Mitt Stone would never again see his four brothers. He stares at a telegram telling him that the oldest, Sam, had been fatally shot. He meets the remaining three in San Antonio. One is well off, one is a hot head with a gun, and one is a devout Christian determined to save his brothers. None has a clue where to start.

The year is 1890.

Their journey, by train and two-horse surrey, to Junction City, Texas, brings them into contact with William J. Burns, a Secret Service agent, and John R. Hughes, a sergeant in the Texas Rangers. Though both men are bored with their assignments – chasing counterfeiters and fence cutters – they won't stay that way for long.