Summary:\u00a0 Joe makes a serious mistake and Adam agrees to help him fix things only to find that he puts himself into a greater problem as others make too many mistakes as well.\u00a0 Adam needs more help than Joe did, but that help is slow in arriving.
\nRating: T\u00a0\u00a0 Word count:\u00a0 35,315<\/p>\n
Not Guilty series<\/strong> <\/p>\n Not Guilty: Part One, Justice Denied<\/strong><\/p>\n Chapter 1<\/strong><\/p>\n “Guilty.”<\/p>\n The jury had filed back into the courtroom after completing their deliberations. It had not taken long. Most of the half hour had been taken up with electing a jury foreman and eating the tray of sandwiches sent into the jury room because it was noon. Then it was a quick poll of the jury and time to go render a verdict to the judge so they could collect their day’s pay for being a juror. It wasn’t much, but every time they served, they got a dollar per day. Being in a town with a regular court and a nearby prison meant a number of opportunities for any who were willing to sit on juries and decide the fate of men. Now they thought they knew that the lawmen and bounty hunters only brought in wanted men and they assumed men were wanted because they had committed crimes so a guilty verdict was all but set as soon as a trial started. A presumption of innocence before a trial began was a lovely ideal but they thought it highly impractical. Guilty verdicts were all they were used to rendering.<\/p>\n This trial had turned out to be much more interesting than most though. The accused claimed not to be the man the lawmen said he was. He loudly proclaimed his innocence until the judge had him gagged. Now he would have one more chance to speak before the judge gave him his sentence and a lecture and then he was hauled away. The jurors wondered what he would say this time.<\/p>\n The judge was relaxed. The defendant was defiant. The jurors could see it in his eyes and the way he sat looking like a mountain lion ready to pounce. The judge must have seen it too as he motioned to one more of the court bailiffs to come forward probably anticipating that he would be needed. Then he had looked to the jury.<\/p>\n “Gentlemen, do you have a verdict?”<\/p>\n “Yes, Your Honor, we do.”<\/p>\n “What is that verdict?”<\/p>\n “Guilty.”<\/p>\n Reaching up with his shackled hands, the furious defendant pulled the gag from his mouth and yelled toward the jury.<\/p>\n “Guilty! How could I be guilty? I’m not that man. I was not in this town then. I never had a chance here. I had no lawyer. My name is Adam Cartwright, and I was living in Nevada then.”<\/p>\n The defendant didn’t get to say anything more as the judge ordered the bailiff to gag the defendant again. It was a struggle as he fought like an innocent man would fight for his freedom, and two more bailiffs were summoned. They forcefully subdued the defendant, and not only gagged but restrained the man. No longer able to resist at all and bleeding from his nose and from several abrasions, the man still stared with that ferocious gaze at the judge who commenced his usual lecture. Now in shackles, manacles, and chains, there was nothing he could do.<\/p>\n “You have been found guilty by a jury of your peers. You will serve an indeterminate sentence of at least twenty years at hard labor. You may not be aware, but the prison here uses the Congregate system. You will work a full day in silence and you will spend your nights silent and alone resting and hopefully thinking about what you did to get yourself into such a situation. This is because you have earned punishment, the loss of your liberty and the ability to control your own life. Your victims get a sense that justice has been served, and that there has been restitution. Your work while there in prison will ensure that no hard-earned money of taxpayers will be wasted on maintaining your life while in you are serving your term. While there, you can no longer harm society. However, an indeterminate sentence means that you can show that you have been rehabilitated and earned the right to reclaim your life and be returned to society to lead a productive life. Failure to cooperate will mean that you will serve out your full sentence and you will face other punishments while inside the prison walls. Is that clear to you?”<\/p>\n Defiant, Adam refused to answer. The judge was used to such behavior by defendants in his courtroom who had similar backgrounds.<\/p>\n “Put him in solitary confinement for three days with no visitors, no food, no clothes, and no blanket. He can have a bucket and water. If he yells, talks, whistles, sings or otherwise makes noise, the standard punishments shall be meted out. He appears to be among the most recalcitrant of the criminal element, and he will have to be forced to follow proper behavior. Meanwhile we will let the natural elements calm him down.”<\/p>\n Emotional turmoil, illness and fever, and then the arrest and transport to this town had left Adam thin and weaker than usual. He knew if he pushed too hard, his punishment could mean the end of his life. There was one glaring fact though and that was he had to push because they thought he was someone other than the man he was. However, every push got him more resistance as no one was inclined to listen to him at all. The last words he heard from the judge were chilling.<\/p>\n “After three days, keep him gagged until he learns to be quiet, use restraints on him until he can control himself, and punish him as needed if he doesn’t follow rules. He is clearly resistant to all efforts to make him a respectable, productive citizen. He will be remade into one or he may die resisting those efforts.”<\/p>\n Gagged, shackled, naked, cold, and isolated in solitary confinement the next day, prisoner 8284 could only wonder how his life had become a nightmare in only a month. Shivering, he pulled his knees up to his chest as well as he could and did his best to keep his arms to his side to retain what body heat he could. The night was going to prove to be arduous though in his already weakened condition and with nothing to eat for the last day. Emotionally, he was in as much discomfort as he was suffering physically. His brothers thought he was a cheater. His father thought he had gambled away a fortune. His friend, the sheriff, thought he was imagining things. His great fear was that they wouldn’t even look for him thinking under all those circumstances he might have left of his own volition. He was sick too and knew that he would be under a great disadvantage in resisting these men who wanted to break his spirit as much as at least one of the guards had shown that he apparently wanted to break him physically.<\/p>\n Unexpectedly, a guard opened the iron clad door. The large man set two buckets inside.<\/p>\n “Almost forgot to give you your provisions. Now don’t go using the wrong bucket to piss. It’s all you got for the next three days.”<\/p>\n Although he might have guessed it, it was sobering to hear that he was only going to get water for three days. He wasn’t sure that was going to be enough to survive in the condition he was in.<\/p>\n If only Adam could have been on the Ponderosa at that moment to hear the conversation between Sheriff Roy Coffee and his father. He would have known then that they would be coming to look for him at least. Although much too late, they all believed him now too although it was much too late to do him much good. All those accusations could be explained. They would feel guilty, but none of that was going to help him. In the position he was in, Adam wasn’t sure anyone could help him because he didn’t know how they could ever find him where he was.<\/p>\n “Guilty”<\/p>\n That word was going to ring in his head for a long time.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 2 -one month earlier<\/strong><\/p>\n Sweating profusely, Joe Cartwright tried his best not to show his nerves. A tell in a poker game could cost a man everything, and he had lost almost everything already that he had brought to the game. Early on he had won more than he lost, but then steadily, he lost more than he won. What he held in his hands though were the cards that could win a lot of his money back if he played it smart. He was certain of that. By betting small bets and slowly raising the pot, he stayed in. He didn’t want to scare the others to bow out too early because he needed this pot to get big.<\/p>\n “I’ll see your twenty and raise you twenty.”<\/p>\n The bets went around the table with each man matching the bet. The man who had started the betting raised an eyebrow as if to question whether Joe was bluffing or might finally have a good hand. He must have decided to test him.<\/p>\n “I’ll see your twenty and raise you one hundred.”<\/p>\n Everyone else dropped out with that, but to Joe, it was worth it, because his strategy had worked. He had their twenties and now a hundred from this man. He decided to see if he could get more.<\/p>\n “I’ll see your hundred and raise you another hundred.”<\/p>\n “I’ll see your hundred.”<\/p>\n It was time to lay down their cards. Joe laid down four queens. His opponent put down his full house of aces over kings. With a smile, Joe pulled in his first big pot of the night, and for the first time in a long series of hands, he was slightly ahead. Confident, he bet and lost small amounts on the next two hands, and then got a hand that almost made him give himself away. Instead he went back to the strategy that worked well with his four-of-a-kind hand with the four ladies. He bet small and increased the bet as his opponents wouldn’t give up. The problem was that his main opponent had to be holding a good hand too, and as the others dropped out, he raised the bet against Joe past his table stakes.<\/p>\n “I don’t have enough to see that bet.”<\/p>\n “You know the rules. If you can’t see a bet, you lose.”<\/p>\n “Would you take an IOU for whatever bet I make?”<\/p>\n “I would. You’re a Cartwright. I figure you’re good for it.”<\/p>\n Grinning at that, Joe thought he had him. He scribbled out an IOU and folded the paper sliding it across the table even as he made his bet. “All right, I see your five hundred and raise you five hundred.”<\/p>\n “You sure you want to do that? That’s a thousand-dollar IOU.”<\/p>\n “I know what it is.” Joe was offended that he would be questioned. So, he retaliated. “Are you afraid to lose this hand?”<\/p>\n In answer, the gambler frowned and pushed five hundred dollars into the pot but didn’t raise. Thinking he had succeeded, Joe laid down his straight flush and prepared to pull in all the money. The gambler put out his hand to stop Joe from pulling in the large pot.<\/p>\n “Hold it there.”<\/p>\n The gambler laid down a rarely seen hand. It was so rare that Joe had never seen one in a game before that night. Staring at him was a royal flush, the top hand in poker. There was nothing that could beat it. As Joe sat in shock, the gambler pulled the money toward him and smiled in triumph at Joe.<\/p>\n “You can have a day and a half to bring me the thousand dollars. I assume the bank isn’t open until Monday morning if you need them. The clock starts ticking now.”<\/p>\n “I need more time. We have a lot of land and cattle but not much ready cash.”<\/p>\n “All right, a week from Monday, but don’t disappoint me. You pay, or someone in your family will pay.”<\/p>\n “Don’t threaten me.”<\/p>\n “It wasn’t you I was threatening.”<\/p>\n Unsure of how to answer that and despondent over what he had done, Joe sat in his chair as the gambler and the other players left the saloon. He tried to imagine how he could tell his father what he had done, and he knew he couldn’t do that. To have to see the look of disappointment in his father’s eyes would be too much piled on top of how he already felt about himself. Any look of disgust he got was only going to magnify the one he saw when he looked inside of himself. The chatter in the saloon seemed to be a chorus of men talking about him, his foolishness, and how he had failed again as he had so often done. Always so close to being a winner at poker, it seemed there was always something that happened too that led to disaster. As he rode home, he knew what he had to do, and it wasn’t going to be much easier than telling his father and might even be more difficult.<\/p>\n The ride home had been slow as Joe tried to think of what he could do to get himself out of this fix and then worked out how he could approach the issue. The next morning after a restless night, Joe worked with Adam in the barn to complete morning chores. When he worked up enough courage, he asked his oldest brother if they could talk. Their father was in Sacramento so they weren’t going to church services. Adam’s opinion was quite different than their father’s when it came to weekly attendance. It was another issue that brought friction between father and son, but Adam didn’t seem to care. Anyway, on this Sunday, it worked out for Joe because it gave him the chance to talk to Adam about his issue. He waited until the two had started their tasks, and Adam was quiet.<\/p>\n “Adam, I got a problem I have to talk to someone about.”<\/p>\n “I was wondering when you would spit it out. Who’s the girl or how much do you owe?”<\/p>\n Irritated that Adam had hit so close to the mark with his guess, Joe was rather short with his next question. “Why did you ask that?”<\/p>\n “Because if you’re asking me for help, it’s because you’re afraid to tell Pa. It was a Saturday night, so you either got a girl in the family way or got caught with her, or you lost a lot of money gambling. So, which is it?”<\/p>\n Almost pushed to anger by that answer, Joe had to keep a rein on his temper because he needed his brother’s help, but it did bother him how Adam could zero in on his problem so easily. Of course, it was Sunday morning so Adam had figured correctly it was something that happened on Saturday night, and Joe hadn’t come home injured so it wasn’t a fine or damages. He supposed it hadn’t been that difficult for his brother to guess, but he still felt a bit upset about it and knew too that Adam was waiting for him to say something like a parent would do with a child. Although he wanted to say that Adam could forget it, he couldn’t do that because he still needed his brother’s help. Looking at him though, he could see the hint of a smile that let him know that his brother knew exactly what he was thinking. It meant that the first words were not the right words nor said in a tone that was appropriate for someone needing a favor.<\/p>\n “You don’t need to look at me like that. I need your help.”<\/p>\n “I gathered that.”<\/p>\n “You don’t have to make me feel bad just because I need some help.”<\/p>\n “I’m not the one making you feel bad.”<\/p>\n “All right, could we start over? I got myself in some trouble last night.”<\/p>\n Holding back from continuing their previous verbal sparring, Adam asked the simple question. “How?”<\/p>\n It took a lot for Joe to admit it, but he was in enough trouble that he got control of himself and explained. “You were right. I was playing poker. It looked like it could be a good night. I won quite often when I started, but then I was losing quite a few in a row. I figured it was going to be my turn to win again sooner or later. Then I had a big winning hand and won back what I lost.” Joe saw the look Adam had. “I know what you taught me. That’s when I should have quit. But I thought I would play only a little longer. I lost two hands but only a little each time, and then I got a straight flush. Adam it’s the best hand you ever get.”<\/p>\n “Except?” Adam had a feeling he knew what was coming and why Joe had gotten in trouble.<\/p>\n “Except after I bet it all, he had a royal flush.”<\/p>\n Leaning against a post, Adam replied calmly. “You never considered that he was cheating?”<\/p>\n “You don’t even seem surprised by the royal flush. I was. I thought about him cheating, but I watched the deal the whole time we played, and he was dealing straight.”<\/p>\n Still leaning, Adam posed what to him was obvious. “What about other players passing cards to him?”<\/p>\n “Why would they do that? They were losing too.”<\/p>\n Quiet, Adam stared at Joe giving him enough time to think about it until he understood.<\/p>\n “They were working together?” Pausing, it all made sense. “They were going to split the profits after the game, weren’t they? Damn. I never watched for them doing that because I never thought about them working together.”<\/p>\n “So, now tell me why you’re in trouble? So far all you told me was that you lost.”<\/p>\n “I ran out of money to bet on my straight flush.” Adam’s eyebrows rose. “I signed an IOU. For the rest.”<\/p>\n “How much is the rest?” By then, Adam was looking worried because he guessed it had to be quite a lot if Joe was asking him for help. He dropped his head in anticipation of hearing a number he didn’t want to hear. It was far worse than he expected.<\/p>\n “A thousand dollars.” Joe’s voice was almost a whisper.<\/p>\n Adam’s head jerked up, but he remained quiet and didn’t respond at first in any other way other than looking shocked. Joe felt compelled to say more.<\/p>\n “They said I had a week. Adam, they said if I didn’t pay, someone in my family would pay. I don’t think they meant in money.”<\/p>\n “Damn, Joe, you know you never gamble on borrowed money, and a thousand dollars is crazy. What got into you to do such a fool thing?”<\/p>\n “I know. But with the hand I had I thought I would win. Have you ever heard of someone losing with that hand. I thought it was a sure thing, but that gambler had a better hand than any I’ve ever seen. I signed that IOU to him and I have to pay him the money. I need your help, Adam. I don’t have the money to pay that IOU.”<\/p>\n Walking into the barn then, Hoss asked Adam the same question Joe had asked. “You gonna loan him the money? You know he’s good for it. It ain’t like he’s gonna run off and never pay you back.”<\/p>\n “You know what it’s for?”<\/p>\n “I heard enough. I heard that last part. He owes some money and he went and signed an IOU, and they want him to pay up.”<\/p>\n “I don’t have that much cash.”<\/p>\n “You had a lot of money a little while ago.”<\/p>\n “Hoss, I invested in that spur line from Virginia City to Carson City.”<\/p>\n “I’m dead then.” Joe dropped down on a bench not sure what he could do next.<\/p>\n “You could face up the problem and tell Pa.”<\/p>\n Hoss looked almost as shocked as Joe at that suggestion.<\/p>\n “Adam, you can’t expect him to do that. The boy won’t be let off the ranch for a year after a fool stunt like this.”<\/p>\n Although Joe wanted to object to being referred to as a boy and a fool in the same sentence, in the present circumstance, it worked to his advantage. He needed Adam to feel sympathy for him. He did his best sorrowful look with a tinge of embarrassment hoping that could help too because he couldn’t imagine asking his father for help in this situation.<\/p>\n “I’ll find the money.” Adam wouldn’t let harm come to his family.<\/p>\n Joe looked up with more hope than he had previously. Hoss slapped Adam on the shoulder in support.<\/p>\n “There you go older brother. It’s our job to keep this young one safe.”<\/p>\n “I’ll go to town tomorrow to make the arrangements. It may take a day or two.”<\/p>\n “Thank you, Adam.”<\/p>\n “It’s on one condition. You don’t sign any more IOUs especially for that much money when you’re playing poker or doing any other gambling.”<\/p>\n Hoss was surprised by that comment because he had no idea exactly what Joe had done only that he needed help from Adam and that Adam could help him.<\/p>\n “How much was that IOU you signed, Joe?”<\/p>\n Adam said it didn’t matter how much it was, and all Joe said was that it was for a lot of money. Both of them assumed Hoss would think it was for a couple hundred dollars. He did. Embarrassed, Joe had to explain the rest of the story though because Hoss had taken his side without question. He told Hoss the same story he had told Adam and how he had pledged an IOU he had signed in order to stay in the game. He admitted again that he had known he should have quit when he got even or a little ahead, but he had thought he could win more. Hoss could only shake his head at his brother’s foolishness, but was not as shocked as Adam had been because he didn’t know the amount.<\/p>\n “I’m sorry, Adam. I never should have said you had to help him. Maybe he ought to tell Pa and take his medicine after a fool stunt like that.”<\/p>\n “It’s all right, Hoss. I would have done it anyway, but I appreciate the support from you letting Joe know his behavior was unacceptable.<\/p>\n As for Joe, he was relieved to get help and not have to face their father even if Hoss called him a fool again and wasn’t as sympathetic as he had been. He had to make an offer.<\/p>\n “Adam, I’m sorry I got into such a mess and now I’m dragging you into it. Maybe it would be best if I did tell Pa.”<\/p>\n “Joe, it’s all right. We’ve all made mistakes. I’ll help you, but you need to remember your promise.”<\/p>\n Although Adam wasn’t expecting it, Joe didn’t know any other way to show his sincerity. He hugged his older brother. A little embarrassed by that, Adam still appreciated it. Hoss chucked Adam in the shoulder lightly with his fist to show that he too thought all was well.<\/p>\n On Monday morning, Adam headed to town because he had to sell off some investments to raise the cash necessary to help Joe pay off his thousand-dollar IOU. He hoped to get it all done before their father returned. Even though their father would probably find out eventually, Adam hoped to have some idea of how to explain it to him by then. It would be difficult to do without lying which he wouldn’t do, but there might be a way to talk around it and keep Joe from having to face his father’s wrath. He had done this so many times, it was a habit. There were times he wondered if he should be doing it, but then Hoss would remind him that Joe wasn’t as able as the two of them to face their father’s anger. Joe was more sensitive, even perhaps oversensitive, and having to face their father’s anger in these situations shook his confidence and sometimes even made him doubt his family’s love for him. Knowing that, Adam always helped him.<\/p>\n It took some time to make the necessary arrangements. What he wanted to do was so out of character and not a wise financial decision so he had to explain something to those businessmen to whom he had to speak directly. Coming up with reasonable cover stories, he spun his tales, and they did their best to act like they believed him. He found it humiliating, but Joe needed his help so he had to do it. Shadows were growing long indicating late afternoon before he had arranged for most of the cash he needed. He left what he had accumulated in the bank suspecting that the gamblers might be waiting for him to be carrying money and bushwhack him. The rest of the money he needed to pay Joe’s debt was going to be ready for him the next morning.<\/p>\n Before heading home, Adam went to the saloon and talked to the bartender to find out the identity of the gamblers. He thought it might be helpful to find out more and perhaps let the sheriff know so something official might be done. Cosmo was a good observer and had been a friend for a long time. He gave Adam the descriptions of the gamblers and said he too thought they were working together.<\/p>\n “Adam, they’ve played together every night with one or two people from the area. It never varies how they do it. Even though they try to act like they’re people who are gamblers who happen to play the same place every night, they do things the same way all the time.”