Set against the mountains and high plains of northeastern New Mexico during the decline of Spanish power in the New World, "The Double Cross" is a story of loss and love regained. A widower, Marco Mondragon lives a predictable life, working as an inspector of livestock brands spending his days among the cattle. Occasional raids by the fierce Comanche Indians interrupt the steady flow of work, but Marco is sensible and always avoids unnecessary risks. Once a year, his work takes him to Santa Fe. In the autumn of 1780, his journey brings more than just business - it brings the prospect of romance and great danger.
Paloma Vega is young and beautiful, but she is being used by cruel relatives. Marco suspects that Paloma's uncle may have stolen a brand from her deceased parents, forcing the pair to contend with many challenges that threaten their safety.
Life becomes less than predictable for Marco Mondragon as he works to change Paloma's fortune while the ever-dangerous Comanches become a more dangerous problem.

The year is 1782. Marco Mondragon, brand inspector in Spanish New Mexico, and his wife Paloma Vega have settled happily into married life on the Double Cross. And yet Paloma is convinced their joy will not be complete until she has a child. She longs to give her husband a baby to soothe his grief over the death from cholera of his first wife and twin sons.
Marco's land grant stands at the edge of the most dangerous region in the Southwest: Comancheria. Both Paloma and Marco have suffered at the hands of the fierce Comanche, losing beloved family members in raids.
Despite their fear and mistrust of the Comanche, one lives among them. Paloma rescued Toshua from slavery and near death. As much as she respects the man now, Paloma wishes he would return to the Staked Plains, Comanche stronghold to the east in Texas. No one knows why Toshua remains at the Double Cross. Is it because his own tribe shunned him, or is he genuinely attached to its owners?
Now a new enemy threatens the Mondragons' domestic bliss: the Dark Wind--la viruela, smallpox--barreling down on the defenseless royal colony from Comancheria. A mysterious and arrogant English physician named Anthony Gill offers their one hope at salvation... but only if Marco agrees to his Devil's Bargain.
Book Two in the Spanish Brand series, which began with "The Double Cross.""