Summary: As Christmas draws near for the Cartwright family, Joe faces the ultimate test of faith as a husband and father. This is the sixth story of my Forever Reimagined series. 

Rating: PG

Word Count: 16,684

Forever Reimagined series: 

Book 1: Vengeance is Mine (By MelissaR1992)

Book 2: No More Promises (By MelissaR1992)

Book 3: The Second Honeymoon (By MelissaR1992)

Book 4: Remember Me (By MelissaR1992)

Book 5: Once In A Lifetime (By MelissaR1992)

Chapter One

It was the week before Christmas on the Ponderosa. The Cartwrights along with Candy were trudging through the snow, bundled up in their coats, scarfs, and hats in search of the perfect Christmas tree. 

Ben and Jamie went off searching on their own while Joe and Candy searched together. During Joe and Candy’s search, Candy spotted a nice big one. 

“Hey, how about this one?” 

Joe tilted his head to the right and gave a sideways smirk. “No, it’s too big. We’ll never get it through the door.” 

Candy placed his hands on his hips and looked up at the tree. “We could cut it down a bit,” he suggested. 

“That’s true, but I don’t exactly want to be around here when it falls,” Joe remarked. He chuckled and patted Candy’s shoulder. “Come on, let’s keep looking.” 

They got moving again when Ben came up to them and asked, a bit agitated, “Haven’t you two found a tree yet?” 

“No, we’re still looking, Pa,” Joe replied. 

“Well, hurry up. Your brother Adam is coming all the way from Boston in a couple of days and I want the house all fixed up and ready by the time he gets here.” 

Joe reassured him. “I know. We’ll find one, Pa, don’t worry.” 

“I’ll see how your brother Jamie is making out.” 

Ben headed in the other direction while Joe and Candy continued ahead. 

As they were trudging through the snow, Candy looked over at Joe and took a brief pause before he got his attention. 

“Hey, Joe?” 

“Yeah?” 

Candy hesitated and sighed. “Well, I might as well tell you now.” 

“Tell me what?” Joe asked. 

“Well, you know that Hannah and I have been seeing a lot of each other lately. And every moment I’ve spent with her has been the greatest joy of my life. So, I think it’s about time I made that next step.” 

Joe smirked. He knew his friend all too well. “Oh? And what would that next step be exactly?” 

Candy revealed, “I’m gonna ask Hannah to marry me.” 

“I had a feeling you were gonna say that.” Joe smiled wide and patted Candy’s shoulder. “I think it’s great. Hannah’s a great girl. I’m sure Alice will be thrilled.” 

“Yeah. The only problem is I’m not sure if she feels the same way.” 

“Why? You think she’ll say no?” Joe asked. 

“Well, yeah. I love her, but I just can’t seem to figure her out,” Candy said in puzzlement. 

Joe chuckled. “I don’t think either one of us can ever figure women out.” 

“I guess that’s true.” Candy shook his head. “I don’t know.” 

Joe asked, “Well, what does Hannah think about the idea?” 

Candy shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. She hasn’t really talked much about it.” 

Joe advised, “Well, if I was you I’d find out before you surprise her with a proposal.” 

“Yeah, I….” Candy yelped as he tripped and fell face first into the snow. 

Joe giggled and asked, “Are you all right?” 

Candy shook the snow off him and slowly got up from the ground. “I’m alright.” He spat out the snow. 

Joe let out another soft giggle and said, 

“You might want to watch that next step there.” 

Candy said in annoyance, “That’s very funny, Joe.” 

“Come on.” 

Joe walked past Candy. Candy looked down at the snow and got an idea. A mischievous grin spread across his face. He bent down and picked up some snow in his hands. 

“Hey, Joe?” 

Joe turned around. “Yeah?” 

Candy threw the snow in Joe’s face. Joe yelped and sputtered as he wiped the snow off. He exclaimed, “Hey! What’s the big idea?” 

Candy remarked with a hint of sarcasm, 

“You really oughta watch what you’re doing, Joe.” 

Candy flashed a grin and chuckled. Joe said in anger as he bent down to the ground. “Why, you….” 

Joe picked up some snow and threw it in Candy’s direction. Candy ducked just as Ben came up behind him. 

“Joe, Candy, I….” Ben yelped as the snowball hit him right in the face. Joe’s eyes widened. Ben shouted, “What the…?” He wiped the snow off his face. He looked at Joe and Candy sternly and yelled, “What is the meaning of this?” 

Candy fixed his gaze elsewhere as he whistled, trying to act casual. Joe said with guilt in his voice, “I’m sorry, Pa, we were just….” 

Ben placed his hands over his hips with a nod of his head. “You were just horsing around like a couple of imbeciles, weren’t you?” 

Joe opened his mouth. “Pa….” 

“Weren’t you?” Ben repeated, sternly. 

“Well, have you forgotten what we came here for?” 

“Well, no, Pa.” 

Ben grumbled, “Well, then….” 

Jamie came up to them while dragging a large pine tree in his hand. “I found a good one, Pa. What do you think?” 

Joe said in disgust, “Oh, that….” 

Ben chimed in, “Is just fine, Jamie. Just fine. Now, let’s get outta here before we freeze to death.” 

The Cartwrights along with Candy headed back to the Ponderosa. 

***

Meanwhile, at the Ponderosa, Alice, and Candy’s girlfriend, Hannah, were busy decorating the Ponderosa for Christmas. Hannah helped Alice hang stockings over the fireplace. She asked Alice, “So, have you thought about what to get Joe for Christmas?” 

Alice looked down at the stocking in her hand. “I don’t know. I haven’t really decided yet. I’m sure Joe will spoil me and Sara though. He’s been doing it every year.” 

Hannah told her, “I want to get Candy a gift. This will be my first Christmas with him and I want it to be special.” 

Alice hung a stocking over the fireplace mantle. “I know what you mean.” 

Hannah played around with the stocking in her hand and said, “I also feel that Candy might propose to me.” 

Alice’s head snapped up. “How do you know that?” 

“I’ve had a feeling about it for the past few weeks now. I think he’s hesitating because he’s afraid I’ll say no.” 

“Should he be?” Alice asked. 

“I don’t know. I haven’t really thought about how I’d feel. I know I love him, but I’m just not sure I’m ready to be a wife.” 

“Well, to be honest with you, I wasn’t sure either. But the more that I got to know Joe, the more I wanted to be with him. And that’s when I knew I wanted to marry him. But you’ll know if it’s right, believe me. 

Hannah smiled. “Thank you.” 

Alice suggested, “Why don’t I have Hop Sing make some coffee. I’m sure when the boys get back, they’re gonna need it.”

“Good idea,” Hannah said. 

They heard the sound of pots and pans rattling and Hop Sing yelling from in the kitchen. Little Sara Marie came running and giggling from out of the kitchen, covered in floor with Hop Sing chasing after her. 

Alice said with dread in her voice, “Oh, no.” She hurried over to Sara and picked her up off the ground. “What have you done now, huh?” 

Hop Sing shouted, “She climb all the way up cupboard and spill flour over Hop Sing!” 

Alice tried to hold back laughter. She said to Sara, “You know better than that, young lady.” She looked at Hop Sing and apologized. 

“You just keep her out of my kitchen!” he shouted. 

“I will. I promise.” 

Alice brought Sara over to the settee. Hop Sing said under his breath, “Like father, like daughter.” He stormed back into the kitchen.

Hannah heard the sound of hoofbeats on the ground. “I think they’re back.” 

The door opened. Ben came through the door carrying the Christmas tree with Jamie trailing behind. He said, “Well, we got the tree.” 

Ben placed it down and removed his hat, coat and gloves. Jamie added, “It’s a nice one too. I picked it out myself.” 

Hannah walked over to it and said, “Oh, it’s beautiful. I can’t wait to decorate it.” 

Alice came up to Ben and asked, “Where’s Joe?” 

“Oh, he’s outside with Candy putting the horses up in the barn.” Ben went over to the fireplace to warm his hands. He rubbed them together and said, “I’ll go see if Hop Sing made a fresh pot of coffee.” 

Alice warned, “I’d be careful, Ben. He might not be in the best mood. Sara made a little mess in the kitchen just a moment ago.” 

Ben chuckled. “Well, I thank you for the warning, but it’s nothing I haven’t handled before.” 

Ben went into the kitchen when Joe and Candy walked through the door. 

Alice walked up to Joe while Candy removed his hat, coat, and gloves. 

“Hi.” Alice gave Joe a kiss when she noticed his face and front end of his coat were damp. “Why are you all wet?” she asked. 

Joe’s expression turned to annoyance as he nodded his head toward Candy. “Ask him.” 

Candy walked past Joe as he held his hands out. “Hey, you should have ducked.” 

Joe gave him a mock smile. Candy walked over to Hannah and asked, “Did you miss me?” 

Hannah sighed. “I suppose.” 

Candy flashed a grin and kissed her. 

Joe asked Alice as he removed his gloves, “How were things over here?” 

Alice hesitated. “Well….” 

Sara came running towards them, giggling. Joe chuckled and lifted her up in his arms. “Hey, you.” He gave her a kiss and noticed the flour on her hands. He picked up her little hand and asked Alice, “What’s this on her hands?”

“I’m afraid she found her way into Hop Sing’s kitchen and poured flour all over herself and Hop Sing.” Joe burst out laughing. Alice said, “Now it looks like I’m gonna have to give her a bath before we head back home.” 

Joe told her, “Well, it might have to wait. It’s starting to come down again out there, so we should probably head back now.” 

“All right.” Alice took Sara out of Joe’s arms. 

Candy came up to them with Hannah next to him. “I should probably take Hannah back to Mrs. Sutton’s,” he said. 

Ben came out of the kitchen and saw them about to leave. “Leaving so soon?” he asked. 

“Yeah, Pa, I wanted to head back before it gets too bad out there,” Joe told him. 

Candy said, “And I wanted to take Hannah back to Mrs. Sutton’s.” 

“All right. I’ll see you tomorrow then,” Ben said. 

Candy and Hannah left the Ponderosa along with Joe and Alice. 

***

Later that evening at Joe and Alice’s house, Alice was in the bedroom folding laundry when Joe snuck into the room with a mistletoe behind his back. 

Joe gave a mischievous smile as he slowly crept up behind her. Alice turned around and Joe held the mistletoe over their heads. 

Alice smirked. “What are you doing?” 

“What do you mean? You know what this is, don’t you?” 

Alice bit down on her lower lip. “I have some idea, yes.” 

“It’s a mistletoe. And you know what that means, don’t you?” 

“What?” 

“You have to kiss me.” 

Alice looked down, trying to hold back laughter. She lifted her head back up to him and said, “Is that so?” 

“Mm-hm. It’s a tradition, you’ve got to.” 

