With Great Discretion

Charles Wolfe Collins is a veteran of the Civil War, an Irish immigrant, a reluctant Pinkerton operative and an independent agent frequently performing confidential investigations for powerful politicians in Washington D.C. In early 1879, he is summoned to the nation’s capital by the Secretary of the Interior and requested to gather intelligence regarding the escape of the Northern Cheyenne from a reservation in Indian Territory and subsequent military actions intended to recapture and punish the fugitives. Collins follows the heartbreaking trail of desperation, betrayals, bloody conflict and extraordinary courage, while the Northern Cheyenne strive to return to their homeland and an unsympathetic government uses any means to drive them back to a perilous and disease-ridden territory against their will.  With the steadfast and capable guidance of a Lakota woman scout, Charles Collins must seek information amongst belligerent soldiers and civilians, as well as Northern Cheyenne peoples, who have been hounded, ravaged and slaughtered beyond reckoning.

Readers Reviews

“The story is very difficult to read because of the sorrow and pain suffered by my relatives. Those of us who have relatives who were part of this story grieve tremendously when we are reminded of the horrific past. The brutally raw and delicate details held within a true story will cause grief and a renewal of mourning that is never lost in our minds. Unlike most Americans, history is personal. American Indian people are not separated from the past. Stories like this are still fresh in our minds and in our hearts. The biggest challenge with a fictional work like this is that most people are not going to believe the details of the atrocities that took place, they will simply be dismissed.” 

- Native American elder -

“Relished each chapter. Not only engaging but captivating. Blown away by the research and knowledge of history, ethnography, geomorphology, botany and the like. Magnificence."

- Charles T. Unseld, was Director of Local Government Services in the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, where he worked for over 20 years and holds degrees in Environmental Engineering and an M.A. in Environmental Planning and Psychology. He has taught at the University of Denver’s Masters Program in Environmental Policy and Management and at the University of Colorado at Denver’s Graduate School of Architecture and Planning.

“Having thoroughly enjoyed J. Hoolihan Clayton’s first novel in this series, my high expectations were fully met. It's as if I'm sitting with the author telling me this tale directly, while emphasizing key moments and digging deeply into the hearts and minds of those listening. I am very impressed with the level of detail that brings the wild west into vision with all its faults, cruelty, harshness and yet, finds friendship and compassion within.”

- Kathy - Amazon reader review