<\/p>\n “Same pattern every time?”<\/p>\n “It sure is a pattern from everything I’ve seen. Adam, I know Joe got himself in a bind. He isn’t the only one. Seems like almost every night, somebody ends up signing an IOU over to these jaspers. Their cover seems to be that every now and then, they let someone walk away a winner but not by much. Whatever it is they’re doing, they’re really good at it. Must have been doing if for a long time to be so smooth in what they do.”<\/p>\n “You’ve caught any names?”<\/p>\n “I’ve had the girls listening figuring I’d be asked that. They’re careful and almost never call each other by name. When they do, it’s nicknames and not ones that they use over and over. You know, they use nicknames based on what happens on that night like if someone got a hand with four kings, he’s the king man and so on. It’s one of the things that’s suspicious about them.”<\/p>\n “It’s not much to go on, but maybe Roy can find out more.”<\/p>\n “Well, speak of the devil, there are the jaspers now. They’ll set up a game and play for small stakes until one or two local citizens join in. Then gradually the pots get bigger and bigger until there’s a huge one and the locals lose every time.”<\/p>\n Staring intently at the men, Adam tried to memorize the features of each stranger looking especially for features that would set them apart from other men.<\/p>\n “You think they’re working together?”<\/p>\n “No question about it. They come in together like this every day. They leave at the same time every night. Like I said, they try to act like they’re not together, but there are too many coincidences for them not to be together.”<\/p>\n “Do you know where they’re staying?”<\/p>\n “I haven’t checked into anything outside of this saloon, but from what I do know, there has to be more. There’s this one other thing I ought to tell you.”<\/p>\n “What’s that?”<\/p>\n Cosmo leaned across the bar so that he couldn’t be overheard, and Adam leaned forward too so that there were only inches between them.<\/p>\n “The girls say that after a deal, sometimes they talk oddly like maybe there’s some kind of code word or words they’re using. You know these girls use code words for customers to let the others know who to watch out for and such and for who’s good for a good tip. Well, these men use words like that after a deal. They don’t talk funny at other times. That’s why it stands out so much to the girls.”<\/p>\n “They’re using code talking? You think they’re using it as a way to know what cards to pass under the table?”<\/p>\n “Don’t know what else it could be. They’ll talk about the moon in various ways or the north star or scalp-hunters or the lake, but whatever the key words are, they show up over and over in different meanings.”<\/p>\n Nodding, he thanked Cosmo for the information and decided he needed to make one more stop. He headed to Sheriff Roy Coffee’s office. Feeling uncomfortably warm, he wondered if it was the stress of the situation or if he was coming down with something. For several days, he had not had much of an appetite and now he thought he might have a fever. He might be coming down with something. If he was getting sick and would need time to recover, it was even more important in this situation that Roy follow up on what Adam suspected might be happening in his town.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 3<\/strong><\/p>\n Entering Sheriff Coffee’s office, Adam was in a better mood than he was when he left a half hour later. Roy laughed at his worries. Adam told Roy what Joe had told him, what he had learned from Cosmo, and his theory about how the cheating was occurring although he was going to have to repeat some of that.<\/p>\n “Roy, it’s the classic set-up. Let someone win a little at the beginning, and then take that money away only to set them up for a bigger win followed by more losses and then another even bigger win to keep them in the game.”<\/p>\n “I gotta tell you, Adam, this don’t seem so bad. They’re winning their money back. How can this be such a system got you all upset?”<\/p>\n Frustrated with Roy, Adam had to control his temper to try to explain the scam to the sheriff. It was something more often seen in bigger cities, but with the rapid growth of population in Virginia City, these gamblers must have thought it worthwhile to try it in the growing community.<\/p>\n “Roy, they control you and let you win some to build your confidence especially that the game is legitimate and that you can win. You will win a big pot before you get set up with a sure-fire hand which will make you willing to sign the damn IOU when you get pushed well beyond your table stake. Joe got an ace high straight flush.”<\/p>\n Roy whistled. He could understand why Joe assumed he would win. Having played some poker, Roy had rarely seen that hand and it was plain bad luck to come up against it in a game. If it was ever dealt to him, he’d bet big on it, and apparently Joe had too. Adam didn’t think it was luck though and kept talking.<\/p>\n “Of course, no matter how good that hand is, it won’t be good enough and you will have lost your table stake as well as all the money from the IOU. Joe lost to a royal flush.”<\/p>\n Roy leaned forward then as the story had gotten more interesting even though it still didn’t seem like cheating to him.<\/p>\n “Shocked, you’ll be faced with a short deadline, and when you don’t meet it, you will be charged ten percent or higher interest per day on the balance.”<\/p>\n “Adam, you get so goldarned concerned about that little brother of yours and the trouble he gets himself into, you start seeing bad men around every corner. Now these men been in town for weeks, and ifn they was dealing a crooked game, someone would have seen them by now. You know I watch out for card sharks and don’t let them stay in my town.”<\/p>\n “Roy, I know you won’t let card sharks in town. But they’re card passing not dealing crooked. They’re cheating by passing cards under the table to the one in charge, the one who wins big every night. It’s a very sophisticated way to cheat, and I don’t know that anyone has ever tried it here until now. It requires code words for the cards that need to be passed and some skill in passing the cards so that isn’t detected.”<\/p>\n “So, you ain’t never seen them, but you know they’re doing that? You a Gypsy man now? You got one of them glass balls where you can see into the future or the past?” Roy began to laugh at his own humor.<\/p>\n “Roy, I have seen this before. It requires that these men have developed a code in their speech. I don’t have time to decipher it, but if you ask Cosmo, he’ll tell you how oddly they talk at times. His saloon girls have heard it and told him about it. Anyone who sat there long enough and wrote down the words and watched the cards they played would figure it out.”<\/p>\n “So, you want me to investigate these men because they play poker together and sometimes they talk funny around saloon girls. Now, Adam, if I did that, I’d be investigating half the men in town at one time or another. It wouldn’t be a good way for me to get re-elected.”<\/p>\n “One man wins every night, but two men lose to him every night and come back and play again for weeks? How does that make any sense unless they’re working together and the one with the money is bankrolling them?”<\/p>\n Roy was chuckling loudly even before he was done explaining. “That sure is a lot of possible things that have to be happening for any of this to be true. A real tangled web that would get your little brother out of trouble. I know you want to help him, but this is too much.”<\/p>\n Exasperated, Adam didn’t respond and stared for a moment until Roy became slightly uncomfortable. Adam had a way of doing that to people. When Adam had come into the office, Roy had noted he had picked up several wanted posters and started drawing on the back of them. When Roy wasn’t taking him seriously as evidenced by that laughter, Adam threw those drawings on Roy’s desk. That action and what he said next startled the sheriff who had not realized until that moment Adam was that serious about the situation.<\/p>\n “These are drawings you can use for the wanted posters you’re going to have printed when they break a law or hurt someone, because they will, and you’re going to want to lock them up. For your sake, I hope you can live with the guilt when it happens knowing you could have prevented it and chose to laugh it off instead. Hopefully no one will be seriously hurt or killed before that happens.”<\/p>\n Without saying anything more, Adam stood and strode from the office. Sobering because of the content of Adam’s last statement, Roy stared at the drawings and then put them in a drawer hoping his friend was wrong but worried that he might be right. The younger man did have a way of sensing when there was going to be trouble. There were times in the next few days when he was going to pull those out and look at them wondering if he would ever need them until the day he did. Adam was correct too about that guilt thing.<\/p>\n Expecting to go back to town the next day, Adam planned to do some investigating without Roy’s help if he had to do it that way. He suspected Joe was in more trouble than owing a thousand dollars even if he didn’t know what it was yet. What he had told Roy about interest would likely happen to Joe and what happened next made it more likely. Mother Nature and Ben Cartwright interfered with Adam’s plans and with Joe’s intention to pay back that loan on time. Heavier than usual rains came and washed out a bridge that had to be rebuilt, fence lines were damaged by mud slides, and flash floods stranded calves far from their mothers. It was about that time that Ben Cartwright arrived home assigning work that kept everyone busy from dawn to dusk every day including Saturday and Sunday.<\/p>\n On Monday morning, Adam and Joe headed to town without their father’s permission or knowledge because they needed to beat the deadline set by the gamblers. At the bank, Adam withdrew the funds he had and handed them over to Joe. Then he went to his partner in another enterprise to get the rest. After handing off the money to Joe, Adam went to look for a place to sit down and rest because he felt light-headed and nauseated. He had not been feeling well at all, and the heavy physical labor of the past week had made things worse. He was feeling weak and had bouts of dizziness too. He should have been in bed instead of working or riding to town with his youngest brother.<\/p>\n When Joe had the money, he headed to the saloon to pay off the IOU he had given to the gambler. The man met him outside the saloon. When Joe finally reached into his pocket for the money and handed it over, it was ten minutes after noon and the man looked angry.<\/p>\n “You’re late.”<\/p>\n “I’m only late by ten minutes. With the storms we had, you could hardly consider that a problem.”<\/p>\n “I do. Now you owe interest on your loan.”<\/p>\n “Interest?”<\/p>\n “Yes, you need one hundred dollars more.”<\/p>\n “A hundred? For ten minutes?”<\/p>\n “And a hundred more for every day until you pay that.”<\/p>\n “That’s stealing.”<\/p>\n “We can go ask your father for you if you want. I’m sure he would be very interested in finding out about your activities especially how you handle your finances.”<\/p>\n Trying not to show how worried he was, Joe tried bravado.<\/p>\n “I’m not paying you anymore. I paid what I owed. And don’t even think about threatening me or my family. You come after us, and you’ll be sorry.”<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Adam had stopped in at the saloon and taken a seat at a table. He asked one of the saloon girls to sit with him and she was surprised until he began questioning her about the gamblers.<\/p>\n “Here I was thinking I got Adam Cartwright interested in me, and all you want is information. Darling, you could have so much more.”<\/p>\n Moving over, she sat on his lap to see if she could entice him to think about more.<\/p>\n “Maybe another day because you are certainly a temptation, but right now, I can’t take the time to show my appreciation for all you have to offer.”<\/p>\n “You do have a sweet way of talking. Now, about those gamblers. Your little brother isn’t the only one they pulled that trick on. There’s at least one a night and they seldom come back in here. I think they don’t have the money any more to even stop in for a beer.”<\/p>\n “If you pay close attention to them and tell me or Sheriff Coffee what you observe, I can make it worth your time. In fact, I’ll trust you in advance.”<\/p>\n Dropping a gold piece down the front of her dress, Adam smiled.<\/p>\n “You can tell any of the other girls they can get money too for telling what they know about the gamblers.”<\/p>\n Soon two of the other girls were there to tell what they knew. Adam found out that Joe definitely wasn’t the only one in trouble owing a large amount of money and trying to keep it a secret. He had names, and he knew before Joe told him that he was going to owe more than he thought he owed. It wasn’t a surprise then when Joe came back and was so upset. Adam asked why to hear it from him, and Joe spilled the whole story matching what Adam had learned from the saloon girls.<\/p>\n “I told them I wouldn’t pay. But Adam, what am I going to do? They’ve got me really worried about what they might do.”<\/p>\n “We are going to have to tell Pa at some point which may be soon because of this, but first I want to find out more and try one more time to get Roy to investigate these men. You aren’t the only one in this boat. They’re doing the same to a number of others, and I want to see if any of them will talk to me or I can give the names to Roy to see if they might talk to him. Right now, let’s head home. We’re going to have to try to get some work done or Pa’s going to blow about that.”<\/p>\n “I know. He hasn’t been easy to talk to since he got back. I suppose all this trouble with the weather didn’t help.”<\/p>\n The two brothers walked out of the saloon together, mounted up, and rode toward home. They still thought they had some control of what was going to happen.<\/p>\n Unfortunately for Adam and Joe, the trouble they anticipated with Ben Cartwright escalated sooner than they expected or perhaps exploded would be a more apt description. As they rode toward home, they met their father on the road as he rode to town to take care of some business. He looked even more surprised than they did, but said only that they would talk about things when he got home later. His look said that talk wasn’t going to be pleasant. Joe looked at Adam when their father rode on, and Adam shrugged. There was nothing they could do about what had happened.<\/p>\n “Pa’s going to be mad that we were in town instead of working.”<\/p>\n “Joe, he’s probably going to be more upset than that. If he’s going to town, it probably means the bank or the lawyer, but I would bet on the bank. If he goes there, he’s bound to hear that I withdrew a lot of money from investments and held it in the bank for a week but took it all out today.”<\/p>\n “Uh-oh.”<\/p>\n “Yes, it could get bad. He’s not going to like hearing that I did that.”<\/p>\n “Today might be the day I have to tell him what I did. It’s going to be even worse telling him when he’s in a mood like this. I’ve been thinking of telling him all week. The way he’s been, I couldn’t do it.”<\/p>\n “I can understand that.”<\/p>\n However, things were worse than either of them anticipated. When Ben returned and confronted them, their father’s red face was the first warning of worse to come. Both were surprised how he began his rant though.<\/p>\n “Not only were the two of you in town when you were supposed to be working, but I met with our banker. Adam, he told me that you sold off some of your investments. Now what did you need that money for? You never sell investments to get cash. You borrow against investments to keep the capital. You know better. What kind of foolishness is this from you?”<\/p>\n “They were my investments. He had no right to tell you anything that he told you.”<\/p>\n “That wasn’t my question. I was not asking if you owned them. My question was quite clear. Why did you sell them?”<\/p>\n “I had my reasons. They were mine to do with as I wished for whatever reasons I have.”<\/p>\n “And that’s what I asked. What were those reasons?”<\/p>\n Silence was all that greeted him then, and Ben knew his son wasn’t going to tell him. Joe hung back not knowing if he should explain because that might make things worse or keep silent and possibly keep things from escalating. Joe never knew what do to in these arguments between Adam and their father. When Adam stormed from the house, he stood there still not sure if he should follow or stay and explain.<\/p>\n “Well, you should tell me why you went to town this morning when you and your brother had work to do.”<\/p>\n Using evasion as well as his older brother, Joe simply answered with what his father already was aware. Until he got some direction from Adam, he wasn’t going to divulge something on which Adam had taken a stand. “You already know Adam had something to do in town.”<\/p>\n “I suppose you won’t tell me that either.”<\/p>\n “I guess it’s up to Adam to tell you if he wants to say.”<\/p>\n With a wave of his hand showing his disgust, Ben turned to his desk and walked away from his youngest son. Joe turned and followed Adam out the door not at all sure if he had done the right thing. He at least thought he needed to thank Adam for protecting him. When he found Adam, he still wasn’t sure if he had done the right thing.<\/p>\n “I thought maybe I should tell Pa what I did and how you were helping me, but then I thought it might even make things worse. It’s always hard to know how Pa is going to react to news like that. He might get upset with you for helping me. I don’t know. What should I do?”<\/p>\n Watching as Adam worked to get his emotions under control, Joe waited not knowing if he was going to get yelled at or if they would discuss the situation. Sometimes Adam needed to vent too. When he turned around, Joe could see he was upset but not angry. It was their father who was the one Adam was focused on at the moment.<\/p>\n “Joe, the way things went in there, maybe we’ll never tell Pa about this whole thing. It’s almost payday. Pay me back, and we’ll forget about it.”<\/p>\n “I don’t get paid that much in a month.”<\/p>\n “I know. Pay some each month.”<\/p>\n “Thanks, Adam. You’re the best oldest brother a man could have.”<\/p>\n Shaking his head, Adam had to smile a little. He didn’t hear that kind of thing from his little brother very often so it was especially pleasing to hear them when Joe did decide to be complimentary even if he had to do favors to make that happen. They went to work, and over the next few days, tension diminished even if it didn’t go away. Ben irritation at Adam surfaced now and then in comments but there was no more conversation about the root cause of it.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 4<\/strong><\/p>\n It was near the end of the month and salaries were paid on the last Friday. Adam expected to get money from Joe, but he knew that Joe would have to do it in a way that didn’t draw any suspicion from their father. Because it was the end of the work week, by evening, he realized his little brother had gone to town. It was likely that he was spending that money instead of paying him which made him angry. Saddling his horse, his temper was flaring and he mounted up to head to town too. In the saloon, he walked in and saw Joe in a poker game. At least this time, he was playing with locals. Not trusting his temper if he stayed, Adam decided against having a drink there and walked back out. As he walked down the street, the headache he had been experiencing on and off lately was back and much worse than ever. He even staggered a little and went to lean on a tree with what felt like a fierce heat in his head. Hearing his name, he turned to see Hoss’ girl and wondered what she wanted.<\/p>\n “Adam, are you all right? You don’t look so good.”<\/p>\n “I’m fine.”<\/p>\n “I know you Cartwrights well enough to know what that means. Come on in. I’m going to get some tea for you or maybe a cool drink if you’re too warm.”<\/p>\n Not ready to let him resist, she took his arm and walked with him up her short walk to her porch and into her house. Down the street, Joe watched in surprise. He had seen Adam come into the saloon and then leave. Excusing himself from the game, he followed him because he had hoped to explain what he was doing. Now he wondered what Adam was doing. He found a bench and sat down to watch.<\/p>\n Inside the house, Adam relaxed on Linda’s couch as she bustled about getting a cool cloth and brewing some tea. Her house was cooler than outside and sitting and resting helped too. She was back in soon with a bowl of cold water and some cotton cloths.<\/p>\n “Tip your head back and let me put this cool cloth over your eyes and forehead. You should relax until the tea is ready.”<\/p>\n When the tea was ready, Linda added some honey and brought it to Adam telling him to sip it. He did and began to feel a bit better. When Linda had taken the cool cloth away, she had laid a cool hand across his forehead and cheek.<\/p>\n “You seem to have a low fever. Adam, you should probably see a doctor or at the very least, be in bed resting.”<\/p>\n “I’ll be fine.”<\/p>\n “I know. When I talk to Hoss, he’s like that too. I don’t see him nearly as often as I would like. I get the feeling I’ve done something to bother him, but then he comes by and it’s like he’s so happy to see me. I don’t understand.”<\/p>\n When Adam finished the tea, Linda told Adam to lean back again and she put another cool cloth over his eyes and forehead.<\/p>\n “We can talk if you wish. I’d like to know more about Hoss if you have any stories to tell.”<\/p>\n So, for an hour, Adam talked about Hoss with Linda. The time was well spent telling her tales about his brother and about his middle brother’s shyness and his insecurities with women. He encouraged her to go ahead and be a little more assertive assuring her that Hoss would not be bothered by it. By the end of the hour, Linda felt she understood Hoss so much better.<\/p>\n “Hoss would probably be relieved to know how you feel and that you want to do things with him. If you make suggestions, he doesn’t have to spend a week or two working up his courage to ask you. But I do need to go now. I thank you for the tea and the care. I do feel better now.”<\/p>\n “Thank you for telling me about Hoss. I especially enjoyed hearing the stories about him and his critters as you call them. I know a little more now how to get him to open up and talk to me. I’m guessing if I ask him about what critters he’s seen this week, he’s bound to have some stories to tell me.”<\/p>\n “I’m sure he will. Be careful what you wish for though. He may tell you about every spot on the fawn he saw.”<\/p>\n Laughing then, Linda opened the door for Adam and stepped out on the porch with him. On the porch, Linda hugged him and kissed him on the cheek before bidding him good evening.<\/p>\n “You take care, Adam. I think you need to get home and get some rest. You have a fever by the best I can tell.”<\/p>\n “Thank you. I’ll be fine.”<\/p>\n “Like I told you earlier, Hoss already told me what that means when a Cartwright says he is fine.”<\/p>\n Smiling, Adam waved as he got to the street only to be confronted soon after by Joe who stood in his way with his hands on his hips. Adam didn’t want to talk because there was too much between them to discuss so he said they would talk at home. That decision by Adam let Joe seethe and when they arrived at home, his little brother was in a foul mood.