Wayne D. Overholser

Forrest Covington: Dømt til repet«Det er en fair advarsel jeg gir deg, Mitch. Hvis Lillebror ikke er ute av cellen innen solnedgang, kommer vi og henter ham!» Sheriff Troy Mitchell så på de fire rytterne. Bullard-brødrene. Hver av dem farligere enn en klapperslange. Han festet blikket på Sam, den eldste av brødrene, og sa: «Lillebror ble funnet skyldig av en jury, Sam. Og dommeren sa at Lillebror skulle henges i morgen tidlig, og det er akkurat hva jeg har tenkt å gjøre!» Wayne D. Overholser: Dalens kongeHugh ble rundjult, all motstand var nytteløs. «Nok!» ropte Pope. Hearn, som sto i bakgrunnen, lo. «Slå ham ut, gutter.» «Nei, han har fått nok,» gjentok Pope. «Du her bløtaktig, Pope,» sa Hearn. «Du er ferdig her! Ta med deg Hugh ut av dalen, og dere behøver ikke å komme tilbake. «Hugh kommer tilbake,» sa Pope. «Glem ikke det, Vic Hearn!»

Ray Gaulden: I enden av repetRoss Novard ble truet på livet, det var mange som var ute etter skalpen hans. Overalt var han i fare, når som helst kunne han bli offer for en krypskytters kuler. Men ingen skulle fortelle ham hva han skulle gjøre. For sent oppdaget de andre hvem de kunne stole på og hvem som kunne hjelpe dem. På det tidspunktet sto Ross såret og våpenløs, og stirret rett inn i de svarte revolvermunningene …Wayne D. Overholser: 50 000 dollarStormen hadde ødelagt den eneste broen, og passasjerene i diligencen med gullast måtte overnatte i det lille gjestgiveriet. Det var ikke til å unngå at folk fikk vite om gullforsendelsen, og hvem kunne ikke ha god bruk for litt gull? Til alt overmål hadde Britton-brødrene rømt fra fengselet, og de sparte ikke på kulene når det var noe de ville ha. Det ble en blodig natt.

Small ranchers in Harmony Oregon are up against it with the price of cattle down and Skull Ranch, owned by a syndicate, trying to buy them out. Dan Riley spends a month trying to find a bank to help them, but he fails. When the editor of The Clarion is shot, the ranchers blame Black Mike Sand, the manager of Skull, in spite of the circumstances of the shooting. As pressure mounts, Riley is determined to find out who is really in charge of the syndicate, and the only man willing to help him is Andrew Daniels, a former newspaper man whose courage comes from a bottle. Ex-gunman Rod Devers has started up a ranch, but small things going wrong on his land make him think someone might be trying to drive him out. In addition, the $2,000 he borrowed to buy his herd is coming due in a few months, and he refuses to marry his fianc e until he's debt free. His brother George ramrods the Spade, the biggest ranch in the area owned by Karl Hermann, who is on his way to Spade. The two-bit ranchers are convinced Hermann is coming to grab up all the land, and they organize a group of vigilantes, the 99, to protect themselves. When Rod refuses to join the 99 and accepts his brother's offer of a temporary job to protect Hermann and his daughter during their visit, the small ranchers turn against him.

Small ranchers in Harmony Oregon are up against it with the price of cattle down and Skull Ranch, owned by a syndicate, trying to buy them out. Dan Riley spends a month trying to find a bank to help them, but he fails. When the editor of The Clarion is shot, the ranchers blame Black Mike Sand, the manager of Skull, in spite of the circumstances of the shooting. As pressure mounts, Riley is determined to find out who is really in charge of the syndicate, and the only man willing to help him is Andrew Daniels, a former newspaper man whose courage comes from a bottle. Ex-gunman Rod Devers has started up a ranch, but small things going wrong on his land make him think someone might be trying to drive him out. In addition, the $2,000 he borrowed to buy his herd is coming due in a few months, and he refuses to marry his fianc e until he's debt free. His brother George ramrods the Spade, the biggest ranch in the area owned by Karl Hermann, who is on his way to Spade. The two-bit ranchers are convinced Hermann is coming to grab up all the land, and they organize a group of vigilantes, the 99, to protect themselves. When Rod refuses to join the 99 and accepts his brother's offer of a temporary job to protect Hermann and his daughter during their visit, the small ranchers turn against him.

HARD BATTLES Wayne D. Overholser has won legions of fans with a depth of characterization and a range of imagination in frontier fiction, and the two short novels featured in this amazing collection are prime examples of his talent. In Chumley's Gold, young Dan Larsen learns after his mother's death that his father was a bank robber, and may have stashed stolen loot on a ranch he once owned. The ranch can be had cheaply for back taxes--but nothing's that easy. The ranch has been claimed by Dutch Dorfman, who considers himself the law in those parts. And he aims to fight hard to keep it. High Valley is set in the Big Bear Mountains of the Colorado Rockies, where Joe Talbot works as ramrod for the Wagon Wheel spread. But life on the Wagon Wheel is getting rough. The owner died under suspicious circumstances, the owner's widow is prepared to sell out...and outlaws in the valley have just declared all-out war on the ranch.

When Ed Morgan got word that his younger brother, Ben, had been released from prison, he set out to see him immediately, hoping for reconciliation between them. Instead he found his brother near death, with one final request. He made Ed swear to recover fifty thousand dollars that Ben had buried before he was captured and sent to prison. He even drew a crude map to help Ed find the money. But that much money never comes without trouble, as Ed soon found out. At least six other people felt they had a right to that money, too. And they weren't about to give it up without a fight.

Ed Edson: Ri mot vest Vogntoget rullet mot vest, der det var jord nok til alle. Men ukjent land skulle passeres – et område som navajoindianerne kjente, og som den hvite mann nødig beveget seg inn i. Og det ventet andre farer – hvite banditter hadde tilholdssted i dette området. Underveis sluttet en tidligere sheriff seg til vogntoget. Han skulle i høy grad få avgjørende betydning for vogntogets videre skjebne … Wayne D. Overholser: Sviktet, forrådt, forfulgt – Det er en mann som kaller seg Bob Kregg som er kommet hit for å drepe deg. Johnny stanset. – Hvor er han? – Vent litt, Johnny, sa sheriff Joe Veal. – Kregg er en profesjonell revolvermann. Har du noen gang deltatt i en duell? – Nei, men jeg antar at det er på tide.

Steven C. Lawrence: Død eller levende – Det er forbudt å bære revolver i denne byen, sa McQuade høyt. – Hvem pokker er du? utbrøt cowboyen. – Spenn av deg revolverbeltet, beordret McQuade og overhørte den andres spørsmål. – Hold hendene så jeg kan se dem! I det samme skjøv den minste av cowboyene stolen sin bakover og reiste seg. Den høyre hånden hans for som et lyn mot revolverskjeftet. – Du og den fordømte loven din … Wayne D. Overholser: Nådeløse menn I det samme fikk Womack øye på en fyr som sto lent til et gjerde et stykke borte. Det var ikke tvil om at det brygget opp til bråk. – Forsvinn! kommanderte Womack. Han ville ikke ha noen diskusjon. Til svar virvlet de to mennene rundt og grep etter de lavthengende seksløperne sine. Nå gjaldt det liv eller død!