Summary:  A What Happened Instead to The Crucible. What if Joe went with Adam? WARNINGS: Rated due to bad language, descriptive violence, and extremely harmful injuries.

Rating:  T   Word count: 58390

 

Worth Fighting For

Chapter One:  Just the Beginning

“Keep working.”

Adam ignored Kane and managed to steal a glance over at Joe. For the past few minutes, the younger man had been having a hard time catching his breath. It made sense since he and Kane had gotten into a brawl a few days ago and Joe had ended up with the butt end of a shotgun in his rib cage. Adam’s own injury was hurting him, too. When they first came across Kane’s camp, Adam had ended up with a shotgun pointed at him. Fortunately, Kane didn’t fire. Instead, he only injured Adam’s leg, but bad enough so that Joe was the one working the mine. A mine Adam knew was dry.

“Kane, you can’t let him go back in there,” Adam stated when Joe was getting ready to reenter the deathtrap. “He needs water and food.”

“Shut up, Cartwright!” Kane ordered, swinging the gun around to aim it at him. “Or your little brother is dead, you hear me?”

Adam closed his mouth as he worriedly watched Joe head back into the mine, coughing from the dust. This had been going on for days now. Every morning, Kane would wake Joe up by kicking him in the side, right where Joe’s injured ribs were. And every morning, Kane would force Joe down into that mine. It was all part of Kane’s plan, Adam figured. Kane wanted to find a weakness, something that would make him, or Joe, crack under all the pressure. It was just a game to him, a game Adam was very sure he and Joe were most likely going to lose.

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Any word yet, Pa?”

Ben Cartwright was snapped out of his stupor by his middle son’s voice. He looked up to find the large man staring over at him worriedly. Ben sighed and looked back at the paper he had in his hand. He had sent several letters to many cities in hopes of finding his two missing sons. All had turned up negative, but, all the sheriffs promised, if they heard anything, they’d send word.

“No, Hoss,” Ben finally answered, crumpling up the paper. “Nothing. This is impossible. No one can just disappear off the face of the earth!”

“I know, Pa, but we’ve looked everywhere,” Hoss reminded him. “The only place we haven’t looked is that desert, but only a fool-hardy man would go in there.”

Ben looked up from his desk.

“Desert?” he repeated. “What desert?”

Hoss frowned.

“Well, I don’t rightly recollect the name of it, but there was rumors in town ‘bout a fella who got lost there,” came the reply. “Never did find him, poor man. That’s why I said no one fool-hardy enough would go through there.”

“Of course, Hoss, you’re right,” Ben admitted. “They wouldn’t do something so foolish.”

Silence reigned for a few minutes when all of a sudden both men leaped to their feet, already heading to the door. Ben was strapping on his gun belt as Hoss made towards the door.

“I’ll go saddle up the horses, Pa,” he announced as he shut the door behind him, causing it to close loudly.

Ben continued getting ready as Hop Sing rushed into the room.

“Where Mista Cartlight going?” he asked, impatiently. “Dinna almost ready. You eat.”

Ben placed both of his hands on the cook’s shoulders.

“We’re going after Adam and Little Joe, Hop Sing,” he explained. “We’ll be back soon.”

That said, he too went out the door, closing it behind him, leaving Hop Sing standing by himself. The Chinese cook nodded.

“Family need be home together,” he said, firmly. “They bring Mista Joe and Mista Adam home, have big meal!”

Happily, he hurried back into the kitchen to prepare more food.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

(Flashback)

“Adam, if we keep going at this pace, the horses will be dead before we will,” Joe stated, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow.

Adam turned in his saddle after bringing Sport to a stop.

“Joe, you know how many bandits are out here,” he responded. “We have to keep moving if we want to make it across by nightfall.”

“I’m afraid you won’t be meeting your deadline, gentlemen,” a voice came.

Joe tensed immediately when he heard the cock of a hammer. Two men appeared from behind an outcrop of rocks, each training a pistol on Adam and Joe.

“Now how ‘bout you get down off them horses?” the first bandit asked, though it really wasn’t a question.

One false move and Adam and Joe wouldn’t be making it home ever again. Without a word, the two brothers dismounted their horses and raised their hands in the air. Grinning like they just struck it rich, the two men mounted and took off, leaving the two Cartwrights to fend for themselves. Once they were out of sight, Adam let his arms drop and he stole an accusing look in Joe’s direction.

“What’d I tell you?” he asked, not wanting an answer. “Now we’re stranded out here with no food, no water, and no shelter!”

Joe turned to him, eyes blazing.

“Oh, like that’s MY fault!?” he demanded.

“Joe, if you hadn’t been complaining about the heat, we’d be halfway there, instead of stuck in the middle of the desert!” Adam shouted, throwing his hands up in the air in exasperation.

“Well, you were the one who stopped, Adam!” Joe retorted back. “I was still going!”

Adam sigh and ran a hand through his hair.

“Look, Joe, we can stand here arguing, or we can start walking,” he proposed. “Which will it be?”

Joe grunted and walked right past Adam, heading in the direction of their previous destination.

(End Flashback)

Adam had woken up quite some time ago, the pain from his leg throbbing. Kane had refused to allow Joe to tend to the wound, insisting Adam keep the bullet in there as a reminder of what he had done.

“I want you to break first, Cartwright,” Kane had sneered. “And I’ll use your brother to do it.”

Adam sighed and turned his head. Joe was sleeping, somewhat peaceful, on the other side of the camp. He was shivering, his body shaking and coughs coming every once in a while after every breath.

“You know how to end all his suffering, don’t you?”

Adam stiffened at Kane’s voice. The man had come up behind him unnoticed, his gun ever-ready in his hand. Kane sat on the bench, one arm on his knee.

“You want to kill me, don’t you, Cartwright?” he asked, keeping a steady eye on him. “You want to hurt me for hurting your brother.”

Adam didn’t reply, he just kept his eyes trained on Joe’s shaking form. Kane leaned in closer.

“How long will you wait, Cartwright?” he whispered. “Will you wait before, or after your brother’s dead?”

Adam turned and looked Kane directly in the eye. He didn’t speak, but Kane saw it. The anger flickering behind his eyes, the sense of fear for Joe and the hatred Adam held for him. It wouldn’t be long now.

^^^^^^^^^^

“Hoss?” Ben asked, cautiously walking up to him, only to spot what he was holding so tightly in his hands.

Ben’s face paled completely.

“That’s-.”

“Adam’s hat,” Hoss finished for him. “That proves they went this way. We just halfta get to them before something else does.”

Ben shivered at the thought. His eyes roamed over the vast desert, not seeing anything for miles as the moon shone brightly in the sky. Not a noise was made as Hoss and Ben continued on, hoping they weren’t too late.

^^^^^^^^^^

“You worthless, good for nothing, piece of trash!” Kane shouted, angrily, kicking Joe in the side. “Get up right now or I won’t hesitate to put a bullet in you!”

Adam woke to the shouts of Kane’s voice. Anger immediately welled up inside of him at the scene he opened his eyes to.

“Kane, stop!” he shouted.

The man turned to him, a slow grin spreading across his face as his attention solely focused on Adam.

“Well, well, well,” he said. “Looks like you have a back-bone after all. Are you planning on stopping me, Cartwright?”

Adam lowered his gaze and didn’t answer. Kane stood to his full height.

“I didn’t think so,” he admitted. “Just goes to show how much you must despise your brother.”

Adam’s eyes flashed dangerously as he turned back to look at his nemesis. Kane laughed.

“Did I guess right, Adam?” he asked, curiously. “Do you truly hate your brother so much, you’re willing to let him die so you can get away scott free?”

“No!” Adam protested. “I’d never do that to Joe!”

Kane snorted.

“Then why do you keep letting me hurt him?” he questioned, smirking. “I bet he’s wondering why his older brother isn’t helping him. Why he continues to let me torture him over and over again. Tell me, Adam, would you hate me enough to kill me if I turned your own flesh and blood against you?”

Something slimy hit Kane’s boot. Adam grinned in satisfaction as his saliva hit it’s mark. Without a word, Kane slapped Adam across the face, sending him back into the dirt. Kane took his gun and pointed it at Adam’s uninjured leg.

“How’d you like to never walk again, Cartwright?” he sneered, cocking the hammer back.

Before Kane had a chance to pull the trigger, something tackled him from behind, sending him flying into the dirt. Adam watched in amazement as Joe, despite his injuries, wrestled with Kane, weakly trying gain control over the gun. Joe didn’t last long. Attacking Kane drained most of his strength and, in a matter of minutes, Kane stood over him, breathing heavily and aiming the weapon straight at him!

“Maybe I oughta teach you a lesson, brat,” he stated, stealing a glance over in Adam’s direction. “Now, we’ll see if my theory’s right. Lets see if your brother will try and save you.”

Adam watched in horror as Kane leveled the gun at Joe, steady as a rock, took aim, and, calmly, fired.

 

Chapter Two:   Found

Ben grabbed his canteen from his saddle and took a long drink. Hoss was just a few feet ahead of him, looking at tracks that had been made in the dust. His brow was furrowed in concentration. Ben took in the scenery around them, but all he could see was the vast desert in front of them, threatening their very existence and the existence of his sons.

“Pa. Pa? Pa!”

Ben snapped out of his thoughts and went over to join Hoss.

“See these tracks here?” he asked, pointing to the freshly ground up dirt. “Looks like two riders. There’s another two set of footprints coming from those rocks there. Looks like whoever came this way was robbed.”

Ben examined the prints his son pointed out. He was secretly hoping that the incident didn’t have anything to do with Adam and Joe, but, knowing that not a lot of people traveled through the desert, his worst fears were slowly becoming reality. Standing to his feet, he mounted back onto Buck.

“Lets go, Hoss.”

^^^^^^^^^^

Kane turned to Adam with a devil of a smile on his face. His smoking gun turned to cover Adam, who was looking over at Joe in horror.

“Do you see what you’ve done, Cartwright?” Kane asked, standing in front of him. “Do you see what you’ve done to your brother?”

Adam didn’t reply. All he saw was Kane firing at his brother again and again and Joe falling to the ground.

“I’m-I’m all right, Adam,” a weak voice said.

Adam snapped out of his thoughts and took another good look at Joe. The younger Cartwright was slowly sitting up, his eyes tightly shut as he clutched painfully at his shoulder. Kane laughed out loud.

“Did you truly think I killed him, Adam?” he asked, curiously. “Now, why would I go and do something like that when I haven’t fully broken you yet?”

Adam closed his eyes. Joe wasn’t dead, Joe was only injured, Joe wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him.

^^^^^^^^^^

(Flashback)

“Adam, I don’t know if I can go any further without a sip of water,” Joe complained, his anger at his brother long since forgotten.

Adam turned to look at him. He knew how he felt. They had to have gone at least five miles already and still no sign of civilization. The sun bearing down on them wasn’t really helping either.

“Just keep trying, Joe,” Adam urged him on. “We’ve got to at least find shelter before sunset.”

Joe nodded and continued walking. This continued for about five more minutes, until Joe ran into the back of his older brother.

“Hey, what was that for?!” Joe demanded, staggering back a few steps.

Adam wordlessly pointed ahead. Smoke could be seen billowing in the sky, a sure sign that someone had a fire going.

“Finally!” Joe exclaimed.

Adam grabbed Joe’s arm before he could go any further.

“Wait, Joe,” he ordered. “We don’t know who’s over there.”

Joe pulled his arm away, a smile plastered on his face.

“Aw, come on, Adam, lighten up,” he said, starting to walk again. “They can’t be all that bad.”

Adam hesitated a moment before following Joe.

(End Flashback)

^^^^^^^^^^

Adam sighed. If only he had listened to his gut instinct, they wouldn’t be in this mess. Joe sat a few feet away from him, still nursing his injured shoulder.

“Kane, you have to at least let me bandage his wound,” Adam almost pleaded.

The man thought a moment, but eventually shook his head.

“No, I’d prefer it if my ‘friend’ here used both his arms to keep getting to that gold,” he stated.

Adam’s anger grew slightly.

“Kane, you and I both know there’s nothing in that mine but rocks!” he shouted. “By making Joe go in there, you’re just uselessly injuring him further!”

“It gets under your skin, doesn’t it?” Kane asked, smirking. “The fact that I’m using your brother to get to you? Well, come on, Adam. Come and get me.”

Kane rose to his feet and walked over to his tent, walking back out with something in his hand. Adam paled slightly. No. No way. He couldn’t have. Adam’s eyes narrowed.

“You sent those men to rob us, didn’t you?” he spat, venomously.

Kane laughed as he chucked Adam’s pistol to the dirt right beside him.

“So what if I did, Cartwright?” he asked. “Go ahead, I know you wanna pick up that gun.”

Adam looked over at Joe, who stared back at him with a look of fear. Adam glanced over at the tempting weapon, but, after a few minutes, looked away. Kane frowned.

“Well, then, I guess I’ll have to give you more incentive,” he announced, turning back to Joe.

“No!” Adam shouted. “Leave him alone!”

Kane grinned at Adam’s plea before kicking Joe, making him fall back in the dirt. On the ground, Joe had no way to protect himself, allowing Kane to kick him in his injured shoulder. Adam felt tears gather in his eyes.

‘I’m sorry, Joe,’ he thought. ‘I’m so sorry.’

Later that night, Adam couldn’t sleep. He knew Kane’s methods were getting worse. Joe’s injuries were proof of that. But with his brother enduring the torture, Adam couldn’t really do much of anything. His leg prevented him from attacking Kane, not to mention the madman always had his gun ready. Adam ran a hand over his face. For once, he wasn’t sure what to do.

“A-Adam?”

Hearing his name, he turned his head, surprised to see Joe awake.

“Joe, go back to sleep,” he urged. “You’re gonna need all your strength tomorrow.”

Joe’s eyes were somewhat glazed over, his breathing labored. Adam paled at his sudden realization. Joe was in desperate need of a doctor. That bullet was slowly taking it’s toll on the young man and, if it wasn’t removed soon, Joe would most certainly die. Making his decision, Adam crawled over to his brother, moving aside the shirt fabric as he closely inspected the wound. The blood had clogged the entrance, but Adam could tell it was hurting Joe like the dickens. Replacing the shirt back over the wound, Adam stole a glance across the camp where Kane sat upright, eyes closed, his breathing even as if he was in a deep sleep.

“Just take it easy, Joe, I’m going to get us out of here,” Adam whispered, turning his attention back to his younger brother. “We’re gonna go home and have Doc Martin take a look at that shoulder of yours.”

Joe closed his eyes tightly against the pain. Adam waited for the pain to pass before speaking again.

“Joe, I-“ he began but stopped when he spotted the horrified look on Joe’s face.

Turning around, Adam found himself face-to-face with the business end of Kane’s shotgun. Swallowing hard, he looked up to find Kane standing over him, smiling.

“I was wondering how long it’d take you, Cartwright,” he said. “Looks like I was right about you. Well, lets just put you to the test, shall we?”

Adam frowned. What was Kane up to? Watching carefully, Kane stepped back a few feet, his smile getting wider. Adam never took his gaze off of him as Kane pulled something out from behind a boulder.

“What!?” Adam shouted, his eyes wide. “You said we ran out of food three days ago!”

Kane shrugged.

“So I lied,” he admitted. “Doesn’t mean anything. But, if you want to feed your brother, you’re gonna have to go through me first.”

Adam paled as the full force of those words sunk in. In order to get the food he and Joe so desperately needed, he’d have to kill Kane. Gritting his teeth, Adam slowly rose to his feet, his leg giving him problems at first, but he gradually stayed balanced.

“Oh and, Cartwright, there’s one more thing,” Kane called, pulling something else from behind the rock.

A medical bag was produced. Kane opened it to reveal all the necessary tools to doctor a wound. Adam clenched his hands into fists. Everything he needed to take care of Joe was right in front of him. Looking at Kane, he knew he wouldn’t stand a chance. But, he had to at least try. Kane placed Adam’s pistol on the ground in front of him, then moved back a few feet, making it so he was the same distance away that Adam was.

“Go for it, Cartwright,” Kane prodded. “You wanna save your brother, don’t you?”

Adam looked over at Joe’s prone figure, then back up at Kane. Ignoring the throbbing pain in his leg, Adam lunged for the pistol.

“Adam! No!” Joe’s hoarse voice shouted.

Adam barely heard anything after Kane’s gun fired. His vision blurred as he fell to the ground, clutching his side in pain. Kane’s boots walked over to him and knelt down.

“Now why’d you have to go and do something so stupid?” he asked. “At this rate, you’ll be dead before you ever break!”

Adam watched him stand up again. His eyes burned with hatred. He allowed himself to flip over, lying on his back as his arms fell to his sides. His right hand closed over something solid. Adam’s eyes widened when he realized what it was.

His gun!Click!

“Go ahead, Cartwright, do it,” he urged. “Get revenge for your brother and yourself. Kill me!”

Adam’s hardened eyes never wavered, his trigger finger at the ready as he stared down the man who had made his brothers’ last few days a living hell. Without so much as blinking, Adam fired off a shot – hitting the ground at Kane’s feet. The man frowned.

“I’m not like you, Kane,” Adam spat out. “I’ll never be like you. I’m not going to kill you.”

“Why, Cartwright?” Kane asked. “Are you too scared? You must really hate your brother a lot if you’re not even willing to fight for his health.”

Adam’s eyes narrowed.

“No, Kane,” he replied. “I’m not a piece of scum like you. I have morals that I live by.”

Kane laughed.

“Morals?” he repeated. “Oh, please, you can barely stand up! Where are your precious morals now?”

Adam’s finger pulled the trigger again, once more hitting the ground by Kane’s feet, this time, causing him to jump back.

“Shut up!” Adam ordered. “At least I have morals! You probably don’t have an ounce of compassion or kindness in your body!”

“Cartwright, you wound me,” Kane stated, sarcastically. “I have morals, but they’re nothing you need to worry about.”

“A-Ad-Adam?” Joe’s weak voice called.

Adam limped backwards, keeping a close eye on Kane.

“We’re leaving, Kane,” he announced. “We’re taking that mule of yours and we’re gonna ride out.”

Kane chuckled.

“And just what makes you think you’ll get out of here alive?” he asked, curiously.

Adam frowned. Why was Kane so sure of himself? Did he have something up his sleeve?

^^^^^^^^^^

“Pa, slow down a bit, wouldja?” Hoss pleaded. “If we keep going like this, these horses are gonna keel over and we’ll have to walk the rest of the way!”

Ben sighed and slowed Buck to a trot, waiting for his middle son to catch up to him. Hours had passed since they found the tracks and waiting seemed to be like a waste of time. Ben’s throat was dry, but he refused to take even so much as a sip from his canteen, for fear that his two missing sons would need it far more than he did right about now. Hoss thought he hadn’t noticed, but his canteen remained attached to his saddle as well, not even touched.

“How much further, Hoss?” Ben asked, anxiously.

Hoss frowned and thought a moment.

“Well, from the looks of the tracks, I’d say another three or four hours at most,” he answered. “But, I really can’t say for certain.”

Ben nodded and slightly kicked Buck’s sides, urging the horse to go just a little faster. This time, Hoss voiced no argument.

^^^^^^^^^^

“You don’t have the guts,” Kane sneered, smiling. “You don’t want your brother to live, that’s what this is all about, isn’t it?”

Adam didn’t hesitate to pull the trigger, hitting Kane in the leg.

“What part of ‘shut up’ didn’t you understand?” he snapped.

Kane glared at him from the ground, holding his leg in pain. Adam looked over at Joe, then turned back to Kane.

“We’re taking your mule, Kane,” he persisted. “I need to get Joe to a doctor.”

For a split second he turned his back and a shot rang throughout the desert. Adam watched as his last hope fell to the ground, dead. Adam turned an angry gaze on Kane, who had pulled a small gun out of his tent.

“Now, Adam, did you really think I was unprepared for something like this?” Kane asked, smiling, despite the pain in his leg.

Leaning against a bench, Kane managed to hoist himself onto it, all the while keeping a steady gun trained on Adam. Kane chuckled.

“Drop the gun, Adam.”

When his prisoner didn’t obey quick enough, Kane’s laughter disappeared.

“Drop the gun, Cartwright, or else your brother won’t need a doctor!” he snapped, aiming the gun at Joe.

Adam’s eyes narrowed as he slowly dropped the gun out of his hand and kicked it over to Kane. Kane’s smile grew.

“There now, that wasn’t so bad, now, was it?” he asked.

Adam didn’t answer. He could feel his side beginning to throb from the wound, but he ignored it. If Kane was about to kill him, he’d die standing up.

“You piece of-“ Kane began, but cut off as three shots were fired off in the distance.

Adam’s head immediately turned to the sound as he looked down at Joe, who had also heard and was looking at him with a half smile, half grimace. Adam turned to Kane, a smug expression on his face.

“Sounds like the cavalry’s finally arrived,” he stated. “That’s my pa and brother out there, Kane, and I guarantee you that they’re not gonna rest until they find us.”

Kane didn’t seem to be paying attention, until he spoke.

“Oh, they’ll find you all right,” he said, looking off into the distance. “Too bad it’ll be after I kill you.”

Adam grit his teeth and, desperately, took a shaky step forward. Spotting him out of the corner of his eye, Kane turned his full attention back on him.

“Don’t make me kill you before I plan to, Cartwright,” he almost pleaded. “If you do, I’ll never have the chance to break you.”

He became thoughtful as an idea suddenly popped into his head. His eyes wandered to gaze at Joe. Immediately, Adam’s brain registered what Kane was thinking. He was going to try to break Joe instead!

“No!” Adam shouted, firmly. “You’re fight’s with me, Kane. Leave him out of this!”

“Oh, but don’t you see?” Kane asked, a light flickering in his eye. “He’s been a part of this from the beginning. I’ve been using him to get to you, Adam. Isn’t that enough? After all, when he dies, you’ll finally crack and I’ll win.”

“This is all just a game to you, isn’t it?” Adam asked, his voice low. “This is all just some sick, twisted game!”

Kane frowned, pouting.

“Aw, what’s the matter? Aren’t you having any fun?”

Adam’s eyes widened. This man had truly gone insane. There was no question. He eyed the gun, wishing that it was in HIS grasp instead of the madman’s. Adam looked over at Joe, who was still looking up at him. In that moment, Adam made a decision.

Kane watched in disappointment as Adam’s body collapsed to the ground. Sighing, he looked over at Joe, who was hoarsely calling for Adam.

“Such a shame, kid,” Kane said, limping to stand in front of him. “I guess your brother just doesn’t have the strength left in him.”

“My brother is a hell of a lot stronger than you are,” Joe spat out in disgust.

“Oh really? Is that why he’s lying there on the ground and I’m still standing?”

Before Joe could reply, Kane felt his feet being pulled out from underneath him. A hand reached out and snagged the pistol and mini gun from Kane’s hands. Joe looked over and sighed in relief at the sight of Adam. Adam had been playing all along!

“Next time, Kane, when your enemy’s down, be sure he stays down!” Adam advised.

Kane thought a moment.

“Well, I’ll certainly take that into consideration,” he said, honestly.

A handful of dirt was thrown into Adam’s eyes as Kane tackled him shortly after. Both men went flying into the dirt, arms locked in a struggle as they fought for the guns. Adam kicked both guns out of the reach of his adversary as he struggled against Kane to keep him as far away from them as possible. Just as suddenly as it began, the fighting came to a stop. Kane’s hands were around Adam’s throat, choking him!

“Adam!” Joe shouted, anxiously. “Kane! Stop it!”

Kane glanced up, then back down at Adam.

“You hear how he pleads, Cartwright?” he asked, smiling gleefully. “You hear how he begs for your life? Tell me, why didn’t you do the same for him?”

Fire ignited in Adam as he kneed Kane in the stomach, sending the older man to the dirt, curled up in pain. Instantly, Adam launched himself at him, his hands tightening around Kane’s throat, trying to make that hated voice go away. Joe watched on in horror for a few seconds before his instincts took over.

“Adam!” he shouted. “Adam! Snap out of it! Adam! Stop, you’re killing him!”

That last line sparked something in Adam and his hold on Kane released immediately. No sound came from the man and Adam’s eyes widened. Hesitantly, he placed a shaking hand to Kane’s throat, surprised, but relieved, to find a pulse. Adam staggered back, practically crawling.

“Adam?” Joe asked, anxiously. “Adam, are you okay?”

Adam’s eyes seemed distant, like he wasn’t even in his body. His gaze seemed transfixed on Kane.

“I-I almost k-killed him, Joe,” he whispered, finally. “I-I almost k-killed him with my b-bare hands.”

Joe winced as he shuffled over to Adam’s side. Placing a hand on his older brother’s arm, he anxiously asked, “Are you okay, Adam?”

Adam nodded in a daze, even though his side was protesting and his leg was throbbing. He could only stare at Kane. Just moments ago, had he really been about to kill him? Joe’s hand tightened on Adam’s arm.

“Adam, you were just trying to protect yourself,” he reasoned. “He was baiting you the whole time.”

Voices could be heard nearby, but the two brothers paid no attention to them.

“Adam, he would’ve killed you if you didn’t fight back,” Joe tried again. “Adam?”

The older Cartwright winced. His side was infected , he could tell. Being out in the desert with all the dirt and dust was definitely not helping the healing process. Joe scooted closer, sitting on his knees, his injured arm tightly clenched to his side as he carefully lifted Adam’s shirt to inspect the damage. A horse neighed nearby and a voice called out.

“Adam! Joe, where are you!?”

Joe opened his mouth to answer, but, after not having a lot of water to drink for such a long amount of time, not to mention using up all his energy on talking to Adam, nothing came out except a cough. Joe sighed. How could he signal Hoss and Ben? It was then that something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. The sun was reflecting off of Kane’s gun. Without hesitation, Joe grabbed it, raised it above his head, and fired a shot. That done, he quickly dropped it and went back to Adam.

“Adam! Joseph!” Ben shouted, riding into the camp, Hoss close behind him.

Both men were dismounting before their horses even stopped. Ben immediately went to Joe. Hoss wandered over to Kane’s motionless body and, gun out and ready, kicked it. Kane didn’t move. Cautiously, Hoss knelt down and placed two fingers to the man’s neck and sighed. This man wouldn’t be needing a doctor.

“Son, are you all right?” Ben asked, anxiously.

“I’m fine, Pa, but Adam needs to see a doctor,” Joe stated. “He was shot twice. Once in the side and once in the leg. I was only shot in the shoulder.”

Ben turned to Hoss, who was already at Adam’s side.

“Hoss?” he questioned, the single name asking everything he needed to.

Hoss looked over at him, a worried frown on his face. Adam had collapsed against him. Ben sprang into action.

“Hoss, hand him up to me on Buck,” he ordered, mounting the animal.

It took a few minutes, but Ben eventually situated Adam in front of him comfortably. Hoss rode with Joe, who was beginning to feel the effects of his wound. Adam groaned about five minutes into their journey.

“Adam?” Ben whispered, slowing Buck to a halt.

To his surprise, his oldest son began struggling against him, crying out.

“Let me go!” he shouted. “Need to . . . save . . . Joe.”

Ben held him tighter, tears gathering in his eyes. What in the world happened to his boys back there?

“Just . . . game,” Adam murmured, deliriously. “Just . . . game . . . to kill . . . . J-Joe? W-Where’s Joe?”

Joe looked over at Adam, worriedly.

“I’m here, A-Adam,” he called out. “I’m okay.”

But his voice did nothing to sooth Adam’s tantrum. Ben reluctantly slid out of the saddle and carefully guided Adam down to the ground, placing his saddlebags behind his head as a pillow. Hoss dismounted too, helping Joe down and letting him go to Adam’s side.

“Come on, older brother,” Joe pleaded. “Open your eyes. I’m right here. Kane’s back there at camp. He’s not here, Adam. He’s gone.”

Adam didn’t respond, but his struggling ceased. Ben felt his forehead and sharply jerked it back.

“He has a fever,” he announced. “We need to get him to the closest town and find a doctor.”

“I’ll go ahead, Pa,” Hoss offered. “I’ll bring back a doctor and a buckboard. It might be a tad bit easier to carry ‘im that way.”

Ben nodded, already taking out his handkerchief and dabbing at the blood forming around Adam’s wounds. Hoss looked over at Joe.

“Come on, shortshanks,” he said. “You’re going with me.”

Joe looked from Adam up to Hoss, then back down at Adam. With a sigh, he allowed Hoss to help him onto Chub and they rode off. Ben watched them go and worriedly turned his gaze back to Adam. He was dripping in sweat. Incoherent mumbling could be heard also, but Ben paid no attention to it as he continued attending to his needs.

“Easy, boy,” Ben whispered, softly. “Hoss and Joe went for help. They’ll be back with a doctor soon.”

He could only pray his words were true as Adam groaned against the handkerchief pressing against his side to stop the bleeding.

 

Chapter Three:  Recovery!

 

“Come on, Joe, you gotta stay awake, pumpkin.”

Hoss shook Joe’s shoulder, waking up the delirious young man.

“Adam,” Joe murmured. “W-Wh-Where’s Adam?”

Hoss held onto his little brother tightly.

“Adam’s back with Pa,” Hoss replied, making sure the younger wouldn’t fall out of the saddle. “You and I are going for help.”

Joe’s glazed eyes looked at him, fear etched into the orbs.

“Y-You left him back there with that madman!?” Joe screamed, pounding his fists against Hoss’ chest.

Surprised by the outburst, Hoss stopped Chub. Taking that moment to make his escape, Joe wriggled out of Hoss’ grip and almost collapsed on the ground. Weak from being shot, he shakily got to his feet and started, slowly, off in the direction they had just come from. Hoss immediately dismounted and went to Joe’s side.

“Come on, little brother,” Hoss said, picking him up. “We gotta get you to a doctor and get a buckboard for Adam so we can get him to a doctor.”

“No, Hoss, K-Kane,” Joe stammered. “H-He’ll kill h-h-him. Go back, H-Hoss! Go back!”

Hoss ignored his brother cries.

“Now, Joe, I done told you, Pa’s with Adam,” he stated. “That there Kane fella’s dead.”

At those words, Joe’s eyes widened in shock.

“D-Dead?” he asked, starting to breathe heavily.

Hoss placed Joe on the ground gently.

“Now, Joe, you best just calm down,” he stated. “Adam’s just fine, ya hear? He’s a little banged up, but once we get a doctor for him, he’ll be right as rain in no time.”

Joe didn’t respond. His eyes remained wide as Hoss sighed and lifted him back on Chub. Shock had finally set in and Hoss knew he had to hurry.

^^^^^^^^^^

Ben winced at the blood that still flowed slightly. Adam cried out as he moved his leg, his brain not fully comprehending that it was injured.

“Easy, Adam,” Ben pleaded.

His worry was starting to become fear. Joe and Hoss had left three hours ago and there was still no sign of them or anyone else.

“J-Joe,” Adam cried, trying to sit up, despite his injuries. “W-Wh-Where’s Joe? G-Got to save, J-Joe.”

Ben anxiously placed a hand on his sons’ chest and pushed him back.

“Adam, it’s me,” he soothed. “Joe’s fine, son. He and Hoss went for help.”

Adam pushed aside Ben’s hand and managed to sit up. A cry escaped his lips as his side injury protested against his movements. No recognition lit up in his eyes as he looked at Ben.

“J-Joe,” he stammered. “Where’s my b-br-brother?”

“Adam, it’s Pa,” Ben whispered. “And it’s okay, Joe’s going to be fine.”

Ben’s voice didn’t seem to reach Adam’s ears as the younger Cartwright struggled to stand to his feet.

“Adam, please, you need to stay still,” Ben pleaded, an ever-ready hand on Adam just in case.

“No,” he protested. “H-Have to save J-Joe. L-Let me go!”

Ben backed away in shock from the blow his oldest son dealt him. Adam continued trying to get up, only to fall back due to the wound in his leg. Snapping out of his daze, Ben went forward and grabbed a hold of Adam’s arm.

“Son, you have to stay put,” he said. “You’ll only make your injuries worse.”

Adam’s glazed eyes looked up at Ben in confusion.

“W-Who are you?” he questioned. “W-Where’s my brother!?”

Ben looked like he had been slapped.

“Y-You don’t recognize me?” he asked.

“Where’s my brother?” Adam repeated, looking around anxiously.

“Adam, listen to me,” Ben pleaded. “Your brother’s fine. He and Hoss went to the nearest town to get help.”

Adam threw off Ben’s hand.

“Who are you?” he asked again. “I don’t even know you!”

Ben closed his eyes and took a deep calming breath.

“Adam, if you don’t calm down you’re going to make yourself sick,” Ben spoke calmly, despite the situation. “If you’re upset, there isn’t going to be a way for you to help Joe. So, please, just calm down!”

Adam’s breathing calmed and he took a shaky breath. His eyes closed and he slowly drifted back into unconsciousness. Ben breathed a sigh of relief. His hands were shaking slightly. If Hoss didn’t hurry back soon, they might lose Adam for good.

^^^^^^^^^^

Hoss was having a difficult time. Joe had passed out a few minutes ago and waking him up proved to be easier said than done, let alone actually keeping him upright in the saddle. Hoss took a look around, anxious to find some signs of a town. To his great relief, he spotted it. It wasn’t as big as he thought it might be, but Hoss didn’t care. Buildings meant a town, a town meant people, people meant a doctor for Joe and a buckboard for Hoss so he could return to get his father and older brother. Hoss quickened Chubb’s pace and hurried towards the town.

^^^^^^^^^^

“Adam? Adam. Adam!”

Adam could hear the voice calling out to him, but he couldn’t fully comprehend who it was. All he knew was his brother was in trouble. Hands grabbed Adam, holding him firmly as the voice continued to speak soothingly.

“Shhh, Adam, please, you need to rest.”

It was really starting to bother Adam, not knowing who the person talking to him was. Determined to find out, Adam slowly opened his feverish eyes. The figure above him looked familiar, but he couldn’t really place it – until the person spoke again.

“Adam, Son, go on. Go to sleep.”

Adam’s eyes slowly closed once again and he leaned into his father.

“Pa,” came the whispered word that escaped his mouth before he gave into the darkness and drifted off.

^^^^^^^^^^

“Mister, I’m looking for the doctor,” Hoss pleaded with a stranger he stopped on the street.

The man looked up at him and, seeing Joe being held firmly, yet gently, in the saddle, the man gave him directions. As soon as Hoss stopped Chubb in front of the doctor’s house, he was dismounting and pulling Joe down from the horse to carry him in his arms. Reaching the front door, Hoss kicked it with his foot in an effort to knock. He waited a few minutes before the door opened and a woman poked her head out. Seeing Joe, she immediately opened it the rest of the way.

“Come in, please, come in!” she urged.

Hoss hurried inside and waited for the woman to close the door and motion him to a table before finally setting Joe down on it. The woman left and returned swiftly with a man. He didn’t speak, just hurried over to Joe and started to examine him. Hoss watched worriedly as the doctor examined Joe’s shoulder, but that was all he saw, for he was quickly rushed out of the room by the woman moments later. Hoss nodded to her.

“My older brother’s been hurt too, ma’am,” he explained. “I gotta go back for him and my pa. Is there a livery around her where I can rent a buckboard?”

“Down the street across from the bank,” the woman replied.

“Louise, get in here!”

Hoss nodded to her again, gratefully as she disappeared inside, closing the door behind her. Not having any time to waste, Hoss started for the livery.

^^^^^^^^^^

Ben paled slightly when Adam’s breathing slowed down considerably. He had examined the extent of Adam’s injuries, but he wasn’t a doctor. Adam’s fever was still there and Ben was growing more and more worried as it became clear that Adam was getting much more worse.

“Adam, open your eyes for me, son,” he pleaded, urgently.

