Preacherman

Amos Huxley has sex with Mary Lou, who is revealed to be the daughter of Sheriff Zero Bull. In the fallout, the sheriff and his deputy beat him and cast him outside the county line. He is warned never to return, setting the events of the story in motion.

Huxley is left unconscious near the county line after the banishment. Judd Crabtree discovers him and carries him to his home to recover. This rescue foreshadows Huxley's reluctant stay in the county.

With a countywide roadblock hunting escaped convicts and likely him, Huxley resolves to stay with Judd. He also meets Mary Lou, who has been flirting with multiple local boys, a detail that unsettles the already tense dynamics. The decision anchors him in Crabtree's household.

Under the pretense of baptizing Mary Lou and curbing her lascivious behavior, Huxley exploits the situation to coerce multiple sexual encounters. He carefully diverts Judd’s attention by sending him outside to watch for 'the Angel Leroy.' The manipulation lays the groundwork for their illicit arrangement.

Judd confesses that he operates an illegal moonshine still, a scheme run with Sheriff Bull and Bull's shopkeeper brother-in-law. The revelation shows how far the town’s power structures are entangled with vice. Huxley begins to see a financial opportunity within this network.

Huxley suggests that Judd can run the moonshine operation as a revenue source to build a new church. He plans to replace Sheriff Bull’s infrastructure with a traveling saleswoman, Martha, as the new supplier. The scheme aims to maximize profit while avoiding the sheriff’s direct control.

Other locals are drawn into the venture, and the operation quickly grows into a lucrative enterprise. The community becomes complicit as liquor profits fund ambitions beyond simple survival. Huxley basks in the growing success while orchestrating the overall scheme.

Clyde Massingale, Mary Lou's former lover, resents his loss of access to her and to Huxley's new arrangement. Huxley attempts to recruit Clyde into the operation to keep him quiet, but Sheriff Bull senses a potential witness to Huxley’s past. Bull alerts Clyde to Huxley's criminal history.

With the dragnet ending, Huxley sees a chance to flee with Mary Lou. He persuades Judd and Martha to stage a large revival event to maximize profits and cover the escape. The plan hinges on a public spectacle rather than a quiet exit.

Clyde betrays the setup by tipping off Bull, who raids the revival. Judd distracts the sheriff long enough for Huxley and Mary Lou to escape, but Mary Lou reveals she loves Clyde. The escape plan is put into motion amid chaos.

Amid the escape, Huxley tells Mary Lou he has left a large share of profits in her bedroom for herself and Judd. He then runs off alone, seeking to put distance between himself and the sheriff’s reach. The departure marks a turning point as loyalty and love are tested.

Clyde reconciles with Mary Lou and misleads Sheriff Bull and his deputy. This ruse clears the path for Huxley to reach the next county free and clear. The community’s tangled loyalties determine who wins and who loses.