Summary:\u00a0 Adam gets some bad news but decides to use those circumstances to do a good deed.\u00a0 That whole situation turns out to be far more complicated and dangerous than he had imagined until it affects his whole family.
\nRating: T\u00a0 Word count: 18,031<\/p>\n
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While There’s Still Time<\/strong><\/p>\n Chapter 1<\/strong><\/p>\n “Will you marry me?”<\/p>\n Sarah Jane Dean sat on the hard wooden chair in the garden at the convent secure in her sanctuary behind the high walls and stared at Adam Cartwright as if he was crazy and then said that to him.<\/p>\n “I’m not crazy. I want to help you, but they won’t let me do anything because of your age and your condition, and to be honest, because of my age. I’m forty years old and they think I want to do something heinous apparently. If you marry me, I promise I won’t ever touch you. I won’t expect you to act as a wife. It would only be as a way to protect you. We would be a family, you, me, and your child, who would then be our child. At some point, if you found someone, I would not stand in your way of having a happy life and a normal family. As I said, I only want to help.”<\/p>\n Staring at him and believing him despite how ludicrous that would seem to be, Sarah couldn’t understand why he wanted to do this for her. She was from the same town and knew his reputation. It was the same as his whole family. They didn’t lie and they kept their promises. He had left Virginia City years earlier, but she didn’t believe he could have changed so much as to become a liar. So something else had happened. Noting that he wore the finest clothing, she was aware too of how the clothing was loose on him and his color wasn’t good. Developing a theory, she had her own question for him.<\/p>\n “There’s something wrong with you, isn’t there? I’m your last chance for a wife and family? I’m convenient?”<\/p>\n That got a response but not the one Sarah expected. With a look that could only be seen as bitter, Adam shook his head before responding.<\/p>\n “I don’t think anyone would see this as a proper marriage or family for me. I would expect that I shall be roundly criticized for this action. However, under my present circumstances, there are no women likely to want to marry me so I am available. If you do not like my proposal, I shall go back to Nevada alone. It will be less troublesome for me to do that. I had made the decision to go before I heard about your situation. I had thought though that as long as I was going, I could do some good with that action at least.”<\/p>\n “You really meant what you said then?”<\/p>\n “It may seem quite redundant, but I try to say what I mean and mean what I say. It keeps things from being misunderstood.”<\/p>\n “Well, then, I got one more question for you before I give you an answer. You’re smart, rich, handsome, well handsome for an older man, so why aren’t you already married and with a bunch of children?”<\/p>\n “It’s a long story or a short statement. I got it wrong on what’s important to being happy.”<\/p>\n Sarah watched as Adam seemed to get lost in a memory and not a pleasant one by the way he frowned. It wasn’t.<\/p>\n “Adam, my sister said you fell asleep on your picnic yesterday. Now I know she may not be the most attractive woman you have ever seen, but she is good looking and smart as well as, shall we say, willing. Since her husband died, she has waited for a good man, but she is tired of waiting. How are you ever going to find a woman to be your wife if you insult every woman you’re with?”<\/em><\/p>\n “I was exhausted. I told you that before you set me up for that outing. I’ve worked every day for the last three weeks. I hardly had time to eat dinner most days. How did you expect me to lay back on a picnic blanket and not fall asleep?”<\/em><\/p>\n “You’re impossible. The doctor told you to take it easy. He told you that your heart couldn’t take much more of this and all you do is work harder. Why?”<\/em><\/p>\n “I wanted to make a mark on the world while there’s still time.”<\/em><\/p>\n “There’s not much more time by the way you look.”<\/em><\/p>\n “And not much more by what the doctor said either. He said I have six months or maybe a year or two before my heart gives out entirely.”<\/em><\/p>\n “What?”<\/em><\/p>\n “So I guess I’m not that serious about finding a wife any more either. I’m selling everything and going back to Nevada. I’ll see my family before it’s over.”<\/em><\/p>\n “When did you find out? When did you decide all of this?”<\/em><\/p>\n “This morning I saw the doctor. I fell asleep on that blanket because I couldn’t stay awake. I think she probably told you she couldn’t wake me at first.”<\/em><\/p>\n “She did. I thought you must have been really tired and drank too much of the wine you brought too. You do have a tendency to drink a bit too much.”<\/em><\/p>\n “I was really tired, and I do drink too much, but the doctor thinks it is far worse than that. So I guess I made a lot of mistakes working too hard, drinking too much, and who knows what else.”<\/em><\/p>\n Looking at Sarah then, Adam was sincere. “I chased the wrong dream.”<\/p>\n “You’re not the only one who’s ever made a mistake. I’ve made plenty as you plainly know, and I’m a lot younger than you. You never answered what I asked before either. There is something wrong with you, isn’t there?”<\/p>\n “There is a lot wrong with me, but nothing that should concern you at this point. I have money enough to support you. I will treat you with respect and kindness. I will protect you with all that I have. I will give you my name, for what it’s worth, and make you a part of my family. Most importantly right now, I can get you out of here safely and you can keep your baby. Is there anything else you need from me?”<\/p>\n “I guess I always thought I would love the man I married, but that dream died with so many others. What you’re offering sounds tempting.”<\/p>\n “Only tempting?”<\/p>\n “What if you find out more about me? What if there’s more bad stuff you don’t know yet? Will that make you change your mind and break your promises to me?”<\/p>\n “And you don’t want to tell me those things now?”<\/p>\n “I don’t trust you enough to tell you anything more than you already know.”<\/p>\n “So you are admitting that there is more and that I won’t like it. I guess I should have known that. All right, I accept that too, unless you tell me you have murdered someone. I could not accept that.”<\/p>\n Her eyes got wide.<\/p>\n “Damn, mister, you got a lot of it to say that to me. Of course, I haven’t murdered anyone. I’ve never stabbed or shot anyone. Heck, I haven’t even ever hit anyone. How could you think that? I mean I pinched a wallet now and then from one who was sleeping off a drunk, but that’s the worst I ever did. I can’t believe you thought I could have murdered someone.”<\/p>\n “I didn’t. I wanted to see your reaction and I did. I feel better about things now.”<\/p>\n “You’re sneaky.”<\/p>\n “Yes, I’ve heard that before. Now, why would you ‘pinch a wallet’ knowing what could happen if you got caught?”<\/p>\n “I got hungry. Lots of times I didn’t have enough to eat. It was the only way to get enough money.”<\/p>\n “Once you were employed by these men?”<\/p>\n “Well, yes. They don’t let you quit. If someone tries, you know they find her in the harbor all bit up by things. I didn’t want to end up that way, but I would be hungry sometimes, and that can make you take chances.”<\/p>\n “And stealing from a drunk wasn’t too dangerous?”<\/p>\n “It was a little. I didn’t do anything that was really dangerous.”<\/p>\n “But you did this?”<\/p>\n “They were going to take the baby away from me. They weren’t going to give me any say, and I wanted a say. I wanted to keep this baby. So I ran here to this convent. They protected me, but you know it’s only for a short time. I can’t stay here forever.”<\/p>\n “The church leaders will only allow you to leave with me if we’re married. The city authorities with whom I’ve spoken concur with that.”<\/p>\n “So you’re telling me that you’re my only answer.”<\/p>\n “At this point, I am. You could wait for another option.”<\/p>\n “We both know how unlikely that is. I’ll have this baby. They’ll take the baby and give it to some married couple to adopt, and then they’ll turn me out because there will be no reason to let me stay. I’ll end up in that damn harbor with things eating away at me and an eel hanging from my head when they pull my body out. I saw that once. So, I have to say yes to you.”<\/p>\n “I’m sorry you feel you are being forced into this. I wish I could offer you a free choice. Once we’re away from here, if you want to be free of me, you can be. I won’t hold you to a bargain you feel is forced.”<\/p>\n “No, if I make a deal, I’ll keep it. What you’re offering is a fair exchange. I’ll do it. It’s the best offer anyone has made to me in many years.”<\/p>\n When Sarah saw Adam’s eyebrow raise at that, she thought she had given away too much, but he said nothing more about it. Instead he got right to the practical matters. She didn’t know if he was ignoring her comment or if he had missed the significance of it. Maybe he didn’t care. She found he was hard to read.<\/p>\n “I’ve already asked the church leaders here about forgoing the publishing of the banns. It seems in this case, it would likely only invite trouble by bringing the marriage to the attention of those who have an interest in stopping it and drag out all the trouble they are already having and bring more unwanted attention. Instead, they do agree to a marriage as soon as you are agreeable to one. I had already made plans to leave so my things are packed and ready to be shipped. My property is sold. I can leave today or any day you decide is right. It is up to you now. I’ll make whatever arrangements you wish.”<\/p>\n “Today is fine. The faster we do this, the better I guess. But if they find out what you’re doing, you could end up in that harbor too, you know.”<\/p>\n “I am well aware of the risks. I will be careful.”<\/p>\n With that, Adam left. It was eight hours before he returned, and Sarah believed he had regretted his offer and had left alone. Instead, he came in disheveled and breathless.<\/p>\n “There are men watching the place rather carefully. I had to use what I learned back home to get in without them seeing me. They never thought to look up in the trees. You’re a bit lucky that I didn’t break my neck though. I haven’t done anything like that in fifteen or twenty years.”<\/p>\n “You came back.”<\/p>\n “I said I would.”<\/p>\n “But it’s so late. I thought you changed your mind.”<\/p>\n “No, but I realized while I was in the jewelry shop that I was being followed. I bought a completely useless tie tac and then went to a friend’s home. I asked him for help and with a circle of other friends helping, I think we have this all worked out. We’ll marry here tonight. In the morning, a couple will be here to have their baby baptized. We will be in the back of their carriage when they leave. We will go to their home where there will be a party to celebrate the christening. My carriage will arrive there as well with someone who looks like me driving. After a fair interval, I will leave, and you will be in the back of my carriage.”<\/p>\n “What if they suspect something like that because they must have seen you come in here earlier today? You said you were being followed when you left.”<\/p>\n “There will be a carriage with security men following us to intercept anyone who tries to interfere with us leaving town. They would most likely want to look inside the carriage. They will never get that chance.”<\/p>\n “You’re doing an awful lot for me.”<\/p>\n “I keep my promises. There is one thing. My friends think I have lost my mind. You may have to ignore some comments. I hope they keep their opinions to themselves, but they have told me rather bluntly what they think about what I am doing. I am afraid they may do so again, and there is that possibility that you may overhear some of that.”<\/p>\n “I have probably heard worse.”<\/p>\n “You shouldn’t have to hear any more, but I need their help. We need their help, so I am forced to accept their boorish behavior.”