Ethan frowned. “That means braking using the whole train together, right? Every car helps slow us down.” Martin nodded grimly. “Exactly—” A metallic thud interrupted him. Both men froze. The sound came again, more deliberate this time. “They’re at car 3,” Ethan said, his voice taut.
Martin toggled the CCTV feed to car 3, and his worst fear was confirmed. The thieves were working on the coupler, trying to separate cars 3 through 7 from the rest of the train. If they succeeded, car 2 and the engine would race forward without the braking power of the rear cars.