{"id":5082,"date":"2003-12-30T03:04:52","date_gmt":"2003-12-30T08:04:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=5082"},"modified":"2025-09-25T15:15:40","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T19:15:40","slug":"its-a-bonanza-ful-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=5082","title":{"rendered":"It’s A Bonanza-ful Life (by Puchi Ann)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summary: \u00a0<\/span>In this Bonanza adaptation of the Frank Capra holiday classic, Ben Cartwright is facing a Christmas so bleak that he finds himself wishing he’d never been born.\u00a0 Enter one slightly unusual guardian angel with the offer to let him see what the world would have been like without him.<\/p>\n

Rated: K+ \u00a0WC 20,000<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It’s A Bonanza-ful Life<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ben Cartwright had never seen a bleaker Christmas Eve.\u00a0 Oh, there had been barer ones, certainly, especially in the early years.\u00a0 When he and his young son Adam, with infant Hoss in tow, had first settled this land, Christmas treasures had been sparse, but through the years the Ponderosa had prospered, and by the time the youngest boy Joseph came along, none of the Christmases could rightly be called bare.\u00a0 This Christmas was no exception in that regard: gifts aplenty would be piled beneath the majestic evergreen set in the alcove by the stairs\u2014if they got around to setting one up, that is.\u00a0 What did a Christmas rich in gifts mean, though, when there would be no one to open them, when in place of the love they had shared was only silence and regret?\u00a0 Only guilt and one tormenting thought:\u00a0 it\u2019s all my fault<\/em>.<\/p>\n

It had been a year fraught with problems, many of them weather-related.\u00a0 Spring floods had not only done damage to anything in their path, but had swept through so persistently that the grass had been slow to sprout.\u00a0 Ben and his boys had been forced to purchase hay from California to feed the cattle \u2018til the pastures were ready for grazing and would face the same problem throughout the winter, since the shortened growing season also meant a meager hay harvest that autumn.<\/p>\n

As if that weren\u2019t enough, winter had come early, blanketing even the lower fields with deeper-than-usual snow.\u00a0 The Cartwrights had, of necessity, let their timber crews take an early hiatus, and the decreased production meant that they\u2019d been unable to bid for a couple of contracts with the local mines that Ben had been counting on to make up for losses elsewhere.\u00a0 To add to the punch below the profit line, they\u2019d lost substantially more cattle to winter kill than usual, and while the horse-raising side of the ranch had produced a modest profit, the Ponderosa had also been underbid for a large contract to supply army remounts.<\/p>\n

The ranch was in no danger of going under.\u00a0 Profits from previous years had been sizeable enough to support the Cartwrights through one lean year.\u00a0 Still, it rankled Ben\u2019s frugal New England soul to see the negative balance in the ledger books, rankled him enough that he determined to find some way to turn a profit, no matter how many barriers Nature or Circumstance threw in his way.\u00a0 Evenings normally spent in companionable games of checkers or chess revolved, instead, around endless discussions of how to boost that balance back to where Ben thought it belonged.\u00a0 Hoss and Little Joe, and even Adam, who normally relished a mental challenge, were thoroughly sick of the subject their father rehashed with them every night.<\/p>\n

Then the McCauber mine fell into their laps.\u00a0 Amos McCauber had showed up at the Ponderosa on the evening of December 18th.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m pullin\u2019 up stakes,\u201d he told the Cartwrights plainly, \u201cbut I don\u2019t want to leave owin\u2019 any man, so I\u2019m offerin\u2019 this in payment of my debt to you, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben ignored the roll of paper in the old miner\u2019s gnarled hand.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t want to lose you as a neighbor, Amos.\u00a0 We haven\u2019t had a good year ourselves, but if you need help\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

