Stan kills murderer Jim Topper in a brutal knife fight. Severely wounded, he’s nursed back to health by Beaver Joe’s tribe. He confronts Topper’s father, who eventually accepts the truth about his son’s crimes.
Stan becomes an investor, partners with Hughes Bank, and meets Emma Jackson. After a romantic affair, he learns she was married to Dick Everett (whom Stan killed) and is now married to Judge Jackson. He ends the relationship.
In New York, he and Betsy had split. Depressed, Stan left the city. On return, his brother and sister-in-law bring him on a weekend retreat. Stan falls for a lovely young woman who takes advantage of him, Stannis teaches her the fine art of reprisals when treating him as a fool.
Stan confronts Pastor John Mitchell (alias Rupert Krieger), a rapist and torturer. After a sword duel, Stan amputates his arm and leaves him to die slowly in Devil’s Canyon. The skeleton is later found, and the area is named after the event.
Stannis witnesses an elk hunt, admires tribal customs, and saves Beaver Joe from a mountain lion. He deepens his bond with the tribe and trains One-Foot Goose in horse gentling. The Arapaho eventually migrate to Canada due to settler persecution.
This is a series of five free Western short stories to introduce readers to the Western books of Andrea Smutz. The stories are distributed in a serial fashion. Finish one story and download the next.
When Stannis Hopefield rides into the high country seeking peace beneath the stars, he never expects to find a frightened, starving boy hidden in the mist.
When Stannis Hopefield rides into the high country seeking peace beneath the stars, he never expects to find a frightened, starving boy hidden in the mist.
Discover the Legend. Live the Journey. Women adored him. Men admired him. Criminals feared him.
Stannis Hopefield was a banker’s son—until his wife was murdered and his world shattered. Now, he’s a vigilante, tracking outlaws across the American West with a Colt on his hip and retribution in his heart.
