Even the remote Rio Bravo town of Guerrero has paid a price for Mexico's war of independence from Spain. Gripped by drought and depression, Guerrero is changing. Sixteen-year-old Rosita Trevino dreams of a better life, as does fifteen-year-old Maria Alvarez, the book-loving stepsister she barely knows. When Father brings home a rich old suitor who chooses Rosita as his bride, she is determined to flee before it's too late!The next day, to everyone's surprise, a Texas gringo named Austin arrives on a steamboat. Desperate, Rosita runs away to the strange boat, and is taken aboard as ship's musician and cook. That night, a young boy sneaks on board -- Maria, in disguise! Dangers lie ahead...killing heat, drought, illness, and pursuit by Father. Sisters, yet strangers, all they have is each other as they face the dangerous, unpredictable Rio Bravo, and a terrifying new world....