{"id":12738,"date":"2003-03-23T07:59:16","date_gmt":"2003-03-23T12:59:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=12738"},"modified":"2025-02-27T12:06:47","modified_gmt":"2025-02-27T17:06:47","slug":"the-noose-by-ginnyf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=12738","title":{"rendered":"The Noose (by GinnyF)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summary<\/strong>:\u00a0 A deserted town and strange happenings.\u00a0 Will the boys survive the night?<\/p>\n

Rating:\u00a0 T (1,820 words)<\/p>\n

The Noose<\/strong><\/p>\n

The three riders pulled their mounts to a halt and turned to study the horizon behind them. Lightening forked through the storm clouds spilling across the distant peaks.\u00a0 Adam Cartwright checked his horse\u2019s nervous prancing as he spoke worriedly to his brothers. \u201cI don\u2019t mind getting wet, but I sure don\u2019t want to be caught out here in the open with that lightning.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hoss Cartwright removed his hat and scratched his head vigorously. \u201cI told you somethin\u2019 was going to happen today. My head\u2019s itchin\u2019 somethin\u2019 fierce, and that always means trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Their younger brother grinned and shook his head. \u201cThe only thing that means is that you need to wash your hair.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A crack of thunder interrupted the trio\u2019s laughter at Joe\u2019s quip. They looked at the sky with concern. \u201cIt\u2019s gettin\u2019 closer,\u201d Hoss frowned. \u201cWe need to find shelter, fast. Hey, that deserted settlement called Tin Bucket\u2019s around here close. There\u2019s an old trail cuts that way from the road to Warbonnet.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cI think you\u2019re right,” Adam agreed. \u201cAnd, hopefully, the buildings haven\u2019t been torn down for the wood. Maybe we can find a dry spot. At least we\u2019ll be in out of the lightning.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The three men were still ahead of the storm when they rode side by side into what was left of Tin Bucket, Nevada. Dust clouds swirled around the riders as their horses trotted into the deserted town. Everything around them was bathed in an eerie light from the gathering storm. Even in its heyday, Tin Bucket had been barely considered a town.\u00a0 At that time, the single, short street had boasted a small livery stable which housed a few mangy horses and a couple of dilapidated buggies. A rundown saloon serving warm beer and watered-down rotgut sagged beside it. On the other side of the street sat a meagerly stocked general store, which also served as a post office, though mail to and from the town was scarce. The only substantial building had been a jail house with one rusty-barred cell. Now, it was the only building left completely standing, though loose boards and shutters rattled and slammed in the rising wind. Behind the building, unseen by the brothers, the skeletal remains of a gallows still stood, its frayed rope swinging in the wind.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re in luck. That building looks like it still has enough of a roof to keep us fairly dry.\u201d Adam looked up at the sky as the first raindrops pattered onto his hat. \u201cLet\u2019s get inside.\u201d He arched his eyebrow and smiled. \u201cBring the horses. I don\u2019t think anyone will mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dismounting, the brothers started to lead their horses to the door of the building.\u00a0 In the lead, Sport balked, shaking his head and snorting.\u00a0 Behind him, Cochise pranced nervously, and Chubb planted his hoofs firmly and wouldn\u2019t budge.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cCome on, boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s get inside.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s alright.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam and Joe talked softly to their horses and patted them gently, until they succeeded in getting the agitated animals inside. Chubb stubbornly remained planted, forcing Hoss to literally drag the big black through the doorway. Once inside, they used the large cell to stable the horses.\u00a0 The three animals stood huddled together in a corner, clearly uneasy.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat the hell is wrong with these horses?\u201d Joe had found an abandoned rain slicker hanging on a hook by the door.\u00a0 He was using horse shoe nails from Hoss\u2019s saddle bag to secure it across a broken window.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cCould be the storm, or they just got it into their heads that this was a mighty strange barn we were bringin\u2019 them into.