Summary: Sequel to “Long Road Back”.

Rating:  K+ (12, 190 words)

Long Road Back Series:

Long Road Back
Acceptance
Far Side of Jordan

 

“I Remember I Remember” (29 Sep 1828)
Written by THOMAS HOOD
composed by C. Meineke.
[Christopher Meineke (1782-1850]) (I have only used the 2nd verse).

Acceptance

Chapter One

Adam sat in front of the fire place watching the flames dance around. Ben sat at the table hoping Tara would arrive soon. For the most part, she was still the one who seemed to be able to get through to Adam on his ‘dark days’, especially if he’d had a nightmare. Not knowing about her days in a mental institution, Ben could only wonder at the connection Tara and Adam had. He wasn’t about to argue though, that connection had saved his oldest son, still was at times. When a knock came at the door, Ben got up from his chair and hurried to answer it.

“Come on in, Tar…” Ben stopped mid-sentence and stared; he couldn’t help it.

Tara chuckled and said, “Be careful of what you let your friends wash your hair with. I should be grateful all that happened was my hair turned blonde.” Ben chuckled and let her in. He pointed towards Adam and sighed. His eyes said ‘He won’t talk to me.’ Out loud he simply said, as he walked out the door, “I have work to do outside.”

Tara made her way over to the couch and sat down next to Adam. She joined him in watching the flames. She knew full well there was no pushing Adam to talk before he was ready. Sure enough, a good fifteen minutes passed by before he turned his head, “Pa send for you?” The question sounded more like a statement that anything.

Tara nodded and sighed, “He’s worried about you and quite frankly, so am I. What is going on?” She laid her hand upon the top of his.

Adam looked at her hand, and then back to the fireplace as he said, “I don’t know. I honestly don’t know. I haven’t been sleeping well and I can’t seem to relax. It doesn’t make any sense to me.”

It did to Tara.

“You still dream about Caine don’t you?” she knew the answer, but asked it anyway.

Adam didn’t want to admit that; after all, hadn’t he’d put all that behind him? Slowly, he nodded his head as he finally said, “Yes, at least once a week it seems. Well, sometimes I see his face. Sometimes, I’m just running. Pa says at least I let him or one of my brothers near me. None of us want to have to ask you to move in again.” He turned his head to look at Tara, “Why do I still dream about that beast so much? When does it stop?”

Tara wrapped her hand around his as she answered, “I can’t tell you that; however,” she paused long enough to turn his head toward her, “You just keep telling yourself it wasn’t your fault and, if it helps, write the dreams down in a book. It’s only been a few months since you come out from behind your wall Adam; it takes time and a lot of talking it out to really come to terms with things.”

Adam had told himself that so many times it made his head spin. “I tell myself that over and over. On my good days, it’s rather easy, but the days after I have ‘those dreams’, doesn’t matter whether Peter Caine is in them or not, I fight myself fighting to keep from slipping behind that wall again.”

Tara nodded knowingly, “It’s not easy, is it? Especially since the last thing you want it is for you, or your family, to ‘be put through that again’.” She slid her free arm around his back, “You’re not alone, Adam. That’s the important part, so many, too many, are.” She knew; she’d seen them.

Adam relaxed as he felt the comfort of her arms, “To be honest with you,” he turned his gazed to the fire once more, “It’s not just that.” Tara said nothing as she waited for him to speak. She wasn’t surprised by what he had to say.

“Hoss and I were supposed to go to Carson City last week,” Adam sighed and shook his head, “We didn’t even get a mile out of Virginia City and I found my heart racing, I could hardly breathe, and poor Hoss thought for sure I was losing it again. As it was, we had to come back and Little Joe had to go with him.” Adam rubbed his forehead, “I’m thirty years old and I felt like a two year old child afraid of his own shadow!” The frustration he felt was in is his voice.

Tara found herself pulling him close without thinking, but he did not fight her. She ran her hand through his hair and whispered, “It was your first attempt at leaving a place your mind is saying you are ‘safe’, even though we both know there is no totally ‘safe’ place in this world. You were bound to have an attack of that kind sooner or later. Remember? We talked about it before.”

They had; he and she had spent more than one hour, one evening, doing just that. Adam sighed, “I know, guess I wanted to believe I was different.”

Tara started chuckling as she remembered feeling the same way. She whispered, “You are different, Adam. Different than any other man I’ve ever met.” Without thinking she started singing softly.

I remember, I remember
The roses, red and white,
The vi’lets and the lilly cups,
Those flowers made of light!
The lilacks where the robin built,
And where my brother set
The liburnum on his birthday,–
The tree is living yet!
The liburnum on his birthday,–
The tree is living yet!

Chapter Two

Ben was sitting behind the table they’d set on the front porch talking to Hoss and Little Joe when Adam and Tara walked of the house. “Hello, Tara,” Hoss smiled at the young woman, as did Little Joe, “Good to see ya.” He liked Tara and was glad Dr. Martin had hired her as his assistant. Most of all, he was glad Adam had someone he could talk to, when he couldn’t get himself to talk to one of them.

“Hello, Hoss.” Tara smiled at the gentle giant before her. He reminded her of her big brother.

Ben spoke up, “I have to go check on some things up at the lumber camp for a few days; do you think the three of you,” Ben asked as he looked at his sons, “can manage to hold the fort down while I’m gone? I won’t be leaving until tomorrow morning.” He wasn’t so much concerned about Hoss and Little Joe as he was Adam. It was something they didn’t have to be told.

“We’ll be fine.” Adam answered as he did his best to hide the fact how nervous he really felt. His brothers said the same thing. Adam then said, “Tara and I are going to ride around the ranch and check on a few fence lines; that is, unless you have something else you need me to do.” He looked at his father.

On the outside, Adam looked as calm as anyone else, but his father saw into his son’s eyes and saw the truth. Inwardly, Ben sighed. There were other things that needed to be done, but he would just have to trust Hoss or Little Joe to get them done. “Sure, if you find any that needs fixing just let me know.”

He waited until Adam had disappeared into the barn before quietly asking Tara “Is everything all right?” He figured if anyone could tell him it was her.

Tara shrugged her shoulders and answered, “They’re as good as can be expected. He just needs your patience. Like I told you all before,” she said as she looked at all the Cartwrights, “I should have known better than to think once he was talking everything would be just like it was before.” ‘Especially, considering my past!’ she chastised herself as she continued talking, “The wall may be down, but he’s still healing.”

They may have said something in reply, only Adam came out of the barn leading Sport. Only after he and Tara had mounted their horses and left did Little Joe start talking. “When is he going to be like he was before?” It’s not that he wasn’t doing all he could do to support Adam, he was, but “something” had changed. It was the change that was frustrating Little Joe.

