Summary:  A young girl visits the Ponderosa and has a profound effect on one of the brothers.

Written for the 2018 Ponderosa Paddlewheel Poker Tournament.  The card “suits” were:

Anatomy (body parts)
Fears
What Women Want
Things Found in a Saddlebag

Rated:   T  5,950 words

 

Greater Love

 

When a couple Ben met years ago, Philip and Jessica London, asked him in a letter if they’d let their thirteen-year-old daughter, Patricia, stay at the Ponderosa for a while to get more excitement, Ben agreed. He thought it would be good for her, and he hoped that she would like it at the Ponderosa and would feel comfortable without her family. The Londons had two healthy children, Patricia and John, who was the age of 17. Ben hadn’t seen the Londons in six years, and got from the letter that Patricia might be unsocial, but John wasn’t. The reason she probably isn’t very social would most likely be because her family moved to California to find gold and get rich, and she doesn’t get much of a chance to meet other people or do things other than living on a mining claim, Ben thought. He sent them a wire that said she was welcome to come and they would all love having her with them. A couple of days later he received the confirming wire that she would be arriving on the stage Tuesday by herself. Ben thought it a little odd that they’d have her travel on the stage on her own, and he hoped she would arrive safely. He told his sons at dinner that she was coming, and they thought it would be a good idea.

“Thank goodness, it will be much more interesting with a girl around here, and less work to do,” Joe said relieved.

“Don’t get too excited Joseph,” Ben warned, “you’ll still have your fair share of work to do here while she’s with us.”

Joe sighed, “Figures.”

Hoss chuckled at Joe’s strong dislike of work, “Joe, you didn’t think Pa would let you off the hook of doing work just because a guest is coming, did you?”

Joe snapped his fingers and pointed at Hoss, “You know what Hoss, that’s a great idea. I’ll be in charge of Patricia and making sure she feels at home here, while you and Adam do the rest of the work at the ranch.”

Adam had been watching the conversation at the end of the table without a word until now, “Sorry to crush your dreams Joe, but I’m afraid that’s not going to work out.”

Joe looked to Adam and taunted, “Why? Are you afraid of doing a little extra work?”

Adam grinned a little, “No actually, I won’t even be here to do my own work. I’m leaving for Reno Monday on business, and I’ll be gone for a week. So it looks like you’re the one that will be doing the extra work.”

Joe stared at Adam in disbelief, “I should’ve known.”

“Well Joe,” Ben said seriously, “that means that you or Hoss can pick Patricia up from Virginia City on Tuesday.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

*****

It was Tuesday and Joe was in Virginia City waiting for the stage to arrive with Patricia. It stopped next to him and he opened the door for the passengers. Two young women came out first, and Joe tipped his hat to them, then a young girl wearing a blue dress stepped out and Joe took off his hat for her.

“Are you Patricia London?” he asked politely.

The dark-haired girl looked up at him shyly, “Yes I am.”

“Welcome to Virginia City Patricia, I’m Joe Cartwright and I’m here to escort you back to the Ponderosa.”

Patricia nodded and answered, “Thank you. Where are your two brothers?”

Joe seemed disappointed at this question, “My oldest brother Adam is in Reno and Hoss is back at the ranch.””Oh,” she replied then looked all around the town.

“I hate to rush you,” Joe put his hat back on his head, “but we should be getting back to the Ponderosa now.”

She nodded again, “Ok.”

Patricia didn’t say much on the trip, only to answer when Joe asked something. She was definitely shy and she kept to herself, but she was in a strange place without her family. Joe found the trip long and drawn out on account of not being able to engage her in a real conversation; she was a very pretty little thing though.

*****

It was the same thing with meeting Ben and Hoss, she was still very shy. At dinner on Thursday, Ben asked her how she liked it at the Ponderosa.

“I suppose it’s better than where I live,” she replied nonchalantly.

Joe and Hoss shared a look, but Ben continued.

“Is there something wrong with where you live?”

She shrugged, “Not much I guess, but it’s kind of boring, not much happens.”

