After the Civil War, veterans of the war returned home to their farming communities along the Missouri-Kansas border. They were looking for peace and tranquility; what they found was turmoil. Forced to leave their homes, four of these men came to Independence and returned to farming. Things were going well for these former confederate soldiers and their families until Bruce Yeager came to town with a carpetbag, $100,000 and a confidential map showing where a proposed railroad line was being planned. Bruce planned to acquire the land that the railroad was going to pass through. To accomplish this plan, he befriended the mayor and hired a gunman named Tony Creek. He used the mayor to acquire the land by the powers of eminent domain and used Tony Creek to enforce his desires. When Bruce attempted to take land from these farmers he found out that they were not ordinary farmers. These men were veterans with a shameful, dark secret.