{"id":13566,"date":"2016-12-19T17:37:51","date_gmt":"2016-12-19T22:37:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=13566"},"modified":"2025-09-25T15:41:21","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T19:41:21","slug":"belly-of-the-whale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=13566","title":{"rendered":"Belly of the Whale (by McFair_58)"},"content":{"rendered":"

SUMMARY<\/strong>:\u00a014 year old Joe Cartwright was just trying to do something nice for a friend. Older brother Adam didn’t see it that way. An argument between brothers sets off a series of events that turns into an unstoppable torrent of trouble, which leaves one of Ben Cartwright’s sons with a terrible task to perform and another near death, trapped in the Belly of the Whale.<\/p>\n

Rated: PG-13 for mild language and implied adult situations, which do not occur. \u00a0\u00a0 WC 76,500<\/p>\n

All known and public characters belong to those who created them. \u00a0All new characters belong to the author. \u00a0There is no intent to infringe on copyright and no money is being made – just friends and warm hearts hopefully!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Belly of the Whale<\/strong><\/p>\n

Prologue<\/p>\n

I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God.\u00a0 Jonah 2:6:\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

A shovel driven down, lifting, hefting, tossing.\u00a0\u00a0 Not an unusual sound.\u00a0 It happened frequently around a ranch \u2013 manure flung in the barn, grain being struck and winnowed, weeds in the field or garden cut down and tossed in a pile along with the dirt that held them.\u00a0 It was the sound of good clean hard work.\u00a0 Yes, that\u2019s what it normally was.<\/p>\n

Not today.<\/p>\n

Oh, no.\u00a0 Not today.<\/p>\n

Each shovelful of earth that struck the ground before him jolted twenty-seven year old Adam Cartwright with the force of a bullet penetrating flesh.\u00a0 The sound carried with it the same white-hot fire, the same sense of being torn apart \u2013 the same sick-in-the-gut-terror that something had entered that wasn\u2019t supposed to and something irreplaceable had been carried out on the other side.<\/p>\n

He glanced at the hole in the ground.<\/p>\n

Something irreplaceable had been carried out, all right.<\/p>\n

Adam passed a hand before his eyes, swatting at the darkness that refused to go away.\u00a0 Then he glanced at his younger brother, Hoss, who stood on the other side of their father.\u00a0 Hoss\u2019 giant hand was anchored on their pa\u2019s shoulder, linking the two of them in their despair.\u00a0 Adam sighed.\u00a0\u00a0 He <\/em>stood apart as he always stood apart, driven by that thing <\/em>inside him that insisted he remain cool, collected \u2013 in control.\u00a0\u00a0 He should offer that same touch \u2013 a touch of comfort to the man who gave him life.\u00a0 But he knew if he did that control would crack and then Pa would have another son to grieve over \u2013 not just the one already lost \u2013 but a living breathing<\/em> dead man.<\/p>\n

Another shovelful of dirt was taken up and tossed aside.\u00a0 The man was careless.\u00a0 Several clods tumbled back into the open grave to strike the top of the ugly pine box that had just been revealed; the one meant for a pauper that cradled a prince instead.<\/p>\n

Thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe was dead.<\/p>\n

Thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Stubborn, mule-headed, damned<\/em>-if-I\u2019ll-listen-to-you-older-brother<\/em>; beautiful, brilliant, irreplaceable Joe.<\/p>\n

Thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe.\u00a0 His kid brother who\u2019d been so angry with him; who\u2019d fled the ranch in a fit of blazing hot anger that drove all notion of kin<\/em> aside.<\/p>\n

Thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe, who\u2019d chosen strangers over his own, running away, disappearing, never to be seen again.<\/p>\n

Thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Until now.<\/p>\n

Adam shuddered as another shovelful of dirt hit the ground, some of it scattering and brushing his boots.\u00a0\u00a0 Pa insisted once they knew.\u00a0 Adam breathed deep.\u00a0\u00a0 Once they\u2019d been told<\/em> what happened, Pa insisted.\u00a0\u00a0 He had to see his son.<\/p>\n

Had to touch Joe one last time.<\/p>\n

Pa was looking down into the grave, at that damned pine box, as the man reached for the lid.\u00a0 Adam turned aside.\u00a0 He<\/em> couldn\u2019t.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t want to see, because he knew what he would <\/em>see.\u00a0 When he closed his eyes in the empty years to come, he wanted the image behind them to be his little brother laughing and snorting and fighting and shouting, not some bloated corpse with blackened lips and staring eyes.<\/p>\n

God.<\/p>\n

Joe….<\/p>\n

Adam glanced over his shoulder at the tree where the ropes still dangled, cut in stark silhouette against the horizon.\u00a0 The sheriff of Genoa was there, watching them, and about half of the citizenry of the town.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t know the name of Cartwright.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t know how impossible it was that his little brother had shot and killed the manager of the new Genoa City Bank and robbed it, callously stealing their sweat and blood.<\/p>\n

Blood. \u00a0This was his<\/em> blood.<\/p>\n

Joe was dead.<\/p>\n

He was only fourteen.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

PART ONE<\/p>\n

For thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed me about: all thy billows and thy waves passed over me.\u00a0 Jonah 2:3<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

ONE<\/p>\n

\u201cStay put.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd don\u2019t get into trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean it, Joe.\u00a0 Don\u2019t move from this spot until we get back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you understand?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe?\u201d<\/p>\n

What was it about a nodding head that older brother Adam just didn\u2019t seem capable of understanding?<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, answer me!\u201d<\/p>\n

The boy with the curly brown hair whirled in the buckboard seat to face the man in black.\u00a0 A forced smile on his face, he saluted smartly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir!\u00a0 Captain Adam, sir!\u00a0 I\u2019ll keep my butt glued to this here wagon seat and I won\u2019t move from this here spot until I see the whites of those there eyes again, and I won\u2019t <\/em>get into any trouble, and I won\u2019t smile at anyone or have any fun or enjoy coming to town at all.\u00a0 Sir!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Older brother Adam sighed.<\/p>\n

Joe hated it when he did that.<\/p>\n

It reminded him too much of Pa.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, it\u2019s not that I don\u2019t want you to enjoy your visit to town.\u00a0 It\u2019s just that \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

His curly head wagged.\u00a0 \u201c…that you\u2019re a boy and Virginia City\u2019s no place for a boy to go roaming by himself \u2018cause he can get into all kind\u2019s of trouble with a capital \u2018T\u2019.\u201d\u00a0 Joe rolled his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve heard that speech so many times, big brother, that I can recite it in my sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe it\u2019d be a good thing if you did, little brother,\u201d his other sibling remarked as Hoss dropped a heavy load in the back of the wagon making both it and him jump.\u00a0 \u201cSince it seems hearin\u2019 it durin\u2019 the day ain\u2019t makin\u2019 it sink in so\u2019s you can tell.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe did everything in his power to avoid looking crushed. \u00a0But he was crushed.\u00a0 Middle brother, Hoss, his soul mate and partner in crime had turned twenty-one last year and just as quickly turned on him.\u00a0 What happened to that big giant of a brother who used to back him up?\u00a0 The one who helped him pay older high-and-mighty you-don\u2019t-nothing<\/em>\u00a0 brother Adam back when he got too big for his college-educated britches?\u00a0 The one who at least let him raise Heck if not quite making it to Hell?<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss and I are going to go over to the saloon for one <\/em>beer, Joe.\u00a0 Just one\u00a0 It\u2019ll take maybe ten minutes,\u201d Adam said as he rounded the wagon and stepped into the street.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI expect you to stay put until we get back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe eyed the sun, which was almost directly overhead.\u00a0 \u201cRight here?\u201d he asked, squinting.\u00a0 \u201cPa ain\u2019t gonna like it much if I come home with my brains baked.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAny more<\/em> baked, don\u2019t you mean, little brother?\u201d Hoss snorted.<\/p>\n

Joe scowled.<\/p>\n

Traitor.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right, Joe.\u00a0 You can leave the wagon.\u00a0 But I want you to stay in sight.\u00a0 If I look out of the saloon, I want to see you. \u201c<\/p>\n

Adam pinned him with that look, the one that said, \u2018If not, you\u2019ll answer to me\u2019, but that really meant, \u2018If not, you\u2019ll answer to Pa<\/em>.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cYou hear me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLoud and clear, big brother.\u201d\u00a0 He eyed the mercantile.\u00a0 \u201cIs it okay if I step in and buy a drink, or do you think I can manage to get into trouble in the two minutes it takes to do that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt wouldn\u2019t be a record,\u201d Adam groused.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat if I need to relieve myself?\u201d Joe pushed, one thick mobile eyebrow cocked and ready to shoot.\u00a0 \u201cDo I need to come into the Palace for a permission slip before heading to the privy?\u201d<\/p>\n

At his look, the twenty-seven year old threw his hands up into the air.\u00a0 \u201cAll right.\u00a0 All right.\u00a0 If I don\u2019t see you when I look out, I\u2019ll give it a couple of minutes.\u00a0 Does that work?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe crossed his arms in triumph and grinned.\u00a0 \u201cThat works.\u201d<\/p>\n

Without warning, Adam moved in, placing a hand on his leg.\u00a0 \u201cJoe, I mean it.\u00a0 No<\/em> chasing girls. \u00a0No<\/em> wandering off with your buddies.\u00a0 And no<\/em> poking your nose in at the Reisen House!\u201d<\/p>\n

With that older brother spun on his heel, signaled to Hoss, and the two of them walked across the street to the Palace where they pushed open the batwing doors and entered the saloon\u2019s darkened interior.<\/p>\n

For a moment Joe sat in the wagon fuming.\u00a0 He was so tired of being ordered around \u2013 of being \u00a0told what to do and what not <\/em>to do without at least having a say \u2013 that he was tempted to up and get into some trouble with a capital \u2018T\u2019 just to prove the two wise-acres right.\u00a0 Then he thought about his pa.\u00a0 The last time he\u2019d hitched a ride on somebody else\u2019s hair-brained scheme and ended up in Roy Coffee\u2019s jail for getting into a fist fight to try to stop one, and Pa\u2019d come to get him, the older man had looked so disappointed it\u2019d near killed him.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t want to hurt his Pa.\u00a0 He really didn\u2019t want to hurt his brothers either.\u00a0 He loved all of them.\u00a0 He just wished….<\/p>\n

Well, dang it, he was almost fifteen!\u00a0 He just wished they\u2019d let him grow up.<\/p>\n

\u201cHi, Little Joe.\u00a0 What are you doing?\u201d a light feminine voice asked.<\/p>\n

Joe swiveled in the seat to find Maisie O\u2019Malley coming out of the mercantile.\u00a0 She was carrying an armload of packages.\u00a0 The shop owner was following behind her with an exasperated look on his face and a second armload a mile high.<\/p>\n

Hopping down from the wagon, Joe went to greet her.\u00a0 Maisie looked real pretty today.\u00a0 She was wearing a dress of a soft shimmery cloth that clung to all her curves.\u00a0 It was the color of her auburn hair.\u00a0 She wore it swept up like most of the girls who worked at Reisen\u2019s, with a dozen or more little tendrils spiraling down around her peach-perfect skin and framing her bold near-black eyes.\u00a0 Maisie wasn\u2019t her real name.\u00a0 It was really Madeline, but she said that name was too ordinary for a woman who was going to one day be celebrated on the stage.\u00a0\u00a0 She was near four years older than him, but they\u2019d gone to school together in the one room school house and been friends ever since.\u00a0 His pa didn\u2019t approve of Maisie anymore \u2018cause of the kind of work she\u2019d chosen.\u00a0 When he apologized to her one time for his pa practically turning his back on her and hustling him away, she\u2019d just laughed and said it was okay.\u00a0 His pa just didn\u2019t understand.<\/p>\n

Artists had to suffer for their art.<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe Cartwright!\u201d the store owner exclaimed.\u00a0 \u201cJust the man I wanted to see!\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe pointed at his chest.\u00a0 \u201cMe?\u00a0 How come?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have customers backed up from here to eternity and Maisie needs help delivering all of these goods for the new stage show to Reisen\u2019s.\u00a0 Would you be a good lad and run these over for me?\u201d<\/p>\n

He asked the last while shoving a half dozen packages into his arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey!\u00a0 I can\u2019t do that.\u00a0 I\u2019m supposed to \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease, Joe,\u201d Maisie pleaded, her painted black lashes fluttering.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d be so<\/em> appreciative.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe looked at her.\u00a0 Her painted lips were parted just a bit and curled in a smile.\u00a0 Close beneath, her bosom was heaving.\u00a0\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t help but notice since the bodice of her dress was cinched tight as a saddle and kind of pushed everything she had…up.\u00a0 Torn, he cast his gaze toward the Palace, thinking of his promise to brother Adam.\u00a0 Well, he wasn\u2019t chasing a girl.\u00a0 He was helping <\/em>one.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t running off with one of his friends either.\u00a0 And he wasn\u2019t poking his nose in at Reisen\u2019s, he was being invited<\/em> in.<\/p>\n

Adam said to stay in sight \u2013 every few minutes.<\/p>\n

Surely, it wouldn\u2019t take more than a few to deliver a few packages.<\/p>\n

Joe reached over and took a package off of Maisie\u2019s stack and anchored it to the top of his own.\u00a0 \u201cYour wish is my command, milady,\u201d he grinned.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you!\u201d the shopkeeper said gratefully as he headed back into his store.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll be sure to tell your Pa how helpful you were, young man, the next time I see him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou do that!\u201d Joe tossed over his shoulder as he let Maisie take the lead.<\/p>\n

That way he could watch her sashay as they crossed the street.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A few minutes earlier, Adam Cartwright had walked to the batwing doors of the Palace and looked out.\u00a0 Finding his little brother still in place, he returned to the bar.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe still out there, Adam?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss asked as he came alongside him.<\/p>\n

\u201cStill on the wagon seat, sitting in the sun.\u201d\u00a0 He took a sip.\u00a0 \u201cProbably trying to work up a burn so he can tell Pa I left him out too long.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, Adam, ease up.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s just a kid and you ride him awful hard.\u201d<\/p>\n

He glanced at his brother.\u00a0\u00a0 At twenty-one, Hoss was already a giant.\u00a0 Since he\u2019d started coming into the saloon with him, things had been a lot quieter.<\/p>\n

\u201cI ride Joe hard because he needs to be ridden hard.\u00a0 Pa lets him get by with murder.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s just high-spirited.\u00a0 Like them horses he loves so much.\u00a0 The boy\u2019s got more energy than he knows what to do with.\u00a0 You just gotta channel it right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam swallowed the last sip of the whiskey he\u2019d opted for and relished the burn as it went down.\u00a0 It was early for hard liquor, but his little brother had put him in the mood.\u00a0 \u201cHigh-spirited.\u00a0 Like his mother, you mean?\u00a0 Look where that got Marie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, Adam.\u00a0 That ain\u2019t nice.\u00a0 Marie couldn\u2019t of done nothin\u2019 to stop that horse fallin\u2019 \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cExcept ride sensibly<\/em>.\u00a0 Except rein both the horse and<\/em> herself in.\u00a0 Except think<\/em> of what it would do to others if something happened to her.\u201d\u00a0 Adam fought for control.\u00a0 The emotions he felt when he thought of his father\u2019s third wife and her unnecessary death even now, some nine years later, were raw.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cIt seems to me that you and Pa think all I want to do is break Joe\u2019s spirit.\u00a0 I don\u2019t.\u00a0 I want to keep him alive!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss was looking at his beer.\u00a0 \u201cSorry, Adam.\u00a0 I know you love Joe.\u00a0 But, he ain\u2019t you<\/em> \u2013 no more than he\u2019s me.\u201d\u00a0 The big man grinned as he turned his mug with his fingertips.\u00a0 \u201cFact is, if he\u2019s like anybody, I think it\u2019s Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa?\u201d<\/p>\n

His younger brother nodded.\u00a0 \u201cLookit what happened the other day when that there fancy citified lawyer delivered that summons.\u00a0 I thought Pa was gonna take his head off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam \u2018s lips quirked.\u00a0 \u201cPa does have quite a temper.\u00a0 But then again,\u201d he raised a finger and ordered a refill, \u201cone more word out of that shyster\u2019s mouth and I would have done it for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa said he\u2019s gonna have to go to Genoa for a hearin\u2019.\u00a0 Is that right?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam smiled at the pretty girl who brought his drink.\u00a0 He tasted it to make sure they weren\u2019t trying to substitute a cheaper whiskey since he\u2019d already had one and then took a swig.\u00a0 \u201cWe leave late tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re goin\u2019 with him?\u201d<\/p>\n

The man in black grinned.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s the matter?\u00a0 You think you can\u2019t keep track of that little hellion of a brother we have for three days?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHeck, no.\u00a0 Joe and me, well….\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s voice fell off.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDang it, Adam!\u00a0 I ain\u2019t been payin\u2019 much attention to Joe lately.\u00a0 Between Pa givin\u2019 me more responsibility with the cattle and the men, and him, well, not bein\u2019 able to do what I want to do anymore, we\u2019ve kind of drifted apart.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss finished his beer and signaled he was done.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe these here three days will give us a chance to talk.\u00a0 I\u2019ve got a feelin\u2019 he\u2019s hurtin\u2019 some.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe?\u00a0 Hurting?\u201d\u00a0 Adam finished his drink.\u00a0 \u201cGod created that boy with a hurt look on his face.\u00a0 It\u2019s what gets him into so much trouble.\u00a0 Men hate it.\u00a0 Women love it.\u00a0 And men hate it because<\/em> the women love it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLeast we done a good job teachin\u2019 Joe to look out for hisself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, he\u2019s a scrapper all right.\u00a0 Still, he\u2019s got a thing or two to learn when it comes to defending himself.\u00a0 Chiefly, the fine art of when to fight and when to walk away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss snorted as he pushed off the bar.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m thinkin\u2019 Joe don\u2019t know there is <\/em>a time to walk away.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPrecisely.\u201d<\/p>\n

As they began to walk, his giant of a brother put a hand on his arm and halted their progress.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou hear that?\u201d<\/p>\n

He did.<\/p>\n

Together they walked to the batwing doors.\u00a0 The street was alive with dust and tumbling men.\u00a0 He looked at the wagon.\u00a0 Little Joe was nowhere in sight.<\/p>\n

Here they went again.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cJust put that down over there, Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maisie was standing in the light that fell through one of the tall windows on the uppermost floor of the Reisen House.\u00a0 That\u2019s where the stage was and where the packages he\u2019d been hauling needed to go.\u00a0\u00a0 The sunlight set her deep red hair on fire and sparked in the tiny bits of glass she had sewn into what she called her \u2018working\u2019 dress.\u00a0 Maisie was too young to be one of the girls the cowhands referred to a \u2018sweat and perfume\u2019 woman.\u00a0 She was a hostess in the main room and performed in the dance hall routines \u2013 both the ones that took place on the saloon floor and the ones up here that were put on for private paying customers.<\/p>\n

Joe stared at her for a moment, appreciating her like one of his pa\u2019s fine horses and then said, regret in his voice.\u00a0 \u201cI better get going, Maisie.\u00a0 Adam and Hoss are probably back at the wagon by now and we gotta get home.\u201d<\/p>\n

She turned and looked at him.\u00a0 Her pretty face was masked in shadows.\u00a0 \u201cOne more stop, okay?\u201d\u00a0 Maisie held out the largest of the boxes.\u00a0 \u201cThis one goes to my room.\u00a0 Can you carry it for me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe walked over to her.\u00a0 Looking at the steamer size trunk that he had just hauled up the stairs, he asked, \u201cHow come we didn\u2019t drop this off on the way up?\u201d<\/p>\n

She batted those lashes again.\u00a0 \u201cI forgot.\u00a0 Forgive me, Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

As he hefted the package, he asked, \u201cWhat\u2019s in it?\u201d<\/p>\n

The redhead smiled.\u00a0 \u201cClothes for me.\u00a0 From one of the patrons.\u00a0 I\u2019ve got a special performance to give tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

He grinned as they began to walk.\u00a0 \u201cIs he a producer?\u00a0 Are you gonna get to act?\u201d<\/p>\n

Her nod came slowly.\u00a0 \u201cSure thing.\u00a0 He saw me on the floor the other night and told me he wants to help me get my career started.\u00a0 Says he\u2019s done it for lots of girls and they\u2019re all taken care of real well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe balanced himself with one arm against the wall as he followed Maisie down the stairs to the second floor.\u00a0 Instead of going on downstairs, she turned and walked down the hallway.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey!\u201d he said, following.\u00a0 \u201cYou got a new room or something?\u201d<\/p>\n

She nodded.\u00a0 \u201cBigger one.\u00a0 It looks out on the street. \u201c<\/p>\n

The street.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d have to look out of it when they got there and see if Adam was standing in the middle of it with steam coming out of his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll take a look. Then I gotta go, Maisie.\u00a0 Really.\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked over her shoulder at him and gave him a wistful smile.\u00a0 \u201cIf you still want to.\u201d<\/p>\n

Puzzling over her answer, Joe followed Maisie into her new room.\u00a0 It was a big one, with red velvet curtains and a big fancy tall wood bed.\u00a0\u00a0 After putting the package down where she told him to, Joe moved to the window and looked out to see that, right in front of the mercantile, there was a brawl going down.<\/p>\n

Bet older brother would be happy he\u2019d moved.<\/p>\n

\u201cAre they out there?\u201d Maisie asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cHard to tell,\u201d he said, swinging back into the room.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s fight and the dust is thick as \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

Joe halted.\u00a0 Maisie had her hair down.\u00a0 The bodice of her dress wasn\u2019t quite as tight as before and she was heading right for him.<\/p>\n

The fourteen year old boy swallowed hard and headed for the door.<\/p>\n

Maisie caught his arm on the way out.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe,\u201d she said softly, refusing to let go.\u00a0 \u201cKiss me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Maisie,\u201d he worked at her fingers.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you think you\u2019re doing?\u201d<\/p>\n

Tears entered her eyes.\u00a0 \u201cWhat would you say if I told you your pa was right all along.\u00a0 That I sold myself to have what I want?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe wasn\u2019t entirely sure what she was talking about, but he had a good idea.\u00a0\u00a0 Breaking loose, he said, \u201cYou\u2019re better than this, Maisie.\u00a0 You know you are.\u201d\u00a0 He swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t have to do this.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I want to, Joe.\u00a0 I want to be an actress and this is the only way.\u00a0 I\u2019m not a Cartwright.\u00a0 I don\u2019t have any money.\u00a0 This is the only \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u00a0 No, it\u2019s not. \u201c\u00a0 Joe paused.\u00a0 \u201cYou haven\u2019t…well…yet, have you?\u201d<\/p>\n

She shook her head.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Her fingers trailed down his chest.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI was hoping maybe….\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe frowned.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMaybe what?\u201d<\/p>\n

Her eyes lit with hope.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe you\u2019d <\/em>be my first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe let out a low whistle.<\/p>\n

Adam never mentioned trouble spelled with a capital \u2018M\u2019.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cYou see him, Adam?\u201d Hoss shouted as he pulled two more brawling men apart and then brought their heads together with a resounding crack!<\/em><\/p>\n

Adam was near the bottom of the pile.\u00a0 A hand came up to signal that he hadn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Hoss continued to wade in.<\/p>\n

They\u2019d asked as they approached and it seemed the brawl was one of those typical lazy Saturday afternoon ones that sprung up to check the boredom.\u00a0 No one knew what started it.\u00a0 No one really cared.\u00a0 The townsfolk were divided into two teams, one cheering the fighting on and the other yelling for the sheriff to come and stop it.\u00a0 A minute before a body had hurtled through the plate glass window of a nearby store and now people were wagering on whether or not the store owner had any kind of insurance.<\/p>\n

It\u2019d be a fool in Virginia City who didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

They figured little brother would be right at the heart of it, but so far there was no sign of Little Joe.\u00a0 Maybe he\u2019d been right smart this time and gone inside the store.\u00a0 Maybe he was watching all the action through that there glass window that fronted it.<\/p>\n

And maybe, today, pigs really were<\/em> gonna fly.<\/p>\n

A moment later a dusty Adam righted himself and came walking toward him out of the melee, wiping his bloody knuckles on his pants\u2019 leg.<\/p>\n

Hoss shoved another man forward so his nose made the acquaintance of one of the poles supporting the porch.\u00a0 He watched him fall and then turned to his brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u201d\u00a0 He inclined it them toward the shopkeeper.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMaybe Sid will know something.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man was standing in the doorway of his shop waving a frantic hand.\u00a0 Hoss looked and saw Roy Coffee and two deputies approaching.<\/p>\n

\u201cSid, you seen Little Joe?\u201d he asked the man.<\/p>\n

The shopkeeper was preoccupied.\u00a0 It took a second before he answered.\u00a0 \u201cYour brother\u2019s not here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss watched Adam\u2019s form go rigid.\u00a0 \u201cWell, if he\u2019s not here<\/em>, then where is he?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sid was stepping off the porch and heading for Roy.\u00a0 As he walked he tossed over his shoulder, \u201cLast time I saw him, he was going into the Reisen House with Maisie.\u00a0 You might try there.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe had done a fair amount of kissing in his brief life and maybe touched a few things here and there that would have given pa a conniption fit if he knew, but first and foremost his pa had taught him to be a gentleman where women were concerned.<\/p>\n

Even ones who wanted him to be something else.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe caught Maisie\u2019s wrist with his hand.\u00a0 \u201cMaisie, both you and I know that I have a hard time thinking through the things I do.\u00a0 When something comes along, I grab it and run all out.\u00a0 But this, Maisie, think.\u00a0 <\/em>You can\u2019t ever get back what you\u2019re thinking of throwing away on some old man who\u2019s made you promises he\u2019s most likely not <\/em>going to keep.\u00a0 I know you want to be an actress bad enough you can taste it, but \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, don\u2019t you see, Joe?\u00a0 If it\u2019s you…first…then I\u2019m not throwing it away.\u00a0 That way with…him…I\u2019ll have someone else to think about.\u00a0 It\u2019ll just be,\u201d her voice broke, \u201canother acting job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaisie, no!\u00a0 You can\u2019t go through with it.\u201d\u00a0 He circled her other wrist with his fingers, so he held them both.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re not one of those painted women downstairs.\u00a0 Remember?\u00a0 You promised you never would be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maisie slumped.\u00a0 She leaned her head on his shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know if I can keep that promise,\u201d she said, her voice small and sad.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure you can.\u201d\u00a0 Joe lifted her chin so she had to look into his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cSure<\/em> you can.\u00a0 Look, I\u2019ll ask Pa.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure he could find you some work somewhere.\u00a0 He knows lots of people.\u201d\u00a0 Joe placed a hand alongside her face.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re better than this, Maisie.\u00a0 Way better.\u201d<\/p>\n

She was gently sobbing now.\u00a0 \u201cOkay,\u201d she said, her voice barely more than a whisper.\u00a0 \u201cOkay.\u00a0 Thanks, Joe.\u201d\u00a0 Maisie looked up.\u00a0 Her smile was wan, but it was there.\u00a0 \u201cReally, thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her lips were so close he could feel their heat.\u00a0 She was leaning on him, her heart beating in time with his own.\u00a0 When she lifted her face toward his and then pressed her lips against his, he didn\u2019t fight but went with it.<\/p>\n

He should have fought.<\/p>\n

Between one heartbeat ad the next, all Hell broke loose.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For a moment, Adam was unable to speak.\u00a0 When the words came out, they were loud enough for the bankers in Placerville to hear.<\/p>\n

\u201cWHAT THE SAM HILL DO\u00a0 YOU THINK YOU\u2019RE DOING!\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe started guiltily and pulled away from Maisie. Adam noted as he did that the top of the girl\u2019s bodice was undone.\u00a0 His eyes shot to the bed behind her.<\/p>\n

Thank God, it <\/em>wasn\u2019t!<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s mouth was open.\u00a0 He was stuttering something about it not being what it looked like.\u00a0 That was probably true, because at this moment he was so absolutely and positively livid <\/em>that he couldn\u2019t see a single thing!<\/p>\n

All sorts of things flew through Adam\u2019s mind as he took his first step into that room, chief among which was what the hell he was going to tell Pa when he had to tell Pa something.\u00a0 Joe was his responsibility.\u00a0 His little brother didn\u2019t know, but Pa\u2019d only let the kid come to town because he\u2019d argued for it, saying Joe had been a lot of help the day before putting up the new fence in the north pasture and it seemed like he was maturing into quite a young man.<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s eyes went to Madeline O\u2019Malley.<\/p>\n

But dear God!\u00a0 Mature enough for…this?<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cAdam, you gotta listen.\u00a0 I was just helping Maisie \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo what?\u00a0 Get undressed?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Adam.\u00a0 No!<\/em>\u00a0 You ain\u2019t listening to me.\u201d\u00a0 Joe\u2019s voice was rising in concert with his temper.\u00a0 \u201cYou got it all wrong!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cDid I or did I not<\/em> tell you to remain where I could see you?\u201d he demanded.<\/p>\n

Joe swallowed.\u00a0 \u201cWell, yeah, but Maisie needed help and Mister \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Maisie needed help<\/em>, did she?\u201d\u00a0 He turned on the young woman who he knew was at least<\/em> three years older than his kid \u2013 his kid<\/em> brother.\u00a0 \u00a0\u201cSeems to me like she was intending to help you learn something new.<\/em>\u00a0 You could be driven out of town for this if Pa wanted to make trouble.\u00a0 Are you aware of that?\u201d he said pointedly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou leave her out of this!\u201d his brother protested.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not her fault, Adam.\u00a0 If you\u2019d just listen!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cOh!\u00a0 Then you admit it\u2019s yours!\u201d\u00a0 Adam\u2019s jaw was tight . His anger matched his brother\u2019s.\u00a0 Good God!\u00a0 The boy could have been ruined for life.\u00a0 He could have picked up some kind of a disease.\u00a0 He could have been bound to a woman he didn\u2019t love if she came up…in a maternal way.\u00a0 His fingers formed into fists.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s about time you acted like the man you want us to think you are and took responsibility for something!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you calling me a child?\u201d Joe shot back.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.<\/em>\u00a0 There.\u00a0 I said it.\u00a0 You\u2019re a child.\u00a0 A reckless, irresponsible self-centered child!\u00a0 Joe, for God\u2019s sake, you\u2019re fourteen!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYou were practically running the ranch at fourteen,\u201d Joe snapped back.\u00a0 \u201cYou telling me you <\/em>weren\u2019t a man?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d he breathed deep.\u00a0 \u201cI am not saying you can\u2019t be a man at fourteen.\u00a0 What I\u2019m saying is that you<\/em> aren\u2019t!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa says\u00a0 \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa doesn\u2019t think straight where you\u2019re concerned.\u00a0 It\u2019s just like it was with your mother.\u00a0 Pa never could tell her \u2018no\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe just stared at him.<\/p>\n

Adam sucked in air.\u00a0 He ran a hand along his forehead.\u00a0 \u201cLook, Joe.\u00a0 I\u2019m sorry.\u00a0 I shouldn\u2019t have said that.\u00a0 I\u2019m just \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019d never seen so many emotions move through the kid\u2019s green eyes.\u00a0 They ran fast as a flash flood.\u00a0 Astonishment.\u00a0 Disbelief.\u00a0 Hurt.<\/p>\n

Pain.\u00a0 A lot of pain.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe….\u201d<\/p>\n

He reached for him, but his brother brushed past.\u00a0 Once Joe\u2019s boots hit the carpet in the passageway he started running for all he was worth.\u00a0 Adam glanced at Maisie and then moved to look out the window.\u00a0 He\u2019d left Hoss outside in case Joe tried to escape.\u00a0 He saw the big man reach for his brother\u2019s arm.<\/p>\n

And miss.<\/p>\n

Hoss gave chase but he knew it was useless.\u00a0 Joe was a hare to Hoss\u2019 tortoise.<\/p>\n

Well, maybe when they caught up to the kid five miles down the Virginia Road Joe would be so worn out he\u2019d at least listen.<\/p>\n

Adam sighed.\u00a0 How was it when he could be cool and collected with just about every other man on God\u2019s green earth, his little brother always managed to get under his skin and make him lose his temper?<\/p>\n

\u201cYou owe Joe that apology, Adam,\u201d Maisie said quietly. \u00a0She was sitting on the bed with her arms wrapped around her middle.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat for?\u201d he snapped.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was me,\u201d she said, tears flowing down her cheeks.\u00a0 \u201cI made up an excuse to get Joe to come to my room after he helped to take the packages to the third floor.\u00a0 That\u2019s all he came here for, to help<\/em> me.\u201d\u00a0 She looked up at him.\u00a0 Her dark brown eyes were black pits in the semi-dark of the chamber.\u00a0 I….\u201d\u00a0 She drew in a breath.\u00a0 \u201cI kissed him<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat doesn\u2019t excuse him kissing you back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike you would have done different at his age?\u201d the girl shot back, her jaw tight.<\/p>\n

It was hard for him to remember being fourteen.\u00a0 He\u2019d had so many responsibilities thrust upon him, he really didn\u2019t have time to be a child.<\/p>\n

A child, like Joe.<\/p>\n

Dear God!\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

What had he done?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

TWO<\/p>\n

Joe bent over and placed his hands on his knees and breathed deeply, fighting off a wave of nausea and dizziness.\u00a0 Once he\u2019d escaped the stifling interior of Reisen\u2019s and broken free of Hoss\u2019 grip, he\u2019d run and run and run and run<\/em> until he couldn\u2019t run any more.\u00a0 Dropping to a seated position, the fourteen-year-old wrapped his arms around his legs and laid his head on the bony surface of his knees.\u00a0 His sides were heaving so hard it felt like someone was kicking him in the ribs.\u00a0 His head pounded \u2013 hammering, drumming, keeping time with his racing heart \u2013 driving home older brother Adam\u2019s words.<\/p>\n

Reckless.<\/p>\n

Irresponsible.<\/p>\n

Self-centered.<\/p>\n

In other words, a spoiled brat.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow dare he mention my mama!\u201d Joe growled under his breath.<\/p>\n

How dare<\/em> he say Pa let him get away with things!<\/p>\n

How dare <\/em>Adam accuse him of…well, what he accused him of!<\/p>\n

\u201cDamn him!\u201d he snarled, and then looked heavenward for the thunderbolt.<\/p>\n

He had a rage in him that lay just under the surface.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know why it was there, it just was.\u00a0 When it threatened to overcome him, Hoss had taught him sit still and to breathe deep through his nose.\u00a0 He was dong it now, waiting for his head to clear.\u00a0 Once it did, he climbed to his feet.\u00a0 It\u2019d been four years now since Adam had come home from college.\u00a0 Four years <\/em>since elder brother had started throwing his weight around, flaunting that fancy Eastern book education, making it clear as mud that he thought he was smarter than just about everyone who had ever lived, including Pa.\u00a0 Why, Adam wouldn\u2019t even have <\/em>that education if it weren\u2019t for Pa laboring night and day with his hands to build the Ponderosa so he could go to that stupid school!\u00a0 Since he\u2019d been back he treated Hoss like he was one of the hired hands and him, well, Adam treated him like he was still that little five year old snot-nosed kid he\u2019d left behind.<\/p>\n

With that, Joe sucked in the snot and struck away his tears.\u00a0 He kicked at a clump of dirt and sent it flying.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t matter what he did, it was always<\/em> wrong.\u00a0 If he cleaned up the stalls like he was supposed to, Adam would complain he\u2019d put the tools back in the wrong place.\u00a0 If he set a fence post, older brother told him it was too shallow or too deep and made him do it again.\u00a0 If he laid a porch board it wasn\u2019t sanded enough, or he drove the nails in wrong, or he\u2019d laid it down backwards even though there weren\u2019t no difference in the ends!\u00a0\u00a0 This was it.\u00a0 What happened at Reisen\u2019s.\u00a0 That was the last<\/em> straw.<\/p>\n

He was done with trying to please Adam \u2018cause Adam couldn\u2019t be<\/em> pleased.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe!\u00a0 Joe, where are you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe!\u201d<\/p>\n

He froze.\u00a0 It was Hoss and Adam.\u00a0 They were looking for him.\u00a0 Joe glanced at the sky and realized hours had passed since he\u2019d run away and it was getting dark.\u00a0 Anger and common sense fought a battle within him.\u00a0 He should call out to his brothers, let them know where he was.\u00a0 It was at least fourteen miles back to the ranch house and it was getting dark.\u00a0 There were all kinds of dangers on and off the road in the dark.\u00a0 Still, he knew what kind of tongue-licking he was gonna take when he joined back up with them.\u00a0 It would be fourteen long miles of \u2018Whatever is wrong with you?\u2019 and \u2018Why can\u2019t you ever listen?\u2019 and \u2018Why don\u2019t you grow up<\/em>, Joe?\u2019\u00a0 A slow smile spread across the curly-headed boy\u2019s face.\u00a0 Besides, if Adam showed up without him, sure, Pa\u2019d be mad at him<\/em>, but he\u2019d be even madder <\/em>at older brother for losing him in the first place.<\/p>\n

After all, he <\/em>was a child and Adam was all grown up.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe?\u201d<\/p>\n

It was\u00a0 Adam again.\u00a0 Curiously, older brother didn\u2019t sound angry.\u00a0 He sounded kind of desperate.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, I\u2019m sorry.\u00a0 Madeline told me what happened.\u00a0 Come on, Joe, don\u2019t be stupid.\u00a0 Answer me!\u201d<\/p>\n

That was about as left-handed an apology as he\u2019d ever heard.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, come on!\u201d Hoss shouted.\u00a0 \u201cYour pride ain\u2019t worth gettin\u2019 hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n

So his older brothers just assumed<\/em> he couldn\u2019t make it home on his own.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d show them.<\/p>\n

Ducking down, Joe moved along the edge of the creek that ran along the side of the road and through the heavy underbrush next to it until he could see them.\u00a0 His brothers were sitting on their horses in the middle of the road.\u00a0 They had Cochise with them.\u00a0 Joe scowled at the sight of his pony.\u00a0 He sure wished he had that black and white, but there was nothing for it but to walk.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe he\u2019s up ahead,\u201d Hoss suggested.<\/p>\n

Adam nodded.\u00a0 Then he glanced up.\u00a0 \u00a0\u201cHe\u2019ll never make it home on foot before dark.\u00a0 If that fool kid can hear us and he\u2019s hiding….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow why would Joe go and do that?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s smarter than you think, Adam.\u00a0 Ain\u2019t no way Joe\u2019d let his pride get in the way of him gettin\u2019 home safe.\u00a0 He wouldn\u2019t do that to Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI suppose you\u2019re right,\u201d older brother said as he pressed his knees into Scout\u2019s sides and started moving.\u00a0 \u201cWell, lets keep looking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe drew in a sharp breath.<\/p>\n

Pa.<\/p>\n

He was <\/em>being a child.<\/p>\n

Shaking his head at his own stupidity, Joe took a step forward, intent on letting his brothers know where he was.\u00a0 At that same instant he heard a sound.\u00a0 It was soft, like the slush of someone panning for gold.\u00a0 Joe stiffened as he put a name to it.<\/p>\n

Rattler!<\/p>\n

Every notion of being a grown-up and able to take care of himself vanished in that moment.\u00a0 Joe wanted his brothers to rescue him \u2013 he needed<\/em> them too.\u00a0 He wanted to call out, to draw them back, but fear clenched his throat and all that came out was a strangled sound. \u00a0As he and the rattler stared each other down, the snake coiled its heavy body and readied to strike.\u00a0 Terror gripped him at the idea that he might die out here, alone; his body bloated, his throat swollen up and closed, unable to breathe.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam…\u201d he managed.\u00a0 \u201cAdam…Hoss…come back.\u00a0 Adam….\u201d<\/p>\n

The snake struck.\u00a0 Joe stepped back.<\/p>\n

And fell.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWhere do you suppose that little cuss is?\u201d Hoss asked his older brother as he reined Chubb in.\u00a0 Adam was off of his horse, bending, checking the road for any sign of Little Joe. \u00a0He looked exhausted.<\/p>\n

\u201cGod only knows.\u201d\u00a0 The man in black ran a hand along his stubbled cheek.\u00a0 \u201cI shouldn\u2019t have had that whiskey.\u00a0 It took off my edge.\u00a0 You know?\u00a0 I mean I was mad at Joe, but….\u00a0 How could I have been so stupid?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what that there Eastern college taught you, ain\u2019t it?\u201d the big man asked softly.<\/p>\n

Older brother started and turned toward him.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cEh?\u00a0 What do you mean?\u00a0 College taught me to be stupid?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Hoss hesitated.\u00a0 How should he put it?\u00a0 \u201cYou know how it is, Adam, when you go into one of them big fancy stores they got nowadays?\u00a0 There\u2019s so many choices a man just stands there\u00a0 lookin\u2019.\u00a0 He cain\u2019t make up his mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, it seems to me that that there college learnin\u2019, well, it put so many things in your head you just ain\u2019t sure which is the right one anymore.\u201d\u2019<\/p>\n

His brother frowned .\u00a0 \u201cThere are always multiple sides to any issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, there ain\u2019t.\u00a0 Not when it comes to family.\u00a0 Little Joe\u2019s your brother<\/em>.\u00a0 You should be on his<\/em> side no matter what, not standin\u2019 against him all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t stand against him all<\/em> the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chubb was shifting, moving from foot to foot, wanting to get home.\u00a0 He did too \u2013 after all Joe might have hitched a ride and could already be there sitting fat and sassy on his mama\u2019s French settee \u2013\u00a0 but this was something that needed to be said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, you do.<\/em>\u00a0 The boy can\u2019t piss without you tellin\u2019 him he\u2019s usin\u2019 the wrong pot!\u201d the big man snapped.\u00a0 \u201cYou mark my word, Adam, you push Joe too hard and one of these days he\u2019s gonna up and leave.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLeave the Ponderosa?\u201d Adam scowled.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t be absurd.\u00a0 He\u2019s a child.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe ain\u2019t no child, Adam.\u00a0 He\u2019s almost fifteen!\u00a0 He\u2019s growin\u2019 up and he deserves to be treated like he is.\u00a0 When Mama died you took it on yourself to take care of us.\u00a0 You did a good job.\u00a0 Its time you realized that you need to let both Joe and me go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s black brows peaked.\u00a0 \u201cYou?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, me.\u00a0 I\u2019m all growed up too,\u201d he said straight-faced.<\/p>\n

His older brother sighed.\u00a0 Adam tossed his hands in the air.\u00a0 \u201cWell, if I let both of you go, then what the hell <\/em>am I supposed to do?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019 blue eyes crinkled.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s always Pa.\u00a0 He needs a good sight of lookin\u2019 after.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam snorted. \u00a0Then he sobered.\u00a0 \u201cWhat am I going to tell him about Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou mean the whole thing with Maisie?\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother nodded.<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t nothin\u2019 to be gained by tellin\u2019 it, Adam.\u00a0 Little Joe thought he was doin\u2019 right.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut he ignored my order to stay put.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss sighed.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, and you<\/em> ignored his need not<\/em> too.\u00a0 You can\u2019t hobble Joe like some ornery stallion, Adam.\u00a0\u00a0 He\u2019s gonna buck and break free.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSage wisdom,\u201d his older brother grunted.<\/p>\n

\u201cSimple truth,\u201d he replied.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Adam said softly as he mounted Scout, \u201cI guess it is.\u201d\u00a0 Shifting in the saddle to find his seat, his older brother looked out over the tree-lined ground beside them.\u00a0 Night was falling.\u00a0 It was going to be all they could do to make it home before dark.\u00a0 \u201cI hate to think of Joe out there.\u00a0 Alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss snorted.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cLittle brother\u2019s got his cussedness to keep him company. \u2018Sides, he may be home already.\u00a0 You know him.\u00a0 All he had to do was pull that pup\u2019s face at some woman in a passin\u2019 carriage and he\u2019d find himself a ride.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam let out a sigh.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s just hope the only people Joe passed were families riding home in carriages.\u00a0 You and I both know what\u2019s lurking out there in the dark.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded soberly.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s get home, Adam.\u00a0 If Little Joe ain\u2019t there, I\u2019m gonna grab me some grub and head back out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter we tell Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

The big man nodded soberly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, after we tell Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The rattler didn\u2019t get him, but he\u2019d twisted his ankle in the fall.\u00a0 He\u2019d also tumbled into the creek and was soaked to the skin.\u00a0 Night had fallen and Joe was wet and miserable and hungry and not so sure that this independence thing was worth it after all.\u00a0 Sitting there in the dark on the bank of the creek, covered with mud and sand and grit, with a swollen ankle and no way home but walking, all he wanted to do was cry.\u00a0 But he couldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

That would just prove to Adam that he was still that little snot-nosed kid.<\/p>\n

Of course, Adam wasn\u2019t here to see it.\u00a0 And he guessed an ankle that was sprained so bad it was swollen to twice its normal size might be a good enough excuse for a tear or two \u2013 even from\u00a0 man \u2013 so he let them fall.\u00a0 After a minute or so of grieving not only his situation but his stupidity, Joe glanced at the makeshift crutch leaning against a tree he\u2019d spent the last hour fashioning from a thick Y-shaped branch, and strips of his now ruined white shirt.\u00a0 He painfully worked his way to his feet and then grabbed it and anchored it under his arm.\u00a0 Standing still for a moment he fought for balance, and then began to make his way along the side of the creek.\u00a0 He was pretty far down into the gulley now and he knew if he followed the slender ribbon of water it would eventually work its way back up until it was running parallel to the road again.<\/p>\n

Hopefully someone else would be fool enough to be traveling after dark and he could hitch a ride.<\/p>\n

Being late September, the air was cool but not terribly cold and that helped since it dried his clothes but didn\u2019t chill him to the bone.\u00a0 The moon was shining now and the stars twinkling overhead.\u00a0 Their light dappled the path before him, alternately highlighting and hiding it.\u00a0 Joe moved slowly, favoring his left leg, careful not to strain it too much or to put his weight on it completely.\u00a0 He thought it was only sprained but a break was a possibility too and he didn\u2019t want to take any chances.<\/p>\n

Chances<\/em>.\u00a0 Joe snorted.\u00a0 It was amazing what \u2018chance\u2019 could do to a feller\u2019s life.\u00a0 What were the chances that Maisie O\u2019Malley would choose him<\/em> to be her…first.\u00a0\u00a0 He\u2019d been flattered and flustered and terrified all at one and the same time when he realized what she was asking for.\u00a0 His Pa had made it clear that a man had to respect a woman, even when that woman didn\u2019t respect herself.<\/p>\n

\u2018There is a price to be paid, Joseph, for every choice a person makes,\u2019 <\/em>Pa told him, \u2018but this is different.\u00a0 There are two people involved but the woman pays twice the price.\u2019\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

Pa\u2019d also made it clear that a man had to respect himself enough to not to act like some loco stallion.\u00a0 \u2018God made man for marriage,\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n

He was gonna get married some day and Pa had told him to save himself too so it would be special.<\/p>\n

Joe winced as he took another step.\u00a0 He liked Maisie, but not in that<\/em> way.\u00a0 They\u2019d been friends back in school.\u00a0 She stood out from the other girls with those black eyes and that sorrel red hair.\u00a0 Her name had been Madeline back then.\u00a0\u00a0 She came from a family of four girls and one boy, with the boy being the littlest one.\u00a0 Her father had come straight from Ireland.\u00a0 Her Ma was Irish too, but she was from Boston.\u00a0 They\u2019d come out West to stake a claim and lived on the far side of Virginia City.\u00a0 Maisie was the youngest of the girls.\u00a0 Maybe that\u2019s why they got along so well.\u00a0 They\u2019d talked\u00a0 lot and both of them felt the need to prove that they could be something other than what their family\u2019s had decided they would be.<\/p>\n

He swallowed hard.\u00a0 It was night.\u00a0 Maisie had her meeting with that man who….<\/p>\n

He hoped she decided to save herself for someone special.<\/p>\n

As he rounded a corner, Joe halted.\u00a0 He held still, listening.\u00a0 There was something in the distance, a noise, familiar….<\/p>\n

Gunfire.<\/p>\n

Turning toward the sound he squinted and yes, there it was, small blasts of light winking on and off in the darkness.<\/p>\n

Coming closer.<\/p>\n

Joe drew a breath and swallowed hard as he cast his gaze about for somewhere to hide.<\/p>\n

Hoss always said he had the darnedest luck.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam tensed, awaiting the blow.<\/p>\n

Their father had been sitting at the supper table, alone, when they walked in, a series of papers in his hands.\u00a0 He\u2019d looked up with a distracted smile, and then even that half-smile vanished when he saw they were only two where there should have been three.\u00a0 It turned into a downright frown by the time he noted the looks on their faces and the obvious rumpled state of their clothes.<\/p>\n

The papers were on the table now and Pa was advancing on him like a mama bear sensing a threat to her cub.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam, what\u2019s wrong?\u201d he demanded.\u00a0 \u201cWhere\u2019s Joseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

It amazed him.\u00a0 Pa knew something was wrong.\u00a0 Joe could\u2019ve been in the barn settling Cochise,\u00a0 or lingering outside looking at the stars.\u00a0 But\u00a0 Pa knew<\/em>.\u00a0 Adam drew a breath and held it. Their father\u2019s relationship with Marie\u2019s son made him think of Edward Rochester in Charlotte Bronte\u2019s Jane Eyre, when the weary world traveler was talking about his connection to the governess he\u2019d fallen in love with against all odds.\u00a0 It was as if there was a string tying their father to Joe, knotted somewhere in his chest, and if that cord was snapped for some reason, Pa\u2019d be so wounded he\u2019d just bleed out.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnswer me!\u00a0 Where\u2019s your brother?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam let his guilt out in words.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s my fault, Pa.\u00a0 I pushed Joe too hard and he ran away.\u201d\u00a0 He shot a glance at Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cWe thought he was headed home.\u201d\u00a0 His eyes moved to the empty area before the hearth.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019d hoped to find him here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pa was staring at him with that look he gave a business partner who\u2019d just suggested he try something shady.\u00a0 Disappointment, disapproval, and downright disdain were mixed evenly in it.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou mean to tell me that a fourteen-year-old boy is out there in the dark, on foot with no light or food, and nothing but the shirt on his back?\u00a0 And no way to protect himself?\u00a0 Good Lord, Adam!\u00a0 What were you thinking?\u201d<\/p>\n

His own temper was rising.\u00a0 His gaze shot to Hoss.\u00a0 A portion <\/em>of the truth, he reminded himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cI told Joe to stay put and he didn\u2019t.\u00a0 I found him in the saloon.\u00a0 I think, Pa, you\u2019d say I had every right to be angry.\u201d\u00a0 He paused.\u00a0 \u201cThe trouble was, I was so<\/em> angry I said a few things I shouldn\u2019t have.\u201d\u00a0 Regret tempered his tone.\u00a0 \u201cLike I said, I pushed Joe too hard and he ran away.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd where were you when all of this was going on?\u201d Pa asked, turning to his younger brother.<\/p>\n

Hoss hesitated.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t miss it and neither would Pa.\u00a0 \u201cI was outside the Reisen House, Pa.\u00a0 I caught hold of the little squirt, but he wiggled free.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 His brother winced.\u00a0 \u201cI figured Joe\u2019d run hisself out quick enough and we\u2019d find him half a mile down the road.\u201d<\/p>\n

Something passed through their father\u2019s eyes at that moment.\u00a0 Something more than anger.\u00a0 It was fear.<\/p>\n

Real\u00a0 fear.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa, what aren\u2019t you telling us?\u201d Adam asked.<\/p>\n

Their father\u2019s eyes moved from him to Hoss and back.\u00a0 Instead of speaking, the older man walked to the table and picked up several of the papers lying there.\u00a0 He came back and handed them to him without a word.<\/p>\n

They were wanted posters.\u00a0 There were several men.\u00a0 Unfortunately, most of the artist sketches looked like cartoons.\u00a0 It would be hard to identify anyone from them.<\/p>\n

Hoss came over and looked.\u00a0 His clear blue gaze shot to their pa.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s this?\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man was heading for his hat and coat.\u00a0 \u201cRoy was out earlier.\u00a0 There was a bank robbery in Genoa last night, in the older part of the city at the first bank.\u00a0 There\u2019s reason to suspect the outlaws are headed this way.\u00a0 Roy\u2019s out with a posse looking for them now,\u201d he finished as he buckled on his gun belt.<\/p>\n

Hoss glanced his way and then said, \u201cPa, there ain\u2019t no reason to think Little Joe\u2019s anywhere near those outlaws.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their father hesitated briefly as he reached for his coat.\u00a0 \u201cAnd there\u2019s no reason to think he\u2019s not<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 As he shoved one of his arms in, he said, \u201cHoss, go saddle Buck for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Hoss vanished out the door, their father placed his hat on his head and then crossed over to the gun rack.\u00a0 Selecting two of their finest rifles, he returned and handed one to him.\u00a0 Looking at the weapon and thinking of the need made him shudder.\u00a0 The men who had robbed the bank would be desperate.\u00a0 If they ran across him, Joe could end up as a hostage or a human shield….<\/p>\n

Or dead, because he\u2019d seen too much.<\/p>\n

He felt his father\u2019s hand come down on his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cLet it go, son,\u201d he said softly.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s done is done.\u00a0 I need your clear thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, Pa, it\u2019s just \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u201d\u00a0 His grip tightened.\u00a0 \u201cThere will be time later to question what\u2019s been done.\u00a0 Right now, we need to find your brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded as he gripped the rifle.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know what he was going to do when he found the kid, hug him tight or hit him upside the head.<\/p>\n

It only mattered that he found him.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A bullet flew over his head to strike a nearby tree.\u00a0 Joe ducked just in time, otherwise it might have hit him.<\/p>\n

There was a take-down happening right in front of him.\u00a0 Sheriff Coffee was there, guns blazing, along with several of their neighbors and a couple of deputies.\u00a0 He\u2019d thought about shouting to the lawman to let him know he was there, but decided against it as it probably wasn\u2019t the smartest thing to do \u2013 draw attention to himself, that is.\u00a0 The only problem was, he couldn\u2019t run away.\u00a0 He was too unsteady on his sprained ankle and the bullets were flying fast and loose.\u00a0 There was no guarantee he could duck in time if he needed to.\u00a0 He was behind a line of about a half-dozen men who had taken cover behind some rocks close by the creek.\u00a0 They were the ones Roy was firing at.\u00a0 So that meant the bad men were in-between him and the law.<\/p>\n

In-between him and getting home.<\/p>\n

Joe figured he was still seven or eight miles out from the ranch house.\u00a0 He\u2019d walked about five hours since spraining his ankle and the thin fingers of dawn were just beginning to draw back night\u2019s curtain.\u00a0 That was enough time for Hoss and Adam to have made it home and \u2013 once they saw he wasn\u2019t there \u2013 for them to turn around and come back to find him.\u00a0 Of course, that was supposing they were gonna<\/em> come back.\u00a0 They might have just decided to let him stew in his own juices for being so bullheaded and running away.\u00a0 Joe sniffed back tears as he ducked behind a tree and listened to the voices of the lawmen and the outlaws\u00a0 raised in anger.\u00a0 They were shouting even as more bullets flew.\u00a0 Brother Adam would sure-as-shooting<\/em> leave him here to teach him a lesson.\u00a0 And Hoss?\u00a0 Well, acting like he\u2019d been lately, middle brother might just do that too.\u00a0 But Pa….<\/p>\n

Pa would come for him come the dark, Hell, and<\/em> high water.<\/p>\n

Placing a hand on the tree in front of him, Joe ran the back of his sleeve over his face, wiping away sweat and dirt. As he finished, he paused to listen.\u00a0 He could hear Sheriff Roy\u2019s voice ringing out above all the racket, calling on the outlaws to surrender.\u00a0 One of the men was answering back.\u00a0 For the moment there was no shooting.<\/p>\n

If he was going to get a move on, now was the time to do it.<\/p>\n

Biting his lip at the pain, Joe used his crutch to move from his place of concealment.\u00a0 The effort left him panting and hanging onto another tree.\u00a0 His ankle was three times its normal size now and it was about all he could do to put his weight on it.\u00a0 Still, he had to try.\u00a0 He\u2019d lay odds, knowing what little he did of criminals, that it wouldn\u2019t be long before those men started shooting at the sheriff again and the sheriff started shooting back.\u00a0 They were looking at prison at least and maybe hanging, depending on what they did, and there wasn\u2019t much chance they\u2019d just lay down their guns and go peaceable.\u00a0 Drawing a breath and holding it, Joe pushed off the tree.<\/p>\n

And came to face with a mean-looking man in black with a gun.<\/p>\n

It was pointed straight at him.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ben Cartwright raced along the Virginia City road with his older boys beside him.\u00a0 Adam to his left and Hoss to his right.\u00a0 The moment the sun had crested on the horizon that had set out.\u00a0 They were riding hard now and pushing their mounts as much as they dared, willing the animals to literally fly instead of run.\u00a0 From the moment Roy had appeared at the door with those wanted posters in hand, Ben had begun to fear for his sons.\u00a0 They\u2019d been due back from town before supper and Hop Sing had already been yelling about them being late before the lawman showed up.\u00a0 Of course, there were a million reasons they might have been overdue.\u00a0 A horse could have thrown a shoe or one of their mounts come up lame.\u00a0 They could have decided to make a detour and fish.\u00a0 And so he\u2019d told Hop Sing to keep warm what he could and put on ice what he couldn\u2019t and sat down at the table to wait.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s fingers tightened on the reins as each clop of Buck\u2019s hooves rang like a bell counting out the time to disaster.\u00a0 Roy had brought word as well that there had been a bank robbery in Genoa the night before.\u00a0 Not at the new bank, but at the older and smaller one located in the area where the town had first been established.\u00a0 Genoa had been settled by Mormons and the old bank was near the original Mormon Station trading post.\u00a0 Over the last few years the town had grown and expanded exponentially.\u00a0 Entrepreneurs had moved in as well as some of Nevada\u2019s newfound rich \u2013 owners of mines, timber barons.\u00a0 Genoa had the proud distinction of having the first hotel in the Nevada territory, established just two years before he and Marie were married.\u00a0 It also had its own newspaper and court.\u00a0 It had grown so grand, in fact, that a new larger bank had to be built to accommodate all of the money pouring in from the city\u2019s burgeoning upper middle class.\u00a0 His lawyer had recommended he do business there.\u00a0 This new bank had recently undergone a renovation, abandoning their old vault for a new nearly invincible Chubb safe with a six tumbler lock.\u00a0 That lock was undoubtedly why the robbers had hit the west side bank with its older four tumbler vault, even though it contained less money. \u00a0The bank robbers made off with about five thousand dollars and some bonds and other notes.\u00a0 Not a huge haul.\u00a0 Still, it had cost the life of a deputy who tried to stop them and left two of the tellers injured.\u00a0 These men, who might be on his land, were looking at a rope, not time in prison.<\/p>\n