Ben nodded, “Your parents know that, and that’s why they sent you here. Just remember they love you,” he paused, “I hope you feel comfortable with us here.”

“I do. Thank you, Mr. Cartwright.”

*****

All through the week the week Joe tried to get Patricia to enjoy the time he spent with her. She definitely didn’t have a fear of being invisible or forgotten. She did things by herself most of the time, but he was determined to get her to like him, or at least pay attention to him. When he tried to play checkers with her, or go riding, or anything else, she had the same melancholy expression. Hoss didn’t have much luck either and he told Joe that her gloominess was about to take over his cheerful mood. So he said that Joe could be in charge of her and he’d do Joe’s work for him. At first Joe thought it was a steal, and then he realized that it might be a harder task than expected.

After a while she got to talking a little more than she did at first, but she was still slow to speak. Joe had to give it to her though, she was no weakling. Being on the mining claim most of her life must have made her tough. He found this out when she was riding, her horse took her underneath a tree and her face went straight into a thick branch and she fell to the ground. Joe had rushed to her aid, but she got up before he could help her, she said she’d be sore for a while and didn’t really complain about anything but her tooth hurting. She said that when she was a couple of years younger she hurt her right molar and the tree must have made it hurt again. Joe was impressed at her ability to work through the pain without complaining much at all. Luckily, her molar didn’t hurt for more than three days.

Joe took her riding with him again on Sunday, and Adam was to arrive back home the next day.

“Adam is coming home tomorrow so you can finally meet him,” Joe informed Patricia on their way back.

She kept her eyes forward, but surprisingly, she joked, “Interesting. I hope he’s more fun and better looking than you are.”

Joe was too shocked to take offense to that, Patricia just joked with him! He had never seen anything but seriousness with her, but he liked her when she joked. Joe was smiling when they rode down the path to the ranch house, and Patricia’s face showed a little smile too. Joe found that moment the best he ever had with her.

*****

Afternoon the next day and Patricia was playing solitaire by herself in her room at the Ponderosa. She was waiting on Hoss and Joe to arrive with Adam who was coming on the stage. She was getting impatient with solitaire, because she couldn’t seem to win, so she put the cards away. Then just as she was coming around the corner to the stairs, the front door opened and Hoss and Joe came in followed by a handsome man wearing black from head to toe. It was Adam for sure. She shrunk back behind the corner so she wouldn’t be seen by them. Then she heard them laughing so she peeked her head out and watched Adam talking to his brothers and father. She wanted to go down and say hi, but her timid nature got the best of her, so she stayed hidden behind the corner. She listened to them and heard what they were saying about her.

“So,” Adam inquired, “how’s Patricia getting along around here?”

She heard Joe let out a breath, “She gets along fine, but she’s very shy, and I get the impression that she doesn’t like me very much.”

Patricia smiled with amusement at Joe’s notion.

“Why do you think that?” Adam asked.

Joe shrugged, “I don’t know, little things.”

Adam nodded, “Where is she now? I’m anxious to meet her.”

When Patricia heard this, her heart picked up with nervousness and she didn’t notice someone coming up the stairs until it was too late. Joe came around the corner and nearly ran over her.

“Sorry. What are you doing out here?” he asked.

Patricia looked down at her feet, “I think it’s called eavesdropping.”

Joe didn’t like knowing she heard everything he had said about her, but shrugged it off. “Oh . . . well I do that sometimes too. Come on down stairs if you want to say hi to Adam.”

She followed him down the stairs, heart pounding in her chest; she didn’t know why she was feeling so nervous. They approached the others and Adam introduced himself first.

“You must be Patricia, it’s a pleasure to meet you,” and he put out his hand.She shook his hand and said, quite awkwardly, “It’s a pleasure to meet you too.”

“I hope you’ve enjoyed your stay here so far.”

“I have, except Little Joe can be kind of annoying sometimes,” she winked at Adam then looked at Joe, who looked a little disappointed.

Adam chuckled, “He can be that way often enough. Especially if there’s a pretty young lady around.”

This statement made Patricia blush and avert her eyes, and left Joe embarrassed; in Joe’s opinion, Adam had a talent for that sort of thing.

