When survival depends on trust, can love bridge two worlds far apart?

Colorado Territory, 1868. After a chance encounter saves a Ute man's life, Tom Dunagan and his daughter, Brooke, are welcomed into the sacred circle of the Yellow Bear Family-a privilege no white person has ever been granted. But acceptance comes at a price.

As fourteen-year-old Brooke finds herself drawn to Water Bird, a brave Ute Indian boy, she must choose between the world she was born into and the one calling her young heart. At the same time her father discovers that the alluring woman, Blue Jay, sees through his carefully guarded walls, awaking feelings he thought died with his wife.

Then the past comes hunting.

When ancient enemies clash and revenge fuels hatred the Dunagan's are caught between the fellowship of their adopted family and its aversion for a neighboring tribe. Can Tom and Brooke survive, caught in the crossfire of age old foes and a relentless wilderness?

From the bestselling tradition of Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee and The Last of the Mohicans comes an unforgettable tale of forbidden love, impossible choices, and the courage to build bridges when the world demands walls.

Rich with authentic Ute traditions and breathtaking Rocky Mountain landscapes, this epic novel reveals the untold stories of the American West-where love was the most dangerous act of rebellion.

Larry Ray Rather is a fourth generation Coloradoan whose grandparents lived among and traded with the Ute Indians of southwest Colorado. His curiosity in Native American culture and history began early and inspired him to write a tale of romance and tragedy across cultural lines in the wilderness setting of Colorado in the late 1860's. His knowledge of Ute life, paired with his understanding of horses and the mountainous terrain of Colorado, inform his exploration of people from disparate backgrounds forging deep bonds, tempered by the hardships of an unforgiving wilderness.