\u00a0 Or Cochise and old Chubb were just followin\u2019 Sport\u2019s lead of being stubborn.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss grinned at Adam, who had emerged from the back room.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no kindling back there. I did find a can of coal oil for the lamp. Some extra wicks, too. At least we\u2019ll have light.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hoss started breaking up the remains of a wood chair. \u201cNow we have kindling. Soon as I get this fire goin\u2019, we\u2019ll have coffee, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A clap of thunder shook the ramshackle building and the rain beat against the roof with a vengeance. Errant drops plunked and sizzled on the hot pot bellied stove. \u00a0In the cell, gusts of wind shook the make-shift window covering, while the horses stomped and snorted. Their stomachs satisfied with bread and beans heated on the smoky stove, the brothers prepared to bed down in the only dry corner of the old sheriff\u2019s office.\u00a0 Adam sighed. \u201cI\u2019m thankful that we\u2019re dry, but that constant dripping on the stove is driving me crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know. I think it\u2019s kind of soothing,\u201d Hoss retorted through a yawn.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe wondered aloud. \u201cWhy do you suppose everyone deserted Tin Bucket?\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cLittle brother, the question is \u2018why would anyone want to live here to begin with?\u2019\u201d\u00a0 Hoss chuckled.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWill you two shut up and go to sleep. We have a long ride tomorrow.\u201d Adam turned on his side and pulled his blanket over his head.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe mumbled \u201c\u2018Night, Hoss,\u201d through the hat over his face, and snickered softly when Hoss\u2019s only answer was a snore and a snort.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe shivered and rolled to his side, wrapping his blanket closer around him. \u201cGeeze, it\u2019s cold!\u00a0 There must be something else I can burn in the stove.\u201d\u00a0 <\/strong><\/em>Joe\u2019s eyes popped open and he clambered to his feet. Moonlight streamed in the jailhouse window; the same window he had covered earlier. Around him everything was deathly quiet in the empty building.\u00a0 No snoring brothers or restless horses. He looked around, wide-eyed and puzzled. \u201cWhere the hell are Hoss and Adam and the horses? Better yet, what am I doing in the cell we were using for the horses?\u201d\u00a0 <\/em>Joe pushed on the cell door but instead of squeaking open, it was solidly locked. \u201cHoss! Adam! Fellows! Come on now, this isn\u2019t funny!\u00a0 Hey!\u00a0 Let me out of here!\u00a0 Where the hell are you?\u201d\u00a0 There was no answer, just the continued heavy silence. Sitting on the cot, he pulled the threadbare blanket around himself.\u00a0 The cold draft that had woken him seemed to be blowing straight into the cell.\u00a0 Something moved in front of the door to the back room. A shadow?\u00a0 \u201cAdam? Hoss?\u201d\u00a0 Joe\u2019s words caught in his throat.\u00a0 The draft was turning into a swirling mist. Joe clutched his blanket in trembling hands as the mist assumed the shape of a man. The shape moved towards him, growing more solid as it neared.\u00a0 Joe could now make out the dull gleam of a badge pinned to its shirt.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The door to the jail house opened with a crash. Joe huddled in horror, as a freezing fog flowed into the room, and separated into the forms of a mob of men. There was a rushing noise in Joe\u2019s ears, but he could make out an occasional muffled word.\u00a0 The voices sounding like they came from under water. \u201cMurderer!\u201d \u201cChild killer!\u201d \u201cHang him now!\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A distinct shot rang out. The figure wearing the badge lay crumpled on the floor. It quickly faded away as if it were never there. The shadowy mob advanced on the cell where Joe sat on the cot, paralyzed by fear.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

***********<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam felt jerked out of an uneasy sleep and yanked to his feet.\u00a0 He was dragged to the back room of the jailhouse and out of the back door.\u00a0 The freezing air swirling around him slapped him awake.\u00a0 He found himself standing in front of a gallows in a tiny fenced in dirt yard, completely swept bare of any blade of grass.\u00a0 The night was silent and still, except for a misty, roiling fog.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

