Summary:  Trouble for the Cartwrights in San Francisco. Ben finds out that deeds he did in his past come back to haun him; fortunately, it’s the good deeds that prove to be most useful.
Rating:  PG  (8,580 words)

One Good Turn

Adam Cartwright stood back and brushed his hands on his black pants.  The dust of several days rose in the air.  He felt satisfied with a good job, well done.  The last load of cut timber was loaded and ready for the first leg of its journey to San Francisco and then on to Boston.   For more than six weeks he and his loggers had worked every hour of daylight.  He had fallen into bed, often without eating because he was so tired and on occasion had slept out at the site to save time.

He turned to his foreman and smiled.  “A nice profit in this one and I’ll make sure every man gets a fat bonus at the end of the month.  We’ll take a few easy days to move the equipment up to the stand at Pine Creek.”  He nodded as if satisfied with his plan.  “If you can organise that by the middle of next week, I’ll spend a few days catching up with the rest of the operation down at the house and then join you again.”

The foreman nodded.  “Sure, boss.  The boys’ll be glad of a bit of a break, this one’s been a hard contract to finish in time.”

“Give ’em a few nights in town.”  Adam laughed.  “They’ll soon forget it and spend their money so we get them back.  Contracts that have to meet shipping deadlines are always the worst. The next one is for the Gould and Curry, we can always stall a bit there.”  He removed his hat and wiped a grimy hand across his forehead then rubbed the inside of his hat with his kerchief.

He swung himself into the saddle of his sorrel mare and nodded to the men.  “Thanks for a good job.  I’ll see you in a few days at the new site.”

An hour later unsaddling Beauty in the barn, he was relieved to see that the evening chores were done.  He smiled to himself.  One advantage to having such a big brother as Hoss was that he could do three men’s work and hardly ever complain.  For the past three weeks that was exactly what his brother had been doing, with Adam at the logging site and Little Joe in San Francisco finalising the details of the shipment it had all fallen to Hoss.

Adam pushed open the door and was surprised to hear the sound of raised voices coming from upstairs.  He was even more surprised to note that one of them was his younger brother’s.  Joe should be in San Francisco not here!   He hung up his hat and gun belt and raised an eyebrow in Hoss’s direction.

Hoss was leaning against the stone fireplace with a deepening frown on his face and he looked up with a certain amount of concern when he heard the door open.

“What gives?”  Adam asked moving over to warm his hands at the fire and pointing at the staircase.  “Shouldn’t our little brother be enjoying the pleasures of the big city?”

Hoss shrugged.  “He should, but he ain’t.  He got home an hour ago and he and Pa have been having words ever since.  I dunno what its all about, something to do with your shipping contract.”

Adam’s head came up and he glowered at Hoss  “There was nothing wrong with my shipping contract.   If Joe has done something stupid, if he’s caused a problem, he’ll answer to me.”  He spoke in an angry burst.   He was tired and he didn’t need this.

Both men looked up as Ben rounded the corner of the staircase with Joe right behind him still trying to get his father to listen.  “It wasn’t my fault, Pa.  I swear I didn’t say a thing to Connors.”

Ben looked relieved to see Adam in the living room.  “I suppose Hoss has told you we have a problem?”

Adam glared at Joe, then nodded.  “What has my little brother managed to get wrong this time?”

Joe’s face was suffused with anger and he was about to retort angrily when he felt his father grip his arm.

“I haven’t got to the bottom of it yet, but it seems that Connors is saying he has no ship available to take our lumber.  The first load is still sitting on the quay.” Ben said, his voice quiet now.

“But he can’t do that, the contract is signed, the second and third loads are on their way.  What the hell did you say to him?”  He swung around to face his little brother.

“Don’t start in on me.”  Joe shot back.  “He was refusing the shipment before I got there.  I spent two weeks trying to sort it out and trying to find another shipper.  There isn’t a firm in San Francisco that will touch Ponderosa lumber.”

Adam’s jaw dropped open.  “What do you mean?  What the hell have you done?”

Joe had taken about as much as he was about to.  He had spent three weeks on the trail or rushing around San Francisco to sort this mess out and he wasn’t about to let his older brother blame him for something over which he had no control.  He moved towards Adam his fists clenched.  “Ever think maybe it was something you did before I got there?”  He spat at his older brother.

Ben held up his hands and moved between them.  “I don’t think it was anything either of you did or didn’t do.”  He said slowly.  “This is more than a mistake on a contract or wrong word spoken in haste.  Let’s sit down and think this through.”  He waved them all to chairs and started to pace in front of the fire.

Reluctantly the two combatants drew apart and sat down but both still glowered at the other.

“Now Joe says that no one on the waterfront will take Ponderosa lumber, so this has to be more than Connors not having a ship available.” He saw Adam start to protest and raised a hand.  “Yes, we can sue Connors but what is the point if we can’t find another shipper.  If he won’t load it then no amount of court action will make him.”

Adam was still hot and angry “We could bankrupt him with a lawsuit though.”

Ben shook his head  “He knows that, so something stronger must be motivating him.”