<\/p>\n Sarah thought something that later she regretted she had not said. ‘I wish you were younger. I think I really could fall in love with you, Adam Cartwright.’ The moment passed then, and she didn’t get another chance to say that or something like it for a long time.<\/p>\n The marriage ceremony was about as forgettable as one could imagine. The priest was mechanical as he went through the motions of what he clearly considered a distasteful action as the nuns who witnessed the wedding were as impassive as they usually were. No one wished then well when the official pronouncement was made. Adam smiled at her and nodded seeming to know that despite all the difficulties she had endured, this was still humiliating. He put a ring on her finger that she hardly noticed through the tears in her eyes.<\/p>\n “Sarah, it will get better. Remember, you are doing this for your baby and for yourself. You are a courageous young lady.”<\/p>\n “I don’t think anyone here considers me a lady.”<\/p>\n “I do. Now you need to show some respect for yourself. You are going to be a mother, and that baby needs a lady for a mother. You also need your rest so I’ll walk you to your room. In the morning, we’ll begin our journey west.”<\/p>\n In her room later, Sarah looked at the ring she had received and realized how much it must have cost. She had two things of great value now, the ring and the marriage certificate in her purse. One more was a husband who was perhaps the most noble man she had ever met. She cried again.<\/p>\n The christening in the morning had one surprise for Sarah in that the baby being christened was a large doll. The couple did a good job of acting though so anyone watching them carry the baby in or back out would be fooled. Crowded into the dark confines of the back of their large carriage, Adam and Sarah squeezed down low where they could not be seen. Any other man Sarah had known would have taken advantage of such a situation, but Adam’s hands stayed where any gentleman would keep them. At the couple’s home, they were able to get out in the back yard under cover of foliage from numerous trees and hedges.<\/p>\n Then when it was time to leave, Adam’s carriage was brought to that same location so Sarah could get into the back and hide under a carriage blanket as Adam took the reins and drove out. In the street, the men he had hired pulled out to follow him as they saw another carriage do the same. A few blocks later, they had an unfortunate and purposeful accident with that carriage while rounding a corner. Looking back, Adam saw the two groups get out and start gesticulating wildly. He got his team to go faster and soon was well on his way with no pursuit. He drove the carriage to the next town where he had tickets to board the train under another name. By that evening, they were exiting the state and those who wanted Sarah Dean had no idea where she was.<\/p>\n Sitting in a private rail car, she looked over at Adam and saluted him.<\/p>\n “You are very good at planning. So, what comes next?”<\/p>\n “As I told you. We travel west.”<\/p>\n “I suppose we should try to get some rest. I didn’t sleep well last night. By the way, where did you sleep? You look very tired today.”<\/p>\n “I was on a chair outside your room, but I wasn’t sleeping.”<\/p>\n One promise he had made was that he would protect her, and in every way he could, he had kept that. She wanted to cry again knowing he had been outside her room as her protector as she slept. He had made other promises, and she wondered if he would keep them too. She removed her coat and shoes and took the small blanket that was provided. He turned down the lamp in the car. She guessed if he was going to try anything with her, this was his first real opportunity. However in a short time, she heard a light snore from him and knew he was sleeping. He hadn’t tried anything. Now that was reassuring, but it did bother her a little that he didn’t even made a slight effort to seduce her. Legally, he was her husband and had every right. He hadn’t even kissed her or anything.<\/p>\n For Adam, a few fake snores were a small price to pay to reassure the young lady that his intentions were honorable and his words were true. Leaning back in the wide bench seat, he kept his hat pulled down over his eyes and the blanket over his legs. She was an attractive young lady but far too young, and he had little to offer her for a future with him. He had known when he decided to help her that it would be a noble act and nothing more, but at least he could accomplish one good thing in the time he had left if it was only the six months the doctor had warned him he might have. With the break from his heavy work load and the fresh air of Nevada, he did hope that might give him somewhat of a reprieve, and he would perhaps get to enjoy the several years instead of the six months. He had to smile too as he realized he was thinking of enjoying the time.<\/p>\n For the past several years, there had been no joy in his life. There was work, whisky to help him sleep, and coffee to wake him up and keep him awake sometimes late into the night, and then the cycle repeated over and over again. Nothing he did ever seemed to be enough. Driving himself to be as good as he could possibly be only brought more demands for more work. Now, he had no work he had to do, and he had a project that was nearly pure altruism although he had to admit he had misled Sarah slightly by omission. He wasn’t trying to create a family to satisfy some instinct, but his father was going to probably see it that way. Ben Cartwright would most likely accept it as the best alternative he was going to get from his oldest son even if he wasn’t going to know the reason why. Returning home, Adam was going to have to admit failure in some ways. Although he had plenty of money, he had failed to achieve the career he had dreamed of creating, and he brought home a woman as his wife who carried a child fathered by another. Perhaps it would be best though if his father didn’t know that either. He and Sarah were going to have to discuss that issue.<\/p>\n While Adam was thinking about his reception in Nevada, he became restless and stirred quite a bit. Sarah knew then that he wasn’t sleeping. She couldn’t sleep either with all the questions about their future swirling in her mind.<\/p>\n “Adam, don’t you think we should spend some time talking?”<\/p>\n When he didn’t say anything but stood and turned up the lamp, she was a bit nervous. But then he sat beside her and offered her his hand.<\/p>\n “Yes, there are a lot of things we need to discuss. There are things I need to tell you that I have neglected to tell you. I want to be as honest with you as I can be. I don’t lie, but some would say that by omitting things in my explanations, I am lying by omission. I want to correct some of that with you now.”<\/p>\n She paused but then knew what she had to do.<\/p>\n “I will tell you anything about me too that you want to know. I think there may be things you don’t want to know too. As for what you just said about yourself, I am as guilty of that as you say you may be. I have left out some things I should have told you.”<\/p>\n “Fair enough.”<\/p>\n “So we can talk and there won’t be any blame?”<\/p>\n “No blame. We’re only getting started on knowing each other. It seems some leeway is reasonable at this point.”<\/p>\n Grateful for his understanding, Sarah took a moment to think about what she wanted to say and how she wanted to say it.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 2<\/strong><\/p>\n Turning to look straight into Adam’s eyes, Sarah gathered all the courage she had left and began. He felt the pressure on his hand increase as her small hand squeezed harder and knew how nervous she must be.<\/p>\n “Remember, it’s all right. No blame, just honesty between us now.”<\/p>\n “All right. Adam, I think I ought to start because there’s something big I need to tell you, and it could maybe change everything. I wasn’t entirely truthful about my situation.”<\/p>\n Although she noticed what appeared to be the hint of a smile, she assumed it was because he had expected that she had been lying about things and now she had confirmed that to him.<\/p>\n “I may look like I’m barely sixteen, if that, but I’m older. The men who controlled me could get more money from men who thought I was fifteen or sixteen. When I first got here, they told men I was twelve. That got them huge amounts of money from men who wanted to be with me. I had no experience and cried and fought them so they thought it was true. If I tried to tell the truth, I was punished. It was a hopeless situation so I just had to live with it. When I needed the nuns to help me, I kept up the charade because I knew they wouldn’t help me if they knew my real age. When you came there, I couldn’t tell you because they would know, and I would have been told to leave.”<\/p>\n At that point, Adam had a look of sympathy that she could tell was genuine. He held her hand and looked into her eyes.<\/p>\n “Thank you for telling me the truth. I am sorry that you had such a difficult time. It took a number of years before I understood how women are abused in that profession. It’s why I would no longer see any woman who had to be paid to be with a man. However you don’t need to apologize for not telling me your true age.”<\/p>\n The smile was more pronounced now to the point that the dimple was showing.<\/p>\n “You knew.”<\/p>\n “Sarah, I taught school at times. As a substitute teacher in Virginia City, I got to know your younger brothers and sisters who were in school then, and I knew about your family. I heard the story about you when you ran away. That was before I left, and you were about fifteen at the time so that makes you about twenty-one or twenty-two now.”<\/p>\n “I should have known that. I remembered you well, but I never thought about that connection. I’m twenty-one, but almost twenty-two. Why didn’t you say something earlier?”<\/p>\n “For the same reasons you didn’t. You needed those others to help you and they wouldn’t be so willing if they knew how old you actually were. If I had said something, they would have known and would not have offered you the help you needed and that I needed you to have so that I could help you too. Now can you tell me how you got into that situation in the first place?”<\/p>\n “I ran away, or as I prefer to say, I left home to be on my own, and the only person I knew that I could go to was my aunt there. I thought she was this free-living spirit who didn’t have all the rules and restrictions my parents held me under. The occasional things my father said led me to believe that she would be the ideal person for me to find and that I could have the life I wanted with her guidance. I found her, only her free life was not what I had thought at all, and her friends were terrible people. Once I was there, I was trapped.”<\/p>\n “I’m sorry for that. You have had a nightmare for all these years then.”<\/p>\n “Yes, and they made sure through various ways that I was never with child not that I ever wanted a child with any of those men, but it happened anyway. What was a shock to me was that I wanted this baby when it happened and I didn’t care who the father was.”<\/p>\n “You have no idea then?”<\/p>\n “I have an idea who it could be, but I can’t be sure. If it is him, then I hope to God he never suspects I’m carrying his child.”<\/p>\n “Dangerous?”<\/p>\n “Mean and cruel is more what I saw, but I would assume dangerous from things I heard. I think it may be his men who pushed to have me brought back. He wanted exclusive rights to me. They wouldn’t do that, but it was close.”<\/p>\n “So when he finds out you’re gone, he may try to do something. I’m glad you told me that. We will need to take some precautions. That is probably why they were so intent on finding you and watching everyone who went into and out of that convent.”<\/p>\n “You still want me to go with you?”