Hoss shrugged his shoulders and with his simple ways made an obvious statement, “I don’t think a body can go through somethin’ like Adam did and not change. It’s not a bad thing, Short Shanks, iff’n it was a bad thing, Tara would tell pa and she ain’t done that. Let’s give big brother the space he needs. Everythin’ will be just fine, you just wait and see.” Somehow, he knew he was right. Though, he couldn’t help but wonder one thing; would Tara stick around once Adam was fine, really fine?

Ben stood up and gathered the papers in front of him. He needed to get ready for the trip up to the logging camp; as he did he again prayed Adam would be all right.

While Ben prepared to leave Adam and Tara were riding around the ranch. The wind was whipping through the air, but not so fast to make the riding miserable. In fact, it felt quite good. Adam stopped when they came to a part of the fence that indeed needed fixing, but something looked funny. He dismounted his horse, as did Tara.

Adam rested his arm on the fence post nearest him and shook his head. The fence wasn’t broken by wear and tear; someone had messed with it. Tara saw the damage and looked at Adam and saw a tiny bit of tension in his face. “Adam?” She put her hand on his arm.

Adam shook his head and let his muscles relax as he said, “Someone did this on purpose.” It wasn’t that he thought she couldn’t figure that out. He just knew he had to say it out loud or bottle it up inside, and he’d been there already.

Tara was less concerned about the damaged fence and more concerned how the stress of dealing with whatever was going on and whoever was involved could affect Adam. “We need to tell your pa.” Tara laid her hand upon his arm, when he didn’t move.

For a split second Adam was going to do just that, and then he realized if he was ever to get completely well he had to deal with it; he and his brothers that is. He knew why his father had to leave and that business had to be dealt with too. “No.” Adam turned and faced her as he said, “My brothers and I will deal with it after pa has left.”

Tara couldn’t help but smile as she saw something in Adam’s eyes she’d never seen before… determination. “And me, I’m with you.” She had to hide a grin as a shocked look came upon Adam’s face.

“You are Dr. Martin’s nurse.” Adam planted his feet ten feet in the dirt. “This isn’t your concern.”

Tara only planted her feet as deep as Adam’s, if not further. “Dr. Martin’s niece came in for a visit; she’s a nurse. I have a couple of weeks off. Like I said, I’m with you.” Her eyes looked like steel, her jaw set firmly in its place, and her arms were folded as if to say “Make me leave!”

Adam thought a moment about arguing with her, but then started grinning from ear to ear. “You are a stubborn one aren’t you?” Tara smiled and went to reply only to find Adam gathering her up his arms and lowering his head. As she unfolded her arms and slid them around his waist and up his back all she could think was ‘It’s about time!”

Chapter Three

Adam stood on the front porch watching his father ride away. Hoss and Little Joe had disappeared into the barn and Tara had stepped out of sight. Adam was shocked to have a sudden wave of panic rush over him. He felt his heart start to race and an unexplainable fear begin to rise up in him. “Adam.” Tara came around the corner of the house just in time to see Adam grab the post in front of him. She hurried to the side and found him holding onto her tighter than he had in months. “It’s okay, Adam,” Tara said as she wrapped her arms around him, “you’ll be fine.” ‘I hope’, she had to keep any thoughts like that to herself. There was no way he could benefit from any doubts.

Adam wanted to curse, but he wasn’t going to do that in front of Tara. “I’m sorry.” He relaxed enough to let go and sit down, “I don’t know what brought that on.” He didn’t, and it was frustrating.

Tara only smiled as she looked around, “That’s an easy one to figure out. You were alone.” She pointed in the direction Ben had gone and asked, even though she had a pretty good idea, “Where’s your brothers?”

“In there,” Adam answered motioning towards the barn, “but I’m at home! This shouldn’t be happening here!” He found himself angry and upset.

Tara sighed and shook her head. Putting her hand over his, she said, “It doesn’t matter; you were alone, being alone had to have sparked the attack. I suspect it stems from the fact you were alone when you crossed paths with Peter Caine.” It was only a guess; still, it was the only thing that made any sense to her.

Adam shook his head. He had to get a grip on himself, especially with what he had to now tell his brothers about the problem they had. “I can’t go around having to have pa, one of my brothers or” he stood up and walked over to the pillar, “even you with me all the time. There’s got to be a way to stop these attacks from happening.”

Tara sighed and joined him by the post. “Look, Adam, whether either one of us likes it or not, these attacks are going to happen for a while. You went through a horrible ordeal. I know, with me, I knew I needed to accept it and deal with it, somehow. I was blessed to be able to do so. Well, I knew it was that or run the risk I’d find myself running the danger of going back behind my wall. Adam, look at me.” Tara reached up and took a hold of his chin and turned his face towards hers; he’d been looking straight ahead, “You don’t belong behind a wall; no one does.” His head knew that; it was his heart that was having the problem.

“You okay, Adam?” Little Joe asked as Hoss and he walked towards Tara and him. He wasn’t sure he liked the, somewhat, pale look upon his oldest brother’s face.

“I’m fine.” Adam sat back in the chair he sat in, “But, we may have a problem to deal with.” He looked at his brothers standing before him. As he went to speak he felt a slight wave of panic wash over him. While it startled him, he was able to keep his composure and speak. “I didn’t tell pa, but some of our fences have been damaged on purpose.” Shock waves passed through, and over, both Hoss and Little Joe. What was Adam talking about?

“Let’s see iff’n I understand this right.” Hoss put his hands on his hips as he looked on Adam. “We have someone trespassin’ on the Ponderosa and ys didn’t say anythin’ to pa. Why?” He was, naturally, afraid that his brother was going back to not wanting to face things. It didn’t’ take Adam long to correct that thinking.

“Because that business pa left to take care of,” Adam answered as he stood up and looked at both his brothers, “is extremely important to this ranch. Now, I say we need look and see if we can find anything. If not, we go into town and see if any strangers are there.” It was the only thing he could think of to do.

Hoss and Little Joe didn’t like the idea that Adam had left their pa out of this, but they understood why. “Okay, I’ll go saddle Cochise.” Little Joe headed back towards the barn, as did Hoss.

Tara looked at Adam. He was looking out over the land in front of his eyes. “I’m going to saddle my horse as well.” She started for the barn.

Adam didn’t like the idea of Tara going along, who knows who they’d meet up with. “You can come with us to town, but I see no reason for you to come along now.”

He turned his gaze towards her. He wasn’t exactly surprised when she replied, over her shoulder, “That’s okay; we don’t always see everything. I’ll saddle my horse.” She figured he’d be by her side within a split second to argue with her; she was right.

“Tara Hansen!” Adam stepped in front of her, “I told you already, there’s no need for you to come with us.” He put his hands on his waist.

Tara hid her grin. It felt good to have Adam fighting back like was, but he should know better by now. “I’m going Adam. Whether or not I ride with you, one of your brothers or by myself, it don’t matter to me none. I’m riding.”

“I thought you said your mother taught school? It’s ‘It doesn’t matter’, ‘none’ doesn’t belong in the sentence,” Adam said as he fought to control his temper, “and why are you insisting on coming with us? I’m fine.”