Joe glanced at Adam and wondered if he’d be allowed to say something without interruption.  “Pa, Connors did say one thing that was odd.  When I threatened him, he said our contract was with Connors Shipping, so he didn’t care what we did.”

Hoss had been sitting back allowing his brothers to argue this out but his brain hadn’t been inactive.  “Sounds to me like Connors don’t own it no more.”  He said softly, making his father and brothers look at him in shock.  It wasn’t often that Hoss joined in business discussions unless it was connected with his precious herd but when he did the others listened.  He usually went straight to the point.

Ben nodded as things began to fall into place.  “If you’re right then someone is buying up or threatening the shipping companies, but who?”

Hoss sat forward a little and leaned his elbows on his knees cradling his chin in his hands.  “You musta made an enemy someplace, Pa..”

Ben smiled despite his concern.  “Probably several.  You don’t get through life without a few, no matter how hard you try.  Trouble is I can’t think of anyone recently and certainly no one in the shipping business.”

Adam and Joe had both calmed down now that the discussion had moved on and neither felt the other to blame for the predicament they were in.

Adam leaned forward copying Hoss’s position.  “Joe, can you remember anything else that might help?  I mean was there any sign of a big company buying up smaller ones or companies changing names…I don’t know, even maybe different ships in the harbor.”

Joe’s temper had cooled as fast as it had risen and he grinned.  “I can tell different horses, even maybe different cattle and different women but ships all look alike to me.”  He stopped and considered something and wondered if his brother would laugh at him, then decided the situation was bad enough to risk it.  “There was one thing,”  he hesitated again then plunged on “…a lot of the ships seemed to have the same flag.”  He glanced at his father, “Whaddya call it…a house flag?”

Ben nodded.  “What was on it, Joe?  Can you remember?”

“It was kinda pretty, dark blue with a circle of leaves or somethin’ and the letter ‘M’ in fancy old fashioned writing…you know…like the first letters in the Bible.”

“Like illuminated script?”  Adam suggested.

Joe nodded.  “Yeah, I guess so.”

Neither of them noticed that their father had gone pale and was breathing heavily.  Hoss saw and reached out a huge hand to touch Ben’s arm. “You okay, Pa?”  He asked worriedly, making Adam and Joe glance across in concern.

Ben nodded slowly.  “I haven’t seen that flag in nigh on thirty years.”

“You know it then, Pa?”  Adam asked quietly, a little disturbed to see his father so shaken.

“Yes, I know it.  It’s a Boston shipping company.”  He lowered his voice as if speaking to himself and the boys had to lean further forward to hear him.  “Mandable…after all these years.”

Hoss and Joe looked at Adam but he shook his head, the name meant nothing to him.

“Who is he, Pa?”  Adam whispered almost as quietly.

Ben cast his mind back to the days before Adam was born and tried to find a way to express the hatred he felt for this man.  “He’s a man who tried to ruin me, to destroy your grandfather and ….”  No, even now he couldn’t say it but he could think it, he probably contributed to your mother’s death.   Did he really believe that, no probably not, but the arguments and uncertainties certainly hadn’t helped.

All three of his sons looked at him in surprise.  They had never heard such venom in their father’s voice no matter what wrongs another had done to him.

“You think he’s behind this?”  Joe asked, his voice as quiet as his brother’s had been.

“Its possible, if he found out that Ponderosa Enterprises was owned by a Cartwright, he’d have made enquiries.  He’s got to be an old man by now but he must have done well to be powerful enough to buy out the shippers in San Francisco.”

“What are we going to do about it, Pa?”  Hoss asked.

“The timber is on its way, we have to ship it or lose thousands of dollars and a valuable customer.”  Adam added.

Ben cleared his throat “I’ll go to San Francisco and see for myself.  There must be some way to beat him, if it is him.”

Adam glanced at his brothers  “If he’s as bad as he sounds, you can’t go alone.”

Hoss nodded  “You’ll need me along in case there’s trouble.”

“I was the one supposed to tie up the contract, I’m coming too.”  Joe insisted.

“It was my contract and I worked damned hard for that timber.  I’ll not let anyone hold it up now.  I want to meet this man.”  Adam’s voice hardened as he spoke.

“Hold it!  We can’t all go. This is my fight.”  Ben stopped pacing and faced his three sons, seeing the determination on each face.

“Yes we can, Pa.  Your fight is our fight.  The ranch is running fine, but this could cripple us.  It’s too important to risk.  Besides the last time I let you three go without me,  Hoss and Joe let you get shanghaied.” Despite the seriousness of the situation, Adam attempted a grin.

Ben shook his head.  “It made no sense but he could see that to oppose them he would have to fight and he would need all his fighting strength for Mandable…if that’s who it was.  He couldn’t believe that the man still held a grudge…yes he could…this was the one person in all the world that he still hated, why shouldn’t his enemy feel the same.

Joe stood at the window and stared out across the city. It never ceased to amaze him how it could grow and change so fast.  He was restless and after a few seconds he turned and walked back to where Hoss was stretched out on one of the beds with his eyes closed.  “I don’t see why we have to hang around in the hotel.  We could be out there finding out what’s going on?”  Joe complained.