Alice crossed her arms. “Oh, really?” 

“Mm-hm, see, I don’t make the rules. And you don’t want to break a tradition now do you?” 

“No, of course not.” Alice sighed. “I guess I don’t have a choice then.” 

“Guess not.” Alice gave him a little peck on the lips. Joe groaned. “No, no, no, that’s not a kiss. I’m talking about a real kiss. Like this.” He placed his hand under her chin and gave her a long lingering kiss. 

Joe pulled away with a smile on his face. Alice pursed her lips and nodded. “I can see why it’s such a sacred tradition. I’m going to check on the baby before I turn in for the night.” 

“I’ll go with you.” 

Joe placed the mistletoe down and they headed out of their bedroom. 

After checking on their daughter in her crib, Joe and Alice got settled for the night. Later, Joe went into the living room to place more logs into the fireplace. Alice came out of the nursery door in her nightgown. She yawned and said in relief, 

“I’m glad we finally got the baby to sleep. I feel like I’ve been chasing her all day. I’m exhausted.” 

Alice saw Joe near the fireplace and asked what he was doing. 

“Oh, I’m just putting some more logs into the fire. It’s a good thing Pa gave us some more firewood before that snow started.” 

Alice shivered as she rubbed her shoulders. “It does seem like it’s starting to get colder.” She walked over to the window and looked outside. “And the snow is coming down again.” 

“We got home just in time then,” Joe said as he got up from the floor. “Come on, let’s get to bed.” 

Joe put his arm around Alice. She started to move, but did so a little too quickly and the room spun around her. She came to a halt and placed her hand up to her temple, nearly losing her balance. Joe took hold of her shoulders. “What’s the matter?” 

“I just got a little dizzy, that’s all. I guess I just need to learn to slow down after having to constantly chase our daughter around,” Alice said with a chuckle. 

“Yeah, but it seems to be happening a lot lately. Maybe when we’re in town tomorrow, you oughta make a visit to Doc Martin.” 

Alice rolled her eyes. “Joe, I’m fine, really. Let’s just go to bed, okay?” 

Joe sighed. “All right. If you wanna be stubborn about it.” 

Alice raised her eyebrows at him.“Oh, and you’re not?” 

“I can be a tad stubborn at times I suppose,” Joe told her. 

Alice laughed. “Oh, you must be joking.” 

Joe shrugged his shoulders. “All right, maybe a tad more.” 

Alice added, “Maybe a lot more.” 

“Oh, really?” 

Alice nodded with a smirk. “Mm-hm.” 

Joe playfully chased Alice into the bedroom as she squealed and giggled. 

Chapter Two 

Rosemary Anderson stood in the kitchen of her and her husband’s homestead, preparing supper. It had been nearly two weeks since she had lost her newborn daughter. The doctor had told her it was a difficult delivery and then gave her the devastating news. 

She and her husband, Henry had been trying to have a baby for years. After having lost the one child she had been praying for, she received more earth shattering news that she could no longer have any more children, which had left an aching hole in her heart. 

Rosemary placed the supper plates on the table and called out to her husband. 

“Henry? Supper’s ready!” Henry came into the dining room and took a seat at the table while Rosemary took a seat next to him. She told him, “I made it just the way you like it.” 

“It looks good, darling, thank you.” 

Henry dug right in. Rosemary studied him for a few brief moments before she began to eat. She took a few small bites of the beef stew she prepared before she spoke. 

“I went into the nursery today.” 

Henry paused. “Oh?” 

“It’s so lonely in there. I just keep staring at the empty cradle; imagining her there, sleeping.” 

“Rosemary. It’s been two weeks. I know how painful this has been for you; it’s been painful for me too. But we have to move on.” 

“I’m trying, Henry. It’s just so hard,” she said as her voice broke. 

Henry placed his hand over Rosemary’s and gave it a light squeeze. “I know it is, honey. But there’s nothing we can do to change it. It just wasn’t meant to be.” Henry then asked, “Have you been taking the medicine the doctor prescribed to you?” 

“Henry, no amount of any medicine can take away the pain I’m feeling inside of me. That child was all we had left and now she’s gone.” 

“Look, I’m starting that new job in Thornton in a couple of days. How about I go on ahead and take the morning stage. You can meet me there before Christmas. Spend some time alone in Virginia City; it might help you.” 

Rosemary shook her head. “I don’t know.” 

“Rosemary, you need some time alone to grieve. I’ll be all right.” 

Rosemary lifted her head up to Henry and smiled. “Okay.” 

Henry brought Rosemary’s hand up to him and gave it a gentle kiss. “I love you, Rosy.” 

While the ache in her heart still lingered, she was grateful she had someone like Henry who kept her from completely drowning in her grief. 

***

The next morning, the Cartwrights along with Candy, rode into Virginia City to do some Christmas shopping. 

The town was busy that morning with people bustling through the noisy streets. Ben and Candy dismounted their horses while Joe pulled a buckboard to a stop and helped Alice, holding little Sara Marie, down. 

Ben pulled out a list from his coat pocket. 

“Does everyone have their list?” 

Joe patted the side of his green jacket. “Yeah, got it right here, Pa.” 

Candy searched his vest pockets and came up empty. His eyes widened as panic began to set in. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a list. Candy breathed a sigh of relief making Joe giggle. 

Ben said, “Good, we’ll meet back here in an hour.” Ben glanced over at Joe and slowly walked up to him as he cleared his throat. “And uh, Joe?” He unfolded a piece of paper and handed it to him. 

“Here’s a little something extra, if you have the time,” he hinted. 

“Oh.” Joe looked down at the list with a sideways smirk. He asked, “It wouldn’t be for somebody special now, would it?” 

Ben shrugged his shoulders. “Oh, well, I wouldn’t say….” 

Joe chuckled. “I’ll see what I can do, Pa.” 

Ben gave a small smile. “All right.” He patted Joe’s shoulder and walked off in the other direction.

Joe placed the list inside his green jacket and walked over to Alice. Candy came up to them and said, “I’m gonna take a look around. I’ll be back.” 

Candy patted Joe’s shoulder and took off down the street. 

Joe said, “Well, it looks like I’ve got a lot of shopping to do. Are you gonna be all right?” 

Alice nodded. “Mm-hm. I have some shopping to do myself.” 

“Oh, really?” Joe rested his hand against the post next to her and leaned forward. 

“Anybody in particular?” 

Alice looked up with a tilt of her head. “Well, I could tell you…but only if you tell me what you’re getting me for Christmas.” 

“Oooh, you know I can’t do that. Nice try though.” Alice giggled. “I’ll see you later.” Joe gave her a kiss and then brushed his finger against Sara’s cheek. He said goodbye to them both and they parted ways. 

Meanwhile, Rosemary Anderson arrived in Virginia City. She got off the stagecoach and started walking down the boardwalk when she came across a toy shop. She peeked through the window and saw a beautiful porcelain doll with curly golden hair. She smiled and stepped inside the shop. 

A few blocks down the street, Candy took a peek through the window of a mercantile. He wanted to buy Hannah an engagement ring, but when he counted the money he had in his pocket, he slumped his shoulders down in disappointment. It wasn’t nearly enough to cover the cost. His head snapped up when he heard shouting and music playing from the Silver Dollar Saloon. He exchanged a few quick glances at the saloon and at the money in his pocket. A mischievous wide grin spread across his face and he marched down the street. 

***

A little while later, Joe paced back and forth in front of the entrance of a general store while Alice held Sara behind him. A stack of different sized boxes sat on the ground next to Alice. 

“Maybe he got held up somewhere,” Alice said. 

“Yeah, at the saloon with a beer,” Joe remarked in annoyance. “Wait here, I’ll go look for him.” 

Joe took off down the street in search of Candy. 

Joe walked past the saloon when out of the corner of his eye, he caught the side of Candy’s bright red shirt. He came to a halt and peeked through the folding doors. Candy sat there at a table playing a game of cards. Joe shook his head and stepped inside the saloon. 

Joe walked up to the table and placed his hands on his hips. “Just what do you think you’re doing?” 

Candy looked up at Joe and smiled. “Hey, Joe.” He turned to the men at the table and said, “Hold on a minute, fellas.” 

Candy got up from his seat and hurried Joe over towards the bar. “Joe, can I borrow two-hundred dollars?” 

Joe stared at him in disbelief. “What?” 

Candy explained, “See, they just raised the stakes and I’m a little short on cash.” 

Joe nodded in disapproval. “Hm, from all the bets you lost, I’m assuming.” 

Candy begged, “Please, Joe. I’ll get you your money back, I swear.” 

Joe crossed his arms. “Do you remember the last time I let you borrow money? I ended up owning half a stamp mill.”

“Yeah, but I’m playing for actual money this time, Joe and I have him beat, look….” 

Candy showed him his cards. “See?” 

Joe looked at them with a sideways smirk. “Hm, not bad. I’m still not gonna loan you the money though.” 

Candy told him in frustration, “Listen, Joe, you don’t understand. I need that money.” 

“So ask Pa for an advance then.” 

“I can’t. I already asked your pa for an advance last month.” 

Joe told him, “Then I’m sorry I can’t help you.” 

Candy said with a frustrated sigh, “Come on, Joe, I won’t ever borrow money from you again. I swear.” 

Joe’s head perked up with intrigue. “Never?” 

“Never, I give you my word.” 

Joe studied him questionably. “If you tell Alice about this, you’re a dead man.” 

“She won’t know a thing. As far as she knows, it never happened.” 

Joe sighed and took his wallet out of his jacket pocket. He remarked, “On the bright side, I won’t have to get you a gift.” He handed Candy the money. 

Candy smiled wide. “Oh, thanks, buddy. You won’t regret this.” 

“Oh, I know I’m gonna regret this,” Joe responded with dread in his voice. 

Joe put his wallet back into his jacket pocket while Candy hurried back over to the card table and slapped the money down onto it. 

“Double or nothing, boys.” 

Joe walked over to Candy and told him, “I’ll wait outside. I don’t think I want to watch this.” 

Candy kept his eyes focused on the game. “Yeah. Sure, Joe.” 

Joe rolled his eyes and shook his head before leaving the saloon. 

While outside, Alice walked up to a toy shop and pointed to the porcelain doll in the window. 

“Look at the pretty dolly,” she said. 

Sara held her little hand out to the window. Alice smiled when she saw Joe walking towards her. “Did you find him?” she asked. 

“Yeah, he’ll be here in a minute.” 

“Joe, could you watch Sara for a minute?” 

“Where are you going?” he asked. 

Alice nodded her head towards the toy shop. “I’m going to look inside for a little present for….” She pointed to Sara and mouthed her name. 

“Oh.” Joe smirked and said, “Sure, I’ll keep an eye on her.” 

“Thanks. I won’t be long.” 