Tara didn’t feel like fighting him. “Fine? You’re healing for sure, Adam. There’s no denying that, nor do I want to deny it, but fine enough for me not to worry about you? What was that I just witnessed a few minutes ago? What were you just saying to me?”

Adam opened his mouth intent on arguing some more only to have it hit him like a tons of bricks; he’d scared her and she, naturally, was genuinely concerned about him because of it. “I’m sorry, I scared you.” Adam softened his tone and sighed. “This is something my brothers and I need to do. No,” he paused then continued speaking, “it’s something I have to do, just stay here with Hop Sing.” He pulled her to him and kissed her slowly. Tara found herself hanging on as if her life depended on it.

“I’ll be back.” Adam whispered as he let her go and walked off. Tara walked over to the porch and stood on it as she watched Hoss, Little Joe and Adam mount their horses and ride off.

“Be careful, Adam.” Tara whispered, “Please, be careful.”

Chapter Four

Tara walked out the front door and headed for the barn. She knew Adam had asked her to stay with Hop Sing, but she was going to go crazy if she didn’t do something, and there was only so much housecleaning she could do. There were still a couple of hours of sunlight left; she should be able to get some riding in. She was almost to the barn when Adam and his brothers rode around the corner of the barn. Instantly, she was concerned as Adam looked rather upset while his brothers looked uncomfortable. She said nothing though; she simply turned around and went back inside the house. She’d figured they’d come in when they were ready; they did.

Tara was setting the table when Hoss, Little Joe and Adam entered. She watched as Adam went upstairs and then looked at Hoss and Little Joe; both looked as if they wanted to crawl in a hole. Somehow she knew whatever had happened was not good. “What happened?” She looked at, her eyes narrowing.

“We meant no harm, Tara,” Hoss answered as he fidgeted, “it’s just that, dagnammit, Adam looked as if he was havin’ a heart attack out there while we were lookin’ ’round. I just asked him iff’n he thought I should go for a doctor.”

“And you backed him up on the offer?” she looked at Little Joe, somehow she knew what was coming; she was right.

“Yes, I did,” Little Joe answered as he threw his hands up in resignation, “I was worried about him. We lost him once, well, twice in a way. I didn’t want to lose him again. Reckon, we jumped the gun a bit.” He felt horrible; he hadn’t meant to upset Adam.

Tara headed for the stairs, and then stopped. “Did you find anything?” she looked at Hoss and Little Joe. “I mean, did you find anything that might tell you what is going on?” She hoped so. What with Adam’s moods and Mr. Cartwright gone, she didn’t feel like being caught in the middle of a mystery with no clues.

“Reckon, we might have,” Hoss said as he showed her a couple of bandanas that actually had initials on them, along with a shirt and jacket “we’re taking them to the sheriff, when we go to town.” He looked up the stairs, “When Adam comes back down.”

Tara started up the stairs and then stopped. She didn’t know why, but it hit her like a ton of bricks that it was time to just pull back. She’d been looking out for Adam for so long, it had become second nature. Also, while she realized that somewhere along the line she’d gone from caretaker, to friend, to a woman in love, she realized she didn’t need to be hovering over him every time it appeared he might have a setback. No, she wouldn’t go up, unless he stayed upstairs for too long of a period. Tara turned around and headed back down the steps.

“Ain’t ya gonna go see iff’n he’s okay?” Hoss was puzzled; this wasn’t like the Tara he knew. He thought she’d want to check on his brother.

Tara could tell by the look on Hoss’s face, and Little Joe’s, just how puzzled they were. “I can’t right now and neither can you.” She went and explained, and then said, “If he’s not down in a decent amount of time, I’ll go up. For now, come and eat.” She headed for the table; Hoss and Little Joe were not far behind.

While they getting ready to eat, Adam was leaning against the window pane in his room and gazed outside. ‘Look here,” Hoss hollered, dismounted his horse and picked up the items that lay near a part of broken fence, “looks like a couple of fellars lost somethin’!”

Adam had taken a look and found the same fear that had taken a hold of him on the porch grabbing at him now, the shirt and jacket were the same color as the ones worn by Peter Caine. He felt his muscles tightening up, and his chest got heavy. Before he knew it both Hoss and Little Joe were asking him if he needed a doctor. He hadn’t meant to, but he’d laid into them and bellowed he didn’t need any one like that and they’d just take the items to Roy after lunch. He’d then turned his horse around and headed home. His heart was racing the whole time.

“Snap out of it!” He may not be behind a wall; he knew that, but he was still running. At least; he felt like he was. Forcing himself to turn away from the window he headed for the bedroom door only to have it hit him that Tara had not come up after him. He knew her well enough to know that would be her first instinct. Slowly, he stepped out of the room, shut the door and headed downstairs.

Hearing Adam’s footsteps, Hoss, Little Joe and Tara looked away from the table. Adam didn’t know whether or not to be flattered by the attention or annoyed. “Don’t look so shocked; I still know my way to the table. Let’s get this food eaten and then head into town.” Adam pulled his chair out, sat down and looked at Tara. The look of someone who was deeply concerned about someone they loved was in her eyes. If they were alone, he might have said something different. As it was, Adam lifted his glass and shot her a playful grin and said, “I suppose, we’ll have to take you along.” He then thought, ‘If we don’t get you back to the Widow Hawkins, she’ll have more gossip going through town than the river has water running down it. That’s just something I can’t allow”.

If Tara hadn’t caught the look in his eyes as Adam spoke and the grin, she’d have taken offense. As it was, she simply smiled and agreed. Hoss and Little Joe weren’t blind; they had to suppress their laughter, as they figured laughing would either upset Adam again or get him on their case. Either way, they didn’t want to deal with it. They had to find out what was going on.

Chapter Five

Roy sat behind his desk as Hoss laid the items down upon the desk, Little Joe sat in a chair near the sheriff and Adam told the lawman what was going on; Tara had stepped into the store while they took care of this matter. “I don’t know what’s going on, Roy.” Adam said as he leaned against the wall although Roy had offered him a seat; he didn’t tell the lawman it was because he, again, was feeling like panic was trying to be become his best friend.

“I’m afraid I do,” Roy said as he leaned back in his chair, “but first, I think you best sit down Adam; you don’t look so good.” The lawman knew there was a touch of sickness going around; he hoped Adam wasn’t coming down with it.

Adam made himself straighten up; he wasn’t going to let this “demon”, as he was beginning to think of it as, get him down again. Well, not if he could at all help it. “I’m fine. What’s up?”

Roy shook his head as he explained, “There’s at least one person, if not more, going around causing trouble to a lot of the folks ’round town and some of the ranches. They’re doin’ plenty of damage, but we can’t figure out why. These items though,” he said as he scratched his chin, “They’re the first physical evidence that has been brought in. I’m afraid, for now, all I can do is take the items, write a report and keep in touch with you. Sorry.”