Hoss  opened one eye and sighed.  “Pa, said we was to stay put and that’s exactly what we’re doing little brother.  Pa and Adam’ll find out what this fella’s up to and then we’ll do somethin’…”

“We could do something now.”  Joe continued reaching for his jacket.

Hoss opened both eyes and slowly sat up.  “You can put that down, ‘cos you ain’t goin’ no place.   You’ll go lookin’ for trouble and you usually find it even when you AIN’T lookin’.”

Joe turned and glared at his older brother  “I didn’t get into any trouble when I was here on my own last week…”

Hoss grunted.  “Leastways, none we’ve heard about.  But then you didn’t know this fella was out to hurt Pa.  Didn’t even know who he was.  Now you do and that’s why you ain’t goin’.”

Joe was about to protest further when the door opened and Ben and Adam walked in.  Ben looked tired and seemed to have aged ten years since the morning.  Adam raised an eyebrow at Hoss and steered his father to a chair.

“Pa was right, it is this fella, Mandable.  In the past couple of months he’s bought up most of the small companies and intimidated others.”

“He can’t own every ship, can he?”  Hoss asked, incredulously.

“He doesn’t need to.”  Ben responded.  “He only needs to own or influence the ones in port.  If the ship is at sea it’s of no use to us.  We need a large ship and we need it now, not in five weeks or next year.”

“You mean there’s no way we can move the lumber and complete on the contract?”  Joe demanded.

“Oh, yes, there’s a way.  Several of the captain’s made it quite clear that they would take the cargo if Mandable gave them permission.”  Adam said, sourly.

“He’s here in San Francisco and  he wants me to go to him and beg.”  Ben said angrily.  “He tried it once before…”  He tried to summon up strength but he was too tired to make it sound convincing  “I didn’t give in then and I won’t now, I’ll go bankrupt before I’ll beg that man for help.”

Adam looked at his brothers then fixed his father with a firm stare.  “C’mon, Pa.  We’re not beaten yet.  Let’s wash and go eat supper.  You’ll feel better in the morning.”

Ben shook his head and stared at the carpet.  “You three go, I’m not hungry.  I’ll just send down for some coffee.”

Adam tried to persuade him and Hoss and Joe added their pleas but he would not budge.  Finally they left him to his thoughts and headed for one of the better restaurants in town.   Once seated Hoss almost devoured the menu, he was so hungry, his order taking far longer to give than anyone else’s.  Joe and Adam were used to his appetite but the waiter kept glancing up to check that he really intended all this for one person.  Adam ordered wine and Hoss glanced at him in surprise.  “Should we, I mean it seems like we’re celibratin’ an’ that don’t seem right somehow?”

Adam shrugged.  “After the day I’ve had I need a drink and I’d rather make it a glass of wine than end up in a bar with a whisky bottle.  Pa needs us to support him so we are not doing the usual rounds tonight.”

Hoss nodded but Joe looked a little disappointed.  He had behaved himself when he had been here in the city alone because he wanted to prove to his father and brothers that he could handle a responsible job when it was given to him.   Despite his abstinence it had still gone wrong and he had rather hoped for a night on the town with his brothers to make up for it.

Over dinner the three brothers discussed the possible options.  Hoss’s ideas were like him, practical and non-violent.  He favored continuing to ask ship’s captains and shipping companies, insisting that new ships must dock every day and one of them might accept the cargo.  Joe’s suggestions were more direct and centred on finding the cause of the problem and ‘persuading’ him with fists or guns to back off.  Adam tried to listen to Hoss but more and more he found himself siding with his younger brother.

“Hoss,”  he said finally  “You’re right more ships do dock everyday but who’s to say that he doesn’t own them.  We might wait weeks and still not find a ship and the third load will be here in a couple of days.  If we don’t move that lumber off the dock before Friday we might as well write of more than a year’s profit for the whole ranch operation.  All the cattle and lumber profits on other deals and your horse sales will have been for nothing.”

Hoss and Joe both gasped.  Neither had realised the full amount of money at stake.

Joe recognised an advantage when he saw one and moved in swiftly.  “An’ if we back down to him, he’ll do it again with our next contract or maybe move in to stop us selling our beef or horses to the army.”

Hoss sighed in resignation, once Joe and Adam lined up together he knew he was beaten.  He could protest but they would do it anyway and he would be left to decide whether to join them or wait to pick up the pieces.  “So what are you two planning?”

Adam held out a hand as Joe started to get to his feet.  “What we’re not going to do is rush in hot headed and cause more trouble.  We’ll visit this Mr Mandable and see what he has to suggest but no threats and no violence.  We need to get the measure of the man before we plan anything.”

“I don’t suppose you got Pa figured anywhere in this plan?”  Hoss asked with more sarcasm than either of his brothers was used to hearing from him.

Adam shook his head.  “We’re only going to talk to the man.  Pa doesn’t need to know anything until we see Mandable and find out what he wants.”  Adam pushed to his feet and took some notes from his pocket book to cover the meal.

Joe followed him and with a final shrug Hoss joined them in the street.

