An accused murderer who fears that he will be lynched before he can be returned to Bender, Wyoming, for trial, hires Paladin to make sure he gets there alive.

Hired to prevent the construction of a dam that would imperil a town's water supply, Paladin finds that he sympathizes more with the Irish engineer who's trying to build it.

Paladin answers an ad in the paper by Kurt Sprague: ""Teach me to quick draw and shoot. Instruction desperately needed. Will pay one thousand dollars. Only experts need apply."" Kurt needs to learn in order to go back home. Paladin does a very good job. Only one problem: Kurt enjoys showing off his new found skill a little too much.