Alice handed Sara over to Joe. As she was walking towards the toy shop, the door swung open and out walked Rosemary. They nearly bumped into each other. 

“Oh, excuse me,” Alice said with a chuckle. 

“That’s quite alright,” Rosemary told her. 

Alice stepped inside the toy shop. Rosemary brought the porcelain doll around to her that she had just purchased and smiled at it. She looked to her right and saw Joe holding Sara up to a display window. Rosemary stared at her chestnut curls that bounced over her little shoulders. She was the most beautiful little girl she had ever seen and her heart ached for the child she’d lost; the one she longed to hold in her arms. 

Joe looked down at Sara and asked, “You know what’s coming up, don’t you? Christmas. And have you been a good girl this year, huh?” Sara reached her little hand out to the display window as she made little babbling noises. Joe asked, “Do you want to see what Daddy got for Mommy? Here.” He gently set her back down on the ground. “There you go, sweetheart.” He took a seat on the steps and began looking through the boxes next to them until he found the box he was looking for. “Here it is. Now this is our little secret, okay?” He began to open the box when he heard a crash. Joe’s head snapped up and he saw Candy come crashing through the saloon doors while another man burst through them and lunged at Candy. 

“Oh, great,” Joe remarked under his breath. He set the box down and got up from the steps. He looked around and saw a shop owner next door sweeping the sidewalk. Joe hurried over to him and got his attention. “Hey, mister? I’m sorry to bother you, but could you keep an eye on my little girl over there for a minute? I won’t be long.” 

“Sure,” he said. 

“Thanks.” Joe went back over to Sara and picked her up. He sat her down on the bench near them. “Sara, honey, I want you to stay right here for Daddy, all right? Don’t move. I’ll be right back. Stay there.” 

Joe took off down the street. The shop owner sweeping the sidewalk got interrupted by a customer and then headed inside his shop. 

Joe swooped in to help Candy fight the men from the poker game, but it turned into a brawl. 

From across the street, Alice came out of the toy shop carrying a box. She heard shouting in the streets and looked up. When she saw Joe and Candy fighting with two men near the saloon, she rolled her eyes and shook her head in disapproval. 

Deputy Clem Foster came around the corner and broke through the crowd that had gathered. He pulled out his gun and fired it above his head. 

“All right, break it up! All of you, get outta here!”

The crowd scattered. Joe got up from the ground and drifted over to Candy who had taken a seat on the steps in front of the saloon. Joe plopped down next to him.

“Are you all right?” he asked. 

Candy rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah. I didn’t need your help, I had it handled.”  

Joe scoffed. “Yeah, it really looked like you had it handled there.” 

Alice came up to them and asked, “What was that all about?” 

“It was nothing,” Joe told her as he got up from the steps. 

Alice said with a scoff, “Yeah, it really looked like nothing to me.” 

Candy moved away from the steps and said to Joe without thinking, “I’m really sorry, Joe. I was so close to getting your money back, I swear, but….” 

Joe’s eyes widened and he waved his hand in front of him, signaling for him to be quiet. 

“Joe, what’s he talking about?” Alice asked in puzzlement. 

Joe turned around to face her and gave a nervous chuckle. “Uh, well, you see, dear….” 

Alice’s mouth opened as it suddenly hit her. “Did you let him borrow money to gamble with?” 

Joe slumped his shoulders and looked sternly at Candy who gave a nervous chuckle and shrugged his shoulders. 

“Sorry, old buddy.” 

Joe chuckled mockingly at him. His expression turned dead serious as he told him, “You’re a dead man.” 

Alice’s irritation with Joe quickly vanished when she noticed Sara was missing. 

“Joe, where’s Sara?” 

Joe, still fuming at Candy, pointed in the direction of the toy shop. 

“Oh, I left her over….” 

Joe’s demeanor changed in an instant. With all the chaos that went on, he had completely forgotten about Sara. His father instincts kicked in high gear and he rushed past Alice down the street. 

Joe came to a halt in front of the toy shop and Sara was nowhere in sight. He felt his heart drop in the pit of his stomach. He pointed next to the stack of boxes and told Alice, “I left her right here, I swear.” He spotted the shop owner next door and ran over to him. “Hey, mister, where’s my daughter? I asked you to watch her, remember?” 

The shop owner rested his hands over the end of the broom. “Oh, I thought you came and got her. After you left, I got a customer and went inside. When I came back out she was gone. Sorry.”

Alice’s heart skipped a beat. She cried, “Oh, no, Joe.” 

Joe took a breath. “All right, don’t panic. She couldn’t have gotten far. We’ll split up and look for her.” 

Joe, Alice, and Candy took off in different directions in search of Sara. They called her name relentlessly, but she was nowhere to be found. They met back near the saloon. Candy said, “She’s not anywhere around here.” 

Joe said, out of breath, “I couldn’t find her either.” 

“Oh, where could she have gone?” Alice pleaded.

“I don’t know, but we’ll find her. I’m gonna go find Pa. Candy, I need you to stay here with her while I go find him.

Candy nodded. Joe took Alice’s face in his hands and could see the fear in her eyes. He reassured her, “We’ll find her, all right? We’ll find her.” 

Joe kissed her and took off running down the street. 

Joe slowed down at the end of the street and scanned the crowd. He finally spotted his pa walking out of a general store. He sprinted over to him. 

“Pa!” 

Ben’s head snapped up and he saw Joe running over to him. He could sense something was wrong based on Joe’s urgency and the tone of his voice. 

“Take it easy, Joe. What’s wrong?” Ben asked. 

“It’s Sara. She’s run off, we can’t find her anywhere,” Joe panted. 

Ben crinkled his eyebrows. “What do you mean she ran off?” 

“I left her alone for a minute and when I came back she was gone.” 

“You left her alone?” Ben stared at Joe in disbelief. He said, exasperated, “Joseph, have you gone mad? You don’t leave a two year old all by herself!” 

Joe responded, flustered, “I didn’t exactly leave her all by herself. Look, the point is she’s run off and we need to find her, fast!” 

“All right. We’ll go to the sheriff’s office and talk to Clem.” 

Ben and Joe met up with Alice and Candy before heading to the sheriff’s office. Once they arrived, Joe explained to Clem what happened. He showed Clem a photo of Sara he kept with him. Clem studied the photo and sighed before handing it back to Joe. 

“I’m sorry. I wish I could offer you more hope, but the fact of the matter is children disappear around here everyday.” 

Ben responded, “I know that, Clem, but there must be something you can do.” 

“Well, I can send some of my men out to ask around and see if any folks have seen her. It might help if you show them that photo. In the meantime, we can start from the last place you saw her.” 

“The toy store,” Joe said. 

“Right, we’ll start there and go from there. I’ll go with you.” 

Clem got up from his desk as Ben thanked him and they then left the sheriff’s office. 

While outside, Joe turned to Alice and said, “Honey, why don’t I have Candy take you home, huh?” 

Alice stared into his eyes and told him, “I’m not going home. As long as she’s out there, I’m not going home. I’m staying with you.” 

Joe gave a faint smile. He couldn’t help but admire her courage and determination. “All right. Come on.” 

He put his arm around her and she leaned her head against his shoulder. 

Ben came up to Candy and suggested he head back to the ranch, but Candy refused. 

“I’m just as responsible for this as Joe is,” Candy told him. “Besides, she’s my goddaughter. I feel I owe it to her.” 

Ben couldn’t help but smile and feel proud. He patted his shoulder and said, “All right. Thank you.” 

Ben headed over to Buck while Candy walked over to his horse. He started to undo the reins when he heard the soft voice of a woman calling out to him. Candy turned and saw his fiancee, Hannah come up to him. Candy faked a smile as he greeted her. He tried to be his friendly, outgoing self with her, but Hannah saw right through him. 

“Is something wrong?” she asked. 

Candy sighed. “Yeah. Joe’s daughter is missing, we’ve been looking all over town for her.” 

Hannah’s mouth opened in disbelief. “Oh no. How did that happen?” 

Candy took a breath as he said, “It’s a long story. It’s partly my fault.” He hung his head down as guilt consumed him. 

“Why do you say that?” she asked. 

Candy pressed his lips together, fighting the urge to tell her the real reason. “Nevermind. We’ll find her.” 

Hannah gently placed her hand on his shoulder. “Is there anything I can do to help?” 

“No. Thanks,” Candy said in a solemn tone. 

“All right. I guess I’ll see you later then?” 

Candy gave her a half-smile. “Yeah.” 

Hannah gave him a kiss on his cheek and walked off. Candy took a deep breath and paused before he finished untying his horse.  

Meanwhile, inside a boutique, Rosemary came up to a sales lady. 

“Yes, may I help you?” She noticed the young child in Rosemary’s arms and smiled. “Oh, what a beautiful little girl you have.” 

“Thank you.” Rosemary looked down at Sara who was holding the porcelain doll with golden hair. “Her name is Sara. She’s my daughter.” 

Chapter Three

Rosemary stood outside with Sara waiting for the next stage to Thornton. A rugged looking man sat on the ground near them with a tin cup in his hand. Rosemary paced back and forth impatiently. She placed Sara down on a bench. 

“Wait right here, darling.” Rosemary came up to the stage office and said, “Excuse me, when does the next stage to Thornton arrive?” 

The man behind the stage office took a look at his pocket watch. “It should be here any minute now, ma’am.” 

“It was supposed to be here ten minutes ago,” she said in aggravation. 

“It may just be running a little late. Don’t worry, it’ll be here,” he insisted. 

Rosemary sighed and glanced over at Sara who was giggling at the rugged man. He was entertaining her with a little wooden puppet. Rosemary snatched her from the bench. “Come along, darling.” 

The rugged man tipped his head to Rosemary. “You have a nice day too, ma’am,” he said in annoyance. 

***

Meanwhile, the Cartwrights along with Candy and Clem continued in their search for Sara, but no one in town had seen her. After many unsuccessful attempts, they all met back up with each other near the sheriff’s office. 

Joe said to Clem in aggravation, “Clem, we haven’t found one person who claims to have seen her. Now, she couldn’t have just disappeared. You’re the one in charge of this town when Roy is away, so do something!” he snapped. 

Ben held Joe back and tried to keep him calm. “Joe, take it easy.” He turned to Clem and asked, “What can we do now?” 

Clem sighed as he looked around. “Well, there is an orphanage on the other side of town. Sometimes lost children turn up there. There’s a chance she could be there.” 

“All right, we’ll head that way now. Thank you, Clem. Let’s go,” Ben said. 

They got moving in the direction of the orphanage. 

At the Virginia City Orphanage, eight-year-old Tommy wandered through the halls of the orphanage having just snuck away from the other children. He was left on the doorstep of the orphanage by his mother when he was only an infant. He prayed every night to God for a mother and a father to love and care for him, but his prayers had not yet been answered. 