Ben suppressed a laugh, “Well it’s about time for dinner Adam, so you better go and get cleaned up now.”

*****

At dinner, the conversation was mainly about Adam’s trip, but they didn’t leave Patricia out. Whenever Adam was speaking, she listened intently to his every word. All through dinner, and after that too, she watched Adam with admiration, and everyone noticed but Adam. When she was too tired to stay awake any longer, she said she was going to bed and they excused her. When Joe was sure she was out of ear shot, he spoke up.

“Did anybody else notice Patricia’s behavior?”

Ben nodded, “I was thinking the same thing.”

“I noticed it too,” Hoss chimed in.

Adam was confused, “What do you mean?”

Ben looked at him, “You didn’t notice how much attention she paid to you?”

Adam’s heart dropped, “You’re not trying to tell me that . . .,” he stopped.Joe giggled at him, “It looked like love at first sight to me.”

Hoss laughed with Joe, “Yup Adam, she must have immediately taken to your charm.”

“This is nonsense, there’s no way . . . I mean, she only just saw me a couple of hours ago.”

Hoss and Joe kept snickering, while Ben tried to look serious.

“It’s possible son.”

Adam rolled his eyes, “This can’t be happening right now, please tell me it’s a dream.”

Hoss stopped laughing long enough to say, “It ain’t a dream brother, it’s actually happening.”

Adam stood up and started up the stairs, “I’m going to bed.”

When he reached the top Ben called after him, “Adam.”

Adam stopped, and looked back, “Good luck son.”

Adam muttered “Thanks” then vanished behind the corner. After Adam was gone Ben laughed along with his other two sons.

*****

Throughout the week, Adam did his best to stay away from Patricia as much as possible. He knew that his behavior might seem rude at times, but in his mind, he had no other choice. He thought that maybe if he stayed away, she’d get over him; he also wished there was somebody around that was her age so she could like him instead. He was aware of her eating breakfast at the table when he was creeping down the stairs. He tried his best at sneaking to the front door to go out and do his chores, but she saw him and followed him outside. She didn’t seem so shy anymore, and she went over to him in the barn and asked if he’d go riding with her.

“Sorry Patricia,” he said while working, “but I’ve got chores to do, and I’ll still be busy after that.”

Adam wasn’t aware that his brother followed him out too.

“You don’t have to worry about your chores Adam, I can do them for you if you want to go with Patricia,” Joe would never miss a chance to mess with his brother, even if it cost him extra work.

Adam gave him a glare that would have had others averting their eyes, but Joe knew he had him beat.

Adam sighed then said, “Alright Joe, you do all the chores and I’ll take Patricia riding. Come on, let’s go.”

He handed Joe the pitchfork then he and Patricia went to saddle up the horses. When Adam started saddling up Sport, Patricia came to his side. She could tell there was something going on, she didn’t know exactly what, but she knew.

“Adam, if you don’t want to go you don’t have to. I’ll be fine not going.”

Adam stopped and looked at her, how did she know he didn’t want to go?

“I said I’d take you, so that’s what I’m going to do.”

Patricia made up her mind that bothering Adam wouldn’t be very polite.

“Don’t worry about it,” she said nicely, “thanks anyways, but I don’t want to go anymore,” and she left without looking to see his reaction.

Adam felt a little guilty about the whole situation, but he uncinched the saddle anyways, and took it off of Sport’s back. He walked past Joe on his way out of the barn.

“Hey Adam, weren’t you going riding with Patricia?” Joe asked.

Adam kept walking while informing him, “Not anymore.”

Joe stopped shoveling, “Oh, you can do your chores then.”

Even though he was out of sight, Joe heard Adam’s reply, “No thanks Little Joe, you can do them.”

