Plot

While a malady is claiming the lives of young women in a Western town, a sinister gunslinger-for-hire Drake Robey is really a vampire, and it's up to Preacher Dan to save the town and girlfriend Dolores Carter.

The cinema's first vampire Western! Young women in a small Western town are dying one by one of an unknown malady involving massive blood loss. The Carter family's ranch is being terrorized by ruthless land baron Buffer. And a mysterious black-clad gunfighter with an aversion to sunlight has just arrived in town.—Marty McKee <mmckee@wkio.com>

The Old West, 1860. Don Robles sent his son Drago to Spain on business, necessitating that he leave behind his new bride Isabella. In Drago's absence, Isabella turned to Drago's brother Roberto for companionship. When Drago returned and discovered their relationship, he killed his brother. Unable to live with his deed, Drago then killed himself. But that wasn't the end of Drago Robles.

About 20 years later. Water has always been a priceless commodity to ranchers and farmers in the American West. He who owns the rights to water is often an important figure in the community. Even more important, however, is that he share that water with those less fortunate. Much blood has been spilled over water rights and between those who had water and those who did not. So it is, between Dr John Carter [John Hoyt] and his neighbor, Buffer [Bruce Gordon]. Buffer has water, and he is doing everything possible, including placing a dam on the stream, to drive out Doc Carter so that he can get his hands on the Carter ranch.

But Doc Carter has another problem just now. Young girls all over town are dying of some mysterious epidemic. The Fuller girl died an hour ago, but it looks like young Cora [Nancy Kilgas] is going to pull through. Preacher Dan Young [Eric Fleming] has not stirred from her side all night, and she is doing better this morning. When offered some coffee and breakfast, Dan realizes how hungry he is and joins everyone in the kitchen. They were just pouring the coffee when Cora's scream is heard. By the time Dan gets to her bedside, Cora is dead. As he kneels down to pray, Dan notices two small, bloody holes in her neck.

Since there is nothing more he can do, Doc Carter rides out to his ranch where he lives with daughter Dolores [Kathleen Crowley] and son Tim [Jimmy Murphy]. Tim is extremely upset when Doc arrives. He tells his father how Buffer's men body-beat him after he tried to bust down the dam, and then Buffer fired four bullets through his hat. Doc Carter decides to ride back into town to talk with Sheriff Bill [Edward Binns], who promises to do something about Buffer. By the time the Doc's buckboard gets home, however, he is dead. After his funeral the next day, the vampire beds down in Doc's coffin.

Grief-stricken over the loss of his father, Tim flies into a rage when he learns that the fence at the back 40 has been torn down and the cattle are escaping. Certain that Buffer is behind it, Tim plies himself with booze and then goes gunning for Buffer. Unfortunately, Buffer responds to Tim's challenge, and Tim suffers the consequences. Alone now, Dolores hangs Gun Wanted posters all over town, offering $100 to anyone who can gun down the murderer. Drake Robey [Michael Pate] answers the call, but not before he has a talk with Buffer. Buffer identifies himself as the "murderer" in the poster, and Robey promises that he will kill Buffer if he takes the job. Buffer considers this a threat on his life, so one of his men fires a shot at Robey. He swears he hit Robey dead center, yet Robey just walks away.

Robey takes the job and moves onto the Carter ranch, much to Preacher Dan's concern. That night, Robey sucks a little blood from Dolores while she sleeps.

Buff is worried. He wants the sheriff to run Robey out of town, but Dan points out that there's nothing the sheriff can do until Robey breaks the law. Dan offers Buffer an alternative. He is to put up $5,000 in gold. Anytime anything goes wrong on Dolores' ranch, even one nail falling from one fencepost, it's going to cost Buffer $1,000. Buff isn't happy with the deal, but he goes along with it.

The next morning, Dan stops at the Carter ranch to tell Dolores about the deal with Buffer. He is surprised to find her looking tired, complaining of the cold and very compliant with his request that she fire Robey, after she practically threw Dan out last night when he expressed his mind about her hiring Robey in the first place. Dolores releases Robey from his contract, and he leaves. Dolores and Dan spend the day going over Doc's papers, looking for his will. It's growing late, so Dan takes the safety box home with him to get the papers in order and record them at the county seat. After Dan leaves, Robey comes to see Dolores. He claims to be losing the ability to see in sunlight and offers his services as a night range-rider who can keep an eye on Buffer and his men while the rest of the ranch-hands are sleeping. Dolores gives him the job.

Meanwhile, Dan is looking through the papers in the box when he comes across a map that shows the Carter ranch as part of Rancho Robles and a diary written by Don Robles that details the story of his son Drago. It tells how, shortly after Drago's death, the young girls in town began dying mysteriously and how Don Robles heard Isabella scream one night and found his dead son Drago drinking her blood. In an attempt to end the work of the devil, Don Robles plunged a knife through the heart of his son as he lay in his coffin. The next day, only the dagger remained.

Drago Robles...Drake Robey...Dan is beginning to piece it together. When he tells Dolores about his discovery, plus the fact that Robey came to him later that night and stole the map, Dolores doesn't believe him, so they go to the crypt to look for the body of Drago Robles. His coffin is empty...except for a silver dagger. When Dan suggests they look in all the coffins, including those of her father and brother, Dolores goes ballistic and refuses. Dan leaves to get a court order. Dolores, apparently weak from loss of blood as well as from throwing a fit over the opening of the coffins, collapses on the floor of the crypt. Robey pops out of the Doc's coffin, drinks a little more blood from Dolores, then carries her back home to her bed.

When Dolores awakens, she is disoriented, not knowing how she got home from the crypt, and she is angry at Robey...until he shows her the map of Rancho Robles and points out that the stream Buffer has been damming up is actually on HER property. Robey goes into town to show the map to Buffer. Buffer doesn't buy it . He draws a gun on Robey, shoots, and hits him; Robey shoots back, kills Buffer, and walks away.

Dolores tells Robey that Dan is going to get a court order to open the graves. Robey promises to stop him. He goes into town to talk Dan out of it, but Dan won't be stopped. They challenge each other to a shoot-out. Since Robey has the advantage with the gun, he gratiously offers Dan the right to call the turn. Robey begins to walk away. Dan calls the shot. Robey turns, Dan shoots, Robey shoots, but it's too late. Dan's bullet hits, and Robey falls to the ground and turns to dust...right in front of Dolores. Dan walks over to where Robey's clothes remain and fetches his bullet...the one with the cross on it. [Original Synopsis by bj_kuehl]