Hawk Nielson was fast-shooting and ruthless, the most powerful man on the range. His holdings spread over thousands of acres and his power spread from one end of the Mesa to the other. His enemies numbered all the men he had stolen from, cheated and crushed. Vard Whitlock had more reason to hate him than most. Land and money were all Hawk cared about, until his wife bore him a son. His pride almost matched his greed. Now Vard knew how to strike back at the cattle baron; he just had to wait for the right moment. When it came, he kidnapped the baby and hit the trail. Then he settled down to work out the revenge that justice demanded for Hawk Nielson. It took twenty-five years, but when it came, it caused the bitterest fight the men of the Mesa had ever seen.