*****

Wherever Adam was, Patricia was never very far away. She followed him wherever he went, and if she couldn’t follow, she just waited patiently until he returned. Adam knew he should be flattered that she chose to follow him rather than either one of his brothers, but it sometimes got under his skin. He had nothing against her, heck, she was even a little cute, but if Joe and Hoss knew he thought that, he’d never hear the end of it. He was glad when the day came to brand cattle, it would give him a little break form everything else. He took off early in the morning with his brothers, unaware that somebody was following them. Patricia made sure that they didn’t know she was following them. Once they got to work, she hid in some bushes, watching them through the leaves. She was starting to get a little uncomfortable crouching there, so she shifted her position, but as she was doing so she lost her balance and fell into the bushes. She recovered quickly and started to evacuate her hiding spot on account of hearing footsteps coming near. She picked up her pace a little and almost reached her horse when something grabbed her arm and brought her to a halt. She looked up at Adam’s face and smiled sheepishly.

“Uh, hi.”

Adam let go of her arm and said sternly, “What are you doing out here?”

She looked away from him, “Nothing.”

Adam crossed his arms, “You don’t follow somebody for nothing.”

“You probably don’t want to know why I came out here.”

“Try me.”

“I came so I could be around you,” she answered so quietly that it was a miracle he heard her.

Adam closed his eyes and nodded, “That’s what I would have guessed. Now you go on back to the house, we’ll be back later,” then he turned around and headed back.

Patricia ran to catch up, “Adam, can I stay here with you until you’re done? I’ll just watch and I won’t get in your way.”

It seemed like Adam already made up his mind before she asked the question, “I don’t think this is a place for a young lady like yourself. I think you should go back home and wait for us.”

Patricia put her hand on his arm and looked into his eyes, “Please?”

Looking into her pleading brown eyes he just couldn’t say no, and he sighed, “Alright, but if you can’t handle it, then you go back, deal?”

“Deal!”

Then Adam pulled his arm away from hers, turned around, and walked away. Patricia ran to catch up with him.

“Thank you so much Adam,” Patricia said excitedly, “you won’t regret your decision!”

A little smile formed on Adam’s face, but he didn’t let her see it. He was trying not to like this kid very much, but it was hard. It did seem like she was trying awfully hard to get him to notice her. Now that he thought about it, if his brothers didn’t say anything about “love at first sight” in the first place, he wouldn’t even have a problem with her.

*****

All throughout the branding Patricia never said a word. She didn’t seem affected by it, she just stood and watched, because she knew it was all part of ranching and it didn’t hurt the cattle for very long. Patricia stayed as close to Adam as possible without getting in the way. Joe joked with the other hands about Adam having a cute little girl as a tag-along, thank goodness not around him. Adam tried not to think much about the matter, but how could he not? I mean she was always right there by him, like a loyal dog. He could only imagine what Joe and the others were thinking about it all: it was kind of embarrassing.The branding was finished well before noon, and Joe wanted to go to town before lunch. Adam agreed; he saw it as an opportunity to get some space away from his loyal dog.

“Patricia, you go on home now,” Adam ordered her, “we’re going to town, but we’ll be back before lunch.”

Patricia was a very stubborn girl, “No thanks, I’d rather go to town with you,” and then she kicked her horse and brought him to a halt beside Adam and his mount.

Joe couldn’t take not cracking a joke any longer, “Come on now Adam, let the girl come with us. I’m sure you’ll enjoy her company very much.”

Joe and the other hands laughed, but Adam gave them all a look that made them shut up, for the moment. Then he turned his head back around and looked at Patricia.

“I’m sorry but you can’t come with us,” he began, “we’ll probably be going into the saloon, and little girls aren’t allowed to go in there.”

Patricia scowled, “I would appreciate it if you didn’t call me a ‘little girl’.”

Adam was starting to lose his patience, it had been a long hot morning, which didn’t help matters any.

“Fine, I won’t say it again . . . if you go back to the house.”

“Is that a threat?” Patricia joked.

“Maybe.”

“Alright,” she smiled, “deal.”

Adam nodded and he, Joe, and the hands took off in the direction of town, then Patricia started following. Adam stopped his horse, the others following his lead, and looked back at her with a quizzical glare.

“I thought we made a deal.”

Patricia’s smile faded, “We did. What’s the problem?”

Adam looked at Joe and rolled his eyes; Joe held back a burst of laughter.

