Summary:  Ten years after he and Joe first met, Baker visits The Ponderosa while on a mission.

Rated: K  WC 15,400

Baker’s Brat Series:

Baker’s Brat
Baker’s Dozen
Baker’s Legacy
Baker’s Destiny

 

Baker’s Dozen

Sequel to “Baker’s Brat”

 

It was just as I had suspected …. Virginia City was definitely not a backwoods town by any means and the descriptions I’d heard of it, though they had seemed exaggerated at the time, were by no means far-fetched. It was essentially a mining town, yet the wealth that was a result of the Comstock Lode was very apparent here to an outsider, even at first glance. I wondered how the Cartwright family fitted into all of this, but I supposed that with all I’d heard of their lands holdings they were quite wealthy and wouldn’t be out of place at all amongst all this wealth.

 

When I thought about it, it was actually strange that I’d never made it out this way before. My years in the army had taken me to many varied places in the West, but I’d never made it to Nevada in all that time.

 

I looked around at the small camp and what I saw pleased me. We’d only been here less than an hour, and yet everything was beginning to take shape. The well-ordered tents stood side by side and the horses had been tethered and watered already. I supposed that was one of the advantages of having such an experienced troop of men.  The twelve of them had of course been hand-picked, for I couldn’t risk anyone making a mistake on such an important mission and when Colonel Whelan had told me to make my choices about who to take, I had given it a great deal of consideration before finally choosing these dozen men. I knew that with such a delicate mission which involved negations such as were before me, I had to have the very best … men who wouldn’t fly off the handle at the least provocation and yet men who could be relied upon if the worst happened. Yes, I thought with satisfaction as I looked around the camp, I had chosen well.

 

“Major Baker?”

 

I turned at the sound of Sergeant Clancy’s voice. “Yes sergeant?”

 

“Did you want the men to start unloading the supplies now?”

 

I nodded. “Yes. Thank you sergeant.”  I watched as Clancy walked away and started to give the orders to that effect.  I had been fortunate that he had been available for this mission to act as my second-in-command, for it would have been difficult to find a better man. He would make sure that everything ran smoothly and would be a trustworthy stand-in should anything happen to me. Not that I was expecting it to, for the Paiutes had not caused any trouble for a long time. That was the whole point of this mission really and I prayed that the General Wilson was correct and the time was right for a treaty between the Paiutes and the whites. Lord knows I was going to do my best to ensure that it came about. I knew that I would need all my negotiating powers to achieve it, but negotiating was something I prided myself on being good at.

 

However, first things first.  Before I was ready to approach the Paiutes with the army’s offer of a treaty, there was another most important mission I had to undertake.  Albeit a personal one, but most important all the same. I smiled as I drew out yet again from my pocket a piece of paper and thought about the small boy who had written me this letter all those years ago. Joe Cartwright. It amazed me how, after all this time, the boy still had an impact on me and I still felt such an affinity towards him. I had never been really sure why, but that little guy had got into my head all those years ago and refused to leave it. If I was being honest with myself, he’d wormed his way into my heart as well … and there he’d stayed.

 

Joe had written to me quite a few times over the years, but no letter had ever meant as much to me as this first one that I’d received a few months after his father had taken him home from the fort. I smiled as I unfolded the worn paper and read it yet again.

 

deer baka,

 

My pa sed I culd rite to you. My pa sed that my brutha Adam is not ded in Bostun and I got in trubble for tring to find him. Can ya pleese rite and tell my pa I shuldnt be in trubble no more baka? I miss ya baka. When are ya cuming ta viset me baka? Tell the sarj that I am eating lots and growing biga every day. I will soon be big enuff ta join the arme like he done told me I culd. I askt my pa iffen we can cum and viset ya agen but he sed no. He seys I can cum when I get biga. I told my pa I am biga now but he sed I still aint big enuf. So ya have ta cum and viset me insted baka. I live in nevardar on the pondarosa ranch. Jest go to verjinia cite and ask sherif cofe. He is our frend and he will tell ya how to cum hear and see me.

 

Your frend

 

Joe Cartwright

 

He must have just turned eight when he’d written this.  The spelling was deplorable, but I assumed it was about right for a just-turned eight year-old. I’d calculated that he’d now be seventeen and not for the first time I wondered just what kind of young man he’d grown into. His letters throughout the years had shown him to be a boy who thought about and questioned things a lot and I suspected that he was probably fairly bright … but then I’d known that fact ten years ago when our paths had first crossed.  Anyone who could have manipulated me in the way that small boy had, would have had to be bright. I laughed aloud as I thought about how he had been then.  The determined green eyes that used to glare at me from under all those curls … the set, stubborn jaw and the small foot that had stamped when he hadn’t got his own way. Yes … he’d led me a merry dance in the days we’d had together and I suspected that he’d probably done the same to his father in the ensuing years.

 

It was nearly ten years since the child had first written and asked me to visit him … well, it might have taken me ten years to get here, but at least in my mind it was better late than never. I had no intention of missing this opportunity to see the boy again now that I had finally made it out this way and to tell the truth I was quite excited about seeing the young man that he’d become.

 

“Sergeant Clancy?”

 

The sergeant walked over and saluted. “Yes sir?”

 

“I’ll be leaving for a while to visit one of the ranches in the area. Once everything is organised, the men may have a few hours off to explore the town.”

 

The sergeant’s eyes lit up. “Myself included sir?”

 

“Yes,” I said, trying to keep a straight face at his eagerness. “Just make sure they’re back by sundown if I’m not here by then.”

 

“Yes sir!”

 

I saluted the sergeant and mounted my horse, headed in the direction that had been pointed out to me earlier that afternoon …. towards The Ponderosa Ranch, the Cartwright family and Baker’s Brat … sometimes known as Joe Cartwright.

 

—————

 

I hadn’t realised just how much land Mr Cartwright owned, and I soon revised my opinion of his wealth as I rode towards the ranch house. The man’s land holdings weren’t just considerable, they were truly massive and he must have been worth a fortune. The land itself was some of the most picturesque I’d ever come across and believe me, I’d travelled a great deal in the army in my time. The Ponderosa bordered on Lake Tahoe and indeed seemed to cover about two-thirds of the shoreline.  I wasn’t sure how far it stretched up into the mountains, but by the description I’d been given by those in town only too willing to tell me, it included a great deal of them as well.

 

By the time I arrived at the house I was in awe of the ranch and the man who ran it. The house itself was a sight …. a rustic wooden structure that seemed to grow up from the land itself as if it truly belonged there. It was a two-story affair and had a majestic, yet homely appeal to it.

 

As I dismounted in the front yard, I was approached by a large and genial man in a tall hat. “Howdy,” he said with a gap-toothed grin. “What can I do fer ya stranger?”

 

I tipped my hat to him. “I was hoping to see Mr Ben Cartwright?” I replied. “Major John Baker is the name.”

 

“Baker?” said a voice behind me and I turned to see Mr Cartwright himself standing there staring at me, surprise stamped across his face. “Major John Baker?”

 

“The very same sir,” I said with a smile. I would have known the man anywhere.  Ten years had certainly traced their mark across his face with a few extra wrinkles than the last time I’d seen him and his hair was definitely whiter than before, but I’d still have been able to pick him out of a crowd.

 

Mr Cartwright grabbed my hand and began to shake it furiously. “Well I’ll be!” he said happily. “John Baker …. after all these years!  It’s Major now?”

 

“Yes sir,” I said, returning the handshake. “It certainly is.”

 

“Well this is a surprise!” he exclaimed. “Hoss … this is Major John Baker. This is my son Hoss.”

 

“Howdy Major,” said Hoss, although I could see that he really hadn’t cottoned on to who I was and why his father was making such a fuss over me. “Pleased to meet ya,” he added as he shook my hand.

 

“Nice to meet you Hoss,” I replied.

 

“Major Baker is Joe’s Baker,” explained Ben. “Remember?”

 

The light dawned on his son’s face. “Oh!” he said. “Joe’s Baker! Well howdy Major. It’s great to meet ya!”  He pumped my hand with a great deal more enthusiasm this time.

 

“Look after the Major’s horse please son,” said Mr Cartwright as he pulled me towards the front porch. “Please … come and sit down.”  He escorted me to the porch and we both sat down. Within seconds a small oriental man brought out cups and a pot of coffee, although how he could have possibly known it was needed right then was beyond me.

 

“This is wonderful,” enthused Mr Cartwright excitedly. “Joe will be home soon and he’ll be thrilled to see you.”

 

“I suppose he’s grown quite a bit since the last time I saw him,” I said as I took the coffee he offered me. “Ten years is a long time.”

 

“He’s seventeen now,” said his father, the pride evident in his voice. “Quite the young man.”

