Summary
Amidst the rugged, unforgiving grandeur of Music Mountain, a simmering feud threatens to engulf the lives of its inhabitants. Henry de Spain, a man forged in the crucible of tragedy—his father felled by a mountaineer's bullet, his mother consumed by grief—assumes command of the Thief River Stage Line, tasked with the perilous mission of taming the notorious Morgan Gap outlaws. His resolve, however, is complicated by a burgeoning, yet forbidden, affection for Nan, the beguiling niece of the formidable Duke Morgan, the very patriarch of the outlaw clan. Their initial encounters are fraught with the bitter legacy of vengeance, Nan's loyalty to her kin clashing fiercely with her undeniable attraction to the man who embodies both law and a deeply personal quest for justice. A brutal ambush leaves de Spain critically wounded, his survival hinging on Nan's reluctant, then increasingly compassionate, intervention. As she nurses him back to health, the truth of his past—a birthmark serving as a poignant memento of his father's demise—unravels the layers of her prejudice, revealing a shared humanity that transcends tribal loyalties. Their clandestine romance blossoms amidst a backdrop of escalating danger, with Nan's unscrupulous cousin, Gale Morgan, scheming to force her into marriage, and Duke Morgan's iron grip tightening around his niece. A desperate plea from Nan ignites a daring rescue, culminating in a dramatic confrontation and a perilous escape through the treacherous mountain passes. The revelation that Duke Morgan himself played a hand in de Spain's father's death shatters Nan, forcing her to confront the agonizing truth of her lineage. Yet, in the heart of a raging blizzard, a profound act of salvation—de Spain rescuing both Nan and her repentant uncle—paves the way for an extraordinary reconciliation. The raw, untamed landscape bears witness to an impromptu, snow-bound betrothal, a testament to love's power to bridge the deepest chasm of animosity, culminating in a grander ceremony that heralds the long-awaited union of two warring factions, finally finding peace in the embrace of shared understanding.
Synopsis
Henry de Spain, a young mountaineer of about twenty-eight, is made general manager of the Thief River Stage Line because he has nerve and can shoot. It is understood that he is to "clean up" the gang of outlaws in Morgan Gap, led by Duke Morgan, with whose pretty niece, Nan, de Spain is in love. Sassoon starts the trouble by a knifing, but de Spain catches him. The laugh is soon turned, though, for Sassoon escapes and soon after de Spain himself is wounded in a fight with about seven of the Morgan gang. He is severely wounded and falls from the horse. The horse runs away, and de Spain is left there unconscious. He is finally discovered by Nan, who cannot forget her resentment even when she sees that he is half dead. Later she learns the true story of his attack by her relatives and from his own lips the reason of his being a gunman. This was that his father was shot in the back by one of the mountaineers and soon after his mother had died from the effects of the shock, leaving him with a birthmark to commemorate his father's tragic death. Nan is won over to his side the more easily that she is already half in love with the handsome gunman. A few days later she helps him escape. Afterwards, although he takes every opportunity for seeing her, they seldom meet and her uncle very nearly succeeds in marrying her to her worthless cousin, Gale Morgan. Duke Morgan is thrown from his horse and seriously hurt. Nan comes to nurse him at the hospital, where de Spain has been since he was shot. De Spain leaves soon after her arrival, but comes to see her under the pretext of bringing supplies. It is while there that she at last surrenders to his pleading and consents to become formally "engaged." Gale learns of the affair and tells Duke. Nan is forced to confess her love for de Spain and her uncle tells her that she will never marry him. Gale wins old Duke's permission to marry Nan and the girl is kept a prisoner in her room until she will consent to marrying her cousin. One night de Spain gets the following message: "Take me away from here as soon as you can." He knows it is from Nan. He rides to the Morgan ranch, and overhears Duke and Gale planning Nan's marriage. He reveals himself and holds the men at bay while he and Nan, who has appeared, escape. Sassoon, a bad man, nearly kills de Spain, but the latter manages to get a successful shot at his enemy and they reach town, where he takes Nan to the home of one of his friends. Henry de Spain learns that old Duke Morgan was the one who killed his father. Nan, broken-hearted, starts back to her uncle to learn the truth. She tries to bring him to de Spain, but they are caught in a blizzard, and only saved by de Spain just as they are about to succumb. Duke tells de Spain that he and Sassoon both shot at his father, but that they never knew which shot proved fatal, and they learned, to their horror soon after, that de Spain was not the man they were after, who had killed a member of their clan. There is a make-shift wedding ceremony performed right there in the snow, for old Duke gives in at last to the lovers, but later at the settlement there is a more elaborate wedding, which serves to unite the two enemy factions.