During the day Ben and Adam had discovered that Mandable had a house on Telegraph Hill and it was here that Adam headed with his brothers in hot pursuit.  The white painted house looked a little eerie in the moonlight, it was now past nine and Adam hesitated before knocking.  The door was opened by a wizen little man, who enquired after their business.

“We’d like to talk to Mr Mandable.”  Adam said pleasantly.  “Our name is Cartwright.”

The old man nodded and indicated that they should wait in the hall.

Joe wandered around the large entry and took in the oil paintings of ships, the heavy oak furniture and the fancy drapes.  “He’s not a poor man, that’s for sure.”  He commented.

They all turned as the little man returned and ushered them into a large airy room, which overlooked the bay.  Adam was in front and he stopped suddenly when he saw the man in the big leather armchair by the fire.  He was a large man but old and somehow frail, Adam guessed him to be approaching eighty and he began to doubt that this man could be the cause of their problems.

Mandable did not stand or offer his hand but looked appraisingly at the younger man.  “Stevens said Cartwright and from the description I guessed it had to be Stoddard’s grandson.”  He said in a strong voice that belied his appearance.  “You have the look of your mother.”

Adam decided there was no point in beating about the bush  “If you know who I am, then you know why I’m here.”  He suggested, hoping the man would confirm or deny it and they could solve the problem.

The older man nodded.  “You’re father not man enough to face me?”

Adam visibly bristled.  “He doesn’t know we’re here.  I thought we could solve this without involving him any further.”

Mandable gave a sly smile  “Oh, but you miss the point, my boy.  I don’t want to solve anything.”

“Why do you want to ruin my father?”  Adam asked bluntly.  “What’s in this for you?”

“Vengeance!”  Mandable spat back.  “Thirty years ago your father ruined me!  Oh he didn’t know at the time, he was too busy mourning your mother.  Then he ran away and left me to pick up the pieces.”

Adam shook his head  “I don’t understand. How?”

“Your father stood up to me, no man had ever done that before.  Your grandfather refused to take one of my ships to sea; said my ships were unseaworthy.  Don’t you know that where one man leads others will follow.  They spread the word and I couldn’t find sailors to man my ships.  My shipping business failed and I had to fall back on the chandlery.  But he even managed to beat me there; he undercut me on prices and cast aspersions on my integrity, my customers deserted in droves to buy from him.  I was bankrupt.

The three Cartwrights were so intent on listening to the old man that none noticed that the butler had return and he was not alone.  Two burly men dressed in sailors’ uniforms accompanied him and two more had slipped in through another door.  All five now stood behind Adam and his brothers.

“So you came here to intimidate other businesses?”  Adam said scornfully.  “It was hardly my father’s fault if you based your business on crooked deals and threats.”

“I moved to New Bedford and started again but it took time to build up my business again, when I had he was long gone and your grandfather was an old man.  It took me years to find your father but when you came back to Boston ten years ago I tracked him down.  I sold up and came out here and built on my shipping connections.   I knew that someday I’d be in a position to take my revenge.”  Mandable’s expression was hard and uncompromising, his eyes cold and calculating.

Adam watched him and knew the man was mad, this was no sane businessman out to ruin another. This was a personal vendetta that had festered in his brain for thirty years.  There was no point in prolonging the discussion.

Behind him his brothers watched the proceedings with growing alarm.  It was obvious that nothing would stop this old man.  If he had harbored a grudge for thirty years and allowed it to grow to where it was the meaning for his whole existence, then amount of talking would change his mind.

Joe began to move forward his anger hot, but Hoss stretched out a hand and held him back.  “Leave it, Joe.  He’s a sad old man, who’s not worth going to jail for.”

“Mighty good advice, kid.”  One of the men behind him spoke menacingly and Joe swung around, only to find Hoss there before him shielding him from Mandable’s men.

Adam too turned and drew in a sharp breath when he saw the formidable opposition.  They had been expected, he was sure of it.  Maybe they had even been followed from the hotel.  This man might be old but he was dangerous too.

Mandable looked up at the young men before him.  “Tell your father, I’ll find him a ship when he comes begging.”

“Hell’ll freeze over first.”  Joe snarled.

Adam and Hoss moved either side of their younger brother and none too gently took his arms so that he was almost frog-marched out of the house.  Once outside, Joe shook free from his brothers.  “You gonna let him get away with this and do nothing?”

Adam raised an eyebrow at Hoss.

“Cool off, Joe.” Hoss said quietly.  “What was you plannin’?  Mebbe killin’ an old man?  Or taking on those oafs of his.  That’s what he wanted.  A fight we’d lose.  We end up in jail or on a ship bound for China.”

Adam nodded.  “Or perhaps washed up in the harbor after a nasty accident.  He’s crazy enough.  It happens all the time around the wharf, no one would even care until it was too late.”  He sighed.  “I don’t know how we stop him.  Try buyin’ a ship of our own maybe.”  Adam was confused and frustrated.  He couldn’t see a way out and he didn’t like the feeling.  Slowly they made their way back to the hotel each trying to find a solution and each failing.  By the time they reached the rooms Ben had rented all three were tired and dispirited.  Adam pushed open the door to the room the boys were sharing and stopped on the threshold, making Hoss cannon into him.

