Steve Brody, who never works, lives in the mountains with his wife. He applies for work at V1 Ranch and the foreman employs him. He takes out a bottle of whiskey and offers a drink to Jim Smiley, who refuses to indulge. Brody makes remarks - a fight is averted only by the boys. Shortly afterwards Jim is examining his gun. As Brody leaves the barn the gun accidentally discharges and Brody pitches forward on his face. The boys find Jim standing over Brody’s body with the gun in his hand. Jim then covers the boys with his gun, mounts his horse and gallops away. He is hit with a bullet by the foreman, but manages to escape to Steve’s hut, where he tells the wife what happened. She conceals him. The boys arrive and search the house, but are unsuccessful in finding him. Later she goes to the ranch to seek her husband and finds out that he has been murdered.