MALACHITE WAS BORN ON SILVER. IT’S ABOUT TO DROWN IN BLOOD.

When he signs on as the lone deputy of Malachite, Arizona, the Regulator agrees to keep the peace… no easy task when two warlords are fixing to fight for control of the boomtown’s saloons, gambling houses, and brothels. But Knox has a secret mandate: judge the two men, decide which is the lesser evil, and tip the scales in his favor. He has thirty days to do it.

Right now, Malachite is strangely peaceful. Both warlords are on their best behavior, and for the same reason: Esperanza O’Hannigan. Wild, wealthy, and unpredictable, Esperanza is known as the Queen of Malachite. Both warlords are courting her. Folks reckon whichever man wins her hand will become its king.

Neither warlord wants to scare her off by starting a war. Meanwhile, Knox can’t afford to wait for one. So he starts one himself. He rattles cages. Pushes dangerous men. Forces enemies into the open. And before long, every hired killer in Malachite wants the lone deputy dead.

But as bodies begin to fall, Knox realizes he’s made one dangerous mistake. He thought he knew who was fighting for control of Malachite. He was wrong.

Knox came to tip the scales. Now he may have to smash them.

THE LONE DEPUTY is another classic John Deacon Western with a touch of romance.

“John Deacon writes the kind of Westerns I like to read—gritty and fun with lots of heart.”—Don Bentley, New York Times Bestselling author of the Matt Drake thrillers; the Tom Clancy Jack Ryan, Jr. novels; and the Vince Flynn Mitch Rapp series