<\/p>\n Standing again in that fighter’s stance with hands on hips, Joe was ready to challenge his oldest brother over what he saw as a betrayal. All thoughts of explaining his own behavior were gone. “What were you doing with Hoss’ girlfriend hugging and kissing her?”<\/p>\n “I wasn’t hugging and kissing her.”<\/p>\n “I saw you.”<\/p>\n “You saw nothing of the sort. What were you doing gambling when you owed me money? Considering your behavior of late, you should have been at home anyway.” Adam had not wanted a confrontation, but once his temper was stoked, his resentment of Joe’s behavior fueled his responses.<\/p>\n “I was making more money so I could pay you off faster. I didn’t play with those cheaters. I do have a little bit more than I had before. Now back to the more important issue of you cheating on Hoss with his girl.”<\/p>\n “No, I’m not talking any more. I don’t feel up to any more talking tonight.”<\/p>\n “Listen, you don’t get to act so superior like you get to decide everything when you’re a cheater especially on your own brother. That’s a lot worse than anything I did which was make a mistake gambling when I should have known better. You did this and knew it was wrong before you ever did it.”<\/p>\n “Once and for all, shut up. I didn’t do anything wrong. As a spy and a detective, you’re even worse than you are a gambler. Now I’m not talking about this anymore.”<\/p>\n Stalking off out of the barn and to the house, Adam never saw Hoss standing to the side of the doors to the barn barely containing his fury. He waited until Adam was in the house and then stomped into the barn demanding that Joe told him exactly what he had seen. With what Joe had seen, Hoss drew the same conclusions Joe had. Neither questioned Joe’s judgement even though he had a spotty record in drawing logical conclusions.<\/p>\n Hoss’ jealousy was inflamed, but he wasn’t going to do anything until his temper cooled some because he was afraid of what he might do as angry as he was. It was difficult, but he held back and sat in the barn until he thought he would be able to go to his bedroom. All his memories of how he had jumped to conclusions that were wrong about Adam and Regan were forgotten. Later, he knew he should have talked to his brother and the whole issue would have quickly been resolved. However, experience is only a good teacher if you’re willing to accept the lesson.<\/p>\n In the house, Ben knew something was up with his sons but not one of them was willing to talk to him about what was happening. Adam sat in his chair with the appearance of reading but didn’t turn the page in his book. Hoss had gone up to his room saying he was tired, but the big man was clearly still up by the noises coming from his bedroom. Joe simply sat and stared at the fire clearly angry about something and the source of that was his oldest brother by the glares Joe sent in that direction. There was nothing there to explain anything though because they weren’t talking. Ben guessed it would come to a head soon, and then he could work with them to get to a point where they could settle their grievances. However, it wasn’t going to work out in that kind of reasonable manner in the mood these three were in.<\/p>\n The next day, Ben went to town to get supplies. It was a pleasant morning but it turned unpleasant with news he got inadvertently. He was in the general store when Sheriff Roy Coffee’s deputy saw him and mentioned that Roy was in his office. Ben decided that a visit with Roy would be a nice way to relax before heading back home and the tension of three brothers who were being icily cold to one another.<\/p>\n All was going well as he sipped Roy’s awful coffee which was so bitter it was always a challenge not to grimace when that aftertaste hit your senses fully. It was good though to visit and speak without fear of setting off an argument or confrontation. That changed though when Ben saw some drawings on Roy’s desk.<\/p>\n “What are these?”<\/p>\n “Oh, those. A friend of mine drew those.”<\/p>\n “It looks like drawings Adam would do.”<\/p>\n “Well, they look like drawings Adam would do because he did those. He wanted me to investigate some gamblers he had suspicions about. I had no complaints about them and told him I wouldn’t investigate just because somebody lost a lot of money.”<\/p>\n Saying nothing, Ben began to seethe again inside. When he got home, he knew he was going to have another confrontation with his oldest son and doubted it would go well. Roy noticed the change in Ben’s mood but didn’t know what caused it. He didn’t realize that Ben had assumed that Adam had gambled and lost a lot of money which led to him selling off his investments. Ben intended to confront Adam about this when he returned home. That went about as anyone would expect.<\/p>\n “Did you sell off investments to pay off a gambling debt?”<\/p>\n “It’s none of your business what I do with my money.”<\/p>\n “It is if you’re a member of this family and your habits put this ranch in jeopardy. What will happen if those gamblers come after you for your debts and want a piece of the Ponderosa as payment?”<\/p>\n “They won’t.”<\/p>\n “How can you be sure?”<\/p>\n “Because I don’t owe money to anyone.”<\/p>\n With that, Adam stormed from the house. In the argument with his father, he had forgotten about the threat to the family that Joe had told him. With his fatigue and fever, his thinking and logic were badly impaired. The huge problem in a situation like that was that the person affected doesn’t have the ability to realize the deficit. If those around him don’t notice, he is at even greater risk especially in a crisis. In a normal crisis if any situation like that could ever be labeled that way, the family would have been pulling closer together and Adam’s condition would have been noticed immediately. However that was not the case and about to get worse.<\/p>\n Adam walked stiffly from the house to the barn not sure at all what he was going to do next and unable to come up with any reasonable plan. Hoss was in the barn, and when Adam entered, Hoss decided to have it out with him because what Joe had told him had been churning inside of him since he had heard the hurtful words.<\/p>\n As Adam walked into the barn, he was thinking that perhaps taking a room in town and sleeping for a few days might be a good idea. He was exhausted. Instead, he ran directly into Hoss whose demeanor indicated this was going to be an unpleasant encounter.<\/p>\n “I’ve been holding back as long as I can, but now I need to know. What were you doing with my gal?”<\/p>\n “I did nothing with Linda.”<\/p>\n “Don’t lie to me. Joe saw you with her hugging and kissing.”<\/p>\n “He didn’t see me hugging or kissing her. I am not going to discuss this when you’re like this.”<\/p>\n “You don’t want to talk about it? Then I know it’s all true.”<\/p>\n “None of it is true.”<\/p>\n “That’s all you got to say? You’re not going to say you’re sorry or nothing?”<\/p>\n “There’s nothing to say like that. I can’t say I’m sorry because that would be saying I did something wrong when I did not.”<\/p>\n “You ain’t being like a brother to me no more if you can do this to me. Brothers just don’t do things like this to one another.”<\/p>\n Without even realizing what he had said although he would remember the hateful words later, Hoss turned without another word and walked stiffly from the barn. He never saw the stricken look on his brother’s face and didn’t know how Adam had taken his words. Adam would have liked to go after him to deny it, but he had no energy to handle this. He needed to rest. Saddling his horse, he never heard Joe come into the barn.<\/p>\n “Adam, I sorry for how I talked to you. I had no right. I guess lately I’ve been on edge because of what I’ve done, but you’re the last person I should have taken out my bad temper against. Maybe I should tell Pa what I did. All I’ve been doing since is making more mistakes trying to make up for the first mistake. It’s too difficult trying to live with this lie.” Joe saw Adam look surprised. “Yeah, I know now that it is a lie. It may be by omission, but it’s the same thing when you’re fooling someone on purpose.”<\/p>\n “Telling Pa is up to you, Joe. What happened between me and Pa has been building for a while. He won’t let me make my own decisions. He seems to think he has a right to check on me like I’m a boy and then question what I’ve done as if he has a right to tell me what to do. It’s exhausting to continually have this battle with him. I’m going to go to town, get a room, and then sleep for at least two days.”<\/p>\n “Yeah, maybe you should get some sleep because you don’t look so good. Maybe you ought to stop in and see the Doc.”<\/p>\n “I only need to rest. I’m worn out by everything. When I get some sleep, then I’ll be fine.”<\/p>\n “I wanted you to know how sorry I am about what I did and the trouble I caused though.”<\/p>\n “Thanks, Joe.”<\/p>\n “Hoss looked real upset walking to the house. Did something happen between the two of you?”<\/p>\n “Nothing happened, but that wasn’t the problem.”<\/p>\n Confused by the response, Joe watched Adam ride out and head toward town. Adam even looked tired by how he sat in the saddle. Briefly Joe even thought about riding along to make sure he was all right, but he knew what Adam would say about that. There was still that threat the gambler had made, but Joe didn’t think they would do anything so soon. Instead he went to the house and worried. He didn’t know that Hoss had berated Adam and said something awful to him. Hoss looked so upset that Joe didn’t want to ask him about it and start up anything. He should have. It was the story he had told that had led to the problem, and Ben might have helped clear that up if he had a chance to hear it sooner than he did.<\/p>\n As it was, it was a couple of hours before their father asked where his oldest son was, and by then Adam was in far more trouble than anyone could have imagined and headed toward even worse problems.<\/p>\n In town, the gambler who had threatened Joe was in Sheriff Roy Coffee’s office to answer a few questions. One citizen claimed that he had been threatened, and Roy had a deputy summon the gambler for questioning. Roy began by asking specifically about the citizen’s complaint against him. The gambler had a prepared answer.<\/p>\n “I’m sure he misunderstood. When I said to him that his life would be ended as he knows it, I meant that I can go after his land, his house, and his horses as well as anything else he owned. Anything he has could be mine unless he pays off his debt. It had nothing to do with threatening to kill him. I don’t kill people. If I did, I would never get the money they owe me. Now that wouldn’t be very good business for a gambler, would it? I need to collect my IOUs or there would be no point in taking them.”<\/p>\n “Well, I thought that was probably the case, but I had to ask you. If I get a citizen complaint, I have to follow up on it. Now I thank you for coming in and talking with me. I’ll be going out to talk to the man and assuring him that you have no evil intent toward him or his family.”<\/p>\n “Thank you, Sheriff Coffee. I know gamblers are probably not your favorite kind of citizen, but you must know that I play an honest game. By now, I’m sure there have been those who have watched me assuming I’m cheating on the deal or have cards up my sleeve. I can assure you I do none of those things.”<\/p>\n “Well, now, yes, I have had a few people mention a few possibilities like that and none ever said they saw anything,”<\/p>\n “And they never will. I am not a cheater.”<\/p>\n The man was evasive and quite a smooth talker. His demeanor was nothing like what his victim had described. Roy began to think Adam may have been correct about what this man was doing. He decided to test him to see how he would answer.<\/p>\n “So, you have never passed cards under the table by having code words to let your partners know which cards to pass?”<\/p>\n Doing his best to disguise his shock, the gambler grinned. “That’s a very creative way to cheat, but a man would need partners to make that work, and I’m here alone. I have no partners, and no, I don’t do that.”<\/p>\n About that time and desperate to change the subject, the gambler saw the sketches Adam had made of him and his two partners. The likenesses were quite good. Roy knew what both responses meant. Someone who was lying often talked way too much. Innocent people usually said no, they didn’t do that. Guilty people tended to want to explain how they were innocent. The second strategy was diversion. He wanted to get the sheriff to discuss a different topic and get away from the one that was uncomfortable. In a sudden and uncomfortable realization, Roy realized Adam was correct about the situation. He could see how nervous the gambler was seeing those drawings. There was no reason for an innocent man to be so nervous.<\/p>\n “What are these? Are you an artist too?”<\/p>\n “No, those were made by Adam Cartwright. He had a notion that you might be doing something illegal and wanted me to have those if I needed to put out wanted posters.”<\/p>\n “Wanted posters? For gambling?”<\/p>\n “No, seems like he thinks there’s more going on than gambling.” Roy decided to say more to see if he could rattle the man. How he responded would tell Roy if the gambler was lying. “Adam does think you’re using a code to the other two who are your partners and passing cards under the table when you need to do it.”<\/p>\n Disguising his shock by feigning genuine interest in the quality of the drawings, the gambler managed not to be too obvious in his reaction to that news but his fingers tightened on the posters. Roy saw that. “And these other two men look like the other gamblers who are usually at my table, but I can assure you they are not my partners.”<\/p>\n “They are the other gamblers. He has an idea that you might know them by the way you act with them every night according to the other folks in the saloon who see you together playing cards.”<\/p>\n Ignoring that supposition, the gambler only commented on the drawings. “It is quite a good drawing of me. Would you be willing to let me have it?”<\/p>\n “No, I don’t think I could do that. Adam gave those to me, and I think he meant for me to keep them.”<\/p>\n “That’s all right then. It would have been nice to have. Good day, Sheriff Coffee. I plan to get a little rest before heading to my usual table for the evening.”<\/p>\n Because Joe owed money, the gambler and his partners had already checked out the Cartwright family. To discover that Adam Cartwright was investigating them and had already discovered their method was significantly disturbing. He hurried back to his room and went through the adjoining door to wake the other two for an emergency strategy session.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 5<\/strong><\/p>\n Once Sheriff Coffee let him know their scheme and methods had been uncovered, they had to make a choice. They could split up and each go back to trying to work alone. The other option was to get rid of the main obstacle to their continued partnership and then move on to continue the same system in another town or city far enough away not to have heard of them or anything they had done. He already knew which option he preferred before he got to his room at the hotel and summoned his partners.<\/p>\n “We’ve got a big problem. The sheriff had me in his office to question me about Samuels. We were worried he might talk and he did, to the sheriff and maybe to others.”<\/p>\n “That’s not such a big problem. We already had talked about that. He seemed like maybe not a good mark. If we couldn’t kill him to set an example, we would walk away from him. He’s not worth it. He doesn’t owe us enough to risk our necks.”<\/p>\n “He’s not the problem.”<\/p>\n “Then why are you talking about him?”<\/p>\n “If you ever let me finish my story, I’ll tell you. I was in the sheriff’s office because Samuels went to him, but while I was there, I saw he had drawings of us. They were very good, too good.”<\/p>\n “Samuels has drawings of us?”<\/p>\n “No, the sheriff has them. Shut up and let me talk. Seems Adam Cartwright drew pictures of us to put on wanted posters.”<\/p>\n “But we’re not wanted.”<\/p>\n “Not yet we aren’t, but Adam Cartwright thinks we’ve been cheating and told the sheriff we pass cards under the table and use code words with each other so we know which cards to pass.”<\/p>\n “He knows how we’re cheating? How did he figure that out?”<\/p>\n “Remember we found out he travels a lot especially down by the Bay, and we know he plays poker. He’s probably run into lots of ways men cheat at cards.”<\/p>\n “That’s bad for us.”<\/p>\n “That’s not all. Those pictures he drew of all of us and gave to the sheriff are very good. The damn sheriff could use them for wanted posters if he suspected we committed a crime, and people would know us wherever we went.”<\/p>\n “Then we have to get rid of that Cartwright, but we have to do it in a way that no one knows we did anything.”<\/p>\n “How would we do that?”<\/p>\n “Maybe we get rid of him like we did the troublemaker we had in Placerville. Didn’t they say they wanted a tall black-haired man? They were offering a thousand dollars.”<\/p>\n The other men grinned. Getting rid of a problem and making money at the same time was an attractive proposition.<\/p>\n “How do we get those pictures?”<\/p>\n “We’ll need a distraction. You two can handle that, and I’ll go in the office and get them.”<\/p>\n “A fire?”<\/p>\n “That should work. They’d panic over a fire.”<\/p>\n So, the three began planning in earnest about how to accomplish their goals.<\/p>\n There was one concern the three gamblers had about whether their solution to Adam Cartwright would work, but they had a contingency plan too.<\/p>\n “Yeah, the broker in California was willing to pay a thousand dollars if we brought him a tall dark-haired man, but that was weeks ago. I don’t know if they still want one.”<\/p>\n “If they don’t, we can leave him somewhere to find his way back. Maybe if they don’t want him, you could leave him in less than perfect condition so getting back won’t be so easy.”<\/p>\n “Yeah, we could make sure his fingers wouldn’t be drawing any more pictures of us. By the time he gets back, we will have collected all we can and gotten away from here. We can collect as much as we can get from all the men who gave us IOUs except for the one who went whining to the sheriff. We can’t touch that damn Samuels.”<\/p>\n “Why not? We always make an example of anybody who won’t pay up.”<\/p>\n “Because the sheriff will look right at us if anything happens to Samuels. This is one time someone gets away with it at least for now. I figure no more than a week here and maybe less than that as all we need is time for collecting from the rest of them. That sheriff was playing it like he was convinced by me, but he wasn’t. He’s going to be checking on us too. If Adam Cartwright disappears though, it will keep him busy enough so we can take care of these other things and leave.”<\/p>\n “So, how do we do this and take care of this Adam Cartwright. We don’t know this country. I’m not even sure I could go find this Ponderosa, and they probably have men working for them that would protect him. There’s those other Cartwrights too. I mean, I’m in favor of the idea, but it sounds too difficult to do to go take him from the Ponderosa.”<\/p>\n “Don’t have to take him from the Ponderosa. That’s the beauty of this plan. As I was walking back here, he rode into town. Came into the hotel after I did and checked in. I waited in the lobby and I paid attention. He’s in room 203. All we have to do is wait until he’s asleep and pull our little maneuver on him like we did on the guy in Placerville.”<\/p>\n “Knock him out, load him in a wagon wrapped in a rug, and head west?”<\/p>\n “There you go, Marty. You aren’t as stupid as folks say. Turn him over for the thousand, collect on the money we’re owed, and get out of here with enough to stake us in the next town. Damn, we got run out of San Francisco and Sacramento by bigger organizations. Who would think we couldn’t make it go here, but there are better towns out there where we can set up and make more money without some nosy cowboy making trouble for us. Now we know we have to work on a few things though so we don’t get anyone curious in the next town. We may have to bring in a few more men to make it work, but that’s for the next town. Right now, we need to get rid of the nosy cowboy here and get some money for him.”<\/p>\n The plan could not have worked better. In using their strong-arm techniques to collect on IOUs, they had learned how to get through a locked door, and these hotel doors were easy. As dead tired as Adam had been, he was sound asleep when they entered the room. He hardly had a chance to react before he was overwhelmed by the three men. Knowing they had to silence him, they had a gag on him as they grabbed his arms and legs. They had him rolled up in a rug and ready for transport by midnight. Adam was awake when they pulled him from his bed, but that gag in his mouth took care of calls for help he might have wanted to try as he was carried from his room down the back stairs of the hotel and hoisted into a wagon. None of it was done with any consideration for him so he was bruised and battered by the treatment. Although he wondered if they planned to kill him, he guessed that wasn’t their intent as they had plenty of chances and hadn’t taken advantage of them. He heard the instructions too when the driver was reminded to stop occasionally and give him water once they were away from town. Other than that, it apparently was mostly a drive to deliver a package and he was the package. All Adam knew on the trip was that he was going to California. He heard that much but couldn’t understand the rest not knowing why he was going to a ranch to be delivered. The driver who took Adam to California was back five days later.<\/p>\n “You delivered him and got paid?”<\/p>\n “Yes, you bet I did. The offer was still good, and I have all the money they offered. They wasn’t too happy he was kinda sick but they were getting desperate to have somebody.”<\/p>\n “He was kinda sick?”<\/p>\n “Yeah, he had a fever and didn’t look so good, but he could walk and he was otherwise all right. I noticed on the way there that he didn’t seem to have much fight in him. When we took him, I guessed his reputation was all blowed up or I did think maybe he was sick. Guess most likely he was sick by how he was acting, and he did seem kinda hot like he might have a fever. Of course, we were kind of rough on him to get him out of that bed and rolled up in the rug. I think we might have banged his head once or twice when we took him down the stairs.”<\/p>\n “But you said he was still walking when he had to so it couldn’t have been too bad or he couldn’t have done that.”<\/p>\n “As long as they took him and paid you, it doesn’t matter. We’re packed up and ready to go. Is the wagon out back?”<\/p>\n “Sure is.”<\/p>\n “Load our things into it. We’ll meet you in Laramie. Seems like that is far enough away that no one will track us down. We’ll set up there for a short time to make enough money to finance a bigger operation maybe in Denver.”<\/p>\n “They don’t have a reason to track us down, do they?”<\/p>\n “It’s better to play it safe. We don’t know how many citizens that Cartwright talked to about his ideas.”<\/p>\n “What about those wanted posters? Did you get those pictures?”<\/p>\n “No.”<\/p>\n “Why not?”