Red trail / a Ralph Compton western by John Shirley.

An outbreak of hostilities with Apaches and Comanches has disrupted the usual trail routes. But Mace Durst must get his cows from his Texas ranch to the railway up in Wichita, Kansas, or face losing his land, which the bank is fixing to foreclose on. He's forced to take his herd on a little-used route called the Red Trail little used for good reasons. It's a tough trek: dangerous, narrow, and fraught with banditry. Along the way, Durst and his men face numerous obstacles thrown up by Mother Nature, cattle rustlers and crooked lawmen. But even their safe arrival in Wichita will offer no relief if he can't make it home in time to save his ranch from the bank and his wife from the predations of their rapacious neighbour. . .