Amos shook his head with determination.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t.\u00a0 Taken help from you many a time before and ain\u2019t too proud to do it again, but it ain\u2019t money I need.\u00a0 I\u2019ve just reached the point in life where I want a chair by the fire and my grandkids in my lap.\u00a0 My son Marty, over to California, is offerin\u2019 me both, and I aim to take him up on it.\u00a0 Only sorry I took so long to make up my mind.\u00a0 Stagecoach ride sure can be miserable this time of year.\u201d\u00a0 He again extended the deed to Ben.\u00a0 \u201cWish I had hard cash to pay my debt, but this ain\u2019t no dry hole I\u2019m givin\u2019 you.\u00a0 I\u2019ve seen good color of late.\u00a0 May even be close to hittin\u2019 a bonanza, but this cold spell\u2019s been hard on my creaky old joints and I\u2019m lookin\u2019 to settle in a warmer clime.\u00a0 Like to get to Marty\u2019s place soon as I can, spend Christmas with those grandkids, so I\u2019m hopin\u2019 you\u2019ll take this and call us square.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled as he took the roll of paper.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re square, Amos,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cStill hate to lose a good neighbor, but I can understand a man wanting to hold his grandchildren in his lap\u2014not that it seems I\u2019ll ever have that pleasure myself.\u201d\u00a0 He cast a significant glance at his three bachelor sons, who made a point of looking anywhere except back at their father.\u00a0 \u201cAnything we can do to help you pack up?\u201d Ben asked Amos.<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t takin\u2019 much with me,\u201d Amos replied.\u00a0 \u201cAnything I leave behind in that ole shack, you and the boys are welcome to.\u201d\u00a0 He stayed long enough to drink two cups of hot coffee before heading back into the cold.<\/p>\n

Sitting in his oxblood leather armchair after the old man had left, Ben tapped the rolled deed into the palm of his left hand.\u00a0 \u201cI wonder,\u201d he mused.<\/p>\n

Adam glanced up from the book he\u2019d been trying, in vain, to read for the last several nights.\u00a0 \u201cHmm?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben waved the deed toward his oldest son.\u00a0 \u201cI wonder if this just might be the answer we\u2019ve been looking for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss, returning from the kitchen after taking in the tray of used coffee cups, scrunched up his nose.\u00a0 \u201cA mine?\u00a0 Pa, you can tell by lookin\u2019 at ole Amos that he ain\u2019t done much more than eke out a livin\u2019 with that mine.\u00a0 Some years, not even that.\u00a0 That\u2019s why he owed you money, ain\u2019t it?\u201d\u00a0 He settled next to Little Joe on the settee.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know, but Amos did say he\u2019d seen good color recently, perhaps bonanza color,\u201d Ben argued.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t like mines,\u201d Little Joe put in, mouth skewing sideways in distaste.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not overly fond of any kind of work\u2014except horse breaking,\u201d Adam said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do my share!\u201d Joe snapped.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou do,\u201d Adam agreed readily, \u201cbut whether you like a particular type of work or not is hardly germane to the question.\u00a0 What matters, at this stage at least, is whether or not it would be profitable to work the mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReckon so,\u201d Hoss admitted reluctantly.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t like workin\u2019 below ground any more than Joe does, but if you and Pa think it\u2019s what we need to do, then that\u2019s what we\u2019ll do\u2014and no complainin\u2019, Shortshanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you think it\u2019s what we need to do?\u201d Joe asked, looking from his father to his eldest brother.<\/p>\n

Adam pursed his lips and then slowly nodded.\u00a0 \u201cWe need to do something.\u00a0 Working a mine wouldn\u2019t be my first choice, either, but I think it\u2019s worth looking into.\u00a0 We\u2019ll ride up there tomorrow morning, take some samples and see how they assay out.\u00a0 Then we can decide whether the mine will produce enough to merit our efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood.\u201d\u00a0 Ben stood and stretched.\u00a0 \u201cI have a good feeling about this, boys, and I\u2019m glad you\u2019re all behind me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe flicked a sharp glance at Hoss, who shrugged his broad shoulders.\u00a0 Adam noted the skepticism on his brothers\u2019 faces and realized, somewhat ruefully, that he was the only one actually behind Pa in this venture\u2014and even he had his doubts.\u00a0 Pa, however, seemed to view the acquisition of the mine as a gift from heaven, the certain sure cure for all their financial woes and was so blind to any other interpretation that he had barely noticed the conflicting opinions of his younger sons.<\/p>\n

\u00a0* * * * *<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The assay report was inconclusive.\u00a0 It revealed a trace of gold and a stronger presence of silver, but not at the levels Ben had hoped for, to give him a quick profit.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt all depends on how deep the vein goes, whether it widens out or pinches off,\u201d Adam explained after interpreting the report for the rest of his family.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd there\u2019s no way to know that,\u201d Joe said.<\/p>\n

Adam shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNot without further exploration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben took a meditative puff on his pipe.\u00a0 \u201cThen we explore further,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n

Little Joe sighed audibly, stifling the sound as his father\u2019s glare fell upon him.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow much further?\u201d Hoss asked, his distaste for the task plain on his open face.<\/p>\n