 

“He was quite the young man even back then,” I said with a chuckle. “He thought he was pretty grown up even at seven when I knew him.”

 

“Yes that’s true,” chuckled Mr Cartwright. “Joseph always was one to want to grow up before his time. Comes from being the youngest I suppose.”

 

“He sure was a caution,” I said. “He told me in one of his letters that he got into considerable trouble for taking off the way he did.”

 

Mr Cartwright’s eyebrows lifted in the quizzical way that I remembered and I had a fleeting glimpse of the firmness that was beneath his geniality. “He did indeed,” he acknowledged. “I could have lost him you know Baker. He did a very foolish thing.”

 

“He was only seven,” I replied, a touch defensively.

 

“Even so,” Mr Cartwright shook his head. “He had to learn. He did a very dangerous thing taking off like that.”

 

“Did you ever find out about his time with the Indians?” I asked curiously.  The child had seemed very upset about it all at the time and I’d often wondered exactly what had happened to him during his time with them.

 

“No.  At first he was very reluctant to discuss it … even with me … and then later on I honestly think that he forgot.  It was as if it was all blocked from his memory.”  He shifted in his seat. “I finally gave up asking about it and he maintains even now that he can’t really remember it. Probably for the best really.”

 

“I’m sure you’re right,” I said. “I must say that I can hardly wait to see him after all these years.”

 

Mr Cartwright leant forward and looked at me intently. “You must stay the night,” he said. “We all have a lot to catch up with.”

 

“Well ….” I began. “I really need to get back to …”  I stopped as a rider came around the side of the barn. I stared at the boy … or rather young man … on the pinto horse and marvelled straight away at the grace with which he was riding. I might have known he’d end up an expert horseman, and I had a sudden recollection of him at seven sitting on a horse far too large for him and yet managing it without the slightest problem.  That was the day he’d earned the cavalry gloves of which he’d been so proud.

 

He dismounted before the horse had even come to a stop, with an ease that made me envious and then looped his reins over the hitching rail before walking quickly towards us. He wasn’t very tall (hadn’t he said that the kids had called him puny back then?) but the spread of his shoulders showed a promise of a muscular man that was developing and the indication of years of hard physical work. He had been a very striking child when I’d known him and now I could see at once that he had grown into a very handsome young man. He tipped his hat back as he approached and I caught a glimpse of the same unruly curls that I remembered so well. His green eyes flickered over me for an instant without recognition before he turned to his father. “Sorry to interrupt Pa,” he said. “But Adam says that …” He stopped as his father held up his hand.

 

“Never mind about that now Joe. There’s someone here to meet you.” Mr Cartwright indicated me as I stepped forward.

 

Joe gave me a quizzical look. “To meet me?” he said, surprised.

 

“This is Major John Baker,” said his father with a grin.

 

There was a moment’s silence and then the youngster’s eyes lit up. “Major Baker?” he said, giving me a hopeful look. “My Baker?”

 

I laughed as I stepped forward. “Well I didn’t know that I belonged exclusively to you,” I said. “But as everyone around here seems to refer to me as such I suppose I can be your Baker.” I smiled at him. “Hello Baker’s Brat.”

 

For a moment he looked as if he was going to fling his arms around my neck, but then he drew himself up to his full height and held out his hand. “Well what do you know,” he said, giving me a huge smile. “Baker!”

 

I took his hand and then placed my free hand around the back of his neck and pulled him close to me. He didn’t hesitate then and we both put our arms around each other and hugged briefly, while Mr Cartwright looked on happily. As I drew back from him, I stared into his face. “Well it’s good to see you after all these years,” I said. “I suppose you’d just about given up on me?” Joe laughed.

 

“I’ve been trying to convince the Major to stay the night to give us time to catch up,” said his father.

 

Joe instantly gave me one of the pleading puppy dog looks that I remembered so well. “Oh yes … you have to!” he pleaded. “There’s so much we have to talk about. Please?”

 

I held my hands up in a mock gesture of surrender. “Well, how could I say no?” I laughed.

 

Mr Cartwright slapped me on the back. “Good,” he said. “I’ll get Hoss to send one of the hands back to your camp to tell your men. Joe … you take the Major into the house.”

 

“This way Baker,” said Joe, his grin even wider than before. He hesitated. “Oh … I suppose I should call you Major Baker now,” he said.

 

“No … Baker is fine,” I replied, putting my arm around his shoulders as we walked towards the house. “That’s what you always called me before …. I wouldn’t feel it was really you if you called me anything else.”

 

—————-

 

The inside of the house was as I had expected, very large, very comfortable and very homely. As we waited for supper to be served I had the opportunity to listen and observe Joe in his home surroundings and I sensed a wonderful warm family atmosphere evident there between him, his father and his brother. Just as we were about to be served our meal, the front door opened and a man dressed in black entered the room.

 

“Ah!” said Mr Cartwright happily. “Here’s Adam. You’re just in time for supper son. Come and meet our guest.” Adam Cartwright was a very good looking man a few years younger than myself … dark of colouring like his father … and I could tell at once from the way he looked me up and down that he was someone who might be a force to be reckoned with if you got on the wrong side of him. I had been looking forward to meeting him, seeing as how he was the one responsible for me really meeting Joe in the first place. If it hadn’t been for Adam going to college in Boston, Joe would never have gone off looking for him and then we would never have met. “This is Major Baker,” said his father.

 

Adam’s eyes immediately flickered over me again appraisingly. “Joe’s Baker?” he enquired.

 

“So it would seem,” I laughed as I shook his hand. “So you’re the famous Adam who died in Boston all those years ago?”

 

“Well, according to some,” replied Adam, his eyes flickering over to Joe who looked slightly embarrassed as everyone laughed.

 

“I was only a little kid back then,” Joe said, a touch defensively. “I didn’t know any better.”

 

“You were one plucky little kid,” I acknowledged as we all sat down at the table. “As I remember it, you were determined to walk all the way to Boston, even though you thought it was south at the time.”

 

“He sure was,” said Hoss, grinning at his younger brother as he helped himself to a generous serving of meat before passing the platter to me. “You sure musta had your hands full looking after him.”

 

“I did,” I acknowledged. “He gave me a lot of extra work at the time.”  I winked at Joe to show him that I was only joking. “If I remember rightly, I had to spend a lot of time going to and from the laundry.”

 

“Let me guess,” said Adam with a chuckle. “He peed on you …. right?”

 

“Constantly,” I said.

 

Adam and Hoss laughed. “He used to do that on us all the time too,” Hoss spluttered and Joe went red.

 

“I’m sorry Joe,” I said, between laughs. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”

 

He shrugged. “That’s all right,” he said. “I’m used to it around here.”  He gave both of his brothers a dark look. “They like to embarrass me whenever they can.”

 

Adam slapped his youngest brother on the back. “That’s what big brothers are for,” he said heartily.

 

Mr Cartwright shot them all a look as if to silence them. “So … Major Baker …. What are you doing in Nevada?” he asked, changing the subject with great abruptness as if to compensate for his sons’ supposed bad manners. “Or is your mission not one that you’re able to discuss?”

 

“No it’s fine,” I replied. “Actually I’m here to see the Paiute chief …. Winnemucca, I believe is his name?”

 

They all stopped eating and looked at me for a full minute without speaking. “Winnemucca?” said Mr Cartwright finally. “Why?”

 

“I have orders to try and negotiate a peace treaty between the Paiutes and us,” I explained. “My superiors believe that it might be a the right time to try it.  There’s been no trouble with the Paiutes in a long time.”

 

“That’s true,” said Mr Cartwright thoughtfully. “Well I must say I’m mighty pleased to hear it. A treaty would be a wonderful thing if you can pull it off Major. There’s been far too much killing around here for far too long.”

 

“I don’t expect that we’ll be able to achieve a treaty just like that,” I said. “The aim is that we begin to make some headway with the Paiutes and have them understand that the army isn’t against them. If I’m successful in achieving just that much, then hopefully the rest might follow in time.”

 

“We can only pray,” said Mr Cartwright with a deep sigh. “Perhaps I can help? I know this country very well and I’d be happy to show you where the Paiute camp is.”

 

“That would be fine,” I said. “Thank you. We could ride back and pick up my troops in the morning and then head out.”

 

“Fine,” he said. “Now Joe … would you get the brandy decanter please? I think we’re ready for a drink to go with this meal.”

 

I settled back to enjoy the wonderful supper and the fine company. I learned all about the Cartwrights and their work on the ranch and filled them in on my years in the army as well, and in no time at all the clock was striking ten.

 

“Time for bed if we’re to be up early,” said Mr Cartwright as he shook my hand. “Joe will show you to your room Major.”

 

“Thank you for your hospitality Mr Cartwright,” I said.

 

“Not at all,” the man replied. “After what you did for Joseph all those years ago … it’s the least we can do. Besides, we’ve enjoyed the company.”

