When freight trains conquered the West, the big, dusty drives of beef on the hoof became just a colorful piece of cowboy nostalgia. So when a cattle baron called C. J. Tarington aims to punch a thousand plus head through the unforgiving heat and sage of the Great Basin, some say he's a mite simple—or crazy—or both. Stringer thinks it's something else. And sure enough, a pack of bloodthirsty varmints is robbing trains all along the cattle trail. Out in the heart of this cowboy country, Stringer finds trigger-happy herders, lead-slinging bandits, hateful lawmen, and deceitful ladies. Meanwhile, the corpses are starting to out-stink the cow pies.