Ruth Hanson

America, 1887. In a country healing from the horrors of the Civil War, the American West has never been more treacherous. Evil men do as they please, and the often faulty and corrupt justice system does little to nothing to help their victims. Enter the Railwalkers. Bandits whose only goal is to punish those whom the law has allowed to walk free. Some think they're an 28 legend, meant to scare would-be criminals into submission. Some see them as no different than the murderers they kill, while to others, they are angels of mercy. To Violet Donovan, they are family. Growing up as the sole heiress to the sizable Donovan estate, Violet's place of privilege allowed her wild spirit to flourish. Despite the pressures of her sex -- find a husband, stay pretty, have children, be subservient, don't speak out of line -- Violet is passionate, loud, stubborn, and untamed. However, at the ripe, marriageable age of twenty, Violet faces the fact that she may have to give in to her mother's wishes and marry mean, ugly Eustace Carpenter, the only other family name in their little town with comparable worth. But Violet's life changes forever when she is saved from an attacker by a strange woman. A woman who, like Violet, doesn't exactly fit the mold. Unfortunately Violet gets mixed up in a murder charge and has to leave everything she knows for a life on the run from the law. Through divine intervention, she and the woman cross paths again, and Violet comes to know her and her comrades. They are Mei Wong, Linus Cooper, Sitting Bear, and Rory McNab. The infamous Railwalker gang.

The Railwalkers

“Linus?” An unfamiliar voice caught their attention. A man, in his early thirties, stood at the counter, purchasing syrups. He was tall and lanky, with big, bushy chops on either side of his face. His spectacles, smaller than Linus’s, sat pinched on the top of his beaky nose. His clothes were well made, but hardly flashy. He smiled, revealing a sizable gap between his two front teeth. “Well, it is a Merry Christmas after all.”


Linus approached the man and gave him a hearty embrace. “Victor! Good to see you, friend.”


“Oh, as well as ever, I’m happy to report. I saw her just last Tuesday. Still fit as a fiddle.”


Violet approached, but politely remained silent, though not for long. Linus perked up. “Oh, Victor, this is Violet. Met her this past spring, brought her along with us. Vi, this here’s Dr. Victor Fredrickson.”


Violet smiled coyly. “Not ‘Frankenstein’?”


Chapter 148