Ben was sitting in one of the chairs waiting for them, his expression boded ill for his sons.  “Where have you been?”  He said in a tightly controlled voice.

Hoss and Joe were pleased that Adam was in front of them and despite the fact that their older brother stepped aside, neither made any move forward.

“We went to dinner.”  Adam said calmly, wondering how long Ben had been sitting there and how angry he had managed to get in that time.

“So the waiter told me.  He also told me you left nearly two hours ago.”  Ben tapped his fingers on the table beside him.  “We came here for business, I hope you haven’t forgotten that.  So where have you been?”

Adam sighed.  It seemed stupid to have to relate his every move to his father at his age but he knew that the eyes boring into him already had the answer and were merely looking for confirmation.  “We went to see Mandable.”

Ben nodded, sagely.  “I thought I told you this was my fight, not yours.”

“Pa, the man is sick. There is nothing we could do or threaten that would get him to back down.  You can’t reason with him.  He’s crazy.  He wants revenge for some half imagined hurt you and grandfather caused him because you stood up to him thirty years ago.  He wants to see you beg him to hire you a ship. Nothing else will satisfy him.”

Ben glanced at his youngest son  “And you did nothing except talk to him?”

“No Pa, we only talked.”  Adam replied quietly, not wanting to mention that there had been anyone else there.  “We wanted to see if we could persuade him to change his mind but I don’t think there is a mind there to change anymore.”

Ben nodded  “You’d better sit down and tell me all that he said.  If we are to find a way out I at least need to know where we stand.”

Adam moved into the room and took the other chair while Hoss and Joe sidled up to one of the beds and sat down, still watching their father to see if he was angry with them.

Adam related the events of the evening with the occasional interruption from Hoss or Joe when they thought he hadn’t made a point.  Ben stayed silent his thoughts drifting back to his last encounter with Mandable.  Finally and very reluctantly Adam mentioned the bodyguards.  “We would have ended up dead in the harbor, if we’d tried anything.”  He added, almost apologetically.

Ben nodded again.  “Exactly why I told you to stay put, but you boys always think you know better.”

“What exactly did he do, Pa?”  Adam asked softly, hoping it wasn’t a question that would hurt.

“Thirty years ago Mandable ran the biggest chandlery operation in Boston, probably in New England.  He also had a shipping line, if you can call it that.  His cargo was human misery…”  He saw Hoss’ and Joe’s puzzled expressions.  “He carried slaves or sometimes bonded servants and convicts.  When Adam’s grandfather and I started our own chandlers he saw it as opposition and if there was one thing he couldn’t stomach it was someone trying to be independent of him.  He found a weakness in Captain Stoddard and exploited it.”  He turned to Adam.  “Your grandfather was forced into retirement, the sea was in his blood and he was unhappy on dry land being a ‘shopkeeper’.  He drank too much and one night when he was far too drunk to know what he was signing Mandable offered him command and part ownership of a ship, a slaver.  The Captain took the money from the store and paid Mandable for the partnership.  Later when he came to his senses he tried to back out of the deal but Mandable would let him. He denied he had been paid any money and tried to take possession of the chandlery to recompense him for the loss.  There was a fight and I made Mandable hand over the contract.”

Ben looked across at his oldest son, “That was the night you were born… To me there were other more important things in the months that followed than worrying about whether Mandable bore a grudge.  I have never given him a single thought until now.”

Adam was quiet, realising that this must be bringing back painful memories for his father.  Hoss saw that both were having difficulty and as he often did he bridged the gap with a quiet but perceptive observation.  “An’ he’s never thought of anything else for more than thirty years, until it’s eatin’ him up so bad he’s crazy.”

Joe, ever the man of action, couldn’t keep still, he got to his feet and started to pace.  “Bein’ crazy don’t give him the right to cost us thousands of dollars or threaten folks.  Pa, we can’t just stand by and let him do this.”

Ben reached out to his youngest son and gently touched his arm.  “Joe, he’s done it.  We can’t force those captains to go against him, he’s their employer, their livelihood.  Right at this moment he holds all the cards and unless and until an independent ship comes into port whose captain isn’t afraid of him, we have no other options.”

After a further three days of tramping the wharf and the shipping offices Ben came to the conclusion that there was no ship that Mandable hadn’t got to first.  He debated going to see his old enemy but he knew that was exactly what the man wanted.  This whole conspiracy was planned for one purpose to get him to go to Manadable and negotiate.  Mandable knew he held the strongest hand this time he would make him beg or he would try to; Ben refused to even contemplate it.

Finally, on day three he found a small independent captain who had come to San Francisco for the first time and knew nothing of Mandable or his men.  The man knew there was some problem for he set the price higher than Ben would have liked but at least he accepted the load.  It was arranged that it would be loaded that afternoon and Ben went off to join his sons for the midday meal with a lighter heart.

They had just finished eating when a note was delivered by the waiter.  Ben opened it as he sipped his coffee.  Then shot to his feet as the news it imparted hit him full force.

“Pa, what is it?”  Adam spoke with concern, looking at his father’s shocked white face.