If it was happening to other people, Adam knew what that meant; his pa would hear about it. Adam hoped that, if that was the case, his pa would have the business taken care of first.

Ben was indeed hearing about it. Having taken care of the urgent business at the lumber camp, Ben had been heading home when he ran across David Miles, a fairly new rancher. The man had been heading for the Cartwright home. “I tell you Ben, everyone in town is keeping their eyes open as things are going missing, or being broken, every time someone turns around! I know for a fact a few of the ranches have been hit. If your s hasn’t been ‘hit’ yet; it will be.”

“Thanks, David. I best stop this talking and get home.” Ben put the hat he’d been holding in his hands upon his head and spurred Buck towards home as fast as he dared push the horse. He wasn’t afraid of Hoss and Little Joe not being able to handle any trouble that came their way, but Adam? Ben stood by, unobserved, his bedroom window looking out. He could see Mr. Simms talking to Hoss and Little Joe. He couldn’t tell what the man was saying, but he could see Adam, hidden from the man’s view, shaking like leaf. Yes, he’d been able to get control of himself and step into view, but only when the man was starting to mount his horse. Mr. Simms had said something; Adam had stiffened slightly and said something back. The man looked as if Adam had slapped him in the face, but he’d simply turned his horse around and left. He knew his oldest had come a long ways, but like Tara said, the man was still healing. That incident proved that fact.

While the boys talked to the sheriff, and Ben raced home, Tara was behind a rack of dresses. She wasn’t purposely trying to hide; it was just that the dresses were hung in such a way as to make the corner of the store a natural ‘out of the way place’. Tara stiffened and had to force herself not to say anything as two men came into the store and started talking.

“Well, well, no one’s here,” she heard a deep bass voice say; “don’t we need a few items?”

“Sure do, Trace.” another voice said. She could hear them gathering a few items up. Very quietly she managed to peek through the dresses. There were two men. One leaned toward the thin side and the other one was of medium built, but he was rather tall. Both of the men sported beards.

She recognized them! The two men had just recently moved into Virginia City and were known for all the time they wasted at the saloon, not that it hurt the saloon’s business anyway. She’d wondered how on earth they could make any kind of living when they spent so many hours there. She reckoned she knew now. When one of the men started walking her way she held her breath.

“Hey, Bryce, don’t that lady friend of yours need a dress?” Tara felt fear run through her. If the man took a dress, he’d discover her. She was saved from that situation when the sound of the back storage door sent the men flying out the front door. She let out her breath. Once she got her heart back in place she’d talk to the store owner, and then she was talking to the sheriff!

Chapter Six

The saloon was pretty much empty when Sheriff Coffee, Adam and his brothers stepped inside. Trace Miller and his cousin, Bryce, sat at one of the tables drinking a couple of beers and playing cards. Due to the fact they didn’t know about Tara, the two men weren’t paying attention to anything but their drinks and the game; that is, until the sheriff and the Cartwrights were practically on top of them.

“May we help you?” Bryce laid down his cards. He didn’t like feeling like a trapped fox and, with four men standing near his cousin and he, and three of the four men folding the arms looking at them, that’s what he felt like. Actually, a trapped fox probably had less to fear.

“You can empty your pockets.” Roy answered bluntly and kept his eyes on the men. He prayed like mad that Tara had seen right. If she had, at least one man had a new knife on him.

Both men’s eyes went wide. How on earth had the lawman caught on to their ‘game of survival’? Trace, not knowing what his cousin had gotten away with, leaned back in his chair and said, “Why on earth would we do that? What have we supposed to have done?” Roy and the three Cartwrights all wanted to wipe the slimy grin off the man’s face, but they didn’t.

Roy looked at the man and firmly answered, “We have a witness that heard you in the store talking.” He, Roy, had to hide a grin as the men went just a tad shade of white. To the good lawman, that spelled guilt.

“I ain’t took a thing,” Bryce pulled out his pant pockets and emptied his vest and shirt pockets, “and I’ve been with Trace all day; he ain’t got nothin’ either.” Bryce looked at Trace and at once knew they were in trouble, as his cousin got ‘that look’ in his eye and fidgeted a bit.

“Well, empty yours.” Roy spoke up and pointed to the table. Before anyone knew it Trace had bolted from the table. Hoss grabbed for him, thus starting a fight. Bryce would have slipped away, but Adam blocked his way.

“Not again.” Lee, the bartender, groaned as the few customers he’d had either hurried out the door or joined in the fight. There was nothing he could do but watch chairs being busted and other items broken; that is, there was nothing he could do until Roy took his pistol out and shot it in the air. That, the shot, brought the noise and fighting to a screeching halt.

Roy walked over to Trace, who was being held up against the wall by Hoss. He slipped his hand into the man’s various pockets and, eventually, pulled out a brand new pocket knife, with the price tag still on it. “Well,” Roy said as he grinned and looked from Trace to Bryce, “so he’s been with you all day? I think we’ve just caught the men causing the city and the ranchers’ problems…”

“You ain’t done no such thing!” Bryce struggled to get out of Adam and Little Joe’s grip. “So, we’ve been stealin’ here and there, but we ain’t never left town! How can we have been causing the trouble for the ranchers when that’s the case?” He glared at Roy.

Roy knew the men had been around town a lot. He didn’t know if they’d ‘never left’ though. He’d have to investigate that one. “Bring them down to the jail,” he looked at Hoss and his brothers, “and then we’ll have to take it from there.” Adam let go of Bryce’s arm and kept his gun on him, while Little Joe led the man out of the saloon with Hoss helping Trace remember what his feet were for.

“If they’re telling the truth,” Adam thought as he walked behind everyone, “then there’s still men out there, men willing to do anything for what they want.” ‘I’m going to prove…’ From out of nowhere, Peter Caine’s voice rang in Adam’s ears. It was all Adam could do to keep on walking. By the time they got back to the jail, Adam came up with an excuse and went out the back door.

Tara, who had been trying to be kind to Roy, was out back cleaning up the area when Adam came out. She only had to take one look at his face, which was fast losing its composure, to know what was going on. She hurried and shut the back door. “Breathe, Adam. Take deep breaths.” Thank goodness there was a chair sitting up against the outside wall. Adam quickly sat down upon it and took the deep breathes, cursing the attack in his head as he did so.

“The men get caught or not?” Tara knelt beside Adam as she rested her hand upon his right arm. She was afraid that; maybe, with Adam’s attack, they’d gotten away.

“We got them,” Adam answered after a few minutes. “If they’re being honest, we still have a problem though.”

Tara was less concerned about the problems with the men breaking the law than she was about Adam and his attacks. “Who exactly caught the men?” she looked at him.

Adam didn’t know what difference that made, but he told her, “My brothers, Roy, myself, and whoever else joined in the fight.” Tara started smiling. Normally, she disapproved of fighting, but in Adam’s case she found herself quite excited. That part, her smiling, confused Adam.

