Eli Colter Boeken

The people of the Seco Range are shocked when handsome Kurt Quillan turns twenty -- and becomes a hardened killer with seven notches on his gun. Though he shoots in self-defense, he seems never to have a witness. Then Lem Strikland, his foster father, becomes victim number eight. The well-liked rancher had raised Kurt as his own after the boy's mother, Bess Quillan, was killed. The locals are irate and pursue Kurt, whom they now believe is a cold-blooded murderer. A stranger to Kurt, Bill Stagg has quit his job to help him. And crazy "Lispy Louie" -- who might not be so crazy after all -- has found and hidden Bess's will and other documents that might help Kurt out of the mess he's in.

The story unfolds in the Great Lost Valley, where Gage Gardin confronts the gunmen of his rival, Louis Peele, amidst a brutal blood feud. As tensions escalate, Gage seeks vengeance for the merciless killing of his horses and men, as well as the abduction of his beloved, Mary Silver. The narrative captures the intensity of revenge and the harsh realities of life in the desert, highlighting themes of loyalty, loss, and the devastating impact of longstanding enmity.