That meant they were desperate <\/em>men.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s jaw tightened as he leaned forward, hoping to urge a little more speed out of the buckskin he rode.\u00a0 His horse knew him well and knew if he was asking for it, the need was critical.<\/p>\n

This time it seemed Buck\u2019s hooves did<\/em> leave the ground.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The line of bad men was right in front of Joe.\u00a0 One was standing, shouting across the distance that separated him from the posse, arguing with Roy Coffee, while the others crouched behind rocks, rifles and pistols in hand.\u00a0 First one and then the other turned toward them as his captor thrust him forward.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s ankle gave way and he cried out in pain as he hit the ground.\u00a0 Seconds later the barrel of the man\u2019s sidearm pressed against his hair.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou keep your yap shut, kid, or I\u2019ll shut it permanently!\u201d the man in black threatened as the pistol\u2019s nose worked its way deeper in until it touched his skull.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s this?\u201d one of the crouching men demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome nosy kid,\u201d his captor shot back.\u00a0 \u201cFound him back a ways.\u201d<\/p>\n

The man who had been talking to the sheriff broke off the conversation and headed their way.\u00a0 \u201cPythias,\u201d he said, acknowledging the man who held him.\u00a0 \u201cI told Coffee I wanted five minutes to think his terms over.\u201d\u00a0 He indicated Joe with a nod.\u00a0 \u201cWho\u2019s he?\u201d<\/p>\n

The barrel tapped on bone.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s your name, kid?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s muscles tensed, mostly in an attempt to stop shaking.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s none of your business,\u201d he replied between clenched teeth.<\/p>\n

The spokesman dropped to his knees before him.\u00a0 Joe felt rough fingers lift his chin.\u00a0 The man had a tough face, but it was not an unkind one.\u00a0 It reminded him of his Pa\u2019s foreman, deeply tanned and wrinkled before its time.<\/p>\n

\u201cSon, you may not realize it, but you\u2019re in a mess of trouble,\u201d the man said as his light eyes narrowed.\u00a0 \u201cMost of these men here would as soon shoot you as let you live.\u00a0 They\u2019ve killed already and they\u2019re lookin\u2019 at a noose.\u00a0 There ain\u2019t much they care about anymore other than survivin\u2019.\u00a0 If you\u2019re worth somethin\u2019 to them \u2013 or worth somethin\u2019 to those lawmen over there \u2013 I\u2019d say you\u2019d right smart to let me know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s eyes flicked from the man talking to him to the one who held the gun on him and back.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou gonna l…let him k…kill me?\u201d he asked, his voice shaking.<\/p>\n

The spokesman, whose hair was blond going gray, and whose eyes looked like they might be gray too, pursed his lips and nodded.\u00a0 \u201cIf I have to.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHarvey?\u201d Roy Coffee\u2019s voice called out.\u00a0 \u201cYou got about a minute to go and then we come in shootin\u2019!\u201d<\/p>\n

Harvey rose.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019ll it be, kid?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe looked at the man in black again.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen his kind before in town, coming out of a saloon to gun a man down in the middle of the street with no more thought than he\u2019d have spitting in a spittoon.<\/p>\n

Ashamed, he blurted it out.\u00a0 \u201cCartwright.\u00a0 My name\u2019s Joe Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

The gun prodded him, poking into his ribs this time.\u00a0 \u201cBen<\/em> Cartwright\u2019s son?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe closed his eyes, defeated.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, that\u2019s my Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam checked his horse.\u00a0 He frowned as he watched his father race past him and then shouted, \u201cPa!\u00a0 Pa!\u00a0 Come back!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss was just coming up behind.\u00a0 His brother\u2019s horse was laboring due to bearing his weight at the pace their father had set.\u00a0\u00a0 Adam saw his father halt and then turn Buck\u2019s nose back.<\/p>\n

Seconds later he was at their side.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is it?\u201d the older man asked, an edge of hope to his voice.<\/p>\n

\u201cI heard something Pa, and saw some movement down by the creek.\u201d\u00a0 Adam\u2019s frown deepened.\u00a0 \u201cMen.\u00a0 A lot of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father listened.\u00a0 It was clear he heard it too.\u00a0 \u201cGunfire.\u00a0 The posse you think?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCould be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Without saying another word, his father dismounted.\u00a0 As he took his rifle from his saddle, he signaled they should do the same.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s split up.\u00a0 Approach from different angles.\u00a0 Don\u2019t take any action until we can determine if your brother is in the middle of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd what then, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

The question hung between them, there, in the growing light, challenging them all.<\/p>\n

Their father\u2019s jaw was tight, his look fierce.\u00a0 \u201cWe ask God for guidance and do what we have to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

THREE<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Roy Coffee let out a long sigh.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d know\u2019d when he woke up that morning that it was gonna be one of those days.\u00a0 First thing off he couldn\u2019t find his boots.\u00a0 He knew for sure where he\u2019d taken \u2018em off the night before and they just weren\u2019t there.\u00a0 He was walkin\u2019 around in his stocking feet lookin\u2019 for them when he ran into a patch of wet occasioned by the water bucket that he kept by the door springing a leak.\u00a0 He\u2019d burned his toast and toasted his eggs and then when he got to the office, there was a line of bellyachers and naysayers lined up to see him to beat the band.\u00a0 He\u2019d spent most of the day taking statements and arguing with all the folks who felt they\u2019d been done wrong who wanted to string up a man for nothing more than walking away with apples off their trees.\u00a0 Then, just as it came time to quit, the rider had shown up from Genoa carrying wanted posters and the word that the men who had robbed the bank the night before had killed a man and were on the way to the Ponderosa.\u00a0 Seems one of them had worked for Ben before and knew his way through using passages it would be hard for a posse to find.\u00a0 He\u2019d wolfed down a few biscuits, shoved some jerky in his pocket, taken a couple of cold swallows of coffee and headed out to warn Ben and the boys.<\/p>\n

Only the boys wasn\u2019t there when he got there which, of course, was just dandy.\u00a0 He\u2019d left the posters with Ben and told him to make all three of them sons of his acquainted with the outlaws mugs, just in case one of them showed up looking for work. Or for something else.\u00a0 Then he\u2019d headed back to town, rustled up a posse, and taken off in pursuit of the half-dozen bank robbers.\u00a0 He\u2019d found \u2018em too.\u00a0 About ten miles outside of Ben\u2019s ranch house.\u00a0 He\u2019d got \u2018em cornered all well and good and told \u2018em if they didn\u2019t surrender, he wouldn\u2019t be responsible.\u00a0 Trouble was, he\u2019d also found one of Ben\u2019s missing sons. \u00a0Seems the outlaws had Little Joe and they were threatening to kill him.<\/p>\n

God alone knew what the boy was doing out here this time of the morning.\u00a0 From the look of him, he\u2019d had just about as bad a day yesterday.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, you just let that boy go, Harvey,\u201d he called, tryin\u2019 again.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re only makin\u2019 matters worse!\u201d<\/p>\n

A mean-lookin\u2019 hombre wearing black was holding Ben\u2019s youngest.\u00a0 He had an arm wrapped around Little Joe\u2019s chest and the barrel of his six-shooter pressed up against the boy\u2019s temple.\u00a0 Joe was pale and trembling, but the look on his face would have done his Pa proud.\u00a0 It was a sure thing the boy was scared, but he wasn\u2019t showin\u2019 it.\u00a0\u00a0 Beside Little Joe was the man he\u2019d been talkin\u2019 to; Wade Harvey, who had worked for Ben Cartwright once upon a time.\u00a0 Probably before Joe was born.\u00a0 Most likely that\u2019s how he knew Joe\u2019s safety was a negotiating point.<\/p>\n

A damned good <\/em>negotiating point.<\/p>\n

\u201cMatters will be worse if you don\u2019t let us go, Sheriff,\u201d Harvey called back.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t want to let Pythias here kill this boy, but I will.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou touch a hair on that boy\u2019s head and you\u2019ll have the whole state of Nevada huntin\u2019 you down,\u201d Roy shouted.<\/p>\n

Harvey laughed.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re huntin\u2019 us down already.\u00a0\u00a0 That\u2019s why we\u2019re takin\u2019 him with us.\u00a0 Roy, you<\/em> know that I know the Ponderosa land well.\u00a0 We\u2019ll let him go somewhere before we get to the north border.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLeaving a boy Joe\u2019s age alone in the high country ain\u2019t my idea of savin\u2019 him.\u00a0 Let him go now, Wade.\u00a0 You know how much those boys mean to their Pa.\u00a0 If you ain\u2019t worried about the state of Nevada, you sure as shootin\u2019 should be worried about makin\u2019 Ben Cartwright mad by threatenin\u2019 one of his own.\u201d<\/p>\n

Made him<\/em> shudder.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe won\u2019t harm him, but we won\u2019t let him go either.\u00a0 You gave me five minutes before, Sheriff.\u00a0 I give you the same thing.\u00a0 You back off and let us ride out of here in five minutes or this boy\u2019s buzzard meat.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy\u2019s gaze fixed on Joe, tryin\u2019 to send him strength.\u00a0 Hang on, son<\/em>, he thought.\u00a0 I\u2019ll get you out of this somehow.<\/em><\/p>\n

One of his deputies pulled out a watch and opened it.\u00a0 He could hear the second hand ticking.<\/p>\n

\u201cFour minutes and thirty-one seconds, Roy,\u201d his man said softly.<\/p>\n

Roy knew his words sounded good.\u00a0 He meant them too.\u00a0 Still, he had no idea what he was going to do.<\/p>\n

Four minutes and thirty-two <\/em>seconds and Joe Cartwright would be dead.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam crouched, hidden in the undergrowth.\u00a0 He had taken the right and their Pa, the left.\u00a0 Brother Hoss had opted to take the longer route to the north and west so he could come out directly behind the outlaws.\u00a0 The black-haired man cocked his head and listened.\u00a0 He was close but not quite<\/em> close enough.\u00a0 Disassociated words carried to his ears \u2013\u00a0 words independent of one another with little meaning.<\/p>\n

…go, Harvey…matters worse.<\/em><\/p>\n

…Pythias…kill.<\/em><\/p>\n

You touch a hair…<\/em><\/p>\n

…threatening one of his own.<\/em><\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s jaw clenched with frustration as his knuckles bled white where they held his gun.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know how he knew, but he knew<\/em> \u2013 the outlaws had Joe.\u00a0 Evil men were holding his little brother hostage or worse.<\/p>\n

If they hurt him \u2013 if they dared touch even one<\/em> hair on Joe\u2019s curly head, he was going to take them down.<\/p>\n

Whatever <\/em>it took.<\/p>\n

Moving with stealth, Adam continued forward, advancing toward three men who were standing a little to the side of the main group.\u00a0 Across the way he could see Roy seated on his light-colored horse.\u00a0 The sheriff was flanked by a row of townsmen and deputies.\u00a0 Unlike the outlaws, their guns were holstered or held at their sides.<\/p>\n

\u201cThree minutes, Sheriff!\u201d one of the three shouted.<\/p>\n

Three minutes until what?<\/p>\n

Then he realized one of the three men wasn\u2019t a man at all.\u00a0 It was Joe.<\/p>\n

Thank God, it was Joe alive!<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t gonna change my mind in three minutes, Wade!\u201d Roy called out.\u00a0 \u201cYou let that boy go and I promise none of you will hang!\u00a0 You kill him, Harvey, and I promise each and every one of you will!\u201d<\/p>\n

What was Roy playing at?\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t actually be willing to let these men kill Joe.\u00a0 The older man must have a plan.\u00a0 Looking again, Adam noticed a few horses to the rear of the line of lawmen.\u00a0 Horses without riders.\u00a0 Suddenly sure of what Roy was doing, the black-haired man glanced around.\u00a0 Yes.\u00a0 There they were.\u00a0 Two men moving through the trees to take up a position on either side of the man Roy had called \u2018Harvey\u2019.\u00a0 Adam blinked and looked again at the outlaw standing just in front of Joe.\u00a0 Harvey.\u00a0 Wade <\/em>Harvey.\u00a0 He remembered him.\u00a0 Wade had worked for their father some fifteen years back.\u00a0 He\u2019d been kind to him, a friend actually.<\/p>\n

What had gone wrong?<\/p>\n

As he continued to assess the scene Adam saw another figure take a position to the left and rear of the other man.\u00a0 He\u2019d know that graying head anywhere.\u00a0 His father moved like a man half his age.\u00a0 Hoss, most likely, was still on the move.\u00a0 That made four of them.\u00a0 They should be more than enough to take down the two men holding Joe.\u00a0 Roy and his deputies could sweep in then and take care of the others.<\/p>\n

Rising up a bit, he waited until his father saw him and then signaled he was ready.\u00a0\u00a0 As he did Roy\u2019s man joined him, crouching at his side.\u00a0\u00a0 Adam glanced at the thin blond man and nodded.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know him.<\/p>\n

\u201cName\u2019s Beaumont,\u201d the lanky man drawled.\u00a0 \u201cI got a kid brother just about the age of yours.\u00a0 You can count on me,\u201d he said, assuring him of his intent.<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks,\u201d Adam breathed.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne and a half minutes, Sheriff!\u201d Wade called.<\/p>\n

They would have to be careful.\u00a0 Joe was in the middle of it all and from the look of pain on his brother\u2019s pale face and the sweat dripping from his hair, he was injured somehow.\u00a0 Adam cursed himself again for making the boy angry enough to run.\u00a0 Their temperaments were just such polar opposites.\u00a0\u00a0 He knew he rubbed Joe as wrong as Joe did him.\u00a0 It was why they got into so many arguments.\u00a0 Joe was a good kid.\u00a0 He would make a better man.<\/p>\n

He loved him more than life.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne minute!\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam saw Roy move in his seat.\u00a0 The sheriff raised a hand and scratched the back of his neck.\u00a0 Beside him Beaumont nodded.\u00a0 It was a signal.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, the man who held Joe in his grip recognized that too.<\/p>\n

As gunfire erupted the man in black stumbled back.\u00a0 For a moment Adam thought the outlaw had been hit, but then the villain was on his feet and running, dragging a struggling Joe along with him, heading into the trees. \u00a0Adam glanced at Beaumont.\u00a0 The other man nodded again and then they both took off in pursuit.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Pain pounded through Joe\u2019s head, making it hard to think. Pythias\u2019 left hand gripped his arm just above the elbow and he had the fingers of the right one twisted in his hair.\u00a0 As the outlaw lugged him over the ground with no more care than he would a feed sack, his injured ankle dragged behind, striking everything in its path and setting off a new shockwave of anguish each time it did.\u00a0 Twice now he\u2019d almost blacked out.\u00a0 In the distance Joe could hear men shouting.\u00a0 Bullets were flying again.\u00a0 He could hear them striking both tree and man-flesh.\u00a0 There were horses running somewhere, in pursuit of someone.\u00a0 And all the while Pythias hauled him farther away \u2013 farther away from Roy, from his home, from life.<\/p>\n

He had to get away.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead as best he could, Joe noted a series of tree roots coming up fast.\u00a0 If he could hook his good foot in one of them, he might be able to take the man down.\u00a0 The only problem was \u2013 if he did manage to knock the outlaw off his feet \u2013 that it was gonna be almost impossible for him to run away.\u00a0 Still, he knew what his Pa had taught him, about the power that rushed through a man when he was confronted by a life and death situation.\u00a0 It could give him the speed to outrun a grizzly and the strength to lift up a wagon if someone he loved was pinned beneath.<\/p>\n

He sure as shooting figured whatever that power was, it had to be running through him right now.<\/p>\n

Watching carefully, Joe gauged the moment when Pythias would have to raise a leg to step over the root.\u00a0 Unfortunately, the foot that was closest to the root was the one that was already sprained.<\/p>\n

Still, there was nothing to it but to do it.<\/p>\n

The root came up quick.\u00a0 Joe caught it with the toe of his boot and twisted.<\/p>\n

He screamed.<\/p>\n

And then the world went black.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam stopped short, his blood turning to ice as a scream cut through the dawning day.\u00a0 He recognized the high-pitched voice.\u00a0 Beaumont shot him a sympathetic look but kept on running, gaining a good twenty feet before he broke through a thick stand of trees and disappeared.\u00a0 Adam had gone maybe ten feet when a gunshot stopped him a second time.\u00a0 There was a pause and then another shot.<\/p>\n

The sound echoed and then the woods went silent.<\/p>\n

As he stood there, breathing hard, his heart pounding in his throat, Adam felt someone come alongside him.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe?\u201d his father asked.<\/p>\n

All he could do was nod.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome on!\u201d<\/p>\n

The two of them took off running and broke through the trees a few minutes later to a horrific sight.\u00a0 Three bodies lay on the ground.\u00a0 Beaumont\u2019s was the closest to them.\u00a0 The deputy was moaning and writhing on the ground, obviously alive and obviously in pain.\u00a0 His father nodded him that way while he continued on, making a beeline for the other two who lay locked together.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s tanned boots and jeans were showing under the form of the man in black.<\/p>\n

Neither was moving.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ben Cartwright hesitated ever so briefly as his eyes took in the sight of his youngest son trapped beneath the evil man who had threatened his life.<\/p>\n

Both were covered in blood.<\/p>\n

There\u2019d been two shots.\u00a0 One of them had hit Roy\u2019s deputy.\u00a0 The other….<\/p>\n

The older man\u2019s jaw clenched.\u00a0 He shot a look heavenward.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s a boy, Lord.\u00a0 Let him grow to be a man.<\/em><\/p>\n

Dropping beside the still figures, Ben shoved \u00a0the outlaw off of his son.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s face was pale.\u00a0 He was covered in mud, blood, and sweat.\u00a0 And he was breathing.<\/p>\n

Dear Lord in Heaven, his son was breathing!<\/p>\n

Quickly running his hands over Joe\u2019s supine form, feeling inside his tattered shirt and along his lower torso, he felt for the telltale sign of a bullet wound.\u00a0 Finding none, he lifted the boy up and ran his hands along his back.\u00a0 They came away bloody, but Ben quickly realized that the blood belonged to the dead man.\u00a0 Apparently the deputy\u2019s bullet had hit Joe\u2019s captor, taking him out.<\/p>\n

Still, his son\u2019s limp and unresponsive form troubled him.\u00a0 He felt the back of Joe\u2019s head, looking for a lump, wondering if the boy had struck his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow is he, Pa?\u201d Adam asked as he dropped breathless at his side.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnconscious,\u201d he said, worried.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know why.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe wasn\u2019t hit?\u201d<\/p>\n

There was so much wrapped up in that question \u2013 fear, hope…guilt.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, son.\u00a0 Your brother wasn\u2019t hit.\u201d\u00a0 He scowled.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe it was just all too much for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben looked at his eldest.\u00a0 \u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe\u2019s foot.\u201d<\/p>\n

His eyes followed Adam\u2019s.\u00a0 \u201cGood Lord!\u201d he said, sucking in air.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s foot was caught on an upturned root.\u00a0 It seemed the boy\u2019s ankle was broken from the way it was twisted.\u00a0 The blood seeping out of his boot indicated it was a serious break.<\/p>\n

Adam was looking back at Beaumont who had worked his way up to a seated position.\u00a0 One of Roy\u2019s other deputies was at his side.\u00a0 The sheriff and Hoss were working their way toward them.\u00a0 For a moment his oldest son just stared, then he choked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hesitated, Pa.\u00a0 For just a moment, I hesitated.\u00a0 If Beaumont hadn\u2019t run ahead, Joe\u2019d be….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t know that for certain, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can see what he did!\u201d Adam almost shouted.\u00a0 \u201cJoe caught his foot deliberately.\u00a0 He took Pythias down.\u00a0 Knowing that crazy kid, he probably thought he could outrun him.\u201d\u00a0 Tears were threatening in his son\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 \u201cPythias had time to shoot Beaumont.\u00a0 He would have had time to shoot Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

There was a logic to his words.\u00a0 Ben hesitated too, just for a moment.<\/p>\n

It was a moment too long.<\/p>\n

Just as Hoss came upon them, Adam turned and began to walk at a quick clip back toward the trees.\u00a0\u00a0 When he called him, his eldest threw up his hand in a dismissive gesture and then began to run.\u00a0 Hoss watched his brother and then turned to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe?\u201d he said, everything he wanted to hear in that one question.<\/p>\n

\u201cHurt, but alive,\u201d Ben said as he ran his hand over his youngest\u2019s face and hair.\u00a0 \u201cHe wasn\u2019t shot.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss let out a long breath.\u00a0 Then his eyes went to the trees.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s the matter with Adam?\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cYour brother blames himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s he doin\u2019 that for?\u00a0 He knows it ain\u2019t his fault.\u00a0 Adam couldn\u2019t know when he got into that there argument with Joe that this was gonna happen.\u00a0 No one could.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben rose to his feet.\u00a0 Then he knelt and picked his fourteen year old boy up.\u00a0 Joe didn\u2019t make a sound as he did, but once he had him in his arms and up against his chest, his youngest stirred.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s eyes remained tightly locked, but his lips parted to emit one word.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa…?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m here, son.\u00a0 \u00a0You rest now.\u00a0 We\u2019re going to get you home and get the doctor to take a look at that ankle of yours.\u201d<\/p>\n

A little smile quirked the end of his son\u2019s upper lip, and then he was out again.<\/p>\n

Ben glanced at the dead outlaw and then his eyes went to the man who had saved his son\u2019s life.\u00a0 He and Joseph were both hurt, but the wounds were physical. They would heal with rest and time.\u00a0 As he shifted his grip on his unconscious son, the older man\u2019s eyes went to the path his eldest had taken \u2013 his eldest who felt he had let the family and most of all, Little Joe, down.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, for what was wrong with Adam, there was no easy cure.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

When he found out DeLoyd Beaumont had no one to take care of him during his recuperation other than a young brother, Ben insisted both men come to the Ponderosa to stay until he was well.\u00a0 He\u2019d thought Del, as he liked to be called, was a lawman, but he\u2019d come to find out he and his brother had just been passing through Genoa and had volunteered for the posse there that had been raised after the robbery.\u00a0 At sixteen, his brother Hoyle was a little older than Joseph.\u00a0 Del was between Hoss and Adam.\u00a0 He was twenty-five.\u00a0 They\u2019d brought Del straight from the shooting to the house and sent for Doc Martin.\u00a0 The physician was with him now, removing the bullet from his shoulder.\u00a0 It had lodged under a bone and was in pretty deep.\u00a0 Fortunately, Paul didn\u2019t think he would have any trouble retrieving it.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d have to remember to send Hoss to fetch the boy from town.<\/p>\n

Joseph was asleep in his bed.\u00a0 Paul had looked in on him before coming down to tend to Del.\u00a0 He said the damage to his youngest son\u2019s ankle wasn\u2019t as bad as they\u2019d feared.\u00a0 Apparently Joe\u2019s boot had protected it to some degree and though the bone was fractured, it had not punctured the skin.\u00a0 The blood pouring out of it had actually belonged to the outlaw.\u00a0 Still, Paul was a bit worried that Joseph had not yet awakened.\u00a0 It could be exhaustion, his old friend said, or there might be something else going on.<\/p>\n

At the moment he was climbing the stairs to sit at his son\u2019s side.\u00a0 When he opened the door, he was surprised to find Adam already occupying the bedside chair.<\/p>\n

It was the first time he had seen his eldest son since the stand-off ended.<\/p>\n

Adam looked up at him.\u00a0 He wore that little smile he\u2019d had since childhood; one of chagrin mixed with a touch of self-denigration.<\/p>\n

Ben nodded and then leaned over to place a hand on Joe\u2019s head.\u00a0 Thank goodness, there wasn\u2019t any heat.<\/p>\n

\u201cHas he said anything?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

Adam shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cPa, do you think he\u2019s all right?\u201d<\/p>\n

He sounded so much like the boy he had once been; a boy who had had to deal with his own mercurial moods.\u00a0 Smiling he answered, \u201cI\u2019m sure he is.\u00a0 The break\u2019s not as bad as we feared and there are no other injuries.\u00a0 Paul thinks he\u2019s just worn out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded, and then he rose to his feet and walked to the window.\u00a0 Leaning an arm on the cool glass, he said, \u201cI wouldn\u2019t listen to him, Pa.\u00a0 That\u2019s what started this whole thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn town, you mean?\u00a0 Hoss told me about what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n

His eldest swung around to look at him.\u00a0 \u201cEverything?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben frowned.\u00a0 \u201cYour brother told me that you told Joe to stay in the wagon and he disobeyed, that you found him in the saloon, and that the two of you got into an argument and Joe ran away.\u201d\u00a0 He paused.\u00a0 \u201cWhy?\u00a0 Is there more?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam seemed to consider it.\u00a0 He looked at Joe and then back.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t get mad, Pa.\u00a0 Not until you hear everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

What wondrous and horrific things had followed those words over the last twenty-seven years?\u00a0 The older man moved to the chair and sat down.<\/p>\n

\u201cGo ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam crossed back over and stood by the side of the bed.\u00a0 He stared down at his sleeping brother.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI found him upstairs in one of the girl\u2019s rooms.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben felt the blood rush to his head.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

His son was holding out a hand.\u00a0 \u201cNothing happened.\u00a0 In fact, nothing was going<\/em> to happen.\u00a0 Joe went there with Maisie O\u2019Malley.\u00a0 I found out later that the store-keep had asked him to help her carry packages up to the third floor stage.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo that\u2019s why he disobeyed.\u201d\u00a0 Ben nodded.\u00a0 \u201cA pretty girl.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA friend<\/em>, Pa.\u00a0 Maisie went to school with Joe, if you remember.\u201d<\/p>\n

He did.\u00a0 She was a beautiful girl.\u00a0 She was the last of Sean O\u2019Malley\u2019s four girls and the one who had gone wrong.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo what was<\/em> Joseph doing in her room?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam ran a hand through his hair and then along the back of his neck.\u00a0 \u201cMaisie took him there.\u00a0 She tried to…seduce him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a boy!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd Maisie\u2019s a girl, Pa.\u00a0 Really.\u00a0 She\u2019s not even eighteen.\u00a0 I talked to her too.\u00a0 She said she was the one in the wrong and that all Joe did was kiss her back when she kissed him.\u201d\u00a0 He paused.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s when I walked in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled sadly. \u201cAnd the legendary Cartwright temper did its work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam snorted.\u00a0 \u201cHow\u2019d Hoss miss inheriting it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben reached out to brush a sodden lock of hair back from his sleeping son\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 \u201cOh, he has it.\u00a0 It just takes a lot of time to bubble up and out of that massive frame.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, it didn\u2019t take two seconds with me.\u00a0 I wouldn\u2019t listen. \u00a0I thought he\u2019d<\/em> been the one to take Maisie upstairs.\u00a0 I told him he was irresponsible and reckless and self-centered and….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI said when it came to you disciplining him, it was just like his mother.\u00a0 You just can\u2019t tell him \u2018no\u2019\u201d.\u00a0 Adam winced at his look.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry, Pa.\u00a0 I owe Joe the truth.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think he would have run if I hadn\u2019t said it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben rose.\u00a0 \u201cIs that how you feel?\u201d<\/p>\n

His son shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cTo be honest?\u00a0 At times.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAm I to take it that you believe my…leniency<\/em>…with your brother puts him in jeopardy?\u201d\u00a0 Ben could hear it in his voice \u2013 that renowned \u2018temper\u2019 he mentioned.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Pa.\u00a0\u00a0 Well, I guess \u2013 in a way \u2013 yes.<\/em>\u201d\u00a0 He winced, well aware he was walking on thin ice.\u00a0 \u201cJoe\u2019s like a wild colt.\u00a0 There\u2019s a beauty in the untamed.\u00a0 At the same time, its the wild ones that break their necks if you don\u2019t break that fiery spirit first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben wanted to yell at him.\u00a0 To tell his son he was wrong.<\/p>\n

Sadly, he knew he was right.\u00a0 Joe was not only Marie\u2019s son and all he had left of her, but he was the child of his middle years.\u00a0 He\u2019d been so hard on Adam and not much better with Hoss, demanding they be men at such a young age.\u00a0 He wanted to let Joe be a boy for as long as he could.<\/p>\n

Before he could reply, there was a soft low sound.\u00a0 Both of them turned to the occupant of the bed.<\/p>\n

Joseph\u2019s eyelids were fluttering.<\/p>\n

Dropping back into the chair beside him, the older man took hold of one of Joe\u2019s hands and used the other to stroke his hair.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph?\u00a0 Son?\u00a0 Can you hear me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s lips parted.\u00a0 A soft sound came out.\u00a0 There were words, but there was no understanding them.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph,\u201d he said again, employing his stern tone.\u00a0 \u201cI need you to wake up.\u00a0 Wake up and look at me!\u201d<\/p>\n

The balls of his son\u2019s eyes rolled behind their fleshy screens.\u00a0 Joseph winced and then slowly his eyes opened.\u00a0 He blinked but said nothing.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you know where you are, son?\u201d he asked.\u00a0 Paul had said if Joe woke to wait for him to tell them where he was and what had happened.\u00a0 It was a way of gauging whether or not there had been a blow to his head.<\/p>\n

His boy frowned, his green eyes roaming from his face to the room and back.<\/p>\n

\u201cHome…?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood son, that\u2019s good.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced at Adam who was hanging on his baby brother\u2019s every word.\u00a0 \u201cDo you remember what happened?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe licked his lips.\u00a0 \u201cCan I have…water?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam grabbed a glass and handed it to him.\u00a0 After Joe drank, he asked again, \u201cTell me what happened, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGot mad…at Adam.\u00a0 Stupid.\u00a0 Ran…away.\u201d\u00a0 Joe\u2019s frown deepened as the events of the night and early morning filtered back in.\u00a0 \u201cMen.\u00a0 Bad men.\u00a0 They caught me.\u00a0 They…he….\u201d\u00a0 The boy\u2019s eyes grew wild and he started breathing fast.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s gonna kill me!\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019d heard enough.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s mind was fine.\u00a0 Ben shifted onto the bed and caught his boy in his arms.\u00a0 Holding him tightly, he said, \u201cIt\u2019s all right.\u00a0 Joseph! \u00a0That\u2019s enough.\u00a0 You\u2019re home.\u00a0 You\u2019re safe now.\u00a0 The man who tried to hurt you is dead.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man sensed more than saw his eldest tense.\u00a0 Adam didn\u2019t say it, but Ben heard it.<\/p>\n

No thanks to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll go let the Doc know and tell Hoss Joe\u2019s awake,\u201d Adam said and before Ben could reply, was gone.<\/p>\n

There was no sense in going after him.\u00a0 Whatever had happened, there was time for the brothers to talk and find a way to come to a peace about what happened.\u00a0 Joe was alive and he was safe.<\/p>\n

Nothing else mattered.<\/p>\n

Nothing else at all.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

FOUR<\/p>\n

Adam went downstairs and did as his father said.\u00a0 He went to the guest room where\u00a0 Paul Martin was finishing bandaging Del\u2019s shoulder wound and told him Joe was awake and lucid . Then he went outside to the barn to find Hoss.\u00a0 His middle brother was standing, brushing down Little Joe\u2019s black and white Paint; his beefy face a study in worry.\u00a0 When he told him Joe had regained consciousness, Hoss put the brushes back and rushed into the house.\u00a0 Adam followed more slowly, his mind working through the conversation he\u2019d had with his father.\u00a0 It had pained him to say it, but he thought it had to be said \u2013 for Joe, so his father would understand why his little brother had gotten mad enough to lose all sense.<\/p>\n

One thing you did not do with Joe was mention his mother, unless it was to praise her.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019d been too young when Marie died to have many memories and so he\u2019d fashioned his own based on their recollections and the three or four images they had of her that made Marie look like, well, an angel or a saint. \u00a0What was ironic, was that Marie would have been the first one to laugh, not at Joe, but at what she had become in his mind.\u00a0 The New Orleans\u2019 native had been a beautiful, vivacious, opinionated, determined woman who loved his father and her son fiercely \u2013 him and Hoss as well \u2013 and who had spent the greater part of her short\u00a0 life in Nevada stifling her natural tendencies in order to appear to be the perfect rancher\u2019s wife.\u00a0\u00a0 Pa saw her in Joe, there was no denying it.\u00a0 He\u2019d always catered to all of her little whims and in some ways, he did the same with her son.\u00a0 The difference was, Joe was going to be a man<\/em> in Nevada not New Orleans;\u00a0 a rancher who had to deal with some of the toughest sorts, who needed discipline to handle not only the dangers of cattle drives, breaking horses, and moving timber, but the likes of the men who would try to stop him.\u00a0 He was hard on his little brother because<\/em> he loved him.\u00a0 Because he wanted him to succeed.<\/em><\/p>\n

Because, maybe, in some ways and at certain times, their pa couldn\u2019t be.<\/p>\n

When he reached the door Adam opened it and was surprised to find someone in the great room.\u00a0 It was a young man he\u2019d never seen before.\u00a0 He was standing by the fire, holding one of his books in his hand.\u00a0 For a second he had the impossible thought that it was Joe.<\/p>\n

Of course, the fact that the young man had his nose buried in a volume of Tennyson should have clued him in that it was not.<\/p>\n

The stranger must have heard him snort.\u00a0 His head came up and he looked at him, his thick golden-brown eyebrows jumping in a pretty good imitation of Joe\u2019s.\u00a0 \u201cSorry.\u201d\u00a0 He indicated the book.\u00a0 \u201cIs this yours?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d he said as he approached him.\u00a0 \u201cDo you enjoy Tennyson?\u201d\u00a0 When the stranger nodded, he added, \u201cWhat\u2019s your favorite?\u201d<\/p>\n

The young man grinned sheepishly.\u00a0 \u201cDel likes the highbrow stuff.\u00a0 It\u2019s Idylls of the King for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Del.\u00a0 If the name hadn\u2019t given it away, the thick southern accent would have.\u00a0 Adam extended his hand.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m Adam Cartwright.\u00a0 You must be Del\u2019s brother, Hoyle.\u00a0 I take it you just arrived.\u201d<\/p>\n

The young man nodded as he took it.\u00a0 \u201cThere was no one around.\u00a0 I…let myself in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHave you seen your brother?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u201d\u00a0 He frowned.\u00a0 \u201cHe was sleeping.\u00a0 I tried to wake him up.\u00a0 I couldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDoctor Martin said he\u2019ll be fine.\u00a0 He gave him something to help him sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh.\u00a0 I see.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle looked to be a few years older than Joe.\u00a0 He would have guessed sixteen, maybe seventeen at most.\u00a0 He had the same small, taut build, except his chest and shoulders were a little broader, probably from whatever kind of work he\u2019d been reared to.\u00a0 He had dark curly blond hair, a shade or two lighter than his brother\u2019s, though it wasn\u2019t quite a thick as Joe\u2019s. \u00a0Adam laughed again.<\/p>\n

No one had hair as thick as Joe.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomething funny?\u201d Hoyle asked as he returned the Tennyson to the stack he\u2019d taken it from.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry.\u00a0 It\u2019s not you.\u00a0 I was thinking of my kid brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right if I sit?\u201d the boy asked, indicating the chair by the fire.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy all means.\u00a0 I apologize for not asking you to.\u201d<\/p>\n

He shrugged as he sat.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s okay.\u201d\u00a0 As Hoyle looked around, Adam watched his eyes grow wide.\u00a0 \u201cYou have a really nice spread.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy father worked hard for every inch of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The youth paled.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t mean anything.\u00a0 I just meant…well…it reminds me of the plantations back home in Louisiana.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you live in a plantation?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMe?\u201d\u00a0 He snorted, obviously amused.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 Our pa worked for one of the big houses before he died.\u00a0 Ma too.\u00a0 She\u2019s gone as well.\u00a0 We played there sometimes.\u00a0 Never went inside.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs it just you and Del?\u201d he asked.\u00a0 \u201cI mean, do you have any other brothers or sisters?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHad a sister.\u00a0 She died.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle nodded.\u00a0 \u201cSo am I.\u201d<\/p>\n

When it seemed the young man didn\u2019t intend to say anything more, Adam opened his mouth to ask if he\u2019d eaten.\u00a0 \u00a0Before he could, Hoyle asked him a question.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs your brother okay?\u00a0\u00a0 The one the bank robbers were holding?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s jaw tightened.\u00a0 \u201cThanks to your brother.\u00a0 Yes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs that how Del was shot?\u00a0 Saving him?\u201d<\/p>\n

Apparently it wasn\u2019t Roy who\u2019d delivered Hoyle to their doorstep.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t anyone tell you what happened?\u00a0 Who brought you out here?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle hesitated.\u00a0\u00a0 His hazel eyes flicked to the room where his brother lay and then his lips curled in a tight smile.\u00a0 \u201cNo one.\u00a0 I was following behind the posse.\u00a0 I waited long enough that they wouldn\u2019t know I\u2019d been trailing them before coming here.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why he had come upon him unexpectedly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll definitely have to meet Joe.\u00a0 Apparently you two have a lot in common,\u201d Adam said with a shake of his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam, are you going to introduce us to your guest?\u201d<\/p>\n

He saw the boy jolt and blanch.\u00a0 There was no mistaking the authority in Pa\u2019s voice.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is Del\u2019s brother, Pa.\u00a0 He arrived a few minutes ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle shot him a look of gratitude as he rose to take his father\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cHoyle Covington Beaumont,\u201d he drawled.\u00a0 \u201cAt your service, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pa was eying the young man, sizing him up \u2013 that or noting his likeness to Joe.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t so much that they looked alike as that they seemed to be the same type, right down to the slightly cocky nature and the inability to understand the word \u2018no\u2019.<\/p>\n

After a moment the older man extended his hand.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m pleased to meet you, Hoyle.\u00a0 I\u2019m Ben Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

The boy\u2019s eyes flicked to him.\u00a0 \u201cYour Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded.\u00a0 Then he turned his attention to his father.\u00a0 \u201cHow\u2019s Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSleeping.\u00a0 Paul says it was just exhaustion after all.\u00a0 Other than his ankle, he seems to be in fairly good shape.\u00a0\u00a0 Paul is insisting on a week\u2019s bed rest.\u201d<\/p>\n

A week.\u00a0 Good Lord!<\/p>\n

\u201cDid Paul leave a prescription for tying Joe down?\u201d he asked, his dimples showing.<\/p>\n

\u201cFortunately that ankle is going to keep your brother immobilized for a while.\u00a0 At least long enough for everything else to heal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam glanced at Hoyle who was taking everything in.\u00a0 \u201cEverything else?\u201d<\/p>\n

When his father hesitated to answer, the boy seemed to sense it was time for him to leave.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll just go check on Del, if that\u2019s all right,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The older man reached out and placed a hand on the youth\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cYou do that, son.\u00a0 You have a brave brother there.\u00a0 We are indebted to him.\u00a0 You\u2019re both welcome to stay with us until he\u2019s well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle nodded.\u00a0 \u201cThank you, sir.\u00a0 That\u2019s very kind of you.\u201d<\/p>\n

They watched him walk to the guest bedroom and go in, closing the door behind him, before speaking.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeems like a nice boy,\u201d the older man said.<\/p>\n

Adam nodded.\u00a0 His father was always very generous when it came to strangers.\u00a0 He was a little more reserved.\u00a0 The boy seemed genuine, but there\u2019d been something….<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry.\u00a0 My mind was wandering.\u201d\u00a0 He met his father\u2019s troubled gaze.\u00a0 \u201cWhat is it Paul is worried about with Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour brother came very close to…dying.\u00a0 The situation he found himself in was explosive and completely out of his control.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe took that villain down.\u00a0 That had to make him think he had some.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the risk of his own life, yes.\u201d\u00a0 His father paused.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m very proud of him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut….\u201d<\/p>\n

His father went to his usual chair by the fire and sat down.\u00a0 \u201cPaul said that near death experiences can…change a person.\u00a0 Especially someone Joe\u2019s age, who\u2019s felt invulnerable.\u00a0 Paul said there are several things we need to look out for.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPersonality changes.\u00a0 Coming that close to death makes some people more cautious, afraid of just about everything.\u00a0 Others it compels to reckless behavior.\u00a0 Paul said time loses its meaning because of a heightened awareness of the current moment and a desire to live it.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 His father held his gaze.\u00a0 \u201cAdam, we\u2019re going to have to be very patient with your brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

He drew in a breath and let it out slowly.\u00a0 \u201cI get it, Pa.\u00a0 Thanks for the slap on the wrist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t mean it that way, son, but I know Joseph and on a normal day, your little brother possesses a unique talent to \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGet under my skin?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was true.\u00a0 And it had almost got his brother killed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI learned my lesson, Pa.\u00a0\u00a0 You don\u2019t have to worry.\u00a0 I\u2019ll hold my tongue.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father rose and came to his side.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m afraid it\u2019s not going to be as easy as that.\u201d<\/p>\n

He frowned.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you mean?\u00a0 I said I\u2019d leave the kid alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLeaving Joe alone will be just as dangerous as pushing him too far.\u201d\u00a0 The older man placed his hand on his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cAdam, he needs your guidance.\u00a0 He\u2019s just a boy.\u00a0 I don\u2019t want….\u00a0 This can\u2019t become an excuse for letting Joe have his way and go unchallenged.\u00a0 Do you understand?\u201d<\/p>\n

It would be like walking a tightrope.<\/p>\n

\u201cDoes Hoss know?\u201d<\/p>\n

His father nodded.\u00a0 \u201cHe heard what Paul had to say.\u00a0 I told him what I told you, only in reverse.\u00a0 He\u2019s going to have to have a heavier hand with Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded.\u00a0 \u201cAmazing, isn\u2019t it?\u00a0 How everything can change in one day?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOr less.\u201d<\/p>\n

An image flashed in his mind then.\u00a0 Joe, standing there in Maisie\u2019s room, insisting he had done nothing wrong and begging him to listen.<\/p>\n

If he only had….<\/p>\n

Suddenly, his father\u2019s hands were on his face.\u00a0 He forced him to meet his stare.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cSon, you have to forgive yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

He drew in a sharp breath.\u00a0 It helped stem the tears.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know that I can, Pa.\u00a0 Joe could have died.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut he didn\u2019t.<\/em>\u00a0 Our God is one of second chances.\u00a0 He allows these things in our lives to teach us.\u00a0 There\u2019s a lesson here for Joe, and<\/em> for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReally, Pa?\u201d\u00a0 Adam snorted.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d be happy if you\u2019d tell me what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one can tell you, son,\u201d his father said, gently patting his face and then pulling away.\u00a0 \u201cI think it\u2019s something you and your brother are going to have to discover together.\u201d<\/p>\n

A second later a light voice intruded.\u00a0 It was Hoss.\u00a0 He was standing at the top of the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cHey, Pa.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s awake.\u00a0 He\u2019s askin\u2019 for Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

He blanched.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t help it.<\/p>\n

\u201cGo to your brother, son.\u00a0 He needs you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded and started for the stairs, even though he didn\u2019t know who needed who more.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hoss smiled at him as he passed him on the stair.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s lookin\u2019 good, Adam.\u00a0 He\u2019s got some color back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s good,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

As he started to push past, the big man caught his arm and stopped him.\u00a0 \u201cIt ain\u2019t your fault, Adam, what happened to Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, if its not my fault, whose is it?\u201d he snapped.\u00a0 \u201cJoe\u2019s?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt ain\u2019t nobody\u2019s and, maybe, it\u2019s everybody\u2019s.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t believe him either.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019 blue eyes narrowed with pain.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I didn\u2019t fight hard enough to stop him there, outside Reisen\u2019s.\u00a0 I just figured Joe\u2019d tucker out and come lookin\u2019 for us with his tail between his legs like always.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam reached out and placed a hand on his brother\u2019s shoulder as a sign of their shared pain.\u00a0 \u201cIt seems we both have our work cut out for us now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss looked frightened.\u00a0 Big as he was, sometimes his middle brother seemed more of a boy than Joe.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou mean what Paul said about Joe, well, maybe changin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s lips quirked.\u00a0 \u201cPa said we have to have patience with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cYou know little brother.\u00a0 Once he figures that out, he\u2019ll find some way to use it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know,\u201d he said, releasing his grip.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019ll be like walking on egg shells.\u00a0 Not reining him in, but not letting him run too fast or too far.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe its a good thing Joe ain\u2019t gonna be runnin\u2019 anywhere anyhow for a few weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n

They stood for a moment, both of them lost in thought, and then Hoss said, \u201cWell, I\u2019ll be lettin\u2019 you go.\u00a0 The little cuss\u2019ll be asleep again if you don\u2019t get in there soon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam patted his brother on the back and then moved down the hall.\u00a0 He stood outside his little brother\u2019s room for a moment and then pushed the door open and went inside.\u00a0 The only sound was that of Little Joe\u2019s breathing.\u00a0 It was even, as if his brother was asleep.\u00a0 Moving to the side of the bed he looked down at him.\u00a0 Sleeping, Joe looked like an angel with his baby face and mountain of light brown hair going dark.\u00a0 At that moment Adam thought he experienced what a parent did when they realized their child was growing up and getting ready to leave them behind.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d looked after Joe for so long, doing everything he could to protect him, it was hard to accept the fact that soon his brother wouldn\u2019t need him anymore.<\/p>\n

Dropping into the chair beside the bed, Adam rested his chin on his hand and waited.\u00a0\u00a0 It was maybe fifteen minutes before Joe roused again from wherever pain and the potent medicine Paul Martin had given him to kill it had taken him.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s dark lashes fluttered.\u00a0 He shifted and moaned.\u00a0 Licking his lips, he opened them and called out.\u00a0 \u201cPa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam leaned forward, taking his brother\u2019s arm in his fingers.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Joe.\u00a0 It\u2019s me.\u00a0 Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s brows met in the middle and he seemed to scowl.\u00a0 \u201c…Adam?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, buddy, it\u2019s me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c…sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

The word tore at him.\u00a0 \u201cYou have nothing to be sorry for.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLeft..the wagon.\u00a0 Maisie….\u201d<\/p>\n

He leaned in.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll let you in on a little secret, Joe.\u00a0 I wouldn\u2019t have listened either if a girl like Maisie had asked me to do something for her.\u201d<\/p>\n

That brought a little smile. \u00a0And another wince. \u00a0\u00a0\u201cHurts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yes, it did.\u00a0 It hurt him<\/em> too.\u00a0 \u201cI know. \u00a0Actually, it\u2019s me who should be sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother\u2019s green eyes turned toward him.\u00a0 They weren\u2019t entirely without focus, but he wasn\u2019t sure he could see him.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat…for?\u00a0 …did nothing…wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

God, how those words broke him!\u00a0\u00a0 Adam did nothing to keep the tears from forming in his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cJoe, my arrogance nearly got you killed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe snorted.\u00a0 Sort of.<\/p>\n

\u201c…sure…are arrogant….\u201d<\/p>\n

He reached out and touched his brother\u2019s thick hair, brushing it away from his face.\u00a0 \u201cJoe, you know the things I do…they\u2019re only because I love you.\u00a0 You do know that, don\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

One cheek twitched.\u00a0 \u201cRight….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReally, Joe.\u00a0 You have<\/em> to hear this.\u00a0 You\u2019re a good kid.\u00a0 You\u2019re going to make a wonderful man.\u00a0 I just…well…I just….\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head, unable to find the words.<\/p>\n

When Joe said nothing, he thought he had fallen back to sleep.\u00a0 Maybe he had.\u00a0 Still, he roused himself one last time.\u00a0 \u201c…this…what it takes….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTakes to what, Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c…get through that…granite head….\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother was asleep.<\/p>\n

Adam sat there, holding Joe\u2019s hand, marveling at the blood pounding through his brother\u2019s veins and at the fact that Joe was alive in spite of all of the mistakes that he had made.\u00a0 Taking the hand he held, Adam moved it below the coverlet and then pulled the thick blanket up to Joe\u2019s chin.\u00a0 Then he leaned over and kissed his baby brother\u2019s furrowed forehead before exiting the room.<\/p>\n

Hoss was waiting for him, questions in his eyes.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou all right, Adam?\u201d he asked softly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cOf course, I am.\u201d<\/p>\n

And, of course, Hoss knew as well as he did,<\/p>\n

It was a lie.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam went straight downstairs.\u00a0 He wanted to see if Del Beaumont was awake yet.\u00a0 On his way to the guest room he ran into Hop Sing who was carrying a tray laden with dishes out of the sitting area. Upon first inspection it seemed the food not been touched.\u00a0 A second glance showed him that it had been \u2013 barely.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoy eat like butterfly,\u201d the Chinese man groused.\u00a0 \u201cFlit from flower to flower.\u00a0 Never stay long enough to gather nectar.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam hid his smile.\u00a0 Hop Sing was in a poetic mood today.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure Hoyle is worried about his brother.\u201d\u00a0 He nodded toward the guest room.\u00a0 \u201cIs he in there now?\u201d<\/p>\n

Their cook shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cBoy go out.\u00a0 Take walk even though dark.\u00a0 Says, maybe hungry when comes back!\u201d<\/p>\n

Restless energy.\u00a0 He knew all about that.\u00a0 It was hard to sit still when your life was out of balance.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure he\u2019ll work up an appetite.\u00a0 Doc Martin\u2019s due back in the morning.\u00a0 Paul said before he left that Del was doing well.\u00a0 Since there was no sign of infection, he thought he\u2019d make a quick recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing might as well go visit cousin in Virginia City.\u00a0 Mistah Ben no eat.\u00a0 Little Joe no eat.\u00a0 Guests no eat.\u201d\u00a0 The Chinese man wagged a finger at him.\u00a0 \u201cNot see Mistah Adam at table last night and father say he send Hoss to town first thing in morning to check with sheriff!\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t let you do that, Hop Sing,\u201d he said, adding a note of regret for show.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ve got two men who need to build up their strength and, unless you want me to try to make beef broth or chicken soup….\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chinese man made a face.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing taste Mistah Adam\u2019s soup.\u00a0 Make convalescence longer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam laughed.\u00a0 \u201cI was fourteen!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo let Little Joe cook either.\u00a0 Burn house down,\u201d he replied.\u00a0 Hop Sing\u2019s dark eyes went to the stair.\u00a0 \u201cHow Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSleeping naturally.\u201d\u00a0 Adam yawned as he said it.\u00a0 He glanced at the clock.\u00a0 It was nearly midnight.\u00a0 \u201cJust like you and I should be.\u201d \u00a0The thought made him frown.\u00a0 \u201cDid Pa go to bed?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cGo after boy.\u00a0 Say too late for him to be out.\u201d<\/p>\n

That was Pa, keeping watch even when the one who needed it wasn\u2019t one of his own.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to check in on Del and then head up to bed.\u201d\u00a0 Adam stepped over and took a plate from the tray that contained an untouched half of a beef sandwich and some apple slices.\u00a0 \u201cMidnight snack,\u201d he said with a grin as he popped one of the slices into his mouth.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing beamed as he knew he would.<\/p>\n

\u201cBreakfast at seven,\u201d the Chinese man said and, with a flourish of his queue, turned and headed for the kitchen.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Del was sitting up in bed, awake and staring out the window when he entered the room.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t wake you, did I?\u201d Adam asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cNah,\u201d he drawled as he lifted the sling that held his arm.\u00a0 \u201cThis did that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe doctor said the wound was clean.\u00a0 Shouldn\u2019t take too long to heal.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other man shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve had worse.\u201d<\/p>\n

Back in the trees the only thing he had been focused on was Joe.\u00a0 Now he was able to give DeLoyd Beaumont a good assessing look.\u00a0 He would have put his age at about twenty-five, so a little younger than him and a little older than Hoss.\u00a0 He was blond like his brother Hoyle, only where Hoyle\u2019s hair was a deep blond tending to brown, Del\u2019s was as pale as a Palomino\u2019s winter coat.\u00a0 His face was longer than his brother\u2019s, but enough like it he would have guessed they had the same mother.\u00a0 Del had deep blue eyes topped by pale brows, set in a narrow face.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t old enough to have too many lines, but there was one \u2013 unnatural \u2013 that ran along the left side of his face from just beneath his ear and into his neck.<\/p>\n

There had to be a story there.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow\u2019d you get that scar?\u201d<\/p>\n

Del reached up and ran his index finger over it.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cKnife fight,\u201d he grinned.\u00a0 \u201cI was a cocky kid.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike your brother?\u201d<\/p>\n

Del was instantly alert.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve seen Hoyle?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEasy.\u201d\u00a0 Adam held his hand out, fingers wide.\u00a0 \u201cApparently your little brother and mine have a lot in common.\u00a0 Joe doesn\u2019t know the meaning of the word \u2018no\u2019 either.\u00a0 Hoyle\u2019s here.\u201d<\/p>\n

For a moment the blond man looked confused, then he nodded.\u00a0 \u201cHe was following the posse.\u00a0 Damn fool kid!\u00a0 He could have been killed.\u201d<\/p>\n

The scene in the forest \u2013 Joe laying silent and still under the man who would have murdered him and Del laying just feet away, his arm bleeding and his gun smoking \u2013 flashed before his eyes.<\/p>\n

He must have winced or frowned because the other man asked, \u201cSomething wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u00a0 I came in here to thank you for saving my<\/em> damn fool kid brother when I couldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI was just faster, that was all.\u201d\u00a0 Del smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve had a lot of experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you a lawman?\u201d<\/p>\n

The other man shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve been that, and a drover, and a wrangler, and just about everything else under the sun.\u00a0 Hoyle and I were sent to live with relatives up north when our father died.\u00a0 About a year ago we started making our way back south, finding odd jobs here and there, working enough to pay the next part of the journey forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo you were just passing through Genoa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been there about a month.\u00a0 We were on the street when the bank robbery went down.\u00a0 I saw that deputy killed. He had a young wife and baby. \u00a0I volunteered for the posse and brought Hoyle along.\u00a0 When we got to Virginia City, I set the kid up in the hotel and told him to stay put until I came back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFamous last words…\u201d Adam muttered.<\/p>\n

Del was silent for a moment.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s a good kid.\u00a0 Cocky, yes, and too sure of himself, but he\u2019ll grow out of that.\u00a0 I regret that the work I\u2019ve done has dragged him from town to town, but its been the only way to pay the price of the trip home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd where is home?\u201d\u00a0 Adam smiled.\u00a0 \u201cHoyle mentioned Louisiana?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA small town in St. Charles Parish.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s near New Orleans, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

Del grinned.\u00a0 \u201cYou make a habit of studying geography?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, and no.\u00a0 I went to college, so I studied it plenty.\u00a0 Actually, the reason I know about New Orleans is that that\u2019s where father\u2019s third wife was from.\u00a0 Her name was Marie.\u00a0 She was Joe\u2019s mother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThird<\/em> wife?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy mother died when I was born.\u00a0 My brother Hoss\u2019 mother died on the journey west.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd this Marie?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe died in a riding accident when Joe was five.\u201d\u00a0 He paused.\u00a0 \u201cHoyle said your mother is dead as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Del started to reply, but had to wait for a yawn to pass.\u00a0 \u201cHoyle was a little older.\u00a0 She died when he was nine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam rose from his seat.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m tiring you out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019d think after sleeping half the day away, I\u2019d be wide awake.\u00a0 But you know,\u00a0 I think I could sleep again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI need to get to my bed too.\u00a0 The needs of a ranch pay little heed to the troubles of man. \u201c\u00a0 He walked to the door.\u00a0 \u201cGood night.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you see Hoyle, send him in.\u201d<\/p>\n

He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI will.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Outside the Ponderosa ranch house a brown-haired man wearing a store-bought suit stood, concealed behind a brace of trees.\u00a0 \u00a0He\u2019d positioned himself where he could watch but not be seen.\u00a0 As the lights began to dim within the large wooden structure, he considered his options.\u00a0 It would take some time for DeLoyd Beaumont\u2019s wound to heal.\u00a0 That was fine.\u00a0 It fit with the plan.\u00a0 There was no sense in moving too quickly.\u00a0 It would only bring them trouble.\u00a0 He would come back once the blond man was on his feet.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen Beaumont\u2019s young brother walking around not too long before and had thought to confront him, but he knew DeLoyd was protective of the kid and decided, in the end, it would be better to leave him alone.<\/p>\n

Unless not <\/em>leaving him alone became necessary.<\/p>\n

Coming to a decision, the city slicker put some distance between himself and the Cartwright\u2019s fine house.\u00a0 He\u2019d tethered his horse back a hundred yards or so.\u00a0 In the morning he\u2019d ride north, take a temporary job, and scout out the next town.\u00a0 Then he\u2019d return to Genoa and finish his business there.\u00a0 By the time he was done with all of that DeLoyd Beaumont should be on his feet and he could come upon him unawares.<\/p>\n

Yes, that would do.<\/p>\n

The brown-haired man cast a last glance at the capitol of Benjamin Cartwright\u2019s empire.<\/p>\n

After all, they had a lot to talk about.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

FIVE<\/p>\n

Ben Cartwright lowered the newspaper he was reading and looked at the young man seated near the end of the table in the spot Joe usually occupied.\u00a0 He\u2019d found Hoyle Beaumont wandering around the corral the night before and had escorted the boy into the house.\u00a0 Hoyle seemed to know his way around horses, so it was more for the boy\u2019s protection than because he feared he might upset the animals.\u00a0 He\u2019d stepped into the guest room with him and noted the boy\u2019s joy when he saw his brother was awake.\u00a0 Del told him Adam had left just a few minutes before and gone to bed.<\/p>\n

That left him as the last man standing.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d gone to the kitchen next and grabbed a snack, and then sat in the chair by the fire for half an hour or so, considering the possible outcomes of the day\u2019s events and thanking the Lord that the one He had chosen had been the one he<\/em> desired.\u00a0\u00a0 After that he went to bed.<\/p>\n

His sleep had been restless, his dreams rife with all those other<\/em> possibilities.<\/p>\n