“Why, may I ask, is that making you smile?” He was relieved to find himself being able to ask the question without feeling as if he was struggling to breathe.

“One day at a time, right?” Tara answered as she continued to smile. She couldn’t help it. It felt great to know Adam was getting aggressive when necessary; he’d been so blasted passive in the past, and it just didn’t suit him at all!

Slowly, a smile spread across his own face as he caught the meaning of her words. He looked at his knuckles, which were starting to show the signs of the fight he’d been in. “Reckon so,” he replied as he looked at Tara. He was shocked when he found himself thinking, “Bet anything she’d look great in white.” He pulled Tara into his arms and murmured as he lowered his head, “Reckon so.”

Chapter Seven

Ben had rode Buck home as fast as he dared. After hearing about the trouble the ranchers were having, and not knowing the ones causing problems in town had been caught, he wanted nothing more to know that his sons were all right. Opening the door, Ben hurried inside his home.

Hoss and Little Joe looked up from the table. The surprise they felt at seeing their father home early wasn’t something they tried to hide. “Is everythin’ all right, Pa?” Little Joe put down his fork.

“Where’s Adam?” Ben asked as he looked around the living room and glanced up at the stairs. Before he answered his youngest son’s question, he had to know Adam was okay too.

Little Joe told him what they had found, what had happened in town, leaving off the fact Adam had known about the fences before Ben left, and then nodded towards the stairs. “He came in and went straight up to his room,” he said with concern in his voice, “He didn’t even eat supper.” Ben didn’t like that. He threw his hat down upon the credenza and hurried up the stairs.

Adam’s door was closed, so Ben knocked. “Adam!” He did his best to keep any fear out of his voice.

“It’s not locked.” Adam’s reply sent a wave of relief over Ben. He’d been half afraid the trouble Little Joe had spoken of had pushed his oldest back a step. He opened the door and stepped inside.

Adam was standing by the open window with his hand resting on the window pane. He did not turn his head nor speak a word as his pa shut the door behind him. Ben walked over and joined him by the window. “Little Joe told me what you found while I was gone and what happened in town, sounds like I missed a bit of excitement.”

Adam, who had tensed up when he heard his father’s voice, relaxed, grateful his younger brother had not spilled the beans on him. “You did.” Adam recalled the comment Roy had made to him after he’d put the two thieves into their cell. ‘Actually, Adam, things have been quiet at the other ranches for a couple of days. Until you came in, I thought maybe the trouble had stopped. If these men are lying, reckon we best start searching the Ponderosa first.’ Adam repeated what Roy had told him. “I was going to tell Hoss and Little Joe if you weren’t home by tomorrow morning.” Also, knowing his father would question his ability to continue handling himself if it should slip out that he had foreknowledge of the trouble on their land, he figured he’d best spill the beans on himself. “I knew before you left we had trouble coming.” Adam turned to look at his father, not surprised to see the look of shock that came upon his father’s face. “Let me explain.” Adam went on to tell his father why he’d done what he did. “Maybe, I should have told you, but you would have stayed behind on my account, and that business had to be taken care of.” His eyes dared his father to deny a fact they both knew to be true.

A part of Ben was upset Adam had chosen to leave him out, but his son had a point. He had been very protective of Adam since he’d been able to get out from behind “that wall”; they all had. He sighed and shook his head. “You’re right,” he admitted, “Reckon, you’re not the only one still healing. How have you been?” He realized he added the question out of his own need for reassurance.

If his father could admit to that, Adam figured he could admit to the attacks he was still having. “I did get more than one punch in and made it somewhere private before ‘it’ hit full force.” Adam chuckled as he finished admitting to what else had happened in town, as he remembered Tara’s words and repeated them word for word, “One day at a time, right?” He gave his father a smile. The small gesture, the smile, went a long ways in getting his father to relax.

Ben grinned from ear to ear. “Reckon, you’ve hit the nail on the head with that one son.” He then folded his arms and shook his head. “Questions now are, if those men in Roy’s jail cell aren’t the ones causing the ranchers problems, who is and why are they doin’ it?”

While Ben and Adam discussed the possibilities, another father and son sat in a rundown shack two miles out of town. “We have to have supplies!” Bert Kyle, a white haired gentleman wanted by the law for land fraud and illegal mining, slammed his fist down on the table that sat in front of him. “Bryce was supposed to get us some more, and you were supposed to pick them up in the middle of the night last night, but no,” he yelled angrily, “that idiot has to go get thrown in jail, along with that stupid cousin of his!”

“So, I go get them myself! Thanks to the supplies he got us in the past, I do have some money on me!” His son, Carson, yelled back. “And don’t start hollerin’ ’bout how I can afford to be seen! I ain’t the one who’s got their face on a wanted poster! No one will think anythin’ of it!” As Carson was sure of it, he stood his ground and stared his father down.

“Fine! Reckon, I can’t argue with ya! Just get the supplies and get back here fast. That mine that sits on the Cartwright’s place has gold in it just beggin’ to be took out!” Mr. Kyle started putting his jacket on.

“What if they catch us going into that mine? We almost got caught last time, what with that big fellar passing by seconds after we went in.” Carson didn’t like this; it didn’t seem to bother his father, almost being caught that is.

“Don’t worry about that,” the older man grinned, “It’s like I told ya befer, every one of the ranches we’ve hit had somethin’ on their land we could use. All we have ta do is make sure the Cartwrights are kept too busy ta bother us. It’s worked on all the other ranches, ain’t it? It will on the Ponderosa too! Now get those supplies!” Bert flew out the door without another word.

Chapter Eight

Carson opened the door to the general store and stepped inside. He looked around. Everything from material for clothing to beef jerky could be seen on the shelves or in containers. A dusty haired fellow stood behind the counter. “May I help you young man?”

“I need a few things.” Carson handed him the list his father had sent him into town for. The sooner he got the items, the sooner he could leave town. He couldn’t help but feel as if every eye was upon him when he drove through town; he didn’t like it.

The storekeeper, a Mr. Timothy Johnson, shook his head, “I’ll have to going into the back and get a few of the things you have on this list. I ran out of them a couple of days ago; they only came in this morning.” He turned and left the room.

Carson looked around. He figured he might as well look; it’s not like he had anything else to do. He was amazed at all the items the man had for sale. He, Carson, had never seen so much in his life. When he saw the pocket knives he couldn’t resist the urge to buy one; he needed a new one and had the money to pay for it. He picked it up and laid it on the counter.

Once Mr. Johnson came out from the back, he added everything up. “That will be ten dollars.” Carson shook his head as he pulled the rest of his money out of his pocket. Yep, it was a good thing he had the three dollars and fifty cents for the small pocket knife. He’d have to hide it from his father though, the man would have a fit if he saw ‘the unnecessary’ item. After all, they already had knives. After paying for the items, he started hauling the items outside and into his wagon.

