Hayes Carson's brother had been the only family he had left in the world. Hayes, a long, tall and serious Texan sheriff, has long been suspicious of the blond-haired, bright eyed Minette Raynor, who is both mysterious and beautiful. And now he's convinced that Minette was involved in giving his brother the drugs that killed him. As far as Hayes is concerened, neither her looks nor anything else will stand in the way of him righting what went so very...

Interviewing an alcoholic Native American who witnessed a murder along the Texas-Mexican border, Sheriff Hackberry Holland and his deputy, Pam Tibbs, recognize the work of serial killer Preacher Jack Collins in an investigation that is assisted by the enigmatic Anton Ling.

Eager to escape his problematic past, Hackberry Holland acquires the sheriff's position in a rundown Texas border town. When authorities discover nine dead prostitutes buried in the desert, Hack must work with both Texas and Mexico, as well as face down hired gunmen, crooked strip club owners, and dubious drug lords, to solve the case.