In April 1950, the rusting hulk of a steam locomotive rises from the waters of a Montana lake, revealing the remains of three men who died forty-four years before – astonishing all those who look on. Back to 1906 – the American West has been suffering a two-year crime spree: a string of bank robberies by one man who murders all witnesses, and then vanishes without a trace. The US government brings in the best man they can find – a no-nonsense detective named Isaac Bell who has caught thieves and killers from coast to coast. But he has never had a challenge like this one. From Arizona to Colorado to the streets of San Francisco, he pursues the best criminal mind he has ever encountered. Soon, it will take all of Bells skills not to prevail . . . but merely to survive.