The train continues it's sliding, screeching incremental deceleration, whistle screaming. Paladin wonders if that's a rational action, possibly to let of steam pressure and aid the deceleration. But it could equally be an irrational action-- blowing a warning whistle to a man on the tracks who's waiting to rob you. He looks out the caboose's window, but sees no sign of Watson. It seems that he's still on the caboose back landing.
Luke yells,
I ain't goin nowhere! There's no point in tryin to fight Sam Bass and his gang! Let em just do their robbin and go on their way!
Paladin crosses from the caboose to the livestock car, swings around its rear landing, grabs its ladder to the roof and shinnies up it. He runs forward along the roof, bent at the waist for balance, and leaps to the roof of the freight car, crosses it, and jumps down to the bed of the flat car. Then up the ladder of the rear coach, across its roof, and onto the front coach. Ahead is the roof of the coach, the coal car below, and the long steel locomotive. The train has slowed to what seem to be about the speed of a run or fast walk. He crouches, then rises slightly to get a line of sight of the tracks ahead. Two mounted men are standing their horses on the raised railbed ahead. The apparent leader of the two has no a double action pistol tucked under his belt, just right of the buckle. The man beside him has a lever action rifle standing on his hip. Away from them and closer to the left and right of the train are a mounted kid with long-barreled hunting shotgun and a young man with a lever action rifle. They don't seem to be an especially desperate bunch. Actually, they look almost home town congenial.
Paladin takes a glance back and sees Watson jump off the caboose and hit the ground running. Wisely, in the direction of braking train's progress. He takes three quick strides, almost stumbles and plant his face in the dirt on the fourth, but recovers with his legs running faster than him and runs to the cover of trackside oaks and scrub mesquites and disappears.
The wheels of the train slow to a walking pace.
Paladin estimates that the front of the loco will stop around 20-30 yards from the riders.