Adam and Hoss were walking down the streets of Virginia City when Adam saw him. The young man roughly five feet six inches, medium sized build and brown hair. He was putting supplies in the back of the wagon he’d brought into town. There was something eerily familiar about the stranger. Adam was horrified to find his heart racing and a feeling of panic start to come over him. He looked around and was relieved to see Tara walking down the other side of the street.

Adam and Hoss were supposed to be checking on some supplies of their own so Hoss was surprised when Adam turned and said, as he walked away. “I’ve got to go talk to Tara.” All Hoss could do was shrug his shoulders and sit down on a nearby bench.

Tara saw Adam coming and, due to the look in his eyes, glanced into the café she was just passing. For a change the place was empty. She quickly opened the door as Adam approached, not surprised when he went straight in, found a seat in the farthest corner and sat down. She was right behind him.

It took a few minutes, but soon Adam’s heart was beating normal, though he was angry that, once again, he’d about lost in town. “Want to talk about it?” Tara finally ventured to ask, her eyes rose slightly.

From where Adam sat he could see across the room and out of the window that was just up from where he sat. “Not really sure. I don’t know if the attack just jumped at me from out of the blue or if it’s him,” he answered as he pointed towards the young man still loading his wagon, “I can’t shake the feeling I know him, of someone related to him. I just know I about lost it out there.”

Tara stood up and walked to the window, studying the young man as good as she could. Her own heart stopped as she realized the young man had some facial features that bore a strong resemblence to that of the late Peter Caine! She turned around and went back to the table and then slowly explained what she’d observed. She wasn’t surprised to see Adam tensing up.

“Adam, don’t worry.” Tara laid her hand upon his wrist and smiled. “Even if he’s related to that beast of a man, all his relatives have simply been told I found him already dead. He has no reason to hold a grudge against you. Look, you lived through what Cain tried to do to you, eventually broke through the wall the event put you behind and,” Tara, a bit frustrated herself, straightened up and said, “stood your ground during that fight and survived. The sooner you accept that you can do all those things, live, survive and stand your ground that is, all the time, the sooner you can really heal, in here.” She pointed to his heart.

Adam was irritated. She wasn’t telling him anything he didn’t already know. The irritation, along with the frustration of trying to find out who was causing the problems on the ranch and the vulnerability he felt when the attacks hit, finally got to him. He exploded as he stood up and bellowed as loud as he could, without drawing attention to the two of them, “You do not have to talk to me like I’m a small child! I know what I went through, and what I’ve done. I also know what I’m capable of!” He turned and stormed out of the café. Tara simply smiled and started chuckling.

Carson was gone and Hoss was still on the bench when Adam came barreling across the street. “What’s wrong, Adam?” Hoss hadn’t seen his brother this upset for such a long time. He didn’t know whether to be worried or not.

“I’m fine,” Adam snapped and headed for the supply store, “let’s just check on the things we’re supposed to!” Hoss couldn’t help but grin as he followed his older brother down the street and into the supply store. Something had finally riled Adam enough to give him, Hoss, a look into a side of Adam he had not seen in over a year.

Tara, herself, stood outside the store watching Adam disappear into the store. “Yep, Adam Cartwright, you’re definitely different from any man I’ve ever known.”

Chapter Nine

A nice, gentle breeze blew through the air as Adam sat up against a tree overlooking the crystal blue lake sparkling in the sunlight. Tara sat on his lap with her head against his shoulders, his arms around her. Adam had surprised her by showing up with a picnic lunch, admitting he’d asked Hop Sing to cook the food up, and asked her out. “You sure know which days to choose to ask a gal out for a date. I must admit too,” she said as she lifted her head just a little, “I love seeing and hearing the Adam I’ve always heard about and,” she chuckled as she laid her head back down, “it feels great having the roles reversed.”

Adam tilted his head to one side, puzzled only for a split second. His smile spread from one side of his face to another as he gave her a hug, “You have been something else, you know that?” He admired the way she seemed to know when to push, pull, step forward or step back. It had helped him out immensely.

“Not according to some ‘good’ people in Virginia City.” Tara’s disgust could be heard in her voice, “Supposedly, I’m too domineering and think I know it all, when it comes to you.” Personally, if she wasn’t trying so hard to be a lady, she’d have told them all where to go.

Adam shook his head. He would never understand some people. “Don’t let them get to you. If you’ve been domineering, it was out of necessity at the time. As far as knowing it all, neither one of us would have spent time behind a ‘wall’ if you did.”

As the wind continued to blow Adam and Tara fell into silence, each simply enjoying being near the lake and admiring the tall pine trees that surrounded the trees, like soldiers guarding some secret treasure they’d been blessed enough to find. Both knew, what with the trouble being caused on the ranch, it could not last forever. Still, they saw no harm in catching small bits of time alone. After all, it was a way to regenerate the strength they needed to carry on when things such Adam’s attacks or strangers cutting fences lines hit.

While Adam and Tara enjoyed some alone time, Ben was talking to Roy. The lawman had ridden out to the Ponderosa to talk to the Cartwrights. The two were standing in the front room. “It’s like I told you before, Roy, I can’t figure it out. We can’t find any signs that anyone is doing anything but damaging fence lines. It doesn’t make sense. You’d think cattle would show up missing or something!” It was frustrating every one of the Cartwrights plus the sheriff.

All of a sudden Roy stood as tall as he could, with a look in his eyes that said “I found it!” “What is it, Roy?” Ben was as curious as a cat to know what Roy had just “found”.

“I just realized something,” Roy answered as a smile spread across his face, “they are hitting the ranches in a specific order, I mean, first they hit the Jacobs, then the Millers…” he went on to list the ranches that had been hit, “Ben, they’re not hopping around like I thought they were. Every one of the ranches, including the Ponderosa, has something in common, besides the fact that you all have cattle.” He looked at Ben as if to say ‘Please don’t tell me I have to tell you.”

He didn’t have to say another word for Ben too stood as straight as he could, “We all have at least one mine on our land!” He told himself he should have figured it out before Roy.

“Exactly,” Roy answered, “That is, the ones I’ve named have mines. The others have something of significant value.” He began listing off the various items that had come up missing. Sure enough, each and every thing he listed, could easily sell for fifty or more dollars.

“So, keep us busy enough and they get away with whatever it is they want.” After all his years of living, it still amazed Ben the length to which some people would go to get what they saw as wealth. That is, dishonest lengths they were willing to go.

“That’s my guess.” Roy saw nothing else that made any sense. He just wish he’d seen it sooner. They could have set some sort of trap and finished this whole business up long time ago. Oh well, he knew there it made no sense to fuss about it now.

Just as Ben was to reply back, Hoss and Little Joe walked in the front door, both looked like someone had taken a pile of dirt had applied it up and down both their sides. Ben shook his head. How could his sons get so full of dust simply fixing fence lines? Truth was, the two had gotten into a bit of a scuffle, but they weren’t going to admit that to their pa. “Hi, Roy.” Hoss held out his hand, after brushing it off the best he could. Little Joe did the same.

