They came from the sea, a former ship captain named Owen Bird who inherited a Texas ranch from his brother. A former pirate named "Black Terrance" Malone, who has arrrived in the once peaceful Rattlesnake Valley with a crew of sea dogs to do his dirty work. And dirty work it will be, as Black Terrance begins a campaign of thieving and threatening, even targeting Bird's beautiful young niece. Into this storm rides the Loner, Conrad Morgan, son of the legendary gunfighter Frank Morgan. The Loner sees what no one else does, a war born on the high seas and a third party is biding his time, waiting to strike a death blow on solid, bloody ground.

The Loner

by J. A. Johnstone

Published 1 January 2009
With his wife's killers dead and buried, Conrad Morgan, known as The Loner, is on his way to Mexico for some peace and quiet. But on the way he's sidetracked by some intriguing travelers who are hunting down a valuable golden artifact. They're not the only ones who want to get a hold of the treasure. A running gun battle with some killers lands The Loner and his cohorts in the Jornada del Muerto, a hellish, waterless wasteland in New Mexico Territory. And now it's up to The Loner to get himself and his new friends out of this arid stretch of land before they perish from thirst, or lead poisoning.