In "The Dragon Was a Lady," Faith Thorndike inherits a gold mine and mansion from her father, whom she hasn't seen for a number of years. She arrives in Goat Springs, on the eastern edge of Death Valley, and finds herself in the midst of turmoil. Lazarus Howe, attorney for the estate, wants to be her champion. He proposes marriage, and Faith, desperate, accepts him. But before she marries, she needs to learn the truth about the mine.