<\/p>\n “We started a little fire to get their attention, but the sheriff locked his office before he left. He never does that. I watched him the next day and the next night. He locked the office every time he left. He suspects something. We’re going to have to take our chances that they’ve got nothing on us that they can use those pictures he drew.”<\/p>\n With the risk of wanted posters, the two traveling by stage and then by train, had to take some precautions altering their appearance. The man driving the wagon wasn’t worried. He didn’t think anyone would suspect they had a wagon carrying their possessions. He felt safe.<\/p>\n As those who had ensnared Adam in a nightmare fled Virginia City, in California, Adam was held on a ranch. He had no idea why he was there and any attempt to ask questions was met with anger and orders to shut up. His hands were bound behind his back and then he was brought to a sheriff’s office where he was exchanged for another man. The ropes were exchanged for handcuffs, and as soon as he could, he tried to tell the sheriff what had happened. A blow that knocked him to the floor was his answer and his warning to shut up again. His next stop was a courtroom where he was still not allowed to tell anyone the truth. Within a couple of days of his arrival, Adam had been found guilty in place of the man who should have been in court. In jail awaiting the prison wagon, he tried whenever he could to protest that he wasn’t that man, but only earned himself a beating and then restraints and another gag. As in the courtroom, none of the men who had sworn to uphold the law had any interest in doing so.<\/p>\n Soon after that experience, Adam got his first taste of life as a convicted man and official inmate of the prison system. Rough treatment at the jail was only a preview of how he would be treated by those who transported him to the prison. Every time he was moved, he seemed not to move to the satisfaction of those guarding him and earned blows apparently meant to punish as well as direct his behavior. His body was getting bruises almost anywhere one would look.<\/p>\n The trip to the prison was rough as he bounced in the back of a wagon without springs with his arms and legs in restraints so he couldn’t adequately brace himself, but the reception and treatment at the prison were worse. He knew he was sick, but if they wouldn’t listen when he tried to tell them his real name and real story, so he guessed they wouldn’t be interested that he was as sick as he could ever remember. He had a fever, body aches and pains, and feelings of nausea, but there was no one there who cared. However, he could walk and do what they ordered him to do which was all that seemed to matter. The judge had told them not to give him anything to eat for three days, but he didn’t care about that too much. He wasn’t much interested in eating even if he was hungry and weak. Lately, eating anything solid only made the nausea worse.<\/p>\n As they brought him to the cell and prepared to leave him there still shackled and gagged, he tried one more time to tell them he was sick.<\/p>\n “I’m sick. I have a fever.”<\/p>\n That was all he managed to say before he was shoved against a wall and pummeled. Grabbed and hauled to his feet, he was pushed up against that same wall and forced to stand at attention. There was no response to his information that he was sick. All he heard was the mantra he heard every time he tried to communicate by any means.<\/p>\n “Your job here is to do as you’re told and be quiet. No talking. No sound. It’s your punishment to be here and your chance to be a decent man. Until then, you’re garbage. Any talking will be dealt with the way it has been so far. You have had several lessons so far but seem like you don’t learn very well.”<\/p>\n Of course, there were blows again to help enforce the rule so he wouldn’t forget it. As the guard had told him, there had been a number of those reminders already and he had bruises all over his back and arms. There were getting to be so many he had lost count. He couldn’t fight them and was even having trouble trying to remember all those who had administered the blows.<\/p>\n “Oh, one more thing, 8284. The warden has said you are a risk to yourself, so his order is that your clothing is to be removed.”<\/p>\n The guard paused expecting a response and seemed disappointed when there wasn’t one. He had thought there would be an opportunity to discipline this prisoner further, but he thought somehow the prisoner must have known that and wouldn’t cooperate. That made him angry with him. Frustrated by the inmate’s passive reception of that news, he continued. The response by Adam remained the same.<\/p>\n “You will be issued a prison uniform anyway so you don’t need what you’re wearing. You can’t do that with the restraints on so the guards will do it for you. Any resistance will result in severe punishment.”<\/p>\n It seemed that guard was taunting him and he was. What the guard saw as passive resistance was Adam had no strength left to resist and let them do what they would. When the guards released his arms, he said nothing. Sick, hurt, and still in restraints, he let himself fall to the floor hoping that would end the abuse. It seemed to satisfy his tormentors who left him lay there. They apparently had expended enough of their sadistic urges when they had taken his clothing from him by force without removing his restraints. It was cold on the floor of that cell, but he would not give them the satisfaction of knowing how chilled he was. He did his best to control the shivering that threatened to overtake him until he heard the metal door clang shut and the room was plunged into darkness. It was the first he realized that there wasn’t even a window in his cell. He guessed he might be underground by how cold it was. It didn’t matter because it was a hopeless position. Unable to think of a single thing he could do to help himself, he stared into the darkness without even the strength to pray or even hope for help at that point.<\/p>\n There was no way for Adam to know his treatment was far worse than any other convict and would likely get worse and worse. After he was securely locked away, the warden got a visit from the judge and sheriff responsible for him being locked up there. They laid out their theory. The broker and the rancher had indeed been stupid enough to bring one of the Nevada Cartwrights into their profitable scheme. The whole thing would bring them down and cost them dearly unless the problem of Adam Cartwright was permanently resolved, but they would have to do it within the usual parameters of the prison. If he could be made to fight back, then he could be punished. If that cycle could be accelerated enough, they thought they might have the problem eliminated within weeks. Considering the scope of the problem they believed they faced, the sooner Adam Cartwright succumbed to all they could do to him, the better it would be for them.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 6<\/strong><\/p>\n For Adam, the physical abuse was something he might have been able to withstand long enough for a rescue to be made. He might have been able to even formulate a plan to better handle the situation in which he found himself even with his illness. What made him too vulnerable though was all of the emotional and mental battering he received. It was demeaning and shocking to Adam to know he had lost his name and was a number. Some ranchers were starting to use a system of keeping their livestock that way giving each one a number. He was now 8284. Sewn on the shirt he was issued was a number not a name. Someone else had worn the shirt before him and been the same number. He had no personal information or had none anyone cared to know. At the jail, he had first been called that number once he was scheduled for pickup by the prison wagon, and every move since then, he had been referred to by that number when they needed his attention. Refusing to respond meant more punishment. He was being conditioned from first contact into being a man without a name and with the identity assigned to him. He wasn’t a man anymore. He was an inmate of the correctional system and seen as less than human and treated accordingly.<\/p>\n When he was curled up on the floor of the cell in darkness and terribly uncomfortable in restraints, Adam tried to sleep. Cold seemed to seep into every part of his body and pressure points ached including into his heart knowing he was so alone and that no one perhaps even knew he was there. As 8284, he could disappear into the system and never be found. That was how his mind explained that no one had yet come to rescue him. He was exhausted which should have led to sleep, but at first, he could only manage to do that fitfully with pain, emotional turmoil, and shivering making it impossible to do so for any length of time. He knew moving would help warm him, but movement hurt so much and used energy he didn’t have. When he tried to think about what had happened to him, much of it didn’t make sense because he was having trouble focusing, and he was losing memories of some of what had happened. Confused and disoriented by everything that had happened and the physical suffering as well as illness, he simply knew he was in a nightmare from which he could not escape. He prayed for someone to realize he needed rescue because there was nothing he could do for himself.<\/p>\n At one point, Adam heard a key in the door and cringed expecting more punishment. Instead, a guard brought in a bucket of water and an empty bucket. Although Adam was thirsty and wanted to drink, he couldn’t bring himself to move that far. He tried moving, but pain wracked his body. Closing his eye, he lay as still as possible hoping the pain would diminish. By doing that, he fell asleep briefly. Getting those small intervals of sleep were his only relief from the pain and the pounding headache that had developed. As the night wore on, with sleep deprivation and dehydration adding to his deficits, he lost all awareness of where he was and why. Finally, it was all darkness and there was no more pain or cold because he had no more awareness of anything as he succumbed to shock, pain, dehydration, and deprivation.<\/p>\n As dawn broke, the night shift guards began to do the morning roll call before handing off duty to the day shift. A guard pulled the metal plate in the door back and looked in. He was surprised to see that it appeared that Adam had not moved. If he had, it had not been far. That was quite unusual for someone new to the prison because they were usually so agitated at this point and usually paced and otherwise moved all about their cell. Most often they were cold too and moved as much as possible to stay warm. The guard watched Adam for a time and there was no movement and it was even too difficult to determine if he was breathing. He went and got a metal plate. Standing at the door, he watched Adam carefully and banged the plate against the metal door. There was no movement he could see. In the position in which the inmate was laying with his back to the door, the guard couldn’t tell if he been startled at all or even had any reaction. He needed to check.<\/p>\n Opening the cell door carefully and only after calling another guard to help because he was aware it might be a deception by the inmate, the guard noted there was no waste in the empty bucket and it appeared the water bucket was untouched. He could tell that inmate 8284 was breathing so he was alive. He didn’t do anything else before locking the door again. Before going off shift, he wrote down the little information he had gathered for the day guard.<\/p>\n The day guard took a look at the written report he got. Noting the information on inmate 8284 in solitary, he decided to check too because it was such an unusual reaction. Following the same procedure the night guard had used, he went in, found about the same response, but also touched Adam finding him quite warm but breathing. Satisfied that nothing was seriously wrong even if the inmate seemed to have a fever, he did nothing more than the night guard except to report his findings to his supervisor. The supervisor wrote the report in his roll call and made a note to check on prisoner 8284 later. None of them were too concerned about a prisoner who chose to sleep a lot at first. Many chose to escape in their own way and maybe sleep was how this prisoner reacted to stress. By their experience with other inmates, they assumed he would adjust.<\/p>\n In the lucid moments Adam had, he was determined not to adjust. He was not guilty of any crime and was determined to win his freedom and get his identity back at any cost. It would be some time though before his family even knew he was missing.<\/p>\n Adam heard that 8284 name called a number of times but he felt so awful, he did not respond. His breathing was ragged, and he didn’t respond to repeated calls of what they thought was his name. The guard poked him with a baton which made him groan but he still did not want to respond. He could hear their conversation.<\/p>\n “He might be faking, but if he is, he’s good at it.”<\/p>\n “Whack him one across the ass. I don’t think he can fake it if you do that.”<\/p>\n The blow got another groan but still Adam did not rouse.<\/p>\n “Get the doctor down here. I don’t want him moved to the infirmary if he’s got something the rest of us could catch.”<\/p>\n No announcement of the doctor’s arrival was necessary. He made his presence known by his opinions.<\/p>\n “These cells are not appropriate to the mission of this prison. How could a man get ready to live a normal life after being placed in here. The conditions themselves could render a man deathly ill. He isn’t but he is very sick.”<\/p>\n Adam had heard what the doctor said and only hoped to have a reprieve from the suffering.<\/p>\n “He said he was sick when he was brought in?”<\/p>\n “Yeah, but everyone thought he was faking it. He could walk and talk all right.”<\/p>\n “Perhaps it was all right, but I would assume he had a fever already at that point, and he was most likely in pain. From what I can tell he has a fever of some kind that has affected his glands. Such a fever in a child is usually not too serious, but when it strikes a man, it can be a major problem. He needs to be under medical care and probably for some time.”<\/p>\n “Can we catch it from him?”<\/p>\n “Only with direct contact. If he breathes on you, touches you, or you get any of his spit, or any other fluid from him like if he vomits on you, then it could spread to you. If you carry him on a stretcher, there should be no risk.”<\/p>\n Guessing the supervisor was playing it safe when he called for two of the younger guards and had them carry Adam on a stretcher to the infirmary, Adam realized in time that it was only the time in the infirmary that did not trigger the horrible nightmares.. There, he was put on a bed in the corner away from all other humans, staff or patients, and screens were set up to shield the other patients and staff from him. Adam was still in isolation but now in a clean bed with a blanket. He would get regular care and food and water as soon as they could get him to wake. Even in the infirmary, silence was the rule unless one was asked a question so the area was very quiet. At least there, no one was punished for the occasional groan or sigh. He fell into a blissful sleep.<\/p>\n When Adam woke up there, he was disoriented. He didn’t know where he was nor how he got there. People talked to him, told him what to do, fed him, washed him, poked and prodded him, and if he tried to talk, they stopped him even there punishing him if he persisted in trying to talk. He was not allowed to complain. In less than a week, he was trained into the Congregate system.<\/p>\n Faking greater weakness and fatigue than he felt, he did his best to extend the time he had in the infirmary. Each extra day there was a bonus. He faked sleeping too so he could listen and what he overheard was a major concern. The talk was that his time alive wasn’t going to be long in the general population. They wondered why they were spending so much time trying to make him healthier. According to what he heard from the staff in the infirmary, one guard in particular by the name of Wallace was the one who had singled him out for abuse. Wallace it seemed did whatever Warden Wilson asked, and the warden apparently wanted Adam dead.<\/p>\n As Adam gained strength, he knew fighting would only get more punishment so he waited for the right time appearing to be compliant, but he was observant trying to learn as much as he could about where he was and about the people around him. The savvy guards and especially Wallace knew better than to accept his apparent obedience though. They knew the quiet ones like Adam who looked around like that were the worst ones because when they became violent, it was always a bad event. They waited for it to happen and prepared to take action which was likely to be very bad for Adam. From the guards’ point of view, it was necessary to make an example of such convicts so that others wouldn’t even consider such outright rebellion. The only way to make an example that strong meant the one who did it had to suffer severe consequences others saw. For Wallace, it was going to be an opportunity to carry out the instructions from the warden that this inmate might have an unfortunate accident with mortal injuries. Most unfortunately for Adam, he worked out all the details of their diabolical plan after he had been victimized by it.<\/p>\n After a week in the infirmary, by prison standards, Adam was well enough to be put in a cell. He could stand and take care of necessary business, and he could feed himself. There wasn’t a day in which he wasn’t hit with batons, punched, or forced into some kind of physical exercise such as standing for hours in place. No talking, singing, humming or any other sounds were allowed and even groaning was punished. He had guards enter his cell and punish him at night for sounds he made in his sleep. With such close scrutiny, no man could have a perfect day. Therefore, under Wallace’s leadership, the guards collectively determined that he was a problem inmate. As a result, he lost his privilege of having a cot in his cell and had to sleep on the hard floor. Occasionally he was denied meals too. He grew thinner and weaker in only a couple of weeks of this treatment.<\/p>\n For Adam, the more serious consequence was the mental and emotional anguish. Used to venting his stress by a variety of means, he was getting so on edge that he was having difficulty keeping himself under control. The taunting and the beatings brought him closer and closer to the breaking point. Finally he had a desperate plan. He wasn’t going to survive this daily hazing. He needed to be away from Wallace until his family could rescue him or he died. There was only one way he knew to escape this hell and to do it, he had to buy time. With the abuse he was receiving, he knew he wasn’t going to last much longer before some kind of internal injury led to bleeding which would end his life. He had to change the circumstances of his incarceration.<\/p>\n His opportunity came when Wallace got close to him at one point in his hazing. Adam grabbed him and shoved him headfirst through a window. It happened on a day when he had worked all day digging latrines for use of the prisoners and then had to scrub the floors of the guards’ washroom. Finally finishing and with just enough time to get to the food line so he wouldn’t miss another meal, he was getting up from the floor where he had been on his knees scrubbing when urine splashed him as it was sprayed across the clean floor. Turning, he saw his nemesis grinning.<\/p>\n “Guess you’ll miss chow line again.”<\/p>\n The guard had made a serious mistake doing that and staying so close to his victim. Leaping the rest of the way up, Adam grabbed the man by the collar and the back of his belt and shoved him headfirst through a window before his two companions could help him. Adam had the satisfaction although short-lived of seeing deep gashes on the guard’s face before he was beaten into unconsciousness. He woke up in horrible pain and in complete darkness laying on a hard, cold floor.<\/p>\n Once he was able to move a little and adjust to the dim light coming from the thin gap under the door, he knew where he was. He was in solitary again so he knew his plan had worked. The warden had decreed a month because of the injuries to the guard, but no one thought to inform Adam of that. His own injuries were ignored. At least this time, he had his clothing and he hoped they couldn’t beat him while he was in this cell and Wallace would be in no shape to do anything to him for quite a while. He could hardly move so they would have to pick him up to do any beating. Within a few days, he would likely be so filthy, they wouldn’t want to come anywhere near him. He wondered if this time, he would die in this cell. Silent tears fell as he wondered too if he would ever get to say goodbye to his family. He had acted in desperation to gain time and could only hope it hadn’t been futile too.<\/p>\n When Adam didn’t return home after two days and his father continued to fume about the situation, Joe knew he needed to come clean about the mess he had gotten in, but he delayed the inevitable for three more days. Although he wondered why Adam didn’t return, he knew how upset his brother had been and thought perhaps it was taking more time for him to settle his thoughts about things before he saw their father again. Knowing it would help Adam for the truth to be told, he built up his courage and asked his father and Hoss to stay at the dinner table at the end of the week.<\/p>\n “I have something to tell you. Hoss knows some of it, but I need to tell you all of it. Adam hasn’t been gambling. I have. I was the one who lost a lot of money. Hoss knows I lost some, but he doesn’t know how much. I signed an IOU with a gambler in town. It was for a thousand dollars.”<\/p>\n “No, Joe! A thousand dollars!” Hoss was shocked and only then realized what he had pushed Adam to do. “And I was the one told Adam he had to help you, but I didn’t know it was for so much. I only knew it was from gambling which was bad enough. That was a mistake, but a thousand dollars, well that’s just plain stupidity.”<\/p>\n Hoss was harsh but Ben went further.<\/p>\n “You were gambling with that kind of money? What kind of fool have I raised here? You haven’t got the sense of your horse.” Ben looked at Hoss. “And you encouraged Adam to help him cover it up?” Hoss shrugged as Ben turned back to his youngest.<\/p>\n “Pa, I know, and they said if I didn’t pay, a member of my family would pay.”<\/p>\n “But you got Adam to pay. Oh, Lord, and I blamed him for gambling thinking he was the one who was foolish. But at least he could cover his losses. Except he would never do such a thing gambling with that kind of money. I should have known. I was such a fool. He covered your losses though, didn’t he?”<\/p>\n “Yes, Pa, except I was late with the money. That Monday we were in town. It was after those storms and all the work we had to do. We didn’t get things done like we had to, and they said I owed interest. Another hundred. I didn’t have it.”<\/p>\n “What did they say?”<\/p>\n “That I owed a hundred a day until it was paid.”<\/p>\n At that, Ben got terribly worried. “And Adam rode into town with that threat hanging over his head. Why would he do that?”<\/p>\n “I don’t know. Adam hasn’t seemed to be himself lately. He doesn’t seem to want to talk about things much. He’s always tired. He told me he was going to take a room in town and sleep for two days.”