Wind That Knocks Down Lodges loves his Apache mother Shining Waters, his grandfather Chief Strawberry Moon, his baby sister Cactus Flower, and the wildness of the desert canyon land they call home. He has even developed a rough-hewn trust for Cactus Flower's father, the pale face soldier from the fort that their mother loves. In one night of gross misunderstanding and novice mistakes, Knocks Down and Cactus Flower's innocent young world is broken and shaken before they find themselves locked in the soldier fort with the pale faces and their mother's lifeless body. With no one to lean on but each other and the fragile balance between the Apache and the soldiers irreparably upset, Knocks Down and Cactus Flower must make their way as children of The People in the pale face world, surrounded pale faces who have now become the enemy.