In the end he had risen early, seen to a few of Joe\u2019s chores to help out Adam and Hoss, and then come in and taken his place at the table.\u00a0 His boys were running a few minutes behind, which left him and Hoyle alone.\u00a0 He\u2019d tried to get the boy to talk a little about his family and where he was from.\u00a0 He\u2019d guessed by the brothers\u2019 accent that it was near New Orleans.\u00a0 While the boy politely answered his questions and responded to pleasantries, Hoyle actually said very little and was obviously preoccupied.<\/p>\n

If it had been Joe and Adam was laying in that room with a bullet wound, he supposed it would have been the same.<\/p>\n

\u201cMornin\u2019, Pa!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben looked up to find Hoss charging down the stairs, with Adam close behind.\u00a0 \u201cGood morning, Hoss.\u00a0 Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded.\u00a0 His eldest was looking rested but his face still had a pinched look.\u00a0 He doubted Adam had slept any better than he had.\u00a0 Hoss on the other hand, as usual, was shining bright.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s for breakfast?\u201d his middle son asked, rubbing his hands together.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood morning, Hoyle,\u201d Adam said as he pulled his chair back and sat down.<\/p>\n

\u201cDang it!\u201d Hoss exclaimed.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s might poor manners, ain\u2019t it?\u00a0 How\u2019d you sleep, Hoyle?\u201d<\/p>\n

The boy looked slightly uncomfortable.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cFine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded to Hop Sing who had entered with a tray holding a platter fully laden with flapjacks.\u00a0 \u201cDid either of you check in on Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSleepin\u2019 beauty\u2019s still sleepin\u2019, Pa,\u201d Hoss replied, his tone softening.<\/p>\n

The older man nodded as he took a small stack of cakes and placed them on his plate before passing the platter to Adam who sat on his right side.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow does he look?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBetter, Pa,\u201d Adam answered as he passed the platter on to Hoyle.\u00a0 \u201cHis color\u2019s coming back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled as the platter moved on to Hoss who was more than ready.\u00a0 His big son with the big appetite emptied it of all the remaining flapjacks and then handed it back to Hop Sing who took it and disappeared into the kitchen.<\/p>\n

\u201cPaul will be out this morning to check on Joe and on your <\/em>brother, Hoyle,\u201d Ben said, addressing the taciturn\u00a0 boy. \u00a0\u201cI imagine he\u2019ll let Del get out of bed if he wants to.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan I have the maple syrup, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s lips twitched.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know…can<\/em> you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nearly blew syrup out of his nose.<\/p>\n

Hoss chuckled.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMay<\/em> I have some syrup, Pa,\u201d he amended.<\/p>\n

The older man picked up the cut-crystal container and passed it to his middle boy.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYes, son, you may<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

And with that, they settled down to eating.\u00a0 Hoyle\u2019s appetite had apparently come back.\u00a0 The boy did a good job of cleaning his plate. When he was done he asked to be excused so he could take a tray into his brother.\u00a0 Ben nodded his agreement and told him to go to the kitchen and check in with Hop Sing.<\/p>\n

Minutes later they watched Hoyle disappear into the first floor guest room.<\/p>\n

Once they\u2019d finished and Hop Sing had cleared the table, the three or them remained in place discussing the day\u2019s business.\u00a0 Hoss was heading into town to check on the progress of Roy\u2019s investigation into the men who had robbed the bank and held Joe hostage.\u00a0 Not all of them had been captured and the lawman was gathering men to go in pursuit of them.\u00a0 He wished he could spare either Adam or Hoss for the posse, but with Joe down it was out of the question.\u00a0 For today Adam would have to undertake his responsibilities as well as his own.<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t want to leave Joe alone.<\/p>\n

As Hoss rose from the table to gather his things, they were all surprised by a knock at the door.\u00a0 Adam went to answer it and returned a moment later with an official looking document in his hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s from the court in Genoa, Pa,\u201d his son said as he offered it to him.\u00a0 \u201cYou think this has to do with that disagreement with Stanfield Hawks?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben stared at the envelope.\u00a0 \u00a0Stanfield Hawks was a newcomer to the area.\u00a0 He\u2019d purchased land right next to theirs and was disputing one of the borderlines.\u00a0 It just so happened the land within the border he was claiming was his was one of the richest on the Ponderosa.<\/p>\n

\u201cI imagine it is,\u201d he sighed as he opened the flap and removed the paper inside. \u00a0After a second, he tossed it on the table.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is it, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cA summons.\u00a0 Hawks has lodged a formal complaint.\u201d\u00a0 His eyes went to the stair and his mind beyond it to the wounded boy who lay sleeping in his room.\u00a0 \u201cI do not<\/em> need this now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen\u2019s the court date?\u201d Adam asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cThree weeks from now,\u201d he said, leaning back in his chair, \u201cbut it will require I go to Eagle Station and a few other towns including the one with the land office where I first filed\u00a0 the claim on the land.\u00a0 That will add another week at least.\u00a0 I don\u2019t want to be away from your brother that long.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe will be fine, Pa.\u00a0 Hoss and I will look out for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAlong with all your other obligations?\u201d he asked, turning to Adam.\u00a0 \u201cSon, a man can only stretch himself so<\/em> thin.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMister Cartwright?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben started and looked toward the guest room.\u00a0 A rather pallid DeLoyd Beaumont was standing in the open doorway, supported by his brother.<\/p>\n

Startled, the older man rose and went to him.\u00a0 \u201cYou should be in bed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m fine, sir,\u201d the blond man drawled.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t look fine.\u201d\u00a0 He was trembling slightly.\u00a0 \u201cCome and take a seat by the fire at least.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle caught his eye as they began to move.\u00a0 \u201cI tried to tell him….\u201d<\/p>\n

Once Del was seated, he said, \u201cI couldn\u2019t help but overhear your conversation, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBen.\u201d<\/p>\n

He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cBen.\u00a0 I had a mind to ask you, but didn\u2019t want to take advantage.\u00a0 I mean, any man would have done what I did to try to save your son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you did<\/em> save him.\u201d\u00a0 Ben smiled.\u00a0 \u201cWhat would you like to ask me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Del\u2019s eyes went to his brother.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ve been traveling for some time and are low on funds.\u00a0 I was wondering, I mean, would you have any jobs available?\u00a0 I can do just about anything around a ranch and the boy is capable of anything your average hand can do.\u00a0 If we could work a month or so, then we could be on our way again.\u00a0 Back toward Louisiana.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben reached out and laid a hand on Del\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019d be happy to have you.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure it would make Joe happy too.\u00a0 This way he can get to know you.\u201d\u00a0 He nodded toward Hoyle.\u00a0 \u201cI have a feeling my youngest and your brother would enjoy each other\u2019s company as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you, Ben.\u201d\u00a0 Del gingerly lifted his injured arm.\u00a0 \u201cOnce this is healed, I promise you I will carry any load you give me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s plenty to do with the upcoming roundup and the horses that need to be readied for the army contract.\u00a0 We can use every hand we can get.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou just put Hoyle with me.\u201d\u00a0 Del glanced at his brother and grinned.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll see he keeps out of trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben looked at the curly-headed youth.\u00a0 He recognized that roll of the eyes and the resolute set to his jaw.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s good.\u201d<\/p>\n

He held out his hand.\u00a0 Del took it with his good one.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a deal.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe woke to Doctor Paul Martin prodding his injured ankle with his fingers.\u00a0 \u201cHey!\u201d he shouted.\u00a0 \u201cThat hurts!\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man looked over his glasses, pinning him with a calculating stare.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI thought<\/em> that would wake you up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou could have thought of a nicer way,\u201d he whined as tears formed in his eyes.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut not more effective,\u201d the doctor said with a tight smile.<\/p>\n

Joe drew in a breath, fighting the pain.\u00a0 \u201cIs it broken?\u201d<\/p>\n

Paul put his foot down gently.\u00a0 \u201cIf you\u2019d asked me last night, son, I would have said \u2018yes\u2019.\u00a0 I even told your father it was.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, now that I have had a chance to examine it more closely, the answer it \u2018no\u2019.\u00a0 There\u2019s a chance it\u2019s fractured, but I think it\u2019s just a bad sprain.\u201d\u00a0 He sat back.\u00a0 \u201cYou are a very lucky young man.\u00a0 From what your father said, you did just about everything you could to break it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe nodded.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t like to think about what had happened.\u00a0 When he did, he felt a sense of panic rise up in him even though he knew he was here, at home, and safe.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t remember much but what he did remember was more than enough.\u00a0 He remembered that man named Pythias.\u00a0 And a gun barrel pressing into his hair.\u00a0 Pain exploding as he hooked his foot into the upturned root and then a heavy weight falling on him.<\/p>\n

Not being able to breathe….<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe?\u201d\u00a0 Paul Martin\u2019s hand landed on his arm.\u00a0 \u201cSon, are you all right?\u201d<\/p>\n

He was shaking.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t help it.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust cold,\u201d he lied.<\/p>\n

The older man rose.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll have Hop Sing come up and stoke the fire.\u00a0 We don\u2019t want you taking a chill.\u00a0 There\u2019s always the possibility of some kind of infection setting in even in the best of circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the doctor snapped his bag closed, Joe asked, \u201cHow long, Doc?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you have to stay off of it?\u00a0 With a sprain like that, I\u2019d recommend two weeks bed rest, and another three with limited mobility.\u00a0 And even then, only on crutches.\u201d<\/p>\n

He must have looked crestfallen because the older man laughed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith a Cartwright, one<\/em> week off of it, two<\/em> weeks on crutches and then, young man, after that only light ranch work and plenty of rest for two more weeks.\u201d\u00a0 Paul held out his hand.\u00a0 \u201cDeal?\u201d<\/p>\n

A whole week in bed.\u00a0 A whole week to do nothing but lay there and think about what could<\/em> have happened.<\/p>\n

Joe\u00a0 swallowed over the lump in his throat as he reached out and took the other man\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cDeal.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSee to it you do as you promise<\/em>.\u00a0 Too much too soon and you\u2019ll just have to start all over again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir.\u00a0 Thank you, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paul touched his head affectionately and then headed for the door.\u00a0 The older man glanced back at him when he reached it and then stepped into the hall.<\/p>\n

After a moment he heard voices.<\/p>\n

One was his pa.<\/p>\n

Several minutes later his father stepped into the room.\u00a0 He had a breakfast tray in his hands.\u00a0 \u201cGood morning, Joseph,\u201d Pa said, smiling.\u00a0 \u201cAre you hungry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cNot really.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instantly, his father was alert.\u00a0 \u201cAre you not feeling well?\u00a0 Should I get Paul back?\u201d<\/p>\n

He loved his pa, but he was a worry-wart and worse than any old maiden lady.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m fine,\u201d he said, shifting and pulling his body up so he was sitting more than laying.\u00a0 \u201cThe Doc messed around with my foot.\u00a0 Kind of put my stomach off.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man put the tray on the bedside table and then sat on the bed beside him.\u00a0 Pa reached out then, touching the side of his face, tracing one of the scratches he\u2019d gotten when Pythias dragged him over the ground.\u00a0\u00a0 As a boy that touch had been a lifeline for him.\u00a0 He\u2019d long for it if a day went by without it.\u00a0 He still did, if the truth be known, but now that he was a man, well, it seemed he wasn\u2019t supposed to feel that way.\u00a0 Or at least, not supposed to show it.<\/p>\n

He squirmed his way out from under it.\u00a0 \u201cPa, I\u2019m fine,\u201d he protested.<\/p>\n

His pa didn\u2019t exactly look hurt.\u00a0 It was more like, well, lost<\/em> maybe.\u00a0\u00a0 Lifting his hand, he sat back.\u00a0 \u201cPaul says you need to stay off your feet for a week and after that, use a crutch for a few more.\u201d<\/p>\n

His nose scrunched up in spite of his best efforts and his voice, when he spoke, came out in a whine.\u00a0 \u201cAh, Pa, you know Doc Martin\u2019s over-cautious.\u00a0 I can be up in a day or two \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou will do no such thing, young man, and that\u2019s an order.\u201d\u00a0 His father\u2019s tone was stern, unbending.\u00a0 \u201cIf I see you out of this bed in less than seven days, I personally guarantee I will hire a nursemaid to sit at your side and make sure you stay put for the next one.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe pulled a face, the one that made it look like he was about to get sick.\u00a0 \u201cWhat am I going to do for a whole week cooped up in my room?\u00a0 Hoss and Adam ain\u2019t gonna have any time to spend with me \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, they aren\u2019t.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

He ignored the correction.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll go stir crazy!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure we can find something to keep you occupied.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe fell silent.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t like the sound of that.<\/p>\n

At that moment, there was a knock at the door.\u00a0 A second later a young man appeared in it, holding their crystal syrup container.\u00a0 \u201cMister Cartwright?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, Hoyle, what is it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing said you forgot this.\u201d\u00a0 The youth held out the pitcher.\u00a0 As he did, their eyes made contact.\u00a0 Hoyle, whoever he was, kind of smiled.<\/p>\n

He did the same.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, this is Hoyle Beaumont.\u00a0 He\u2019s the younger brother of the man who saved you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe blinked.\u00a0 He\u2019d thought Adam….\u00a0 As he lay there, looking at Hoyle, more of that horrible moment flashed through his mind.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen a man running toward him.\u00a0 He thought it was Adam, but then realized his coloring was wrong.\u00a0 A second later he\u2019d hooked his foot, the pain had come, and he\u2019d fallen to the ground nearly unconscious.\u00a0 Pythias was fuming, cussing at him, telling him he was gonna shoot him in the head.\u00a0 He felt the barrel of the pistol press into the curls dangling in front of his eyes and then…then<\/em>…before the outlaw could cock the hammer Pythias stiffened.\u00a0 A look of disbelief entered his eyes.\u00a0 And then \u2013 blood spurting everywhere \u2013 the dead man had toppled over on him.<\/p>\n

Joe shuddered from head to foot \u2013 which, of course, caused his pa to tuck his blankets in like he was a little kid.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa….\u201d<\/p>\n

His father looked at him, confused, and then chuckled even as Hop Sing appeared in the door behind Hoyle, a load of wood in his arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cDoctor send Hop Sing up.\u00a0 Say, make fire warmer for Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man nodded.\u00a0 \u201cExcellent timing, Hop Sing.\u201d \u00a0With that, he crossed over to where Hoyle was standing and took the pitcher. \u00a0Placing it next to the tray, his pa said, \u201cWell, I\u2019ll leave you two young men alone to get acquainted.\u201d\u00a0 Looking at him again, Pa added, \u201cTry to eat something, Joseph.\u00a0 The quicker you build up your strength, the quicker you\u2019ll be able to do the things you want to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d he agreed reluctantly.<\/p>\n

In passing, his father placed a hand on Hoyle\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll be downstairs if you need me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe watched him go.\u00a0 So did Hoyle.\u00a0 For a long time neither of them said anything.\u00a0 It was like a grown-up to think that, just because you were two men about the same age, you\u2019d have all kinds of things in common.\u00a0 Most of the time it wasn\u2019t true.<\/p>\n

An hour later, Joe realized that Hoyle coming to the Ponderosa was just about the best \u2018get well\u2019 present he\u2019d ever had.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

When Hoss got back from town around suppertime, the first thing he did was check in on his little brother.\u00a0 He found Joe in better spirits than he could have hoped, sitting up in bed with a board on his lap, playing checkers with Hoyle.\u00a0 Both boys looked up when he came into the room.\u00a0 Joe grinned while Hoyle looked a little guilty, like he was where he shouldn\u2019t be.\u00a0 Hoss told him to stay put and then reached over and ruffled his little brother\u2019s hair and called him \u2018punkin\u2019.\u00a0 A minute later he exited the room to the sound of Joe\u2019s protest.<\/p>\n

He laughed all the way down the stairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re in good spirits,\u201d brother Adam said as he came to the table and took a seat.<\/p>\n

The big man nodded.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s right satisfying to see Joe lookin\u2019 so good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s eyes went to the stairs and the landing beyond.\u00a0 \u201cYes,\u201d he said quietly.<\/p>\n

Hoss reached for a roll and the butter to put on it.\u00a0 \u201cYou ain\u2019t still stewin\u2019 over Del shootin\u2019 that there outlaw instead of you, are you?\u201d<\/p>\n

His older brother leaned back in his chair.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0\u00a0 Not \u2018stewing\u2019 exactly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou said you heard Joe scream and it stopped you for a split second.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss looked thoughtful.\u00a0 \u201cWould have stopped me too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDel didn\u2019t stop.\u00a0 He just plowed ahead as if he hadn\u2019t heard anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe ain\u2019t Del\u2019s brother, Adam.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss stopped with the roll halfway to his lips.\u00a0 \u201cSides. Is somethin\u2019 wrong with that?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam blinked.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 No.\u00a0 Just surprising.\u00a0 That scream came out of nowhere.\u00a0 It sounded like….\u201d\u00a0 His older brother paused.\u00a0 Adam drew a deep breath and let it out slowly.\u00a0 \u201cThat scream sounded like it came as a result of a killing blow.\u201d\u00a0 His older brother\u2019s jaw was tight.\u00a0 \u201cI was sure Joe was dead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss considered it for a second and then dismissed what his brother said \u2013 because he had<\/em> to.\u00a0 \u201cDel ain\u2019t said much about what\u2019s made him the man he is.\u00a0 Maybe he\u2019s used to it, been in battle or something.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe.\u201d\u00a0 Adam straightened up.\u00a0 \u201cAnyway, he saved Joe\u2019s life.\u00a0 We owe him a debt of gratitude that will be hard to repay.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss popped the roll into his mouth, chewed and swallowed.\u00a0 Then he washed it down with a bit of milk.\u00a0 \u201cHiring him on \u2013\u00a0 him and Hoyle \u2013 will pay some toward it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will certainly help around here, too.\u00a0 With Joe down and Pa gone for days to collect those records, it\u2019s going to be up to you and me to keep the ranch running.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you think about that there thing with Hawks?\u201d he asked.\u00a0 \u201cYou think he\u2019s gonna be able to keep that land?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam grimaced.\u00a0 \u201cStanfield Hawks is as bull-headed as they come, and not entirely honest.\u00a0 I think he\u2019d going to do everything in his power to get that piece of land away from Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou gonna go meet up with Pa when he gets back to Genoa?\u201d Their Pa had suggested it.\u00a0 He always valued brother Adam\u2019s cool logical view of things.<\/p>\n

The black-haired man straightened up just as Hop Sing entered the room carrying a steaming platter of roast beef.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll see.\u00a0 It will depend on how things go around here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI imagine he\u2019s gonna need you, Adam.\u00a0 Joe will be up on crutches by then.\u00a0 With Del and Hoyle, we can manage.\u201d<\/p>\n

His older brother nodded to their cook as he accepted a plate.\u00a0 \u201cLike I said, we\u2019ll see.\u201d\u00a0 As Adam put his fork to the beef, he asked, his eyes on the empty seat at the head of the table, \u201cWhere\u2019s Pa now?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight here,\u201d their father said as he came in the door.\u00a0 After depositing his hat and coat on the rack, and placing his gun belt on the credenza, the older man joined them.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere you been, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

His father nodded to Hop Sing as the Chinese man placed a plate before him.\u00a0 \u201cThank you,\u201d he said before answering.\u00a0 \u201cI got word one of the hands was injured. \u00a0Luckily, it turned out to be nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMe and Adam were talking,\u201d he said as his father picked up his glass.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh?\u00a0 About what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout you bein\u2019 gone gettin\u2019 what you need for that there Hawks\u2019 case.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss paused.\u00a0 One did not<\/em> tell Ben Cartwright what to do \u2013 not if they valued their hide.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re gonna need Adam with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

His pa sighed.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I certainly would like to have my oldest college-educated boy at my side, but it will depend on a number of things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam smiled.\u00a0 \u201cIf you need me, Pa, I\u2019ll be there.\u00a0 You know that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, we don\u2019t have to make a decision for a few weeks on any account.\u00a0 As the Good Book says, \u2018Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

Hoss stopped with a forkful of beef just past his lips.\u00a0 \u201cEvil?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam snorted.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a manner of speech.\u201d<\/p>\n

The over-sized teen shoveled the beef in his mouth and thought hard on that as he chewed.<\/p>\n

He certainly hoped so.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Roy Coffee stared hard at the two mangy-lookin\u2019 outlaws he had locked up in his cell, a frown creasing his forehead.\u00a0 If they weren\u2019t two of the dumbest galoots he\u2019d ever locked up! \u00a0\u00a0Wasn\u2019t no way either of them had planned that there robbery in Genoa.\u00a0 They had more muscle between their ears than they had on their arms!\u00a0 All of which meant, the men what planned it were either six feet under now or still on the loose.\u00a0 He figured they got about half of them there bank robbers, includin\u2019 that Pythias Morgan fellow who was wanted in just about every state in the union and most of its territories too.\u00a0 The bad thing was, that meant the ones still on the loose were probably plannin\u2019 to rob another bank and that could be all the way from Virginia City to Tombstone.\u00a0 The only place they knew was safe was Genoa.<\/p>\n

Wasn\u2019t a bank robber alive\u2019d be stupid enough to try robbin\u2019 two banks in the same town.<\/p>\n

Sidling over to his desk, Roy sat down and picked up the wanted posters he\u2019d been sent, eying them again to see if anyone jumped out at him.\u00a0 Pythias Morgan\u2019d had a reward on his head.\u00a0 He\u2019d have to talk to Ben about that and make sure Del Beaumont got what he had comin\u2019.\u00a0 It sure was lucky that young man had signed on for the posse in Genoa.\u00a0 Beaumont had a clear head and a sure hand and had used both to save Ben\u2019s boy.\u00a0 The lawman smiled as he tossed the posters to the desktop.\u00a0 That Little Joe, he was<\/em> a caution.\u00a0 Seemed like every bit of minx that had been in his mother and all the determination and temper of his pa had ended up collidin\u2019 in that boy\u2019s skinny frame.\u00a0 Keepin\u2019 his youngest alive had just about become Ben\u2019s main occupation.\u00a0 Roy ran a hand over his chin and glanced at the drawing of Pythias Morgan again.\u00a0 Would have been a downright shame if a skunk like Morgan had killed Little Joe.<\/p>\n

A downright shame and probably the end of his pa.<\/p>\n

The sound of the jail door opening brought the older man out of his reverie.\u00a0 Roy looked up to find one of his deputies standing in the open doorway.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou got somethin\u2019 to say, come on in and say it, boy, \u00a0he said when the boy just stood there letting the wind blow in.<\/p>\n

His deputy nodded.\u00a0 \u201cTrouble at the Reisen House, Roy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sheriff made a dismissive noise.\u00a0 \u201cWell, now, why don\u2019t you tell me just which kind<\/em> of trouble?\u00a0 Angry gambler who thinks he got cheated?\u00a0 Miner who\u2019s been insulted by a cowboy?\u00a0 Barroom girl with a run in her stockin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the girls has been beaten.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy sobered instantly.\u00a0 \u201cBad?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPretty bad.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man grabbed his gun belt and buckled it on.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s her name?\u201d he asked, having a suspicion that it might be that older one named Viney.\u00a0 She had a mouth on her and he\u2019d warned her more than once that one day he wouldn\u2019t be there to stop someone tryin\u2019 to shut it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s one of the young ones.\u00a0 Maisie, I think.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy froze.\u00a0 \u201cMaisie O\u2019Malley.\u00a0 Sean\u2019s girl?\u201d<\/p>\n

His deputy shrugged.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d watched Maisie grow up.\u00a0 Like her sisters, she was a beauty.\u00a0 And like Ben\u2019s youngest, she was a rare <\/em>one.\u00a0 He\u2019d heard she decided to be an actress and thought working at Reisen\u2019s would teach her a thing or two about the world and what was in it.<\/p>\n

Somehow, he didn\u2019t think this <\/em>was what she\u2019d had in mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll head right over.\u00a0 You go see if you can find the Doc.\u00a0 I know he was out to the Cartwright\u2019s this morning.\u00a0 Let\u2019s hope he\u2019s made it back to town.\u201d<\/p>\n

The young man nodded and was gone.<\/p>\n

Roy picked up his badge and pinned it on his chest and then caught his coat from the hook by the door.\u00a0 Night was fallin\u2019 and it was a sight colder than it should have been for this time of year.<\/p>\n

That, he thought with a grunt, or it was just this job and all it entailed that left him cold.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In the end it turned out the girl was pretty banged up, but the Doc said she wasn\u2019t in any danger.\u00a0 The man who attacked her hadn\u2019t been a local, but a city slicker she\u2019d been set to \u2018entertain\u2019 the night before.\u00a0 He was old enough to be her father and had come into the saloon bellowin\u2019 about her bein\u2019 a no-show, threatenin\u2019 to break every last glass and bottle in the place until he could talk to her.\u00a0 Nothin\u2019 unusual about that.\u00a0 The saloon-keeper sent him up to her room where, evidently, the man had found Maisie packin\u2019.\u00a0 \u00a0Sam hadn\u2019t thought much more about it until the man come flyin\u2019 down the\u00a0 stairs and walked straight out the door without saying a word, leavin\u2019 a trail of bright red drops behind him.<\/p>\n

Seems his knuckles were bleedin\u2019 from the despicable thing he\u2019d done.<\/p>\n

Roy shook his head as he descended the stairs.\u00a0 He\u2019d looked up Viney and asked her if she\u2019d mind the girl \u2018til she was better.\u00a0 In spite of what she did for a livin\u2019, Viney didn\u2019t like men much, so she was more than happy to ride shot-gun in case the slicker came back.\u00a0 Literally<\/em>.\u00a0 He warned her he\u2019d have to put her in jail and probably stretch her neck a bit if she did anythin\u2019 stupid.\u00a0 Viney\u2019d just laughed.<\/p>\n

Bein\u2019 born<\/em>, she said, was the stupidest thing she\u2019d<\/em> ever done.<\/p>\n

As the older man walked back to the jail, feeling everyone of his more than fifty years, a clock somewhere struck midnight.\u00a0 Another day was over.\u00a0 Tomorrow it would all begin again.\u00a0 Tomorrow he\u2019d wake up and get dressed and first thing go to the Reisen House to talk to Maisie O\u2019Malley. \u00a0Then he\u2019d head for the office where he\u2019d pour over those wanted posters again, memorizing each and every poorly rendered face.\u00a0 Tomorrow he\u2019d take out a search party and return to that place where Little Joe Cartwright had almost lost his life and see what he could find.\u00a0 He\u2019d ride out to the Ponderosa next and check in with Ben to see how his youngest was doin\u2019, and then he\u2019d question as many of the men who had joined in the search for Little Joe as he could find in order to see if there was anythin\u2019 he missed \u2013 a word, a clue; a footprint man or beast.<\/p>\n

They were out there somewhere, those men who had robbed the Genoa City bank, and his aging bones were telling him one thing loud and clear.<\/p>\n

They weren\u2019t done.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

PART TWO<\/p>\n

The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head. Jonah 2:5<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

SIX<\/p>\n

Hoss Cartwright eyed his older brother who stood beside him clinging onto the same rope he was, and then turned back to watch the progress of his younger brother who seemed hell-bent on breaking his neck.\u00a0\u00a0 Little Joe\u2019d insisted on rappellin\u2019 down the side of a cliff to save a stray calf that had got stuck on a two foot-wide ledge some fifteen feet below. \u00a0\u00a0They\u2019d told him to forget it and he\u2019d just about bit their head off for it, callin\u2019 them all sorts of things, some of which would have made even old Viney at Reisen\u2019s blush.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe\u2019s taking\u00a0 too many chances,\u201d Adam said, his words as tight as his grip on the rope.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo why\u2019d you let him do it?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

Adam sighed.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cBecause I knew if I didn\u2019t<\/em>, Joe would come back out here on his own later and try.\u00a0 Dangerous as this is, at least you and I are here to keep the worst from happening.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cEver since those bank robbers took him, its like Little Joe\u2019s got to prove somethin\u2019 to hisself.\u00a0 Like, well, he don\u2019t dare admit anythin\u2019<\/em> scares him.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother eyed the drop before them.\u00a0 \u201cAnd that<\/em> scares me.\u201d<\/p>\n

He thought a moment.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s hard, ain\u2019t it? \u00a0Knowin\u2019 what to do, I mean.\u00a0 Before he left Pa kept quotin\u2019 Doc Martin and tellin\u2019 me I gotta have patience with Joe, that we gotta wait until little brother works things out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI got the same speech,\u201d Adam agreed.\u00a0 As his brother adjusted his grip, one eyebrow peaked and his dimples appeared.\u00a0 \u201cAnd<\/em> the stern look.\u00a0\u00a0 Pa practically ordered me to give Joe his head. Let him gallop it out.\u201d<\/p>\n

The big man looked at the rope in their hands.\u00a0 Joe had just tugged on it, meaning he had reached the ledge safely.\u00a0 \u201cThat what we\u2019re doin\u2019 now?\u00a0 Givin\u2019 Joe his head?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cIn a way.\u00a0 The problem is, Pa also told me to keep Joe out of trouble.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cKind of hard to do both, ain\u2019t it?\u201d Hoss grinned.<\/p>\n

\u201cKind of.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019re you two old ladies doing up there?\u201d Little Joe\u2019s voice called up from below.\u00a0 \u201cChatting over tea?\u00a0 I got the calf roped and ready.\u00a0 Come on!\u00a0 Pull!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss puffed out a sigh.\u00a0 \u201cYou suppose if a man rolls his eyeballs one too many times they can get stuck up inside his head?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI would suggest the use of empirical data,\u201d his college-educated brother said as he began to pull hand over hand . \u00a0\u201cExperiment.\u00a0 Observe.\u00a0 Record.\u201d\u00a0 \u00a0And with that, Adam did about the best eyeball roll Hoss had ever seen. \u00a0\u201cThey came back down,\u201d he reported.<\/p>\n

The big man snorted like a horse sensing a rattler.\u00a0 \u201cWell, if anyone\u2019s eyes was gonna get stuck, it\u2019d be yours, older brother!\u00a0 They done made that turn enough times since Joe\u2019s been born.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHey!\u201d Joe yelled again.\u00a0 \u201cPay attention!\u00a0 Give it another tug, she\u2019s almost there!\u201d<\/p>\n

The baby calf mooed in fear as they complied and it\u2019s reddish head topped the rise.\u00a0 Hoss dropped the rope and went to her.\u00a0 Reaching down, he caught the animal in his arms and brought the little lady up all in one movement.\u00a0 Laughing, he set her down, untied the harness of ropes that bound her, and then slapped her on her rear and sent her running toward the small herd they\u2019d corralled that morning.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou bottle feeding her?\u201d Little Joe shouted.\u00a0 \u201cLet down the rope!\u00a0 I\u2019m getting tired of waiting!\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam was at the edge looking down. \u00a0\u201cThe rope\u2019s headed your way, Joe,\u201d he said as he played it out.\u00a0 \u201cBe sure you secure it and double-check your knots before signaling us to pull you up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDoggone it, what kind of a fool do you think I am, older brother?\u00a0 I ain\u2019t gonna do that,\u201d came Joe\u2019s sarcastic reply.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m gonna tie the knots wrong so they let loose halfway up and I fall down the cliff and break my neck.\u00a0 Figured Pa would like it better that way!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss walked to Adam\u2019s side and took the rope and anchored it around his middle to make it extra secure.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst dibs on who gets to smack some sense into baby brother when that curly head of his shows,\u201d he said as Joe\u2019s weight pulled him slightly toward the edge.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo way.\u201d\u00a0 Adam\u2019s dark head shook from side to side as one black eyebrow cocked.\u00a0 \u201cBeing oldest has got<\/em> to be good for something.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It felt odd to sit at the head of the table.<\/p>\n

Though it was his right as oldest present, Adam still shifted uncomfortably in his pa\u2019s chair.\u00a0 If it had just been the three of them, he would have stayed in his normal spot, but they\u2019d invited Del and Hoyle to join them and added sheriff, Roy Coffee, to the mix when the lawman had unexpectedly shown up.\u00a0 Roy had been sheriff in Virginia City for about a year and was freshly returned from yet another fruitless search for the men who\u2019d taken Little Joe captive.\u00a0 He wanted to ask him a few more questions.\u00a0 Joe had immediately grown sullen.\u00a0 Over the last few weeks his baby brother had made it abundantly clear that he had no<\/em> desire whatsoever to talk about what had happened.\u00a0 From outward appearances, it seemed had happened.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s scratches and cuts were healed, as was his ankle. \u00a0Inward<\/em> was another matter.\u00a0 As predicted, Little Joe had become even more un<\/em>predictable.\u00a0 He was more volatile as well.\u00a0 The slightest thing set him off.\u00a0 And he wasn\u2019t sleeping.\u00a0 Nightmares plagued him, awaking both him and<\/em> them, sometimes several times a night.\u00a0 Joe, of course, denied every time that he had had a night terror.\u00a0 Adam looked at him now where he saw at the opposite end of the table with his head close to Hoyle\u2019s.\u00a0 The circles under Joe\u2019s eyes and the sallow coloring of his cheeks begged that to be a lie.\u00a0 There\u2019d been more than one time in the days since Pa had left that he\u2019d had to use his authority just to get Joe to eat.\u00a0 Well, in all honesty to get Joe to do just about anything <\/em>at all.\u00a0 They were walking a tightrope, him and his youngest brother.<\/p>\n

One of these days, in spite of everything, one<\/em> of them was going to fall off.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, Roy,\u201d Hoss said as he picked up a spoonful of potatoes, \u201cyou ain\u2019t seen hide nor hair of any of those bank robbers?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot seen or heard, Hoss,\u201d Roy replied as he reached for his cup of coffee.\u00a0 \u201cBeen askin\u2019 around too, all the way to California.\u00a0 There\u2019s a lot of rumors, but not much fact.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat are the rumors, Roy?\u201d Adam asked as Hop Sing offered to refill his water.\u00a0 Placing a hand over the top of the glass he declined. \u00a0\u201cOr can you say?\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man nodded.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t see no problem in this here company, since this effects you all \u2013 most of all Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam watched his little brother\u2019s eyes move to the lawman, but he remained locked in conversation with Hoyle.\u00a0\u00a0 The two had become close over the last six weeks.<\/p>\n

Roy leaned back in his chair.\u00a0 \u201cSeems there was something like six men robbed the bank.\u00a0 Wade Harvey was the brains of the outfit and Pythias Morgan, the brawn.\u00a0 The other three were along for the ride \u2013 and the money.\u201d\u00a0 He sniffed.\u00a0 \u201cNow we know out of those five, three are dead and two, including Wade, are on their way to prison.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s five out of five, Roy,\u201d Del said.\u00a0 He\u2019d been listening, but hadn\u2019t spoken until now.\u00a0 \u201cWhy are you still looking if you have them all?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, you see, that\u2019s where these here rumors come into play,\u201d the lawman replied.\u00a0 \u201cWitnesses in Genoa claim they saw eight men on the outskirts of town, not five.\u00a0 If that\u2019s true, there\u2019s three of them robbers remainin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFront men, you think?\u201d Adam asked.\u00a0 \u201cOr maybe lookouts?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe the brains of the outfit?\u201d Hoss chimed in.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomethin\u2019 of that sort. \u00a0Anyhow, I ain\u2019t gonna sleep right until I figure it out.\u00a0 Either we got us three bad men on the loose in these parts, or we don\u2019t.\u00a0 I want to know which it is. \u201c\u00a0 Roy turned in his seat and looked to the end of the table.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s why I wanted to talk to Little Joe again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam saw his brother stiffen at the mention of his name.\u00a0 Joe glanced at Hoyle and then at the lawman.\u00a0 \u201cI told you all I know, Sheriff Coffee,\u201d he said as he straightened in his seat.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure you did, boy.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure you did.\u00a0 It\u2019s just, well, sometimes things come back to a man, days or even weeks later.\u00a0 I wanted to ask you if you thought you seen any other robbers than the five we can account for.\u00a0 Maybe in the trees, or hiding in the shadows.\u00a0 Maybe a shadow themselves, movin\u2019 at the edge of your eye.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe glared at the lawman for a moment and then closed his eyes.\u00a0 He honestly seemed to be trying to remember.\u00a0 After a moment, he shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI just saw a line of men.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t have a chance to count them.\u201d\u00a0 He swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cMostly I saw Wade and…Morgan.\u00a0 Sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy\u2019s voice was soft.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t nothin\u2019 to say you\u2019re sorry for, son.\u00a0 You had other things to think about.\u201d<\/p>\n

The prospect of those \u2018other things\u2019 hung over the table and between them for a moment of silence.<\/p>\n

Finally Roy turned to Del.\u00a0 \u201cWhat about you?\u00a0 You see anythin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam and I were focused on the man holding Joe,\u201d he responded in his thick southern drawl.\u00a0 \u201cI was sure Pythias was going to kill him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even as Roy turned to him, Adam\u2019s eyes remained fixed on his brother.\u00a0 Joe was visibly shaking now.\u00a0 \u201cSame with you, Adam?\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother was scooting his chair back.\u00a0 It was time to change the subject.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s discuss it over a glass of brandy once supper ends, shall we, Roy?\u201d\u00a0 His eyes flicked to his brother and the lawman got it.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure thing, Adam. \u201c\u00a0 Roy took another sip of coffee.\u00a0 \u201cYou hear from your pa yet?\u201d<\/p>\n

He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cPa wired and asked if I could join him in a few days.\u00a0 Seems there are some papers he left here at the house that he needs in order to finish building his case against Stanfield.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll be going to Genoa then?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s eyes went to Joe who was standing, ready to leave the table.<\/p>\n

\u201cDay after tomorrow,\u201d he replied, \u201cwhich brings me to the upcoming roundup.\u00a0 Since I\u2019ll be leaving to join Pa, we need to get that small herd out of the south forty and join them with the larger herd.\u00a0\u00a0 Before I go, I have to ride into town to gather a few more things to support Pa\u2019s case. I thought \u2013 while Hoss goes to check on the big herd, maybe you could drive the other one up to meet him…Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was a risk.\u00a0 Maybe a big one.\u00a0 But the look his baby brother gave him when it dawned on him what he had just said was worth it.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe?\u00a0 You\u2019re<\/em> gonna trust me?\u201d<\/em> Joe exclaimed.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny reason I shouldn\u2019t?\u201d he asked quietly.<\/p>\n

\u201cHeck, no!\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe was grinning from ear to ear.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about fifty head.\u00a0 You think you can handle that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan I pick my own men?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam raised a hand.\u00a0 \u201cWhoa.\u00a0 We\u2019ll pick them together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe seemed to accept that.\u00a0 He glanced at his newfound friend.\u00a0 \u201cCan Hoyle come?\u201d<\/p>\n

He hesitated.\u00a0 Not because he didn\u2019t trust Hoyle.\u00a0 He was nearly seventeen and he\u2019d seen him around the ranch.\u00a0 Hoyle was no stranger when it came to working with cattle, or to hard work itself for that matter.\u00a0\u00a0 He and Joe had done a good job mending the fences.\u00a0 But…and it was a big \u2018but\u2019…he knew as well what could happen when you put two teenage boys together with little or no supervision.\u00a0 Adam\u2019s lips quirked at the edges.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d been young himself once, after all.\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0Years<\/em> ago, it seemed.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, I don\u2019t know….\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother\u2019s jaw tightened.\u00a0 His nostrils flared.\u00a0 \u2018Here it comes,\u2019 he thought.<\/p>\n

Instead, Joe roped in his anger and laid out a good argument.\u00a0 \u201cHoyle\u2019s older than me, Adam. He knows how to rope and ride.\u00a0 He can be a big help.\u00a0 And you said yourself, no one looks out for your back like a friend. \u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cHoyle\u2019s been on drives before, Adam,\u201d Del said, adding his support.\u00a0 \u201cHe knows his way around steers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam glanced at Roy Coffee whose light blue eyes reflected his own mixed feelings.\u00a0 Hoss was watching him closely, obviously wondering what he was up to.\u00a0 It was hard to explain.\u00a0 It just seemed to him that, \u00a0maybe, if he showed Joe he thought he was man enough to do this \u2013 that he trusted<\/em> him \u2013 it might help his little brother to let go of the horror of what had happened six weeks before.<\/p>\n

Finally, he nodded.\u00a0 \u201cAll right.\u00a0 You two can go.\u00a0 After we finish eating, we\u2019ll head out to the bunkhouse together and recruit a few others to go with you.\u00a0 You can head out in the morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure thing, Adam,\u201d Little Joe said, his green eyes smiling.\u00a0 \u201cThanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam and Sheriff Coffee were having their brandy.\u00a0 Rather than remaining downstairs, Joe took Hoyle up to his room where they sat on the bed talking about the drive and how much fun it was gonna be to spend several days together without their older brothers around.\u00a0 They\u2019d got to do that with the fence \u2013 spend time together \u2013 but most days now they had their own chores to do that kept them apart and they only got to talk an hour or so in the evenings.<\/p>\n

He liked Hoyle.<\/p>\n

The southerner had been kind of quiet when they met, but over the last few weeks Joe\u2019d found out his new friend could talk your arm off when he wanted to.\u00a0 He\u2019d also found out Hoyle wasn\u2019t like him in one way.\u00a0 He had one of those tempers that simmered until it suddenly boiled over.\u00a0 Everyone knew when he<\/em> was mad.\u00a0 Hoss told him he looked like a loco stallion.\u00a0 He\u2019d found out about Hoyle\u2019s temper \u00a0one day when one of the other hands had made fun of his friend\u2019s slow Louisiana drawl.\u00a0 At first it seemed the teasing didn\u2019t bother his friend, but then quicker than a hot knife sliced butter, Hoyle had the other man up against the barn with his arms pinned behind his back and his nose smashed into the boards.<\/p>\n

They\u2019d settled it without pa hearing about it.<\/p>\n

Joe stared at the curly headed youth.\u00a0 His friend had risen from the bed and was looking at one of the books Adam had given him the year before that he kept on the table by the window.\u00a0 Even though Hoyle was only two years older than him, he was pretty worldly-wise.\u00a0 He\u2019d been with a girl and was no stranger to a shot of whiskey.\u00a0 He said traveling alone with his brother had taken him into places most kids weren\u2019t allowed in since Del couldn\u2019t leave him on his own.\u00a0 Joe snorted.\u00a0 He\u2019d thought about that, and then thought about what it would have been like to travel with his<\/em> older brother.\u00a0 Somehow he doubted Adam would have taken him to a sporting house or into a saloon.\u00a0 Most likely he would have spent his days wearing a fancy suit and sitting in some library or attending the opera, or some other boring thing like that.<\/p>\n

\u201cA thousand for your thoughts,\u201d Hoyle said with a grin.<\/p>\n

Joe started.\u00a0 Then he smiled too.\u00a0 \u201cYou ain\u2019t got a thousand.\u201d<\/p>\n

His friend shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cNot now, I haven\u2019t.\u00a0 Maybe one day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you get back to Louisiana, you mean?\u201d Joe asked rising and crossing to where his friend stood looking down at something on his dresser.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho\u2019s this?\u201d Hoyle asked, picking up the frame that held the image of a beautiful blond woman and holding it out to him.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t remember this being here the other night. \u00a0She\u2019s real pretty.\u00a0 \u00a0Friend of yours?\u201d<\/p>\n

Breathe,<\/em> Joe, he thought, breathe.<\/em>\u00a0 It\u2019s all right.<\/em>\u00a0 It was \u2018all right\u2019, he told himself, for Hoyle to pick the frame up so callously.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t <\/em>understand.\u00a0 Joe held his hand out.\u00a0 His whole body sighed when his fingers closed around the image.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d he said softly.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s my mother.\u201d\u00a0 He\u2019d taken the picture out of his jacket pocket and placed it on a stand on the dresser the night before so he could look at her.\u00a0 Every time Hoyle or Del opened their mouths and he heard their thick southern accent, it reminded him of her.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou miss her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s eyes flicked to his friend\u2019s face.\u00a0 Did he?\u00a0 How could he miss something he couldn\u2019t really<\/em> remember having?\u00a0 What he would say was that he longed <\/em>for her.\u00a0 \u00a0He longed to know who she had been, what had formed her \u2013 to see where she had come from.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hardly knew her,\u201d he said at last, replacing the frame on the dresser.\u00a0 \u201cMost of what I remember is because of my brothers and my pa told me.\u00a0 I wish….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

He looked at Hoyle.\u00a0 \u201cI wish I could go with you to New Orleans.\u00a0 I sure would like to see it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCome with us then.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe blinked.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCome with<\/em> us.\u00a0 You\u2019d be welcome.\u201d\u00a0 Hoyle beamed.\u00a0 \u201cHell, we\u2019d have grand time of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cAdam would never let me go \u2013 or pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

The blond shrugged.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThen don\u2019t ask them.\u00a0 Just go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Six words.\u00a0 Six little<\/em> words.<\/p>\n

Could it really be that simple?<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe!\u201d\u00a0 Adam\u2019s voice carried up the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m ready to head out to the bunkhouse.\u00a0 You coming?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBe right there!\u201d<\/p>\n

As he turned, Hoyle\u2019s hand came down on his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cJoe, you\u2019re like the little brother I never had.\u00a0\u00a0 Del and me, we could show you a good time.\u00a0 And you could always come back. \u00a0You know your family would welcome you back.\u201d\u00a0 Hoyle scoffed at his distressed look and then grinned. \u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s not going to happen with a Cartwright.\u00a0 I know that.\u00a0 But it would be an adventure, wouldn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe nodded.<\/p>\n

It certainly would.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Roy Coffee was a man who liked everythin\u2019 tied up.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t cotton well to the idea of loose ends.\u00a0 The rumors about there bein\u2019 more bank robbers on the lam keep nigglin\u2019 at him and so he kept lookin\u2019 and askin\u2019 questions.\u00a0 He\u2019d found another feller who thought he\u2019d seen a group of eight men camped near the outskirts of Genoa a day or two before the bank robbery.\u00a0 He\u2019d been able to identify Morgan and Harvey from the wanted posters.\u00a0 It had been dark, he said, and he\u2019d only seen a few faces lit by the camp firelight when he stopped to ask directions.\u00a0 There\u2019d been an older kind of nondescript feller with brown hair and a young one, and the rest were in-between.\u00a0 Since it was dark, he had no idea of the color of their eyes or hair.\u00a0 A couple were dressed in suits, but most like ranch hands or drovers.<\/p>\n

Which just about described the male population of Virginia City and every other city between it and Genoa.<\/p>\n

He was riding now toward the O\u2019Malley place.\u00a0 When he\u2019d got back to the office, he\u2019d found a note there from Maisie, or rather, Madeline O\u2019Malley.\u00a0 The girl\u2019s mother had come to town when she heard what happened and taken her daughter home.\u00a0 Last he heard, the girl had mended right nicely and decided to stay. \u00a0\u00a0He guessed Madeline\u2019s days of dreamin\u2019 of bein\u2019 an actress were done.\u00a0 A good thing too.\u00a0 The girl got a taste of what life in the big city would be like from that city slicker that beat her.\u00a0 A pretty one like her, alone in say Reno or Carson City?\u00a0 Well, he didn\u2019t like to think about it.<\/p>\n

As he pulled up out front of the O\u2019Malley\u2019s homestead the youngest of Sean\u2019s kids, a little boy named Rory, came flying out, his red hair flashing like copper coins in the sun.<\/p>\n

\u201cRory O\u2019Malley!\u00a0 You get back in here!\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy dismounted and removed his hat as he approached Maureen, who was standing in the open doorway, her eye on the young\u2019un.\u00a0 She was in her mid-forties but had the face and figure of a woman ten years younger.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d ask what can we do for you, sheriff, but I suppose you\u2019re here to see our Maddie,\u201d she said as she wiped flour from her hands onto her apron and then shooed the little boy back inside.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, Ma\u2019am.\u00a0 Is that all right with you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Maureen sighed.\u00a0 \u201cSheriff, I\u2019m tellin\u2019 you, that beatin\u2019 is the best thing that could have happened to the child.\u201d\u00a0 She struck away a wandering lock of hair.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s a hard thing for a mother to say, but it\u2019s God\u2019s own truth.\u00a0 It brought her back to her senses.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Good Book says good comes out\u2019a bad,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Madeline\u2019s mother stared at him for a moment and then said, \u201cI\u2019ll send her out.\u00a0 The wee one is in the kitchen and I don\u2019t want him hearin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCompletely understand, Ma\u2019am,\u201d Roy said with a tip of his hat.<\/p>\n

He hadn\u2019t seen Madeline for about two weeks and the lawman was pleased to find most that of the bruises from the beating were gone. \u00a0She had a little scar on her lip where it had been split, but that was all that was visible.<\/p>\n

Most of the girl\u2019s scars, he knew, were on the inside.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo I call you Maisie or Madeline?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

The redhead looked at him.\u00a0 Her large dark eyes were haunted.\u00a0 \u201cMaisie\u2019s dead and Madeline, well, she\u2019s not quite livin\u2019 yet.\u00a0 Call me Maddie.\u201d<\/p>\n

He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cMaddie.\u00a0 I came because I found your note.\u00a0 Was there somethin\u2019 you wanted to talk about?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs Little Joe all right?\u201d she asked, surprising him.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know he is, Maddie.\u00a0 I seen you in church just this last week.\u00a0 Little Joe, well, he was there too.\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked troubled.\u00a0 \u201cSeeing isn\u2019t always believin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

He noticed her accent was thicker, since she was livin\u2019 at home.\u00a0 \u201cWhat are you worried about Maddie?\u201d<\/p>\n

The girl glanced back at the house and then wrapped her arms around her frame.\u00a0 \u201cThe man who beat me.\u00a0 I saw him yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n

His pale eyes narrowed.\u00a0 \u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n

Maddie nodded toward the trees beside the road.\u00a0 \u201cThere.\u00a0 He was watching the house.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDid he see you?\u201d<\/p>\n

She shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 I was inside.\u00a0 I saw him through the window.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy \u00a0glanced and then turned back.\u00a0 \u201cDid anyone talk to him?\u201d\u00a0 When she shook her head \u2018no\u2019, he had to ask, \u201cSo what makes you think he might pose some danger to Little Joe Cartwright?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI…\u201d\u00a0 She swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cI was foolish.\u00a0 I told him Joe was the one who talked me out of…performing for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was before<\/em> the beatin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u00a0 Little Joe, well, he told me I was better than that.\u201d\u00a0 She winced.\u00a0 \u201cI got him into trouble with his brother.\u00a0 I don\u2019t want to get him in trouble with…this man.\u201d<\/p>\n

He held her gaze.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s his name?\u00a0 This city slicker?\u201d\u00a0 When she hesitated, he added, \u201cNow come on, Maddie, you know I can\u2019t help you or <\/em>Little Joe if I don\u2019t know his name and what he looks like.\u201d<\/p>\n

She shivered a bit before speaking.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s about your age.\u00a0 Maybe a little taller.\u00a0 He likes to wear fancy suits and smoke fancy cigars.\u00a0 They make him feel like he\u2019s better than others. \u201c\u00a0 She lifted her hand to her face.\u00a0 \u201cHe has a little scar, right here,\u201d she pointed above her right eyebrow.\u00a0 \u201cSort of like a dimple.\u201d\u00a0 Maddie\u2019s jaw tightened.\u00a0 \u201cHis name is Weston.\u00a0 Weston McCloud.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSounds like he should be right easy to spot with that scar.\u201d\u00a0 When the girl said nothing more, he nodded.\u00a0 \u201cWell, thanks for the information, Maddie.\u00a0 I\u2019ll head on out to the Ponderosa and make Ben aware this here man might be lookin\u2019 to harm Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

As he started to turn away, he felt Maddie\u2019s hand on his arm.\u00a0 \u201cSheriff?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you…\u00a0 If you see Little Joe, tell him I\u2019m sorry.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t mean to get him involved.\u00a0 I just…\u201d\u00a0 She drew a breath, held it, and then released it slowly.\u00a0 \u201cWeston is such a pig<\/em>, I wanted him to know what a real gentleman is like.\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019d have to tell Ben that too.\u00a0 Maybe, in spite of his high temper and headstrong ways, Little Joe would turn out all right.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure Ben will be right proud to hear that.\u201d\u00a0 Roy patted her arm.\u00a0 \u201cNow you go on inside and you stay inside or with someone from your family, until you hear from me again.\u00a0 You hear?\u201d<\/p>\n

She gave him a little squeeze and then she stepped back.\u00a0 \u201cI will.\u00a0 Thank you.\u201d<\/p>\n

As he mounted his horse, Maddie\u2019s mother stepped outside again.\u00a0 He gave them both a wave and then turned and began to the trek back to Virginia City.\u00a0 The O\u2019Malleys lived on the side of Virginia City opposite the Cartwrights.\u00a0 It would be night before he got back to town.\u00a0 He wouldn\u2019t be able to deliver Maddie\u2019s message until halfway through the day tomorrow.<\/p>\n

Roy looked up as he urged his mount on, pressing the tired animal for just a little more speed.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou keep them Cartwrights safe tonight, you hear, God?\u00a0 All of them, but most of all, Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam was smiling as he walked back to the house.\u00a0 Joe had done a good job in selecting the men to help him move the steers.\u00a0 He\u2019d been afraid his young brother would limit his choices to the men closest to his age \u2013 those in their late teens and twenties with less experience \u2013 instead he had suggested a couple of older men including Dan Tolliver, who was in his sixties.\u00a0 Tollivar, along with thirty-four year old Joshua Bates, Hoyle, and Joe, would make up the quartet that would drive the small herd north.\u00a0 There was nothing complicated or difficult about the task, but the fact that he had given Joe the responsibility seemed to sit well with his little brother.\u00a0 Joe had been laughing and grinning like his old self when he went off to the barn to check on Cochise.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d left Del and Hoyle sitting in the great room when he took off with Joe.\u00a0 It had been about an hour so he didn\u2019t know if they would still be there, or if they would have returned to the bunkhouse, which was now their home.\u00a0 Hoyle had been reading and Del had been chatting with Hop Sing about the growing Chinese community in New Orleans.\u00a0 Between them they were trying to determine if any of their cook\u2019s countless cousins lived there.\u00a0 While the brothers were not completely sophisticated, Adam found chatting with them himself, especially Del, about the culture and art of the great city they lived close to invigorating. The only thing that troubled him was that Hoyle seemed pretty worldly-wise for a kid of sixteen.\u00a0 Still, he supposed that was to be expected since Del was his only family and so many years older.<\/p>\n

He just hoped Hoyle wasn\u2019t filling Little Joe\u2019s head with the wrong kind of thoughts.<\/p>\n

As he opened the door and stepped in, Adam glanced around.\u00a0 Hoyle was seated at the table now, eating a slice of pie supplied by Hop Sing.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t see Del.\u00a0 At least not at first.\u00a0 Then he saw him coming out of the area of Pa\u2019s office.<\/p>\n

Adam frowned.\u00a0 \u201cLooking for something?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFound it.\u201d Del grinned.\u00a0 \u201cI was just looking at the map of the Ponderosa behind your father\u2019s desk.\u00a0 One thousand square miles.\u201d\u00a0 He let out a long low whistle.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s a lot<\/em> of land!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa\u2019s worked hard for every acre,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t doubt it.\u201d\u00a0 The blond man gestured toward the settee.\u00a0 \u201cMind if I wait while Hoyle finishes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course not.\u201d\u00a0 Adam joined him as he sat down, taking a seat in one of the red chairs near the hearth.\u00a0 \u201cFirst or second?\u201d<\/p>\n

Del frowned.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst or second slice of pie?\u201d\u00a0 He laughed.\u00a0 \u201cIf it was Joe, you\u2019d be here through at least two.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing answered for the other man as he came into the room with a glass of milk and set it down in front of Del\u2019s brother.\u00a0 \u201cHoyle good boy.\u00a0 Eat much.\u00a0 Grow like weed!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle was about as small as Joe, if a little bulkier.\u00a0 He could probably use it.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo,\u201d he began, turning back to Del, \u201cyou mentioned moving on when we talked earlier.\u00a0 Any time soon?\u201d<\/p>\n

The southerner nodded. \u00a0\u201cSoon.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe will be upset.\u00a0 He\u2019s grown quite fond of your brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re fond of him too, Adam, and all your family.\u00a0 Still, we need to get home.\u00a0 Staying in Nevada isn\u2019t going to do much toward making it to Louisiana before the snow flies.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was October now.\u00a0 Del was right.\u00a0 \u201cYou plan on taking the stage?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs much as possible,\u201d the other man replied, shifting back on the settee.\u00a0 \u201cWith the wages your pa pays, we\u2019ve got enough already.\u00a0 I figure we\u2019ll go when Joe and Hoyle get back from taking the cattle north.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEnd of the week then.\u201d<\/p>\n

Del nodded.\u00a0 Turning his head, he called out to his brother.\u00a0 \u201cYou full yet?\u00a0 It\u2019s getting late and I\u2019d like to bed down soon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle wiped his mouth with a napkin and rose.\u00a0 \u201cDone.\u00a0 Thanks, Hop Sing.\u00a0 That was great!\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chinese man nodded.\u00a0 \u201cBoy come any time.\u00a0 Hop Sing cook for him what he like.\u00a0 Make him grow tall like brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

The youth laughed.\u00a0 \u201cSomehow,\u00a0 I don\u2019t think all the pie in the world could do that, Hop Sing.\u00a0 But thanks for trying!\u201d<\/p>\n

Del had risen to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cThat foreman of yours will be shouting early in the morning, Adam.\u00a0 I\u2019m for bed.\u00a0 How about you?\u201d<\/p>\n

He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cAs soon as Little Joe gets back from the barn.\u00a0 He\u2019s tending to Cochise.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other man smiled.\u00a0 \u201cHe does <\/em>love that horse.\u00a0 You may be waiting a while.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe I\u2019ll go get a slice of that pie from Hop Sing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle was still licking his lips.\u00a0 There was a drop of blackberry filling on his lower lip.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s fine. \u00a0I\u2019m here to tell you that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou better get to sleep too, Hoyle.\u00a0 Little Joe will be up bright and early \u2013 if I have anything to do with it.\u00a0 We need to get those cattle moved and it will take you a day or two.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGoodnight, Adam,\u201d Del said as he wrapped an arm around his brother and headed for the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood night.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam watched the pair go and then stood in the door looking out toward the barn.\u00a0 Del and Hoyle had such an easy relationship.\u00a0 He wondered why it couldn\u2019t be that way with him and Joe.\u00a0 Stepping off the porch, he noted that there was a light in the barn, so Joe must still be there brushing and bedding down Cochise.\u00a0 For a moment he thought about joining him, but then decided to head into the kitchen instead.<\/p>\n