“The captain I spoke to this morning has been shot!  He’s dead along with one of his crew.”  Ben’s voice almost cracked as he spoke.

Adam and Hoss gasped and Joe whistled through his teeth.

“They started loading the timber and some men tried to stop them, when they wouldn’t stop, shots were fired.  This is from the mate, he says he can’t risk loading and wants us to move our wagons away from the ship.  I guess he’s too nervous even to touch them.”

Hoss’s kindly face crumpled in sorrow.  “That poor man.”  He almost whispered.  “He didn’t do nuthin’ ‘cept try to help us and run his business.”

Ben nodded.  “That pretty much decides it, we dump the lumber and go home.  No contract is worth dying for, especially when it’s innocent people.”

“But surely Pa, the law’ll arrest Mandable’s men for murder, him too?”  Hoss asked.

Ben shook his head  “There is no effective law on the water front.  Men are killed every day and no one does anything.  Proving Mandable had anything to do with it would be impossible.”

Frustration and impotence showed on the faces of all three of his sons but even Joe couldn’t argue with his father’s logic.  They had never backed away from a fight but it seemed as if this one was one they couldn’t win and by continuing it more innocent victims would be casualties.

The next morning Ben gathered his sons together and over breakfast presented them with tickets for the next boat to Sacramento.

Joe reacted first,  “So we are giving up?” He said softly, although he had known it was inevitable he had still hoped there was a way to beat Mandable.

“Joe, there is no value in going on.  The cost is too high.  Two men have died.  It’s not just us, it’s everyone we deal with and we can’t ship lumber without a shipping company and a captain and a crew.”  Ben sounded as frustrated as his son.  “I won’t endanger more people.  Besides, four of us here is costing money and there is work to be done at home.  We might wait months and still not find a ship.  If the lumber doesn’t leave the dock within two weeks we miss the contract deadline for sure anyway, as it is a bout of bad weather around Cape Horn or on the run up the coast could mean we pay a late penalty.  I’ve found a buyer who will take the cut lengths for building.  It’s at a low price but it should help defray our costs.”

Adam glanced at his brother then fixed his father with a determined look.  “And the next time?  Do we stop shipping lumber?  How about cattle, think he’ll buy up railroad cars next?”  He said sarcastically. “I know what you’re saying but now he’s found you, he’s not going to let go.”

Ben shook his head.  “He can’t afford to buy every railroad car or buy out every customer.  He’s done this because he knows shipping.”

“I’ve met him, Pa.  He doesn’t have to buy everything. He just has to be one jump ahead of us on a few big deals and we cease to be profitable.  He’s spent thirty years stewing, he’s not going to let it go now, with one ruined deal.”  Adam protested.

Ben wasn’t to be persuaded “Regardless of that, we have to cut our losses and move on and we have to stay one jump ahead.  No talking about deals in saloons…”  he glanced at Joe, who flushed in embarrassment at being singled out.  “We keep everything quiet and maybe we can ship out of another port, but not at the risk of other people.”

At this Adam snorted  “You gotta a suggestion where, maybe we simply drive the cattle to Chicago or send the lumber wagons to Boston direct.”  He said scathingly.

Hoss and Joe looked at one another and waited for the heavens to fall.  It didn’t take long.

“You keep a civil tongue in your head when you speak to me, young man.  I still run this operation and I’ll say what we do or don’t do.”  Ben’s voice was quiet but firm.  “Right now you can start packing while I go and complete the deal to off load that timber.”

He had barely reached the door and had his hand outstretched to the doorknob when there came a knock.  All four looked up in surprise.  Apart from Mandable and a few business acquaintances, no one knew they were here.

Ben opened the door to find a tall well-built man in his mid forties standing there.  He was dressed smartly but looked relaxed and pleasant.  “Mr Cartwright?”  He enquired, but there was a smile of recognition on his face that puzzled Ben.  “You don’t recognise me, do you?  I guess it has been a while.”  The man smiled again.  “Apart from the hair you haven’t changed much so it’s easier for me.”

Ben frowned.  “I’m sorry…should I know you?”

“The Wanderer, all of thirty years ago.  You were her first mate and I was a very poor third hand.  James Price…little Jimmy, you used to call me.”  The man grinned.

Ben’s face clouded for a moment then broke into a smile.  “Of course.”  He exclaimed.  “You must admit you’ve changed since then.”

James Price kept his grin.  “I was fifteen and a skinny kid then.”

“And now?”  Ben asked, quietly.

“Ah, that’s what I came to see you about.  Do you mind if I come in?”

Ben stood back and allowed him to enter.  “These are my sons, Adam, Hoss and Joseph.”

Price nodded and smiled at them.  “Please to meet you, gentlemen.  Your father was my saviour thirty years ago.”  He turned to Ben.  “I hope I can repay that kindness now.”

Ben raised and eyebrow, waiting.

“You need a ship, I understand.  Something about lumber for Boston?”

Ben nodded.  “We are having a few problems.”  He was still unsure of why this man from the past had come here.

