Summary:  Have Pa and Little Joe had one argument too many?  Will the family be split apart?  Will Adam have to break a promise and tell Little Joe the truth?

Rated:  MA (23,300 words)

 

Early Nights

Joe, although awake, lay in his bed with his eyes shut, he did not want the harsh glare of the morning sunlight to add to the pain, and pain, was putting it mildly, that he was already suffering.

His head, if that was what was lying on his pillow, was, no longer a head it was a drum on which a tribe of braves were rapidly beating.

His mouth dry, prickly, scratchy, as if he had spent the night chewing on a prairie cactus, which of course he never had done in his life, but felt that if he had done, it would of left the same taste and discomfort.

The fact he could not remember all of last night did not worry him in the least, what he did remember, lingered lovingly, as had the inviting arms and body of Laura… Laura…..
And that was another thing he couldn’t remember, a sated, satisfied smile swept slowly across his handsome face, conversation hadn’t been part of the agenda!

He could hear the murmur and mumble of voices drifting up into his bedroom, his father’s voice was the loudest, he didn’t have to guess what the topic of conversation was – ‘Joseph Francis Cartwright.’

Why hadn’t he stuck to his original idea, and wait in town for the early stage that Laura told him she was catching? He could then have spent at least 30 minutes with her.

The passion of last night was still with him, the closeness of her body against his, the sweet smell of her soft blonde hair, the fire in her kisses….mmhmmm, he thought, who needs breakfast.

Now, he knew if he wanted to see her, he would have to leave pronto and gallop flat out to Virginia City, which, he also knew he was in no condition to do, well, condition or no he would get there.

The memory of her lips, and soft mouth spurred him to the task.

Number one problem however would be to get out of the house and avoid ‘facing the music’ and the way things had been between him and Pa over the past few weeks, this would not be an easy thing to accomplish.

He never could understand the expression ‘face the music’ as music was to him a pleasing experience, but every time he had to ‘face the music’ which was his father, his ear drums had been blasted and left stinging, pretty much like the effect he felt after blowing up a couple of stubborn tree stumps.

He slowly dragged himself out of the warm comfort of his bed.

**************************
This beautiful sunny morning found Ben Cartwright, the Patriarch of The Ponderosa, not a happy man; he sat, stiff backed, like a judge, in his usual place at the head of the table.
Hop Sing, as always had laid a fine table and the hearty breakfast was spread out ready for all takers.

“Can either of you tell me, what is going on with that younger brother of yours?”

Ben addressed his two older sons, Adam and Hoss, they were both silently digging into their eggs and bacon, knowing, by the look and demeanour of their father, that he was doing his utmost to keep his temper under control, they were hoping that their silence would pour calm onto troubled waters.

It didn’t.

“l know for a fact”,

Their father continued his rant,

“it was almost three before, THAT boy, got through THAT door this morning, and THAT, l might add, has become a regular habit of his, it has got to come to a STOP! I’ve heard rumours of drunken fights, late night poker games and only the devil knows what else, come on speak up, can either of you enlighten me”,

He turns first to Adam and then to Hoss, expecting some sort of explanation, they look at each other, then to their father knowing full well that whatever they say will not make a dimes worth of difference,

Pa and younger brother were heading for a show down.

It had been on the cards for weeks, today, they both thought, was as good a day as any to clear the air.

“Aw Pa, cut him sum slack”,

Hoss, as always, the defender of his little brother,

“he’s just young, Pa, he means no harm, he keeps up his chores, he….”

Looking across at his father, who was glaring at him from beneath his bushy, eyebrows, Hoss immediately realises he had not helped , and done no favours for his brother, he returns to eating his eggs and bacon, he didn’t see any point in going hungry, not even for Little Joe.

“Cut him some slack eh, means no harm eh, means no harm”,

Ben repeated himself, his, voice and anger rising with each word, his face turning a stormy red,

“if he carries ON brawling around town, he WILL do some harm, he barely DOES what he has to DO around the ranch, and whatever he DOES DO is done sparingly, and with a face of thunder.”

“Maybe, Pa,”

Adam, Ben Cartwright’s eldest son, carefully folds his napkin and places it beside his plate, calmly he sits back on his chair, folds his black sleeved arms across his black shirted broad chest, and in his usual quite, calm manner, he suggests to his father,

“You should have it out with Joe, Hoss and l cannot answer for him, he is not a twelve year old kid any more”

“Adam, I am fully aware that your brother is no longer twelve years old, l wish to God, and all that’s Holy, he was, l could take him out and give him a good whipping, and l do have every intention of talking to him today, now, where is he?”

Adam turns to his father, his elbows now resting on the table and his chin balanced on his thumbs.

“Pa, to my recollection, and Hoss can bear me out on this, can’t you Hoss?”

He nodded toward the giant of a man that was his younger brother, for confirmation,

Hoss’ sandy haired head was moving backwards and forwards at such a speed, it was in danger of toppling into his plate of eggs, Hoss didn’t know exactly what his elder and much wiser brother was going to say, but knew he had to back him up.

“It’s true Pa, whatever Adam is saying, yer know it’s the truth”

Adam gave Hoss a very cool stare, and continued,

“You never took a whip to any one of us, and especially not Little Joe, oh yes; you threatened on more than one occasion,

And he thought, more often in Joe’s case with good cause,
Wisely he kept that thought to himself.

‘Your hand and voice were always as good enough a deterrent.”

Ben knowing this to be true, glared in exasperation at his eldest boy,

“Mores’ the pity, more is the pity” he slowly repeated himself,

“Maybe l should have done that very thing, then maybe there would be a little bit more respect shown around these parts,”

On reflection he softened and added,

“You boys know I have never believed a whipping is the best way to tame man nor beast but….”

Hoss, who was not in the habit of interrupting his father, felt he had to speak up again for his younger brother.

“Zactly Pa, yer know Pa, yer told me yer very self, sumtime the wildest stallion, had to have the gentlest handlin”

Hoss was pleased with his efforts; he felt that his elder and much wiser brother couldn’t have done any better.

Ben and Adam look at each other, then, in unison turned to stare at Hoss, who was sitting back with a superior smirk stamped on his large round face,

Adam glared at his brother in despair, while Ben, a smile playing with the corners of his mouth, continued,

“Let me finish Hoss, l was going to add, there is always the exception to the rule, and believe me Little Joe certainly qualifies as an exception, and now , Hoss tell me, are you really comparing your younger brother to a wild stallion?”

“Yes sir, no sir, l means not zactly, aw Pa, yer knows what ahm trying ta say, but Pa….”

Hoss placed his elbow on the table, rested his large head on his equally large closed fist, thinking deeply within himself, and as usual chewing on the inside of his lower lip, with brows furrowed the sky blue eyes stared into space,

“When a body gets ta pondrin there aint a lota diffrence, no sir, their sure aint a whole lota a diffrence that’s a fact”

Ben and Adam were now both staring at him with looks of abject dismay, Hoss though was completely unaware of his audience, he continued,

“And yer always told me, Pa, the tighter the rein, the harder the head” he ended with a flourish.

Ben still staring at his middle son but now with an expression of desperation; he needed no physical whip to exact his authority,

“Hoss, thank you very much for the benefit of your knowledge and wide experience of child rearing, if and when l require it again l shall of course ask you”

“Yesum sir, sorry Pa” Hoss, felt deeply his fathers reproach and backed off in filial obedience.

Adam turned sharply to face his father, who was now taking on the appearance of a volcanic eruption;

He knew full well his fathers tongue could cut any man to the very quick, he had heard it used and had been on the receiving end of it on a number of occasions, but never in his memory used towards or against Hoss.

His brother Hoss, for all his strength and size was the gentlest, most caring person he knew, and after all it was Little Joe, who needed the stripping down, not Hoss.

Quietly, and for Hoss’s ears only he said sarcastically,

“Well that did us all a lot good”

Ben’s anger was diverted to Adam,

“Speak up Adam; you know l will not have mumbling, what was that you said?”

“I asked father, if Hoss had ‘chopped the wood,’

Clearly pronouncing every word and syllable, he returned his fathers withering stare, with an equally withering stare of his own.

“I also ask father, that you talk to Little Joe, after all Hoss is not supposed to be the one in the dock, so to speak”
In defending Hoss, Adam had made his point perfectly clear,

‘There is no one in the dock here Adam, well l, l just need to talk to that boy,”

Ben blustered trying to justify his position.

“Exactly my point, Pa go talk to Joe, he’s the one who’s sticking in your craw.”

Ben realised immediately he had been unnecessarily harsh, Hoss had not deserved such a cutting down.

Dam it, he thought, but these boys stick together like mud to a hog’s belly.

He turned to see his huge off spring, sitting chastened, and crumpled, head hanging; he placed his hand over the boys, and gave it a gentle, fatherly pat.

“I’m sorry Hoss; l had no right to be rude.

Ben, not a small man by any stature, but his brown weather beaten hand barely covered that of his sons.

Hoss decided this was as good a time as any to make an exit, and warn Little Joe of the oncoming storm that was waiting downstairs, pushing his chair from the table he stood to his full height of over six foot six inches.

“Pa, l’ll go and get Little Joe”

“That will not be necessary Hoss sit back down, finish your breakfast, why should your food go cold”

“Yesum sir”,

Hoss dropped into his chair twice as fast as he had arisen from it, feeling sorry that he couldn’t forewarn his little brother, he did in his mind the next best thing, his plate was in fact empty, knowing full well Little Joe rarely had breakfast the morning after a ‘late night in Virginia City’, he helped himself to the last of the eggs, bacon and pancakes.

Placing his napkin on the table, Ben Cartwright, summoned his youngest off spring, relying on the powerful strength of his vocal cords, he roared.

“JOSEPH FRANCIS CARTWRIGHT”

On hearing this bellow Hop Sing, scuttled out from the kitchen,

“Wah you shout fow ow man?”

He asks in his broken English, seeing his employer’s, by now murderous expression, he does not wait for any answer, but scuttles back muttering in his native tongue.

Little Joe, boots in hand, head still pounding, face an unhealthy greenish, grey stands at the top of the stairs watching his father, he inadvertently adds flames to the fire,
“Good morning Pa, did l hear you calling me?”

This stab at sarcasm, which was more often Adam’s forte, was not lost on the Patriarch.

“Good morning Joseph, yes, you certainly did, so good of you to honour us with the presence of your company for breakfast”

And, l expect, so did half of Virginia City,

Adam quietly said to himself as he sat back in his chair, hands clasped behind his head waiting for the oncoming battle to commence.

Ben continues keeping his temper, in hand, for the moment, at least.

Joe walks on egg shells down the stairs, across the floor of the big room, towards the breakfast table, placing his boots by the sofa as he passed; it is blatantly obvious that he is carefully nursing a hangover.
Thinking it best to eat humble pie, although putting anything in his mouth in his present condition would not have been advisable, Joe glances at his father’s stern features.

“Sorry sir, musta over slept,” he voiced in an almost overtly painfully, sad tone.

Ah, Adam thought, good tactic Joe trying the pity, poor me approach, but, alas, it won’t work, not this time fella.

Joe tipped toed to the table; his eyes trying hard to avoid the various plates of food scattered across it.

Hoss flashed a quick look at Joe’s green edged face, chuckled, and happily continued chewing,

No ways, he thought, no ways, little brother, are yer gonna be eating anythin this mornin.

“Think l will just have a coffee”

Joe concurred with Hoss’s thoughts, Hoss chuckled again, happy, that he had guessed correctly and even happier to be enjoying the last of the meal.

Joe felt as if his father’s eyes were boring holes in him; if, he thought, if he took his medicine on the chin he could still have time to meet Laura…mmm Laura, she flashed across his mind bringing with her a crumb of comfort, and then if he was lucky he could avoid his father for the rest of the day, it seemed like a good plan.

But alas, plans, good or otherwise do not always work out as expected, and Ben Cartwright was not privy to his youngest off spring’s ‘good plan.’

“Just a coffee, IF, young man, you had got to BED before three ‘o’clock, like the REST of this household, you would of had PLENTY time to sleep, like the REST of this household, and IF you had got UP at a reasonable hour, like the REST of this household, you would have been able to get a GOOD breakfast under your belt, like the REST of this household, instead of CREEPING ABOUT in your socks looking like a SICK GHOST, it’s about time you had a few EARLY nights, my boy, and starting from TONIGHT l will make sure that you will, we will ALL have supper as a FAMILY, and there will be NO rousting off into town, an EARLY night and a PROPER meal, that is what YOU need, my boy, and THAT is what you are going to get ”

Joe still on tip toes returned to the sofa, grimacing at every word his father spoke, each stressed word and syllable pierced his ears and head like tiny paiute arrows.
He carefully placed his cup and saucer on the coffee table, gingerly, slowly he sat down and started, taking great effort to do so, to pull on his boots, even Adam, for a very brief moment felt small pangs of sympathy for him, and Hoss, as big as he was, was almost in tears.

Adam sat back in his chair, a small smile high lighting his dimpled cheeks, stretched his long, black covered legs, and eyed the proceedings with a wry expression, once more he crossed his arms over his black shirt;

Even for Pa, he thought, a lot of repetition in that tirade, but very good, very good, almost Dickensian, this may well be developing into a very interesting and entertaining morning, now easy, Little Joe, easy fella, the hornet is well and truly on top of the nest”.

Hoss, however, remained head down, arms crossed on the table, wishing he was anywhere’s but where he was, in fact wrasstlin a bear in the woods would to his mind have been a much safer option.

Joe, alas, not being able to read his elder brothers thoughts rises to the bait, his fiery temper always easy to ignite most especially this morning as he knows the top of his head is about to split open, and his chances of a farewell kiss’n’cuddle with the lovely Laura seemed to be fading fast.