Adam’s eyes fluttered, but then remained closed. Ben sighed deeply and ran a hand over his own face. Hoss had better hurry. If Adam stayed out there much longer, there wouldn’t be any need for a doctor.

^^^^^^^^^^

Hoss was getting frustrated. He had found the livery okay, but there wasn’t anyone around. He couldn’t wait much longer. He had to get back to his father and brother!

“Can I help you, mister?”

Hoss turned in relief upon seeing the sheriff.

“Sheriff, you gotta help me,” he pleaded. “I need a buckboard. My brother’s been hurt bad and we’re afraid we’ll hurt him more if he tries to ride a horse. I have the money, but the person who runs this place doesn’t seem to be here.”

The sheriff seemed to size up Hoss, taking in his ragged appearance. Maybe it was the way Hoss asked or the fact that Hoss was so frantic that caused the sheriff to believe him, but, whatever it was, the middle Cartwright son didn’t care. Sheriff Dugan, as he revealed his name to be, quickly helped Hoss hitch up a team of horses to a buckboard. Once it was done, Hoss started to hand him the money, but Dugan held up his hand and shook his head.

“B-But, Sheriff-” Hoss started to argue.

“You go get that brother of yours,” Dugan cut him off. “Once you bring him back to see the doc, just make sure you put that buckboard and those horses back.”

Hoss couldn’t believe his ears, but he had no time to dwell on his generosity. With a quick nod of thanks, he hurriedly climbed into the seat and urged the horses on.

^^^^^^^^^^

Ben looked down worriedly at Adam. The younger man still had yet to wake up and with every passing moment, Ben was becoming more and more worried.

“P-Pa?”

Adam’s eyes had opened slightly and he seemed to be squinting up at his father. Ben smiled in relief.

“You’re all right, son,” he soothed him, softly. “Hoss took Joe to the nearest town to the doctor and then he’s coming back for us.”

Adam nodded, showing he understood, but he didn’t say anymore. Ben watched as Adam stared off into the scenery, thoughtfully. Ben’s worry grew. Something was wrong. His oldest son seemed to have a far away look in his eyes and it wasn’t because of the pain.

“Adam, what’s wrong?” Ben asked.

There was silence for several minutes before Adam looked up at him again. The next set of words Adam spoke sent a wave of fear through Ben.

“He won, Pa,” Adam said in a hushed tone. “He called it all a game, using Joe to get to me and, in the end, I-I killed him.”

Ben’s grip on his oldest son tightened as he tried to find the words to reassure him.

“He wasn’t in his right mind, Adam,” he started. “There was nothing else you could’ve done.”

“I gave in,” came the argument. “I let him break me just like a horse!”

“No!” Ben shouted, startling both Adam and himself. “Son, you did what you had to in order to save yourself and Joe. And for that, I’m proud of you.”

Adam turned his gaze away from Ben.

“You shouldn’t be.”

Ben silently watched Adam, his thoughts swirling. This wasn’t the Adam he had known all his life. This Adam was giving in too easily. Ben opened his mouth to say more, but closed it again. Time. It’d just take time – and a lot of patience.

Ben was ready to cry in relief at the sight of Hoss returning with the buckboard. Adam had developed another fever, causing Ben to worry that maybe Adam wasn’t fighting against his injuries as hard as he normally would. As Hoss and Ben carefully lifted their family member into the buckboard, Ben couldn’t help but fully examine the extent of his oldest son’s injuries, which shocked him. Adam’s leg had stopped bleeding, blood clotting the entrance to the wound, which caused some relief for Ben, but, knowing that the doctor would have to reopen it, made him cringe. Adam’s side was also clotted, but bruising suggested there was more going on internally that no one could see from the outside.

“Pa?”

Hoss’ voice snapped Ben out of his trance and he shook his head as he climbed into the buckboard with Adam, settling down next to him. Hoss nodded at him and climbed into the driver’s seat before snapping the reigns. Before too long, they were on their way. Ben tried to keep Adam still as best he could, but, with the somewhat rough terrain, it proved to be a difficult task.

Halfway there, Ben looked down at Adam, only to see the younger man’s eyes open and, seemingly, alert. His firm grip slightly tightened.

“Adam, can you hear me, son?”

To his great relief, Adam’s eyes shifted to meet his own.

“Welcome back, boy. Welcome back.”

Adam frowned a moment, until his eyes finally lit up in recognition and the smallest of smiles crossed his lips.

“Hey, P-Pa.”

Tears filled Ben’s eyes, but he held them back. Their conversation from earlier seemed to be forgotten, for which he was grateful. He watched silently as Adam took in his surroundings and saw the question in his dark eyes when he realized they were moving.

“We’re on our way to the nearest town, Adam,” Ben explained. “Joe’s already there waiting for us with the doctor.”

Adam’s eyes widened at the mention of his younger brother. Noticing this, Ben quickly reassured him that Joe would be fine.

“I’m sure the doctor is working right now to remove the bullet from his shoulder,” he said.

Adam seemed to think about that for a moment. In that moment, everything that had happened in Kane’s camp came rushing back to him, but one memory stood out. He was looking down at Kane, his hands wrapped firmly around his throat. In a slight panic, Adam looked up at Ben.

“P-Pa, I-I . . . . d-did I-?”

He couldn’t finish the sentence, but Ben knew exactly what his oldest son was asking. Taking a shaky breath, he spoke softly.

“He’s dead, Adam.”

Adam’s world seemed to tilt at that point, even though he was already lying down. He closed his eyes tightly before opening them again as Hoss called out that they were nearing the town.

They reached the doctor’s office in record time, where they placed Adam in the exam room. While Louise hurriedly made Adam comfortable, Ben pulled the doctor aside.

“My youngest son, Joseph, was brought in earlier,” he said. “How is he?”

The doctor stare at Ben for a moment before, gripping his forearm supportively.

“Sir, I suggest you sit down,” he advised.

Ben’s face completely paled at that and he sat heavily in the nearest chair. Joe’s injuries hadn’t been too severe, had they?

Seeing the worry etched into Ben’s face, the doctor quickly realized what the man must’ve been thinking.

“Oh, Mr. Cartwright, I’m sorry,” he said, quickly. “Joseph’s fine, he’s resting at the moment, but I expect him to make a full recovery. I wanted you to sit down only because you looked like you were going to pass out if you remained standing any longer.”

Ben’s whole body relaxed at that and he ran a shaking hand over his face. The doctor was about to say more when Louise hurried into the room.

“He’s ready for you, Doctor,” she announced and disappeared back inside.

The doctor turned to the two men and nodded before hurrying in after her and closing the door behind him. Hoss sat down next to his father, worry set on his face as he stared at the floor.

“You think Adam’s gonna be okay, Pa?” he finally asked.

Ben looked over at his middle son, not really knowing what to say. Adam’s injuries were cause for concern, of course, but Ben wasn’t particularly worried about that more than he was worried about his oldest son’s state-of-mind. Adam’s words back in the desert haunted him.

‘I’m proud of you.’

‘You shouldn’t be.’

Ben shivered slightly at the memory, but quickly pushed it aside when he realized he had yet to answer Hoss’ question.

“Your brother’s strong, Hoss,” he stated, his words seeming far away, even to his own ears. “He’ll survive.”

Hoss nodded, accepting that answer and the room fell into a long silence as the two men sat there, waiting on news. After what seemed like forever, the door opened and Louise stepped through, closing it quietly behind her. Hoss and Ben were immediately on their feet. Turning to find them both still there, Louise smiled and moved towards them.

“Both of them are doing well,” she said, reassuringly. “Joseph is resting comfortably and the doctor is finishing up with your friend.”

Ben nodded, gratefully.

“That’s my other son, Adam,” he explained. “C-Could we maybe go in to see them?”

Louise shook her head.

“Not right now, sir,” she replied, sympathy shining in her eyes. “The doctor still has to clean up the mess and-”

“Louise, get in here!” came the doctor’s voice from the other room.

Without wasting a minute, Louise was already at the door, opening it wide. Ben and Hoss were right behind her, alarmed at the sound of the doctor’s voice. The scene that greeted them wasn’t a pretty one and Ben and Hoss had to glance away for a minute or two before they could look inside without feeling sick. Adam lay on the table, his forehead and hair damp with sweat. The cloths used to stem the bleeding from his body were lying next to him. That was when Ben caught sight of his son’s leg. The doctor had obviously cut Adam’s pant leg in order to get to the wound, but the wound itself was a sight to behold. The wound was puffy and red, blood still slightly coming from the entrance wound and Ben already knew that there was a slight infection. What caused his fears to rise was the fact that gangrene was almost sure to follow if something wasn’t done soon.

“Get some more cloths in here, Louise, and get those two out of here!” the doctor ordered.

The woman nodded and immediately started to push Ben and Hoss back out into the waiting area. Once out of the room, Hoss turned to his father, his face pale.

“Pa-.”

Ben cut him off.

“I know, Hoss,” he whispered, still staring at the closed door leading to the room Louise had just hurried back into. “Believe me, I know.”

It was another hour before the doctor walked out, wiping his hands on a cloth. Ben was standing by the window when he entered and was immediately across the room before Hoss could even get to his feet.

“Doctor, Adam. Is he-”

The man placed a hand on Ben’s shoulder.

“He’s asleep right now, Mr. Cartwright,” he assured him. “I expect him to sleep for a while. Louise is getting him settled right now and cleaning up. Just give her about five minutes before going in.”

That said, the doctor started to walk back into the room. Ben looked back at Hoss who stood there with a worried look on his face. Hurriedly, Ben spoke up, asking a question both father and son were wondering about.

“Doctor, Adam-Adam’s leg,” he began. “D-Did you have to-”

Realizing what he was asking, the doctor shook his head.

“We were able to save his leg, Mr. Cartwright,” he said, smiling. “Granted, it was close, Sir. Your son’s going to have a long recovery before he’s back to full strength.”

Ben nodded. He already knew that. Just the look in Adam’s eyes when he said he shouldn’t be proud of him told Ben that Adam not only had to heal physically from Kane’s attacks, but mentally as well. So lost in his thoughts, Ben didn’t snap out of it until Hoss spoke.

“Pa, the doc said we could go in and see Joe,” he announced.

Ben pushed his thoughts aside for the time being and entered the back room with Hoss. Joe was lying on a separate table, a curtain on the other side of him, most likely where Adam was resting peacefully. Ben was immediately at Joe’s side, his hand touching the top of the young man’s head as he leaned in to speak to him.

“Joe?”

As if in answer, Joe’s eyes opened slowly and they tiredly looked up at Ben. Seeing his father, Joe’s eyes lit up in recognition and he started to struggle to sit up.

“Stay still, son,” Ben ordered, firmly, placing a hand on his chest to stop him. “You’re safe now.”

Joe’s body relaxed, but his eyes never strayed from Ben’s face. They spoke an unvoiced question and Ben smiled slightly for he already knew what the question would’ve been had Joe been able to speak.

“Adam’s all right, Joe,” he reassured him. “He’s on the other side of that curtain. He’s resting, just like you should be.”

As Ben was speaking, Joe was shaking his head. His eyes were pleading, as if begging him to understand, but Ben didn’t know what his youngest son was trying to tell him. Eventually, Joe’s eyes slowly closed and he gave in to sleep. Satisfied that Joe would be asleep for a while, Ben moved towards the curtain separating himself from his oldest son. The sight that greeted him wasn’t a sight he expected to see. Adam was lying on the table, his chest slowly rising and falling, telling Ben he was still alive. Adam’s lower body was covered by a sheet and Ben sighed in relief as his hand touched the younger man’s forehead to feel it cool to the touch. That meant no fever, but there was still the possibility. Hoss had come in behind Ben and now stared at his older brother’s still form in shock. Sure, he had seen Adam hurt before, but nothing like how he looked just then. Ben leaned over, his lips right next to Adam’s ear as he spoke.

“Adam, son, it’s Pa,” he whispered.

There was no response, not that Ben really expected one, but Adam’s index finger on his right hand moved. Ben had seen it and it raised his hopes that maybe Adam was regaining consciousness. Sure enough, moments later, Adam’s dark eyes opened and he looked around before finally setting his gaze on Ben. A small smile tugged at Ben’s lips and he gave into the temptation.

Adam’s mouth slowly tried to form the word “Pa”, but, seeing as he was incredibly weak, no sound came out. A little frustrated and alarmed by this, Adam looked at Ben frantically. Ben placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and squeezed gently.

“It’s all right, Adam,” he said, soothingly. “You’re all right. You’re safe.”

As Ben watched Adam fall back asleep minutes later, he couldn’t help but wonder what had happened out there in the desert between his two sons and Kane. He also wondered if his words would ring true. He wondered if things would truly be all right ever again.

 

Chapter Four: Remembering

 

Ben had fallen asleep in a chair Louise had brought into the back room for him. So when Hoss woke him a few hours later, saying Joe was awake again, he almost lost his balance in his haste to stand up and hurry to his youngest son’s side. Joe’s eyes were wide open and fully alert. A small smile appeared on his face when Ben appeared in his line of vision.

“P-Pa.”

Ben was shocked at the condition of Joe’s voice. It was weak and soft. So soft, Ben had a hard time hearing him at first. Ben unconsciously placed a hand at the top of Joe’s head and stroked the curly brown hair absentmindedly.

“You’re all right, son,” he reassured him. “You and Adam are both all right.”

Joe didn’t seem to hear his father’s words.

“P-Pa, Adam, h-he-” Joe cut himself off as he tried to sit up, resulting in pain shooting through his shoulder.

Ben placed his hand on Joe’s uninjured shoulder and gently pushed him back down on the bed.

“You don’t have to tell me anything, Joe,” he said, soothingly. “You just rest. You’ll need to save your strength.”

Joe shook his head, determined to tell Ben something. Ben leaned in closer to catch the words. Hoss noticed the frown on his father’s face when he straightened up and it bothered him even more when he saw the tears coursing down the older man’s cheeks. Hesitantly, he stepped forward and placed a hand on Ben’s shoulder.

“Pa?” he called, watching as Ben practically jumped at the sound of his voice. “Pa, what’d Joe say?”

Ben shook his head.

“Not right now, Hoss,” he answered, not really wanting to answer his middle son. “I-I need to go see Adam.”

Ben turned and headed for the curtain, until Joe’s weak voice called from the bed.

“P-Pa, p-pl-please,” he whispered, his eyes filled with worry.

Ben looked over at him and nodded, understanding the plea before turning back again, pushing aside the curtain, and stepping through. The curtain fell back into place as Hoss watched Joe fall asleep once more.

Ben watched his eldest son sleep for quite some time, Joe’s words echoing in his mind.

“K-Kane. A-Ad-Adam k-killed him.”

Ben shivered slightly, closing his eyes as he tried to block out the words. He didn’t have to try, however, seeing as a groan came from Adam at that exact moment. Relief flooded through him as he leaned over the bed, watching anxiously as Adam’s eyes fluttered a little, then slowly opened halfway. Recognition shown in his eyes and Ben managed to smile.

“Welcome back, boy,” he whispered, placing a hand on top of Adam’s head.

Adam didn’t say anything, his eyes searching his father’s for something. The dark orbs frowned for a moment before widening. Adam opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Realizing that Adam’s throat was probably dry, Ben hurried to the pitcher and glass on the other side of the room. Pouring some water, he hurried back to the younger man’s side and tipped the glass to his lips.

“Easy now, son,” Ben calmed him as Adam had started to gulp down the water.

Once Adam had, slowly, finished the glass, Ben placed it back where he had found it, then returned to the bed. Instead of finding Adam falling asleep, like he had hoped, he found him very much awake, his eyes fully opened and alert. Ben frowned, noticing that Adam kept looking around the room, as if he was searching for something that wasn’t there.

“Adam? What is it?” Ben asked.

Adam’s eyes darted to him, his face an uncharacteristic mix of fear and sorrow.

“J-Joe,” came the hoarse reply.

Realization suddenly dawned on Ben and he gently gripped Adam’s arm.

“Joe’s just fine, Adam,” he reassured him. “He’s sleeping right now on the other side of that curtain.”

This seemed to satisfy Adam and he visibly relaxed. At first, Ben thought he had fallen asleep, but when Adam opened his eyes moments later, he realized he was wrong. He watched his eldest son closely, not sure exactly what was going on in that head of his. What Joe had said earlier came back to him and he took a sharp intake of breath. Adam seemed to notice for he looked over in Ben’s direction, a questioning look on his face. Ben sighed, figuring he might as well say what was on his mind.

“Son, we need to talk.”

Adam just stared at Ben for a moment before nodding. Ben sat next to the bed, his eyes never leaving his oldest son’s.

“I want to understand what happened to you and your brother, Adam,” he began. “I’m hoping you’re feeling a little bit stronger so you can tell me.”

Adam continued looking at his father, the questioning look gone as he realized where the conversation was heading. Adamantly, Adam shook his head. No, he couldn’t tell Ben what had happened to him and Joe out in that desert. Ben frowned at Adam’s reluctance.

“Adam, please. I can’t help you or Joe if I don’t know exactly what happened to both of you,” he pleaded.

Still, Adam shook his head, refusing to obey his father’s wish. Sighing, Ben ran a hand over his face. He made a decision and looked back at Adam.

“Adam, I was in with your brother just a few minutes ago and he told me something that worries me,” he said. “Adam, he told me you killed that man. He called him Kane.”

Adam’s eyes widened and he began sitting up hurriedly. Immediately Ben stood and pushed him back down gently.

“Easy, son,” he soothed. “There’s no need for you to get up.”

Adam struggled briefly against his father before settling back down on the bed. Ben waited a few more minutes before speaking again.

“Now you know why I need to know what happened out in the desert, Adam,” he stated. “I have to know the truth. I have to know what-what agitated you enough to cause you to kill that man.”

Adam shook his head for what seemed like the hundredth time. Ben’s face softened.

“All right, son,” he gave in. “But as soon as you’re ready, don’t hesitate to talk to me.”

Adam nodded, accepting that, if the time came, he could confide in his father the horrors of what he and Joe had to go through.

^^^^^^^^^^

Hours later found Ben still with Adam, not necessarily for conversation but rather for companionship. Ben did most of the talking seeing as Adam was still having trouble putting full sentences together.

“Want . . . .see . . . . Joe.”

Ben’s eyes widened and he looked over at his oldest son in surprise. He didn’t need the missing words to understand what Adam was asking.

“Adam, I don’t know if-” Ben began, but Adam cut him off.

“P-Please, Pa.”

Ben knew he couldn’t deny Adam his right to see his brother so, instead of protesting, he stood and walked over to the curtain separating the siblings and pushed it away, moving to give Adam a better view of his little brother. Just Joe’s shoulder was bandaged, but to Adam it was more than enough. He turned his head away and Ben took that as his cue to pull the curtain back in place. After doing so, he turned back to Adam.

“Adam, please, talk to me,” he urged. “What happened to you and your brother? What did that man do to you?”

Adam’s eyes were tightly closed and he didn’t answer. Ben could only watch as his son relieved the scene in his mind, not sure what he could do to help him.

Ben stood there, his head lowered as he thought of all the possible scenes that could have played out in that desert.

“He was insane.”

Ben jerked his head up to look at Adam, surprised he even spoke and how strong his voice sounded. Ben moved closer to the bed.

“Who, Adam?” he whispered, afraid that if he spoke any louder then Adam would stop talking.

Adam’s gaze turned to his father, his eyes seemingly blank.

“Peter Kane.”

The name was spat from Adam’s lips and Ben straightened, his eyes wide at the venom he heard in his son’s words. Adam turned his head away from Ben, although he continued talking. In slight detail, Adam described Peter Kane and everything that had occurred in the camp. Ben listened, his stomach churning at the abuse his sons had gone through. There was a long pause after Adam stopped talking and Ben sat heavily into a chair. His eyes were closed and he was fighting the emotions that wanted to come to the surface. He knew that if Adam hadn’t killed Kane, then he would’ve.

“Pa?”

Adam’s voice snapped Ben out of his thoughts and he looked down at the younger man. Adam was staring back at him, his normally masked emotions displayed clearly on his face as tears spilled onto the mattress beneath him. Ben gripped his hand and squeezed gently, reassuring him that he wasn’t going anywhere, but he detected a question in Adam’s eyes so he waited patiently.

“Pa, did I do the right thing?” Adam asked, his eyes pleading for confirmation.

Ben’s heart constricted in his chest at Adam’s question. He could see the hope in his eldest’s eyes. Ben opened his mouth, then closed it again, not sure what type of answer he should give. Adam kept his gaze on his father, waiting and hoping that Ben would tell him it was okay. That it was okay to kill Kane to save himself and Joe. He felt another squeeze in his hand.

“You did, Adam,” Ben finally replied, smiling, “and I’m very proud of you.”

“P-Pa?”

Adam and Ben both looked towards the curtain and Ben pulled it back to reveal a conscious Joe. Adam looked away from his younger brother, not able to look him in the eye after what he had done. Though Ben’s words had somewhat soothed his fears, the guilt still remained. Ben frowned at Adam’s reaction and looked over at Joe who had a disappointed look on his face.

“A-Adam?”

Adam shivered slightly against the sheets, but made no inclination that he had heard Joe’s voice. Ben watched as Joe slowly sat up and, realizing that both Adam and Joe needed this, he made no move to stop him. Joe sat on the edge of the bed for a moment or two before hesitantly standing.

“Adam,” he tried again.

Realizing Joe’s voice seemed closer than before, Adam looked over, his eyes widening. Joe swayed slightly and Ben grabbed a hold of his arm.

“Joe, lets get you back to bed,” he said.

Joe shook his head.

“N-No,” he protested. “N-Need . . . . t-talk . . . . . A-Adam.”

Surprised at Joe’s determination, Ben let go of his youngest son’s arm and allowed him to continue forward, but kept a close eye on him. Adam watched worriedly as Joe approached the bed. With a heavy, yet relieved, sigh, Joe sat on the edge of Adam’s bed.

Adam frowned, wondering what could be so important that Joe had to tell him.

“A-Adam,” Joe began, “t-thank . . . .y-you. S-Saved . . . . Me.”

Adam couldn’t believe what he was hearing. After he had killed a man, here his younger brother was thanking him for saving his life. A thought struck him suddenly and he smiled as he reached out and grasped Joe’s arm gently.

“Thanks, Joe.”

Ben looked between his oldest and youngest, confusion registering on his face, but he said nothing. Joe nodded to Adam, a smile spreading across his lips. His eyes drooped, exhaustion taking hold as he pitched forward. Adam reacted instantly, holding Joe and gently lowering him to the sheets so he wouldn’t further injure himself. Ben stepped forward immediately, calling for the doctor.

“What happened?” the doctor asked as he hurried inside. “Why is he out of bed?”

“He had something important to tell me,” Adam replied for his father.

He didn’t say anymore than that as the doctor and Ben carried Joe back to his own bed and laid him down gently. Ben stepped back and allowed the doctor to examine Joe. A few minutes later, Ben was surprised when the doctor pushed him behind the curtain and closed it, blocking Adam and Ben from seeing Joe. Ben looked over at Adam, who was starting to sit up. Ben hurried to his side.

“Adam, please, you have to stay in bed,” he pleaded, holding his oldest son’s arm.

Adam looked at Ben, his eyes seeming to see right through him.

“What’s wrong with Joe?” he asked, his voice quiet.

Ben squeezed Adam’s arm gently as he looked towards the curtain. He had no answer for Adam.

It was several long minutes before the doctor came from behind the curtain to find Ben and Adam waiting. Adam’s face was slightly pale as he stared at the doctor, waiting for the news. Ben had helped him sit up slightly and he now was propped up with pillows. Tired shadows were under his eyes. Ben tore his gaze from his eldest to look at the doctor, worry wrinkles etched deeply into his forehead.

“Doctor?” he asked the unspoken question.

The doctor sighed and rubbed his head a little.

“He’s weak,” he stated. “He’s also loosened the stitching in his shoulder. I don’t particularly like the fever he’s developing, but he’s strong.”

Adam breathed a sigh of relief and Ben mumbled a heartfelt, “Thank God.”

The doctor looked between the two of them and smiled slightly.

“You know, in all this confusion, I haven’t even told you my name,” he realized.

Ben looked at him and chuckled a little.

“No,” he agreed, “I don’t believe you have.”

Extending his hand, the doctor nodded and said, “Doctor Timothy Gram, Mr. Cartwright.”

Ben shook the hand warmly.

“It’s a pleasure, Doctor Gram.”

Gram was about to reply when Adam’s voice reached both men’s ears.

“He should’ve stayed for the trial.”

Ben turned to him in confusion.

“Adam?” he asked, worriedly. “Adam, what are you talking about?”

Adam looked into his father’s face, his eyes almost void of any emotion as Gram quietly slipped out of the room, allowing them some privacy.

“The trial,” he replied. “Joe was going to stay in town for a trial, but I talked him out of it. I figured we needed him more on the Ponderosa. I should’ve let him stay. Maybe, if I did, he never would’ve gotten hurt.”

Ben took a deep breath. If it wasn’t one thing, then it was another. He stood nearer to the bed.

“Adam, there was no way for you to know that Kane was going to be out there,” he persisted. “You also had no way of knowing that Joe would be hurt. Son, if every man knows what’s going to happen in the future, well, then, there wouldn’t really be a life worth living.”

Adam seemed to ponder that a moment and Ben held his breath, hoping his words had gotten through to him somehow. After another moment or two, Adam nodded in agreement and Ben let out the breath he had been holding. Adam looked up at him again, though.

“I should’ve looked out for him more,” he whispered, his eyes having an almost frantic look as if he and Joe were back in that camp and, once again, fending for their lives.

Ben swallowed the bile in his throat as he remembered the first time he had seen the wounds on his two boys. Shaking away that memory, Ben turned his attention back to reassuring Adam.

“Son, you were hurt,” he said. “There was nothing more you could’ve done to help your brother.”

Adam’s eyes darkened slightly as his next words pierced through Ben’s heart like a spear.

“I could’ve killed Kane when I had the chance.”

Ben stared out the window into the darkness. They had been there for almost three days. Joe and Adam were healing well, but their emotional state was a whole different story. Adam had become more subdued, only speaking when spoken to. Joe had tried everything to get through to his older brother, but to no avail. Joe hadn’t stayed silent like Adam. Rather, he just needed Ben in the room with him at all times, at least when he was awake. Hoss was torn between which of his brothers needed him the most and was wearing himself out switching between the two.

Ben smiled as he heard the snoring coming from the other room. He looked over towards his youngest son’s bed and the smile slowly disappeared. How could this have happened to his boys? What had possessed a man like Kane to harm another human being so cruelly? Ben looked back out the window and sighed.

“Pa?”

Hearing his name being called, Ben looked over at Joe and, upon finding him still asleep, headed through the curtain and to his eldest son’s side. Adam was wide awake, sitting up in bed. He looked up as Ben entered and managed a small smile.

“I thought I heard you in there,” Adam stated.

Ben nodded, noticing the strange look in the younger man’s eyes.

“Was there something you needed to talk to me about, Son?” he asked, praying that the answer would be yes.

Adam shook his head.

“Not particularly, Pa,” Adam replied, dashing Ben’s hopes. “But . . . .”

Ben waited patiently, seeing the internal struggle on Adam’s face.

“I wanted to kill him, Pa,” Adam’s soft voice drifted to Ben’s ears. “I wanted to kill him for hurting me and Joe.”

Ben moved closer to the bed and placed a hand on Adam’s shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly.

“That’s a natural reaction, Adam,” he said. “Anyone else in that situation would’ve felt the same way.”

Adam shook his head, firmly and was about to say something when Ben interrupted.

“He was threatening your younger brother, he hurt both of you, he planned on killing you,” Ben stated and sighed, his voice becoming softer. “Adam, you had no choice.”

Adam didn’t say anything for a few minutes and Ben was afraid that he had caused a wall to go up until he heard a sigh.

“Adam?”

He looked up at his father, his eyes filled with unshed tears. Ben’s heart broke at the look and he sat on the bed next to him, pulling Adam into a tight, yet gentle, embrace.

“It’s all right, boy. It’s all right.”

Surprised at first at the unexpected contact, Adam stiffened, but relaxed slowly. His own arms slowly wrapped around his father as he leaned his head against Ben’s shoulder, the tears finally falling freely down his cheeks. Ben held Adam gently, relishing in the feeling that he was able to. It was rare that he was able to hold Adam like this. Ben was just grateful that he was able to at all.

Eventually, Adam’s tears subsided and he pulled away from his father, wiping his eyes and leaning back on the bed.

“Sorry, Pa,” Adam apologized, softly.

The oldest Cartwright looked at Adam, a frown on his face.

“Adam, there’s no reason for you to be sorry,” he stated, firmly.

Adam was about to protest further when Doctor Gram walked in.

“Well, it seems that my patient is feeling much better,” he said, a smile on his face.

Not sure if he was talking about Joe or Adam, Ben spoke up.

“Doctor?”

Realizing the confusion, Gram chuckled.

“Sorry, Mr. Cartwright. I meant Joe seems to be doing much better. His fever’s still there, but it isn’t rising and granted, he does have a long road to recovery, as does Adam here, but I do believe both of your boys will be just fine.”

Adam breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing that Joe was going to be okay. Ben watched him carefully as he settled back before turning to the doctor again.

“How long before we can take them home, Doctor?” he asked.

He felt his boy’s recoveries would come along faster if they were in a more familiar environment. The doctor thought it over for a while.

“Well, I’d like them to stay for at least another day or two,” he suggested. “When I’m sure they’re ready for travel, we can start making preparations to transport them.”

Ben nodded in understanding and looked back at Adam before going through the curtain to check on Joe.

^^^^^^^^^^

Joe was confused as he opened his eyes. He could remember bits and pieces, but nothing more than that. He blinked a few times, allowing his eyes to adjust to the darkness.

“Joseph?”

A small smile crossed his lips as he recognized the voice.

“H-Hey, Pa,” he whispered in return.

“Welcome back, Son,” Ben said, softly, putting a hand on top of the younger man’s head and stroking the soft curls.

Joe closed his eyes briefly and opened them again, a sudden thought coming to him as the events of the last few days returned to his memory.

“Pa, I-is A-Ad-Adam . . . .?”

Knowing immediately what his youngest son was asking, Ben smiled and took Joe’s hand in his own, squeezing gently.

“Adam’s fine, Joe,” he reassured him. “The doctor said Hoss and I can take you boys home in a few days.”

Joe nodded, satisfied with that answer, his eyes closing unwillingly, exhaustion taking over his body. Ben watched in silence as Joe drifted off to sleep again and sent a silent prayer of thanks. He only hoped going home would help both Joe and Adam forget about their experience in the desert.

^^^^^^^^^^

“N-No! Please . . . . .Joe!”

Adam jolted upright in bed, breathing heavily and wincing in pain as his side reminded him of his injuries. He held his side with his hand as he swung his legs over the edge of the bed. He and his family had been home for about two weeks now, the healing process taking a lot longer than everyone had hoped for. Adam and Joe’s physical injuries were healing nicely, it was the emotions that the two brothers refused to acknowledge which was causing Ben to worry more and more each day. Hoss had tried everything he could to get his brothers back to their old selves, even going as far as going fishing with both of them at once, but nothing seemed to be working.

Adam sucked in a breath, trying hard to ignore the pain, but failing miserably as he slowly stood and made his way across his bedroom. He was just putting his shirt on when a knock sounded at his door and Ben’s voice filtered through.

“Adam, are you all right, Son?” he asked, his voice worried.

Adam smiled at his father’s concern.

“Yeah, Pa,” he replied, reassuringly.

There was a slight pause.

“Are you sure?”

Adam sighed softly and smiled a little.

“I’m sure, Pa,” he answered. “Just can’t fall asleep is all.”

Whether or not Ben detected the hesitancy in Adam’s voice or not, the oldest Cartwright son couldn’t tell. But he could feel his whole body relax as he heard Ben’s footsteps move off down the hall, apparently, back to his own bedroom. Adam finished dressing slowly before exiting his bedroom and starting downstairs. He was glad that no one was in the living room when he reached the bottom.

“Adam, whatcha doing up this late?”

Adam whirled around in time, fully prepared to fight whoever it was. He visibly relaxed when he turned to see Hoss’ surprised face. In his hands, he was holding a plate of cookies. Adam sighed and straightened, running a trembling hand over his face.

“Sorry, Hoss, I . . . “ Adam didn’t finish his sentence.

Instead, he headed for the front door, fully intending to go for a ride. He could hear Hoss’ footsteps behind him and stopped, sighing.

“Is there something you want to say?” he asked, his voice coming out like he was accusing his brother of a crime.

Hoss frowned, unsure of how to answer. It was like his older brother was a whole new person since the desert, a total stranger at some points.

“No, no I guess I don’t,” he finally answered. “Just, be careful, Adam.”

No response came as Adam headed out the door, almost slamming it shut behind him, causing Hoss to wince.

“Was that Adam?”

Hoss turned to the stairs, not at all surprised to see Ben standing at the bottom of them.

“H-How much of that did you hear, Pa?” Hoss asked, knowing full well his father heard everything.

Ben gave a small, sad smile before placing a hand on Hoss’ shoulder.

“Give him time, Hoss,” he advised. “He’ll come around eventually.”

Hoss sighed and nodded. He looked to the top of the stairs, thoughtfully.

“How’s Joe?” he asked, softly.

Ben sat in the blue armchair and ran a hand over his face.

“He’s as ill-tempered as that older brother of yours, but he doesn’t seem to be lashing out as much as he is,” he replied. “Joe’s shoulder may be healed, but I’m afraid the horrors of what that man did will never leave his memory.”

Hoss turned sad eyes to his father.

“Pa, what are we gonna do? We have to do something. They can’t keep going like this!”

“I know, Son, but what else can we do?” Ben asked, his voice sounding defeated. “Adam has all but left the Ponderosa. Every time he goes for one of his rides, I half-expect him to not come back.”

Hoss’ brow furrowed.

“Pa . . . .” he started, but Ben held up a hand, causing him to stop.

“I know, I know,” he stated. “And I thank God for every time I wake up in the morning and he’s asleep in his room or waiting downstairs for breakfast. I just don’t know how much longer he can last.”

Hoss nodded in understanding, the frown still on his face.

“I’ve noticed something else, too, Hoss,” his father added. “Do you realize that your brothers haven’t spoken to each other since we returned home a couple of weeks ago?”

His middle son remained silent a moment.

“They talk to each other, Pa,” he said, trying to word his answer carefully. “Maybe you’re just imagining things.”

Ben shook his head, adamantly.

“Of course they say hello to each other every morning at breakfast, but they never have any of their usual conversations, even to argue or tease just a bit.”

Hoss sighed and looked at the floor.

“Like you said, Pa,” he agreed, half-heartedly. “We just have to wait.”

 

Chapter five:  Complications!

Adam ran a hand through his hair and sighed deeply. Sport neighed happily, glad to be out of his stall and getting fresh air. Horse and rider rode along, Adam allowing Sport to take the lead, not really caring what their destination was. He leaned back slightly in the saddle, pausing as the movement jarred his ribs a little. He stroked Sport’s mane as the horse, seemingly sensing it’s master’s pain, slowed to a trot.

“It’s all right, boy,” he soothed, reassuringly. “I’m fine.”

Sport tossed his head, but finally continued in his normal run. Adam smiled at the familiar ride, observing each tree and animal he could see. He had missed this when he was laid up. He pulled back gently on Sport’s reigns, causing the horse to stop as his rider slowly dismounted. He had been to that same spot thousands of times before, but, each time, it took his breath away. The lake was glistening in the moonlight as the waters moved slowly with the breeze. Adam stood there, overlooking the water as the wind picked up a little. Sport neighed and Adam knew then that a storm was brewing. Quickly, he hurried to Sport and mounted, careful not to jar his ribs too much as he pushed Sport towards home. As he drew close to the house, Adam stopped Sport. He frowned, his ears picking up on the smallest cry for help. Adam spurred Sport towards the sound, eager to help the person and then get home before the storm hit full-force.

