The Texan, a Civil War Veteran whose reputation of being the fastest gun in the west precedes him, roams across Texas from town to town, not looking for trouble; trouble finds him.

Orin and Ruth McKnight's May/December romance hits a rough spot when Bill Longley returns from a cattle drive.

Bill saves a government agent from an ambush; the agent is carrying a list of landowners who are refusing to pay their taxes, and Bill learns the daughter of one of those landowners arranged the ambush.

Bill finds a town engulfed in a feud between two ranchers; he also learns that his former commanding officer is now a doctor who's turned to drinking, and a young man blames him for crippling his arm.

While sleeping by his campsite, Bill is startled by sounds of movement in the underbrush; he investigates and finds a young boy who is so frightened that he can't talk.