“FINE, just FINE and are you going to FEED me as well, and, l am not CREEPING ABOUT in my socks, as YOU put it, l just don’t think the MORNING is the time to be STOMPING, and ROARING about, that’s all”

Adam leans back even further in his chair allowing it to rock back and forth on its legs; he sucks in both cheeks pursing his lips, as if to give a long, low whistle, he exhales slowly and silently, and looks at Joe, standing, glaring fiercely at his father, but still not yet able to hold his head completely upright.

My, my, younger brother, temper, temper, do we not have just a little bit of a hangover to take care of.

Ben’s anger was past simmering, it had boiled over, exploded, he gave full vent to his fury and rage….
he stood, raised two clenched fists and brought them both crashing down onto the table top, his knuckles turning white as he pressed upon them with the full weight of his body, bringing his forceful, penetrating gaze fully to bear on his youngest son.

Cups,saucers, plates and the rest of the breakfast dishes and cutlery clattered in unison as they hopped up and down upon the cotton covered wooden table.

Hoss completely startled, jumped, as if shot and almost fell from his chair.

Little Joe, took two involuntary paces backwards, but held firm his green eyes, blazing, almost black with fury locked to his fathers.

Only Adam, quietly rocking his chair to and fro, cheeks dimpled in a private, secret smile appeared to be gleaning some sort of warped pleasure from the father and son confrontation.

“OH, YOU DON’T, DO YOU, WELL, YOUNG MAN LET ME TELL YOU, I DO NOT LIKE YOUR TONE AND I WILL NOT HAVE THAT DISRESPECT UNDER MY ROOF, “

Adam sat up suddenly, and restored the chair to its normal position with a loud bang.

Joe winced, glared at his elder brother, if Adam had hit him over the head with that chair it would not have been as half as painful.

“Pa?”

Ben looks to his elder son; Adam’s face is a picture of innocence, his dark lashed brown eyes squinting in pretence of thought and concern.

On the other hand his own face, unrecognisable, is twisted with ire and rage,

Little Joe, he thinks, is the only one of his boys who can manipulate him like this.

“Do you still want Hoss and I to check out that old disused mine, you were saying there may be some safety issues, or something…?”

Adam as always the master of discretion, changes the topic of conversation.
Ben turns to stare at the thorn in his side, but his youngest boy is avoiding his gaze, still pulling on his boots whilst his untouched coffee cup sits cooling on the table, in exasperation Ben turns back to Adam.

“Well, yes, yes Adam l do, but l think Joe should go, l have something else for Hoss to do”.

“What’s that Pa?” asks Hoss, eagerly trying to add to Adams excellent diversionary tactics.

“I will talk with you later Hoss, Joe you go with Adam”

Joe turns to Adam, the glare has been replaced with a look of relief and thanks.

Thank you brother, thank you, his original plan is back, he thinks, is back on the cards.

But, again, unwittingly he helps Vesuvius to erupt,

“Adam l’ll meet you at the mine, l have to go to town first”

Joe, boots now in place, makes his way to the door.

“JOSEPH, l said YOU WILL GO with Adam, with NO, do you hear me, NO diversions into town, you and Virginia City have seen enough of each other lately, l want no delays with this report, do you hear me”

Like a lamb to slaughter, Joe continues to fan the flames.

“If l leave now, it won’t take long l….”

He doesn’t even try to finish, his words are falling like seeds on stony ground.

He feels the silence and can cut the atmosphere with a blunt knife, he looks first up at his father and then his brothers, he knows he has over stepped the mark, there is no going back, Hoss both eyes closed to a squint, sucks on his lower lip, Adam, standing fingers thrust into the hip pockets of his black trousers, again starts whistling silently through pursed lips.

Joe, under his breath whispers a soft farewell to Laura.

Ben Cartwright fires both cylinders, Vesuvius re- erupts, his voice, to begin with, almost a whisper:

“Joseph Francis, to my knowledge, l AM still your father,”

His tone raises a number of decibels,

“To my knowledge l AM STILL the OWNER of the Ponderosa,”

His tone raises another number of decibels,

“AND WHILST YOU ARE LIVING UNDER MY ROOF YOU WILL DO AS I SAY, DO YOU UNDERSTAND, DO l MAKE MY SELF CLEAR,”

Joe stands his ground, his face drained to a deathly white, the green eyes, have again darkened, black, glowing with an uncontrolled fierceness, trying his best to forget the stampede that is now in his head, and the sickness in his stomach he turns to face his father, he knows what he is going to say and knows he should not say it, but he has no choice, the ultimatum has come, he takes a deep breath.

“l understand perfectly, you have made yourself very clear, “

His voice although strained is non-the-less calm, each word spoken with a definite precision, he looks to his brother,

“Adam, l‘ll go saddle the horses”,

He turns his penetrating, withering glare to his father,

“Pa, l will leave your house tonight”,

Walking towards the door he collects his hat and gun belt, he closes the door quietly behind him.

Ben stares after his youngest boy, at the closed door as if the door itself would be able to explain the mornings inevitable turn for the worst, he slams his clenched fist into the palm of his hand, looks to his other two sons, searching their faces for any explanation; his own face has softened, his expression pained and puzzled,

Aloud he asks himself, “Where have l gone wrong with that boy, why can l not reach him?”

“Pa, he don’t mean it, yer know he don’t, he’s all fired up Pa, “

Hoss tries once more to cool the situation,

“he’ll be fine by tonight Pa, yer know it, he’ll be back with his tail between his legs, he aint gonna leave the Ponderosa not Little Joe”

Ben looked kindly at Hoss, always there for his little brother, ever since the first time he saw him as a baby, Hoss loved him to an inch of his own life, he would mind and look after Little Joe against all comers, against the world, you mess with Little Joe, you mess with him; he hoped, he prayed he was right.

Adam, on the other hand knew better, he knew his little brother to be not only determined but stubborn, almost stubborn to the point of recklessness, he knew the last thing his father wanted was for Joe to leave, but, in fact they were two peas in the same pod, both had a mule like stubbornness about them.

No way would he put a bet on which one would throw the towel in first.

“See you two both for supper,” he said lightly as he made for the door.

“Adam,”

He turned toward his father; he saw nothing but pain and despair on his father’s face, he had seen that look only once before and had hoped he would never see it again.

“Talk to him for me son, talk to him; see what you can do,”

Adam touched the brim of his hat, in a small salute, picked up his gun belt and saddle bag, inwardly he thought he would have more success if he banged there two heads together,

Its’ gonna be one hell of a long day, take it in your stride boy, take it in your stride, that’s all you can do.

He left the house and followed his little brother to the barn.

Both the horses were saddled and ready, Joe stood leaning his back and head against Cochise’s neck, the ponies reins were hanging idly from his hand, the other hand was covering his forehead and eyes, as if protecting himself from the hot sun, but as he was standing in the shade of the barn and also wearing his hat, Adam knew Joe was hurting, and hurting bad.

Well boy, if you don’t wanna break eggs, don’t go in the kitchen, you won’t be getting a dimes worth of pity from me!
It wasn’t that he didn’t feel sympathy for Joe, heck, we’ve all had our hangovers, morning after, feeling as rough as a grizzly’s breath, but Joe this morning seemed a might cruel, the way he looked at Pa, Adam had never seen him appear, so vicious, almost evil, and, he remembered seeing a similar expression once before, a long time ago, on another man’s face.

Hearing the footsteps, Joe slowly slid his hand from his forehead to his chin, at first he thought it may be Pa, he just knew he didn’t have any more strength to continue this on going battle, seeing Adam approaching he stirrup mounted in the correct manner, not his usual fashion of a swing up into the saddle, gathering the reins he turned his pony and walked slowly away from the house.

Adam watching his younger brothers hunched back, raised his eyes to the heavens, threw his saddle bag on Sport mounted and followed, he turned as the house door creaked open, saw Hoss with his arm over his fathers shoulder, Pa had aged at least 10 years since breakfast, his worn, tired face, crumpled with concern, it worried him, he raised a black sleeved arm, waved a goodbye and trotted after Joe.
CHAPTER 2 A CONFESSION AND A PROMISE
Joe had absolutely no intention of breaking into a trot, it was too hot, his head was too sore and his stomach too sick, he guessed a three maybe four hours ride should see them at the mine.

He tried not too think of Laura and the smooth silkiness of her skin, and how the only thing he wanted was to be laying in her arms, he tried very hard to feel her small, searching fingers caressing his neck, soothing away the pain in his head, body and mind.

The two brothers walked their animals side by side, neither one wanting to engage in any conversation; the false silence got to Adam first,

“Well, little brother, not being a Trappist monk or taken any vow of silence, l feel l must ask what’s bothering you, what’s going on fella, lately you…..”

Before Adam could continue, Joe interrupted; turning to his elder brother he threw him the cutting glare he had dealt his father earlier,

“Listen to me Adam l have had one lecture today, and l certainly do not want another one from you, or any of your acid remarks,”

The harshness of Joe’s tone and the fierce look in his eye momentarily stopped Adam in his tracks, trotting Sport to regain position once more beside Cochise, he took hold of the ponies reins and brought both animals to a halt, Joe made a feeble attempt to snatch them back, but Adam’s grip was tight and gave no quarter, turning in the saddle to face his brother he spoke with a quite but firm voice,

“Younger brother if you want to be a hard nosed, hard headed cuss, answerable only to yourself ,fine, you just go ahead, but take a look at who is gonna bleed first and the most….”,

before he could finish Joe interrupted,

“It’s fine for you, you and Hoss, Pa leaves you both alone, why, in Pa’s eyes Adam your nigh on perfect, it doesn’t matter which way l turn, he is always on my back, you and Hoss had it light compared to what l have to put up with”

“Kid, don’t be ridiculous, l was in my nearly in my teens before you were born, and Hoss didn’t have time to cause Pa much bother, he was too busy being your guardian angel, and keeping you out of even more trouble, as he tried to do this morning, so you have no idea how heavy or light Pa dealt with us, get that chip off your shoulder boy, you will find the load your carrying a lot, lot lighter, or maybe not there at all, no one’s gunning for you fella, we are all on your side, just for once look at the other side of the fence, the world Joe, isn’t your playground, you gotta start taking responsibility for your self fella, open that great black door you’ve got behind, come out or let someone in, or someone or something will break it down, and little brother there will be nobody, no one around to pick up the pieces , you will be out on your own”

Joe, taken aback, for a moment wondered what the hell he had now done to Adam, he had never seen him as ablaze, almost as angry as Pa, he had never spoken to him like that before,

“Well, he thought, l can fight my own corner, l can take it and l can dish it out

“So, Adam”,

the killer glare returned once more to Joe’s green eyes, “what’s your role in this, you gonna save me from myself”

Adam regaining his composure, slipped back into his usual cool, sarcastic mode.

“Me, no, little brother, as far as l’m concerned you’re past saving, and by the way, you ought to stop wearing that side gun, you are well able to kill a body with that bullet you carry in your eye”

Joe, looked at his brother with complete distain, dug his heals into his ponies side and galloped away.

Adam swallowed Joe’s dust, he felt his own horse’s anticipation of a race, the animals powerful muscles, flexed and tightened, his ears pricked forward, he knew the horse would enjoy the stretch of its legs, he slid his hand along Sport’s silky chestnut neck until it reached the shoulder, and gave him a gentle pat.

Easy, easy there now fella, as much as you would enjoy chasing that pinto’s black ass, and Cochise is clearly having fun, l feel that little brother Joe, will very shortly have to put a stop to her gallop, or that pretty, little pony will have an added colour to its flowing mane.

Ahead, on the straight, dusty track that cut through a summer flowering meadow, as if on cue, Joe pulled Cochise up to an abrupt halt, in fact so sudden was the command that the pony spun around in a full circle, Joe, threw himself from the saddle, and staggering into the side of the meadow, flopped to the grass on hands and knees, his head almost touching the earth, he was still retching when Adam drew level with him.

Adam removed the canteen from his saddle and nonchalantly dropped it, it landed with a soft thud, almost on top of Joe’s shaking shoulders, Joe, without looking picked it up, removed the stopper and rinsed his mouth with a few short sips, spitting the bile tasting fluid on to the grass, before taking a long gulp, finishing off by pouring the rest of the canteen of cooling water over his head and neck.

As l was saying Sport.

Adam continued speaking quietly to his horse, he walked him forward to retrieve Joe’s pony, which had by now trotted further up the track, looking somewhat miffed, as to why her master had put a stop to the fun she was having.

A short gallop like that boy would do you no good at all fella, your legs are much too long, and looking at Cochise she’s not too happy with it either, maybe on the way home when it is a little cooler.

Giving Sport another reassuring pat on the neck, he handed Cochise’s reins to his little brother.

“I guess you must feel a little better after that?”

Adam asked his brother,

“You do seem to have lost that green edge to your face, although, it did match up nicely with those green eyes of yours, they always seem so attractive to the ladies, l have never really understood it myself, but then we all have to have our finer points, don’t we?

Joe completely ignored his elder brother’s quip, mounted and continued the journey.

Another hour had passed the horses were back to walking alongside each other, Adam turned to Joe, his brother was an expert horseman normally tall and comfortable in the saddle, he now sat, head hung low, shoulders hunched, he visibly winced with each of his ponies short stepping strides.

Ok, fella, he thought, l can only take so much misery in any one day.

Adam decided to change tactics and try the elder, friendly brother approach.

“There is a little clearing just across the meadow, with a small creek, how’s about we rest up some and have lunch, Hop Sing packed the bags so l can’t say what we have, but it’s bound to be something tasty?”

Joe’s non committal,

“You’re the boss”, didn’t bode well for a full blown conversation.

