Book I of The Outlaw Gospel follows seventeen-year-old Asa Hendricks on a relentless hunt for Luis "The King" Reyes, the outlaw he believes murdered his mother. Guided by U.S. Marshal Matthew Selleck and shadowed by the enigmatic gaucho Martín Fierro, Asa leaves the safety of his uncle's ranch and rides into a brutal desert world where justice is earned at the point of a gun. From the rough streets of Folklore to the borderland towns of Justicia and Las Fuentes, Asa faces ambushes, duels, and a showdown at Hangman's Canyon. Along the way he finds an unexpected ally in Leona Montenegro and discovers the cost of vengeance and the weight of becoming a lawman. When the gunsmoke clears, a newspaper hails Asa as a newly sworn marshal after a deadly shootout with Reyes, but the truth is more complicated. The King's Mark opens a sweeping Western saga about grit, loyalty, and the choice between the badge and the blood feud.