The Millston run is over. Gunnar Harlan is back at Mrs. Okafor's boarding house before the rest of the town wakes up — and some things about the house feel like they were waiting for him.
Mrs. Okafor has run this boarding house for thirty years. She knew Emmet Harlan when he was young — same window seat, same black coffee, same refusal to explain why he took the night runs nobody else would. She never presses. But she notices everything. In this chapter, Gunnar pieces together who his father was through the small, precise details of the woman who fed him for fifteen years.
Iron Rails & Ruin is a steampunk adventure for boys ages 8–14 — set in Montana, 1882, where Gunnar Harlan runs the Widow-Maker through Syndicate territory one chapter at a time.
New chapters weekly. Narrated by Reed Sterling.
For fans of steam engines, frontier history, and adventure fiction that respects the reader.
🎧 All episodes: https://compassandcodex.buzzsprout.com/
📱 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBW5Z1VJRtjtf23nnptGwRA
In this Iron Rails & Ruin episode, Gunnar returns to Mrs. Okafor's boarding house after the dangerous Millston run, slipping through the building by feel in the dark — every creak, every tilt, every stair measured by instinct. Over black coffee in the east window, Mrs. Okafor begins to share what she knew of Emmet Harlan: that he sat in the same spot, drank the same drink, and always said the Millston runs were more complicated than they should be. This homeschool audiobook episode draws on real 1880s Montana railroad culture, boarding house life, and the role of women in frontier communities.
What did Gunnar's father know — and why was he the one who always took the dangerous runs?
Send us Fan Mail
Remember: Never stop exploring unknown worlds!