<\/p>\n “I knew most of this about you before I ever made the offer. Nothing has changed. Now I have a few admissions myself besides that. I told you that I have no designs on you and that you are free to leave at any time. I’m afraid though that it is not as simple as that. Once you reach the Ponderosa and the baby is born as a Cartwright, that is forever. My father is domineering. There’s no other way to put that. He has ideas about what a Cartwright is and what a Cartwright’s future ought to be. Should you want to leave, he wouldn’t stop you, but taking a Cartwright with you would likely not be in the cards.”<\/p>\n “But if he knows you’re not the father?”<\/p>\n “That’s something I want to discuss with you. I think this whole charade works better if we let people assume I am the father.”<\/p>\n “But then they would think you were a customer and that you married me only after I was with child because you wanted the baby. It makes you out to be a not very nice person when you are a very nice man.” When Adam did not reply, she could guess the rest. “But it makes me out to be the victim in this and gets sympathy for me, and it will make your family accept the situation better too, but their opinion of you will suffer. Do you want that?”<\/p>\n “I’m afraid their opinion of me isn’t that good anyway. Making it a little worse isn’t that much of an issue. They will think whatever they will think. Wait, does this all mean that you still want to come with me to Nevada?”<\/p>\n Smiling because she finally had surprised him, Sarah squeezed his hand again which she had been holding lightly as the conversation had turned to his issues.<\/p>\n “Yes, I do. I can’t think of a better situation for me at this time. I like you. I feel safe with you. My baby will have a wonderful future with you. It’s a good solution, and I had no idea what else I was going to do.”<\/p>\n The look he got then told her that there was something else she needed to know.<\/p>\n “Tell me.”<\/p>\n “You asked me once what was wrong with me. I dodged answering that question. You may find that I am good with doing that.”<\/p>\n “As you’re doing right now?”<\/p>\n “No, right now I’m only delaying answering as I try to find the right words. Over the last year or so, I’ve felt exhausted. I put it off the horrible hours of work I was putting in. I had to use whisky to fall asleep. I drank pots of coffee then to stay awake. I lost weight and strength. Sometimes during the day, no matter what I did, I fell asleep. I felt awful. A few weeks ago after a particularly embarrassing episode of that, I went to see a doctor. He told me that my heart is failing and that at most I have a few years left. I hope the fresh air of Nevada and less work will make that possible.”<\/p>\n As Adam talked, he felt her hand grip his more tightly. He knew his news wasn’t the kind he should be delivering to a woman with child, but she deserved the truth.<\/p>\n “You will have a family, Sarah. I may not be part of it for as long as needed to raise your baby, our baby now, but my brothers are good men. They will stand by you and help you as much as you need, protect you, and care for you as part of the Cartwright family.”<\/p>\n “So that’s the other reason you want them to think you’re the father, isn’t it. When you’re gone.” She couldn’t continue. Even after such a short time, thinking of him being gone was too painful.<\/p>\n “I am sorry to tell you all of this, but you’re safe now. I would never leave you destitute if you want to get out of this arrangement now. We never consummated the marriage, and it could be annulled. In fact, so few even know about it that you could tear up that paper you have and simply decide to declare it isn’t so, and there would be none to dispute you.”<\/p>\n “Are you trying to get rid of me?”<\/p>\n “No, I want to start over with you and be honest with you.”<\/p>\n “Is that all? You don’t have any more secrets, do you?”<\/p>\n “No, I think that was enough, don’t you?”<\/p>\n “More than enough, thank you.”<\/p>\n Leaning back, Sarah put her head on his shoulder. They rode in silence until the next stop. There, Adam said he was hungry and tired.<\/p>\n “What would you like to do?”<\/p>\n “I’d like to stay in a hotel, get some good sleep, and eat a regular meal. Then we can look at a map and plan the rest of our trip. I don’t want to push too hard. You need to have your rest and good meals as we go.”<\/p>\n “I’m not fragile. I can take a little trouble.”<\/p>\n “Your baby is fragile.”<\/p>\n That silenced all of her objections to being treated with such care as Adam was showing such fatherly instincts already that it made her want to cry. Instead, she held her emotions in check and agreed that what he had said was best.<\/p>\n The next morning, they were well rested. Adam had secured a suite so they each had a comfortable bed. They had dinner in the suite and breakfast too. The plan was to buy tickets for each leg of the journey as they embarked on it so no one could anticipate where they would be. They had a set of aliases to use too so they would change names with each stop. Anyone following them if there was someone doing so would have to investigate to find out what name they were using and where they had gone before they could be followed. By then, they would likely be using the next alias. Adam guessed they could be across the Mississippi well before anyone could realize where they were.<\/p>\n “But if they know you’re the one I’m with, couldn’t they just go to Nevada?”<\/p>\n “Not any faster than we are.”<\/p>\n “Oh, that’s right. But they could be somewhere around us.”<\/p>\n “That would be the worst situation.”<\/p>\n “Let’s pray that doesn’t happen.”<\/p>\n “Maybe we ought to do more. I think a visit to a reputable firm offering security services is what we need before we go any further.”<\/p>\n Unfortunately, Donald John Travis was spending a lot of money trying to get men to bring Sarah back to him. After discovering that his favorite consort was missing, he checked into the reason for that. When he found she was with child, he guessed it was probably his, and her managers admitted that was most likely true. With the amount of money he was willing to spend to have her as his whenever he demanded, they had hardly ever sold her services to any other men. However, no matter how rich or influential one was, he found that apparently it didn’t let you take an underage female out of a convent where she had sought refuge. At this point, he did believe she was as young as she appeared, and her managers were not about to tell this dangerous man the truth. Travis had his men watch for a chance to snatch her, but they had reported she never left the place. Then inexplicably, he heard she was no longer there. His men thought that perhaps she had been taken out with a couple who went to a christening but had not found her there. They never admitted that they had failed to follow the one carriage they thought she might be in. Travis hired men to find out what happened and quickly had much of the story. Not only did he set his own men on the trail, but he put a bounty out on Adam Cartwright, the man suspected of taking Travis’ pregnant consort out of the city. Within a day, he had a report.<\/p>\n “Cartwright is a wealthy man. He’s not as wealthy as you are, but he can afford the best hotels and the best travel accommodations. It’s not going to be easy to get close to him and take her. He might hire some help too. It’s a good possibility he already has.”<\/p>\n “He’s damn sneaky too. Keep that in mind. What we need is a plan more devious than his. I want him to suffer too. If he ended up dead, I wouldn’t mind at all.”<\/p>\n “We have a plan. It’s risky though. If it fails, he’ll know we’re onto him.”<\/p>\n “Do it. Do something.” Travis paused but had to ask. “What do you plan to do?”<\/p>\n “Create a diversion with him as the center of it and snatch her in the middle of it.”<\/p>\n “That could work.”<\/p>\n “And you should get your wish that he gets hurt too.”<\/p>\n “If you can, find out how he got caught up in this. How does he know her? Was he a client of hers? I want to know how he knew her. I don’t like mysteries.”<\/p>\n About that time, Sarah was asking Adam a similar question. She wanted to know how he knew about her situation and where she was.<\/p>\n “It is far simpler, and is not at all sinister as you may have started to suspect. My former housekeeper’s daughter is in that convent. When I told her that I was going to leave and go back to Nevada, she said there was a young girl with child who had sought refuge at the convent. She said that the young girl was also from Nevada. She wondered if there was a chance that I could help perhaps by escorting her back to Nevada because the nuns were not at all sure what they could do. I asked her if she could get a name, and when I learned your name, I knew who you were. I decided to help if you would let me.”<\/p>\n “You left something out of that story, didn’t you? You pause just a little when there’s something you aren’t saying.”<\/p>\n Staring at her, Adam didn’t know what to say at first. Then he guessed the truth was all he had.<\/p>\n “You’re right, but it is also nothing sinister. I let you assume my housekeeper got the name for me. It was however a lady whose services I once paid to enjoy on a regular schedule until I decided that wasn’t the way for me. I contacted her and paid her for the information I wanted. She was more than willing to discreetly find out for that generous fee which got me the information and her silence about who was asking.”<\/p>\n “She won’t keep that secret.”<\/p>\n “No, not if it is in her interest to tell, but she kept it long enough for the plan to work, and that was all that mattered. No one was likely going to ask her anything until after we were gone if you accepted my offer. Now will you tell me who it is we’re running from?”<\/p>\n “You could tell I left that out too, couldn’t you?” Adam said nothing not falling for her distraction either. “Donald Travis.”<\/p>\n That got a whistle from Adam who knew about the criminal boss and how dangerous he was purported to be.<\/p>\n “I need to hire more security. I have a feeling we may need it sooner than expected.”<\/p>\n “Do you think his reach is this far?”<\/p>\n “His reach is much farther than this. He may not only send his men. There are other ways when a man has money like he has.”<\/p>\n “I’m sorry too that I’m costing you so much.”<\/p>\n Almost slipping then, Adam was going to wrap an arm around her to reassure her but caught himself in time and only squeezed her hand in his. He had moved closer though, and Sarah had sensed that there might have been more except for his iron control of himself. At that moment, she wished it wasn’t so strong because she could have used a hug. She saw Adam get that serious look he had when he was about to deliver some bad news.<\/p>\n “I think we need to speed up our plan as much as we can. If they get ahead of us, that could mean more trouble. Let’s get packed, get more security hired, and leave.”<\/p>\n It still took hours to accomplish all of that letting the pursuit get closer. By the time they left that town, some of the Travis men were only hours behind them and gaining. When they stopped again in Chicago, his men got ahead of them. It was the worst scenario Adam had imagined could happen. They had three men with them to provide security but never imagined what they were going to face in a small town in Illinois when they had to switch trains late the next day.<\/p>\n When Adam escorted Sarah to the end of the railcar to disembark, he was surprised at the boisterous crowd on the small platform and the number of men who had spilled off that platform as well. Sarah wondered too and asked him if there was a holiday she didn’t know.<\/p>\n “I have no idea. It seems like some kind of celebration except these men don’t look like they’re celebrating. Here, let me help you through the crowd.”<\/p>\n Putting an arm around her, Adam took her elbow in his other hand and his three security men did their best to help him get through the unruly crowd. Then shouts broke out that drew attention to them.<\/p>\n “There he is. There’s the man who kidnapped her.”<\/p>\n “See, he’s forcing her to go with him.”