 Tom Benton (Don Barry), orphaned as a young boy and brought up by gunfighter "Montana" Smith (Noah Beery), becomes alienated from his foster father, gives up his career as "The Tulsa Kid" and resolves never to carry a gun again. Drifting into Wind River, he is on hand when rancher Bob Wallace (David Durand) kills Sam Ellis (Stanley Blystone) in self-defense. Ellis, with his partner Dirk Saunders (George Douglas), town boss of Wind River, was attemptiing to steal the rights to the water hole on Bob s ranch. Saunders tries to have Bob railroaded, but Tom insists that Bob shot in self defense and should be acquitted. When Saunders  henchmen attempt to lynch Bob, Tom helps him escape. Tom seeks out Bob s sister, Mary (Luana Walters), tells her Bob s hiding place and promises to do all he can to help him. Tom brings Bob to an inquest and secures his acquittal, and brings suspicion on Saunders by disclosing that his men had tried to waylay him and Bob on their way to the inquest. Saunders offers $500 to which ever of his henchmen kills Tom, and engages the services of "Montana" Smith to help track him down. Smith urges his foster son to leave Wind River so they won t have to be pitted against each other in a showdown, while Tom tries to talk Smith into joining with him against Saunders and his crooked crowd. Wallace Ranch foreman Rance McGowan (Reed Howes), secretly working for Saunders, stages a night raid on the Wallace herd, with many of the Wallace cowhands killed. Bob vows to have a showdown with Saunders, but the latter details Smith to represent him. Learning this, Tom takes Bob s place, and goes to meet his foster father in a shoot-out.