The most dangerous man may be the one she just hired.
In 1870, a land war between a railroad and Kansas settlers explodes into violence. Amy Langford, a strong woman who steps into her father's shoes to promote the railroad, becomes the target of attacks. When a ruggedly handsome drifter comes to her rescue, she trusts her instincts and hires him as her bodyguard. Her life is protected, but her heart is not.
Buck O’Connor is a wanted man with a dark past, which he hides from Amy, as well as his purpose for returning to Kansas. A purpose that puts him at odds with his new employer’s ambitions and makes the life she begins to imagine between them impossible. When his deceptions unravel, it threatens to destroy not only Amy’s future, but also her love—the only power on earth that could redeem him.
It's not easy being a strong woman in a man's world...
In Her Bodyguard, the heroine, Amy Langford, steps into her late father's role with a railroad that's racing to construct track to the Kansas border ahead of its rival.
If mysterious threats on her life and rioting settlers aren't bad enough, she has to go toe-to-toe with powerful men who stand in her way. Three of these men also left their mark on history. Read on to find out who they were and what they did.The Railroad Magnate
James Frederick Joy was the president of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy railroads (which included the MFS&G line through Kansas that Amy is promoting).
Earlier in his legal career, Joy hired and worked alongside a young Illinois attorney by the name of Abraham Lincoln. They became lifelong friends.
Mr. Joy developed a talent for financial and executive enterprises and became one of the great railroad builders of his century. In Kansas, however, he met his Waterloo in the form of a settlers' revolt against the railroad's purchase of land they were currently homesteading.
In my novel, the fictionalized Mr. Joy hires Amy, but he becomes skeptical of her unconventional approach to the problems they face. However, his solutions only served to further anger the settlers.
The brilliant engineer
In 1869, the first bridge across the Missouri River opened a flood of westward expansion by rail. Octave Chanute, a self-taught engineer with no formal training, supervised construction on a task that daunted the greatest minds of the time. He forged his own tools, brought in pile drivers, built dredges and derricks in a makeshift machine shop. No wonder Joy put him in charge of the MFS&G.It was hard enough to construct a line being vandalized regularly, but Chanute insisted on building a track that would last, even if it took longer and cost more. It's a decision Amy questions and warns him about in my novel. Ironically, Chanute’s commitment to quality contributed to the railroad's ultimate defeat.
Later in life, Chanute became obsessed with flight. In the 1890s he gathered and published research, designed gliders and gave valuable advice to the Wright brothers. Octave Chanute became an engineering icon and left an indelible mark on history with his achievements. Unfortunately, the success of the MFS&G railroad was not one of them.
The fiery newspaper editor
Amos Sanford, a Kansas politician and newspaper editor, becomes a huge thorn in Amy’s side. In real life, he was a fiery figure on the Kansas prairie who published a newspaper that railed against the railroad’s land policies. Sanford and his followers were so successful at stirring up unrest that the federal government had to send in troops to keep the peace. Shown here is a letter from the Kansas governor denying a Cherokee Country sheriff's request to have federal soldiers removed.
In Her Bodyguard, Amy runs into problems when a rally she plans creates an opportunity for her enemies to make trouble. One of those opposing her is the rabble-rousing newspaper editor.
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