BLOG TOUR - The Silken Daggers (Mavericks of the Heartland #2) by Jenny Bullington

Title: The Silken Daggers
Series: Mavericks of the Heartland #2
Author: Jenny Bullington
Genre: Adult, Historical Mafia Romance
Published: September 6, 2018
Page Count: 181 Pages
Publisher: The Pathos Pen Publishing

Ruby Walsh and Edith Campbell are two women ahead of their time. One the wife of a soldier fighting on the front during World War II, the other in a relationship with a forbidden love. Together they form a secret society dubbed The Silken Daggers to investigate a missing woman with ties to mafia activity in their sleepy Northwest Iowa town. What they uncover is more than they bargained for, as they decide to take justice into their own hands. Can they keep their town safe while keeping themselves alive? Can they find the missing woman in time? Their passion for fighting crime matches their passion for their men, but will love prevail? THE SILKEN DAGGERS is Book Two in the Mavericks of the Heartland series.

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The Silken Daggers Excerpt © Jenny Bullington 2018
What I wouldn’t give for that man to be with me right now, Ruby found herself longing. Sighing, she was ready to load her gun, hearing the familiar clicking of the shells as they got into proper position in the chamber. She loved having shooting contests with Jack. She remembered how she would beat him, watching first laugh it off, but after several attempts, get so focused a vein would pop out in his neck. She’d laugh and laugh.
Ruby scooted her butt back so she wouldn’t fall as she braced herself, and took aim at the first tin can on the fence that separated the land around the old barn from the field beyond. If Ruby was one thing, she was a tomboy. She’d always had better aim than all five of her brothers combined, which had made them insanely jealous. She readied her trigger finger, careful not to place it on the trigger until she was ready, and closed her left eye as she aimed with her right, leaning over to look through the sight on the tip of the gun.
Ruby fired the gun, hearing the tin can plink as it fell behind the fence. She smiled to herself as the smell of gunpowder wafted over her: she still had it. She looked back over the countryside, remembering her happy childhood running around with her brothers, knowing all the secrets of the kids in town and where they hid their cigarettes and dirty magazines. She had to learn very quickly to stand on her own two feet when she found out in school that she wasn’t very much like the other girls.
Then she’d met Jack and things just clicked for the first time. She made sense when she was with all of him. She didn’t have to pretend to be a lady, and he wasn’t intimidated by being forced to keep up with her.
Ruby shot the third and fourth cans on the fence, still lost in the memories of how she got to where she was today. Am I too much of Jack and not enough of me? she wondered to herself. His absence had been horrid, and she felt so lost. Nights where the worst, when she was alone. Making meals for one was just as awful. It made her simply not want to eat.
Ruby had found the one her heart loved, and whether he was near or far, she only felt whole when he was in her heart. He made her a better version of herself, and in return, she gave him all of her, even the most hidden parts of her.
No, she was not too much Jack. She was perfectly in union with another human being, and that is the exact place she wanted to be. That was exactly what having a soulmate meant.
Ruby closed her eyes and felt the chill of the wind blow through the hay loft. Right now, in these quiet moments, all she had was the love in her heart and memories of Jack in her mind. How amazing their union would be when she could be with him in person again…
There were moments when she could become so lost in him, the cobalt eyes that made her forget any worries and woes from the day, such as the snide remarks from another woman who didn’t like her tenacity or were bored being stuck at home and having an absent husband. All she needed to do was hug Jack and everything else melted away. If that was being too much of him, then that’s all she wanted, because that was where peace was.
She laughed out loud, proud of herself. She had had a fun time by herself for the first time since Jack had left for war. The winter sun beamed down upon her, and she rested her head against the door. As she closed her eyes, she imagined the face of her beloved above her. A quiet and gentle voice seemed to be on the wind that blew through the hay loft. It sounded strangely like Jack’s… it sounded like he was saying I’m coming, Ruby. I’m coming home.

Jack and Ruby Walsh thought their sleepy town's Independence Day would be like all the others. That is, until an accidental explosion of fireworks destroys downtown Cherokee, Iowa. A witch-hunt ensues as WWII tensions rise, causing everyone to blame one immigrant German family for the fire. But was it really them? Only Jack and Ruby have the courage to fight for justice, even as they stand against the most corrupt in their community. Ignited by their white-hot passion for each other, the two stick together until they have Cherokee on its knees, rectifying its wrongs and uncovering a more sinister criminal network. RACE TO THE GALLOWS is a harrowing tale of love, loyalty, and courage. Based on true events in Northwest Iowa.

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Ever since she was a little girl on a farm in rural Iowa, Jenny Bullington's heart has been filled with wanderlust and adventure. She started writing at an early age, and has never stopped. After exploring Italy, Ethiopia, and South Korea, Bullington's desire to transport others to those places and to raise awareness of important humanitarian and social issues takes hold in her writings. She received her Bachelor's Degree from Iowa State University and her Master's Degree from Pacific Oaks College. In her spare time, Bullington enjoys teaching as an adjunct college professor, writes parenting and child development columns for a taekwondo kids program, advocates against domestic violence and human trafficking, and is passionate about social justice. She's recently been featured as a storyteller at Ode, an Iowa organization that promotes positive impact through empathy. Her adventures never stop as she raises her five small children with her beloved husband, Branden, in the Midwest.

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