Twenty-year-old Robert "Badger" Davis travels to the town of Harmony, Kansas to visit his cousin, Sister Mary Beth Cole. Along the way, Badger is assaulted by a would-be thief in a life-and-death encounter. When Badger reaches his destination, he meets Father James "Fox" Sayers, a black former gunslinger turned priest, who has a checkered past of his own.

Badger brings trouble with him, when members of his former gang hunt for the cowboy and the money he stole from them. Unable to locate Badger in Harmony, the outlaws burn down Fox's church and kidnap Sister Mary.

Now the inexperienced cowboy must ride with a man he doesn't trust in a desperate attempt to save his cousin's life. The success of the mission relies on the two men working together and overcoming dangerous terrain, savage wildlife, and ruthless killers.