<\/p>\n “He’s got three of his thugs with him.”<\/p>\n “We have to save her.”<\/p>\n “No one else can help her.”<\/p>\n All the day, the Travis men had been whipping up the crowd with false stories and lots of alcohol. Now it was about to pay off as the men surged forward, separating the three security men from Adam and Sarah, and then pulling Adam away from her. The rage they felt at Adam was shown quickly by fists and then boots even as Sarah screamed for them to stop. The security men had pulled their weapons but other than shooting men, they were unable to stop the mob. It was two blasts from a shotgun fired in the air that brought some calm, and then Sarah’s voice could finally be heard.<\/p>\n “Please stop. He’s my husband. He didn’t kidnap me.”<\/p>\n The Travis men slithered away unwilling to face any scrutiny of what they had done and unable to get close enough in the melee to grab Sarah. The sheriff moved to Sarah to ask if she was willingly offering that information. She opened her reticule and pulled out the marriage certificate. The sheriff turned to the crowd and told them all to go home.<\/p>\n “They’re married. He may be a lot older, but it’s all legal. You done showed him what you thought about it so skedaddle.”<\/p>\n Sarah was kneeling by Adam’s side as the three security men came up to them. They asked if they should carry him to a doctor and got a look that said they shouldn’t even have to ask that. The sheriff though told them there was no doctor in their town.<\/p>\n “Next town up the line has a doctor. Your best bet is to go there. Mood in this town ain’t so good and not likely anyone is gonna want to help him here.”<\/p>\n “We need to get to the other station.”<\/p>\n “It’s down the road a piece.”<\/p>\n “Can someone help us get Adam there?”<\/p>\n Not even the railroad employees were willing to help get them to the other station. They had thought Adam was traveling with his daughter. By his actions, they had not thought he was her husband. The three security men carried Adam to the other station and got him on board. Laying on the seat in their car, he wasn’t responding to much except to grimace in pain with every movement. The security men told her they had sent a telegram ahead and more men would be waiting to help them now at every stop.<\/p>\n “How much will that cost us?”<\/p>\n “Nothing, ma’am. We failed in our duty. The extra will be at our expense. Nothing more will happen to the two of you if we can do anything to stop it.”<\/p>\n At the next stop, Adam refused to go to the doctor.<\/p>\n “I’ve had worse injuries being thrown from a horse. I’ll be fine.”<\/p>\n Not knowing him well enough yet, Sarah didn’t know what fine meant when Adam said it. He was badly hurt but putting her welfare above his needs. The security guards guessed as much and were exceedingly gentle when helping him move.<\/p>\n Travis didn’t like the telegram he received.<\/p>\n We failed STOP Subject has more resources now STOP Will wait for instructions STOP <\/em><\/p>\n During his formative years, Travis didn’t have parents who had been particularly moral, but they would have been shocked by the words he used at that point.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 3<\/strong><\/p>\n The rest of the trip, the couple stayed on the train as much as possible which was almost all the time. The security men stayed with them. In Reno, the train schedule was set up for only limited passenger service to Virginia City. The spur line was primarily an ore carrier line and freight hauling line. Adam told the group what he thought they had to do.<\/p>\n “We can’t wait for the next passenger service. It will take too long. We need to go overland.”<\/p>\n “I’m afraid he’s right, ma’am. Any delay lets them organize against us and gives them a better chance of success. Keeping them surprised at what we do is our best chance. Waiting several days for a passenger train to Virginia City could be quite dangerous for both of you.”<\/p>\n “How about the stage then?”<\/p>\n That got a negative answer from Adam that was more a groan than a word but it was followed by one word. “Carriage.”<\/p>\n “You want to ride a carriage all the way to Virginia City?”<\/p>\n “Best option.”<\/p>\n “Ma’am, he’s probably right. We can get a carriage here to the train and leave town before they know what happened.”<\/p>\n “But they could follow us, and he needs to see a doctor.”<\/p>\n “They could follow us if they have any idea that’s what happened. Instead, I think I have another plan that could confuse them enough or a lot. We can be in Virginia City in two or three days. He can see a doctor then. Meanwhile, he won’t have to do a thing except lean back and wait to get there.”<\/p>\n “Sarah, it’s what we have to do.”<\/p>\n “I don’t like it. Why can’t you stay here in a doctor’s care?”<\/p>\n “You know the answer.”<\/p>\n She did as well as the security man there. Adam would be used to draw her out, and they weren’t likely to care about his condition.<\/p>\n An hour later, a hearse was pulled up to the car and a plain coffin was carried in. Inside was a woman about Sarah’s size. She climbed out, and a few minutes later accompanied the coffin back to the hearse which was driven away to the undertaker’s office. She would spend a few hours there obviously distraught and unable to leave. At least that was what they wanted the Travis men to believe. By the time they realized it was a trick, Adam and Sarah should be miles down the road leaving no trace of where they had gone. It worked. Again, Travis did not like the telegram he got.<\/p>\n The trip to Virginia City was far more difficult than Adam had imagined, and he had expected a painful journey. They spent over four days on the road having to travel slowly, take long breaks, and stop early every day because he was exhausted. Finally on the fifth morning, they pulled into the town only to find it filled with exuberant people involved in all sorts of festive activities. Signs strung across the streets proclaimed that the celebration was a Frontier Days hullabaloo and all were welcome.<\/p>\n After Sarah gave them directions to the doctor’s office, they headed there and several men got Adam inside only to find the doctor was already busy. There was a room with a bed open so they put him in there. Sarah finally got the nurse’s attention when she came out to talk to two men who had arrived to ask about the patient inside. She told the nurse that her husband had severe injuries, was passing blood, and was running a fever. Soon, the doctor was out to talk to her. The two men objected.<\/p>\n “Joe will be fine. I bandaged his arm and his ankle. They’re not broken. I’ll go bind his ribs as soon as I find out what I need to know about this woman’s husband. Now, ma’am, how was he hurt?”<\/p>\n “He was beaten by some men.”<\/p>\n “Beaten? Here?”<\/p>\n “No, in a town in Illinois.”<\/p>\n “And you’re only seeking help for him now?”<\/p>\n “He wouldn’t let me get help any sooner. He kept saying he was fine, and we had to get away from the men who were chasing us. Then we fooled them and took a carriage from Reno. It was his idea, but it was a bad one. He’s really been suffering, but we couldn’t turn back.”<\/p>\n “I’ve heard some wild tales, but that is one of the wildest. Don’t worry. I’ll take care of him to the best of my ability, but I do appreciate it when patients and their families tell me the truth.”<\/p>\n “That is the truth. He would never let me lie about things like that. Honesty and truth are very important to him.”<\/p>\n “All right, let’s go see him.”<\/p>\n Sitting in the waiting area, Hoss looked to his father. Joe had been hurt in a riding contest when the horse he ran to get for a ride went loco on him. Joe had managed to dodge those flailing hooves but had still been thrown back into a wooden fence.<\/p>\n “Pa, the way she was describing her husband reminded me of Adam.”<\/p>\n “It didn’t to me. Adam wouldn’t be married to a young girl like that.”<\/p>\n “No, I mean the things she said about him.”<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Doctor Paul Martin had not drawn the same connections Hoss did so he had a shock when he met his patient.<\/p>\n “Adam?”<\/p>\n “Yes, Paul, and I’m sorry to complicate your life so much, but it got out of hand for me, and I don’t have any other options left.”<\/p>\n “So what she said is all true?”<\/p>\n “I don’t know what she told you, but I assume it was all true.”<\/p>\n Standing to one side, Sarah smiled that Adam trusted her.<\/p>\n “You’re married.” Paul’s voice gave away his incredulity. “Your family is outside in the waiting area. Joe has some minor injuries. I was taking care of him when my nurse said you needed me more.”<\/p>\n “Please don’t tell them. I’m not strong enough to face them right now.”<\/p>\n With that, Adam closed his eyes. He had used the little reserve of strength he had left. Doctor Martin began his exam and didn’t like what he found.<\/p>\n “Sarah, has he been drinking much?”<\/p>\n “Yes, he doesn’t want to eat, but he will drink especially to help him stop coughing. It really hurts him when he coughs.”<\/p>\n “We’re going to have to cut back on what he’s drinking too for a few days and let his kidneys take a rest. In fact, that’s the major prescription I have for Adam right now. He’s got one broken rib but luckily it is not displaced. He’s going to have to tolerate being strapped but that should alleviate the pain if he has to cough. What he desperately needs is rest. He’s running a low fever but nothing that should cause too much concern at this point unless it gets worse. Can I assume you don’t plan to take him anywhere else?”<\/p>\n “No, we had thought to go to the Ponderosa, but you know how he feels about that at the moment. Can he stay here?”<\/p>\n “He probably has to stay here. With all the people in town, I don’t think there’s a chance of a decent room anywhere. You’ll have to stay with him. My wife can help you out with anything you need. The men with you who seem to be acting as bodyguards can use my small stable out back. It’s the best I can offer.”<\/p>\n “I don’t think Adam is going to like all of this.”<\/p>\n “Sarah, I know this man rather well. The fact that he heard everything I said and is laying there and saying nothing is a measure of his weakness. He knows that too. I know in a few days, he will likely be the most cantankerous patient on the planet, but right now he needs the care he can get here for the next three days, and he knows that too.” Paul paused not sure how much he ought to say, but his care for his patients overrode those concerns. “Sarah, it seems you could use a bit of care too.”<\/p>\n “I know. It’s getting so I can’t hide it anymore.”<\/p>\n “I could find someone who could get word to your family.”<\/p>\n “Not yet, please. This has all happened so fast that I’m not ready for anything else to happen.”<\/p>\n “Happened so fast? Sarah, you must be seven months along already.”<\/p>\n “Can we talk later, please?”<\/p>\n “Yes. I should go see to my other patient. While I’m gone, Adam could use a bath but he shouldn’t move about. There are cloths and towels on the side cabinet and water in the pitcher. It will help get his temperature down. He’s staying here anyway so take his clothing off and just cover him with a sheet and that light blanket when you’re done.”<\/p>\n Paul walked out without noticing that both Adam and Sarah were surprised by that request. Adam’s eyes had opened wide despite how exhausted he was, and Sarah didn’t know what to say to him. When he was gone though, she decided she knew what to say to Adam.<\/p>\n “It’s understandable that he would assume that would not be a problem, and it shouldn’t be. It’s not like I haven’t seen men undressed, and you do need to be bathed as he said.”<\/p>\n “Sarah, this goes beyond the bounds of what we agreed to do.”<\/p>\n “No, it’s only the care you need because you’re hurt. Now, I’m going to do this and unless you want to make a dramatic scene that will surely draw attention, I suggest you cooperate.”<\/p>\n “I don’t like this.”<\/p>\n “Well, that should make things easier for you.”