<\/p>\n Ben shook his head. “Take a room and town and sleep for two days. That doesn’t sound at all like your brother. Usually he would say he wants to read for two days.”<\/p>\n Noticing that Hoss was not participating in the discussion, Ben had to ask why. The answer was shocking to him. “After what Joe told me, I thought he was going after my gal.”<\/p>\n “I cannot believe that Adam would try to take Linda away from you. One, he doesn’t do that kind of thing. I know he has been accused of such things.”<\/p>\n They all had a moment to remember the incidents with Melinda Banning and with Regan Miller, but also to remember that in both cases, he had not tried to take those ladies away from his brothers even if he was sorry for what he had done. His intentions had been good even though his actions had not worked as he had hoped.<\/p>\n “And the other reason is that we know Linda is not like that.”<\/p>\n That one Hoss had to admit was true. He knew he shouldn’t suspect his brother of trying to do what he had thought, he couldn’t believe Linda would do it ether. These were two of the people in the world he should trust the most. He felt ashamed that he had been so jealous he would suspect her of being unfaithful and then felt shame for thinking the same of his brother.<\/p>\n “Pa, I said something awful to Adam. Might be better if Joe goes with you to see him. I think the two of us ought to talk in private first and not where there are other people.”<\/p>\n “Worse than what I said to him?”<\/p>\n “Yeah, I have to say it was about the worst thing I could have said. I was powerful angry, and he did that thing where he wouldn’t talk to me about it.”<\/p>\n “Probably worried that no matter what he said he was going to set you off and start a fight?”<\/p>\n “Yeah, I see that now.”<\/p>\n “Joe, Adam told you he would sleep for two days so he must have planned to only be gone for two days?”<\/p>\n “Yes, I thought he would be back by now. I thought he would be back a lot sooner than now, but then I thought he might need more time.”<\/p>\n “I suppose you thought that because of me. I hate to admit it, but that’s probably a fair assessment, but it’s been five days. We should have done something before now, but I thought he would come back. I didn’t know there was a specific timetable. Tomorrow, we’re going to town to find him and talk this out.”<\/p>\n No one slept much that night and all were up by dawn. Chores were done early, and Hop Sing got to serve breakfast as soon as it was done. Hoss thought it best if his father and Joe went to get Adam thinking he and his brother would do better with a private conversation, By eight, the two headed to town.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 7<\/strong><\/p>\n At the hotel, Ben asked the clerk if Adam was still there.<\/p>\n “I think so.”<\/p>\n “You think so?”<\/p>\n “He never checked out and some of his things are in his room. We looked when we didn’t see him around, but no one has seen him since that first day. We had to check into his room to make sure he wasn’t sick or hurt. No one was in there when we checked.”<\/p>\n The clerk was nervous knowing that nothing he could have done was going to be seen as the right thing to do.<\/p>\n “Show us the room.”<\/p>\n The men filed up the stairs to see what they could find in the room Adam had taken because of them. They weren’t going to like what they found.<\/p>\n When the clerk opened the door to Adam’s room, his father and youngest brother smelled the stale air. When the clerk stepped in and lit the lamps, they saw that the sheets and blanket were pulled halfway off the bed and found his boots, pistol rig, saddle bags, jacket, hat, and shirt were in the room. There was no sign that he had been there in days. There was slight dust on the table where the wash basin stood and on the small table by the bed. The bed coverings that had been dragged off the bed and were hanging over the side had small splotches of dried blood on them.<\/p>\n “Pa, this looks bad. Adam didn’t leave here on his own. He wouldn’t have left without his things and somebody was hurt here.”<\/p>\n It was then that the clerk noticed something he had not noted from the doorway. “The rug is missing.”<\/p>\n Ben and Joe drew the same conclusion. Most likely that rug had been used to take Adam from the room, but in what condition, they couldn’t know.<\/p>\n “Joe, we need to go see Roy.”<\/p>\n When they saw Roy, he wanted to see the room for himself, but when he did, he drew the same conclusion. Someone had forcibly removed Adam from that bed and probably from that room. Most likely, it had happened on the first night Adam had been there. Joe repeated once more what he had done with the gamblers and what they had threatened. Roy had been keeping tabs on the gamblers.<\/p>\n “Let’s go talk to those gamblers. Seems they got some things to explain.”<\/p>\n “Ah, Sheriff Coffee.” The hotel clerk was nervous.<\/p>\n “What?”<\/p>\n “They left.”<\/p>\n “When?”<\/p>\n “Late yesterday, almost evening in fact, two of them on the late stage, I think. The one who was gone came back, and the one with the money paid their bills. Then they were gone.”<\/p>\n “All three were together?”<\/p>\n “No, they had separate rooms, and they took their meals alone, but two had rooms with an adjoining door and the other one was down the hall. All three were seen going into one room fairly often. They would come or go one at a time but always within a few minutes of each other. Well they did until one was gone for almost all of the last five days. It’s hard to keep secrets in a hotel for very long.”<\/p>\n Roy got businesslike. “What did you mean that the one who was gone came back?”<\/p>\n “About six days ago, the one with the wagon left but didn’t check out. He came back yesterday, checked out when the other two did, and left. I think they put all their things in his wagon.”<\/p>\n “When they left, did you see where they went?”<\/p>\n “The one who had been gone probably took his wagon which he usually had out back and it looked like he headed northeast or at least that was the street direction he took. I don’t know where the other two went other than they talked about the stage schedule so I guessed the stage.”<\/p>\n A trip to the stage depot gave them the information that confirmed two had taken the late stage to Carson City. It wouldn’t do any good to try to catch up with them at this point. There were too many places to stay in Carson City and multiple means to leave the city. Roy sent a telegram to Carson City anyway but knew it was likely futile. Ben paid for the message. They had gotten the names of the three men from the hotel clerk but doubted they were actual names. From Cosmo and the saloon girls, they got information that the three men on occasion used other first names when they were playing cards. They got those names too.<\/p>\n “Roy, can we send out wanted posters on these men?”<\/p>\n “Ben, they aren’t charged with anything!”<\/p>\n “Didn’t you have a complaint from a man who felt threatened? That should be a charge shouldn’t it?”<\/p>\n “Yes, I did, and it could be.”<\/p>\n “Bring him in here if you have to. Between what they did to him, the threats to Joe, and what we think they did to Adam, we have enough to put out a poster on them for crimes and for suspicion of committing crimes, don’t we? I’ll put up the reward money. That should get someone somewhere to be willing to turn them in at least.”<\/p>\n “And Adam gave me sketches of them. With those, their names, and what that man told me they threatened him with, yes, I think we have enough.”<\/p>\n While Roy gathered up what he needed to go get wanted posters made, Joe had a concern.<\/p>\n “Pa, the hotel clerk said one of them had a wagon. I want to check around town and find out what direction he went. I think we can catch up to him.”<\/p>\n “It may take some time for you to find that out. Send someone to get Hoss and what the two of you may need to follow that wagon. I think you and Hoss would be better at chasing him down than having me come along and do it with you.”<\/p>\n Roy volunteered one of his deputies to help Joe and another to go get Hoss. Then he and Ben went to the print shop to get the wanted posters made discussing the amount of the reward as they went. An hour and a half later, they were back in Roy’s office to hear what Joe and the deputy had found out.<\/p>\n Anxious to get going, Joe spoke rapidly telling his father and Roy all the main points immediately but mostly only what they needed to know.<\/p>\n “The man with the wagon headed out to the northeast, but more important, we found out that about five days ago when Adam went to town, the man with the wagon headed toward California late at night. He came back yesterday late. Then last night, he left again like the clerk said.”<\/p>\n “How did you find out so much so fast?”<\/p>\n “We figured out he had to have his horses some place so we checked all the livery stables in town. None of them had anything to tell us, but Moe wasn’t at his, and the stable boy hadn’t worked yesterday. But we went to Moe’s house, and we got the information we needed from Moe. That’s where the man had kept his horses. Moe told us everything he knew about him and his wagon and his horses. He thought the man’s habits were a bit strange so he kept track of him more than he did of others.”<\/p>\n “That’s good, but it will take some time for Hoss to get here.”<\/p>\n “I know that, Pa. It will take me some time to get things ready too. We’re going to have to move fast so I’m going to get some extra supplies and get a pack horse ready to go. As soon as Hoss gets here, we’re going to be ready to go after that man. But Pa, those posters should go to California just in case and say we need information too. From what I was able to find out, that’s our best bet for where Adam is. If these men won’t tell us what we need to know, it would be good to have another way to find out.”<\/p>\n Roy had a different suggestion. “Instead, maybe to California, we should send a poster looking for information only on the whereabouts of Adam Cartwright. That might be a better idea for a poster in California because we’re pretty sure these three men did not go in that direction.”<\/p>\n “Roy, that’s a good idea. Put a thousand-dollar reward on that too for any information that leads us to where Adam is. We’ll pay any printing costs as well as fund any reward.”<\/p>\n “Kind of already figured that. I’ll take care of all that.”<\/p>\n There were a few tasks then to complete before Hoss arrived. While Joe waited after completing his preparations, he tied off the horses and sat on a bench. Linda saw him and walked across the street to talk. After the usual greeting, she asked about Adam concerned that he might still be ill.<\/p>\n “He’s missing? But I would have thought someone would have noticed he was ill and made sure he took to his bed. I could see he was sick. He looked quite ill if you took a good look at him.”<\/p>\n Again guilt washed over Joe. “I know, but there were a bunch of other things going on, and, yes, we didn’t do what we should have done, and Adam paid a price for that. Now we need to find him.”<\/p>\n “Where did he go?”<\/p>\n So, Joe had to repeat once more the debacle with the gamblers and how he had been fooled so thoroughly and gotten himself into a terrible mess.”<\/p>\n “If Adam was helping you with that, I would think you would have noticed then that he was ill. You must have spent time with him. What else could have happened that would make you miss that?”<\/p>\n Joe knew the next part was going to be humiliating, but even if he could be foolish and impulsive at times, he was no coward.<\/p>\n “I, ah, saw you kiss and hug Adam that day he was at your house, and I guess I took it the wrong way, and I accused him of going after you.”<\/p>\n Although Joe had the good grace to look embarrassed as well as to feel that way at this point, it wasn’t enough. Linda was aghast and then her temper exploded with righteous indignation for herself and for Adam.<\/p>\n “I am so insulted that you would think that of me, but I am horrified that you would think that of your own brother. He spent an hour telling me all about Hoss and how I could be closer to Hoss and how we could be more comfortable together. He was the kind of brother you should aspire to be. You didn’t tell anyone your cockamamie story, did you?”<\/p>\n From his sick look, she could tell that he had, and as he looked even sicklier, she got upset realizing whom he must have told.<\/p>\n “No, you didn’t! I can’t believe you would tell Hoss such drivel and hurt him so purposefully. I don’t want to talk to you any more right now. What kind of brother are you to do these things to your brothers when all they wanted to do was to help you?”<\/p>\n With an angry piercing glare and a swirl of her skirts, Linda left. By the time their conversation had ended, Joe’s guilt was magnified, and his stomach was churning. He knew he and Hoss were going to have a long conversation that wasn’t going to be easy. There were going to be things he was going to have to admit to clear up misunderstandings. He guessed it was only going to be a foreshadowing of what he was going to have to say to Adam before begging his forgiveness. Then, like his father, he wondered if saying he was sorry could possibly be enough.<\/p>\n A short time later, Hoss rode hard into town leading Chubb and two other horses. Spotting Joe, he pulled up in front of him and dismounted. He started talking even as he was tying off the horses.<\/p>\n “Joe, I came as fast as I could.”<\/p>\n “Why do you have so many horses?”<\/p>\n “I want to ride a fresh horse and didn’t know if you wanted fresh horses along too.”<\/p>\n “Hoss, I’ve got plenty of supplies on a pack horse I have ready. If that horse gets tired, we can split up that load or switch them out.”<\/p>\n “Good ideas. I brought a horse along to use as a pack horse, but we can leave that one with Pa.”<\/p>\n “He should be here anytime now.”<\/p>\n “I’ll be ready as soon as I get Chubb saddled up.”<\/p>\n Soon Ben was there, took charge of the extra horse, and wished them well. They didn’t waste any time in small talk, and rode in a wide arc to the north of town. The plan was to avoid all the heavy trafficked areas near town and try to pick up the lone track of a heavily laden wagon moving in the unusual direction of northeast. It worked and soon they picked up the track of a that wagon as expected. It had to be the one they wanted so they rode hard following that track until sunset hoping to cover a lot of ground before darkness. They didn’t talk until they had to stop to camp. Then once they had taken care of the horses, fixed coffee, and had a cold meal, it was time to talk. Joe explained all that they had found out and then paused.<\/p>\n “I talked to Linda too. Hoss, I was so wrong. She came to talk to me because she wanted to know if Adam was still sick. Linda asked Adam to come into her house because she thought he wasn’t feeling well. She said he had a fever. She fixed some tea for him and put a cool cloth on his head.”<\/p>\n “He was sick? You sure?”<\/p>\n “As much as I can be. You know he hasn’t been eating much lately. I guess he hasn’t been feeling well. He never said anything to us, but we should have known. She said he had a headache and was dizzy. She did what she could to cool him down but was certain that he had a fever too. They talked quite a while about you. He gave her some advice about you and how to get closer to you. He said the two of you were a good couple and he hoped things would work out. I was so wrong about it all. He was there trying to help things along for you.”<\/p>\n “What about the kiss and hug you saw? Joe, you told me they kissed and hugged. You wouldn’t lie to me about something like that.”<\/p>\n “On the porch, she kissed him on the cheek to thank him and hugged him because she felt he was feeling bad and wanted to show a little comfort to him.” Close to tears, Joe had trouble continuing. “From the angle I saw them, I didn’t realize she hugged him and kissed him on the cheek. Hoss, it’s my fault he went to town. I’m the one who got into trouble and I’m the one who caused the trouble between you and him. Now he’s in some kind of even worse trouble, and that’s all because of me too.”<\/p>\n “Joe, you can’t feel as bad as I do. I was so mad at him, and I never let him tell me what happened and then I said the worst thing I could ever have said to him. I told him I couldn’t treat him like he was my brother no more.”<\/p>\n In shock, Joe said nothing.<\/p>\n “I didn’t mean it. You know I only wanted to hurt him, and I wanted him to say something, but he wouldn’t answer me. He wouldn’t say nothing. Then I went in the house and found out he just had a fight with Pa. I guess that’s why he wouldn’t say nothing. He must have been so angry he didn’t want to talk. What I did to him made him probably too upset to talk. I know ifn that had all happened to me, I’d want to smash somebody’s face, and the only way not to do that would be to shut up and go off by myself.”<\/p>\n “Maybe, or maybe he didn’t say anything because he was too exhausted to say anything. He told me he was going to take a room in town and sleep for two days. I thought he was just tired, but now I think he was that sick.”<\/p>\n “We gotta catch up with this jasper and find out what happened.”<\/p>\n “Get some sleep. We’ll get going as soon as there’s light. He doesn’t know he’s being chased. We should be making ground on catching up to him.”<\/p>\n Planning to sleep and logically concluding that sleep is what one ought to do doesn’t mean it will happen. The brothers had trouble falling asleep and woke early. They had miles to go but thought today would be the day they would catch their man.<\/p>\n They were nearly to Wyoming but Hoss and Joe finally did catch up to the man who had delivered Adam to California. The man had set up camp as if he was sure there was no danger to him. Hoss came in from one side and Joe from the other. The man had no chance to resist them, but he was reluctant to talk at first. It didn’t take long to change his mind on that as Hoss had a few things to say to him that convinced him.<\/p>\n “I love my family more than anything in this life. I would kill for any one of them. Right now, it’s my brother. I want to know what happened to him. That means your life is worth nothing to me. You tell me what I want to know or I’m going to kill you, and it’s going to take me a long time to do it or at least you’re going to feel like it’s a long time. You might decide to tell me what we want to know somewhere along the way, but it might be too late by then. I hardly know my own strength. You could be dying before I know I’ve used too much force. Now you got anything to say to me about where you took our brother Adam?”<\/p>\n “I didn’t do anything.”<\/p>\n Hoss grabbed and broke the man’s index finger then without hardly trying.<\/p>\n “Once, more, where is my brother?”<\/p>\n Cradling his hand, the man whimpered.<\/p>\n “You’re just like any criminal. You have no respect for the law and the rights men have.”<\/p>\n Glaring, Hoss grabbed the man’s middle finger in his large hands, and the man yelled he would talk.<\/p>\n “I’ll tell you anything you want to know. I took him to a broker in Stockton. He was looking for a tall dark-haired man. Some rancher wanted him for some reason. He was willing to pay a lot. We got a thousand dollars for him.”<\/p>\n “What’s the broker’s name and what does a broker do?”<\/p>\n “Ted Hawley.”<\/p>\n “I asked what he does.”<\/p>\n “He gets men to fill in for other men, you know, who are wanted for crimes. Sometimes they end up in jail or on chain gangs or even on ships.”<\/p>\n “Where?”<\/p>\n “East of Placerville. He’s got a small ranch there.”<\/p>\n “Why did they want a man like that, you know, one who looks like our brother?”<\/p>\n “We never knew that, but most likely it was to take the place of somebody who was wanted or on a chain gang or something like that. It’s the usual thing when they’re looking for somebody with a description like that unless.”<\/p>\n “Unless what?”<\/p>\n ” Please don’t kill me. Unless they need a body that looks like that.”<\/p>\n “I won’t kill you now but there’s no guarantees on your future. How much money did you get?”<\/p>\n “A thousand dollars.”<\/p>\n “Is that a lot for this kind of thing?”<\/p>\n “Yeah, so it probably means the one he’s taking the place of someone did something awful like commit a murder or something.”<\/p>\n “Hoss, we need to get this information to Pa as fast as we can. We’ve got to get to this Hawley and find out what he did.”<\/p>\n “Joe, you head back with that information. I’ll bring this one back with me. Right now, he’s going to give us the names of the other two to add to the wanted posters. Then as we travel back, he’s going to be telling me all he can about those two so we can catch them too.”<\/p>\n “I can’t. They’ll kill me. You don’t know what kind of men they are. I work for them, but I only do what they order me to do. Honest, they’ll kill me if I tell you.”<\/p>\n Hoss gave him the look that said they wouldn’t be able to do that because Hoss would already have done it. He took the man’s shirt bunched up in one hand and lifted him up until only his toes touched the ground.<\/p>\n “All right, I’ll tell you but please don’t tell them I told you. You have to believe me. They’ve killed others who didn’t do what they were told to do.”<\/p>\n Hoss and Joe had no sympathy for the man. He was free and Adam was suffering in prison so they were in a consensus that if he had to die, it was justice. Hoss was the first to express their attitude though.<\/p>\n “Don’t matter much to me. My brother dies, somebody is gonna kill you. Seeing as I’m right here right now, it’s probably going to be me. You better pray my brother is still alive and that’s he’s in pretty good shape though.”<\/p>\n The man swallowed hard and swore he had been telling the truth, all of it. He believed Hoss when he said he would kill him because Hoss had that look that showed he meant it when he said it. If he didn’t, Joe looked almost as dark.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 8<\/strong><\/p>\n There was plenty of guilt to go around when it came to how Adam had been treated. His father, Ben Cartwright, felt that burden but so did his longtime friend, the sheriff of the town, Roy Coffee. Sitting in Roy’s office in Virginia City and drinking his bitter coffee, the two men were serious as they discussed what they had to do and eventually they talked about their roles in what had happened to Adam. Ben and Roy took their turns blaming themselves for what had gone wrong. Roy knew he had played an integral part in what had happened and admitted it openly.<\/p>\n “Ben, I hafta tell you that if I had followed up on investigating those gamblers and their threats, I would likely have been able to prevent what appears to be the kidnapping of Adam. Now we don’t rightly know why three gamblers would do such a thing that they did, but everything points at them doing it. I was the one pointed them at Adam too by what I did. I should have kept my mouth shut and my eyes open. Long before it all this happened to your boy, Adam was in here telling me exactly how he thought they were cheating men and getting them to sign over big IOUs. I didn’t believe he could know what he said he knew. I should have known better. Somehow he had it all figured out long before most of knew enough to even be suspicious.”