Texas “Tex” McCormick rides his beloved horse, Negrito, through the Oklahoma plains. As he rides, he thinks about his best friend Johnny Collins’s new motorcycle, his absent father who is out on the rodeo circuit, and his older brother, Mason—with whom he sometimes has a contentious relationship. After stabling his horse, he catches a ride to school with Johnny on the motorcycle, which is faster than the bus. When he returns from class, he finds his brother unexpectedly already at home: Mason has skipped school to sell Negrito and their other horse. The household has run out of money while Pop, their father, has been on the circuit. Tex is devastated, and he and Mason have a brutal physical altercation over the issue. Mason beats Tex up badly.

Tex leaves the house to go looking for the horses, knowing that Mason has almost certainly sold them to a ranch too far away for him to find, but determined nonetheless to get Negrito back. Johnny and his younger sister, Jamie, try to convince Tex to turn around, but can’t convince him to abandon his mission. Mason finds Tex on the road and forces him to return home. Mason went grocery shopping while Tex was trying to run away, and Tex finds Johnny and Jamie at his house.