 

“We sure have,” said Joe, grinning at me. “Come on Baker … I’ll show you the guest room.”

 

I had barely started to take off my shirt as few minutes later, when there was a knock on my door and I opened it to see Joe standing in the hallway smiling at me. “I guessed you wouldn’t be asleep yet,” he said sheepishly. “Can I come in for a while? I’ve got something to show you.” I nodded and opened the door to let him in. He sat down on the edge of my bed and held up a pair of yellow gloves and a yellow bandanna, grinning at me all the while. “Remember these?” he asked.

 

I sat down next to him and fingered them. “I certainly do,” I said. “You kept them all these years?”

 

“Of course!” he snorted. “As if I’d throw them away.  I was real proud of these when I first got em. They fit a bit better now though,” he added unnecessarily. “Gee I was a skinny kid, wasn’t I?”

 

“Yes,” I agreed. “Did you ever seriously consider of joining the army as you’d wanted to back then?”

 

“Well I thought about it on and off until I was about thirteen,” he said, tucking his feet up under him on the bed. “But then I realised that I really didn’t want to leave here. Besides,” he added with a huge grin. “I’m not too good at taking orders you know.”

 

“I do know,” I laughed. “I remember it well.”

 

Joe made a face. “I guess I was a lot of bother to you back then,” he said. “Sorry bout that.”

 

“You weren’t a bother,” I said, patting him on the back of the neck. “Not one I minded anyway … at least … not after a while.” We laughed together.

 

“It’s real good to catch up with you,” he said suddenly. “I … wanted to thank you for all those letters you sent me over the years Baker.”

 

“Well you sent me a quite a few as well,” I said. “In fact, I have one of them here with me.” I pulled it out of my pocket and showed it to him. “Remember this?”

 

Joe read it quickly. “Gee I was a bad speller,” he said when he’d finished.

 

“You got better,” I replied, taking the letter and replacing it in my pocket.

 

“How come you kept it?”

 

“To remind me of my promise to myself to visit you,” I said.

 

“Well I’m glad you did Baker.  It’s great to see you again … and to have you meet my brothers.”

 

I smiled at him, knowing that my dreams that night would be full of a certain curly-haired child as they had so many times before over the years, only this time the child would have grown into a delightful young man.

 

—————-

 

The next morning, Mr Cartwright rode back with me to pick up my troops before I set out to meet with the Paiutes.  Joe, of course, insisted on coming with us and when his father agreed I didn’t object.  In fact, I relished the opportunity to keep our conversation going from the night before. Joe spent a great deal of the ride pointing out landmarks along the way that he thought might be of interest to me and by the time we’d got to the high country with the dozen troopers I let him know how suitably impressed I was with their ranch. I could see that my approval meant a lot to him and he was justifiably proud when I said it.

 

“Are you sure you don’t want me to ride the whole way with you?” asked Mr Cartwright once we’d reached the summit of a hill and he was able to point out the smoke from Winnemucca’s camp to me. “I’ve met Winnemucca a few times before and I might be some help to you.”

 

I shook my head. “No thank you,” I replied. “This is something for the army to do Mr Cartwright. We’ll be fine.”

 

“Well good luck,” he said. “You shouldn’t have any trouble.  The Paiutes have shown themselves to be very co-operative lately.” He turned his horse. “Come on Joe.”

 

“Pa?” Joe looked at his father pleadingly and Mr Cartwright returned the look with a smile.

 

“Oh yes,” he said. “We were wondering if you and your troops could camp near the ranch house tonight?” he said. “You have to camp somewhere and it may as well be there.”

 

“That way you can visit for a bit longer,” added Joe. “Please?”

 

“I don’t see why not,” I said. “We’ll camp down by the lake if that’s all right with you Mr Cartwright. The men might enjoy some fishing once we’ve finished our work.” There was a mutter of approval from the troops behind me at my words.

 

“See ya there then,” said Joe happily. “You be careful with them Paiutes Baker!” He waved as he and his father rode off and I waited until they had disappeared before calling Sergeant Clancy forward.

 

“All men on the alert,” I said as I checked my rifle. “Just in case.”

 

He nodded and gave the order and the men behind us cocked their rifles ready as we headed off.

 

The Paiute camp was larger than I had expected it to be and it was situated in a secluded area next to the Truckee River. I made sure that we made ourselves known long before we got there, as I didn’t want anyone thinking that we were sneaking up on them and coming in unannounced.  Even so, it was obvious that our arrival set the camp on edge immediately and all the squaws and children disappeared immediately as we entered. My men were on high alert with their rifles at the ready, but such was their experience that any casual observer would never have known it. The dozen I’d chosen weren’t men to lose their heads lightly, however, and I knew there would be no panicking amongst them.

 

As I dismounted, an older man whom I took to be Winnemucca himself approached me.  I had been informed that he spoke quite good English, but even so I had chosen one of my dozen men specifically for the fact that he had some experience with the Paiute language and could be used as an interpreter if needed.  As it turned out, he wasn’t needed at all.

 

I can’t complain about the progress we made that morning. We spoke of many things that affected both the Paiutes and whites alike and came to an understanding that peace was what we both wanted. At least, I felt that Winnemucca himself wanted it. Looking around at some of his braves standing behind him while the negotiations were taking place, I wasn’t so sure that they all agreed with him. By the time our talk of land rights and terms had finished though, I felt that I had come some way to persuading some of them, for the atmosphere was decidedly less tense than it had been when we had begun. We smoked a pipe together and I promised to take the outcome of our talk back to my superiors.

 

As we left the camp I knew that even though we hadn’t come to an agreement by any means, today had been an important first step on the path to peace between the whites and the Paiutes. I sincerely hoped so with all my heart, as I’d seen far too many deaths on both sides in my years in the army and never wanted to see more.

 

We camped near Lake Tahoe as I’d promised Mr Cartwright, and the men enjoyed a well-earned rest. It was going on for late afternoon when I spied Joe approaching on his pinto, galloping in as if his heels were on fire.  It didn’t surprise me at all to see him, as he’d virtually told me that he would come, but what did surprise me was the look on his face as he drew his horse to a halt. “Baker!” he called out as he waved to me.

 

“You look as if your coattail is on fire,” I remarked casually as I came up to stand next to his horse. “Do you always ride like that?”

 

He ignored the question and I could see that he looked somewhat agitated. “I was worried about you,” he said.

 

“There’s no need to worry,” I assured him. “Everything went fine. As your father said this morning, the Paiutes are peaceful at the moment.”

 

He shook his head. “Not any more,” he said. “What time did you leave the camp?”

 

“About midday,” I replied, instantly on the alert. “Why? What’s happened?”

 

“You musta got out just in time then,” he said breathlessly. “I was in town picking up the mail for Pa and I heard about a Paiute brave being shot over by Tyson Wells.”

 

“What?” I snapped, instantly on the alert. “Sergeant Clancy … over here!” The sergeant immediately came to stand beside me and we both readied ourselves to hear what Joe had to say.

 

Joe swallowed to catch his breath before he continued. “Charlie Burton over at Tyson Wells shot a brave,” he said. “From the sound of it there was a few of em hanging round there. No one seems ta know why, but I guess maybe Charlie might have panicked. Anyway …. One of em was shot and the others rode off.”

 

I closed my eyes momentarily, cursing the unknown Charlie Burton and his timing. “Sergeant,” I instructed the man. “Get the men mounted up and ready. We have to get back to that camp straight away.”

“Yes sir,” he said, giving me a snappy salute and running off to get everyone organised.

 

Joe leant down and held onto my arm. “Baker, you can’t go back there,” he said urgently. “You don’t understand …”

 

“I do understand Joe,” I said firmly. “I understand that everything we hoped to achieve might all come to nothing now. I have to try and make Winnemucca understand that we weren’t giving him false promises this morning.”

 

“But they’ll cut you down before you can even get to him,” persisted Joe anxiously. “They’re gonna want revenge for this killing. You don’t understand the Paiutes Baker.”

 

“I understand Indians Joe,” I replied calmly. “I’ve fought them for many years. I know exactly what will be going on in that camp right now, but it’s my job to try and stop it before this turns into a war.” I patted him on the arm. “We’ll be fine,” I assured him. “All my men are seasoned professionals and they’re used to this sort of thing.”

 

Joe stared at me for a moment with that intense look in his green eyes that I remembered from all those years ago. “Then I’m coming with you,” he stated.

 

“You’re doing nothing of the kind,” I said crossly. “You’re going to ride home and let your father know what’s going on and then you’re going to stay there and be guided by what he tells you to do. Believe me … I’ll be fine.”

 

“But Baker …”

 

“No buts about it,” I snapped. “Do as you’re told!”