He walked past the office of Mr. Dawson, the head of the adoption agency’s office when he saw a couple sitting on a bench inside. He peeked his head up to the window and a hopeful smile spread across his face. He opened the door and walked in. 

Joe and Alice looked up and saw a little boy approaching them. He said, “Excuse me, are you here to adopt a boy?” 

Joe and Alice exchanged glances. Joe smiled warmly at the boy and answered, “No. We’re looking for our little girl. She’s lost and we thought maybe she ended up here.” 

Tommy hung his head down in disappointment. “Oh.” He lifted his head back up and asked, “You ever thought about adopting a little boy? I wouldn’t be much trouble. I can learn things fast too.” 

Joe glanced over at Alice who tried to suppress a smile. Joe moved his gaze over to the boy and shrugged his shoulders. “No, we haven’t. Look, I’m sure you’re a fine boy and all, but I’m sorry to say, we’re just not looking to adopt right now.” 

Before Tommy could speak, Mr. Dawson’s secretary, Mrs. Caines, walked in. “Thomas?” 

Tommy froze and his stomach sank at being caught red-handed. Mrs. Caines approached him. She asked, “What are you doing away from the other children?” 

Tommy swallowed hard. “I….” 

Mrs. Caines took him by the shoulders and said in a firm voice as she hurried him out of the room, “Go on back to the others, young man, this instant.” 

Tommy sighed. “Yes, ma’am.” He waved to Joe and Alice. “Bye!” 

Joe and Alice both smiled at little Tommy as he left the room. His presence helped them forget about their pain for a brief moment. Mrs. Caines came up to them and apologized. 

“I’m terribly sorry if he bothered you.” 

Joe got up from his seat along with Alice. “Oh, no. He didn’t bother us at all. Cute kid.” 

“Yes, but quite a handful, I can assure you. How may I help you?” 

Before Joe could answer, Mr. Dawson walked in and greeted them. “Hi. I’m sorry to keep you waiting. Now about your little girl….” 

“Yeah, here’s her picture right here.” Joe handed him the picture of Sara. 

Mr. Dawson took a good look at the photo and said, “Yes, well, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but we haven’t had any girls brought in here for weeks now.” 

Joe sighed. “Yeah, I kind of thought you’d say that. Well, I thank you for your help anyway.” 

“Of course. If any more children are brought in, I’ll be sure to contact you.” 

“We appreciate that,” Joe said, softly. 

Alice’s throat tightened as she fought tears. Mr. Dawson apologized again and said goodbye to them. Joe took Alice’s shoulders and led her out the door. Mrs. Caines watched them leave the orphanage with sympathetic eyes; her heart breaking for them. 

Outside, Ben waited with Candy and Clem when Joe and Alice walked out of the orphanage. Ben came up to them and could already tell it was bad news by the looks on their faces. 

“She’s not there,” Ben said. 

 Joe shook his head. “No.” 

Clem asked, “You think she might have found her way onto a stagecoach?” 

Alice spoke up. “No, she couldn’t have done that.” 

Clem said, “It’s worth a shot. You can check the stage office and see if any folks saw her there.” 

“All right, we better head over there now,” Ben said. 

Clem told him, “I won’t be able to come with you this time. I’ve got to head back, but good luck, Ben.” 

He held his hand out to Ben who thanked him. The Cartwrights along with Candy, then headed over to their horses and buckboard while Clem headed back to the sheriff’s office. 

Meanwhile, little Tommy peeked his head out from around the corner. He saw Joe and Alice get onto a buckboard and as soon as their backs were turned, he snuck onto the back of the buckboard and hid. Joe whipped the reins and they got moving. 

At the Stage Lines, the rugged man who had entertained little Sara, held out his tin cup and begged, “Anybody got a coin? Anything’ll do folks!” 

Ben came up to the man behind the stage office while Joe, Alice and Candy waited next to a bench. 

“If you’re looking for the stage, it left about an hour ago,” he told Ben. 

Ben shook his head. “I’m not looking for a stage. I’m looking for my granddaughter, she’s disappeared.” 

“Disappeared?” he asked with intrigue in his voice. 

“Yes, I’m Ben Cartwright. The little girl that’s missing is my son, Joseph’s and his wife’s.” He pulled out the picture of Sara from inside his coat and showed him. 

“Here’s a picture of her.” 

The office clerk inspected the photo and shook his head. “No, I don’t recall seeing her, Mr. Cartwright. Of course I see a lot of people come through here.” He handed Ben back the picture. “I’ll keep an eye out though.” 

Ben gave a heavy sigh. “Thank you.” 

The rugged man lifted his head up, having overheard the conversation. 

“I hear you say youse lookin’ for a little girl?” 

All eyes darted to the rugged man. Joe answered, “That’s right.” 

The rugged man held his hand out. “Can I see that picture there?” 

Ben handed him the picture and he took a look at it. With a nod of his head, he said, 

“Yeah, I seen her all right.” 

Joe asked, anxiously, “Where?” 

The rugged man handed the photo back to Ben. “It was right here about an hour ago.” The rugged man tilted his head as he fixed his gaze on Alice. “You say she’s your daughter?” 

“Yes,” Alice said. 

The rugged man scratched his head. “Well, she was with this other woman. I thought she was her ma.” 

Alice swallowed as a wave of nausea hit her. “Someone took my baby?” 

Joe scrunched his eyebrows. “What are you talking about? What woman?” 

The rugged man shrugged his shoulders. “Well, this woman. I was just bein’ friendly. I had this here puppet with me and I was playin’ around with it, making the little girl laugh. She’s cute as a button.” 

Ben said, impatiently, “Yes, nevermind all that, do you know where they went?” 

“Oh, I seen’em hop on the stage.” 

The stage office clerk said, “I think I remember now. Let me see that photo again.” Ben handed him the photo. 

“Yeah, I think I do remember her and the woman.” 

Ben asked, “Can you give a description of her?” 

“A woman, late twenties, early thirties, I’d say. About that tall.” He held his hand up. “Blonde hair.” 

Ben tucked the photo away in his coat pocket. “Do you know where the stage was heading to?” 

“Thornton. Next one won’t be here till morning though.” 

Ben turned to Joe. “We’ll have to ride out there ourselves. We can be there by sundown tomorrow.”

Ben thanked the clerk and hurried over to his horse. Joe took some money out of his pocket and put it into the rugged man’s tin cup; thanking him before he took off after Ben with Alice and Candy trailing behind him. 

The rugged man shouted, “Hey, you ain’t gotta pay me for helpin’ you out! I’s just doin’ my duty as a citizen!” He looked inside the cup and took out the roll of bills. “Although it doesn’t hurt none.” He chuckled. “Thank ya!” 

***

Later that night, the Cartwrights and Candy were in the woods. They had made camp for the night to rest the horses. Candy was asleep on his bedroll while Alice laid down on her bedroll, tossing and turning. Joe, however, was wide awake; his mind racing with a million thoughts when he heard the voice of his pa. 

“More coffee?” 

Joe turned and answered, “No, thanks.” 

“You better get some shut eye. We’ve got a long ride ahead of us tomorrow,” Ben told him as he took a seat on the log next to him. 

“I can’t sleep.” Joe stared into the campfire, trying to fight tears. “Why did I leave her?” 

“You mustn’t blame yourself, Joe, these things happen. I can’t count the number of times you ran away from me as a child,” Ben told him with a chuckle before he took a sip of coffee. 

“This is different, Pa, I should have been more careful. I never should have left her alone like that. I mean what kind of a father am I?” 

“A human one, Joseph. And I know exactly what you’re going through right now. I had my doubts as well when I had you boys. But what I’ve learned over the years is that all a father can ever really do is try his best. There are no simple answers on how to be a father. I do know when I was left to raise you, I only had your brothers to help me. And it wasn’t easy. But you’ve got Alice and you both need each other desperately right now.” 

Joe’s breath shuddered. “She blames me.” 

“She doesn’t blame you, Joseph.” 

“Yes, she does. I can see it in her eyes when she looks at me.” 

“He’s right, Joe.” 

Joe turned to his right and saw Alice approach him. “It isn’t your fault. I don’t blame you.” Joe hung his head down, avoiding eye contact with her. “Joe, look at me.” Alice gently lifted his head up to her. “Look at me.” Joe held his gaze on her and she smiled through her tears. “We’ll find her. We will. Okay?” 

Joe could no longer stop the tears from falling. Alice wrapped her arms around him and held him. “I love you,” she said as she stroked his head. 

“I love you,” Joe said through choked tears as he cried into her shoulder. Ben watched them hold each other and couldn’t help but admire Alice’s strength and courage. 

Chapter Four 

The Cartwrights and Candy arrived in Thornton by late afternoon, the next day. 

After Ben dismounted his horse, he turned to Candy. 

“Candy, I want you to take the horses over to the livery. We’ll split up and cover more ground, ask anyone you can find.” Candy nodded in agreement. Ben said, “We need to hurry. Let’s move.” 

Ben, Joe, and Alice parted ways while Candy gathered the horse’s reins. After he tied them all together, he heard a sneeze. He paused–his head tilted to the right in puzzlement, wondering if it was just his imagination when he heard the sneeze again. 

Candy heard it more clearly that time and it was coming from behind the buckboard. He walked over to the back of the buckboard and removed the tarp to find a little boy with brown hair, crouched down on all fours. He lifted his head up to him. 

Candy scrunched his eyebrows. “Who are you?” 

“My name’s Tommy, mister.” 

“Well, Tommy, what are you doing in the back of my friend’s buckboard?” Candy asked. 

“I snuck a ride. I’m from the orphanage.” 

“The orphanage back in Virginia City?” Candy asked in disbelief. 

“Yes, sir. Please don’t send me back,” he begged. 

Candy sighed as he nervously rubbed the back of his head. “Great.” He looked out into the street and turned to Tommy. “Come with me.” 

Candy helped Tommy off the buckboard and with his hand on his back, moved him along. 

As Candy walked with Tommy down the boardwalk, he spotted Joe and Alice. 

“Joe?” Joe turned around along with Alice and Candy approached them with his hand on Tommy’s shoulder. “Joe, we’ve got a little problem.” 

Joe looked down at the boy and recognized him. “That’s the kid we saw at the orphanage, how’d he get here?” 

Tommy answered, “I snuck into the back of your buckboard, mister.”

“He says his name is Tommy,” Candy told him.

Ben came up to them, saw the boy, and dreaded what he was about to ask. “What is it now?” he grumbled. 

Joe answered, “A boy we met at the orphanage followed us and snuck onto the back of the buckboard.” 

Ben’s eyes widened as he looked at Joe and pointed to Tommy. “You mean he’s been with us this whole time?” 

“That’s what it looks like, Pa,” Joe said with a sigh. 