He looked wildly around for any sign of his brothers, his teeth chattering in the cold.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The fog now seemed menacing, and his distant voices rang in his ears murmuring, \u201cHang the murderer! \u201c \u201cHangin\u2019s too good for him!\u201d The fog clung to him as he was propelled up the gallows steps.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

*********<\/p>\n

Hoss stood on the gallows platform, unable to grasp what was happening. He had been tossing and turning in his bedroll, strange thoughts and even stranger voices bouncing around his head. All of a sudden, he couldn\u2019t breathe. He felt as if he were being carried away in an icy torrent. He awoke, shocked and terrified to find himself in a freezing fog, on this splintery wooden platform, a noose around his neck. \u00a0He was completely alone.\u00a0 \u201cWhere\u2019re Joe and Adam? Oh, Lord, I hope they got away!\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 He jerked in fear as the noose tightened.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

**********<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cJoe! Joe! Wake up!\u201d Hoss grabbed his brother\u2019s wrist just in time to keep from getting punched in the jaw, as he shook Joe awake. \u201cYou were havin\u2019 one heck of a dream, little brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe stared at Hoss groggily from the corner where he huddled, his jacket awry and his blanket twisted about his body.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I guess I must have, but I sure don\u2019t remember what it was about. Sorry I woke you up.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cYou didn\u2019t. I must have been havin\u2019 a nightmare, too. All I can remember, though, was I couldn\u2019t breathe. I was pantin\u2019 and sweatin\u2019 like a race horse when I woke up, just a couple minutes ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe untangled himself from his blanket and looked around. \u201cWhere\u2019s Adam?\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s waterin\u2019 the horses. He woke up \u2018bought the same time I did. He\u2019s rarin\u2019 to go, even though don\u2019t look any more rested than we do. He didn\u2019t even want any coffee first.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The pair quickly packed up the bedrolls and cooking utensils and went outside.\u00a0 The horses had satisfied themselves at the sagging, rain-filled horse trough. They were impatiently stamping and snorting.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The brothers loaded up their gear. \u201cHey, Adam? Me and Joe both had nightmares last night.\u00a0 How\u2019d you sleep?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t sleep well at all.\u00a0 To tell you the truth, I had a nightmare, too,\u201d his older brother admitted.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t really remember it, though. Whoa, Sport. Settle down, boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cThat sure is strange. That all three of us would have a nightmare, and wake up at pretty much the same time.\u201d Hoss patted Chubb\u2019s flank. \u201cThese horses are still nervous about somethin\u2019.”<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam swung into his saddle. \u201cNot really so strange. It was probably a mixture of the storm and the uneasiness of the horses and being so tired.\u201d He chuckled. \u201cLet alone spending the night in a ghost town.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, well, come on you two. Unless you want to eat our dust,\u201d Joe piped in. Cochise was prancing and pawing the ground, eager to be away. \u201cEver since we came outside, I\u2019ve felt like someone\u2019s watching us. Let\u2019s get out of here.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam and Hoss, following behind Joe, exchanged a grin. But Hoss saw Adam give one last curious look at the old jail as they rode by.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Behind the jail house, in the desolate courtyard, a noose hung silent and waiting.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

*****End*****<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summary:\u00a0 A deserted town and strange happenings.\u00a0 Will the boys survive the night?<\/p>\n

Rating:\u00a0 T (1,820 words)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121,"featured_media":10624,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"template-full-width-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[23,32,29],"tags":[14,17,16],"class_list":["post-12738","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-drama","category-mystery","category-halloween","tag-adam-cartwright","tag-hoss","tag-joe","wpcat-23-id","wpcat-32-id","wpcat-29-id"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/brothers.jpg?fit=296%2C226&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12738","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12738"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12738\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10624"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}