 

His jaw jutted out in that stubborn way that I remembered and he looked for a moment as if he was about to argue, but then abruptly nodded before turning his horse and galloping off into the pines again, much to my relief. I ran to my own horse and mounted up, motioning to Sergeant Clancy to bring the men behind. “Let’s ride,” I shouted.

 

—————-

 

It was clear before we’d even got near the camp that things weren’t right and the very air around us was thick with unseen tension. We didn’t need to see the danger to know that it surrounded us. I still hoped to avert it and to get to the camp unharmed in order to have the opportunity to speak to Chief Winnemucca, but it wasn’t to be. The braves who descended upon us as we rounded a bend made it perfectly clear that they weren’t going to welcome us as they had earlier that day and we soon found ourselves caught up in the midst of a fight that was upon us before we hardly realised it. My men fought bravely, but we were vastly outnumbered …. A dozen men standing between the settlers of the area and the hordes of Paiutes were never going to win. One by one I saw them fall … a dozen good men, bravely fighting until the end.

 

Finally Sergeant Clancy and I were the last two left, and we wheeled our horses around to make for the cover of an outcrop of rocks behind us. Sergeant Clancy never made it.  He fell beside me before we’d got halfway there and I found myself taking cover by myself behind the rocks. As I reloaded my rifle I cursed both myself and the Paiutes for the mess that I was in and the loss of the dozen brave men who’d ridden with me.

 

Suddenly I had no time to curse anything, as bullets began to shower down on me and I was so busy returning the fire, that it was a few minute before I realised that mine wasn’t the only rifle being discharged from behind the rocks. I turned sharply in surprise.

 

“What the h …” my eyes widened with surprise at the green eyes which stared back at me fleetingly. “What are you doing here!” I snapped.

 

Joe shrugged. “I told ya I wasn’t any good at taking orders,” he said. “I followed you to see if I could help.”

 

There was no time to say more. Inwardly I cursed the youngster for being there, but secretly I was a little proud of him as well. It had taken guts to do what he had, even though it had been a damned stupid thing to do. Suddenly the Paiutes were on us again and there was no time to do anything except defend ourselves the best way we could.

 

I was aiming at a brave who was advancing towards me when I heard a movement behind me and turned sharply to see a large Paiute staring down at me.  Suddenly the world went black and I slumped to the ground as I felt a hard blow on the back of my head. My last thought was for Joe’s safety and I called out for him … but I heard no answer as I lost consciousness.

 

—————-

 

The next sound I heard was a groan and it took me a few minutes to establish that it wasn’t me making the noise. I rolled over on my side to look up at the sky, but to my surprise I saw instead the dirty colour of animal hide that seemed to surround me. Shaking my head, I continued to roll until I was on my back, flexing my hands tentatively. I expected them to be tied, but to my relief there were no bonds at all.

 

There was another groan and I looked across to see Joe’s unmistakable curly head lying next to me. “Joe!” I whispered as I sat up and looked around the small tent. “Joe!”  I shook him roughly and was pleased to see that he opened his eyes immediately and stared up at me.

 

“What?” He said and then groaned again and put his hand to his head. “Ow! My head hurts.”

 

“Those Paiutes sure can hit hard,” I said ruefully, rubbing me own head. I pulled him to sitting position. “Are you alright?”

 

“I think so,” he said groggily. “Where are we?”

 

“Looks as if we’re back in their camp,” I said, looking around the tepee. “At least, I think we are.”  I scrunched over and picked up the bottom of the hide tentatively and looked out. All around us were sign of Paiutes.  No wonder they hadn’t bound us …. There had been no need to … There was no escape. “Looks as if there’s plenty of them out there,” I said.

 

Joe scrunched over and lay beside me to look as well. “Sure are,” he said ruefully. “I guess we’re in a mess ain’t we?” He looked across at me. “What do ya think they’re gonna do to us Baker?” he asked.

 

“I don’t know,” I said honestly. “But at the moment we have no choice but to wait and find out.”

 

“I could maybe fit under here and edge my way over to …” he began.

 

“You’ll do nothing of the kind,” I snapped. “For once you’ll do as I say!” He closed his mouth and didn’t reply. “You listen to me Joe,” I said, gripping him by the shoulders. “This is no game. There are far too many Paiutes out there to take a chance on escaping and I have no intention of you risking your life. You hear me?”

 

“I hear you,” he said. “But I reckon my life ain’t worth squat at the moment,” he added sadly. “It don’t make much difference does it?”

 

“Don’t you talk like that,” I said firmly. “Nothing is certain. Besides … your father and brothers might come looking for us.”  I looked at him intently. “You did go home and tell your father what was happening, didn’t you?’

 

Joe avoided looking at me directly. “Not exactly,” he admitted.

 

“Joe!” I said, exasperated. “So no one knows where we are?”

 

“I’m sorry,” he said, giving me one of his best puppy dog looks. “I didn’t mean to make things harder.” He bit his lip. “I’m sorry bout … all your men too Baker. None of em made it, did they?”

 

“No,” I said shortly, trying to block the image of their last moments out of my mind. “None of them. They were good men.”

 

Joe thought for a moment. “I’ll bet my brother Hoss will track us when I don’t make it home,” he said finally. ‘Hoss is a real good tracker.”

 

“We’ll need more than a good tracker to get us out of this mess,” I said. “Didn’t you see how many Paiutes were out there?  It’s going to take more than your family to save us Joe.” I noticed the youngster swallow at my words and I tried to soften them by adding, “But I’m sure they’ll get help and we’ll have a good chance of being rescued.”

 

He nodded. “Sure,” he said, trying to smile.

 

Looking at him made me remember just how young he was and I smiled back at him. Really he was no more than a boy trying hard to be a man under very difficult conditions. “We’ll get out of this Joe,” I said softly, trying to sound confident. “I’m sure of it.”

 

—————-

 

We must have both fallen asleep at some stage, for the next thing I remembered was being woken up by the sound of Joe yelling beside me. “No!” he shouted as his arms and legs began flailing around wildly. “No! Go away!”

 

“Joe!” I leant over and began to shake him, but he immediately lashed out at me.

 

“No!” he shouted again. “I want my Pa!  Let me go!”

 

“Joe!” I tried again, this time shaking him urgently as I was afraid that his cries might bring us unwanted attention from the Paiutes outside the tent.

 

He opened his eyes and blinked a couple of times, grabbing onto my arms tightly. “Pa?” he said as he blinked again.

 

“No …. It’s Baker,” I said.

 

He blinked again and swallowed as he looked around. “What happened?” he asked.

 

“You were dreaming,” I said. “Are you all right now?”

 

He nodded and let go of my arms as he sat up. He drew up his knees and hugged them tight towards him as he put his face down on them. “I …. I think so,” he said softly. “I guess it was …”  He looked up at me and swallowed. “I was remembering,” he said.

 

“Remembering?”

 

He nodded. “About … about that other time. You know Baker …. before you found me … with the Indians … that other time.”  He frowned and then added as if to himself. “I … thought I’d forgotten it.”

 

“You probably had,” I said, sitting up as well. “Only … now that you’re here with Indians again, it’s probably bringing back all the memories that have been at the back of your mind.”

 

He nodded thoughtfully. “They weren’t good ones,” he said softly.

 

I put my hand on his shoulder. “I’m sure they weren’t,” I said. “Do you want to talk about it?”

 

He shook his head, but began to speak even so. Memories from a time ten years ago when a frightened and very vulnerable seven year-old child had found himself cast adrift from all that he’d known …..

 

The child didn’t mind being dirty, for as a typical seven year-old he was quite used to it and actually relished the fact that there was no one to remind him to wash for a change. He scratched his head absently as his scalp started to itch yet again and then brushed the long unruly curls out of his eyes as he had lately begun to do so often. He suddenly remembered that he’d meant to ask Bia for a piece of hide like the other boys wore to keep their hair tied back and wondered if he could find one for himself.  He wandered around the back of the tepee, searching for something he could use and then stopped as he spied a couple of the braves sitting there. Quickly he ducked back again and observed them from the safety of the other side of the tepee.

 

It wasn’t that he was scared of them, for no one in the camp had actually been unkind to him. In fact most of them simply ignored him. It was just that he was wary and preferred, for reasons he couldn’t have even articulated, to go to one of the numerous women who lived in the camp if he needed anything. The braves usually looked at him in a way that he didn’t understand and he kept his distance whenever he could.

 

 He wandered across the clearing like a small animal wary of its surroundings, his eyes darting to one side and then the other as he searched the area for Bia. Finally he saw the woman sitting by the fire, went over to her and squatted next to her. He watched for several minutes as she stirred something in a pot that hung over the small cooking fire and then grinned as she handed him a bowl with a small amount of warm ground corn in it. He ate it hungrily with his fingers, licking them when he’d finished and looking hopefully at her to see if there was more. Bia took the bowl from him and turned back to her stirring again without a word and he frowned as he realised that he wasn’t going to get any more. It wasn’t that he was starving, but his belly was never quite full here and he was always looking for ways to snatch a piece of extra food whenever he could. Like small foraging dogs, he and the other children were forever on the lookout for something to eat to supplement what the adults gave them.