Adam shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know, but that really isn\u2019t the point.\u201d\u00a0 He dropped his hands between his legs and leaned forward, facing his father across the low wooden table before the fireplace.\u00a0 \u201cPa, a lot of the shoring in that mine is old, some of it rotted.\u00a0 It won\u2019t be safe to work until that\u2019s replaced.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben set the pipe aside.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re not going to incur that kind of expense unless we decide definitely to work the mine, especially not with our timber crew already released for the season.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI agree.\u00a0 We shouldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe looked up, his expression hopeful for the first time in days.\u00a0 \u201cSo we\u2019re gonna let it pass?\u201d<\/p>\n

Silence ensued, long and uncomfortable.\u00a0 Joe squirmed as his father stared at him for endless moments and then spoke with a menacingly quiet tone.\u00a0 \u201cAre you not listening, Joseph?\u00a0 I said we\u2019re going to explore further.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, Pa,\u201d Hoss inserted, \u201cif it ain\u2019t safe . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll just dig in a little further,\u201d Ben explained, \u201cmaybe another ten feet.\u00a0 That should give us an idea of whether the vein is worth pursuing.\u00a0 If it is, then we\u2019ll shore it up properly and proceed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam drew a long breath.\u00a0 \u201cPa . . . I\u2019m not sure we should.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know<\/em> we shouldn\u2019t,\u201d Joe declared.<\/p>\n

Ben rounded on the boy.\u00a0 \u201cI have heard just about enough out of you, Joseph.\u00a0 You have not had one positive word to say about this project since it came our way.\u201d\u00a0 When he saw that his youngest had been effectively cowed, he turned a hard glance next on his eldest.\u00a0 \u201cYou surprise me, however, young man.\u00a0 I thought I could count on you to understand the importance of turning this situation around.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI do understand,\u201d Adam said tersely.\u00a0 \u201cI just think there are other concerns even more important.\u00a0 Like lives.\u201d\u00a0 He practically bit out the final two words.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll be careful, of course,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 Failing to see the support he hoped for, he squared his shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cWell, if you little boys are afraid, then I\u2019ll make the exploration on my own.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa!\u201d Hoss protested.\u00a0 \u201cWe can\u2019t let you do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou ain\u2019t<\/em> gonna do that,\u201d Little Joe insisted adamantly, jumping to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t like workin\u2019 in a mine, but at least I can.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, you don\u2019t think the old man\u2019s up to a day\u2019s work in a mine, is that it, young man?\u201d\u00a0 Ben arched an eyebrow in the direction of his youngest son.<\/p>\n

This time, with his father\u2019s safety at stake, Little Joe refused to be cowed.\u00a0 \u201cI think the old man can\u2019t run as fast as a young one . . . if it comes to that.\u201d\u00a0 He folded his arms across his chest and stared unblinking at his father.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s right,\u201d Adam said quietly.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t like this idea, Pa, but if it\u2019s going to be done, we\u2019ll be the ones doing it, not you.\u00a0 No argument.\u201d<\/p>\n

A smile quirked at Ben\u2019s lips as he heard words more often used by father to son, rather than the opposite direction.\u00a0 \u201cAll right,\u201d he agreed.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll give in to you young whippersnappers on this, and you\u2019ll soon see that while the old man may not run as fast as the young ones, he just might see more clearly, more boldly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe,\u201d Adam conceded with a half smile of his own.\u00a0 \u201cI hope so, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too,\u201d Hoss agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Joe muttered, like his brothers fearing to say what he really thought, that the hope was a slim one.<\/p>\n

