Book excerpt: Lawrence Shaw, aka Fast Larry, aka the Fastest Gun Alive, in this 4th book in the Gunman’s Reputation series, appears to have given up . . . but not just yet. First, he will take Rita Vargas to Willow Creek in search of William Bonney—the infamous Billy the Kid—who, unbeknownst to the Kid, is the father of her unborn child. On Shaw’s trail are gunmen hell-bent to leave him dead on the ground, not realizing that having people out to kill him might be the only thing that keeps “Fast Larry” alive. Lawrence Shaw had heard the thunder of horses’ hooves from the north trail long before the five riders slid the animals to a halt out front of the plank shack. He’d heard them stop suddenly, fifty yards away, and he’d pictured the riders sitting there discussing him in the pale purple darkness, deciding the best way to kill him. After a moment he’d heard the horses come forward again, this time slower, with stealth and deliberation. Oh, yes, they mean to kill me, Shaw told himself. . . . He did none of the things a man might do under such dire circumstances. Shaw had lost interest in such matters of life and death. They would arrive to kill him; but he would kill them instead. It was that simple. The matter deserved no deeper thought.