As a child Maggie McGill dreamed of riding the range through the wide open spaces of a Wild West filled with cattle rustlers, white hats, and black hats galore. When Maggie and her daughter, Allie, meet for a Thanksgiving vacation at an Arizona dude ranch, they certainly don't expect to find danger lurking with the turkey mole. Even before they arrive at the ranch things begin to go wrong. They find themselves lost in the desert, a prize Arabian stallion becomes mysteriously ill. Allie and Maggie find themselves embroiled in a mystery unique to the southern Arizona desert. They encounter two-legged coyotes, illegal immigrants, and a mysterious desert wayfarer. They sample native desert food and decide that survival never tasted so good. Who is the mysterious stranger who seems to read their very thoughts? Why are their dude ranch hosts being threatened? What can the two women do to resolve this gripping mystery?