“Hello?!” he shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth. “Where are you?!”

A muffled answer came from off to Adam’s right and he dismounted, hurrying into the trees. He stopped short upon finding a young man lying on his side, clutching his chest in pain. Adam approached him carefully and knelt down beside him.

“It’s okay, I’m here to help,” he assured the man. “What’s wrong?”

The man looked up at him, removing his hand for Adam to see the blood that was forming there. Adam moved back unconsciously.

Flashback

Kane turned to Adam with a devil of a smile on his face. His smoking gun turned to cover Adam, who was looking over at Joe in horror.

“Do you see what you’ve done, Cartwright?” Kane asked, standing in front of him. “Do you see what you’ve done to your brother?”

Adam didn’t reply. All he saw was Kane firing at his brother again and again and Joe falling to the ground.

“I’m-I’m all right, Adam,” a weak voice said.

Adam snapped out of his thoughts and took another good look at Joe. The younger Cartwright was slowly sitting up, his eyes tightly shut as he clutched painfully at his shoulder.

End Flashback

Adam shivered involuntarily. Why was it he couldn’t get that man out of his mind?

“H-Hey,” the injured man called. “Y-You gonna help me o-or what?”

Adam took a deep breath.

“Yes, I am,” he answered. “My name’s Adam. Adam Cartwright. My house isn’t too far from here. If I put you on my horse, do you think you can make it while I lead him?”

The man seemed to think about that for a moment before nodding. Adam helped the man to his feet and they slowly made their way to Sport, who was waiting restlessly nearby. With a little effort, Adam helped the man into the saddle and then gently pulled on Sport’s reigns, urging the horse forward. They had gone only a little more than halfway when the man called out in pain. Adam stopped almost immediately.

Deciding that it was too quiet, Adam tried making conversation.

“So, where were you heading?” he asked, keeping a close eye on the injured man in case he needed help or started falling off of the horse.

It took a moment for the man to answer as he fought against the pain.

“V-Virginia City,” he stammered. “O-On my way to seek out my older brother. He was supposed to be heading this way.”

Adam raised an eyebrow, curious to know more.

“Oh really?” he asked. “Who is it you’re going to see? I know a lot of the people in town. Maybe I could give you an idea of where you might find him.”

The man smiled, despite the pain in his eyes.

“His name’s John,” he replied. “John Kondle.”

Adam nodded.

“I know the Kondles,” he announced. “How long has it been since you’ve seen him?”

“A couple of years now,” came the reply. “Darn, they got my wallet.”

Adam couldn’t help but smile.

“I doubt whoever shot you was planning on stealing your hat,” he said, trying to lighten the mood.

The man chuckled but ended up coughing suddenly. Adam looked up at him, frowning, but relaxed when the coughing stopped. A long pause followed when Adam finally started moving forward again, not liking how long this was taking, Why was it long distances seemed so much shorter riding a horse than walking? Adam sighed. He looked at the man on Sport and froze. The business end of the man’s gun was pointed directly at Adam’s head, the hammer cocked back, ready to fire. Adam swallowed the lump rising in his throat.

“What’s this about?” he asked, softly, his voice barely audible over the strong winds blowing around them.

“This is about you, Cartwright,” the man replied. “You see, I do have a brother, but he’s not the person I came here to see, though he is the reason I came here. I know for a fact you know him. His name was Peter Kane.”

Adam felt his whole world tilt as the man’s words echoed in his mind. Brother? Kane? No, it couldn’t be, could it? He shook his head as if to clear it, before taking a good look at the man slowly dismounting from Sport’s back. The resemblance was uncanny.Twins,

“H-How did you find me?” he asked, curiously, his eyes never wavering from the weapon.

The man smiled.

“You’d be surprised how nice people are when you tell them you’re a long lost relative,” he answered, smugly.

Adam could feel the bile rising in his throat, but now was not the time to be sick, so he kept it down, trying desperately to work out a possible escape. Finding none, his wide eyes turned back towards Kane.“Why don’t you beg, Cartwright?”

Adam shook his head, closing his eyes as his anger rising far more quickly than he wanted.

“No,” he whispered. “This can’t be happening. I-I can’t-”

“Can’t what, Cartwright?” Kane asked, holding his side. “Can’t carry the guilt of killing my brother around with you forever? What if I killed one of your brothers? What would you do then?”

Adam’s eyes snapped open.Joe! Joe’s hurt!

With a cry of rage, Adam lunged towards Kane, ignoring the fact that he didn’t stand a chance against an armed man. He closed his eyes halfway though as he heard the shot and felt something slam into him, hitting him full force and sending him reeling backwards. A small, sad smile was on his face as he stared up at the sky.I’m sorry, Joe. I wasn’t there to save you.

With that thought, Adam’s eyes closed again and unconsciousness mercifully claimed him.

He didn’t know how long he was unconscious or what had happened to Kane’s brother afterwards. All he could see was blackness.

“Adam?”

He was surprised he wasn’t in more pain than he should’ve been, but, he figured, it all came with dying. He struggled to open his eyes and finally succeeded after several failed attempts.

“Pa, I think Adam’s waking up!”

Was this what Heaven was like? He frowned. No, wait. The walls looked familiar, the paintings bringing back a whole bunch of memories from his childhood.

“Adam?”

It took a few minutes before he finally realized that he wasn’t dead and that he was in his own bed in his own room.

“Son, can you hear me?”

Adam turned his head towards the familiar voice he had known all his life. His lips were parched and he licked them a little to give them more feeling before he spoke, his weak voice piercing the absolute silence that had engulfed the room.

“P-Pa?”

He could see the relief on his father’s face and couldn’t help but wonder why. He looked around, his mind slowly reminding him of all that had happened. In that moment, Adam jolted up in bed, yelling in pain. Ben was at his side in an instant, gently helping him to lay down again.

“Adam, please, you can’t move around just yet,” he said, keeping a hand on the younger man’s shoulder as he watched him worriedly.

“J-Joe . . . H-Hoss,” Adam managed to say, his eyes franticly searching the room.

Ben, a little taken aback, hurriedly tried to calm his oldest son down.

“Easy, Adam,” he pleaded, anxiously. “Your brothers are just out in the hall.”

At that, Adam’s body relaxed against the sheets and a deep sigh of relief escaped his lips. Ben waited a few more minutes for Adam to calm down before he spoke again. By that time, Joe and Hoss had both reentered the room.

“Son, can you tell us what happened out there?”

Adam’s voice was weak and he had to blink several times in order to clearly see the faces of his family members. His eyes were blank.

“Adam?” Joe’s voice asked, worriedly. “Adam, what’s wrong?”

His older brother looked over at him.

“K-Kane.”

Ben’s eyes widened and he took a step back from the bed. Kane? Kane was dead! Kane had been killed out in the desert! How in the world could that madman have been out by the lake with his son? Ben shook his head as if to clear it. It just wasn’t possible. Adam had to have been dreaming! Ben frowned, thoughtfully. Then, how could he explain the gunshot wound in Adam’s side? Or the blood they had found five feet from where Adam had been lying, injured? A hand landed on his shoulder and he looked up to see Joe standing there, a worried look on his pale face.

They both looked back at the bed where Adam was staring at the wall, seemingly lost deep in thought. Ben hesitated and moved back towards the bed, concern for his oldest son’s state of mind filling him.

“Adam?” he whispered.

No reply came and Ben swallowed hard, wondering exactly what was going through the younger man’s mind at that moment.

“He . . . . w-wanted to k-kill me,” Adam’s weak voice stated. “K-Kane’s brother c-came to finish me off.”

Ben’s eyes widened considerably and he looked briefly at Joe and Hoss, who were also looking at him in surprise. Adam turned tired eyes to look at his family.

“H-He came c-cl-close, Pa,” came the whispered statement. “D-Did you f-find him out t-th-there?”

Ben silently shook his head.

“No, son, we didn’t,” he admitted. “But he won’t come anywhere near you again if your brothers and I have anything to say about it!”

Hoss spoke up for the first time since they entered the room.

“Pa, maybe we should tell Roy ‘bout what’s going on,” he suggested. “We might need his help.”

Ben thought about that for a moment before nodding.

“You’re right, Hoss,” he gave in. “Roy should know what’s going on. He’s already aware of what happened out in that desert and, as you said, he may be able to help us find Kane’s brother and bring him in for trying to kill Adam.”

“I’ll go into town and tell him, Pa,” Joe offered, feeling a need to get out of the house.

Ben shook his head, adamantly and placed a hand on his youngest son’s shoulder.

“I’d fell better if you stayed here, son,” he requested. “With Kane out there, there’s no telling just where he is.”

Adam watched the interaction between his family and couldn’t help but agree with his father’s decision. He shivered at the thought of Kane’s brother gaining access to Joe and holding him as a hostage for his own personal gain. Adam closed his eyes tightly against the resurfacing memories until they finally slipped from his mind. He opened them again to find Joe, Hoss, and Ben all looking at him worriedly.

“Are you all right, Adam?” Hoss asked, worriedly, his hand holding Adam’s in an attempt to comfort his older brother.

Adam smiled and nodded.

“I-I’ll be f-fine,” he reassured him.

He watched Hoss smile back and felt guilty for lying to his younger brother like that, but it was necessary. He knew what Kane’s brother was capable of and, he hated to admit it, but the man scared him. And what Kane could do to his younger brother scared him even more.

“Boys, we should let your brother rest,” Ben suggested, ushering them out the door. He turned back to face Adam briefly. “If you need me, Son, I’ll be right down the hall.”

Adam nodded again.

“Thanks, Pa,” he said.

Ben smiled, nodded back, and left the room. Adam settled back a little, staring up at the ceiling and knowing, somehow, that sleep wouldn’t come to him tonight.

^^^^^^^^^^^

It was well after midnight when Adam woke up again. Shadows danced on the walls from the light of the moon and the wind blowing through the trees. He blinked a few times to allow his eyes to get used to the darkness in the room and sighed once his vision cleared.

“Well, well, well,” a voice from the room chuckled.

Adam’s whole body froze and he slowly forced himself to look over at the side of his bed. His eyes widened considerably at the sight of Kane calmly sitting there as if he didn’t have a care in the world. Adam was about to call out to his family, to warn them that Kane was there, but, at the other man’s chuckle, he paused, looking at the man with a frown.

“Do you honestly think they’re in hearing range, Adam?” he asked. “I sent them away before they could hear me. You see, I set the barn on fire and, as of right now, they’re in the process of putting it out. You’re alone, Adam.”

Adam shook his head, not wanting it to be true.

“N-No,” he hoarsely argued. “Y-You’re lying.”

“Am I?” Kane countered.

Adam couldn’t move as Kane stood and slowly approached the bed. It felt like rocks were holding him down and he desperately struggled to get away as Kane continued forward.

“No!” Adam shouted, anxiously. “No!”

Adam sat bolt upright in bed and immediately regretted it as his bullet wound cried out in protest.

“You all right, Adam?”

Hearing his name and fearing that Kane was still in the room with him, Adam unconsciously picked up his book on his nightstand and threw it towards the voice for all he was worth. Hearing a thud as it hit the floor, Adam cautiously looked over to see Hoss standing there, ducking. Realization dawned on Adam then and, shocked, he laid back on the bed. Kane being there had been a dream. The weight that had been holding him down was Hoss, trying to rouse him. Guilt appeared on Adam’s face as Hoss stood to his full height.

“A-Adam?” Hoss whispered.

“H-Hoss, I’m s-sorry,” Adam whispered back, his body shivering at the thought of what could’ve happened if Hoss’ reflexes weren’t fast enough.

His younger brother’s hand landed on his shoulder and he looked up at Hoss, frowning.

“I understand, Adam,” he reassured him. “You were havin’ a nightmare. I was just tryin’ to wake you up.”

Adam closed his eyes briefly and nodded.

“And I almost hurt you.”

His voice was soft, yet firm, as he spoke. His words held anger, but the anger wasn’t directed towards Hoss. Hoss’ hand squeezed his shoulder gently.

“It’s all right, Adam,” he said. “I know ya didn’t mean to – “

Adam cut him off, his anger filling his voice.

“I-It’s not all right, Hoss!” he argued. “I could’ve hurt you, or worse!”

Hoss frowned.

“Yeah, you could’ve, but ya didn’t, Adam,” he countered. “Now, why don’tcha just go right on back to sleep?”

Adam didn’t want to go back to sleep, knowing he’d only see Kane’s face again. But, to satisfy Hoss, he closed his eyes, only opening them again when he heard the younger man leave the room and head down the hall to his own. But, try as he might, Adam couldn’t keep his eyes open and he soon dropped back into a deep sleep.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben wasn’t sure what woke him up so early the next morning, but the sounds coming from down the hall made him jump out of bed, throw on his robe, and leave his room as if the devil was after him. He entered Adam’s room well before Hoss and Joe and was quickly at his oldest son’s side, soothingly trying to wake him up.

“Adam, son, open your eyes,” Ben pleaded, looking up as Hoss appeared on the other side of the bed and helped hold Adam down so he couldn’t hurt himself or anyone else.

Gradually, Adam’s cries died down and he opened feverish eyes to look at his father.

“P-Pa?”

Ben smiled slightly.

“It’s me, Adam,” he reassured him, stroking his hair gently. “You all right, Son?”

Adam’s breathing was heavy and his eyes seemed a little unfocused.

“K-Kane. H-He was h-here, P-Pa,” he stammered.

Ben frowned and looked at his two younger sons before turning back to Adam.

“Adam, no one else is here except me and your brothers,” he stated, a little confused.

The fever he had seen in his son’s eyes was causing him to worry that Adam’s wound had reopened and, upon hearing Hoss gasp, acknowledged that that’s what had happened.

“Joe, run and get me some hot water and a cloth,” Ben ordered, immediately taking charge.

As Joe was about to rush out to retrieve the necessary items, Ben called him back, remembering one more thing.

“Gather some fresh bandages,” he added. “We’ll need to re-clean and re-bandage his wound. And while you’re down there, Joe, send one of the hands for Paul. We may be needing his services.”

Processing all that information, Joe hurried off to do as he was told. Ben sighed as he watched his youngest go. Adam was silent now, but his breathing remained heavy as he slowly calmed down. Ben immediately turned his full attention back to Adam.

“It’s all right, boy,” he soothed him, keeping himself, as well as Adam, calm. “It was just a dream. Kane was never here. It was just a nightmare.”

Adam seemed to relax at those words and Ben began repeating them over and over until Joe returned with the items they needed. Without a moment to waste, Ben soaked the cloth in the warm water as Hoss carefully and gently removed the useless bandages from Adam’s body. He apologized profusely when he jostled Adam a little too much and his older brother cried out in pain.

“It’s all right, Adam” Ben started to sooth him as well. “I’m almost done.”

Adam nodded through his heavy breathing and slowly closed his eyes against the pain, trying desperately to think of other things besides the pain in his side. Finally, after what seemed like hours which was, in fact, merely minutes, Ben leaned back and sighed, inspecting his work. Voices from downstairs reached their ears and Ben stood as Doctor Martin entered. After a thorough examination of Ben’s handiwork, Paul motioned Ben outside of the room.

“Paul?” Ben asked, questioningly.

His long-time friend smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“You did a good job in there, Ben,” he admitted. “No better than what I would’ve done. Adam just can’t move around so much anymore.”

Ben sighed and ran a hand over his face.

“I know, Paul,” he said, looking back at Adam’s close door. “This is the first nightmare I know of that he’s had. Joe, Hoss, and I will take turns staying with him. It might be better if we’re in there before the nightmare starts so we can calm him down before it gets too much worse and this happens again.”

Paul was silent for a moment.

“Ben,” he started slowly, “if that happens again, Adam’s condition could become worse.”

Ben’s face paled and he looked back at Paul, confusion writing on his face.

“Paul, what are you saying?” he asked, hoping the doctor wasn’t saying what he thought he was saying.

The hand was removed from his shoulder and Ben’s heart sank.

“I’m saying, Ben, that if Adam has more of these nightmares and he continues to move around like he did today, he could lose too much blood and-”

“NO!”

Ben and Paul both turned at the sound of Joe’s voice and paled as they realized he heard everything they had said.

“Joe,” Ben started, stepping towards his youngest son.

Joe took a step back, shaking his head.

”No, you’re wrong!” he shouted. “Adam’s gonna be fine!”

Ben looked at Paul and frowned before looking back at Joe.

“Joe, we can’t know for sure – “ Ben started, but Joe interrupted him.

“But I do, Pa!” he exclaimed. “Adam’s gonna be fine! He will!”

Joe knew he was acting like a child, but he didn’t care. He couldn’t lose Adam. Not after everything they went through in that desert. Ben started towards Joe again and, this time, he didn’t move.

“Joe, in order for us to make sure Paul’s diagnosis doesn’t come true, that means we’ll just have to keep a closer eye on your brother and make sure he stays calm.” He paused. “Do you think you can do that?”

Joe’s body seemed to relax a little and he nodded eagerly.

“PA!”

Ben bolted into Adam’s room at the sound of Hoss’ frantic voice, only to witness Adam’s eyes starting to open. He sighed in relief and looked to the door, where Joe was standing silently as Paul shouldered past him and sat on the bed as Adam’s eyes opened fully.

“Well, young man,” Paul said, smiling, “welcome back.”

Adam smiled slightly before his eyes wandered around the room and fell on Ben. His mouth opened and his lips formed the word “Pa”, but no sound came out. Realizing what Adam wanted, Paul stood and motioned his friend to the bed. Ben didn’t need anymore prodding and immediately sat on the bed next to his oldest son, taking his hand into his own.

“It’s all right, boy,” he soothed him. “You’re all right.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

It took a full three days for Adam to be allowed out of his room and another four days until he was able to start doing odd chores around the house. While he was healing physically, Ben and his brothers were worried about him emotionally. Adam never offered up ideas anymore, choosing, instead, to just fade into the background whenever work was mentioned.

“Adam! I’d like to talk to you!” Ben called from the house to where Adam was chopping wood.

Wiping a bead of sweat from his brow, Adam swung the axe, sticking it into the wood, and headed up to the house. Entering the house, he found his father sitting at his desk.

“You wanted to talk to me?”

Ben looked up from his paperwork and frowned. Clearing his throat a little, he motioned for Adam to sit down.

“Pa, if this is gonna take a while, I have a lot of work to do,” Adam said. “Could this wait until after I’m finished?”

Ben stood, pushing his chair back as he moved around the desk, positioning himself directly in front of his oldest son.

“No, Adam, it can’t,” he argued, grabbing the younger man’s arm as he prepared to turn away. “Adam, you can’t go on like this.”

Adam refused to meet his father’s gaze.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he replied.

“Adam,” Ben said in a soft voice, “Son, look at me.”

Reluctantly, Adam turned his head to look at him. Ben smiled slightly.

“Adam, you’ve been ignoring your brothers, you spend all your time outside working, you barely speak to me. We can’t help you unless we know what’s wrong.”

“There’s nothing wrong with me, Pa!” he shouted, viciously yanking his arm out of his grasp and turning away once more only to be stopped by Ben’s next words.

“That’s exactly what I’m talking about, Adam!” he exclaimed. “Every time me or one of your brothers tries talking to you, you just leave the room! You can’t run away from us forever, Son. Please, let us help you. At least TRY talking about what happened!”

Adam whirled to face him.

“Why, Pa!?” he shouted. “What’s the use in telling it all over again?”

“Because then maybe it’ll help you accept what happened!” Ben shouted back. “Your brothers are worried about you, Adam. Hoss hasn’t been eating as much as he used to and Joe’s been feeling guilty about everything.”

Adam’s face changed to one of confusion.

“Guilty?” he repeated. “None of this was his fault. He should know that.”

Ben hesitated before putting a hand on Adam’s shoulder, surprised to find it shaking.

“He doesn’t know that, Adam, because you’ve been ignoring him for the past few days,” he reminded him, gently. “Adam, it’s no more your fault than it is his.”

Adam didn’t say anything for a while.

“Where’s Joe now, Pa?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Ben frowned, but answered anyway.

“He’s out by the coral.”

Adam nodded and turned towards the door.

“Adam?” Ben called out again, but he didn’t receive a reply as the door closed shut behind the younger man.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam easily spotted Joe by the coral and silently stood next to him, leaning against the fence. They watched the hands ride horse after horse. It was only when Joe jumped off the fence and headed towards the stall that Adam spoke.

“Joe, wait a minute!”

His younger brother paused before looking back.

“I have work to do, Adam,” he stated.

Adam, slightly taken aback, could only watch as Joe prepared to mount the next horse. Once settled on the wild animal, Joe nodded his head. Horse and rider shot out of the stall like a bullet and Adam watched quietly. There was no warning when, with a final buck, rider and saddle went flying through the air. Joe’s body landed with a thud in the dirt, the saddle not too far away as hands scrambled into the coral to rope the horse and guide him away from the injured man. Realizing Joe wasn’t getting up, Adam hopped the fence too and hurried to his side. He gently rolled him over and lifted his head off the ground.

“Joe? Joe, can you hear me?” he asked, anxiously.

Not expecting a reply, he was surprised when Joe’s voice reached his ears.

“A’am?”

Adam squeezed Joe’s shoulder reassuringly.

“It’s all right, Joe,” he soothed. “I’m right here.”

Joe’s eyes opened slowly and he looked directly at his older brother.

“A’am, K-Kane,” he stammered, weakly. “K-Kane’ll c-come b-ba-back. Y-You have to get ‘way.”

Adam frowned until realization finally dawned and he grit his teeth. Joe thought they were back in Kane’s camp!

“Mr. Cartwright, who’s Kane if you don’t mind me asking?” Charlie, who was kneeling beside the brothers, asked curiously.

Adam didn’t answer for a minute. His grip tightened on Joe until he eventually looked up at Charlie.

“Actually, Charlie, I do mind,” he responded as his father and Hoss came running from the house, having been informed by a hand of what had happened.

Ben dropped to his knees beside his oldest and youngest. Without hesitation, Adam transferred Joe to his father’s waiting arms. Satisfied Joe was in good hands, Adam stood and walked over to the saddle lying in the dirt, forgotten in the chaos and confusion. Adam knelt down, just staring at it for a while. Not quite seeing what he was looking for, he turned the saddle over. His eyes widened considerably and he looked over towards his family, where Hoss was lifting Joe into his arms carefully. Adam watched for a moment, then stood again, the saddle weighing heavily in his hands.

“Mr. Cartwright, is something wrong?” Charlie asked, moving next to his boss as Ben and Hoss headed into the main house with Joe.

“Charlie, who was in charge of saddling the last horse?” Adam countered with his own question.

A thoughtful expression on his face, Charlie suddenly snapped his fingers.

“Come to think of it, that new fella that just started today,” he replied.

Adam frowned, not liking that answer.

“What new fella?” he asked, looking skeptical.

“Why, this fella right – “ Charlie cut off as he turned.

A frown appeared on his face as the person he was looking for seemed to be missing. He turned back to Adam.

“Mr. Cartwright, I swear, he was here a minute ago,” he promised.

Adam placed a hand on his shoulder after handing him the saddle.

“It’s all right, Charlie,” he reassured the man.

Charlie nodded and went off towards the barn. Adam watched him go before turning towards the house and hurrying inside to check on his little brother. Ben and Hoss were surrounding the settee when Adam entered.

“Pa, how is he?” Adam asked, approaching them.

Ben looked up, then back at Joe.

“He’s in a lot of pain,” he admitted. “He has a bump on the back of his head and the impact with the ground caused that shoulder wound of his to reopen. I’ve already sent someone for Paul.”

Adam nodded in understanding before clearing his throat.

“Pa, I have to talk to you,” he announced.

Ben, never taking his eyes off of Joe, answered, “Oh? What about?”

Adam didn’t reply, causing Ben to look up only to see the urgency on his oldest son’s face. Patting Hoss on the shoulder, he stood and walked over with Adam out of hearing distance as Hoss took his place next to Joe.

“Well, what is it?” Ben prodded, curiously.

Adam sighed.

“Pa, Joe’s fall wasn’t exactly an accident,” he informed him.

Ben frowned and shifted on his feet, his mind trying to comprehend what he was being told.

“Y-You mean to tell me that – “ he started, but was cut off.

“-someone cut halfway through the girth, Pa,” Adam finished, quietly. “That saddle was bound to come off of that horse no matter what. Someone deliberately tried to kill Joe.”

 

Chapter Six:  A New Threat

Doctor Martin had already been on his way out to check on his patients when the hand caught up with him. They arrived at the house in record time. Ben watched silently as Paul examined Joe’s shoulder carefully. While his prime concern was for his youngest, all his worry was focused on Adam, who remained positioned outside the doorway, watching and listening to everything. After his announcement of someone trying to murder Joe, Adam hadn’t stepped a foot into his younger brother’s bedroom, nor had he uttered a single word, except to explain to Paul exactly what had happened.

Ben’s thoughts were interrupted when Paul stood from his position next to Joe and turned towards him.

“He’ll be fine, Ben, but he shouldn’t move that shoulder of his around too much,” Paul stated, starting to pack away his instruments. “Anymore setbacks, Ben, and that shoulder won’t heal at all.”

Ben nodded and shook the doctor’s hand.

“Thank you, Paul,” he said, gratefully. “We’ll make sure he stays in bed.”

Paul nodded and managed a small smile.

“I can see myself out, Ben,” he said and proceeded to leave the room and head downstairs.

Ben watched him go and wasn’t all too surprised to find that Adam was gone from where he had been standing. Sighing, he sat in the chair the doctor had just vacated and folded his hands, almost like he was going to pray. He waited a few minutes until he heard someone out in the hall. Knowing it had to be either Adam or Hoss, he went to investigate, only to find his oldest son preparing to go downstairs with his bedroll and a small bag. Frowning, Ben stepped into the hall, closing Joe’s door behind him.

“And where do you think you’re going?” he asked, folding his arms across his chest.

Startled, Adam turned at the sound of his father’s voice, but he quickly recovered.

“I figured I’d go for a trip,” he replied, meeting Ben’s gaze with the same one he had inherited from the older man.

“Where will you go?” came the next question.

Adam shrugged. He really hadn’t thought much about it.

“I guess I could go to Boston and visit some old friends,” he answered, suddenly averting his gaze to the floor.

Ben sighed and allowed his arms to fall to his sides as he took a step towards Adam. Standing in front of him, Ben placed a hand on his shoulder.

“You’re going after him?”

It was more of a statement than a question, but Adam took it as one and slowly nodded.

“Adam, your brother needs you here,” his father tried to argue.

Adam’s eyes flashed dangerously and anger appeared on his normally calm face.

“Why, Pa?” he demanded. “So Kane can come here looking for me and get to Joe instead? I won’t put him in danger like that again! Especially not with a man out there bent on revenge for my killing his brother!”

Ben’s eyes searched the younger man’s face. Fear, confusion, and anger were all evident, but he made no comment about it.

“Adam, please, Kane can’t get to you here,” he pleaded. “There’s strength in numbers.”

Adam shook his head, his mind made up. He was determined not to place anymore of his family members in danger.

“You may be right, Pa, but Kane will find a way around it,” he persisted, starting down the stairs, Ben right behind him.

“Adam, I’m not going to stand by and just let you leave like this!”

Adam somewhat flinched at the familiar words. He had heard them before when he was fully ready to leave the Ponderosa after a dispute between himself and Joe. He had done it to ensure Joe’s safety, just like he was doing now.

“I’m sorry, Pa,” he whispered, facing the door, “but you can’t stop me. I have to do this.”

Ben remained silent for a moment, trying to decide his response.

“Will you be coming back?” he finally asked, softly.

“I don’t know.”

Ben took a deep breath, regaining control of his emotions. He took a hesitant step forward, then stopped.

“Just know you’ll always have a home here on the Ponderosa, Son.”

Adam nodded, never turning around. If he did, he’d be sure to change his mind.

“I know that, Pa,” he acknowledged, opening the door and heading outside.

He didn’t bother closing it, knowing Ben was watching him from that very spot as he saddled Sport and rode out of the yard.

^^^^^^^^^^^

How long he had been riding, Adam wasn’t sure, but with every step Sport took away from the Ponderosa, he felt a twinge of guilt. Sport seemed to understand his mood and tossed his head back and forth. Adam patted his neck, soothingly.

“It’s all right, boy,” he spoke, gently. “I know.”

“Well, then, Cartwright, if you’re so smart, I won’t have to tell you that you’ve made this far too easy for me. Oh, and drop your gun belt as well as your rifle.”

Adam froze, recognizing the voice. Slowly, he did as he was told, watching as Kane’s brother retrieved the weapons. Kane’s gun was firmly trained on him and he averted his gaze. Kane moved around to the front of Sport and into Adam’s line of vision. The smile on his face made Adam wish that at least his gun was in his possession so he could use it to wipe the smirk right off the other man’s face.

“Well, well, looks like the doc patched you up real nice, huh, Cartwright?” Kane taunted him. “Hey, you think he could do it a second time?”

Adam spat in the dirt, inches from Kane’s feet. Kane glared up at him.

“You’re gonna wish you hadn’t done that,” he vowed, motioning with his gun. “Now, get down off that horse!”

Slowly, ever so slowly, Adam dismounted Sport. As soon as his feet touched the ground, however, he swatted the horse on the backside, sending the animal into a full gallop towards the house. Adam smiled in satisfaction before something hard hit him in the back of the head, causing spots to appear in front of his eyes as he sank to the ground and let darkness surround him.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben sat in his youngest son’s bedroom, his chin resting against his hand as he stared off, deep in thought. It had been hours since he had watched his oldest ride out and, for some reason, he just couldn’t seem to get rid of this weird feeling in the pit of his stomach. Hoss had gone downstairs and started on the chores, which had been neglected for the past few days.

“P-Pa?”

Ben snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of his name and the weak voice that called it. Immediately, his full attention was on Joe, whose eyes were open and alert as he slowly took in his surroundings.

“Easy, Son,” Ben soothed him, “I’m right here.”

Joe looked up at him and managed a weak smile before wincing slightly in pain. Ben hurriedly poured a glass of water and held it to the younger man’s lips, allowing him to take small sips before he set it back down again.

“T-Thanks, P-Pa,” Joe said, gratefully. He paused a moment and looked around, a frown suddenly appearing on his face. “W-Where is e-everyone?”

Ben froze at that question, but cleared his throat.

“Well, Hoss is outside doing some of the chores,” he replied, purposefully avoiding Joe’s face as he talked. “Hop Sing I believe is cooking something in the kitchen.”

Joe nodded and waited for his father to continue. When he didn’t, Joe spoke.

“W-What about A-Ad-Adam?” he inquired.

Ben finally looked at Joe, who was staring at him, worriedly.

“P-Pa, w-where’s A-Adam?”

It was more of a demand than a question, but Ben realized why Joe was so upset and dismissed the lecture he was about to deliver on why he shouldn’t raise his voice.

“Adam’s . . . . gone on a trip, Joe,” he decided to say, watching his reaction closely.

Joe’s eyes widened slightly and he began to sit up. Immediately, Ben placed a hand on Joe’s uninjured shoulder and gently pushed him back down, not at all surprised at the lack of effort it took to do it.

“Now, Joe, Adam’s old enough to make his own decisions,” he stated. “He just needed to get away for a while. He’ll come home when he’s ready.”

Joe remained silent for a few minutes.

“Pa, w-what happened?” he asked, his eyes suddenly wide.

Ben sighed. He had been hoping to avoid this until Joe was at least a little more stronger, but he had never lied to his sons and he wasn’t about to start now.

“You fell, Joe,” he replied, taking the younger man’s hand in his and squeezing it gently. “The saddle came off of the horse and you fell.”

Joe frowned, trying to process what he had just been told.

“P-Pa?”

That one word held all the questions Joe wasn’t able to voice. Why did the saddle come off? Was it a mistake on his part? Were one of the hands responsible?

“Joe, Son, the girth was cut halfway through,” Ben spoke, softly.

Joe’s eyes were wide at that and he started to sit up again, but Ben’s firm hand pushed him back once more.

“Joe, it’ll do no good if you injure yourself further by getting out of bed before you’re supposed to,” he said, frowning.

Joe shook his head.

“Pa, d-don’t you s-see?” he stammered, anxiously. “A-Adam was r-right. K-Kane’s brother. H-He’s after A-Ad-Adam!”

Ben frowned, understanding what Joe was saying, but Kane’s brother’s actions didn’t make sense.

“But why would he try to kill you if he’s been after your brother all along?” he questioned out loud, not really expecting an answer.

He got one anyway. Totally focused on Joe, Ben hadn’t heard Hoss come into the room.

“’Cause Adam killed his brother, Pa,” Hoss reasoned. “He was gonna kill one of us to get revenge for Peter Kane.”

Ben looked up in surprise, but Hoss’ words made sense and he nodded. Joe and Hoss looked at Ben, expectantly.

“Hoss, go saddle the horses,” Ben ordered, standing. “We’ll have to leave right away. While you’re outside, have one of the hands come in to watch Little Joe. We don’t know if Kane will double back and try to come after him again.”

Hoss nodded and hurriedly left to do as he was told. Ben looked back at his youngest son, surprised to see him sitting up and preparing to get out of bed. He rushed to his side.

“Now just a minute, young man,” he scolded, lifting Joe’s legs back onto his bed, “you aren’t going anywhere! You’re going to lie in that bed and rest, understood?”

Joe slowly nodded and Ben smiled slightly. A thoughtful expression crossed Ben’s face and he went over to Joe’s dresser. Opening one of the drawers, he pulled something out and walked back over to Joe’s bedside. He held out a gun to Joe, whose eyes widened, but he took the offered weapon without question. Ben smiled a little more before patting Joe’s shoulder.

“Just in case,” was all he said before he turned to the door and left to follow Hoss.

^^^^^^^^^^^

When Adam finally woke up, his head was throbbing, but he ignored it when he remembered what happened. His eyes narrowed when he felt a sharp pain in his side.

“’Bout time you woke up, Cartwright,” Kane snapped, spitting into the dirt.

Adam slowly sat up, his hands tied behind his back as he grimaced from where Kane had kicked him. Silently, Adam hoped Sport had made it home. Memories from his time spent with Peter Kane came back to him and he shivered slightly at the scenes.

“Aw, what’s wrong, Cartwright?” Kane asked, kicking him again. “Remembering my brother? Huh?”

Adam coughed and looked up at Kane, not saying a word. Kane laughed and went to stand by the fire he had obviously made while Adam was unconscious. Adam leaned against a tree, taking deep breaths.

“What do you want from me, Kane?” he finally asked.

“Now, now, now, Cartwright,” Kane stated. “I thought we were friends. None of that Kane stuff. It’s getting mighty confusing if you’re talking to me or about my brother and, well, you don’t want to be talking about me when I’m right here. Call me Paul.”

“I have a name for you, but Paul isn’t exactly what I was thinking of,” Adam retorted, smirking.

The blow wasn’t unexpected and Adam allowed his head to move with the punch.

“More smart talk like that, Adam, and I’ll kill you right here and now!” Paul vowed.

“If you had wanted to kill me, you would’ve done it when I was unconscious,” he reasoned. “No, you won’t kill me.”

Paul lifted Adam by the front of his shirt, their faces inches from each other.

“Don’t tempt me, Cartwright!” he shouted.

Adam just smiled, knowing he had hit a m or nerve.

“The truth hurts, doesn’t it?” he asked, relieved when his captor let go of his shirt.

Paul smiled suddenly.

