Plot summary

As a child, Bart Tare had a fascination with guns. He was never a violent person and didn't even like shooting at animals. Caught after breaking a shop window to steal a gun, he is sent to reform school. He later joins the army but eventually returns home to see his older sister Ruby and two of his childhood friends. They go to a traveling carnival where Bart gets to show off some of his shooting skills with the sideshow's main attraction Annie Laurie Starr. They prove to be equals in their shooting skills and are eventually married. They choose a life of crime starting with robbing gas stations and liquor stores but eventually moving up to much larger heists. Their life of crime leads to its inevitable conclusion.—garykmcd