Rounding the bend, the pretty clearing was just ahead, a small creek, which thankfully had not yet dried up, gurgled playfully; it was the perfect spot for a picnic lunch, dismounting beside a large, shady tree, loosening the horse’s cinches they left them to idly graze on the sweet meadow grass.

By the time Joe had returned from the creek with the now refilled water bottles, Adam was already unpacking the lunch, bread, chicken, a fruit pie to follow, with crunchy red apples to finish.

They both sat, backs against the tree, enjoying the shade.
Joe looked at the food laid out on the chequered napkins, and for the first time that morning lightened the proceedings,

“Hey, did Hop Sing think we were meeting a couple of gals, it’s a kinda fancy a lunch for us two fella’s,”

“Glory be, little brother, you have a civil tongue after all, fancy or not let’s sit, eat and enjoy, l’m kinda hungry myself, as breakfast was just a little bit spoilt”

He looked from under his black hat at Joe to see what the response to this remark would be; all he got was a half-hearted twisted grin and a shrug of his green jacketed shoulders.

Finally Adam thought, a break through, the day can only get better.

Joe, stared at the spread out meal, the green pallor of nausea returned to his handsome boyish face,

“Elder brother, as much as l thank you for the invite, me and my stomach must decline, but you feel free to enjoy, Hop Sing must have known Hoss was not going along with you, because there is no way that amount of food would of been enough for Hoss and another, in fact there is no way at all it would of been enough for a Hoss”

“Now, there, fella, l do agree with you, l am thankful that you and not big brother Hoss is, or is not sharing this fine repast with me, tuck in little brother, eat your fill”

Adam felt the tension between them easing, and happily selected a plump chicken leg, cooked as always to perfection followed by a piece of home made bread.

“Joe, you should try something,”

Adam said offering him some bread,

“you have not had a mouthful all morning, and what you did have in your stomach is now, as we speak, probably feeding the meadow crows.”

Not even glancing in Adam’s direction Joe said,

“Now, Pa, your worrying, l thanks you for that information, but it hasn’t helped my condition”

They both turned to look at each other; Adam’s face creased into its usual dimpled grin, which produced a chicken splattered laugh, Joe’s features had softened from the fixed scowl of the morning, his impish smile played about his mouth, they were both sure that the rest of the day would be fine.

“Not to disappoint you my elder and wiser brother, “

Joe picked up one of the apples, took two bites, stood up, strolled over to Cochise and promptly fed her the remains, which she chomped greedily on,

“Hey, brother, would you throw me one of those apples”

Joe called to Adam.

“Well, how many apples are you not going to eat?”

Adam replied pitching a shiny one in his brother’s direction.

He caught the thrown apple, took one bite, and nearly lost his fingers to Sport,

“You should teach your horse some table manners, brother, apart from almost taking a chunk out of Cooch’s neck, for a moment there my fingers were in great danger of amputation”

“Believe me younger brother, you were in no danger of losing anything, Sport has a fine gourmet palate and is very selective about whom or what he chomps on”

Joe, laughing happily returned to his spot under the tree, took off his jacket, made him self more comfortable, tilted his hat forward and waited for Adam to finish his meal.

***************************************

Adam decided that this was the time to completely disregard his father’s wishes, break a solemn promise, and tell Little Joe the truth, the whole truth.

“Joe, l’m gonna tell to you something about Pa, why he treats you the way he does, why he tries so hard to keep you from harm and trouble, he has a special fondness for you and because of it is, more careful and protective, and yes, l suppose, no, not tougher but tighter with the rein than he was with Hoss and l, its a bit because you were such a tiny and at first sickly baby”

Adam talked between mouthfuls, sitting back now and then to ponder and think, to make sure of what words he chose, as if he had to put them in careful order.

“I was in my teens Joe, when Pa got back from New Orleans, of course he also brought with him your Ma, Joe, she was a very special woman, beautiful, glamorous and exotic, l do not really have to tell you that, that is something you already know,”

He looked towards his brother; Joe had pulled down his hat so that the crown rested on the bridge of his nose,

“I sure do brother,”

agreed Joe, Adam continued,

“Hoss was just a kid, we all got along so well, it was a good time, well, you know Pa often went away, you used to hate it when you were a kid, on business trips or cattle drives, and on one occasion he was expected to be away for two months.

Your mother, Marie, became to rely on me, she was the first person to treat me as an adult, a man, after all l was looking after the Ponderosa while Pa was away, of course we didn’t have as much land as we do now, but l was no more than a kid myself.

It was early summer, Pa had been gone three days, Hoss was at school most of the time and your mother and l pretty well had the place to ourselves, we went on picnics and long rides, she loved to be with the horses, riding, grooming or just watching them in the pastures and corrals.

It was on one of those days that the four riders came, bandits, commancheros, renegade Indians a mixture of all three l guess, call them what you like, we had finished eating, l was sitting with my back against a tree, quite like l am now, your mother was paddling in the cool stream, her hands holding up her summer dress so that it wouldn’t get wet, she laughed as she kicked up the water, her slim ankles glistened in the sun.

It all happened so suddenly, one moment she was laughing, the next screaming, it was over quickly, they tied me to the tree, l could do nothing to help, thankfully only one of them assaulted her.

l will never forget his face, and those cold greenish black eyes, he didn’t want to share his prize, he shot and injured one of his own men, the other two kept out of his way.

l watched as they sat and as if they were on a Sunday picnic, ate the remains of the picnic.
He assaulted her again, she never made a sound, l wept, but there was not a thing l could do.

Why they did not kill us l do not know, they tied the injured man to his horse and rode away.”

Adam stared into the distance, as if in a trance, as if hypnotised, he continued his confession:

“She untied me, and all the while she talked to me as she washed her fully clothed body in the clear water,

Adam, you must promise me your father must never hear of this, it would kill him, do you understand, he would look for these evil men and try to kill them, but, they would kill your father, and that would kill me, do you understand, this terrible thing must never be spoken of, it has not killed you, it has not killed me, but it will kill your father, do you understand me Adam, promise me.

l did make that promise.
But Joe, some promises however hard you try to keep them cannot be kept, they must be broken, or more harm, more damage can be done than any one can ever imagine.

Pa was delayed It was nearly four months before he returned, l remember he was very happy and excited he had won his first major timber contract, and had buyers for cattle and horses.

We celebrated, your mother was happy and excited for him, he knew he would have enough money to finally make his plans and dreams a reality.

It didn’t take Pa long to know that something was wrong, he knew before he found the note she had left.
Even though l had promised your Ma l had to tell him.

That was the first time l saw the look of despair and pain on his face, the same look l saw on his face this morning.

It didn’t take long for him to find her and bring her home.
Hoss and l were so happy to see her and see Pa smiling again.
You were born shortly afterwards, everyone who saw you fell in love with you.

No more so than your mother she treated you like a precious jewel, a treasure, l guess the only one who loved you more than that was Pa.

l saw him the first time he held you he cried with joy, his tears falling on your tiny face.

l remember even now, him sitting on the bed beside your ma, looking into her eyes, he placed you in her arms, he drew her to him, his large, strong arms cradled you both, softly he spoke, but l heard, Joe, l heard every single word,

“My love, my Marie, you have given me a beautiful boy, and today l will make you this promise, no child will be as loved, protected and cherished as my Joseph, l shall see no harm will ever befall him, no evil destroy him, our little son, my Little Joe,”

Pa did find out about the riders, the shot man we assume died of his injuries, another was shot dead fleeing from a bank robbery in which four people were killed, somewhere in Texas, l think, near the Mexican border, the other two were hung.

Which one was your father Joe we never knew?

We do know that they were all dead months before you were born.

Pa your Ma, and l made a pact, a solemn promise; you were never to be told.

Hoss didn’t know and still doesn’t know anything about this.

l had to tell you Joe, Pa’s hurting.

Pa doesn’t love you any more than he loves Hoss and l.

He loves you in a very special way, he never made you out of love, he chose you out of love, and you are all he has left of your mother.

But sometimes Joe, sometimes there is an anger, a fire, a cold fire of fury that burns in you.

He sees it and it frightens him, he will do anything to protect you, to see no harm comes to you, and yes as you said this morning, to even save you from yourself.

You Joe and only you can help him to keep the promise, the solemn promise he made to your ma, only you can do that.

Joe, can you… do you now understand………

Adam suddenly realised that his brother had not said a word, no cutting remarks, no arguments, no anything; he knew without having to turn, without having to look under his brother’s tilted hat, that Joe had been asleep and not heard a word.

“Well, Pa l didn’t break my promise, but now l think, l do really think he should be told”

Slowly Adam repacked the lunch left over’s, he walked to the horses, checked they were safely hitched, and returning to the shade of the tree, he stood looking down at his slumbering brother, giving a deep sigh he shrugged his black clad shoulders:

“Well, if you can’t beat them, join them.”

He sat, settled himself back against the broad trunk of that large tree, even in the shade, he felt the warmth of the sun seeping into his body, tilting his hat in the same fashion as Joe’s; he stretched his long legs.

Protected by the green umbrella of that sturdy tree the two brothers slept soundly, little knowing the dramatic events that fate held in store for them, which would bring the bond between them closer than ever before.
CHAPTER 3 THE AWAKENING
Joe awoke with a sudden start, sat up and for a moment had no idea where he was, he wondered why Adam was laying asleep on the ground beside him.

Bit by bit it came back to him, he recalled the first part of the day, the heated quarrel with his father, and obviously his brother’s attempts at bridging the rift that was starting to, no, had developed between him and Pa.

He slowly got to his feet, stretching and scratching his head, bending to pick up the water bottle he looked fondly at his sleeping brother.

Giving him another few minutes rest, he went to refill the canteens with the cool, fresh creek water.

Once filled he set them aside and drank the sparkling water from his hand, finally splashing his face and head he rubbed his hands dry in his thick, dark curly hair.

Squatting at the side of the creek, he looked across the meadow, the pale green of the waving grass dotted with specks of yellow and blue, the hues of the summer flowers.

Here and there, tall poppies added brilliant splashes of red, the meadow seem to spread as far as the eye could see, it drew his gaze upwards to the majestic, cold, snow topped mountains, which only highlighted the cloudless blue of the sky;

Why, why was he not happy here, why?
What had gotten into him?

He was seeing the Ponderosa as if for the first time, as if through his father’s eyes, seeing its magnificence, its splendour, finally seeing and feeling what his Pa could see and feel.

He knew he couldn’t leave this beautiful place.

Leave the Ponderosa… he whispered to himself.

Leave his brothers, Adam, Hoss… softly he spoke their names,

Leave his beloved father… forgive me Pa.

His eyes brimmed with tears and he resolved there and then to reconcile himself with his Pa as soon as he and Adam returned to the house for supper.

Renewed and refreshed, a surge of energy swept through his young, virile body.

He walked back to the tree and his sleeping brother feeling better than he had done for a long, long time.

Gently he kicked the sole of Adam’s boot, but it would take more than that to rouse him from the luxury that was an afternoon nap.

He contemplated waking Adam with a sprinkling of water, remembering that Hoss had done the same to him last summer which pre-empted him breaking more than five window panes, but he also remembered, rubbing his jaw, that Adam could pack a pretty good punch, and that he had been on the receiving end of one of those on more than one occasion, his still tender head would not be able for that.

Adam withdrew his leg after the third and more forceful kick, from under the brim of his black hat he raised one dark, bushy brow and opened his eyes; he could see Joe standing over him.

“Come on old man, there is work to be done that is if it’s not too much trouble for you”,

“Joseph Francis Cartwright, you amaze me,”

Adam gave his brother his full title, which usually only happened, Joe thought, when he was in some sort of trouble and about to get a lecture or stripping down, he had heard it a lot lately!

“And how’s that elder brother”

“You fall asleep a lazy, and for the want of a better word, yahoo, as your big brother Hoss would say, and awaken as the foreman on the job”

Joe took Adam’s raised hand and pulled him to his feet.

“l‘m sorry elder brother not to live up or should l say down to your low expectation of me, anyway, what were you gonna tell me about Pa, l was just so dogon tired l couldn’t keep my eyes open, so what was it, uh?”

Adam began to roll up the sleeves of his black shirt, baring his brown tanned, muscular hairy arms to the warmth of the day, he draped one arm in a friendly, brotherly manner across Joe’s pale brown, shirt covered shoulders.

Joe following his brothers example, began rolling his sleeves in the same fashion, exposing his own golden brown muscular arms, he turned his head to face Adam, the dark, heavy lashed questioning green eyes towards the equally dark, heavy lashed brown eyes, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he repeated,

“Ok Adam, so, what about Pa do you know that l don’t?”

“Nothing little brother, nothing, just baring my soul, l guess the soft beauty of the day, the warmth of God’s golden sun, the cool breeze blowing across the Ponderosa, started me waxing lyrical”

Joe raised his eyes to the heavens,

“Don’t start talking at me with all those poetry words, Adam, save them for the ladies”

he grinned cheekily,

“ And, l guess l don’t need to know anything l don’t already know about Pa, he’s my Pa, l love him, and that’s good enough for me, and do you know the first thing l am gonna do when l see him is tell him, tell him l’m sorry for this morning and the past few weeks”

Pulling his brother toward him in the semblance of a hug, Adam playfully punched him on the chin,

“Good enough, little brother, good enough”

Now holding both Joe’s shoulders he half pushed him away and looked closely into his face.

‘My, my!’ he exclaimed ‘what a transformation,’

‘Your face was greener this morning than the pale meadow grass, and now you’re fairly bristling with good health and good humour’

Joe had to agree as he tightened Cooch’s cinch, and swung into the saddle, apart from a small throbbing in his head he felt good.

