Bowers Jamison, a thirteen-year-old Iowa farm boy, is alone and far from home for the first time when he meets Shady O’Toole a ten-year-old orphaned, Irish girl in a box car in Missouri on his way to Colorado. The Civil War has ended, and times are tough for everyone. Bowers promises to help Shady escape from Old Scratch, a Fagan-like crook who had forced her into a life of pickpocketing. In return, Shady agrees to help Bowers get back a gold pocket watch that his n’er-do-well uncle stole from Bowers’ father. The two make a formidable pair. Together they learn the value of friendship and trust while they negotiate a wild frontier town, elude the pursuing "Fagan," and stymie two Wells Fargo bank robbers who are counting on the watch’s magic powers to help them get away.