“So I heard on the dock this morning. Mr Mandable!  He has been buying up ships and ship’s captains and I guessed he had his reasons; ones that went beyond good business practice, which is why I refused to sell out to him.  I don’t like the man and yesterday’s shooting was brutal.”  He nodded,  “Oh yes, I know about that too.  At the time I didn’t know who you were, and I won’t risk lives for a man I don’t know. I made a few enquiries and here I am.  If you want a ship Mr Cartwright, my clipper, Boston Venturer will be docking tomorrow with a cargo of mining equipment.  She’s large enough to handle your lumber and she’s fast with one of the best captains you’ll find.”

Joe and Hoss looked at each other in triumph, while Adam stared open mouthed but with his eyes shining.  Ben was more cautious.  “Mandable could ruin you, he could see you never find another cargo and your captain has no crew?  He has already killed two men, what makes you think he won’t do the same to you and your captain.”

Price shrugged.  “He might, but if we all back down to bullies like him the world will be a sad place.  As for ruining me, he can try Mr Cartwright but he can’t be in every port or at every deal.  I only own two ships, besides Venturer, one sails the China seas and rarely comes home and the other works out of New York.  Venturer could get cargo elsewhere if Mandable closed San Francisco or Boston to me.  And as for my captains and crew, they are all hand picked and loyal.  You taught me that. A loyal crew is worth taking care of, you never know when you might need them at your back.  Your advice to an inexperienced boy and it was good advice.  It’s something Mandable hasn’t learned he has to buy his loyalty and that means he can be outbid.”

Ben nodded but still persisted.  “Why would you risk anything?  It’s not your problem.  You could end up a dead man.”

Price looked at the three young men and nodded to them. “Ask your sons if they would risk their lives for you or you for them.”  He saw all three nodded in assent. “I was fifteen, scared, away from home and family and very seasick.  You took care of me.  It must have been frustrating to have a boy who knew nothing thrust upon you, but you never showed it.  You showed me patience and kindness, gave me advice and taught me how to survive, not just the sea but the banter below decks, the bullies and the orders.  Without you I would have thrown myself overboard within a month.”

“That was my job, I was the mate.”  Ben replied, quietly.

Price shook his head  “It was more than that.  After you and Captain Stoddard left her, the ship went through some pretty bad masters and mates, they did their job too, with a lash or harsh words.  There’s not one of them I would call friend.  You were my friend and friends stick by each other.  It don’t matter that it’s taken thirty years for me to repay that friendship, it’s enough that I can.”

Ben held out his hand  “Well in that case, I can’t thank you enough for the offer, I hope you don’t lose business or your life by helping me.”

Price laughed.  “I was rather hoping to gain business…yours.  You see, although I have three ships, I also run a freight line out here.  I could transport your lumber to here or any port on the west coast for my ships to pick up, or move it to the deeper mines in the Sierras or to the south of California where there is a lot of new building going on.  I have contacts in that area and I know I could find you customers if you’ll give me the transport business.  The world is getting smaller Mr Cartwright but the prospects are increasing for someone with ambition and energy and I intend to expand my business.”  He chuckled.  “I might even be able to outbid Mandable someday, unless he hangs for my murder first.”

Within forty-eight hours the Boston Venturer was in port and unloaded.  Ben watched nervously as the first load of Ponderosa lumber was brought to the new wharf.  Slowly, over the course of the morning he had seen men assembling to watch, waiting to see what the ship’s new cargo would be.  It worried him but Price was adamant that he wouldn’t back down.  His sons, too, were aware of the men gathering near the ship.

“Hey, Hoss.”  Joe whispered.  “The guy on the left of the warehouse doors, he was at Mandable’s.”

Hoss nodded.  “He’s been there a while.”

“There’s another one of them leaning against that capstan.”  Adam indicated with an almost imperceptible movement of his head.

“Think they mean to stop the loading?”  Hoss asked.

“If they do they’ll get more than they expect.”  Joe said hotly.

Adam rested a hand on his brother’s shoulder.  “Cool off, Joe.”  He deliberately  avoided Joe’s nickname, knowing that would inflame the situation further.  “Let’s see what they have planned before we show our hand.”

“Whaddya mean?  Our hand.”  Hoss asked.

Adam gave a sly grin.  “While you were sleeping like babies last night, I went out and called in a few favors in the city.  Mandable has as many men hired as he thinks it will take to overpower the four of us and maybe the ship’s crew.  He got what he paid for.  I got what we earned in friendship.”  He moved is head around the wharf, indicating other men going about what appeared to be normal business.

Joe recognised the man he’d talked to about unloading the wagons and three or four of his teamsters, all big, burly mule skinners.  A little further along a dapper man in a smart suit was talking to another in similar dress.  Joe raised an eyebrow.

Adam grinned.  “Bart and Lucas might look foppish but Bart’s a better hand with a gun than most I know and they can both can handle themselves in a brawl.  I know I’ve been in a few with them.”  He chuckled.  “And if you ever tell Pa that, I’ll deny it.”

Suddenly Hoss’s head shot up as he spotted a familiar shape,  “Brannigan?”