 

It had been a very lean winter for the tribe and even though the small boy couldn’t have known it, they were all feeling the effects of the lack of food during the colder months. Now that the earth had once again turned towards spring and the promise of warmer days to come, they could all hopefully expect more meat to fatten them up. Always a skinny child, the boy’s flesh was stretched over his bones and his arms and legs showed the effects of the meagre diet he’d been subjected to for the past weeks.

 

He gestured to his hair, searching his brain for the word which he couldn’t remember. He was quite a bright child and had picked up much of their language since he’d been here, but the one word which he now tried to remember had escaped him for the moment. He could usually make himself know through gestures and mimicking and now was no exception as the woman grasped his meaning and picked up a piece of hide. He reached for it, but she turned his head and tied it around the curly hair herself, effectively keeping it back out of his eyes.  He smiled at her and said “haa,” which he knew meant “yes” before getting up and walking away.

 

As he walked away, his small brain grappled around the problem that he always had of how to tell them what he really wanted … His family. He’d spent a lot of time over the past weeks trying to think of a way to make these Indians understand that he wanted to leave here and go home again, but he just couldn’t do it. He’d considered just walking away and trying to find home by himself, but every time he did he remembered back to those awful few days when he’d been lost out there without food and very little water.  When they’d first found him he was literally starving and even the small amount of food and company they’d provided for him had been preferable to the hardships he’d experienced out there.

 

Always a sociable child, he had found the isolation the hardest thing to bear … although he wouldn’t have known it as such. Something in him longed to be able to do more than communicate on the superficial level that he did. He craved for the touch of comfort and the feeling of security that only a caring adult could bring him and like a small wild animal he cherished every small piece of the attention that a few of the women like Bia gave to him. Even the gesture of her tying the piece of hide around his head would stick in his mind as a comforting thought.

 

He shivered slightly as he thought about being out there alone again. He felt the loneliness of this place keenly … yet he knew that being around people … any people … was better than being by himself. So he had clung to these Indians for the security that they had offered him in a way that was quite pitiful to see.

 

Suddenly he heard a noise and turned his head instinctively to see a troop of soldiers riding out from the cover of the trees at the side of the clearing. Instantly, the braves who were sitting in the clearing sprang to their feet and shouted at the women and children who began to run towards the river and the cover of the trees there. The child stood as if rooted to the spot, watching the soldiers and the braves fighting around him, his eyes widening at sights that a child his age should never have been subjected to.  At last, when a brave staggered across the compound and fell at his feet with blood oozing from what was left of his face, he turned and ran screaming across the clearing towards the safety of some rocks.

 

He ran full tilt into a pair of blue-clad legs and he looked up, his terrified eyes widening at the sight of the tall soldier gazing down at him. He froze as the man lifted his rifle and pointed it directly at him, his little heart pounding in his chest and his screams suddenly stilled with the fright of what was happening. For a split second the world seemed to stand still and then the man leant down and grabbed him by the arm, pulling him towards the safety of the cover of the rocks …

 

As Joe talked, I could feel his vulnerability and fear coming through every word.  No wonder the poor kid had been scared out of his wits when I’d come across him that day. My heart went out to him and I longed to hug him to me as I had once when he’d been small, but I feared that he’d only push me away.

 

“I felt so scared all the time,” Joe finished softly, his green eyes shining in the dim light of the small fire in the middle of the tent. “I wanted my Pa so much and no one seemed to understand that.” He looked at me directly for the first time, his eyes glistening with the unshed tears. “When you found me I was still scared. That’s why I didn’t talk for so long I reckon.”

 

“That was obvious,” I said. “You looked like a terrified wild rabbit when I first saw you that day and it wouldn’t have helped that I was pointing a rifle directly at you.” I gave up resisting the temptation not to give him the physical comfort he so obviously craved and pulled him towards me. Joe didn’t resist my touch, but leant in towards me as if comforted by it and put his head on my shoulder. The tears began to fall as he sobbed like the little boy I’d known all those years ago and he allowed me to stroke his curly hair gently for a few minutes as he composed himself.

 

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled as he sat up again abruptly. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

 

“It’s fine,” I said. “No need to be embarrassed Joe.”

 

He sniffed a couple of times and wiped his nose on his sleeve. “I didn’t mean to wake you up neither,” he mumbled, averting his eyes from me as it was obvious that he was still embarrassed about the crying.

 

“At least you didn’t pee on me this time,” I said, trying to lighten the mood and received a half-hearted smile for my trouble.

 

“Baker?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“What do you think they’re going to do to us?” he asked, fear of the past and the present both reflected in his eyes.

 

I hesitated. “I’m not sure Joe,” I admitted. “One thing I do know though. If they were going to kill us I think they would have done it by now. There’d be no sense keeping us alive unless …”

 

He swallowed. “Unless they have other plans, huh?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“I wonder what they’re thinking out there?” he said softly.

 

“We’ll know in time,” I said. I thought back to when he’d been in my charge on the way back to the fort after I’d first found him.  Even though I’d been disgusted with the filthy little body that had been forced onto me, I had begun in those days to feel a protectiveness towards the child that I couldn’t have explained at the time. He’d been totally dependant on me then and I suppose that had made me feel as if I had wanted to shield him from any further danger or discomfort. As I gazed at the young man now I knew that he didn’t need me in the way that small child had, but that he still depended on me to be strong for him. There was no way that I could have let him down at that moment. I had lost a dozen good men and I had no intention of allowing either of us to go the same way if I could help it.  “I’m sure it will be fine,” I lied and was pleased to see him nod slightly.

 

“Yes,” he said simply.

 

“Lie down and try to get some more sleep,” I suggested. “We’re going to need it.” He lay down next to me and I watched him in the dim light, knowing that no more sleep would come to either of us that night.

 

—————-

 

It was just before a very cold dawn that they finally came for us. I felt the presence of the two Indians before I saw them in the dim light and immediately was on the alert. I felt Joe tense up beside me and I whispered to him. “Just take it easy Joe. We don’t know what’s happening yet. It could be nothing.” He nodded slightly and we both got to our feet. One of the Indians gestured for us to move outside and as we came out into the chill morning air a sense of foreboding came upon me swiftly.

 

I tried for Joe’s sake to master my feelings, but I knew that the tension in the air was so think that there was no mistaking it. Joe’s eyes began to swivel from side to side as mine were doing, each of us taking in our surroundings and assessing the situation. There were far less Indians around than there had been before, and I guessed that a lot of them were asleep in the tepees that surrounded us on all sides. “Don’t even think about it,” I whispered to him, knowing what was in his mind as we were led across the main compound towards a small group of braves.

 

Suddenly Chief Winnemucca appeared from inside one of the tepees and stood looking at us silently with his arms crossed over his chest. It seemed like forever that we stood in this way, but it was probably not more than a few minutes. I could sense Joe becoming agitated as he stood beside me and I guessed that patience wasn’t one of his virtues.

 

Finally the chief spoke. “You promised peace,” he said simply.

 

I licked my lips before replying. “Yes,” I said. “And I still do.”

 

His eyes narrowed. “You call what happened yesterday, peace?” he spat. “I do not think so.”

 

“Your braves also broke our agreement,” I countered. “Many white men were killed.”

 

“The white man killed first.”

 

I nodded. “That is true, but I did not know that it would happen when I was here yesterday. I promise you that he will answer for it.”

 

The chief’s eyes narrowed. “The white man’s justice?” he said mockingly.

 

“It is all I can offer,” I said. “If …” I stopped as a movement beside me caused me to turn. To my surprise, Joe was no longer there and I anxiously scanned the area for a glimpse of him. My heart sank as I saw him running behind one of the tepees and I started after him immediately. “Joe!” I called, for I could see that several of the braves who’d been intent on listening to the Chief and myself had also realised that he had run and were starting after him even as I had turned about to follow him. “Joe! Get back here!” I yelled desperately.

 

Joe continued to ignore my calls and ran as if his life depended on it, which indeed it did. “Damn fool kid!” I muttered as I felt my arms being pinned to my sides and I fought against my captor as I struggled to get free. I managed to kick him and he loosened his hold just as another brave let fly an arrow. It struck Joe in the side of the chest and he fell to the ground instantly. “Joe!” I shouted as I began to run towards him.

