Szabo is a ranchman in Montana. He also works an office job that works with purchasing and producing parts for wind generators. He loved his tractor and ranching though he would not admit it. The people who bought products from his ranch privately thought he was nuts but relied on his business. One day, when climbing into his tractor, Szabo falls and severely injures himself.

He wakes up in the hospital on morphine and with the news that he needed shoulder surgery. He would be unable to continue his work on the ranch for a month. He calls his secretary Melinda who helps him with the business aspect of his work on the ranch. She suggests that he hire a temporary ranch hand. He agrees. They struggle to find someone until they stumble upon Barney. Szabo called one of his references and received an odd, drunken response. However, Barney was qualified and was soon hired. Barney started soon after and was extremely efficient at the job. This caused heartache for Szabo.

One day, Szabo tried to ride his horse, Moon. He was not able to. Barney offers to ride the horse and keep him in shape. Barney rode without grace and that was also hard for Szabo to see.  Barney says he will have the horse safe for Szabo in no time. With attitude Szabo questions when the horse wasn’t safe.

Szabo’s elderly mother lives in a nursing home nearby. She has her own room because of her chain-smoking and possession of an heirloom painting likely worth millions of dollars. One afternoon, Szabo gives Barney of a box of things to drop off at his mother’s during his trip into town.

Szabo slowly begins to recover. Barney continues taking control over things at the farm.

Szabo must go to Denver. He stops by his mother’s. She says she does not need anything and may spend her time getting lunch with Barney. Szabo prepares to leave as his assistant, Melina, who has a warm, stable family and four children, has already organized all of his ranch affairs. Melinda is a close friend of Szabo. After Szabo’s wife Karen, who was a recovering alcoholic, divorced him because they went bankrupt, Melinda brought him into her circle. Karen moved to southern California with her new, rich husband, Cliff. Szabo once touched Melinda. They resolved the situation. Szabo was convinced that he was crazy and that was why Karen left him. This is also what Szabo’s son, David, believed.  

Szabo arrives in Denver and visits David in prison. He is in jail on drug charges. David tells his dad that he plans to live with his mother and Cliff after he gets out of jail in about a year. Szabo tells David to write his grandmother back. David says he will and mentions his grandma’s boyfriend, Barney. This surprises Szabo but does not distract him from the fact that his son won’t be coming back home. He knows that he has a mother—but she has a new companion. He is upset about David and how drugs destroyed David’s generation.

Szabo arrives back at the farm. Szabo tells Barney he no longer needs his help. Barney said that there was something Szabo needed to know and that he was a respectable person.

Szabo was disturbed. He took his mother out to lunch. They talk about David and Barney. She says that David is the one who is pulling things together, even just for her. She says that it was Barney who told her to insure her painting. She also says that Barney thinks David is in this situation because of things that happened when he was growing up. Szabo says that Barney has never even met David.

Once winter arrives, Szabo goes to Germany on business. He meets a girl and they are flirtatious. Szabo flies from Germany to Denver. He goes to see his son. David tells him that Cliff and Karen do not want him to stay with them in California. He does not have a plan B. Then David asks why Szabo sent Barney to come to talk to them. Szabo is confused and questions David about this. David says Barney has a Ph.D. and tried to counsel him.  He said that Barney advised him to go home and take over the ranch because Szabo is incompetent.

This makes Szabo very upset because people in his past have also encouraged him to give up his ranch due to his incompetency. Szabo asks if David told him no. David says that he told Barney that he was not welcome at the ranch.

Szabo says David has always been welcome. David starts crying and explains that even though he was bad at business, he was good at ranch work. Szabo makes a backhanded remark about David’s drug use.

Szabo goes back home to the ranch. When he arrives, he discovers that Barney absconded with the expensive painting. He is an infamous art thief named Ronny and has done this several times previously. David goes to live with Szabo on the ranch.