Publisher's Synopsis
"More than a "Western," this timeless story raises the issues of race, personhood and justice which reside deep within the human psyche." (Rose Mary Evans/Donna Lee Graham) The story begins underground, in a mining tunnel at the moment of collapse. Here, with the earth itself caught in a spasm of change, is a metaphor for the necessary and even desperate struggle out from the darkness of our awareness. We follow four main characters that make up a tiny band moving through the imposing dry lands of Utah into the colossal mountains of Colorado, during one of the most barbaric eras in American history. Each are fugitives; two from the law, all from their past. Their odyssey takes us into the deepest challenge known to the natural world: survival. Edgeton, Pine City and Delrico are among the towns where the "West" had its beginnings. The completion of the railroad was the final link to the East, transporting the likes of Molly LaBrines Traveling Show and bringing an end to the Butterfly Express Stagecoach. On their way to Delrico, for an Amnesty hearing in court, the caravan of four encounter a series of memorable characters. They provide a welcomed, balancing relief from the breathless pace of the story's often-violent action. These are the same people we have met in and out of real life and fiction. They bring us to remember who we came from, what we have done and where we need to be. They teach us that man is the only animal that kills "for the killing's sake." Back in 1877, when the Railroad was determined to crisscross the country, Cattlemen and the Logging Industry were first married to Politics, Natives were being rounded up or obliterated at a devastating rate..."man's" barbarous behavior was at an all-time high. It was the epitome of "Dog eat Dog" and "do onto others before they do onto you." This story follows the life of two brothers on the run for murders which are improbably in self-defense...yet admittedly drenched in revenge. On their journey to prove the manipulation of Justice, they offer themselves as caregivers to a lone injured Black man, mistakenly and relentlessly being hunted by Texas Rangers. Together, the twists and turns along their travels make each Chapter a story all its own. From town to town, while caught in the crossfire of greed and corruption, we are greeted by the heart-full nature of humankind...while returning us to a dark knowing that continues to expose the naked truth of the human-being.
