"Black Knife"
Doctor Jacobi is a Confederate trained battlefield surgeon. Now, he practices medicine by travelling between out of the way towns. He hangs his shingle in Jamison Township but travels bi-weekly to the towns of Baron and Garrison Creek.
He travels with his trusty Appaloosa, named Bell. She is his source of emotional saneness and safety as he talks with her of their adventures, issues, and problems, and it seems Bell understands.
While the Doc and Bell make their way toward Baron Township, they confront two strangers who claim to have fought off an Indian war party. After the Doc directs them to Jamison, he finds a wounded Indian and must remove his arm to save him. The next day, he brings the Indian to his office in Baron.
The Doc learns from a bartender that two strange men killed a friend and an Indian squaw, during a robbery. The Doc realizes the two he encountered are responsible and that they have gone to Jamison.
In Baron, a saloon prostitute named Billy helps bring the Indian up to the Doc’s place. She is a classy woman from New Orleans, travelling across country but out of funds. She has taken to prostitution for money to continue her travels.
The district Marshall named Garvey also travels like the Doc, visiting several towns and outposts within his territory. Garvey is a rough drunkard bully, who is partial to Billy and dislikes other men around her. He especially dislikes the Doc believing he is discreetly meeting with her.
The town drunk, an old harmless Indian, sees Billy and the Doc bring the injured Indian upstairs to the doc’s office. He informs members of his tribe who are looking for the two men who killed the squaw. They come after the injured Indian. They learn the Doc knows where the two killers are and demand he take them to the two white men who killed the chief’s wife. The Doc hesitates until they threaten to kill Billy if he refuses; he reluctantly goes with them to Jamison.
The Doc finds the two men at a diner. When confronted, he kills one; the other is captured and taken to the waiting Indians. As they lead the man away, the Marshal joins the Doc. They hear the screams of the man as the Indians torture him.
Garvey tells the Doc he earned the reward for the two men. After the Doc brings Bell to the Livery to rest and feed, they discuss plans to wait for the reward money and give it to Billy so she can continue her travels.
Henry P. Gravelle is the creator of the Buddy Sands Cases, Ten Wide, The Sketcher and The Closet of Lucy Pang, where the adventures of medically retired Boston police detective, Kevin “Buddy” Sands bring him into the world of criminals and creatures.
Also the series of Doc Jacobi and his horse, Bell; a western series beginning with Black Knife. He has also penned The Bamboo Heart, Pug, The Fort Providence Watch, The Banshee and Apple Hill along with two short story collections, Ollie-Ollie Oxen Free and Epitaph.
He is screenwriter for the short films, Cream, two sugars, El Paso and Chum, as well as co-writer for the feature films Gunner’s Rift and The Igloo Boys, both adapted from his novellas of the same names. The novellas Hobo and Bogieville were optioned for film as well.
Henry has been cast in the films Johnny Taw, Little Boy Blue, Cream-two sugars and El Paso, as well as a feature character in the trailer for Final Hours, a feature film in pre-production for Story Street Productions.
As a Playwright Henry’s short plays, The Last of the Meagans and Chum, were presented at the prestigious Sundance sponsored First Stage Playwrights festival in Hollywood, California. Double Walker received an Honorable Mention, and reading, at the Camino Real Playhouse, San Juan Capistrano, California. He is currently in pre-production with The Ten-Cent Tour, a showcase of six skits within one play.
His stories have appeared in numerous print and Ezine publications. He attended Northeastern University in Boston and currently resides along the south shore of Massachusetts.
www.henrygravelle.com
"24 Hours To Kill"
“24 Hours To Kill” is a tale set in the murky underworld of Darren Sant’s “Longcroft” series. Taking characters from “A Good Day”, “Community Spirit” and “Rowan’s Folly”, it weaves them into a dark and sparkling tale set against the backdrop of the Longcroft’s less salubrious locations.
Mark Temple considers himself the king of his world. His criminal enterprises have provided him with wealth, influence and power. On the Longcroft estate people respect and fear him in equal measure. Davey Cullen sees himself as something of a player on the Longcroft estate as well, an up-and-comer amongst Mark Temple’s group of underlings. However when they decide to double-cross a Russian drug dealer they reap the wind of vengeance in the deadly yet attractive form of Cassandra Vincent.
Praise for The Longcroft Estate series:
“Nicely done!” – Craig Douglas
“A great character piece!” – Mark Millar
“Bittersweet Brit Grit!” – Paul D. Brazil
“You never expect the Spanish Inquisition!” – Mark Cooper
Mark Cooper is a 37 year old civil servant, father of three and life-long lover of the strange and bizarre. When he isn’t trying to understand the greater mysteries of the universe or how to synch his iPod to his laptop he can be found in various comic book stores in the central regions of England spending money his wife doesn’t know about.
"Small World Protection Agency-Volume 3- Bulls and Burglars"
Star athlete Josh and computer prodigy Madison are recruited by the mysterious Mr. Crux to attend a special summer camp. The two elementary school kids then begin the adventure of a lifetime. They discover that the Small World Global Protection Agency is a network of talented and skilled children in countries all over the world. Their mission is to help other kids and save the day when adults can’t.
In Case File: 002-A, Bulls and Burglars, Josh and Madison are sent to Spain to investigate the world’s most notorious cat burglar, La Pantera. There, they team up with Special Agents Devante and Drina, brother and sister twins, to investigate a seaside castle.
The Small World Global Protection Agency is an adventure serial aimed at third through fifth grade readers. Each volume will take Josh and Madison to a different country. The stories will be entertaining, sometimes suspenseful, sometimes humorous. Each story will introduce facts about other countries and cultures, educating the reader through the eyes of children their own age while having fun.
Mark currently resides in Florida with his family. He strives to follow in the footsteps of his namesake, Mark Twain.
His father was a newspaper writer and editor for both the Kansas City Star and Kansan. Mark received his Bachelor’s Degree in Film from the University of Kansas. He has been influenced by great stories from C.S. Lewis, and Tolkien and Star Wars.
Mark is the author of The Empyrical Tales. Book I: The Fourth Queen and Book II: The Lost Queen are available now. Book III: The Secret Queen is coming Spring 2012. Mark is also the creator of the spiritual eBook series “Mark Miller’s One”. The first story, “Meant To Be”, tells how he met his wife.
Mark believes being a father of four makes him uniquely qualified to write his stories. He also has spent time in the classroom with third, fourth and fifth graders.
