VENGEANCE COMESCarver goes to El Fuerte to visit his friend, Joe Donelly, only to find out he's dead. Joe bred prize-winning horses.

One of those horses supposedly kicked him to death. Carver doesn't buy that for a minute.

For one thing, Joe was a former Navy SEAL. He taught Carver everything he knew.

He was a careful man. Skilled.

Quick on his feet. A pro at handling horses.

Carver quickly discovers there were plenty of reasons for someone to want Joe dead. For one thing, he was running for mayor of El Fuerte, and the sitting mayor is as crooked as they come.

Joe wasn't big on politics, but the city was threatening to annex his property and he ran for office just to stop it. The mayor of El Fuerte is also apparently in league with gangs.

She runs the city like she owns it. She spends the city's money like it's her own.

She uses gang members to threaten anyone who gets in her way. And the police do everything she says.

She owns them lock, stock and barrel. The more acquainted Carver becomes with the locals, the more convinced he is that one of them killed Joe.

But who did it and why?The guilty might not be a single person. There might be several people who had a hand in Joe's death.

And if that's true, it doesn't matter to Carver. He'll send them all to meet their maker.

Even if he has to kill them by the dozen. .