“Yes, yes it does,” he agreed, surprising Adam. “The truth is, my friend, I plan on making you suffer before I kill you. My brother made you suffer and now it’s my turn. You’ll pay for killing my brother, Cartwright, even if it’s the last thing I do!”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Jesse had been giving the task of watching over Joe, which wasn’t easy since the younger man was delirious and kept trying to get out of bed. It was in such an instance that Jesse heard the first noise from downstairs. At first, he thought it was the cook, Hop Sing, but when the noise persisted, he finally realized something was wrong.

“Joe, stay put, please!” he pleaded and cautiously made his way out of the bedroom, gun in his hand.

A curse could be heard from downstairs and Jesse frowned. That definitely wasn’t Hop Sing. He stayed positioned at the top of the stairs, waiting silently as hesitant footsteps started up the stairs. Jesse tensed, prepared to jump out at the right time.

“Hold it right there, mister,” he ordered, stepping away from the wall.

The man stopped, his hands slowly rising above his head. Before Jesse realized what was happening, the gun was flying out of his hands and the guy had him pressed against the wall, the barrel of his own gun making an indent in his neck.

“Where is he?” the man’s rough voice demanded.

Jesse shook his head, firmly.

“I’ll never tell you,” he told him.

A blow sent him to the floor and, uncaring, the man stepped over Jesse, proceeding down the hallway. He opened door after door, looking for the man he had been hired to kill. The next door he opened almost became his last. A shot rang out, missing him by inches as the bullet imbedded itself in the frame of the door. He looked into the room, swallowing hard at what he found. Joe was sitting up in bed, his gun aimed directly at the man’s head, the barrel still smoking from being fired.

“Come on in,” Joe invited, smirking and motioning with his gun to a chair. “We’re gonna have a long wait so you might as well get comfortable while you can. Trust me, those jail cells aren’t very homey.”

Adam wasn’t sure when Paul fell asleep, but it gave him the chance to eat the leftovers that were sitting by the fire. His throat was dry and they went down hard, but it was better than nothing. He forced the food down his throat and settled back, staring up at the sky. If only he hadn’t left home. He sincerely hoped Sport was all right.

“Can’t sleep, Cartwright?” Paul asked, his eyes still closed.

“It’s none of your business,” Adam answered, not even bothering to look over at him.

Paul propped himself up with an elbow.

“Now, is that any way to treat the man who’s taking care of you?”

Adam looked over at Paul, glaring.

“You call this taking care of me?” he asked incredulous. “You’re holding me against my will!”

Paul chuckled.

“You better get some sleep, Adam,” he advised. “You have a long day tomorrow.”

Paul turned over and, within minutes, seemed to be fast asleep. Adam shivered slightly at the premonition of Paul’s words and what tomorrow would bring.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben and Hoss were making good time, despite not knowing where, exactly, they were going. They traveled about five miles before they heard the sounds of a horse nearby. Hoss dismounted and followed the sounds, his face paling when he came across Sport. He approached him carefully.

“Easy, boy,” he soothed the animal, running his hand along it’s neck. “Pa, it’s Sport!”

Ben appeared behind Hoss, watching his son look after the horse.

“Hoss, is-is there any blood?” he asked, worriedly.

His middle son shook his head.

“No,” he replied. “But he’s been running hard.”

Ben nodded in understanding.

“We better get moving,” he said, heading back to Buck. “Bring Sport in case-”

He didn’t finish his sentence, but he didn’t need to. Hoss knew what he was trying to say. In case the family member they were searching so hard for was, in fact, dead.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Joe eyed his captive curiously. It had been a little over an hour since the man had come barging through the door and, honestly, he was getting a little bored just sitting here, waiting. Finally, the youngest Cartwright couldn’t stand the silence anymore.

“Why did you come here?” he demanded, his gun firmly trained on the man seated in the chair next to him.

The man, taken aback a little, sat up a little straighter.

“I don’t think it’s any of your business,” he retorted, smirking.

Joe shrugged.

“Maybe not, but it’ll be easier than when you’ll have to tell the sheriff when he gets here,” he replied, pretending to scrutinize his gun.

The man’s whole attitude seemed to change at the mention of the law and he looked at Joe, eyes wide.

“T-The sheriff?” he repeated.

Joe nodded.

“Yup,” he confirmed. “Gonna have you arrested for trespassing and attempted murder.”

Joe watched, amused, as his companion began sputtering.

“B-But this wasn’t my idea!” he shouted, standing and, in the process, knocking the chair over. “I was paid to come here and kill you, but-”

Joe held up a hand, wincing as he moved his shoulder a little.

“That’s all I wanted to hear,” he interrupted. “Now, who sent you here and why?”

The man thought a moment before shaking his head.

“I don’t know. He never gave me his name. Just paid me the money and left, saying if I didn’t do the job, he’d come back and kill me.”

Joe sighed.

“I should’ve known,” he mumbled, thoughtfully.

So intent in thinking, Joe didn’t notice the man pull out a knife from his boot. By the time he looked up, the knife was already on it’s way down, making contact with his uninjured shoulder and causing Joe to cry out in pain as his finger instinctively pulled the trigger. The attacker flinched and froze, his body stiffening before he collapsed on the floor. Joe dropped the gun, his hand shaking violently as he placed it to his shoulder, his fingers gripping the handle of the knife which was still lodged there. With a cry of pain and a grunt of effort, Joe pulled the weapon out, dropping it onto the floor next to the dead man.

Thoughts of listening to doctor’s orders far from his mind, Joe slowly got out of bed and stood shakily. Maneuvering slowly, he managed to get out of his room and step into the hallway, where he found Jesse sitting on the floor, holding his head after just regaining consciousness. He looked up in surprise at seeing Joe. Seeing his boss’ son was injured, Jesse took immediate action.

“Easy, Joe, lets get you back to bed,” he stated.

Joe shook his head, firmly.

“Man’s in there,” he told him, softly. “Hired b-by Kane. H-Had to kill him. H-Had a knife.”

Jesse thought a moment, but nodded.

“All right, where do you want to go?” he asked, eyeing the wound in the younger man’s shoulder worriedly.

“Hoss’ room,” Joe automatically replied. “It’s closer.”

Jesse nodded and guided him in the direction he told him to go. Once he got Joe settled in the large bed, Jesse hurried downstairs and got one of the other hands to ride to town for Doctor Martin. Without attention, Joe’s shoulder would get infected and that was the last thing he needed right then! Done giving the order, Jesse gathered the items he needed and went back upstairs, where Joe was gritting his teeth in pain.

“Joe, I have to clean this out,” Jesse said, sounding apologetic.

Through painful breathes, Joe replied, “Do what you have to do.”

Jesse nodded, determined and immediately set to work. The warm water made Joe cry out until Jesse placed a towel in his mouth to absorb the pain and screams. It was only minutes later, which seemed like hours to Jesse, that Joe’s cries died completely and he was resting comfortably. Both of Joe’s shoulders were bandaged as best as they could, the old wound having reopened again. Having seen that, Jesse re-bandaged it until the doctor could get there. Joe slowly drifted off into a restless sleep and Jesse once again took a seat next to the bed, keeping a careful eye on both Joe and the door.

The next thing that caught his attention was Doctor Martin entering the room and starting his examination.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Pain was the first thing Adam felt when he was abruptly kicked in the side at the break of dawn. He opened his eyes to find a smirking Paul standing over him.

“’Bout time you woke up, Cartwright,” he said, turning away from him and poking the fire with a stick. “I thought you were gonna miss all the fun.”

Adam frowned, not quite sure what the man was talking about, but not liking the sounds of it.

“Get up, Cartwright,” Paul ordered.

Adam started to get up, but, apparently, it wasn’t fast enough. Without warning, a kick to his side had him falling back to the ground. Kick after kick came and Adam ended up gasping for breath as he curled into a ball, protecting his sides. Finally, the attacks stopped and Adam slowly uncurled from his position on the ground.

“Get up, Cartwright,” Paul repeated. “I have work for you to do.”

Adam slowly obeyed, raising an eyebrow. Work? What work could the man possibly have for him to do out in the middle of no where?

“See that stack of wood over there?” Paul asked, pointing. “I want it moved to over here. Here’s the catch. If you don’t work fast enough, you get whipped. You fall, you get whipped. Any little movement I don’t like, you get whipped.”

Adam swallowed hard, but moved forward, wincing slightly. Paul watched his every move and smirked in satisfaction when Adam ended up down on one knee, holding his side in pain. Paul cracked the whip in his hand.Whack!

Games. Adam shivered involuntarily. He was all too familiar with the types of games that Peter Kane had used against him. Paul Kane’s were probably no better. Adam finally finished filling his arms with wood and began the long trek to where Paul wanted the wood restacked. Of course, Adam had to pass by his captor, who nonchalantly put his foot out, tripping Adam and causing him to go sprawling into the dirt as the pieces of wood flew everywhere. As Adam started getting to his feet, he distinctly heard the crack of the whip before it made contact with his still sore and bleeding back.

“That’ll teach you to stop lying down on the job,” Paul sneered at him. “Now, get up!”

Adam didn’t know how he managed to stand, but, through some force of will power, he made it, shakily, to his feet. It was an hour and a half later that the wood was fully stacked in the spot Paul had indicated earlier.

“Good, Adam,” Paul praised him, smiling. “Very good. Now, put it all back.”

Adam looked up in surprise. Paul just smiled at him.

“You heard me,” he said. “Put. It. Back.”

Adam’s eyes narrowed and he didn’t move. Paul’s smile disappeared in almost an instant. Adam expected the pain and he most certainly wasn’t disappointed when it came. Adam was breathing heavily by the time Paul was finished and he knew he wouldn’t be able to stand up right away.

“Get up.”

Paul’s usually confident voice was cold. Still, Adam didn’t move. In a split second Paul was standing overtop of Adam, the whip curled neatly underneath the captive’s chin as Paul pulled it back, lifting Adam’s head up.

“You’ll do as I say, Cartwright!” he hissed in his ear. “You’ll pay for killing my brother. I swear to it!”

Adam gulped in breaths of air when Paul eventually released him and collapsed onto the ground, coughing. Paul grinned in satisfaction before turning to his horse and pulling his canteen from the animal’s back.

“See how you like this, Cartwright!” he shouted as the liquid made contact with Adam’s back.

It was that moment that Adam screamed.

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Pa,” Hoss began, but his sentence was cut off before it could even begin.

“No, Hoss,” Ben said, firmly. “We’re not stopping.”

Hoss sighed and shook his head.

“It’s no use, Pa,” he argued. “Their tracks are covered good. That fella knew which way ta go seeing as his tracks lead back here to the main road. There’s no way we can find ‘em, Pa.”

Ben didn’t say anything. Silently, he turned Buck around and father and son headed home. They never spoke a word on the way back to the house. But they both wondered whether or not they’d ever see Adam alive again.

^^^^^^^^^^^

It was a whole five minutes before Adam stopped screaming in pain. His back was in agony and he couldn’t move at all. Tears leaked out of his eyes as he opened them to see Paul sitting there, just watching him as he took a drink of water. Adam’s mouth was dry and he blinked a few times to refocus his eyes.

“Have you had enough yet, Cartwright?” Paul asked, standing to his feet as he put the canteen aside. “Are you finally ready to admit that you murdered my brother? Or do I have to convince you some more?”

Adam spoke through the pain, his words strangely calm as he grimaced.

“I-I told y-you,” he said, softly. “H-He was trying t-to kill m-me. I k-killed him in self-d-defense.”

Paul’s face seemed to turn red with anger.

“Fine then!” he said and walked over to his saddlebags.

Adam fought through the pain, watching as his captor took out three pieces of leather. It didn’t take long before Paul had tied Adam’s hands and legs. Paul looked at Adam before bending down next to him.

“You know what happens next, Cartwright,” he said, smiling. “That leather’s gonna dry and tighten around you. It’s gonna hurt like hell, but I have one more leather strap to tie. You know where I’m gonna put it?”

Adam’s eyes narrowed. He had a pretty good idea what Paul was up to. His suspicions were confirmed when Paul reached down, tying the wet strap around Adam’s neck. He stepped back to admire his handiwork and then turned around to reach into his saddlebag to pull another item out. It was a black bag – and it was moving. Adam froze, his eyes wide as Paul laid the sack on the ground and a snake slithered out.

“That’s right, Adam,” Paul said, grinning as he stepped back to allow the snake room to move around. “If you admit you killed my brother in cold blood, I’ll shoot the rattlesnake right now. Deny it, and I’m gonna go sit over there and watch.”

Adam’s eyes didn’t leave the snake moving towards him, it’s tongue moving in and out of it’s mouth as if taunting him, begging him to make a move so it had reason to strike. Adam remained perfectly still, despite the growing pain in his body from the tension.

“So, what’s it gonna be, Cartwright?” Paul asked, rubbing his hands together slightly. “Do I shoot? Or let him bite you?”

Adam lifted his head slowly to look at Paul, his dark eyes betraying no emotions.

“I-I never m-mu-murdered your b-b-brother.”

Paul’s smile left his face.

“Have it your way,” he said, and leaned back to watch.

Adam moved slowly and cautiously away from the snake. His heart was beating rapidly in his chest as the snake drew closer and slithered over him. Adam remained perfectly still as the snake’s long body passed over him, thinking it was over. But the snake had turned around and was now raising it’s head as if to strike. Paul watched in fascination as the snake rose it’s head further, a hissing sound escaping it’s mouth.

It happened in a matter of seconds. Adam felt the pain in his hand before he felt the fangs pierce his skin. He bit back a scream and kept his gaze focused on Paul as the snake slowly let go and slithered a few feet away. Adam lay there for a few minutes, groaning in pain and burying his face against the ground, trying to get away from the pain.

“That’s a Western Diamondback Rattlesnake, Cartwright,” Paul announced, smiling at the scene before him. “It’s venom is deadly if not treated right.”

Adam’s could already feel where blood was running over his hands and he could tell his hand was already swelling. He started breathing heavily.

“Bet you wish you had agreed to my terms, huh, Cartwright?” Paul asked, moving to stand next to him. “Well, too late.”

Adam’s vision was blurring slightly. From the venom in his body or from the heat, he wasn’t sure, but it was better than looking into the eyes of a man bent on revenge. Paul watched Adam squirm for an hour more before kneeling down next to him, smirking.

“I gotta hand it to you, Cartwright, you have more guts than I thought,” he admitted, patting Adam’s shoulder. “Too bad that snake wasn’t poisonous or else you would have given me a real show.”

Adam’s eyes widened. The snake wasn’t deadly? It was a lie? No, it wasn’t a lie. It was a game. And Paul just won the first round.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben’s heart practically leapt into his chest when he and Hoss entered the yard. Doctor Martin’s buggy was a familiar sight and it caused Ben’s thoughts to race. Had Adam returned home and Paul was called on to look him over? Had Joe’s condition gotten worse? Not even bothering to put Buck in the barn, Ben dismounted and tied him to a hitching post before rushing inside.

“Paul!?”

“Mr. Cartwright?”

Ben turned on his heels to face Jesse, who was just coming from the kitchen, a full basin of water in his hands. Ben was about to ask him what was going on when he spotted the cloth draped over the younger man’s arm. Blood stains spotted it and Ben’s face completely paled.

“Jesse? Where is he?”

“Upstairs in Hoss’ room,” he replied. “Doctor Martin’s with him now.”

Ben closed his eyes tightly to try and control his emotions.

“What happened?” he asked as calmly as he could.

Jesse told him about the man who tried to kill Joe and, with each word, he watched as Ben’s face grew paler and paler. After the explanation was finished, Ben bolted up the stairs and into Hoss’ bedroom, smiling a little at seeing Joe seemingly swallowed up in the huge bed. He heard footsteps behind him and turned to see Hoss standing there, worry etched into his face. Ben moved further into the room, taking in Joe’s pale features and noticing the new bandage around the youngest Cartwright’s shoulder, blood already beginning to seep through it.

“Ben?”

He turned to see Doctor Martin before looking back at Joe, Hoss already by his side. Ben nodded to his long time friend and moved on the other side of the bed, kneeling down and stroking Joe’s sweat-drenched hair gently. The doctor moved in behind Hoss, watching Ben’s reaction closely.

“How is he?” Ben asked, softly, his voice still sounding loud in the silent bedroom.

Doctor Martin sighed and ran a hand over his face.

“The knife didn’t go in too deep, but he has lost a lot of blood, Ben,” he replied. “It’s up to him and God right now.”

Ben sighed and lowered his head. A lot of things were left up to God right now. He looked out the window. Including the life of his eldest son.

 

WARNING: Descriptions of torture are included in this chapter.

Chapter Seven:  Branded

 

Round two,

He had been watching Paul for a while now, not exactly sure what the man was doing, but not liking the looks of it one bit. The whole incident with the snake was far from forgotten, although Adam had gotten the drop on Paul once.(Flashback)

“You should’ve seen your face, Cartwright,” Paul sneered, the smile never leaving his face.

Adam couldn’t believe the trick that had just been played on him. His hand still throbbed from where the snake had bitten him, but he said nothing about the amount of pain he was in.

“You gone mute?” Paul prodded further, wanting a reaction out of him.

Adam said nothing, just stared at his captor. Paul’s smile disappeared and he turned away from Adam, which was all the latter needed. In one swift movement, despite his injuries, Adam’s legs shot out, tripping Paul and sending him to the dirt. Paul got up quickly, however, not giving Adam the chance to move anymore.(End Flashback)

Adam was snapped out of his thoughts by a kick to his side. He bit back a cry of pain and glared up at Paul in disgust as the man laughed. Adam pulled his legs in closer to his body, blocking any further attempt Paul might make at his battered sides. He almost fell asleep in that position, until a gunshot startled him awake. Paul stood over him, smiling as he moved the smoking gun he held in his hand into Adam’s line of vision.

“You ready to play some more, Adam?” he asked.

Adam’s eyes narrowed, but, still, he didn’t say anything. There was no need to argue, after all. He was right, for minutes later, gunshots filled the air. Adam’s eyes were tightly closed. He could feel the dirt kick up in his face from where the bullets landed, inches from where he was laying. Paul’s laughter seemed to almost drone out the gunfire, but not by much as he continued firing. Eventually, the shots drew closer to Adam and he moved painfully until he had completely rolled over.

“Just like a dog, Cartwright,” Paul shouted out. “Crawl to your master!”

Adam grit his teeth and forced his battered body to move once more to escape the barrage of bullets. He breathed a sigh of relief when the gunfire finally stopped, but paled when he realized Paul was just reloading his gun. Half expecting another spray of bullets, he was surprised when none came. Taking a chance, Adam turned over again, wincing as his whipped back and kicked sides screamed for him to stop. Paul was standing there, staring at him.

“To be honest, Cartwright, I’m surprised you’ve lasted this long,” he admitted, bending down to examine Adam’s wrists, feet, and neck.

The straps were tighter, Adam could feel it. The leather strap around his neck, however, was going to start making it hard to talk soon. But Adam didn’t care. Paul wouldn’t listen to him anyway. His wrists were raw from the straps rubbing against his skin and from several attempts at getting them off. The straps around his ankles were worn, not nearly doing enough damage, but holding Adam’s legs together tightly. Paul stood up, satisfied for the moment.

“It won’t be long now before that strap around your neck becomes too tight,” he said, smirking. “The question is, Cartwright, will you have enough air to start begging for your life by then?”

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Ben! Ben, wake up!”

The said man startled awake, looking around wildly, before looking up to see Doctor Martin standing over him. He relaxed a little in his chair.

“W-What is it, Paul?” he asked, running a hand over his face.

“It’s Joe, Ben,” his friend replied.

Ben was suddenly wide awake and he anxiously looked over at his youngest son’s bed. Joe’s sheets were drenched in sweat and he was mumbling incoherently. Ben was on his feet in a matter of seconds. He felt Joe’s forehead before looking at the doctor.

“What happened?” he demanded. “His fever’s gone up!”

Doctor Martin shook his head.

“It’s the injury taking it’s toll, Ben,” he replied. “I just finished cleaning it again so infection won’t set in. I figured I’d better wake you and tell you.”

Ben nodded in understanding and turned his full attention on Joe, who was tossing his head back and forth on the pillow, mumbling incoherently. Occasionally, he’d mumble Adam’s name along with more words Ben couldn’t understand. Ben silently said a prayer for Joe and offered another one up for Adam – wherever he was.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam had long since given up on rescue. It had almost been a full day since his capture and, each hour, the torture just became worse. His skin was raw where the leather straps had rubbed against the skin. His neck was worse, the strap tighter and almost cutting off all air flow. And through it all, Paul was smiling. Adam wished more than anything he could wipe the smile off the other man’s face, but, with his body failing him, all hope of him making it out of his predicament alive seemed hopeless.

“You had enough yet, Cartwright?” Paul sneered, kneeling next to him. “Those leather straps will only get tighter.”

Adam didn’t answer. He probably couldn’t even if he had wanted to anyway, but he chose to not say a word. He just glared at Paul with as much intensity as he could muster. In a flash, Paul was suddenly standing over him after pushing Adam into the dirt, face first. Paul’s hand was holding Adam’s head in place, grinding it into the ground and causing the sand and dirt to enter his nose and mouth, making him gag slightly.

“You will admit that you murdered my brother before you die, Cartwright!” he shouted, removing his hand. “Do you hear me? I’ll make sure of it!”

Adam lifted his face enough to spit out the dirt, before Paul roughly turned him over onto his back.

“Beg, Cartwright,” Paul practically ordered. “Beg for your life. And while you’re at it, beg for the life of that younger brother of yours.”

Adam’s eyes widened considerably as Paul stood, his hand fingering his gun absentmindedly.

“That’s right, Adam,” he said. “I know all about your little family. Your pa and two brothers. Do you think I’m stupid? I did my homework on you. I also know you don’t give in so easily as other men would’ve by now. But I plan to change that. Tell me, how much is your family’s life worth to you?”

Adam didn’t care about the pain anymore as he fought viciously against the leather straps holding him. Anger flashed dangerously in his eyes, his gaze never wavering from Paul’s face.

“D-Don’t you dare, P-Paul!” he tried to shout, but it came out in a slight whisper.

His captor just laughed and leaned in close to Adam, their faces inches apart.

“Just who’s gonna stop me, Cartwright?” he asked. “You?”

Adam fought again, but stopped almost immediately. His strength was almost gone in his body, but his mind was strong.

“I-If I have t-to,” he vowed, weakly.

Paul just laughed and walked over to the fire he had built in order to keep himself, not Adam, however, warm. He sat next to it, placing his hands out and rubbing them together. He looked back at Adam and that devilish grin crossed his face once more.

“It gets awful cold at night, Adam,” he announced, shifting his gaze to the fire. “And with the cold and darkness come animals. We can only hope they won’t come near our camp.”

Adam felt a shiver run down his spine, but it wasn’t from his words. He knew very well what lurked out in the woods at night and not one animal out there scared him as much as what Paul’s next move would be did. He also knew that Paul wouldn’t let anything kill him. A small smile crossed his face. No, Paul wanted to save that to fulfill his own desires. Adam looked up at the darkening sky, his thought turning to his family and what they were possibly doing at that exact moment.

“Hey, Cartwright,” Paul’s voice drifted from the fire.

Adam didn’t even acknowledge the words, but he listened all the same.

“Do you know how a calf feels after it‘s been branded, Cartwright?” Paul questioned, that grin still on his face.

He pulled something out of his saddlebag and moved it towards the fire so Adam, who had turned to look, could clearly see what he held in his hands. In the dim glow of the fire, Adam could make out a branding iron in the shape of an oval with a line drawn through the middle. His face paled considerably as the inclination of what Paul was planning to do invaded his mind. He watched as Paul stuck the iron in the fire, waiting for it to turn red hot. That done, he took it out and slowly made his way towards Adam.

Adam watched him, carefully, trying so hard to will his body to move. Having no success, he could only watch as Paul drew closer and closer.

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Pa, you should get some rest,” Hoss’ voice penetrated through Ben’s thoughts.

He hadn’t heard his middle son open the door, let alone enter the room so his voice came as a shock. Ben jerked a little and looked up at Hoss, smiling slightly before he turned to look at the bed, where Joe seemed to be sleeping somewhat peacefully. Sweat still glistened on the younger Cartwright’s forehead from the fever, but his fever had not risen in the last couple of hours and, for that, Ben thanked God.

But the light slowly coming through the window also reminded him of his other son who was in danger out there on his own with a madman. Ben turned his gaze to once more look at Hoss, concern and hope filling his eyes.

“Hoss, anything?” he asked, softly.

Hoss paused a moment before reluctantly shaking his head.

“No, sir,” he replied. “Me and that posse done looked within fifteen miles of the Ponderosa. We-We couldn’t find any trace of ‘em.”

The hope in Ben’s eyes died slowly. They had been so close to finding Adam before and the news that there seemed to be no other choice than to give up killed him inside more than anything. Ben stood and patted Hoss’ shoulder.

“Stay with your brother while I get some coffee,” he said, passing his son and making his way down the hall and downstairs into the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Ben leaned hard against the counter, his head lowered. He was disappointed. No, that wasn’t the word. He had been hoping the posse would find Adam and Paul Kane. He had put his trust and faith in them, believing they could do what he and Hoss had failed to when Adam first disappeared. Devastated would work better, he decided. He regained his composure before doing what he had intended on doing when he entered the kitchen. Pouring himself a cup of coffee, he went and sat out in the dining room in his normal chair, occasionally glancing up at the stairs.

It seemed like hours later, when in fact it was merely minutes. Hoss’ excited voice came from upstairs, snapping Ben out of his thoughts for the second time that day.

“Pa! Pa, come quick!”

Fearing the worst, he left his coffee and jumped up, the chair toppling behind him with the movement. Hurriedly, he rushed up the stairs and into Hoss’ bedroom, where Joe was slowly opening his eyes.

^^^^^^^^^^^

The morning came far too quickly for Adam’s liking. The scare he had received from Paul last night was enough to cause vivid nightmares, but they seemed like peaceful dreams compared to the nightmare he woke to the next morning.

“’Bout time you woke up, Cartwright,” Paul said, handling the branding iron from last night. “I wouldn’t want you to miss all the fun.”

Adam turned, surprised to find the leather straps missing from their usual place. He looked up at Paul in confusion.

“I took them off, but only to hear you scream, Cartwright,” Paul announced, grinning. “Nothing more.”

Adam closed his eyes as Paul stood, the branding iron red hot and steaming. He moved, slowly, trying to escape from the hot iron, but inevitably failing in the end. The pain as it met his flesh was excruciating and his cries echoed all around them. He tried desperately to move away from it, but Paul stayed with him, keeping the iron pressed tightly against his shoulder. Finally, Paul pulled it away and Adam’s cries were the only thing left. His skin burned with an intensity he had never felt before. His body wouldn’t move, every muscle tensed in shock.

“You still here, Cartwright?” Paul teased, watching the reaction from his captive.

Spots were appearing in front of Adam’s eyes. He turned on his side, trying to rid himself of the pain racking his whole body, but mainly his shoulder. He fought back a wave of nausea as the sickening reality of what Paul had done hit him. Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes and he anxiously tried to hold them back. He couldn’t show Paul weakness, no matter how much he hurt him. But his pain won out and the tears silently made their way down his cheeks as he grit his teeth in pain. Satisfied, Paul knelt next to Adam. Without a care in the world, he punched Adam’s burnt shoulder, causing another round of pain, and screams, to explode.

“The pain is just gonna keep coming, Adam,” Paul vowed. “It’ll keep coming until I decide to kill you. By the time I’m finished with you, you’ll be begging for me to kill you in the end.”

Through his blurry vision and feverish eyes, Adam stared at Paul, somehow managing a weak smile. Paul’s eyes widened in surprise.

“I-I’ve been t-told that b-before,” Adam stammered, coughing a little at the end of his sentence.

Paul’s face turned red with anger. Adam wasn’t supposed to be talking to him! He stood and swiftly kicked Adam’s side, causing the other man to roll over and moan.

“Keep it up, Cartwright, and I’ll make your last few days of life a living hell!” he promised, the smile slowly coming back to his face as he watched Adam squirm in agony.

The whispered response was soft, but Paul heard it all the same.

“T-They’ve told me t-th-that before t-too,” he managed to gasp out.

With a cry of rage, Paul kicked Adam again, harder this time and right in his injured shoulder. Adam’s cry came louder and more pain-filled than before. His eyes wanted to close so he could slip into darkness, but his mind was hard at work. The only thing keeping him awake was the thought of what Paul would do if he ever fell asleep. Adam did close his eyes briefly to try and pretend he was home in bed with his family all around him, but it was hopeful dreaming and Paul’s sinister laughter brought him back to the present far too soon.

“You’re mine now, Cartwright,” Paul sneered at him, tauntingly. “That brand makes you mine and there’s nothing you can do to change that.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam couldn’t believe what was happening. The burn on his shoulder didn’t hurt as much as it had earlier, but it still stung all the same, reminding him it was there. Paul hadn’t even bothered covering it, so Adam had to be careful not to roll over too far and get dirt in it. If that happened, he’d be at a serious risk of infection. Paul was asleep next to the fire, his face turned in his direction, but Adam knew Paul wasn’t actually asleep. No, he wouldn’t risk Adam trying to get away. But Adam wasn’t worried about that. It had been a long time since he had thought about home. His pa and brothers.

“Get some sleep, Cartwright,” Paul’s voice drifted over to him. “You’re gonna need it.”

Adam waited a while before moving slightly. The pain in his shoulder and the rest of his body was excruciating and he had to bite his lip to keep from crying out. It was a few hours later when he dropped off into a restless sleep.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben didn’t know how long he had been asleep before Hoss’ anxious voice broke through the first real sleep he’d had in weeks. Joe had woken up last night briefly, but had fallen back asleep almost immediately, Ben following suit immediately afterwards.

“Pa! Pa, wake up!” Hoss shouted, shaking him slightly.

Ben rubbed his eyes before looking up at his middle son in confusion. He was still a little groggy, but he answered all the same.

“’at is it, ‘oss?” he asked, softly.

Hoss’ worried face swam into his vision and Ben came fully awake at Hoss’ next words.

“Pa, Joe’s gone!”

All traces of sleepiness were gone as Ben shot out of his chair and turned to the bed, his eyes widening at the empty bed that had held his youngest son just hours earlier. Not wasting any time, Ben hurried out into the hallway and downstairs, Hoss closely on his heals.

“How did he get out of bed without me hearing him?” Ben asked, fidgeting furiously with his gun belt. “He knows he isn’t in any condition to be out of bed, let alone outside!”

Hoss put a hand on the door as Ben yanked it open.

“Pa, want me to go with ya?” he asked, worried for his younger brother ‘s health.

“No, I need you to stay here, just in case he comes back,” Ben replied, firmly. “I won’t lose him, too, Hoss. I swear, I won’t lose Joe too!”

Hoss just stood there as his father hurried out the door, hoping and praying that Ben would make it in time to find Joe.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam gasped awake as Paul kicked him in his shoulder. The burn had already started healing, but it stung and infection was likely to set in because of the wind blowing dirt into the wound. He bit back a cry as Paul kicked him again.

“Get up, Cartwright!” he ordered. “I have plans for you and I don’t want you sleeping while I’m doing it.”

Adam just glared up at Paul, grateful the man hadn’t replaced the leather straps yet, but not wanting to give him the satisfaction of replying. Paul went back to the fire, poking it to keep it burning. Adam shivered as he realized that his captor was using the branding iron to stir the fire. Paul had a grin on his face, which didn’t surprise Adam, but this particular grin seemed . . . . . confident, almost satisfied.

“We had a little visitor last, night, Cartwright,” Paul stated, poking the fire one last time before turning to face him. “One I’m sure you’ll be very interested in.”

Adam frowned, entirely confused as to what Paul was talking about. What visitor? An animal? Did he kill an animal last night without his knowing? Adam’s eyes narrowed. No. He wouldn’t have said that he’d be interested in a dead animal. Then what could he possibly be talking about?

“A-A’am?”

He felt his whole body stiffen at the familiar voice as Paul dragged out a figure from behind a boulder. His eyes widened considerably and he felt his breathing get heavy as anger coursed through him.

“No,” he whispered. “Paul, let him go!”

Paul smiled and shook his head.

“Now, Adam, why in the world would I want to do a stupid thing like that?” he asked, smugly. “If I let him go, he’ll bring back a posse for me and I really can’t have that, now, can I? No, he’ll just have to join us here.”

Adam could only look on in horror as Paul lifted the figure by his hair and shoved him forward towards the fire. It was still slightly dark out, just before sunrise, in fact, so Adam hadn’t been absolutely sure, but his worst fears were confirmed as the body turned, almost as if it were in pain, to reveal the battered and bloody face of none other than Joe Cartwright!

^^^^^^^^^^^

“You bastard,” Adam spat out, angrily. “You sick, twisted bastard.”

Paul just chuckled.

“Now, now, Adam, name-calling isn’t allowed,” he said. “I was just lucky your father and brother decided to leave him alone for a few minutes. Stubborn brother of yours was already outside when my boys got a hold of him and brought him here.”

Anger coursed through Adam and he found himself once again wishing more than anything that he could get up. He tore his gaze from Paul to look at the beaten body of his little brother. All at once, his gaze softened.

“J-Joe?” he called out, hopefully.

There was no response. But Adam forced himself to call out again.

“Joe, c-can you hear me?”

A small groan was his reward and he managed a small little laugh of relief. Paul sat back and watched the scene before him, curiously. How he did it, Adam would probably never know, but he managed to drag his beaten, torn body across the ground to his brother’s side. His eyes widened at the sight of Joe’s newly bandaged shoulder. He looked up at Paul, fire burning in his eyes. Hurting Adam was one thing, but when it came to his family, that was a whole different matter. Joe groaned again and Adam refocused his attention to him.

“Joe, come on, open your eyes,” he pleaded.

Almost as if his very willpower had made it happen, Joe’s eyes slowly opened. Adam smiled as recognition dawned in Joe’s eyes and they widened.

“A-Adam,” he whispered, weakly.

Adam smiled slightly and nodded.

“That’s right, Joe, it’s me,” he replied, gently holding Joe’s hand in his own.

Paul sighed from where he was sitting and impatiently stood, stepping in between the brothers and breaking the hand connection. Adam grit his teeth as Paul stepped on his hand, sinking his boot further as Adam’s arm sunk lower into the sand and dirt.

“I’ve had enough of all this mushy stuff, Cartwright,” he said, turning at the sound of a horse approaching.

A rider came into view and, along with it, Adam’s hopes were dashed. The rider wasn’t familiar to him, meaning only one thing. The rider was a friend of Paul’s. Adam looked over at Joe, wishing he could spare the younger man from the sheer torture that was sure to ensue.

“So, now, my question is, who gets to go first?” Paul asked his comrade.

Adam felt a chill go through his body as the man turned cold eyes towards him and smirked.

“It looks like you’ve had your fun, Paul,” he said. “Now it’s my turn.”

Adam paled a little, but didn’t say anything. As long as he remained quiet, they’d keep their attention on him instead of Joe. But such was not the case as Adam watched in horror as the newcomer bypassed him and walked straight to Joe.

“N-No!” Adam cried out, anxiously. “Leave him alone! Don’t touch him!”

Paul kicked Adam hard in the ribs, causing the latter to curl up in pain.

“One more word out of you and your brother will suffer much more than you ever will, Cartwright,” he vowed. A grin suddenly appeared across his face. “You know, I believe this moment should bring back some memories for you two. After all, both of you were with my brother when he was killed. Maybe I should have a trial of my own right here.”

Adam was still fighting the pain when he raised his eyes to look at Paul’s laughing face. Adam knew very well that any ‘trial’ Paul planned would most likely end up turning in his favor instead of Adam’s.