“Nectar of the God’s, elder brother, Ponderosa creek water, nothing finer for whatever ails you, believe me, l know”

Before Adam could reply, Joe expertly heeled his pony’s flanks, and closed his hand on the reins Cochise squealed, rose up high on her hind legs, squealed once more, then neighing loudly spun round, before her front hooves had touched the ground Joe leaned forward from his hips his upper body flattened to the ponies neck he let the reins slip through his giving fingers and softened his hand allowing the pony her head, another squeeze from his heels, the pony stretched her neck and lengthened her stride, yahooing his enjoyment they galloped into the distance.

Adam cussed his little brother at the top of his voice, and tried with great difficulty, to mount.
Sport by now was excited to almost a pitch of frenzy; the prancing animal decided the race was definitely on.
At last, settled in the saddle, Adam gave up the fight, sitting forward, giving rein to the powerful beast, he allowed the horse to stretch its neck and long legs in a desperate bid the catch the fleeing pony, which was, by this time a tiny speck on the horizon.
Chapter 4 The Mine
By the time Adam did catch up, Joe had Cooch tied to a hitching rail on the shady side of the mine, her head dipped in and out of a bucket, water dripping from her mouth and tongue; he himself was stretched out on a flat boulder, idly chewing a long grass root.

“What kept you elder brother? You old folk aint got no stamina” Joe quipped,

“One day little brother you will turn that pony right over on it’s back”

“Nah, not Cooch”, said Joe “why l could almost take her dancing, she is so good on her hind legs”

“And from what l have heard of some of the ‘ladies’ and l say that loosely, if you pardon the pun, you have been acquainted with lately, your Cooch, would possibly be the best of the bunch”

Adam replied with a wry knowing smile.

“Oh yeah”,

Joe chipped back,

“well from what l heard, you have gone back to education, still taking lessons brother, after all the money Pa spent on that fine college education, where might l ask have you been going after supper on these long summer evenings?, who’s front porch swing have you been sitting on?”

Sport now secured next to Cochise, slurped happily from the same bucket, Adam clapped Joe playfully on the back, as they walked toward the boarded up disused mine.

“Believe me fella,”

he bent his head to whisper into his brother’s ear, a wide grin accentuating the dimples in his cheeks.

“A body can never have too much education,”

Joe chortled at the sexual innuendo, his dark brows puckered high on his forehead,

“l do believe l know what you mean brother, l never had any problem with that kind of learning myself”

“And how comes you are so knowledgeable on the subject, as you haven’t spent much time anywhere other than The Bucket of Blood or The Silver Dollar?”

“I have my ways brother, nothing much goes on around these parts without my knowing”

Joe replied mysteriously,

“Oh, l have my contacts”,

Adam spun his brother round to face him, seeing the grin lighting up his face.

“l guess you must mean master spy Hoss Cartwright”

“Correct” agreed Joe.

The both laughed outright as they kicked in the rotting boards that secured the entrance to the mine, the stale, stagnant odour of the long disused mine assailed their nostrils; they turned to each other with grimacing faces,

“Phew,” Joe crinkled up his nose,

“this place smells worse than ole Walter Miller’s hog pen”

“Little brother it even smells worse than ole Walter Miller himself”

Little Joe again hooted with laughter, but immediately covered his mouth with his hand.

“Yes, brother l would advise you to keep your mouth closed, it is bad enough to have to breathe it, you don’t want to be eating it as well, especially the way you’ve been feeling today”

They had by now walked through the entrance tunnel, down into the belly of the mine, Adam, checking the timbers as they went, they entered a small storage room, which itself opened out into a slightly larger storage room, possibly where the miners ate and took their breaks, the main tunnels of the mine led down off of the larger of these rooms.

“Well, what’s the outcome so far Adam, what do you think?”

Joe asked looking around tapping the odd upright or beam, not really knowing what he was doing or looking for,

“Well,”

Adam rubbed his chin,

“l am beginning to think, it would be better to securely close up the whole mine, there are a too many rotted uprights and beams, the mine is totally played out anyway, it’s not worth doing any repairs, so be careful Joe, don’t touch anything at all, l really don’t think we need to go in much further, and l don’t want roof to cave in on top of us”

Joe snatched back his hand from the upright he was about to touch as if the wood itself was on fire.

“I’m behind you all the way brother, l won’t touch a thing, the only thing l am happy about, forgetting for a moment that stink, is that we are out of the hot sun for a while, but the less time we spend in here the better”

“l concur brother, l heartily concur”

Adam’s voice came back to him from one of the tunnels.
The eerie creaking of the old timbers echoed through the tunnels, Joe looked to Adam for his reaction, but he was busy surveying the side timbers.

“Just say the word and you bet l’m out of here, ready when you are elder brother”

Joe disliked the cold, stuffy, smelly interior of the mine, it sent shivers down his back, he knew, that he would never of been happy working underground,

Rain or shine, give me the open prairie any day rather than this underground prison.

He recalled what his absent brother Clay said when they first met,

A man should go underground once in his life, and then only in a pine box.

He shivered again.

How right he was.

“O.K Joe”

Adam called softly from the larger storage area,

“let’s leave it at that”

Little Joe delighted to be told to leave, turned quickly on his heel, stumbled on some loose sacking and fell heavily against the upright dividing the two storage rooms.

The overhead beam screeched above him, he immediately saw the danger, pushing Adam back into the safety of the larger room, Joe tried to dive in after him.

The falling overhead beam caught him a glancing blow on the side of the head, knocking him onto his back, he felt nothing more.

The small storage area filled with falling earth, debris and broken timbers, completely blocking off the exit.

Adam felt the smell of dust and earth filling his nostrils and mouth, fortunately in the larger room which Joe had pushed him back into the overhead and side beams remained intact.

The earth that fell, almost covering him was soft, although choking, he coughed, spat, cleared his mouth, and called to Joe, brushing the loose earth from his body, he continued to free himself, calling again to his brother,

“Joe, Little Joe, for God’s sake answer me, are you hurt?’

His urgent plea met with no reply, Joe lay half buried, between the two rooms, blood gushed from underneath the dark curls a large gash had opened from his forehead to just above his ear.

Eventually Adam succeeded in pulling himself free from the clawing earth; he could now see Joe, unconscious, lying on his back his out stretched arm flung across his chest in a vain attempt to protect himself, his bloodied head was motionless, the rest of his body was covered with the same dark clawing earth, the stillness of his body, combined with the gloomy darkness of the mine added to the panic that was taking a hold of Adam’s gut, he crawled on hands and knees to little Joe’s side.

“Please, please God don’t let him be dead, don’t do that to me”

he begged the Almighty for mercy.

Gently, tenderly he brushed the loose earth from his brothers head and face, cringing as he saw the open wound, that blood was pouring profusely out of, the side of Joe’s head was already caked in the sticky substance as it flowed and disappeared into his curly brown hair, he continued removing earth and debris from Joe’s upper body down to his waist, he knelt and pressed his head against Joe’s chest, he could just about hear the rapid beating of his heart, over the pounding of his own.

“Thank you, thank you”

he cried raising his eyes to the roof of the mine, as if, to all intense and purposes that was where he could look to for help.

He quickly glanced around for something to staunch the bleeding head wound, a small black bag, something like a doctors bag caught his eye, it thankfully contained bandages and what he supposed were field dressings, pressing one of the dressings to the wound he used his neck cloth to secure it.

“That will have to do for the moment”

He remembered seeing some shovels, quickly he looked around and spied them in a corner, grabbing the nearest, he set about digging Joe out as best he could.

He realised as soon as he had cleared the loose earth from around Joe’s body that the fallen overhead beam had him trapped, it had come to rest at an angle across his thighs, his lower legs were still buried.

Using the shovel and then his bare hands he slowly managed to uncover first one leg then started on the other.

The soil in his hand turned from a dry powdery substance to a moist, sticky goo, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Even in the dim light the whiteness of the split bone protruding from the gaping hole in Joe’s leg was clearly evident, blood seeped from the injury and trickled like many tiny, spidery, rivers through the dry earth, finally culminating on the floor in a thick red pool.

Reddened soil clung to the wound and to Joe’s blood stained torn trousers, taking a quick glance over the beam at his still unconscious brother Adam gently brushed, and cleared as much of the dirt as possible, he determined to clean and treat Joe’s leg before any chance of infection could set in.

A quick survey and search of the storage room provided Adam with a supply of various useful items.

Various shovels and spades, two barrels of water, (not fresh, but at least it was water), the small doctors bag (the field dressings, some kind of alcohol wash, swabs and bandages), strips of beef jerky, dry biscuits, a small bottle of, yes, thank you again God, whiskey, various bags and sacking, which he decided he could tear to make covers and also strapping for Joe’s leg, there was plenty wood to make a splint, he became so engrossed with the job in hand, that at first he didn’t hear Little Joe’s rasping call.

*******************************************

Joe’s eyes slowly flickered open he knew something bad had happened but he couldn’t remember what it was;
Why was his head threatening to explode again?
Why did he feel as if Hoss or Cooch or the both of them were sitting on his legs?
Where had the sun gone?
What was that awful stink?”
Slowly, slowly like the dripping of a tap he began to recall the course of events that had happened since he and Adam entered the mine,

Adam, jeez, where’s Adam,

‘Adam……. Adam’, oh please God no….’Adam,’

Joe’s voice was hoarse with dust, cracked with pain and trembling with fear.

He tried to sit up, waves of pain cascaded down from his head through his body to his feet, the room tilted and spun; he fell back with an agonized groan.

Adam scrambled to his side; tenderly he lifted Joe’s head,

“Where you hurting fella”

Joe closed his eyes, another wave of pain wracked his body, but the pain would have to wait.

‘l…thought, l thought…you… thirsty’ he croaked,

‘Not me fella, easy, drink this, don’t know how fresh it is, but its wet and fluid’

He told Joe as he half filled a tin cup and helped him to drink.

Thankful to be looking into brother’s face and for the feel of Adams strong hands supporting his head, Joe sipped the brackish tasting water.

‘Thanks, its ok’ Joe gasped.

“Tell me exactly where you’re hurting; don’t just tell me your fine?”

He asked Joe again, as he placed some rolled up sacking on the floor and laid his brother’s head gently upon it.

Taking as deep a breath as he could, Joe looked into Adam’s concerned face.

‘Where do you want me to start?’

Joe did his best to proffer a grin of some sort, but Adam saw in his brothers usually sparkling green, flecked hazel eyes, now dulled and glazed with pain, the effort it had taken.

“My head’s not too good, but it hasn’t been all day, so l guess that doesn’t count, though now it’s pretty fuzzy, and you ‘ve gotten a twin”

Adam grinned back,

“l wish l had little brother, then maybe we could lift that beam off your legs, but l cannot do it on my own, so you’re going to have to stay where you are for a while, l have got to do something with your leg, it’s broken, fella, and not a pretty site, but l found some whiskey, that will help a bit, what about your breathing, is that painful, you may have some bruised or broken ribs, but l guess you know from the odd scrap or two that you’ve gotten into what that feels like.”

“Breathing not too bad, l think my ribs are ok, l don’t wanna breath too deeply that smell makes me wanna retch, my leg is, well you can see it, l can’t, l’ll take your word for it,it hurts like hell, did you study medicine?, it would be a help if you did”

Joe was trying hard to make little of his condition, but he felt as if he had had better days

“’Fraid not brother, l could build you a bridge; you’re mighty chirpy for someone trapped under a big piece of wood”

‘Hey’

Joe tried grinning again; it turned into another wince of pain,

‘Where is big brother Hoss when you need him?”

“Yes, he would be a BIG help, it wouldn’t solve the problem of getting out of here, l will have to check the tunnels, one thing at a time though,’

“Do you have a plan?” Joe asked

“A plan, hell no, first things first, l want to clean this cut on your head and stop the bleeding, you’re making a hell of a mess on the floor”

Joe saw the funny side of this remark but his attempt at his boyish giggle turned into a low groan, as Adam applied a soaked swab to his head,

“Sorry fella, hold that in place will you, l’ll bandage your head, hopefully that will stop the bleeding, then try and do something with your leg,”

Adam kept up a running commentary on his doctoring, more for his own benefit than for Joe’s.

The continual lifting of his head was making Joe extremely queasy, or maybe it was the stagnant odour.

He felt Adam had enough to do, other than listen to his belly aching, in fact that was one part of his body that was not giving him any trouble;

Anyway, thankfully there was very little in his stomach,
Adam appeared to be able to read his thoughts,

‘OK fella, l have finished, try and keep your head still, it will ease the queasy, sick feeling, my guess is you have a concussion, so the less you move about the better, which is kinda helpful, seeing your movements are sorta restricted’

“Are you quite sure you’re not a Doctor?”

Joe decided a sprinkling of Cartwright sarcasm was called for.

Adam gave him a mind your manners little brother meaningful look.

Joe was beginning to feel the effects of the effort he was putting into making conversation, he closed his eyes as the feeling of floating descended upon him, it helped slightly to ease the pain, he could still hear Adam talking but could not make any sense out of what he was saying, it felt good to keep his eyes closed and drift, he felt Adam’s hand gently shaking him back to consciousness,

“Keep talking little brother, it doesn’t matter what you say just keep talking, it’s better for you, and will do me a heap of good as well”

For some reason Joe shook his head, trying to recollect what he had been saying, it was not the right move, he promised himself he wouldn’t do it again, the room spun, tilted, and spun again, he felt violently sick, tried to raise himself to turn his head and retch, the excruciating pain in his head and leg doubled if he made any kind of movement, breathing as deeply as he could in the foul air, he let his head fall back onto the sacking.

“Adam what do you have in mind?” a pained smile spread across Joe’s face.

