Lash LaRue Western #18

When Lash LaRue is called to investigate the suspicious disappearance of retired lawman Pop Gaynes, who has suddenly moved to a remote house in Bucktown, the roving marshal uncovers a scheme far more sinister than anyone suspected. Bud Prescott, Gaynes' caretaker, has been collecting the old man's pension checks under false pretenses—and he'll do anything to keep his crime hidden. With nothing but his legendary bullwhip and quick draw, Lash must escape a deadly trap and expose the truth before Prescott silences him for good.

Molasses Mouth debates the luck of black cats with a friend near a bank, arguing that a feline crossing his path brought him misfortune—not because of what happened, but because of what *might* have happened instead. It's a tongue-in-cheek look at superstition and backward reasoning from a frontier character convinced he knows better.

When a cocky self-proclaimed master of ceremonies at the local opera house orders the young Wagonwheels around like a servant, the kid decides to teach him a lesson in humility. What starts as a simple errand request turns into a battle of wits as Wagonwheels proves that brains—and a sharp tongue—beat boasting every time.

Dusty inherits a pocket watch from his late uncle and decides to go hunting, but his friend has a better idea—why not tackle the wild wolf pack that's been terrorizing the local cattle herds and become a hero? It's a humorous take on frontier heroics, where Dusty's reluctance to face danger is matched only by his deadpan comebacks.

When widows across Dover County start losing their life savings to a cunning con artist posing as a pots-and-pans salesman, roving marshal Lash LaRue takes the case personally—and discovers the scheme runs far deeper than anyone suspected. With help from an unlikely informant and his trusted horse Rush, Lash closes in on the criminal behind the robberies, though a deadly trap in the quicksand country nearly ends his pursuit for good. It'll take quick thinking, a well-placed disguise, and his trusty whip and six-guns to bring the outlaw to justice.

A drifter posing as royalty cons a well-meaning old-timer named Squinty into borrowing money and goods by claiming to be the King of Cellmania, but his scheme unravels when his creditors come calling—just as Lash LaRue arrives on the scene. Lash discovers the con artist is actually an escaped prisoner and sets out to bring him to justice, ultimately clearing Squinty's name and restoring the townspeople's stolen property.