“W-Why a trial, Paul?” he dared to ask. “Afraid that a real trial would show you that you’ve been wrong about me murdering your brother in cold blood?”

The kick wasn’t unexpected, but the hand that lifted him off the ground was as Adam found himself staring into the eyes of his captor’s friend.

“You just made my job a whole lot more fun,” he said, grinning as he dropped Adam and moved again towards Joe.

Adam closed his eyes tightly, trying hard not to remember . . . .(Flashback)

“You hear how he pleads, Cartwright?” he asked, smiling gleefully. “You hear how he begs for your life? Tell me, why didn’t you do the same for him?”

(End Flashback)Adam’s eyes snapped open. He did remember and, he promised himself, he’d never let anything like that happen again. With strength he never knew he had, Adam pushed himself until he was leaning on his elbow on his side. His voice echoed across the camp as he spoke.

“You touch my brother and I’ll make sure your death is slow and painful!”

Paul and his companion turned from Joe to look at him, but he didn’t back down from their stares. Paul looked at the man beside him before walking over and kneeling down in front of Adam.

“And just who’s gonna stop us, Cartwright?” he asked, teasingly. “You’re really in no condition to argue or move at the moment.”

Surprisingly, a grin crossed Adam’s features and he even managed to chuckle a little, causing Paul to frown and stand to his full height.

“What’s so funny?” Paul demanded.

Adam stopped laughing, but the smile remained on his face.

“You’re right,” he admitted. “I’m not in any condition or position to argue, but I am to bargain.”

It took a full minute for Paul to realize what Adam was talking about. He burst out laughing as his friend did the same behind him. Their laughter died down eventually, allowing Paul to speak in between gasps of air.

“What . . . makes you think . . . . you have . . . .anything we could possibly want?” he asked, trying to hold down another round of laughter.

Adam’s eyes narrowed.

“Because if you’re like your brother in anyway,” he replied, “then there’s a rule you should know.”

Paul’s smile died and he frowned.

“What rule is that?” he asked, curiously.

Adam smirked, hiding the pain in his body well.

“You don’t get to my little brother without going through me first. And, as of this moment, all the bargaining chips are on my side of the board.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Every bone and muscle in Ben’s body was screaming out for him to stop and take a break, but he pressed onward, determined to find at least one of his sons! The sun was hot overheard, beating down on him as he wiped his brow of the sweat that had accumulated there.

“Ben! Ben!”

At first, he thought he was imagining it, but the louder the voice became, the more he realized that it wasn’t just part of his imagination. Turning in his saddle, he was surprised to see Roy Coffee and a deputy riding towards him. When they approached, Ben gratefully accepted the canteen of water that was offered to him as he had run out of water not long ago.

“Roy, what are you doing out here?” Ben asked, taking a deep breath after gulping down water.

“Figured I’d come out to the ranch and see if there was any news on Adam,” Roy replied, shifting slightly in the saddle. “I heard from Hoss that Joe’s gone missing now too.”

Ben nodded slowly, handing back the canteen.

“We’re here to help you, Ben, any way we know how.”

Ben smiled slightly.

“I appreciate that, Roy,” he answered. “Lets get going.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Paul and his friend continued staring at Adam as if he had gone insane. Joe lay forgotten, for the moment, on the ground, moaning in pain.

“I’m listening, Cartwright,” Paul said, crouching next to him.

Adam smiled slightly.

“Knew you’d see things my way,” he said, more confidently than he felt. “You see, Paul, I have nothing to lose.”

Paul snickered.

“Oh, but you have something very important to gain,” he countered, looking over at Joe before turning back to Adam. “The life of your little brother.”

What was meant to be a threat caused Adam to laugh out loud.

“You think your little brother’s life is a joke, Cartwright?” Paul questioned, staring at Adam curiously.

“A joke? No, not when I don’t care what happens to him,” came the reply.

Both his captors stared in shock as Adam replayed his plan in his head. Peter Kane had used Joe to get to him the first time, however, if he pretended not to care if they hurt his brother, then perhaps they’d leave him alone and focus solely on Adam. Adam was acting like Joe’s life meant nothing to him, when, in reality, Joe was the very person he was trying to protect.

“A-Adam?” Joe’s weak voice called from across the camp.

The oldest Cartwright brother’s heart constricted in his chest as he looked over to see Joe’s wide eyes staring directly at him. This was the hardest part of his plan, Adam decided. He had to betray his brother’s trust and confidence in order to save his life. Adam mentally smiled a little. Even if it meant Joe would never forgive him, it was well worth it compared to the alternative.

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Adam turned his head away from Joe’s pleading eyes. It took all of Adam’s willpower not to look over at his younger brother as he continued calling his name desperately.

“Shut up, kid!” Paul shouted, taking his rifle and hitting him in the face with the butt.

Joe’s cry of pain tore at Adam’s heart, but he didn’t look over.

“You gonna try and help him, Cartwright?” Paul asked, all traces of laughter gone from his face. “Or are you going to just lay there and give in? Will you admit that you killed my brother and are you finally finished drawing out your suffering?”

Adam’s eyes strayed to Paul, looking as if he didn’t have a care in the world, despite the pain and wounds covering his body.

“I’m not admitting to anything, Paul,” he snapped, his anger rising as he heard Joe cry out once more.

Paul’s friend had pulled a knife and slowly drew it across Joe’s arm, a thin line of blood following afterwards.

“Are you saying that you don’t care whether Joseph lives or dies?”

Adam smirked.

“I’m saying I could care less,” he replied, smugly, his insides churning at the words he was saying that were as far from the truth as he could get.

Paul nodded, thoughtfully.

“Well, then I guess Kurt here can be rid of extra weight,” he said, looking over at him and silently giving his partner permission to continue.

Kurt’s eyes widened and he smiled broadly. A gun was in his hand within a minute and he took careful aim at Joe’s head. Adam’s brain was screaming at him to make the scene stop! To admit that he had been bluffing! But Adam remained silent as Kurt closed his finger around the trigger. His eyes closed tightly as the sound of a gunshot reached his ears – then, silence.

 

Chapter Eight:  Help

“Do you want to look at what you’ve lost thanks to your mistake, Cartwright?” Paul asked.

Adam kept his eyes closed, his breathing labored as he realized that Joe had been killed due to the plan he had thought was so well thought out. Tears threatened to spill out of his eyes, but he desperately held them back. He couldn’t give Paul the satisfaction.

“Fine,” Paul said. “Get the body out of here, Kurt.”

The body. Adam cringed at Paul’s poor choice of words. He looked over at Paul, who was watching Kurt with a grin. He won, Adam decided. Kurt came back from behind a boulder where he had put Joe’s body and stepped over to Paul to whisper something in his ear. Paul’s smile slowly faded. Adam frowned. What was going on? Adam didn’t say anything as Paul moved closer to him.. His gaze was focused on the boulder hiding Joe from his view when he felt the impact from Kurt’s fist. Adam didn’t try to escape, he didn’t cringe and curl into a ball like he normally would. It seemed like all emotion had been taken out of him.

“Paul, you aren’t gonna get anything else out of him,” Kurt announced. “You said we weren’t gonna murder anyone, Paul! Why’d you have to kill the kid!?”

Paul back-handed Kurt.

“Shut up, you idiot!” he ordered. “You’re just as guilty as I am. They’ll as sure as hang me as they will you and don’t you forget it!”

Kurt snorted and looked back over at Adam, who was breathing heavy, tears unconsciously streaking down his cheeks. Kurt’s gaze softened slightly. He knew how Adam felt. His own brother had been killed three years ago during a stagecoach robbery. Kurt shook his head, forcing himself to look away from the distraught man lying on the ground.

Time passed slowly for Adam during that first hour. He could hear Paul and Kurt talking, but he ignored them. He was the cause of his little brother’s death and he could never forgive himself for that.

“Go bury the kid before we start getting buzzards around here,” Paul ordered Kurt, jerking his head towards the boulder.

Mumbling how he had to do everything himself, Kurt went behind the boulder to do as he was told. Paul turned to Adam.

“Well, Cartwright, are you going to admit it yet or do I have to persuade you some more?” he asked.

“Paul! Paul! Paul!” Kurt shouted, running back to him.

Paul sighed and turned.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” he asked, angrily. “I thought I told you to bury the kid!”

Kurt bent over to catch his breath.

“You did, but, Paul, the kid’s not there!”

That sentence snapped Adam out of his daze and he looked up at the two men in shock. Paul grabbed Kurt by his collar.

“What do you mean he’s not there?!” he shouted. “You shot him yourself, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, but he’s not there now!”

“Well, go and look for him then! He can’t have gone far with his injuries!”

Paul shoved his friend away.

“And don’t come back without him!” he added before turning back to Adam.

Adam managed to smile weakly. Joe was alive!

“Well, Paul, it seems my little brother out-smarted you,” he said, coughing slightly. “What are you gonna do now?”

Paul pulled a knife out of his boot and held it to Adam’s neck, drawing some blood and causing him to wince a little.

“If your brother is alive, Cartwright, he won’t leave you behind,” he stated, smiling. “He’ll try and find a way to rescue you. Unfortunately, he’ll be a little too late. You haven’t admitted that you murdered my brother, but that’s all right. I know the truth and killing you now will be enough to satisfy me.”

Adam tensed as the felt the cold blade press deeper into his skin. A gunshot filled the air and Adam’s eyes snapped open to see Paul standing there, a surprised look on his face. Adam watched him fall flat on his back and looked up a minute later to see Kurt there, smoking gun in his hand. But the person he was supporting was what Adam’s attention was fully centered on. Joe managed to give his older brother a slight smile, a way of saying he was really okay. His side had blood on it, but he looked no worse than before. Adam relaxed against the ground, his vision swimming as the injuries he had sustained finally caught up with him.

“T-Thank G-God, Joe,” he whispered weakly as his eyes closed and he fell into blessed darkness.

^^^^^^^^^^^

The light practically blinded him when he woke up next. The sun was bright and he used his arm to shelter his eyes. He could feel every ache and pain in his worn, beaten, and bruised body, but he paid no attention to them as he looked around.

“J-Joe,” he called out, weakly, trying to move.

“That’s so sweet, Cartwright,” came an all too familiar voice. “Calling out for your brother before you die.”

Adam’s whole body froze and he turned his head, eyes wide as he took in the appearance of Paul. What surprised Adam more was the man didn’t seem to be injured.

“H-How . . . .” Adam began but stopped and turned his head away from Paul, squeezing his eyes shut tight.

Paul smirked as Adam desperately tried to figure out what had happened. He swallowed hard as a thought occurred to him. It-It wasn’t a dream, was it? Was his fever starting to make him have dreams that he wished were real? He stared up at the sky, tears threatening to fall down his cheeks as he felt every bruise and cut on his body. The brand was still sore and he grit his teeth as he laid on it slightly – just as Paul placed his foot in the middle of Adam’s chest and pushed down, earning a cry of pain from Adam.

“Hurts, doesn’t it, Cartwright?” he sneered, grinding his foot into Adam’s chest a little more.

Adam gasped for breath as the foot was removed and he turned on his side to alleviate the pain. His head was screaming at him from his pounding headache.

“Adam.”

His eyes snapped open suddenly, looking around for the source of the voice he had heard. After a few minutes passed and he heard nothing else, Adam closed his eyes again, fully prepared to take whatever else Paul was going to do to him.

“Adam, can you hear me?”

Once more, Adam’s eyes opened and he looked around, knowing he hadn’t imagined it. He frowned. Paul was standing on the other side of the camp so it couldn’t have been him. So who was it? All of a sudden, Paul was in his face, his face surprisingly worried.

“Adam? Can you hear me? Come on, Adam, wake up . . . . . . “

Adam found himself in darkness, his eyes heavy as he tried to open them. He had an odd sensation of deja vu. When he opened his eyes, he found himself lying on the ground, staring up at the sky, but, instead of Paul’s face, he was met by the younger, worried eyes of his brother. He heard Joe breathe a sigh of relief.

“Hey, older brother,” Joe said, smiling. “Welcome back.”

Adam frowned, but realization slowly dawned. He had been hallucinating. Joe and Kurt had saved him from Paul. He seemed to relax against the pressure on his chest when he started sitting up, finding comfort in knowing that it was Joe’s hand and not Paul’s foot. His dark eyes locked onto Joe and a small smile graced his lips.

“J-Joe,” he stammered. “Y-You ‘kay?”

His little brother seemed taken aback by the question but recovered quickly and returned the smile.

“I’ll be okay, Adam,” he reassured him, hardly daring to believe that, after all the injuries his brother had gone through, Adam’s first and foremost concern was Joe.

Adam smiled a little more if it was possible. Again, his eyes trailed over the camp, spotting Paul a few feet away, tied up and fuming. A chuckle escaped Adam’s mouth before a coughing fit began.

“Easy, Adam,” Joe soothed him, bringing a canteen of water to his lips and allowing him to take small sips.

“W-Why h-haven’t we s-st-started for t-town?” his older brother managed to gasp out after he got his fill.

Joe’s expression changed then and he looked up. Adam looked over in the direction he was looking in and paled. Kurt was making his way over to them and knelt down a moment later next to Adam.

“How you feeling, Cartwright?” he asked.

Adam’s frown remained.

“W-Why?” he asked, curiously. Why did you help us?

Kurt smiled, knowing the question was bound to be asked.

“It’s because I had a younger brother too, Cartwright,” he answered, softly. “Paul killed him over three years ago.”

Adam’s eyes widened and he looked over at Joe, who was staring at Kurt in shock. Obviously, it was the first time he had heard about it. Adam looked back at Kurt.

“T-Th-Thank you,” he said, offering a trembling hand to the man, who shook it gently.

Kurt nodded and looked up at Joe, who sighed.

“Adam, we didn’t want to chance moving you with how high your fever is,” he stated. “And, we’re actually not totally sure of what Paul did to you before Kurt and I came here.”

Adam’s eyes darkened and he turned his head away from Joe and Kurt. The branding iron, the kicks and punches, and the emotional torment he had had to endure was something he could never share with anyone, let alone his brother and a complete stranger. He closed his eyes tightly, only to have images appear before him of his time spent with both Kane and Paul. He shivered involuntarily before opening his eyes again ever so slightly. He could hear Joe calling to him, but he had no strength to answer. Instead, his eyes closed once more and he gave in to the blessed feeling of unconsciousness, Joe’s voice still ringing in his ears.

“Adam, you have to stay awake!”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam’s body relaxed against the ground as Joe knelt next to him, worriedly.

“Adam, wake up!” he pleaded, shaking him gently.

Kurt knelt next to Joe and pulled him away.

“Joe, just let him rest for a while,” he advised. “I’ll carry him over to the shelter. At least then he’ll be out of the sun.”

Joe nodded in understanding and watched as Kurt half-carried, half-dragged his brother to the shelter. Underneath the roof, Joe and Kurt could make out Adam’s injuries better. Both of his wrists were rubbed raw, his neck also red and raw. Joe shivered at the sight. Kurt frowned at the blood-soaked shirt Adam was wearing and lifted it to see ugly black and blue bruises adorning Adam’s ribs. Joe reached out gently to touch Adam’s shoulder, practically jumping out of his boots when Adam’s eyes shot open and he cried out in pain. Joe and Kurt exchanged glances before Kurt removed a knife from his boot and gently ripped the fabric away from Adam’s shoulder, revealing the brand Paul had imprinted into the area. Joe had to look away.

“We’ll have to clean this out,” Kurt stated, looking at Joe.

Joe swallowed as he understood the other man’s meaning. They were going to have to reopen Adam’s wound and then clean it and bandage it properly. He looked away as Kurt set to work on the wound and waited until he was finished before looking again.

“We better let him rest now, Joe,” Kurt said.

Joe nodded and settled under the shelter, leaning back and closing his eyes. Not long after, he fell asleep.

^^^^^^^^^^^

It was an hour later when Adam started showing signs of regaining consciousness again. Joe and Kurt were right next to him as he opened his eyes slowly and focused on Joe.

“J-Joe?” he whispered, hoarsely.

Joe smiled, taking Adam’s hand in his own and squeezing gently.

“It’s all right, Adam,” he reassured his older brother. “How do you feel?”

Adam just smiled and winced as he started to try and sit up, only to feel Joe gently push him back down.

“Easy, Older Brother, you’re not feeling that much better.”

Adam smiled slightly as he laid back on the ground.

“H-How are w-we getting o-outta here?” Adam stammered, weakly.

Joe lifted a canteen of water to Adam’s lips and allowed him to take a sip.

“You’re too weak to move right now, Adam,” he replied. “We’re gonna stay here until you build up your stre-”

Adam’s eyes widened. He watched helplessly as Joe stopped in mid-sentence. Joe’s face was extremely pale and sweat had beaded on his brow. It seemed like it all happened in slow motion as Joe collapsed on top of Adam, earning a grunt of pain from the latter. Adam could feel his younger brother’s heavy breaths and placed a hand on the back of Joe’s head.

“J-Joe?” he whispered, worriedly.

Kurt came beside them and carefully lifted Joe off of Adam and positioned him on the ground next to him. Kurt carefully peeled back the bandages around Joe’s shoulder where the knife had entered. He winced slightly at the what he found. Joe’s shoulder was red and swollen, puss coming from the opened wound as Kurt hurriedly tried cleaning it. Joe screamed in pain as Kurt touched his shoulder while Adam looked on, feeling powerless to do anything.

“Easy, Joe,” Kurt said, moving his knife behind him so Joe couldn’t see. He gave a slight nod to Adam. “I have to reopen the wound and let it drain, otherwise infection will set in.”

Adam nodded in response as Kurt cleaned his knife thoroughly. Reaching out his hand, the older Cartwright was able to grasp Joe’s hand and hold it as tightly as he dared to offer a little bit of support. Joe’s feverish eyes turned towards Adam and a small smile lit the younger man’s face.

“Joe, I’m not gonna lie to you,” Kurt said, apologetically. “This is gonna hurt.”

Joe looked at Kurt, understanding shining in his eyes, telling Kurt to continue. Kurt began and Adam closed his eyes tightly as he heard Joe’s cries of pain. He could feel his hand being crushed under Joe’s grip, but ignored the pain, telling himself Joe’s was a lot greater. All at once, the grip lessened and Joe’s cries disappeared. Adam opened his eyes to see that Joe had mercifully passed out. Kurt was busy getting the fluids from the wound out, using Joe’s unconscious state to his advantage.

“Oh no,” Kurt whispered and Adam raised his head a little to look at the man.

But Kurt wasn’t looking at Adam or even Joe. His attention seemed to be focused on something on the other side of them. Curious, Adam turned his head again – to find a gun pointed directly into his face! Adam mentally cursed. Paul wasn’t dead!

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Ben, we sh-”

“Don’t say it, Roy!” Ben snapped, turning to look at his long-time friend. “I gave up on looking for Adam, but I will NOT stop looking for Little Joe.”

Roy sighed and looked around at their surroundings.

“Ben, there isn’t anything out here,” he tried to reason. “We’ve been on the trail for hours and it looks like the horses might collapse before we make it back to the Ponderosa.”

Ben closed his eyes, turning away from his friend. He opened them again, looking up at the sky, his heart heavy. He had failed to find his sons and that hurt more than anything. He should’ve stopped Adam from leaving home, should’ve insisted he stayed. Maybe then this never would’ve happened.

“Ben?”

The oldest Cartwright looked at Roy again and sighed, He didn’t want to give up, didn’t want to lose hope that Adam and Joe were out there somewhere, waiting for him to come and find them, but the sheriff was right. If he continued, they’d end up running the horses to death and then where would they be? He turned Buck around, not saying a word. He didn’t have to. Roy watched him with sad eyes and turned his own horse to follow.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Upon arriving home, Ben and Roy found Hoss leading Chub out of the barn. He stopped seeing his father and looked at him hopefully.

“I was just coming to look for you fellas,” he explained, looking behind them as if expecting his little brother to appear.

Ben exchanged a look with Roy before returning his gaze back to his middle son as he dismounted.

“Hoss . . . .”

Ben wasn’t sure what to say. How do you explain to one of your three sons that the other two aren’t coming home? Hoss’ usually smiling face frowned, his shoulders slumping a little as he turned to lead Chub back into the barn. Guilt and sorrow engulfed Ben at the same time and he placed a hand against Buck to steady himself and keep from falling over. Noticing this, Roy immediately dismounted and hurried to his friend’s side.

“Ben, you all right?” he asked, worriedly. “Come on, lets get you inside.”

Hoss came back outside just then and was on the other side of his father in an instant, offering his help to the grief-stricken man. Once in the house, Roy and Hoss helped Ben sit on the settee. That done, Hoss poured him a glass of brandy and told him to drink. Ben did so and took a deep breath when he had finished. Hoss took the glass from him and put it on the table, turning back to face his father, his worried eyes carefully examining the man before him as if seeing him for the first time.

“Pa?” Hoss whispered, hesitantly.

Ben looked up at Hoss, taken aback at seeing the tears gathering in the younger man’s eyes. Ben dropped his gaze to the floor and leaned forward, holding his head between his hands.

“I’m sorry, Hoss,” he apologized. “So sorry.”

His son didn’t have to ask what he meant. He already knew the answer. Without a word, Hoss stood and walked over to the barely lit fireplace. He removed the fire poker from it’s stand and moved the wood around a little. Ben and Roy stayed sitting on the settee, watching Hoss and wondering why things couldn’t be different.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Paul wasn’t dead. Paul wasn’t dead. Paul wasn’t dead.

That’s the only thought that kept spinning in Adam’s mind as he tried to control his breathing. He wanted desperately to move in front of Joe so Paul couldn’t get to him, but his body refused to cooperate and he only succeeded in causing himself more pain. Paul was chuckling above him and he grit his teeth.

“Thought I was dead, didn’t you, Cartwright?” he tormented. “I’ll let you in on a little secret. You can’t get rid of me that easily.”

Adam watched with wide eyes as Paul turned to face Joe. His chest constricted as he tried to get his body to move, but failed miserably.

“Leave him alone, Paul,” Kurt’s voice came to Adam’s ears.

The man stepped in front of Joe, blocking Paul’s path. Paul was startled for a moment, but he recovered quickly, his gun trained directly at Kurt’s heart.

“Get out of my way,” he ordered.

Kurt stood his ground, refusing to move until Paul brought the butt of his gun down on the side of his neck, sending him crumpling to the ground in a heap. Adam’s eyes widened and he watched in horror as Paul advanced on Joe’s lifeless form.

“No!” Adam managed to shout, angrily. “Get away from him, Paul!”

His captor turned at the outburst, a smile plastered on his face.

“And what if I don’t, Cartwright?” he asked, tauntingly. “What will you do then?”

Adam grit his teeth and slowly clenched his hands into fists. There was nothing he could do. Lying on the ground five feet from his little brother, and there was nothing he could do to save him. He closed his eyes tight as he heard cries of pain come from Joe as kick after kick was embedded into the younger man’s side.

“Beg for his life, Cartwright.”

Adam’s eyes snapped open and he looked up at Paul, who was smirking down at him. The words were familiar, spoken before by Paul’s brother. Adam just glared at Paul, knowing begging wouldn’t do any good. Paul would most likely kill Joe anyway.

“Nothing to say, Cartwright? You’re just going to let your younger brother die without even begging for me to spare his life?”

Adam wanted to beg, wanted to be able to stand up and beat Paul for laying a hand on Joe, but his body was too worn out to move. Not answering, Adam kept his head lowered, hiding his face from Paul’s prying eyes. Paul snorted.

“Fine, I’ll kill him, then I’ll kill you,” he stated, turning back to Joe.

With strength Adam didn’t even know he had and a determination he’d never felt before, he pushed himself into a kneeling position.

“Don’t touch him, Paul!” Adam shouted, trying to hide the intense pain in his body.

Paul turned to face him, slightly surprised that Adam was able to move at all. While his attention was focused on Adam, he suddenly felt himself falling onto the ground, his feet swept out from underneath of him. Adam brought his head up at Paul’s surprised cry and smiled weakly. Joe had regained consciousness and tripped Paul, sending the latter’s gun scattering across the ground to lay in front of Adam. Slowly, Adam reached for the gun and grasped it in his hands. With cold determination, he lifted it – aiming it directly at Paul.

“What are you waiting for, Cartwright?” Paul asked, having recovered from his fall. “Pull the trigger. Prove to your brother what a cold-blooded killer you are!”

Adam took only a glance over at Joe, who was looking back at him with wide eyes. Adam looked at Paul again, both of his hands tightening around the gun he held. His vision swam slightly, the effects of his worn out body still taking their toll on his senses.

“Adam, p-please,” Joe’s weak voice reached his ears and he shivered at the worry and desperation in that one plea.

The gun didn’t waver as Adam’s finger slowly cocked back the hammer on the gun. Paul’s face remained smiling.

“Do it, Cartwright.”

“Adam, d-don’t,” Joe’s still weak voice called out to him. “Y-You’re not a k-killer. P-Please, d-don’t.”

Adam closed his eyes tightly for a moment, hearing Joe’s words and letting them sink in to his subconscious. The gun shook ever so slightly, but he kept his grip on it. He didn’t want Paul to hurt Joe, but, if he killed him, he’d be the murderer Paul made him out to be. Adam shook his head to clear it, releasing the hammer and lowering the gun. His hand dropped to the ground, holding him upright.

“You should’ve killed me when you had the chance, Cartwright,” Paul said, standing. “You may have just lost the chance to save your brother’s life.”

It didn’t take long for Adam to lift the gun again, cock the hammer, and pull the trigger, the sound echoing through the camp.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Paul had fallen back on the ground, staring at Adam through wide eyes. The ground was still smoking just to his left where the bullet had embedded itself deep into the dirt. Adam still held the gun, it’s barrel smoking a little, but unwavering as he continued looking at Paul.

“I may not have killed you,” he said, his voice cold, “but that’s only because I refuse to stoop down to your level.”

Paul spat in his direction.

“You think you’re so great, Cartwright,” he snarled, angrily. “You just wait. You’ll get yours!”

Adam felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Kurt standing there, obviously recovered from the blow to his head. He removed the gun from his hand and took over in covering Paul as Adam sat down heavily in the dirt, his energy spent.

“You’re gonna pay for killing my brother, Cartwright,” Paul vowed, spitting in the dirt.

He struggled slightly to stand, but Kurt kicked him back down, cocking back the hammer on the gun.

“Go ahead, give me a good reason to pull this trigger,” he challenged.

Paul stopped struggling and sat there.

“A-Adam?”

At the sound of his name, Adam turned to look at his younger brother, whose eyes were wide, yet relieved.

“I’m all right, Joe,” Adam said, managing a smile to calm him.

It was far from the truth, however. His whole body seemed to be on fire, but he wasn’t about to tell Joe that. Before he could react, though, Paul kicked Kurt’s legs from under him. A hard blow had Kurt on the ground once more, unconscious. Turning his attention away from Kurt, Paul approached Adam, a murderous look on his face as he jumped on him, his fingers closing around his neck and slowly starting to squeeze. Adam struggled as best as he could, his hands clawing at Paul’s as he gasped for breath.

“I’ll kill you just how you killed my brother, Cartwright!” he shouted, adding pressure to his neck slowly. “I told you I’d kill you, didn’t I?”

Adam’s vision was fading, his breaths tiny gasping sounds as he continued struggling against Paul’s iron-clad grip. One of his hands grasped the dirt, as if searching for a weapon he could use to break Paul’s grip and set his neck free, but there was nothing. Spots started appearing in front of his eyes, little black dots that were clouding his vision as, ever so slowly, his struggles stopped and his hands dropped from where they were tightly grasping Paul’s as he continued strangling him.

It was in those few precious seconds of no air that Adam heard the gunshot. At first, he thought he had imagined it, but when he felt Paul’s hands lessen on his neck, he knew someone had to have fired off a shot. Adam sucked in deep breaths of air as Paul’s lifeless body fell to the ground next to him. It took several minutes before Adam’s vision cleared enough so he could see where the shot had come from. Joe was sitting up, the smoking gun in his hand. When Kurt had been knocked out, the gun he’d been holding had fallen at Joe’s feet, giving him enough time to retrieve it and fire off a shot at Paul before he could kill Adam.

“A-Adam, y-you okay?” Joe managed to stammer out.

Still not able to use his voice just yet, Adam merely nodded and sent him a grateful smile.

“A-Adam, h-how are w-we gonna g-get home?” Joe asked, still stammering, but it seemed to be getting better every time he talked.

Even Adam didn’t have the answer to that, but he figured once Kurt regained consciousness, he’d help them get home. Adam’s breathing became wheezy as he lay there on his back. The force of pressure Paul had placed on his neck was slowly taking it’s toll on his weakened body.

“A-Adam?” Joe’s worried voice called out.

Wheezy breaths still came from Adam as he tried desperately to calm his racing heart.

“Adam?” Joe called again.

This time there was silence.

“Adam. Adam? ADAM!”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam’s eyes were tightly closed, his wounds becoming painfully obvious as he slowly came back to consciousness. The sky was the first thing he saw when he opened his eyes, which didn’t surprise him a bit, but the fact that Joe and Kurt were no where in sight scared him. Had Kurt been lying and taken Joe with him, leaving Adam to die? Was Joe in even worse condition?

“Adam?”

At the familiar voice saying his name, Adam’s body visibly relaxed and he turned his head slightly. Kurt was staring back at him, a small smile on his face.

“J-Joe?” Adam stammered, worriedly.

Kurt placed a hand on Adam’s shoulder.

“He’s all right, Adam,” came the reassuring reply. “I had to move him into the shade a little more. Look to your right.”

Adam did so and felt a wave of relief wash over him as he saw his younger brother about three feet away from him, lying on the ground, covered protectively by the shade. Joe’s eyes were closed, but Adam could tell by the shaky rise and fall of his chest that he wasn’t asleep.

“J-Joe?” he stammered again.

He was rewarded with Joe opening his eyes and blinking a few times to clear his vision. Adam called his name again, satisfied when he looked over in his direction and smiled slightly.

“A-Adam, are you okay?” he asked, worriedly, his eyes looking over his older brother as if expecting to find something wrong.

Adam smiled a little. Same old Joe, worried about others when he was hurting himself.

“I’m all right, Little Brother,” he replied, softly, his voice hoarse from lack of water.

Kurt knelt next to him suddenly with a canteen in his hand and pressed it gently to his lips. He drank slowly at first, then stopped, wanting to leave the rest for Joe. Kurt moved next to him next and allowed him to drink as well.

“Adam?” Joe asked, waiting for a response.

“Yeah, Joe?”

“How are we gonna get home?”

Adam didn’t answer right away. In all honesty, he had no idea how they were going to get home in both of their states. Kurt could help, of course, but the journey itself could prove to be too much for just one man helping two injured men to handle. Vaguely, he wondered if his father and Hoss were still looking for them, or if they had given up hope of ever seeing him or Joe alive again. He closed his eyes at that thought and snapped out of his thoughts suddenly at the sound of his name being called.

“Adam!”

“I’m all right, Joe,” he reassured the younger man. “I was just thinking.”

A small silence ensued.

“About what?”

Adam sighed and shifted slightly, almost crying out when he did. He hadn’t realized how seriously injured he was until that very moment.

“Adam?” Joe called, his voice slightly loud with worry.

Adam sucked in a deep breath.

“I’m all right, Joe,” he reassured him again, trying to will his body to stop throbbing. “Just moved the wrong way.”

“Adam, are we gonna be able to go home?” Joe asked, quietly.

Adam thought a moment, choosing his words carefully.

“Yeah, Joe,” he finally replied, “we’re gonna be able to go home, but it might take a while and moving for us is gonna hurt. Are you sure you want to put yourself through that right now, Little Brother?”

There was silence for a moment and Adam was afraid Joe had passed out.

“We have to, Adam,” came the surprisingly strong reply. “Pa and Hoss . . . . We just have to.”

^^^^^^^^^^^ Within the next few hours, Ben and Hoss had several visitors arrive to offer their condolences. Many offered their assistance around the ranch, which Ben declined seeing as they had plenty of hands to do the work. Roy returned to town, having to continue his duty as sheriff, but Dr. Martin remained, silently offering his support to his long time friends.

“Ben, maybe you should go lie down for a while,” Dr. Martin suggested, quietly.

The oldest Cartwright shook his head, his gaze distant.

“No,” he said in a monotone voice.

Hoss was sitting in the blue armchair and he looked over at Ben in concern.

“Pa, maybe you better do as Paul says,” he agreed with the doctor quietly.

The loss of Adam and Joe weighed heavily on their hearts. Neither had eaten anything as of yet and this worried Doc Martin, but he found rest to be a better solution for the time being. After all, what medicine could he possibly give to a grieving father and a grieving brother?

 

Chapter Nine:  Complications

The going was rough. Joe, Kurt, and Adam had to make numerous stops on the way into town to rest. Adam’s back had started bleeding one time, which Kurt had to bandage all over again using his own shirt. As they stopped again for seemingly the tenth time, Adam couldn’t hold in his exhaustion any longer.

“You two should go on without me,” he panted.

The response was almost immediate.

“Adam, no!” Joe argued, firmly. “We either go together or not at all.”

His older brother shook his head, trying to catch his breath.

“You’ll be able to get there faster without me. Then you can send someone out with a wagon to get me. Joe, please, it’s the only way.”

Joe seemed to ponder this for a few moments before he turned to Kurt.

“Go on ahead,” he ordered. “Bring help.”

Kurt looked surprised, shifting his gaze from Joe, to Adam, then back to Joe. Adam was looking at Joe, not believing that he bypassing the opportunity to get to the nearest town and send help. Adam’s surprised look turned to one of acceptance. Joe was trying to help him by doing the only thing he knew how – being brave.

“Joe,” he whispered so only his younger brother could hear. “Joe, please, you have to go with Kurt. You have to send word to Pa and Hoss.”

Adam’s vision was slowly failing him and his breathing was becoming labored. He could hear Joe saying something, but the words were lost on him as he struggled to stay conscious. Slowly, Joe’s voice broke through the haze in his mind.

“Adam? Adam! Come on, stay with me!” he pleaded, anxiously.

Still a little disoriented, Adam weakly grabbed onto Joe’s arm and squeezed. A smile broke out onto Joe’s face.

“That’s it, Adam,” he urged. “We’re gonna get you home, Older Brother.”

Home. That sounded nice. All conscious thought was lost as Adam slipped into unconsciousness.

Joe continued trying to rouse Adam, with no success. After several failed attempts, Kurt finally stepped in.

“Joe, it’s no use.” he said, grasping his shoulder. “He’s exhausted and in pain. It’s probably better that he’s unconscious while we travel.”

Joe seemed to think about that for a minute before, reluctantly, nodding in agreement. It wasn’t long before they were moving again, Joe and Kurt walking as they led Kurt’s horse with Adam sitting precariously in the saddle.

^^^^^^^^^^^

“How is he, Hoss?” Doctor Martin asked, quietly, placing a hand on the younger man’s shoulder.

Hoss looked up at his longtime friend with glassy eyes. He had thought all of his tears had ended, but, apparently, they were just beginning.

“He can’t sleep,” he replied to the doctor’s question. “Neither one of us can sleep.”

There was silence for a moment.

“I can always give you something-.”

“No, Doc!” Hoss interrupted, his voice slightly harsher than he intended. When he spoke next, he lowered his voice. “Giving us somethin’ to make us sleep will just make us feel like we’re denying what’s happened. Won’t make it any easier. You understand that, don’tcha?”

Doctor Martin nodded. He understood it very well. Joe and Adam Cartwright had been well-liked in Virginia City, which had begun to seem like a ghost town ever since the news that the two Cartwright brothers were gone had appeared in the newspaper. It had been almost three days since they called off the search for them, a fact that haunted Ben to no end. If only he had pushed harder, ridden further, but it was too late to think about what ifs.

