Rancher Mack Murphy has been buying up land in southwest Colorado, threatening those who won't sell, including Junior, the uncle of ex-sheriff Bud Shumway. Bud agrees to visit his uncle to help defuse things, never suspecting he would get caught right smack in the middle of Mack's murder. And it becomes the toughest case Bud's ever had to solve, as almost everyone is a suspect.

Set in the Paradox Valley, a beautiful and remote area with a wooly Wild West history, this mystery will have you laughing, scared to death, and wondering when the mysterious Wild Man will strike again. Add in some fake Ute Indian burials, a new-age addiction counsellor, Bud's bumbling deputy Howie, a wealthy restaurateur with a penchant for railroads, Mack's missing wife, Junior's longing to return to his hobo ways, and two young gold prospectors who are always just one step ahead of the law, and there's never a dull moment.

This is the third book in the Bud Shumway Mystery Series.