 

The Paiutes let me go to him this time. I suppose there was no point in holding me back, as by now the area was swarming with braves who were very much on the alert and I couldn’t have gone anywhere. I reached Joe in seconds and turned him over, grimacing as I saw the arrow piercing out of the side of his chest. I looked up at the Paiutes who were surrounding us. “He needs help,” I said, knowing that my pleas would be in vain. No one moved or said anything, so I finally picked him up in my arms and headed back towards the tepee where we’d come from, noticing on the way that Winnemucca had disappeared. No one stopped me, although as soon as I’d reached the tepee and put Joe down on the ground inside, a guard was again placed at the doorway.

 

“Damn fool kid!” I muttered aloud in my frustration. “Didn’t I tell you not to try anything?”  I ripped his shirt away from him and used it to stem some of the blood that was flowing freely down his torso. The movement disturbed him and his eyes opened.

 

“I’m … sorry,” he whispered faintly. “I … thought I could … make it out and … bring back help.”

 

“Be quiet,” I said firmly. “Don’t worry about any of that now. You need to save your strength.” He nodded and closed his mouth. I stared down at him, knowing what I had to do, but dreading the thought of it. I had taken plenty of arrows out of men before, but never had I felt quite like this at the thought of doing it. He stared back up at me, his green eyes reflecting understanding through their fear.

 

“This has to come out now,” I said. “You have to stay as still as you can Joe.”

 

He nodded again and his fingers dug into the earthen floor in anticipation of the pain that he was expecting to wash over him at any moment. I swallowed and avoided looking at his eyes as I concentrated on getting the arrow out of his chest. Thankfully it had not gone too deeply and had penetrated at an angle which I hoped meant that it was well away from his heart and lungs, although I had no way of really telling. I gripped hold of the shaft firmly and took a deep breath before using all my strength to pull it out of his body and towards me. I felt it momentarily catch on something inside him and he cried out with the pain which must have been excruciating … but I kept on going, knowing that if I stopped it would only make it worse for him in the long run. Slowly the arrowhead emerged from the wound and I breathed a sigh of relief as I threw it aside and once more used his shirt to stem the flow of blood.

 

“That’s it now Joe,” I said as I worked. “It’s out.”  There was no reply and it was with a sense of relief that I looked at his face and saw that he had passed out. I put my hand on his hair. “You’re going to be alright Joe,” I murmured. “I promise you. You’re going to be alright.”

 

—————-

 

It’s strange how time doesn’t seem to mean much when you’re in a difficult situation. There have been plenty of times I can remember that time seemed to move so quickly, but that day as I sat by Joe’s side time seemed to have stood still. At first I was mostly concerned about stopping the flow of blood from his chest, but later on when it seemed to have slowed down somewhat I began to get very anxious about the fever that he was developing. I had nothing with which to wash the wound and I knew that without proper care his time was very limited. The wound itself became quite red and swollen around the edges and I told myself that it was nothing to worry about, although I knew better.

 

Not long after I had removed the arrow, Joe woke up to a world of pain. He tried to be strong for my sake, but I could tell from the way he clutched at the ground and then finally at my sleeve that he was feeling the agony of the wound with every breath that he took. He was weak, which wasn’t surprising due to the amount of blood that he’d lost and he seemed to get weaker as the fever that was bound to come began to overtake him. I was worried that I was going to lose him right there on the earthen floor and the thought drove me to distraction.

 

“Joe,” I said, leaning close so that I could be sure that he heard me. “Joe?”

 

His eyes fluttered open and he stared up at me. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.

 

“I told you to stop saying that,” I replied. “Now you listen to me kid. You need to hang on.  I know it’s hurting real bad at the moment, but your family will be coming for us soon … remember? You just have to hang on until they get here.”

 

Joe closed his eyes and then opened them again. I could see beads of sweat beginning to form on his forehead and I wiped them off with a clean part of his blood-soaked shirt. “You said … we needed more than … my family,” he said.

 

I cursed him silently for remembering. “You know as well as I do that your Pa will move heaven and earth to get us out of here,” I said, for want of something else to say. “Once he finds us he …”

 

“But … he don’t know we’re here,” Joe interrupted, his green eyes searching my face intently. He closed them again with a sigh.

 

“Joe!” I shook him slightly, knowing that if he lost consciousness he might never regain it again. “Joe! Stay with me kid.”

 

He opened his eyes again and licked his lips. “Thirsty,” he murmured.

 

I leant close to him. “I’m sorry Joe,” I said. “There’s no water.”

 

He nodded slightly and closed his eyes again, causing me to shake him gently. Once again, his eyes opened. “You need to stay awake Joe,” I said. “Stay with me.”

 

He shook his head. “Too … tired,” he murmured.

 

I desperately searched my brain to come up with something for him to focus on. “Remember when we were at the fort?” I finally said. “Remember the name of the Sergeant?”

 

Joe frowned. “Sergeant … Beame?” he said finally.

 

“Yes,” I replied. “He wanted you eat more …. Remember? You were determined to get into the army and he said that you couldn’t unless you ate more and grew.”

 

Joe’s lips parted in a grin. “Yes,” he said and then closed his eyes again.

 

I shook him once more. “Remember the Colonel?” I said, wondering how I was going to able to face this boy’s father if he died right here in front of me. “The Colonel, Joe … remember what his name was?”

 

Joe shook his head. “No,” he murmured.

 

“Think!” I said. “Open your eyes and think!”

 

Joe opened his eyes and stared up at me. “Can’t … remember,” he said.

 

“Colonel Hudson,” I prompted. “Remember?”

 

He smiled. “Hairy,” he said, trying to smile.

 

“Yes … that’s right,” I said encouragingly. “You were scared of him because he had so much hair.”

 

Joe glared up at me. “I was …. not scared!” he declared. “Just … didn’t like him … that’s all.”

 

“That’s it,” I said, pleased to see his fighting spirit again. “You get mad. You get as mad as you like if it keeps you with me Baker’s Brat.”

 

He grinned up at me groggily. “I … like that,” he said softly.

 

“You like what?”

 

“When you call me Baker’s Brat,” he said.

 

“Well why wouldn’t I?” I said, caressing his hair gently. “It’s your name after all, isn’t it?”

 

He nodded. “Yes,” he agreed. “I’m Baker’s Brat.”

 

—————-

 

“Baker?”

 

I shifted slight so that I was within his line of vision. “I’m here,” I said.

 

Joe clutched hold of my sleeve. “If I don’t … make it … will you tell my Pa for me that …”

 

“You stop that,” I interrupted firmly. “I don’t want to hear you say anything of the kind. You’re one tough kid and you’re going to make it … do you hear me?” He said nothing as he gazed up at me, still clutching hold of my sleeve tightly.

 

Suddenly the hide slung across the doorway of the tepee was flung open and chief Winnemucca himself appeared inside.  He stood looking down at us for several seconds, his eyes giving nothing away.

 

“Why army come here again today?” he asked finally.

 

“To try and avoid more bloodshed,” I answered truthfully, feeling Joe still clutching hold of me.

 

His eyes narrowed. “Not to fight?”

 

“No.  I meant what I said earlier. I don’t want war …. anymore than I think you do,” I replied.

 

He stared at me again. “You tell your chief that?”

 

“Yes I will,” I said, hope beginning to flutter in my heart for the first time. “If I get the chance I will most definitely tell him.”

 

“My braves killed your men for the one of ours who was killed,” he stated.

 

“Yes. Let that be an end to it now,” I said hopefully.

 

“It will not be,” he said with a sigh. “White men will not stop there.”

 

I knew he was right.  My superiors would be asking some difficult questions when I returned with the news that a dozen good men had been killed and I knew in my heart that it wouldn’t stop there. Looking at Winnemucca at that moment, I was also aware that he knew it. We were both two men fighting for peace, but circumstances were thwarting us at every turn.

 

“I will do my best,” I said simply.

 

“There will be no treaty now,” he said flatly. “The time is not yet right.” I said nothing, knowing that he spoke the truth.

 

At that moment Joe stirred as he groaned aloud and Winnemucca’s eyes instantly were upon him. “This one does not wear the army uniform,” he said. “He is a scout?”

 

“No,” I replied, holding onto Joe as he continued to groan. “He just got in the way.”

 

“He is young. He is your son?”

 

I shook my head. “No … he is Ben Cartwright’s son.”

 

Winnemucca’s eyes momentarily widened and then narrowed again. “I know Ben Cartwright,” he said. “He is a good man … Take his son back to him.”  He turned abruptly to leave, but I called out to him.

 

“If I put him on a horse he’s likely to die,” I said, thinking that he was likely to die anyway.

 

Winnemucca continued to walk away, and I knew that I had no choice. It was either leave Joe there … which I couldn’t do … or take him with me and risk killing him on the ride. Gently, I propped him up against my body. “Lean on me Joe,” I said. “We’re getting out of here.”