That blackberry pie was calling.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe had finished brushing Cochise down.\u00a0\u00a0 He\u2019d returned the brushes to their proper places and was standing, talking to the Paint, explaining to his horse that they were going on a grand adventure in the morning.\u00a0 He\u2019d asked Adam to let him pick out a horse for Hoyle to ride that could keep up with the black and white and amazingly, Adam had agreed.\u00a0 The pretty Palomino was in the next stall.<\/p>\n

Together, they\u2019d fly like the wind.<\/p>\n

After giving Cochise a treat, Joe headed out of the barn.\u00a0 It was late and he knew Adam would be waiting up for him.\u00a0 He wondered if, when he got to twenty-five or thirty, his older brother would think he was old enough to come in on his own.\u00a0 Most of the time thinking about the way everybody treated him like he was made of glass made him angry.\u00a0 Not tonight.\u00a0 Tonight was a good<\/em> night.\u00a0 Adam had trusted him.\u00a0 Older brother had asked him for his opinion and let it stand.<\/p>\n

When he was almost to the house Joe heard a noise that stopped him. \u00a0He couldn\u2019t say exactly what it was, but it was out of place.\u00a0 Almost like someone stifling a laugh.\u00a0 He turned and looked back toward the barn, but saw nothing.\u00a0 With a shake of his head, he dismissed it.\u00a0 Probably his imagination.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout time you came in,\u201d he heard his older brother say.<\/p>\n

Joe swung, anticipating a dressing down for staying so long in the barn.\u00a0 Instead he found Adam holding out a piece of Hop Sing\u2019s blackberry pie.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast one,\u201d older brother said with a grin.<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks,\u201d he said as he took it.<\/p>\n

And he knew Adam <\/em>knew it was for more than the pie.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As soon as the two brothers entered the Cartwright house, a man emerged from the shadows beside the barn.\u00a0 He stared at the closed door and then, with a snort, returned to his horse and mounted.<\/p>\n

Tomorrow was going to be fun.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

SEVEN<\/p>\n

\u201cCome on, Joe, you deserve it.\u00a0 You know you do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe Cartwright looked sideways at his friend.\u00a0 Hoyle was grinning from ear to ear.\u00a0 They\u2019d left Dan and Joshua watching the herd and were preparing to bed down for a few hours.\u00a0 The four of them had spent the early part of the day rounding up strays and then begun to drive the fifty or so cattle toward the place where they would meet up with Hoss.\u00a0 Dan had let him take the lead and he was feeling pretty good about everything he\u2019d accomplished.\u00a0 Hoyle wanted to celebrate.<\/p>\n

Hoyle had a bottle of whiskey.<\/p>\n

Pa would not approve.<\/p>\n

Let alone, Adam.<\/p>\n

Joe shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t think its a good idea, Hoyle.\u00a0 Pa won\u2019t even let me sample to brandy in the cabinet.\u00a0 Says there will be a time, but the time isn\u2019t now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle shrugged as he lifted an enamelware cup and poured some of the golden liquid into it.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, if you\u2019re afraid \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not<\/em> afraid,\u201d he replied \u2013 a little too quickly.<\/p>\n

His companion raised the cup to his lips and looked at him over the rim.\u00a0 \u201cWhat are<\/em> you then?\u201d he asked before taking a sip.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s jaw was tight.<\/p>\n

Obedient?\u00a0 Respectful?<\/p>\n

\u201cLook, Hoyle, this chance to prove myself is important to me,\u201d he said at last.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m asking you as my friend to understand.\u00a0 Pa doesn\u2019t allow the hands to have liquor when they\u2019re on a drive.\u00a0 Too many things can go wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut this isn\u2019t really<\/em> a drive, is it?\u201d\u00a0 Hoyle said, leaning back against the tree he had spread his bedroll under.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re just picking up a few strays and delivering them.\u201d<\/p>\n

After spreading out his bedroll, Joe turned and looked at his friend.\u00a0 Hoyle was a hard one to figure out.\u00a0 They had a lot in common, but there were also big <\/em>differences \u2013 the main one being that Hoyle seemed to feel he owed nothing to anyone but himself.\u00a0 He was close to Del, but their relationship was more like a partnership of equals rather than the older brother, baby brother one he had with Adam and Hoss.\u00a0 Hoyle was just under two years younger than him and already he\u2019d been in saloons and sporting houses, tasted whiskey….<\/p>\n

And he was carrying a handsome burl-handled Colt revolver on his hip.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, what do you say?\u201d Hoyle asked, holding out the cup.<\/p>\n

Joe eyed it with a frown.\u00a0 After several seconds of mental gymnastics, he said softly, \u201cTell you what.\u00a0 I\u2019ll take a sip if you let me handle that sidearm of yours.\u201d\u00a0 He\u2019d asked once before and his companion had declined.\u00a0\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t sure why.<\/p>\n

Hoyle glanced at the gun on his hip.\u00a0 \u201cCoralee, you mean?\u201d\u00a0 He snorted as his fingers brushed the weapon\u2019s inlaid wood handle.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know, Little<\/em> Joe.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t seem to me you\u2019re old <\/em>enough to handle her.\u201d<\/p>\n

His words stung.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t a boy, even if his family refused to see it.\u00a0 Why, at his age Adam had practically been running the ranch!<\/p>\n

\u201cWhoa, Joe!\u00a0 Don\u2019t take my head off.\u201d\u00a0 His companion held out a hand at his look.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not the one you\u2019re mad at, after all.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a grin, Hoyle reached down and unbuckled the strap that held his gun in place.\u00a0 Removing it from the holster he held it and the cup out.<\/p>\n

Joe drew in a deep, calming breath of air and took both.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hoss Cartwright stood beside his horse, one hand on a leather strap, staring up at the sky, a slight frown on his face. \u00a0They were near where Joe and the others had the herd corralled for the night.\u00a0 He\u2019d ridden back to join Adam, and the two of them were gonna \u2013 well, Adam had said \u2018circumspectly\u2019 \u2013 check on their little brother\u2019s progress before he headed out to join their Pa in Eagle Station.<\/p>\n

That high-falutin\u2019 word meant they was gonna spy on Joe \u2018cause they was worried about him.<\/p>\n

As his older brother came to his side, Hoss whistled low as he indicated the sky.\u00a0 \u201cLooks like somethin\u2019s\u2019 blowin\u2019 up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam looked.\u00a0 \u201cA storm.\u00a0 We\u2019d best get moving.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t arguin\u2019, Adam, but you know Joe\u2019s got Dan Tollivar with him.\u00a0 That boy ain\u2019t gonna run into any trouble with ol\u2019 Dan lookin\u2019 out for him and he\u2019s gonna be mighty upset if he finds out we didn\u2019t trust him..\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam pursed his lips.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not Joe I\u2019m worried about.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo who are <\/em>you worried about?\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother seemed to consider what he was going to say before saying it.\u00a0 \u201cHoyle Beaumont.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoyle?\u201d Hoss asked as he checked the final strap on his saddle.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong with the boy?\u00a0 He do somethin\u2019 wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u201d\u00a0 Adam placed his foot in the stirrup in preparation to mount.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s more his attitude.\u00a0 The more interaction I have with him, the less I think he\u2019s a suitable companion for Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo how come you let the two of them go together?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s dimpled popped.\u00a0 \u201cJust plain loco, I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n

The big man snorted and then mounted himself.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 Really, Adam.\u00a0 What\u2019s wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t put my finger on it.\u00a0 Let\u2019s just say I think Hoyle is very old<\/em> for sixteen, and little brother is rather young and inexperienced for fourteen.\u201d\u00a0 He squared his shoulders as he took hold of the reins.\u00a0 \u201cJoe\u2019s always pushing to take the lead but, most of the time, he follows.\u00a0 He\u2019s well….\u201d\u00a0 Adam paused. \u201cToo trusting.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou think this thing with Hoyle \u2013 what you\u2019re sensin\u2019 \u2013 is anything other than hijinks?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cNot really.\u00a0 I just think boys will be boys.\u201d\u00a0 He sighed. \u201cI\u2019d hate to see Joe ruin this chance to show that he can be responsible due to someone else\u2019s idea of \u2018fun\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe was awful excited, Adam, and right proud that you trusted him.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure the boy will keep his head about him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI certainly hope so.\u00a0 Either way, when we get back I intend to talk to Del about his brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDidn\u2019t you say they was leavin\u2019 soon, headin\u2019 back to New Orleans?\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother nodded.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd sorry to say, I think it is none too soon.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe sucked in air and breathed out satisfaction.\u00a0 There\u2019d been less than half a cup of whiskey left and he\u2019d drunk about half of that.\u00a0 It tasted dreadful and he\u2019d coughed a dozen times, setting Hoyle off into gales of laughter.\u00a0 At first it had made him mad, but now, as a warm feeling coursed through him, making the world fuzzy at the edges, he thought it was funny too.<\/p>\n

Soon they were both sniffing and snorting to wake the band!<\/p>\n

With a hand wrapped around his middle to shore up his aching ribs, Joe pleaded, \u201cKeep it down, Hoyle!\u00a0 You\u2019ll wake the cows!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHello, cows!\u201d Hoyle shouted.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Hoyle, really!\u201d\u00a0 Joe wiped the tears from his cheeks as he sobered instantly.\u00a0 \u201cIf Dan finds us, we\u2019re dead.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat old man\u2019s hard of hearing,\u201d his friend grinned.\u00a0 He held up the bottle then. \u201cYou want anymore?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe blinked. The world was wobbling a bit.\u00a0 \u201cNo, thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot to your liking?\u201d Hoyle asked as he poured a bit more into the cup before he stopped the bottle and put it away in his saddlebag.<\/p>\n

He winced.\u00a0 \u201cTruth to tell, it\u2019s awful!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe South stands insulted,\u201d Hoyle said with mock indigenization.<\/p>\n

The South.\u00a0 They\u2019d been talking about that before \u2013 about New Orleans, where his mama came from. \u00a0Hoyle had asked him again to leave and travel there along with him and Del.\u00a0 He had no intention of doing so.\u00a0 Still, the thought of it was appealing in so many ways.<\/p>\n

Maybe he could talk Pa into taking him there one day.<\/p>\n

His companion nodded toward the sidearm that lay in his lap.\u00a0 \u201cYou want to shoot it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s eyes dropped to the beautiful hand-crafted weapon, and then went to the rifle anchored on Cochise\u2019s saddle before coming back to the revolver.\u00a0 It was another of Pa\u2019s \u2018don\u2019ts\u2019.\u00a0 He said he would teach him himself \u2013 or Adam would \u2013 when he was old enough.\u00a0 He thought he might get one on his fifteenth birthday, which wasn\u2019t all that far away.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, I want<\/em> to shoot it, but \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBig brother Adam will have your hide if he finds out.\u201d\u00a0 Hoyle leaned forward.\u00a0 \u201cTell me, Joe, just how<\/em> is he going to find out?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam\u2019s got eyes in the back of his head,\u201d he snorted as he watched the world melt a little bit at the edges, \u201cand on both sides.\u00a0 He don\u2019t miss anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle tossed the remainder of his drink into the grass and then rose and walked over to him.\u00a0 Towering over him, the older boy held out his hand. \u201cGive it to me then.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s fingers ran along the fine metal and the wood inlay.\u00a0 \u201cCan I just keep it a minute more?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGive it up, Joe, or stand up beside me and shoot it.\u00a0 One or the other.\u201d<\/p>\n

He licked his lips.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019ll startle the cattle.\u00a0 Might cause a stampede.\u00a0 I can\u2019t do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll make sure it isn\u2019t loaded.\u00a0 There won\u2019t be any explosion, just a click.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe wrapped his fingers around the weapon\u2019s handle.\u00a0 It fit like a glove \u2013 like it was the most natural thing in the world.\u00a0 With a look at Hoyle, he slowly rose to his feet.<\/p>\n

\u201cGive it here. I\u2019ll check the chambers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can do that.\u201d\u00a0 He\u2019d watched his brothers do the same thing often enough.\u00a0 Joe opened the weapon \u00a0and checked.\u00a0 There were no bullets in it.\u00a0 Closing it with a click, he added, \u201cLooks good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle glanced over his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cThat tree looks good too.\u00a0 It\u2019s got a natural bulls eye on it.\u00a0 Aim for that.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was talking about a tall pine tree that had suffered some sort of damage. The scarring had created a series of round circles in its rough hide.<\/p>\n

\u201cImagine its your brother Adam,\u201d Hoyle suggested with a snort.<\/p>\n

Joe glanced at him. \u201cThat\u2019s not funny.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry,\u201d Hoyle said, seeming genuinely contrite. \u00a0\u201cI see how sore you get at him for bossing you around.\u201d<\/p>\n

He did get sore, but that didn\u2019t mean he wanted anything to happen to Adam \u2013 or to his Pa or Hoss.<\/p>\n

Joe lifted the weapon, bringing it up and holding it out as he\u2019d seen his brothers and father do.\u00a0 He sighted along the barrel and pulled the trigger.<\/p>\n

And the gun went off!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cYou hear that, Adam?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded his head.\u00a0 He certainly had.\u00a0 A shot.\u00a0 He could also hear the roar of startled steers and Dan Tollivar\u2019s voice rising above it.\u00a0 He\u2019d guess they were maybe half a mile away.<\/p>\n

\u201cMust be trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRustlers, you think?\u201d Hoss asked from where he was seated on Chubb.<\/p>\n

\u201cI doubt it, not for that many steers when there\u2019s four men watching them.\u00a0 Bad profit-to-risk ratio.\u201d\u00a0 Adam put his heels to Scout\u2019s flesh.\u00a0 \u201cCome on!\u00a0 Sounds like they can use help!\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe stood stunned, staring at the smoking barrel and wondering how in the world a gun could go off when it didn\u2019t have any bullets in it.\u00a0 Around him the world had broken into chaos.\u00a0 He could hear Dan Tollivar shouting his name as Joshua Bates started cussing at the steers, telling them it weren\u2019t nothing and they should calm down.<\/p>\n

They didn\u2019t sound like they were calming down.<\/p>\n

His eyes went to Hoyle. \u201cWhat happened?\u00a0 How…?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle shook his curly blond head.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u00a0 Couldn\u2019t have been my gun.\u201d\u00a0 His head turned toward the ruckus.\u00a0 \u201cAnyhow, sounds like Dan could use out help.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe absentmindedly tucked the weapon under his belt and ran to Cochise.\u00a0 Vaulting into the saddle, he turned his horse\u2019s nose toward the frantic sounds of shouting and mooing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m supposed to be in charge!\u00a0 I gotta get out there!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll be right behind you,\u201d his friend said as he headed toward his mount.<\/p>\n

Joe nodded once, and was gone.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam removed his hat, wiped sweat and rainwater out of his eyes, and then blew out a long, heartfelt sigh.<\/p>\n

It had taken several hours to subdue the frightened cattle and they were all wet, exhausted, and on edge by the time they did.\u00a0 The storm had hit as they set out and the rain had pounded so hard they\u2019d lost two of the steers by the time they were done.\u00a0 The terrified animals had panicked and plunged over a steep ravine into three feet of water and drowned.\u00a0 In the midst of it all he\u2019d spotted Little Joe riding Cochise, moving in and out of the churning cattle in sync with Dan.\u00a0 Thank God Cochise was easy to spot!\u00a0 He\u2019d been impressed by the way his brother handled the animal in the midst of a crisis.<\/p>\n

Obviously, Joe was born to work with horses.<\/p>\n

As he stood there, thinking, Hoss came to stand beside him.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t notice the look on his brother\u2019s face until he realized middle brother had remained silent for a full minute or more.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrouble?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

Hoss pursed his lips.\u00a0 His head cocked.\u00a0 Both a sure sign that whatever he had to say he did not want<\/em> to say.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t rightly say.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced over his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cYou need to talk to Dan.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam looked but didn\u2019t see the older man.\u00a0 \u201cWhere is he?\u00a0 And where\u2019s Joe?\u00a0 I wanted to tell him how proud I was of the way he handled a tricky situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss looked even more <\/em>uncomfortable.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d\u00a0 When his brother wasn\u2019t forthcoming, Adam\u2019s temper ratcheted up a notch.\u00a0 \u201cWhat aren\u2019t<\/em> you telling me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, Adam, don\u2019t get mad before you hear all the facts \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

His jaw tightened.\u00a0 He had a sinking feeling.\u00a0 \u201cAnd why <\/em>exactly would I get mad?\u201d<\/p>\n

His sandy-haired teenage brother looked sick.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeems like Little Joe and Hoyle just might have caused<\/em> that there stampede.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe stood beside Hoyle with the captured steers mooing contentedly to his back and a fuming Dan Tollivar stomping a circle in the grass in front of him.<\/p>\n

Dan had Hoyle\u2019s gun in his hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf all the irresponsible, reckless, and just plain clodpated <\/em>things to do!\u00a0 Do you realize what you two might\u2019a caused by being so dag-blamed self-centered?!\u201d Dan asked as he stopped and faced them.\u00a0 \u201cSomeone might\u2019a been killed!\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019d tried to explain.\u00a0 But somehow having a gun tucked in your pants was hard enough to explain, let alone trying to tell someone that, \u2018yes\u2019, you\u2019d fired it, but, no\u2019, you hadn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Dan\u2019s stare went from him to Hoyle and then soundly landed on him. The old drover\u2019s voice grew softer.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m disappointed in you, boy.\u00a0 And Adam\u2019s gonna be mighty disappointed too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd just what is it that I am going to be \u2018mighty\u2019 disappointed about?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe could hear the tension in Adam\u2019s tone and knew his mind was already made up.\u00a0 Somehow, he had to make him listen.\u00a0 He had<\/em> to make older brother understand that all <\/em>of this was not his fault!<\/p>\n

As Adam approached with Hoss at his side, Dan swung around.\u00a0 He faced them and handed Adam the gun.\u00a0 \u201cI found this on Joe.\u201d\u00a0 The older man paused, as if considering skipping the next bit.\u00a0 Then, his loyalty to Pa won out.\u00a0 \u201cSorry to say, Adam.\u00a0 Both of them smell of liquor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam went to granite.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWhiskey.\u201d\u00a0 Dan reached to the ground and picked up Hoyle\u2019s saddlebags.\u00a0 He removed the half-empty bottle and held it up.\u00a0 \u201cFound it in their camp.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cAdam.\u00a0 Hoss.\u00a0 I…\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s fierce gaze pinned him.\u00a0 When he remained silent, Adam said, \u201cSay what you have to say.\u201d<\/p>\n

He glanced at Hoyle, who seemed curiously unconcerned and back to his brother.\u00a0 \u201cI admit to…the drinking.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t much.\u00a0 About a quarter of a cup \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know what the rules are about drinking on a drive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI brought the whiskey, Mister Cartwright,\u201d Hoyle offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, unless you made<\/em> my brother drink it, that\u2019s doesn\u2019t really matter, does it?\u201d\u00a0 Adam rounded on him.\u00a0 \u201cIs that it, Little Joe?\u00a0 Did Hoyle make<\/em> you drink it?\u201d<\/p>\n

He straightened his back and lifted his chin.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam sighed. \u00a0He ran a hand over his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cWell, that\u2019s honest, at least.\u201d\u00a0 His brother held out his hand and took the gun.\u00a0 \u201cAnd what about this?\u00a0 You know Pa\u2019s told you to stay away from revolvers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe glanced at his middle brother for support.\u00a0 Hoss was looking away.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa told me he\u2019d give me one on my fifteenth birthday, Adam.\u00a0 That\u2019s only a week or so away.\u00a0 \u201cWhy\u2019s it so important to wait \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause Pa told<\/em> you to wait!\u201d\u00a0 Adam\u2019s voice rose with his ire.\u00a0 \u201cJoe, a sidearm is not a toy.\u00a0 It\u2019s not something to play around with because you feel like it.\u00a0 Look at what happened.\u00a0 You shot it off and we lost two steers. You\u2019re lucky someone wasn\u2019t killed!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI know it\u2019s not a toy!\u201d he shouted back.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I didn\u2019t shoot it!\u00a0 I don\u2019t know where that shot came from.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou didn\u2019t shoot it?\u00a0 Really.\u00a0 Then where did <\/em>that shot come from?\u201d<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t know.\u00a0 He really didn\u2019t know.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam, I swear, it wasn\u2019t me.\u00a0 You can ask Hoyle.\u00a0 The chamber wasn\u2019t even loaded.\u00a0 When I pulled the trigger, it couldn\u2019t have \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou pulled the trigger?\u00a0 You just said you didn\u2019t shoot it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t!\u00a0 Well, I shot it, but there wasn\u2019t anything in it. It couldn\u2019t have made the noise that startled the cattle, Adam.\u00a0 It couldn\u2019t have!\u201d<\/p>\n

His older brother was staring at him.\u00a0 \u201cStop lying, Joe. Face up to what you did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now it was his<\/em> jaw that clenched.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not lying, Adam.\u00a0 I\u2019m telling you the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam shook his head. \u201cNo.\u00a0 No, you\u2019re not.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s eyes shot to Dan Tollivar.\u00a0 The older man looked sympathetic, but it was plain as the nose on his face that Dan was on Adam\u2019s side.\u00a0 Joshua Bates had ridden in and was still on his horse, looking down at him in the same way.<\/p>\n

Tears entered his eyes. \u201cAdam, I swear.<\/em>\u00a0 I wanted to hold Hoyle\u2019s gun and the only way he would let me was if I tried the whiskey.\u201d\u00a0 Joe realized how lame that sounded even to his own ears.\u00a0 Like he was a little boy trading Aggies.\u00a0 \u201cI drank a little bit and then Hoyle said I should try firing the pistol without bullets.\u00a0 We checked the chamber. It was empty!\u00a0 You can ask Hoyle.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd what good would that do?\u00a0 He\u2019d just lie too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe bristled. \u201cI told you I ain\u2019t lying?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s lips were pursed.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I would believe you, because…?\u201d<\/p>\n

Tears threatened to fall.\u00a0 \u201cBecause I\u2019m your brother and you know I don\u2019t lie<\/em>,\u201d he pleaded, asking for trust.\u00a0 For just this once<\/em>, Adam, he thought, trust me.<\/em><\/p>\n

His older brother\u2019s expression had changed.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t as angry.\u00a0 It was disheartened.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Joe, no.\u00a0 I am afraid I don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

His eyes shot to Hoss who was standing by Adam\u2019s side.\u00a0 Hoss shook his head and looked away.<\/p>\n

Joe felt his heart break in that moment.\u00a0 It broke in such a way that it could never be mended.\u00a0 Looking at his older brothers, standing there so sure in their self-righteousness, he choked. \u00a0It would be the same with Pa.\u00a0 Adam would see to it.\u00a0 Pa would believe he\u2019d gotten drunk while driving the cattle and he\u2019d fired off a sidearm, causing the stampede.\u00a0 He\u2019d be relegated to the house and peeling potatoes for Hop Sing until he turned twenty-one.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d look into his pa\u2019s eyes and see that the older man would never trust him again.<\/p>\n

When he said nothing, Adam did.\u00a0 The words were breathed with regret.\u00a0 \u201cGet your things and go home, Little Joe.\u201d\u00a0 His brother\u2019s hazel eyes flicked to Hoyle.\u00a0 \u201cYou stay here.\u201d<\/p>\n

So he was separating them like two little boys who\u2019d done wrong.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy?\u201d he demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy?\u201d\u00a0 Adam\u2019s voice rose in pitch and volume.\u00a0 \u201cBecause I say so!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd who are you?\u201d Joe shot back, anger and hurt driving out common sense.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re not Pa!\u00a0 You can\u2019t tell me what to do!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle brother,\u201d Hoss said, his voice gentle as it was when dealing with an ornery horse, \u201ctake a deep breath.\u00a0 Think what you\u2019re sayin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know<\/em> what I\u2019m saying!\u00a0 \u00a0Adam doesn\u2019t like me!\u00a0 He never has!\u201d\u00a0 The tears were falling now, wetting his face and shaming him.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s just an uppity snot-nosed blue-blooded Yankee who wishes his Pa had stopped at two \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The crack! <\/em>of his hand on Little Joe\u2019s cheek was loud enough to hear all the way back to the Ponderosa.<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s jaw was about as tight as it had ever been.\u00a0 He breathed hard, sucking air into his lungs, fighting the urge to turn his fourteen year old brother over his knee.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood Lord, Joe!\u201d he nearly shouted. \u201cWhat is wrong with you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s look was defiant.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t nothing wrong with me, you Northern blockhead!\u201d<\/p>\n

He couldn\u2019t stop himself.\u00a0 Adam stepped forward and caught the lapel of Joe\u2019s shirt in his hand.\u00a0 Tightening his grip, he lifted his little brother up so he was balancing on his toes.\u00a0 \u201cYou will keep a civil tongue in your head or you will<\/em> keep quiet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho\u2019s gonna make me?\u00a0 You?\u201d Joe snapped back.\u00a0 \u201cYou gonna beat <\/em>me this time?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam eyed the side of his brother\u2019s face.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s cheek was red and swelling.\u00a0 The sight of it made him relent \u2013 a bit.\u00a0 \u201cJoe, I don\u2019t want to hurt you.\u00a0 I just want you to listen \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike you<\/em> listened to me?\u00a0 Why should I?\u201d<\/p>\n

He felt a hand on his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cAdam, step aside.\u00a0 I\u2019ll take him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam watched as Joe\u2019s green gaze shot to Hoss.\u00a0 He had never seen <\/em>such a look of pain.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou too, middle brother\u201d?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, Joe, I don\u2019t know about what happened before them steers stampeded,\u201d the big man sighed.\u00a0 \u201cBut what you\u2019re doin\u2019 now is just plain wrong.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Adam looked at his hand where it gripped Joe\u2019s collar and then at Joe.\u00a0 While his knuckles were white, Joe\u2019s face was beet red.\u00a0 Releasing him, he took a step back.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry, Joe.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t mean to \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSave it!\u201d Joe snarled.\u00a0 \u201cCause I don\u2019t want to hear it!\u201d<\/p>\n

The black-haired man looked at his father\u2019s old friend and then up at Joshua Bates.\u00a0 Both had been watching without interfering.\u00a0 Joshua was hiding a smile at what he viewed as a little brother\u2019s comeuppance.<\/p>\n

Dan just looked sad.<\/p>\n

With a glance at Hoss, he said, \u201cTake him home, Hoss.\u00a0 I\u2019ll see the cattle get where they need to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou gonna wire Pa and tell him your lies?\u201d his little brother demanded to know.<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s jaw clenched.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, get him out of my sight before I do something I\u2019ll regret.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, you already did that,\u201d Joe said as he walked toward Hoss, his tone threatening.\u00a0 \u201cYes, sir, you did <\/em>that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam stared at Little Joe\u2019s retreating back before turning to Hoyle.\u00a0 \u201cSo what was your part in this?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

Hoyle shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI brought the bottle.\u201d<\/p>\n

His concern about Del\u2019s brother was rising.\u00a0 \u201cWhat about the gun?\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u201cDid you shoot it off?<\/p>\n

He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDid Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle snorted.\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 He\u2019s good with it too.\u00a0 Hit the target dead center.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo there was<\/em> a bullet in the chamber and that was the shot that set off the stampede?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle\u2019s face registered no emotion, as if he didn\u2019t realize his words were sealing his \u2018friend\u2019s\u2019 fate.<\/p>\n

\u201cFar as I know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam didn\u2019t know what to do, so he nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYou get your things together and go back to the bunkhouse.\u00a0 You tell your brother what you did or I will.\u00a0 Do you understand me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll tell him.\u00a0 Its not like I <\/em>did anything wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Del\u2019s brother moved to do what he said, Dan Tollivar came to his side.\u00a0 He nodded in Hoyle\u2019s direction.\u00a0 \u201cThat one\u2019s trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t know how they\u2019d missed it unless it was simply due to the fact that Del had saved Joe\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re right.\u00a0 I guess its a good thing he and Del will be moving on in a few days.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dan was silent a moment.\u00a0 \u201cYou were awful hard on the boy.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI seem to remember when you were his age you made a poor choice or two.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam snorted.\u00a0 \u201cOr maybe three.\u201d\u00a0 He ran a hand along the back of his neck.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know what it is with Joe.\u00a0 He just….\u00a0 Well, it doesn\u2019t take much of anything <\/em>for him to get under my skin.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a lot like your Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

He shot the other man an astonished look.\u00a0 \u201cPa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Dan laughed.\u00a0 \u201cYou didn\u2019t know Ben when he was young.\u00a0 I did.\u00a0 Trust me.\u00a0 That quick temper and damned cock-suredness don\u2019t come out of nowhere.\u201d\u00a0 The older man\u2019s hand came down on his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cYou just got to aim it right, son.\u00a0 Joe\u2019ll be okay.\u00a0 He just needs to grow up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe was <\/em>a boy.\u00a0 He forgot that sometimes.\u00a0 And it was true, he\u2019d done a few things when he was that age that he\u2019d prefer not to remember.\u00a0 Pa had always been stern, but understanding.<\/p>\n

And he\u2019d never called him a liar.<\/p>\n

\u201cI owe Joe an apology, don\u2019t I?\u201d he asked with chagrin.<\/p>\n

\u201cWouldn\u2019t hurt.\u201d\u00a0 Dan lifted his hand.\u00a0 \u201cSooner said, best mended.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight.\u00a0 We\u2019ll get the cattle to the main herd and I\u2019ll ride back in the morning and\u00a0 talk to him.\u00a0 Thanks, Dan.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe\u2019s a good kid.\u00a0 You remember that.\u201d<\/p>\n

He snorted.\u00a0 \u201cIf I don\u2019t, I\u2019ve got you to remind me.\u201d<\/p>\n

With that, Adam moved toward his horse and prepared to drive the herd.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Watching from the underbrush, the man who had been casing the Cartwright household, smirked.\u00a0 Things were going according to plan.\u00a0 When he\u2019d spoken to Del everything had fallen into place.\u00a0 Plan A had been scrapped for plan B, and that was going to make things so much easier.\u00a0 This way the boy would cooperate.\u00a0 He was ripe to turn on his family and would be of considerable use to them in Genoa.\u00a0 The Cartwright name carried a lot of weight and, from the look of young Joseph Cartwright, he was a boy who wanted to be a man and would be more than willing to throw that weight around.<\/p>\n

Shifting his position, the man\u2019s narrowed eyes followed Joe\u2019s older brother as he rode off toward the herd.\u00a0 It was such a beautiful touch, waiting until the boy aimed that empty pistol and then firing his own to scatter the cattle.\u00a0 Coupled with Hoyle\u2019s idea of bringing the whiskey, young Joe\u2019s standing with his family had been so undermined he was almost duty bound to take up the brothers\u2019 offer to run away with them.\u00a0 And when he did….<\/p>\n

When he did, he would make him \u2013 and Del and Hoyle \u2013 rich men.<\/p>\n

After that, of course, there\u2019d be no use for him.\u00a0 Joe Cartwright would have seen people and things he could never forget. Then \u2013 then<\/em> \u2013 the kid would get his comeuppance.\u00a0 No one thwarted Weston McCloud and lived to tell about it.<\/p>\n

At least not with their brains or body intact.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

EIGHT<\/p>\n

Joe drew a deep breath and let it out in a long sigh as he turned back to look at the ranch house.\u00a0 It was well after midnight and everyone there was fast asleep.\u00a0 Hoss was snoring loud as a buzz saw.\u00a0 Pa had put down his book and turned off his lamp and gone to his room.\u00a0 Pa didn\u2019t snore.\u00a0 His breathing was deep, even.<\/p>\n

Strong, just like him.<\/p>\n

The ride back to the house with Hoss from the disastrous cattle drive had been made in silence.\u00a0 Upon their arrival he\u2019d sprung from his horse, tethered it, and then run into the house and vaulted up the stairs.\u00a0 Once in his room he slammed the door shut and threw himself on the bed.\u00a0 Pulling a pillow over his head, he\u2019d muffled the sobs and cried until he was all cried out.\u00a0 By the time Hoss knocked on his door on his way to bed, asking him if he was all right, the pain and horror of what had happened had been transformed into deep, dark, determined rage. \u00a0He\u2019d been sitting there, contemplating what to do about it when a knock came on his window.\u00a0 Startled, he\u2019d turned toward it to find Hoyle crouching on the roof outside.\u00a0 They\u2019d come and gone a few times that way, so it didn\u2019t surprise him that Hoyle had chosen to use that route.<\/p>\n

What did<\/em> surprise him was the words that came out of his friend\u2019s mouth as he slipped inside.<\/p>\n

\u201cDel and I are leaving tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u00a0 Tonight?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWe got enough money and Del\u2019s none too happy with the way things went down with Adam.\u00a0 He says he\u2019s ready.\u00a0 I am too.\u201d\u00a0 Hoyle had paused. \u201cHow about you?\u00a0 You coming with us?\u201d<\/p>\n

A chill \u2013 no, more of a thrill<\/em> had snaked down his spine.\u00a0 \u201cYou headed for New Orleans?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoyle nodded.\u00a0 \u201cEnd of the day tomorrow.\u00a0 Del\u2019s got some business to take care of in Genoa first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe remembered the mention of Genoa had made the color drain from his face.\u00a0 \u201cMy pa\u2019s somewhere in the area.\u201d<\/p>\n

The southerner shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cWe won\u2019t run into him.\u00a0 Remember, your pa\u2019s in Eagle Station right now, not Genoa.\u201d<\/p>\n

The thought of his father took Joe \u2013 for an instant \u2013 to another place and time, to a childhood where that single word \u2018pa\u2019 had held everything he needed in the world.\u00a0 Joe swallowed hard as he continued to stare at the only home he had ever known.\u00a0 In about two hours Hop Sing would rise.\u00a0 The Chinese man would make his morning tea and then start the new day\u2019s tasks.\u00a0 Two or three hours later his Pa and his brother Hoss would come downstairs.\u00a0 Maybe Adam would be back by that time too.\u00a0 They\u2019d sit at the table and look at his empty chair and yell at him to get his sorry butt down to breakfast.\u00a0 Little did they know that \u2018sorry butt\u2019 was planted on a fence rail at the edge of the yard, or that he and it were ready to head for New Orleans.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s grinned.\u00a0 That\u2019d teach them to call him a boy!<\/p>\n

The curly-headed youth shifted anxiously.\u00a0 He was going off on a great<\/em> adventure with Hoyle and Del.\u00a0 They were gonna go to another town and get on the stage and head for his mama\u2019s home.\u00a0 New Orleans<\/em>, he thought with a shake of his head.\u00a0 With his eyes closed he could almost smell the spray coming off the Mississippi River and hear the calls of the men loading and unloading the ship as they came into port.\u00a0 He\u2019d never been far away from the Ponderosa.\u00a0 There was a world out there he knew nothing of.\u00a0 He\u2019d thought he would see it one day with his pa and brothers but….<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re awful quiet, Joe.\u00a0 Are you having second thoughts?\u201d Hoyle asked as he came alongside him.<\/p>\n

Joe opened his eyes.\u00a0 The look he gave his friend was resolute.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDamn straight!\u201d\u00a0 Hoyle laughed.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll never get anywhere as long as Adam is in charge.\u00a0 Its him who runs the ranch now, not your pa..\u00a0 That arrogant bastard is never<\/em> going to see you as a man.\u00a0 You\u2019re going to have to prove <\/em>it to him.\u00a0 Taking off with us will go a long ways toward doing that.\u201d\u00a0 The southerner met his eyes and held his gaze.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u2019ll see the changes in you when you come back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoyle\u2019s right, Joe,\u201d Del said as he joined them leading three horses.\u00a0 Hoyle\u2019s older brother had been saddling them while they talked.\u00a0 Joe wasn\u2019t going to take Cochise.\u00a0 Cooch was his horse, but he didn\u2019t really belong to him.<\/p>\n

Nothing really<\/em> belonged to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom what Hoyle told me, you\u2019ve already burned your bridges, Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Del was wrong.\u00a0 He <\/em>hadn\u2019t burned any bridges \u2013 Adam had.\u00a0 <\/em>That\u2019s why he was going away.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t leaving his home, he was being driven<\/em> away by his oldest brother\u2019s unreal expectations, by Adam\u2019s arrogance; by his need<\/em> to be in control.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s jaw tightened.<\/p>\n

But most of all, by the fact that Adam had called him a liar.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe snorted and then wiped a hand across his lips as he left the rail and headed for the horse Del had brought him.\u00a0 The world lay before him.\u00a0 He was going to be on his own \u2013 he was going to be a man<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Pa would be proud of him.<\/p>\n

Yeah.\u00a0 He would.<\/p>\n

Whenever he came home.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hoss blinked awake and lifted his head off the pillow.\u00a0 He thought he\u2019d heard movement downstairs.\u00a0 Casting an eye to the window, he saw the dawn was breaking.\u00a0 Thinking maybe it was Joe and little brother had finally got over pissin\u2019 and moanin\u2019 and gone downstairs for something to eat, the big man sat up on the edge of his bed, stretched, and then rose and pulled on his robe.\u00a0 It was chillier than he remembered it being when he went to bed.\u00a0 The season was turning.\u00a0 October was almost over.<\/p>\n

The snow would be flying soon.<\/p>\n

Crossing to his door Hoss opened it and stepped into the hall.\u00a0 Sure enough there was a noise downstairs. \u00a0Someone was moving around the great room.\u00a0 As he scratched his head, Hoss moved to the top of the landing and looked down.\u00a0 What he found surprised him.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t Joe.\u00a0 It was Adam.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019re you doin\u2019 here?\u201d he asked as he descended.\u00a0 \u201cI thought you were goin\u2019 straight on to Eagle Station.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother looked up at him.\u00a0 Adam was covered with trail dust; his eyes ringed with fatigue and colored by a bit of chagrin.\u00a0 \u201cI figured I owed Joe an apology.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou was a little hard on him,\u201d Hoss said as his bare feet hit the floor.<\/p>\n

Adam went to the hearth and sat down, mindful of getting his dust on the upholstery.\u00a0 \u201cI know.\u00a0 It\u2019s just….\u201d\u00a0 His brother sighed.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know what it is about Joe.\u00a0 I know he\u2019s a good kid.\u00a0 I just get so frustrated \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust like you did with mama,\u201d the big man finished for him.<\/p>\n

Adam started.\u00a0 His eyes shot to his face.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHeck, Adam, I was only a little tyke, but I can remember how hoppin\u2019 mad mama made you.\u00a0 You two was likes bucks in rutting season clashin\u2019 antlers.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother snorted.\u00a0 Then he smiled.\u00a0 \u201cYeah….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, Adam, you\u2019re always thinkin\u2019, calculatin\u2019 even.\u00a0 Mama was about the moment.\u00a0 Joe is too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam sighed.\u00a0 \u201cHe is <\/em>that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you know, Adam, not everybody thinks that\u2019s wrong.\u00a0 I know it\u2019s not your way, but even the Good Book says to let tomorrow take care of itself.\u00a0 To live in the moment, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI hadn\u2019t really thought about it, but Marie did challenge me the same way Joe does.\u00a0 Only I think she did it on purpose.\u201d\u00a0 His brother laughed.\u00a0 \u201cJoe does it without knowing<\/em> he\u2019s doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a kid, Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

Older brother sucked in air and let it out slowly.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s the problem, Joe is <\/em>a kid. \u00a0When I considered what could<\/em> have happened when those steers stampeded….\u201d\u00a0 He looked at him.\u00a0 \u201cJoe or someone else could have been killed, and all because he was being stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow do you know he wasn\u2019t tellin\u2019 the truth?\u00a0 I mean, he did admit to the drinkin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFool kid!\u00a0 Whiskey<\/em>, for God\u2019s sake!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss paused.\u00a0 \u201cI think you and me was about that age when we took our first sip.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam looked abashed.\u00a0 \u201cWe were stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe <\/em>was kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat doesn\u2019t change the fact that Joe\u2019s reckless behavior caused a stampede and resulted in the loss of livestock.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss ran a hand along the back of his neck.\u00a0 \u201cI been thinkin\u2019 about that.\u00a0 Joe seemed awful upset when you accused him of lyin\u2019 about the gun going off.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoyle said \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

The big man met his brother\u2019s angry gaze.\u00a0 \u201cAnd why is it, Adam, that you\u2019d believe a stranger <\/em>over your own brother?\u201d<\/p>\n

There, he\u2019d said it.<\/p>\n

Adam scowled.\u00a0 \u201cBecause Joe\u2019s been known to stretch the truth before.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStretchin\u2019 the truth\u2019 and lyin\u2019 are two different things.\u00a0 You called Joe a liar and Joe ain\u2019t no liar.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t make any sense,\u201d Adam admitted as he rose and began to pace. \u201cHow can you fire a gun but not<\/em> fire it, and yet have it go off and cause a stampede?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLook at it this way, brother.\u00a0 You\u2019re accusin\u2019 Joe of bein\u2019 awful smart and wily.\u00a0 Shouldn\u2019t he be smart enough to make up a better lie than that?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam stopped and stared at him.\u00a0 His eyes shot to the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cGood God.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, God is<\/em> good, Adam,\u201d Hoss said with a half-smile. \u201cSeems He decided to knock some sense into that think head of your\u2019n before it was too late.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother looked slightly ill.\u00a0 \u201cYou know, I was going to talk to Joe about Hoyle before this happened.\u00a0 I was worried he was pulling Joe in the wrong direction.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat mean you\u2019re thinkin\u2019….?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoyle told me that Joe fired the gun and hit the target on the tree.\u00a0 I believed him.\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m thinking now I shouldn\u2019t have.\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019d noticed Joe was different around Del\u2019s brother.\u00a0 It was like to two of them was always sharing a secret.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s awful quiet, that boy.\u00a0 You never know what he\u2019s thinkin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam was on the move again, pacing in front of the fire.\u00a0 \u201cWhen you think about it, we accepted Del and Hoyle into our home and lives without question because Del saved Joe from the those bank robbers.\u00a0 We really know nothing about them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Cept they\u2019re from the south.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhich would have tied them to Marie and, thereby, ingratiated them to Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam went to the bottom of the steps.\u00a0 \u201cJoe still in his room?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo far as I know,\u201d Hoss replied.\u00a0 \u201cLittle brother ran right up and slammed that door tight last night.\u00a0 I heard him crying.\u00a0 Figured he cried himself to sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother gripped the stair rail.\u00a0 \u201cI feel like an ass.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s okay,\u201d he replied with a small twist of his lips.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve been behavin\u2019 like one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you,\u201d Adam said flatly.\u00a0 \u201cThat so<\/em> helps to alleviate any feelings of remorse I might be entertaining.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy don\u2019t you just go up and entertain little brother with an apology instead?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI will.\u201d\u00a0 The big man watched as his older brother slowly climbed the steps.\u00a0 Near the top Adam stopped and looked back at him.\u00a0 \u201cHave I remembered lately to tell you how wise you are?\u201d<\/p>\n

The big man\u2019s cheeks went red.\u00a0 \u201cShucks.\u00a0 Ain\u2019t nothin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo wonder Pa keeps you around.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam rounded the corner before the settee pillow he tossed could reach his head.<\/p>\n

Hoss turned then and headed for the kitchen.\u00a0 Hop Sing wasn\u2019t up yet, but he was sure he could scrounge up something.\u00a0 He was powerful hungry since he hadn\u2019t had much of an appetite the night before.\u00a0 A quick circuit of their Chinese cook\u2019s domain gave up some slices of cold beef and a half-dozen hard boiled eggs. With several of each in hand, Hoss headed back into the great room just as Adam came flying down the stairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWas Joe in the kitchen?\u201d he asked, breathless.<\/p>\n

His mouth was full, so he shook his head.\u00a0\u00a0 Chewing quickly, the big man swallowed and asked, \u201cAin\u2019t he in his room?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u201d\u00a0 Adam looked worried.\u00a0 \u201cHis window was open and some of his things are gone.\u201d<\/p>\n

So that\u2019s<\/em> why it felt so cold upstairs!<\/p>\n

\u201cYou think he had enough of a mad on he done run away?\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m going to wake Hoyle and ask him if he knows anything.\u00a0 You check the house again, just in case Joe\u2019s hiding somewhere and I missed him.\u201d<\/p>\n

They parted then, with Adam going outside and him heading up the stairs.\u00a0 Ten minutes later they met again just inside the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe ain\u2019t here,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t suppose….\u201d\u00a0 He stopped short.\u00a0 Older brother looked….well…terrified.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong, Adam?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoyle\u2019s gone.\u00a0 So is Del.\u00a0 And I found three sets of horse prints leading out of the yard.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThree?\u201d\u00a0 It must of been too early in the morning.\u00a0 It took a second.\u00a0 \u201cYou ain\u2019t thinkin\u2019….\u00a0 You mean, you\u2019re thinkin\u2019 Joe took off with that pair.\u00a0 For New Orleans?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cBy the look of it they left around midnight.\u00a0 They\u2019re probably heading for the stage depot in another town.\u00a0 They could have made by now.\u201d\u00a0 Adam\u2019s hand was shaking as he ran it across his chin. \u00a0\u201cGood Lord!\u00a0 What am I going to tell Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHang onto your hat, Adam.\u00a0 No need to go tellin\u2019 Pa anythin\u2019 yet.\u00a0 It can\u2019t be that hard to track the three of them.\u00a0 I mean, since they had such a lead I doubt they\u2019re doin\u2019 much to cover their trail.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hope entered his brother\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 \u201cYou might be right.\u00a0 Del said he and Hoyle were going to take the stage south.\u00a0 I checked and the money Joe keeps in his dresser is gone.\u00a0 That\u2019s enough to buy a ticket for the first leg.\u201d\u00a0 Adam sucked in air, seeming to steady himself.\u00a0 \u201cI imagine they would go south of Virginia City to board, maybe Gold Hill or Eureka.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI cain\u2019t believe that little cuss was so mad he\u2019d go off and do somethin\u2019 so gol-<\/em>darned stupid!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t believe he\u2019d do this to Pa,\u201d Adam said flatly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know Little Joe.\u00a0 He ain\u2019t thinkin\u2019 about anythin\u2019 more than the mad he\u2019s got on.\u00a0 When he calms down, he\u2019ll come back home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI agree.\u00a0 But the more I think about it, the less I like the idea of him alone with Del and Hoyle.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s not completely innocent, but he has no idea how wicked the world is \u2013 especially a city like New Orleans.\u201d<\/p>\n

Big brother\u2019d been in those big cities.\u00a0 He knew a thing or two about them.\u00a0 And the look he had on his face right now about said it all for the type of trouble Joe might get into.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll pack some food if you go saddle the horses,\u201d Adam said.<\/p>\n

He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll saddle up three \u2013 just in case.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSounds good.\u00a0 Once I have the food, I\u2019ll find the foreman and give him orders for the men.\u00a0 When I get back, we\u2019ll ride.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss watched as his older brother disappeared around the corner into the kitchen wing of the house.\u00a0 A second later he opened the front door and stepped out.\u00a0 The day was dawning.\u00a0 The sun was up and it painted the land in shades of pink and gold.\u00a0 After allowing himself a moment to enjoy it, the big man headed toward the barn.\u00a0 When he was almost there he turned and went instead to the edge of the yard where Adam said he had found the trio of horse prints.\u00a0 Kneeling, he ran his hand over them, as if somehow that could connect him to his missing brother.\u00a0 Joe was an ornery little cuss.\u00a0 Once he had his hackles up, it took an awful lot to bring them back down.<\/p>\n

Hoss rose and dusted the knees of his trousers off.\u00a0 Shifting his hat back on his thinning hair, he looked up at the sky and spoke to the big man upstairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cMake it gentle this time, ya hear?\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

By the time they camped for the night, Joe was a little less angry but just as determined to see the choice he had made through in spite of doubts creeping in.\u00a0 The truth was, there was something bothering him, and that was his pa.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t want to hurt him and he knew by doing what he was doing, that he was.\u00a0 It was funny.\u00a0 Pa wasn\u2019t anything <\/em>like Adam.\u00a0 Pa always listened to him and trusted him and usually supported him when one of his brothers accused him of something.\u00a0 But pa…well, in a way…when it came to letting him grow up….<\/p>\n

Pa was worse.<\/p>\n

He and Hoss had talked about it and he thought he understood why.\u00a0 His pa had loved his mama something fierce.\u00a0 When she died, well, he was all Pa had left of her.\u00a0 Hoss said when Pa looked at him, he saw his mama looking back.\u00a0 Joe shook his head and sighed.\u00a0 His pa hadn\u2019t been able to keep his mama from dying when that horse fell on her and so he was scared, middle brother said, that something would happen to him<\/em> too.\u00a0 Because of it, Pa treated him like he was made out of glass or, maybe, was like one of those blown-out egg shells you colored for Easter that you could crush by blowing on it.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t want to hurt his father, but it seemed, well, running away and being on his own for a while might be the only thing that would prove to his pa that he wasn\u2019t <\/em>gonna break.<\/p>\n

Or die.<\/p>\n

Joe looked at Hoyle who sat across the fire from him, talking to his brother.\u00a0 Hoyle was only two years older than him.\u00a0 He said he\u2019d been on his own since he was two years younger, with just his brother at his side.\u00a0 Del wasn\u2019t like Adam.\u00a0 He\u2019d taught Hoyle how to be a man so they could go everywhere and do everything together.\u00a0 He\u2019d helped him \u2013 wanted<\/em> him to grow up.<\/p>\n

All Adam wanted to do was make sure he stayed a snot-nosed kid.<\/p>\n

As he thought again of the events of the day before, Joe\u2019s anger began to resurface.\u00a0 How dare <\/em>older brother call him a liar and accuse him of causing that stampede!\u00a0 And Hoss.\u00a0 Hoss hadn\u2019t backed him up.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t said it, but he could tell middle brother believed everything lie that was being told about him.\u00a0 And old Dan.\u00a0 He believed it too. \u00a0Everybody<\/em> believed he\u2019d been reckless and foolish and stupid because that\u2019s what they already believed he was \u2013 reckless, and foolish and stupid.<\/p>\n

Well, he\u2019d show them!\u00a0 He\u2019d take that stage all the way to New Orleans and get a job and live on his own for a while and then he\u2019d write them and tell them what he was doing.\u00a0 And then \u2013 maybe<\/em> then \u2013 he\u2019d come back home.<\/p>\n

Or maybe he\u2019d just stay in his mama\u2019s home town.<\/p>\n

Maybe.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s lips opened and he mouthed the word.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou okay, Joe?\u201d Del asked.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re awful quiet.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Joe looked up, he found Hoyle\u2019s brother looking down at him.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m fine,\u201d he replied.\u00a0 \u201cJust considerin\u2019 the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

Del glanced at Hoyle and then sat down.\u00a0 \u201cWe were just talking about that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour future.\u201d\u00a0 The blond man glanced at his brother.\u00a0 \u201cThe business deal I\u2019m working on in Genoa has a lot of potential.\u00a0 It should bring in enough cash to set all of us up in New Orleans.\u00a0 I…\u00a0 We thought maybe you\u2019d like to become a partner.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat kind of business deal is it?\u201d he asked, curious.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a man \u2013 he\u2019s the backer \u2013 and he\u2019s looking to work with the manager of the new bank in town.\u00a0 The one on the east side of Genoa.\u00a0 Hoyle and I thought, well, the name Cartwright carries a lot of weight.\u00a0 If the manager thought your father was interested….\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe frowned.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019d be a lie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, it wouldn\u2019t, Joe,\u201d Hoyle said from across the fire.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re Ben Cartwright\u2019s son.\u00a0 You speak for him, just like your brothers do.\u00a0 Just like I do for Del.\u00a0 Right, brother?\u201d<\/p>\n

Del nodded.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019d be your way of earning your passage all the way to your mama\u2019s hometown.\u00a0 It\u2019s a long way to New Orleans.\u00a0 How much did you bring with you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Not enough.\u00a0 Pa wouldn\u2019t let him keep much cash on hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cEnough for the ticket.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight.\u00a0 There\u2019s meals and hotel rooms and supplies and….\u201d\u00a0 Del\u2019s look was sober.\u00a0 \u201cA man<\/em> pays his own way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe fought to keep his breathing even.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t really thought about it.\u00a0 Del and Hoyle couldn\u2019t fund the trip or his life \u2013 nor would he want them to.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat would I have to do?\u201d<\/p>\n

Again, the brothers exchanged a look.\u00a0 \u201cWell, if the manager thought Ben Cartwright was going to invest in his bank, he\u2019d certainly accept our backer\u2019s deal.\u00a0 Your father has money in the Genoa bank already, doesn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u00a0 Sometimes he keeps money there,\u201d Joe said, growing less certain by the moment.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey!\u201d Del said, stretching out his arm and placing a hand on his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t look so worried.\u00a0 You don\u2019t have to do it if you\u2019re scared \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not scared!\u201d Joe snapped, even though he was.\u00a0 \u201cI just don\u2019t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou will tomorrow, Joe,\u201d Hoyle said as he drew a blanket up about his shoulders and rolled over.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re meeting with the backer then.\u201d<\/p>\n

Del was looking right at him.\u00a0 \u201cNow, you don\u2019t think we\u2019d ask you to do anything wrong, do you, Joe?\u00a0 We\u2019re friends<\/em>, aren\u2019t we?\u201d<\/p>\n

He thought so.<\/p>\n

No.\u00a0 He knew <\/em>so.<\/p>\n

Joe placed his hand over Del\u2019s.\u00a0 \u201cSure.\u00a0 We\u2019re friends.\u00a0 I trust you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGreat!\u201d\u00a0 The blond man rose.\u00a0 \u201cNow you get some sleep.\u00a0 We can only chance a few hours.\u00a0 Those brothers of yours are going to be on our tail first thing.\u201d\u00a0 He grinned.\u00a0 \u201cIf they catch up to us, they\u2019ll drag you back by the ear like you\u2019re some little kid.\u201d<\/p>\n

With that last word, Del walked away.<\/p>\n

Joe sat for a moment considering all his friends had said.\u00a0 What was wrong with him helping them out?\u00a0 If just his name could secure their deal, well, he owed them that at least.\u00a0 Didn\u2019t he?\u00a0 After all, they were taking him to his mama\u2019s hometown and helping him prove he wasn\u2019t that little kid.<\/p>\n

Clutching the edge of his blanket in his hand, Joe rolled over on his side.\u00a0 A couple of hours, Del said.<\/p>\n

Joe didn\u2019t sleep a wink of it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

DeLoyd Wakefield Beaumont waited until Joe Cartwright\u2019s back was turned and then he silently rose to his feet and made his way into the woods.\u00a0 As he walked he considered the fortuitous turn of events that had put the youngest of the wealthy Benjamin Cartwright\u2019s sons in their hands.\u00a0 Weston\u2019s plan was good, but this piece of good luck made it better.\u00a0 That Northern dimwit, Wade Harvey, had no idea when he was put in charge of the bank robbery in Genoa that he was a sacrificial lamb.\u00a0 Wade thought he was the big man and that, along with his bloodthirsty partner, Pythias Morgan, there was no way they could miss.\u00a0 Of course, he might have been right \u2013 would<\/em> have been right \u2013 if Weston hadn\u2019t slipped a note under the door tipped off the sheriff.<\/p>\n

Hiram Whitaker was on his way before a single shout went up.<\/p>\n

The plan was simple.\u00a0 Weston hired Harvey and his gang to rob the old bank.\u00a0 At the same time he hired him, plus a few other savvy Southern men, to take up residence in Genoa a few days so they could join the posse when it was raised.\u00a0 That way they would appear above reproach when the real <\/em>robbery went down.\u00a0 The idea was that no one would expect a town\u2019s banks to be hit two time in less than two months.\u00a0 Weston sent Harvey to the west side bank.\u00a0 There was some money there, but the big <\/em>money was in the new bank with its new vault with its six tumbler lock vault.\u00a0 Weston had befriended the bank manager, dropping names and tossing around enough cash to make it look like he was pretty well-off.\u00a0 That was how he\u2019d gotten to see the new vault.\u00a0 The old one was still there in the basement.\u00a0 It was a four tumbler and stood empty now.\u00a0 After the last bank robbery attempt, the bank board had decided to buy the new top-of-the-line vault and to telegraph that fact to every town within a hundred mile radius of Genoa in order to attract the timber, mine and cattle barons.<\/p>\n

Weston had seen Ben Cartwright there one day, checking out the new vault.<\/p>\n

At that time Cartwright had just been a name he\u2019d heard on the lips of his father\u2019s boss; a man Stanfield Hawks detested without reason.\u00a0 All that changed the night the robbery went down and he\u2019d set out from Genoa with the self-righteously angry men of the town.\u00a0 They were hell-bent to hunt down the men who had so callously and uncaringly stolen their hard-earned cash.\u00a0 He\u2019d realized right off that it was Ben Cartwright\u2019s boy Pythias and Harvey were holding.\u00a0 It had been a golden opportunity to get in good with the owners of the biggest spread in Nevada.<\/p>\n

Of course, DeLoyd thought as he shifted his aching shoulder, he hadn\u2019t meant to get shot.<\/p>\n

The wound had worked to his advantage though, earning him and Hoyle a free ticket into the Cartwright\u2019s hearts and lives.\u00a0 Him saving the Cartwright\u2019s \u2018baby boy\u2019 had made Ben and his other sons so grateful they hadn\u2019t asked any questions.\u00a0 It was probably a good thing, he thought with a scoff.<\/p>\n

If they\u2019d asked too many he might have had to kill them.<\/p>\n

The blond man halted when he heard a noise.\u00a0 He tensed and his hand went to his sidearm.<\/p>\n

\u201cRelax, Beaumont.\u00a0 It\u2019s me.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a shadowy form separated itself from the other shadows of the forest, DeLoyd relaxed.\u00a0 He recognized the man\u2019s middle height, middle weight, middle-aged form.<\/p>\n

\u201cHello, Weston.\u201d<\/p>\n

Weston was about as average as average came.\u00a0 He was around five feet nine and had thinning brown hair muddied by gray.\u00a0 The businessman wore suits but they were store-bought, not anything he\u2019d ordered, and so they fit like a feed sack.\u00a0 Weston\u2019s eyes were gray too \u2013 a bone-chilling gray like icy mist hanging over a mountain.\u00a0 His lips were thin and cruel.\u00a0 He sported a mustache above them that should have been shaved off day\u2019s before.\u00a0 The only distinguishing feature the average man had was a small scar over his right eyebrow. Weston said he got it in a duel.\u00a0\u00a0 He didn\u2019t believe it.<\/p>\n

