A speculator in land is already unpopular in Dodge, but when he is acquitted of the murder of a man he killed, he finds himself "sent to Coventry": no one in town, not even Kitty, will buy, sell, or even speak to him.

Bert Clum uses his clan to get what he wants. They are camped outside of Dodge. When they meet a small wagon train, he hatches a plot to rob the local bank. But he needs to snatch a baby to hide behind first.