In 1878 Idaho Territory, the town of Orofino clings to the banks of the Clearwater River, half dream and half desperation, and its only real law wears a Marshal's star over a woman's heart. Known simply as Madam, she can read a trail like scripture and hold a saloon full of hard men with a single look, but a string of burned freight wagons, whispered blame on the Nez Perce, and the quiet rise of a shadowy raider called the Lark threaten to set the whole country on fire. Caught between merchants who smell profit, an Army captain who believes in hammers more than justice, and a ruthless money man who buys other people's debts and souls, Madam must ride a line as narrow as a canyon ledge to keep war from crossing the river. With her father, Del, standing as mayor at her back and a Nez Perce elder who names her "she who sees ahead," Madam gambles everything-reputation, town, and life itself-on one last showdown to prove that sense can be heavier than lead, and that a quiet, honest land is worth more than all the gold men ever chased.