Western Historical Fiction
Date Published: 08-19-2025
Publisher: Artemesia Publishing, LLC
As the Kelly Can Saga continues, Charlie and his wife, Susan, must deal with continued conflict as they attempt to grow their fledgling Kelly Oil Company. Like many other oilmen, Charlie and his partner, Hank Thomas, want to acquire oil and mineral rights to the Osage Nation’s land in northern Oklahoma. This leads them to confrontations with an adversary from their recent past. Susan’s life is imperiled by those evil characters. How will her cowboy come to her rescue and deal with dangerous direct threats on their lives? Charlie rapidly steps up to the challenge as any past Top Hand at the world-famous Miller’s 101 Ranch would.
Excerpt
After lunch the group decided to walk down the hill to the barns and corrals to show Getty some of their ranch and allow their meal to settle.As they stood at a corral, Charlie pointed and said, “Paul, see
the big, beautiful Angus bull? He’s one of the reasons our beef is
in such demand. Do ya see all the cattle out in the near pasture
over there grazin’? We’re mighty proud of them, too.”
Paul nodded, “Very impressive, Charlie. I don’t know ranching or cattle, but I can hear the pride in your voice. You're every
bit as excited to talk about this as you are about oil. Yep, very impressive.”
Charlie didn’t try to hide his smile. “I am, Paul. I’ll always be
a cowboy, and ranching will be a big part of my life. I’m happy
you’re impressed with this part of our lives.”
They walked around some more so Charlie and Susan could
show off parts of the ranch. After a while, they returned to the
house to continue their discussion.
As they settled in Hank asked, “Paul, do ya have any other
land or rights to drill here in Oklahoma you might be interested
in sellin’ before you head to California?”
Paul looked up at the ceiling, then back at Hank. “I hadn't
thought about it, but I have several possibilities. Some might be
interesting to you. They include land with minerals up at Cushing, over in Garvin County, nearby in Seminole County, and even
over close to the Capitol in Oklahoma City.”
Hank smiled, “What would ya take for the whole batch?”
Paul slumped in his chair with his arms across his chest. “Let
me think a minute.” After a long pause, he said, “I guess $75,000
would be alright.”
Hank looked at Charlie, who nodded his approval. Charlie
said, “Paul, I can draft ya a check right now you can cash at the
Exchange Bank tomorrow for $60,000 if we have a deal. You can
have the deeds sent to Curt for processin’.”
“Your offer is less than I wanted.” He grinned and reached
over to shake hands. “I’ll take it, and the deeds are in a safety de-
posit box at the Exchange Bank.
I know you bought the bank.
Harry Sinclair continues to run it, right?”
Charlie shook Paul’s hand. “He does, and I’m glad you are
willin’ to sell.” He looked at Hank and winked. “We at Kelly Oil
need to accumulate more properties; if you had them, I’m sure
there must be value in them.”
Susan nodded. “Harry continues to have a leadership role
for us, but we had one of our bankers from Kansas City move
here to run the bank. Harry wanted and needed to create more
time for Sinclair Oil.”
Charlie left the room to write the check. When he returned,
he handed it to Paul.
Susan stood. “It's getting to be late. Paul needs to get back to
Tulsa if he’s heading to California tomorrow.” She looked at
Hank. “Didn't you say you were going to Shawnee for dinner with
someone?”
Hank hesitated. “Uh... all I’m sayin’ is her name is Polly’. I'll
be back in the mornin’ at about nine if that’s okay?”
Charlie grinned. “Who he has dinner with is none of our
business, and nine’ll be great.”
Paul nodded. “Susan, you’re right. It's time I headed toward
Tulsa. Today's trip was successful for me. I’m $80,000 richer
than when I arrived. I hope we can do some business in California or at least be rooting for each other's success.”
About the Author
E. Joe Brown is an award-winning author of
novels, short stories, and memoirs. His current projects include a series of
historical fiction novels set in his native Oklahoma. Publication of the first
book in the series is scheduled for August 2022. His memoir ‘Mickey and
Me’ about meeting his hero, Mickey Mantle, is now featured in the
National Baseball Hall of Fame. Joe currently serves as President of New
Mexico Westerners, an Advisor to the SWW Board of Directors, and is a member
of Western Writers of America and Military Writers Society of
America.
He supports his love of music and performance through
active membership in the International Western Music Association. He served on
the organization’s board of directors for three years. In 2013, Governor
Susanna Martinez appointed him a New Mexico Music Commissioner.
Veterans
Portrait Project, Military, USAF
Photo Courtesy of
Stacy
Pearsall's
Veterans Portrait Project
Joe concluded his lifetime
military and civil service careers upon retirement on June 30, 2010. An
exciting multi-faceted career of firsts included leading the USAF Range
Instrumentation Team to aid the original NASA Space Shuttle program. His team
helped create the Shuttle Worldwide Network and supported the first six
missions of Space Shuttle Columbia. As the Air Force Flight Test Center
Project Manager, he guided the design, construction, and implementation of the
Benefield Anechoic Facility on Edwards AFB. The facility tests
state-of-the-art electronic warfare systems in a secure environment. His final
assignment was in direct support of the two-star Major General at Edwards AFB
where he advised on strategic planning to assure future readiness to test USAF
and Department of Defense weapons systems.
An alumnus of the
Oklahoma State University College of Engineering, Joe continued his
engineering education during both his military and civil service careers. He
completed coursework at the University of Colorado, Georgia Institute of
Technology, George Washington University, University of Tennessee, Chapman
University, and the University of California at Los Angeles. He later
completed a BS in Business Management at Phoenix University and the Executive
MBA program with a Strategic Planning emphasis from Webster University.
Joe
has been married to his wife Linda for over fifty years, and their sons have
given them five beautiful grandchildren.
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