The Duncan family has moved to the Braswell home outside of Campbellton, Georgia. Jody, the older son, attends school at Newnan's Male Academy. Sonny is learning the basics of education from Mathew and Margaret. The two boys spend time working together at the home place when Jody visits from school. Molly, the young bloodhound, is being trained as a tracking dog. In the Reconstruction years following the War Between the States, the economy is bad and times are hard. Summers are hot and dry, and winters bitterly cold. Freedmen and a few remaining "bummers" roam, often taking at will, but not in Campbellton. Marshal Mathew Duncan is just as hard and harsh as the weather when it comes to bringing criminals to justice. Marshal Duncan is called out on a cold night to solve the murder of a local ferryman. He and his young son trail the murderer to a psychic's remote cabin where they barely escape with their lives in a hail of gunfire and roaring flames. The following winter, a prize horse is stolen from the Jackson family in the darkness of a stormy night. Two young brothers strike out to track down the horse. Their lives are in peril Marshal Duncan is notified and feels compelled to act, although the offense was committed outside his jurisdiction. The horse thief is tracked with the help of Sonny's young bloodhound, Molly. After the jury trial, justice is served in a manner that even the marshal finds disturbing.