The case of the week involves a cowboy who dies on a Mars simulator site. 

Steve and Danny go shopping for a Christmas tree, but are left with slim pickings. 

Steve comes up with the idea to cut down a tree from a protected forest for Danny to use for Christmas. 

Steve and Danny receive a phone call about a case, but Steve cannot go as he has a meeting with a governor. 

While on the case, Max runs into an old classmate of his with whom he has a rivalry with. 

The team finds out that the dead man was a local bull rider. 

Steve and Danny are investigated for stealing the Christmas tree. 

Kono and Danny chase down their top suspect, a fellow bull rider, but discover that he did not commit the murder. The team begins to suspect that the murder was not about revenge. 

Max and his old classmate have an argument over Janice, a woman whom they both liked. 

The team chases down a new suspect to find that another victim has been poisoned. The team identifies the second victim as the owner of Urban Myth, a horse that was a contender for the Kentucky Derby. 

The team saves Urban Myth just before it is killed. Urban Myth is reunited with his owner. Sanjid and Max make up as friends when Sanjid gives Max the action figure that they had fought over. 

At the end of the episode Danny and Steve are fined for stealing a pine tree from a protected reserve.