Colorado Silver Rush

Latter part of the Nineteenth Century

The year was 1879, the height of the Colorado Silver Rush, and the Rockies were alive with restless men and echoing gunfire, the mountains shimmering with promise. In the twilight hours, miners and prospectors huddled around campfires, their faces ghostly in the flickering light, telling tales of fortune and doom. But one story always brought a hush, one whispered legend that struck fear even into the bravest hearts—the story of the hidden treasure of Silver Falls.

A man known only as Old Garvin, a grizzled prospector with eyes clouded by secrets, was the first to speak of it. He’d been a ghost of a figure, huddled in the corner of The Broken Spade Saloon, a place thick with smoke and desperate men. They said he’d come down from the mountains after weeks without sleep, his face pale as the moon, his hands shaking as he clutched his whiskey. “That mountain’s alive, boys,” he muttered, his voice barely more than a rasp. “She don’t want us there.”

In his worn fingers, Garvin held a nugget of silver the size of a child’s fist, raw and glittering. The men around him leaned closer, eyes wide with hunger. But Garvin’s hand shot up, and his eyes, dark as river stones, flickered with fear.

“This ain’t no ordinary silver,” he warned. “Found it in a cave up past Silver Falls, tucked behind boulders like a secret. Felt like it was calling to me, luring me closer. But I wasn’t alone. Shadows were watching, moving in the darkness, and I swear I heard voices, low and mournful, whispering my name.”

The men laughed, but there was an unease in their eyes. “What are you sayin’, Garvin?” someone sneered. “The mountain’s haunted?”

But Garvin only shook his head. “It ain’t haunted. It’s cursed. That silver—it's the blood of the mountain, spilled from a wound. Some call it ‘ghost silver.’ Found it where the tribes say their ancestors walked, where spirits guard their land. You take from it, and it takes something back. I was a fool to bring this piece down—had to get it away from there before it took me, too.”

Whispers followed Old Garvin's words, rumors that couldn’t be ignored. Some said the spirits of those who had died in search of the treasure guarded it. Their greed cursing the treasure and any who sought it for all eternity—a warning to any who dared to plunder what didn’t belong to them.

But avarice had a stronger pull than fear. The following week, four men from the saloon went up the mountain, vanishing into the mist. They called themselves “The Iron Four,” fearless prospectors who laughed at Garvin’s story. But when days turned into weeks with no sign of their return, folks began to worry.

Then, on the third full moon after their disappearance, a storm unlike any other swept through Silver Falls. Thunder crashed, and lightning cracked the sky open, illuminating strange, shifting shapes in the clouds. And from the heart of that storm, a single figure stumbled into town, drenched and half-mad. It was Isaiah Blakiston, one of the Iron Four, his eyes hollow, his hands raw from clawing at the earth.

“They’re gone,” he whispered, voice broken. “The mountain took ’em. We found the silver, but it was guarded. Things…things that weren’t human, things with eyes like fire and teeth like knives. The others—they didn’t make it.”

His fingers clutched a small leather pouch, his last possession. When he opened it, silver dust spilled out, glinting in the firelight like stars.

“We dug too deep,” he said, his voice trailing into a shiver. “Broke a pact older than any of us. They said they’d let me go if I carried the story back. Tell the others: the silver stays buried. The spirits of the mountains will watch over it till the end of days. Anyone who tries to claim it will pay the price.”

That was the last anyone saw of Isaiah Blakiston. Some say he went back into the mountains to join his fallen friends. Others claim the spirits claimed him that very night. But since then, no one had dared search for the hidden silver of Silver Falls. And if anyone heard the low howl of wolves in the midnight mist, they’d say it wasn’t a wolf at all. It was the spirits of those who had gone before warning those who come too close to the mountain’s haunted heart.

Present Day

And so, the legend endured: a hidden fortune buried somewhere in the Rockies, cursed by the spirits who gave their lives to protect it. The treasure of Silver Falls remained untouched, guarded by shadows, forever tempting—but always deadly.

Until now.

Irene Blakiston had heard the legend more times than she cared to remember, only she knew the truth. It wasn’t spirits that had guarded the treasure, it was wolf-shifters. Over the years the pack had come down from the mountain, establishing itself in the town. All but one. Isaiah had never accepted being forced to become a wolf-shifter and had gone off to die alone in the Superstition Mountains—only he hadn’t died, not right away. And now, his last descendant, Irene, would claim the treasure for herself and those who called her alpha. It would not be their curse, it would be their salvation.

Ready to read Irene and Beckett’s story? Click here to read Beckett’s Fate.

She sought independence… but fate had other plans. Can she risk her heart to embrace love?

Irene Blakiston arrives in Silver Falls pretending to be a hiker, her true purpose hidden: to find a legendary silver treasure that could secure a future for her pack. The last thing she expects is to cross paths with Beckett Grey, the town's enigmatic sheriff and alpha wolf-shifter whose piercing gaze sees right through her facade.

Beckett senses something unusual about the captivating newcomer. His protective instincts awaken, and she stirs feelings he thought he'd never experience. Recognizing her as his fated mate, he's determined to uncover her secrets.

When Irene is attacked while hunting for the treasure, Beckett refuses to let her face the dangers alone. Forced to trust each other, they journey deep into the wilderness, uncovering not only the hidden treasure but also secrets that bind their pasts. As they navigate the treacherous quest, their connection intensifies, igniting a passion neither can resist.

With hunters closing in, Irene must choose between her duty to her pack and the profound bond she shares with Beckett. Can they protect their people and embrace the love that destiny has woven, or will their secrets destroy their chance at happiness?

"Beckett's Fate" is the enthralling second book in the Silver Falls Shifter series, a tale of courage and destiny. Lose yourself in a world of resilient heroines, powerful alphas, and a journey where love and fate collide.