Amid the chaos of the French-Mexican conflict, Marc Kannon seeks refuge in Mexico, only to find his brother allied with outlaws targeting a town he once passed. After a fateful encounter leads to the death of a general's man, Marc becomes determined to protect Rio Diablo from impending destruction. With an unlikely team of children, the elderly, and determined women, he prepares for a desperate fight, highlighting themes of courage and resilience in the face of overwhelming odds.
Latigo Dykes, known as the Gentleman Bandit, never robbed a lady and always left a man enough to get by. With a dogged deputy U.S. marshal on his trail, Latigo knows his days are numbered. He has only one wish before he ends up dead or in prison: to make amends with the son he left behind. When Marshal Wes Gavin becomes responsible for one of the deadly Quinteen gang being hung, he goes after the Gentleman Bandit thinking it will help him avoid the ruthless gang. But the Quinteen gang's thirst for revenge adds a twist of fate, which puts Latigo and Wes on the same side. Wes is soon mixed up with a couple of extraordinary females, while trying to save a man from being wrongly imprisoned or hanged. As the Quinteens close in, Wes needs Latigo's help to find a missing gambler and prevent the gang from attacking a town full of innocent people. Latigo is an experienced gambler himself, and he knows the odds are good he and Wes both might just die in a hail of gunfire.
Joe Bratt grew up like an unbroken mustang, and trouble has never bothered to move out of his way. He has had to claw and scratch through a life of hard knocks and daily struggles. Fortunately, these trials have taught him three things: fight when you must, never sit down to a fixed game of chance, and never, ever, get involved with a good woman. Joe holds true to his three rules until he meets up with Raylene Stanfield, a judge's well-educated daughter from the East. Joe has never met a more headstrong woman in his life, but he owes the lady, and he always pays his debts. Although running from the law and a hired killer, Joe takes on the chore of becoming the town judge--a job about which he knows practically nothing! As usual, trouble is ready and waiting for Joe in Gold Butte. It's a town ruled by greed and power, with a sheriff who is more concerned with collecting taxes than making Gold Butte a safe place to live. Genuine judge or not, Joe determines to do what is right. . .even if it means taking on a passel of gunmen and maybe getting killed in the process!
Keith Konniger enjoys his quiet, solitary life as a hunter. But when he rescues a woman and a child his world is turned upside down and then twisted a little bit more. Little could he know that his good deed would most certainly not go unpunished, as he finds himself with a war chief after his scalp, hired killers hot on his trail, and the worst fate he can imagine being stuck with two female companions until the spring thaw! Konn soon learns that even more devastating than the punishment he's facing for coming to the aid of his two companions is the pain of loving someone who will never love him in return. His misery is eased only by the continued threats on his life, so when death comes looking for Konn, he welcomes the chance to meet it head-on!
Kari Underwood, an investigative reporter, becomes involved in a curious
double murder which puts her in a killer's crosshairs. With Kari's life in
danger, Jason Keane leaves his position in the Sutton CID and returns to
America to protect her.
Nash Valeron didn't expect starting up his doctor's practice would be so lively. But when a young woman arrives, his life is basically turned upside down and inside out. What begins as protecting the girl from a couple bullies becomes a life or death situation. Land grabbing, murder and a host of killers are in Nash's immediate future. The only way to combat the odds is to ask for help from his family. A lethal ambush, a corrupt asylum, and plots to kill the girl abound. And only the combined strength and savvy of the Valeron people can foil the wrongdoers sinister plans. Who will be left standing after the blood and gun-smoke finally clears?
Not all criminals wear masks and carry guns. Some hide behind respectability and seldom wield a weapon. The Valerons seek justice for an attack and theft, but they find no smoking gun, no gunmen, not a single piece of evidence against the perpetrators. They realize they are dealing with clever and careful criminals. As Jared and Shane's investigation alone can't expose the guilty party, Wendy Valeron is employed to explore an alternative means. While trying not to risk her life, there is always great danger when attempting to expose an organized criminal enterprise. With fear of exposure, the nervous culprits summon help and react violently. How many lives on both sides will the Valerons' retribution claim?
The Valeron code was simple: Trust in the Lord, but keep a gun handy. And when it came to harming one of them or their family, they had but one commandment: Thou shalt not get away with it! Rodney (Lightning Rod) Mason had a habit of getting involved in other people's problems. So when a banker hires him to help his sister, it seems just another job. But Rod finds more than he bargained for in Deliverance, Colorado. The opposition is ruthless and the victim is someone who can change his world. When an ambush leaves Rod vulnerable and unable to fight back, word is sent to his brother and cousins. Within hours, Wyatt and Jared Valeron are dispatched to aid their kin. The odds against them mount, but a Valeron doesn't know how to quit. A final showdown will decide who lives, who dies . . . and how the Valeron family code works.
It sounded simple enough—Wyatt Valeron is hired to escort a man from Paradise to Denver, Colorado. However, upon arrival at the secluded mining town, he learns a sinister tyrant named Gaskell controls everyone and everything. His hired "enforcers" maintain a form of law that supersedes all outside authority. To break a rule can mean punishment, or even death. Wyatt does what comes naturally and ends up sentenced to hang. With the Valerons going into action to save Wyatt and take on the all-powerful men in Paradise, another problem has landed on the family doorstep. Cliff Mason finds himself drawn to the plight of a runaway girl, a girl with a dark secret and terrible fear of the man searching for her. Both dilemmas have a similar challenge—the authorities are unable to do anything without proof. The Valerons must act on their own to stop these criminals who are Beyond the Law.
As ramrod over the Valeron cattle, Sketcher takes Reese Valeron's place on a trip to the yearly auction in Chicago with Shane and Jared Valeron. A simple sketch becomes the impetus that quickly involves Sketcher with several street urchins, a person called Mother and an unsolved murder. Meanwhile, Wyatt goes to visit a friend in the small town of Solitary. What starts out as a genial trip ends up as a battle with a rancher and his sons that leaves him fighting for his life. The call goes out to come to Wyatt's aid. Jared and Shane leave Sketcher to deal with buying and delivering the prize bulls to the Valeron ranch. Others from the Valeron ranch join the conflict, arriving in Solitary to wait for Jared. The battle with the Strang ranch could pit thirty men against Jared and his handful of men, while Sketcher is risking his life dealing with crooked cops and the leader of a Chicago gang. Covering bets on two fronts, the chances are slim everyone will get out alive!
