Ballard and McCall

One of them came to Gunner's Creek at the end of a long search.The other had simply drifted into the town.Fate drew them together. Two Texans who found a town in trouble, and being who they were, had to throw in their hands to helpChet Ballard and Jess McCall.Texicans down to the tips of their boots. Big men with hard fists and fast guns, who saw trouble and refused to back away from it.This is the long "lost" novel by best-selling Western writer Neil Hunter, now available for the very first time. Neil Hunter is, in fact, the prolific Lancashire-born writer Michael R. Linaker. As Neil Hunter, Mike wrote two classic western series, BODIE THE STALKER and JASON BRAND. Under the name Richard Wyler he produced four stand-alone westerns, INCIDENT AT BUTLER'S STATION, THE SAVAGE JOURNEY, BRIGHAM'S WAY and TRAVIS. From Neil Hunter comes a new western series.

Ballard and McCall were in Texas, working for Henry Conway, an old friend of Ballard's, on Conway's Lazy-C. But trouble was brewing as Yancey Merrick, owner of the big Diamond-M, kept pushing to expand his empire. Then Harry Conway, Henry's son, was run through the brasada thicket before being shot in the back and killed.Determined to find the guilty party, Ballard and McCall suddenly found themselves deep in a developing range war.Yancey Merrick might have had the advantage of superior numbers, but he couldn't reckon on the fighting fury of Ballard and McCall as they cut down the odds, exposed the scheme behind Merrick's long term plans, and caused it to literally blow up in his face. Neil Hunter is, in fact, the prolific Lancashire-born writer Michael R. Linaker. As Neil Hunter, Mike wrote two classic western series, BODIE THE STALKER and JASON BRAND. Under the name Richard Wyler he produced four stand-alone westerns, INCIDENT AT BUTLER'S STATION, THE SAVAGE JOURNEY, BRIGHAM'S WAY and TRAVIS. From Neil Hunter comes a new western series.

He rode in as an innocent man – until they branded him a killer. Then they hounded him until he had nowhere left to run…But they made one mistake. They didn't kill Jess McCall when they had the chance, and when he got mad enough he decided it was time to turn the game around…The big Texan had been beaten and shot at and called murderer. Now he was going to his pursuers the error of their ways. Now McCall was on a hunt of his own… Neil Hunter is, in fact, the prolific Lancashire-born writer Michael R. Linaker. As Neil Hunter, Mike wrote two classic western series, BODIE THE STALKER and JASON BRAND. Under the name Richard Wyler he produced four stand-alone westerns, INCIDENT AT BUTLER'S STATION, THE SAVAGE JOURNEY, BRIGHAM'S WAY and TRAVIS. From Neil Hunter comes a new western series.

When Chet Ballard visits an old friend, Ben Colter, in New Mexico, he finds Colter's ranch burned to the ground, Ben and his wife Rachel missing, and the Apache who worked for Colter badly wounded. It turns out that whoever hit the ranch did so in order to kidnap Rachel. But why?While McCall goes in search of Colter, Ballard finds his own trail being dogged by vicious bounty hunters and an Apache on a blood hunt.Along the way Colter begins to understand why his wife has been taken. It also reveals the desire of a ghost from the past to get his hands on a treasure that has lain hidden for years – a cache that only Ben Colter knows how to locate.As all the different characters make their desperate attempts to gain what they seek, Ballard and McCall can only help Ben locate and save his missing wife in the bullet-riddled finale of Colter's Quest. Neil Hunter is, in fact, the prolific Lancashire-born writer Michael R. Linaker. As Neil Hunter, Mike wrote two classic western series, BODIE THE STALKER and JASON BRAND. Under the name Richard Wyler he produced four stand-alone westerns, INCIDENT AT BUTLER'S STATION, THE SAVAGE JOURNEY, BRIGHAM'S WAY and TRAVIS. From Neil Hunter comes a new western series.

On their way home from the funeral of a friend, Ballard and McCall unwittingly cross Circle-B range and find themselves mistaken for rustlers. Tensions are high and McCall is forced to defend himself when a pair of zealous cowhands bring their guns into play. One man ends up dead and another is wounded. McCall takes a bullet in the side. The Texans ride in to the local town, Jericho, to report the incident to the law. Before they know it, however, Ballard and McCall are caught up in the local problems led by Celestine Blanchard, owner of the Circle-B, her treacherous, wayward son Orrin and the underhand trickery that results in more gunplay and violence.The Texans take more than their share of hard treatment before a bullet ridden showdown brings peace to Circle-B and the streets of Jericho – with its own personal tragedy. Neil Hunter is, in fact, the prolific Lancashire-born writer Michael R. Linaker. As Neil Hunter, Mike wrote two classic western series, BODIE THE STALKER and JASON BRAND. Under the name Richard Wyler he produced four stand-alone westerns, INCIDENT AT BUTLER'S STATION, THE SAVAGE JOURNEY, BRIGHAM'S WAY and TRAVIS. From Neil Hunter comes a new western series.

Jess McCall was under threat from an unknown enemy. Then he had to face a shootout with a man he didn't know. Even then there's no peace, when he's lured into a confrontation with hired guns. Only by using his own gun-skill does he stay alive, though severely wounded.Making it back to town, with his wounds showing infection, it suddenly falls to his partner, Chet Ballard, to step in to face the still existing threat.Through his dogged persistence, Ballard starts to unravel the mystery behind the attempts on his friend's life, and learns that they're facing the desperate efforts of a man from McCall's past who wants nothing less than McCall's death as a way of hiding the truth of his near forgotten crime. Neil Hunter is, in fact, the prolific Lancashire-born writer Michael R. Linaker. As Neil Hunter, Mike wrote two classic western series, BODIE THE STALKER and JASON BRAND. Under the name Richard Wyler he produced four stand-alone westerns, INCIDENT AT BUTLER'S STATION, THE SAVAGE JOURNEY, BRIGHAM'S WAY and TRAVIS. From Neil Hunter comes a new western series.