“And what’s put a smile back on your face fella, share the joke please”

“Just thinking not the best of days to go without breakfast and lunch and, l guess no chance of supper either, not that …,”

‘l am sure Hop Sing could make a delicious feast out of it, but its just beef jerky and dry biscuits, l want to fix up your leg first Joe’

‘Sure Dr Cartwright, no eating before surgery eh’

Adam squatted down on his haunches beside his brother, checked his bandaged head, felt his forehead and pulse, all seemed fine,

‘Your hands are cold, do you want another cover.’
‘Nah, l’m fine,’

Adam placed another sacking cover over his brother, ruffled his hair,

‘Listen Joe, l am not going to kid you, this is gonna hurt like hell, this might help, if you wanna holler you just go ahead’

Adam handed Joe the bottle of whiskey,

l am not, Joe thought, going to enjoy this.

Joe reached for the whiskey and took a slow, long gulp, it burnt his mouth, it wasn’t the best whiskey he had ever drunk, but it still tasted good, it felt warm and soothing as it trickled down his throat, he couldn’t see Adam without lifting his head, which, again he made the effort to do, but quickly realised that keeping his head level with his body was definitely the best option, again Adam was correct he had to stay as still as possible.

‘OK fella, l don’t want to hurt you too much but your boot has got to come off,’

Pulling as gently as possible, Adam managed to slowly remove the blood stained boot, he could hear Joe’s stifled groans, he pressed on regardless, taking the knife that was in the boot he cut open the rest of the trouser leg and grimaced, it didn’t look good, as ever his meticulous discipline came to the fore, he cleaned the knife on Joe’s trousers and dropped it back into the boot,

“l can only do the best l can” he thought, he looked over the beam at Joe.

“Ok, fella, take a slug on that bottle, this is going to sting”

Adam counted to three and slowly poured the alcohol based wash onto the splintered bone and gaping wound, the compound fracture that was his brother’s leg, he winced as he heard Joe’s scream, then a sharp gasp for breath.

****************************************

Joe, forced another gulp of whiskey down his throat, closed his eyes, and waited….

“Anytime, elder bro……”

A searing, burning fire encased his leg, his whole body was on fire, tears filled his eyes, spilling down onto his cheeks.

He screamed once, but then not a sound escaped from his lips,

His jaw was clenched so tight he felt unable to open his mouth; he could hear Adam’s voice, but not what he was saying…

He prayed the pain would stop… it didn’t

“Sorry Joe, but now this is really gonna hurt, l am going to bring the bone together and secure the splint”

He tasted the warm sticky sweetness of his own blood as he bit deep into his lower lip;

He prayed the pain would stop… it didn’t…

Gladly he accepted the veil of darkness as it swept over him pulling him down into the welcoming arms unconsciousness…

The pain stopped.

Adam carried on doctoring Joe’s leg, talking to him as he worked, he stemmed the blood flow and strapped together a make shift splint to hold the broken bone in place, using strips of torn sacking he bound the leg to keep in the warmth, knowing full well, that although it was a glorious summers day outside, the temperature inside the mine, after the sun had gone down would be pretty cold, in fact he felt that the sun must be well down as there was a distinct chill creeping in.

Every-so-often he checked on his brother by looking over the top of the beam, watching for the rise and fall of his breathing, at what point Joe had passed out he didn’t know but he was thankful he did.

Joe was still unconscious when Adam clambered back into the small room, he checked the pulse and heart beat of his patient, all ok, the lanterns that he had found he placed as close as possible around Joe’s prone form, his hands were still cold, Adam covered them with sacking.

Joe’s face and forehead were hot, to the touch, Jeez, that’s all he needs, an infection, he thought as he redressed the head wound, thankfully the bleeding had stopped, he also wiped a trickle of blood from Joe’s lip and chin.

He is certainly a tough kid, Adam thought he didn’t make much noise, but then, hopefully he had passed out in the first round.

Sitting down next to his brother, he took a small sip of whiskey and gladly felt the hot liquid warm his innards,
Best leave the rest for Joe; his needs are greater.

The lanterns gave some warmth but very little light, Joe’s face looked ghostly in the gloomy atmosphere of the mine, the longer he remained in that unconscious state the better, he pulled down the sacking that covered Joe’s body, unbuckled his gun belt, and slowly, gently pulled it from beneath his brothers slim hips, it slid toward him without any bother, he folded it around itself, before going to place it on the floor, the belt felt wet and sticky.

Jeez no;

He immediately knew it was Joe’s blood, and not something on the floor of the mine, he distinctly remembered that the surface in all the rooms and tunnels that they had entered had been bone dry.

Thankfully Joe was still unconscious.

He raised him to a sitting position, he wished he could turn him over, but of course that was impossible, letting Joe’s head flop on his shoulder, he leaned the body of his little brother against his own.

Adam felt a sudden panic.

Where else was he bleeding?

He thought he had checked everything, he traced his hands down Joe’s back, gently probing for any cuts or wounds, there was nothing.

There was still a pool of blood that had collected under Joe’s back, his shirt was also soaked with blood, he thought better of removing the shirt.

Suddenly he realised that the floor sloped slightly inwards from either wall, the blood must of been from Joe’s leg and head, he sighed in relief, as he now knew he had dealt with all of his brother’s injuries.

He placed a number of sacks over the blood; they would soak it up and also make a mattress, which would keep Joe’s body from the cold floor.

Gently he laid him back on the sacking; Joe’s dark curly hair was matted and stiff with his own blood.

He thought about how particular Joe was with his appearance, he would not like to be seen by any of his many admirers in his present condition, and boy, did, his brother, have admirers, all ages, blondes, brunettes, red heads, as much as he attracted trouble and that trouble was drawn to him, it was the same with the female population of Virginia City and surrounding countryside, women and girls were drawn to him like bees to honey, he didn’t even have to snap his fingers.

Still he would have to be tidied up just a piece before he presented himself to anyone, then he thought l guess l am not looking clean and dressed for an after church Sunday picnic.

He sat back to survey their situation and put things in perspective:

On the positive side, Joe’s injuries, painful and uncomfortable they may be, were not life threatening; they had water, food, plenty sacking to use for any purpose, strapping, coverings, padding’s, they had various shovels, picks and tools.

On the negative side, stale, maybe poisonous air, cold, and the possibility more earth falls, cave ins, at present no way out, Joe cannot be moved, the biggest problem was the stale air and how long it would be breathable, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out the fewer bodies using that air the better.

He now put his mind to getting out of the mine.

Joe was not in the equation.

He guessed that there would be a ventilation shaft, or another exit, as most of these old mines had one.

There were in fact only two options.

One – he could sit tight and wait for rescue, he knew Hoss and Pa wouldn’t take long to figure out that something amiss had overtaken Joe and himself;

Two – he could take a look at the other tunnels for another way out.

The main problem was Joe, whether to leave him or not.

He checked again for any signs of infection, there was no doubt his temperature was rising, he face was flushed and his forehead hot and damp with perspiration.

Adam felt exhaustion seeping through his body, but he knew if he sat back against the wall and closed his eyes he didn’t know when he would again open them.

He decided to take one lantern and start exploring the tunnels, hoping Joe would stay oblivious, he placed more covers over his brother, as the temperature had definitely dropped, he hadn’t moved since Adam had splinted his leg, he wished he could leave a message in case he came to, with a backward glance at his brother, he left and began to check the right hand tunnel.

Gingerly he crept along the tunnel, making sure to keep to the middle, the uprights and beams, creaked and groaned almost as if they had a life and breath of their own, warning him of trespassing down these foreboding black holes.
He always felt he would be able to hold his nerve on any given occasion, but these dark tunnels had him on edge.

The main one split into three different tunnels, he hoped it wouldn’t take long to check them all, he wanted to get back to Joe as soon as possible, the first two dead ended, and the third went a short way then was impassable.

Always uppermost in his thoughts was how long the air was breathable, Joe’s shallow breathing would use up less air, he prayed he would remain unconscious as long as possible, he knew he would have more chance of survival if he left him on his own.

Adam had made his decision, he would have to find a way out and not wait for rescue.

He returned to find Joe, conscious and a little agitated.

“How you feeling fella,”

He placed his hand on Joe’s forehead, it was hot, he had kept one bucket half full of water precisely for this purpose, he retrieved his neck cloth and soaked it in the water, placing the damp cloth on his brothers burning forehead, he hoped and prayed that he could keep his temperature down.

He knew he couldn’t leave him if he was on the way to delirium.

“I’m fine Adam, l thought you had gone, you’ve got to go? you can you know, l’m OK, it’s best you find a way out and get help, you know that’s the only thing to do, l’m fine, you have patched me up better than any Doc, go whenever you want to, Adam, l can’t move, you can get out, don’t make me feel guilty, don’t stay here because of me”

Joe knew he was rambling on, but he had to make it clear to Adam.

He attempted to sit up, the room spun, he felt his stomach lurch, pain, agony slammed his body, a cry which turned into a low groan escaped from his throat as his head fell back, he felt Adams hands settling him onto the sacking.

‘Easy fella, easy, better to lay quite’

‘l’ll sit and rest awhile, l am a little bushed myself, are you hungry? l am, though not l suppose as hungry as Hoss gets, l don’t think l ever want to see ‘bear fat’ on the menu’

Adam watched a wan smile flit across Joe’s, face which was again spotted with droplets of perspiration; he applied another cold cloth to his forehead and wiped away the sweat, he thought it best to keep him talking.

He found the biscuits and jerky, at least there was plenty jerky, taking a bite, he looked down again at what he had just put in his mouth, maybe ‘bear fat’ wasn’t such a bad idea, Joe didn’t touch either biscuits or jerky.

That boy has a wise head on those young shoulders Adam said to himself, he doesn’t need to eat; water is better for him.
Keep him talking, he thought; keep his mind on other things.

‘Do you remember when you put Hoss on a diet for the ‘Flapjack Contest’?’
Joe opened his eyes and looked towards Adam, again a vain attempt at a smile.
‘l remember very well, your so called ‘ruby’ l had to give you 1500 dollars for that bit of glass, if it hadn’t of been for Hoss, winning that contest l would still be paying you off’
Adam was pleased he had hit upon the idea of keeping Joe talking.
‘Just a minute, little brother, l think you are forgetting the time, you rode the winning horse in a race, took the first prize, sold the horse at a profit, had a share in the second placed horse, and to boot, ended up with my new rifle,’
He could see Joe’s face light up with the recollection of that day.
‘And Adam the best part was the look on your face when you found out that Hoss had bet against you, he put his money on my horse, even better the expression on Hoss’s face when he realised that you had found out, priceless, l relive that day over and over again, that elder brother was one of my better days’

Joe was enjoying the ‘chewing over the fat’ and Adam was happy to see him perking up.

‘But, Adam, the very best must be your almost betrothal of marriage to Abigail Jones, when you came down that morning and told us, l thought l would bust my seams laughing, it was a very near thing for a while, ‘Adam and Abigail Cartwright,’ you must admit it did have a good sound to it’

Adam watched as his brother struggled with the memory and the fact that although he wanted very much to laugh, his still painful body wouldn’t allow it.

‘You may not be surprised, little brother, that l take great effort in trying to erase Miss Abigail Jones completely from my memory’

It was too much for Joe, regardless of the pain, he gave forth his infamous chuckle, interspersed with loud groans.

‘I was under the impression little brother, that you were laying there in great pain, l seem to have been some how misled’
Adam’s sardonic, serious face added to Joe’s discomfort.

‘Please stop it, l am really hurting here’

‘You mean you don’t want to discuss the positives of the ‘Noble Pachoderm’ against the obvious negatives of the lowly mule! and Pa’s face when he saw an elephant in the barn, priceless’

‘Stop, stop, no more, l can’t take any more’

Joe cried in desperation,

‘let’s get serious Adam, it’s gotta be less painful’

‘Good enough Joe, l am going to rest up for a while, and then check out the other tunnels, you should get some rest try to sleep’

Joe closed his eyes, while Adam placed a fresh compress on his head.

‘I do believe, little brother, your fever is cooling, and therefore laughter must in fact be the best medicine’

Adam sat with his back to the wall, and tried to get some shut eye; Joe slowly opened his eyes and watched his brother.
‘Adam’
‘What is it fella’
‘Will you answer me something, truthfully’,

Adam opened his eyes; slowly raising one eye brow he looked quizzically down at Joe,

‘I will if l can Joe’
‘What do you think are chances are?’
Adam had been wondering when this would crop up.

‘Seriously, l would say excellent, my guess is Pa and Hoss are, as we speak, organising some sort of rescue, the best thing you could do is get some sleep’

He settled back against the wall and again closed his eyes.

‘If the worst, comes to the worst, would you prefer to die of cold, starvation, suffocation or madness’

Adam stared directly at Joe, now this was serious.

‘Jeez, Joe, if l had a preference l would prefer old age surrounded by my many grand children’

‘l am talking about our situation now, l don’t want to lay here waiting for the inevitable, l would rather be in control of my own life or death, wouldn’t you?’

‘Are you saying that you would prefer to put a bullet in your brain, or open a vein and bleed to death,’

‘l would prefer it to any of the other choices, especially madness’

Adam went to Joe’s side, ostensibly to check his bandages, placing his hands on Joe’s shoulders he squeezed gently,

‘It’s not gonna happen fella, we are going home, l promise you that, we are going home, keep that thought’

Joe turned his head from his elder brother, trying to keep his fears and distress to himself, Adam felt his shoulders start to tremble, his voice shaking with emotion as he spoke,

‘It’s not the dying, we all gotta die, l know that, l don’t wanna die, the thing is l don’t wanna die here choking for air, going mad, buried alive, that’s what scares me Adam’

Adam recalled the all times he had comforted, cradled and held his little brother, his body trembling with fear from one of his many night mares;

Crying in anger and frustration when he had been naughty, scared his Pa wouldn’t forgive him;

The many days and nights he wept for his Ma, begging for her to come back, a five year old pretending to understand what death meant.