“If there’s anything I can do, Hoss . . . . . “

Hoss nodded, slightly, not trusting his voice. Doctor Martin turned to leave, but Ben’s voice called him back.

“Paul, did they-?”

The doctor’s heart broke as he faced the grief-stricken father.

“No, Ben,” he whispered in reply, “there’s been no word.”

Silence met in the uncomfortable silence as Ben absorbed the words, knowing the answer even before he asked, but needing to ask anyway, just to be sure. Doctor Martin watched as his friend broke down and cried for the first time since his sons disappeared.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam didn’t know when he woke up again or when he was finally able to realize where they were, but he knew that they were close. The landmarks he’d always made for himself were in his line of vision, every rock and every tree exactly as he remembered even through his fever. It didn’t matter though, since Joe obviously recognized the landscape too.

“We’re almost home, Adam,” he reassured him. “We’re almost home, brother.”

Adam smiled weakly at that, just barely holding onto consciousness. He wanted, no, needed, to see his father and Hoss. It seemed like a lifetime since he’d seen his home and the rest of his family. Passing out was not an option! As they journeyed further onto the Ponderosa, Adam felt the tension leave his body. He noticed Joe’s shoulders relax a little and that’s when he knew they were almost home. What seemed like seconds later to Adam, which was really hours seeing as he slept again, Joe was shaking his shoulder.

“Adam, Adam, wake up!” he shouted, excitedly.

Adam could tell why almost immediately. The ranch house was in clear view, lights burning brightly, as if welcoming the weary travelers home. A familiar shout echoed through his head as he lost his fight to stay in the saddle. With a low moan, he fell to the ground, just as a familiar face appeared in his line of vision. A whispered word escaped Adam’s lips as he tried to make sense of it all.

“P-Pa?”

That said, Adam closed his eyes, welcoming the darkness with open arms.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben, after much resistance, reluctantly agreed to try to get some sleep. Doctor Martin and Hoss accompanied him to his room, neither man missing the sad and almost devastated look he gave to Adam’s room and Joe’s as they passed them. Once Ben was settled in bed, they both headed back downstairs. Hoss sat on the settee, weariness clear on his face as he leaned back, trying to relax.

“Hoss?” Doctor Martin called, worriedly. “Maybe you should get some sleep too.”

His friend thought a moment, but shook his head.

“I better not,” came the reply. “I wouldn’t be able to sleep anyway.”

Not bothering to argue, Doctor Martin went upstairs to sit with Ben, knowing he wouldn’t be asleep. As he did that, Hoss stood, not really sure what to do. He looked around at the empty room, allowing his sorrow to cloud his mind. He had been strong for his father, but not anymore. The actual loss of Joe and Adam hit him hard. He half-expected Joe to come bounding through the door with Adam following behind him. A small smile crossed his lips as he imagined both of his brothers teasing each other, occasionally hitting each other on the arm, good-naturedly. Sighing, Hoss walked outside, finding the emptiness of the room too much to handle. Outside, crickets chirped happily, enjoying the darkness.

Everything else was silent as Hoss breathed in deeply, trying to take his mind off of things. But it was easier said than done. He found himself thinking back to before this whole nightmare started, back to a time when things were actually somewhat normal.

(Flashback)

“I bet I can race you from here to that stump along the road,” Joe challenged, smirking.

Adam raised an eyebrow as a smile spread across his face.

“Oh really, little brother?” he asked, crossing his arms over his chest. “And just how do you plan on doing that?”

Joe snorted in amusement, looking at Hoss briefly before turning to look back at his older brother.

“Cooch is faster than any other animal on the Ponderosa!” he bragged.

Adam allowed his arms to fall to his sides as he started for the barn. Slightly confused, Joe started after him.

“Where you going, Adam?” he asked, curiously.

Adam turned and stopped walking, a smile on his face.

“Well, little brother, I figured since you’re so sure that Cochise is gonna win, you wouldn’t mind a nice friendly race. Sport against Cochise.”

Joe’s smile broke out into a full-blown grin.

“You’re on, Adam!” he shouted and they both saddled their horses.

Hoss was chuckling as they both started back towards the yard, the horses galloping as if their lives depended on it. Joe’s care-free laugh as they reached the barn, Adam shouting loudly for Sport to go faster.

(End Flashback)

Wait a minute. Hoss squinted, trying to see in the darkness as shapes formed slowly. The images of Joe and Adam riding in only to tie at the race disappeared. In it’s place stood Joe and another man, who Hoss didn’t recognize, leading a horse with someone slumped in the saddle. Hoss’ heart skipped a few beats. It couldn’t be, could it?

“Pa.”

The word got stuck in his throat as he took a hesitant step forward. His father needed to know, deserved to know.

“Pa!” the word came loudly, cutting through the darkness like a knife as Hoss ran forward. As he got closer, his thoughts were confirmed.. It was Adam, alive, sitting in the saddle! Just as he approached, Adam’s huddled form tilted and fell, hitting the ground too fast for Hoss to realize it had happened. Immediately, he knelt down, holding Adam tightly, yet gently, against his chest. He recognized the signs of fever as his older brother looked up at him through glassy eyes, a small smile forming on his lips.

“P-Pa?” he whispered before going limp in Hoss’ arms.

By this time, it seemed as if entire the Ponderosa was awake. Hoss witnessed the look of pure shock on his father’s face when he and Doctor Martin rushed outside after hearing his shouts. Adam was transferred from Hoss’ arms to Ben’s as he cradled Adam gently, hardly daring to believe this was real. As Ben and Doctor Martin hurriedly carried Adam into the house, Hoss turned to Joe, a big grin adorning his face.

“It’s good to be home, Hoss,” came the soft-spoken words.

Hoss didn’t even reply as he wrapped his younger brother up in the tightest bear hug he could manage. It was only when Joe started wincing in pain did he release him. Hoss ruffled his hair playfully.

“Where’d you run off to, Short Shanks?” he asked, throwing an arm around his shoulders and leading him towards the house.

Joe explained bits and pieces, leaving big chunks out of his story, chunks he was sure Adam could fill in once he recovered. In order for Doctor Martin to treat Adam, however, Joe had to explain the extent of his older brother’s injuries. As quickly as he could, Joe explained in detail what injuries he’d seen and witnessed. Once he was done, Doctor Martin rushed Joe, Hoss, and Ben out of the room.

Downstairs, Kurt was standing by the front door, not entirely sure what he should do or where he should go. Ben helped Joe, who was beginning to show signs of exhaustion, to the settee to rest. His room might’ve been better, but, until Doctor Martin came downstairs with news of Adam, Ben knew his youngest son wouldn’t be sleeping any time soon.

By the time Paul appeared at the top of the stairs, Joe had filled Ben and Hoss in on all the m or details about his and Adam’s captures. At the doctor’s presence, all four men stood, expectantly.

“Ben, I need to speak with you-” he began, but was interrupted almost immediately.

“Whatever you need to say can be said in front of everyone here, Paul,” Ben said, not noticing Joe stiffen at the name.

Kurt noticed, but said nothing, turning his attention back to the doctor as he came down the stairs and started to explain his diagnosis.

“Adam has been through a lot, Ben. The cuts, bruises, and even the extent of damage down to his shoulder-”

“His shoulder?” Ben repeated, confused.

He didn’t remember Joe mentioning Adam injuring his shoulder.

“Yes, Ben, his shoulder,” Paul repeated, looking at each man standing in the room. “Didn’t any of you notice?”

“Notice what?” Joe asked, his face slightly pale.

Paul took a deep breath, the regret of having to tell them evident on his face.

“Adam’s shoulder was severely injured. From the markings, I’d say it was made no more than two days ago.”

Hoss was getting impatient.

“What markings?” he asked, anxiously. “What are you talkin’ about?”

Paul took another deep breath.

“There’s a mark on Adam’s shoulder, Hoss,” he replied, softly. “To all appearances, it looks like Adam was branded.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben’s face completely paled at that news. It took him several minutes to find his voice.

“P-Paul, t-there has to be some mistake,” he stammered.

“I wish I was, Ben,” came the sympathetic reply. “A hot iron was pressed against his skin. An oval with a line through it.”

Ben’s hands clenched into fists as he shook slightly. Joe and Hoss, also shocked at the news of their brother’s condition, watched his reaction closely, gauging what he would do. Without a word, Ben ascended the stairs. Joe and Hoss exchanged glances before following him up the stairs, Paul close on their heels. Everyone entered Adam’s room quietly, congregating around the bed.

“I want to see it,” Ben said, his eyes never leaving Adam’s motionless figure.

Paul frowned.

“Ben, I don’t think-” he began, but was interrupted.

“I don’t care what you think!” his friend spoke angrily, yet quietly at the same time as he looked up. “I want to see the brand.”

Paul looked at Joe and Hoss before silently moving towards the bed and pulling back the sheets covering Adam’s beaten body. Three sharp intakes of breath were heard around the room as they witnessed the brutality that Paul Kane had bestowed upon their family member. Doctor Martin quickly re-covered the wound and stepped back, eyeing Joe, Ben, and Hoss carefully.

Joe’s face was completely pale, looking as if he could be sick at any minute. It was then Paul noticed the other various injuries the younger man had sustained during his time out with Kane and Adam. He seemed to be favoring his shoulder a little, the same shoulder that the intruder had knifed in trying to make his escape. The bandage around it was slightly dirty with blood just beginning to seep through, signifying that the wound had reopened.

“Joe, we better go into your room and take care of that,” Paul advised.

Ben’s attention turned from Adam’s sleeping figure to face his youngest son. Almost immediately, he recognized the signs of fatigue and pain.

“Help me get him down the hall, Ben,” Paul ordered as Joe started swaying back and forth on his feet.

Ben nodded, grabbing one arm as Paul grabbed the other one. After a quick word to Hoss to ask him to stay with Adam, the three men headed to Joe’s bedroom. The younger man practically collapsed onto the bed as Paul immediately set to work on his shoulder, carefully removing the old bandage and cleaning the wound with water, a wash cloth, and some liquor that were in there from before.

“Easy, Son,” Ben soothed as Joe started to move on his bed. “Doctor Martin just needs to take a look at your shoulder.”

Joe seemed to relax at his father’s familiar voice, allowing Paul to remove his shirt and get a closer look at the wound. It took a good hour before Paul felt comfortable enough to leave, promising he’d be back the next day to check on his two patients.

“Maybe now you can get some sleep, Ben,” he suggested as he headed outside to leave.

Ben managed to smile a little.

“I’ll try, Paul,” he replied. He closed the door and looked up at the stairs leading to the bedrooms. “I’ll certainly try.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam’s fevered brow was furrowed as his head moved back and forth on the pillow.

“Easy, Adam,” Hoss’ soft voice penetrated through the haze as something cool pressed against his forehead, wiping the sweat away. “It’s all right. You’re home now.”

Adam tried to open his eyes to acknowledge his brother’s words, but they felt too heavy. Visions appeared in his mind. Some of Peter Kane, others of Paul Kane, sometimes, both of them at the same time. However, each scenario was the same. He would find himself back in the mining camp, Joe with him. Then, the most painful amount of sheer agony he’d ever felt would rock his body.

“Adam? Adam! Wake up!”

He fought violently against the hands holding him as the same voice shouted something else. Seconds later, several sets of hands were holding him down firmly, yet gently. He recognized the ever-comforting hand of his father and, knowing Ben would never let anything bad happen to him, he relaxed slightly.

“Adam, open your eyes, son.”

His lips formed ‘Pa‘, but nothing came out, but, as if he sensed Adam was trying to speak, Ben’s hand slipped into his own and squeezed.

“It’s all right, boy, I’ve got you,” he whispered, reassuringly.

Adam’s body seemed to relax and, after struggling a little more, his eyes opened halfway. Recognition dawned in his eyes immediately as Ben’s blurry face came into view. Weakly, he looked around the room, then turned his gaze back to his father, asking the question without actually voicing it.

“Hoss is just downstairs getting some more water,” Ben said, already knowing what, or who, Adam was looking for. “Joe’s in his room. His shoulder wound reopened.”

Adam’s eyes seemed to widen slowly and he made a move as if to get up. Ben was fully ready to hold him down, but never got the chance as pain laced Adam’s body, pausing his movements. He leaned back on the pillow, giving up for the time being. Ben breathed a sigh of relief, sitting back and closing his eyes, but opening them once more as Adam started trying to speak.

“I-Is . . . o-o-over?” he managed.

Ben wasn’t sure what to say. While, yes, Adam and Joe’s wounds would heal and they’d recover with scars that would stay with them for the rest of their lives, the emotional turmoil might take longer to deal with. So, instead of answering Adam, he remained quiet, giving his eldest all the answer he’d need.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben never slept that night. The brand marking Adam’s shoulder was engrained in his mind. He could only imagine the pain and torture Adam had gone through at the hands of Paul Kane, but it was nothing compared to the horrors Adam was sure to face in his dreams.

“Pa? Maybe you should get some sleep,” Hoss’ voice filtered into the room from the doorway.

Ben frowned.

“I thought you were keeping an eye on Joe,” he whispered, noticing Adam wince in his sleep as he shifted slightly.

Hoss noticed the movement too and waited for Adam to settle again before replying.

“He asked me to come in and check on Adam and to make sure you go get some sleep.”

Ben lifted his tired eyes to meet those of his middle son’s.

“I’m sure both of us aren’t going to be able to sleep tonight, Hoss,” he said, turning his gaze back to Adam’s still form.

“I guess you’re right,” came the soft reply.

Both father and son remained silent, listening to the soft, yet shaky, breathing of their family member until Hoss spoke again, his words cutting through the silence like a sharp knife.

“What happened to them out there, Pa?” he whispered, his mind clearly thinking back on the brand on Adam’s shoulder.

Ben ran a hand over his face, as if trying to wipe the tiredness away.

“I don’t know for certain, Hoss,” he replied, just as quietly. “The only thing we can do is hope and pr-”

He was cut off as Adam made a small noise, twisting and turning on his bed, each movement causing him more and more pain. Ben reacted almost instantly, standing and rushing to his son’s side to hold his arms down.

“Adam! Adam, wake up!” he shouted, worriedly. “Hoss, help me!”

The bigger man needed no further prompting as he, too, rushed forward, trying desperately to hold Adam down to keep him from hurting himself. They tried everything from yelling to slapping him gently on the cheek, but nothing they did was bringing Adam around. Calls from the next room had Ben and Hoss exchanging a glance, the voice unmistakably that of their youngest family member. Hoss shifted his position so he could better hold Adam down while Ben hurried into Joe’s room.

Joe’s eyes were wide and frightened as he looked up at Ben.

“Pa, what’s going on?” he asked, worriedly.

He felt his father place a hand on his chest, pushing him back down against the bed gently.

“It’s all right, Joe,” he tried to reassure him.

Even as he said it, he could still hear the yells coming from Adam’s room and winced at their volume, wishing he could do something, anything to ease the pain of his eldest son. Joe was once again trying to get out of bed, but Ben paid no attention as he left the room and hurried back into Adam’s. Hoss, despite his strength, was having a difficult time keeping Adam down. Without wasting a moment, Ben rushed to the bed and took his earlier position.

“Pa, if he keeps this up, he’s bound to hurt himself or one of us!” Hoss shouted, anxiously.

“Adam Cartwright, wake up this instant!”

The shouting only seemed to increase Adam’s dream and strength. His eyes popped open and his hands raised. For a split second, Hoss and Ben relaxed, thinking that Adam was awake. But his hands didn’t reach for him father’s or for Hoss’, like they were expecting them to. Without any warning, they closed around Ben’s neck and started to squeeze. It took a second for Hoss to react.

“Adam, stop!” he yelled. “What are you doing?!”

His older brother’s eyes were open, but they showed no recognition. Adam’s face was twisted into a murderous look, one he had never seen on the older man’s face before, especially not directed towards their father. Ben had his own hands grasping the ones encircling his neck, trying to remove them so air could rush back into his starving lungs. Hoss took matters into his own hands.

“I’m sorry, Adam, but you’re not leavin’ me with any other choice,” he whispered.

“No . . . . m-more g-g-g-games,” Adam’s weak voice stammered.

Hoss grasped his brother’s hand tightly within his own and, after a brief struggle, managed to pry them away from their father’s throat. Adam fell back on the bed as Ben moved away and sat heavily into the armchair nearby, a hand positioned where his son’s had been moments before, eyes wide in disbelief at what just happened.

Whatever nightmare Adam had been lost in seemed to die as recognition slowly dawned in his eyes and realization slowly made him realize just what he had almost done. Hoss turned from his older brother’s horror-struck face to tend to his father. Ben sat, unmoving. He could only gingerly rub his neck as Hoss leaned down and moved his hand to take a look.

“I better send someone for the doc,” he said, softly.

That seemed to snap Ben out of his trance and he vigorously shook his head.

“No, Hoss, that won’t be necessary,” he argued, firmly.

Hoss was taken aback.

“B-But, Pa-” he started to argue, only to receive a single glare, which silenced him.

A small noise from the hall caused Ben and Hoss to turn, only to see Joe standing in the doorway. From his facial expression, he’d seen and heard everything!

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Joe . . . “

Whatever Ben was about to say was lost as Joe turned and, despite his limited ability to move, hurried from the room. Ben moved to go after him, but Hoss stopped him.

“I’ll go after him, Pa,” he offered, looking back over at Adam, who was just staring off into space. “You’re needed more here.”

His father seemed to consider this for a moment before nodding, giving Hoss permission to go after Joe. The youngest Cartwright hadn’t gotten very far, Hoss noticed. He found him outside of his bedroom door, leaning heavily against the wall. Hesitantly, he moved forward.

“Joe, let me help ya,” he offered, softly, touching the younger man’s arm.

Joe turned to face him, panic appearing on his face.

“H-Hoss, you s-shouldn’t be out h-here,” he insisted. “W-What i-if . . . ?”

Hoss unconsciously guided him into the room and helped him onto the bed as he spoke.

“Pa and Adam will be fine, Joe,” he reassured him.

Joe’s eyes were wide, obviously thinking back on the scene he witnessed not more than a few minutes ago.

“B-But Adam . . . “

“Had a nightmare, Joe,” Hoss interrupted. “It was bound to happen sooner or later after all you fellas have been through.”

Joe was getting mad.

“H-He tried to kill P-Pa!” he insisted, angrily, starting to fight against his older brother’s grip.

Hoss held him down firmly.

“Now, Joe, you know that ain’t true,” he argued. “Adam didn’t know what he was doing. You know and I know he’d never hurt Pa.”

Joe’s struggling ceased, but his hands were clearly shaking as he tried to comprehend Hoss’ words. He had been worried when Ben had bolted out of the room, even more so when Adam’s cries increased slightly, then died altogether. He closed his eyes tightly, unable to get rid of the vision of his older brother’s hands clenched tightly around their father’s neck.

“Joe?”

Hoss’ voice jolted him out of his thoughts and he looked up to find him staring at him worriedly. Tearing his gaze from Hoss, Joe looked at his sheets.

“S-Sorry, Hoss,” he whispered.

“Nothing to be sorry for, Little Brother,” came the reply.

Silence filled the room, each brother thinking.

“Hoss?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you think Adam’s really capable . . . I mean, would he really . . . Is he really capable of killing someone like that?”

Hoss couldn’t help but be surprised at that question. Joe’s head was bowed low, as if ashamed that he even had to ask.

“Little Joe, you know Adam could never kill anyone, unless he had to in self-defense,” he replied, softly.

“W-What do you think is wrong with him, Hoss?”

“I don’t know, Short Shanks,” he answered with a sigh. “I just don’t know.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Adam? I know you’re awake, Son.”

He closed his eyes tightly, hoping his father would just leave. He couldn’t believe what he had just done. His hands were shaking so much that he clenched them into fists in order to control them. Silence was in his room, making him believe Ben had left, so it was quite a surprise when a hand landed on his shoulder.

“Adam? Please, look at me,” came Ben’s worried voice.

He could only shake his head. He couldn’t face his father right now, not after he almost killed him. He opened his eyes slightly, but closed them again almost immediately. Ben had switched sides of the bed, sitting directly in his line of vision. Adam shivered. He could clearly remember the dream.

Dream

He was back in Kane’s camp, the man’s laughter ringing in his ears. He could hear his words, taunting him, telling him that all of this was just a game – and Kane was winning. Adam couldn’t handle it, he couldn’t face being back in that hellhole. His anger grasped him forcefully and, with a cry of absolute rage, he rushed Kane.

He could feel his hands encircling Kane’s neck, squeezing harder and harder, wanting to wipe the smile off of his captor’s face more than anything in the world.

“No . . . . m-more g-g-g-games,” Adam ground out.

“You’ll never be rid of me, Cartwright.”

End Dream

It was then that Hoss prying his hands from their father’s neck had woken him up, showing him exactly what he had been about to do.

“Adam Cartwright, look at me right now!”

He shook his head.

“Adam . . .”

“Please, not right now,” Adam pleaded quietly.

“We’re talking about this right now, whether you like it or not, Adam!” Ben argued, firmly.

 

Chapter Ten:  Trouble

 

Adam recognized the tone in his father’s voice. He had encountered it himself many times in his lifetime, more so when he was still a boy after doing something wrong. Even after all the years, that tone could still make him flinch, if only just a little. The thing is, it didn’t necessarily need to be aimed at him.

He didn’t want to open his eyes, didn’t want to face Ben so soon. Guilt was eating at him. He had almost killed his father all because of a stupid dream.

“Adam, open your eyes,” came Ben’s voice again, but the tone was slightly softer.

Reluctantly, he obeyed, expecting anger to appear on Ben’s face. What he saw instead somewhat surprised him. Anger was there, of course, but so was confusion, hurt, sorrow, worry, and fatigue. Before Adam could move or say anything, Ben stood and sat on the edge of the bed, taking Adam’s hand gently in his own.

“Son,” he began, the word causing Adam to flinch as if he had been struck.

“I don’t know how you can call me that after . . . after what I-” he stopped, unable to finish the sentence and unwilling to say it out loud.

“You know better than that, Adam,” Ben admonished him, sternly.

The younger man looked at him, fire burning in his eyes.

“Do I?” he retorted.

Ben, a little startled at Adam’s rare display of emotions, took on the same look.

“Yes, you do,” he replied. “I’ve taught you to know better than that, Adam. No matter what you do or say, you will always be my son. Nothing can change that.”

Adam was about to argue, but, before he could get the chance, his bedroom door opened and Hop Sing walked inside, carrying a tray of broth. He smiled at Ben and Adam, obviously not knowing what had occurred minutes ago in that same room.

“Hop Sing bring broth for Number One Son,” he announced, setting the tray on the nightstand. “Doctor Martin say eat all. Get stronger.”

Ben looked at Adam briefly before smiling a little and nodding.

“Thank you, Hop Sing,” he said, gratefully. “I’ll make sure Number One Son eats all of it.”

Hop Sing smiled more and nodded vigorously, backing out of the room and closing the door behind him. Once he was gone, Ben turned back to look at Adam, who was now sitting up slightly, eyeing the food warily.

“You might as well start eating now before it gets to be too cold,” Ben suggested, slowly getting up.

“No!”

Adam’s unexpected exclamation startled Ben, causing him to freeze in his tracks. He could see a drop of sweat rolling down the side of his son’s face and frowned. Was the fever starting to set in?

“All right, Adam,” he agreed, sitting back down. “Maybe later.”

Adam visibly relaxed against his pillow, breathing a sigh of relief. His body was still extremely sore, his throat no different from the leather straps being tied around it. If he had a mirror, he was positive there would be markings there from it.

“Adam?”

The oldest Cartwright son snapped out of his thoughts, looking at Ben as if seeing him for the first time.

“S-Sorry,” he whispered, quietly.

Ben’s frown deepened. He hadn’t missed the fact that Adam had been failing to call him Pa throughout their entire conversation. This scared him, but he stayed quiet.

“It’s all right, Adam,” he reassured him. “I guess you must be tired, so I’ll leave you so you can get some rest.”

Adam didn’t say anything and Ben had a feeling their talk was far from over. Ben closed Adam’s bedroom door behind him, sighing once he was alone in the hallway. He could still hear voices coming from Joe’s room, telling him Hoss was still in there. Deciding he’d better see to his youngest son, he headed in that direction and entered the room.

Joe’s eyes went wide when Ben entered.

“Pa!” he exclaimed, worriedly. “Pa, are you all right?”

Ben smiled slightly and nodded.

“I’m all right, Joe,” he said, reassuringly.

The looks on his younger son’s faces told him they didn’t believe him for an instant. His neck was still sore, especially from talking to Adam.

“Pa?” Hoss asked, fidgeting nervously.

Knowing his son all too well, his father waited for the inevitable question.

“How’s Adam?”

“I honestly don’t know,” came the reply. “He’s refusing to speak to me and, during our whole conversation, he never once called me by name.”

Joe and Hoss exchanged a worried look before looking back at Ben. Hoss stepped forward, anxiously.

“Pa, maybe I better go in and-” he started, but was cut off.

“No!” Ben immediately argued. “Adam was going to sleep when I left. Whether or not he’s doing so now, I don’t know, but I don’t want you or Joe going into Adam’s room for at least a couple of hours! Do I make myself clear?”

Joe was staring at the sheets that were covering him as he slowly nodded. Hoss hung his head.

“Yes, Sir,” he answered aloud. “Pa, why do you think Adam . . . Well, what do you think made him . . . . you know?”

Ben, who had been focusing his gaze on his youngest son, jerked out of his thoughts and turned his attention to Hoss’ question.

“I’d imagine it has something to do with that nightmare he had,” he answered, thoughtfully. “The only explanation I can come up with is that he must’ve thought I was someone else.”

Joe seemed to be interested by this as a frown crossed his features.

“Could a nightmare really become so intense that it caused Adam to try to kill you, Pa?” he questioned.

The room was silent for a few minutes and Joe’s eyes widened in surprise at what he said. Everyone knew, including Joe, that Adam had no control over his actions. However, the fact that the attack had taken place still scared Joe a little. A hand landed on his shoulder and he looked up into his father’s concerned face.

“Joe? What’s wrong?”

Joe shook his head and forced a smile on his face.

“Nothing, Pa,” he lied, secretly thinking that he wasn’t going to be able to look Adam in the eye again.

“If you’re sure.”

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

Ben didn’t believe him, but he didn’t say anything.

“We better be going to bed, Hoss,” he suggested, smiling down at Joe. “Good night, Son.”

“Good night, Pa.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

The days passed slow. At least, they seemed to for Ben and Hoss. With both Adam and Joe laid up in bed, they had to work extra hard around the ranch, trying to pick up the slack from being short-handed. After a week, Doctor Martin said it would be all right for Joe to start doing light chores around the house, which Joe did eagerly, trying to prove that he was on the mend. Adam’s injuries, however, were mending slowly. Doctor Martin checked in on him everyday, making the Ponderosa one of his many regular stops along his route.

Doctor Martin was smiling as he exited Adam’s bedroom after that first week, silently closing the door behind him. An anxious Ben was waiting for him out in the hallway, pacing back and forth. Seeing his long-time friend, he hurried to him.

“Paul?” he asked, hopefully.

The doctor shook his head and motioned that they should go downstairs. Ben followed him, glancing once at Adam’s door. Once they reached the bottom of the stairs, Doctor Martin spoke.

“His wounds are slowly getting better, Ben,” he announced, that same smile on his face. “His shoulder’s still bleeding a little, so make sure you keep changing the bandages at least three times a day. I don’t think I’ll need to come out everyday as I have been.”

Ben felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of his shoulders.

“And the rest of his injuries?” he inquired.

“They’re healing faster than Adam’s shoulder,” came the reply. “At least another two weeks of bed rest, Ben.”

“Thank you, Paul,” the oldest Cartwright said, gratefully, walking with him towards the door.

After seeing him out, Ben turned back to the room, not at all surprised to see Joe and Hoss sitting on the settee. It was obvious they had heard everything. At that moment, Hop Sing came out of the kitchen, smiling broadly as he carried a tray of food.

“Tray for Mr. Adam,” he explained to Ben. “He need to eat, get stronger.”

Hop Sing hadn’t stopped saying that same sentence all week, each day taking a tray up to Adam and only coming down once he was sure he had eaten it all. Occasionally, Ben or Hoss would take the tray up to Adam, who would refuse the food, but, eventually, managed to eat at least half of it. Joe, however, hadn’t set foot into his older brother’s room since seeing Adam with his hands around their father’s neck. It was a known fact that Joe was afraid of Adam, which is why Ben decided today would be the day to finally rectify that.

“That’s all right, Hop Sing, I’ll take the tray,” he reassured the cook.

Hop Sing looked like he might argue, but, seeing his employer looking at Joe, a knowing smile crossed his face and he nodded.

“Yes, Mr. Cartlite,” he said, turning to go back into the kitchen.

Ben waited until he was sure Hop Sing was out of sight before walking over towards the settee, the tray still in his hands. He stopped just in front of it, looking directly at Joe.

“Joe, I’d like it if you’d take this tray up to Adam for me,” he stated, noticing as his youngest son’s eyes widened.

Immediately, Joe was on his feet.

“What!? Pa, you told Hop Sing you’d take it up to him!” he protested.

“Don’t raise your voice to me, Joseph!”

Joe winced at the volume of his father’s voice, recognizing the tone instantly. Ben walked over to him and handed him the tray.

“Now, take the tray up to your brother,” he ordered, firmly.

Joe knew better than to argue with his father when he was in this type of mood, but something inside of him stirred and, setting the tray on the coffee table, he folded his arms across his chest.

“No, Pa,” he said, defiantly.

Startled, Ben’s eyes widened slightly.

“What do you mean ‘no’?” he asked, placing his hands on his hips.

Joe visibly swallowed, but held his ground.

“I mean I’m not taking the tray up to Adam, Pa.”

“Why not?”

There was silence for a minute or two as Joe thought long and hard about what he was going to say next.

“Well, Joseph?” Ben prodded.

Joe’s temper was getting the better of him, embarrassment causing a hint of red to appear on his cheeks.

“I just can’t, Pa, all right?” he almost shouted.

“No, it’s not all right!” his father answered, his voice matching his son’s. “It’s not all right that you’ve been ignoring your brother like the plague! I’d like an explanation as to why.”

Joe’s hands were shaking, his eyes closed as his hands slowly clenched into fists by his sides. Ben remained silent, allowing Joe to gather his thoughts.

“Please, Pa, don’t make me take the tray to him,” Joe pleaded, softly, opening his eyes halfway.

“But why, Joe?”

Ben knew exactly why his youngest son was refusing to go upstairs to take the tray to Adam, but he had to hear it from Joe’s own lips. Mainly, so Joe could hear it himself and, hopefully, come to grips with it. Maybe then, both of his sons could finally begin the healing process.

“I can’t go up there because I can’t face him.”

Joe’s reply was so soft, at first, Ben thought he had missed it, but he heard every word. Stepping forward, he placed a hand on Joe’s shoulder.

“You can’t ignore him forever, son,” he reasoned. “You know he asks about you every time I go into his room? He’s noticed that you never go to see him, Joe.”

Joe’s eyes flashed dangerously as he raised his head to look at Ben.

“He should know why I haven’t been up to see him!” he said, angrily, shrugging off his father’s hand.

“It wasn’t his fault, Joseph!” came the equally angered shout. “You’ve had your fair share of nightmares over the years. Haven’t you lashed out at me or one of your brothers during one?”

Joe looked at the floor. His father was right, but none of his dreams had ever included him almost killing one of his family members. But he knew he couldn’t avoid Adam for the rest of his life. Not saying a word, he bent down and removed the tray of food from the coffee table. Straightening up, he gave Ben a knowing look along with a small smile before looking over at the stairs and heading over to them. The climb seemed to take minutes to Joe, but it only lasted one.

He was standing outside Adam’s bedroom door, fist raised to knock, when his oldest brother’s voice reached his ears.

“I’m not hungry, Pa. Come back later, I’ll eat then.”

Joe couldn’t hold back the small smile appearing on his face. It was no surprise that Adam believed that Ben was the one bringing him his food. Without saying anything, Joe opened the door and stepped inside, swallowing hard at the sight of his brother lying on the bed, facing away from the door. At the sound of the door opening, however, Adam slowly turned over.

“Pa, I said-” he cut off when he realized that his visitor wasn’t his father, but his younger brother.

His eyes widened in surprise and he couldn’t find his voice for a moment. Joe hurried to set the tray down and give him a small smile before turning to leave. He was getting ready to walk out, when Adam’s shaky voice stopped him. It was just one word, but it stopped him anyway.

“Wait.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Joe stopped dead in his tracks. He didn’t want to, but years of growing up with Adam prompted him to. His hand dropped from the doorknob, but he didn’t turn around.

“Why don’t you sit down, Joe?” Adam’s voice came again.

Joe closed his eyes, wanting nothing more than to run out of the room. He wasn’t ready to talk to Adam just yet, but he really didn’t see any other way out of it. Reluctantly, he turned and, not meeting Adam’s eyes, he sat down in the chair by his older brother’s bed. Silence reigned in the room for a while, neither Cartwright knowing what to say.

“Why did you try to kill Pa?”

Joe’s question cut through the tension in the room like a knife. Adam sucked in a breath, hardly daring to believe Joe had asked him that. Being laid up in bed for so long had given him time to think. While, yes, he had tried to kill Ben, he had done it unknowingly. Several talks with his father had made him see that. Now, he just had to get Joe to see it too.

“Joe, I . . .” he began, but was interrupted by his younger brother.

“Why, Adam?!” he shouted. “Did you want to know how Kane felt when he was trying to strangle you?!”

Adam closed his eyes against that particular memory, not willing to bring it to the surface. In front of him, Joe was breathing heavily, struggling to bring his emotions under control. Neither brother said anything for a few minutes, until Joe started talking again.

“I’m sorry, Adam,” he apologized, turning towards the door. “I should never have come in here.”

“Joe, wait!” Adam called out after him, but he was long gone and Adam didn’t have the strength or the energy to get out of bed. He could only hope that Joe would eventually come back inside. It was less than two minutes later when Ben knocked on his door and walked inside, closing the door behind him. Adam didn’t have to look at him to know that he spoke with Joe.

“I take it the talk didn’t go as well as you planned.”

It was more of a statement than a question, but his oldest son answered anyway.

“No, it didn’t,” he said, sighing. “I thought things would go a lot better than they did. I just don’t know how to convince him.”

Ben was silent for a moment, thinking.

“Maybe-Maybe next time you talk to Joe, I should stay in the room,” he suggested.

Adam shook his head, a small smile on his face.

“No, Pa, this is something Joe and I have to work out on our own,” he said, sadly. “I just hope I can get through to him.”

Placing a hand on Adam’s shoulder, Ben squeezed gently.

“I’m sure you will, Son,” he encouraged him.

“Thanks, Pa.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben didn’t pressure Joe to go up to Adam’s room again. He often suggested it, but Joe denied each time. Adam himself was disappointed that Joe hadn’t come back to see him. He still wasn’t sure what he could say to his little brother to make him believe that he hadn’t tried to kill their father on purpose. Finally, however, Doctor Martin gave Adam his permission to move around. When Adam first went downstairs, Joe was nowhere to be seen. Ben claimed that he was outside in the barn, feeding the horses, but Adam knew that Joe was avoiding him as much as possible. But not even Joe could avoid him forever.

It was three days after the encounter in Adam’s bedroom when Ben was helping his oldest downstairs, carefully taking their time due to Adam’s still weakened state. Hoss was waiting at the bottom of the stairs, a big grin on his face when he spotted his brother and father.

