Release Day

 

 A marker is called in.

 

 

Brandon comes home from a trail drive to find his wife on her way to Mexico to help the mission folk that took her in. Putting herself in danger. Crossing perilous terrain, where not only the weather kills, but Comancheros and bandoleros as well. He climbs back into the saddle and heads out after her. Both of them now embarked on separate journeys that involves killers, flooded arroyos and narrow divides where one misstep means a plunge to certain death. And, if that’s not enough to challenge them, at journey’s end they’ll face the most dangerous situation of all.

“This book contains plenty of grit and gunfire, but no graphic violence or explicit scenes.”

Excerpt: 

July, 1874

 

The sun hit a blood-red horizon and shot upward in a crown of tangerine brilliance, hurting the eyes, lighting the trail from the top of the canyon to the ranch house like a beacon thrown across the sea.

The early July morning a warm one.

Dust rose as a horse trotted up. Jonas, a young cowhand, reined in his sorrel gelding beside the woman who stood on the veranda. “Rider coming.”

“Is it Brandon?” Hand over her eyes, Alexandria O’Malley Wade strained to make out the narrow trail at the top of the foothill that her husband and their men would come galloping over when they returned from the trail drive. Her tan split-skirt rustled as she leaned against the smooth white-painted railing, trying to get a better view.

Jonas pushed up in his stirrups. Worn leather boots peeping from canvas chaps. “Can’t tell.”

The speck at the top of the canyon grew as it came tumbling down the trail. Her heart thumped and her breath lodged in her throat. Her fingers tingled, her excitement rose.

The speck shifted into a rider.

Anticipation heightened.

Then shriveled. It wasn’t her husband.

The horse was a pinto not the big roan Brandon rode. And even from this distance, she’d know her husband with every fiber of her being.

She heaved a deep breath and waited.

As the rider trotted closer, she slid her hand to the worn wooden handle of her 4.75-inch barrel, single-action, six-cylinder Peacemaker.

Jonas did the same.

She frowned. The pinto looked familiar, but it wasn’t one of theirs.  And instead of a cowboy hat and chaps, the rider wore a sombrero along with a brightly-colored poncho.

Spying her, he yanked the sombrero off his head and waved it.

She recognized the rider and the horse at the same time. Her breath caught then whished out on a mile-wide smile.

“It’s okay, Jonas. I know him.”

Now sure there was no trouble brewing, he nodded, raised his hand to the approaching rider, and putting heels to his horse’s ribs, galloped off.

“Manuel.” She jumped off the porch and ran toward the boy who’d went in search of Brandon when she’d holed up at the mission awaiting the birth of the twins.

He leaped off his horse and grabbed her in a bearhug.

The term boy no longer applied. He was muscled and lean. A man.  A young man, but still a man.

“What are you doing here? Is your family well? Sisters Sarah and Marie? Father Jon?” The questions tumbled over each other.

The smile on his face fell away.

Something was wrong. Dreadfully wrong. Stomach knotting, she took a step back and waited, dread seeping through her pores.

 

What people are saying: 

"Silverhills Rescue (2026) is another Sandra Cox Classic Western filled with action, intrigue, great characters, and excitement." Jacqui Murray, author 

"This well-written  western was hard to put down and I highly recommend it." D.L. Finn, author

“Silverhills’ Rescue is Sandra Cox at her best.” D.K. Deters, author

 

Book 3 of the Silverhills' Saga available at Amazon 

 

Two Bits and a Buzzard Dollar ~ D.K. Deters

 As a writer with an interest in historical coins, I’ve always enjoyed the stories behind them. Since my work in progress (WIP) is set in 1881, I’m excited to share some intriguing trivia from the 19^th century about the Seated Liberty quarter and the Morgan silver dollar.

You’ve probably read a Western scene that goes something like this:

“What do I owe ya?” The gunslinger reached into his pocket.

“That’ll be two bits,” the barber said.