If there was one thing Weston McCloud was not<\/em>, it was a gentleman.<\/p>\n

The city slicker stepped forward to shake his hand.\u00a0 \u201cI received your wire.\u00a0 The boy is with you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u201d he snorted.\u00a0 \u201cIf I can\u2019t fool a fourteen year old boy, then I better hang up my hat.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat does he know?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat we\u2019re headed for New Orleans and that he needs money.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou think he\u2019ll go through with it?\u201d\u00a0 Weston looked worried.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s to stop him from turning around and going home?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPride.\u201d\u00a0 DeLoyd grinned.\u00a0 \u201cYou haven\u2019t met this kid.\u00a0 He\u2019d ride his horse into Hell to prove it didn\u2019t exist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cExcellent.\u00a0 So you think he will do as you ask?\u201d<\/p>\n

There\u2019d been a moment.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen Joe hesitate.\u00a0 \u201cI think he will.\u00a0 There\u2019s no guarantee.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo matter,\u201d the businessman said. \u201cThere\u2019s always plan C.\u201d<\/p>\n

DeLoyd\u00a0 nodded reluctantly.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t like<\/em> plan C.<\/p>\n

Weston scoffed.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t tell me you\u2019ve grown attached to the boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

He shrugged. \u201cJoe\u2019s a good kid.\u00a0 He\u2019s fourteen and he\u2019s trying to prove himself.\u00a0 Reminds me of Hoyle a few years back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yes, your brother.\u00a0 Where is the little outlaw?\u201d<\/p>\n

Del wanted to bristle at the insult but he couldn\u2019t.\u00a0 It was true.\u00a0 With that baby face of his that made him look years younger, his eighteen-year old brother was one of the most successful bank robbers in the south.\u00a0 Of course, Hoyle was also one of the biggest spenders, so they were always looking to rob another one.\u00a0\u00a0 Weston had been in their town looking to hire them.\u00a0 They\u2019d checked his organization out and decided they could be of use to one another.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoyle\u2019s back at the camp with Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you think young Cartwright will do as you ask?\u201d<\/p>\n

DeLoyd hesitated.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a gamble. I still think it\u2019s better just to hold him in reserve.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot with that new vault, it isn\u2019t.\u00a0 You\u2019ve never broken into a Charles and John Chubb six tumbler safe before.\u201d<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t like Weston\u2019s tone.\u00a0 It was insulting.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can just walk away if you think I\u2019m not up to it.\u00a0 After all, I<\/em> have Joe Cartwright.\u00a0 That\u2019s money in itself.\u00a0 His father would pay anything to get him back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Weston paled.\u00a0 \u201cNo, no.\u00a0 I meant no disrespect. \u201c\u00a0 The middling man paused and then added, \u201cYou really think you can break it?\u201d<\/p>\n

DeLoyd shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cIf not, there\u2019s always gunpowder and a match.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s too noisy!\u201d<\/p>\n

The blond man sighed.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re forgetting our insurance.\u00a0 Once the authorities know we have Joe Cartwright, they\u2019ll give us a parade to march us out of town.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, yes….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo you see, either<\/em> way we win.\u00a0 If Joe does as we want, well, we have a new partner.\u00a0 With him and Hoyle, we could take anyone.\u201d\u00a0 DeLoyd hesitated. \u201cIf not, then owning him is our ticket to freedom.\u201d<\/p>\n

Weston snorted.\u00a0 \u201cI like the way you think, DeLoyd.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt hasn\u2019t led me astray yet,\u201d the southerner replied.\u00a0 Tipping his hat, he added, \u201cWell, I better get back to the camp.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think Joe was asleep.\u00a0 He\u2019s liable to start worrying if I\u2019m gone long.\u00a0 He probably thinks I came out here to relieve myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Weston McCloud watched the man he\u2019d hired to break the new bank in Genoa walk away.\u00a0\u00a0 DeLoyd Beaumont was cock-sure of himself and that rubbed him the wrong way.\u00a0 Still, the southerner and his brother had come highly recommended.\u00a0 With their background they were comfortable among the elite as well as the common folk, and they were known for pulling heists that were legendary in size and scope as well as take.\u00a0 Their father was overseer of the slaves at one of the largest plantations in Louisiana.\u00a0 DeLoyd had been groomed to take over his job but, in the end, his temperament prevented it.\u00a0 An overseer needed some<\/em> restraint and that was something DeLoyd lacked.\u00a0 There were rumors that he\u2019d killed a man with his bare hands just for intimating that he\u2019d been involved with one of the slave women.\u00a0 That was why he and Hoyle had come north \u2013 to escape scrutiny in the South and to give their father time to ask his patron to smooth things over.\u00a0 They expected to return within the year.<\/p>\n

Their father\u2019s superior was a powerful man indeed with holdings not only in the South but in the West. \u00a0He was one of the men who\u2019d seen to it the Compromise of 1850 happened and campaigned hard for the South’s rights in each new state.\u00a0 He wanted slaves in the West because he had holdings in the West and was seeking to increase his power there. \u00a0In fact, he\u2019d just recently expanded into Nevada and bought land close to the Cartwright spread.\u00a0 Yes, Stanfield Hawks was a man of strong beliefs, chief among them that the ends justified the means.<\/p>\n

A belief with which he completely concurred.<\/p>\n

Weston turned again in the direction DeLoyd had gone.\u00a0 Just beyond the trees was the southerner\u2019s campsite and, at it, Joe Cartwright.\u00a0 When he thought about that skinny raw-boned kid, his fingers itched.\u00a0 Cartwright had insulted him and no one<\/em> who did that went unpunished.\u00a0 He’d kept him from a much anticipated liaison with the beautiful and virginal Maisie O\u2019Malley and had in fact driven the girl back to a life of chastity under her mother and father\u2019s watchful eye.\u00a0 For the moment he intended to follow plan B, which was the one in which they would use Joe Cartwright to gain access to the bank\u2019s vault and all it held under the guise of him doing business for his father.\u00a0\u00a0 Secretly, he was hoping the boy refused to cooperate.\u00a0 If it came to plan C, he knew exactly <\/em>what he was going to do.\u00a0 Ben Cartwright’s youngest son would be used as a hostage \u2013 and human shield.<\/p>\n

And everyone knew what happened to human shields.<\/p>\n

A sneer lifted the average man\u2019s upper lip, pushing his minor mustache up so it tickled his more than average nose.<\/p>\n

With a sneeze, Weston McCloud dismissed Joe Cartwright\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

NINE<\/p>\n

Hoss Cartwright ran a hand through his sandy hair and placed his hat on his head.\u00a0 It was the start of a new day and from what he could tell they\u2019d done been hornswoggled by that little brother of theirs.\u00a0 He and Adam had spent the time since they\u2019d discovered Little Joe was missing traveling south, moving from one stage depot to the next.\u00a0 They\u2019d made it to Eureka as the sun set and had rented a room for the night. Now that it was morning, they had to decide whether to go further south or turn back and go home and start all over again.<\/p>\n

The big man narrowed his crisp blue eyes and looked at his brother.\u00a0 \u201cI got a gut feelin\u2019 Joe ain\u2019t on the stage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam puffed out a little air and nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m beginning to believe that too.\u00a0 Still, if they didn\u2019t head south, then where would they have gone?\u00a0 Del made it fairly clear it was his intention to return to Louisiana as soon as he had the funds.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss didn\u2019t like the sound of it, but he said it anyway.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe havin\u2019 Joe along changed his and Hoyle’s plans for some reason.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam didn\u2019t look happy about it either.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was getting worried.\u00a0 He knew Little Joe was old enough to look out for himself, counting on things being normal.\u00a0 The problem was the more time went by the less he got to thinking anything<\/em> about Joe disappearing was \u2018normal\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just can\u2019t help it, Adam.\u00a0 I sure got a bad feelin\u2019 about this.\u00a0 I mean, Joe was awful mad, but you know that boy, once he cools down he thinks better of bein\u2019 stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam chewed his cheek a moment.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m afraid its because of me,\u201d he admitted.\u00a0 \u201cI should have believed Joe over Hoyle.\u00a0 Like you said, Joe\u2019s my brother.\u00a0 Why believe a stranger?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCause you\u2019re too danged logical for your own good,\u201d Hoss said as he began to check the straps on his saddle.\u00a0 \u201cWhen somethin\u2019 don\u2019t make sense, it drives you plumb loco.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u201d\u00a0 Adam scowled as he remounted.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve been thinking about that too.\u00a0 If Hoyle deliberately lied there has to have been a reason, and the only reason I can think of is he knew it would make me mad enough to confront Joe, thereby giving Joe a reason for running.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019 brows peaked toward the downy tumble of hair on his forehead.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou think Hoyle was tryin\u2019<\/em> to get Joe to run away?\u00a0 Whatever for?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing good, I\u2019m afraid.\u201d\u00a0 His older looked at the road ahead.\u00a0 \u201cI think we need to split up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou goin\u2019 on to the next depot?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam snorted.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t I wish?\u00a0 No, I think I better let Pa know what\u2019s going on.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss swallowed.\u00a0 \u201cI sure<\/em> wouldn\u2019t want to be in your shoes when Pa finds out Little Joe\u2019s missin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to be in my shoes either, but its not fair to Pa to keep him in the dark.\u00a0 He needs <\/em>to know about Joe, especially if there is<\/em> more to this than one angry boy running away from home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want me to go back to the house and check out them tracks again?\u201d<\/p>\n

From what they\u2019d seen as they traveled along the first few hours, Del had done a pretty good job of covering the signs of their passage.\u00a0 At least, he assumed it was Del.\u00a0 They\u2019d followed the three horse\u2019s prints about five miles until they veered off into the rocks and headed for the high country.\u00a0 Both of them had agreed it was a feint and they\u2019d followed stage line instead.<\/p>\n

\u201c Yes.\u00a0 See what\u2019s left and then follow what you find as best you can.\u00a0 Maybe you can tell if they really went into the high country.\u201d\u00a0 Adam ran a hand along the back of his neck. \u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m thinking that it was just to throw us off. \u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll see what I can find. \u201c\u00a0 The big man said as he too mounted his horse .\u00a0 \u201cIf I don\u2019t find nothin\u2019, you want me to head over Genoa way?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa\u2019s not due there for a couple of days,\u201d Adam replied. \u201cI\u2019m supposed to join him in Eagle Station.\u00a0 He \u2018s meeting with a group of men there who have some information on Hawks\u2019 operations, both here and back East. \u201c\u00a0 He thought a moment.\u00a0 \u201cWhy don\u2019t you plan on meeting us there the day after tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded.\u00a0 \u201cHopefully I\u2019ll have little brother with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully.\u201d\u00a0 Adam pulled on the reins and set Scout to moving.\u00a0 \u201cI better get on my way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTell Pa \u2018hello\u2019 for me when you see him.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother haled his horse and looked back.\u00a0 \u201cI will.\u00a0 When I can get a word in, that is.\u00a0 After I tell Pa Joe took off, I have a feeling that might not be until the time you arrive.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe was sitting on a lumpy bed, in a seedy hotel room, wondering what the heck he thought he was doing.\u00a0 He\u2019d been so sure, so<\/em> certain this was what he wanted \u2013 to get out from under brother Adam\u2019s thumb and to prove he could stand on his own two feet without him or Hoss or even his Pa watching over him every minute waiting for him to make a mistake, or get hurt, or…something.<\/p>\n

Now, he wasn\u2019t so sure.<\/p>\n

They\u2019d arrived at the dingy hotel and gone straight up to the room Del rented.\u00a0 As soon as they tossed their hats and satchels on the bed, Del and Hoyle headed out.\u00a0 He\u2019d asked to go with them, but Del said he couldn\u2019t, that it had to do with the business deal he was negotiating and, at the moment, he wasn\u2019t a partner.\u00a0 He\u2019d been uncomfortable with being left behind even before<\/em> the blond man had stopped at the door with his hand on the knob and, looking back, told him he was going to lock him in.\u00a0 When he\u2019d asked why<\/em>, Del had said it was for his safety.\u00a0 When that <\/em>prompted him to ask just what this deal was about, Hoyle\u2019s older brother snorted and answered, \u201cMoney.\u00a0 What else?\u201d<\/p>\n

Then he locked the door.<\/p>\n

Rising, Joe crossed to the window.\u00a0 He\u2019d been so<\/em> sure he could trust Del and Hoyle.\u00a0 He just knew<\/em> the brothers were his friends.\u00a0 He and Hoyle had talked for hours about how much he wanted to see New Orleans because of his mama coming from there.\u00a0 Hoyle\u2019d told him all about it, drawing pictures with his words of the ports and wharfs and the paddle wheelers coming in, of tall trees dripping with moss, of the narrow winding streets with their cast iron lace fences and tall locked gates covered with vines.\u00a0 All he things he\u2019d seen and Joe so desperately wanted <\/em>to see.\u00a0 Hoyle had woven a spell that had convinced him that in order to see them, he had to do it now.<\/em><\/p>\n

He was only fourteen.<\/p>\n

What was the hurry?<\/p>\n

Joe leaned his hand on the glass and looked out at the sleazy back alley the hotel opened onto.\u00a0 Genoa was a growing city.\u00a0 Like all western towns, it had its good side and its bad side.\u00a0\u00a0 They were in the older part of town now, which usually meant trouble.\u00a0 As he stood there looking out, he saw a man come up to a tough-looking woman and try to take her by the arm.\u00a0 She swung around and struck him with her palm, knocking him off his feet, and then walked off in a huff.\u00a0 A few seconds later two other men began trailing her.<\/p>\n

Up to no good, no doubt.<\/p>\n

Maybe Del was<\/em> trying to protect him.\u00a0 He and Hoyle were certainly more experienced than he was.\u00a0 \u00a0They probably couldn\u2019t do their business if they felt they had to watch out for him.\u00a0 Joe frowned as he pivoted and looked at the locked door.<\/p>\n

Still, couldn\u2019t they have trusted<\/em> him?<\/p>\n

No, more and more he was beginning to think that he\u2019d got it all wrong. \u00a0Since he\u2019d been locked in, he\u2019d gone back through all the things Hoyle had said since that morning when Adam had blown up at him and accused him of lying.\u00a0 Any way you looked at it, Hoyle was doing his best to paint Adam in a bad light and to make sure he stayed mad at him.\u00a0 Hoyle\u2019d bad-mouthed older brother from the minute he came in his window and told him he and Del were taking off and wanted him to come with him. \u00a0What he couldn\u2019t figure out was why?\u00a0 Del had made some mention of him helping them at the bank since his pa kept money there.\u00a0 Right now he had a good amount in the vault since the cattle drive was coming up and he was dealing with that Hawks fellow.\u00a0\u00a0 If things went bad with Hawks, Pa was gonna have to pay through the nose to buy back the land Stanfield Hawks said was his.\u00a0 It was important land.\u00a0 They needed it for their cattle.\u00a0 Still, he couldn\u2019t figure there was anything he<\/em> could do at the bank to help with any kind of deal.\u00a0 Much as he hated to admit it, he was<\/em> just a kid.\u00a0 If he\u2019d been a little older Pa might have sent him along with a letter or something for the manager.\u00a0 Hoss had started doing that at about fifteen.\u00a0 Pa even had him carry a draft from one bank to the other one time so he could have money transferred.<\/p>\n

Hoss had sure felt important and all grown up that day.<\/p>\n

Pressing off the window, Joe returned to the bed and sat down and considered his options.\u00a0 He could stay with Hoyle and Del and hope that whenever they were done doing whatever it was they were <\/em>doing, they\u2019d still take him to New Orleans with them.\u00a0\u00a0 Or, he could just tell them when they got back that he wanted to go home.\u00a0 Of course, Hoyle would make him feel like he was a little boy running home with his tail between his legs and not a man making a decision to do what he thought was best.\u00a0 Joe snorted and a tiny smile lifted his lips.\u00a0 His pa would be proud of him for making a decision like that.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d<\/em> tell him he was a man.<\/p>\n

Joe leaned back on the pillows with a sigh.\u00a0 When he first thought of running away all he could see was what lay ahead<\/em> of him \u2013 a real big city with thousands of people and lots of excitement, plus it was the place his mama had loved and lived in.\u00a0 Sitting here, alone, thinking about it again in the light of the way Hoyle and Del were acting, he thought about how the Ponderosa was the place he<\/em> loved and lived in, and how his mama had left New Orleans and chosen to live there instead.\u00a0 She\u2019d left that old city of thousands and all its corruption behind, Pa said, for the rushing streams, the open air, and the honest scent of pine trees.<\/p>\n

He missed his pa.<\/p>\n

Heck, he even missed Adam.<\/p>\n

A noise in the corridor caught his attention.\u00a0 Joe looked at the space between the door and the floor and saw shadows moving through the light in the hall.\u00a0 He heard the key turn in the lock and then Del and Hoyle stepped in \u2013 followed by another man.\u00a0 He was shorter than Del and kind of dumpy looking in his ill-fitting suit.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know him.\u00a0 And he didn\u2019t think he wanted<\/em> to know him.\u00a0 He looked, well….<\/p>\n

Shifty.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, this is Weston McCloud.\u00a0 He\u2019s my…business associate,\u201d Del said.<\/p>\n

McCloud was staring at him like he already didn\u2019t like him, which was odd since they\u2019d never met.<\/p>\n

\u201cMister McCloud,\u201d he said, sticking out a hand like his pa taught him.<\/p>\n

The dumpy man didn\u2019t take it.\u00a0 Instead he said, \u201cI understand you are in with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe frowned.\u00a0 He shot a look at Del and then Hoyle.\u00a0 They were both watching him closely.\u00a0 Hoyle looked….<\/p>\n

Scared.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat depends on what \u2018this\u2019 is,\u201d he replied, itching his voice to sound just a little bit like his pa\u2019s when he was being cautious.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see my associates have not yet explained your role in our proposed endeavor.\u00a0 That was very lax of you, DeLoyd.\u201d<\/p>\n

Del…or DeLoyd shrugged.<\/p>\n

Weston McCloud came to stand before him.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t a big man, but he was bigger than Joe and he loomed over him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI understand you want to be considered a man, Mister Cartwright,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo\u201d\u00a0 What\u2019s that to you?\u201d Joe shot back \u2013 and then felt stupid for having said it.<\/p>\n

\u201cA man<\/em> looks at an opportunity, weighs its advantages and disadvantages, and then comes to a conclusion he can live with.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t you mean one he can be proud<\/em> of?\u201d he countered.<\/p>\n

McCloud\u2019s cloudy gray eyes were fastened on him.\u00a0 \u201cPerhaps.\u201d<\/p>\n

When the man said nothing more, Joe prompted, \u201cSo you gonna to tell me what this is all about?\u00a0 Any of you?\u201d\u00a0 He looked pointedly at Hoyle.<\/p>\n

\u201cDel?\u201d McCloud asked.<\/p>\n

Hoyle\u2019s brother went to his satchel in response.\u00a0 He pulled out an envelope and then slipped a piece of paper out of it.\u00a0 Moving forward, he held it out and wagged it until Joe took it from his hand.<\/p>\n

When he saw what it was Joe paled.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere\u2019d you get this?\u201d he asked, still looking at the blank bank draft with his father\u2019s signature on it.<\/p>\n

Del scoffed.\u00a0 \u201cYou left us alone plenty in that big house of yours.\u00a0 It was simple to slip over to the desk and remove one of the drafts from the back of the book.\u00a0 As to the signature, all I had to do was hold a piece of paper over the top draft note and run a pencil over it, and then imitate it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s heart was racing.\u00a0 \u201cAnd what do you expect me<\/em> to do with it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe expect you to walk into that bank with us tomorrow, with a completed draft in your hand, and to present it to the bank manager.\u00a0 You will tell him who you are and that your father sent you as his emissary and that, \u201c McCloud\u2019s gaze flicked to Del, \u201ca pair of trusted ranch hands were sent along with you to guard both you and the money you are going to withdraw on the way home.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was shaking his head.\u00a0 \u201cWhat makes you think any bank manager would give me my pa\u2019s money?\u00a0 I\u2019m just a kid.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor your sake, Joe Cartwright, and the sake of those in the bank, I hope you are a very convincing \u2018kid\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

He swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIts all up to you.\u00a0 Who lives to walk out of that bank, or who dies.\u201d\u00a0 Weston McCloud held his gaze.\u00a0 \u201cEither you do it my way or I will order my associates to do whatever<\/em> is necessary to retrieve the money.\u00a0 The safe will have to be blown.\u00a0 There will <\/em>be a shoot-out.\u00a0 People will <\/em>die and it will be your<\/em> fault.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, it won\u2019t \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, it will!\u201d\u00a0 McCloud came to his side.\u00a0 He caught his collar in his fingers and pulled him up close, so he could smell the man\u2019s cheap cologne.\u00a0 \u201cYou listen to me, you little runt.\u00a0 Either you cooperate or I will order every hostage in the bank killed.\u00a0 And don\u2019t get any ideas about trying to let someone know what\u2019s going on.\u00a0 Hoyle will be with you every minute.\u00a0 Won\u2019t you, Hoyle?\u201d<\/p>\n

Was he imagining it, or did his former friend look uncomfortable?<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I\u2019ll watch him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I\u2019ll watch you!\u201d<\/em> the man in the suit snorted as he let go. \u00a0\u201cThe plan was for you to pretend<\/em> to befriend Joe Cartwright.\u00a0 Don\u2019t tell me the little rich kid\u2019s got under your skin!\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe looked from McCloud to Hoyle and then back again.\u00a0 McCloud had left the door open when he came in.\u00a0 If \u00a0he was fast enough he could get by him.\u00a0 If he ran down the hall shouting and making a ruckus someone was sure to ask him what was wrong. Then he could tell them to get the sheriff.\u00a0 Maybe even, send someone to wire his pa.\u00a0 Joe wanted his pa right now so bad he could taste <\/em>it.\u00a0 Pa would know what to do.\u00a0 Pa would know how to get him out of this predicament.<\/p>\n

Pa would…save him.<\/p>\n

Weston McCloud turned at that moment to face Del.\u00a0 Joe drew a breath and held it.\u00a0 This was it.\u00a0 It was a split second, but it was a split second he had to take advantage of.\u00a0 Without hesitation, Joe ducked under McCloud\u2019s arm and bolted for the door.\u00a0 He was small, so he slipped by without any trouble.\u00a0 He made it to the corridor and was headed for the stair when he heard it.<\/p>\n

Click.<\/em><\/p>\n

A hammer being cocked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYoung man, I would stop where you are if I were you,\u201d the man in the suit hissed, his tone filled with the promised threat of the death that awaited him if he didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Joe stopped cold.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou will come back here.\u00a0 Now.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

He considered it.\u00a0 He could still bolt. \u00a0Maybe make it to the stairs. There was a chance the bullet wouldn\u2019t hit him.<\/p>\n

Then again, there was a better chance that it would.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe drew in a gulp of air and let it out slowly.\u00a0 Then he turned and walked back to the room.\u00a0 Once inside he stood there breathing hard, his nostrils flaring and his heart racing as Weston McCloud closed the door.<\/p>\n

And locked it this time.<\/p>\n

McCloud holstered his gun and came to stand over him again.\u00a0 As he spoke he shook his head. \u201cDidn\u2019t you Pa teach you to obey your elders?\u00a0 What am I going to do with you, boy?\u201d\u00a0 As if in answer, a sly smile twisted the brown-haired man\u2019s lips as he rolled up his sleeves.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, nothing that shows.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cSir.\u00a0 Sir?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben Cartwright started and looked up from the pile of papers he was working his way through.\u00a0 When he did, he found a woman looking down at him.\u00a0 He was seated at a table in the better of Eagle Station\u2019s hotels.\u00a0 It as barely noon and already he was so caught up in business he\u2019d failed to notice a dark-eyed beauty with raven-black hair trying to make conversation with him.\u00a0 The older man sighed.<\/p>\n

He disliked Stanfield Hawks more and more every day, and he hadn\u2019t even met the man!<\/p>\n

\u201cForgive me,\u201d Ben said as he put down the portfolio he had been perusing.<\/p>\n

The young lady shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cIf you don\u2019t want to order anything, it\u2019s less work for me,\u201d she said with a dazzling smile, \u201cbut then again if you\u2019re hungry, I\u2019d be more than happy to get something from the kitchen for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat would be lovely.\u201d<\/p>\n

The waitress handed him a menu.\u00a0 \u201cWould you like a minute to look it over?\u201d<\/p>\n

It was his fourth day at the hotel and he knew the menu like the back of his hand.\u00a0 \u201cThe roast beef will do fine,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cPotatoes and beans?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019ll do,\u201d he replied as he handed the menu back to her. \u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve been here half the week.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve seen you before.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cProbably not.\u00a0 I\u2019m filling in for a friend today.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI see.\u00a0 Well, thank you…?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJuliet.\u00a0 Juliet Hallenberger.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you, Juliet,\u201d he said as he handed the menu back.<\/p>\n

\u201cCoffee?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, please, and water.\u201d<\/p>\n

The young woman smiled again and nodded and then headed for the kitchen.<\/p>\n

Ben sat staring out the window that fronted the main street of the small burgeoning town.\u00a0 Eagle Station was developing nicely. \u00a0The site had great potential and there was even talk of it one day becoming a seat of government \u2013 when Nevada became a state.\u00a0 The fact that it was a main route to Virginia City didn\u2019t hurt.\u00a0 He\u2019d come here to talk to a group of men who\u2019d been let go unfairly by Stanfield Hawks and were disgruntled with the man and ready to tell some of his secrets.\u00a0 From what he\u2019d learned so far he now knew that Hawks had broken several laws when he purchased the tract of land that was in dispute.\u00a0 With that knowledge he\u2019d managed to get the hearing delayed a few days until he could gather further evidence and until Adam found his way to town.\u00a0 His eldest was late and he\u2019d sent no word as to why.\u00a0 The older man leaned his chin on his fist and fingered the papers laying in front of him.\u00a0 He understood what they said well enough, but he wanted his oldest boy\u2019s unique take on the situation.\u00a0 Adam had a wonderful head for business.\u00a0 He had come to rely heavily on him in the years since his eldest had returned from college.\u00a0 \u00a0Sometimes he thought that was a bit unfair.<\/p>\n

Hoss and Joseph had gotten to be boys, while Adam never had.<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled as he leaned back in his chair.\u00a0 Joseph was still a boy, even though he <\/em>didn\u2019t think he was.\u00a0 At fourteen his youngest was at that awkward stage.\u00a0 Joseph wanted so badly to be a man like his older brothers, but he still had a child\u2019s understanding of things.\u00a0 Due to the fact that he had grown up almost exclusively on the Ponderosa, the boy was really rather naive.\u00a0\u00a0 Not childlike, but…well…\u00a0 He guessed the word he was looking for was \u2018innocent\u2019.\u00a0 Of course, Joseph would take rare exception to that statement.\u00a0 His curly-haired boy\u2019s jaw would tighten and his nostrils flare.\u00a0 Then he\u2019d get that look<\/em> in his eyes \u2013 the one that was halfway between anger and astonishment.\u00a0 His son had grown up around ranch hands and, though he\u2019d done his best to pick good men who would be a good influence on his sons, he knew Joseph had learned a thing or two about life.\u00a0 The main trouble with the boy was that he was too trusting.\u00a0 He saw good in every one and, while that was a wonderful thing, Ben worried that \u2013 in the end \u2013 it would lead him into deep trouble one day.<\/p>\n

Juliet was back.\u00a0 She placed a china cup filled with steaming coffee on the table and a pot beside it.\u00a0 \u201cYour food will be out in a few minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you,\u201d he said.\u00a0 When she remained standing there, Ben looked up at her.\u00a0 \u201cCan I help you with something?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI just….\u201d\u00a0 She paused.\u00a0 \u201cWell, it\u2019s none of my business.\u00a0 You looked kind of sad.\u00a0 Is everything all right?\u201d<\/p>\n

He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u00a0 I was just thinking about my sons.\u00a0 I\u2019ve been away on business and I guess I am missing them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow many do you have?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThree.\u00a0 Two of them are grown.\u00a0 It\u2019s the youngest one I was thinking of.\u00a0 Joseph is only fourteen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a brother about that age.\u201d\u00a0 Juliet laughed.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s a handful.\u00a0 Actually, my ma says he\u2019s two<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

He laughed as well.\u00a0 \u201cThat would be Joseph.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou said you\u2019d been here a little less than a week.\u00a0 Will you be heading home soon?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot soon.\u00a0 I\u2019m here waiting on my eldest son to join me.\u00a0 We have a bit of business to do in Eagle Station and then its on to Genoa and then <\/em>finally home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to Genoa,\u201d the young woman said, \u201ctonight, actually.\u00a0 My sister Jenny and her husband live there.\u00a0 I\u2019m going for an extended visit.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, that\u2019s a coincidence!\u00a0 Maybe I\u2019ll see you there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Juliet grinned.\u00a0 \u201cThat would be nice.\u00a0 Then I\u2019ll know three<\/em> people in town!\u00a0 I\u2019ll go get your food now.\u00a0 I imagine its ready.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the young woman left, Ben turned back to the window just in time to see the figure of a man in black garb move past.\u00a0 It made him think of and long for Adam.<\/p>\n

As it turned out, he didn\u2019t have too long to<\/em> long.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben swiveled in his chair.\u00a0 His eldest son was standing there, framed by the arch that led into the dining room.\u00a0 Adam \u2018s usually impeccable clothes were covered with trail dust.\u00a0 His son looked weary.<\/p>\n

And worried.<\/p>\n

Ben was on his feet in a second.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s hazel eyes took in the dining room with all its patrons.\u00a0 \u201cDo you have a room here, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n

His son met his challenging stare and said simply.\u00a0 \u201cWhat I have to say needs to be said in private.\u201d<\/p>\n

The walk to his room was one of the longest Ben had taken in his life.\u00a0 He knew <\/em>Adam. \u00a0Something was wrong \u2013 terribly<\/em> wrong.\u00a0 He could see it in the way the young man held himself; in the troubled and apologetic look in his eyes.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know why his mind went instantly to Joseph, but it did. \u00a0By the time they reached his room, he was practically out of his mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell?\u201d Ben demanded as he closed the door.\u00a0 Adam had proceeded him into the room.\u00a0 As his son turned and opened his mouth to reply, he cut him short. \u00a0\u201cIs it Joseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s hazel eyes went wide.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know how you do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s happened?\u00a0 Is he hurt?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope not, Pa,\u201d his son answered.<\/p>\n

The older man couldn\u2019t believe what he was hearing.\u00a0 \u201cYou hope <\/em>not?\u00a0 You don\u2019t know?<\/em> \u201c<\/p>\n

His eldest frowned.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWe got into it, Pa. \u00a0Just \u2018why\u2019 is not important now.\u00a0 I accused Joe of lying and it ended up he was telling the truth. \u00a0You know Joe, he got mad….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Adam winced.\u00a0 \u201cHe ran away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben felt like his son had slapped him.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou remember Del and Hoyle, Pa? \u201d<\/p>\n

Of course, he did.\u00a0 He\u2019d lived with them in his house for weeks.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t care about Del and Hoyle.\u00a0 He needed to know about Joseph.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u00a0 Yes.\u00a0 What about them?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s them Joe took off with.\u201d\u00a0 At his surprised look, Adam added, \u201cYou know how they were always talking about New Orleans.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben went to the desk in his room and sat down on the chair beside it.\u00a0 He\u2019d forgotten about the two men\u2019s connection with the town Joseph\u2019s mother had come from.\u00a0 \u201cSo you think he\u2019s headed for New Orleans?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam was quiet a moment.\u00a0 \u201cActually, Pa, I don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s stomach tightened. \u00a0\u201cBut you just said \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI said Joe\u2019s with Del and Hoyle.\u00a0 Hoss and I, well, we figured \u2013 if<\/em> they were headed for Louisiana \u2013 they\u2019d take the stage.\u201d\u00a0 His eldest shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cWe checked every depot between Virginia City and Eureka and no one had seen them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere is<\/em> Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

Overcome by worry and fatigue, Adam sat on the edge of the bed.\u00a0 He closed his eyes for a second and then blew a breath and some tension out with it before continuing.\u00a0 \u201cHoss went back to the Ponderosa to start all over again.\u00a0 He\u2019s tracking them.\u00a0 It looked like they went up into the high country, but I\u2019m not so sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

The tightness in his stomach was becoming a knot.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t think they were really heading for New Orleans?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know what I think, Pa, other than….\u201d\u00a0 His son\u2019s troubled eyes fastened on him.\u00a0 \u201cI think we trusted Del and Hoyle too readily.\u201d<\/p>\n

Had they?<\/p>\n

\u201cDel saved your brother\u2019s life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that, Pa.\u00a0 But I can\u2019t help but wonder if he did it because he had a reason<\/em> to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSuch as?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam shrugged.<\/p>\n

Ben knew what it was like \u2013 that gut feeling where the welfare of someone he loved was concerned.\u00a0 There was no way to explain it, it just was<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The older man remained silent a moment and then he asked, \u201cWhat is Hoss going to do if he can\u2019t pick up their trail?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHead for Genoa.\u00a0 I told him to be there the day after tomorrow.\u00a0 I knew you\u2019d have to finish up whatever you were doing here and then head there like you planned.\u201d<\/p>\n

Business couldn\u2019t wait, unfortunately, since the courts were involved, though there was no way he could concentrate on the fight with Hawks now.<\/p>\n

Ben thought a moment.\u00a0 \u201cYour youngest brother flies off the handle with little provocation, but he usually cools down just about as fast.\u00a0 He could be on his way back to the Ponderosa now.\u201d<\/p>\n

His eldest was silent a moment.\u00a0 What he said next pulled that knot about as tight as it could get.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf he can.\u201d<\/p>\n

A chill ran through him, turning the blood in his veins to ice. \u201cWhat aren\u2019t you telling me, Adam?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not hiding anything, Pa.\u00a0 It\u2019s just a feeling.\u201d\u00a0 His son rose and came to his side.\u00a0 \u201cI think Del and Hoyle deliberately magnified the trouble between me and Joe.\u00a0 I think they stoked the fire and kept him mad enough that he went with them.\u00a0 I think….\u201d\u00a0 He drew a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cI think they have some plan and Joe\u2019s a part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut what kind of plan?\u00a0 What could they want with a fourteen year old boy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know, Pa.\u00a0 I really don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben didn\u2019t either.\u00a0 But come Hell or high water, Stanfield Hawks and his nefarious dealings not withstanding, he was going to find out.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

PART THREE<\/p>\n

Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish’s belly and said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice.\u00a0 Jonah 2: 1-2<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

TEN<\/p>\n

Hoss Cartwright dismounted and looked up at the sky.\u00a0 Near a day had passed since he and Adam had parted and he wasn\u2019t one whit closer to finding their missing baby brother.\u00a0\u00a0 He\u2019d gone back to the ranch house as they\u2019d agreed and started a slow and careful search following what tracks remained.\u00a0 When he came to the place where the horses had gone up into the hills he\u2019d checked it out thoroughly, but pretty quickly decided it had been a ruse as they suspected and returned to the road.\u00a0 Unfortunately, whoever was covering their tracks \u2013 and he figured it was Del \u2013 was pretty expert at it.<\/p>\n

So <\/em>expert, in fact, it made him nervous.<\/p>\n

Once he\u2019d determined Joe and the others had stuck to the road, the big man started moving quickly.\u00a0 There were a good many roads along the way the three of them could have veered off on, but for some reason \u2013 some gut-wrenching reason \u2013 he felt they\u2019d gone south.\u00a0 Maybe it was Little Joe\u2019s attraction to it or maybe there was an angel sitting on his shoulder whispering in his ear, but he\u2019d pointed Chubb\u2019s nose toward Genoa and started riding as hard and as fast as he could.\u00a0 He was past Virginia City now.\u00a0 The next big town was Eagle Station.\u00a0 That\u2019s where Adam and Pa were.\u00a0 He hoped he could catch them before they moved on to Genoa.\u00a0 The big man wasn\u2019t sure why.\u00a0 He just did.<\/p>\n

He knew it was important.<\/p>\n

For the most part, since he\u2019d started, he\u2019d ridden without stopping.\u00a0 He was doing so now mostly to let Chubb rest and feed for a while.\u00a0 He was a large man, even at eighteen, and he knew his bulk wore the horse out faster than it would have if he\u2019d been carrying a little squirt like Little Joe on his back.<\/p>\n

Hoss drew a sharp breath as tears flooded his eyes and a world of regret washed over him.\u00a0 If he\u2019d just stood up for Joe against Adam, none of this would have happened.\u00a0 The trouble was for just a second \u2013 due mostly to the fact that Little Joe\u2019d been drinking \u2013 he actually thought his baby brother might be<\/em> lying.<\/p>\n

It was a choice he hoped he didn\u2019t live to regret in a big <\/em>way.<\/p>\n

After wiping the tears off of his face with the back of his sleeve, Hoss went back to doing what he had been doing, which was relieving Chubb of his saddle.\u00a0\u00a0 He\u2019d just undone the first of the buckles when he a rider approaching.\u00a0 Taking his rifle from the holster that held it, Hoss turned and \u2013 keeping it casually at his side \u2013 awaited whoever was coming.<\/p>\n

A minute later he returned the gun to its holster and went to meet Roy Coffee.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, there, Sheriff Roy!\u201d he called jovially.<\/p>\n

A closer sight of the lawman wiped the smile right off of his face.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d he asked as the lawman dismounted.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you Cartwrights aren\u2019t the dangest <\/em>things to track down!\u201d the sheriff snorted.\u00a0 \u201cI been riding for a near a day trying to find just one <\/em>of you!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry, Sheriff Roy.\u00a0 Pa and Adam are in Eagle Station.\u00a0 I\u2019ve been….\u00a0 I\u2019ve been doing some trackin\u2019.\u201d\u00a0 He hesitated to mention just \u2018what<\/em>\u2019 it was he was tracking.\u00a0 Roy didn\u2019t need to know Little Joe had done got a mad on and run away.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s up?\u201d<\/p>\n

The lawman reached into his pocket and pulled out a sheet of paper.\u00a0 As he unfolded it, Hoss realized it was a wanted poster.\u00a0 The lawman held it out to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnyone you recognize?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss frowned as he took it and then looked down.\u00a0 He stared at the meaningless face some artist had sketched and then quickly read through the description.\u00a0 When he looked back up, it was with puzzlement.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u00a0 Should I?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTake another look at the man.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss scratched his head and did as asked.\u00a0 The drawing of the outlaw was one of those that must have been based on witness descriptions.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t look like whoever had drawed it had seen the man since it was kind of cartoony.\u00a0 The outlaw had a mustache and side whiskers and his hair looked kind of medium in tone, but then sometimes that just had to do with printing the posters.<\/p>\n

There was <\/em>something about the eyes.<\/p>\n

He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNope.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sheriff Roy shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cWell now, that sure makes me feel a sight better since you and yours done lived with the man for night onto two months!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019 crisp blue eyes narrowed.\u00a0 He looked again.<\/p>\n

It was Del.<\/p>\n

He went on then to reread the description of the outlaw \u2013 \u2018dangerous, wanted for extortion, bank robbery, and possible….\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

Murder.<\/p>\n

He had to sit down.<\/p>\n

As the big man stumbled over to a felled tree, the sheriff asked, \u201cHoss?\u00a0 What\u2019s wrong?\u00a0 What ain\u2019t you told me?\u201d\u00a0 Sheriff Roy followed him and stood by him as he dropped heavily onto the tree\u2019s rough surface.\u00a0 \u201cHoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

It took a second.\u00a0 He was so plumb wore out with travel and worry already, that thinking what he had done \u2013 sending Little Joe off into the hands of a man who had a $6000 price on his head \u2013 had the power to leech all the strength out of him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just hope I ain\u2019t killed him,\u201d he managed at last.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho?\u00a0 DeLoyd Beaumont?\u00a0 Hoss, you better tell me straight \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u00a0 Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The lawman stared at him for a full ten heartbeats.\u00a0 His voice had softened when he spoke.\u00a0 \u201cYou want to explain that to me, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss fought back tears the whole time and he knew the sheriff heard them choke in his voice, but he didn\u2019t care.\u00a0 Hoss explained the whole thing to Roy Coffee.\u00a0 He told him about the cattle drive that went wrong, the lies Hoyle told \u2013 for he knew now they had <\/em>been lies \u2013 about Adam and Little Joe\u2019s fight, about him…him not backing <\/em>Joe, and his baby brother\u2019s flight from home in the middle of the night.<\/p>\n

Sheriff Roy\u2019s hand came down on his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cSon, it ain\u2019t your fault.\u00a0 First of all, those two are experts.\u00a0 I wired the last town they were seen in and there\u2019s a poster for Hoyle too.\u00a0 Seems the law thinks that boy\u2019s at least eighteen, but he passes for less.\u00a0 They\u2019ve fooled a lot of people.\u201d\u00a0 His father\u2019s longtime friend paused, as if what he had to say was going to be hard to hear.\u00a0 \u201cAnd as to that there fight between Adam and Little Joe and what you did or did not do, it was your little brother who chose to take off.\u00a0 You know, Hoss, I think I worry for that boy as much as your Pa does.\u00a0 There\u2019s somethin\u2019 to say about thinkin\u2019 with your heart, but not when it comes before your head!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Hoss sniffed.\u00a0 He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cThanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, you say your Pa and Adam is in Eagle Station?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey might be on their way to Genoa by now,\u201d he said as he stood up.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t be sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sheriff\u2019s gaze went to Chubb.\u00a0 \u201cHow long afore that horse of yours is rested?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss knew he should give the animal a good half hour, but he had a deep-down twist-of-the-gut just-can\u2019t-do-it feeling that that half hour might mean the difference between life and death for his baby brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s ready now.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man eyed him and his mount.\u00a0 The look the sheriff gave him said he knew neither of them was ready.\u00a0 But it also said he understood.<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay, son.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go find your Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It was close to sundown, which meant it was close to the time the new Genoa City bank would shut down for the day.\u00a0 The sky overhead was filled with clouds and there was a chill in the air that spoke of rain.\u00a0 Joe was standing in the alley beside the hotel, which was across the street from the bank, surrounded by seven men including DeLoyd Beaumont \u2013 he just couldn\u2019t <\/em>think of him as \u2018Del\u2019 anymore \u2013 \u00a0Hoyle, and Weston McCloud.\u00a0 The other four, from what he understood, were hired guns.\u00a0 McCloud had decided they would enter the bank one half hour before the business day ended.\u00a0 They\u2019d pretend to conduct legitimate business using him and his pa\u2019s bank draft right up to the time when the \u2018open-closed\u2019 sign was turned and then, if Weston didn\u2019t have what he wanted, they\u2019d kill everybody who was still in the bank, blow the safe, and light out of town.\u00a0\u00a0 Joe didn\u2019t know if they meant to kill him, but if they murdered everybody else in the bank he\u2019d just as soon they did.<\/p>\n

He wouldn\u2019t be able to live with himself if his stupidity caused other people to die.<\/p>\n

A young couple had just headed in.\u00a0 The pretty lady had long shining black hair that fell in a wave to the shoulders of her red dress.\u00a0 She hung on the arm of a handsome man in a suit who kissed her and touched her face gently..\u00a0 They obviously cared for each other deeply.\u00a0 Before that there\u2019d been a fat old man with his wife and a passel of giggling kids walk in.\u00a0 Thank God they\u2019d done their business quickly and left.\u00a0 At the end of the day there was no knowing who<\/em> would be in the bank.\u00a0 Because of that he had to go along with McCloud\u2019s scheme, even if he came out looking like an outlaw in the end.<\/p>\n

\u201cReady?\u201d DeLoyd asked.<\/p>\n

The man in the suit turned to him.\u00a0 \u201cYou remember, boy,\u201d McCloud said, \u201cit\u2019s all riding on your <\/em>shoulders \u2013 the safety and lives of all those people in that bank are on you. \u00a0You cooperate and do your part and they won\u2019t be hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s jaw was tight.\u00a0 \u201cAnd what happens afterward?\u201d he countered.\u00a0 \u201cThose people are going to have seen you.\u00a0 You want me to believe you\u2019re just going to let all of them go?\u201d\u00a0 It plagued him, that doubt.\u00a0 He was willing to do what he had to do to keep them all safe, but as his pa always said, \u2018There\u2019s no honor among thieves\u2019.\u00a0 \u201cHow do I know you\u2019re not just going to kill everyone anyway?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDefiant to the end!\u201d McCloud snarled, jabbing him in the ribs, bringing an instant shooting pain that took his breath away.\u00a0 The man had beaten him the night before, keeping each and every blow between his shoulders and hips.\u00a0 His ribs had taken the brunt of the attack.\u00a0 He thought one of them was cracked, but there was no way to be sure.\u00a0 As a tear escaped his eye and ran down his cheek, the McCloud leaned in.\u00a0 \u201cYou won\u2019t know.\u00a0 So its up to you, I guess, if you want to risk being responsible for the deaths of every<\/em> man, woman, and child in that bank at closing time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust shut up, Joe, and do what you\u2019re told,\u201d a low voice warned.\u00a0 Hoyle was right behind him.\u00a0 \u201cAnd maybe you\u2019ll come out of this alive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat would you care?\u201d he snapped as he whirled about.\u00a0 Just before hands gripped him and turned him back, he managed to lock eyes with the young man he had thought of as a friend.<\/p>\n

Hoyle was scared.<\/p>\n

Real<\/em> scared.<\/p>\n

It was Weston who had hold of him.\u00a0 Turning to DeLoyd, he warned, \u201cYou keep that little brother of yours under control or I\u2019ll \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOr you\u2019ll what?\u201d<\/em> the blond man countered quickly.\u00a0 \u201cYou touch a hair on my little brother\u2019s head and I will personally see to it, Mister McCloud, that you aren\u2019t around to spend that money you\u2019re so all-fired sure you have to have!\u201d<\/p>\n

Like Pa said.\u00a0 No honor among thieves.<\/p>\n

The two men stared each other down for several heartbeats and then the man in the suit growled.\u00a0 \u201cTime to go.\u201d\u00a0 Returning his gaze to Joe, McCloud shook him and forced him to meet his stare one last time.\u00a0 \u201cRemember, boy.\u00a0 This is the first time your pa has sent you with a bank draft.\u00a0 DeLoyd and his brother here are ranch hands come along to guard you and the money on the way home.\u00a0 If they ask, you tell them you\u2019re sixteen.\u201d\u00a0 McCloud made a face as he looked him up and down.\u00a0 \u201cToo bad you\u2019re so puny.\u00a0 That\u2019s gonna be a stretch.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe wanted to respond to the insult, but he didn\u2019t.\u00a0 It was the truth after all.\u00a0 He was a skinny little kid who was way in over his head, who had gotten too big for his britches and thought he was a man.\u00a0 A skinny little kid who had let himself be fooled and was looking now at either ending up dead or being branded as a criminal.\u00a0 And worse than that, his being foolish might get a lot of innocent people killed.<\/p>\n

Right now he\u2019d give anything to go back to being Hoss\u2019 \u2018punkin\u2019<\/em> and Adam\u2019s \u2018little buddy\u2019<\/em> and Pa…oh Pa!…<\/p>\n

Pa\u2019s baby boy.<\/p>\n

Weston\u2019s hand shoved him forward into the street.\u00a0 As they entered the waning daylight the town clock struck quarter after four.<\/p>\n

Forty-five minutes.<\/p>\n

He had forty-five minutes left.<\/p>\n

Only God knew if he would live to see forty-six.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam Cartwright waited outside of the hotel in Eagle Station for his father to emerge.\u00a0 Pa was settling up his hotel bill before they headed south.\u00a0 The two of them intended to ride as far as they could tonight, until the dark overtook them.\u00a0 That should put them in Genoa by sundown the next day.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t a long or a hard ride, but distance was distance and there were places where the road gave way to little more than a footpath.\u00a0 Shifting anxiously, the man in black cast his gaze heavenward.\u00a0 The sky was heavy with pendulous clouds threatening rain.\u00a0 If that happened, then the going would be much slower.\u00a0 He begrudged the time it would take them to get to Genoa, but in all honesty he had no idea where else to go.\u00a0 Unless Hoss had picked up a trail they might as well be blind and deaf and dumb.\u00a0 There was no knowing what direction Del would have taken, if not south.\u00a0 That heavenward gaze was meant for more than just judging the weather.\u00a0 While his eyes were aimed upward, Adam also pleaded with God.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe\u2019s just a kid, Lord.\u00a0 You can\u2019t take him now.\u00a0 Little brother\u2019s got too much life in him.\u201d\u00a0 He chuckled softly.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019ll take him at least ninety years to use all of the energy you gave him up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Returning his gaze to the earth, Adam watched the people of Eagle Station as they went about their daily routine, shutting the town down for the night.\u00a0 The bank and the mercantiles were going dark, while the saloons and other dens of possible iniquity were turning up their lamps.\u00a0 It was a quarter until five and soon the town would fill with working men seeking to blow off a little steam.\u00a0 And a few pickpockets looking to make a living.\u00a0 There\u2019d be \u2018working\u2019 women as well, out strolling the boardwalks, looking for an easy mark.\u00a0 The soiled doves, as they were known, would be hoping against hope to land a mine owner or timber baron.\u00a0 Most likely, they\u2019d end up with a ranch hand or miner instead who had more desire than money in his pocket.\u00a0 Such were the ways of a town.\u00a0 He\u2019d grown used to it during his time in Boston.<\/p>\n

It would all be new to Little Joe.<\/p>\n

Adam glanced anxiously at the hotel door.\u00a0 His father had yet to make an appearance.\u00a0 Every minute they lingered ate away at him.\u00a0 If Joe had gone with Del and Hoyle willingly it was one thing.\u00a0 But if his brother had been forced and he chose to try escape, that would leave him at the mercy of strangers in a town large enough not to care about one lost and frightened boy.\u00a0 There were white slavers and crimpers and just plain evil men in the city whose entire thought was bent on finding and devouring attractive young men like Joe.\u00a0 He had to find his brother.\u00a0 He had to get to Joe before anything….<\/p>\n

Before anything, well, happened.<\/em><\/p>\n

Adam ran a hand over his scruffy chin.\u00a0 His young brother\u2019s life could very well hang on the mistake he had made of trusting Hoyle over Joe.\u00a0 If someone took advantage of Joe \u2013 if someone used<\/em> him in the wrong way \u2013 his brother might never be the same.\u00a0 And it would be his<\/em> fault.\u00a0 He\u2019d pushed him too hard, expected too much, and in the end failed him by accusing him of something he didn\u2019t do.<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s eyes went skyward again.<\/p>\n

\u201cGive me another chance, God.\u00a0 Okay?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam?\u201d<\/p>\n

With a sigh of relief he turned toward his father who was just stepping down off the porch.\u00a0 \u201cDid you get everything done, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes. \u201c\u00a0 Ben looked at the sky and scowled.\u00a0 \u201cI hate to take the time, but we need to go to the wire office and send a telegram to Roy.\u00a0 I want him to know what\u2019s going on.\u201d\u00a0 His father paused.\u00a0 \u201cJust in case.\u201d<\/p>\n

Three words.\u00a0 And they almost undid him.<\/p>\n

His father stepped close.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll find Joseph, Adam, and he\u2019ll be all right.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope you\u2019re right, Pa,\u201d he said, denying the current wave of tears he\u2019d been fighting.\u00a0 \u201cWhen I think of Joe out there, broken-hearted and confused, crushed<\/em> really by the fact that the two men he trusted are out to do him harm, it makes me…\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBoil?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam snorted.\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 And cry.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father smiled \u2013 a sad understanding smile.\u00a0 \u201cWelcome to the world of parenthood.\u201d<\/p>\n

The man in black pursed his lips.\u00a0 \u201cI can take out a wolf, Pa, deal with a stampede of cattle, face down angry miners and defiant lumber jacks, and even stare into the eyes of Paiutes, but I\u2019m not sure I\u2019ve got the guts to be a pa.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know how you\u2019ve kept yourself sane all these years.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man\u2019s eyes went to the sky.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not alone.\u201d\u00a0 Those black orbs rested next on him.\u00a0 \u201cAnd neither is Joseph.\u00a0 God will keep him until we find him.\u201d<\/p>\n

He nodded, though he was less certain than his father that\u2019s God\u2019s ways were always man\u2019s <\/em>ways.\u00a0 \u201cWe should get going if we want to cover any ground tonight. The sun will be down soon and I don\u2019t like the look of the sky.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re right,\u201d Pa agreed.\u00a0 With a nod he indicated the opposite side of the street.\u00a0 \u201cThe telegraph office is over there.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

They\u2019d reached the city of Mound House.<\/p>\n

Hoss was standing outside the telegraph office, waiting on Sheriff Coffee.\u00a0 The lawman had thought it wise to send a message on to both Eagle Station and Genoa telling Pa about Del and Hoyle and who\u00a0 they really were.\u00a0 Since Pa was dealing with business, it was likely he\u2019d stop in and see if anyone had wired him about anything.\u00a0 He sure wished he could be with Pa when he read that telegram.\u00a0 At least he knew Adam would be there.\u00a0 It was gonna be hard.\u00a0 Little Joe running away would hurt their pa enough.\u00a0 Knowing Pa. he\u2019d feel like he\u2019d failed somehow.\u00a0 But knowing that the men Little Joe done took off with were wanted by the law was gonna make him feel even that much worse.<\/p>\n

The big man whistled low.\u00a0 Six thousand <\/em>dollars reward.\u00a0 And that was just for Del.\u00a0 Hoyle had a price on his head too, though it was a mite lower.\u00a0 Hoss thought of the boy and how much he looked like Little Joe.\u00a0 He wondered what he\u2019d do if his brother turned to a life of crime.\u00a0 Loving Little Joe wouldn\u2019t stop just because his brother chose the wrong path.\u00a0 He thought Del loved Hoyle.\u00a0 At least, watching them, it had seemed that way.<\/p>\n

But if you loved someone, you protected them \u2013 you didn\u2019t put them in harm\u2019s way.<\/p>\n

Did you?<\/p>\n

Hoss started out of his reverie as Roy Coffee appeared in the telegraph office doorway.\u00a0 The older man was holding a piece of paper.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou get a message too, Sheriff?\u201d Hoss asked as the older man stepped off the porch.<\/p>\n

The lawman was concentrating on what he was reading.\u00a0 It took a second before he looked up and at him.\u00a0 \u201cThis here\u2019s from Indian Hills.\u00a0 Someone there thinks they saw DeLoyd Beaumont at the livery exchanging horses yesterday mid-afternoon.\u00a0 Said there was two<\/em> boys with him as well as some other men.\u201d The lawman folded the message and tucked it in his pocket.\u00a0 \u201cIf that\u2019s the case, then they\u2019re headed for Genoa all right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss was shaking his head.\u00a0 \u201cWhat would those men want Little Joe for?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I had to guess?\u201d\u00a0 Sheriff Roy held his gaze.\u00a0 His voice was soft but firm.\u00a0 \u201cAs a hostage.\u00a0 The bank manager there, name of Lemuel Douglas, knows your Pa.\u00a0 He\u2019d think mighty hard about hesitatin\u2019 to open that vault of his if someone was holdin\u2019 a gun to Little Joe\u2019s head.\u201d<\/p>\n

He could see it. \u00a0Little Joe, in a criminal\u2019s hands, the barrel of a pistol pressed into those golden brown curls.<\/p>\n

It made him sick.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou all right, son?\u201d the lawman asked.<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 He opened his arms wide.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Sheriff Roy, I ain\u2019t right.\u00a0 And I ain\u2019t gonna be<\/em> right until I got Little Joe back and right in these here hands.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe sooner we get goin\u2019, the sooner that\u2019s like to be,\u201d the older man replied.<\/p>\n

That was what he was thinking.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, then, what are we waitin\u2019 for?\u00a0 Lets get to Genoa.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe fought to master his fear.\u00a0 He glanced at the clock and noted it was four-thirty-three.\u00a0 They\u2019d entered the new Genoa bank and asked to see the manager.\u00a0\u00a0 He\u2019d told the clerk that met them his name and said his pa had sent him to withdraw enough money from the bank to pay the men for the upcoming winter cattle drive.\u00a0 McCloud and DeLoyd had settled on seven thousand dollars, thinking that was reasonable and wouldn\u2019t seem like too much.\u00a0 He knew they were right.\u00a0 Pa usually kept somewhere between five and ten thousand in the safe this time of year to cover year-end expenses and then there was the money to deal with Hawks as well.<\/p>\n

As he waited, Joe\u2019s gaze roamed around the room, noting the people who occupied the bank.\u00a0 The pretty dark-haired lady and her husband or beau were still there, sitting on chairs to the side, osculating.\u00a0 There was an older man \u2013 looked to be about seventy \u2013 who had a little boy with him.\u00a0 Probably a grandchild.\u00a0 There were also a couple of older ladies.\u00a0 They were dressed to the nines, so they were probably well-off, and were standing by the counter arguing about how much money to withdraw from their savings.\u00a0 Joe swallowed hard as his eyes went from the banks\u2019 patrons to the men watching them.\u00a0 Four gunslingers had come in with them.\u00a0 One was pretending to make out a deposit slip.\u00a0 Another was sitting in a chair by the kissing couple, reading the paper.\u00a0 The last two were standing by the door, talking and looking for all the world like they were just passing the time of day.\u00a0 He knew better.\u00a0 He knew each and every one of them had a gun and he wasn\u2019t gonna hesitate to use it if something went wrong.<\/p>\n

And then there was Weston McCloud.\u00a0 He was watching too from across the room.<\/p>\n

Joe sucked in air.\u00a0 He shivered as he let it out slow through his nostrils. \u00a0\u00a0Nothing could go wrong.\u00a0 \u00a0Even if that bank manager thought he was one of them.<\/p>\n

Nothing<\/em> could go wrong.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph Cartwright?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe looked up.\u00a0 A man about his father\u2019s age, with blond hair going white and a long kind face, was approaching him.\u00a0 He straightened up and took a step toward him.\u00a0 \u201cYes, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