Ben took a breath as he tried hard to keep his temper in control. He looked at Tommy and asked, “Why in the world would you do a thing like that, son?” 

“Well, I thought maybe once you got to know me; maybe you’d change your mind about having a boy and adopt me.” 

“So you ran away from the orphanage,” Ben said. 

Tommy nodded. “Yes, sir.” 

“What do we do?” Candy asked. 

Ben held his hands out towards Tommy and said in exasperation, “We’ll just have to send him back, that’s all there is to it.” 

Tommy pleaded, “No. Please, mister, don’t send me back!” 

Joe responded in irritation, “Pa, do you know how long that would take to send him all the way back to Virginia City? We’ve wasted enough time as it is. At this rate we’ll never find Sara.” 

Ben sighed, losing his patience. “All right, fine, we’ll take him with us.” He pointed his finger at Tommy and said in a stern voice, “But as soon as we find her, you’re going right back to the orphanage, young man, is that understood?”

Tommy nodded as a hopeful smile spread across his face. “Yes, sir!” 

“All right, let’s get going while it’s still daylight,” Ben said. 

***

Meanwhile, Rosemary arrived in Thornton with Sara that morning. They were taken to a little cabin that Henry had purchased for him and Rosemary to stay in for the winter. After Rosemary paid the driver, she headed inside the cabin with Sara while carrying a bag in her other hand. 

Inside the cabin, Rosemary called out for Henry, but there was no answer. She sat little Sara down on the settee and checked all of the rooms. 

Rosemary came out of the bedroom and sighed. “I guess he hasn’t arrived yet.” She looked down at Sara and smiled before she went over to her and scooped her up in her arms. “Henry is going to be so happy when he sees you.” She kissed Sara’s cheek. 

Sara murmured, “Mama?” 

Rosemary held Sara up to her. “Yes, darling.” 

Sara’s lip quivered as she cried out for her mother over and over again. Rosemary’s heart sank as she held Sara close to her, trying to comfort her. “It’s all right, darling. Mama’s here,” she said, softly. 

Rosemary fought tears as she murmured soothing words to Sara. 

***

Back in town, Candy waited by the buckboard with Tommy. Candy leaned back against the buckboard with his arms crossed when Tommy spoke. 

“You ever thought about adopting a boy?”

Candy looked down at Tommy and responded, “No, can’t say I have.” 

“Well, maybe you oughta consider it,” Tommy said. “There’s lots of things I can do!” 

Candy sighed. “Is that so?” 

Tommy nodded enthusiastically. “Uh huh! I’m mighty big for my age. I can chop wood, do chores. You wouldn’t have to feed me much neither.” 

“Well, I’m sure you’re a fine boy, Tommy, but I just don’t think I’m ready for that kind of commitment yet. I can’t even ask a girl I love to marry me.” 

“How come?” Tommy asked. 

“Well…it’s kind of hard to explain. I guess I’m afraid she’ll say no.”

“Well, I think you should,” Tommy said. 

Candy’s head perked up. “You do?” 

“Sure. If you love her, then you should do it. What have you got to lose?” Tommy shrugged his shoulders. 

Candy gave a sideways smirk. “Hm. You know, you make a good point. Thanks for the talk.” He held out his hand to him. I’m sure whoever adopts you will be lucky to have you for a son.” 

“Gee, thanks, mister.” Tommy shook Candy’s hand. 

Candy smiled when he saw Joe, Alice and Ben approaching. He moved away from the buckboard and asked, “Any luck?” 

Ben shook his head. “No. We’re gonna head to the sheriff’s office now. I’m gonna need you to come with us.” He pointed to Tommy and said, “So, that means you, young man, are gonna stay right here.” 

Tommy sighed. “Okay.” 

Ben smiled and patted his head. “Good boy.” Ben turned to Joe. “Let’s go.” 

After Ben left with Joe, Alice, and Candy, Tommy climbed onto the buckboard and took a seat. He knew once they found Sara, he would have to go back to the orphanage. But he wouldn’t go back. He hopped back down off the buckboard and hurried down the street. 

***

Rosemary’s husband, Henry, arrived in Thornton not long after Rosemary and Sara. He opened the door to the cabin and Rosemary greeted him. With their arms wrapped around each other, Henry told her, “I’m sorry I’m late. The stage was delayed.” 

“Oh, that’s all right.” She pulled away and told him, “I have a surprise for you. Come here.” 

Rosemary took his hand and led him into the bedroom. Little Sara sat down on the bed, playing with the doll that Rosemary had bought. Henry looked down at Sara with intrigue.

“Who’s this?” he asked. 

“I found her. She was abandoned at the orphanage in Virginia City.” 

Henry came up to Sara and knelt down next to her. “What’s her name?” 

“Sara.” 

Henry smiled and brushed his hand over her chestnut curls. “Hello Sara. She’s a very beautiful little girl.” 

Rosemary said, “I know we talked about adoption. But I couldn’t leave her.” 

“Of course you couldn’t.” 

Henry got back up and Rosemary fixed her gaze on him. “So can we keep her? I already love her like she’s my own.” 

As Henry looked into Rosemary’s eyes, he could see a glimpse of the old Rosemary already. That child brought a renewed sense of hope into her that Henry couldn’t take from her. He gave a warm smile and said, “Sure we can.” 

A big smile spread across Rosemary’s face as she embraced Henry. She pulled away and kissed him before she told him, “I’ll be right back.” 

“Where are you going?” Henry asked with a chuckle. 

“Well, I haven’t had the time to do any shopping since we arrived here. I’ll need to make a run into town before it gets dark.” 

“Do you want me to come along with you?” 

Rosemary carefully placed her hands on his shoulders. “That won’t be necessary. I’m sure you’re exhausted after being on that stage for so long. Your daughter and I will be just fine.” 

Henry smiled. “All right.” 

Rosemary gave him a kiss and picked up little Sara from the bed before leaving the room. Henry stood there feeling overjoyed at Rosemary’s happiness again. 

In town, Tommy wandered down the boardwalk with his hands in his pockets. He walked past a mercantile when a woman and her daughter came out followed by the owner who was carrying out their groceries for them. 

The owner placed the groceries down in the back of her buckboard. “Well, there you are, ma’am.” 

“Thank you for your help,” Rosemary said. 

“It was my pleasure, ma’am.” He looked down at Sara in her arms. “You take care little lady.” 

Rosemary giggled. “Say bye-bye, Sara.” 

Tommy’s head jerked up at the name. He turned around and saw a woman holding a little girl in her arms. She bore a striking resemblance to the Sara in the photo he had seen. “Sara?” 

Rosemary placed Sara down on the bench and then got into the buckboard herself. She whipped the reins and took off down the street as Tommy watched them with disbelief on his face. He backed up slowly and then took off running down the boardwalk. 

***

Meanwhile, the Cartwrights along with Candy visited with the sheriff of Thornton in his office. The sheriff examined Sara’s photo and gave them less than hopeful news. 

“Lots of people come into the area everyday. I can’t say if your little girl is not here. But I haven’t seen her.” 

He handed Ben back the photo. Alice’s lip quivered as she hung her head down; all hope draining out of her. Joe placed a comforting hand around her shoulder. 

The sheriff sighed. “I’m sorry. I wish I could help you, but there’s really not much I can do.” 

“Thank you, sheriff,” Ben said in a disappointed tone. The sheriff then suggested. 

“You might wanna try the hotels. There’s a good chance she could have gone there.” 

“We’ll do that, thank you.” Ben turned to Candy. “Candy, would you…?” 

“I’m on it,” Candy said. He headed to the door as Tommy came speeding up fast, nearly bumping into him. Candy put his hands on his shoulders and said with a chuckle, “Whoa, hey, slow down there.” 

Ben looked at Tommy and said in a stern tone, “I thought I told you to wait in the buckboard.” 

“Yes, sir, but….” 

“But what?” 

Tommy sighed with a slump of his shoulders. “Nothin’.” 

Ben raised an eyebrow in suspension, but brushed it off. “Let’s go.” 

Candy placed his hands on Tommy’s shoulders. “Come on, Tommy.” 

Tommy became filled with guilt as he left the sheriff’s office. He knew he should have told them he found Sara, but he hesitated because he would then have to be sent back to the orphanage. 

***

Later that evening, Alice stood by the window and stared at the snowfall outside while Tommy laid down on the bed with his arms folded underneath his head. Ben, Joe, and Candy were gathered around a table looking over a map of Thornton. 

Ben said, “She couldn’t have gotten far. She must live around here somewhere. We could check all the farms.” 

Joe countered, “That could take days. We don’t want to get too close. As soon as she finds out we’re on her trail, she’ll run off and leave town and we’ll lose any chance we have of finding her.” 

Ben let out a sigh. “All right.” He pointed to a spot on the map. “We’ll start here in the morning.” 

Joe turned and saw Alice near the window. He came up behind her. “Hey. She’s here somewhere, we’ll find her.” 

Alice stared motionless out the window; her heart heavy with grief. 

“She must be so frightened. What if we never find her, Joe?” She hung her head down as tears filled her eyes. 

Joe placed his hands on the sides of her shoulders. “We will.” 

Alice pushed him off of her in a rage and turned around to face him. “Why did you leave her?” she snapped. 

Her words felt like a knife through his chest. Joe stared at her in confusion. “What?” 

“I asked you to stay with her,” she cried. “But no. You had to get in some stupid fight over a poker game that you gave Candy money for.” Joe continued to fix his gaze on her, trying hard to keep his composure. Alice hung her head down; tears spilling down her cheeks. “I never should have brought her with us. If only I had left her with Mrs. Bennett, she’d be safe with us now.” 

Joe snapped, “First, you blame me and now you’re blaming yourself? Alice, what difference does it make whose fault it was? The point is that we find her.” Alice’s whole body trembled. Joe firmly grasped her shoulders. “And I’m not gonna stop until we do,” he told her. Alice began to feel lightheaded as the room spun around her. Her eyelids grew heavy and she fell into Joe’s arms. “Alice?” 

Ben shouted, “Candy, get a doctor now!” 

Candy bolted out the door. Tommy jumped up from the bed as he stared at Joe holding Alice, realizing he may have just made things much worse. 

Chapter Five 

Alice laid in bed as a doctor from Thornton examined her while Joe stood helplessly over by the door fearing for his wife, but also filled with guilt for how he let his temper take hold of him again. 

Ben stood next to him and placed a comforting hand over his shoulder. “She’ll be all right.” 

Joe stared at Alice lying on the bed and said, “It’s all my fault. I never should have lost my temper with her.” 

“Joe, you can’t keep blaming yourself. Pointing the blame isn’t helping you, it isn’t helping her, and it certainly isn’t helping Sara.” 

Joe took a deep breath as he fought tears. “What if she’s right, Pa? What if we never find her?” 

