While I was researching for LAKOTA HONOR I needed to know how a coal mine operated back in the 1800’s. I came across some pretty interesting stuff, and being an avid researcher with a love for any kind of history, I obtained more information than I needed. Here is what I learned.
The mines back in the 1800’s were not built
like they are today. In fact most of the smaller mines back then didn’t have
tunnels leading into the mine, but a shaft instead. The shaft was a hole blown
into the mountain that went straight down. These were deep and dangerous pits
that could be a challenge lowering men in and out of the mine. An ore bucket
was crafted and used to haul men, equipment and coal in and out of the
mine. Large enough to carry more than
one person, the bucket could conveniently carry two more miners if they stood
on the rim and held onto the rope. With the hole in most shafts only a little
wider than the ore bucket itself you could imagine how scary it would be riding
down on one of them.
The picture with the miners in the bucket was taken in 1895 at the Hubert Mine in Nevadaville, Colorado
Bestselling Western Romance
author, Kat Flannery takes you on an exciting journey with the release of her
new Historical Paranormal Romance, Lakota Honor.
Fate has brought them together, but will a promise
tear them apart?
In the small
town of Willow Creek, Colorado, Nora Rushton spends most of her days locked up
in her home with a father who resents her and fighting off unwanted marriage
proposals from the wealthy Elwood Calhoun. Marked as a witch, Nora must hide
her healing powers from those who wish to destroy all the witkowin—crazy women. What she doesn't know is
that a bounty hunter is hot on her trail.
Lakota native
Otakatay has an obligation to fulfill. He has been hired to kill the witkowin.
In a time when race and difference are a threat and innocence holds no ground,
courage, love and honor will bring Nora and Otakatay together as they fight for
their freedom. Will the desire to fulfill his promise drive Otakatay to kill
Nora? Or will the kindness he sees in her blue eyes push him to be the man he
once was? 
Reviews:
"Transport
back to the old west with this paranormal historical, and its alpha hero, and a
heroine hiding her secret talents."
—Shannon
Donnelly, author of the Mackenzie Solomon Urban Fantasy series
"Ms. Flannery doesn’t shy away from writing gritty scenes or
about unpleasant topics…That’s what good writing is all about—bringing out
strong emotions in a reader."
—Peggy L. Henderson, bestselling author of the Yellowstone Romance
Series
—Cindy Nord, author of No Greater Glory
—Erika Knudsen, paranormal author of Monarchy of Blood
~~*~~*~~
Excerpt:PROLOGUE
Colorado Mountains, 1880
He’d been two hundred feet below ground for ten days, with no food and little water. Weak and woozy, he stared up the ladder. He’d have to climb it and it wasn’t going to be easy. He wiped the bloody blade on his torn pants and placed it between his teeth. Scraped knuckles and unwashed hands gripped the wooden rung.
The earth swayed. He closed
his eyes and forced the spinning in his head to cease. One thin bronzed leg
lifted and came down wobbly. He waited until his leg stopped shaking before he
climbed another rung. Each step caused pain, but was paired with determination.
He made it to the top faster than he’d thought he would. The sky was black and
the air was cool, but fresh. Thank goodness it was fresh.
He took two long breaths before he emerged
from the hole. The smell from below ground still lingered in his nostrils;
unwashed bodies, feces and mangy rats. His stomach pitched. He tugged at the
rope around his hands. There had been no time to chew the thick bands around
his wrists when he’d planned his escape. It was better to run than crawl, and
he chewed through the strips that bound his feet instead. There would be time
to free his wrists later.
He pressed his body against
the mountain and inched toward the shack. He frowned. A guard stood at the
entrance to where they were. The blade from the knife pinched his lip, cutting
the thin skin and he tasted blood. He needed to get in there. He needed to say
goodbye. He needed to make a promise.
The tower bell rang mercilessly. There was no
time left. He pushed away from the rocky wall, dropped the knife from his mouth
into his bound hands, aimed and threw it. The dagger dug into the man’s chest.
He ran over, pulled the blade from the guard and quickly slid it across his
throat. The guard bled out in seconds.
He tapped the barred window
on the north side of the dilapidated shack. The time seemed to stretch. He
glanced at the large house not fifty yards from where he stood. He would come
back, and he would kill the bastard inside.
He tapped again, harder this
time, and heard the weak steps of those like him shuffling from inside. The
window slid open, and a small hand slipped out.
“Toksha ake—I shall see you
again,” he whispered in Lakota.
The hand squeezed his once,
twice and on the third time held tight before it let go and disappeared inside
the room.
A tear slipped from his dark
eyes, and his hand, still on the window sill, balled into a fist. He swallowed
past the sob and felt the burn in his throat. His chest ached for what he was
leaving behind. He would survive, and he would return.
Men shouted to his right, and
he crouched down low. He took one last look around and fled into the cover of
the forest.
~~*~~*~~
BIO:
Kat
Flannery has loved writing ever since she
was a girl. She is often seen jotting her ideas down in a little black book.
When not writing, or researching, Kat enjoys snuggling on her couch with a hot
chocolate and a great book.
Her
first novel, CHASING CLOVERS became an Amazon’s bestseller in Historical and
Western romance. This is Kat’s second book, and she is currently awaiting the
release of her next, HAZARDOUS UNIONS in September 2013.
When not
focusing on her creative passions, Kat is busy with her three boys and doting
husband.
BuyLAKOTA HONOR here.Kat’s website
Kat’s blog