The man studied him a moment with his pale green eyes. \u00a0\u201cYes, I can see it.\u00a0 In the eyes and the set of the jaw.\u201d\u00a0 The bank manager smiled.\u00a0 \u201cYou favor your mother, Marie.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe blinked.\u00a0 \u201cDid you know my mama, sir?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI met her a few times.\u00a0 Lovely woman. \u00a0Such a shame about the accident.\u201d\u00a0 The man held out his hand.\u00a0 \u201cLemuel Douglas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe took it.\u00a0 \u201cPleased to meet you, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

The bank manager\u2019s face formed a frown as he continued to look at him.\u00a0 \u201cHow<\/em> old are you, Joseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSixteen,\u201d he answered without hesitation, telling the lie he had been told to tell.<\/p>\n

Lemuel stared at him a moment longer.\u00a0 \u201cI remember your mother was quite petite.\u00a0\u00a0 If you don\u2019t mind my saying so, Joseph, you are a very young<\/em> looking sixteen.\u201d<\/p>\n

He forced a laugh. \u201cThat\u2019s what everyone says.\u00a0 And I just<\/em> turned sixteen, sir.\u00a0 That\u2019s why Pa let me come.\u00a0 He said I was old enough now to fetch the payroll money on my own.\u201d<\/p>\n

The manager looked behind him.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t see Adam or Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re with Pa in Eagle Station,\u201d he answered quickly.\u00a0 \u201cPa sent a couple of trusted hands with me instead.\u201d\u00a0 He indicated DeLoyd and Hoyle with a nod.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re like family.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man was looking at them.\u00a0 It seemed, from the expression on his face, that he wasn\u2019t entirely pleased with what he saw. \u00a0\u201cI assume you have the bank draft from your father?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe nodded.\u00a0 He reached into his pocket and drew it out.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeven thousand?\u00a0 That\u2019s a lot of cash to carry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just give it to me, <\/em>Joe pleaded silently.\u00a0 Its just money. Give it to me. \u00a0I don\u2019t want you or anyone else to get hurt!<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got a big herd this year, sir.\u00a0 Pa\u2019s hired more men than usual.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI see.\u201d\u00a0 The bank manager\u2019s pale eyes had not left Del and Hoyle.\u00a0 \u201cWhy don\u2019t you step into my office, Joseph?\u00a0 I need to check the signature on this draft against the one we have on file.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t you….\u201d\u00a0 Joe swallowed hard. \u201cDon\u2019t you trust me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u201d Lemuel said with an easy smile.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s policy.\u00a0 Even with regulars.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe wanted to glance at Del or McCloud to get permission, but he knew that would make Mister Douglas suspicious. \u00a0Steeling himself, he nodded and then followed the man into his office.<\/p>\n

Once inside Lemuel Douglas sat at his desk.\u00a0 He took a key and opened the top drawer and drew out a book.\u00a0 While he did, Joe snuck a look behind.\u00a0 DeLoyd and McCloud were talking \u2013 and watching him closely.<\/p>\n

The bank manager looked up.\u00a0 He held out his hand.<\/p>\n

Joe surrendered the falsified bank draft and then stepped back.<\/p>\n

\u201cSit down, Joseph,\u201d\u00a0 Lemuel said.\u00a0 \u201cThis will take a minute.\u201d<\/p>\n

He stifled a sigh as he dropped into the chair.\u00a0 Somehow that seemed to be all<\/em> he was doing today.<\/p>\n

Lemuel Douglas ran his hand along the index in the ledger.\u00a0 As he did, he said quietly, \u201cJoe, I can see you are under duress.\u00a0 Those men are not your father\u2019s workers are they?\u201d<\/p>\n

Every muscle in his body went rigid.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust nod if I am right.\u201d<\/p>\n

It terrified him to do it, but he did.\u00a0 Joe nodded.<\/p>\n

The bank manager lifted a magnifier to his eye.\u00a0 He took time comparing the two signatures.
\n\u201cHave they threatened to harm you and the people in the bank if you don\u2019t comply?\u201d<\/p>\n

Again, Joe nodded.<\/p>\n

Lemuel removed the magnifier and returned it to its case.\u00a0 Then he made a show of handing him the bank draft back.\u00a0 \u201cI am going to pretend to open the vault, but before I do, I am going to trip the alarm.\u00a0 We have a modern bank.\u00a0 It is connected to the sheriff\u2019s office.\u00a0 The law will be here in a few minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n

He held out his hand as if to shake Joe\u2019s.<\/p>\n

Rising, Joe took it. \u201cBut you can\u2019t do that, sir!\u201d \u00a0His whisper was quiet and fierce.\u00a0 \u201cThey told me they\u2019ll kill everyone in the bank!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAn outlaw\u2019s threat.\u00a0 They prey on fear.\u201d\u00a0 The older man held his gaze.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph, it is my sworn duty to protect the funds entrusted to my care.\u00a0 Do you understand?\u201d<\/p>\n

He nodded.\u00a0 Reluctantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything appears to be in order, Mister Cartwright,\u201d Lemuel said loudly even as Joe noticed him go to the wall and pull a cord.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cCome with me to the vault.\u00a0 It won\u2019t be long.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe followed dutifully.\u00a0 He tried to appear calm even though everything that was in him wanted to scream to the two ladies and the young couple, to the grandpa and the little boy\u00a0 – RUN!<\/em>\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0As they walked to the back of the bank where the vault was located time slowed.\u00a0 He saw the grandpa take the boy\u2019s hand.\u00a0 Saw the man with the woman stand up.\u00a0 He noticed it was raining.\u00a0 It was funny.\u00a0 Mister Douglas\u2019s words had slowed too.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis…way…Joseph.\u00a0 It…won\u2019t…be…long….\u201d<\/p>\n

Time began to race again when he saw Weston McCloud \u2013 who sitting in front of the window \u2013 \u00a0nudge Hoyle.\u00a0 The two of them rose from their chairs and followed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI imagine you have never seen anything like our new safe,\u201d Mister Douglas was saying.\u00a0 \u201cThis is the reason your father moved the bulk of his money here.\u00a0 The old one in the basement is a four tumbler.\u00a0 This new Chubbs\u2019 vault has a six tumbler lock.\u00a0 The combination is known only to me and the manufacturer, so you can reassure your father that his funds are completely secure.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 As they reached the vault and the older man wrapped his fingers around the handle, his father\u2019s friend turned to look at him and smiled. The bank manager was so confident it made Joe confident too \u2013 and hopeful.\u00a0 Maybe it would all come out right.\u00a0 Maybe the law would <\/em>arrive and surprise Weston McCloud and DeLoyd Beaumont and take them and all their men into custody before they could hurt anyone.\u00a0 That was what would happen in one of the dime novels he liked to read.\u00a0 The good guys would win and the bad guys would pay.<\/p>\n

But dime novels were fiction and this was real life.<\/p>\n

As the tumblers began to click Joe heard\u00a0 a man\u2019s sharp intake of breath and a woman\u2019s stifled scream.\u00a0 He turned and saw the grandpa thrust his grandson to the floor and then lay on top of him.\u00a0 The ladies who had been arguing fell silent and backed into a corner with their hands over their mouths as several men with badges stepped into the room, rifles in hand.\u00a0\u00a0 Joe opened his mouth to shout out a warning, but nothing came out.<\/p>\n

Nothing but a short bark of surprise as the bank turned into a battlefield.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

ELEVEN<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam….\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam turned toward the telegraph office.\u00a0 Before that his attention had been on the sky.\u00a0 It was clouding up and growing darker.\u00a0 The wind had picked up and it threatened to blow the hat off his head.\u00a0 Catching it, he held it on as he went to meet his father.\u00a0\u00a0 Seldom had he seen the older man look so pale.\u00a0 He had a telegraph in his hand.<\/p>\n

His hand was shaking.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa?\u201d<\/p>\n

His father drew a breath as he handed him the message.\u00a0 A quick glance brought relief.\u00a0 It was from Roy Coffee.\u00a0 A longer one filled him with dread.<\/p>\n

Dear God, he\u2019d been right all along.<\/p>\n

The short message contained a warning about DeLoyd and Hoyle Beaumont.\u00a0 Del and his brother had been in with the bank robbers all along.\u00a0 The blond man had taken advantage of Joe\u2019s kidnapping to curry favor with their family and then stolen their most priceless treasure.<\/p>\n

Joe himself.<\/p>\n

The lawman and Hoss were on their way.<\/p>\n

\u201cShould we wait for them, Pa?\u201d he asked as he handed it back.\u00a0 \u201cFor Roy and Hoss?<\/p>\n

The telegram had been sent from Mound City.\u00a0 That meant the pair were three or four hours out from Eagle Station.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we should.\u00a0 I wired back after I read it to let them know we\u2019re here. I can only pray they waited for a reply.\u201d\u00a0 His father sought his gaze and held it.\u00a0 \u201cI told them we would wait for them here. \u00a0\u00a0Both<\/em> of us.\u00a0 Then all of us \u2013 you, me, Hoss and Roy \u2013 will ride to Genoa in search of your brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t know for certain Joe is in<\/em> Genoa, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man scowled.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re there.\u00a0 It\u2019s the only thing that makes sense.\u00a0 From the conversations he would have overheard during his time at the house, Del would know I have funds in the new bank.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut Pa, the Genoa bank was robbed less than two months ago and \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPrecisely.\u00a0\u00a0 The old <\/em>bank not the new one with the greatest amount of cash in it.\u201d\u00a0 His father shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cits a brilliant plan.\u00a0 No one would expect Genoa to be robbed again, at least, not this soon.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was beginning to understand. \u00a0\u201cPa….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEarly on I found Del in the area of your office.\u00a0\u00a0 I didn\u2019t think much of it at the time, but he could have been there to take something.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father was nodding.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThere was a missing draft note.\u00a0 I thought I had simply forgotten that I destroyed it, though I found it odd it had been detached from the back<\/em> of the book.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam felt sick to his stomach.\u00a0 \u201cSo that means Del intends to use that draft and Little Joe \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTo obtain the money.\u00a0 Yes.\u00a0 With that new safe, it would take a lot of trouble to break it. \u00a0It would be far easier to have the manager open it and \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then<\/em> take the cash.\u201d\u00a0 Adam wet his lips.\u00a0 \u201cPa, that means that Joe \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs only useful to them until <\/em>they get what they want.\u201d<\/p>\n

Silence fell.\u00a0 Neither of them had the heart to move on to the next logical step.<\/p>\n

The older man gripped his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cCome on, son.\u00a0 I told Roy and Hoss we would be at the hotel.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam shook his head.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d like to go ahead, Pa. \u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cI know you would, but the answer is \u2018no\u2019.\u00a0 It won\u2019t be long until Roy and your brother are here.\u00a0 You and I can best use that time seeking out the law and advising them as to what we think might be going on so they can wire the sheriff in Genoa.\u201d<\/p>\n

The black-haired man looked longingly down the road.\u00a0\u00a0 Pa was right, of course.\u00a0 Genoa was somewhere around fifteen miles away.\u00a0 In the daylight, at a reasonable pace, it would take maybe half a day to get there.\u00a0 But the day was gone and night was falling fast and try as they might, they would probably make it only a few miles down the road before being forced to stop \u2013 if that.\u00a0 Even as they spoke a gentle rain had begun to fall.\u00a0 If it grew into a storm it would slow them down, maybe even keep them in Eagle Station for another day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know, Pa,\u201d he said softly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve got this feeling….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have it too, son,\u201d his father agreed as he gripped the shoulder of his black shirt.\u00a0 \u201cI won\u2019t order you to stay, but I think its best we marshal what forces we can and then head out together.\u00a0 There\u2019s strength in numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded grudgingly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow why don\u2019t we go to the hotel and get something to eat?\u00a0 We\u2019ll both need our strength if we\u2019re going to help your brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou go ahead, Pa.\u00a0 I\u2019ll be there in a minute.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father squeezed his shoulder again.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll be waiting. Don\u2019t be long.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam remained in the middle of the street.\u00a0 He stood there, looking south, as the wind howled and the rain began to pound the dusty road beneath his boots.\u00a0 Everything that was in him was bent toward that road.\u00a0 At the end of it lay his baby brother \u2013 a baby brother who was in the hands of desperate men.\u00a0 When he closed his eyes he could see Little Joe as a baby, with that head of blond curls, toddling and laughing, giggling like a girl when he fell down.\u00a0 Or as a young boy, beaming with pride when he landed his first fish.\u00a0 Or now, as a youth reaching for manhood, sure and certain, strong….<\/p>\n

And so vulnerable.<\/p>\n

When he opened them all he could see was that empty road and his brother\u2019s bleak future.\u00a0 Joe had been lured away from his family, lied to and probably abused, and now was being forced to participate in a bank robbery that could leave him branded as a criminal or….<\/p>\n

Dead.<\/p>\n

Adam turned his face to the sky and willed the rain to wash away the worry.<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t work.\u00a0 He knew it wouldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

But it did hide his tears.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As gunfire erupted, sending bullets flying both into and out of the bank, time slowed once again.\u00a0 Joe heard Hoyle say something.\u00a0 He saw Mister Douglas lower his head as his hand came up.\u00a0 The bank manager looked at him, puzzled, even as his white shirt turned red with his blood.\u00a0 As Mister Douglas fell Joe turned to find Hoyle standing behind him.\u00a0 He was holding a smoking gun.\u00a0 Hoyle looked scared.\u00a0 He shouted something. The ringing in his head wouldn\u2019t let him hear it.\u00a0 The next thing he knew the smoking gun was in his hand and Del was advancing toward both of them, an angry look on his face.\u00a0 The gunmen McCloud had hired were crouching behind counters and chairs, firing at the advancing lawman.\u00a0 Two of them were already wounded, but so were the lawman.\u00a0 He could see several men on the ground just outside the bank.\u00a0 The room was full of acrid choking smoke.\u00a0 It made it had to see and harder to breathe.\u00a0 He could hear the older women coughing.\u00a0 They had managed to make it inside the teller\u2019s cage.\u00a0 The young couple who had been sitting in the chairs were on the floor.\u00a0 \u00a0The man had been taken a bullet in his upper leg and was growing still and pale.\u00a0 The woman was sobbing.\u00a0 The grandpa had his head up, looking around, shouting at the boy who lay under him to \u2018Keep down!<\/em>\u2019\u00a0 The child was sobbing just like the lady; big heart-rending sobs that tore at Joe\u2019s heart even as time started again and he began to wonder what was going to happen to him.<\/p>\n

Turning back toward Hoyle he saw two things \u2013 Hoyle and Del were gone and Weston McCloud was on top of him.<\/p>\n

Fingers locked with brutal strength in the hair at the back of his head and a hand grabbed his arm and shook the gun out of it.\u00a0 Before he could even try to retrieve it, McCloud dragged him toward the back of the bank.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re coming with me, Cartwright,\u201d the man in the suit snarled.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re my ticket out of here.\u201d<\/p>\n

He lost something in that moment.\u00a0 Later, his pa would tell him it was innocence.\u00a0 Joe realized at that moment that there was true evil in the world.\u00a0 None of it mattered to Weston McCloud, not the old women, the child and his grandpa, or the young couple.\u00a0 Nothing mattered but his own skin and he would do anything and everything he had to do to keep it intact including kidnapping him and using him to blackmail his father.<\/p>\n

He couldn\u2019t let that happen.<\/p>\n

Joe continued to mock struggle \u2018cause he knew McCloud would expect it.\u00a0 He was curious where the man in the suit was taking him.\u00a0 Weston used the gun smoke as a screen, darting in and out of the thick parts as he propelled him toward the far back corner of the bank.\u00a0 When they got there McCloud veered right and began to drag him down a stone staircase.<\/p>\n

As they practically fell down it, Joe asked, \u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d<\/p>\n

McCloud let loose of his hair.\u00a0 Ten seconds later the barrel of a pistol pressed into his sweat-soaked curls.\u00a0 \u201cGetting the Hell out of here,\u201d he growled.<\/p>\n

\u201cThrough the basement?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe felt the metal top of the gun strike his skull.\u00a0 \u201cYou just shut up and do as you\u2019re told, Cartwright!\u00a0 Do you think I didn\u2019t check this place out thoroughly before making a robbery attempt?\u00a0 There\u2019s a coal chute in the basement that will provide an escape route.\u00a0 The law isn\u2019t going to think of it \u2013 at least not at first.\u201d<\/p>\n

They were standing on the cellar floor now.\u00a0 Even as he thought how silly it was to notice, Joe became aware that it was made of bricks laid down in a hounds-tooth pattern.\u00a0 The room they were standing in had a great big old vault at the back of it.<\/p>\n

The foot thick door was open.<\/p>\n

McCloud had stopped.\u00a0 He hesitated, listening.\u00a0 Above them the pop of gunfire was slowing.\u00a0 Someone was winning the fight \u2013 unfortunately Joe had no way of knowing who<\/em>.<\/p>\n

And no time.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome on, kid!\u201d the man in the suit barked.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s green eyes went from the coal chute to the open vault.\u00a0 It was now or never.<\/p>\n

Now, and he might just get away.\u00a0 Never, and his Pa would find his rotting corpse across the next territorial border.<\/p>\n

Sucking in air, Joe ducked away from the pistol.\u00a0 Dropping his head, he sunk his teeth into the McCloud\u2019s other hand.\u00a0 As his captor cried out in shock and released his hold on him, Joe made a beeline for the vault.<\/p>\n

\u201cDamn nuisance kid!\u201d McCloud shouted.\u00a0 Joe heard a hammer being cocked.<\/p>\n

There was only one thing to do once he reached the vault.\u00a0 It was \u2018past desperate\u2019 as that Shakespeare fellow Adam liked so much was wont to say.\u00a0 Stepping inside, Joe wrapped his fingers around the harp-shaped metal piece on the back of the vault door and pulled for all he was worth.<\/p>\n

The door slammed and he was locked inside.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hoss and Sheriff Roy arrived in Eagle Station as the sun set.\u00a0 They were both soaked to the skin, with water dripping off their slickers and hats.\u00a0 The big man stomped hard and shook like a dog and then followed Roy Coffee into the front hall of the fancy hotel.\u00a0 They\u2019d seen his Pa and Adam sitting in the dining room.\u00a0 When his pa saw them, the older man sprang to his feet and came to join them.<\/p>\n

\u201cRoy,\u201d Pa said, shaking the lawman\u2019s hand.\u00a0 With a nod, he added, \u201cSon.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was out of his mouth before he could stop it.\u00a0 \u201cAny sign of Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

His father glanced back at Adam.\u00a0 \u201cYour brother has a theory.\u00a0 I want you both to hear it.\u00a0 Then we need to get a couple of hours of shut-eye, if we can, before heading to Genoa.\u00a0 I\u2019d hoped to start tonight, but with this rain….\u201d<\/p>\n

If God was looking out for all of them like his pa always said, it was sure a wonder why a storm had to come up at just this time.<\/p>\n

\u2018God\u2019s ways are mysterious, son<\/em>,\u2019 Pa also liked to say.<\/p>\n

Usually Hoss liked mysteries, but not today \u2013 not with his little brother\u2019s life on the line.<\/p>\n

As they went to the table and sat down, Adam did that \u2018thing\u2019 he did.\u00a0 He drew in a breath and held it as he hunched forward over the table, as if he was leaning into the problem straight away just to prove he weren\u2019t gonna run from it.\u00a0 Finally his brother\u2019s lips pursed and then he let out a low, slow breath.<\/p>\n

\u201cConsidering what we now know about Del and Hoyle Beaumont, we can assume Del was in that posse looking for the bank robbers \u2013 with Hoyle following behind \u2013 in order to know what law knew and then inform the other members of their gang. \u00a0When they came upon Joe, Del improvised and decided he could use the situation to his benefit. \u00a0When we offered to take him and his brother in, it gave them a place to lay low and also the opportunity to learn our routines and other valuable information.\u00a0 Obviously, from the time he spent with us, Del would know that Pa had money in Genoa right now and that it was in the new bank.\u00a0 I think,\u201d Adam glanced at their father, \u201cI think Hoyle befriended Joe because all along he and Del intended to take Joe with them either as a hostage, or to use him to gain the trust of Lemuel Douglas, the bank\u2019s manager.\u00a0\u00a0 Joe\u2019s…anger with me gave them a way to do that, to convince him to leave on his own rather than having to force him.\u00a0 I imagine, knowing how smart little brother is, that it didn\u2019t take him long to see through their ruse.\u201d\u00a0 The black-haired man leaned back in his chair.\u00a0 \u201cAnd that\u2019s what has me the most concerned.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their father exchanged a look with each one of them, but it was Roy Coffee who said, \u201cMakes sense so far.\u00a0 Go on, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019d robbed the old bank a few months back, so Del probably figured no one would expect them to hit the new one so quickly.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure they\u2019d canvassed it and figured out all the angles by the time they came into our lives, but the opportunity to make it happen arose after the incident with Joe.\u00a0 \u00a0Once they got him on their side they could use him to approach the manager, hoping that Lemuel would open the safe and spare them blowing it.\u00a0 It would be nothing to have one of Ben Cartwright\u2019s sons come to Genoa with a bank draft.\u201d\u00a0 Adam looked at Roy as the sheriff nodded.\u00a0 \u201cPa, had one stolen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss didn\u2019t understand.\u00a0 \u201cBut why take Joe?\u00a0 Why not<\/em> blow the safe just like they did the first time?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe new bank has a six tumbler lock.\u00a0 When I went to Genoa a while back, Lemuel Douglas showed it to me.\u00a0 That\u2019s the main reason I moved so much cash there.\u00a0 The new Chubbs safe is almost impossible to open without a combination,\u201d their father answered quietly.<\/p>\n

His older brother agreed.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe would be their ticket into the vault and then out of town \u2013 or out of the territory.\u00a0 If the robbery went off without a hitch, the outlaws could be out of town before anyone was the wiser.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pa\u2019s eyes rolled over to him.\u00a0 \u201cThen, Hoss, your brother would become a hostage. \u00a0Joseph\u2019s presence among the thieves would practically guarantee no one would try to stop them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The big man frowned.\u00a0 When he spoke, his voice was hopeful.\u00a0 \u201cSounds like they need Little Joe alive then, no matter what?\u201d<\/p>\n

The lawman was shaking his head.\u00a0 \u201cOnly \u2018til they get to the border.\u201d<\/p>\n

Danged if Sheriff Roy didn\u2019t have to go and say it out loud!\u00a0 He knew it as sure as he knew the sun would rise next morning.\u00a0 Saying it out loud made it all too real.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow long\u2019s Joe been gone?\u201d the sheriff asked.<\/p>\n

Hoss watched the wheels turn in Adam\u2019s head as he figured it. \u00a0\u201cTwo full days and part of another one.\u00a0 It would have taken them at least a day and a half to get to Genoa.\u00a0 Possibly longer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, the earliest this here robbery could go down is….\u201d\u00a0 Roy thought a moment.\u00a0 He paled. \u201cTonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

They all looked out the window at the night, at the lack of light, at the pouring, pounding rain and the lightning bolts splitting the sky.<\/p>\n

Sheriff Roy leaned back in his chair and blew out a sigh. \u00a0\u201cBen, you know,\u201d the lawman said softly, \u201cthe soonest we\u2019re gonna see that town is tomorrow mornin\u2019.\u00a0 And not then if this here rain don\u2019t stop.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss watched as his father rose from the table and walked to the window.\u00a0 The older man leaned a hand on the sash and looked out at the muddy street.\u00a0 Their pa had a way about him.\u00a0 Somehow he knew whenever one of them was in trouble.\u00a0 And once he knew, there was no stopping him until he found you and you were safe at home.\u00a0 That tie was tight with him and Adam, but it was ever tighter with Little Joe.\u00a0 That boy might as well have been<\/em> his father\u2019s heart.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s smile, his crazy laugh, his fierce sense of independence and, yeah, even his quick-on-the-trigger<\/em> temper were part and parcel of what kept their pa young.<\/p>\n

Pa\u2019s hair might be turning white, but Joe kept the grass under his feet a springtime shade of green.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been too long, Roy,\u201d Pa sighed. \u201cThe minute this rain stops and the road is dry enough to travel, the boys and I will head out.\u00a0 Its up to you if you come with us or not.\u00a0 If,\u201d the older man swallowed hard as he turned back into the room, \u201cif <\/em>there is a robbery happening in Genoa right now and if<\/em> we wait until light, those men could have a ten or twelve hour lead.\u00a0 I simply will not abandon Joseph to such a fate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pa and Roy Coffee had been friends a right long time.\u00a0 They knew each other so well neither one of them had to say a word.\u00a0 The fact that Pa did meant he was talking for himself as much as for the sheriff.<\/p>\n

And for them.<\/p>\n

Sheriff Roy stood.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m with you, Ben.\u00a0 You know that.\u00a0 The minute the road is passable.\u201d<\/p>\n

As his father nodded, Hoss rose and went to him.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t all that long ago he\u2019d been young as Joe and got himself into some mighty tough scrapes \u2013 though, truth to tell, Joe did have him beat by a long mile with how many he stumbled into.\u00a0 An encouraging smile planted firmly on his face, the big man placed a hand on his father\u2019s shoulder and squeezed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll find Little Joe, Pa.\u00a0 I know we will.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father covered his hand with one of his own and nodded.<\/p>\n

A second later Adam was at their side.\u00a0 He placed his hand on their pa\u2019s other shoulder and the three of them stood there, like that, united in flesh and spirit as well as a determination to find the missing member of their family.<\/p>\n

And the rain kept falling.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe stood in the pitch blackness on the other side of the vault door.\u00a0 He took several deep breaths seeking to still his heart, which was hammering in his chest.\u00a0 The sound from beyond the vault was faint, but he thought he could hear McCloud cussing and at least five bullets strike the vault door.\u00a0 He\u2019d escaped from the bank robber just in time.\u00a0 Weston McCloud was not a man who took well to being thwarted and that\u2019s what he had just been \u2013 thwarted \u2013\u00a0 by circumstance, by the law, and now by him.\u00a0 Joe pressed his ear against the cold metal and listened.\u00a0 There were other voices out there but they sounded like something in a dream \u2013 far away, unreachable, nearly impossible to hear.\u00a0 Using his hands Joe felt the back of the two and a half foot wide, nearly foot thick metal door, running his trembling fingers over all of its various gears and locking mechanisms.\u00a0 After a moment he swallowed hard.<\/p>\n

There was no way it was going to open and there was little chance anyone would be able to hear him either.\u00a0 Still he yelled.\u00a0 He yelled and yelled until his throat was sore and his voice sounded like one of those bullfrogs down by the pond and he started coughing.<\/p>\n

Then he gave up.<\/p>\n

Joe coughed again and snorted as he drew in a deep breath of the musty air that filled the vault.\u00a0 Thinking furiously, he dropped to the floor and ran his hands along it.\u00a0 He\u2019d remembered right, it was made of pine.\u00a0 Shifting to the right wall, he pressed his fingers against its cold surface.\u00a0 It <\/em>was made of metal.\u00a0 \u00a0Looking up, Joe imagined what was there.\u00a0 He\u2019d glimpsed the ceiling as he ran in.\u00a0 It was metal too, made in panels and held together by big old rusted, immovable screws.\u00a0 \u00a0As Joe continued to make his way around the vault, the toes of his boots ran into something and he nearly tripped.\u00a0 When he knelt down to feel what it was he discovered heavy castors or wheels, and above the wheels, dozens of drawers with keyhole locks.\u00a0 Lockboxes.\u00a0 That\u2019s what they were.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen Pa take some of his mama\u2019s jewels from a wooden casket at home and put them in a lockbox like that once to keep them safe.<\/p>\n

Joe sucked in a steadying breath. \u00a0He coughed again.<\/p>\n

Pa.<\/p>\n

The curly-headed boy shivered as he deliberately drove the comforting image of his father away.\u00a0 It made him weak.\u00a0 He\u2019d got himself into this pickle, after all, and he\u2019d get himself out of it as well!<\/p>\n

Moving on, Joe continued to run his hands over everything in his path, searching for something that might help him open the door.\u00a0 Common sense told him it wasn\u2019t going to happen.\u00a0 It was<\/em> a bank vault, after all!\u00a0 But he couldn\u2019t just sit still and wait for someone to come and rescue him.\u00a0\u00a0 No one knew he was there.\u00a0 Still, he told himself, stifling another gasp, someone would <\/em>come. \u00a0After all, there\u2019d just been a robbery.\u00a0 They\u2019d check all of the vaults to see what was missing \u2013 even the old one.<\/p>\n

Wouldn\u2019t they?<\/p>\n

Groping with his fingers again, Joe ran into another row of lockboxes and then some empty shelves.\u00a0 And then more empty shelves and more boxes.\u00a0 Only these were open.\u00a0 As he shoved his fingers into them, his heart began to beat faster.<\/p>\n

They were empty.\u00a0 All of them.<\/p>\n

A shiver ran through his slender frame.\u00a0 So that <\/em>was why the vault had been standing open!\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t being used anymore.\u00a0 There were no jewels hidden away safely here, no wads of paper money or bonds.<\/p>\n

The old bank vault in the cellar of the Genoa City Bank contained nothing at this moment but one very young and very<\/em> frightened fourteen year old boy.<\/p>\n

Joe gripped the open lockboxes to steady himself and sucked in another breath and held it.\u00a0 His brothers were usually pretty kind to him, but he remembered one Halloween \u2013 he must have been about ten \u2013 when Adam read him a story that chilled him to the bone.\u00a0 It was by Edgar Allan Poe and had been called, \u2018The Premature Burial\u2019.\u00a0 The story was about am a man who feared being buried alive.\u00a0 Poe\u2019s fellow didn\u2019t dream of being in a bank vault, but the result was the same.\u00a0 You couldn\u2019t live without air and a vault was air tight and \u2013<\/p>\n

Joe felt panic rise within him.\u00a0 He fought it down.\u00a0 Refused to listen to his fear.<\/p>\n

He remembered the talk he and Adam had after they read that story and so he began to draw slow shallow breaths.\u00a0 \u00a0He\u2019d asked his older brother how someone could be buried alive and still tell a tale?\u00a0 Adam said the man in Poe\u2019s story wasn\u2019t really buried alive but, even if he had been, he would have had so much air to last him so much time.\u00a0 In the end his brother cautioned, it would run out quickly and so the man would need to conserve it as best he could \u2013 not move around too much or take big swallows of air so it would last as long as possible.\u00a0 In the end though, big brother said, it was inevitable that anyone buried alive would die.<\/p>\n

Inevitable.<\/p>\n

It was a big word but Joe understood it.\u00a0 It meant expected.\u00a0 Foreseeable.<\/p>\n

Unavoidable.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe let the breath he held out slowly and was careful to draw in as little as he could.\u00a0 Adam had also told him that if he was ever to find himself in that kind of a situation, he should remain calm.\u00a0 Adam was smart, so he was gonna do what he told him.\u00a0 He\u2019d breathe as little as possible and take as little in as he could to conserve the air that was in the vault so he could last longer.\u00a0 So there would be time….<\/p>\n

Time for someone to find him.<\/p>\n

Joe came to the iron gate that, with its turnstile, marked the back of the vault.\u00a0 It was made up of iron bars.\u00a0 His fingers found a little lightless window in it looking onto nothing.\u00a0 Joe held on to that window, \u00a0imagining the world beyond the vault.\u00a0 Imagining his pa and his brothers and maybe even Sheriff Coffee riding into town and coming to the bank.\u00a0 Pa would figure out that he was there somewhere.\u00a0 He\u2019d be sure to look everything over, including this old vault.\u00a0 Yeah, Pa would find him.\u00a0 Pa would find him alive.<\/p>\n

Alive.<\/p>\n

He had<\/em> to stay alive.<\/p>\n

He wanted to live, of course, but even more, he wanted to stay alive for<\/em> his pa and for his brothers.\u00a0 He\u2019d argued with both Adam and Hoss before he ran away. \u00a0They\u2019d be feeling guilty when it was really all his fault.\u00a0 And Pa….\u00a0 Oh God, Pa!\u00a0 \u00a0Pa still struggled every day with his mama\u2019s death and that had been almost ten years before. \u00a0If he was to die….<\/p>\n

Joe let the breath he held come out in a sigh and then drew in a little more air.\u00a0 If he died, Pa would never forgive himself.\u00a0 So he had to live.\u00a0 He had<\/em> to.\u00a0 Joe laughed.\u00a0 Trapped as he was, desperate and without hope, he<\/em> had to rescue his pa.<\/p>\n

Much as he wanted to see his mama, he didn\u2019t want her scolding him when he did because he\u2019d come too soon.<\/p>\n

Resting his forehead against the metal grate, Joe reached up and rubbed his temple.\u00a0 It was hurting.\u00a0 He sighed and then pivoted to look back into the vault.\u00a0\u00a0 His jaw tightened as he considered the predicament he was in and tears entered his eyes as he envisioned his father opening that door he couldn\u2019t see and finding his corpse with broken nails and bloody fingers \u00a0just like in that story by Mister Poe.<\/p>\n

No.\u00a0 No, he decided.<\/p>\n

No. <\/em><\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t going to end that way, not if he had anything to do with it.<\/p>\n

For a second or two Joe\u2019s slender fingers grappled with the darkness, seeking something strong that he could strike the door with.\u00a0\u00a0 When he found it \u2013 a thick metal rod broken away from the impenetrable wall of the vault \u2013 he wrenched it free.\u00a0 Carrying his treasure, Joe walked forward until he banged into the door.\u00a0 He drew a breath and held it and then wielded the metal rod as a club, bringing it down with a resounding clang!<\/p>\n

Hear me<\/em>, he willed.\u00a0 Someone.\u00a0 Hear me!<\/em><\/p>\n

God.\u00a0 Please….<\/p>\n

Someone<\/em> hear me.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The new Genoa City Bank was closed.\u00a0 A black band crossed the door, sealing it off, and a black wreath hung on a peg above it in honor of the bank manager and his deputy who had been killed in the robbery attempt.\u00a0 Hiram Whitaker, the acting sheriff of the town, stared hard at that wreath as he pushed the tan hat he wore back on his head and looked out from the porch of the sheriff\u2019s office at desolate rain-swept town.\u00a0 The inclement weather had prevented him from immediately gathering a posse and heading out in pursuit of the outlaws.\u00a0 Sad to say, it hadn\u2019t stopped the citizens of the town.\u00a0 Once they heard that Lemuel Douglas had been killed, there\u2019d been no reasoning with the dozen or so men who stood in front of his office looking like drowned rats, rifles loaded, screaming for justice and blood.\u00a0 Everyone in town liked Lemuel.\u00a0 He\u2019d been one of Genoa\u2019s founding citizens.\u00a0 But there was something more <\/em>riling these men than that.\u00a0 This was the second time that their town had been violated in just a few months and the second time they\u2019d lost their hard-earned money and, some of them, what was left of their lifesavings.\u00a0 He pitied anyone they caught up with.<\/p>\n

There was sure to be a hanging or two tonight.<\/p>\n

What bothered him the most was the rumors, well, actually the eye-witness testimony from the people held hostage in the bank.\u00a0 Several told the same story.\u00a0 Just before the bank was to close this young kid came in with five or six mean-looking men.\u00a0 The men hung around the bank while the kid went into the manager\u2019s office and talked to him.\u00a0 Hiram shook his head.\u00a0 That must have been about the time the alarm went off in his office.\u00a0 Apparently Lem took the kid to the vault and was preparing to open it, when he and his deputies appeared at the entrance.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen the kid but thought nothing of it.\u00a0 Actually, there\u2019d been two younger outlaws, both with curly hair, but he\u2019d barely caught a glimpse before the gunfire started and the smoke built up and they both disappeared.\u00a0 Jenny Wilkerson, the young lady whose husband was at the Doc\u2019s office now, probably breathing his last, said she saw one of the kids with Lemuel just after the bank manager was shot.\u00a0 He was holding a smoking pistol in his hand.\u00a0 She said she\u2019d heard the kid\u2019s name as he went into the office with Lem, and then again when they came out, so she was sure she\u2019d heard it right and he was the one who had killed Lem.<\/p>\n

Joe Cartwright.<\/p>\n

He knew the name.\u00a0 Joseph Cartwright, son of Benjamin Cartwright, the biggest landholder in all of Nevada.\u00a0 A man of conscience from all he had heard, honest as the day was long.\u00a0 Hiram spit tobacco juice into the street and watched it mingle with the mud.<\/p>\n

Apparently, this time, the apple had <\/em>fallen far from the tree.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d asked around and it seemed this Joe<\/em> Cartwright was the youngest of three brothers.\u00a0 The older ones, Adam and Hoss, had been in town before since their pa kept money in the Genoa bank \u2013 the one that had been robbed.\u00a0 They were both pretty well known and respected.\u00a0 The youngest one, well, it seemed he was a handful, and though no one had heard of him doing anything criminal, he was known for being high-tempered and defiant.<\/p>\n

A regular little pistol,<\/em> from what he could tell.<\/p>\n

Since there\u2019d been two young men with the outlaws who had curly hair, he was hoping the lady in the bank got it wrong.\u00a0 He also hoped that when and if that lynch mob found the men they were hunting, common sense and the fear of God took over.<\/p>\n

Otherwise, Benjamin Cartwright \u2013 timber baron, mine owner, and king of the Ponderosa \u2013 in spite of all that land and the hundreds of thousands of dollars he had, was going to be a lot less rich.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam Cartwright shifted uncomfortably in the saddle.\u00a0 He tipped his black hat back and gazed at the risen moon.\u00a0 The portion of the night they had spent at the hotel had been interminable, and the ride through the hours just past midnight little better.\u00a0 The road was full of chuckholes and unexpected hazards occasioned by the endless driving rain that had fallen earlier.\u00a0 He\u2019d feared that, at any minute, he or Pa or Hoss would go down.\u00a0 So far, each of their mounts had picked their way through and kept them safe.\u00a0 If determination counted for anything in that big book God kept, then the Cartwright\u2019s account was years <\/em>ahead.\u00a0 As dogged as the land and the weather and everything else seemed to be to keep them from finding Little Joe, their combined will and resolve paid them no heed.\u00a0 There was no way of knowing if his theory was right but somehow \u2013 through supernatural means, perhaps \u2013 all of them had come to accept it as fact<\/em>.\u00a0 His father rode to his right and his middle brother to his left.\u00a0 Like the storm that had passed barely an hour before midnight, the three of them were a force of nature \u2013 as sure and steady a thing as the mountains and the tall standing pines they passed.\u00a0 Every nerve and sinew of their beings was aimed toward finding the youngest of their clan and making sure he was safe.\u00a0 Every beat of Adam\u2019s heart pounded out that need.\u00a0 It echoed through his being \u2013 Joe.\u00a0 They had to find Joe .\u00a0 Joe had to be safe.\u00a0 Joe had to be whole.<\/p>\n

Joe had to be alive.<\/em><\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s lips parted.\u00a0 It might as well have been in prayer.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe….\u201d<\/p>\n

His big-hearted and bigger-framed brother turned and met his gaze.\u00a0 That need was there too in Hoss\u2019 crisp blue eyes.\u00a0 And Pa… God, Pa!\u00a0 The older man looked neither to the left or the right.\u00a0 He had no thought of failure or how impossible it was not <\/em>to fail \u2013 his only thought, his ever-present <\/em>thought was to find his youngest son and to make certain all was well.<\/p>\n

To make certain they did not<\/em> fail.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

TWELVE<\/p>\n

Joe sat on the pine floor by the vault door panting shallowly.\u00a0 Sweat soaked his light brown locks, dripping off the ends of the spiraling curls and onto his steel gray shirt, soaking it as well.\u00a0 After what seemed an eternity he had given up banging on the vault door.\u00a0 Dropping to the cold hard floor, he\u2019d curled up as best he could and fallen into a fitful sleep plagued with nightmares of finding himself buried alive in a pine box six feet down.\u00a0 Upon waking he\u2019d taken up the metal bar and started banging again, hoping against hope that someone was in the basement of the bank and they might hear him.\u00a0 He\u2019d kept it up for near another hour, banging and shouting until his throat grew to hoarse to let <\/em>him shout.\u00a0 That had given way too, just now, to exhaustion.<\/p>\n

As he sat there, in the absolute darkness trying to breathe shallowly but wanting to pull in great gasps of air to fill his lungs, he tried not to panic.\u00a0 He was tired of Mister Poe\u2019s story so he\u2019d started to think about one he learned in Sunday School.\u00a0 The one about Jonah and the whale.\u00a0 Jonah\u2019d been running too, but from the Lord instead of from his pa and brothers.\u00a0 God had wanted him to do something and he plain flat-out said \u2018no\u2019.\u00a0 Joe snorted. \u00a0Pa\u2019d taught him you just didn\u2019t say \u2018no\u2019 to God.\u00a0 God was kind of selfish about that, he guessed, He always got what he wanted.\u00a0\u00a0 Joe leaned his head back against the vault and smiled wearily.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t get to have his way all the time, \u2018so why should God?<\/em>\u2019, he\u2019d asked when he was little.\u00a0 Pa, of course, had explained that God knew everything, that\u2019s why He got to have His way.\u00a0 And it was always for the best.\u00a0 God\u2019s way.<\/p>\n

For the best….<\/p>\n

Joe looked around.\u00a0 Just like Jonah must have seen when sitting in the belly of the whale, there was nothing.\u00a0 Nothing to let him know he wasn\u2019t the last person in the world, or that the world hadn\u2019t gone all black like Hoss\u2019 uncle had told his nephew it would when the waters rose up to swallow it.\u00a0 Now he wasn\u2019t one to doubt God most days, but \u2013<\/p>\n

This <\/em>was for the best?<\/p>\n

Raising up a little, Joe propped his back more firmly against the vault door.\u00a0 Running his fingers through his hair he combed the sodden curls back from his forehead.\u00a0 It was kind of funny really.\u00a0 Here the vault was, sitting in the basement of the bank.\u00a0 It should be clammy and cold as a cooling room.\u00a0 Instead it was stifling hot.\u00a0 His skin was wet and he was shaking, probably from the fact that he hadn\u2019t had anything to eat since noon the day before.\u00a0 At least, he thought it was the day before.\u00a0 He had no idea what day it was, or how long he had been sharing Jonah\u2019s fish palace, or even how long ago the bank had been robbed….<\/p>\n

Hoyle.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s eyes teared up as Hoyle\u2019s face sprang up before his eyes.\u00a0 In the end, his friend had proved himself just that.\u00a0 Hoyle had tried to help him.\u00a0 He\u2019d stuck that gun in his hand so he could protect himself. \u00a0Oh, he knew there were those who would say Hoyle had done it to implicate him in Mister Douglas\u2019 shooting. \u00a0The boy snorted.\u00a0 If he ever got out of this place, he was going to have a lot<\/em> to explain.\u00a0 Still, he\u2019d seen Hoyle\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 His friend had been sorry \u2013 sorry about the robbery, sorry he\u2019d drug him into it, and sorry that there were both probably going to die.<\/p>\n

As his mind began to replay the robbery, Joe shuddered.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen no such remorse in Weston McCloud\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 The man in the cheap suit cared about nothing except himself and what he wanted.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s fingers touched the heavy door he leaned on.\u00a0 That was why he\u2019d chosen to risk going into the vault.\u00a0 He knew McCloud wouldn\u2019t have hesitated to use him as a hostage, to give his Pa a chance to ransom him, and then kill him anyway once the money was in his hands.\u00a0 He knew his pa.\u00a0 Pa would do anything<\/em> to save him \u2013 even put Adam and Hoss and himself at risk.\u00a0 He just couldn\u2019t let that happen.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t let any of them…die because of his stupidity and selfishness.<\/p>\n

Joe snorted.\u00a0 Guess, in that way, he and God were kind of the same.<\/p>\n

Closing his eyes, the weary boy permitted himself one deep breath of air.\u00a0 It was musty and old and smelled of mold, but it was about the sweetest thing there was.\u00a0 It was funny how the little things seemed so important now \u2013 the smell of the earth, the soft pine under his feet, the memory of Hoss\u2019 blue eyes crinkling when he laughed, Adam\u2019s firm arm around his shoulder; his father\u2019s hand touching his cheek.\u00a0 Joe reached up and touched his cheek just like his pa did.<\/p>\n

And then he dissolved into tears.<\/p>\n

The fact was, he was going to die here.\u00a0 If anyone had been set to check the old vault and see if something had been stolen out of it, they would have done it right after he shut himself in.\u00a0 No.\u00a0 No one was going to come down to check, and the door was so thick no one upstairs could hear him.<\/p>\n

Joe reached up and wiped the tears away from his face with the back of a filthy sleeve.\u00a0 He sucked in the snot and then wiped his nose too.\u00a0 As he sat there in the dark and the silence he because acutely aware of the rapid beat of his own heart.\u00a0\u00a0 He could almost hear it echo off the metal walls.<\/p>\n

A slight smile lifted the corner of his upper lip as Joe thought about Jonah again.\u00a0 Would Jonah have been able to hear the beat of his heart echoing from walls made of blubber?\u00a0 His pa\u2019d told him about whales.\u00a0 Pa knew all about them since he\u2019d been a sailor.\u00a0 His pa said the fact that the whale swallowed Jonah whole was a miracle.\u00a0 A whale just couldn\u2019t do that.\u00a0 God had wanted Jonah cut off from everything so he could think.<\/p>\n

Well, here he was, cut off from everything and thinking.<\/p>\n

This had all started when his pride got hurt.\u00a0 When Adam accused him of lying.\u00a0 Oh, he\u2019d been mad before, but it was the kind of mad that faded after an hour or two.\u00a0 That kind of \u2018mad\u2019 had mostly to do with not getting his own way.\u00a0 This \u2018mad\u2019 \u2013 the one with Adam \u2013 had to do with his older brother thinking bad of him.\u00a0 Joe shook his head.\u00a0 So what did do he because Adam\u2019s opinion meant so much to him?\u00a0 Told himself he wanted nothing<\/em> to do with Adam and ran away.<\/p>\n

\u201cGoes to show what an ignoramus you are, Joe Cartwright,\u201d he snorted.<\/p>\n

It came down plain and simple to being the youngest.\u00a0\u00a0 He knew that.\u00a0 He just couldn\u2019t accept it.\u00a0 Adam was thirteen <\/em>years older than him right now. He was a man and pa treated him like a man, giving him man-size responsibilities, and while Hoss was a good bit younger, he already was<\/em> man-size.\u00a0 Pa\u2019d seen it, so he set middle brother to tasks that took the strength of a man.\u00a0 And him?\u00a0 Well….<\/p>\n

He was a skinny little kid with no man-size strength or experience and it just made him mad as a nest of wet hornets.<\/p>\n

Mad about things you can\u2019t control<\/em>, Joe thought as he glanced about the near-black vault.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Well, you can\u2019t control this, Joseph Francis Cartwright.\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

You can\u2019t control the day God\u2019s gonna take you home. <\/em><\/p>\n

He wondered about that need to control.\u00a0 He thought it had something to do with losing his mama.\u00a0 He remembered making a vow standing beside her coffin, looking down at her so beautiful and so still.<\/em>\u00a0 His mama had never been still.\u00a0 She\u2019d always been flying around the ranch house, her skirts swishing, her beautiful voice singing, with her arms full of flowers and other things.<\/p>\n

Including him.<\/p>\n

When he looked at her there in that coffin, her arms empty, quiet as fallen snow, he\u2019d decided he\u2019d never <\/em>stop moving \u2018cause if he did, death would catch him as it had her.<\/p>\n

As it had him now that he was still.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

They\u2019d ridden hard.\u00a0 About as hard as he could recall ever having ridden.\u00a0 As he halted his lathered horse, Ben Cartwright felt a moment of vertigo.\u00a0 Standing still seemed wrong <\/em>somehow.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou okay, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man turned to look at his middle son.\u00a0 Hoss was barely more than a boy himself, though he was struggling hard through this horrific event to be a man.\u00a0 Ben\u2019s lips curled in an affectionate smile.\u00a0 A stoic was something his middle boy was not.\u00a0 He\u2019d best leave that to his older brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m fine, son,\u201d he said, beginning to move again.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s find the sheriff\u2019s house.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s on the main street just past the office, Ben, just ahead,\u201d his old friend, Roy Coffee, offered.\u00a0 \u201cBeen there before.\u00a0 Follow me.\u201d<\/p>\n

They\u2019d made it to Genoa in record time.\u00a0 The sun was rising, but still half-hidden behind a horizon promising more rain.\u00a0 It was about four o\u2019clock in the morning.\u00a0 Fortunately, the road from Eagle Station was a good one since it was the main route to Virginia City and had been cleared and packed and was maintained for both wagon and stage travel.\u00a0 The mud and chuckholes filled with rain had slowed them down and nearly took one of the horses once when he caught his foot and came close to snapping an ankle, but they had finally arrived.<\/p>\n

Now it was time to seek out the sheriff and see if he had any information regarding Joe.<\/p>\n

As they neared the sheriff\u2019s office, Adam was the one to spot it.\u00a0 On the door of the bank they\u2019d been due to visit today, there was a black wreath.\u00a0 A closer look revealed bullet holes riddling the windows and doors of the establishment.<\/p>\n

\u201cLooks like we\u2019re too late,\u201d Roy said, stating the obvious.<\/p>\n

Adam was staring at the wreath.\u00a0 He turned toward him, his jaw tight, his hazel eyes narrowed in grief.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s eyes went from Adam to Hoss.\u00a0 His middle son looked sick.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll not borrow trouble,\u201d he said firmly.<\/p>\n

They didn\u2019t have to.\u00a0 A moment later it walked right up to them.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan I help you, gentlemen?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben turned back to look.\u00a0 A man was standing in the middle of the road, weapon drawn; a silver star pinned to his vest.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t see him clearly but he looked to be in his thirties and had dark brown hair.\u00a0 He was dressed in the clothes he had obviously put on the morning before.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll handle this, Ben,\u201d his old friend said as he slipped from his horse.<\/p>\n

Walking toward the man with his hands up, Roy said, \u201cWe don\u2019t mean no trouble.\u00a0 We\u2019re looking for a lost boy, most likely kidnapped.\u201d\u00a0 He gestured with the fingers of one hand toward his coat. \u201cIf you\u2019ll let me reach inside, I\u2019ll show you my badge.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re a lawman?\u201d\u00a0 His tone was dubious.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure enough am.\u00a0 Roy Coffee, out of Virginia City.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCoffee?\u00a0 My predecessor mentioned a lawman named Coffee,\u201d the man said, obviously surprised.\u00a0 \u00a0\u201cOkay.\u00a0 Show me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben watched as Roy opened his slicker so his badge sparked in the dim morning light.\u00a0 The Genoa City sheriff visibly relaxed.\u00a0 He holstered his gun and stuck his hand out saying, \u201cHiram Whitaker, acting sheriff of Genoa.\u201d\u00a0 As Roy took it, he added, \u201cSorry about the gun.\u00a0 It\u2019s been an ugly night. \u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cUgly?\u201d Roy asked, clearly puzzled by the word.<\/p>\n

The man\u2019s jaw was\u00a0 tight.\u00a0 His mouth a thin line.\u00a0 \u201cBank robbery first, followed by a lynching.\u00a0 Rain delayed my getting a posse together.\u00a0 Lem\u2019s friends took the law into their own hands.\u00a0 They lynched three men, two adults and one barely more than a boy.\u00a0 Buried them where they hung them, just outside of town.\u00a0 Hell of a way to start the day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s knuckles were white on the saddle horn.\u00a0 \u201cThey lynched a…boy?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

Hiram Whitaker looked at him.\u00a0 There was something in the sheriff\u2019s eyes, something that cut him to the quick.<\/p>\n

Pity.<\/p>\n

Ben felt the world shift.<\/p>\n

The sheriff\u00a0 came to him.\u00a0 He waited while he dismounted and then and planted himself squarely in front of him.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMay I ask your name, sir?\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man nodded.\u00a0 \u201cBen Cartwright.\u201d\u00a0 Indicating Hoss and Adam who were dismounting as well, he added, \u201cThere are my sons, Adam and Hoss.\u00a0 We\u2019re looking for their brother.\u00a0 He was taken by the men who robbed your bank.\u00a0 His name is \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe?\u201d<\/p>\n

The cut became a stab that pierced his heart.\u00a0 It was all he<\/em> could do to speak the answer, so robbed of strength was his voice.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes…\u201d<\/p>\n

Hiram looked at him like a man who was<\/em> a father.\u00a0 \u201cWas the boy small-built, with curly hair?\u00a0 Dressed like a rancher?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

He felt Adam\u2019s arm under his, supporting him.\u00a0 The word came out in a stutter.<\/p>\n

\u201cW..was…?\u201d<\/p>\n

Genoa\u2019s sheriff\u2019s gaze went from him to Adam and back, as if he knew there was a chance he might go down.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m afraid your son is dead, Mister Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe wasn\u2019t dead, but he was sure he was going to be soon.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d been sitting in the dark trying to remember just about everything he had in his head to<\/em> remember, trying to fill the darkness and the silence with something \u2013 anything \u2013 but fear.<\/em>\u00a0 He was having a hard time of it.\u00a0 Every time he started thinking about something, his thoughts derailed like a loco wagon.\u00a0 He\u2019d start thinking through everything Adam had taught him about busting broncos, but the order of how to do it, even the way to do it, got all muddled.\u00a0 It was like he was saying two plus two equals four, no, five, no, twenty-nine. \u00a0\u00a0No….<\/p>\n

What\u2019s addition?<\/p>\n

His pa always told him he had to slow down and think<\/em>.\u00a0 Well, he was thinking slow now and it didn\u2019t seem to be helping.\u00a0 Like a wisp of morning mist, whatever he thought about slipped away.\u00a0 Joe chucked quietly.\u00a0 It probably slipped out through a crack he couldn\u2019t see and then and rose to join all the other wisps in the sky before floating right on up to Heaven to tickle God\u2019s nose and set the angels to laughing….<\/p>\n

There he went again.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d tried getting up a few minutes before, but had given up on that too.\u00a0 His legs wouldn\u2019t hold him anymore.\u00a0 They were as wobbly as a newborn foal\u2019s.\u00a0 Besides, he really didn\u2019t have the energy to stand or walk around.\u00a0 He barely had the energy to sit.\u00a0 All he wanted to do was lay down on that pine floor and fall asleep.<\/p>\n

Pine floor.\u00a0 There was a pine <\/em>floor.<\/p>\n

Joe turned his head and looked lazily up.\u00a0 Was there a pine ceiling to?\u00a0 Was he already buried just like that man in Mister Poe\u2019s book?<\/p>\n

Could you sit up in your coffin?<\/p>\n

Joe shook his head to clear it.\u00a0 Of course not.\u00a0 Besides, he knew his pa wouldn\u2019t bury him in a pine coffin.\u00a0 Mama had had a special one made of the finest cherry, hand-carved and lined with a deep red satin.\u00a0 That was color his mama had loved.\u00a0 She looked so beautiful in it.<\/p>\n

Mama had been here.\u00a0 She\u2019d been sitting right beside him, stroking his hair and singing in French.<\/p>\n

He hadn\u2019t been afraid then.<\/p>\n

Actually, he was waiting for her to come back.<\/p>\n

Back to the belly of the whale.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A shovel driven down, lifting, hefting, tossing.\u00a0\u00a0 Not an unusual sound.\u00a0 It happened frequently around a ranch \u2013 manure flung in the barn, grain being struck and winnowed, weeds in the field or garden cut down and tossed in a pile along with the dirt that held them.\u00a0 It was the sound of good clean hard work.\u00a0 Yes, that\u2019s what it normally was.<\/p>\n

Not today.<\/p>\n

Oh, no.\u00a0 Not today.<\/p>\n

Each shovelful of earth that struck the ground before him jolted twenty-seven year old Adam Cartwright with the force of a bullet penetrating flesh.\u00a0 The sound carried with it the same white-hot fire, the same sense of being torn apart \u2013 the same sick-in-the-gut terror that something had entered that wasn\u2019t supposed to and something irreplaceable had been carried out on the other side.<\/p>\n

He glanced at the hole in the ground.<\/p>\n

Something irreplaceable had been carried out, all right.<\/p>\n

Adam passed a hand before his eyes, swatting at the darkness that refused to go away.\u00a0 Then he glanced at his younger brother, Hoss, who stood on the other side of their father.\u00a0 Hoss\u2019 giant hand was anchored on their pa\u2019s shoulder, linking the two of them in despair.\u00a0 Adam sighed. \u00a0He <\/em>stood apart as he always stood apart, driven by that thing <\/em>inside him that insisted he remain cool, collected \u2013 in control.\u00a0\u00a0 He should offer that same touch \u2013 a touch of comfort to the man who gave him life.\u00a0 But he knew if he did that control would crack and then Pa would have another son to grieve over \u2013 and not just the one already lost, but a living breathing<\/em> dead man.<\/p>\n

Another shovelful of dirt was taken up and tossed aside.\u00a0 The man was careless.\u00a0 Several clods tumbled back into the open grave to strike the top of the ugly pine box that had just been revealed; the one meant for a pauper that cradled a prince instead.<\/p>\n

Thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe was dead.<\/p>\n

Thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Stubborn, mule-headed, damned<\/em>–if-I\u2019ll-listen-to-you-older-brother<\/em>; beautiful, brilliant, irreplaceable Joe.<\/p>\n

Thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe.\u00a0 His kid brother who\u2019d been so angry with him; who\u2019d fled the ranch in a fit of blazing hot anger that drove all notion of kin<\/em> aside.<\/p>\n

Thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe, who\u2019d chosen strangers over his own, running away, disappearing, never to be seen again.<\/p>\n

Thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Until now.<\/p>\n

Adam shuddered as another shovelful of dirt hit the ground, some of it scattering and brushing his boots.\u00a0\u00a0 Pa insisted once they knew.\u00a0 Adam breathed deep.\u00a0\u00a0 Once they\u2019d been told<\/em> what happened, Pa insisted.\u00a0\u00a0 He had to see his son.<\/p>\n

Had to touch Joe one last time.<\/p>\n

Pa was looking down into the grave, at that damned pine box, as the man reached for the lid.\u00a0 Adam turned aside.\u00a0 He<\/em> couldn\u2019t.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t want to see, because he knew what he would <\/em>see.\u00a0 When he closed his eyes in the empty years to come, he wanted the image behind them to be his little brother laughing and snorting and fighting and shouting, not some bloated corpse with blackened lips and staring eyes.<\/p>\n