Adam nodded.  “You told me about him, remember?  He wasn’t hard to find, he’s brought a few pals from the Barbary Coast bars with him.  Said he’d like to help, hadn’t been in a good fight since you beat him.  There are a few more that remember good times or favors, including a few of Hop Sing’s relatives, and they’ll pitch in if we need them, Let’s hope we don’t.”

“Does Pa know?”  Hoss asked.

Adam shrugged. “I didn’t tell him, he might have done the speech about keeping friends out of our fights.  No sense in asking for trouble. I figured if we need them he’d be grateful, if we don’t he’d never know.”

Joe shook his head in amazement.  Adam was somethin’ else.

All three looked up as the three mule trains with the lumber began to enter the wharf.  It would take most of the day to load but they were sure that any opposition would come now.

Ben tensed as the first mule team drew alongside the ship’s hold.  The block and tackle swung into place and the mule skinner, dressed in heavy wool jacket and felt hat, began to fasten the and chain  to the first log.  On the ship the black gaping hole of the hold waited to receive it.

One of the men who had been at Mandable’s moved forward and all the Cartwrights held their breath.  “Don’t move no further.  Turn that load around and head back for the hills, if you know what’s good for you.”  The barrel of a gun reinforced the words.

It was almost as if a whole group of men were on strings as they came upright and swung toward the speaker.  For the first time Ben was aware of the number of people in the area who were not there for legitimate business.  He had guessed at a few of Mandable’s men but the others who gathered near his sons surprised him.

As the mule skinner straightened up to reply Ben was aware of movement on the deck of the ship. James Price was standing at the gangway.  “I don’t reckon he can do that mister.  My ship has to sail with tonight’s tide and she will.”

The man on the dock fired and Price dived for the deck.  The shot went wide and before the second could be fired Joe was on the gunman.  As if from nowhere, more men appeared but they were matched man for man by the Cartwrights and their allies.  Adam found himself fighting alongside his father and in a slight lull, he heard Ben grunting at him  “I suppose you set this up.”  Ben stopped to take a swing at an opponent and as the man fell, he continued  “We’ll discuss it later.”

Hoss and his friend Brannigan provided a solid wall, which dealt with any man approaching the wagons or the ship and sent them into the water.  “This is fun, ain’t it?”  Hoss grinned at his old opponent as he despatched another into the Bay.

It didn’t take long.  Ten or maybe fifteen minutes and the wharf was peaceful again.  Once the fight started there had been very little gunplay, the risk of shooting your own men was too high.  There were a few bruises, black eyes, skinned knuckles, but none of the Cartwright family or friends were badly hurt.  Mandable’s men, on the other hand, were either limping away to lick their wounds or swimming for the shore in an effort to get out of the none to clean water of the dock area.

Price came around from the back of the wagon rubbing his knuckles and grinning.  “Well, now that the festivities are over, let’s get this loaded.  She needs to sail on the tide, that’s at about six and I don’t want her delayed.  If she has to wait for the morning, I’ve a feeling we may get a return visit after dark with more guns. They may try to stop her again.  I don’t see Mandable as a man to give up.”

Several of the ship’s crew and the mule drivers began the task of swinging the huge logs into the hold.  They worked fast and were always alert for more trouble but none came.  People on the wharf came and went but always there was a presence from friends.

Ben went around checking on the injuries of those who had helped and thanking them until only his sons remained for him to speak with.  He moved toward them and the three instinctively shuffled together.

Adam decided his best line of defence was attack.  “We had to do something, Pa.  We couldn’t let all that work go for nothing. We had to try to protect the ship’s crew too.”  He began.

“Yeah,” Hoss chimed in.  “There was too many for us to handle alone.  Adam was right to call in a few friends.”

“Ah, so it was all Adam’s idea!”  Ben fastened on to the slip immediately.

“Well, we’d a’ done it too, if we’d thought about it.”  Joe protested.  “It’s just that Adam knows more folk in the city than we do.”

Ben raised an eyebrow.  “Oh, is that so.”

Adam gave a wry smile as he saw his father’s gaze take in some of the less salubrious characters who had helped out.

The two gamblers stepped forward.  “That’s what friends are for Mr Cartwright.”  Bart smiled.  “Adam’s bailed me out a time or two, I was just repaying the favor.” He said as he slipped his gun back in its holster with practised ease.

Adam groaned as his father’s eyebrow went even higher and he looked at his oldest son with a knowing expression.

Price nodded.  “Let’s say one good turn deserves another.”

Ben sighed.  “All right, I know when I’m beaten.  But the accounts are now settled.”

Price shook his head.  “Friendship doesn’t work that way Mr Cartwright.  In a friendship no one is counting.”

Hours later, after they had watched the Boston Venturer put out to sea,  and Price had reported back that Mandable had left town on one of his own ships.  Joe got his party, a noisy one in a bar owned by one of the men who had helped.  Ben didn’t approve but he could hardly object.  James Price had reminded him of a few drinking sessions during his time serving with Ben and suggested they might make real interesting stories for his sons to hear.  So Ben gave in with a good grace.  As the evening progressed and became more rowdy, James Price climbed on to a table and held his glass aloft.  “To friendship, may it grow stronger every day.”

The End