\u00a0* * * * *<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0All my fault, all my fault<\/em> . . . Gasping for breath, Ben staggered toward daylight, only to collapse in the arms of another silver-haired man at the entrance to the old McCauber mine.\u00a0 He squinted in the mid-afternoon sunlight and made out the features of the family doctor.\u00a0 \u201cYou still here?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot still . . . again,\u201d Paul Martin said brusquely.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re the only one \u2018still\u2019 here, Ben, the only one who refuses to take a minute\u2019s rest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben struggled to stand erect.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re my sons.\u00a0 Would you leave if they were yours?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d the doctor admitted, \u201cbut it\u2019s been two days, Ben.\u00a0 You can\u2019t keep going without a break.\u00a0 Now, you come with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, no, not while there\u2019s still a chance.\u201d\u00a0 He turned agonized eyes to his old friend.\u00a0 \u201cThere is still a chance, isn\u2019t there?\u00a0 They can survive two days?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, there\u2019s a chance,\u201d Paul responded almost perfunctorily, knowing that each passing hour lessened the chance of the three Cartwright sons surviving the cave-in, knowing also that there was an even fainter chance that Ben would survive the deaths of all three.\u00a0 Not when he held himself to blame for what had happened.\u00a0 \u201cYou come over here and at least take a breather, Ben,\u201d he ordered.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re going to fall over if you don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having gone without nourishment and sleep for nearly forty-eight hours, Ben was almost trembling with weakness as the doctor led him to the shade of a nearby tree.\u00a0 \u201cWell, maybe a few minutes,\u201d he conceded as he sank wearily to the ground, \u201cif the others keep working.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey will,\u201d Dr. Martin assured him, \u201cand you need to take more than a few minutes, Ben.\u00a0 Half an hour, at least, or so help me, I\u2019ll get some of these men to hold you down while I shoot a sedative into you that\u2019s guaranteed to put you out for hours.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou wouldn\u2019t dare,\u201d Ben sputtered, his objection feeble despite the energizing anger that surged through him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would,\u201d the doctor stated firmly, \u201crather than see you kill yourself.\u00a0 It won\u2019t help them, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nothing will<\/em>.\u00a0 It was the thought Ben had been avoiding for hours, perhaps even days, perhaps from the first moment he\u2019d learned of the cave-in.\u00a0 The wall of rock between him and his boys seemed impenetrably thick, and as far as he knew, there was no other way in\u2014or out.\u00a0 Two days now\u2014a long time to survive without food or water or fresh air, even if they hadn\u2019t been hurt in the collapse . . . and if they had?\u00a0 Ben buried his face in his hands as thunder claps of recrimination reverberated through his aching heart.\u00a0 My fault, all my fault.\u00a0 Should have listened, shouldn\u2019t have forced them to go my way.\u00a0 None of them wanted to do this; all of them just did it to keep me from the risk.\u00a0 Good boys, such fine boys.\u00a0 Deserved a better father.\u00a0 Instead, they get one who leads them to their deaths . . . just as I did their mothers long ago.\u00a0 Better for all of them if I\u2019d never come into their lives<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t say that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben looked up and saw a short Chinese man dressed in loose blue shirt and pantaloons.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing?\u00a0 I\u2019m sorry; I didn\u2019t realize I\u2019d spoken aloud.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou didn\u2019t,\u201d said the man, \u201cand I\u2019m not Hop Sing.\u00a0 He\u2019s back at the house, making sandwiches for the workers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re . . . not Hop Sing?\u00a0 Oh, one of his cousins, I suppose.\u00a0 You\u2019re as like as\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot a cousin.\u00a0 No relation.\u00a0 Not even Chinese, except for this assignment.\u201d\u00a0 The man shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cJust a new theory we\u2019re testing, to see if those we serve respond more readily to a familiar face.\u201d\u00a0 He bowed awkwardly from the waist, as if not accustomed to the gesture by culture.<\/p>\n

Ben blinked.\u00a0 Definitely not Hop Sing, however much he looked like the family cook.\u00a0 Hop Sing had never constructed a sentence in such flawless English.\u00a0 \u201cWho are you and what do you want?\u201d he asked, frown lines wrinkling his careworn brow.<\/p>\n

The apparent Chinaman beamed broadly.\u00a0 \u201cYou may call me Sam Sung, AS2.\u201d<\/p>\n

The frown lines deepened.\u00a0 \u201cAS2?\u00a0 What\u2019s that?\u201d<\/p>\n

The Oriental\u2019s proud smile widened.\u00a0 \u201cAngel Second Class,\u201d he amplified, \u201cand I am here to help you through this hour of need.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen grab a shovel and go to work,\u201d Ben said gruffly.<\/p>\n

The other man shook his head from side to side in a manner reminiscent of Hop Sing.\u00a0 \u201cNo, not that kind of help,\u201d Sam Sung insisted.\u00a0 \u201cI come to offer spiritual help, guidance, encouragement.\u00a0 I am your guardian angel, Mr. Ben.\u201d\u00a0 He struck what he assumed to be an angelic pose and awaited the awestruck response celestial visitors were supposed to inspire.<\/p>\n

Ben rolled his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cI wouldn\u2019t be a bit surprised; you look about like the kind of guardian angel I\u2019d get!\u00a0 Sort of been sitting down on the job, haven\u2019t you?\u00a0 But then I guess you can\u2019t do much flying without wings.\u201d<\/p>\n

