The Secret of the Apache Kid!

The Apache Kid has called a secret meeting with his father Red Hawk and Captain Bill Gregory to discuss rumors that illegal gambling equipment is going to be shipped into the area. Not knowing who the mastermind behind the plot is, Red Hawk suggests to the others that Apache Kid look around in his alter-ego of roving cowboy Aloysius Kare. They are unaware that they are being watched and that the spy has overheard the secret of Apache Kid's double identity until the spy tries to leave, alerting them of the spy's presence. However, their efforts to capture the spy end in failure. With the possibility of his double identity being revealed and hampering his ability to fight for justice, the Apache Kid changes into Aloysius Kare and follows the spy's tracks into town to try and find them.

As Kare passes by Nellie Green's dance parlor, Miss Nellie offers Kare a job, and suggests that if he's not interested maybe the Apache Kid would take it. Realizing Miss Nellie was the person who discovered his double identity, she points out quite the bind: That the great Apache Kid could not bring himself to kill a woman, and that if he does not take on the job she will tell everyone his secret identity. With no choice, Kare accepts and Miss Nellie goes around back to get ready. Before Aloysius meets up with her he passes a note to a soldier to give to Bill Gregory, telling him to come to Gulcher Pass alone for a showdown.

Having doffed his Aloysius Kare identity, the Apache Kid joins Nellie and her gang to pick up the gambling equipment. Nellie threatens the Kid to do just as she says or she will reveal his identity. However, when the equipment is turned over to Nellie and her gang, the Apache Kid jumps at her, calling out to Bill Gregory to help. While Gregory shoots down Nellie's men, the buck wagon carrying Nellie and Apache Kid runs wild and careens off a cliff while they struggle. While Apache Kid manages to grab hold of a branch, Nellie and her horses go falling all the way to the bottom and are killed on impact. With Nellie dead the Apache Kid's secret died as well as her ambitions of opening a gambling house in Madison have died with her.

Recurring Characters

• Apache Kid

• Red Hawk

• Captain Bill Gregory

• Nightwind

Thunder Below the Border!

In the border town of Tolputic, Texas, the Gunhawk meets with his old friend, Sheriff Buff. Buff is worried because he has recently jailed a Mexican outlaw named Tinto Chavez, and he fears that his gang may come across the border in order to free their leader. He can't wait for the Mexican Federales to come up and relieve him of his burden by taking Chavez back to Mexico to serve his time.

When men claiming to be Federales arrive to pick up Chavez, the Gunhawk notices that the colonel of the group winks at Chavez. Finding this suspicious, Red decides to follow after them across the Rio Grande into Mexico. There finds that the "Federales" are really members of Tinto's gang.

Before the Gunhawk can act, a man gets the drop on him. However, he learns that he is not a member of Tinto's gang. The man is Ricardo Ibanez who is the son of Juan Sebastian Ibanez who was married to the beautiful Donna Teresa Orestes, a woman whom Tinto sought to call his own. After Ricardo was born and grown into a young boy, Tinto came to his fathers farm and shot Juan dead. His mother eventually died of a broken heart. When he became an adult Ricardo vowed to get revenge against Tinto Chavez for murdering his family.

After hearing this story, Gunhawk agrees to help Ricardo get his revenge. The pair attack the gang, while the Gunhawk mows down the gang members Ricardo gets his revenge by slaying Tinto Chavez as he tries to flee, avenging his parents.

Recurring Characters

• Gunhawk

• Blaze

The Murderers of Crippled Bend!

Riding into Crippled Bend, Colorado territory, frontier doctor Matthew Masters hears someone crying for help. The man seeking help is Jed Pinkham who is fleeing from some masked men. The men, seeking to silence Pinkham try to silence him, but Masters forces them to flee with his shotgun. going to Pinkham, Masters finds that the old man has been fatally shot. Dying, Pinkham tells Masters that he saw one of his killers unmasked and identifies him as Tod Rancer who works at the Calhoon ranch. He explains that the masked men collect tributes. Jed dies from his wounds and Masters decides that he must act, changing into the Black Rider.

Riding out to the Calhoon ranch, he meets with the owner Eve Calhoon who took over the ranch after her father died. He asks to see Ted Rancer and Eve brings him onto the ranch. When the Black Rider explains that Jed Pinkham identified him as his killer and asks him to empty out his pockets. When Rancer refuses he tries to draw on the Black Rider. The Black Rider disarms him with a punch, but before things can escalate Eve stops them and tells the Black Rider everything she knows -- That the masked thieves have demanded the ranchers to pay tribute to them or risk having the local river blasted with TNT in order to divert it away from the ranches that need it. When the Black Rider points out that her ranch is struggling and that she would benefit if the water was diverted she is insulted and slaps the hero across the face. The Black Rider informs her that he was acting as a gentlemen and it allowed the accused killers get away and informs her that he will not be a gentleman in the future if it means capturing the killers.

The Black Rider follows after Rancer's trail and ends up riding through a trip rope set out and is taken prisoner. They put the Rider on another horse and tie him to it so that unless he tries to stay rigid straight he will be strangled by a noose. He then finds that the masked killers are in league with Thomas and Carerro who are local gambling racketeers. When he questions them they tell the hero that they have joined up with the leader of the masked men to expand their criminal enterprises.

The horse the Black Rider is tied to is set on a run, trying the buck the hero off threatening to strangle him with the rope around his neck. However the Black Rider manages to maintain his seating and forces the horse to run off a cliff into the river below. Down there waiting for him is Satan who chews through his bonds and escapes. Worried about being captured, Thomas and Carerro decide to take it out on Rancer, shooting him.

Meanwhile, the Black Rider has changed back into Matthew Masters and comes across Rancer who is dying from his gunshot wound. He only manages to tell Masters that the leader of the gang is the person he least suspects before dying. Changing back into the Black Rider, Masters goes to the Calhoon ranch where Eve has deduced that the Black Rider has come once again to accuse her of being leader of the gang. She tells him that a mineralogist friend of hers and US Marshall Nick Kelway had located the outlaws camp and that they plan on having a secret meeting and offers to show the Black Rider where it is. When they arrive there, Kelway is already there appearing to bust the outlaws. However, when the Black Rider sees that Kelway has a crippled arm and only carries on gun, he remembers something that Rancer said and realizes that he is the killer. The Black Rider rounds up the gang and takes them all prisoner.

Later on in town, the Black Rider makes sure that Eve gets the credit for the capture and the town of Crippled Bend awards her with 500 acres of land on the fertile side of the river.

Recurring Characters

• Black Rider

• Satan