Ben told him as he lightly squeezed his shoulder, “You can’t give up hope. The minute you do, so will Alice. She needs you now more than ever. She needs you to keep hoping; to keep fighting. Don’t take that hope away from her. Miracles do happen.” 

“Right now it seems like it’s gonna take a miracle,” Joe said. 

After he finished examining Alice, he moved away from the bed and over to Joe and Ben. Joe asked, “Is my wife all right, doc?” 

The doctor wiped the inside of his spectacles with a rag. “Well, she appears to be all right. She’s conscious now. After hearing what you’ve both gone through the past few days, I’d imagine the emotional stress would take a toll on a person quite considerably. I’d recommend plenty of rest.” 

Ben thanked the doctor while Joe hurried over to Alice’s bedside. The doctor glanced over at Joe and Alice and paused before he said, “I did however make one little discovery upon examining her.” 

Ben looked over at the doctor with intrigue. “What do you mean, doctor?” 

“That I’m afraid I will have to leave up to her to tell you. Goodnight.” 

The doctor left the hotel room leaving Ben standing there puzzled by his words. 

Meanwhile, Joe took hold of Alice’s hand and brushed her hair back with his other hand. Alice turned her head to him and gave a weary smile. “Joe.” 

Joe smiled wide. “Hey. How are you feeling?” 

“I’m alright. Joe, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean….” 

“No, no.” he said. “It’s fine. I guess we both lost our tempers again, huh?” 

She nodded with a small smile and Joe kissed her forehead. 

Meanwhile, in the next room, Tommy sat on the settee filled with guilt. He looked over at Candy who leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. Tommy took a deep breath and the words were out before he could even stop them. 

“I saw her today.” 

Candy’s head perked up and he looked down at Tommy. “What?” 

“I saw Sara today. She was with a woman outside of a mercantile down the street from here.” 

Candy moved away from the wall as he fixed his gaze on Tommy and went over to him. “You mean to tell me that you’ve had this information all this time and you never said anything about it?” Candy leaned forward, resting his arm over the settee. 

Tommy swallowed. “Yes, sir.” 

Candy pressed his lips together in a firm line and fumed, “Boy, I ought to whoop your hide clean off.” 

Tommy said with guilt in his voice, “I’m sorry. I just didn’t want to have to go back to that orphanage is all.” 

Candy sighed as he moved away from the settee. “Well, you know what you have to do now, don’t you?” 

Tommy shrugged his shoulders. “I reckon so, but do I have to?” 

Candy folded his arms with a slight tilt of his head. “It wouldn’t be right if you didn’t.” 

Tommy hung his head down. “I know. All right.” 

Ben walked out of the bedroom when Candy came up to him with his hand over Tommy’s shoulder. “Ben? Tommy here has something he wants to tell you.” 

Ben looked down at Tommy with curiosity as Tommy gathered the courage to confess, “I saw Sara today, Mr. Cartwright. She was with a lady outside of a mercantile a little ways down the street from here.” 

Ben asked in disbelief, “Why didn’t you say anything before, son?” 

Tommy apologized again and said, “I just didn’t want you to send me back to the orphanage. I know I should have told you sooner.”

“Yes, you should have,” Ben said, sternly. 

Tommy lifted his head up to Ben. “Are you gonna whoop me?” 

Ben raised an eyebrow as he looked over at Candy who tried to hold back a smirk. Ben placed one hand over his hip and said to Tommy, “Well, I should, but seeing as it’s almost Christmas, I think I can make an exception this time.” Ben flashed a warm smile at him. 

Tommy smiled big. “Thanks, mister!” 

Candy grinned as he patted Tommy’s shoulder. Ben bent down with his hands over his knees and looked Tommy in the eye. “Now, I want you to tell me everything you remember.” 

After Tommy filled Ben and Candy in about what he saw, Ben explained it all to Joe and Alice before he and Joe put on their coats and gun belts while Candy gathered the horses and hitched up the buckboard outside. 

Alice came out of the bedroom while Joe put on his black leather gloves. He turned and saw her approach him. 

“I’m coming with you,” she said. 

Joe said in a firm voice, “No, you’re not, you’re staying here. The doctor told you to stay in bed.” 

“Joe, she’s my baby. I’m not going to stand around and wait. I’m coming with you.” 

Joe could see the determination on her face; knowing he wouldn’t stand a chance in changing her mind. He sighed with a smile and said, “I hate to think how our daughter is gonna turn out to be with two stubborn parents.” Alice flashed a grin. Joe placed his hand on her shoulder. “Come on.” 

Alice grabbed her shawl and coat before heading out the door with Joe, Ben, and Tommy. 

The Cartwrights along with Candy and Tommy raced down the street over to the mercantile before Ben and Joe hurried up to the door and Joe pounded his fist against it. 

Inside, the owner, Fred, came trudging over to the door with a lit lantern in his hands. 

“Is anyone in there? Open up!” Joe shouted from the other side. 

“We’re closed!” Fred shouted back. 

Ben pleaded, “Please. I know it’s late, but we need to talk to you, it’s very important!” 

“All right, just hold your horses now,” Fred grumbled. 

He put the lantern down and opened the door. Ben rushed through the door with Joe and Alice trailing behind. Candy waited with Tommy outside. 

“What do you want?” Fred demanded. Joe pulled out the picture of Sara from his coat pocket. “We’re trying to find our daughter. She was in your store today.” 

Fred took hold of the photo and went over to the lantern he left on top of the counter. He brought the picture up close to the lantern. He slowly nodded. “Yeah, she was in here, all right. She was with her ma.” 

“What’s her name?” Alice asked, anxiously. 

“Mrs. Anderson. She just moved here with her husband, Henry.” Fred handed the photo over to Ben as he shook his head. “Look, I don’t understand all this.” 

“You don’t have to,” Ben said as he put the photo in his coat pocket. “Do you know where she lives?” 

“Yeah, it’s a cabin not too far from here. I can get you a map.” 

Ben thanked him and he followed Fred around the counter. 

Joe turned to Alice and embraced her as he burst into tears. “Oh, thank God, we found her.” He pulled away and took hold of Alice’s face and said, “I told you we would.”

Alice giggled through her own tears and Joe kissed her. 

After they left Fred’s mercantile, the Cartwrights, Candy, and Tommy found the Andersons’ cabin. Ben, Joe, Alice, and Candy snuck around the back of the cabin while Tommy waited in the buckboard. 

Ben, Joe, and Candy had their guns ready as Ben went over the plan. 

“All right. Now, Joe, you go in and get Sara out while Candy and I hold them off. We don’t know how dangerous these people are and I’ve got a feeling they won’t give her up without a fight.” 

Joe turned to Alice. “Pa’s right, it might be better if you wait out here with Tommy. I don’t want to risk you getting hurt.” 

“I’m going with you,” she insisted. 

Joe gave a frustrated sigh. “Alice…” 

“Joe, if she’s scared, I need to be the first one she sees.” 

“She has a point, Joe.” Ben looked over at Alice. “All right, Alice, you’ll be the one to get her out, but make sure you do it as quickly as possible while we hold them off.” Alice nodded in agreement. Ben said, “Now, we go on the count of three. One…two…three!” 

Ben slammed his shoulder against the door, breaking it open. 

Rosemary and Henry, who were sitting on a settee, jumped out of their seats, startled. Alice found Sara on the settee and hurried over to her. “Sara?” She burst into tears as she picked her up and held her close. “Oh, my baby.” 

Henry reached for the rifle hanging on top of the mantle and pointed it at Ben, forcing Joe and Candy to draw their guns on Henry. 

“Tell her to put my daughter down now,” Henry demanded. 

Joe stared at Henry wide-eyed in disbelief. “Your daughter?” Joe’s hurt turned into anger as he tightened his grip around his revolver. With a firm yet calm voice, he said, “Alice, get her out of here now.” 

Henry told him, sternly, “I’m warning you. Put my daughter….” 

“She is not your daughter!” Joe shouted. 

Ben held his hands up between them and yelled, “All right, hold it now, hold it! Joe, put your gun down, everybody put your guns down now.” 

“Not until she puts my daughter down,” Henry said. 

Joe attempted to lunge at Henry when Ben pushed him back. “Joseph, stop it.” Ben turned to Henry and said, “Now, Mr. Anderson. You say this little girl is your daughter, but I know for a fact that she is not your child, but my son’s.” 

Henry barked, “I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I want you all out of my house now.” 

Ben held his hands up. “Now wait a minute. We can prove it to you.” He pulled the photo of Sara out of his coat pocket and showed it to Henry. “See? This little girl right here is my granddaughter, Sara.” 

Henry glanced at the photo and slowly lowered the rifle. He looked over at Rosemary and asked, “Is he telling the truth, Rosy? Is she theirs?” 

Rosemary’s eyes filled with tears as she stared into Henry’s eyes. She hung her head down and nodded. “Yes, it’s true.” She lifted her head back up to him and confessed, “I took her. She was just so beautiful. I never thought they would find us.” She turned to Ben and told him, “I lost a baby over two weeks ago. She was my first and only child. We had tried so hard for years to have a baby. Then we lost her.” She looked over at Sara in Alice’s arms. “Then I saw her. I don’t know what came over me. I know it was wrong and I can’t tell you how sorry I am for what I put you through.” She turned back to Henry and cried, “Oh, Henry, I’m so sorry.” 

She broke down and buried her head in his shoulder. Henry wrapped his arm around her. “Oh, Rosy.” He looked over at Ben and said, “I know you have every right to press charges against her, but she’s been through so much pain already. Maybe you can find it in your hearts to forgive her.” 

Ben, Joe, Candy, and Alice stood there motionless before Ben spoke; his voice almost a whisper. “Well…any charges against you would not be up to me.” He turned to Joe. “Joe?”

Joe moved his gaze over to Alice and stared at her as if he were trying to read her thoughts. He received his answer when she gave him a reassuring smile and a nod of her head. Joe turned to Henry and told him while trying to keep his voice steady, 

“There won’t be any charges.”

Henry, still holding Rosemary, thanked him. 

Ben said, “We’ll be going now. I’m sorry for the way we barged in like that, but we didn’t know what to expect when we saw you. I hope you can understand.” 

“We do. Thank you,” Henry said. 

“Let’s go.” Ben headed out the door with Candy, Joe, and Alice holding Sara behind him. 

While outside, Alice held Sara up to her who had a big smile on her face. “Mama!” 

Alice giggled and kissed her cheek. Joe caught up to Alice and gave Sara a kiss on her forehead. “She didn’t cry at all,” Alice told him. “I don’t think she was ever frightened, not even once.” 

“I know I’m never letting her out of my sight ever again, I’ll tell ya that,” Joe promised. 

