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

“Easy now!” he said. “If y’all want a wedding, you might wanna wait till we actually have the thing.”


Smiling so hard her cheeks hurt, Violet stood, helping Mei to her feet. “Oh, this is for you, too.” Violet took the small package and put it in Mei’s hand.


“That bride we saw had her hair all fancy like. Figured you’d want to do the same. So I got a few things.”


Again, Mei laughed. She constantly wiped away the tears on her cheeks, though there always seemed to be more. “Well…S’pose we should get dressed, shouldn’t we?” With that, Violet scooped up the last package, and she and Mei went inside the boarding house. Ms. Gina certainly noticed their fresh twitter, but had the good sense to merely smile from the counter and leave them to their devices.


Chapter 171