Once more he folded his arms around his brothers trembling shoulders, Adam held him close to his chest allowing Little Joe the time he needed to control and compose himself, in between gulps of breath and sobs Joe whispered,

‘So…Sorry Adam, I’m so…sorry’

‘Let it go, little brother, let it go, l promise you, you are not going to die here, you will be telling your grandkids all about this, l promise you’

Adam closed his eyes and prayed to God, Allah and Abraham, any higher being or deity that could help him keep his promise.

‘Sure, Adam’

he found it difficult to keep the tremble from his voice,

‘l..l’m fine now, l was just putting all the cards on the table’

He gently laid Joe back on the makeshift mattress, brushed his hand through his brothers blood caked hair.

“Good enough, little brother, try and get some shut eye”

Adam watched Joe closely, until he was sure he had fallen asleep, finally with his own eyes feeling like leaded orbs, he fell into a sound but fitful sleep.

He woke suddenly, shivering, he immediately looked down at Joe, his chest, rose and fell, in a steady movement,

Well, he thought that’s a blessing.

He leaned forward and rested his palm on his brother’s forehead, it was warm, not hot, thank God, he replaced the sacking tucking it under Joe’s shoulders.

I’d best check that other tunnel; he got up and walked towards the tunnel, changed his mind and clambered over the beam.

Lifting the covers he checked the splint on Joe’s leg, it seemed ok even in the gloomy light, gently he lifted the leg to make sure there was no blood seeping.

Joe murmured a cry of pain and tried to move his leg away, Adam peered over the top of the beam, but he was still sleeping, he gently recovered the leg with the sacking.

Now he really must check that other tunnel, again taking a lantern with him, he followed the second tunnel to the point where it split, as the first did into three separate tunnels.
Before he made a choice he stood at the top of each tunnel, hoping that he could maybe smell, or feel air, fresh air, blowing or moving through any one of the tunnels, he knew that the air in the room was not going to hold out for long.

On instinct only, he slowly walked into the right hand tunnel, he had been walking for some time, this was the longest tunnel he had entered, but he felt drawn, he knew that this was the correct tunnel.

Again the beams creaked and groaned, he looked up fearfully but they remained in place, finally he reached the tunnels end, but there was another smaller tunnel running off again on the right hand side.

Adam turned and looked down from where he had just been, he should go back to Joe, but he knew he must check this tunnel before he went back.

The tunnels path rose slightly;

He was walking upwards, upwards, upwards; the end of the smaller tunnel was boarded up;

He would need some tools, this was definitely the right one, he could feel, even smell fresh air on the other side of the boards.

Adam tried to pull the planks of nailed wood apart and open up the entrance way but they wouldn’t budge, he got on his back and tried to kick them out, he had to get some tools; he began making his way back to Joe.

Before he left the tunnel,to enter the room where Joe lay he unbuckled his gun belt and dropped it to the floor..

Gently he shook Joe awake, he had to tell him, he couldn’t just leave.

‘Joe, Joe, fella how you feeling?’

Joe’s eye’s flickered open,

‘l’m fine Adam, never felt better’

He brought his hand from under the covers; clenching his fist he punched Adam playfully on the arm,

‘Never better’

‘l have found a way out, it’s boarded up, but with some tools l can open it, it can’t be very far back to the horses, and at least it will let some fresh air into here, l am going to have to leave you fella, but you’ll be ok, there is still plenty water’

‘Well, we’re due some good news, that’s great’

Joe tried hard to appear excited as Adam; he knew it was the best thing to do;
He also knew did not want to be left on his own.

‘l’ll get straight at it’

Selecting a small shovel and pick, he turned to see Joe staring intently at him, he did a check on Joe’s injuries, the silence and stillness from Joe was worrying, he knew and felt Joe’s eye’s following his every movement,

‘Little brother l’m gonna need your gun, l left mine on my saddle’,

He said as he slipped his brothers gun from its holster and shoved it into the top of his trousers.

Joe tugged at his brother’s arm, Adam turned and looked into his little brother’s worried and frightened eyes, quietly Joe asked,

‘Why are you taking my gun’

‘If l can’t get out, l can fire some warning shots’

‘Sure, sure’ agreed Joe.

He watched Adam collect what he needed and walk into the tunnel, his black clothed body almost disappearing in the gloom, Joe called after him,

‘Adam,’

As his brother turned towards him Joe continued in a cracking, trembling voice,

‘Tell Pa, tell him…’ he hesitated ‘l’m sorry’

Adam walked back to Little Joe and knelt down beside him, he could see even by the poor lantern light, that his eyes were filled with brimming tears, laying his hand first on his shoulder and then tenderly stroking his thick brown hair,

‘You can tell him that yourself, little brother’

he chucked him gently on the chin,

‘see you soon fella’

‘What are you doing Adam’

Joe asked in alarm as he watched his brother turning off every other lantern.

‘The lanterns take oxygen, you need it more’

Adam explained, and cursed himself for not thinking of doing it sooner.

‘OK, don’t turn them all off, will you’

Joe had never been afraid of the dark, now he felt fear gripping his gut and tightening his muscles.

‘Don’t worry little brother, l’ll leave you enough light’

Adam tried to keep his voice as normal as possible, the fear in Joe’s voice was infectious.

God knows l don’t wanna leave you Joe, but l must, l know you’re feared of being on your own, but it’s the only way.

Joe knew Adam had to go, but an awful sense of dread welled up from the pit of his stomach, it rose to catch in his throat and slowly, slowly squeezed the breath from his lungs, he knew with a sudden and dreadful realisation that he would never see his elder brother again.

‘Adam’,

The name escaped from his mouth in a strangled cry, Adam turning on his heel looked downwards where his brother lay, Joe’s dirt stained bloodied face shone grey and ghostly, yellow edged by the light thrown from the gloomy lanterns , the flecked glistening, green eyes brimmed with unshed tears, he watched as Joe’s lip’s moved silently,

‘Love you, brother, love you,’

‘Please don’t go’ remained unspoken in his heart.

Joe watched horrified, only Adam’s face was visible, his black clothed body had already disappeared, sucked into the equally black hole that was the entrance to the tunnel, his breath came in short gasps as a hand and arm reappeared and gave a small half salute, Joe was transfixed to the macabre spectacle, he trembled as he heard Adam’s voice.

‘See you soon short shanks, love you brother, l promise l’ll get you home’

Adam knew that what he was doing was the hardest thing that he may ever in his life have to do, but Joe’s chance of survival had just doubled, he bent to retrieve his gun belt and buckled it on, he touched Joe’s gun still stuck into the top of his trousers, he knew he had done the right thing, with a purposeful step he strode toward his means of escape.

Joe kept his gaze on the tunnel entrance until his eye lids, edged with long, thick lashes, moist with tears slowly covered the green eyes, now dulled with sorrow, pain and fear, slowly he allowed the lids to droop and close, he drifted into a fitful, distressed sleep.

He could feel his brother’s arms enclosing him in a cocoon of warmth, strength and safety, he pressed his head into his strong broad chest, he could feel Adams hand stroking his hair, his voice softly soothing his aches, pains and fears away;

Shush Little Joe it’s only a bump, a cut, a bruise.

Hush Little Joe it’s only a night mare.

Don’t cry Little Joe, Mama’s waiting in Heaven, but she will always be here in your heart.

Hush Joe it’s only a night mare.

It was all fine now.

You’re safe.

His eye’s snapped open;

It wasn’t a night mare… it wasn’t a dream… it was real…it was happening.

‘NO, NO, NO’

He heard his own voice screaming, but not screaming loud enough to drown out the booming, thunderous cracking and screeching, the sound of falling earth, rocks and timber….

‘ADAM…ADAM…ADAM…ADAM…Adam…Adam.’
He yelled, screamed, struggled until his voice was hoarse and cracked, tears streamed down his face, he watched, terrified, as the tunnel where he last saw his brother, slowly filled with rocks, wood and debris, the soft earth spilling into the room where he lay trapped.

He lay listening to his own loud heartbeat;

His breath left his body in jerky gulps,

He tried desperately to control his breathing,

Control his thoughts… his mind…he was losing the battle,

He was lying in his own tomb, buried alive; madness;

The eerie glow from the light of the lanterns threw ghostly shadows across his body;

Pushing himself up he rested on his elbow, the pain that roared through his body, he paid it no heed, it was nothing, the least of his worries,

He searched frantically for his gun,

Where is it? Where is it?

He saw his gun belt,

He saw his brother kneeling in front of him;

Adam has it.

He fell exhausted, in agony, back on to the sacking.

I am not going to lay here till l go mad or suffocate.

He turned his head to check if there was anything, anything that would bring his torment to an end.

The trembling started every time he looked at the mound of earth blocking the tunnel entrance, he wouldn’t allow himself to think of Adams body, broken and buried somewhere in that tunnel.

Greedily he gulped the remains of the whiskey, every gulp becoming smaller and smaller, he knew there wasn’t enough left to help push him into oblivion,

What he wanted was the bottle.

He felt the smoothness, the cool smoothness of the glass, as he pressed it to his cheek,

e knew what he had to do, could he find the strength or courage;

Would it be a courageous gesture, a brave end to his life he didn’t know, he didn’t care.

He only knew that madness would not claim him.

The air was getting staler; his breathing was becoming short and laboured.

Slowly he placed the glass bottle on the floor.

His left boot was an arm length away; he stretched and pulled it toward him.

Adam , Adam, he pushed his brother from his thoughts, had left it there after he fixed his leg, please God, please God let it be there, he pulled the boot closer and searched inside.

Yes.

He took the small bone handled knife from the inside of the boot; he held it in his left hand.

He felt strangely comforted just by holding it.

He lay back down and settled himself,

Slowly but forcefully he traced the edge of the blade with his thumb, it would have to be sharpened,

A soft smile played on his lips as he remembered his elder brother’s sarcastic humour,

‘Don’t want to make a mess on the floor’

One tear drop escaped, and slowly trickled down his cheek, he tried to hold back the flow of tears that followed, it made no difference now.

He wept openly, for his brothers, his Pa, for himself, for the life he wanted that now he would never have.

It didn’t take him long to find a suitable stone.

The only sounds in the room were his own short gulps of breath, stifled sobs and the smooth screech of the blade as Joe almost lovingly honed it to a fine edge against the flat stone.
CHAPTER 4 THE RESCUE
‘Hoss will you please stop that pacing, sit down or go to bed or do something’

‘Dadburn it Pa, l knows their in trouble, l feels it’

Ben looked up into his large son’s concerned face, they had finished supper without waiting for Adam and Joe, he could hear Hop Sing, noisily finishing the kitchen chores.

‘Hoss you are as jittery as a maverick steer this evening, if we had waited for your brothers, you would be complaining of being hungry, and now that you have eaten, you want to go off in the middle of the night to look for them’

Ben resettled himself in his comfortable leather chair and returned to reading his paper, although if you had asked him what was the news on the front page he would of had no idea at all, he had not read a single word, his concern for his two sons was as keen as Hoss’s, he just wouldn’t admit it.

‘Pa, there are two very good reasons why l knows Adam and Little Joe are in trouble’

Hoss would not be diverted from his cause.

‘They could have stopped off in town for a drink,’ Ben continued to make excuses.

Hoss stood in front of his fathers chair with his hands on his hips, slightly he bent toward him in an intimidating manner,

‘Two reasons, two reasons’, he repeated, ‘and dadburn it l knows very well what they are’

Folding his paper Ben slapped it on the coffee table, sat back in the chair and crossed his arms.

‘Very well, Hoss what are these two very good reason’

‘It’s Wednesday Pa,and evry Wednesday fer the past month or two Adam has been spending the evening sharing a swing on a certain front porch with a certain young lady’

Hoss nodded in a sly and knowing way.

‘Really’
his father replied unfolding his arms, pressing his grey head further into the comfort of the reading chair,

‘And the other reason?’ he enquired

‘Little Joe, Pa, after this morning you knows he wouldnt go into Virginia…..’

Hoss didn’t have to finish.

‘All right, all right, Hop Sing’

Ben roared for the Chinese cook, who dashed out of kitchen talking rapidly in his native tongue,

‘Missa Ben, wah you wan, wah you shout fow, Missa Adam and Lita Joe home for suppa?’

‘No, no they aren’t, l am going with Hoss to look for them, get some food together, we won’t be back till morning,’
Ben immediately took charge,

‘Hoss go and saddle the horses,’

His middle son made a bee line for the door glad at last to be asked to do something positive, his father stopped him in his tracks,

‘And Hoss, get a few fella’s from the bunkhouse, we may need some extra hands’

Opening the door Hoss turned he recognised the serious worried look on his fathers face.

‘Yes sir’
The small group, six riders on horseback and two men in an uncovered wagon, laden with shovels, picks, and any other useful tools,just in case; headed out into the bright star lit night, as they reached the fork in the road,Ben sent one of the riders into Virginia City fetch his friend Doctor Paul Martin, just in case;

‘Get the Doc and meet us at the mine,’

***********************************

Adam was half way into the exit tunnel when he heard the cracking of overhead timbers, he didn’t stop to look, running as if possessed he threw himself into the side tunnel that led to the boarded up exit,

The falling earth knocked him to the ground, he struggled in panic to free his head and shoulders,as he was struck on his arms and head by small rocks and clumps of earth, but fortunately nothing that caused any serious hurt or damage.

The main fall was back down the tunnel from which he had come, he scrambled and searched for the tools, he found just one small shovel, it will have to do.

‘Dear God, please keep him safe’

he prayed for his brother,

‘l made a promise’

He continued whispering the words over and over, as he tried to dig himself free.
‘I made a promise…l made a promise’

He struggled until he was on the point of collapse, his fingers and hands were cut and torn from removing wood and stones, but not enough to loosen his legs;

“Please God help me, help me”

He prayed as he had never prayed before,

His face was wet with tears,

He heard himself sobbing,

It made no difference, he couldn’t move,

He was stuck, stuck firm, trapped.

