Brandon, a surveyor, dreams of building a railway to the west. He sets off with his son, Davy, to survey a route. They discover a new pass which will shave 200 miles off the expected distance, but they are set upon by a party of Cheyenne. One of them, a white renegade with only two fingers on his right hand, kills Brandon and scalps him. Davy is all alone now.

There's dirty work afoot at the crossroads when arch-villain Howard Breen and a crooked banker are scheming to take over the Jeremiah Grant's ranch, and Breen also has his eye on Grant's daughter, Evelyn. However, cowhand Johnny Bowers, who also has an eye on Evelyn, and his horse, Lightning, put an end to the villainy.

A gangster falls in love with the daughter of a former colleague who has quit the rackets. However, things aren't exactly what they appear to be.