"Well?" Stillwell's eyes narrowed fractionally.

"Let's hear it. And for God's sake, sit down." Ryder hesitated. He had no liking for the command or the tone. It was only when he saw the gentle encouragement in Mary's eyes that he left the fireplace and sat in the chair opposite his uncle.

"Mary and I spent most of the day at the War Office," he said.

"I was interested in the records of assignments, transfers, and discharges for Fort Union and we-"

"Why?" asked Stillwell.

"Because the short time we've been in town we've already seen two men who escorted the gold wagons through Colter Canyon." There was a slight indication of surprise on the senator's part as he exhaled sharply. Ryder continued.

"It made me curious as to who else might be around."

"And?"

"I can't say with any certainty that they're here in Washington," said Ryder.

"But to a man, they've received transfers from Fort Union or were discharged from the Army." The senator's brows pulled together as he squinted at Ryder. He lowered his cigar slowly.

"You're saying," he said deeply, almost growling, "that no soldier who survived the Colter Canyon massacre is still stationed at the fort. Is that right?"

Ryder and Mary nodded in unison. Mary's look was more expectant than Ryder's.

"Well," Stillwell said impatiently, "what's so blasted unusual about that? The Army thought they could be more useful elsewhere after their experience. Hell, I'd have put in for a transfer myself."

"And it's doubtful it would have been granted," Ryder said.

"One man. Two. Maybe a half dozen could have been expected to be permitted to transfer, but not all of them. And they were fresh recruits, newly assigned to the post just before the gold shipment was supposed to take place."

"Do you see?" Mary asked eagerly when Stillwell didn't respond.

"They were assigned to the fort for just one purpose-to be part of escorting and protecting the gold."

"Of course I see," he said.

"But what does it mean? They were assigned, did their job-poorly, I might add, or the Apache raid wouldn't have been so successful-then they were transferred. You two have drawn some conclusion other than the one I have settled on." Mary shifted to the edge of her seat and asked earnestly, "Senator Stillwell, do you believe Ryder's innocent of the charges leveled against him?" There was no hesitation.

"Of course I do."

Satisfied, she nodded once.

"It's Ryder's contention that there were no Apache involved in the massacre." The senator's attention turned to his nephew.

"You've said that before, but you've lacked evidence to support it."

Ryder rested his forearms on his knees.

"It was impossible for me to prove it wasn't a Chiricahua raid," Ryder said frankly.

"I wasn't allowed to return to the canyon after my arrest. I believe investigators who did go saw things that were placed there purposely to support the stories of the surviving soldiers. Only one Army scout-Rosario-was permitted to comb the area, and he had his own reasons for concealing the truth."

"And the truth is ..." Stillwell sounded both impatient and expectant.

Mary broke in.

"The truth is that the massacre was a surprise attack by the new recruits against the old ones."

Complete silence followed her announcement. The senator exhaled very slowly, his narrowed eyes moving thoughtfully from Ryder to Mary, then back to Ryder.

"Did you put that idea in her head?" he asked at last.

"I gave her the information," Ryder said.

"Mary's quite capable of putting things together on her own."

"You realize what you're saying, don't you? You're talking about brother against brother here. A bloody little civil war right in Colter Canyon, Arizona."

"That's what it was," said Ryder.

"Except it had no purpose other than greed." Stillwell stubbed out his cigar.

"They sure as hell weren't able to execute this plan all on their own."

Ryder nodded.

"You're right. This kind of operation-the dates, the assignments, the route-demanded help from someone who had access to all that information. I was one of those people."

"Except that Ryder didn't have the authority to transfer men in or out of Fort Union," Mary said.

"He could have suggested certain men to General Gardner, but that was the extent of his influence." The senator's frown deepened as he tried to take it in.

"Then you're saying Gardner put this attack together and framed you?"

Ryder shook his head.

"I'd never believe that.

It was someone who could wield more power than the commander."

"But who--"

"Warren Hamilton," said Ryder. Stillwell was in the process of raising the glass of Montrachet to his lips. He paused in mid motion stunned.

"Hamilton?" he said softly.

"That doesn't seem-" Mary nodded understandingly.

"We know. It will be hard for anyone to believe, and that's why we need your help." She began to click off points on her fingers.

"We know these things:

Senator Hamilton is a member of several committees that oversee expenditures to the War Department; he has been supportive of the Western Campaign from the outset; he has financial interests in Holland Mines; he was influential in helping Northeast Rail secure a land grant for the railroad in that area; he was at the fort at the time of the raid; and" Mary drew a quiet breath and let her fingers fold back into a loose fist "and his daughter was instrumental in supporting the charge of treason against Ryder."