JOHNSTONE COUNTRY. RUSTLERS' PARADISE.

At first, the job sounds easy: lead a small herd of horses across the Arkansas-Texas border to the Double-D ranch near Texarkana. No problem--at least not for a man like Perley Gates. In fact, he's looking forward to the 150-mile journey with his old sidekick Possum Smith and young Sonny Rice, and doesn't expect any trouble along the way. Unfortunately, trouble has a way of finding Perley Gates. This time, it's a trigger-happy trio of horse thieves who take one look at old Possum, young Sonny, and the low-key Perley, and decide they're three very easy targets. But in the Old West, nothing comes easy. Except death...

So begins one hell of a showdown. On one side are the forces of evil itself, with notorious gunslinger Spade Devlin gunning for blood. On the other side are a few good men, a town under siege--and a merciless angel of vengeance named Perley Gates...

Being the all-around assistant, typist, researcher, and fact checker to one of the most popular western authors of all time, J.A. Johnstone learned from the master, Uncle William W. Johnstone.

He began tutoring J.A. at an early age. After-school hours were often spent retyping manuscripts or researching his massive American Western history library as well as the more modern wars and conflicts. J.A. worked hard--and learned.

Every day with Bill was an adventure story in itself. Bill taught me all he could about the art of storytelling. 'Keep the historical facts accurate, ' he would say. 'Remember the readers, and as your grandfather once told me, I am telling you now: be the best J.A. Johnstone you can be.'