 

Joe turned his sweat-covered face towards mine, not comprehending for a moment. “What?” he said weakly.

 

“We need to go now,” I said. “Come on … up you get.”  I pulled him to his feet as gently as I could and put my arm around his slim waist, walking him towards the doorway. As we reached outside, Joe stirred slightly in my grip.

 

“Where?….” he said.

 

“We’re going home,” I said again. “Just take it easy now.”

 

“I’m … not going without my … horse,” he said stubbornly. “Cochise.”

 

I bit my lip with the frustration of having to deal with such a hardheaded boy. “For heaven’s sake!” I muttered. “This isn’t the time …”  I stopped as I noticed a Paiute bringing Joe’s horse forward for us and I could have flung my arms around him right then and there. I had a feeling that Joe meant every word of what he’d said and was likely to cause a fuss about his horse in spite of the state he was in.

 

I helped him up into the saddle and mounted behind him, saluting to Chief Winnemucca before turning the horse around and slowly walking him out of the Paiute camp. Joe slumped back onto me, his energy depleted. “This ride is going to be hard on you Baker’s Brat,” I muttered over the top of his curly hair. “But you’re going to make it kid. I’m going to see to it.”

 

—————-

 

The slow ride back to The Ponderosa reminded me of taking him on that very first ride on my saddle back to the fort. Only that time he’d been filthy and wriggled constantly in front of me.  This time he was very still, his head bent forward and his body a dead weight against my own. I had given up trying to keep him conscious now as it was beyond me to achieve it, and I kept one of my hands placed over his heart as I felt for the faint thudding movement that told me that he was still alive. With every beat that I felt, I thanked God that we’d made it another step towards safety. His wound had started to bleed again and he was getting paler by the minute. I wondered again how I’d have the strength to face Mr Cartwright if Joe didn’t make it and I prayed that I’d never have to find that out.

 

I was hampered by how fast I could go because I was so worried about the fact that Joe’s wound had begun bleeding again, so we really hadn’t gone very far in the first hour. I was beginning to think that we might never make it, when to my intense relief Adam and Hoss suddenly rode out of a clearing ahead of us. I shouted for them and they both immediately turned and headed over to us. As soon as they saw the state of their younger brother in front of me, neither of them hesitated. As if they had an unspoken agreement with each other, Hoss wheeled his horse away again and shouted over his shoulder that he was going for the doctor. He was gone before I hardly knew he’d been there in the first place.

 

Adam drew up alongside me and held out his hands. “I’ll take him on my horse with me,” he said. “You look done in.”

 

I gratefully shifted Joe from my saddle to Adam’s and such was the depth of Joe’s unconsciousness that he never stirred once while I was doing it. His wound began to bleed profusely again once his brother had settled him in front of him on the saddle and Adam immediately took off his own bandanna and held it against Joe’s chest. He covered Joe with his own coat to keep him extra warm and I was surprised how gentle he was with his younger brother. I shouldn’t have been … given the closeness that I’d already observed between the members of this family.

 

“Joe thinks a lot of you,” I observed as we carefully made our way towards the ranch house and my words made Adam hug his brother even more protectively to his chest as he looked down at him. “He never would have taken off the way he did when he was younger if he hadn’t been missing you dreadfully,” I added. “He talked a lot to me about you at the time.”

 

Adam smiled at me briefly. “The feeling is mutual,” he said. “Only don’t tell him I said so, will you? I like to keep him guessing … that’s what big brothers are for.”

 

I shook my head. “I won’t let on,” I said. “But I’m sure he knows it anyway.”

 

Our progress was slow, but I felt much more confidant now that there were two of us to watch over Joe on the way. Adam filled me in on what had been happening as we went. “We’ve been tracking you all day,” he said. “As soon as we realised that Joe wasn’t coming home last night we checked at your camp first of course. When we discovered that you and your men had left, we figured that Joe had probably gone with you.”

 

“Actually I didn’t know that he had,” I interrupted. “I told him to go home, but he followed us.”

 

Adam lifted an eyebrow, but didn’t comment. “Hoss starting tracking you at first light,” he continued. “Pa went back to the house about half an hour ago to see if maybe Joe had turned up there yet and to get some fresh horses. He’s not that far ahead of us … with any luck he’ll still be there.” He glanced at me then briefly. “We found the bodies of your men,” he added with compassion in his voice.

 

I nodded, then started to tell him what had happened and by the time we were entering the front yard I had told him most of it. He had been right …. His father’s horse was still tied to the hitching rail outside. I don’t think that I will ever forget the look on the poor man’s face as he ran outside at the sound of our horses and saw Joe slumped in his brother’s arms, the blood-soaked bandanna against his chest. He reached up without a word and drew his youngest son into his arms, hugging him to his own chest as if he could will him back to health before turning and running into the house with him.

 

“You go in with Pa,” said Adam as he dismounted. “I’ll take care of the horses.”

 

I didn’t need any more encouragement than this, as I was feeling pretty awful myself by this stage. I followed Mr Cartwright up the stairs and along the hall to Joe’s bedroom and then watched as he expertly took off his son’s boots, stripped his clothing from his unconscious body and then cocooned him under a few blankets, leaving the injured side of chest exposed.

 

Hop Sing appeared with both hot water and cloths within minutes, although how on earth he had known that they would be needed was beyond me. “You should get some rest,” said Mr Cartwright as he began to bathe Joe’s wound gently, but I shook my head and resolutely sat down on the other side of the bed.

 

“I’ll rest once I know he’ll be alright,” I said.

 

“That could be quite a while,” he replied.

 

“I’m staying,” I said firmly as I watched him work.

 

“Hoss went for the doctor,” I said and he nodded. I realised that I hadn’t even needed to tell him this, as he would have known that his sons had everything under control and would have thought of the doctor at once.

 

As we sat there, I told him what had happened and he heard me out without a word. When I had finally finished, he shook his head. “What a waste,” he said. “Twelve good men.” He looked at me then intently. “Do you think the army will let it rest there?”

 

I shook my head. “I honestly don’t know,” I said. “I’ll do my best to make sure it stops at this though.”

 

He nodded again and then leant forward as Joe stirred and muttered something in his sleep. “It’s alright son,” he murmured as he stroked his hair. “You’re going to be alright now. Pa’s here.”  He looked up at me with tears standing in his eyes. “Thank you,” he said. “You’ve given me back my boy twice now.”

 

I shook my head. “You’ve got nothing to thank me for Mr Cartwright,” I said. “If it wasn’t for Joe I most likely would never have even made it as far as the Paiute camp in the first place. It took a lot of guts for him to do what he did.” I looked at the unconscious youngster between us fondly. “He’s a special young man … even if he can’t follow orders.” I glanced at his father thoughtfully. “Does he ever do as he’s told?” I asked.

 

Mr Cartwright shook his head. “Not often,” he admitted and then smiled at me. We each took one of Joe’s hands in ours as we sat together and waited for the doctor to arrive.

 

—————-

 

We all had a long night ahead of us and I must admit to being exhausted by the time the doctor finally came and pronounced Joe out of immediate danger. I headed off for some sleep then at the Cartwrights’ insistence and by the time I awoke a few hours later Joe’s temperature had gone down to the point where the doctor felt he could safely leave him. He’d lost an awful lot of blood of course, but as the doctor said he was young and fit, so with rest he should recover nicely. He did look very pale, but with the amount of blood he’d lost that was to be expected of course.

 

We took turns in watching him, and it was while I was sitting with him later the next day that his eyes finally fluttered open and he looked up at me. “Well …. You’ve finally decided to join us have you?” I said dryly, trying to mask my concern for him with a light-hearted attitude. I have a feeling that I didn’t fool him though and he gave me a slight grin.

 

“How’s Cochise” he asked.

 

I shook my head. “Would you be quiet about that horse?” I said. “He’s fine. Luckier than you.”

 

He made a face at that remark and looked down at the swathe of bandages that encircled his chest. “I guess I did a stupid thing, running like that,” he said.

 

“You’ve done several stupid things young man,” I said sternly.

 

His grin became wider. “You sound like my Pa,” he said teasingly.

 

“I suspect your Pa is going to have a thing or two to say to you once you get better,” I warned him. “And I don’t blame him one bit.”

 

Joe shrugged slightly, wincing with the pain that even that small movement caused him. “I’m used to it,” he said casually.

 

“Well he has every right to be angry with you,” I continued.

 

“I know,” he admitted giving me one of his puppy-dog looks. “I’m sorry Baker. Thanks for saving my life the way you did.”

 

I shook my head. What was it about this youngster that got to me the way he did? One look from him and I softened with him every time. But he looked so young and vulnerable lying there … and I suddenly remembered what it was like to be young and impulsive. “Well just don’t make me have to do it again,” I said gruffly. “Twice is enough.”

