Lucky and the Railroad Ransom

**"Lucky and the Railroad Ransom"** is fortieth episode of *Spirit Riding Free* and the first episode of the seventh season.

## Plot synopsis

While a patient Kate waits on the altar, Lucky—with support from a surprising ally—must confront Jane... for once—who is holding Jim captive.

## Plot

Lucky is held captive in the parlor of her House by Rooster, the bulky bearded bandit henchman of Butch LePray, who makes off into the frontier with Lucky's father, Jim Prescott, along with two accomplices. Rooster tells Lucky that she was merely bait in Butch's plan to kidnap Jim.

While Lucky is held captive, back at the Church, Kate sends Pru and Abigail to look for Lucky and Jim, while she entertains the gathered crowd before Snips gets bored and causes a catastrophe. But when both girls walk up to the Prescott house, Spirit warns them not to enter the house, and they spot the bulky henchman watching them, and realize that Lucky is in trouble. While Pru sneaks up to the roof and Abigail breaks china in the parlor to distract Rooster, Lucky frees herself using the escape artistry skills she learned in the circus. All three girls escape, while Spirit knocks out Rooster cold. Spirit points out tracks bearing Grayson's brand, and the girls make a plan to track Butch and her gang.

The PAL find Butch telling Jim that she was mad Lucky exposed her identity, and that she wanted Jim to open a safe in a JP & Sons train that would give her enough money to move to a new territory. Jim shakes off one of Jane's men, but gets punched in return. Lucky tells Pru and Abigail to warn the town and Sheriff of Butch's return, while she rescues Jim.

Once they run off, Lucky runs toward the group, but gets grabbed and pulled behind a tree by none other
than Grayson. He is wondering who were the men that stole his horses. Lucky tells him that the men work for Butch LePray, who knows the name all too well.

Grayson boards the train in pursuit of Butch, while, with Spirit's help, Lucky ascends to the roof of the moving train. Grayson calls Butch out, but is attacked by her henchmen while Butch hurries with Jim to the engine of the train. Lucky arrives and helps Grayson fight the men off before separating them on a trailing train car by un-hitching it.

Butch, meanwhile, knocks out the engineer with a crowbar, and handcuffs Jim to the engineer's seat, before forcing him to open the combination-locked safe. Once she collects a bag of money from inside, she puts the train into full speed and tears the speed control lever from the control panel, which causes the train to speed out of control. She refuses to spare Jim's life, and leaves him chained up. She then makes her way through the train and ends up going the other way, because Lucky and Grayson approach her. They warn the passengers on the train about Butch's scheme, and unhitch the car with the passengers on it.

Meanwhile, Rooster tries to stop Pru and Abigail from reaching the church where the town is gathered for the wedding. He ropes them up, but when they note he has amnesia from two recent blows to the head, they persuade him that he fought off their kidnapper and he unties them. The arrive at the church, and tell everyone that Butch captured Jim.

Jane then climbs onto the roof, and is about to jump onto her getaway cart, but Spirit knocks her through an opening in the cart. Just when the notorious bandit finds her bag of money, Lucky and Grayson enter the compartment. Grayson then reveals that Butch was the one who killed his dad—Judge Merle Grayson—during a jailbreak in Los Bujos some years prior. He says that he can't wait to have her arrested. While they both fight each other, Lucky races to help her dad. She axes the handcuffs he was wearing, but he tells her that he must stay on the train and figure out how to slow it down, because if it got too fast, it would go off rails.

While he is figuring that out, Jane nearly throws Grayson from the train, when Lucky jumps in on her and gets ahold of the missing lever. Just when she grabs it, Jane throws her off the train, but Spirit catches Lucky, and brings her up to the engine. Lucky throws the lever to her father, and he catches it. Then, he reattaches the lever to the train, and slows it down.

Meanwhile, Grayson finishes lassoing Butch, and just when he ties her up, she breaks free. But just when she opens the door, she sees her exit blocked by the Sheriff and his deputies.

Back at the depot in Miradero, the Sheriff handcuffs Jane and takes her away. In parting words to Jim, she vows that he'll see her again. Lucky reunites with her dad, who calls Grayson a hero, but Grayson responds only by scoffing and demanding compensation for two horses stolen by Butch's gang. Though the wedding ceremony was interrupted, Kate and Jim wed in front of their house, with family and close friends celebrating and dancing in the warm night air.

## Notes & trivia

* This is the second time Grayson got an injury on his eye ever since "Lucky and the Risky Rescue".
* This is the second episode Lucky used the escape trick ever since "Lucky and the No-Good Outlaw Butch LePray".
* Julian and Fannie Granger appear, but are nonspeaking.
* Continuity: The church's bridal preparation room has a window to the outside that, in view of its placement, ought to actually look inside to the church's main room.
* Continuity: Rooster leaves the Prescott House without his hat, but has it again when he captures Pru and Abigail.
* The PAL change out of their bridesmaid dresses and into their usual clothing before tracking Butch's gang.
* Butch and Grayson both lose their hats in their final confrontation.
* Movies References Allusion: Titanic Silverstreak

## Links

* Dad's in Danger
* Butch LePray vs. Grayson
* For Better or For Worse