“Patricia,” he said slowly and purposefully, “we agreed that if you go back to the Ponderosa, I won’t call you a ‘little girl’ anymore.”

Patricia nodded, “That’s right, and I haven’t broken the promise. I’ll go back to the Ponderosa . . . when we get back from town,” then she kicked her horse and rode past him with a triumphant look on her face.

Adam covered his eyes with his hand, and then took it away slowly, “That’s it, I can’t do this anymore.”

It took a lot to get Adam to give up, so he must really have lost his patience. He turned Sport around and started riding back home.

“Forget about it Patricia,” he called out over his shoulder, “I’m going home.”

Patricia turned her horse around, what’s the matter with him? She wondered, and then caught up to him. Joe and the others kept on their way to town, laughing about Adam and Patricia.

“Adam, what—”

“—please,” Adam interrupted her, “don’t say anything. I want to ride home with peace and quiet, Ok?”Patricia stopped her horse and watched him ride away into the distance. She did her best to ignore it at first, but Adam’s rejection of her and her friendship really hurt her feelings. She watched him ride away a moment longer, then turned around and cantered her horse in the opposite direction. Fine, she thought, if he wants nothing to do with me, then I’ll just leave and it will be on his conscience that I’ve disappeared. He’ll also have a lot of explaining to do to my parents when they come to the Ponderosa.

After leaving the open land and riding through the woods for a while, she came upon a clearing. Angrily, she dismounted her horse and sat down on a large rock. She decided that disappearing and worrying him about whether she was even alive or not would be enough revenge for being spurned. She figured he didn’t care enough to come back and look for her soon anyways, which would give her time to get farther away; she never even considered her fear of the dark when she was all alone. After thinking about everything that happened for a while, her emotions hit her, and tears started flowing down her cheeks and onto the large rock.

*****

Adam led Sport into the barn, then looked back to see if Patricia was right behind him. He didn’t see her, but supposed she just got a little behind to give him some space; he really appreciated it if that was the case. By the time he finished bedding down Sport, she still hadn’t arrived. He knew he should go back and look for her, but he was tired and she’d probably be fine by herself for a little while. It normally wasn’t like him to leave a young girl by herself out there, but he thought she could take care of herself just fine, she was very tough. But after some time and she still wasn’t there, he got really worried so he went outside just as Joe was returning.

“Hey Adam, how’s Patricia?” Joe asked with a gleam of amusement in his eyes.

Adam walked over to him, looking troubled, “You mean you haven’t seen her?”

Joe was clearly bewildered, “Should I have? She left with you, didn’t she?”

Adam didn’t take the time to answer; instead he rushed into the barn to saddle up his horse yet again. When Adam came back out atop Sport, Joe tried to stop him.

“I’ll come with you,” he offered.”No Joe. I appreciate it, but I’m sure it’s my fault she didn’t come back, so it’s my job to go and find her.”

“But I-,”

“Stay here Joe!” Adam interrupted then raced his horse down the dirt path.

*****

Adam picked up her trail quite easily, but he was surprised to find that she didn’t follow him at all; she just turned right around and rode off. He followed the trail into the woods and came upon the clearing. He saw Patricia’s horse tied to a tree branch and knew that she was close by. After he dismounted he looked through the leaves and spotted her sitting on a large rock. Not wanting to startle her, he approached in plain sight. At first, she looked surprised to see him, then she slid off the rock and stared defiantly at him.

“Go away,” she demanded.

“Patricia, what are you doing way out here? I was worried about you; you could have gotten hurt!”

Patricia got angry, “Oh, so you came here to lecture me, is that it? Well if that’s the case, then just leave me alone and go back.”

Adam found out now that his first words were a mistake, and he felt bad about it. Taking off his hat, he began to apologize, but Patricia interrupted him.

“Please go away. I’m not going back.”

“Patricia, please listen to me.”

She rolled her eyes, “Ok, speak. It’s a better chance than you gave me earlier.”

Adam felt guilty now, “I’m sorry Patricia, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. It’s just. . . I wanted a little time by myself.”

