The Legend of Tornado Tess — Terrell L. Bowers

Amy Cole wants to do more than write a story: she wants to live one. Her chance comes when one of her fans writes, pleading for help in clearing a doctor of murder charges. Investigating the crime means entering the fortress called Little Babylon, a bandit stronghold in the middle of the New Mexico wasteland. Whitney Scott is on the trail of a band of killers, a trail which leads to this very fortress. He meets Amy and soon finds himself caught up in her story -- both figuratively and literally. They agree to work together, but little does Amy know an unknown assassin is out to kill Whitney. In the end, Amy Cole realizes that solving a murder mystery is not nearly as important as staying alive.