<\/p>\n “Roy, don’t feel too bad. He’s done that to me his whole life surprising me with things that I wasn’t ready to hear. We would argue, and he would be upset with me. Eventually, most of the time, I’d see he’d been correct, and I would have to change my way of thinking. It’s not an easy thing to do.” “You should have seen how upset he was with me when I wouldn’t accept what he said. Must have been like those arguments the two of you have had. He had it all figured out though. He had checked with enough people too to get enough information to back up what he was saying. I should have listened to him. By the time I was thinking he was right, I couldn’t find him to talk to him. I went to the hotel but never could locate him. The clerk said he was only supposed to be there for two nights. I thought he went back to the ranch. I had no idea he was missing. Not for a moment did I think he’d been kidnapped. I underestimated the men I was dealing with. I was fooled in the worst way.”<\/p>\n “I don’t think anyone could have guessed that would happen.”<\/p>\n “Ben, I should have known better. I had my damn blinders on thinking I was dealing with the usual card sharks and not really listening. When he was in my office, he’d been drawing on the backs of some wanted posters while he was talking to me. The more I chuckled, the more he paid attention to that drawing. I had no idea what he was doing until he threw them on my desk before he left. Yeah, he told me I was gonna need them when they did something and I was gonna want to lock them up. Then he up and walked out that door. If only I had known then what I know now. Pretty darn awful that it’s something that happened to Adam that I got to use his drawings for them wanted posters.”<\/p>\n It was Ben’s turn then because he had jumped to conclusions and again accused his son of doing things he had not done. He knew he should have asked what had happened and not been accusatory. His emotional and rash reactions and responses he feared might cost his son dearly.<\/p>\n “I always expect perfection from my eldest and then unjustly question him when there’s a hint he may have made a mistake. He pays dearly for my unreasonable expectations. What you said and did was minor compared to my failure. I assumed the very worst with hardly any reason to do so. I connected some information in a way that made Adam look like he had done something shameful and then accused him of it. I should have come home with concerns for what I had learned and asked him if there was something I could do to help. That might have gotten him to tell me what had happened. Instead I treated him like a schoolboy in trouble when he had done nothing wrong and I had no right to do or say any of what I did. I do wish he had told me what was going on. If I had known, perhaps none of this would have happened.”<\/p>\n “We both better work on doing a better job with that boy.”<\/p>\n “First we have to find him and hope the price he’s paying for our mistakes isn’t too high. I want the chance to apologize and to promise to do better. I can only hope he can forgive me.”<\/p>\n “More important, Ben, is can he forget how badly we acted. Not an easy thing for a proud man to do or a man who values trust like he does. We didn’t trust him, and that had to hurt him badly. Can he ever forget that?”<\/p>\n “I hope he can.”<\/p>\n But Ben knew Roy had hit the crucial element of asking his son to forgive him. Adam was a generous man and likely to forgive both of them. But the more serious question was whether he could forget, or would this be the thing that pushed him to leave. Knowing Adam had been considering that, Ben feared what might happen next because his apology rang as hollow with him as he thought about it as he guessed his son must have thought about all the others. He wondered if any of his other apologies were truly sincere if he was sorry for the consequences of his words but still believed in the words themselves. Perceptive enough to recognize the difference, Ben was aware Adam must have been seething inside at the duplicity of such statements. He didn’t say more about how he had to apologize to Adam although they did talk more about the situation.<\/p>\n Because of a commotion outside, left unsaid by the two men was that they hoped to find Adam alive and hopefully uninjured. The alternative was something they didn’t even want to voice.<\/p>\n Taking the extra horses, Joe had made record time getting back to Virginia City, but it was still almost two weeks now since Adam had disappeared. He was exhausted but determined to get the search for Adam underway before he could even think about resting. He blurted out all that he and Hoss had found out. As he began talking, Roy guided him into the office and had the deputies close the door once the group was inside. As Joe finished, Ben asked if they had a large force.<\/p>\n “It’s big enough, but we have a lot more right here.”<\/p>\n “Then we’ll ride on them now.”<\/p>\n “Pa, maybe you ought to think about taking Adam’s advice.”<\/p>\n “Adam’s advice?”<\/p>\n “Remember the trouble with the sheepherders?”<\/p>\n Turning to Roy, Ben put a hand on Joe’s shoulder. “Roy, what can you do to start this investigation going and know that Joe and I want to be part of it.”<\/p>\n They may have made many mistakes, but they were determined to work together and efficiently now. Roy laid out a plan he thought would work best for them.<\/p>\n With the new information and the contacts arranged by Sheriff Coffee, Ben and Joe headed to California to contact the authorities there with what they had. It took a few precious days and Ben using all the influence he had, but they finally got enough to convince that U. S. Marshal and the local sheriff to go to the Hawley ranch. Ben and Joe with several deputies made up a sizeable party. With what they knew of Hawley, they wanted to be careful. Hawley claimed innocence but was arrested based on the probable cause supplied by Ben and Joe. Once he was at the jail facing prison time, he learned that they only had him on the one charge and decided to make a deal to see if he could do even better.<\/p>\n “I’ll tell you who wanted him if I get amnesty for this and any other offenses.”<\/p>\n The sheriff looked at Ben and the marshal before he nodded. “The state of California won’t prefer any charges against you if you tell us what we need to know to rescue Adam Cartwright. You got my solemn promise on that.”<\/p>\n Hawley assumed he had the deal he wanted and gave them the name.<\/p>\n “The man who wanted him was Mo Johnson. His son was charged and convicted of a murder and was supposed to be sentenced to a life term. Mo wanted to substitute someone else before the judge passed sentence.”<\/p>\n “Wouldn’t the judge notice it wasn’t the same man?” Even at his age, Ben was still able to be shocked at the behavior of callous men.<\/p>\n Hawley had a grin. “That was the good part. Mo’s son had a beard and a bandage around his forehead during the trial. They figured they could fool the jury and anybody else there. All they needed was someone about the same height with dark hair and a beard. Those folks on the jury mostly have jobs at the prison or because of the prison so they don’t much care what a prisoner says. Now the judge is one of those judges who doesn’t want a convicted man to say anything so he wouldn’t listen if he said he wasn’t who they said he was. Plus a little extra donation or whatever you want to call it and the judge wouldn’t be asking questions anyway.”<\/p>\n “You’re talking about that new prison then?” The marshal was focused on what happened after the trial.<\/p>\n “Yeah, and most of the people in the town down there including the sheriff have jobs because of the prison so they’re not going to make trouble either.”<\/p>\n “So, they would send an innocent man into that prison so they could keep their jobs?” Joe was incensed. Ben put a hand on his arm to calm him because they had the information they needed from Hawley.<\/p>\n At that point, the marshal put Hawley under arrest.<\/p>\n “Hey, I have a deal.”<\/p>\n “You have a deal with the state of California. I’m arresting you for federal crimes, and the state amnesty does not apply. You committed a conspiracy with men in Nevada to kidnap a man and bring him across state lines. I’m sure I can find other crimes in other states. You sold a man. That’s in direct violation of the Constitution and multiple federal laws.”<\/p>\n With Hawley in handcuffs, the marshal turned to Ben with a warning.<\/p>\n “Mister Cartwright, we got this far, but we’re going to run into a hornet’s nest trying to take on a judge. We’re going to need more than the word of this man.”<\/p>\n “I’m offering a thousand dollars for information that leads to the location of my son. Do you think that might bring forward another witness that might convince the judge so we can get the warrant we need?”<\/p>\n “I don’t think we need to convince that judge. I have a feeling he may already know what is happening or at least have some suspicions about the local law enforcement. Some strange things have happened, and he never asked any questions about them. What we need is to convince a federal judge so we can get a warrant that will get us into that prison to search for your son.”<\/p>\n With a heavy heart, Ben knew he was correct. He looked at Joe who had the same look. Both of them were as sure as anyone there that Adam had been sent to prison in place of another man, and the guilt for that was nearly overwhelming. Ted Hawley was locked in the jail, and the marshal rode with Ben and Joe to Stockton to talk to the federal district judge so they could use federal authority to enter the prison perhaps with soldiers as escorts.<\/p>\n In order to convince the federal judge, the marshal got some help and went to Mo Johnson’s ranch. It was a surprise to the rancher, and they were able to catch Mo’s son there. They took both Mo and his son into custody. Mo was arrested for various offenses including kidnapping and his son because he had been convicted and was supposed to be in prison. Both were brought before the federal judge with the statement from Ted Hawley. That was enough to get the warrant the marshal needed to enter the prison to search for Adam Cartwright. The judge required him to include the State of California authorities in the process. He was agreeable to that as he assumed there were going to be more arrests once the investigation proceeded into the prison and eventually into the local judge’s activities. He stopped by the nearest military garrison and asked for a small patrol to assist him as well. The show of force worked well when they showed up at the prison cowing the guards at the gate who had no choice but to open up.<\/p>\n The warden was clearly nervous when he faced the show of force that the marshal led into the facility. Obviously aware of the irregularities of some of the incarcerations there, he did not have enough force to resist what had been brought against him. If they found Adam on the premises, he feared he was going to be arrested. The marshal was direct and forceful.<\/p>\n “I want all the prisoners and the guards assembled in the yard.”<\/p>\n The warden was apologetic. “Some of the prisoners are in the infirmary.”<\/p>\n “We’ll go there next then.”<\/p>\n When all the prisoners were assembled and the guards lined up opposite them, Ben and Joe looked for Adam and were dismayed not to see him. Their fear was that he was in the infirmary. The marshal accompanied them there but he wasn’t in any of the beds there either. There did seem to be a number of inmates with serious injuries that appeared to be from beatings. Outside again, they looked out over the prison. The marshal addressed the warden.<\/p>\n “These are all the prisoners?”<\/p>\n “You saw that we emptied all the cells. They’re all out there.”<\/p>\n The marshal thought the warden was being evasive but didn’t know what he was hiding. Looking out at the guards, Joe noticed that one in particular kept looking at them as if he was angry at them for some reason. He had cuts on his face that were stitched closed. It looked like someone had pushed his head through a window because Joe couldn’t think of any other way to cut a man’s face so many ways at once. He had cuts diagonally across each cheek and across his forehead with smaller cuts across his nose and chin. With those injuries, he had an idea of how it had been done and who might have done it so he had a question for the warden.<\/p>\n “What happened to that guard with all the cuts on his face?”<\/p>\n “He was attacked by an inmate. Some inmates here can get violent.”<\/p>\n Quick on the uptake, the marshal guessed where Joe was going with that line of reasoning, and he took over the questioning then. “How exactly was he attacked?”<\/p>\n The warden didn’t want to answer but had no choice. “A prisoner pushed him through a window.”<\/p>\n The marshal got a small smile then that made both Joe and Ben wonder until he asked the warden a question.<\/p>\n “And where do you put the inmates you’re punishing for things like violent attacks on guards? Specifically, where did you put the prisoner who attacked this guard.”<\/p>\n “We punish them with physical means and by withdrawing benefits. That was what was done with that prisoner.”<\/p>\n “Oh, yeah, I’m sure you do punish prisoners that way, but that isn’t all of what I asked you. I asked what about a man who pushes a guard’s head through a window, and I asked where you put a man who did something like that. And remember if you don’t tell me, I can charge you for concealing evidence and obstructing a marshal among other things. You wouldn’t like to have to face a federal judge with those charges. So now one last chance to tell me is all you get. Where is the prisoner who attacked that guard?”<\/p>\n “We have the right here to discipline those who violate rules and attack guards.”<\/p>\n “What about men who are tortured and try to defend themselves because they were put here illegally and the guards and the warden know it and are trying to kill him?”<\/p>\n The marshal signaled to his men to bring shackles and place the warden in custody. Then he addressed the deputy warden.<\/p>\n “Same question needs to be answered by you. Where is the prisoner who attacked that guard?”<\/p>\n Defeated because clearly the marshal knew too much, the deputy warden led them to the isolation cells behind the infirmary. Unwilling to be charged with murder, he pulled the keys and opened the block of cells to reveal one cell that was occupied. When he opened that cell, the stench was nearly overwhelming. Gagging, Ben entered to find his son laying on the floor in the fetal position. He didn’t move as the cell door clanged open and light flooded the cell for the first time in days. He didn’t move as men crowded around him. Prisoner 8284 was breathing and his eyes were open. Those were the only positive signs.<\/p>\n The marshal took the deputy warden by the arm and shoved him ahead of him outside to be placed under arrest as were all the guards. Prisoners were returned to their cells with soldiers taking over temporary guard duties. It would take some time to get things straightened out, but with the investigators working, hopefully soon, innocent men would be released. One would be released immediately. The marshal hoped he was hurt too severely, but he would help Ben Cartwright and his sons as much as he could.<\/p>\n In the next half hour, Ben and Joe had what they remembered for many years as a bad dream that was all too real.<\/p>\n “Adam. Adam, son, can you hear me?”<\/p>\n There was no response even though Adam’s eyes were open. Joe called his name too and grabbed a filthy arm, but Adam didn’t respond.<\/p>\n “Joe, you need to be gentle. We have no idea how he may be injured.”<\/p>\n “Sorry, Pa, but I wanted him to know we were here.”<\/p>\n “I know, son, but we need to get him out of here to see better what we need to do next. We can’t care for him in this filth.”<\/p>\n Carefully, Joe and Ben picked Adam up and carried him from the cell. In the open and the sunlight, the extent of his injuries and the filth was horrible. There were bruises and abrasions on his arms, legs and torso front and back. His face was battered with dried blood from his nose covering his lower face and neck. There were scabbed over abrasions in many places on his body as well. The marshal was overcome too with sympathy for the innocent man who had clearly been terribly mistreated.<\/p>\n “Take him to the infirmary. We’ll get him cleaned up and do what we can for him here. I’ll get a hospital wagon so we can take him to town.”<\/p>\n In the infirmary, Ben ordered the men there to get a bath ready. He and Joe stripped the filthy torn clothing from Adam’s legs. He had no shirt or shoes. With wet cloths, they cleaned him as well as they could before the bath was ready. Then with help, they lifted him into the bath and washed him carefully because of the bruises and abrasions that seemed to cover him. Ben carefully washed his son’s hair and asked for a razor to shave him. It was unnerving though to have Adam watch everything they did and not make a sound and not say a word. They knew some of what they did must hurt, but he never even showed that he was in pain. They asked questions but got no response.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 9<\/strong><\/p>\n When they got to town, the group ended up with a problem they had not anticipated. In prison, Adam had pushed a guard headfirst through a window. Assault charges were filed by that guard against Adam. The sheriff was going to try to put Adam in jail, but the marshal said he couldn’t because Adam was in federal custody. However, Adam couldn’t leave town either as long as those charges were pending. Ben was furious.<\/p>\n “This is ridiculous. He was an innocent man in prison.”<\/p>\n “He did shove the man through a window.”<\/p>\n “Did you see all the injuries he has. He was assaulted far more often than one time. He was defending himself.”<\/p>\n “I don’t disagree, but he’s not talking. He’s not saying anything. We can’t file charges unless he’ll say something we can use to defend him.”<\/p>\n It was quiet for a time until Joe had an idea.<\/p>\n “We know Adam wouldn’t attack someone for no reason. They don’t know he’s still not talking. Let’s write up a complaint and bring it to the sheriff. We have the name of the guard because he’s the one who filed the charge against Adam. We’ll file multiple charges against him and maybe against some others.”<\/p>\n It didn’t take long to come up with things they could charge the man with and then write out a list of charges for false imprisonment, assault, battery, fraud, and attempted murder. To make the threat more effective, there were other names on the charging papers that were likely to shock a few and hopefully scare them enough to get a reaction they needed. The marshal took the papers to the sheriff’s office and informed him that not only was the guard to be charged, but the sheriff himself, the warden, and the judge were to be included as well and probably others when they had enough time to collect more information. Those in charge recognized the ploy and the dangers to themselves if they tried to fight. It didn’t take long for the guard’s charges to be dropped. The marshal was aware there would likely be charges filed against those men by California once their investigation was complete, but he thought it best if the victim of this scheme, Adam Cartwright, was out of their hands well before that happened. With his victory, he went back to the hotel to tell Ben Cartwright they were leaving town and he could and should make travel arrangements to return home from the next town. The Cartwrights were going to have a difficult time by what the marshal had observed so far. He didn’t want them to have to face any additional problems.<\/p>\n Within a few days, Ben and Joe were headed back to Nevada with Adam who was still mostly nonresponsive indicating only by hand gestures or looks what had to be communicated. Worse than that, he didn’t want to eat or sleep if they were in the room with him. He only ate or slept if he was in a room alone. Any time they touched him, he tensed up and was clearly uncomfortable until they were done with whatever needed to be done. He often needed help because his hands were injured and he couldn’t manage things like buttons so they had to help him with his clothing, but he made them aware of how much he didn’t like it. As a solution, Ben went to the general store and bought several pullover shirts for Adam so they didn’t have to button his shirts for him. They were large enough that he could get them on by himself even with his damaged hands. Adam’s eyes followed them wherever they were as if he didn’t trust them. It was unnerving. Both knew that when they got to Virginia City, Doctor Paul Martin was going to have to be called and hopefully would have some answers to questions they had. Until then, they could only do what they thought was best.<\/p>\n There was no way to warn Hoss of what had happened other than Adam was coming home with them and that he was badly hurt. Ben didn’t even want to hint in a telegram at the full extent of that harm. When the wagon pulled into the yard of the ranch, Hoss came rushing out because he had been waiting for days for their arrival. His big smile and booming greeting had the expected negative impact on Adam who didn’t want his large brother to come near him. Hoss was surprised at his older brother’s reaction almost as much as he was by Adam’s appearance and looked to his father.<\/p>\n “I’ll explain inside, Hoss. Let Adam walk on his own. You’re going to have to keep your distance. He doesn’t like to be touched. In fact, he doesn’t even like people getting close to him.” Turning to Adam, Ben pointed to the house. “We’re home now. Please go inside. Go as slowly as you need to go. We’ll wait and get you to a room where you can be alone.” Before Adam could go too far, Ben told Joe to go warn Hop Sing not to approach Adam either.<\/p>\n That promise and the warning seemed to be enough to motivate Adam to move. He walked at a slow pace and with care to the house while keeping a close look at Hoss to make sure he didn’t approach him. When Adam got through the front door, Hoss turned to his father.<\/p>\n “Pa, what’s wrong with him?”<\/p>\n “It’s a long story, Hoss, and an ugly one. He was in a prison, and he had a terrible time there. Let’s go inside and get him in a room so he can rest. We’ll need to explain things to Hop Sing too. I’ll talk to the two of you once we get Adam settled so he can hopefully get some rest.”<\/p>\n As they talked, Joe came out the house and went to the barn where he soon walked out leading a horse. He mounted up and waved before riding around the barn and away.<\/p>\n “Where’s Joe going?”<\/p>\n “We need Doctor Martin’s help. He’s going to go talk to him and explain the situation.”<\/p>\n Father and son followed Adam into the house. It was going to be a difficult time for all of them.<\/p>\n A few hours later, when Doctor Martin saw Adam, shock was almost a mild way to describe his reaction even though he had been told quite a bit by the family about what to expect. After a month, it was seeing a man who was nothing at all of what he had been. When Paul asked Adam to remove his shirt, he did after several requests to do so but only when Paul promised he would not touch him but would look at his injuries and do nothing else.<\/p>\n “I won’t hurt you, and I won’t force you to do anything. It’s your choice because this is your home and you should feel safe here. But if I can see your injuries, I can leave sooner and give you the peace of being alone that it seems you want so much.”