Patricia looked at her feet, “I understand, I get on your nerves. This is exactly why I’m not going back with you.”

Adam smiled, “You don’t get on my nerves, well maybe sometimes,” he joked, “but I want you to come back.”

Patricia looked up, “You do?”

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I?

Patricia only shrugged, and she took off running towards her horse.

“I’ll beat you back!”Adam laughed, “Oh no you won’t!”

She rode off on her horse with Adam close behind her, but her horse slowed down to a stop and refused to move another step. She got down and checked his leg, he was lame. Adam rode up beside her a dismounted.

“He’s lame,” she informed him, “I’ll have to walk.”

She started walking but Adam stopped her, “There’s no need, you can ride double with me.”

Patricia raised one eyebrow, very much like Adam himself, “No thanks, I’d rather not.”

“Oh, come on. You still don’t forgive me?”

“I don’t know.”

Adam had a serious expression, “I really am sorry, don’t you understand?”

Patricia finally smiled, “Yes, I forgive you.”

Adam smiled too, “Do you want to hug me now?”

“Not really.”

“I think you do.”

“Alright,” then she hugged him quickly, and Adam had to smile at her shyness.

“Why are you so shy?” he asked.

A rough voice behind them didn’t allow for an answer, “Drop your gun belt, nice and easy like. Or somebody is gonna get hurt.”

Three men emerged from the bushes with guns backing up their threat.

Adam did as instructed then questioned them, “What do you want?”

The men were serious, and the leader said, “We want you Mr. Cartwright, the only thing you Cartwrights have done is cause trouble. We’ll take the girl along with us too.”

Adam was now very protective of her, “Do whatever you want with me, but leave her alone.”

The men all laughed, “Not a chance, we’re taking both of you.”

Adam held Patricia’s hand while they were taken into the bushes beside the lake and tied to each other. The three men watched them the whole night in shifts; they weren’t the kind to take any unnecessary risks.

*****

The men were planning on keeping Adam and Patricia hostage for a while so they would starve. Once, Adam tried asking what they wanted of him, but the only answer he got was a pistol whip to the face. When this happened Patricia got angry and started getting after the man who hurt him Adam.

“Don’t ever do that again,” she demanded through clenched teeth.

The man, Trace, gave her the evil eye, “You aren’t in any position to threaten me right now. Besides, what’s a little girl going to do to me?” then he laughed with malice.

Patricia kept her icy gaze on him, “If you do it again, I swear I’ll kill you.”

Adam looked at her in shock, she was very brave, and he’d never before seen a young female threaten to kill a grown man so sincerely. On Trace’s face flashed a hint of fear, but it was gone quickly and replaced with anger.

“You’d better keep your mouth shut missy.”

Patricia replied with only a stare, but it unnerved Trace a little, so he turned around and walked away. Patricia looked up at Adam and smiled; Adam didn’t know what to say, so he returned her smile.

*****

Later that night, when he was sure no one could hear, Adam told Patricia what he thought.

“I don’t want to frighten you, but I think what these men plan to do is to kill us.”

“I’m not scared to die Adam; I know I’ll go to heaven. The Bible says to go to heaven all you have to do is believe Jesus died for us, it says so in John 3:16, my favorite verse. Do you believe it Adam?”

“Yes Patricia, I do.”

She smiled, “I thought you would.”

*****

They woke up to someone shouting, “It’s a posse! We gotta get outta here quick Trace!”

The other two men, Carl and Josh, grabbed Adam and Patricia and made them stand. Trace came over to them with a rope and a rock and started untying them.

“Alright Cartwright, I’m sorry we have to do it so quickly . . . but who cares?”

Patricia stood close to Adam and asked Trace, “You aren’t planning on killing him are you?”

“Yes I am, now step back,” he said sharply and shoved her back.

Patricia fell down then got back up quickly.

“Leave her alone,” Adam ordered, “do whatever you wish to me, but don’t hurt her.”

“I almost want to kill her just as much as you. She’s a real smart alec.”

