It"s September 1868, with winter fast approaching. Three travelers on the Bozeman Trail need routes that avoid the great Northern prairies-and the infamous Sioux warrior Red Cloud. The Bozeman Trail is littered with graves, but that doesn"t stop Hannah Holt, her pockets laden with riches from Virginia City; a horse trader named Colonel Wiley Smart; and twelve-year-old Linc Larrimer, only recently made an orphan by Sioux arrows. As this odd trio heads toward the Bridger cutoff-and safety-they face more obstacles than an encounter with the great warrior. They can only get to where they"re going by using each other"s resources--and use each other they do.