions. These are people with names and faces.

His father delivered supplies to these towns for fifteen years.

By 7 a.m., the Widow-Maker is moving.

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Iron Rails & Ruin is a steampunk Wild West fantasy adventure for boys 8–14. A fourteen-year-old engineer in 1882 Montana finds out his father is alive — and the Syndicate has fourteen days to take every locomotive in the territory. New chapters every Friday.

For fans of Mortal Engines, steampunk classics, and Wild West adventure. Perfect for reluctant readers who want mystery, machines, and something supernatural on the frontier.

📚 Grab your copy of Iron Rails & Ruin: Smoke & Suspicion, Book 1 — available now on Amazon: https://us.amazon.com/stores/Reed-Sterling/author/B0H2ZM86WQ

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00:00:00 — Six saboteurs at the High Pass trestle — and a supply train full of medicine
00:00:45 — Frost's intelligence — Gunnar runs the numbers
00:03:45 — Dutch objects. Vesper objects harder.
00:07:30 — "Seed grain and medicine" — Gunnar makes his case
00:09:40 — The Widow-Maker climbs into the blizzard
00:15:50 — High Pass in sight — the saboteurs are already there
00:18:00 — The valve his father said never to use
00:19:05 — The valve turns — the Widow-Maker wakes
00:20:50 — Gunfire on the bridge
00:23:50 — Throttle forward — the crossing and the failed detonators
00:27:50 — Turning the valve back — the supply train comes through safe
00:33:45 — The cost — the syndicate will know within days
00:37:30 — The whistle and the descent
00:39:10 — CH 7 — What Comes Next

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I am the author of serialized fiction books for kids and young adults, including:

- Brickhaven: A Bricks Fan Fiction Adventure

- Colony In Danger: A Fire Ant Adventure

- Eagle's Edge: A Story of Rome, Gaul and the Making of a Soldier

- Treasure Island: A Classic Adaptation

- Iron Rails & Ruin: A Novel of Steam, Sorcery and the Lawless Montana Territory

📚 All five books -- including Brickhaven Book 1 -- are now available on Amazon: https://us.amazon.com/stores/Reed-Sterling/author/B0H2ZM86WQ

📖 Wanna check out all five series for yourself? Get all five Chapter 1s free: https://compass-codex.kit.com/middle-school-reader-group

Thank you for listening! This is Reed Sterling. Remember: Never stop exploring unknown worlds.