Category: Hurt/Comfort
I’m Already There (by Wrangler)
Summary: Little Joe doesn’t know what to do with himself when Pa is delayed and can’t make his seventeenth birthday. A simple sweet tale.
Rating T, WC 3326,
The Declaration (by Pat D in PA)
SUMMARY: An older brother mourns his believed failure in keeping a promise. Written for the 3rd Quarter 2025 Chaps and Spurs Writing Challenge.
RATING: K/G WORD COUNT: 1,335
If Your Heart Cries Out Tonight (by Wrangler)
Summary: Little Joe reflects back to when he challenged an important decision that his father made. Now, at seventeen, he discovers why Pa was right.
Rating T WC 10,225,
Sick Love (by bonanzagirl)
Summary: Joe wants to end a relationship, but the girl has other ideas.
Rating: PG-13 Word count: 10600
The Zephyr (by Wrangler)
Summary: When a man seeking revenge traps Pa in a mine, Little Joe races against time to find him. Adam, Hoss, and Hop Sing must then rescue them both.
Rating T, WC 23,175
The Trapper (by bonanzagirl)
Summary: Joe’s encounter with an old trapper turns into a harrowing adventure that tests his courage, endurance, and creativity.
Rating: PG Word count: 14600
Not Til We Find Him (by Patina)
Summary:. A missing son, a father’s search. A WHIB and WHI for The Crucible.
Rating: T Word Count: 5,353
Remember When (by Wrangler)
Summary: Ben recalls a bittersweet moment from the past when a special gift from Little Joe caused a big misunderstanding. (A rare shorter story)
Rating T WC 2,568,
In This Life (by Wrangler)
Summary: When Joe arrived in Savannah to be Clay’s best man he never knew he’d be running for his life after contracting yellow fever. Now home, he recounts the terrifying details to his family.
Rating T, WC 47,230
The Fragrance of Violets (by McFair)
Summary: A shadowed room, thick with the scent of incense, reverberates with the whispers of the Ancestors. What do they seek, and can anyone defy their mystic call? For He Xing—known to the white man as Hop Sing—questions crowd the silence, yet only one answer emerges, undeniable and unyielding. Xuè hǎi xuè chóu. Blood revenge.
Rating: T+ Word Count: 55,685
The Verdict (by bonanzagirl)
Summary: A Saturday night visit to the saloon has terrible consequences for Joe.
Rating: PG Word count: 7900
Payback (by Wrangler)
Summary: It’s time for payback when Little Joe is unwittingly duped by Pete Timmons, setting the stage for one final battle between them. The conclusion of “The Third Son” Trilogy. Rating T WC 22,067 The Third Son Series: The Third Son The Devil’s Hold Payback
The Devil’s Hold (by Wrangler)
Summary: The lives of the Cartwrights are turned upside down when Joe falls into an old well setting the stage for more mystery and danger.
Rating T WC 38,900
The Third Son (by Wrangler)
Summary: The Cartwrights find mystery and danger when Little Joe is gifted a strange present by Ben’s late uncle; which proves to be a curse when Joe is attacked. Rating T, WC 41,000 The Third Son Series: The Third Son The Devil’s Hold Payback
Fifteen Minutes (by Wrangler)
Summary: When Ben is told that Little Joe is dying, they board a stagecoach and begin the race against time to save his life.
Rating T, WC 36,200