But what’s the story behind this simple phrase? The term “two bits” originated from cutting a Spanish silver dollar into eight equal parts called “bits” to make smaller change. So, when the barber in the scene asks for two bits, he’s referring to a quarter.

You’ll still hear this colloquial expression today. My dad used it often, but it didn’t make sense until I delved into its historical context many years later.

By the way, a short bit is a dime. The short bit is less than a bit, which is 12 ½ cents.

To put this in perspective, the 1873 purchasing power of $0.25 is about $6.62 today, according to the CPI Inflation Calculator.

Image credit: National Numismatic Collection, National Museum of American History

Items folks might buy with a quarter from the 1870 Catalogue of Goods:

Sugar per pound    $0.10                    Flour per pound               $0.04

Rice per pound      $0.05                   Coffee per pound              $0.12

Butter per pound   $0.15                    Molasses gallon               $0.15

Personally, I think the Morgan silver dollar is the prettiest coin of all time, but I digress.

George T. Morgan designed the Morgan silver dollar. Lady Liberty is on the obverse. It’s interesting to note that the model, Anna Willess Williams, was a Philadelphia school teacher and philosophical writer. Although she’s given credit for being the model, some speculation remains. Read more about her at:

http://www.acoincollection.com/anna-willess-williams-the-silver-dollar-girl/.

On the reverse, you’ll see a thin eagle with outstretched wings. Many cowboys thought the eagle looked “scrawny” and called it the buzzard dollar. I’ll be using the phrase “buzzard dollar” in my WIP.

The 1887 purchasing power of $1.00 is a whopping $33.22 today, according to the CPI Inflation Calculator.

Here are other items folks might buy from the 1870 Catalogue of Goods:

1 silk parasol                        $1.00

1 lantern                                $1.00

7 yards blue denim               $1.00

6 pairs men’s cotton socks   $1.00

6 pairs Army wool socks      $1.00

3 yards plain cashmere         $1.00

We could only hope to buy three yards of cashmere for $1.00 today.

New Release: SHERIFF TYREE, second in the Keeper series

 

Blurb:

Keeper Tyree has a reputation of being the toughest, most fearsome bounty hunter in Kansas. Now he’s sheriff of El Dorado.

 

Description:

There’s a new sheriff in town.

Instead of chasing bounties all over the state, Keeper Tyree has taken the job of sheriff of El Dorado.

Everything is going well. He’s tamed the town and now he doesn’t have to knock more than a few heads together a day, and has no more than one or two occupants in the calaboose at a time. Then a stranger comes to town. A stranger bent on vengeance and the man he wants to bring down is Keeper.

Mitchell Jordan holds Keeper personally responsible for his daddy being hung. He believes in an eye for an eye and he’s out to even the score. A family member for a family member.

Keeper is fearless, except where his loved ones are concerned. They’re his one weakness and there’s nothing he won’t do to keep them safe. No matter which side of the law he has to come down on. There’s no right or wrong, there’s just taking care of his own. And now they’ve been threatened.

Jordan leads Keeper out of El Dorado down a winding trail of danger and deceit, and that trail won’t end till one of them is lying boots up six feet under.

Keeper surely does enjoy a good cup of coffee.

 

Dora, one of Maybell’s girls, is always flirting with him, but he only has eyes for his new bride.

 

When Keeper married Cathleen, he had the exact same ring he gave her made for her young daughter so Aislinn would know there was room in his heart for her too.

 

Bio:

Sandra, who writes as both Sandra Cox and S. Cox, is an animal lover and avid gardener. She spent a number of years in the Midwest chasing down good Southern BBQ. By the time she moved to North Carolina where Southern BBQ is practically a staple, she’d become a vegetarian.

She and her husband are ruled by a dog and several cats. An award-winning author, her stories consist of all things Western and more.

Sandra can be found at http://www.sandracoxwriter.com

OR http://www.cowboytrivia.blogspot.com

OR https://sandracox.blogspot.com 

 

Buy Link:

https://www.amazon.com/Sheriff-Tyree-Keeper-Book-2-ebook/dp/B0CN3S271W