“Not much is known about them until Miguel Peralta’s name pops up in the mid seventeen hundreds,” Isaac continued. “That’s when the family discovered gold in the Superstitions, or so the story goes.”

“As I understand it,” Gage said, “the gold was carried back and forth between the mine and Mexico for the next hundred years.”

Isaac nodded. “The Apaches were their greatest threat. From the start, the tribe wanted them gone. They believed the mountains belonged to them, and anyone who trespassed was fair game. A lot of Mexicans died defending the mine. Or at least that’s what people believe.”

“What about the massacre?” Gage asked. “That’s supposed to have been the demise of the family and the last anyone heard of the Peralta mine.”

“In 1848 or thereabouts, a large party of family members was taking a load of gold back to Mexico, which they did a number of times each year. One of them was leading a pack string loaded with gold bars when the Apaches attacked. All of the Peraltas were killed. The Apaches buried the bodies and hid the gold. A few years later, soldiers found the remains. Newspapers of the time reported finding the bones of the mules with saddlebags full of gold.”

“What about the soldier, William Edwards?” Abby asked.

Isaac looked at her with a hint of respect. “Not many know that part of the story. A cavalry trooper named William Edwards claimed he was present when the bodies were found. Claimed he found a gold tooth in one of the skulls, the mark of the Spanish aristocracy in those days, which the wealthy Peralta family would have been part of. He may have even found some of the gold. He and his son searched for years but never found the mine. At least that’s the story.”

Isaac led them over to a wall filled with framed maps. “These mark the trails of some of the expeditions that went in search of the gold.”

Abby instantly recognized one of the maps as similar to the old rawhide drawing in the bag currently locked in the Explorer, the safest place to store it while they were away from the ranch.

Of course, King’s markings were not on the map hanging on the wall.

“Lots of people have looked for the Peralta mine,” Isaac said. “But it was Jacob Waltz and his partner, Jacob Weiner, who claimed to have found it. Brought out sixty thousand in gold ore before he died. Be worth a million now.”

“What happened to Weiner?” Gage asked.

“Killed by Apaches. Waltz blamed himself for leaving his friend alone while he went to Phoenix for supplies. He stayed in a bordello with his girlfriend, lingered longer than he should have, came back, and found his partner tortured and mutilated. Never was the same after that.”

“I read that on his deathbed he gave clues to the location of the mine,” Abby said.