The Last Crossing

Winter is closing the river. Jessie is running out of strength.

Ten children follow him north along the abandoned tracks. One boy's fever is getting worse, and Jessie can feel every mile in his chest. Farther up the line, a signal station offers the possibility of shelter. He has little left to offer except his hands and whatever work they can still do.

At Teague's, taking in children comes with rules. Across the river, there is talk of a doctor, a school, and families with room to spare. Getting there means a cable ferry and a narrowing window before the water freezes.

The children are beginning to imagine lives beyond the tracks. Jessie still counts them every night.

To give them a future, he may have to trust other people with the lives he has fought so hard to protect.

The Last Crossing is Book 3 in A. R. Shaw's The Broken Line, a post-apocalyptic survival series about responsibility, trust, and the family we choose.