God.<\/p>\n

Joe….<\/p>\n

Adam glanced over his shoulder at the tree where the ropes still dangled, cut in stark silhouette against the horizon.\u00a0 The Acting sheriff of Genoa was there, watching them, and about half of the citizenry of the town.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t know the name of Cartwright.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t know how impossible it was that his little brother had shot and killed the bank manager and robbed the bank, callously stealing their sweat and blood.<\/p>\n

Blood.\u00a0 This was his<\/em> blood.<\/p>\n

Joe was dead.<\/p>\n

He was only fourteen.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s cheek was resting on the bottom of that cherry coffin.\u00a0 Adam had found him and buried him properly thinking he was dead.<\/p>\n

He couldn\u2019t blame him really.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t been able to move or to say anything.\u00a0 There was no way older brother could have known he was alive.\u00a0 It was funny though, Adam should have heard his heart beating.\u00a0 He should have heard him breathing too.\u00a0 He was breathing real fast and the sound of it was echoing off the walls of his coffin and driving him mad. The only thing that kept him from screaming and shouting and pulling at his hair was the fact that he was too tired.<\/p>\n

That, and the fact that mama was using the rhythm as she sung her tune.<\/p>\n

If my boy will slumber,<\/em><\/p>\n

Angels without number<\/em><\/p>\n

Will draw near, so fair and bright,<\/em><\/p>\n

For they only come at night.<\/em><\/p>\n

If my boy lie still in bed,<\/em><\/p>\n

God, too, will be pleased and glad,<\/em><\/p>\n

And will say, “I’ll send to him<\/em><\/p>\n

All night long the loveliest dream.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m lyin\u2019 still, mama,\u201d Joe murmured.\u00a0 \u201cAre you proud of me?\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Roy Coffee stood staring at one of the saddest sights he had ever seen in his fifty-plus years.\u00a0 No man should have to lose his son.\u00a0 No<\/em> father outlive one.\u00a0 Still, he\u2019d seen that<\/em> time and again.\u00a0 Been through it with particular man too when he thought one of his boy\u2019s was gonna die after bein\u2019 shot or takin\u2019 an arrow.<\/p>\n

The lawman swallowed over the bile that rose into his mouth.<\/p>\n

But this….<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s youngest lynched <\/em>for a crime they knew sure as God was in his Heaven he hadn\u2019t committed, and then buried like the scum of the earth in a hasty unmarked grave.<\/p>\n

It was a wonder the animals hadn\u2019t gotten him in the last twelve hours the dang thing was so shallow.<\/p>\n

It was a wonder too that the fellows that did the lynchin\u2019 had taken along a pine box.\u00a0 Just one from the looks of what they\u2019d found in the other two graves beside this one.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen\u00a0 the result of lynchings where they had and where they hadn\u2019t brought a box.\u00a0 To his thinking, it had somethin\u2019 to do with the fact that these men were trailin\u2019 a boy.\u00a0 It also meant that someone in that there lynchin\u2019 party had a conscience, and that meant the feller might just break down and spill all he knew.\u00a0 He needed that.\u00a0 Ben Cartwright<\/em> needed that.<\/p>\n

Justice needed to be done for Little Joe.<\/p>\n

Roy glanced at the Cartwrights where they stood nearby.\u00a0 Hoss was holding onto his pa as the man who\u2019d done the digging on the grave reached for the lid.\u00a0 Adam was looking away.\u00a0 He s\u2019posed the boy couldn\u2019t stand to look on that lonely pine box buried a foot or two down that was now exposed to the sunrise.<\/p>\n

A sunrise his little brother was never gonna see.<\/p>\n

\u201cStop,\u201d Ben said, and everyone did.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Three protests erupted at once.<\/p>\n

\u201cBen….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Pa, you can\u2019t….\u201d<\/p>\n

His old friend\u2019s jaw was set.\u00a0 Those black eyes flashed fired.\u00a0 \u201cI said, I\u2019ll<\/em> do it.\u00a0 Now, get out of my way.\u201d<\/p>\n

The man what had unearthed the coffin skedaddled up out of the grave quick as Jack Robinson.\u00a0 Ben stepped into it and then, for a moment, he lay his hand on the wooden surface.\u00a0 His eyes closed and his lips moved silently.<\/p>\n

He was prayin\u2019.\u00a0 Good God, Almighty!\u00a0 Ben was prayin\u2019!\u00a0 He thought his boy had just been lynched, and he was prayin\u2019!<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cPa, let me do it,\u201d Adam said quietly.\u00a0 He was beside his father now.\u00a0 So was Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t have to \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I do<\/em>,\u201d he said without looking up.\u00a0 \u201cI owe it to Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The morning sun cast blood-red trails across the land.\u00a0 The late October air was heavy with rain just waitin\u2019 to fall.\u00a0 Somewhere a bird was singing and Roy could hear cattle lowing, roosters crowing.<\/p>\n

Life went on.<\/p>\n

Looking at Ben\u2019s haggard face as he reached for the pine lid, he changed that.<\/p>\n

It did for some.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam steeled himself.\u00a0 He had one hand on Hoss\u2019 shoulder now.\u00a0 They\u2019d changed places. It was Hoss who couldn\u2019t look now.\u00a0 The big man said he couldn\u2019t bear to be haunted by what he would see for the rest of his life.\u00a0 Hoss wanted to remember Joe laughing and smiling, riding too fast and sleeping too hard.\u00a0 He<\/em> found in the end he had to look.\u00a0 He had no choice.<\/p>\n

As his father owed it to Joe, Adam owed it to his pa.<\/p>\n

He heard his father gasp at the sight of the curly head.\u00a0 The corpse\u2019s hair was matted with mud and blood.\u00a0 It was hard to tell the color.\u00a0 The boy\u2019s neck was elongated and there was a deep ugly ligature mark around it.\u00a0 A trail of dried blood ran from the corpse\u2019s ears and nose, trailing down onto the filthy gray shirt he wore.<\/p>\n

A stray thought took Adam from the scene.\u00a0 Grief nearly bent him double.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t remember what Joe had been wearing when he last saw him.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t remember!\u00a0 Drawing a deep breath Adam fought for control.<\/p>\n

He thought it was a gray shirt, but he couldn\u2019t be sure and he held onto that.<\/p>\n

The man in black watched as his father knelt and reached with exaggerated care for that curly head.\u00a0 He saw his hands tremble and he heard the older man draw in a sharp breath as the mottled face with its bulging eyes and blackened tongue \u00a0was revealed.<\/p>\n

Trembling visibly, their father turned his tear-streaked face upward.\u00a0 A sob escaped him.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not Joe.\u00a0 It\u2019s not<\/em> Joe,\u201d he repeated.\u00a0 \u201cThank God!\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam felt Hoss tense and then his middle brother\u2019s frame relaxed to the point of falling.\u00a0 Adam crouched beside him.\u00a0 The big man was sobbing.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss sucked in air and shook his head.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cGo to Pa, Adam.\u00a0 Pa needs you.\u00a0 I\u2019m fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy Coffee had beat him to it.\u00a0 Pa was sitting on the edge of the crude grave, his eyes closed, his shoulders slumped.\u00a0 Roy was on his knee beside him, a hand on Pa\u2019s shoulder, talking.\u00a0 After squeezing his brother\u2019s shoulder, Adam joined them.<\/p>\n

He looked down into the grave again.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t Joe, but it was someone.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIts Hoyle, isn\u2019t it?\u201d he asked quietly.<\/p>\n

His father nodded.\u00a0 When he spoke, his voice shook with barely controlled rage.\u00a0 \u201cHow could they do it?\u00a0 How could honest men hang a boy?<\/em>\u00a0 No matter what he\u2019d done, Hoyle deserved justice.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Genoa sheriff had come up to them.\u00a0 \u201cI agree, Mister Cartwright.\u00a0 But if it will give you any comfort, the boy lied about his age.\u00a0 He was at least eighteen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their father was shaking his head.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s still a boy.\u00a0 And even if he had been a man, there was no need.\u00a0 No need.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe men that did this will pay, sir, I promise that,\u201d Hiram said and sounded as if he meant it.\u00a0 \u201cI will not allow this kind of thing in my<\/em> town.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their father rose at that.\u00a0 He walked unsteadily away from the grave, headed for Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cPut the lid back on, Adam.\u00a0 Bury the poor boy again and mark the grave.\u00a0 We\u2019ll have the coffin moved later and place him somewhere respectful.\u201d<\/p>\n

As he nodded, the man in black said, \u201cPa….\u201d<\/p>\n

It showed in his father\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 He already knew what he was going to ask.\u00a0 If Hoyle was in the grave \u2013<\/p>\n

Where was Joe?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

THIRTEEN<\/p>\n

He\u2019d kind of held out for some kind of glowing fish.\u00a0 One time, he thought he\u2019d seen one, but it vanished when he tried to catch it.<\/p>\n

He did<\/em> try to catch it.<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t he?<\/p>\n

Joe was awake, or at least he thought he was.\u00a0 He was having trouble telling what was a dream and what was reality.\u00a0 He\u2019d used the tips of his fingers like feet on a ladder\u2019s rungs to pull himself up using the edge of the lockboxes until he was sitting again with his back against the door.\u00a0 He was completely sweat-soaked and panting like Cochise now after one of their free-flying flights.\u00a0 His head felt mighty funny too \u2013 kind of like it could explode \u2013 and there were a dozen or more church bells ringing in his ears.<\/p>\n

Sally Simms was mighty pretty.\u00a0 She\u2019d have liked one of those glowing fish if he could have caught it.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d seen her last summer at the church social.\u00a0 The wind had been riffling her hair and her thin white gown up was billowing up around her knees.\u00a0 He\u2019d laughed when she caught him looking and tried to hold it down in the font, only succeeding in making it fly up higher in the back.\u00a0\u00a0 His pa\u2019d taught him to be a gentleman and so he\u2019d looked away.\u00a0 He\u2019d looked at the church steeple.<\/p>\n

The bell was ringing.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing was calling him in to supper.\u00a0 He was in the barn.\u00a0 He\u2019d done all the dang work that Adam had set him and more and then, played out, taken a seat in the back of the last stall he\u2019d mucked out.\u00a0 Tossing his head back, he\u2019d been asleep in seconds.<\/p>\n

Only to have that darned bell call him back.<\/p>\n

Well, Hop Sing would have to wait.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t hungry anyhow.\u00a0 And he was just too doggone <\/em>tired to drag his sorry frame up to the house.\u00a0 They could just come and find him.<\/p>\n

Come…and find….<\/p>\n

Pa.<\/p>\n

Come.\u00a0 Find me.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe blinked and forced his eyes open.\u00a0 For an instant \u2013 just a second<\/em> \u2013 he realized he wasn\u2019t falling asleep but was falling unconscious. \u00a0He remembered now that he was trapped in a bank vault.\u00a0 He\u2019d been trapped there for hours without any fresh air. \u00a0While the reason he was in the vault eluded him, he knew he had to stay awake.\u00a0 Someone might come.\u00a0 Someone might still <\/em>come and if they did, he needed to be awake.\u00a0 He needed to be able to answer if someone called his name.<\/p>\n

Joseph.<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s lean frame stiffened.\u00a0 \u201cPa?\u201d he asked aloud.<\/p>\n

Hang on, son.\u00a0 I\u2019ll find you.\u00a0 Wherever you are, I\u2019ll find you.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cPa!\u201d\u00a0 Joe rose up on his knees and banged on the vault door.\u00a0 \u201cPa!\u00a0 Pa! I\u2019m here!\u00a0 Pa, you gotta hear me!\u00a0 Pa!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Pa was there.\u00a0 He was just outside the door.\u00a0 Pa had come to save him, he knew it.<\/p>\n

He knew it!<\/em><\/p>\n

With his chest heaving and tears running down his cheeks, the church bells ringing, his head fairly popping, and those dang glow fish swimming by, Joseph Francis Cartwright shouted and continued to bang on the unforgiving metal door until his knuckles ran red with his blood.<\/p>\n

When he was unable to shout any longer he kept banging.<\/p>\n

When he was no longer able to bang on the door, he cried.<\/p>\n

Out of tears \u2013 out of hope.<\/p>\n

He succumbed.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Hang on, son.\u00a0 I\u2019ll find you.\u00a0 Wherever you are, I\u2019ll find you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben Cartwright was standing on the porch of the sheriff\u2019s office staring at the bank building.\u00a0 After reburying Hoyle and the other outlaws, they\u2019d returned to Genoa. \u00a0They arrived just as the sunlight illuminated the town\u2019s wood and brick structures, including the sad and sorrowful city bank with its black wreath hung above the door.\u00a0 Sheriff Whitaker had taken them to his office so they could regroup and come up with a plan, and then left them to carry on his official business.\u00a0 The night before Whitaker had wired every lawman within a twenty mile radius of Genoa informing them of what had happened and asking them to keep an eye out for the robbers who had escaped.\u00a0 He was going to send a second wire, asking if there had been any sighting of DeLoyd Beaumont or a Weston McCloud.\u00a0 Names had been dropped during the robbery and McCloud\u2019s name was one of them.<\/p>\n

Ben grimaced.\u00a0 DeLoyd he knew.\u00a0 He\u2019d given him the run of his house for nearly a month and hired the man after that, much to his chagrin now that he knew he was a wanted man.\u00a0 Who this Weston McCloud was, he could only guess.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t really matter.\u00a0 All that mattered was that one or both had to know what had happened to Little Joe.<\/p>\n

One or both of them could have<\/em> Joe.<\/p>\n

Ben glanced at the chair on the porch behind him, nestled up against the office door, but remained standing.\u00a0 The Sheriff had left to round up men to form a posse.\u00a0 Hoss and Roy went with him.\u00a0 He and Adam had chosen to remain in town.\u00a0 Much as his feet itched to be on the trail of the men who could have his child, DeLoyd or Del most of all, he wanted \u2013 no, he had felt compelled<\/em> to remain in town.\u00a0 The older man sighed.\u00a0 He found himself in fact, for some inexplicable reason, drawn to the bank building itself.\u00a0 That was where he and Adam were going to begin their search as soon as his oldest son returned from talking to the woman who had incorrectly identified Joe as a bank robber.\u00a0 It seemed her husband would make it after all and so he\u2019d felt it was proper for Adam to go to her and ask her what she remembered.<\/p>\n

Ben frowned and ran a hand across his chin.\u00a0 Joseph. In front of the vault with a smoking gun in his hand; Lemuel Douglas dead at his feet.<\/p>\n

What in the world had his boy gotten himself into?<\/p>\n

The fact that there had been no ransom demand troubled him. \u00a0If Del and this other man were trying to escape and had Joe with them, then why not use that to their advantage?\u00a0 No.\u00a0 In his heart, he believed his boy \u2013 alive or<\/em> dead \u2013 was somewhere in Genoa.\u00a0 Joseph might be hurt.\u00a0 The amount of bullet holes in the facade of the bank was unnerving.\u00a0 Little Joe might have crawled away injured from the robbery scene.\u00a0 His beautiful boy might be laying somewhere even now, alone, in filth and squalor, bleeding to death.<\/p>\n

Calling out to his pa.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben started out of his reverie.\u00a0 It was Adam.\u00a0 \u201cYes, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry it took so long.\u00a0 I had to find someone who had a key to the bank.\u00a0 Since Lemuel died….\u201d<\/p>\n

The bank manager had been a good man and a good friend.\u00a0\u00a0 His loss would be felt by many.<\/p>\n

\u201cI found the assistant manager,\u201d his son said as he joined him on the porch.\u00a0 \u201cA man by the name of Burnett Clawson.\u00a0 He\u2019s going to meet us at the bank.\u201d\u00a0 Adam hesitated.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe doesn\u2019t know much, Pa.\u00a0 He was just hired last week\u00a0 Due to that, he doesn\u2019t know the bank all that well and he wasn\u2019t privy to the combination on the new vault.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben frowned.\u00a0 They had to check the vaults just in case.\u00a0 \u201cWhat about the old one?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was abandoned when they put in the new Chubbs safe, partly for security, but mostly due to the fact that it wasn\u2019t working.\u00a0 They had a dickens of a time operating the door.\u00a0 They\u2019d actually gone to leaving it open so no one would get trapped in there.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man paled.\u00a0 \u201cDid anyone check it after the robbery?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cBurnett didn\u2019t say.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure they did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s near-black eyes went to the bank.\u00a0 The robbery had happened the night before around six o\u2019clock.<\/p>\n

More than twelve hours before.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere he is, Pa,\u201d his son said as he returned to the street.<\/p>\n

A young man, about Adam\u2019s age, was coming toward them.\u00a0 His hair and clothing were askew as if he had thrown them on and hurried out the door without checking to see what he looked like.\u00a0 He was a good-looking man with a strong jaw and wide open eyes.\u00a0 His dark curly hair reminded Ben painfully of his missing son.<\/p>\n

\u201cMister Benjamin Cartwright, I presume?\u201d Burnett asked while extending a hand.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry to hear about your son Joseph \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, yes.\u00a0 Thank you.\u00a0 Now, I need to get into that bank.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe searched it thoroughly the night of the robbery, sir.\u00a0 There was no one left in the building when we shut it down.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you check the vaults?\u201d<\/p>\n

The young man paled.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 I\u2019ve just wired for the combination on the new vault, sir.\u00a0 We will hopefully have an answer within the hour.\u00a0 It took a lot of convincing for the company who supplied the safe to believe the request was legitimate.\u00a0 They had to be sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI understand.\u201d\u00a0 Ben\u2019s eyes remained locked on the silent brick building.\u00a0 \u201cWhat about the old vault?\u201d<\/p>\n

Burnett looked puzzled.\u00a0 \u201cWe swept the cellar.\u00a0 We knew one of the outlaws escaped that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat about the old vault?\u201d he repeated.<\/p>\n

The young man frowned.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t give it much thought.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWas the door open or closed?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam was staring at him, puzzled as well.\u00a0 \u201cWhat is it, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBurnett.\u00a0 Answer me.\u00a0 Was the vault door open or closed?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

He knew his answer before the young man gave it words.\u00a0 Burnett\u2019s skin had gone to paste.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was closed.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hoss Cartwright stood beside his horse, waiting for the animal to take a drink.\u00a0 As he did, he balanced his hands on the saddle and looked back toward Genoa.\u00a0\u00a0 The sun was halfway to noon, near done chasing off the chill of the night.\u00a0 Most times that sight would have brought a smile to his face.\u00a0 But not today.<\/p>\n

Not with his baby brother still missing.<\/p>\n

The big man couldn\u2019t really put into words the feelin\u2019 he\u2019d had when his Pa\u2019d stepped into that grave.\u00a0 It was all of the terrors he\u2019d ever known wrapped up into one.\u00a0 As they rode to the edge of town, headed for the spot where the lynchin\u2019 had taken place, he\u2019d tried to keep Joe\u2019s face in front of his eyes \u2013 Joe smiling, Joe smartin\u2019 off; Little Joe giggling and falling on the floor, laughing so hard the veins popped out in his forehead.<\/p>\n

Tried, but failed.<\/p>\n

He was old enough.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen men hung before.\u00a0\u00a0 He knew what a dead man\u2019s grin looked like where the teeth bit down on a tongue gone black as Hades, while above it the dead man\u2019s bloodshot eyes bulged out.\u00a0 He kept seeing Little Joe, his neck stretched out long and thin, his head snapping to the side \u2013<\/p>\n

Suddenly sick, Hoss moved off into the trees and lost what little was left of the food he had in him.<\/p>\n

When he returned, it was to find Roy Coffee standing by Chubb waiting for him.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou all right, son?\u201d the older man asked.<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded.<\/p>\n

\u201cThinking about what might<\/em> have happened to your brother?\u201d<\/p>\n

Again, he nodded.<\/p>\n

\u201cTerrible thing, hanging, even when its needed.\u201d\u00a0 The lawman shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cToo bad about that boy, Hoyle.\u00a0 Too bad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss paled.\u00a0 He was so focused on what had almost happened to Little Joe, that he\u2019d near forgot it had <\/em>happened to Hoyle.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you suppose drives someone like Hoyle to commit a crime?\u201d he asked the sheriff.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoyle?\u00a0 If he was eighteen or more, Hoss, he was old enough to make his own choices.\u00a0 Nothin\u2019 need drive<\/em> him to them\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, but why<\/em> make that choice?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCould of been his brother.\u201d\u00a0 Sheriff Roy\u2019s smile was soft.\u00a0 \u201cYounger brothers look to their older ones for their lead.\u00a0 Maybe Hoyle wanted to be like Del.\u00a0 Just like Little Joe wants to be like you and Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe ain\u2019t nothin\u2019 like me.\u201d<\/p>\n

The lawman shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cYou can\u2019t see it, can you?\u00a0 He\u2019s kind, boy, just like you.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s got a big heart.\u00a0 Makes him too trusting.\u201d\u00a0 He paused. \u201cHe\u2019s kind of like you there, too. \u00a0And your pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sheriff Roy was right.\u00a0 They\u2019d taken Del and Hoyle into their home because they assumed they were who they said they were.\u00a0 After all, Del had saved Joe\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

Now, he might cost it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hate to think what Little Joe felt when he found out Hoyle was usin\u2019 him,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cJoe thought of that boy as a friend.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe one who trusts can\u2019t ever be betrayed, Hoss,\u201d the sheriff said kindly.\u00a0 \u201cJust mistaken.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYes, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

The lawman eyed him.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re still lookin\u2019 peaked, boy.\u00a0 You ready to ride yet?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m all right, Sheriff Roy,\u201d he said as he placed his foot in the stirrup.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s go find that pair.\u00a0 Hopefully Joe\u2019s with them and he\u2019s all right.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss drew a deep breath as he settled into the saddle and picked up the reins.\u00a0 Otherwise, I\u2019ll \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOtherwise, you\u2019ll do what, boy?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sheriff Roy was giving him that stare \u2013 the one that belonged to the lawman and not his father\u2019s friend.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll mind myself and my temper, sheriff,\u201d Hoss said as he pressed his knees into Chubbs\u2019 side and started moving.<\/p>\n

The big man wondered if the sheriff noticed.<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t promise.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It was too late to call Hoss and Roy back.\u00a0 Hopefully they would find the men who had escaped.<\/p>\n

Hopefully, they<\/em> were about to find Joe.<\/p>\n

It was a race which of them reached the bank door first, him or his pa.\u00a0 For being the older of the two, Pa beat him there.\u00a0 Burnett was fumbling through the keys on a ring he had, trying to find the right one to open the door.\u00a0 When he found it, he tried, but the key scraped against the metal and never found its mark.\u00a0 Snatching it away, Adam took it, stuck it into the key hole, and then thrust the door open.<\/p>\n

Again, his pa was quicker.\u00a0 Lantern in hand, the older man ran through the bank and down the back stairs and was on his way to the old vault before his own boots hit the cellar\u2019s brick hounds-tooth floor.\u00a0 \u00a0As his father\u2019s knees hit the ground, he started calling.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph.\u00a0 Joseph?\u00a0 Are you in there, son?\u00a0 Can you hear me?\u00a0 It\u2019s Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Burnett looked at him askance as he crossed to the coal chute and threw the trap door open so they had some light.\u00a0 \u201cThat door is more than a foot thick, Mister Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe will hear him,\u201d Adam said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s likely to be unconscious by now \u2013 if he\u2019s even in there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam drew in a breath.\u00a0 \u201cJoe will hear him.\u00a0 If there\u2019s any way, Joe will hear his pa.\u201d\u00a0 He closed his eyes then.\u00a0 It wouldn\u2019t do him any good to call out to Joe.\u00a0 Two voices might be confusing.\u00a0 But there was nothing to stop him calling out to God.<\/p>\n

God.\u00a0 Please.\u00a0 Let Joe be alive.<\/em><\/p>\n

The silence as they waited was deafening.\u00a0 His pa crouched by the door, his fingers pale, stretched out on the dark metal surface as if he could divine by touch whether or not Joe was in there.\u00a0 Nothing else made sense really.\u00a0 Joe was missing.\u00a0 None of the telegrams had reported a boy with the men who had been spotted.\u00a0 The bank vault door that should have been open was closed.<\/p>\n

He wanted to pray that his brother was in there, but at the same time, that was the last thing he wanted to do.<\/p>\n

God.\u00a0 PLEASE.\u00a0 Let Joe be alive.<\/em><\/p>\n

His father\u2019s hand shot out.\u00a0 His head came up.\u00a0 The older man looked at him and then returned his cheek to the heavy metal door.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph?\u00a0 Son?\u00a0 Was that you?\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019d been warm and safe and lying in his mother\u2019s arms.\u00a0 She was singing again.<\/p>\n

If my boy lie still in bed,<\/em><\/p>\n

God, too, will be pleased and glad,<\/em><\/p>\n

And will say, “I’ll send to him<\/em><\/p>\n

All night long the loveliest dream.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Joe stirred as she stopped abruptly.\u00a0 He looked up to find her smiling.\u00a0 \u2018C’est ton p\u00e8re\u2019<\/em>, Mama whispered.\u00a0 \u2018Il est venu pour vous.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

It was Pa.\u00a0 He\u2019d come for him.<\/p>\n

When he felt her start to release her hold on him, Joe panicked and clutched his mother\u2019s arm.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Mama,\u201d he rasped, his throat raw, \u201cstay with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

He felt her gentle touch on his cheek.\u00a0 Her lips caressed his brow.\u00a0 \u2018Non, ma petit Joseph<\/em>.\u00a0 I must go.\u00a0 You must stay.\u00a0 Your papa <\/em>needs you.\u2019<\/p>\n

Joe shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cPa isn\u2019t here.\u00a0 You<\/em> are, mama.\u00a0 I don\u2019t have the strength….\u201d<\/p>\n

Her fingers released his arm.\u00a0 He felt her pull back.<\/p>\n

Miserable, bereft, Joe screamed.<\/p>\n

\u201cNO!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cDid you hear it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded as his father turned a ghostly pale but hopeful face toward him.\u00a0 At least he thought<\/em> he had.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou try,\u201d Pa said as he sat down and leaned his back against the vault.<\/p>\n

Moving in, Adam put his ear against the door and called, \u201cJoe!\u00a0 It\u2019s Adam.\u00a0 Hey, lazybones!\u00a0 What are you doing sleeping?\u00a0 Time to get up.\u00a0 Hop Sing\u2019s hopping mad!\u201d<\/p>\n

This time he heard his brother\u2019s voice, clear as a bell.\u00a0 Well, a muffled bell.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t…want to.\u201d<\/p>\n

He and his father had to hold each other up.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph,\u201d his father said as soon as he was able.\u00a0 \u201cBoy, how are you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGo away…want to…sleep….\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam couldn\u2019t help it.\u00a0 He grinned.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s definitely Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The grin faded with Joe\u2019s next words.<\/p>\n

\u201c…want to…go…with Mama….\u201d<\/p>\n

He saw every muscle in his father\u2019s frame go rigid.\u00a0 In a heartbeat the older man was on his feet and bearing down on the bank\u2019s assistant manager.<\/p>\n

\u201cOpen that door!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Burnett paled and took a step back.\u00a0 \u201cI can\u2019t Mister Cartwright.\u00a0 Even if I had the combination, the locking mechanism is broken \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI am not interested in excuses!\u201d\u00a0 Adam turned from the door to watch his father take a deep breath to regain control.\u00a0 The next time the older man spoke it was with that voice that had built an empire and kept three very unruly boys alive in a deadly land over a period of nearly three decades.\u00a0 \u201cWell, then, find <\/em>someone who can!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a Chubb…sir,\u201d Burnett stuttered.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s no way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam eyed the vault.\u00a0 He hated to leave his brother\u2019s side for even an instant in case Joe called out again.\u00a0 Still, he knew something his father didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa?\u201d he said as he walked to his side.<\/p>\n

The older man rounded on him.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI read it in a paper at the Palace the other day.\u00a0 A man got caught in one of these vaults recently.\u00a0 They managed to get it open.\u00a0 They had to…blow the safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those black eyes pinned him.\u00a0 \u201cDid he survive?\u201d<\/p>\n

Honesty.\u00a0 That\u2019s what this man demanded \u2013 even when it was brutal. \u00a0\u201cNo.\u00a0 But he was locked in over two days.\u00a0 It was the weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBlow the safe?\u00a0 You mean like those men did at the old bank?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam took heart from that.\u00a0 If it had worked once….<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father\u2019s eyes were on the vault. \u201cBut we don\u2019t know where your brother is.\u00a0 It sounds like he\u2019s right by the door.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded.\u00a0 He\u2019d thought of that as well.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll have to get him to move.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat if Joseph is unconscious and can\u2019t<\/em> move?\u201d<\/p>\n

The question hung in the air between them.<\/p>\n

He shook his head at last.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know Pa.\u00a0 But we can\u2019t leave him in there much longer.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father\u2019s eyes mirrored his emotions \u2013 hope, determination, fear, and then a reach for faith. \u00a0\u00a0His jaw tight, the older man nodded.\u00a0 Turning to Burnett Pa said, \u201cTake Adam to where he can get what he needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam frowned.\u00a0 \u201cPa.\u00a0 No.\u201d\u00a0 He swallowed hard over his own fear.\u00a0 \u201cYou want me…?\u201d<\/p>\n

His father\u2019s hand rested on his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve done it before, in the mines.\u00a0 And you\u2019re an engineer, Adam.\u00a0 You\u2019ll know best how and where to set the charges to keep your brother from getting…damaged.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe someone in town has more experience?\u201d \u00a0Adam turned to Burnett who was shaking his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot that I know of.\u00a0 And I wouldn\u2019t know how to find them if they did.\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019d begun to tremble.\u00a0 \u201cPa. What if \u2013 what if something goes wrong?<\/em>\u00a0 What if I…kill….\u201d\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t finish it.<\/p>\n

His father\u2019s grip intensified. \u00a0The older man waited until he met his resolute stair.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph is dead already if we don\u2019t try.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

With what little strength he had, Joe groped the darkness searching for his mother.\u00a0 She\u2019d gone away and left him alone and he didn\u2019t understand why.\u00a0 He\u2019d heard Pa calling him, but Pa was so far away and he was so<\/em> scared.\u00a0 Scared to be alone.\u00a0 Scared to be in the dark that he used to think of as a friend.<\/p>\n

Scared he was going to die with no one touching him.<\/p>\n

As he lay there, quietly sobbing, he heard his pa call him again.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph.\u00a0 Joseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

At first Pa\u2019s voice was soft.\u00a0 It sounded like it did when the older man used it to wake him up during a sickness to give him medicine.\u00a0 Then it changed.\u00a0 It became the voice pa used when he\u2019d done something wrong.\u00a0 When he\u2019d better pay attention and hop to, otherwise there\u2019d be a switch waiting.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph!\u00a0 Boy!\u00a0 Answer me.\u00a0 Answer me now!\u201d<\/p>\n

He tried to lick his lips.\u00a0 They were swollen and cracked.\u00a0 At first nothing came out.\u00a0 Then he managed a strangled, \u201cPa….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe!\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe turned his head so he was facing the door.\u00a0 \u201cPa?\u201d<\/p>\n

This time pa\u2019s voice was that one he used when he found you laying in a ditch with a twisted ankle or hiding out in the barn, \u2018cause you were scared you\u2019d get in trouble.<\/p>\n

\u201cSon.\u00a0 You have to listen to me.\u00a0 You\u2019re trapped in a bank vault.\u00a0 We have to get you out before you run out of air. \u00a0The only way is to…blow the safe\u2019s door off.\u201d\u00a0 There was a pause, like his pa had taken in a big gulp.\u00a0 \u201cYou need to get as far away from the door as you can.\u00a0 Find something.\u00a0 Put it over your head.\u00a0 Joseph!\u00a0 Do you hear me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Yeah, he heard him.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s eyes drifted to the back of the vault.\u00a0 It was about a million miles away.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t…\u201d was all he managed. \u00a0It took too much effort to shake his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou must!\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 His pa sounded desperate now.\u00a0 \u201cSon, I know you\u2019re so tired you think you can\u2019t move.\u00a0 Maybe you can\u2019t breathe right.\u00a0 But, son, you\u2019re alive!\u00a0 You have to fight!\u201d<\/p>\n

Fight?\u00a0 He\u2019d of snorted if he\u2019d had the energy.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, Pa….\u201d<\/p>\n

His pa\u2019s voice was steady.\u00a0 He kept talking.\u00a0 \u201cJoe, you remember that little black foal you loved so much?\u00a0 The one who almost didn\u2019t make it?\u00a0 You remember, don\u2019t you, sitting with her and talking to her and telling her she couldn\u2019t give up no matter what?\u201d<\/p>\n

She\u2019d been a beauty.\u00a0 All black with a star on her nose.\u00a0 He loved black horses.\u00a0 They were like midnight come to life.<\/p>\n

\u201cI…remember….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou kept talking to her until you willed <\/em>her to chose life, to move.\u00a0 To get up on her feet <\/em>and move.\u00a0 Joe, listen to me, son.\u00a0 You have to move!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

His muscles spasmed as he reached out with his hand, his fingers groping for something to grab hold of.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m…trying…Pa….\u201d he breathed even as the tips of his fingers found the seam between the pine boards that made up the floor.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat was that, Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t have any more energy for talking.\u00a0 His pa would just have to get mad at him for not answering. \u00a0What energy he had was being channeled into those fingers.\u00a0 They\u2019d moved on now with a will of their own, creeping from the first seam to seek the second.\u00a0 The floor was rough.\u00a0 No use using good lumber for the bottom of a basement vault.\u00a0 His knuckles were red already and now his fingers and chest were bleeding from the splinters being driven into them.\u00a0 Still he kept crawling, his progress agonizingly slow, inching his way across the rough floor toward the back of the vault where his pa had ordered him to go.\u00a0 Finally, his fingers struck metal and he reached up, taking hold of one of the metal bars that made up the cage door.<\/p>\n

A triumphant smile spread across Joe\u2019s cracked lips.<\/p>\n

\u201cMade it, Pa,\u201d he gasped.<\/p>\n

Then his fingers let go and he struck the floor.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ben turned from the vault and rose as his eldest son came into the basement followed by several other men including the sheriff and Burnett.\u00a0 He\u2019d been bent so on Joseph hearing him and getting his son to move away from the door, that he hadn\u2019t realized what a strain he was under.\u00a0 When he stood, Ben found his knees were next to jelly.\u00a0 Adam came to his side quickly and offered his shoulder.\u00a0 He nodded his thanks as he accepted.<\/p>\n

After a moment the older man said, \u201cThanks, son.\u00a0 I think I can manage.\u201d<\/p>\n

His eldest boy raised his black brows and pursed his lips.\u00a0 \u201cReally?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben inclined his head toward the men gathered in the room.\u00a0 There were two new ones.\u00a0 \u201cWho\u2019s this?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know Burnett and Hiram.\u00a0 The tall one is Jasper Smith.\u00a0 He owns the hardware store.\u00a0 And this is Milton Hanks.\u201d\u00a0 Adam paused.\u00a0 \u201cMilton\u2019s the town doctor.\u201d<\/p>\n

He should have known.\u00a0 Hanks was an older man with graying hair, wearing a conservative brown suit and tie. \u00a0He saw the bag now in his hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow long has the boy been in the vault?\u201d Milton asked as he came to their side.<\/p>\n

It was the sheriff who answered.\u00a0 \u201cNear as we can tell, from the time the robbery ended.\u201d\u00a0 Hiram paused and his voice fell.\u00a0 \u201cNear thirteen hours.\u201d<\/p>\n

The doctor blinked.\u00a0 His crisp blue eyes narrowed.\u00a0 \u201cThirteen <\/em>hours?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAt least.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man drew in a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cThen for God\u2019s sake, wait no longer!\u00a0 Get him out of there!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa?\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019d been looking at the older man, gauging what the physician\u2019s violent reaction meant for his youngest son.\u00a0 He turned now toward his oldest.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got what I need, Pa.\u201d\u00a0 He gestured to Smith, who\u2019d brought with him gunpowder, fuses, and cord.\u00a0 The shop owner had brought as well several small cotton bags and tape.\u00a0 \u201cI think its best to blow the hinges to take the door off.\u00a0 Hopefully the sideways blast will keep anything from flying inward where it might…hit Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

With force enough to kill.<\/p>\n

Ben looked at the materials in the man\u2019s hands and then at the locked vault.\u00a0 Joe couldn\u2019t hold out much longer.\u00a0 These lethal things could mean life or death for his son.<\/p>\n

It was up to God which it was.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo it,\u201d he said with a nod.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

FOURTEEN<\/p>\n

Hoss and Roy were about three hours out from Genoa when they found what they were looking for.\u00a0 The sun was hidden by clouds and the fresh round of rain that had threatened earlier was starting to fall.\u00a0 It was a soft rain this time though \u2013 female, the Indians would have called it since it was a gentle one, not driving and hard like the male rain of the night before.\u00a0 This was the kind of rain that brought life.<\/p>\n

\u2018Cept it couldn\u2019t do nothin\u2019 to bring it back to the man they done found.<\/p>\n

Hoss squatted on his hind quarters and placed a hand on Del Beaumont\u2019s chest, or what was left of Del\u2019s chest.<\/p>\n

Del had a hole done blown straight through him.<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t no honor among thieves,\u201d Roy Coffee said, unknowingly echoing the words their father often spoke.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou s\u2019pose that other man, that Weston McCloud, got the drop on him?\u201d\u00a0 It was hard to believe.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen Del shoot. The man was fast.<\/p>\n

Sheriff Roy shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cProbably bushwhacked him. \u00a0The skunk probably called him out to talk and gunned him down or some such thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

As he stood Hoss thought about all the times they\u2019d sat around the table with Del and Hoyle, laughing and talking about the day, sharing, like he and his brothers did. \u00a0\u00a0Now both of them were dead.\u00a0 And for what?<\/p>\n

Money.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy wasn\u2019t it enough?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy wasn\u2019t \u2018what\u2019 enough, Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

It was hard to put into words, since he didn\u2019t exactly know \u2018what\u2019 it was he and his brothers had.\u00a0\u00a0 A home, he guessed.\u00a0 Each other.<\/p>\n

Love.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just, Sheriff Roy, I don\u2019t understand why them havin\u2019 each other wasn\u2019t enough.\u00a0 Why\u2019d they want to go and rob banks?\u00a0 Why\u2019d Del and Hoyle want to take other people\u2019s money instead of earnin\u2019 their own honest-like?\u201d<\/p>\n

He heard a gurgling cough and then the word, \u201cStupidity\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss spun.\u00a0 It was Del.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t dead.<\/p>\n

Well, not quite.<\/p>\n

Kneeling beside the dying man, the big man placed a hand on his shoulder.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t oughta talk, Del.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m…dead already,\u201d the blond man said as blood trickled out his lips and down his chin.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened?\u201d Sheriff Roy asked as he knelt on Del\u2019s other side.\u00a0 \u201cCan you tell us, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

Pain flickered through the dying man\u2019s eyes, proving he was still able to feel.\u00a0 \u201cHoyle and me…Jess and Parker…we ran.\u00a0 Got to…the edge of…town and found…men…waiting….\u201d\u00a0 They waited too as he drew a shuddering breath.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201c..bastard Weston…betrayed…us….\u00a0 Posse was…here….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow\u2019d you get away?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

A sad smile lifted the corner of Del\u2019s blood-streaked lips.\u00a0 \u201cHoyle.\u00a0 Damn fool…kid…spooked my…horse.\u00a0 Sent it…running.\u201d\u00a0 His eyes locked on the sheriff\u2019s.\u00a0 \u201cS\u2019pose…he\u2019s in…jail now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Without hesitation Sheriff Roy nodded.\u00a0 \u201cHoyle\u2019s safe.\u00a0 No one\u2019s gonna hurt him now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Del sort of nodded and his lips curled with a faint smile.\u00a0 \u201cBy…time…I got the horse…under control…was half mile away.\u00a0 Was…going to…turn back.\u201d\u00a0 He coughed and the sound rattled in his chest.\u00a0 \u201cSaw…Weston.\u00a0 Chased him.\u201d\u00a0 The dying man coughed again even as a snort blew more blood out of his nose.\u00a0 \u201cWasn\u2019t…thinking clearly…mad…worried….<\/p>\n

\u201cStupid.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWeston ambushed you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Again, that little half-nod.<\/p>\n

The lawman exchanged a glance with him.\u00a0 Then the sheriff asked, \u201cWhere\u2019s McCloud now?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHeaded….\u201d\u00a0 Del sucked in air.\u00a0 \u201cHeaded back…toward…town.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then he went silent forever.<\/p>\n

Hoss rose to his feet.\u00a0 Sheriff Roy turned with him back toward Genoa.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow why would that there citified varmint want to head back to town?\u201d Sheriff Roy asked.\u00a0 \u201cIs McCloud just plain loco?\u00a0 That town\u2019s out for his blood.\u201d<\/p>\n

There was only one reason he could think of.\u00a0 Little Joe wasn\u2019t here.\u00a0 Little Joe who could identify Weston and appear as a witness in court to convict him.<\/p>\n

That meant Joe was in Genoa somewhere.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d bet all the money he had, Weston McCloud was there too.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ben had moved back as Adam insisted.\u00a0 His son had finally set the charges after a full ten agonizing minutes of calculations.\u00a0 His eldest, with his usual calm demeanor, had reminded him it would do no good to get Little Joe out of the vault if they managed to send a two ton door crashing into him in the process.\u00a0 Adam had to make sure that only the hinges would blow and that they would blow so that the door was pushed to the side instead of into<\/em> the vault.\u00a0 It was a delicate business and Ben knew that more than Joe\u2019s life depended on a successful outcome.<\/p>\n

Most likely so did Adam\u2019s sanity.<\/p>\n

The older man ran a trembling hand over his face to wipe away the sweat beading there.\u00a0 It was rolling off his forehead and into his eyes.\u00a0 Adam was little better.\u00a0 Even in the dim light of the cellar he could see his eldest son\u2019s skin had a sheen to it.\u00a0 He\u2019d have preferred to shoulder the responsibility himself.\u00a0 He\u2019d have set the gunpowder charges if he\u2019d felt competent.\u00a0 Unfortunately, he didn\u2019t.\u00a0 He was counting on his son\u2019s engineering skills to win the day.\u00a0 Both of them had watched it done in the mines.\u00a0\u00a0 Neither of them was a blast expert.<\/p>\n

Still, Adam was closer to being one than he would ever be.<\/p>\n

As his son crouched beside him, they exchanged glances.\u00a0 There were no words.\u00a0 Just a look that said it all.<\/p>\n

Adam turned then to the three men waiting behind them.\u00a0 They\u2019d upturned tables and moved carts and old cabinets of lockboxes, setting the obstacles between them and the door in the hope that, when it blew off the hinges, they would be protected should he have miscalculated and it decided to fly their way.\u00a0 His son\u2019s hazel eyes went to the assistant bank manager first.\u00a0 For all his youth, Burnett had insisted on staying, saying that it was his responsibility to make sure the bank was represented since it was their vault his son was trapped.\u00a0 Next Adam nodded to the store owner.\u00a0 He\u2019d agreed to stay too.\u00a0 Jasper was a veteran of the War with Mexico and had offered to assist Doctor Hanks if necessary. \u00a0He\u2019d served in field hospitals, he said, his voice grim.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen it all.<\/p>\n

Last of all his son turned to the physician.\u00a0 Grim only began to describe the look on the man\u2019s face.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet that boy out of there now!\u201d Milton ordered through teeth gritted hard.<\/p>\n

Adam nodded.\u00a0 He turned back toward the vault. \u00a0As he went to strike a match to light the fuse line, Ben stopped him.\u00a0 Holding his son\u2019s gaze, he took it from him and struck it himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cTogether,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

And lit the cord.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joe couldn\u2019t see her, but he could hear his mama singing again.\u00a0 He was happy she\u2019d come back.\u00a0 He was pretty sure he was sick and, whenever he was sick, she\u2019d sit on the side of his bed and sing and that singing would chase the pain away.<\/p>\n

It was doing it now.<\/p>\n

He hardly felt any pain anymore.\u00a0\u00a0 His head and heart weren\u2019t pounding like they\u2019d been before and the church bells had stopped.\u00a0 He was still breathing fast though.\u00a0 In fact, he sounded like a little puppy standing on its hind-quarters, eager for a treat.<\/p>\n

Seeing mama would be a treat.<\/p>\n

Closing his eyes, Joe thought again of his brothers.\u00a0 They were gonna be mighty upset if he went home with Mama.\u00a0\u00a0 He felt worst of all about Adam.\u00a0 Adam was gonna blame himself.\u00a0 He was good at that.\u00a0 He\u2019d been trying hard to get his older brother to understand that he was growing up and that he was old enough now to be responsible for the choices he made, good or bad.<\/p>\n

Joe chuckled weakly.<\/p>\n

Boy, that last one had been a humdinger!<\/p>\n

Then there was Hoss.\u00a0 Hoss would cry and he couldn\u2019t stand to see Hoss cry.<\/p>\n

And Pa.\u00a0 Pa would go all stoic like older brother.\u00a0 He\u2019d hold it all in until his sadness burst through like a gully-washer, swamping him.<\/p>\n

He couldn\u2019t do that to Pa.<\/p>\n

He couldn\u2019t do it to Adam or Hoss either.<\/p>\n

\u201cMama,\u201d the dying boy whispered, even as a sizzling sound penetrated the darkness of a mind shutting down.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry…\u00a0 You\u2019re just gonna have to wait….\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

On the street outside of the shuttered bank, with its black tape and wreath, the citizens of Genoa stopped and looked around amazed.\u00a0 They paused as well in the livery and the mercantile and in the hotels and dress shops as ceiling lights swung and items danced off of shelves; as the solid ground rolled under their feet.\u00a0 Most of them ran to catch hold of something, waiting on the aftershock from a quake that never was.<\/p>\n

Below, in the cellar of the new Genoa City Bank, debris rained down on the men who crouched behind the barricade as a huge cloud of dust and smoke billowed out from the area of the vault, rising toward the ceiling \u2013 some, but not all of it fleeing through the open chute door that led to the outside.\u00a0 Adam found he was holding his father\u2019s hand.\u00a0 Their eyes met as they waited for the smoke to clear enough that they could see what their choice to blow the safe had brought \u2013 freedom or death for the boy they both loved.<\/p>\n

His father\u2019s jaw tightened as he released his hand.\u00a0 The older man closed his eyes briefly \u2013 Adam knew it was in prayer \u2013 and then he rose to his feet.\u00a0 For a second Pa seemed lost.\u00a0 Then he shouted.<\/p>\n

He had to shout.\u00a0 He could barely hear.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam!\u00a0 I can see your brother!\u00a0 I can see Joe!\u201d<\/p>\n

Faster than was sensible the older man began to crawl over the twisted remnants of the metal lockboxes and shelves that separated him from his youngest son. \u00a0Pa\u2019s sleeve caught on an upturned bit of metal.\u00a0 He ripped it loose.\u00a0 Another grabbed at his pants leg in passing.\u00a0 His pa thrust it out of his way, cutting his hand in the process. \u00a0The older man ignored the blood.<\/p>\n

Every fiber of Benjamin Cartwright\u2019s sizeable frame was bent toward reaching Little Joe.<\/p>\n

Adam cast a glance at the doctor, ignored his sympathetic but bleak look, and took off after his father.<\/p>\n

The air was thick enough to choke.\u00a0 Adam lifted his shirt over his mouth as he moved through the debris and stepped over the mangled wreckage of the vault door.\u00a0 It had blow both out and to the left as intended.\u00a0 Still, fragments of metal had been driven into the vault.\u00a0 He could see some of them embedded in the sides of the wooden cases that held the lockboxes.<\/p>\n

If one of them had hit Joe….<\/p>\n

His father was kneeling in the back of the vault near the cage door.\u00a0 His back was to him.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t see his brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa?\u201d<\/p>\n

His father stiffened.\u00a0 He glanced at him.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t shake his head, but he didn\u2019t nod it either.<\/p>\n

Do something, Pa!<\/em> his brain screamed.\u00a0 Say something!<\/em><\/p>\n

Then the words came.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s alive, Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

Relief flooded through him.\u00a0 Then his father added.<\/p>\n

\u201cBarely.\u201d<\/p>\n

The doctor had his shoulder and was pushing him aside.\u00a0 \u201cLet me through!\u201d Milton commanded.<\/p>\n

Adam stepped back to let the older man pass.\u00a0 At the same time his father rose with Little Joe in his arms.\u00a0 Pa was wearing a pale blue shirt.<\/p>\n

Joe was just as blue, but paler.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to get him out of here and up where there\u2019s clean air,\u201d Doctor Hanks ordered as he lifted his brother\u2019s lids and touched his cold skin.\u00a0 \u201cNever mind if he\u2019s hurt,\u201d he added at his father\u2019s look, \u201che\u2019ll die of cyanosis if we don\u2019t get some oxygen into him.\u00a0 Its been too long.\u201d<\/p>\n

With that cryptic remark, the physician led the way out of the vault.<\/p>\n

It was almost like being a man who had been trapped in a mine and was suddenly freed.\u00a0 When they stepped out onto the street and into the daylight Adam was almost blinded.\u00a0 The air was sweet.\u00a0 It smelled of rain newly fallen.\u00a0 All around them were dozens of people looking as if they were waiting for something to happen.\u00a0 It took a moment and then he had it.\u00a0 It almost made him laugh.\u00a0 Almost.<\/p>\n

They thought there\u2019d been an earthquake and were waiting for another.\u00a0 The citizens of Genoa \u00a0thought the safe blowing had been an act of God.<\/p>\n

Adam ran a hand over his face as he nearly dissolved.<\/p>\n

It had been.<\/p>\n

God had brought Joe forth out of the belly of the whale.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The doctor quickly commandeered a wagon with a clean bed and ordered Ben to lay his boy in it.\u00a0 Then he ordered him to get out of his way.\u00a0 The older man knew from experience that as much as he wanted to be close to this son, who had been rescued from the grave a second <\/em>time, the physician needed room to do what he had to do in order to save Joseph\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

If he hadn\u2019t seen the boy\u2019s chest slowly rising and falling, he would have thought that what he\u2019d picked up and carried was a corpse. \u00a0Joseph\u2019s skin was pale as the gray day.\u00a0 His lips and nails were blue.\u00a0 And most frightening of all, he was completely still.\u00a0 Joseph was never still.<\/p>\n

Something was very<\/em> wrong with the world.<\/p>\n

Milton Hanks shouted.\u00a0 He was leaning over Joe, opening his son\u2019s shirt; laying his head on the boy\u2019s chest.\u00a0 When he looked up, all hope was gone.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe isn\u2019t breathing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s heart skipped a beat.\u00a0 He glanced at Adam who looked sick and then vaulted into the wagon bed and thrust the doctor aside.\u00a0 Taking his son\u2019s cold hand in his own, Ben stroked the boy\u2019s hair, his cheek; he touched the place over his son\u2019s heart and felt….<\/p>\n

Yes.<\/p>\n

A faint beat.\u00a0 Faint.<\/em><\/p>\n

None.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph,\u201d Ben said softly, stroking that curly hair and leaning in close to the boy\u2019s ear. \u201cJoseph, it\u2019s your Pa.\u00a0 Listen to me, son.\u00a0 You have to fight.\u00a0 Remember what I told you about that little foal?\u00a0 She\u2019s all grown up now.\u00a0 She won<\/em> her battle.\u00a0 Son, you have to win <\/em>yours.\u00a0 Fight, Joseph.\u00a0 Fight <\/em>for me!\u201d<\/p>\n

He wanted to take the boy and shake him.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know what else to do.\u00a0 A glance at the doctor told him they were past desperation.\u00a0 After all, if the boy was going to die, what would it hurt?<\/p>\n

Catching his son by his arm, he shook him gently.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph.\u00a0 It\u2019s your father.\u00a0 Joseph, breathe, boy!\u201d<\/p>\n

The doctor hovered close by.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve got maybe four minutes, Mister Cartwright,\u201d he said, his tone clinical.\u00a0 \u201cAfter that even if you revive him there will be brain damage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam was in the wagon now.\u00a0 His son\u2019s hazel eyes locked on his.\u00a0 Ben staggered back as Adam took his place.<\/p>\n

His oldest boy was angry.\u00a0 More angry than he had ever seen him before.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, you wake up, you hear me!\u201d\u00a0 Rarely seen tears fell from Adam\u2019s eyes as he took hold of the collar of Joe\u2019s gray shirt with both hands.\u00a0 \u201cYou get up you….\u00a0 You wake up you good-for-nothing layabout!\u00a0 Get up and get to work!\u00a0 You hear me!\u201d\u00a0 And then, Adam did what he hadn\u2019t had the heart to do.\u00a0 He pulled his brother\u2019s limp form up off of the wagon bed and shook him so hard the curls bounced on Joe\u2019s pallid forehead.\u00a0 \u201cGod,<\/em> Joe!\u00a0 Wake up!\u00a0 You have to wake up!\u00a0 Joe!\u00a0 Don\u2019t you dare die on me!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The street was utterly silent.\u00a0 It seemed at that moment that Ben heard the angels sigh.<\/p>\n

Or maybe.<\/p>\n

Just maybe <\/em>it was Joe.<\/p>\n

His son\u2019s blue lips parted.\u00a0 Joseph\u2019s rich green eyes opened.\u00a0 They were unfocused and shot with red, but they opened.<\/p>\n

Ben didn\u2019t even mind when the first word that passed between them wasn\u2019t his<\/em> name.<\/p>\n

Joe breathed.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam…\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

He had never been so exhausted in all of his life.<\/p>\n

Adam Cartwright practically fell to the board walk.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t remember climbing out of the wagon where Joe lay.\u00a0 Maybe he didn\u2019t.\u00a0 Maybe he was carried.<\/p>\n

More likely he fell.<\/p>\n

However he got there it was about all he could do to manage to drop his head between his knees before the lights went out.\u00a0 Even so, for a second or two, he saw nothing but black.\u00a0\u00a0 He stayed there, locked in that position for he had no idea how<\/em> long, until he felt a familiar hand on his shoulder.\u00a0 When he looked up he saw his father.\u00a0 The older man smiled wanly and then dropped beside him.<\/p>\n

\u201cAren\u2019t we a pair?\u201d Adam murmured.<\/p>\n

His father nodded.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe?\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man\u2019s near-black eyes went to the wagon.\u00a0 His jaw was tight. \u00a0\u201cAs well as can be expected.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMeaning?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour brother is a long way from being out of the woods, son.\u00a0 He went almost too long without air.\u00a0 The doctor\u2019s ready to move him.\u00a0 Milton says we need to bathe him as quickly as possible and get him into fresh clothes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam frowned.\u00a0 \u201cWhy is that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSomething about the air in the vault. It can cling to a man, continue to make him sick.\u00a0 He says we have to strip your brother bare and soap him from head to toe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam let a slight smile curl his lips.\u00a0 \u201cGood thing Joe\u2019s out cold.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father laughed.\u00a0 He seemed grateful for the release, though he sobered quickly enough.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cOnce he\u2019s cleaned up there\u2019s not a lot to be done. \u00a0He needs oxygen most of all.\u00a0 We have to make sure he…well…he keeps breathing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs that all?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u00a0 He\u2019ll have to be monitored for a few days.\u00a0 His heart may have been weakened.\u00a0 He could develop pneumonia.\u00a0 There might be…convulsions as a result. \u00a0Maybe even epilepsy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGod….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, son.\u00a0 God<\/em>.\u00a0 God led us to your brother.\u00a0 God has seen Joseph out of that vault, and He<\/em> will see him through.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam lifted an eyebrow.\u00a0 \u201cYou have His personal promise on that?\u00a0 Do you, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man clapped him on the shoulder and then rose to his feet.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have His Word.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ben was sitting at Joseph\u2019s side, keeping watch and nodding, when a commotion in the hotel lobby brought him to his feet.\u00a0 The manager had graciously given them a room close to the main staircase so Doctor Hanks could come and go with ease.\u00a0 He\u2019d been in to examine Joseph about a half-hour before.<\/p>\n

Nothing had changed.<\/p>\n

With a concerned glance at his quiescent boy, Ben crossed the room and opened the door only to find his gentle giant of a son barreling down the hallway as if nothing \u2013 God included \u2013 could stop him.\u00a0 Hoss halted just outside the door, breathless, hopeful…hurting.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa?\u00a0 They said you found Joe?\u00a0 Pa, is he all right?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019 sky-blue eyes were wet with tears as they went to the open door.\u00a0 \u201cI mean, you got him in a room.\u00a0 He\u2019s gonna make it, ain\u2019t he, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laid a hand on the shoulder of Inger\u2019s son.\u00a0 \u201cYour brother is sleeping.\u00a0 He\u2019s alive.\u00a0 I\u2019m afraid I can\u2019t say much more yet, but that\u2019s enough for now. \u00a0Joseph is alive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019 eyes crinkled with pain. \u201cThe sheriff, well, he said you found him.\u201d\u00a0 The big man\u2019s voice squeaked \u2013 really<\/em> squeaked.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe was trapped in the bank vault?\u00a0 Since yesterday night?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss sucked in air to steady himself.\u00a0 \u201cPa,\u00a0 you didn\u2019t answer me.\u00a0 Is Joe gonna be all right?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss was well aware of what happened to the victims of cave-ins; how most suffocated to death. \u00a0\u00a0But his son knew as well there were others who survived \u2013 and who were never right again.<\/p>\n

He squeezed his son\u2019s fleshy shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cWe can only look to God.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those blue eyes were searching the room behind him.\u00a0 \u201cCan I sit with Little Joe, Pa?\u00a0 I mean, I won\u2019t disturb him or nothin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled.\u00a0 \u201cGo ahead.\u00a0 Disturb him.\u00a0 Let Joseph know<\/em> you\u2019re there.\u00a0 Talk to him, son.\u00a0 You\u2019re close.\u00a0 Maybe he\u2019ll hear you and come back.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Hoss pushed past him and entered the room, Ben heard Adam\u2019s voice drifting up the stairs.\u00a0 His oldest had gone to talk to the sheriff.\u00a0 From the sound of it, he\u2019d found him and another lawman along the way.\u00a0 Ben recognized Roy Coffee\u2019s voice as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt ain\u2019t over, Adam,\u201d he heard his old friend say as he descended the stairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat isn\u2019t over, Roy?\u201d Ben asked, drawing their attention.<\/p>\n

All three looked guilty.\u00a0 Apparently they hadn\u2019t decided yet whether to share what they were talking about with him or not.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat <\/em>isn\u2019t over?\u201d he asked again as he came to stand beside them.<\/p>\n

