When ranchers have a problem, they send for Cordwainer Wild. Cord always tries to apprehend his charges peaceably, but often he's forced to bring them in boots first. And when he kills a pair of horse thieves in self-defense, Cord finds himself facing down a powerful enemy from his past. The two thieves worked for Horace Weatherall, an outlaw closely tied to the murder of Cord's father. And Horace is determined to see Cord go the same way.