Alice smiled. “You won’t have to worry about that. You’ll never lose any of us.” 

Ben came up to them and remarked, “I don’t know about you, but I’d like to get home in time for Christmas supper. Let’s go home.” 

They all made their way over to their horses and buckboard. Candy reached the buckboard first and trudged over to the back. “Okay, Tommy, let’s go.” He crinkled his eyebrows when he saw Tommy was missing. He turned around and asked, “Where’s Tommy?” 

“He’s not there?” Ben asked in puzzlement. 

Candy shook his head. “No.” 

Joe and Candy began calling out to him, but there was no answer. Only the whistling of the wind through the pine trees. Ben said, “He’s run off. And I think I know why. He ran so he wouldn’t have to go back to the orphanage.” Ben shook his head and sighed. “I should have seen it, he kept asking.” 

“Well, we’ve gotta find him,” Joe said. 

“You’re right, we’re gonna need lanterns. I’m gonna ask the Anderson’s if we can borrow some.” Ben hurried back over to the house and knocked on the door. Henry answered. Ben asked, out of breath, “We’re sorry to bother you again, but we were wondering if we could borrow some lanterns. A little boy that came with us has run away and we can’t find him in the dark.” 

“Of course, take all you need. In fact, I’ll help you. Come inside.” 

Ben thanked him as he walked through the door. Ben took a few steps before he put his hand up to his head and said in embarrassment, “Oh, I just realized I never introduced myself. I’m Ben Cartwright.” He held his hand out to Henry who gave a small smile. 

“I know,” Henry said. 

Ben scrunched his eyebrows. “You know?” 

“Yes, my wife, Rosemary and I used to live in Virginia City before we moved here for a fresh start.” Henry took a few lanterns down off of a shelf. “We had heard stories about you and the Ponderosa.” 

“Oh, all good ones I hope,” Ben said with a chuckle. 

“Yes. That’s why it came as quite a shock to see you come charging through my door.” 

Ben gave another soft chuckle. “I should say it did.” 

Henry handed him a lantern. “Let’s go.” 

***

A little while later, Ben, along with Joe, Candy, and Henry searched for Tommy in the woods while Alice and Sara stayed inside the house with Rosemary. They were out there for nearly thirty minutes when they met back up with each other. Henry said, “It’s gonna be near impossible to find him until daylight.” 

Ben huffed, “We’ll have to. It’s gonna get awfully cold before morning.” 

Joe asked, “Do you have any other folks that live nearby? He might have asked them to take him in.” 

Henry shook his head. “No, there’s not another living soul for miles out here.” 

Ben muttered, under his breath, “Dear God, where could he be?” 

Joe looked up and saw a star shining brightly in the night sky. “Pa, look.” 

Ben looked to where Joe was pointing up into the sky and he stared at the star in disbelief along with Henry and Candy. Henry said, “I’ve never seen a star like that one before.” 

Ben looked ahead of him and said, “Well, I never thought to say a thing like this, but…let’s follow that star.” 

Ben started trudging through the snow in the direction of the star with Henry, Joe, and Candy following behind him. 

Ben led the way when he saw a tiny figure laying in the snow under a tree. He looked up and saw the star shining directly onto little Tommy. 

“I don’t believe it,” Ben said under his breath before he hurried over to him. 

Ben and Joe knelt down in front of Tommy who was sound asleep. They set their lanterns down beside them in the snow. Ben said, “Let’s get a blanket around him and get him back to your place.”

Henry nodded.”All right. You’re all welcome to stay for the night.” 

Ben thanked him when Candy stepped forward and said, “Here, I’ll take him.” 

Candy gently took Tommy in his arms and scooped him up. Ben stood back up along with Joe who followed after Candy and Henry. Ben paused and looked back up at the star again in awe before he followed after them. 

Meanwhile, back inside the house, Rosemary walked out of the kitchen holding a tray with a coffee pot. Alice sat on the settee as she held Sara close and rocked her in her arms. Rosemary came up to her and offered her some coffee in which Alice politely declined. 

Rosemary set the tray down on the table and took a seat in a chair across from her. She took notice of Sara’s features. Her curly chestnut hair and sparkling green eyes. She stared at her for several seconds and said to Alice, “You know, I didn’t realize how much she favors your husband.” 

Alice smiled as she looked down at Sara. 

“I know. She’s the splitting image of her daddy. She’s also quite the little mischief maker like him too.” 

Rosemary told her, “I gave her some candy earlier. I hope you don’t mind.” 

Alice played around with Sara’s little hand. “It’s all right. She’s used to it. Her father, grandfather and uncles spoil her already.” 

Rosemary, still filled with guilt, said, “I know I’ve already said this to you, but I truly am sorry.” 

“It’s all right. I can understand why you did it. I can’t imagine the thought of losing a child.” Alice stroked Sara’s head. 

“I know the thought of losing Sara scared me to death. I can’t even begin to imagine what you’ve been through. I know it was wrong, but I understand it, believe me I do.” Alice looked down and moved her hand over her midriff. “After everything that’s happened, it made me realize how precious having a child really is.” 

Rosemary noticed where she placed her hand. “Are you…?” 

Alice nodded with a smile. “I had a feeling for a while now and a doctor just recently confirmed it.” 

Rosemary flashed a big smile despite the pain inside of her. “That’s wonderful. Congratulations to you and your husband.” 

Alice couldn’t help but admire her strength. She thanked her and then told her, “I pray you do have that child someday. Don’t give up hope.” 

Rosemary fought tears as she thanked her when the door opened. Henry walked in with Candy carrying Tommy from behind him. Henry said to Rosemary, “We found him.” Joe and Ben stepped into the house as Alice and Rosemary rose from their seats. Candy placed Tommy down on the settee. Henry turned to Ben. “I’ll show you where you’ll be staying for the night.” 

“Oh, here is just fine,” Ben told him.

Rosemary said, “I’ll get some extra blankets for you.” 

After Rosemary went into the bedroom, Alice came up to Joe with Sara in her arms and asked, “Where did you find him?” 

“You wouldn’t believe it,” Joe told her. 

“Well, after tonight I can believe anything.” Alice looked down at Sara who yawned. Alice giggled and said, “I think she’s finally sleepy.” 

Joe smiled and brushed his fingers against Sara’s cheek. “Maybe you both oughta get some sleep now.” 

Alice agreed and they all settled down for the night. 

***

Later that night, Ben was wide awake as he stepped outside on the porch. To his surprise, he found Joe standing there gazing up at the stars. 

“Everyone’s asleep. Except you.” 

Joe gave a small smile, recognizing his pa’s voice. He glanced over at him and then turned his gaze back up to the sky. 

“Yeah, I couldn’t sleep. I can’t stop thinking about that star.” 

Ben gave a soft chuckle as he came up next to him. “Yeah. It was really something, wasn’t it?” 

“It sure was. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was like a miracle,” Joe said. 

Ben raised his eyebrows. “And why not? It’s almost Christmas after all. He looked up into the night sky and recited the second chapter of Luke. “And the angel said unto them; fear not. For behold I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior; which is Christ the Lord. This shall be a sign unto you. Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.” 

Joe paused before he said, “It’s not gonna be much of a Christmas for that boy when we take him back to the orphanage.” 

“No,” Ben said, softly. 

“Pa, is there anything we can do? I mean, there must be someone in Virginia City who can take him in. There’s a lot of good people in that town who would love to have him.” 

Ben sighed. “I don’t know. I’ll ask around when we get back to Virginia City.” 

Joe nodded and then looked back up into the sky. Joe and Ben stood there in silence for several seconds until Joe spoke. “Pa, do you remember when I left my rifle up there on Eagle’s Nest because I was too afraid to get it down?” 

Ben nodded. “Yes, why?” 

“Well, after everything that happened with Sara, I’d rather make that climb again than have to go through what I went through these past few days. I’ve never been more scared of anything in my entire life. I hope to never go through something like that again.” 

Ben tilted his head. “Well, I hope you don’t either, but I can’t promise you that you’ll ever stop worrying about your children. I’ve never known a father who has. No matter how old you boys got, I never stopped worrying about where you were or what you were doing. Your brother Adam is all the way in Boston right now and I still worry about him. But through all of that worrying, you also experience the joy your children bring you. And that to me is what makes every single bit of that worrying worth it.” 

“Yeah.” Joe rubbed the back of his head and said, “I’m tired, I think I’ll go to bed now. Goodnight, Pa.” 

“Goodnight.” Ben patted his shoulder. 

After Joe went back inside, Ben stayed outside a little while longer. He looked up into the sky, hoping to catch a glimpse of that star again. 

Chapter Six 

The next morning, the Cartwrights along with Candy and Tommy said goodbye to the Anderson’s. Ben held his hand out to Henry. “I want to thank you for all your help last night.” 

“It’s me who should be thanking you, Ben. I’m sorry again for everything.” 

“I know, it’s all right,” Ben told him before mounting onto his horse. 

Alice handed Sara over to Joe when Rosemary came up to her. 

“I made you some extra biscuits for your trip.” Rosemary handed her a basket with a blue-checkered cloth. 

Alice thanked her and she set it down on the buckboard. After Joe helped her into the buckboard, she said goodbye to Rosemary. 

Ben started moving first with Candy and Joe following him from behind. Henry, with his arm around Rosemary, waved goodbye to them before going back inside their house. 

Inside, Rosemary removed the breakfast plates from the kitchen table as Henry helped her. He paused and glanced over at Rosemary before he spoke. 

“Mr. Cartwright told me that little boy’s story. It made me feel sorry for him.”

Rosemary fixed her gaze on the table as she picked up the silverware. Henry hesitated with his next few words. “I was thinking. I know we talked about adoption. And that little boy needs a home, so…” 

Rosemary paused and turned to Henry who looked into her eyes as a smile formed on his lips. “What do you say?” 

Rosemary burst into tears as she wrapped her arms around him. “Oh, Henry. Yes! Oh, yes.” 

Henry pulled away and took her hand. “Maybe we can still catch them.” 

Henry and Rosemary hurried into their wagon and raced down the pasture. They caught sight of the Cartwrights a little ways ahead of them and Henry called out to Ben. 

Ben steered the reins of his horse around when he heard the faint sounds of Henry calling out to him. 

“Hold it,” Ben said. Candy, along with Joe, slowed their horses to a stop. Henry pulled on the reins of the wagon next to Ben who asked, “Is something wrong?” 

“No, nothing’s wrong. It’s just Rosemary and I got to thinking about Tommy. I mean he wants a family, so we’d like to be his folks.” 

Tommy’s face lit up as he jumped up from the back of the buckboard. “You would?” 

“Well, yeah, if you’ll have us,” Henry said with a chuckle. 

“Oh boy!” Tommy shouted with delight as he jumped down off of the buckboard. 

