The Texians 5: Death's Shadow. The Texians, #5

Between a rock and a hard place . that's where Texas Ranger Josh Sands finds himself when he joins an expedition from Austin, Texas, to New Mexico, with a crew bent on wooing Santa Fé from the Mexicans-peacefully. The trouble is, the Mexicans have their own idea about how to greet this brave but inexperienced band who endured hardship and danger in hostile Indian territory: Ambush and imprisonment! Now it's up to Sands to take command.
In the dead of night he and several companions overcome their guards, steal guns and horses, and light out for Texas. But the hardships they meet on the way to Santa Fé will double on the way back. Sands will need every trick of survival he knows to overcome the forces of nature-let alone the blood lusting Apaches waiting to make his death a cause for celebration ...