“Well, it’s about time you got out of that bed,” he stated, placing his hands on his hips.

Adam smiled back at him as his father led him down the last stair. With Hoss on one side of him and Ben on the other, they walked to the settee, which Adam gently settled into. He didn’t bother looking around for Joe.

“Hey, Pa, I wanted to-,” Joe started as he stepped inside the front door. He cut off once he saw Adam downstairs.

Ben looked back and forth between his oldest and youngest sons before nodding to Hoss, signifying that they should give them some privacy.

Silence reigned for a few minutes after Ben and Hoss left. Joe fidgeted nervously on his feet, much like he had done as a little boy, knowing he was about to get in big trouble. Adam just continued watching Joe, hoping he’d speak first.

“Adam…”

”Joe…”

Both Cartwright boys blinked in surprise, for they had spoken at the same time.

“Adam, I’m sorry!” Joe blurted out, suddenly.

Not expecting the apology, Adam’s eyes widened slightly.

“Joe, I-,” he began, but Joe cut him off.

“No, Adam,” he said, holding up a hand. “Please, just let me say this first.”

Adam said nothing more. Instead, he sat there, staring at his younger brother as Joe started talking once more.

“I didn’t mean what I said a couple of days ago, Adam,” he said, softly. “I should’ve known that you would never willingly or knowingly hurt Pa. I guess with everything that happened to us between Kane and his brother, I wasn’t sure what to believe anymore.”

Adam wasn’t sure what to say. Here he had been, wondering how he was going to convince Joe that the attack wasn’t his fault, when, apparently, the youngest Cartwright knew all along.

“Joe, thank you.”

Joe managed to smile slightly before turning and walking back outside. Adam sighed as he watched him go. It wasn’t much, but at least it was a start. He and Joe had a while to go before they’d ever be all right again. Adam’s nightmares were fewer and far between and he often woke up in the middle of the night, breathing heavily with sweat pouring off of his face. He remembered every single nightmare. It all seemed so real. He practically ordered his family not to come into his room if they heard him in the middle of the night. Up until now, they’d abided by his wishes. He knew Kane and Kane’s brother were dead, yet they continued to haunt his sleepless nights. He’d see them in the shadows, in every imaginable hiding place. He’d jump at the drop of a hat. No, he still had a while to go.

Outside, Joe had his hands clenched into fists. His own dreams weren’t much better at night. He’d been working outside later and later, even going so far as to have Hoss come outside after him and literally drag him inside. His behavior wasn’t going unnoticed by Ben. He was worried about all of his sons. Even Hoss was effected. None of them had been eating much, though Hop Sing had been trying his hardest to get them to by preparing their favorite foods.

It was later that day, Adam wanted to go outside to get some fresh air. Hoss helped him outside and into a chair. That done, he went back to his chores. Adam leaned back, relaxing as much as possible. He fell asleep only to wake up hours later to find a note embedded into the post next to him with a knife. His face paled as he removed the knife. The note floated into his lap, the words practically bulging from the page. As he read the words, Adam could feel the sweat beading on his brow. Cautiously, he looked around, as if expecting to see the person who had left the note for him. The yard was silent and, at that moment, Hoss came outside to help him back inside.

“Ready to go, older brother?”

Silently, Adam nodded. As the two brothers made their way into the house, a figure in the shadows stealthily disappeared into the woods.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam didn’t mention anything about the note to his family. Whoever sent it made it perfectly clear that it was for his own eyes only. He had a feeling his father knew something was wrong, but, if he did, he never said anything. Later that night, Adam laid wide awake in bed, staring at the ceiling. He waited until closer to midnight before slowly dragging himself out of bed. The note tucked safely in his pocket, he started the painful task of descending the stairs. Several times, he had to stop, afraid all his noise would wake at least one member of his family. Finally, he reached the bottom, but his victory didn’t last long.

“Adam?”

The oldest Cartwright brother cringed at the sound of his youngest brother’s voice. Joe was standing in the dining room, having just come out of the kitchen. He was frowning at Adam.

“What are you doing out of bed, Adam?” he asked, hurrying to his side.

“Just needed some fresh air, Joe,” Adam lied. “Didn’t think it was worth waking up you, Pa, or Hoss for.”

Years of growing up with Adam told Joe that his brother wasn’t telling him the whole truth, but he decided not to say anything.

“We wouldn’t have minded, Adam, honest,” he replied. “It’s better than you hurting yourself trying to get out there on your own.”

Adam managed to smile weakly, wondering exactly how he was going to convince Joe to leave him by himself.

“Adam, you’re not going.”

At first, the words were so quiet, he thought he had imagined them, until Joe looked at him with a set determination in his eyes.

“Joe?” he asked.

“You’re not going to meet him,” came the reply.

“Joe, what are you talking about?” Adam asked, innocently.

His younger brother thrust something into his hands. A letter clearly identical to the one Adam had received. He looked up to see Joe nodding.

“I had a feeling with the way you’ve been acting that you got the same letter,” he explained, softly. “Adam, you can’t go.”

Adam’s eyes narrowed, the stubborn streak he had inherited from his father shining through.

“That means you’re not going either,” he stated, firmly.

“But, Adam,” Joe protested, “you know what’ll happen if both of us don’t go.”

He closed his eyes and looked unconsciously towards the stairs.

“I don’t know, Adam,” he continued. “I just don’t think it’s worth the risk.”

Adam was struggling with what to do. He couldn’t let Joe go alone and, as much as he hated to admit it, he couldn’t go alone either. Which only left one other option, one he wasn’t particularly fond of.

“We’ll have to go together,” he announced out loud.

Immediately, Joe was shaking his head.

“No, Adam, you can’t come,” he argued.

In a voice that rivaled Ben’s when he was angry, Adam replied, “Yes, I can and I will. We’re seeing this through to the end, together.”

Joe opened his mouth to say something, but promptly closed it again. He knew it was no use arguing anymore. Once Adam made up his mind about something, there was no talking him out of it.

He sighed in defeat.

“All right, Adam, but I still don’t think it’s a good idea,” he agreed. “What are we gonna tell Pa and Hoss?”

Adam shook his head.

“We can’t tell them, Joe,” he replied. “They’ll try to stop us and we can’t afford for that to happen.”

Joe nodded and slung one of Adam’s arms around his shoulders just as his older brother started swaying slightly on his feet.

“We better get going before they wake up.”

Adam nodded in agreement. In such a rush to leave, neither brother noticed when a piece of paper fluttered to the floor as they closed the front door.

It didn’t take long for them to saddle the horses and ride out with Joe leading. It also didn’t take long for the person who sent them the notes to catch up to them.

“Just get off your horses nice and slow, boys.”

Adam’s eyes narrowed and his hands clenched into fists as he grit his teeth. Unfortunately, he recognized that voice. From the look on Joe’s face, he did too. Sure enough, their captor stepped out of the shadows, grinning.

“Well, well, well, it sure is nice to see you two again,” the man said, steadily aiming his gun at them. “I see you two escaped after your little trip in the desert.”

If it wasn’t for his weakened condition and the fact that the guy was holding a gun on them, Adam would’ve surely punched him in the face just to wipe the smirk from his face.

“You and your partner were the ones who left us to die in that desert,” Adam said through clenched teeth.

He could see Joe looking at him in shock out of the corner of his eye, but said nothing more as the bandit chuckled.

“Well, I’m glad you remember me,” he said, cheerfully. “That means I won’t have to explain everything to you.”

Joe turned his attention away from Adam to look at him.

“What do you want with us?” he demanded, angrily.

“Want?” the man repeated. “What I want is the money that bastard Kane promised me! He was killed before he could fulfill his end of our deal. And, as the saying goes, someone has to pay.”

The older Cartwright brother didn’t like where this was going. Not at all.

“What are we supposed to do about it?” Joe snapped back.

Adam closed his eyes, praying and pleading silently for Joe to be quiet. Their captor’s grin was gone, replaced with a look that only a desperate man would have. Before he realized what had happened, the bandit lashed out, striking Joe across the face and sending the younger man reeling to the ground, where he slowly started sitting up, gingerly touching his now cut and bleeding lip.

“You’ll find that, just like Kane, we don’t take too kindly to brat-nosed kids.”

Adam closed his eyes at the sound of Kane’s name. He didn’t want to relive the torture that he and his brother had gone through that day. The memories were still freshly buried in his mind and going through something similar would bring them out in the open. That scared Adam for several reasons.

The man in front of them snorted before motioning at Adam with his gun.

“Come on, Cartwright, get over there with him,” he ordered. “Kyle will be here any minute and I can’t waste my time on you two spooking him when he rides into camp.”

‘Camp?’ Adam thought, glancing around.

It didn’t look like any camp he’d ever seen. There was no fire, which made sense since they weren’t exactly looking for company. Bedrolls were missing and, seeing that, Adam assumed that they’d been sleeping on the ground. Still, he didn’t know how long they’d have to wait before his partner arrived.

Chapter Eleven:  The Ransom

Ben gave a large yawn as he descended the stairs, putting on his vest as he did so. He spotted Hoss already at the table and smiled at his middle son’s pile of pancakes that were sitting on his plate.

“Good morning, Hoss,” he greeted, warmly.

Hoss looked up at his father with food in his mouth. He swallowed before smiling.

“Morning, Pa.”

Ben smiled and sat in his seat at the head of the table. Silence reigned for a few minutes.

“Have you seen your brothers yet this morning?” he asked, starting to fill his plate with the breakfast Hop Sing had prepared for them.

Hoss swallowed another mouthful of pancakes.

“No, Sir,” he answered. “Both of their rooms were empty.”

Ben stopped as he was about to place his napkin in his lap. His brow furrowed in confusion.

“What do you mean they’re not in their rooms?” he asked, unsure of if he had heard correctly.

Hoss’ hand paused just before the fork was about to enter his mouth. Seeing his father wasn’t about to wait for him to chew and swallow, he, reluctantly, set the fork down onto his plate.

“I went in to wake up Little Joe and his bed was made up like he hadn’t even slept in it last night,” he replied. “Well, I looked in on Adam to see if he’d seen Joe, but he wasn’t in his bed. I thought they might be down here, but I haven’t seen them since I came down.”

All thoughts of breakfast long forgotten, Ben practically threw his napkin on the table.

“They can’t have just disappeared into thin air!” he exclaimed, worry evident on his face. “Maybe we should go look for them.”

Hoss looked up at him, also worried.

“You want me to saddle the horses, Pa?” he asked, expectantly.

Ben nodded slightly, causing Hoss to jump up in a flash and go outside. Ben hurried after him, stopping to put on his gun belt. He turned towards the settee as he did so, when something white caught his eye. Frowning, he picked it up, his eyes skimming the words written there as his face registers first surprise, then shock, and, finally, anger. Putting his hat on, he rushed outside after Hoss.

“Hurry, Hoss!” he shouted, anxiously. “We have to go see Roy first!”

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam had lost all track of time after their captor, who introduced himself as Mark, announced that his partner was on his way. Joe hadn’t said much of anything since Mark hit him, though the youngest Cartwright continued sending their kidnapper death glares once in a while. Suddenly, they all could hear a horse coming in their direction. Instantly, Mark was on his feet, gun held tightly in his hands as they waited for the rider to come into clear view. Both Adam and Joe’s hearts sank when they saw the man’s partner riding towards them.

“Well, it’s about time you got here!” Mark shouted to him. “I was about ready to think you up and left me!”

“And leave without my share of the money?” Kyle shouted back as he dismounted. “Not on your life!”

Mark watched Kyle move further into the ‘camp’ before asking, “So, where have you been all this time?”

Kyle smirked, glancing over at Adam and Joe.

“Been over to the Ponderosa,” he replied, smugly. “Seems old man Cartwright and his other son have found out their kin’s missing. They rode out like the Devil was on their heels!”

Adam sent Mark a look of disgust as both men started laughing.

“I don’t see what’s so funny,” Joe mumbled under his breath.

Despite their laughter, Kyle heard Joe’s remark and marched over to him, pulling up by the collar of his shirt.

“What did you say, kid?” he demanded.

“You must be hard of hearing,” Joe snapped back. “I said ‘I don’t see what’s so funny’.”

Adam’s anger was slowly rising to the surface, as well as the painful memories of his and Joe’s time with Kane. It was like the whole thing was repeating itself, except with different players.

“Let him go!” he shouted, angrily.

Mark stepped in front of Adam, blocking his view of Joe and Kyle.

“I really don’t think you’re in the position to argue, Cartwright,” he said, smirking. “After all, your life and that of your brother’s hang in the balance. One wrong move and we won’t hesitate to pull the trigger.”

Adam’s eyes were narrowed, his breathing hard as his still weak body protested against the strain he was putting it through.

“You pull that trigger, my father will have every lawman in the territory of Nevada looking for you two,” he shot back.

He was expecting the slap and wasn’t disappointed when it came. Blood quickly formed at the corner of his mouth, but that didn’t stop him from smiling. He had hit a sore spot.

“The truth hurts, doesn’t it?” he asked, not really expecting an answer.

“The truth is, Cartwright, that you and your brother won’t live to find out,” Mark replied before turning to Kyle. “Did you place the note like I told you to?”

Kyle smirked and nodded.

“Just as you said. I left it right on the front door.”

“Good,” Mark said, nodding. “When they go back home, they’ll find it and, if they ever want to see the rest of their family ever again, they’ll pay us the ransom.”

Adam snorted, catching the attention of Kyle.

“You got something to say?”

“You’re planning on killing us anyway, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, we already told you that.”

Adam shook his head and chuckled.

“What makes you two think that you’ll have the time to spend the money before a posse gets a hold of you and you hang?” he asked, knowing he was pushing his luck.

Mark grit his teeth, his hand gripping his gun tighter.

“You know, I’m getting real sick of your mouth,” he said. “Maybe I should shoot you first and then your brother.”

“No!”

Adam looked behind Kyle and Mark to see his youngest brother struggling to stand.

“I strongly suggest shutting your mouth, kid,” Kyle advised. “If you behave, we might even let you and your brother say your good-byes before you die.”

“Shoot me first,” Joe said, earning him incredulous looks from Adam, Kyle, and Mark.

Adam couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“Joe, no! It’s not worth arguing over this!” he shouted, determined not to let his brother die first.

Joe gave him a look, one that told him all he needed to know about why he was doing this. It was a noble sacrifice. If Joe died first, it may alert anyone in the vicinity to their whereabouts and, hopefully, that person would arrive in time to save Adam. There was only one problem. Adam wasn’t willing to watch his brother die in front of his eyes. Not if he might have a chance of saving Joe’s life instead. As fast as Adam’s body would allow him to move, he kicked a foot out, tripping Kyle and sending him flying into the dirt. The man came back up, spitting at the clumps of grass and dirt that had entered his mouth. His eyes were aimed directly at Adam, who simply smirked.

“Adam!” Joe shouted as Kyle tackled his older brother around the waist.

Both of them went tumbling into the dirt, Kyle on top as he punched Adam in the face. Still weak, all Adam could do was try and fight back, but his injuries from before were making fast movement difficult.

As the fight went on, Joe glared over in Mark’s direction. He was watching the fight with interest, obviously having no intentions of breaking it up anytime soon. Joe tore his gaze from Mark back to Adam and Kyle. His heart was hammering in his chest as Kyle landed punch after punch, until Joe just couldn’t take it anymore.

“STOP!” he shouted, closing his eyes tightly.

Kyle stopped in mid-swing, his other hand holding Adam up by the collar of his shirt, his head just barely above the ground. With a shrug, Kyle dropped him and he fell to the ground, motionless. Without a second thought, Joe hurried to his brother’s side, tears gathering in the corners of his eyes as he examined the damage done to him.

“Adam?” he managed to get out. “Adam?”

A small cough reached his ears and he breathed a deep sigh of relief when his older brother opened his eyes and smiled weakly up at him. Before either could say anything, Kyle and Mark roughly pushed them away from each other.

“That’s enough!” Mark shouted. “You two better not get too comfortable. Believe me, it won’t last long.”

Joe narrowed his eyes, his hands clenching into fists. Every fiber of his being wanted nothing more than to jump the two men right then and there. But, knowing that Adam wouldn’t be able to help him in the fight, Joe refrained from following through. Kyle half dragged and half carried Adam all the way to the other side of the camp, where he set Adam down before moving back beside Mark.

“So now what do we do?” he asked, impatiently.

Mark smiled, looking at Joe as he did so.

“Now, we just wait,” he replied. “Old man Cartwright will be getting that ransom right about now. Then, we’ll see just how much he’s willing to pay to get his sons back. Too bad they’ll be going home in pine boxes.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben and Hoss rode slowly into the yard after traveling into town and dismounted. Handing their horses off to a hand, they walked towards the house, dejectedly. Hoss was the first one to notice the new addition to the door. He ripped the note off and read the words, his eyes widening.

“Pa,” was all he said as he handed it over to him.

Ben could hardly dare to believe the words written on the paper. He looked up at Hoss, disbelief clearly visible across his features.

“What are we gonna do, Pa?” Hoss questioned, anxiously.

Ben crumpled the letter in his hands as small as it would go. He stormed into the house, tossing the paper ball onto the coffee table angrily.

“We’ll have to meet their demands,” he finally answered his middle son.

Hoss’ eyes widened.

“But, Pa-,” he started, but was cut off.

“Not another word about it!” Ben snapped, turning to face him. “Joe and Adam’s lives are at stake here.”

Hoss knew he should listen to Ben, but, he couldn’t help asking one more question.

“Pa, what if they follow through with their threat of killing them?” he inquired, softly.

Ben didn’t speak for a moment or two.

“Then we’ll catch them,” he vowed, speaking more to himself than to his son. “We’ll catch them and they’ll hang.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Too weak to move, Adam just stayed on the ground, facing the sky. He hadn’t heard a sound from Kyle, Mark, or Joe in a while. He was worried, but, unable to move on his own, he had no way of checking to see if his little brother was all right. An hour or two later, Kyle rode into town and returned with news. They had instructed Ben and Hoss to leave a note at the bank if they were going to meet Kyle and Mark’s demands. Sure enough, the note was there and Kyle brought it back for Mark to read.

“It seems your pa is awful found of you boys,” Mark commented after he read the note. “Too bad he’ll never get the chance to see you ever again. I’ll be sure to tell him you fought valiantly!”

“You won’t have to tell him,” Adam heard Joe say, firmly. “He’ll find us alive and take us home.”

Mark chuckled at Joe’s words.

“You really think you’re getting out of here alive?” he asked, incredulously.

Joe said nothing, but Adam could tell that he was fuming. Moving slowly, Adam moaned loudly, attracting the attention of the others.

“Adam?”

Adam opened his eyes to see Joe next to him, looking down at him, worriedly. For some reason, Mark and Kyle had let him go to his side. It probably meant they were planning on killing them soon. At least they could say good-bye.

“Easy, Adam,” Joe spoke quietly. “Don’t try to move so much.”

“Joe, please, don’t give them any reason to come after you,” Adam pleaded.

“I’m not gonna just let them kill you, Adam!” he answered, angrily. “I can’t do that. What would I tell Pa?”

Adam didn’t know what to say to that, so he kept silent. Kyle walked over a minute later and grabbed Joe’s arm forcing him to move back to where he had been before. Mark stood over Adam, a smirk on his face.

“Your Pa doesn’t have very long, Cartwright,” he said. “He better get that money fast.”

Adam didn’t bother saying anything. What was the point? He already knew Mark and Kyle were going to kill him and Joe anyway.

^^^^^^^^^^^

“What do you mean you can’t loan me the money?!” Ben Cartwright’s voice boomed throughout the bank. “Tom, you know I’m good for it!”

The manager of the bank fidgeted nervously, wringing his hands over and over as he stood in front of Ben.

“Oh, I know, Mr. Cartwright,” he agreed, readily. “But, well, there are other factors you have to take into consideration.”

Ben placed a hand on his hip, a sure-tell sign he was getting even angrier.

“Oh? Just what kind of ‘factors’ are you talking about?”

“Well, sir, you have to take into consideration the high amount you’re asking us for,” Tom replied. “$5,000 is a lot of money and, unfortunately, I’m not authorized to loan out that kind of cash. Besides, even if I was, we surely don’t have that much money in the bank. You can see my dilemma.”

Ben’s hands clenched into fists, but he fought to hold down his temper.

“Tom, if I don’t get that money, both Adam and Little Joe will be killed,” he said, softly, almost begging.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Cartwright,” Tom apologized, solemnly. “I truly am.”

Ben didn’t say anything more. With a dejected look on his face, he twirled his hat in his hands before placing it on his head. With one last sad look at Tom, he moved past him and walked out the door.

Outside, Hoss was waiting by their horses, glancing in every direction to see if anyone had been tailing them. When Ben stepped outside, he immediately turned his attention to him.

“Did Tom loan you the money, Pa?” he asked, hopefully.

His worst fears came to be when his father said nothing and simply shook his head. Hoss turned away from Ben and tightened his grip on Chubb’s reigns. Their only hope for saving his brothers had just been thrown out the window. What were they going to do now?

Ben placed a hand on his middle son’s shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly, even though he wasn’t sure how everything was going to turn out.

“Come on, Hoss,” he said. “Lets go to see Roy.”

Hoss nodded and followed him along the street. Behind them, a man with his hat pulled low over his eyes followed closely, but it didn’t go unnoticed by Ben and Hoss. They went into several shops and, each time, the stranger followed them inside. After going into the third shop, Ben motioned for Hoss to take a position by the door. With the store completely empty except for the owner and his wife, Hoss grabbed their shadow just as he walked through the door. Holding him by his collar, Hoss pushed him up against the counter.

“Now, mister, you better talk,” he warned, gritting his teeth, “and you better talk fast.”

“Talk about what?” the man asked, feigning innocence.

Ben stepped up next to Hoss, making no move to stop his son.

“Where are my sons?” he demanded, angrily. “You’ve been following us all this time, haven’t you?”

The man didn’t say anything for a moment, until Hoss pushed him back a little more, frightening him.

“Okay, okay, okay!” he said, anxiously. “You’re right. I have been following you, but I don’t know where they are, I swear.”

Ben stared at him for a moment or two before glancing at Hoss briefly.

“Hoss.”

That was all he needed to say and his middle son punched the man out. The owner of the store said nothing as he swept around the unconscious man and watched as the two Cartwrights walked outside. No other instances occurred on the rest of the way to the sheriff’s office. As they entered, Roy rose from his seat to greet them.

“Ben, Hoss,” he said, nodding to them each and shaking their hands. “What can I do for you fellas?”

Ben looked at Hoss as they took their seats, then back to Roy before answering.

“Roy, is there any way, any way at all that you can authorize the bank to loan me $5,000?” he asked, softly.

At first, the sheriff wasn’t sure he had heard right, but, upon seeing the determined look on his visitor’s faces, he sighed and removed his glasses. Running a hand over his face, he looked at Ben once more.

“Ben, what in the world do you need $5,000 for?” he asked.

Hoss spoke up before his father could.

“It’s for Little Joe and Adam, Roy,” he answered. “It’s the ransom the kidnappers are demanding.”

Roy frowned.

“Ransom?” he repeated. “Why didn’t you tell me this sooner, Ben?”

“Because we can’t afford to have a posse out there scouring the countryside with these men holding Joe and Adam,” Ben replied, firmly. “If they so much as catch wind of a posse, they won’t hesitate to kill them both.”

Roy seemed to contemplate that for a moment.

“You’re right, Ben, but if there’s anything I can do, you just let me know.”

“I’ve already told you, Roy. We need that loan from the bank. Without it, they’ll kill my boys.”

Roy stood.

“All right, Ben, I’ll see what I can do.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Two hours later, Ben and Hoss were riding fast to the designated meeting place for the transfer of money and captives. Ben was holding the saddlebags full of money. Unfortunately, Roy hadn’t been able to persuade Tom to loan Ben the money, but, after some negotiations, Tom had agreed to pay half of the ransom while Ben would pay the other half. After Ben signed for it, Tom had even apologized for acting so uncaring before.

Now, they were waiting and hoping. Hoping that Joe and Adam would be brought to the designated meeting spot and the exchange would go smoothly. Just as they were both about to give up hope of anyone coming, horses could be heard in the distance. Ben frowned when only three riders came into view. His heart plummeted when he realized that only Joe was riding with the men. His eyes narrowed as they stopped their horses in front of the Cartwrights.

“Where’s my other son?” he demanded.

One man was holding a gun on them, the other, the reigns to Joe’s horse.

“We’ll ask the questions, Cartwright,” the one with the gun answered, firmly. “Now, where’s our money?”

Ben stole a glance at Hoss, who was staring directly at his younger brother. Tearing his gaze away from him, Ben, too, took a good look at his youngest son. Several bruises could be seen on his face, a few cuts as well from where he had obviously been hit. Other than that, there didn’t seem to be any severe damage. Ben reached behind him and produced the saddle bags. He threw them to the ground in front of the men’s horses.

“There it is,” Ben said. “All $5,000 of it. Now, where’s Adam?”

“You don’t really believe we’re that stupid, do you, Cartwright?” the leader asked, smirking. “Your son, Adam, is our passage out of here. As long as we have him with us, you and the sheriff won’t come after me and Kyle here.”

“Mister, if you hurt him, I swear, you won’t be able to find a rock or boulder big enough to hide under,” Ben vowed. “I will find you.”

The fear in the other man’s eyes told Ben that he understood what he was trying to say. All at once, Kyle dismounted and ordered Joe to do the same. As Joe walked towards his father and brother, Kyle picked up the saddle bags and back-traced his steps until he reached his horse. With a heavy heart, Ben watched the kidnappers leave. Shaking his head as if to clear his thoughts, he hurriedly dismounted and went to Joe’s side.

Placing both hands on his youngest son’s shoulders, he searched his face, worriedly.

“Joseph?” he questioned without actually saying the words.

Joe half smiled, which turned into a sad look on his face as the events caught up to him.

“Pa,” he sobbed, welcoming his father’s strong arms as they caught him and gently lowered him to the ground.

“Joe!” came Hoss’ shout as he reached their sides. He pushed back the curls on his younger brother’s forehead as he added, “Hey, Short Shanks.”

Joe wasn’t seriously hurt, just exhausted. He managed a weak smile for Ben and Hoss, who each breathed a sigh of relief.

“Joe, can you tell us where they’re holding Adam?” Ben asked, anxiously.

His heart sank as Joe shook his head.

“They said they’d be moving him as soon as they got their money,” he replied, his throat hoarse. “I don’t even know where they’re taking him. But they said they’ll release him once they’re far enough away.”

Ben was silent for a few moments as he allowed the information to sink in. They didn’t have a clue as to where Kyle and his boss were taking Adam, nor where they’d leave Adam either. With a sigh, he and Hoss helped Joe to his feet.

“Lets go home, boys,” Ben said, softly.

Joe’s eyes widened.

“But, Pa, what about Adam?” he asked, panicking. “W-We can’t just leave him out there.”

Ben closed his eyes tightly, knowing he was right, but also knowing that they’d just be wasting time looking for them without any idea of where they might be.

“We have to get you home, Son,” he replied, reluctantly. “We’ll send one of the hands for the doctor.”

Joe grabbed his father’s arm before they could urge him along any further.

“Pa, please.”

Ben didn’t know how he was going to be able to ignore Joe’s pleading, especially since there wasn’t anything else they could do. Still, one thought weighed on Ben’s mind.

“We’ll try, Joseph,” he promised. “We’ll try.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Move faster, Cartwright!” Mark ordered, yanking his rope viciously.

Adam wasn’t given the privilege of riding a horse. Instead, his wrists were tied in front of him, Mark holding the other end as he was forced to walk the whole way.

“At this rate, Mark, we’ll never get far enough away,” Kyle complained.

Mark sighed and nodded.

“You’re right, Kyle,” he agreed. “I guess here’s as good a spot as any to kill him, wouldn’t you say?”

“Sure is,” came the affirmative reply.

Adam struggled uselessly against the rope.

“You won’t get away with murder,” he vowed. “No matter how hard or how far you ride, someone will eventually catch up with you. Believe me, one way or another, you’ll hang.”

Kyle backhanded him across the face, sending Adam into the dirt.

“Shut up, Cartwright!” he shouted, angrily. “We should’ve killed you and your brother instead of letting him go.”

Mark frowned.

“Kyle, that’s enough!” he shouted back, equally angry. “The only reason we let the other one go is to make Cartwright trust us enough to let Adam here go as well. We’ll let him go, all right. We’ll send him back in a pine box!”

While the two men were arguing, Adam, having been forgotten, had been working furiously at his bonds until he finally managed to get loose. Quietly, he stole away unnoticed, but not for long.

“Now look what you’ve done, you idiot!” Mark shouted. “You let him get away!”

“It’s not my fault!” Kyle replied back. “You were supposed to be watching him too!”

“Lets spread out and find him.”

Adam couldn’t run very fast, if at all. His still weak body was making it harder and harder so he had to settle for hiding instead. It was just as effective as he watched both of his kidnappers go by without even giving his hiding spot a glance.‘Gotta keep moving,’

He could hear Mark and Kyle moving further and further away from him. He prayed that they wouldn’t backtrack and catch him. If they did, he knew he wouldn’t be able to escape a second time. He wished his father and brothers had disobeyed Mark’s order about following them. From the looks of it, they hadn’t and that discouraged him for the moment. However, he knew he had to keep going. Maybe, hopefully, he’d get lucky and meet someone on the trail.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Ben didn’t know how far he and Hoss would be able to ride before they’d have to give up and turn around to head for home. Joe’s words rang true as they rode into the former camp of the kidnappers. The only signs that anyone had been there at all were several sets of footprints in the dirt. And, even then, they didn’t necessarily belong to the men. After over an hour and a half of searching, Ben turned to Hoss with sad eyes.

“Son-” he began, but was interrupted.

“I know, Pa,” he answered, softly. “Lets go back home and see what the doctor has to tell us about Joe.”

They had left Joe back at the house with Doctor Martin. Once the doctor arrived, father and son had immediately set out to look around. Both knew that it was a possibility that they wouldn’t find anything, but their hopes had been slightly raised. Now, their faces once again held dejected looks as they glanced one last time around the ‘camp’ before turning their horses for home. As they rode out, a rustling sounded in the bushes and a disheveled Adam stepped into the clearing. His eyes widened in surprise at the sight of his father and brother riding away.

He opened his mouth to call out to them, but a hand closed over it quickly as Kyle grabbed a hold of him, a sinister grin spreading across his face.

“Now, none of that, Cartwright,” he whispered into Adam’s ear. “You don’t want your family hurt, do you?”

All the fight went out of Adam as he realized there was nothing he could do. His body lay limp in Kyle’s grasp, causing the other man to loosen his grip. Something in Adam seemed to snap. As fast as he could, he dropped all the way to the ground, surprising Kyle, who was barely holding onto him. Once down on the ground, Adam tripped his captor, sending him into the dirt face first. As he fell, Adam darted forward, ignoring the protests of his injuries as he did so, and retrieved Kyle’s gun from it’s holster. Holding it above his head, he fired three rapid shots into the air, hoping that Ben and Hoss weren’t too far away to hear it.

“You’ll pay for that, Cartwright,” Kyle stated from the ground.

Without even blinking an eye, Adam aimed the gun at him, his hand steady even though his body felt as if it could give on him any second.

“No, actually, I don’t think I will,” he answered just as the sound of riders could be heard in the distance.

He frowned as Mark rode up on his left. He’d forgotten that he was around. The enormous relief he felt when he saw Ben and Hoss riding towards him, however, squelched the rising fear in the pit of his stomach. A look of pure and absolute relief crossed Ben’s features as he laid eyes on his oldest son. But that relief quickly turned to concern, worry, and anger. Concern because Adam was swaying slightly on his feet. Worry due to the gun being aimed at him by Mark and anger at the two men who had promised to let Adam go in the first place, but, obviously, had gone back on their word.

“Let him go,” Ben ordered, his eyes narrowed. “We made a deal. You have your money.”

Mark and Kyle exchanged glances before smiling and turning to face Ben once more.

“We said we’d release your son, Cartwright,” Mark agreed. “And we did. We released the other one. We never said anything in the note about releasing both of them.”

Ben wanted to argue, but his eyes widened at the kidnapper’s words because he knew he was right. The note had been in the singular tense, not the plural. Ben grit his teeth, angrily. They had tricked him!

“If you hurt him, I swear to you, you’ll never get out of the territory of Nevada alive,” he vowed, his right hand already beginning to reach for his gun.

“Cartwright, you really don’t have a choice,” Mark answered, still smug. “You see, we’re still taking Adam here with us and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

Ben looked over at his oldest son, who was staring right back at him with somewhat pleading eyes. Ben closed his eyes, wanting to silently send him a reassuring message that he wouldn’t have to go with them, but, seeing the gun Kyle was holding on him, it looked like he had no other choice. Ben opened his eyes again.

“All right,” he agreed, softly.

Next to him, Hoss’ eyes went wide.

“But, Pa-” he argued, anxiously.

His father held up a hand to silence him, not wanting to get into a discussion about his decision with Adam’s life hanging in the balance. But Hoss wasn’t about to let his brother go that easily.

“Take me instead,” he offered, turning to face the men. “With Adam in the condition he’s in, he’ll just slow you two down. I’m healthy and strong. You won’t have to worry about me lagging behind.”

Ben’s eyes widened in surprise and he moved next to Hoss.

“Hoss!”

“Hold it, Cartwright,” Mark ordered, obviously thinking about the Cartwright brother’s proposition. “Your boy makes a valid point.”

Ben’s hands clenched into fists at his sides. They shook slightly as Mark continued speaking.

“Maybe we should take him instead,” he said, thoughtfully. “What do you think, Kyle?”

Kyle shrugged, seemingly uncaring.

“Doesn’t matter to me,” he replied. “I don’t think it makes a difference which one we take. Any one of them will get us where we need to go.”

Hoss and Ben could both see the looks in the men’s eyes. In that instant, they knew Adam was going to be taken away from them once more. They said nothing as Kyle roughly retied Adam’s hands in front of him, the ropes cutting into his skin.

“You won’t get away with this,” Hoss thought to point out as the men made to leave.

Ben had to fight to keep a smile from forming on his face at his middle son’s words.

“I do believe we already have,” Mark replied, a satisfied smile appearing on his face. Turning to Adam, he added, “Say good-bye to your family, Cartwright. It may be the last time you ever see them.”

A scowl appeared on Adam’s face at the man’s suggestion, but he looked over at Hoss and Ben anyway, a small, sad smile slowly working at the corners of his mouth.

“We’ll get you back, Adam,” Ben vowed, his voice carrying across the distance as Mark and Kyle led Adam away. “I promise you, we will!”

Adam kept looking back at his father and brother until their outlines were just shadows in the distance and he couldn’t make out their faces anymore. He winced as Mark pulled tightly on the rope anchoring him to the horse and turned his head back to look in the direction they were going in. The sunlight was blinding him, making it hard to see the ground.

That’s exactly how he tripped.

It happened so fast, he wasn’t even sure if it was a rock, stick, branch, or even his own two feet! Almost as soon as he hit the ground, Mark and Kyle stopped. One of their shadows fell across him. He was expecting a boot to the side, but none came. Adam slowly opened one eye to see what they were up to.

“Get up, Cartwright,” came Mark’s voice.

“Maybe we should just leave him,” Kyle suggested. “He’s just slowing us down anyway and we’re almost far enough away that his family won’t be able to catch up to us once they reach him.”

Mark seemed to think about this for a few seconds before he eventually nodded.

“You’ll never get far enough away,” Adam managed to say as Kyle pushed him onto the ground and began tying his ankles so he couldn’t follow them.

“Just keep telling yourself that,” Kyle said, smirking as he finished.