Carl, a man even bigger than Hoss, tried to reason with his accomplice, “Trace, we didn’t agree on killing a young girl, I won’t stand for it.”

Trace continued to tie up Adam’s hands and feet, “Alright, fine. I’m not gonna fight you about it, we don’t have time.”

Patricia couldn’t just stand and watch them kill Adam, so she ran at Trace and jumped on him. Knowing her goal, she reached for his boot and pulled out his knife in the struggle. It didn’t take long for Trace to get her away, and he ordered Carl to restrain her and throw her in the bushes. Carl did that, then came back to help Trace with Adam. They tied his hands and feet, and then attached a rock to the ropes. The whole time they heard Patricia yelling for them not to kill Adam. All three men worked together to pick up Adam and toss him into the lake; then they quickly jumped unto their horses and took off. Meanwhile, Patricia was struggling to untangle herself from the sharp thorns in the bushes. It didn’t take her too long, but she came out with arms all scratched up and bloodied. She looked into the water and saw bubbles where they threw in Adam. She took the knife she stole from Trace in her right hand and ran towards the edge of the lake. When she reached the edge, she dived into the water making the most heroic move of her life. She swam far down into the dark depths of the lake until she found Adam. She felt for the ropes and used the knife to cut him free, but she dropped it once she finished cutting the last rope.

Finally lose and feeling like his lungs were about to burst, Adam swam up to the surface as fast as he possibly could. Once his head broke the surface he took in big gulps of air; you never realize how good air tastes until you don’t have any. He treaded water, catching his breath until he remembered that somebody cut him free. He immediately knew who it was and he looked around to see where she was. There was nothing but ripples in the water from his own swimming. She was still down there! He dove down, searching for her along the bottom of the lake. His lungs wouldn’t let him stay under long enough to have a long thorough search. He didn’t know how many times he dove under and came back up and it was getting harder and harder to swim, but he would never give up. He was so focused he didn’t see his family approaching, or hear them calling his name, until his brothers were in the water right next to him.

“Adam, you have to get out’a the water now,” Hoss said gently.

He and Joe tried to convince Adam to come out but he wouldn’t. Eventually they had to take hold of him and swim him to shore.

“Let me go! Patricia is still under there, and I’m not stopping until I find her!”

Hoss and Joe didn’t like to hear what Adam said, and they felt bad about what they were doing, but it had to be done. They pulled him out of the water and kept a hold on him because he was still struggling.

Ben tried to calm him down, “Adam . . . son. Calm down, there’s nothing more you can do.”

Adam finally quit struggling and said quietly, “She saved my life. . .”

Joe looked quizzical, “Patricia?”

“You can let go of me now,” they let go of him and he stared out into the water, “yes, she sacrificed her life for mine.”

It was then that he realized completely that he would never see her again, and he felt like he had been run over by a stagecoach.

*****

A week after that incident and Adam still didn’t want to talk about it. He wasn’t his normal self, he didn’t laugh, and he didn’t even tease Little Joe anymore. Every day Adam found himself looking in his Bible at Patricia’s favorite verse. He knew she would be in heaven and that she would love it there, but it didn’t make it any easier. He came to the conclusion that the love she had for him wasn’t the romantic kind, but a greater love- sacrificing your life for someone else.

Patricia’s family came eight days later, and Adam had to tell them what happened, it was one of the hardest things he’d ever done. They left the next day, it was very hard on them and they wanted to go back home.

*****

After breakfast the next day Adam sat in his favorite blue chair to read a book. Joe wanted to ask him to play checkers, but didn’t want to be turned down yet again, so he asked Hoss instead. Then there was a knock at the door, and to everyone’s surprise, Adam got up to answer it. He opened the door and his heart skipped a beat, he was looking down into the pretty brown eyes of who he thought was dead. She looked up at him and smiled, they were both too emotional to speak, so she embraced him in a hug. There were tears on both of their faces when they let go.

(No one knows what happened to Patricia, use your imagination)

–The End—

 

The cards (words/phrases) dealt to me were:

Fear of being invisible or forgotten
Fear of the dark
A molar (tooth)
Healthy children
Revenge for being spurned