The Sunset Trail plot
Bess Aiken grows up quickly when her mother abandons her father to flee with wealthy Easterner Vernon Treloar. Alone with her father, Bess begins to long for some female companionship. When the opportunity presents itself for Bess to visit her newly remarried mother, her father agrees. The little girl soon finds herself in a fairytale world of beautiful dresses and extravagant luxury. Believing that everything her mother does must be right, Bess soon picks up bad habits, much to the dismay of Kirke Livingston, who loves her but fears she's inherited her mother's weaknesses.