“Hello boys.” Roy repeated what he’d just told Ben.

“Little Joe and I can go check it out first thing in the morning. Where’s Adam?” Hoss looked around.

Little Joe and Ben both gave him a look that screamed, “If you don’t know, we’re not tellin’ ya!” Quickly, Hoss waved his hand through the air and headed for the kitchen, “If those two keep this up, we’ll have a sister in law before long!”

Ben, Roy and Little Joe laughed. That fact, that Adam and Tara seemed to be getting awfully serious with each other, was all over town. In fact, any man that had been interested in Tara had, basically, been warned by others that ‘she belongs to Adam’. “You may,” Ben agreed, “or you may not. I wouldn’t be counting any chickens before they hatched.”

“I reckon, I know that,” Hoss said as he disappeared around the corner of the dining room into the kitchen, “but I can always hope. We need a good cook around when Hop Sing visits his relatives!” Hoss’ last words trailed out of the kitchen leaving only more laughter to ring throughout the house.

Chapter Ten

The sun was bearing down upon Adam and Hoss as they rode over the Ponderosa. They’d left some of the ranch hands mending yet another fence line and were seeing what they could do about finding the culprit, or culprits, that were doing the damage. Both Adam and Hoss were surprised to see Tara off to their left, she was riding quite hard.

“This can’t be good,” Adam said as he turned Sport in the direction Tara was coming, “She should be in town, not out here.” He spurred Sport forward, Hoss did the same with Chubby.

“What’s wrong?” Adam stopped his horse beside Tara’s, a look of panic was in her eyes. That was definitely something he was not used to seeing in her.

“Your pa,” Tara answered, that got both Adam and Hoss to sitting up straight in their saddle, “he came in wounded and half conscious. Dr. Martin is with him right now!”

“Where’s Little Joe?” Adam spoke louder than he meant to. It didn’t matter, Tara understood his great concern.

“I don’t know, but some of the men have gone looking for him.” She answered.

“You go be with pa, Hoss,” Adam said as he turned Sport to the west, “Little Joe and Pa were supposed to be checking out our mine, I’ll go find the others and look for Little Joe.” Before Hoss could put up the smallest protest, Adam was gone, as was Tara who had pushed her horse to catch up with Adam.

Adam pushed his horse towards the mine, “Go back! Go be with pa and Hoss! Who knows what I will find!” He had to holler slightly, as the wind was picking up.

Tara knew he had a right to be concerned. What with his father injured and, who knows, maybe he had an injured brother too, or worse yet…no, she couldn’t allow herself to think that way. “Don’t worry about me!” she hollered back, “I am not turning back yet! I shoot as good as you or any of your brothers. Besides, if Little Joe is hurt too, I’m a nurse!” It was that idea that really spurred her on. Adam had given her no reason to be concerned for some time, but she was a nurse, and his brother may very well be in need of medical help.

Adam would have stopped his horse and had argued with her, only she had a point. If his father was hurt, Little Joe may be injured too. If he was, her skill and expertise would indeed be needed. “All right, but,” he yelled as they pushed their horses onward, “only because my brother may need you. You do not argue with me on anything else! Understood?” His voice held a ‘do not argue with me!’ tone.

Tara smiled from ear to ear. She understood and had no desire whatsoever to fight with him. She grinned as she answered, “Yes, Adam.” Two words that had her smiling from ear to ear, almost to the point to chuckling again, but she didn’t. The situation was far too serious for any sort of laughter.

One scene after another played through Adam’s mind as Tara and he sped towards the area his pa and brother had been known to be searching in. What had happened? Who had they come across? These were just two of many questions that raced through their minds. For Mr. Cartwright to make it back to the ranch and was getting help was good, now to find his baby brother!

Scenes of searching for her relatives after the Sioux attack flashed through Tara’s mind. She remembered the panic she felt and the fear of what she’d find. Glancing over towards Adam she saw the same look in his eyes. She couldn’t blame him in the least; she just hoped that, if something bad had happened to Little Joe, it would not push Adam backwards.

Adam seemed to read her mind as he glanced her way. A part of him was irritated that she was still concerned he might slip; after all, he’d gone a whole week without an attack. Then again, he knew she had every right to worry. He had to be honest himself, there were times he still worried himself. It didn’t matter who was worried about him though, they had more pressing matters to be concerned about.

While Adam and Tara continued riding hard, Little Joe was doing his best to keep from getting killed. Why had he and his pa taken separate trails? They’d have been better off sticking together. He looked up from where he was wedged between three large boulders; the blazing hot sun was almost directly above him. It had to be getting closed to noon.

“I sure hope you’re okay, pa.” Little Joe thought as a bullet hit one of the boulders and ricocheted off. He shot back. The other party, whoever he was, stopped shooting. Had Little Joe gotten him, or was the man just waiting for him to make a move? Looking at his left leg, Little Joe knew that would be impossible. He’d taken a bullet to the leg earlier and wrapped it the best he could with his bandana. There was no way he would be able to make it out on foot. Just as he was about to decide he had no choice but to see if he could draw the man’s fire once more, he heard a voice that made his heart jump.

“Little Joe! Little Joe!” It was Adam! Horror ran through Little Joe’s veins. If the man that had been shooting at him saw Adam, he might shoot him.

“Stay back! Adam!” Little Joe yelled at the top of his lungs, “There’s a man up near that mine! Stay back!” Would his brother hear him? Would he stop and find another way to him? Little Joe hoped so; he didn’t want Adam killed on his account. He didn’t want to bury him yet.

Chapter Eleven

Adam and Tara heard Little Joe yelling to warn his big brother, they saw the glint of a rifle and jumped off their horses and behind a boulder just in time to avoid a bullet. There was a time when the sound of bullet had driven Adam further behind a wall, now he found himself angry that the stranger up near the mine was, most likely, harmed his pa, or someone associated with him had, was attempting to do the same to his brother. He returned the fire and was elated to see the man jerk slightly then fall down. Adam hoped the man was at least injured bad enough to give Tara and he time to get to Little Joe. “Come on.” He grabbed Tara by the arm, grabbed his rifle and started running.

They had just reached Little Joe when they heard a man yelling, “Carson! Carson!” Every one of them knew by the tone in the man’s voice, ‘Carson’ was dead. “Good to see you, brother, but,” Little Joe said as he looked towards the mine, “I don’t think it’s over yet.”

“What happened?” Adam asked as Tara went to work on Little Joe’s leg.

“As you know, there’s a trail that forks off not that far from here,” Little Joe answered, “Pa and I figured we’d split up, each taking a trail and keeping near the trees and such for cover, just in case. I found that,” he pointed towards the mine, “only I swear, there was only one man.”