<\/p>\n It should have if it was true, but it wasn’t that Adam didn’t like Sarah touching him. It was that he didn’t like that it was going to happen and he had no say in the matter. He had promised something that now he could not stop. He responded to her touch as he was afraid he would. He had not had a woman touch him in a long time and was disgusted with his lack of control. She guessed why he had the look of shame and knew him well enough already to know the shame wasn’t because of her.<\/p>\n “Don’t worry about that. I know you can’t help it. I’ll be done soon, and you can cover yourself.”<\/p>\n “Sarah, it’s not that you, I mean, it’s not you that has me upset.”<\/p>\n “I know. I understand you well enough already.” Then to try to help him relax, she bent down to whisper to him because she didn’t want anyone to over hear her. “I rather enjoyed giving you the bath. The scenery was marvelous.”<\/p>\n That got the hint of a smile for him because even though she was trying to make it as easy for him as she could, there was something else he couldn’t help. Sarah had tears for the grimaces he had as she wiped anywhere near where the worst bruises were. There were many of those ugly dark blue and dark purple blotches that showed where the worst blows had landed. When she finally finished and pulled the sheet and blanket over him, he was able to relax and then look at her. That was the first that he saw her tears. It took his mind away from his embarrassment.<\/p>\n “Sarah, I’ve been hurt worse than this in the past. Please don’t cry.”<\/p>\n “But you were never hurt because of me.”<\/p>\n “It wasn’t because of you. It was because of Travis. Remember who is the fault of all the trouble. It isn’t you.”<\/p>\n “But I brought you into my trouble.”<\/p>\n “No, I can make my own decisions. I left here years ago because I wanted to make my own decisions. I take responsibility for anything I do.”<\/p>\n “But you came back.”<\/p>\n “You know why. We may not stay on the Ponderosa if it’s too much like it was when I left, but we need to stay in this area.”<\/p>\n “I know. I was so relieved to get away from there, I didn’t think as much as I should have about how difficult it was going to be when I got here. Doctor Martin wants to contact my family. Adam, I don’t know what to say to them.”<\/p>\n “The same thing we’ll say to my family. We’re married. You’re going to have a baby. There’s nothing else they need to know.”<\/p>\n “They’re going to want to know details. My family will want to know what I was doing before I got married to you. I’m sure they know more about my aunt than they ever told me. They’ll probably have a pretty good idea of what I was doing.”<\/p>\n “Then I guess we’ll need to talk about that. First, why don’t you sit down and rest too. Doctor Martin was right. I need that, and I think you do too.”<\/p>\n “Do you think we can tell Doctor Martin the truth?”<\/p>\n “I don’t know. It might be good to have someone to talk to about all of this. Let’s think about it. It sounds like I’m going to be confined here a few days. We’ll have time.”<\/p>\n “It seems I’ll be confined with you as the doctor has made the assumption we wanted him to make.”<\/p>\n “Yes, this is going to be complicated, isn’t it.”<\/p>\n With bandages in hand, Paul walked back into the room then careful to not open the door too far. Adam could hear his father talking outside until Paul pulled the door closed.<\/p>\n “Yes, they’re still here if you’ve changed your mind.”<\/p>\n “I haven’t.”<\/p>\n “All right. You don’t have a serious head injury so I have to assume you must have a rational reason for that. Let me strap that rib of yours firmly in place. I don’t want any chance that it will move and do any more damage than it likely has already done. It doesn’t appear that anything serious has happened, but there’s an awful lot of bruising in that area. Your back looks bad too so I want you to stay in that bed except for what is necessary. In your condition, any extra exertion is too much.”<\/p>\n Once Paul finished and had another good look to make sure he hadn’t missed any injury, he had Adam lay back again. Then he sat on the chair by the bed and stared at his friend.<\/p>\n “Now, are you going to tell me what the hell is going on?”<\/p>\n Looking to Sarah who nodded, Adam turned back to Paul.<\/p>\n “We are married.”<\/p>\n “I assumed that was true. You wouldn’t lie about something like that, and neither would Sarah. She is with child too so you don’t need to explain that. But neither of you want to see your families, and you’re all busted up, so I know there’s a story that needs to be told if I am going to care for the two of you properly and give you the best advice I can.”<\/p>\n “I had decided to come home. Things had not worked out the way I had hoped. Then I heard that a girl from Nevada was in serious trouble. I got her name, and when I found out it was Sarah and what the circumstances were, I decided to help. The only way to help was to marry her and get out of town as quickly and secretly as possible. We didn’t do it well enough though, and a man named Donald Travis has set his men after us. You were right. The four men with us are hired for security and the man who helped me to get in here is in charge. I assume they’re watching the place now. We should probably call James at least in here and let him know what’s going on.”<\/p>\n “Based on your condition, they didn’t do a very good job protecting you.”<\/p>\n “Travis’ men set a mob on me in a small town. They got people to think I abducted and assaulted Sarah.” Adam pointed at himself then. “This happened before she and the security men could stop the attack. There was no doctor there, and then it didn’t seem wise to stop anywhere and give them time to set up another ambush. Until we took the carriage from Reno to here, I was doing all right.”<\/p>\n “You rode a carriage from Reno to here? Nothing much every changes with you Cartwrights.”<\/p>\n “Did you call me?”<\/p>\n The door had opened and Ben Cartwright stuck his head in after hearing the name Cartwright. Adam closed his eyes in full expectation of what was going to happen next.<\/p>\n “Adam? It can’t be you. Some people said they saw you come into town and go to the doctor’s office, but I said it couldn’t be you because you would have come to see us especially as we were at the same place. But here you are and you said nothing?”<\/p>\n Then Ben noticed Sarah sitting by the bed and the ring on her finger was as hard to miss as her advanced pregnancy.<\/p>\n “It seems there’s a lot you haven’t been telling us too.”<\/p>\n With all that had happened, Adam began to breathe too fast which caused him to cough and things escalated from there. He wrapped his bruised arms around his middle and grimaced in pain as coughs wracked him. Paul went to Ben.<\/p>\n “Ben, your son is injured. This is not the time nor the place for you to get answers.”<\/p>\n Hoss stepped into the room then too and tried to understand what was going on.<\/p>\n “Is that Adam? What’s going on?”<\/p>\n Paul took charge.<\/p>\n “Hoss, get your father out of here and close the door. I have to take care of your brother. Now!”<\/p>\n It took some time for Paul to help Adam calm himself and stop coughing. Then he got him reclining on pillows promising something to eat and drink as soon as he got the other Cartwrights settled down. James, the leader of their security team stepped in then and introduced himself as Paul headed to the reception area to speak to Ben and his sons.<\/p>\n “Boss, it looks like another lynch mob forming up out there.”<\/p>\n “No, it’s just my family. If Sarah’s family gets here, it could get worse, but the good doctor will keep me safe in here. How do things look out there?”<\/p>\n “Hard to say with all the commotion. I don’t like the idea of you staying here. So many people saw you come in here. Anybody asks about you, they’ll head right here, and it’s not defensible.”<\/p>\n “And they could be here already as long as it took us to get here.”<\/p>\n “That’s what I’m thinking.”<\/p>\n “Piper’s Opera House.”<\/p>\n “What?”<\/p>\n “Find out if there’s anything playing there. If not, it’s the perfect place for us to stay. The dressing rooms have no windows and there are cots to use.”<\/p>\n It took only a short time before James was back.<\/p>\n “The mob outside has grown. Seems like what Sarah predicted has come true and maybe more of your family too. But, good news too. The Opera House is empty, and we paid the manager a nice fee for silence to have a few people stay there for a few days out of sight. No names were used. We can go now. We have the carriage out back because we were anticipating we would have to move you. Don’t worry. We’ll let the doctor know when he’s done with the mob.”<\/p>\n Very carefully and under Sarah’s watchful supervision, James and the other men bundled Adam into the sheet and blanket and carried him to the carriage. In the darkness, they worked efficiently having planned their steps ahead of the move. Sarah gathered Adam’s clothing and hers before they left. An hour later, they were settled into dressing rooms. Lamps were lit and the security men had brought food and water. Sarah asked for extra pillows for Adam and extra blankets just in case. All was provided.<\/p>\n At Paul’s office, there had been shock and consternation when Ben and Sarah’s parents, unwilling to accept Paul’s decree, opened the door to Adam’s room to find him and Sarah gone.<\/p>\n “Paul, where are they?”<\/p>\n “I don’t know.”<\/p>\n “Come on now. You were buying them time to get out of there without us knowing where they were going. You must know.”<\/p>\n “Honestly, I had no idea they were going to leave. It was against my advice because I told Adam he needed to stay in bed for at least three days with his injuries. He’s at great risk if he’s moving around much.”<\/p>\n “What about our Sarah? Look what he’s done with our little girl already.”<\/p>\n Ben rolled his eyes at that. “She’s hardly a little girl.”<\/p>\n Hoss though had seen her sitting by Adam’s side. “She looks like a little girl.”<\/p>\n That made Sarah’s mother smirk until Joe added things up for Hoss.<\/p>\n “C’mon Hoss. She was fifteen when she left, and she left before Adam did. He’s been gone almost six years. She’s got to be twenty-two by now.”<\/p>\n “She’s only twenty-one. She hasn’t had her birthday this year yet. And your brother is nearly twice her age.”<\/p>\n “None of this is getting us anywhere. We need to talk to the two of them, and we’re not likely to find them tonight. If Paul won’t tell us where they are, we’ll have to wait until tomorrow for them to show up.”<\/p>\n Paul threw up his hands in surrender as the group trudged from his office. He pushed the door closed and barred it hoping there would be no more patients. Exhausted, he wondered where Adam and Sarah had gone. He had to smile a little though. They claimed that the marriage was for convenience, but he saw how they looked at each other and how they worked together. He guessed that convenience thing wasn’t going to last. The only real question was how long it was going to take for them to realize their growing feelings for each other and how well others were going to accept their marriage especially as the details emerged because Paul knew they would. Things like that never stayed buried no matter how much people wanted them to stay that way. Adam and Sarah faced some difficulties, but so far it seemed the troubles they had endured had drawn them closer. Paul hoped that continued to be true.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 4<\/strong><\/p>\n At the Opera House, trouble was drawing the couple closer. Part of the arrangement that had been made with the manager was that no lamps would remain lit while they slept. With all the combustibles in the place, the danger of fire was too great. Adam and the others had agreed to that stipulation. However, Sarah had not realized just how dark it would be with no light at all.<\/p>\n “Adam, can’t we have the lamp turned up a little?”<\/p>\n “No, we made a deal and we have to keep it or get turned out of here.”<\/p>\n “There’s a lamp on in the hall.”