A newly minted graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Medical School in 1890, Dr. Thomas Parks heads to the big timber country of Puget Sound to practice trauma medicine. An hour after stepping off the boat he's nearly crushed to death by a less-than-surefooted mule and finds himself a patient rather than a physician. As he convalesces, he discovers that his host, an aging and venerable physician friend of his father's, is running an elaborate medical scam, selling worthless concoctions nationwide, with enormous sales. Limited to practicing medicine with one functioning eye, one hand, and one leg, Thomas grapples with exposing the old family friend. To make matters worse, an epidemic threatens the town and surrounding area. Will the young doctor's first trip to the Northwest be his last?