Adam shook his head and sighed, “The other one must have found pa. He’s home but badly injured. Do you know what they were after?” he asked as he ducked down; the man up near the mine had just taken a shot at him. He returned fire.

“They think that old mine has gold in it. Reckon they don’t know it’s been empty for years.” Little Joe answered.

“..I’ve known it for sometime…” Peter Caine’s voice rang in Adam’s ear, but for the first time Adam did not flinch, cringe or draw back at the incident. If anything, he was startled to realize that he’d finally accepted that Caine was a man driven by an unexplainable desire to be better than anyone else, and he’d failed miserably, as would these men. With that acceptance, Adam found himself with a sensation that had long since avoided him…peace.

Adam looked at Little Joe. In spite of the fact that Tara was working feverishly to deal with the man’s leg, Little Joe was still positioned in such a way as to make shooting up towards the mine possible. “Cover me.” Adam laid his rifle down, since he had his pistol, and jumped up. Before either his brother or Tara could say a word he had started running.

Tara was horrified by the sudden action, but, as Little Joe started shooting, she quickly tied finished re-bandaging his leg and, grabbing the rifle, started shooting also.

Bert was furious as he tried to get another shot at the man running up towards him. Every time he thought he had a good aim, the man’s brother and the woman that had come with Adam, took a shot at him. They weren’t supposed to be here. He’d made sure they had plenty to keep them busy, and then that old man of theirs. He’d crossed paths with him, beat him up good and shot him. Was the man dead or what? He reckoned it didn’t matter, as he wasn’t going to let them win. They’d killed Carson, now he was going to get at least one of them.

“Drop it!” Adam yelled once he was close enough to have an excellent shot at the man, but far enough away have cover.

“No way! You’ve killed my boy and this mine has gold in it! Yer goin’ to die, and I’m getting the gold!” Bert, who had been behind his own rock, stepped into view and took a shot towards Adam. He missed and dove for cover as Adam returned fire. As he was busy with Adam, the man didn’t see Tara until it was too late. She’d gotten it into her head to go up the back way and surprise him, not that hard as a path led straight up to it. Little Joe had tried to stop her, but was in no condition to do so.

“Drop it.” Her voice was low and calm. While she disliked the idea of shooting a man, she would do what she had to do. The stranger had tried killing Mr. Carwright, Little Joe and now he was attempting to do the same thing to Adam. The man froze, shocked to hear a woman’s voice. What was a woman doing with the Cartwrights? The old man was a widower three times over, and his sons had yet to marry. He whirled around to do two things, one, to see the woman who had ‘broken all the rules’ and two, to take her down. He knew by so doing he’d probably be killed by one of the Cartwrights, but at that moment he didn’t care. He might as well tried flying to the moon though; Tara and Adam’s bullets hit him before he had a chance to shoot his pistol.

Once the man had dropped to the ground dead, Tara dropped her rifle and found her hands shaking. Adam was by her side and had her in his arms in no time flat. “When I said it was nice to have the roles reversed,” Tara smiled a little, “It wasn’t supposed to be like this.” She then nodded in the direction where she’d came from. “I think we best get back to Little Joe.”

“I think you’re right.” Adam smiled as he and Tara walked back down to where Little Joe sat with a smile a mile wide upon his face. He, Little Joe, was sure than ever that his brother, Hoss, had been right. They would be getting a new sister in law, and a cook when Hop Sing was away visiting relatives. At least, he hoped so.

Chapter Twelve

Ben stood on the porch and leaned on his cane. Dr. Martin had fixed him up just fine and, after four weeks, only his leg had yet to heal completely. He thought how close he’d come to dying by the hand of one very wicked man, how close he’d come to losing at least one of his sons, and how good it felt to have the crooks dead and gone, with his family still intact. The stars were hanging in the sky sparkling as bright as any diamond he’d ever seen, and crickets were singing their songs. When he heard the front door open, he turned to see Adam walking out the door and up beside him.

“Quiet night,” Adam said as he stopped beside his father and looked up at the sky, “peaceful night too.” He was enjoying the peace and quiet, it was so much better than the turmoil and hell he’d been through in the past.

Ben nodded, but said nothing. He knew there was something else on Adam’s mind, he could tell that much. He wasn’t surprised when Adam looked at him and said, “I asked Tara to marry me this afternoon.”

Ben was thrilled to hear the news. Out of all the women his oldest had courted, Tara was by far the best match for his son. She’d already proven she would stand by Adam come what may and would only act on his best interest. However, he was concerned. Adam looked too serious. Had Tara turned him down? “Well,” Ben asked as he looked upon his son with concern in his eyes, “What did she say?”

Adam started smiling from ear to ear as he felt his heart still flying thousands of miles above the earth. “She said yes. We want to marry in the spring, the first part of April.” He looked at his father and paused, and then continued, “I still can’t believe I’ve been so blessed. Sure, once I was able to get out from behind that wall I was hiding behind, I found I had a very good friend in her, but,” he said as he took a deep breath, “I never expected for that friendship to grow as strong as it has, nor to feel love like this.”

Ben started beaming. He knew that kind of love and had often prayed for his sons to know it too, now Adam did. “Don’t ever take her for granted son. She is indeed a rare one.” The night wore on, as did the talk between father and son, both very grateful for the way things had turned out.

Epilogue

Ben stood on the porch and Hoss stood next to his father. Little Joe mingled with the guests. The stars shone down upon the celebration as the music that was being played rang through the air. “They look good together, pa.” Hoss made the observation as Adam and Tara danced, he in his suit and tie, she in her flowing white gown and veil that hung to the middle of her back.

Ben looked upon the newly married couple. His thoughts turned back to the day he’d ridden onto the ranch she’d been left only to find his missing son lost behind an invisible wall. He wondered what he’d have thought if someone had told him then his son’s “guardian angel” would someday become his, Adam’s, wife. A smile spread across his face, one as wide as the lake on his land. “Yes, they do, son. They were meant for each other.” Hours later, after the party was over and everyone else had drifted off to sleep, Adam and Tara lay tangled up together in the home he and his brothers had built for just the two of them.

“Ever sorry, you stopped to help out a stranger in the desert?” Adam asked as he pulled Tara as close as he possibly could.

“At a time like this, what kind of stupid question is that?” Tara held onto her new husband for all she was worth, “I’ve never been sorry; tired maybe, but never sorry.” Adam continued holding her close, knowing, in some ways, it had been a stupid question, but one he still just had to ask. As they both fell asleep, he found himself murmuring, * “O, how this spring of love resembleth, The uncertain glory of an April day; Which now shows all the beauty of the sun…” As his voice trailed off the crickets, and other night animals, continued the singing they’d started, as if they were doing their best to promise the couple inside they’d do what they could to make sure they, Adam and Tara, had a long life together.

* The Two Gentlemen of Verona (I, iii, 84-87) Shakespeare.

~The End

Next Story in the Long Road Back Series:

Far Side of Jordan