Which eccentric cowboy in Stockton County branded Evan Sting on Shotner Hill, murdering the young man? This is what private eye Joe Boxford asks himself when he's hired by Evan's father Benny to find the murderer. Joe needs some help, and enlists the services of Tal Linear, owner of The Linear Bar. But sparks begin to fly between the two. As romance heats up between them, they attempt to solve the branding crime. As the suspects start to pile up and weird relationships unfold in West Stockton, Joe and Tal begin to unravel a heinous crime. That is, until Tal vanishes and Joe thinks his sleuth buddy is going to be the killer's next victim. Does Joe have the skills needed to be a hero and save Tal from the killer's secret agenda and solve the crime? Or will Joe fall flat on his face and lose his reputation as a private investigator as well as his new lover, Tal Linear?

Stockton County Cowboys Book

Tal brought a Styrofoam cup of coffee and ruby-colored paper folder into my office instead of a bottle of whiskey, which he had access to and would have shared with me had I not been an alcoholic. The desire to have a morning drink had never seized. My taste buds and mental state craved nothing less. Perhaps that’s exactly how my mother felt each and every morning after a night of hardcore binging.


“I came prepared,” Tal said, and sat where Maddy Shore and Benny Sting had sat only minutes before. He took a sip of his coffee, opened the paper file in front of him, and said, “I’m not a professional case cracker like you, Joe, but I think we should start questioning people close to Evan Sting.”


Chapter 9