He collapsed breathless, the foul air was taking its toll.

“My God,” he remembered Little Joe’s fears,

“How would you prefer to die….”

He could feel Joe’s gun warm against his belly, he slowly removed it from his belt, a bullet in the brain was much more desirable than suffocation or madness, and if it brought the roof down on top of him, what the hell, at least he would be dead.

“You were right, little brother, l am so sorry Joe, l took that choice away from you, forgive me, l am so sorry”

His right hand shook as he placed the gun to his temple,
He brought his left hand up to steady it;

Slowly he started to release the hammer….

He heard the faint sounds of splintering timber,

He closed his eyes; it would have to be now, do it now;

Breathing was becoming more and more difficult,

He could hardly take a gulp of air, even if it was bad air,

He was becoming light headed,

He could hear voices,

He felt his finger touch the trigger;

Joe’s gun had a hair trigger, it would be quick.

He could here Joe’s voice, his infectious giggle, see him practising his fast draw,

l don’t want to kill anyone, Adam, l just wanna be that second faster than the fella that wants’ ta kill me.

He could hear voices,

He felt the gun slip from his grasp;

He could still hear voices,
He felt a hand on his;

A wave of black silk swept him away.

***************************************

Joe, felt strangely calm his mind and body were set on one determined goal, he knew what he had to do.

He looked round the room,

So this was to be his burial chamber, his tomb,

He eyes flicked quickly past the mound of earth that was once the entrance to the tunnel;

His body trembled again as he thought of Adam.

Everything was ready now.

He held the sharpened knife in his left hand, with his right he pulled closer to him a small pile of sacks;

Laying the knife beside him he made a makeshift cushion of the sacks,

He picked up the knife and even in the dull light the blade shone,

He laid his right arm on the cushion,

He pressed the shiny blade against his wrist,

lightly he drew it across his arm,

“Good enough” he whispered to himself “good enough”

He stared transfixed at the silver, shining blade,

Gripping the bone handle of knife firmly,

He pressed deeper,

A slight stinging sensation but very little pain,

He watched mesmerised as small droplets of blood chased the blade across the straight line he had drawn on his wrist, each droplet forming a small red river which ran and formed a pool of blood on each side of his arm

“Now that is one good straight line Joe”

Carefully, almost reverently he placed the knife beside his bloodied arm,

He exhaled the air from his lungs in short gasps, it was becoming difficult to breathe.

He remembered his Sunday school classes, he knew to take your own life was a sin, he would pray anyway
.
His eyes squeezed shut, tears unashamedly poured from under each long lashed lid, his lips moved in silent prayer;
Our Father who Heaven…………………..Amen”

Sorry Pa, forgive me, l love you,

I love you Hoss,

A…Adam, l love you,

Mama, are you waiting for me, please wait for me.

His eyes opened, slowly he turned his gaze, as if drawn by a magnet to his bloodied arm,

His shallow gasps for breath, grew slower,
Transfixed he watched the crimson flow,

He watched as his life seeped from his body,

He watched until finally the heavy lashed lids drooped and covered his sorrowful green eyes.

“Pa”, he called for his beloved father.

*********************************************

The dawn was breaking as the wagon and riders finally reached the mine, the sweat streaked animals were dismounted and the tired group of men stretched their legs.

Ben and Hoss Cartwright fearfully looked toward the two horses, Sport and Cochise, whinnied softly, they were hitched to the rail, the water bucket had been kicked over and lay empty beside them.

“Somebody see to the horses”,

Ben shouted as he and Hoss ran toward the mine, two of the hands set about making all the animals comfortable, the rest followed the Cartwright’s into the mine.

“This don’t look good Pa”

Hoss didn’t know what else to say as they both surveyed the result of the first cave in.

Ben sent two men to collect shovels and picks from the wagon;

Even though there was no sound in the mine he bade the crew of men to be silent,

“Adam, Joseph,”

he called, he waited,

“Joseph, Adam,”
he called a second time, he waited,

Fearing the silence, broken only by the heavy breathing of the gathered men, he called at the top of his lungs, they all waited, with baited breath, but there was no response, he called again, but still the silence in the mine was undisturbed.

“We will start digging in shifts, two at a time, go careful boys, we don’t want another fall”

Ben took charge;

Carefully, the first two men started to clear away the earth and debris,

Hoss added extra help by manually lifting any heavy boulders and beams.
At regular intervals Ben brought the work to a standstill and called out for his two sons.

“Boss”,

Ben’s foreman Will Travis, entered the mine, he had been tending the horses,

“There is an exit tunnel that comes out just round the back over yonder, l remembers boarding it up a few years ago, we may be able to get in from there, should we check it out?”

Ben stared almost unable to assimilate what his foreman had said,

“Yes, go, go fire a round if you….” Ben could not finish

“Sure thing Boss”,

Will ran from the mine calling to one of the hands to accompany him, grabbing a couple of jemmies, the ranch hands rode swiftly to the rear of the mine.

It didn’t take long for the two men to prise away the wood that boarded the exit, the foul air immediately filled their lungs, they both backed away coughing, removing their neck cloths they tied them over their mouths and re-entered the mine, in minutes they found Adam,

“Get the canteen, and fire off a round?”

The foreman ordered, the ranch hand sped to do his bidding.

The air was becoming fresher by the minute, Will removed his kerchief and wiped the blood and sweat from Adam’s face, he slapped him gently on his cheek,

“Adam, Adam buddy “

Adam was oblivious, the ranch hand returned with the canteen, Will mopped his bosses son’s face and poured some water into his mouth,

Adam spluttered, moaned, his head sank back down into the dirt.

“He’s alive anyway, let’s get him outa here”

Both men set about freeing Adam’s feet.
***********************************************

Back in the mine Ben, Hoss and the rest of the crew heard the gunfire, as one they all stopped digging, ran from the mine, hastily mounted and rode toward the gunshots.

Ben and Hoss found Will trying to revive Adam,

Ben dropped on his knees beside his son;

Hoss ran into the mine calling out for Little Joe, with help, he started to clear the debris where Adam was found.

Ben helped Adam to drink, and bathed his forehead with a dampened neck cloth;

Adam’s eyes flickered open; he looked in astonishment at his father,

“No Pa, Joe, leave me, you gotta get Joe,”

He gasped, for breath trying to struggle to his feet, he looked around in panic.

“Easy, son, easy”

Ben pulled Adam to him,

“We’ll get him; Hoss is in there now…”

Adam looked around again terror etched on his face.

“No, no, not here, he’s trapped, trapped, no air”

He managed to stand, his legs buckled under him,

“Not here,”

Trying again to stand he pulled himself up by dragging on his father’s trouser legs.

His legs buckled once more, on hands and knees he pleaded,

“Pa, help him, l promised, l promised”

By now Adam was distraught, hysterical, sobbing.

Ben called Hoss and the crew from out of the mine, Hoss looked aghast at Adam’s distress, running to support him;

“Joe, Little Joe, where’s Little Joe, Adam, where’s Little Joe?”

Hoss the gentle shook his older brother, Adam staggered to his feet with his father and brother supporting him,

“He’s trapped,” he gasped, “not here the other side, quick we must, hurry, hurry, no air”

Everybody made a dash back to where they had come from, as they again reached the front of the mine, Paul Martin and the ranch hand arrived in a buggy.

“See to Adam Paul,”

Ben shouted toward him, Adam pulled away from the doctor,

“No, no gotta get Joe”,

He collapsed to his knees before he reached the mine entrance.

“See to him Doc,”

Ben repeated as he ran headlong into the mine closely followed by Hoss and the rest of the hands.

Adam had no strength left to resist, Doc Martin rested him against the wall of the mine, he stared blankly at the Doctors face as he wept silently for his little brother.

“l pro …pro…promised him,”

Adam closed his eyes to the dread he feared, his head sank on his chest, the doctor administered to his torn and bleeding hands, and to also the cuts and bruises on his face, neck and arms.

Back in the mine the men returned frantically to the digging, managing to clear a makeshift tunnel, they finally made it to the entrance of the room where Joe lay,

“l can see him, l can see him, his feet, he’s in here,”shouted one of the men.

Ben clambered over the beam,

He stood horrified at the prone, bloodied body, of his youngest boy,

He stared aghast at Joe’s outstretched arm,

The bone handled knife he had given him as a present on his sixteenth birthday lay beside his gashed wrist,

Blood still slowly seeping from his son’s vein.
.
“God, please let us be in time”

he prayed under his breath.

“Get Paul Martin in here, quick, quick,”

He shouted, the call went down the line, the men made way as the Doctor scrambled into the makeshift tunnel.

He knelt down putting his ear to Joe’s lips,

He could hear nothing,

No sound of breathing,

He then placed his ear to Joe’s chest, he heard it the faintest flutter of a heartbeat,

The pulse was faint but it was there,

The stench of the bad air reaching his lungs brought about a fit of coughing as it did with the other men,

“Cover your faces boys, Ben lets get him ought of here fast”

Hoss seeing the predicament, placed his broad back against the beam that was trapping his brother, taking the strain he bodily raised the obstacle from off of Little Joe’s thighs.

“Quick boys, careful, careful” he gasped, “Get his legs,’

With Ben and Paul Martin lifting and pushing Joe’s shoulders and two of the men gently pulling his legs, Joe’s body was slowly freed from beneath the beam,

Hoss lowered it, gasping and coughing he followed the rest of the rescue party out into the fresh summer air.

Joe’s motionless body was laid gently on the ground, Ben gazed mortified on the sorrowful sight.

“Paul, for God’s sake please help him”

Ben Cartwright’s face streaked with dirt stared pitifully down at his son.

Dr Paul Martin tended to Little Joe’s injuries, the boy’s skin had a sickly yellow appearance, his lips tinged blue, his closed eye’s sunken into their sockets, blood oozed from the gash on his right arm, his bloodied head was bandaged , his left leg splinted and tied with sacking, to the untrained eye Joe looked as if there was very little that anyone could do for him,

Doctor Paul Martin knew it would take every inch and ounce of his knowledge to save the boys life.

He set about the task silently praying for celestial assistance.

“Help me, Ben hold his arm up, Ben, Ben,”

Ben Cartwright was paralyzed with fear and dread, Hoss went to the doctor’s aid,

“Put that swab against the cut and bandage it tight”

He ordered the gentle giant, Hoss did as he was told, he dared not look at his little brother, his own heart was breaking.

Tearing Joe’s shirt open the doctor pressed his ear to Joe’s chest,

He felt for a pulse in his neck and left wrist, still there, just.

Gently but firmly started to massage his chest,

Hoss had completed his given task.

“Help me turn him over”

The Doctor once more directed the huge man;
Joe was lifted as carefully, as if he were a new born babe, and turned onto his stomach,

The doctor repeated the massage on Joe’s back, as if he was trying to save a drowning man.

The gathered group of prairie toughened ranch hands and cowboys watched silently willing life and breath into their boss’s son’s lifeless form.

“Hoss, turn him back now please”

The careful turning procedure was reversed,

Paul Martin, sweat pouring from his brow, continued massaging and checking for a pulse,

He rocked back on his bended legs and slowly shook his head.

Ben now kneeling beside him gasped in despair, his torment wracked his body with fitful sobs.

Adam crawled on hands and knees to Joe’s side, was weeping copiously, holding and kissing his little brothers dirt, blood stained hand,

“No, no, l promised him, l promised, Joe l’m sorry…l’m sorry” he whispered into the bloodied palm.

Hoss gently lifted and cradled his little brother’s head,

An almost inaudible gasp slipped, as soft as a breeze from the slightly parted bluish lips,

Doc Martin immediately continued the massaging,

Jerkily Joe’s chest fluttered then steadily started to rise and fall,

The blue tinged lips gradually took on a normal pink hue.

Once more the doctor checked Joe’s pulse and finally nodded his head; he looked toward his friend,

“Well, he’s breathing Ben and although very faint he has a steady pulse, let’s get the boy home, l’ll do the rest there”

Doctor Martin slowly got to his feet, he reached out a hand to Ben Cartwright who took it gladly, and on standing both men clasped each other around the shoulders,

“Paul, l owe you a dept of gratitude that l will never be able to repay”

“He’s not out of the woods yet, Ben, and at the moment l would happily settle for a cup of coffee”

Adam and Joe were both made comfortable in the wagon,

Joe wrapped in blankets was cradled in his fathers arms,

Adam’s hysteria abated, exhausted, spent body finally collapsed into a sedated sleep,

He didn’t stir until the tired procession of men and horses reached the Ponderosa.

Still holding Joe in his arms Ben turned to his crew of men,

“Boy’s thank you, thank you,”
The group of men dismounted and tiredly walked to the bunk house.

Adam and Joe were taken to their respective bedrooms; Paul Martin supervised the cleaning, care and tending of both brothers.

Finally Ben, Hoss and Dr Paul Martin sat in front of the unlit fire place drinking strong hot coffee.

Paul placed his cup and saucer on the table.

“Adam, with plenty rest will be fine, he has minor cuts and bruising, Joe will take a good while longer, l have reset his leg and stitched the head wound, thankfully Adam’s care although basic was excellent, Joe fortunately wasn’t so knowledgeably on his anatomy and thankfully did little damage to his wrist, apart from the loss of blood, it would of taken some time for him to have achieved what he set out to do, which Ben, was a pretty major decision for him to go through with.
The foul air could be the problem, if either one develops coughing fits or shortness of breath, it may mean that they have some damage to their lungs, hopefully not, time will tell, they both have suffered a terrible traumatic experience, being trapped underground is…, well l have known the toughest of miners to break after that.
Their both heavily sedated, so don’t expect either to wake for at least 24 hours, and Joe may take a little longer.
Now, Ben l am going to finish this coffee and head for home, l will call again tomorrow.”

