title: Battered Souls
author: Ball, Kathleen
description: In the aftermath of the Civil War so many people struggled to put their lives back together.Iris Sands travels from Virginia to Texas as a Mail-Order Bride. When she arrives in Sweet Water she finds that the man who sent for her died. The Union Soldiers thought her to be a new saloon girl and thought to get to her first before she started working.Lex Willis and ex-Confederate Soldier was about to leave town when he saw Iris being tossed back and forth by the soldiers. He puts a stop to it and takes her to the Eastman Ranch. He swore never to marry but Iris makes him rethink his vow.Lex soon finds out that Iris' family were killed for being spies during the war. The worst part is her family spied for the Union. Had she given information to the enemy that led to the massive losses suffered by the Confederate Army?