Red Ryder Comics #123

In "null," Red Ryder and Little Beaver track two rustlers, Sag Bloor and Pronto, to a remote lock-gate where the pair attempt to alter the river’s flow to erase their trail. With Sheriff Newt’s help and the help of Jed Swale, the local host, Red must outthink the rustlers before they vanish into the frontier’s hidden currents.

When outlaws Big Bill and Lobo hide inside a wooden water wagon to ambush the stagecoach, Little Beaver recalls a clever trick from an old tale—and turns their plan against them, trapping the thieves in their own ruse. With help from Po-ko and Uncle Jeb, the young scout uses quick thinking to outwit the bandits, proving that brains can be just as powerful as a gun.

When the medicine showman Doc Taney hands Auntie Duchess his entire stock of miracle bottles to help him escape trouble, she’s suddenly stuck with a surplus of dubious remedies. With the town’s latest fire threatening to spread, Auntie’s quick thinking leads her to toss a few bottles at the flames—only to discover, to her surprise, that they might just be more than just showmanship.

In a dusty frontier town, Red Ryder and Little Beaver uncover a deadly conspiracy when Sheriff Tom Hanson is framed for murder by the corrupt lawyer Bruce West. With the truth hidden in a cake and a hired gunman closing in, the boys must protect the only evidence that could clear an innocent man—before the law itself is bought and the trail goes cold.