Storm on the Range — Max Brand

Meet Tom Fernald, the gutless sheepherder of Mount Griffon. The townsfolk scorned him for being slow-witted, so he kept to himself, mostly. And Tommy never fought back when it came to bandits - maybe because he had nothing to lose. A freak accident on a wintry night turned Tom into a rancher of mysterious wealth. He stole a dead man's fortune and wanted it for keeps. Only Bill Ransome, the reformed reprobate, knew the truth and was intent on seeing Fernald behind bars. To survive, Tommy had to become Mount Griffon's most feared gunfighter