Preface
The blazing red sun beat down on an empty desert. A lone horse and rider came into view, both showing signs of a long, hard ride. They came out of a large, dark canyon that opened its mouth at the edge of the desert just on the fringe of the mountains. It was dusk, the man felt alone. Suddenly his horse perked up his ears.
"What's the matter, fella?" A man who rides alone learns to trust the instincts of his horse more than his own. He knew someone was nearby.
Then he heard the whisper of leather on rock. Most men would miss it all together, but living out in the west tends to sharpen a man's ears. He knew exactly what had made that sound. But before he could so much as turn his head he felt a dull pain in his back even before he heard the report of the shotgun. The horse reared and he fought desperately to stay in the saddle. There was another shot and he cried out in agony as the bullet made a burning furrow through his upper arm. He couldn't hold onto his horse. He started to slide, down, down; and then, he knew no more.
It had been three months since the ambush of Wilder Right. In that time Riley Conners had come to town, Blacky and Red Mohawk had left the town, and Leo L'mond had finally been able to pull himself back together and reopen the Salt Lick.
Riley had come to learn all he could about the circumstances of the ambush. For the three months he'd spent there, he'd worked as a cowhand for Joel Diamond, the richest rancher in the territory. He'd never gone to town much. No one knew him that well, not even Joel, but he'd made it a point to know everyone else. When he left no one noticed.
The outlaws, Blacky and Red, had been spending more time than usual in the town of Salt Canyon, and nobody was sad when one day, they just disappeared.
Leo L'mond had been acting very strange lately, but then all of a sudden a big burden seemed to have been lifted from his shoulders.
Riley had watched all this with a keen eye, and had finally decided he needed to go back and get his friend. He had a hunch he was going to need some help. He'd been following his hunches for years now and they usually paid off.
The blazing red sun beat down on an empty desert. A lone horse and rider came into view, both showing signs of a long, hard ride. They came out of a large, dark canyon that opened its mouth at the edge of the desert just on the fringe of the mountains. It was dusk, the man felt alone. Suddenly his horse perked up his ears.
"What's the matter, fella?" A man who rides alone learns to trust the instincts of his horse more than his own. He knew someone was nearby.
Then he heard the whisper of leather on rock. Most men would miss it all together, but living out in the west tends to sharpen a man's ears. He knew exactly what had made that sound. But before he could so much as turn his head he felt a dull pain in his back even before he heard the report of the shotgun. The horse reared and he fought desperately to stay in the saddle. There was another shot and he cried out in agony as the bullet made a burning furrow through his upper arm. He couldn't hold onto his horse. He started to slide, down, down; and then, he knew no more.
It had been three months since the ambush of Wilder Right. In that time Riley Conners had come to town, Blacky and Red Mohawk had left the town, and Leo L'mond had finally been able to pull himself back together and reopen the Salt Lick.
Riley had come to learn all he could about the circumstances of the ambush. For the three months he'd spent there, he'd worked as a cowhand for Joel Diamond, the richest rancher in the territory. He'd never gone to town much. No one knew him that well, not even Joel, but he'd made it a point to know everyone else. When he left no one noticed.
The outlaws, Blacky and Red, had been spending more time than usual in the town of Salt Canyon, and nobody was sad when one day, they just disappeared.
Leo L'mond had been acting very strange lately, but then all of a sudden a big burden seemed to have been lifted from his shoulders.
Riley had watched all this with a keen eye, and had finally decided he needed to go back and get his friend. He had a hunch he was going to need some help. He'd been following his hunches for years now and they usually paid off.