He ran up to Ben and said, “I’m afraid I can’t go back with you, Mr. Cartwright.” 

Ben chuckled and responded, “That’s quite all right, son.” Ben looked over at Henry and told him, “We’ll notify the Orphanage in Virginia City.” 

Rosemary thanked him when Tommy came up to Joe and said to him, excitedly, “Can you believe it? I got a home!” 

Joe chuckled and ruffled Tommy’s hair. “Good luck, Tommy,” he said. 

Tommy hurried past Candy who said goodbye to him and he hopped onto the back of the wagon. “What are we waiting for? Let’s go home.” 

Henry and Rosemary chuckled and said goodbye to Ben before Henry turned the wagon around and he and Rosemary headed back home with Tommy. 

Ben turned and said, “Well, like the boy said, let’s go home.” 

They all got their horses moving again and headed in the direction of Virginia City. 

***

Christmas arrived and the Ponderosa was fully decorated with stockings hanging over the fireplace mantle and a Christmas tree standing tall next to it. The Cartwrights along with Candy and his girlfriend, Hannah were gathered in the living room. Ben knelt down under the tree as he moved the presents around. He got back up and stood back as he looked up at the tree. Jamie came up next to him and looked up at the tree himself. 

“It turned out really nice, didn’t it?” Ben asked. 

Jamie smiled. “Yeah, it looks great, Pa.” 

Ben inspected the tree as he scrunched his eyebrows and rubbed his chin. “Hm.”  

Joe came up next to him and said, “Hey, the tree looks great, Pa.” Ben said as he rubbed his chin. “There’s something missing though. I can’t quite put my finger on it.” Ben’s face lit up as he snapped his finger. “A-ha. The angel. We didn’t put the angel on.” Ben hurried over to the box of ornaments and pulled out an angel with a golden halo. 

Joe reached his hand out and said, “I can put it up, Pa.” 

Ben held the angel back and said, “I think it’s about time we passed it on to the next generation of this family, don’t you think?” He nodded his head in the direction of Sara who sat down in Ben’s chair playing with one of her new dolls. 

Joe looked over at Sara as his lips formed a smirk. “Oh.” Ben handed the angel over to Joe who went over to Sara and knelt down in front of her. “Hey. Would you like to help Daddy put the angel on the tree?” Sara brushed her hand over the angel and nodded with a smile. Joe placed the angel in her hand and lifted her up from the chair. He brought her over to the tree and with the help of Ben, she carefully placed the angel on top of the tree while Alice, Candy, and Hannah watched her with delight. 

Sara looked up at the angel and smiled. “Pretty, Papa.” 

“She’s very pretty. Almost as pretty as you.” Joe kissed her cheek. 

Alice came up to them and Sara pointed to the angel. “Look, Mama.” 

Alice chuckled. “I see. You did a very good job.” She reached over and took Sara out of Joe’s arms. “Why don’t we head into the kitchen and see if Hop Sing has any more cookies left.” 

After Alice went into the kitchen with Sara, Ben turned to Joe, “Well, I guess I better head into town and wait for Adam. The stage should be arriving….” 

The door opened and in walked Adam with his wife, Emily holding their son, Adam Jr. Ben’s initial shock wore off and he chuckled with joy as he greeted Adam along with Joe. 

Ben said, “I was just on my way to meet you.” 

“Well, the stage came a little early, so we thought we’d surprise you,” Adam told him. 

Ben said with a chuckle, “Well, it certainly is! It’s good to see you.” Ben glanced over at A.J. and reached his hands out to him. “How is my little grandson doing, huh?” Ben took A.J. into his arms and was amazed at how he had grown. 

Meanwhile, Joe embraced Adam. He pulled away and asked, “How’s life in the big city treating you?” 

“Just fine.” Adam then asked with a big grin on his face, “How is it still living under Pa’s thumb?” 

Joe smirked and shook his head. “Just great, thanks.” 

Ben motioned to the dining area. “Why don’t we all head into the dining room. Hop Sing prepared a great feast for us.” 

Everyone gathered in the dining room and enjoyed the Christmas dinner that Hop Sing prepared for them. 

After dinner, everyone headed back into the living room to open presents. Candy opened a box and pulled out a red woolen scarf. 

Hannah smiled and said, “I wasn’t sure what to get you, so I made you a scarf. I hope you like it.” 

Candy gave a small smile. “I love it. It’ll help keep me warm too.” He placed the scarf back into the box and set it aside. “I do have a gift for you. I wanted to wait until we were alone, but I guess now is as good a time as any.” 

“What is it?” Hannah asked in curiosity. 

Candy took her hand. “Hannah, a friend helped me realize something. And that is if I really love someone, then what have I got to lose? And I don’t want to lose you, Hannah, so there’s something I want to ask you.” Candy reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring. Hannah’s mouth opened in shock as she stared at the ring. 

“Will you be my wife?” 

Hannah looked into Candy’s eyes as a big smile spread across her face. “Yes.” 

Candy’s face lit up as he said, “You will?” 

Hannah nodded and wrapped her arms around him. Candy smiled wide and kissed her. He took her hands and helped her up from the settee before he announced to everyone in the room, “Hey, she said yes.” 

Joe raised his eyebrows slightly. “To what?” he asked. 

“To marry me!” Candy said with a chuckle. 

Ben and Joe’s faces lit up with joy as they chuckled with delight. They came up to Candy and congratulated both him and Hannah as well as Alice. 

Candy turned to Joe and asked, “Joe, how would you like to be my best man?”

Joe’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Would I!” he chuckled and embraced Candy. 

Hannah showed Alice the ring and then placed her ring on her finger. She held it up to her and asked Candy, “How did you ever afford it?” 

Candy took a breath. “Well, let’s just say I’ll be clearing out a lot of watering holes for the next few months, but it’ll be worth it.” 

Hannah smiled and kissed Candy again. Alice looked over at Joe and said, “Joe? I do have another gift for you.” 

Joe pointed to himself. “For me?” 

Alice nodded and pulled out a chair for him. “I want you to sit down right here.” 

Joe smirked. “All right.” 

Joe took a seat in the chair and Alice brought over a small box to him. “I was going to save this for later, but here. Open it.” Joe opened the box and pulled out a bright yellow knitted blanket. He scrunched his eyebrows when it hit him. He looked up at Alice wide-eyed in disbelief. She said, “I think we’re gonna have to add on another room pretty soon.” 

Joe shot up from the chair and took Alice’s face in his hands. “Are you kidding me?” 

“No,” she giggled. 

Joe pulled her in and kissed her. He pressed his head against hers as he became overwhelmed with emotion. He said with a big smile on his face, “A baby. I love you.” He kissed her again. 

Ben chuckled with joy as he embraced Joe. He then said with a shrug of his shoulders, “I’m having another grandchild.” 

Adam remarked with a sigh, “Yes, just what we need, another little Joe running around the house.” 

Ben picked up a glass and held it up to him. “I’d say another congratulations are in order.” 

Adam held up his glass and said with a warm smile, “Congratulations, Joe. I really do mean it.” 

Joe smiled as he patted Adam’s shoulder and thanked him. Candy and Jamie, along with Hannah congratulated Joe and Alice as well. 

Ben took a drink and glanced over at the front door. “Adam, I see that you brought your guitar along.” 

Adam turned and looked at his guitar near the door and said with a smirk, “Yes I did.” 

Ben asked, “Would you mind playing a little something for us?” 

Everyone in the room agreed in unison. Adam sighed. “Well…all right.” 

Adam picked up his guitar and sat back down on the settee. He held up his guitar to him and strummed to the tune of Silent Night as everyone in the room fell silent. 

Adam sang, “Silent night, holy night. All is calm, all is bright. Round young virgin, mother and child. Holy infant so tender and mild. Sleep in heavenly peace. Sleep in heavenly peace.” 

He hummed to the music as everyone listened in awe and wonder. 

***

Ben had everyone stay at the Ponderosa overnight due to the heavy snowfall. It was a little past midnight when Alice awoke and found Joe missing next to her. She rose from her pillow and turned around, finding Joe standing near the windowsill in his robe looking out at the snowfall. She smirked and got up out of bed. 

Joe barely noticed her walk up to her. She placed her arm over his shoulder and he turned. “Oh, hey.” He put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her to him as she wrapped her arm around his waist. They stood there in silence until Joe broke it with a chuckle. 

“What?” Alice asked with a grin. 

Joe pointed to the window and said, “You know I broke this same window years ago?” 

She chuckled. “What?” 

“It’s true. It was Hoss’s fault, really; I had overslept. Pa had work for me that day so he sent Hoss to get me up. Well, he had the bright idea to pour a glass of water on me and I jumped up so fast I knocked my head against the bed frame.” 

Alice laughed. “Oh no.” 

Joe said, “I was so mad I grabbed my boot and hurled it at him. He ducked and it went right through the window. Pa was already in a bad mood that day so you can guess how mad he was, phew. He then had me get a new window pane, but I kept breaking all of those.” 

Alice smoothed her hand over his chest. “So, you’re saying it was your brother’s fault even though you’re the one who broke the window?” 

Joe pressed his lips together with a tilt of his head. “Well, I wouldn’t have broken it if Hoss hadn’t woken me up like that. It hurt too. I had a big lump right about there.” He touched the top of his head. 

Alice peeked over his head and brushed her hand through his silver curls. “Well, I’m sure he didn’t mean for you to do that.” She then asked, “So, what are you doing up so late and looking out the window you broke all those years ago, huh?” 

Joe gave a soft chuckle. “I just couldn’t sleep. All the excitement I suppose.” 

“About the baby?” she asked. 

“Yeah,” he replied, softly. “I still can’t get over it.” 

Alice looked up at him and asked in curiosity, “Any one in particular you’re hoping for?” 

Joe gave her an annoyed glance. “What? Because we have a girl, you think I want a boy now?” 

“Well, wouldn’t you like a little Joe running around the house?” she asked as she laid her chin on top of his chest and stared up at him. 

“We’re not calling him that.” Alice giggled before Joe added, “That nickname has haunted me ever since I was a kid.” 

Alice lifted her head up and said, “It wouldn’t be so bad though, would it?” 

“No, I guess not. You know, wouldn’t it be funny since Pa had all boys, I end up with all girls.” 

They both chuckled. Alice said, “Well, whatever we have or however many we have it doesn’t matter to me. I told you we can have as many as you want.” 

Joe smiled warmly at her before he said, “I love you,” 

She repeated the words to him and they kissed. 

Alice gazed into his eyes and said, “Merry Christmas, husband.” 

“Merry Christmas, wife.” 

They exchanged another kiss and turned to look at the snowfall together as Alice gently laid her head down on Joe’s shoulder. 

The End

Author’s notes: This story was inspired by the Little House on the Prairie TV movie, Bless All the Dear Children.