<\/p>\n “There’s a guard in the hall. He’s awake so there’s a lamp burning at each end of the hall for him to see better from where he is.”<\/p>\n “Could we open the door a little then to let some light in?”<\/p>\n “That would be all right. Can you get there without tripping?”<\/p>\n “I think so. I’ll feel my way along the wall.”<\/p>\n A few bumps into things and Sarah was there. The door was opened, and the dim light did make it possible to see vague outlines of things in the room. When she got back to her cot though, she realized her part of the room was still nearly completely in the dark.<\/p>\n “Adam, can I slide my cot next to yours? The light doesn’t get this far.”<\/p>\n “Of course.”<\/p>\n Once she slid her cot next to Adam’s and climbed back in, she threw her blanket over him as well and pulled his blanket over her so they could be side-by-side.<\/p>\n “Sarah, I’m not wearing anything yet.”<\/p>\n “I know. I saw you earlier. We are married, you know. It’s all right if I see you.”<\/p>\n “Sarah, what are you doing?”<\/p>\n “I’m scared, and I want to be next to you like I was in the railroad car. Now, my belly is so big I have to lay on my side. You don’t have to worry. The worst that can happen will only be my back up against you, and you’re resting on your back, so nothing is going to happen.”<\/p>\n “All right.”<\/p>\n Except it wasn’t. Adam was already reacting to her back pressed against his shoulder. She knew it too by the hoarseness of his voice when he responded to her. She had a smile as she closed her eyes to sleep. Knowing he was attracted to her and aware that he liked and trusted her made her feel good. She had hope now when before she met him, she had none. They still had a lot to face, but she was becoming more positive that somehow they would find a way out of the mess they were in. The only downside was what his doctor had told him, but she wondered if Doctor Martin had any advice on that. Maybe there was a treatment or something that could extend those years beyond what the first doctor had said. From what she had seen at the doctor’s office, Adam certainly looked strong and healthy not someone with a short time to live. She wouldn’t mind another look and guessed that was a good possibility in the morning as he would need help dressing.<\/p>\n In the morning, there was a knock on their door as James peeked in to make sure nothing was going on before he pushed the door open and entered with another person who was carrying food. James had two pitchers of water as well as towels.<\/p>\n “Good morning, we have food for your breakfast, and water and towels for you to freshen up. We’ll light your lamps and let you have some privacy.”<\/p>\n Adam was surprised at the newcomer with the food.<\/p>\n “James, we’ve added someone to our company?”<\/p>\n “Nope. We found the costumes here to be very useful. It’s my little brother, Todd.”<\/p>\n The youngest of the security men pushed back his hood and grinned. He was young and barely had any beard. When he shaved, he looked to be about fifteen although he was twenty.<\/p>\n “He decided to dress as a woman to get food. He figured nobody would even notice him doing that. We watched out the windows up front, and there was nobody following him as he came back here. He’s going to put his arm in a sling and go out as a cowboy needing medical help to tell the doctor how you’re doing, and then he’ll go to the sheriff and give him the basics of what is going on. We won’t tell the doc where you are so he won’t be able to be forced into telling. We will have him tell the sheriff so he can keep an eye on the place to see if trouble heads our way.”<\/p>\n “If we have to make so many trips out of here, sooner or later, someone is bound to notice.”<\/p>\n “That’s why we’re stocking up on supplies. We’re hoping to only make one more trip for food. You’re going to have to get by with mostly cold meals though. We can make coffee and probably soup on the pot-bellied stove we found, but I don’t think it will be much good for anything else.”<\/p>\n “If you can make soup, I can make stew, eggs, beans with bacon, and a host of other things. Get me a pot. That’s all I need. I’m not a great cook, but I can do a fair job with those kinds of basic meals.”<\/p>\n “I was hoping to hear you say that, ma’am.”<\/p>\n Leaving then, the two brothers pulled the door closed. Sarah looked to Adam.<\/p>\n “Food or bath first?”<\/p>\n “Food, and I can clean up by myself.”<\/p>\n Except he needed some help because he was too stiff and sore to do some things. Sarah was more than happy to help. She enjoyed the morning views for the next two days too.<\/p>\n For three days, they stayed at the Opera House. The meals were simple but good, hot food. The nights were reasonably comfortable. On Monday, the crowds were gone as Frontier Days were over. It made Sheriff Coffee’s job much easier as the strangers in town who appeared to be looking for Adam and Sarah, asking questions about the Cartwrights and the Ponderosa, were obvious. He had his deputies begin to watch them. As they became aware of the scrutiny, they sent a telegram to their boss letting him know they had failed. He told them to come back home. They discussed whether they should return or quit. As a group, they decided to quit rather than face Travis’ retribution for failing to do his bidding. They bought tickets on his expense account except they headed to San Francisco instead of back to the east. Once they left, Roy headed to the Opera House and knocked on the front door. The manager opened the door.<\/p>\n “I came to see your guests.”<\/p>\n When Roy gave the news to Adam and Sarah, he also talked with them about what had happened. His advice was to go to their families and tell them the truth.<\/p>\n “Roy, we’ll tell them some of the truth and see how they take it. If it goes well, we’ll tell them more, but I have to admit, I don’t think they want to hear the truth.”<\/p>\n Roy shrugged. He guessed Adam wasn’t too far from the truth with that assumption.<\/p>\n “Maybe not right now. Even I have to say seeing the two of you together was a bit of a shock. Now that I know the whole story, I understand, and I wish you both well. I think your families will too once they know the whole story.”<\/p>\n “I hope so, but we’re going to have to take this one step at a time.”<\/p>\n “Well, if there’s anything more I can do for you, you know you can call on me. This is my last term as sheriff. Clem is about to take over so I’m going to tell him what’s going on too. If this Travis fellow sends any more of his men, I want Clem to know he has to help.”<\/p>\n “Thank you, Roy.”<\/p>\n “Stop by and see Paul on your way out too. He’s been darn persnickety about you leaving like you did.”<\/p>\n “I will. I’ll pay him a generous fee for his services too. Maybe that will help. I can pay you some if you had any extra expenses covering us here.”<\/p>\n “Now you don’t have to use up your money taking care of things like that.”<\/p>\n “I won’t use up my money on a few little expenses like that.”<\/p>\n “I thought you said things didn’t work out for you in the east like you wanted.”<\/p>\n “They didn’t, but it had nothing to do with making money.”<\/p>\n “Yes, he’s got lots of money. He spends so much on me it’s embarrassing.”<\/p>\n “So, you’re rich?”<\/p>\n “I guess you could say that I have enough money to do what I want to do but I’m not rich like these mine owners and the Bank Crowd. I can afford what I want. Money isn’t what I was after, but it was the only thing I could seem to get in abundance. The whole world seems to be based on greed and money.”<\/p>\n “You are a different kind of man, Adam. Most men judge success based on how much money they have.”<\/p>\n “Not me.”<\/p>\n “No, not you.”<\/p>\n When they saw Paul, he was grateful for the payment, but insisted that the main reason he was upset that they had left was that he wanted to check on Sarah. So before they left again, Sarah was examined, and Paul told them his suspicions had been confirmed.<\/p>\n “When I saw her, I suspected that by her look, the position of the baby had already shifted. I believe that baby is coming early or she is wrong about how long she has been with child. She is either more than eight months along or that baby is going to be very early. I hope she is wrong about the time. Sometimes the flow can continue lightly even after a woman is with child. That makes the counting of the months incorrect. It could be the case here, but expect that child will arrive in less than a month. Everything that has happened has probably speeded things up.”<\/p>\n “But eight months is early too.”<\/p>\n “Sarah, a few weeks early is usually not a serious problem. The baby may be small. Little Joe Cartwright was small. It only means you have to feed them less at a time and more often, and you have to take special care to keep them warm. It’s summer so that part should be much easier. If you are eight months along, I am not as concerned if the baby arrives early.”<\/p>\n “If it’s less?”<\/p>\n “We’ll talk about that if we have to deal with it. I don’t think that’s what it is.”<\/p>\n After their visit with Doctor Martin, the couple headed to a visit with Sarah’s family. When they got there, they never had the chance to get out of the carriage. Her parents met them and delivered what must have been a prepared speech. Her father did most of the talking.<\/p>\n “We know you met up with your aunt, and we know what kind of woman she is. We can only assume what kind of things you was doing, and now you show up here married to a man almost my age, and you’re about to have a baby. We can’t tolerate the shame of it. All the talk in town makes us hardly able to go to church or to go into town for supplies right now.”<\/p>\n “Sarah, we might someday be able to forgive and tolerate you being here, but right now we have to think of the younger ones, and you don’t set a good example for them. So you go with your husband.”<\/p>\n “Don’t come back to us for nothing. You chose your way, and he’s responsible for you now. We ain’t responsible for what you’re carrying neither. It’s got his name so his family is responsible. That’s all your ma and me got to say on that.”<\/p>\n There was so much Adam wanted to say, but none of it would do any good. He knew that the only good he could do was take Sarah away while she still had her composure so he did. As they drove off, Sarah buried her head into Adam’s shoulder as she sobbed. Riding alongside the carriage, James said only one thing.<\/p>\n “I’m glad you weren’t wearing a pistol back there because I would have hated to have to shoot you to stop you from murdering two people much as they deserved it.”<\/p>\n “I hope our reception on the Ponderosa goes better than that. Otherwise, you may be working for us longer than today.”<\/p>\n The homecoming on the Ponderosa was better if a bit stiff. Ben had gotten over his temper, and the family had time to discuss and process what they had learned. When Adam walked in with Sarah, both were greeted politely if not as warmly as they might have hoped. Adam asked if it was possible to have the adjoining guest rooms as Sarah was quite possibly going to give birth within the month. Ben said they had already set things up that way assuming they would need a room for the baby next to them.<\/p>\n As Hoss and Joe took the luggage to those rooms and escorted Sarah there, Adam went outside to tell James and the others that their services indeed were no longer needed. He had paid them that morning with a generous bonus.<\/p>\n “I think we’re staying in town though. Seems there are some employment possibilities here we want to check out. If you need us, know that we will be around for a while yet.”<\/p>\n “Thank you.”<\/p>\n When Adam walked back into the house, only his father was waiting.<\/p>\n “Your brothers are still upstairs with your wife.”<\/p>\n The way his father said it left something to be desired in the way of warmth and pride.<\/p>\n “Pa, there’s a lot going on you don’t know.”<\/p>\n “Oh, I guessed that. With you, there often is. The question is when you plan to tell me what that is.”