Murder at the Mercantile

When a respected shopkeeper is found dead behind his own counter, the town of Red Bluff is left reeling.The mercantile was the heart of the settlement - a place where ranchers traded coin, travelers swapped stories, and trouble was kept outside the door. But now the door stands open… and the blood has dried on the floorboards.Four men were inside that morning.A drifting cowboy with dust on his boots.A smiling ranch hand with a quick temper.A quiet gunman who says little and watches everything.And a newcomer carrying secrets heavier than his saddle bags.With no marshal in town and suspicion spreading like wildfire, it falls to one reluctant man to uncover the truth before another body drops.In the Old West, justice doesn't always wear a badge.Sometimes it stands at the counter… waiting. Wyatt Slade writes Westerns where mercy is scarce and survival is earned.His stories are stripped down, fast, and unforgiving - built for readers who like their heroes hard and their endings harder.