Tanglefoot — Paul Lederer

In a cutthroat western town, a newcomer is tricked into helping an outlaw

After three days in a stagecoach, Chad Dempster is weary, dusty, and sore. On his first step into Las Palmas, he slips, and crashes face first into the dirt. His clumsiness earns him a nickname -- Tanglefoot -- and the sympathy of Glen Walker, one of the most powerful men in town. Walker buys Chad lunch, finds him a place to stay, and gets him a job driving the stagecoach. He seems like the best friend a newcomer could have -- but he is setting Tanglefoot up to die.

On Chad's first run with the stage, a crew of bandits open fire on him. He is saved only by the quick shooting of a mysterious passenger. But why did the outlaws quit so easily? And if the passenger was the one who saved him, why did Chad not see him draw his gun? Trapped in a conspiracy he can't understand, Tanglefoot must move quick to stay alive, or risk something much worse than falling on his face.