Roy looked nervous.\u00a0 \u201cDid Hoss tell you?\u201d<\/p>\n

He looked from the sheriff to his eldest.\u00a0 \u201cTell me what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDel\u2019s dead, Pa,\u201d Adam said.\u00a0 \u201cHoss and Roy found him just outside of town with a bullet in his gut.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man pursed his lips and sighed.\u00a0 Such a waste.\u00a0 Both<\/em> gone.\u00a0 \u201cWho shot him?\u201d\u00a0 He turned to the lawman.\u00a0 \u201cYou, Roy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Pa.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t Roy.\u00a0 It was Weston McCloud.\u201d\u00a0 Adam\u2019s hazel eyes sought his.\u00a0 \u201cWeston\u2019s still on the loose.\u201d<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t take a pen and a piece of paper to spell out what that meant.\u00a0 \u201cDoes McCloud know your brother survived?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no way of knowin\u2019, Ben,\u201d Roy said, his voice apologetic.\u00a0 The lawman\u2019s gaze shot to the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cWho\u2019s with Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss.\u201d\u00a0 There was no need to worry so long as Hoss was there.\u00a0 He\u2019d break the weasel of a man in half if Weston dared to even look in Joseph\u2019s direction.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got a search party out looking for McCloud, Mister Cartwright,\u201d Hiram Whitaker said.\u00a0 \u201cTrouble is, anybody who met him can\u2019t quite recall what he looks like.\u00a0 They all say he was about as ordinary as it gets.\u00a0 Middle height, middle weight, middle-aged, middling brown hair.\u00a0 Nothing distinguishing about him other than a scar above his brow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Such was the face of a monster.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat about the witnesses at the robbery?\u00a0 The young woman, for one, who remembered Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJenny?\u00a0 She was pretty scared and her attention was on her husband.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDid her young man pull through?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hiram nodded.\u00a0 \u201cJack\u2019ll be fine.\u00a0 Jenny saw Weston, but only once when bullets were flying and the smoke was rising.\u00a0 She said the same thing.\u00a0 Muddy brown hair, ordinary-looking.\u201d\u00a0 The sheriff turned and indicated the bustling dining room of the hotel.\u00a0 \u201cHe could be sitting here pretty as a jaybird and we wouldn\u2019t know.\u201d\u00a0 The lawman sought his gaze and held it.\u00a0 \u201cMister Cartwright, until we find him, you can\u2019t leave your son alone for a minute.\u00a0 Jenny might have an idea of what McCloud looks like.\u00a0 I doubt it would hold up in court.\u00a0 Your son is the only one left who could positively identify him.\u201d<\/p>\n

He knew it.\u00a0 Even if \u2013 when <\/em>\u2013 Joe recovered, it wasn\u2019t over.<\/p>\n

Not by a long shot.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam watched his father head for the front door of the hotel.\u00a0 The older man had said he needed a breath of fresh air.\u00a0 Knowing his pa that was just an excuse to find some quiet place to petition his God for Little Joe\u2019s life.\u00a0 He\u2019d found him before on his knees in the middle of the stable, and one time, in the bath house. \u00a0Anywhere that was away from\u00a0 the hustle and bustle of an active ranch.\u00a0 Adam smiled at the memory.\u00a0 Marie was Catholic and her prayer time was non-negotiable.\u00a0 He\u2019d found her once fully clothed and on her knees when he\u2019d opened the door to the privy.<\/p>\n

She\u2019d blushed and laughed, and then said it was the only place she could find where she was sure no men would bother her.<\/p>\n

Adam took hold of the railing and slowly ascended the stairs, headed for the room where his little brother lay.\u00a0 They\u2019d brought Joe out of the darkness of the vault that could have been his tomb, but in some ways he was still in there.<\/p>\n

It was eerie to see Joe so quiet and still.<\/p>\n

As he came to the door Adam hesitated before entering.\u00a0 Finding a chair in the hall he sat in it and considered the last few months.\u00a0 He\u2019d tried to convince himself that he\u2019d handled Joe right.\u00a0 That he had<\/em> to ride his obstinate little brother hard in order to keep him safe, in order to make him into a man.\u00a0 The truth was….\u00a0 Well, the truth was that was <\/em>the truth.\u00a0 At times.\u00a0\u00a0 At other times it was convenient lie.\u00a0 The truth was he\u2019d let other things become more important than his brother.\u00a0\u00a0 Meeting a deadline.\u00a0 Impressing the hands with his knowledge.<\/p>\n

Impressing the businessmen<\/em> who thought he wasn\u2019t fit to fill his father\u2019s shoes.<\/p>\n

Joe wasn\u2019t him.\u00a0 Joe was…well, Joe.\u00a0 His little brother needed other people around him almost as much as he needed their approval.\u00a0 Joe lived on touch and on a kind word.\u00a0 He thrived when he was complimented and withered with correction.\u00a0 Adam shook his head.\u00a0 He knew it, and still<\/em> he corrected him.\u00a0 Still, he sought to tame him, to change <\/em>him.<\/p>\n

To break Joe\u2019s spirit.<\/p>\n

With a deep sigh, the black-haired man leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.<\/p>\n

God, was he so <\/em>selfish?<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam….\u201d<\/p>\n

Opening them he found his giant of a brother standing in the hall.\u00a0 Hoss was looking at him like he read every thought in his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow\u2019s Joe?\u201d he asked, straightening up.<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t never seen little brother so quiet, Adam.\u00a0 He ain\u2019t moved a pinch.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been through a lot,\u201d he said as he ran a hand over his stubbled cheek.\u00a0 With a snort, he added, \u201cWe all have.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou done good gettin\u2019 him out of that vault.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou mean I managed not to kill Joe or us?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cYou never was one to take a compliment.\u201d<\/p>\n

He shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cNo, I guess not.\u201d\u00a0 Adam stood and looked toward the door.\u00a0 \u201cYou want me to keep watch?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019 look was dark.\u00a0 \u201cYou know about McCloud, then?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat he\u2019s on the loose and most likely gunning for Joe?\u00a0 Yes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t little brother been through enough!\u201d the big man declared.<\/p>\n

Adam ran a hand along the back of his neck.\u00a0 \u201cI imagine McCloud can\u2019t outrun the law for long.\u00a0 Every deputy and half the citizenry of the town is looking for him.\u00a0 Remember what they did to Hoyle and the other bank robbers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI cain\u2019t forget,\u201d his gentle giant of a brother replied.<\/p>\n

Moving close to him, Adam touched his arm.\u00a0 \u201cGo see if you can find Pa.\u00a0 I think he\u2019s probably needing someone about now.\u00a0\u00a0 I\u2019ll watch Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded.\u00a0 He touched his hand and then moved quickly down the stairs.<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s weary eyes followed him and then he stepped into his little brother\u2019s room.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Down the hall to the right, near the laundry chute, a middle-size, middle-aged, middle-minded man lingered.\u00a0 He\u2019d gone to the hotel\u2019s lower levels and stolen clothes from the employee\u2019s wardrobe room.\u00a0 He \u2018d changed his clothes and looked like he belonged.\u00a0 No one would suspect him if he stopped outside a door and knocked, or stepped inside<\/em> a room to inquire if anything was needed.\u00a0 No one would care if he went to a window to make certain it was secure and perhaps left it open an inch.<\/p>\n

No.<\/p>\n

No one at all.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

FIFTEEN<\/p>\n

Adam caught himself nodding.\u00a0 He blinked the sleep from his eyes and lifted his head.\u00a0 He\u2019d fallen asleep in the chair by Joe\u2019s bed.\u00a0 Twisting, he looked out the window.\u00a0 It was dark.\u00a0 They\u2019d found Joe around six or seven in the morning.\u00a0 Twelve, maybe thirteen hours before.<\/p>\n

Twelve hours.\u00a0 Half a day.<\/p>\n

What a difference it could make.<\/p>\n

Rising, he leaned over his little brother and repeated the current ritual.\u00a0 He pressed his ear to Joe\u2019s chest and then let two fingers hover over the boy\u2019s lips.\u00a0 That was the only way he knew his brother\u2019s heart was still beating and Joe was still breathing.\u00a0 Since saying his name that morning on the street, Little Joe hadn\u2019t said a word.\u00a0 His color was better.\u00a0 The blue was gone from his lips and fingernails, but it seemed Joe\u2019s life and vitality had gone with it.\u00a0 He\u2019d been in the room along with his father the last time Doctor Hanks visited.\u00a0 The older man said his brother might remain comatose for some time.<\/p>\n

Maybe forever.<\/p>\n

Joe.\u00a0 Still.<\/p>\n

Forever.<\/p>\n

It would have been kinder to let him die.<\/p>\n

Adam screwed his face up, denying the tears that threatened to fall, and walked to the window.\u00a0 As he did, a knock came at the door.\u00a0 Puzzled, he crossed the room and opened it to find one of the hotel security guards standing in the hall.\u00a0 The man was of average height and had a hat pulled down over his forehead.<\/p>\n

He was wearing a gun.<\/p>\n

\u201cChecking on the young man, sir.\u00a0 Is all well?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded absentmindedly. \u201cAs well as can be expected.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWould you like me to inspect the locks on the windows and doors?\u201d<\/p>\n

He frowned.\u00a0 \u201cDid someone send you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, sir,\u201d the man replied.\u00a0 \u201cJust doing my duty.\u00a0 I walk the floors every night.\u00a0 I heard, well, that there might be some trouble and thought you\u2019d like to make sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHeard?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI spoke with Hiram when he came by earlier.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh.\u00a0 I see.\u201d\u00a0 Adam hesitated to let anyone into Joe\u2019s room, especially someone who was armed.\u00a0 \u201cI think we\u2019re fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs you will, sir.\u00a0 I\u2019ll check back again come the end of my rounds to make sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI doubt I\u2019ll change my mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

He tipped his hat.\u00a0 \u201cAs I said, sir, as you will.\u201d<\/p>\n

A moment later the security guard was gone.<\/p>\n

Adam closed the door after him and returned to the chair by Joe\u2019s side.\u00a0 Maybe he had been foolish.\u00a0 They were in a hotel, after all.\u00a0 There were literally dozens of people moving up and down the halls and lingering on the streets outside.\u00a0 Rising, he went to the window and checked the lock himself.\u00a0 It seemed secure.\u00a0 With a frown, he went to the door and checked it too.\u00a0 As he did, there was a knock.<\/p>\n

For some reason, it made him hold his breath.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam, it\u2019s your father.\u00a0 Let me in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Relieved, he turned the lock and opened the door.\u00a0 \u201cPa.\u00a0 Am I glad to see you.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man was instantly on the alert.\u00a0 \u201cIs something wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u00a0 It\u2019s just, well, I\u2019m jumping at shadows.\u00a0 I think I need to sleep for a little while.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father\u2019s eyes went to the still form on the bed. \u201cHas your brother stirred?\u201d<\/p>\n

He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam watched as the older man went to the chair and took a seat.\u00a0 Once there he reached out and took Joe\u2019s hand in his own, rubbing his thumb over a red spot Adam had missed.\u00a0 Using the other one, his father lovingly brushed the curls back from his brother\u2019s forehead.\u00a0 \u201cDoctor Hanks thinks Joseph went too long without oxygen.\u00a0 He…tested him….\u201d\u00a0 His father drew a breath.\u00a0 \u201cYour brother responded to a needle being stuck in his hand.\u00a0 He mumbled something and his muscles tensed, like he…like he wanted to get away.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s good, isn\u2019t it?\u201d he asked with hope.<\/p>\n

His father turned eyes black, not from nature, but with fear on him.\u00a0 \u201cThe doctor thinks your brother is in a vegetative state and won\u2019t ever wake again.\u201d<\/p>\n

The words were out before he could stop them.\u00a0 \u201cDoctor Hanks isn\u2019t God.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father looked startled.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t think he claims to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam scowled.\u00a0 \u201cSorry, Pa.\u00a0 It\u2019s just, Milton doesn\u2019t know Joe.\u00a0 If anyone can beat the odds \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s your brother.\u201d\u00a0 His father smiled wearily at him.\u00a0 \u201cI completely agree. Still, we have to prepare ourselves.\u00a0 Hanks is a man of science.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you\u2019re a man of faith<\/em>, Pa.\u201d\u00a0 Adam\u2019s voice was quiet.\u00a0 \u201cI know which you <\/em>would tell me was stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father leaned forward and planted a kiss on his brother\u2019s forehead and then rose.\u00a0 He rounded the bed and faced him.\u00a0 \u201cSon,\u201d he said quietly, \u2018have I told you how proud I am of the man you\u2019ve become?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam was taken aback.\u00a0 \u201cPa, how can you say that?\u201d \u00a0He indicated his motionless brother.\u00a0 \u201cLook<\/em> at what happened when you left me in charge.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know you did what you thought was best.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I didn\u2019t, Pa.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t!\u201d\u00a0 Shame drove back the tears that threatened to fall.\u00a0 \u201cI was angry.\u00a0 I said things I shouldn\u2019t have said.\u00a0 I drove <\/em>Joe away!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I suppose your brother just stood there and said nothing to provoke you?\u201d his father asked quietly.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe….\u201d\u00a0 Adam stopped.\u00a0 A little smile touched his lips.\u00a0 \u201cOf course.\u00a0 Joe stood there like a little angel and nodded his head.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cExactly.\u201d\u00a0 His father reached out and cupped his cheek with his hand.\u00a0 It was a familiar gesture he employed with Joe all the time, but seldom with him.\u00a0 The fact that he did it said more than his words.\u00a0 \u201cYour brother chose to run away from home.\u00a0 Whatever drove him to that choice, Joseph still made it.\u00a0 No one forced him.\u201d\u00a0 His father paused as if in pain.\u00a0 \u201cIf your brother regains consciousness, he and I will have a lot to talk about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam covered his father\u2019s hand with his own. \u201cWhen, Pa.\u00a0 When<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man nodded wearily.\u00a0 \u201cWhen.\u201d<\/p>\n

A knock on the door made them both look toward the hall.\u00a0 Adam went to it, unlocked and opened it.\u00a0 Hoss was standing outside.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow\u2019s Joe?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

Adam sniffed.\u00a0 \u201cThe same.\u00a0 Sorry to say.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought I\u2019d sit with him a bit, if it\u2019s okay.\u00a0 That young lady from the bank, the one whose husband was shot, she\u2019s downstairs.\u00a0 Says she wants to talk to Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man nodded.\u00a0 \u201cAdam, I\u2019d like you with me.\u00a0 Hoss, you stay with Joe.\u00a0 Don\u2019t leave him alone.\u00a0 Not for a minute.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ben gripped the railing tightly as he quickly descended the stairs.\u00a0 Neither he nor his boys had had any real sleep in the last twenty-four hours and it was telling. His mind, usually sharp, was not only fatigued but clouded with unwanted words \u2013 comatose, vegetative, somnolent.<\/p>\n

Brain dead.<\/p>\n

The older man felt a hand grip his elbow.\u00a0 \u201cWatch where you\u2019re going, Pa.\u00a0 We don\u2019t need two convalescents in the family.\u201d<\/p>\n

He glanced at Adam and whispered a silent thanks for that<\/em> word.\u00a0 Convalescent.<\/p>\n

Improving.\u00a0 Recovering.<\/p>\n

Soon<\/em> to be well.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you, son,\u201d Ben said as he straightened and watched where he next placed his foot.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m fine now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam released his grip as he accepted the easy and oft-told lie.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure thing, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMister Cartwright!\u201d a young voice called out as they reached the hotel lobby floor.<\/p>\n

Ben looked and saw that Roy and Genoa\u2019s sheriff were missing.\u00a0 In their place was a lovely young lady with black hair and near-black eyes.\u00a0 He approached her and held out his hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel I should know you,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The young woman smiled hesitantly.\u00a0 He noted her eyes were red-rimmed.\u00a0 \u201cJuliet.\u00a0 Juliet Hallenberger.\u00a0 The restaurant at Eagle Station?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, yes.\u201d\u00a0 Now he remembered.\u00a0 The lovely waitress.\u00a0 \u201cYou were coming here to spend time with your sister and her husband.\u201d<\/p>\n

Juliet sobered instantly.\u00a0 \u201cThose madmen shot him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bank robbers?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d\u00a0 Juliet looked over her shoulder.\u00a0 Beyond, in the dining room, another young woman with dark hair sat weeping, almost inconsolably. An older woman was at her side. \u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s my sister, Jenny.\u00a0 She was at the bank.\u00a0 She saw everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben felt bile rise into his throat.\u00a0 \u201cI thought her young man was going to make it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Julie started.\u00a0 \u201cOh yes. \u00a0<\/em>Jack\u2019s getting better.\u00a0 Jenny, well, she\u2019s upset about something she told the sheriff.\u00a0 She knows now she was wrong.\u201d\u00a0 Tears flooded Juliet\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 \u201cOh, Mister Cartwright can you ever forgive her?\u201d<\/p>\n

There was such pain in Juliet\u2019s young voice that it quite took him aback.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do I need to forgive your sister for?\u201d<\/p>\n

The dark-haired beauty drew in a deep breath.\u00a0 Her eyes went to Adam who was standing at his side, looking as puzzled as he did.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe death of your son.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hoss shifted.\u00a0 He\u2019d parked in the chair by his little brother\u2019s bed and, as usual, it wasn\u2019t made for someone his size.\u00a0 Looking at Joe, lying there, so small and so still, a sad smile lifted the big man\u2019s lip.\u00a0 Nothing much was made for Joe\u2019s size either.\u00a0 It was funny how they were on both ends of Adam \u2013 whose size was just about right as men went \u2013 kind of like those three bears that there Goldilocks ran into.\u00a0 Reaching forward, he tugged the cover up closer to his brother\u2019s beardless chin.\u00a0 Hovering above him, Hoss switched his fingers to the curls on Joe\u2019s forehead.\u00a0 They felt like the finest stallion\u2019s coat.\u00a0 And that\u2019s what his little brother was \u2013 a fiery, fierce stallion.\u00a0 Pa\u2019d taught him early on to be careful around them tall proud horses.\u00a0 He said, \u2018Hoss, a stallion is a wonderful animal.\u00a0 Everything\u2019s fine with him until you get in his way or you challenge his dominance, even while just playing games.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

Hoss snorted.<\/p>\n

Little Joe sure as heck did hate to lose a game.\u00a0 And as to getting in his way, well, there weren\u2019t no stoppin\u2019 that boy when he wanted something, or thought he knew something better than you.<\/p>\n

Joe was stopped now.<\/p>\n

It was, well, like he weren\u2019t Joe <\/em>no more.<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019 big thumb rubbed across his brother\u2019s forehead as he called to him.\u00a0 \u201cJoe.\u00a0 Hey, Little Joe.\u00a0 Punkin<\/em>\u2019, it\u2019s me, old Hoss.\u201d\u00a0 He waited for a reaction.\u00a0 He knew how much Joe bucked at the pet name he had for him.\u00a0 \u201cYou wake up now.\u00a0 You hear?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs the young man no better?\u201d a concerned voice asked from the area of the door.\u00a0 Hoss reared up like a mama bear protecting her own and turned toward it. \u00a0\u201cHow\u2019d you get in here?\u201d he asked the man who stood in the open doorway holding a new set of towels.<\/p>\n

The hotel employee shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI apologize, sir, if I startled you.\u00a0 The door was open.\u00a0 The manager sent me up with a change of fresh linens.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss eyed the man.\u00a0 He was pretty average and was dressed just like every other male staff member he\u2019d seen moving around the hotel in a funny little coat with black pants and a cap.\u00a0 Several had been in since they\u2019d brought Little Joe to his room.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry I shouted,\u201d he apologized.\u00a0 \u201cPa must have left the door unlocked accidentally when he and Adam left.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps he thought this \u2018Adam\u2019 would lock it after him?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u00a0 That\u2019s it, most likely,\u201d the big man said as he turned back to his brother.<\/p>\n

A moment later the man cleared his throat.\u00a0 \u201cMay I, sir?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss blinked.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEnter the room.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, sure.\u00a0 If you just got towels you can lay them on the chest over there by the window.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you, sir.\u201d\u00a0 The man\u2019s pale eyes locked on him.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll attend to the washstand while I am here as well, if that\u2019s all right.\u00a0 I am sure the young man could use some cool clean water.\u201d<\/p>\n

He nodded.\u00a0 \u201cThanks.\u201d\u00a0 Returning to his brother\u2019s side, Hoss picked Joe\u2019s limp hand up and held it.\u00a0 \u201cYou hear that, punkin\u2019, you got nice people lookin\u2019 out for you.\u00a0 Everyone wants you to get bet\u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

There was a clunk!<\/em>\u00a0 A sigh.<\/p>\n

And then a thud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Seconds later the middle-aged, middle-sized, middle-minded man crossed to the window and opened it, providing an avenue of escape in case he could not slip back out the door.\u00a0 Then he returned to the bed and shoved the hulk of Joseph Cartwright\u2019s middle brother out of the way with his foot.\u00a0 As he stared down at the silent helpless boy a sneer of triumph lifted Weston McCloud\u2019s upper lip.<\/p>\n

Snatching a pillow from beneath Cartwright\u2019s head, he pressed it over the boy\u2019s face.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cCome along with me, Mrs. Sutherland.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben glanced with sympathy over the head of Juliet\u2019s distraught sister at the dark-haired woman who was following close behind as they mounted the stairs.\u00a0 Juliet gave him a little encouraging smile.\u00a0 Her sister, Jenny, was sobbing uncontrollably.\u00a0 He\u2019d been unable to convince the young woman that it had not been Joseph who had been hung, that \u2013 unfortunate as it was \u2013 the young man who had <\/em>been hung had at least deserved punishment.\u00a0 Jenny was the one who\u2019d told the sheriff that it was Joseph who had shot the bank manager.\u00a0 The mistake had been understandable.\u00a0 He\u2019d told her that.\u00a0 He\u2019d told her a hundred things just like that and Adam had added a few dozen more.<\/p>\n

In the end they decided the only thing that would <\/em>console her was seeing Joseph alive.<\/p>\n

So here they were, headed up the staircase to the room where his son lay comatose.\u00a0 He only hoped the sight of Joseph as he was would not be enough to send Juliet\u2019s sister into another fit of guilt and despair.\u00a0 Both Juliet and Jenny were very young, twenty-two or three at most.\u00a0 Both had long lives ahead of them and he would not see them wracked and ruined by false guilt.<\/p>\n

As they approached the room, Ben felt Adam\u2019s hand on his arm.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa, the door\u2019s open.\u201d<\/p>\n

They\u2019d locked it.\u00a0 Hadn\u2019t they?<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you…?\u201d he asked Adam.\u00a0 Terror gripped him at his son\u2019s negative shake of his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought you….\u201d<\/p>\n

After ordering the women to return downstairs, they burst into the room.\u00a0 The sight that greeted them upon their arrival was beyond <\/em>horrifying.\u00a0 One of the staff knelt, his left leg on the side of Joe\u2019s bed.<\/p>\n

He was holding a pillow over Joe\u2019s face.<\/p>\n

When he saw them, the man dropped the pillow.\u00a0 They both reached for their guns as he did but found, since they had been sitting with Joe, that they weren\u2019t wearing them.<\/p>\n

No such luck with the man who was attempting to murder his son.<\/p>\n

They both knew it was Weston McCloud.\u00a0 Who else could it be?\u00a0 Bile rose in Ben\u2019s throat as he stared at this man who had left his youngest to die in the bank vault.\u00a0 McCloud had produced a weapon and trained it on Adam.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne move, Mister Cartwright, and you\u2019ll lose two<\/em> sons tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s eyes went to Joseph.\u00a0 He was so still.\u00a0 But then again, he had to remind himself, he\u2019d been still before.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t mean….<\/p>\n

\u201cGo!\u201d the older man shouted.\u00a0 \u201cGet out!\u00a0 I need to care for my son!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe dead one,\u201d McCloud sneered, \u201cor the one I\u2019m pointing my gun at?\u201d\u00a0 The man\u2019s foot shot out and someone moaned.\u00a0 \u201cOr maybe you mean the one here on the floor?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss!<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat have you done?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry about the big one\u2019s head.\u00a0 It\u2019ll mend.\u201d\u00a0 Weston nodded toward Joe, \u201cUnlike that one\u2019s body.\u00a0 He got what he deserved, the little brat!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019d best go, McCloud,\u201d Adam growled.\u00a0 \u201cThe sheriff will be back any time and the hotel is full of guests.\u201d<\/p>\n

The bank robber\u2019s eyes went from him to his father, to Hoss where he lay, and then back to Joe on the bed.\u00a0 The gun wavered between them, finally settling on Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cDamn kid can identify me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s breath caught in his chest.\u00a0 There was<\/em> a chance Joe was alive!\u00a0 Weston wouldn\u2019t threaten to shoot him otherwise.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can all do that now, McCloud,\u201d Adam said evenly.\u00a0 \u201cAnd will, with pleasure.\u201d<\/p>\n

The robber\u2019s anger and gun turned on Adam.\u00a0 Before he could say anything, Weston McCloud pulled the trigger.\u00a0 His son anticipated it and dove to the side nearly out of harm\u2019s way.<\/p>\n

Nearly.<\/p>\n

As Adam\u2019s blood ran red from a wound in his arm, the bank robber went to the window and opened it all the way.\u00a0 Stepping out, he waved his weapon in farewell.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d be afraid that you\u2019d try to follow me, Mister Cartwright, but with all three sons injured, I imagine you\u2019re a little preoccupied.\u201d\u00a0 McCloud saluted and then slipped out of the window and onto the \u00a0roof.<\/p>\n

Ben steeled himself to let him go.\u00a0 Weston was right.\u00a0 His place was here.<\/em>\u00a0 There would be time later for vengeance.<\/p>\n

For now he had to see to his boys.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa, Joe…\u201d Adam gasped as blood ran through his fingers.<\/p>\n

Before Ben could turn, he heard his middle son\u2019s sigh and the words, \u201cHe\u2019s alive, Pa.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s still livin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man stared at his youngest for a full ten heartbeats, watching Joseph\u2019s chest rise and fall, before turning to Hoss who, head bleeding, had crawled to the bed to check on his brother.\u00a0 \u201cAre you all right, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss touched his head.\u00a0 There was a sizable knot rising on the back of it.\u00a0 \u201cShucks, Pa.\u00a0 You know my skull\u2019s too thick for any old fancy vase to crack.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben allowed himself the luxury of a smile as he moved to Adam\u2019s side.\u00a0 His eldest had stumbled to a chair and was fumbling, trying to wrap a tourniquet between his heart and the bullet wound.<\/p>\n

Dear Lord!\u00a0 All three of them under threat in one night!<\/p>\n

\u201cPa. Leave it,\u201d Adam insisted as he took the strip of cloth in hand.\u00a0 \u201cYou can\u2019t let that man get away!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour health and your brothers\u2019 is more important than revenge, son.\u00a0 The sheriff will \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

A shout resounded through the night.\u00a0 Outside the window there was a shout.\u00a0 It was returned in anger and then gunfire broke out.\u00a0 Ben went to the window and looked.\u00a0 Standing in the middle of the street was one of the hotel security guards.<\/p>\n

Under his feet was the twitching body of Weston McCloud.<\/p>\n

The man saw him looking.\u00a0 He reached down and opened his shirt and showed Ben the badge he wore.<\/p>\n

Of course.\u00a0 Sheriff\u00a0 Whitaker and Roy had been called away, but the lawmen hadn\u2019t left them alone.\u00a0 One of Whitaker\u2019s deputies had been masquerading as a hotel security guard, keeping watch.<\/p>\n

Watch over his son.<\/p>\n

Ben leaned his head against the cool window glass.\u00a0 It was over.\u00a0 A second later he reeled back and looked at Joseph still unmoving, still silent as the grave.<\/p>\n

No.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

And if what Doctor Hanks believed was true….<\/p>\n

It might never <\/em>be.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The long ride back to the Ponderosa was a desolate one.\u00a0 Once or twice along the way Joe opened his eyes, but there was nothing behind them \u2013 just a void where his feisty annoying little brother should have been.\u00a0 He muttered something a couple of times, but the words were unintelligible.\u00a0 The doctor told them they meant nothing.<\/p>\n

Adam removed his hat and wiped sweat from his brow.\u00a0 He\u2019d watched as Joe flinched several times when they went over rough parts of the trail.\u00a0 Sadly, Doctor Hanks had been thorough in his explanation of just what a \u2018vegetative\u2019 state was.\u00a0 Before they left Genoa he\u2019d told them that someone in a deep coma often exhibited signs of consciousness.\u00a0 They might swallow, scream, laugh or cry.\u00a0 Maybe follow movements with their eyes. But none of these meant they were coming back to life.\u00a0 So long as they could get water into him, Joe\u2019s body might continue for twenty days or so.<\/p>\n

After that, well, there was nothing anyone could do.<\/p>\n

It was killing their father.<\/p>\n

Adam replaced his hat before looking at the older man where he rode in the back of the wagon, supporting Joe\u2019s head on his lap.\u00a0 They\u2019d hooked Buck and Cochise to the back of the wagon.\u00a0 The horse\u2019s heads were bowed too, as if they knew something was dreadfully wrong.<\/p>\n

Doc Martin was stepping out of the front door as they arrived.\u00a0 Paul was a part of this family too, just like Hop Sing who trailed only a moment behind.\u00a0 There wouldn\u2019t be<\/em> a Ponderosa without Paul Martin and there certainly wouldn\u2019t be a Joe Cartwright.\u00a0 From the moment his tiny brother had entered the world early until now \u2013 bringing the fourteen-year-old home looking like a living corpse \u2013 life had been a fight.\u00a0 Sometimes, it was Joe who made it that way, but it seemed, sometimes, that life had it out for him.\u00a0 It was either going to break him or make him strong.<\/p>\n

Trouble was, there was only so much a man could take.<\/p>\n

Adam glanced at his father as he dismounted and shook hands with the physician.\u00a0 His father\u2019s step was unsure.\u00a0 Paul caught him by the shoulder as he stopped and spoke a few words of concern, which Pa tossed off.<\/p>\n

Looked like Ben Cartwright was just about at the breaking point.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Paul Martin shook his thermometer and inserted it between Joe Cartwright\u2019s still lips.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t look good.\u00a0 Ben had explained that the boy had been trapped without fresh oxygen for over thirteen hours, almost half a day.\u00a0 He\u2019d never heard of anyone surviving that long without oxygen.\u00a0 But then again, here Joe was, still breathing.\u00a0 If anyone could triumph over such a trial, it would be Joseph Francis Cartwright who didn\u2019t know the meaning of \u2018can\u2019t\u2019.<\/p>\n

Still, he didn\u2019t want to give the boy\u2019s already grieving father false hope.<\/p>\n

Ben was holding Joe\u2019s hands in his own, leaning forward over the bed on the opposite side.
\n\u201cWell?\u201d he asked, his expectant face turned toward him.<\/p>\n

Paul thought carefully of what he was about to say.\u00a0 \u201cI can\u2019t dispute Doctor Hanks findings, Ben.\u00a0 The boy is near death.\u201d<\/p>\n

The man before him seemed to wither.\u00a0 \u201cI…\u00a0 Paul, I thought…\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou thought I would tell you Joe was going to be all right.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI…hoped <\/em>you would.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paul rounded the bed.\u00a0 Standing by his friend, he placed a hand on his shoulder and waited until Ben released Joe\u2019s hands and swiveled to look at him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t dispute Doctor Hanks findings according to medical science, old friend, but,\u201d he glanced at the unconscious boy, so young, so much the seat of his father\u2019s hopes and expectations, \u201cbut I believe there are one or two things Doctor Hanks failed to take into account when making his prognosis.\u00a0 One or two things, Ben, that can make all the difference in the world as to whether or not Joe pulls through.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben glanced at his son and then back; his near-black eyes puzzled.\u00a0 \u201cPaul, what are you saying?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst of all, Doctor Hanks doesn\u2019t know<\/em> Joe.\u00a0 I do.\u00a0 If there is a way, that young man will fight to come back to you.\u00a0 And you, Ben, and Adam and Hoss, you will fight like grizzlies not to let him go.\u201d\u00a0 He paused.\u00a0 \u201cAlso, Doctor Hanks strikes me as a man of science.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot of faith.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you saying, Paul, that it really is<\/em> up to God this time?\u201d<\/p>\n

Paul Martin laughed.\u00a0 \u201cHere\u2019s a secret we old country physicians hesitate to tell \u2013 its always<\/em> up to God. We just help Him a little along the way.\u201d\u00a0 The older man sobered as he looked at his young patient.\u00a0 \u201cIn those days Hezekiah became mortally ill,\u201d <\/em>he quoted.\u00a0 \u201cAnd Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz came to him and said to him, \u2018Thus says the Lord, ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.\u2019 Then he turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, saying, \u2018Remember now, O Lord, I beseech You, how I have walked before You in truth and with a whole heart and have done what is good in Your sight.\u201d<\/em> He squeezed his friend\u2019s shoulder before releasing it.\u00a0 \u201cGod heard a good man\u2019s prayer.\u00a0 He gave Hezekiah fifteen more years.\u00a0 You know as well as I do, Ben, that sometimes you have to beat on the bad judge\u2019s door,\u201d Paul added with a smile.<\/p>\n

They both turned at the sound of a soft knock.\u00a0 It was Hoss.<\/p>\n

\u201cSay Paul, Hop Sing\u2019s got a fresh pot of coffee and some sandwiches downstairs.\u00a0 He says you ain\u2019t et yet today.\u201d<\/p>\n

The physician passed a hand over his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 I was at the Murphy\u2019s delivering a baby when your telegram arrived. I didn\u2019t think there was any time to lose so I came straight here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs there something you can do for Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

His father answered for the doctor as he shifted onto the bed beside Hoss\u2019 fourteen-year-old brother.\u00a0 \u201cPray, son,\u201d the older man said, his voice barely above a whisper.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s all any of us can do.<\/p>\n

\u201cPray.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It was late and his older sons were in the great room along with Paul Martin.\u00a0 Ben was sitting on Joseph\u2019s bed, his back against the headboard, holding his son\u2019s still form.\u00a0 He\u2019d been having words with his Lord when he\u2019d fallen asleep.\u00a0 The sound of laughter drifting up the stairs had brought him back to the present.\u00a0 For some, that sound would have been blasphemy.\u00a0 With someone so cherished so ill<\/em> in the house, it would have made them angry, and maybe rightfully so.\u00a0 How dare <\/em>someone laugh when a young boy \u2013 a child, really \u2013 lay so close to death?\u00a0 But if there was one thing the West taught a man it was that life and death walked the same knife-edge.\u00a0 There wasn\u2019t a day when he sent his sons out to do the daily work of a ranch that word might not come back telling him they were dead.\u00a0 Broncos bucked and men fell to their deaths.\u00a0 Rusty nails pierced skin and men died in agony.\u00a0 Cattle stampeded.\u00a0 Horses shied and kicked breaking bones, which brought infection.\u00a0 If he worried about it every time the boys went out, well then, he wouldn\u2019t have been white-haired, he would have been insane.\u00a0 A man couldn\u2019t carry that kind of worry.\u00a0 He had to let it go.\u00a0 Had to give it to someone else.<\/p>\n

Had to give it to God.<\/em><\/p>\n

If there was anything Ben hoped he had instilled in his boys it was the deep, abiding faith a man needed to carry on no matter what life handed him.\u00a0 No matter how hard the day.\u00a0 No matter how impossible<\/em> the obstacle to overcome.\u00a0 No matter the cruelty of men and the wickedness of the world they created.<\/p>\n

No matter three dead wives.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s hand brushed Joseph\u2019s dark brown curls.<\/p>\n

No matter one<\/em> dying son.<\/p>\n

Closing his eyes again and resting his head on the board behind him, Ben\u2019s thoughts flew once again to Heaven.\u00a0 He\u2019d railed.\u00a0 He ranted.\u00a0 He\u2019d cried out on his knees until he was exhausted, arguing with his Heavenly father, telling Him he<\/em> was ready to go if He would just spare Joseph.\u00a0 He reminded Him how young the boy was \u2013 of all the potential his son had, of Joseph\u2019s quick mind, his winning smile; his easy and amiable ways.<\/p>\n

Like the One who had created him didn\u2019t <\/em>know<\/p>\n

God had laughed, of course, reminding him <\/em>of Joseph\u2019s stubborn streak, of his son\u2019s quixotic temper and unpredictable nature.\u00a0 Of all<\/em> the times the boy had brought him to the brink of an anger so deep he didn\u2019t know what to do with it.<\/p>\n

\u2018That\u2019s how it is with a father and his children\u2019<\/em>, God said softly.<\/p>\n

I know. <\/em><\/p>\n

In the end, Ben had abandoned his position on the floor and crawled into the bed with his son. Lifting Joe\u2019s body he\u2019d slipped in behind him. He held the boy now like he had when he\u2019d been a child suffering from a fever.\u00a0 The older man opened his eyes and looked down at his youngest boy.\u00a0 Joe was growing thinner.\u00a0 Weaker<\/em> by the day.\u00a0 He\u2019d had very little sustenance in over three days, nothing but water and the small bit of broth Hop Sing had managed to work between his lips once they got him home.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t fair.\u00a0 This suffering.<\/em><\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t fair to Joe.<\/p>\n

Tears ran down the older man\u2019s cheeks as he pressed his son\u2019s curly head into his chest.<\/p>\n

\u201cFather,\u201d he said softly, \u201cthis child isn\u2019t mine.\u00a0 He\u2019s yours.\u00a0 He\u2019s suffering, Lord, and it\u2019s more than I can bear.\u00a0 Please….\u201d\u00a0 Ben drew a deep breath and let it out slowly.\u00a0 \u201cPlease, Father, if its not your will to heal Joseph then…take him now<\/em>.\u00a0 Let my boy be at peace.\u201d<\/p>\n

The tears were flowing like a rain-swollen river now, raging in a torrent that could not be checked.\u00a0 They trailed down his face and fell onto Joseph\u2019s, wetting his son\u2019s thick black lashes and traveling down the pallid, too-gaunt cheeks.\u00a0 Ben reached for one of them.\u00a0 He meant to brush it away when he saw \u2013 movement.\u00a0 The older man blinked, uncertain.\u00a0 Yes….<\/p>\n

Yes! <\/em><\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s eyes were moving behind the lids.\u00a0 His son tried to swallow, winced, and then those glorious green eyes opened and looked at him.<\/p>\n

Really looked <\/em>at him.<\/p>\n

The boy\u2019s cracked lips parted and out of them came the most precious word Ben had ever heard.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa….\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

EPILOGUE<\/p>\n

But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord.\u00a0 Jonah 2:9<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Adam Cartwright leaned on his father\u2019s desk, rereading the letter Pa had received from Sheriff Whitaker that morning concerning the late Weston McCloud and Stanfield Hawks\u2019.\u00a0 The lawman had backtracked on both men to see if there was any connection between them.\u00a0 It seemed they had <\/em>known each other, as McCloud had been in Hawks\u2019 employ at one time, but there was nothing to connect the crooked businessman to the robbery or any of Weston\u2019s other crimes. In the end, Hawks had dropped his case against them and relinquished the right to the land he\u2019d claimed to own.<\/p>\n

And that<\/em> spoke volumes more than any paper trail the sheriff could have followed.<\/p>\n

The interesting thing was, Stanfield Hawks knew Hoyle and DeLoyd Beaumont as well.\u00a0 He actually owned the Louisiana plantation where their father worked.\u00a0 Adam shook his head as he reread that part.\u00a0 Another<\/em> lie.\u00a0 The elder Beaumont wasn\u2019t dead as the brothers had told them.\u00a0 He was actually the overseer of the plantation and well-off in his own right.\u00a0 Which begged the question as to why his sons felt the need to rob other people of their hard-earned money when they had plenty of money of their own.<\/p>\n

They\u2019d probably never know.<\/p>\n

Adam folded the letter and put it back in its envelope.\u00a0 According to Sheriff Whitaker Del and Hoyle had pulled a number of heists in Louisiana over the last year or so.\u00a0 It had become too hot for them there.\u00a0 So hot, in fact, that their father sent them away and then set about negotiating with Hawks, asking his boss to obtain a pardon for them from the governor.\u00a0 For whatever reason, the brothers had chosen to come to Nevada.\u00a0 Weston McCloud came about that time too, \u00a0looking for men who would work for him.\u00a0 McCloud\u2019s specialty?\u00a0 Robbing banks.\u00a0 DeLoyd and his brother came highly recommended, or so one of the surviving robbers told them, and the three of them soon joined forces.\u00a0 Apparently they had been considering a raid on the Ponderosa before Joe fell into their laps.\u00a0 That occasioned the formation of plan \u2018B\u2019 in which the trio would court and then use Joe and the stolen bank draft to get them into the new \u2018guaranteed secure\u2019 Genoa City bank vault.\u00a0 One of the men Sheriff Whitaker had taken into custody told him that Weston McCloud meant to murder Joe all along.\u00a0 Apparently McCloud was the man who had wanted to deflower Madeline O\u2019Malley.\u00a0 He resented Joe\u2019s interference and for that he was willing to kill a fourteen-year-old boy.<\/p>\n

Adam Cartwright shook his head, disgusted.\u00a0 With a sigh, he let the envelope fall to the top of his father\u2019s desk.<\/p>\n

How could someone who was such a nothing<\/em> cause their family so much grief?<\/p>\n

Weston McCloud was a nobody from a nowhere town who had made himself something of a somebody by pretending that\u2019s what he was.\u00a0 Apparently McCloud had worked average ordinary jobs where he was mostly ignored \u2013 bank clerk, accountant, night watchman, even custodian \u2013 all the while acquiring the knowledge he would need to round up a bunch of desperados and wreck havoc on the banking industry in Nevada.\u00a0 Until Genoa, Weston had never actually taken part in one of the robberies.\u00a0 He\u2019d always remained on the sideline.\u00a0 One of Sheriff Whitaker\u2019s \u2018guests\u2019 told him he didn\u2019t understand why it had been different this time.\u00a0 Adam turned and looked at his little brother where he sat in their father\u2019s chair, bundled up in front of the hearth with a thick plaid blanket wrapped tightly around his shrunken frame.<\/p>\n

He <\/em>did.<\/p>\n

The nobody from a nowhere town that no one noticed had made a success \u2013 an industry<\/em> almost \u2013 out of \u2018ordinary\u2019.\u00a0 Wisely, Weston McCloud had chosen small to middle-size banks to rob in not too big, but not too little towns.\u00a0 He\u2019d taken just enough<\/em> money to make the risk worthwhile, but not so much that the law found it worth the effort to run him to ground.<\/p>\n

Until this last time.<\/p>\n

Until someone \u00a0mentioned a name that carried with it a big enough pay-out that Weston could retire from crime as a middle-size, middle-weight, middle-aged wealthy<\/em> man with money and power that weren\u2019t his own.<\/p>\n

Until someone mentioned the Cartwrights.<\/p>\n

His pa had known all along that he and his brothers would be targets for unscrupulous men \u2013 \u00a0Benjamin Cartwright, timber baron, cattle king, owner of mines that oozed precious metals from their rock-hard veins. \u00a0He\u2019d<\/em> been the safest as a boy as he was most often at his father\u2019s side and the empire his pa was to build was in its infancy. \u00a0Hoss had started young with the hands, mastering quickly the physical side of the work they had to do, so he was always in a crowd.\u00a0 And, of course, there was the simple fact of Hoss\u2019 size.\u00a0 It was a rare man who would take on a boy who was just shy of six feet and built like an ox.<\/p>\n

No, it was Joe who was the most in danger.<\/p>\n

They all knew it though none of them said it aloud and so they all kept close watch over him.\u00a0 Adam chuckled.\u00a0 Poor kid, if you added Hop Sing, he had four <\/em>mother hens!\u00a0 It was probably the reason why Joe was just next to being spoiled \u2013 most likely why he rebelled too.\u00a0 Adam ran a hand along the back of his neck and glanced at his sleeping brother again.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t sure what he thought of the belief that a name had power, but sometimes it seemed Marie\u2019s choice to call his brother Petit Joseph<\/em> had branded the boy.\u00a0 Joe was small in stature; a scrawny vulnerable <\/em>kid whose mere existence begged other men to take out their own fears of inadequacy on him. Just so they could prove they were nothing like him.\u00a0 The black-haired man snorted as he move toward the hearth.\u00a0 No.\u00a0 They were nothing like him.<\/p>\n

There was no one<\/em> like Joe.<\/p>\n

Taking a seat on the settee table, Adam looked hard at his baby brother where he was curled up in their father\u2019s chair.\u00a0 It had been six weeks since Joe had awakened from the coma.\u00a0 The poor kid had been through the mill since then.\u00a0 As Doc Martin expected he\u2019d developed a case of pneumonia shortly afterward and there\u2019d been another period there where they thought they might lose him.\u00a0 Standard for Joe he\u2019d fought his way through, but the course of the disease \u2013 and the coma \u2013 had left him weak and irritable.\u00a0 He tired easily.\u00a0 Because of that, he wasn\u2019t up to his usual chores and was confined to the house a good bit of the time.\u00a0 Of late, it seemed he\u2019d given up.\u00a0 Even when Hoss asked him to help with something in the barn, Joe refused, saying he was too weary.\u00a0 Sometimes you\u2019d catch him staring at nothing and unaware he was doing it.\u00a0 Worst of all, Joe still had a hard time putting words together and that was probably the cruelest blow for an energetic, now fifteen<\/em>-year-old boy, who before had never stopped talking.\u00a0 The Doc said it should get better with time.<\/p>\n

Should.<\/em><\/p>\n

Adam slammed a hand down on the table.\u00a0 It simply wasn\u2019t fair!<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cMmmm….\u00a0 You gotta make so much noise?\u201d a sleepy voice asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry, Joe.\u00a0 Didn\u2018t mean to wake you, buddy,\u201d he said with chagrin.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s wide green eyes blinked.\u00a0 He straightened up in the chair and then asked, \u201cPa home yet?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot yet.\u201d \u00a0Adam stood.\u00a0 \u201cYou hungry?\u00a0 Hop Sing\u2019s got some cold beef and \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s eyes took in his brother\u2019s skinny wrists where they showed out of the cuffs of a flannel shirt grown too big to fit.\u00a0 He noted as well the way Joe\u2019s cheeks fell in.<\/p>\n

\u201cLook, Joe, you gotta eat.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI do<\/em> eat,\u201d he insisted with a scowl.\u00a0 \u201cWhen<\/em> I\u2019m hungry.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMore<\/em>,\u201d Adam added.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve got to eat more<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother shifted uncomfortably.\u00a0 Joe had a sore hip too.\u00a0 Shortly after he\u2019d began to show real progress in his recovery, Pa had let him out to do simple chores.\u00a0 Well, Joe being Joe, he\u2019d overdone it \u2013 just to prove that he could \u2013 and had ended up lying flat on his face in the barn.<\/p>\n

The kid gloves had really<\/em> gone on after that.<\/p>\n

Hence the bundling.<\/p>\n

Joe ignored his words.\u00a0 \u201cWhere\u2019s Hoss?\u00a0 Is he back yet?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam knew where this was going. \u201cNo.\u00a0 I\u2019m afraid, you\u2019re stuck with me.\u201d\u00a0 He paused.\u00a0 It was probably pointless.\u00a0 Still….\u00a0 \u201cDo you want to talk about it?\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother\u2019s eyes narrowed and his fingers gripped the arms of the chair.\u00a0 He was getting angry.<\/p>\n

Still, Joe\u2019s nostrils hadn\u2019t flared yet, so there was hope.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt?\u00a0 It<\/em>, what?\u201d he demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened.\u00a0 How you feel about it.\u00a0 What you\u2019re afraid of.\u201d<\/p>\n

The boy practically shot up out of the chair\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t afraid of nothin\u2019!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Adam wanted to jump up and gather his injured brother in his arms and carefully return him to his seat.\u00a0 Instead he remained where he was.<\/p>\n

He remained calm.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThen prove it.\u00a0 Pa said you can do some simple chores again.\u00a0 Get out of that blanket and up out of that chair and prove<\/em> that you\u2019re not afraid!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t be in<\/em> this chair if you three would stop coddlin\u2019 me like I was some whelp barely made it out of his mother alive!\u201d Joe shot back.<\/p>\n

Pa wouldn\u2019t like it.\u00a0 They were shouting at each other.<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s lips pursed.<\/p>\n

Good.\u00a0 It was good<\/em> to see some color in those cheeks.<\/p>\n

Joe was standing, breathing hard. \u00a0The blanket was at his feet now. \u00a0\u201cYou got somethin\u2019 else to say, big brother?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d\u00a0 He knew Joe\u2019s answer was only part of the story.\u00a0 They\u2019d tried to get him to talk about what had happened.\u00a0 He was having no part of it.\u00a0 \u201cIs that it, then? Coddlin\u2019 as you say, doesn\u2019t keep you from helping Hoss in the barn or riding along with pa to town.\u00a0 You haven\u2019t been to town in \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to go to town \u2018cause….\u00a0 Cause….\u201d\u00a0 Joe wobbled.\u00a0 His brother looked surprised.<\/p>\n

Then he went down.<\/p>\n

It was a good thing Joe\u2019d left that blanket at his feet.<\/p>\n

A second later Adam had him sitting again.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry, Joe.\u00a0 I just \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe batted his hand away and turned his face into the chair.\u00a0 \u201cYrr rgghhht,\u201d he mumbled.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re right!\u201d his little brother shouted as he pressed his body back.\u00a0 \u201cThere!\u00a0 Are you happy?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam took a seat on the table again.\u00a0 \u201cWell, yes and<\/em> no.\u201d<\/p>\n

There were unspent tears in those green eyes.\u00a0 \u201cYes?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I\u2019m happy you admitted I\u2019m right but, no, I\u2019m not happy that you\u2019re afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n

The nostrils finally flared \u2013 for about five seconds before the tears fell.\u00a0 Joe looked down at his bony hands that were linked between his bony knees.<\/p>\n

\u201cI…can\u2019t….\u201d\u00a0 His brother drew as deep a breath as his punished lungs would allow.\u00a0 \u201cI can\u2019t trust myself anymore, Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s black brows peaked.\u00a0 That answer was not<\/em> the one he had expected.\u00a0 Joe wasn\u2019t afraid of menacing men stealing him from his family, or of being trapped in the dark without air and almost dying \u2013 though there was plenty of fodder there for nightmares and he\u2019d had them \u2013 or even of the fact that he could have been hung for a crime he didn\u2019t commit.\u00a0 His young brother was scared….<\/p>\n

Of himself.<\/p>\n

How had they all missed it?<\/p>\n

\u201cDel and Hoyle,\u201d Joe began, sucking in snot and air.\u00a0 \u201cI trusted them, Adam.\u00a0 I thought….\u00a0 No, I knew <\/em>they were good men.\u201d Adam watched as a tear splashed on the back of his brother\u2019s hand.\u00a0 A second later Joe looked up.\u00a0 \u201cIf I was wrong about them, how can I be right <\/em>about anything?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey fooled us all, Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you didn\u2019t spend hours \u2013 whole days \u2013 with them like I did!\u201d\u00a0 His voice was quiet.\u00a0 \u201cEspecially with Hoyle.\u201d<\/p>\n

They hadn\u2019t told him about Hoyle\u2019s fate \u2013 or Del\u2019s for that matter \u2013 until a week or so back.\u00a0 The Doc hadn\u2019t recommended it. \u00a0Even then, when Joe heard what had happened to Hoyle, it set him back for a couple of days.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted so much to believe what they told me about who…\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 His brother drew in another gasp of air.\u00a0 \u201c…about who they were and where they came from, and about how much they wanted me to go with them.\u201d\u00a0 Joe\u2019s eyes flicked to his face and then away.\u00a0 \u201cThey listened<\/em> to me.\u00a0 They were interested in my opinion.\u00a0 They thought I was smart and would be a good man to have around.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s words were like a slap in the face.\u00a0 A richly deserved one, he had to admit.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnlike me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe blinked back more tears.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t want to hurt you, Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have, Joe,\u201d he said softly, \u201cyou have.\u00a0 But it\u2019s a \u2018hurt\u2019 I merit.\u201d\u00a0 For a second he was silent.\u00a0 \u201cI blame myself, you know, for everything that happened to you.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother frowned.\u00a0 \u201cHow come?\u201d<\/p>\n

The question was so simple and came so easily it all but stunned him into silence.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow come?\u00a0 Because I wouldn\u2019t<\/em> listen to you. \u00a0Because I \u2013 your own brother \u2013 made you feel like you were stupid and wrong and you ran away.\u201d\u00a0 He sucked in guilt and shame that threatened to rain through his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cGod, Joe! You ran away because of me and you almost died!\u201d<\/p>\n

Inexplicably, Joe was smiling.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat are you grinning about?\u201d he growled.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou.\u201d\u00a0 Joe stifled a giggle.\u00a0 \u201cMister high-and-mighty-I-got-a-college-education-back-East<\/em>, Adam Cartwright.\u00a0 I guess you don\u2019t know everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d he asked, wary.<\/p>\n

Joe looked off toward the window.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d pretty much cooled down before I took off with Del and Hoyle.\u00a0 Sure, I was mad at you, but that ain\u2019t nothin\u2019 I haven\u2019t been a hundred times before.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam felt a little weight lift off his shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cSo why did you go?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou<\/em> oughta know, if anyone would,\u201d Joe said, looking sheepishly out from under his fringe of lambswool curls.<\/p>\n

He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 I have no idea.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, first of all, I wanted to be a man. \u00a0Able to make my own choices and do what I thought best, you know?\u00a0 Second,\u201d his little brother ducked his head, \u201cI wanted to see where my mama was born.\u00a0 I keep wonderin\u2019 if it\u2019s as pretty as she was.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam sensed there was more.\u00a0 \u201cAnd third?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI guess I wanted to be like you.\u201d<\/p>\n

That did <\/em>stun him to silence \u2013 for about ten heartbeats.\u00a0 \u201cYou what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTraveling.\u00a0 Seeing all those places you only read about.\u00a0 Seeing the world.\u00a0 Only,\u201d Joe looked around the great room, \u201cI found out I don\u2019t like it so much. I think I\u2019m happy right here.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was still trying to find a balance.\u00a0 His ornery little brother wanted to be like him?<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s great, Joe, but you can\u2019t hide in the house forever.\u00a0 You have to….\u201d\u00a0 he hesitated.\u00a0 \u201cYou have to forgive yourself, just like I have to forgive myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those green eyes were locked on him.\u00a0 \u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing stupid.\u201d\u00a0 Adam laughed at his brother\u2019s expression.<\/p>\n

Joe\u2019s eyes widened.\u00a0 \u201cIf that don\u2019t take the cake!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

Behind him, he heard the door to the ranch house open.\u00a0 The footsteps told him it was Pa, followed closely by Hoss.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat have you two been up to?\u201d their father asked as he headed for them.<\/p>\n

\u201cBig brother just admitted he was stupid!\u201d Joe whooped.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did no such thing,\u201d he corrected him with a scowl. \u201cI merely said we both acted in a stupid manner.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMeaning what?\u00a0 How can a man act \u2018stupid, if he ain\u2019t <\/em>stupid?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2019Isn\u2019t<\/em>\u2019, Joseph,\u201d their father corrected.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s got you there, older brother!\u201d Hoss said with a smile<\/p>\n

\u201cStupid is as stupid does,\u201d Joe chimed, grabbing his sides as the girlish giggling rose to a crescendo.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou take it easy with that laughter, young man,\u201d their father chided, stifling his own and forcing a stern look.\u00a0 \u201cThose lungs of yours aren\u2019t healed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe was sucking in air and sputtering.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Pa, but they sure are happy!\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam exchanged a look with their father and Hoss.\u00a0 Something passed between them.\u00a0 You might have called it \u2018delight\u2019.<\/p>\n

It was the first time they had heard that laugh in this house in months.<\/p>\n

Paul Martin, however, was not going to be pleased.\u00a0 Joe was beet red and gasping for air.<\/p>\n

Adam watched his father cross to Joe and lean over.\u00a0 The older man\u2019s hand wrapped around his brother\u2019s thin wrist and pulled.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s hand was thin too and it slipped straight through.<\/p>\n

Tossing their father off-balance so he crashed to the floor.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa!\u201d both he and Hoss shouted.<\/p>\n

The older man looked stunned.\u00a0 Then he looked at his gasping, giggling curly-headed boy and started to laugh as well \u2013 deep, heartfelt, bellows of laughter that lifted the rafters and brought tears to Ben Cartwright\u2019s near-black eyes.<\/p>\n

What was there to do but join in?<\/p>\n

When Hop Sing came in ten minutes later and found them all red-faced and gasping like fish fresh out of water, the Chinese man wondered aloud if they had all lost their minds.<\/p>\n

Adam didn\u2019t wonder.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t care.\u00a0 His little brother had survived his days in the belly of the whale \u2013 first in the vault, and then two more days in what seemed might prove to be an unending darkness.\u00a0 The black-haired man glanced at his snorting father and his two red-faced brothers and then at Hop Sing.<\/p>\n

The Chinese man had tears trailing down his face.<\/p>\n

You know what they say?<\/p>\n

The family that laughs together….<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tags:\u00a0 Adam Cartwright,\u00a0Angst,\u00a0Ben Cartwright,\u00a0Hoss Cartwright,\u00a0hostage,\u00a0JAM,\u00a0Joe \/ Little Joe Cartwright,\u00a0JPM<\/p>\n

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

SUMMARY:\u00a014 year old Joe Cartwright was just trying to do something nice for a friend. Older brother Adam didn’t see it that way. An argument between brothers sets off a series of events that turns into an unstoppable torrent of trouble, which leaves one of Ben Cartwright’s sons with a terrible task to perform and another near death, trapped in the Belly of the Whale.<\/p>\n

Rated: PG-13 for mild language and implied adult situations, which do not occur. \u00a0\u00a0 WC 76,500<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10058,"featured_media":30550,"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_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2,23,41,30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13566","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-actionadventure","category-drama","category-hurtcomfort","category-prequels","wpcat-2-id","wpcat-23-id","wpcat-41-id","wpcat-30-id"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/fd86455c4a1c06260953074d4e183abd.jpg?fit=236%2C295&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13566","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\/10058"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13566"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13566\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/30550"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13566"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13566"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13566"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}