<\/p>\n “When Sarah and I agree that we should, we will tell you. For now, we are married. She is going to have a baby. Things didn’t work out for me the way I hoped, and I quit and decided to come back here. I sold my house and shipped what I wanted back here. Some crates ought to be arriving within days. I would appreciate some help in getting them.”<\/p>\n “You plan to live here?”<\/p>\n “If we are welcome.”<\/p>\n “Of course you’re welcome. That’s a ridiculous question.” Ben paused. “I guess maybe not so ridiculous. Of course, you are both welcome. This is your home, and now it is Sarah’s home. I should have said that first when I saw you. It was such a shock, I guess my good manners failed. Son, I am so glad to have you home.”<\/p>\n “Thank you.”<\/p>\n “Can you tell me why you were in the doctor’s office when I first saw you?”<\/p>\n “It’s complicated, but there are some men who didn’t want us to get here. They may still want to find us. It would be best to alert the hands to watch out for any strangers trying to get onto the ranch.”<\/p>\n “Set a night guard?”<\/p>\n “Probably a good idea.”<\/p>\n “Still not ready to tell us why?”<\/p>\n “I have to talk to Sarah about that first.”<\/p>\n For two weeks, that was the state of affairs. The family members became reacquainted, and Sarah got to know them as they got to know her. Gradually things settled into routines, and it seemed quite normal to have Adam back home with a wife. No one went to town or to church. Facing the gossip and the looks was going to take more time.<\/p>\n One evening at dinner, it all changed when Sarah first complained of backaches and then an upset stomach. Ben smiled which Adam at first thought was odd, but then his eyes grew wide as he realized what that meant.<\/p>\n “It’s time?”<\/p>\n Sarah frowned. “Time for what?” Then she realized what he meant too. “Now? I’m not ready.”<\/p>\n “Sweetheart, you’re as ready as you will ever be.”<\/p>\n Adam helped Sarah to the bedroom as Joe rode to get the midwife. The next twelve hours were a time for waiting and worrying. Finally Sarah stopped yelping, groaning, and occasionally screaming, and instead the wail of a baby was heard. Adam almost dropped to the floor with relief. When the midwife appeared at the top of the stairs twenty minutes later, he almost ran up the steps. To his relief, Sarah was all right, and the baby was somewhat small but not too small. Wrapped in a receiving blanket, he was held tightly in Sarah’s arms.<\/p>\n “I don’t care what you say. I want to name him Adam after his father.”<\/p>\n “All right.” Although he had protested that choice originally, there was some comfort in knowing there would be an Adam Cartwright after he was gone. “And his middle name?”<\/p>\n “Benjamin for the man who gave him his first home.”<\/p>\n “His initials are going to be ABC then.”<\/p>\n “We’ll settle for AC instead I think.”<\/p>\n “After all you went through to make sure he was born, I think you deserve that.”<\/p>\n After the family met the newest Cartwright, new routines had to be established. Adam spent as much time as he could holding his son using the excuse that the baby had to be kept warm, which was true, but everyone knew the real reason. The smile he had with the baby in his arms was all they needed to know.<\/p>\n A baby crying in the night though was something new for most of them, and for Ben, something he hadn’t heard in a very long time. Sarah did her best, but AC was hungry every hour or two it seemed but didn’t take much at any one feeding. Everyone longed for him to grow fast. Sarah spent a lot of her time or even most of her time in or near the nursery room so she could feed her son. About two weeks after AC was born, she was exhausted and simply opened her dressing gown and plopped into the rocking chair to feed him. Adam stepped into the room to ask her something and for the first time, saw her naked. He had seen a breast or two while she nursed AC, but he had not seen her naked from her neck to her ankles before that moment. Sarah looked up and couldn’t understand the look she saw on her husband’s face before he turned and in effect fled. Shocked, she finished feeding her son, but when she put him in the crib, she headed to the stair landing to see if Adam was downstairs. He wasn’t but Hoss asked what had happened.<\/p>\n “I don’t know. Where did he go?”<\/p>\n “I’ll go fetch him for ya. Don’t you worry none.”<\/p>\n Sarah was worried but could do little about it. She returned to their bedroom to wait.<\/p>\n Hoss looked to his father. He and Ben had been discussing Adam and Sarah since they had arrived on the Ponderosa. Some things had never added up. There were times when they seemed close like one evening when Adam was sitting on the settee, and Sarah sat down next to him and leaned on his shoulder. They sat like that for a couple of hours and talked looking as relaxed as one might expect a husband and wife to be. The night Sarah went into labor, Adam had called her sweetheart. Yet other times, he was standoffish with her as if she was not his wife and he could not touch her or be close to her.<\/p>\n “Pa, I aim to find out what’s going on. Things ain’t what he says they are and he needs to tell us what’s going on. It’s time for some truth around here. We’re family and he needs to trust us with the whole story.”<\/p>\n “Sarah needs to trust us too. She was crying earlier, and I asked her why. She said Adam hadn’t even kissed her since the baby was born. I said he just wanted to make sure she was recovered from all she went through. At once, she agreed and stopped talking. I knew there was so much more that needed to be said, but she wasn’t saying anything. There’s a complex story there, I think, and we don’t know any of it. I think the two of them have some kind of bargain between them to keep it all a secret. I don’t know why.”<\/p>\n “Well, he’s gonna have to tell me now. This can’t keep going like this. He’s gonna talk to me.”<\/p>\n “Good luck with that, son. You know he doesn’t talk until he’s ready.”<\/p>\n “Then he better be ready.”<\/p>\n With that, Hoss headed out the door to find his older brother.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Chapter 5<\/strong><\/p>\n Although it didn’t take Hoss long to find Adam, he felt more compassion for him when he saw him. Leaning on the corral fence with his head down, Adam had the look of a man who carried far more burdens than anyone should have to bear. Hoss’ tone was gentle when he got there.<\/p>\n “What are you doing out here? It’s late and Sarah is asking where you went.”<\/p>\n “Thinking.”<\/p>\n Noting his brother’s disheveled state and his deep frown, Hoss grew more concerned. It wasn’t like Adam to have a look of defeat like he had at that moment.<\/p>\n “I’m thinking on what caused it all now that you got that look that says you’re mighty troubled about something? What happened? You came down those stairs looking like you had a scare, and you’re standing here like you’re carrying a mighty load.”<\/p>\n It was too much to carry, and Adam needed someone to lean on. For years, Hoss had been the one he turned to in a storm. He turned to him once more.<\/p>\n “I went into the nursery, and Sarah had her dressing gown open and was nursing the baby. I never saw her like that. I wanted her so much, and I can’t have her.”<\/p>\n “What do you mean you never saw her like that or you can’t have her? You’re married and you got a baby with her.”<\/p>\n “That’s just it. It’s all a sham, and the marriage isn’t real. I want that baby to be mine, but he isn’t.”<\/p>\n “It’s not his baby. It’s mine, and she’s mine. At least he knows that much.”<\/p>\n Men stepped from the shadows by the barn then including one red-haired man who had a pistol aimed at Adam.<\/p>\n “I should kill you now, but I’m afraid the noise would alert those in the house. I’ll have to settle for this.”<\/p>\n Before Adam could yell more than the first part of a warning, he was hit, and then another man hit him from behind and then one more blow knocked him to the ground. Hoss was going to intervene, but pistols being cocked made him pause. All he could do was watch Adam being beaten into submission until he lay still on the ground.<\/p>\n “Now big man, unless you want my men to finish the job by kicking his head in, lead us into the house peacefully so I can get my baby.”<\/p>\n Loud enough so that hopefully men in the bunkhouse could hear, Hoss repeated what the man had said with an addition.<\/p>\n “All right, don’t kill Adam. I’ll take you into the house peacefully so you can take the baby. Just don’t shoot anyone.”<\/p>\n “Not so loud, fool, or we’ll have to shoot every one of you. My men are professionals, and none of these country bumpkins would stand a chance so get moving and keep your voice down.”<\/p>\n In the bunkhouse, Candy and a few others heard enough from Adam’s short outcry which alerted them to hear Hoss’ quieter warning. Near the kitchen throwing out garbage, Hop Sing heard enough too, and in an upstairs bedroom, Jamie got Hoss’ message as well. A rapid response was underway as Hoss walked to the house with Travis and his five henchmen. When they entered the house, it seemed to be empty.<\/p>\n “Where are they?”<\/p>\n “Maybe in the kitchen. I’ll go look.”<\/p>\n Before the leader could object, Hoss rushed around the corner. When the red-haired man went to follow, he was met by a Chinese man holding a shotgun pointed directly at him.<\/p>\n “One little Chinaman with a gun isn’t going to stop us.”<\/p>\n “How about two men with rifles to help him?”<\/p>\n Joe answered from the stair landing where he and Jamie stood armed with rifles. Then Ben moved halfway around the corner by his desk with a pistol in hand. From outside, a voice was heard that ended the standoff.<\/p>\n “Boss, we got trouble out here. There must be twenty men with guns on us.”<\/p>\n The three in the house dropped their weapons and raised their hands. Hoss walked to the leader and smashed a fist into his belly and then one into his face.<\/p>\n “Search them for more weapons. Pa, Adam’s hurt out by the barn.”<\/p>\n Heading out the door then, Hoss left the others to take care of the intruders. Adam was awake and aware, but he was struggling to stand as Hoss got to him.<\/p>\n “I figured you was acting a little. Here, let me help you.”<\/p>\n As Hoss got to the house again with Adam leaning on him for support, Candy asked what they should do with the six men.<\/p>\n “Take off their shoes, hog tie ’em, and load ’em in a wagon to haul to town.”<\/p>\n With a grin, Candy agreed that was a good plan. The men objected saying they had horses out behind the barn. Candy said they would get the horses and make sure they got back to wherever they had been rented.<\/p>\n “I got my orders, and you can’t change them.”<\/p>\n The hands rather enjoyed carrying out those orders too. Hoss asked one of the hands to ride to town ahead though to send the doctor out to check on Adam.<\/p>\n In the house, Sarah was concerned about Adam but also relieved. Now that Travis was under arrest, she thought their troubles were over. Based on what Travis had said, Hoss now had some idea of why he had been there and waited to hear what Adam would say about the situation. He was still confused though about some of what Adam had said to him, and wondered if now his brother would explain the inconsistencies of what had happened with him and Sarah.<\/p>\n “Adam, it’s over. Travis will go to jail now.”<\/p>\n In pain once more and not only physically, Adam wanted to offer comfort to Sarah but couldn’t lie to her. He had promised honesty and had to deliver.<\/p>\n “Maybe it is, but I’m betting it isn’t. I’m afraid a jury might be sympathetic to his situation.”<\/p>\n As Sarah thought about that, she dropped her head worried that he could be right. Ben and Joe though were astonished that Adam thought a jury could side with the man who had beaten him and invaded the house. Hoss was surprised somewhat but not as much because of what Travis had said to Adam when he first confronted him. Knowing how they would react because they didn’t know the story, Sarah looked up at her husband.<\/p>\n “Maybe we have to tell them now, Adam.”