Western Hero #94

Bill Boyd smells smoke on the prairie and races to his friend's ranch to find it engulfed in flames—O'Hen lies wounded and dying in the fire, and Boyd risks everything to save him. With O'Hen clinging to life, Bill discovers the arson and shooting were no accident, and sets out to track down the culprits behind this "fiery fate."

Li'l Buck sets off on a small mission to deliver an apple pie to a friend of his mother, hoping to spread a little sweetness. When the friend plans to write a thank-you note, Li'l Buck gently suggests she mention two pies instead—just to keep the good vibes going.

Big Bow and Little Arrow take on what seems like easy money—a simple job sleeping overnight in a haunted ranch house—but their employer's peculiar inheritance clause and the mysterious happenings inside quickly test their nerve. When something genuinely spooky appears, these two fast-talking partners must decide whether their pay is worth staying put until morning.

When a fast-talking stranger cons Gabby Hayes into buying what he thinks is raw wool—only to discover a carload of live sheep has arrived instead—the easygoing foreman suddenly finds himself at odds with every cattleman in the territory. As Gabby scrambles to make his woolly investment pay off, the neighboring ranchers grow increasingly hostile, forcing him to track down the con artist and settle accounts before the whole situation spirals completely out of control.

Manders shows off a magic trick to Brown, making a card vanish—and when Brown offers five dollars to learn the secret, Manders agrees to teach him how to transform peaches into a pear. The punchline lands harder than any sleight of hand when Manders reveals his surprisingly practical "method."

When a gold strike transforms the sleepy town of Lost Pike into a boomtown, food becomes scarce—and Mr. Vingo seizes the opportunity to corner the market on cattle, keeping competing herds out and charging outrageous prices to desperate settlers. Monte Hale discovers the scheme and sets out to bring in a massive herd to break Vingo's stranglehold, but Vingo's hired guns will stop at nothing to prevent it, forcing Monte to outthink them at every turn. As tensions boil over and the town turns against him, Monte must uncover Vingo's final trick before it's too late.

A sharp-talking frontier character named Ruffles makes a deal with a known schemer named Filche, and when concerned onlookers warn him he's been swindled into buying worthless stock, Ruffles reveals he's already thought several moves ahead. This quick-witted western humor tale proves that sometimes the best con is knowing you're being conned.

Ban returns to his one-horse town full of tall tales about his time in Hollywood as a movie actor, but his old friend Joe isn't buying the act—especially when Ban claims he "stole" his last picture and compares himself to Robert Taylor. As the two trade increasingly colorful insults about Ban's supposed stardom and acting chops, Joe makes it clear he remembers exactly who Ban was before the bright lights.

When a botched safe-cracking at the Dobie Bank leaves one outlaw injured and desperate, Tom Mix finds himself hunting a clever criminal mastermind whose scheme goes far deeper than a simple robbery. With dead stagecoach drivers, a phony architect, and a trail of deception winding through the town, the straight shooter must piece together the clues before the real culprits escape with a fortune in gold. It's a case that'll test Mix's wits as much as his gun hand.

Cactus Brain frantically searches for a newspaper to check the prize winners in the Mexican Sweepstakes, convinced his luck has finally turned around. When he finds the list and scans the names, he discovers his own isn't among them—but takes unexpected comfort in the realization that he never bought a ticket in the first place.