Ben and Hoss, sipped their coffee and listened intently to the Doctor’s report, both appeared to be in a trance, Hoss snapped out of it first, his large features screwed up in concentration,

“Doc, can l ask summat,”

His brow furrowed in deep thought
,
“Of course Hoss”

“That what yer did to Little Joe, was he, was he gone then Doc,”

“Well, Hoss, yes as near as anyone can get without actually dying, the lack of oxygen, bad air, loss of blood combined with his physical injuries, and added to the trauma of being trapped, also thinking Adam is dead, which he, by the way still believes, and until he regains consciousness he will not know any different, l would suggest that apart from tonight, in which you two should both get a good nights rest, Joe should not be left alone for too long.”

“Yes sir, is there anything else we can do?”

“Not at the moment,”

Paul looked to Ben who had not said a word, his grey head was rested back against the leather chair, his eyes sunken, his faced etched with worry and concern,

“Ben are you alright, do you want me to give you something to help you sleep, or you Hoss?”

“No Doc, not for me,” replied Hoss immediately shaking his head, “No sir”

Ben spurred himself into action,

“Paul, forgive me, you know you can stay here….”

Both men got to their feet,

“Ben l wish l could accept your offer, but l must to get back to the surgery, l will see you tomorrow,”

They clasped each others hands, Ben pulled his friend to him and hugged him,

“Thank you seems so inadequate, but what else can l say, thank you, thank you”

Tears brimmed, and not for the first time that day, in Ben Cartwright’s brown eyes, Dr Paul Martin slapped his friend on the back,

“There are days Ben when there is nothing else in this world l would rather be than a Doctor, today has been one of those days”

With that last remark Dr Paul Martin left.
Chapter 5 The Recovery

Adam awoke first, twenty four hours later just after lunch.

Hoss was sitting back on the chair beside the bed, eyes closed ,they snapped open when he heard Adam stirring,

He waited till he saw his brothers eyes flicker open, Adam stared hard at him, trying to recollect his thoughts, why was Hoss sitting at his bedside,

“How yer feeling elder brother”

The happenings of the past day suddenly slammed into his brain, he started to scramble out of the bed, which was made difficult as both his hands were bandaged.

“Easy Adam, yer gotta stay in that bed, Doc’s orders,”

He pushed at Hoss’s hands, as Hoss easily forced him back into the bed.

“Leave me Hoss, help me, where’s Joe,l gotta see Little Joe,”

Adam redoubled his efforts to sit up and get out of the bed, which brought about a fit of coughing, making him collapse back onto the pillows,

“Pa, git up here Pa,” Hoss called as he replaced the quilt over Adam,

“You gotta stay put brother, you gotta rest,”

Ben came running into the room; Adam now recovered from coughing was again struggling to get up out of the bed,

“Adam, please stay in bed, you have to have rest,”

Ben gently pushed and ushered Adam back down onto the bed.

“Pa, l want to see Joe, how’s little Joe,”

“He is fine Adam, he’s sleeping, he’s heavily sedated, he must rest, as you must,”

“Well let me see him, that’s all l want, you will have to tie me to this bed or maybe you want Hoss to knock me out, l don’t care, l will see little Joe”

Adam persisted,

There was nothing Ben could do other than help his eldest son into his robe, Adam managed to stand but swayed and staggered when he started to walk to the door, Hoss was at his side,

“I’m OK brother,”

He spoke softly to Hoss, but when he swayed again, he leant against his bigger brother and allowed him to support him.

Ben quietly opened Joe’s bedroom door, the three men approached the bed, Adam’s legs started to buckle, Hoss held him and helped him to sit on the bed.

Joe lay motionless, his heavily bandaged head sunk deep into the white pillows, his face still held the yellowish tinge, his eyes dark ringed from sedation, his breathing hardly noticeable under the quilt which was pulled up to his chin, he lived up to his name of ‘little’ Joe as the pillows and quilt seemed to almost envelope him
.
Adam reached to stroke the small amount of dark hair that wasn’t covered by the bandage,

“Pa, he is OK, isn’t he?” questioned Adam,

Twisting his fingers round a lock of his brother’s hair, Adam waited for his father to answer, his father remained silent,

“Isn’t he, isn’t he?”

Adam repeated his question he turned to face his father Ben was standing on the opposite side of the bed.

“He is still very poorly, Adam, he’s in hands of the Almighty, son”

Ben turned his gaze from his youngest boy to his eldest boy, Adam’s head and body slumped, he nodded to Hoss,

Hoss gathered his brother into his large arms and almost bodily lifted him from the bed, Adam pulled away resisting his brothers help,

“Please, please let me sit with him for a while, l need to be with him, Pa, l need to be with him,”

“Pa, sit here with Joe n Adam, l got summit l wanna do”

Ben gave a puzzled look at his middle son but did as he was asked.

Some moments later Hoss called to his father to help him carry Adam’s bedstead into the room, with a small rearrangement of the furniture they were able to set the bed beside Joe’s.

Hoss then returned with the mattress followed by Hop Sin with the bed linen, the bed was quickly dressed and ready.

Adam, raised no objection when Hoss helped him into the comfort of his own bed, his eyes closed as soon as his head lay on the pillow.

Ben ushered Hoss and Hop Sin out of the room, Hop Sin voiced what they were all thinking,

“Lita Joe he loo so lita in da beh,”

Ben gave Hoss a soft pat on the back in appreciation of his thinking,

He returned to the bedroom to sit in vigil over his two sons.

**************************************

Four days had passed, Joe still had not regained consciousness, he was giving everyone cause for concern, especially Adam,

Adam had physically made a good recovery, the coughing bouts had diminished, but mentally he was in anguish, it seemed that Adam’s recovery would not be complete unless Joe showed signs of improvement.

There were times in his unconscious state Joe would have periods of acute distress, and delirium, calling and wailing for his brother, and even though Adam slept in the same room, Hoss or Ben never left Joe’s bedside.

Joe had lapsed into one of his few restful moments; Ben was sitting between the two beds dozing.

Adam sat up in his bed and watched his fathers grey head continually fall to his chest, rest for a moment and then snap upright, his eyes remained closed, after a few of these jerky movements, Ben’s eyes stayed open, he saw Adam watching him,

‘You OK son, must of dozed off’

‘Pa, you can’t keep this up, you must be dog tired’

Ben looked fondly at his eldest son, moving from the chair, he sat on Adam’s bed,

‘l must be here when he wakes’

He took hold of Adam’s hand and gently gave it a squeeze.
Adams emotions still raw and tender from his ordeal gave way; his head slumped to his chest, as his shoulders shook, he sobbed silently,

‘l didn’t want to leave him Pa, l knew what he was going to do, l knew he was terrified of, of madness,’
Ben took the burden of his son’s pain, he rested Adam’s head on his shoulders and slowly stroked his hair, and Adam drew from his father’s strength,

‘l was going to do the…’

‘I know Adam, you were both pushed to the edge, but you saved him, you saved him and yourself, if you had stayed neither of you would be here, you did the only thing you could’

Adam, regaining his composure sat back and rested himself against his pillows,

‘Joe was going to apologise to you for the way he has been lately, he told me that before we even got to the mine’

‘We both lost our tempers, l need to….’

‘Pa, l…l told Joe’

‘Told Joe what’

‘l told him everything, l broke my promise to you,’

He looked for his father’s reaction; Ben sat back onto the chair, his mind in turmoil,

‘Why, Adam why?’

‘The way you have been tearing at each other, l thought he should know, l still do,’

‘What do you mean l thought you told him,’

‘He was fast asleep, but Pa, he could still hear it from someone or somewhere else, isn’t it better he hears it from you?’

‘That Adam is always at the back of my mind, but it is highly unlikely, as the years pass, my fears lessen,’

‘How’s about some coffee and cookies, there still warm,’

Hoss set the tray carefully on Adams bed, and proceeded to pass the cups to his brother and father, the conversation between Ben and Adam came to an abrupt ending.

It was on the sixth day just before dawn, Ben was keeping vigil, he had closed his eyes for a moment on opening them he saw that Joe was sobbing quietly into his pillow, his sons shoulders shuddered with each gasping breath, he sat on the bedside placed his hands on his trembling body, to soothe and comfort.

“Shush, shush, son,”

The weather beaten hand gently stroked his sons back, Ben was saddened at how, after only a week, thin, and puny Joe had become, his ribs and spine were almost protruding from his skin.

To Ben’s amazement Joe turned to him, his open eyes glistened in the dim light, he buried his head against his fathers arm,
“Ad..Ad..Adams go..gone Pa, he’s gone, l sa..saw”

Frail and weak from his ordeal Joe’s emotions gave way; tears streamed down his cheeks soaking into his father’s shirt sleeve,

Ben’s own eyes were glistening, brimming with tears ready to be shed.

Ben lifted his son and cradled him in his arms; he was again surprised how light his body felt,

“No Joe, no, Adam…”

Joe knew what he had seen and heard, he was inconsolable,

“l s..saw, P.. Pa, l s..saw A..Adam’s gh..host…l s…saw”

Ben held Joe away from him and gently shook him; he slowly turned Joe’s head toward Adam’s bed.

“Look son, look,your brothers there”

Ben called for Adam to wake; his eldest son stirred in his bed and raised his head,

“Adam, Adam come here boy, your brother’s back with us”

Adam scrambled from his bed,

Joe backed away from him in terror, he looked to his father then back to his brother,

Adam took Joe in his arms pressed his bandaged head to his chest, and kissed the top of his curly hair,

“Your home Joe, l promised, didn’t l promise,”

Adam laid Joe back on his pillows; Joe stared at his father and brother, closed his eyes and immediately opened them, as if to make sure Adam was still there, he tried to smile but all he wanted to do was sleep.

“Yes Adam, you promised”

He could feel his father or brother settling his pillows and straightening the quilt, his eyes were closed they were so heavy he tried hard to open them,

“Sleep son, rest now”

Joe struggled and slowly his eyes opened to see his brother and father still looking down on him, he felt complete happiness,

“Pa, l’m sorry, l’m sorry,”

“It wasn’t your fault boy, it was an accident, you don’t need to be sorry,” he ruffled Joe’s hair, or the little bit of hair that he could ruffle.

“No Pa, l’m sorry for this morning, l’ll try and control my temper, and pull my weight,”

Ben’s face softened, as he placed his hand on Joe’s cheek,
“So am l son, and if you want to pull your weight you will have to rest and tomorrow start eating, but now sleep”

Joe snuggled down into his pillow, closed his eyes and fell into a fast, healing, peaceful sleep.

A night shirted Hoss rushed into the room, just in time to see his little brother eyes close, he looked to his father and his elder brothers smiling faces, they nodded in unison, Hoss joined them in a happy, gappy grin,
“Dadburnit, l swear that boy spends more time sleeping that l do eating an that’s a dang true fact”

Hoss had never felt so much pure happiness.

********************************************

Days passed and both brothers were making good recovery, it was decided to leave Adams bed in Joe’s room for a while longer as Joe, was still experiencing panic attacks and night mares.

It became a habit of Adam’s, at Joe’s request to read to him, Joe never asked for any particular book, he just needed to hear the voice of his brother, the brother he thought he had lost.

It also became a habit to take breakfast upstairs in the bedroom as Joe was still confined to his bed, and tended to eat a heartier meal amongst the family than when he had a tray on his own.

On one of these particular mornings the family were enjoying the fruits of Hop Sin’s kitchen.

Ben was trying to coax Joe into having a second helping, which he had declined, much to Hoss’s delight,

“Son, you look well today, Paul told me yesterday that if you go on the way you’re going there is a good chance that you will be up and about next week, Hoss has already started to make some crutches for you,”

Joe’s faced beamed his delight.

“That’s great Pa, l can’t wait to get outa this bed,”

“Well that is a first little brother; it usually takes Hoss and a hurricane to get you out of bed,”

Adam grinned as he sat back in his chair, finishing the last dregs of his morning coffee.

“Do you want more coffee Adam? l am going to get a refill,”

Ben got to his feet and stretched an arm towards his eldest son’s empty cup,

“Sure would Pa,” Adam made to raise himself from his chair,

Ben was happy man and to bring coffee to his eldest son was no bother to him.

“No son, sit with your brother’s,”

“Dadburnit, l’ll just be darn pleased to have some help with the chores round here, if l remembers, Pa just wanted yer to have a few early nights Joe, not a month in bed,”

Hoss’s casual remark was made from the depths of his breakfast plate, he had no way of avoiding the pillow that Joe hurled at him, it caught him on the side of the head, and dropped on to his arm, his plate fell on the bed spilling the remains of his food onto the floor, the abject look of disappointment and loss spread slowly across his features.

Adam was trying hard to stifle a laugh and hid his smiling dimpled face behind his hand.

Hoss stood and advanced towards his little brother a look of sheer murder written on his face, Joe grabbed his quilt pulling it up to his nose, with difficulty he backed himself to the top of his bed, he had no where else to go, he needed help.

“It, it was an, an accident Hoss, it fell,” he looked to Adam with pleading eyes.

Adam shrugged, picked up Joe’s empty cup and saucer and sent them clattering to the floor; he gave his little brother a knowing wink.

“JOSEPH, HOSS, what’s going on up there?”

Hoss turned to look at the open bedroom door, from where his fathers voice emerged, then turned to look at his little brother, Joe’s sad puppy dog eye’s were peeping over the top of his quilt, the quilt was stifling his infectious giggle.

“Nuthin Pa, dadburnit little brother, dadburnit.

Everything was back to normal on the Ponderosa.