Red Mask #1

When a dying prospector entrusts Redmask with a fortune in gold and a mission to reach his daughter, the masked rider finds himself trapped in a cave system along the Indian Bow River—a discovery that becomes far more valuable than the gold itself. As Redmask transforms the hidden cavern into his secret headquarters, he remains unaware that the young woman claiming to be Sara Anderson may not be who she seems, and that ruthless enemies are closing in on his discovery. With his new hideout complete and danger circling closer, Redmask must stay one step ahead of those who would exploit both the gold and his secret.

A young orphan named Jeff spends three years alone on the prairie after a tragic raid, until he's rescued by Dr. Crowell, a traveling magician who takes him under his wing and teaches him the art of illusion. When the scarred man responsible for Dr. Crowell's death finally surfaces years later, Jeff—now the blacksmith of Red Gulch—fashions a masked costume from his old mentor's magic gear and sets out to face his nemesis with nothing but clever tricks and his wits. Thus the Presto Kid is born: a masked rider who uses magic and strategy instead of guns to stand for justice.

Muley Pike treks up to Stubborn Sam's mountain cave to convince the ornery hermit to come to town and vote for his old friend Honest Oscar—but Sam's stubbornness sends Pike packing, only to have another visitor stumble into his cave claiming to be a fellow misanthrope. When Sam discovers the deception, his contrarian nature drives him to march down to Hogwash Junction determined to vote *against* Oscar, playing straight into the hands of the corrupt Dead-Eye Danbury and his gang.

When a respected cook named Mex Lallapoosa is accused of stagecoach robbery based on eyewitness testimony, Redmask believes in his friend's innocence—but the evidence seems insurmountable. As Redmask searches for proof, he discovers that a criminal double has been impersonating Lallapoosa, setting off a dangerous cat-and-mouse game across the frontier that will test both men's loyalty and resolve.