<\/p>\n With what Doctor Martin saw, he wanted to see more of what Adam’s back.<\/p>\n “Could you let me see your back? Again, it’s your choice but if I’m going to help you and reassure your family, I need to know as much as possible.”<\/p>\n He only got a half turn because Adam wouldn’t take his eyes from him. It was enough.<\/p>\n “Thank you. I’ll leave now and I’ll tell them not to bother you for a few hours. You look tired, and you should be able to sleep without being disturbed. You can put your shirt back on if you wish. It’s a little cool in here and there’s a quilt here on the rack if you want to use that.”<\/p>\n With what Ben and Joe had told him, he had a good idea of what had happened and knew enough about the system used in that prison. When he made suggestions to Adam, he was careful to word them as choices so he wouldn’t ignite any anger. Then he left pulling the door closed behind him. Taking a deep cleansing breath, he walked down the hall and down the stairs to the waiting and worried family knowing his first words would confirm what they feared but didn’t want to hear.<\/p>\n Before Doctor Martin could be bombarded with questions, he started talking to the anxious family members. Knowing they needed reassurance that Adam would be all right, he could only tell them the truth in the most hopeful manner he could and it was going to be subdued in this conversation.<\/p>\n “With the treatment he received, there’s no other way to say this. He’s been tortured systematically. From what I know of this prison system, silence is the rule and is absolute so every sound he made earned him a punishment. From the looks of him, it was taken to an extreme in his case. Knowing what I know of prisons, he most likely earned the attention of a sadistic guard who decided to make him an example or someone there decided he needed to die to cover up what they did or had done. Not only was he forbidden to talk, sing, hum, or otherwise communicate, he was probably punished for any kind of sound he made even the most innocent kind. That he won’t sleep when anyone is in the room leads me to believe he was even punished for sounds he made while sleeping. Beatings and sleep deprivation were bad enough, but from the looks of him, he was also denied food. That put him in a state that made him less able to reason and to find a way to adapt to his difficult circumstances. You said you found him in an isolation cell?”<\/p>\n “Yes, and it was dark and filthy.”<\/p>\n “Doc, it made us almost vomit just to go in there and get Adam out.”<\/p>\n “Did he smell any better than the cell?” Paul could tell from their reactions what that answer was. “So, he was probably in that cell for a long time periodically beaten when he wasn’t in there, denied food and kept in isolation and darkness otherwise, and deprived of sleep either way.”<\/p>\n “From what we were able to find out, he was also ill when he got there so he was sick already.”<\/p>\n “He was sick?”<\/p>\n “Yeah, they had him taken to the infirmary after two days.”<\/p>\n “He was sick but they waited two days to send him to the infirmary?”<\/p>\n “They told us that sometimes inmates fake being sick. They didn’t know. They finally had the doc come look at him, and he said Adam was really sick.”<\/p>\n “What else did the doctor say?”<\/p>\n “No one remembered. After some investigation, we had the answer. In the infirmary, the staff said he had a high fever and his glands were swollen. He was there for a number of days. They didn’t remember how many, but they said he was weak when he left.”<\/p>\n “Which made him even more susceptible to what was done to him. Now this prison system has been in place for forty years or more in some states and is being removed because of its negative consequences. It was supposed to help men consider their offenses and help them readjust so they could become good productive citizens. More often, it made them worse and even caused insanity among some.”<\/p>\n Shocked, Ben couldn’t stop his outburst at that. “My son is insane?”<\/p>\n “No, but he is ill. He needs to heal his mind as well as his body. You know as well as I do that Adam is a verbal man. He uses his voice to vent his emotions whether it’s by conversation, singing, or just yelling.”<\/p>\n They all smiled slightly at that.<\/p>\n “Denied the opportunity to do that and by the most brutal of means, he withdrew inside. He needs to come back out, and that will take some time.”<\/p>\n Doctor Martin could see they were disappointed by that news and knew he had to explain more.<\/p>\n “It’s very important that you let him emerge on his own. He’s been forced to do too much with no control over anything. He had no choices and was punished severely for trying to make any. Now he very much needs to be able to do this on his own to take control of his life back again. I know you care a great deal so I’m guessing you’re doing everything for him?”<\/p>\n “We have to, Paul. He’s not doing anything for himself.”<\/p>\n “He’s not doing anything for himself because he wasn’t allowed to do anything. Set things up for him, but don’t do them. Set his food tray up where he can get to it. Put his clothing within easy reach. Put everything close but don’t do those things for him. He will have to reach out. His needs will push him in time. Don’t get too discouraged if it doesn’t work the first time. He has to know you won’t do it and that he has to do it.”<\/p>\n “It’s almost time for lunch. What should we do?”<\/p>\n “We should eat. I told him he had a couple of hours to rest. Let’s give him that. It will give him time to relax after the pressure he felt from me being in the room. I could see he knew me but was afraid of me too. He didn’t trust me in the room apparently worried about what I might do next. I doubt he was able to relax until I left and closed the door.”<\/p>\n “Dadburnit, Doc, he’s like that with us too.”<\/p>\n “Hoss, everything he’s known was taken from him. He doesn’t know what or who to trust. He needs to find his way back. At this point, we have to give him the time he needs for everything. Right now, the most important thing we can all do is to give him time for rest. He’ll be hungrier too if we make him wait a bit longer for his lunch.”<\/p>\n “Oh, you mean like now we have to start doing what you said.”<\/p>\n “Yes, if you wait on him like servants and everything comes on a timely schedule, he’ll get used to being dependent. For a man like Adam, that would be the worst possible result.”<\/p>\n “But how can he be independent when he can’t do nothing for himself, Paul. Adam is unable to do so many things.”<\/p>\n “Yes, but he can also do many things. It’s time to find out what he can do and have him start doing those. He’ll start working on the rest as he is able.”<\/p>\n Almost an hour and a half later, Hop Sing had a tray ready for Adam. Joe wanted to take it up to him. Paul told him to leave it in the hall. Hoss volunteered to go up to get a small table to set outside the door. Paul also said to open Adam’s door a little when they told him his lunch was there.<\/p>\n “It won’t hurt to have the smell of the food get in his room. But be sure to tell him you’re leaving and he has to come get his lunch when he’s ready.”<\/p>\n Hoss and Joe waited at the top of the stairs for ten minutes, but Adam did not come to the door. Later when Hop Sing went up to get the tray, they thought he had not eaten his lunch except Hop Sing came back out from the kitchen to show them the covered dish. He took the cover off to show the dish was empty. Paul smiled.<\/p>\n “It’s a start. Keep doing things this way. Step-by-step, I think he’ll make his way back. He’s a strong man and we know the depth of his courage. He’s survived a lot. He’ll manage this.”<\/p>\n It worked the way the doctor explained to them too except Adam didn’t want to leave his room nor did he talk. Each day, family members and Hop Sing did as the doctor had requested. Clean clothing was put in Adam’s room. Trays of food were delivered and set in the room on a table by the door. Fresh water was brought to his room every morning and evening. Anything he needed was put within reach but nothing was done for him. Ben hoped that Adam would want to take a bath, but even though the offer was made, he made no response to it.<\/p>\n After two weeks, Ben knew he had to be patient but it was difficult. Doctor Martin continued to counsel them that it would take time for Adam to break free of the brutal conditioning he had received in the prison. He warned them that if they pressured Adam, they could trigger negative responses because their behavior could make him remember the pressure he had been under in the prison even though their motives were benevolent.<\/p>\n About that time in Adam’s recuperation and recovery, Ben felt that he could be gone for a time in order to conduct ranch business. Joe needed to come with him to the meetings in town. In the morning before they left, he went to Adam’s room and quietly announced that he and Joe were going to town, and that Hop Sing was gone for the day as well.<\/p>\n “We should all be back by the dinner hour or late afternoon possibly. Hoss will be out in the barn if you need something. There are several horses that need new shoes. He’ll be busy all day. If you want to try coming downstairs, now would be the time. It would only be you except at lunchtime. You know your brother will be in the kitchen then.”<\/p>\n He got a nod from Adam. It was about all they got from him. Nods and shakes of the head or hand gestures were the only forms of communication. It was all silent. It was so disappointing, but at least Adam was shaving, dressing himself, and eating full meals so he was looking more like the son Ben remembered.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 10<\/strong><\/p>\n After Ben and Joe left, Hoss worked but several times looked to the house and wondered if Adam had ventured out of his room. When he brought Sport out to put two new shoes on him, the horse was even more frisky than usual. He kept wanting to pull away. Hoss thought he might know why. He untied the lead and took Sport up to the house tying him off to the closest ring for that purpose. Moving to the door, he knocked first and then opened it to find Adam standing stiffly in the middle of the room.<\/p>\n “Didn’t mean to surprise you, but I got a friend of yours out here who seemed to know you was in here. You want to grab a couple of them apples and come say howdy to Sport? I’ll leave you two alone if you want to visit.”<\/p>\n Leaving the door wide open, Hoss walked back to the barn to sit on a bench just inside the door. He watched the house and smiled as Adam emerged to walk up to Sport to feed him two apples. The two friends seemed very natural with each other. Then Hoss almost cried as he heard Adam talking to Sport telling him how much he missed him. His voice was weak and hoarse. When Adam took the lead rope and led his horse to the water trough so he could drink, Hoss moved to a bench by the barn door so he wouldn’t surprise Adam.<\/p>\n Hoss saw Adam look his way and then he led Sport to the barn where he intended to brush his coat because it looked like it could use it. Adam knew too that Sport liked the attention. Hoss stood when Adam got to the barn. Hesitantly, Adam looked at his brother and then smiled.<\/p>\n “Thank you.”<\/p>\n “You’re welcome. You want a curry brush?”<\/p>\n “Yes. Please.”<\/p>\n “I’ll help if you want. Sport probably ain’t had enough grooming since you been gone.”<\/p>\n Adam’s voice was still hoarse, and he spoke softly almost as if he wasn’t sure if he should be speaking, but it was clear.<\/p>\n “Yes, he likes to be groomed.”<\/p>\n Careful not to move quickly, Hoss walked into the barn and got two curry brushes. He heard Adam walking behind him leading Sport and waited until his older brother had secured Sport in the stall before he announced he was bringing the brushes. When he handed a brush to Adam, he got a slight smile from his older brother as if Adam knew how careful Hoss was being around him. The two were beginning to work their way back together. As they brushed the horse, Hoss said only a little not wanting to put pressure on his brother but letting him know he could respond if he wished or not.<\/p>\n “I put two new shoes on him. He’s ready for a ride when you are.”<\/p>\n “Maybe tomorrow.”<\/p>\n Still being careful not to rush things, Hoss waited before he asked a question.<\/p>\n “You want some company.”<\/p>\n “Yes.”<\/p>\n “A short or a long ride?”<\/p>\n “Short.”<\/p>\n “I’ll tell Hop Sing we’re taking a long ride though so he packs up some biscuits or cookies for us.”<\/p>\n For the first time since he had been home, Hoss heard Adam chuckle. It was one of the sweetest sounds he could imagine hearing. They finished grooming Sport in companionable silence. Then they walked back to the house.<\/p>\n “Do you want to sit on the porch?”<\/p>\n “Yes.”<\/p>\n “Do you want some lemonade?”<\/p>\n Adam gave him an arched eyebrow for that.<\/p>\n “Don’t you worry. Hop Sing made it yesterday, and it’s chilling in the cellar. I only got to stir it up and maybe add a little sugar. So, do you want some lemonade?”<\/p>\n “Yes.”<\/p>\n When Ben and Joe rode into the yard, they were almost shocked because Adam was sitting with Hoss on the porch drinking lemonade. Hoss noticed that Adam tensed up with the arrival of their father and younger brother.<\/p>\n “Listen, ifn you can forgive me, nothing they did could possibly be bad enough to make you worried about them sitting down with us, is there? I’ll tell them you still don’t talk much. We’ll all relax and have some lemonade together. Would that be all right with you?”<\/p>\n “Yes.”<\/p>\n So, Hoss went to greet his father and brother to tell them what had happened. They came up on the porch and got glasses of lemonade, sat down, and both told Adam they were glad he was able to be outside with them. They told him briefly what they had done in town, and then there was little talk until Hoss mentioned he and Adam were going for a ride the next day. When he mentioned the ploy about getting the treats from Hop Sing, Adam smiled. Both Ben and Joe were pleased to see that.<\/p>\n “You laughed the last time I said that.”<\/p>\n “Not so funny the second time.”<\/p>\n It was the most he had said in over a month and a major breakthrough. However, he was looking tired so Hoss suggested that his father and younger brother might want to go inside to freshen up for dinner. They got the hint. When they left, Hoss turned to Adam and told him he was going in too.<\/p>\n “You’re doing real good, but I don’t want to push too hard. You relax here as long as you need it. We’re going to have dinner soon. You can have it here, up in your room like usual, or you can try sitting at the table with us. It’s up to you. Think on it and do whatever you decide you want to do.”<\/p>\n The easiest for Adam would have been to go back to his room and close the door. He had already done a lot for one day. He could relax there. There was no pressure there. It was safe. He knew all his muscles were tensed up after sitting with his family, but he was tired of being safe. He wanted his life back or those who had tormented him would have won. It was up to him to take the steps to get it back. It was difficult to even get up the courage to stand to take that first step and his muscles trembled as he did that.<\/p>\n After a short time standing in place, he turned slowly and walked in a measured pace to the house, paused at the door before reaching out his hand to take the handle and opening it. When he was inside, he purposefully avoided looking at his family knowing that doing so could cause him to lose the will to continue. He did his best to stride to the table with at least the appearance of some confidence, pulled out his usual chair, and sat down at the table. With his heart pounding and sweat running down the back of his neck, he reached for the coffee pot Hop Sing had recently put there and poured a cup. His hand was shaking too much to try drinking any of it though.<\/p>\n As surprised as they could be, his father and brothers moved to join him walking slowly to the table not wanting to do anything to ruin things. Hoss stood at Adam’s side and put a hand on his shoulder to try to help him. Adam leaned against his brother’s leg until his breathing slowed. When he sat up and nodded, Hoss moved to his chair without a comment. Quietly, Ben asked Hop Sing if he was ready to serve dinner.<\/p>\n Dinner was relatively quiet but conversation continued throughout. At the conclusion of dinner, Adam announced he was tired. Worried that he might escape again to his room, all three were relieved when he moved instead to the blue chair by the fireplace, leaned back, and put his feet up on the table crossing his long legs before closing his eyes. Joe looked at his father who said nothing, and then he looked at Hoss with a grin. Joe and Hoss got up and walked to the settee, sat down, leaned back, put their feet up on the table, and closed their eyes. Adam watched with his eyes cracked open a little. Ben knew it was a test. He walked to his chair, sat down, put his feet up on the table crossing his long legs, and closed his eyes.<\/p>\n Watching from the table where he was clearing away the dishes, Hop Sing had tears in his eyes. He offered up prayers that events could leave them in this state at least for a reasonable period of time so that healing and perhaps even some reconciliation could be achieved.<\/p>\n Slowly over a few days, conversation and activities returned to a more normal pattern for the family. Dinner discussions centered on business as there was ranch business that had been put off and needed to be done. They needed to do a round-up and cattle drive but Adam wasn’t ready to participate. He was ready to be by himself though and agreed to stay home while his brothers took over the responsibility of the round-up. He and his father had time together that ended on a sour note the day before Ben left for the cattle drive.<\/p>\n On a quiet Sunday morning after the family had breakfast, Ben decided to open a conversation about what had happened to Adam. It seemed to him that Adam had recovered well enough to start talking about the whole experience. It was a huge miscalculation. Although Ben hoped to heal some division in the family with a discussion, all he did was to widen the rift. Had he asked any advice before proceeding, he likely would have been told to hold off on what he wanted to attempt or at the very least to practice what he was going to say or better yet try it out on someone who understood the situation. Instead he blundered through it.<\/p>\n “I think we should discuss what happened to you and try to understand why it happened.”<\/p>\n The only sign that Adam made was that his hands were tightening on the coffee cup and saucer he held. His father didn’t notice too intent on trying to carefully pick his words for what he wanted to say. No one was aware that Adam’s heart began beating faster even though to him it was pounding so hard he thought it must be something others could hear. They didn’t know thoughts began to churn in his mind reminding him of all his father had said to him to make him angry before he had gone to town that fateful night when he was kidnapped.<\/p>\n “I wish that you and Joe had been willing to talk to me about the situation. I think you know it would never have gotten so bad if you two hadn’t kept it all a secret.”<\/p>\n “I don’t think you want to do this now.”<\/p>\n Ben should have heeded the warning of his son’s voice. Adam’s voice was quiet and calm. Hoss and Joe both noted it and knew what it meant. He was seething inside and doing his best not to explode. This was usually when he was the most dangerous and the best thing to do was back away. Their father didn’t do it.<\/p>\n “I don’t know when there would be a better time. There isn’t a good time to look at things that go wrong. If you’re going to make a full recovery and this family is going to be able to move forward, we have to face what went wrong and how you got into so much trouble.”<\/p>\n “So this is how you see it? I got into so much trouble? You seem to think what happened to me is my fault?”<\/p>\n “Adam, I’m not trying to assess blame here. I only want to avoid things like this in the future. I want to try to get us back to where we were. I’ve thought about this a lot. I know I was not blameless either. I accused you of things I never should have. I should have asked you about those things instead of making accusations.”<\/p>\n “Accusations? There should never have even been a conversation about my business. No, the bank manager should never have told you. It was none of your business. It was my business. It was my choice of whom to tell.”<\/p>\n “You don’t need to get angry about that. You’re my son. I had a right to know. I wanted to protect you. I wanted to help.”<\/p>\n “No, I have every right to be angry. It is something else you have no right to tell me. I have the right to feel any way that I wish to feel. I may be your son, but I am a man. You had no such right to pry into my private business without my knowledge and permission. You know why this all happened? You want us to talk to you? What would have happened then? How do you talk to us? You lecture. You yell. You order us about like we haven’t reached the age of majority yet. You refer to us as boys. I haven’t been a boy for twenty years. I’ve been working a man’s job since before I was sixteen. Yet you think you can treat me like I never got past that age. We only get to talk to you when we agree with you or rather when you agree with us. You never show respect by talking with us. It is always to us.”<\/p>\n Adam’s carefully controlled voice and litany of things he resented got his father upset too. Hoss and Joe both asked them to stop and consider what they were doing and saying but stopping them was impossible and especially so when in his anger, Ben fell back into old bad patterns. His voice rose and his choice of words wasn’t diplomatic nor wise.<\/p>\n “I certainly can’t talk with you when you’re in a mood like this. You need to change your attitude or we’re going to have to make some changes around here.”<\/p>\n “You’re at least correct about that. There are going to have to be some changes around here. I’ve already changed and none of you seem willing to recognize that. I will not sit quietly by any longer when I feel I am being abused. I will tell you what I think. I will not hold back like some child afraid of what the reaction might be. When you get back from the drive, we’ll discuss if you’re willing to accept who I am or if I can continue to live in a situation I am finding more and more intolerable. I’m tired of being expected to be perfect and faulted when I’m not.”<\/p>\n Ben got it then. He remembered his own words on the same issue yearning to admit that was what he had said to Roy, but his pride got in the way. He didn’t know how to get out of the discussion without retreating and assessing the blame on himself for the terrible trauma his son had suffered. He had worded his whole commentary to his son incorrectly and knew it. He should have stopped talking, but Ben never quit a fight in his life. This was one he lost though by continuing.<\/p>\n “While I’m away on the drive, you will get a chance to think about all the benefits you have by being on the Ponderosa, and when I get back, we’ll have a better discussion than this has been. We all want to be able to put all of this behind us. We can’t do it unless we can air out what happened and express what is on our minds no matter how poorly we say it.”