<\/p>\n “That’s probably true. Are you all right with that, Sarah?”<\/p>\n “I guess I am now. I think I knew it had to come out one way or the other. It was going to happen eventually. Now is that time.”<\/p>\n So Adam told the story and then explained how he expected the wealthy Travis to use it at his trial. He tried to be thorough without saying too much about the life Sarah had before they had left for Nevada. His family knew enough about life to guess the details he omitted.<\/p>\n “Now Travis and his lawyer will play to the jury for sympathy. The story will likely be something like this. He believed Sarah was carrying his child. Then I swooped in, married her, and took her off to Nevada. He came here to get his child, his son, and supposedly rescue the woman he loved, if he could, from me. You know who is going to look like the bad guy when that story gets told. What man isn’t going to feel some sympathy for a man trying to get his son back. In a similar circumstance, wouldn’t you try to do the same? And that’s the question they’re going to ask the jury. We can’t counter with the truth because of what it would do to Sarah and to AC in the future.”<\/p>\n “He’ll get off then, won’t he. No jury is gonna convict him.”<\/p>\n Hoss had said what they were all thinking, and it meant the trouble was not over. About that time, Doctor Martin arrived and had everyone except Sarah leave the room. She asked Paul a question at the end of the exam when he told Adam that nothing too serious had happened except he should stay in bed one day because of the mild concussion. Other than that, he was in reasonably good health.<\/p>\n “What about his heart? Is it any better?”<\/p>\n “Better? Better than what?”<\/p>\n “Sarah I can speak for myself.” Resigned now to having to explain, Adam reluctantly told Paul what he had been told. “My doctor told me I had six months unless I changed my life, and maybe two or three years if I did. I was drinking too much, sleeping too little, working ridiculously long hours, and eating only when I got the chance. I was losing weight and falling asleep even when I tried not to.”<\/p>\n “I don’t know if your doctor was a friend trying to scare you into better choices or if he was simply incompetent, but I rarely hear a heart beating better than yours. If those were the things you were doing, that would likely have shortened your life but not to such an extreme as healthy as you are. I have no doubt your heart could and will work for another thirty or forty years or more.” Paul paused only briefly. “Is that why you came home? You thought you were dying and you wanted to make sure Sarah and the baby had a home?”<\/p>\n Chagrined, Adam had to admit the truth. “That was part of it.”<\/p>\n “Well, feel free to make any choices you wish. Dying isn’t part of your decision. I’m going to tell your family you’re doing fairly well except for the concussion and then see if Hop Sing has some dinner for me. I do enjoy these dinner time visits.”<\/p>\n When Paul left the room, Sarah closed the door and locked it. She came back to the bed and sat beside Adam.<\/p>\n “Earlier, before all the trouble happened, you came into the nursery and saw me with our son. You stared at me, and then you left. Why?”<\/p>\n A bit chagrined at his age to have to admit it, Adam wanted to shrug it all off and act as if it was nothing, but Sarah wasn’t going to let him get away with that.<\/p>\n “You saw me naked. Was that so awful you couldn’t stand to stay there?”<\/p>\n “Oh, Lord, no, that wasn’t it at all. Your robe was open. I had never seen you completely undressed like that before. I had seen a breast when you were nursing. That was quite a temptation, but to see all of you like that, I wanted you, and I knew I couldn’t have you. It hit me then to be in this sham marriage and be so close to you and not be able to be a husband to you, to not be able to do what a man wants to do. It was too much.”<\/p>\n “But that’s just it. You can have me, Adam, and I want you too. There’s nothing stopping you now, is there?”<\/p>\n Still in her dressing robe, Sarah opened the sash and the buttons and let the robe drop open before leaning forward to kiss Adam.<\/p>\n “I’m almost twice as old as you are.”<\/p>\n “I’m a woman and you’re a man. You want me and I want you. I know how old you are, but you are the best man I have ever known. I love you. I’ve wanted to say that so many times. I bit my lip each time because I was worried about how you would react. Now, I think I have to tell you because I want you to love me. I want to be with you forever. Do you love me?”<\/p>\n He paused before letting his hands reach up to touch her cheeks and gently pull her to him for a kiss, and then let his hands slide down to caress her as they kissed more.<\/p>\n “I take that is a yes?”<\/p>\n “Yes. Lord help me, I know I thought it would be wrong. There are so many logical reasons why this shouldn’t be, but it seems so right. I don’t know why it took me so long. I do love you.”<\/p>\n Holding her close, he kissed her with all the passion he had held back for so long.<\/p>\n “It’s too soon. Paul said I had to wait six weeks.”<\/p>\n “How did he know we would want to?”<\/p>\n “He seems to have guessed.”<\/p>\n “We can do other things.”<\/p>\n “Yes, we can.”<\/p>\n So they did. The closed bedroom door told the family not to intrude. Only AC interrupted their time together, but they didn’t mind. It was truly a night of bonding together as a couple and as a family. By the next morning though, Adam’s father and brothers could see the change in the relationship as Adam and Sarah came down to breakfast. Ben only raised an eyebrow as they sat down at the table, and Adam stared at him before smiling and giving him an Adam kind of answer.<\/p>\n “Sarah and I are committed to one another.”<\/p>\n That got smiles all around as well as congratulations. There was the usual kind of family talk until it got more serious when breakfast was done and Sarah left to nurse AC.<\/p>\n “What can we do about Travis and what he’s going to be saying?”<\/p>\n “We talked for hours last night.”<\/p>\n “I wonder where you found the time.”<\/p>\n Ben had a smirk that got Adam’s eyebrow to rise, but got Hoss and Joe snickering.<\/p>\n “I mean you were injured, and Sarah had to care for AC.”<\/p>\n “Yes, of course, but we did talk, and we have a plan. He’s undoubtedly going to get out on bail. When he does, he will probably make another try. We need to catch him at it. That will get him locked up tight for quite a while, and we need that time.”<\/p>\n “We have lots of men. We’ll catch him, but why do you need the time?”<\/p>\n Looking around at his family one-by-one, Adam saw the looks of apprehension and knew they were justified.<\/p>\n “If we stay here, not only Sarah but AC will forever be marked by things Travis will say. We can’t stop him. However, we can get far enough away that he can’t touch us.”<\/p>\n Joe was the first to react. “You’re leaving?”<\/p>\n “Adam, the man’s rich. What state can you go to that he can’t reach?” Then Hoss knew. “You’re leaving the country, ain’t you?”<\/p>\n “Yes, and for now, we prefer not to say where we’re going. We’ll contact you when we get there.”<\/p>\n ” But you’re hurt. Shouldn’t you wait until you have recovered from the beating you took?”<\/p>\n “We need to surprise him to get away from him. As Hoss said, he’s rich and has a lot of resources to tap to get after us.”<\/p>\n “Son, whatever money you need, we’ll do our best to help you.<\/p>\n “Pa, I don’t need any money. What I need is for Travis not to have any idea we left. And for you to catch him breaking his bail so he gets locked up for some time. His rivals back home with peck away at his empire and weaken him if they don’t knock him from his perch entirely. Jail time or hopefully even a short prison term will weaken him. That’s what we need.”<\/p>\n Still surprised that Adam didn’t need any money, Ben had to ask. “But no money?”<\/p>\n “No, I have plenty of that.”<\/p>\n “You do?” Hoss and Joe both asked that.<\/p>\n “Yes, everyone keeps asking me that. I didn’t come home because I had no money. I came home because I wasn’t getting to do what I wanted to do. I was working my ass off for other people on projects that only made me wealthy, not happy.”<\/p>\n “But you think you can do that somewhere else?”<\/p>\n “I’m hoping to go where I can start my own company and do projects I want to do. It may be slow at first, but I have the money now to try things on my own. I may fail again, but I have Sarah and AC now so I have a family and that’s what is most important.”<\/p>\n “When will you leave?”<\/p>\n “Today.”<\/p>\n It was a shock but necessary if they were going to be successful. On the borders of the Ponderosa later that day, men waited. Others were trailing Travis and his men as they tried to sneak onto the Ponderosa. Crossing into the southwest pasture after cutting a fence, the men with Travis snickered at his comment.<\/p>\n “This is so easy. These buffoons have no idea how to have security.”<\/p>\n They rode another one hundred yards into some trees when their whole plan fell apart. Ropes dropped from trees ensnaring some of them and toppling others from their horses as men appeared seemingly out of nowhere having hidden in the brush waiting for the trespassers. In a matter of moments, they were once more hogtied and waiting for the sheriff to arrive. Three shots signaled him to bring his wagon.<\/p>\n “Boys, you seem to have caught some men trespassing and violating their bail agreement. I’ll have to take them into custody. Seeing as how they committed some crimes, I’ll leave them tied up the way you have them if you wouldn’t mind loading them into my wagon for me.”<\/p>\n “Sheriff, you set this up.”<\/p>\n “Couldn’t rightly set nothing up, Travis, if you had stayed in town like you was supposed to do. Now you riding out here, cutting a fence, crossing onto the Ponderosa, and all, well I have to report all that to the judge. I think he isn’t going to like that at all.”<\/p>\n The judge didn’t like it. He sentenced the men to two months for each offense. Even though the charges for the attack on Adam were dropped, the original trespassing was reinstated for an additional two-month sentence each to be served concurrently. With good behavior, they could be out in four months. Considering what they had done, four to six months was not much. Travis had wanted a jury trial but his lawyer advised against it saying he knew this judge, and the sentence was likely to be much higher if Travis insisted on a jury trial and was convicted in that trial.<\/p>\n “All right, but file a lawsuit against Cartwright for custody of my son. I want everything you can find to be thrown at him.”<\/p>\n “I can’t do that.”<\/p>\n “Why not?”<\/p>\n “He’s gone. The big story around town is that he and his wife and son are gone.”<\/p>\n “That can’t be true. Find out where he is and go sue him there.”<\/p>\n “I’ll try, but no one seems to have any idea where he is.”<\/p>\n Four months later, when Travis got out of prison, none of his men had found any trace of Adam and Sarah. They had seemingly disappeared. His family said he had gone to France, but there was no record of him traveling in that direction or of ending up there. They couldn’t find any sign that he had gone to any other state, to Canada, Mexico, or England. Travis headed home to fight a turf war with other criminals who were dismantling his empire and gobbling up his criminal businesses while he was away. A few years later, he was assassinated by his main rivals who tired of his excesses. Adam and Sarah didn’t hear about that. Travis had dropped so low by then that his death wasn’t news.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, on the Ponderosa, the Cartwrights welcomed a new son as Jamie Hunter Cartwright was adopted into the family. Almost a year after Adam left, Jamie came home with Candy after picking up supplies. He brought a package into the house.<\/p>\n “Pa, do you know anybody in Australia. You got a package from there.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Tags:\u00a0 Adam Cartwright<\/p>\n