Adam grit his teeth in frustration and struggled against his restraints, despite the protests his body was making. His injuries still weren’t healed it reminded him of that fact every single day.

After a while, Mark and Kyle mounted their horses and headed out, smiling smugly at Adam as they passed him. All he could do was watch them go, knowing he’d never be able to get out of the ropes without help.

 

Chapter Twelve:  Worth Fighting For

“We’ll get him back, Hoss,” Ben repeated for the umpteenth time.

Father and son had started out almost as soon as Adam and his kidnappers were out of sight. Neither had spoken a word. But neither of them had to. Once Ben started moving, Hoss just naturally followed.

For the most part, their trip was silent. Whether it was because they were afraid Mark and Kyle were lying in wait somewhere, just to see if they’d follow, they didn’t know. Finally, Hoss couldn’t stand the silence anymore.

“We should’ve caught up to ‘em by now,” he commented, softly.

At first, Ben didn’t reply. Hoss looked over at the older man and frowned. His father didn’t seem to be paying attention to him. His eyes seemed distant, as if lost in his own thoughts.

“Pa?” Hoss asked, a little louder.

The sound of his voice snapped Ben out of whatever thoughts he may have been thinking.

“Huh? What?” he asked, looking over at him. “What is it, Son?”

Hoss smiled slightly.

“Pa, don’t worry,” he said, reassuringly. “We’ll find Adam.”

Ben managed to smile a little before his face turned serious again.

“We have a lot of ground to cover,” he stated. “Lets get moving.”

^^^^^^^^^^^

Adam shivered against the desert night’s chill. Time seemed to escape him. His wrists were raw and bleeding from trying to get out of his bonds. His legs were pulled as close to his chest as he could manage to keep warm, but the temperature wasn’t letting up. Mark and Kyle had left him nothing to eat or drink, making his lips and throat parched and dry. But Adam wasn’t ready to give up. He just repeated his father’s words in his head over and over again.

We’ll get you back, Adam. I promise you, we will!

He had to wait. If he could survive, he knew his father and brother would find him. When Ben Cartwright gave his word, he never broke it. Adam’s delirious thoughts traveled to when he was a little boy. Ben had never lied to him about the hardships they went through. He told Adam exactly what happened as it happened. Whether they were on the trail, in a town, or holed up in a cave. His father had been there for him then, had reassured him time and time again that they’d make it through, no matter what and they had.

That’s why Adam knew he’d pull through for him now. He just had to wait.

It was cold. Wolves were probably getting ready to hunt and he was an easy target, defenseless and alone. With his hands tied behind his back and his body refusing to cooperate with him due to his injuries, he was an easy target. Somehow, he managed to fall asleep. His dreams were really nightmares, causing him to cry out a few times.

When he finally woke up, the first thing he felt was the chill of the night air. He had no idea what time it was or how long he had been out there. He could’ve been asleep for a day and not even known it. But he had a feeling it was merely hours later. For one, he could still hear the coyotes howling in the distance, but they didn’t dare come near him. They weren’t as brave as wolves. As Adam laid back on the ground, he shivered, getting the strangest feeling that he was being watched. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end and he took a brief look around, his eyes falling on a pair of amber orbs staring directly back at him. There was no mistaking that color or whose eyes they belonged to as a grey wolf stepped into the clearing, slowly. He made no sudden moves towards Adam, yet he didn’t seem to be afraid of him.

Adam could see the hungry look in his eyes, a nice row of sharp teeth in his mouth as the animal panted heavily. Who knows how long he had been searching for food out in the desert or for how long he had been traveling in the first place. For some reason, however, the wolf didn’t seem to want to attack right away. He was waiting, either for something or maybe someone, such as the rest of his pack. It made no sense why he would be alone. Adam was still sure he was about to become dinner, though.

But the wolf made no move to strike as he circled his prey cautiously, eying him. Adam couldn’t hear any signs of other wolves in the area. So, what was the wolf waiting for?

Instead of attacking like Adam thought it would do once it got tired of circling him, the wolf actually laid down no more than five feet away from him, staring directly at him. Adam didn’t do anything, unsure of if this was a trick to get him to move. His injuries, however, had other ideas and caused him to cry out in pain as he laid back down on the cold ground. The wolf didn’t move, just kept staring at Adam, tilting his head slightly as if he was curious about what he was doing.

Adam moved a little, careful not to jar his shoulder, where the scab from his branding mark had been opened and now was bleeding. He could see the wolf sniffing the air, as if the blood was drawing him in. The animal stood, stretching slightly before circling again.

He didn’t know what to do. This wolf clearly was waiting for something. Adam didn’t have to wait too much longer to find out what, either. From the same direction the wolf came in, another followed after him, also grey in color, it’s eyes as golden as the first. Whether it was a sibling of the other wolf or his mate, Adam wasn’t sure, but he had a feeling this is why the first wolf had waited for so long. He waited for his mate that way, once they killed him, they would both get equal shares. It made him shiver just thinking about it, but if definitely made sense to him now.

The growling started off low at first, gradually growing in pitch as the wolves bared their fangs at Adam, growling their ferocious intent. Still on his back, there was no real way for him to escape. He couldn’t stand even if he wanted to, though the effort itself would probably cause him to pass out. All he could do was lay there, hoping, by some miracle, he’d survive.

The growls grew louder, one snapping at him with it’s large jaws to scare him a little, but Adam didn’t move. Suddenly, the wolves stopped circling him. One crouched down, poised to strike. The other, on the other side of him, was still growling, baring it’s sharp teeth as if to intimidate Adam. All he could do was wait helplessly as the first wolf attacked, leaping on top of him, his eyes murderous.

The next few seconds seemed to happen in slow motion, as if time wanted him to remember. Just as the wolf’s fangs were about to bite him, a gunshot rang out, followed quickly by a second one. The wolf that had been so ferocious collapsed on top of him, lifeless as Adam felt the air rush out of his lungs under its weight. Desperately, he looked around, fully expecting to see the other wolf ready to attack him, but there was no sign of it. He could hear voices, shouting something as the weight lifted off of him and he was cradled in someone’s arms. The voices sounded familiar, he realized as someone started shaking him.

“Adam!”

“P-Pa?”

His voice was rough and scratchy, but relief flooded through him as a hand was placed on his forehead, pushing back the curls that had gathered there and matted down from sweat.

“Is he all right, Pa?” a second voice asked, worriedly.

Adam’s vision focused finally and he found himself staring up at both his father and Hoss, who smiled back at him, reassuringly. Adam looked over, surprised to find the wolf dead next to him. Confused, he looked back at his father.

“It’s all right, Son,” he said, helping him sit up a little. “Hoss and I managed to get both of the wolves before they could do anything.”

Adam smiled slightly before leaning back in his father’s arms and closing his eyes, grateful it was over. At least, for the time being. He opened his eyes once more and looked back up at Ben.

“K-Knew you’d c-c-come,” he stammered, weakly. “Y-You p-pr-promised you w-would.”

Ben’s eyes seemed to fill with tears at Adam’s words and he nodded, tightening his grip on his eldest son gently.

“I know, boy,” he whispered back. “I know. Hoss and I are gonna get you home.”

At that, Adam’s eyes closed again and he fell into blessed darkness.

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Do you have any idea when he’ll wake up, Paul?”

Quietly, Adam stirred, unconsciously listening in on the conversation happening above him. His eyes were heavy, making it impossible for him to open them.

“I really don‘t, Ben,” came the familiar reply.

It was a voice Adam recognized, one he’d heard often. Why couldn’t he place it? And he was absolutely certain he knew the first voice as well, but, with his pounding headache, it was impossible for him to think about.

“Adam? Can you hear me?”

He wanted to reply, to reassure the worried voice that he was awake and there was nothing to worry about. The best he could do was open his eyes, only to close them again due to the brightness in the room. The curtains had been drawn back to allow some sunlight into the room, which now blinded Adam so he couldn’t see.

“Close the curtains, Ben,” the second voice ordered. “He’s coming around.”

A strange sound reached his ears and he stirred slightly, trying to move away from it. Hands gently touched his shoulders, pushing him back and holding him in place.

“Easy, Son,” the first voice soothed. “It’s all right, Adam. You’re home.”

A name came to him then. A name that made him relax against the hands keeping him in the bed.

“P-Pa.”

His voice was weak and hoarse from disuse and he licked his lips to get moisture into them. At the same time, a glass was pressed to his lips and he found himself drinking cool water.

“Easy, Son, not too much,” Ben said, gently, removing the glass from in front of him.

Adam’s eyes, despite their heaviness, opened slowly. He blinked a few times, trying to make the heaviness go away. A hand was placed on his forehead and he smiled slightly at the familiar touch.

“His fever’s broken, Paul.”

Another hand on his head seemed to satisfy whoever else was in the room.

“I think he’s in the clear, Ben.”

Adam knew that voice too, now that he could hear clearer. Doctor Martin. It had to be. Turning his head, painfully, he looked up into the smiling face of his old friend.

“Welcome back, Adam,” the doctor greeted him. “You gave us quite a scare.”

Adam could only smile a little, but it was enough. Doctor Martin patted his shoulder before standing to his full height.

“I better be getting along now, Ben,” he announced. “Just give him the medicine for pain as he needs it. I’ll be back in a few days to check on him.”

Ben nodded and followed him to the bedroom door.

“Thank you, Paul,” he said, gratefully.

Once he had left, Ben turned back to Adam, only to find him struggling to sit up in bed.

“Adam!” he shouted, hurrying to his side. “Adam, Son, you’re not strong enough to be up and about yet.”

Using his hands like before, he pushed Adam back down against the bed, pulling the covers overtop of him as if he was a little boy. His oldest son struggled weakly against him.

“T-The men,” he stammered.

“Don’t worry, Adam,” Ben reassured him. “Roy caught up to them a couple of days ago.”

Adam frowned. A couple of days ago? Then that would mean…

“H-How long?” he asked, curiously.

At first, Ben had no idea what he was asking about, but, as he thought, it suddenly became clear.

“About five days,” he replied, softly.

Adam’s eyes widened. Five days. Five days of not knowing what was going on. He didn’t even know Joe’s condition. Stealing himself as he moved slightly in the bed, Adam relaxed afterwards and looked at Ben, ready to ask.

As if sensing Adam had a question, Ben moved forward a little.

“J-Joe?”

Ben’s eyes widened at the unspoken question lurking behind his youngest son‘s name, but he smiled slightly.

“He’s fighting, Adam,” he replied. “His fever is up, but Hoss is taking good care of him.”

Almost immediately, Adam started trying to sit up again, but Ben was there once again to push him back down.

“Adam, I just told you, Hoss is taking care of your brother,” Ben stated, trying to calm him down. “You know how he is when it comes to these types of situations.”

Fire seemed to be burning deep within his oldest son’s eyes as he stared at his father.

Ben sighed.

“I know you want to see him,” he said, “but you’re in no condition to be out of bed.”

The look in Adam’s eyes didn’t waver, but Ben was just as stubborn, if not, more so, than him. After all, that’s who he inherited it from.

“You’re staying in bed, Son, and that’s all I have to say on the matter,” he ordered, firmly. “When Joe’s better, I’ll have him come and see you, but, until then, you are staying in this bed and recovering.”

Adam knew when he was beaten and, as tired as he was, he was in no position to argue anymore with his father. Ben watched as Adam’s eyes slowly closed, as if they had become too heavy. Once he was sure that the younger man was asleep, he quietly slipped out of the room, heading for the stairs.

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Now you just simmer down, Joe.”

Hoss was fighting a battle of his own – against his little brother. Joe’s fever had gone up a little and, needing to bring it back down, he had placed a cloth on Joe’s forehead. Unfortunately, due to the fever, Joe kept throwing the cloth off. Hoss was doing everything in his power to keep his little brother still, but he was failing.

“Dadburnit, Little Joe, calm down!” he shouted, pinning the younger man’s arms to the bed, gently, yet firmly.

Slowly, Joe’s thrashing subsided and he leaned back on the bed, sweat matting his hair to the sides of his head as Hoss used the cloth to cool him.

“Don’t you worry about a thing, you hear?” Hoss asked, softly. “I’m gonna take care of you and get you feeling better in no time, little brother.”

Silently, Hoss hoped he was telling the truth. As soon as Doctor Martin was finished checking over Adam, he’d have to have him check on Joe. His fever had gotten worse last night and, for some reason, Hoss just couldn’t seem to be able to bring it down.

It wasn’t even a minute later that Joe started struggling again, a nightmare seemingly gripping him as he tossed and turned. Down the hall, Hoss could hear the door to Adam’s bedroom opening and footsteps he had come to know as his father’s heading for the stairs. Desperate, Hoss hurried to the door.

“Pa! Pa, come here, quick!” he called before retreating back into the room.

Ben entered at a small run, stopping in the doorway as he looked at Joe on the bed. Without wasting any time, he moved into the room and gently grabbed a hold of his youngest son’s shoulders.

“Joseph!” he called, anxiously.

His name seemed to penetrate through Joe’s feverish brain. Slowly, he calmed down, relaxing against his father’s gentle touch. His eyes wandered around the room briefly before settling on him.

“P-Pa?” he stammered, weakly.

Ben smiled and nodded.

“That’s right, Son,” he assured him. “It’s all right now. You’re safe.”

Joe seemed to become a little more agitated, his eyes pleadingly looking up into Ben’s.

“A-Adam?” he asked, worry shining deep in his eyes.

Ben smiled and nodded.

“Adam’s just fine, Joe,” he replied, using a hand to brush back the damp curls clinging to his son’s forehead. “He’s in his room, worrying about you.”

Joe frowned, trying to focus on what Ben was saying, but the fever was slowly taking over and a few minutes later, he had drifted off into a restless sleep. Breathing a deep sigh of relief, Ben rose from the bed and turned to look at Hoss only to find him missing from the room. Frowning, Ben went out into the hall, not in the least bit surprised to see his middle son standing just outside the door.

“Hoss?” he called.

The bigger man turned to look at him, worry and concerned etched into his features.

“Pa, how’s Joe?” he asked, anxiously.

“He’s resting for right now,” came the reply. “What’s wrong, Son?”

Hoss looked down at his feet, shuffling a little. It was quiet for a few moments as Ben waited for an answer.

“Nothing’s wrong, Pa,” he slowly started speaking. “Well, not exactly anyway.”

Ben frowned, folding his arms.

“What do you mean?”

Again, Hoss was silent, apparently trying to think of the right words to say so his father could understand him.

“It’s Joe,” he said. “Pa, I just don’t know how to help him or Adam. Joe’s fever’s been getting worse.”

Ben swallowed and nodded in understanding.

“I know, Hoss, but we just have to do the best we can to help them through this,” he said, placing a hand on his shoulder. “You go after the doctor and I’ll go on to check on your brothers.”

Hoss nodded and headed downstairs as Ben entered Adam’s bedroom. His oldest son was sitting up in bed, despite his weak body and Ben couldn’t help but sigh in exasperation. Realizing Adam would sit up no matter what he said, Ben simply walked into the room, sitting in the chair by the bed he had occupied earlier. It was silent in the room.

“You know, it’s not very nice to pretend to be asleep just so you can be stubborn and sit up in bed,” Ben finally stated, his voice penetrating the air in the room.

Adam looked at him with a raised eyebrow and Ben couldn’t help but chuckle a little.

“Don’t look at me like that, Son,” he scolded, though there wasn’t any real anger behind it. “You’re forgetting, I raised you ever since you were born. There aren’t too many things you can pull over on me.”

A small smile tugged at the corners of Adam’s mouth, but it didn’t completely surface. The pain still evident in his body wouldn’t let him as he closed his eyes and winced.

“Adam?” Ben asked, worriedly.

The younger man slowly opened his eyes and looked at his father.

“I-It h-h-hurts s-some-sometimes,” he replied, stammering.

“Well, the doctor’s coming back to check on Joe so-”

“S-Something’s w-wr-wrong with J-Joe?”

It took a minute for Ben to realize exactly what he had said and, when he did, he mentally kicked himself. Adam had enough to worry about without worrying about the condition of his youngest brother. Knowing Adam would never believe him if he said Joe was fine, Ben sighed.

“His fever is high, higher than before,” he admitted, solemnly.

Adam’s eyes widened, but he made no indications of trying to get out of bed, which Ben was grateful for. He could sense the tiredness in Adam’s voice when he spoke and, as he watched, his son’s eyes slowly closed as the medicine Doctor Martin gave him started working. Knowing Adam would sleep for real this time, Ben left, meeting up with Paul Martin in the hall just as he was about to enter Joe’s bedroom. The door to the room was already open and Hoss was inside, standing by the foot of Joe’s bed.

“Let me by, Ben.”

The oldest Cartwright stepped aside, allowing the doctor to enter. Anxiously, he watched as his longtime friend examined Joe. Still delirious, the younger man had no idea what was going on, his fever still high. As Paul finished, Ben waited anxiously for him to put away his instruments.

“Hoss, give him a tablespoon every four hours for pain,” the doctor instructed him, handing him a bottle of some sort of red liquid. “If the fever goes any higher, give him an ice bath. Ben, may I speak to you outside?”

Frowning, Ben nodded.

“Of course,” he replied, taking one last glance at his sons before closing the door behind them.

Out in the hall, Ben turned his attention to Paul.

“What is it?” he asked almost immediately.

“Keep a close eye on Joe, Ben,” he advised. “If his fever goes up too far, I’m afraid that ice bath won’t do a bit of good. You have to catch it in time so don‘t leave him alone even for a few minutes.”

Ben’s face turned pale as he nodded.

“Is there anything else we can do, Paul?” he asked, anxiously. “Anything at all?”

Doctor Martin turned to look at him from his position atop the stairs. Worry and deep concern were clearly seen on his weathered face. He was more than just a doctor, he was a friend and Ben knew that he had done everything possible to help his youngest son. Doctor Martin didn’t even need to voice the next word that Ben knew would be escaping his lips.

“Pray,” came the answer.

The oldest Cartwright watched as Paul descended the stairs and he stood there for a moment or two, staring after him. Briefly, he glanced back towards Joe’s room, then, allowing his eyes to wander further down the hall, they landed on Adam’s. He noticed the silence in the normally rather noisy house and sighed, running a hand up and down his arm as if it would bring him some comfort. The house hadn’t been loud ever since Adam and Joe were found after that madman, Peter Kane, had gotten through with them. He closed his eyes, feeling guilty for doing so, but thanking God all the same that his boys had been spared.

Now, however, he also offered up a prayer, pleading with God to spare them again. He knew both of them had been having nightmares lately, each waking up in a cold sweat. Sometimes, they wouldn’t even wake up at all.

Behind him, Joe’s bedroom door opened and he turned, seeing Hoss exit and shut the door. Ben said nothing as his middle son walked up behind him.

“Pa?” he silently asked.

Blinking back the water in his eyes, Ben turned towards him and managed to force a smile, which quickly disappeared at the serious look on Hoss’ face.

“What the doc have to say?” he asked, his brows furrowed together as he swallowed hard.

Ben was fully prepared to tell Hoss that Paul was just giving him last minutes instructions and that there was nothing to worry about, but the look on the younger man’s face made him rethink that decision.

“We need to keep a close eye on him, Hoss,” he answered, softly. “Paul said if his fever goes any higher, then we need to use the ice bath as soon as possible.”

Hoss didn’t say anything for a minute, lost in his thoughts. Silently, he turned and walked back down the hall into Joe’s room. Ben didn’t have to hear him say anything. It was pretty much an unspoken agreement that Hoss would be taking the first watch.

^^^^^^^^^^^

He shivered as he regained consciousness. Vaguely, he wondered why he wasn’t wearing a jacket, only to come to realize he had nothing on at all. But the cold wasn’t from wind or any other element. It was pressed up tightly against his body, causing water to cascade off of his still slightly feverish skin.

He shivered again, his teeth chattering together as if the very cold of winter had made itself at home in that very room. His eyes were heavy, yet, somehow, he managed to open them only to close them due to the brightness of the room.

“He’s awake, Pa,” a voice penetrated the quietness in the room.

A familiar hand touched his forehead, brushing back the sweaty curls that lingered there. In almost an instant, he knew where he was. Hazy memories came back to him in a flash. He was sick and his fever had gone up, but, what happened after that? He could remember going to sleep and then, nothing.

The hand on his forehead was warm and he stirred a little, leaning into the touch. As his body shifted, a cracking noise filled the air. He frowned, unsure of what it was that had caused it. Finally able to open his eyes again, he did so, surprised to find himself engulfed in a tub of ice. The cold blocks filled the tub to the brim, his body buried underneath.

“Joseph?”

Weakly, he lifted his head to find the source behind the hand resting gently on his shoulder now.

“P-Pa?”

His father gave him a relieved smile and knelt next to the tub, his eyes never leaving his boy.

“Welcome back, Son,” he greeted him, his voice cracking a little. “Welcome back.”

Joe frowned, looking around as if in a daze before his eyes settled back on his father.

“Where did I go?” he asked, confused.

Ben smiled, realizing Joe was still a little disoriented.

“You’ve been sick, Son,” he replied, gently. “We finally managed to bring your fever down.”

Joe didn’t say anything for a moment, allowing his father’s words to sink in.

“How long has it been?” Joe suddenly asked, startling Ben out of his thoughts.

He smiled and leaned closer to the tub of ice so Joe could hear him over the still crackling cubes.

“No more than 24 hours,” he answered.

Joe seemed to accept this and winced a little as he shifted his body.

“Best not move around too much, Little Brother,” came Hoss’ voice from his left. A few seconds later, Hoss’ face moved into his line of vision just as he added, “Don’t want that ice to crush ya now.”

Joe couldn’t help but smile at that before looking back up at Ben, his eyes pleading.

“Pa, do you think I could get out of this ice now?” he asked, anxiously. “I’m freezing.”

Immediately both Ben and Hoss sprang unto action until Joe was released from his icy prison and helped into fresh clothes. That done, they helped him back into bed and prepared to leave him to rest. But Joe wasn’t ready to sleep just yet.

“Pa, how’s Adam?” he asked, worry shining in his eyes.

Ben was about to reply, but Hoss interrupted him before he got the chance.

“Now don’t you worry none about brother Adam, Shortshanks,” he said, firmly. “You just worry ‘bout getting better and then you can see him for yourself.”

As much as his younger brother wanted to protest, he couldn’t for Joe’s eyes were already sliding closed. Once he was sure Joe wouldn’t be opening them again, Hoss motioned to his father and both men tiptoed out of the room.

Out in the hall, they exchanged glances and chuckled a little. Now that Joe was out of danger, they could focus on helping both him and Adam back to health, but it wasn’t going to be easy.

^^^^^^^^^^^

It wasn’t easy and the next two weeks proved just that. Joe’s fever had gone up again, but, after that, his temperature dropped back down to normal and stayed there, much to the relief of Ben and the doctor. Adam, on the other hand, wasn’t having any luck at all. Paul Martin found three bruised ribs from where the wolf had landed on top of him, which was the reason why he was having such a hard time catching his breath every once in a while. After the doctor had wrapped them, however, Adam was able to breathe easier. His body was still on the mend and would be for quite a while.

Ben sighed and ran a hand over his face, letting it rest underneath his chin as his elbow leaned against the arm rest of the chair. He was in Adam’s room, sitting next to the bed and watching his oldest son sleep. The younger man had been through so much lately it was hard to believe he was still alive.

“Pa?”

Snapping out of his thoughts, Ben focused on the figure in the bed, slightly surprised to find him awake.

“What is it, Son?” he asked, worriedly, afraid something might be wrong.

Adam smiled slightly and chuckled a little.

“Nothing’s wrong,” he calmed him. “Just wondered what you’re thinking so deeply about. I’ve been calling you for the past five minutes.”

Ben smiled.

“It’s nothing important, Adam,” he said. “Just got caught up in some old thoughts and memories.”

If Adam doubted Ben’s words, he didn’t voice his feelings aloud. Instead, a frown crossed his features as he continued staring at him, waiting for his father to speak whatever seemed to be weighing on his mind. Ben knew the look his oldest was giving him and he sighed.

“I was just thinking about everything that’s happened to you and Joe,” he admitted, softly.

Adam nodded in understanding.

“I know, Pa,” he stated. “It doesn’t seem real, does it?”

Ben didn’t know what to say. He could hear the hurt and pain in Adam’s voice.

“No, it doesn’t,” he agreed. “But it did happen. Your injuries are living proof of that.”

“Joe’s are, too,” Adam added. “How is he?”

“He’s doing better. His fever hasn’t gone up again and Paul’s sure he’ll be all right with more rest.”

The younger man nodded, relieved at the good news. Ben watched as his eyes slowly started to close and, seeing that he was about to fall asleep, he stood.

“I’d better let you rest, Son,” he said, patting his shoulder. “I’ll be downstairs if you need me.”

Adam smiled gratefully and watched his father leave before allowing sleep to overcome him.

^^^^^^^^^^^

“Adam? Adam, wake up.”

Groaning, Adam’s eyes slowly opened, only to close again immediately after seeing that the sun hadn’t come up yet.

“Adam. Come on. I came all the way here to see you and you’re gonna sleep?”

The voice was familiar and Adam’s eyes snapped open when he recognized it fully. Looking to his left, he was pleasantly surprised to find Joe sitting in the chair next to his bed. The very one Ben had occupied no more than a few hours earlier.

“What are you doing in here?” was the first thing that he could think of to ask.

It wasn’t that he was unhappy to see his youngest brother, but, hearing the extent of Joe’s injuries from his father and Hoss, he knew he shouldn’t be moving around in bed let alone out of it. Next to him, Joe snorted and shifted in the chair. Wincing a little as his body protested against the change, he managed to force a smirk onto his face.

“It’s good to see you too, older brother,” Joe replied, sarcastically.

Adam sighed and shook his head.

“Not what I meant,” he said. “What are you doing out of bed, Joe?”

Again, Joe shifted in his chair, but he hid the grimace from Adam’s line of vision.

“I wanted to see you is all,” he replied, softly.

Adam blinked a few times as those words sank in. It had been a while since he’d laid eyes on Joe. His brother looked like death warmed over. His face was pale and dark circles were clearly visible under his eyes and, though he tried to hide it, Adam could see that he was hurting.

“Were you trying to kill yourself in the process?” he questioned. “Paul’s gonna have your hide.”

Joe grinned then, but it didn‘t reach his eyes the way it normally did. This one didn’t reach his eyes or brighten up his face.

“Who says he has to know?” he countered. “I’m sure not telling him.”

Adam gave him a look and Joe’s eyes widened, the grin disappearing completely.

“You wouldn’t,” he said, accusingly, glaring at him.

The small smile on Adam’s face was all the answer Joe needed that he would, in fact, tell Paul Martin that he had gotten out of bed.

“So much for brotherly love,” Joe mumbled, pouting as if he was a little boy again.

Adam’s smile grew a little.

“It is good to see you, Joe,” he admitted. “You feeling any better?”

Joe nodded.

“A lot better than I was,” he answered. “Pa says I gave everyone quite a scare with my fever going up as high as it did.”

“You sure did,” Adam agreed. “I can’t even count how many times I saw Pa and Hoss rushing past my room to bring up more blocks of ice. We’re just thankful your fever went down.”

The room was silent all of a sudden, neither brother knowing what to say next. After a few minutes, Joe glanced over at Adam, who was staring up at the ceiling.

“A-Adam?” Joe stammered, softly.

His older brother looked over at him, curiosity in his eyes.

“What is it, Joe?” he asked.

A lump suddenly formed in Joe’s throat as he tried to force the words he wanted to say out of his mouth. Sensing the younger man’s problem of speaking, Adam sat up a little in bed, using his pillow to support his back.

“Joe, what’s wrong?”

His brother’s eyes were somewhat wide, confusion shining in them as if he had a puzzle that he was waiting for Adam to solve.

“W-Why?”

The question was a simple one, but it had many possible meanings as well as answers. Unfortunately, Adam didn’t have answers for Joe seeing as he had questions of his own. With a small sigh, Adam scooted over on his bed, taking a sharp intake of breath until he finally settled comfortably. He released his breath and looked up at Joe, who had his eyes closed tightly.

“Look, Joe, I know you’re not nine or ten years old anymore, but…” Adam trailed off as he watched his younger brother open his eyes and, as fast as his battered body would allow him, get into bed next to him.

Neither of them had slept in the same bed together since Joe was ten years old and still suffered from nightmares. Gradually, the nightmares had stopped and the late night visits were few and far between until they, too, stopped altogether. While Adam would never admit it, he had missed the late night conversations he and Joe used to have. He just wished they were having this one under different circumstances.

“What do you think provoked Kane to do all of that to us?” Joe’s quiet voice drifted to his ears, reminding Adam of when he was a boy.

All he could do was sigh as he tried to come up with an answer. Unable to think of one, he placed an arm around Joe’s shoulders.

“I don’t know, Joe,” he replied, softly. “I just don’t know.”

“I thought you knew everything,” came the quick retort.

Adam smiled at that and the room became silent once again.

”Hey, Adam?”

“Yeah, Joe?”

“How are your ribs?”

Adam looked at him, sensing that that wasn’t the question he had wanted to ask.

“They’re sore, but healing,” he answered, still observing his younger brother closely. “Joe, what’s really bothering you?”

Joe’s eyes closed, then reopened, staring up at him.

“Was all of this worth it, Adam?” he asked. “First Kane, then his brother, then the men who robbed us in the first place.”

Adam said nothing.

“What did we do, Adam?” Joe’s voice softened to just barely above a whisper. “Did we do something wrong? Is that why everything happened? Are we cursed? Adam? Hey, Adam, are you even listening to me?”

Snapped out of his thoughts, Adam looked up, startled.

“What?”

Seeing Joe looking at him, worriedly, he smiled.

“Sorry, I was just thinking,” he reassured him.

Joe frowned.

“Thinking? About what?” he asked, curiously.

“Nothing.”

“Adam, you don’t just go off thinking about nothing for two minutes,” Joe said, accusingly. “Now, come on. Tell me.”

Adam sighed and shifted a little in the bed, wincing as his ribs protested against it. Seeing the pained look on his older brother’s face, Joe made to get off of the bed, but Adam’s hand on his arm stopped him.

“It’s okay, Joe,” he said, trying to hide the grimace threatening to appear on his face.

“No, it’s not,” the younger man argued, firmly. “I better go get Pa.”

Adam shook his head, vigorously.

“No, Joe, it’s all right,” he said, firmly. “There’s no need to get Pa. Besides, if you go get him you’ll get in trouble for being out of bed anyway and I’m sure you wouldn’t want that.”

Joe seemed to ponder Adam’s words before realizing he was right. Sighing, he laid back down on the bed, careful not to jar Adam’s side. While, at the moment, Joe wasn’t going to get his father, he promised himself that if Adam got worse, he would, despite the consequences of him being out of bed. In his opinion, Adam’s health was more important than any lecture he was sure to receive.

“I guess Kane was just trying to prove a point.”

Adam’s weak voice pierced the silence in the room and it took Joe a minute or two to realize that he was answering his earlier question about why Kane had done all of this. Figuring if he kept Adam talking then it would help keep his mind off of the pain, Joe answered him.

“But why did he have to take it so far?” he asked, anxiously.

“He was the type of man willing to do anything to make sure that he was right, Joe,” Adam replied, his breathing easier now. “He wanted so desperately to be right and worked extra hard to make sure he was.”

Joe fidgeted slightly.

“So, do you think what he said was right?” he inquired. “Is it really possible that any man can be provoked to commit murder?”

He could feel Adam suck in his breath and waited, worriedly. After a few seconds, Adam let out a long breath and leaned his head against the pillow. When Adam didn’t answer after a while longer, Joe was afraid he wouldn’t answer his question. However, minutes later, Adam spoke.

“I don’t know about any man, Joe,” he admitted, “but it’s possible for some men. It all depends on their strength.”

Joe smiled suddenly.

“I guess that makes you pretty strong, Adam,” he praised him.

Adam shook his head immediately as his younger brother frowned.

“I’m not that strong, Joe,” he argued. “I killed Kane, remember?”

“Yes, but you did it out of self-defense, Adam,” Joe retaliated, “and to save me.”

“That’s just what he wanted. He wanted to prove me wrong. Besides, you would‘ve done the same for me.”

Joe watched Adam for a minute, trying to find the right words to say.

“You’re right,” he finally said. “I would’ve done the same thing for you, Adam. But the point is I didn’t have to. You did it all by yourself, Adam.”

Adam’s eyes were angry when he looked up at Joe.

“I killed him, Joe,” he practically shouted. “I proved his theory right. He provoked me into killing him.”

There was silence for a minute or two. Adam could feel Joe shift in the bed.

“He won.”

The older Cartwright’s head jerked up at the words Joe just spoke. His youngest brother’s eyes bore straight into him as he continued.

“He won, is that it, Adam?” he demanded. “You’re just gonna accept the fact that he beat you? After all we’ve been through, fought through, and lived through, you’re just accepting it like that!?”

Joe sat up on the bed, swinging his legs over the side and standing stiffly before sitting down in the chair by the bed, refusing to look at his older brother.

“You saved us, Adam!”

Joe was the one practically shouting now and his voice filled the entire room. Adam blinked several times as Joe continued.

“You did what you had to do in order to make sure we were safe. Kane wasn’t thinking clearly. I don’t know what made him that way or why, but you and I did nothing to make him turn on us like he did. It was self-defense, Adam.”

No one said anything for a minute. Adam was thinking about what Joe had just told him as the younger man continued watching him, waiting expectantly for him to say something.

“You’re right,” came the soft answer.

Joe’s eyes opened wide at Adam’s announcement, but a broad smile crossed his features a few seconds later.

“Well, it’s about time I got through that thick head of yours,” he said, relieved. “Adam, I-”

Adam held up a hand, silencing him.

“You don’t have to say anything more, Joe,” he stated, smiling. “I know.”

The shouting had awakened Hoss and Ben who now burst into the room, fearing something was wrong. They exchanged glances when they found Joe and Adam simply talking. Frowning, Ben entered the room, going to stand next to the chair Joe was sitting in.

“Are you two all right?” he asked, worriedly.

Adam and Joe looked at each other, a smile on both of their faces before they looked up at their father.

“We’re gonna be fine, Pa,” Adam answered. “Just fine.”

Seeing the faces of his sons and the honest smiles, Ben couldn’t help but smile himself. For once since the mess with Kane started, he heard Adam’s words and believed them. Together, they’d all be all right.

EPILOGUE:

Two months later, Joe and Adam were almost completely recovered. Adam’s shoulder still pained him from time to time and a nice scar remained on his shoulder, a sort of reminder of what he and Joe had been through. Joe suffered from nightmares almost every night, but Ben was always by his side to comfort him. A week earlier, the nightmares had stopped and Joe was now able to sleep peacefully throughout the night.

“Pa?”

Ben snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of Adam’s voice coming from the stairs. Looking up, he spotted his eldest son standing at the bottom, looking at him curiously. A smile crossed his face.

“What is it, Adam?”

“Nothing, I was just making sure you’re all right,” he answered, walking over and sitting at the table in his usual spot.

Ben studied Adam closely. He could see bags under his eyes from lack of sleep. At that moment and before Ben could answer Adam, Joe and Hoss bounded down the stairs, laughing about some secret joke between them. They approached the table and sat down, still poking fun at one another until Ben cleared his throat.

Silence reigned for a few moments, all eyes turned to Ben as he looked at each of his sons in turn.

‘This is how it’s supposed to be,’ Ben thought, smiling as Hop Sing brought out their breakfast and they began to eat. ‘Together, as a family and that’s certainly worth fighting for.’

 

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and settings are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.

 

 

Tags:  Adam Cartwright, Ben Cartwright, Hoss Cartwright, Joe / Little Joe Cartwright