<\/p>\n Although Ben meant that he would be in better control and be able to better express himself, what Adam heard was that once again his father expected him to change and concede. Once more he felt he was being criticized. It had happened so often, he couldn’t see it any other way. Ben assumed that what he heard as Adam’s outburst was a vestige of the horrible treatment he had endured and that he would be willing to grant his father another attempt at reconciliation even if he had bungled this one. He knew there was an awful lot of anger inside his son. With another six weeks to recover, he thought his son would be more like he was before the whole terrible ordeal had begun. What he, Hoss, and Joe still did not understand was that was never going to be true.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 11<\/strong><\/p>\n The venting was because of what Adam had endured, but it was not an emotional reaction. It was because Adam didn’t trust any of them especially his father. He couldn’t believe their motives were anything but selfish, and their words were taken as spoken. Adam could forgive them their mistakes as he had done so many times but couldn’t forget them. He could never be like he was before his imprisonment. He wanted to tell them that, but he knew that would hurt them, and it was still so very difficult for him to express himself except when he was angry.<\/p>\n Later, Hoss met Adam in the hallway upstairs and tried to heal the rift.<\/p>\n “Adam, Pa didn’t mean what he had said. He as much as admitted that he did a poor job of it. I know he didn’t choose his words well and gave the wrong impression. Even when he said he would try again, you took it that he wanted you to try it again when he really meant him. He only wants another try to tell you how he feels. What I heard was that he would try again and do better at expressing himself.”<\/p>\n Staring at Hoss and the sincerity etched on his face, Adam wanted to say that he had said what he said and that was that. He couldn’t purposefully hurt his brother though so he simply nodded and let Hoss think whatever he wished about that. He could see Joe hanging back probably hoping Hoss would be able to help things improve. When Adam nodded, Joe smiled. Like all of them, they thought they knew what Adam was thinking, but they had never understood him and it had become even worse after his return. They had no idea what it was like to have his life, his thoughts, his hopes, and his dreams.<\/p>\n That night, Ben, Hoss, and Joe went to sleep still feeling the guilt over what had happened to Adam and waiting for things to return to normal so they could drop that burden. They did not yet realize they would never be able to shed it. They wanted to put the whole experience behind them and had trouble understanding why Adam didn’t seem ready to do that. Unable to see that Adam had not healed from his ordeal and that he had been fundamentally changed by it, they were unable to help him. Adam was left alone to face his fears and try to heal the emotional and mental damage that had been done. None of them realized that this situation meant that there would forever be a chasm between Adam and the rest of his family.<\/p>\n For Adam, that night, like many nights, was another excruciating bout of revisiting those days and what it had been like for him to be incarcerated even though he was not guilty of any crime. In those prison walls, he had lost his identity, his freedom, and his pride. Though his family had rescued him from his hell there, he couldn’t forget all that had happened which led to him being there. They said they were sorry, but that had happened so many times. When did being sorry become the willingness to change so there would be no more reason to apologize and to have to forgive. He was so weary of carrying this load. He too wanted to escape the torment, but that time wasn’t there yet. Fear was growing in him that it was going to take a long time to put these experiences behind him, and his family pushing him to do so made things worse not better. During the days, he tried to maintain a fa\u00e7ade of being able to carry on despite his torment, but at night the horrors of his incarceration held him in their grip.<\/p>\n In the dark of the night, Adam’s family never heard him call out in his sleep. He had been trained too well in that prison. Indoctrinated into the system of silence, he endured the torment there in his bed and suffered the continuing pain never voicing his complaints. He never let anyone hear him in his agony. His cries were without sound but not without tears. The nightmares and bad dreams woke him often and stopped him from being able to fall asleep again on those nights.<\/p>\n In the prison in California, Adam had paid dearly already for all the mistakes made by him, by his family, and by his friends and he had no way to know when he was there that a search was underway and heading in his direction. In his home, he suffered and knew no one was coming to help him. He was on his own and he feared that he might never overcome the fears that were such a burden to him.<\/p>\n Used to manipulation by some people in his life, Adam had never experienced anything like what had happened in that prison except when he was in the clutches of Kane in the desert. Some of those horrible memories came back to haunt him as he faced the task of adjusting to having no control of his life. The difference was that he realized that the prison rules were harsh but weren’t meant to kill anyone. Those who had treated him so badly were acting out of corrupt purposes. The others were doing what they considered their job. It was sad that their job was to harm men. He knew who his enemies were in the hell of that prison and those who had put him there. The names of the guard Wallace, Sheriff Thomas, Warden John Wilson, and Judge John Simpson were never going to be forgotten by him. Someday he hoped he would have justice.<\/p>\n When rescue came in that prison, at first, he hadn’t believed it was real. Then he wondered what they wanted from him because it seemed everyone always wanted something from him and he was always hurt by the end. As he relaxed back into life on the ranch, he was still wary remembering what had happened to him, how it had happened, and who had made it possible.<\/p>\n These experiences haunted not only Adam’s sleep as nightmares but invaded his thoughts every day as well. He couldn’t escape them even as his family kept insisting on how well everything was returning to normal. So many things triggered memories of what he had endured, but darkness and being closed in were two of the worst. It took him a long time to realize that and even years later he slept with a lamp lit in his room. It was one physical manifestation of the changes that had taken place in him. The other changes were not visible, but they were even more significant. He never wanted to be in any one’s control again taking orders and doing another’s bidding. Although he didn’t yet have the strength to leave, he was getting close and realized he had made the decision to go. The Ponderosa felt like a prison in some ways even if it was a benevolent atmosphere. His family may have meant well, but Adam found that their comments to let the past go demeaned the experience he had and when they did bring up his experience in a sympathetic tone, it only sent daggers into his mind as he remembered the horrors of those terrible weeks.<\/p>\n Over and over, Adam found he was unable to bury the memories of that prison and relived his horrible experiences there. They molded his recovery and the man he was becoming. He was more cautious, more skeptical, and more guarded in everything. His family thought he was quiet because he was still weak and would regain some of his enthusiasm for the life on the ranch and participation in the family as he recovered physically. They didn’t see so they couldn’t understand the fundamental changes that were taking place.<\/p>\n Many times, Doctor Martin tried to tell them to be ready for Adam to be a different kind of man, but they wouldn’t accept it. When he paused before responding to anything they said, they thought he was still in recovery mode and needed time to think through his answer. They didn’t realize he was judging their words, questioning their motives, and formulating an answer he thought they wanted to hear so they would leave him alone. They had no idea what he was thinking or feeling as he kept everything hidden from them not trusting them enough to confide in them, to seek the solace he needed.<\/p>\n The result was that the family was optimistic for Adam’s recovery because on the surface, things appeared to be returning to normal. Inside though, Adam didn’t trust his own family and worried about what they would do in the next crisis. He vowed to himself that if he had to rely on them for his future, he would leave regardless of how difficult he might find it to be on his own in his present state. Their reaction to his return was not something that would build confidence. Not once did any member of his family ask him to talk about what had happened to him, to let it all out. Instead it seemed, they were more concerned with having him put the experience behind him as if that was as easy as tossing out stale bread for the chickens to peck away at. To Adam, their actions seemed more in line with helping themselves not helping him. It was not what he needed.<\/p>\n Close observers like Doctor Paul Martin saw how his eyes moved from family member to family member in every interaction as he judged their reactions. He always stood far enough away so there would be no casual touch, no hand on an arm or shoulder if he could avoid it. Paul had seen it before in those who had undergone trauma. They were gone before they physically left putting distance between themselves and their family members and cutting those invisible connections. Without trust and a sense or protection within the family, there could be no ties strong enough to hold men there with other men. It was clear to others when he spoke with or about his father or brothers because there was no warmth in his voice. Paul and Sheriff Coffee talked about the situation and were in agreement. Although they had sympathy for the whole family, they waited for the day when they would hear that Adam had left.<\/p>\n When Ben and his younger sons returned from the cattle drive, the emotional state of the family wasn’t much better than when they had left, and Adam seemed to want to avoid talking with his father. Ben was afraid his son had decided to leave. He was close to the truth because Adam had done that. Adam’s conclusion that a crisis would make him leave had him considering why he didn’t leave when the timing was best for him and not wait for the chaos of a crisis. It meant the balance was leaning heavily toward leaving soon. He felt he needed time to heal, and the pressure the family was exerting on him was denying him what he needed most. Adam hardly realized he had already made a decision but only needed to recognize it and carry it through. Only his family was going to be surprised by what he did although perhaps not all were as surprised as others.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 12<\/strong><\/p>\n Ten days after the three returned from the drive, the family was having dinner together, and there was a knock on the door. Joe answered it and was surprised to see their old friend, Sheriff Roy Coffee. Ushering him in, he had to ask why he was there and got the answer that he had news for Adam.<\/p>\n “Sorry to barge in on you folks, but I got some news that couldn’t wait. I shouldn’t be telling you this, but my conscience won’t let me do anything else. After what I did to get Adam in a mess before, I can’t let it happen again without telling him the truth. The sheriff, the judge, and the warden who were defendants in Adam’s case have all been found dead. They were shot with a forty-five like Adam carries. Witnesses described a man riding away and that description matches Adam. There is a prison guard who knew him who swears it was him.”<\/p>\n “Well, it couldn’t be Adam because he was here the whole time that I was with Hoss and Joe at the round-up and then he was here while we were on the drive.”<\/p>\n Turning to Adam, Roy was sober. “Adam, can you prove you were here?”<\/p>\n “You know I can’t account for all the days. Even Hop Sing wasn’t here. He was on the drive. There were only a few of the older hands here doing the basic chores. They wouldn’t be able to swear I was here every single day.”<\/p>\n “I was afraid of that. I knew you were all on a round-up and a drive. Adam, there’s likely to be a warrant issued for you and arriving here as fast as they can find a marshal to deliver it.”<\/p>\n Hearing that was like a blow to Adam’s gut. He had a difficult time breathing for a moment, but knew what he had to do. It was fight or flight, and as far as he was concerned, only one of those was going to work.<\/p>\n “I thought they were arguing that I was too ‘feeble minded’ to be a credible witness against them?”<\/p>\n “It seems that with the men your brothers arrested and a couple of others who turned against the main ones, your testimony would mean a lot more. So that makes you the center of the case.”<\/p>\n “Which means they need to bury me. Putting me in that prison again would take care of that problem for them, wouldn’t it? Without the main one, the rest of the case goes away.”<\/p>\n “I’m afraid that’s true, and the way the system is now, any jail or prison in that state isn’t safe for you. They only need to pay one man to do their dirty work for them. It won’t look like they had any part in it.”<\/p>\n The family was shocked, but Roy only looked sorrowful at the news he had been forced to bring. Seeing how Adam looked at the news, Roy had a pang of regret which didn’t last because he knew too that Adam had a right to make his own decision about what to do next.<\/p>\n “I thought you should know.”<\/p>\n “Thank you, Roy.”<\/p>\n “Good luck, boy. I know you had a hard time of it with those folks last time. I hope it works out better for you this time whatever you do.” Roy was sad to have to say goodbye to his friend, but he had seen it coming. He and Doctor Martin had talked because both had observed the same things in Adam, the things the family refused to see. Roy and Paul had drawn the same conclusion that Adam couldn’t heal in the family setting because they were rushing him to be what they wanted him to be instead of letting the process play out naturally. They were adding to Adam’s misery instead of helping him get beyond it. Both men guessed they wouldn’t understand that until Adam left, and now that time had arrived.<\/p>\n The four Cartwrights were quiet as Roy departed. When Adam’s brothers were going to talk, he held up his hand to hold them off so he could think. He stood rigidly staring into the flames in the fireplace. The silence was broken by Ben after about fifteen minutes had passed and he saw his son lower his head and nod briefly. He guessed Adam had made a decision.<\/p>\n “Adam, what are you going to do?”<\/p>\n “I think you know. Roy knew too what I would likely do. It’s why he said goodbye like he did. I won’t go back there. I can’t go back there. I can’t even take a chance on going back to that prison or any prison, and I can’t trust that I won’t end up in that prison if I stay here. I’ll write when I can. I’ll be leaving very early.”<\/p>\n “Adam, you’re not ready to leave. You still haven’t fully recovered from what happened.”<\/p>\n “Maybe, Pa, but how will I be if they lock me up again?”<\/p>\n “You’ll look guilty by running.”<\/p>\n “I don’t give a damn how it looks. How the hell will I look after they lock me up again? Looking guilty is a damn sight better than standing in a courtroom listening to a jury say you’re guilty when you’ve done nothing wrong, but so many others have.”<\/p>\n No one had an answer for that. They also knew when he said he couldn’t trust that he wouldn’t end up in that prison again that he was referring to them. He couldn’t trust them. None of them could offer a defense against that either. Rebuilding trust took a long time if it even could be done after what had happened, and there had not been time to do it.<\/p>\n “Lordy, Adam, where will you go? I don’t know where you can rightly go without making plans.”<\/p>\n “Hoss, I don’t know either. I won’t be able to do the things I had thought to do if I left because it would only make it easier to find me. I have to tell you I feel lost already, and I haven’t left yet. But I can’t stay. I’m a witness against them in California, and they’ve set me up to go back to prison. After what happened with Kane and after those weeks in that prison, I can’t get locked up again. I’ll die first, one way or another.”<\/p>\n Ben was offended by that statement. “Don’t you talk like that. We’ll work on proving you innocent. We’ll find a way.”<\/p>\n “Don’t you ever tell me how to talk. No one has the right to tell me what to think and what to say. No one! Now, if you find a way to prove my innocence, I may come back. But you have to do that first, and I’ll be the one to decide if it’s enough.”<\/p>\n Shocked into silence by his son’s response, Ben said nothing more.<\/p>\n “You don’t trust us, do you?”<\/p>\n Joe was upset not only that Adam was leaving but that he didn’t feel Adam had forgiven them and put the past behind him.<\/p>\n “We did everything we could to help you. I think you were planning on leaving anyway, and this is the excuse you needed or maybe wanted to make it easier to just go. You still blame us for all of it, don’t you?”<\/p>\n Staring at Joe, Adam said nothing. His lack of response though said it all. Joe knew it too. They had done all those things to help him because they had done all the things that got him in the mess in the first place. They had cleaned up a mess they made and Adam paid the price. He was unwilling to accept those parameters again. Hoss was the only one who asked what Adam wanted.<\/p>\n “If we don’t find who done it? Will you ever come back?”<\/p>\n Hoss was worried about what the answer would be. They all knew the answer when Adam still said nothing. There were no more comments about his decision and why he made it. He only said one more thing to Hoss and Joe about leaving when they were in the barn as he saddled his horse.<\/p>\n “I’m not leaving just for me. I’m leaving for you two as well. Someday you may understand what I mean.”<\/p>\n With the reminder of the torture Adam had faced in the desert years before that had scarred him made them all reconsider what he must have felt like by being in that prison for weeks. They finally understood that those experiences had changed him although they still had to come to terms with how much he had changed. Any confinement was abhorrent to him and he would sacrifice anything to avoid it. The ranch itself and his family who smothered him were making him feel he was in a prison again even a benevolent one. He knew he was sensitive to those issues, but that was who he was now. Even if they promised to fight to get him out as soon as possible, it wouldn’t be good enough.<\/p>\n It was a few hours before dawn, and they got to say goodbye, and then he was gone. At least he had talked to them more in these last hours than he had in some of the days he had been recuperating. It was a sign that he was doing better, but they all worried that he was still not well enough to be out on his own. Hoss had volunteered to go with him, but he had said it would be too easy to track him in the company of his large brother. They all had to agree with that assessment and with the wry smile he had when he said it. Hoss at least could tell Adam was grateful for the offer.<\/p>\n When the marshal arrived about noon to serve the warrant, he was frustrated that Adam wasn’t there. With no one to arrest, he made a few angry comments and left. Roy’s warning had been timely.<\/p>\n That night at dinner, there were three again, and they felt like that empty chair was blaming them for failing to protect one of their own. They had always thought no one could defeat them if they stood together, but that had been broken, and one of them had been lost. Not guilty of any offense, he had been punished, and they were not capable of stopping it. Joe looked to the other two.<\/p>\n “It shouldn’t end like this.”<\/p>\n After a pause, Hoss agreed and looked to their father.<\/p>\n “Yes, tomorrow, we’ll see what can be done to clear your brother. It won’t be easy now that he’s fled, but there must be a way. We’ll have to find it because someone stole everything away from Adam, and that person has to pay for that, and we have to get his life back for him.”<\/p>\n “Pa, what if we can’t. I mean, those gamblers Joe lost money to were just the beginning. That outfit they sold Adam into seems like they got their fingers into everything if they can kill people and get warrants for men in another state and things like that. Maybe we ain’t strong enough to beat them. I think that’s what Adam thinks too and that’s why he left. He thinks it’s hopeless. The way I feel now, I kinda do too.”<\/p>\n “We all know now your brother was planning to leave. He probably has some idea of where he wants to go but didn’t share it because we can’t be forced to tell what we don’t know.”<\/p>\n “Pa, you think Adam wanted to leave?”<\/p>\n “Yes, Hoss, I do, and I think that part was my fault.”<\/p>\n “Pa, I think all that happened to Adam was all our fault and we forgave ourselves too easy and let it all fall on him. Now it still is all on him, ain’t it? Gonna be hard thinking on my brother for the next year and not thinking on how bad the part was that I played in making him leave. I never wanted him to go, but it don’t change the fact that I did.”<\/p>\n The tone was somber as Ben and Joe thought about what Hoss said and realized it applied to them in even greater measure.<\/p>\n They meant to keep that promise too, but within the year, the Pinkertons sent a final answer with one of their agents.<\/p>\n “Sir, we could keep taking your money, but it would be unethical. We have determined that you do not have the resources to pay for the kind of investigation it would take to take down the criminal organization that was behind what happened to your son.”<\/p>\n “What would you need?”<\/p>\n “At least two and perhaps four full-time investigators working only that case for at least six months but probably more than a year. Money for payoffs to get the documents and other materials that would be needed for evidence. It is not only a criminal organization we would be investigating but corruption within the government of the state as well. I’m sorry, sir, but it would bankrupt you, and it would still not be enough.”<\/p>\n So that had nearly been the end of it. They had tried a few detectives less concerned about ethical conduct, but no one had been able to find any more than the Pinkerton Agency had found. Truly the criminal organization was far-reaching and complex. It was David against Goliath but David had no weapon to use.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Tags:\u00a0 Adam Cartwright,\u00a0Angst,\u00a0Ben Cartwright,\u00a0Hoss Cartwright,\u00a0jail \/ jailed,\u00a0Joe \/ Little Joe Cartwright,\u00a0Roy Coffee,\u00a0SAS<\/p>\n
\nNot Guilty: Part One, Justice Denied (by BettyHT)
\n<\/a>Not Guilty: Part Two, Justice Delayed (by BettyHT)<\/a>
\nNot Guilty: Part Three, Moving Forward (by BettyHT)<\/a>
\nNot Guilty: Part Four, The Dogs (by BettyHT)<\/a><\/p>\n
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