Rainwater is in the middle of a horrific vision quest. Standing on the plains, he sees a burning tree and a woman on fire running for her life. Beside him sits Dan Jenkins, his face partially burned. What happened to you, he asks Dan. Dan raises a gun and pulls the trigger as Rainwater sits bolt upright in bed.
John and the ranch hands are out looking for a group of lost cattle. They're in the thick woods, and they need to flush them out.
It utterly freaks me out the way those dogs run and jump pushing the cattle. One gets punted, squealing in pain.
A new man is heading to Yellowstone.
The team is hustling cattle into pens, taking a count. Eight hundred so far.
It's low man's work to use the ejaculator. Hot damn, that's huge.
Carrying all of his tack, the stranger asks John if there might be work. After eyeing Rip, John sends him over to Kacey to make his case. Kacey eyes his father, and Rip assesses the new dynamic.
Jamie is in bed, political photos on the wall at Christina's place when his girlfriend and manager suggest he meet her parents this weekend.
He heads out for coffee after an incident that suggests he has nothing in common with the girl. At the coffee joint, they're slow-brewing individual cups of coffee. He notes there are machines for that, but he now he understands the long line. The girl quips, people wait all day for it.
He grabs a cup and lifts it to his lips, and the barista suggests he let it rest. He never lowers his eyes as he openly defies her.
Christina thanks God for the pour-over leading Jamie to ponder his fate on the sofa.
Beth is renting a space a space, but it's a short term lease.
Beth reports to John that she found one. A former rodeo queen. John remarks she looks like Beth.
There is a council meeting at the reservation. Their reservation is not a destination, it's a gas station on the way to destinations. He wants to own the land and then annex it to the reservation. They can build businesses, hotels, restaurants, all without state oversight because it will belong to the reservation. At least one member balks at Rainwater's idea of progress, but the others are more willing to go along with his devious plans.
Monica goes to visit the college. She wants to remain at the university and teach classes evenings and weekends. The dean offers one class in American History. He wants her to teach her version of American history from Columbus to the Declaration of Independence.
She goes by Monica Long, now.
Cassidy arrives at the Yellowstone. She's the new candidate they're going to back for Montana. She's surprised. She started a charity for wounded war veterans by saving horses.
Cowboy isn't making friends at Yellowstone. He has to learn there is one rule — if they want to fight anyone, they fight Rip.
Cowboy and Walker are previously acquainted. Walker suggests Yellowstone ain't like anyplace he's ever been. It's like a ranch at the border with drug runners and other criminal sorts. Cowboy says there's no border here. Oh, there is. You just can't see it.
Monica is shielding Tate from what Kacey has done because she doesn't want Tate to see it catch up to Kacey.
Beth meets with Bob Schwartz. They discussed her office space. She wants to start with a $100 million to buy land that they will then get paid for not farming it while they spend all of that money to buy more land. They're even in a year and they're profitable in two. She wonders how Bob is fixed for junk. He tucks it in his sock.
Avery can't believe what a bunch of pussies the wranglers are on a weekend. With Cowboy's prodding, they all play a different kind of poker that involves the bulls and breaking shit.
Rip is not pleased they were messin' with the bulls. He sends them into town, but asks Lloyd who won and is damn proud when he learns it's Avery.
Jimmy and Avery start a conversation about cowboying and their families. When a dude asks Avery to dance, she wants to continue the conversation. Assured that being with the Yellowstone means nobody will mess with them he tells the guy to fuck off. A fight ensues, and the guy even punches Avery in the face.
When Avery gets back to the bunkhouse, he goes to Rip. Kacey gets ready to join Rip for revenge when Rip tries to stop him.
They release a bull inside the bar so everyone runs out and they pummel them with baseball bats. Walker looks on without raising his hand. Rip wants to beat the crap out of Walker as a result, but Lloyd says first things first and they all enter the bar.
They need to round up the bull, and Rip needs to remind the bar if trouble starts, they need to break it up, call Rip or both. Kacey says maybe next time he'll just burn it down.
In town, John catches up to Dan Jenkins. He's alive and well! Dan's not leaving Montana. He's sticking around. He wants John to be on the Yellowstone when he takes it. John says dreams take courage, and then Dan mentions Lee's death.
Jimmy gets to inseminate the bulls.
Seconds later, John collapses. The only help is a local large animal vet who discovers he doesn't have colon cancer, he has an ulcer and it's ruptured.
He's saved after a grisly veterinarian rescue, but now he knows he's not dying and has a lot to undo.