 

He reached out and grasped hold of my hand then and clutched it tightly in his. “I’ll try not to,” he murmured. “But I can’t promise anything.” I squeezed his hand in mine and we both smiled at each other.

 

—————-

 

I stayed at The Ponderosa for three days and organised the burial of my men in the small cemetery while I was there. As I put together their few belongings to take with me for eventual shipment to their loved ones, I couldn’t help but feel the futility of all of this. A dozen good men … gone … and no hope of even a treaty to show for it. Mr Cartwright must have sensed my despair and frustration with things, for he took extra care to talk to me about it in those days. He was a man who also wanted peace and was probably as bitterly disappointed as I was at the outcome of it all.

 

“I’m sorry it didn’t work out,” I said to him on that last morning before I left. “I had great hopes that it would.”

 

He put his hand on my shoulder. “One day it will,” he said. “As long as there are men like you to strive for it Major. I just hope that I will be around to see it when it does.”

 

“Thank you for the horse,” I said as we walked towards the animal. “I’ll see that it’s returned to you.”

 

“It’s yours,” he said. “Giving you a horse is nothing compared to what you’ve given me.” He motioned to the house where Joe was walking slowly across the porch towards us. He’d been allowed downstairs briefly to in order to say good bye to me, but I could tell that after I was gone his father was going to have quite a job getting him to agree to go back up to his room. He was trying to prove to both of us that he was doing fine, but his pale face told a different story.

 

“Are you sure you don’t want Adam and Hoss to ride part of the way with you?” Mr Cartwright continued. “Just in case?”

 

I shook my head. “No,” I said. “I’m certain that there’ll be no trouble with the Paiutes for now. I just hope I can persuade my superiors not to pursue things further once I’ve explained to them what happened. I know they’ll have a lot of questions after that wire I sent. A dozen men dead is going to cause quite a bit of an issue.”

 

“They’d better not blame you,” said Joe defensively as he came to stand beside me.

 

I smiled at the youngster. “I was responsible for their safety Joe,” I said. “I will be answerable for what has happened.”

 

“Well you just tell em ta ask me,” he declared. “I’ll tell em it weren’t your fault!”

 

“I’ll let you know if I need you to,” I said. I turned to Mr Cartwright and held out my hand. “Well this is goodbye,” I said. “Thank you for everything and please say goodbye to Adam and Hoss for me.”

 

He gripped my hand tightly and shook it. “They’ll be sorry they couldn’t see you off personally,” he said. “I’ll tell them.”  His grip tightened on my hand. “And thank you again Major.”  His eyes flickered over to Joe and no words were needed to convey to me his meaning.

 

I turned to Joe who was looking rather forlorn standing there next to his father and once again I noted how vulnerable he looked. “Well Baker’s Brat,” I said, trying to keep my tone light-hearted. “This is goodbye.”

 

He nodded and then took a step forward and hugged me tightly. “Joseph, be careful of your bandages,” warned his father.

 

I hugged Joe as well and then patted him on the back. “We’ll try and not wait another ten years before we see each other again this time eh?” I said.

 

“You’re welcome here at any time Major,” said Mr Cartwright. “You know that.”

 

“Thank you,” I said and then stepped back from Joe’s grasp. “Bye Baker’s Brat,” I said.

 

He tried to grin at me and then lifted his right hand and gave me a snappy salute. “Bye Baker,” he said.

 

I returned the salute and mounted up. As I rode around the side of the barn I looked over my shoulder to see Mr Cartwright standing with his arm around his son’s shoulder and they were both smiling and waving at me.

—————-
Epilogue

 

Joe came crashing through the front doorway and flung his hat onto the credenza before grinning at his father and brothers. “How come you’re all inside? Am I the only one who does any work around here?” he said cheekily.

 

Adam stood up slowly. “We’ve got chores to do,” he said. “Come on Hoss.” He gave his father a sad look and then patted Joe on the shoulder as he passed him. Hoss looked at the floor and refused to meet Joe’s eyes as he headed slowly out of the room behind Adam.

 

“What?” said Joe, when they left and he had turned to face his father.

 

“Joe … come and sit down,” said Ben. “I need to talk to you about something.”

 

Joe sat down on the edge of the coffee table, facing his father who was seated on the sofa. “I didn’t do nothing,” he said warily.

 

Ben put his hand on his youngest son’s shoulder. “I know,” he said. “Don’t worry  … you’re not in trouble.”

 

“Then what’s happened?” asked Joe.

 

Ben took a deep breath before replying. “There’s no easy way to tell you this son,” he said. “I’m afraid … I’m afraid that Major Baker is … dead.”

 

There was silence for a moment as they stared at each other … a silence so deep that they could both hear the quiet ticking of the grandfather clock. “What?” said Joe finally. “How … How do you know?”

 

“I received a letter from a Colonel Whelan this morning,” said his father, holding it out. “Would you like to read it?”

 

Joe shook his head as he stared at the letter in disbelief.  After another moment of silence, Ben began to read it aloud.

 

Dear Mr Cartwright,

 I’m sorry to have to inform you of the death of Major John Baker in Arizona. He was killed while fighting some Apache Indians last ….

“No!” interrupted Joe. “It isn’t true! He’s lying!”

 

Ben put the letter down and leant forward, putting his hand on Joe’s shoulder. “Joseph …” he said gently.

 

“No!” said Joe, shaking his father’s hand off. “Baker isn’t dead Pa. It’s a mistake! It has to be!”

 

“It’s no mistake Joe,” said his father sadly. “I’m sorry son.”

 

Joe looked at his father pleadingly. “But …. I don’t understand,” he said finally. “Why did that Colonel write to you?”

 

“It appears that Baker left all his things to you,” said Ben, picking up a small brown paper package next to him on the sofa. The Colonel sent it for you and wrote to me explaining about it.” After a moment, Joe took the package and stared at it. “Aren’t you going to open it?” asked his father finally. He watched silently as Joe undid the string and then the brown paper wrapping to reveal a few assorted items in a box. There was a razor, a couple of books, a pocket watch and a bundle of letters tied up with a piece of hide that had once tied back the curly hair of a small boy.

 

Joe fingered through the letters. “They’re all the letters I sent him over the years,” he said wonderingly. “He kept them all.” He looked up at his father. “Why would he keep them all Pa?”

 

“Probably because he thought a lot of you,” said Ben. “The same reason he left you his things.”

 

Joe nodded as he replaced the items in the box and closed the lid. “I thought a lot of him too,” he said, his voice breaking on the words.

 

Ben reached out and held onto his son’s shoulder, noting this time that Joe didn’t push him away. “I know son,” he said.

 

“His whole life,” murmured Joe as he ran his fingers across the top of the box. “His whole life and this is all he had.”

 

“I guess a man learns to live simply in the army,” said Ben. “Baker’s life wasn’t measured in what he owned Joe. It was measured in how he lived. He was a good man and that’s what we’ll remember about him.”

 

Joe nodded and bit his lip, trying to keep his composure. “I … really thought a lot of him Pa,” he said softly. “I …” His voice trailed away and he was silent.

 

“I know son,” said Ben, moving across and sitting next to Joe on the coffee table. He put his arm around the young man’s slim shoulders. “He knew that too.”  They sat together for several minutes like this, Joe drawing comfort from his father’s touch.

 

“I’d better …. go and put this away,” he said finally as he stood up.

 

“You want company?” asked Ben sympathetically.

 

Joe shook his head. “No. I’d like to be alone for a while if you don’t mind Pa,” he replied.

 

Ben watched his son walk up the stairs slowly, his shoulders hunched and his steps dragging. His heart constricted and he felt a great weariness come over him. Once again a good man had died fighting for the dream of peace and Ben wondered how many good men like Baker it would take to achieve it. He stared into the fireplace as he thought about his boy upstairs and the grief that he would experience in the coming months and probably years for a man that he’d loved and he wished that he could protect him from it. But Ben knew that Joe had to go through his own journey of grieving …. a journey that Ben knew very well himself … and all he could do was be here for his son as he experienced it.

 

Joe sighed as he sat down on his bed and looked at the box on his lap. After a moment, he put it on the bed and reached over to his dresser, taking out a pair of yellow gloves, a yellow bandanna and a package of letters. He looked at the letters, which wavered slightly in front of his eyes as tears filled them. Each one was addressed to him in Baker’s own neat handwriting. “I kept your letters too Baker,” he whispered softly.

 

He hugged them to his chest for a moment and then wiped a couple of tears away as they began to fall down his cheek. With another deep sigh he placed the letters, the bandanna and the gloves in the box and slowly closed the lid, leaving his hands on top of it as he whispered softly. “Goodbye Baker.”

 

The End

Next Story in the Baker’s Brat Series:

Baker’s Legacy
Baker’s Destiny