Favor picks up 700 head of cattle from an owner who tells him there is a financial crisis in the east. If Favor doesn't make it to Abilien before the news, none of the cattle will be worth anything including the rest owned by Favor and the drovers. They have to cut ten days off the travel time plus Favor can't tell the men why he is driving them so hard due to worry about the news leaking. Favor takes in an aquaculturist, who'll make a fortune introducing shad to West Coast rivers, but he's all alone after leaving his adulterous wife to his treacherous fish hand. Gwynn's also down with a bad fever, and his little fishes turn the hardened drovers into tender fishwives, driving Favor batty as the drive slogs through a drought. Flinty New Englander Tom Gwynn doesn't know that his wife and her new lover are trailing him, planning to pull off a big fishnapping. The drovers decide to rebel against the way they and Gwynn are being treated. When Rowdy tries to tell Favor, Favor is forced to tell Rowdy the truth when Rowdy backs down on his own. Rowdy pushes the men on while Favor goes after Gwynn who is in trouble.
—David Stevens