Folding his arms, Sam Sung scowled, for his wingless state was a sore point.\u00a0 \u201cThat attitude only reveals how much in need of guidance you are!\u00a0 No wonder the heavens are being bombarded on your behalf this night, such a gloom-monger you are.\u00a0 I have been dispatched by heaven to help you, and if I can, I stand a good chance of earning my wings.\u00a0 So how about it?\u00a0 Can we work together here?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben clambered to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cLook, little man, I\u2019m in the middle of a crisis.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know,\u201d Sam Sung intoned soberly, his visage softening, \u201ca more critical one than you realize.\u00a0 It is your soul at stake this night, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben raised his voice.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m supposed to be resting, but if you\u2019re going to pester the life out of me, I\u2019d be better off going back to work.\u00a0 My sons need me.\u201d\u00a0 If they\u2019re still alive<\/em>.\u00a0 He started toward the mine entrance, but halted when the Chinaman firmly grabbed his arm.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve got a surprisingly strong grip for an angel,\u201d Ben grunted.\u00a0 \u201cLet me go.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot \u2018til I am certain your thinking is more clear.\u201d\u00a0 With irresistible force he propelled Ben into the surrounding forest of snow-flocked pines.\u00a0 \u201cBetter here, I think, away from that which worries you into thinking yourself to blame for all the ills of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot all the world,\u201d Ben muttered.\u00a0 Just my world<\/em>, their world<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cTheir world?\u00a0 Do you speak of your sons this time or your wives again?\u201d the Chinaman queried.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s brown eyes flared wide.\u00a0 \u201cI know<\/em> I didn\u2019t speak aloud that time!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI read your thoughts in your eyes.\u00a0 You blame yourself for the possible deaths of your sons, just as you have always blamed yourself for the deaths of their mothers.\u201d\u00a0 Sam Sung reached up to lay a compassionate hand on the rancher\u2019s broad shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cIt is not so, Mr. Ben; it never was.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben twisted away from the comforting touch.\u00a0 Moving a little further into the forest, he turned, glaring over his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cNo?\u00a0 Elizabeth died bearing the child I gave her; Inger would never have encountered Indians if she hadn\u2019t come west with me; Marie would never have fallen if I hadn\u2019t given her that horse.\u00a0 And now their sons\u2014the precious boys they gave to me\u2014lie gasping for the breath of life, and once again because of my decision\u2014my foolish, self-centered decision.\u201d\u00a0 He leaned his head into the massive trunk of the ponderosa pine rising above him.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019d have all been better off without me in their lives.\u00a0 I wish I\u2019d never been born!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t\u201d\u2014Sam Sung hesitated and stood stroking his hairless chin\u2014\u201cAh, so . . . perhaps . . . yes, that might do it.\u201d\u00a0 He stood as tall as the diminutive form he had assumed for this assignment permitted.\u00a0 \u201cAll right, Mr. Ben, you have your wish: you\u2019ve never been born.\u201d\u00a0 Directly above their heads, a large limb broke under its weight of ice and snow and plummeted down.\u00a0 Sam Sung pulled Ben out of the way and stared skyward, arms akimbo.\u00a0 \u201cWell, you don\u2019t have to make all that fuss about it!\u201d he declared.\u00a0 \u201cI think this just might work!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWork is exactly what I need to be doing,\u201d Ben sputtered as he brushed blobs of snow from his shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cWorking at getting my sons out of that\u201d\u2014tomb<\/em>, he thought, but refused to voice the thought aloud.\u00a0 Not that his silence seemed to preserve his privacy with this small man . . . angel . . . whatever . . . that trailed him back to the mine.<\/p>\n

Ben came out from the trees and stared.\u00a0 For a moment he thought he must have lost his way in the trees, ridiculous as that notion was in a forest he knew so well, but the scene looked different, somehow.\u00a0 Amos McCauber\u2019s old home was still in the same location . . . or at least, some structure was.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t a shack now, though, but a solid log building, at least twice the size of that tumbledown place.\u00a0 The mine entrance was just where it had been, too, but something didn\u2019t look right.\u00a0 Then it hit Ben forcefully.\u00a0 There were no men in sight, no sounds of digging echoing down the tunnel.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019ve all left!\u201d he cried and began running toward the mine.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Mr. Ben, you don\u2019t understand,\u201d Sam Sung called, plunging after the frantic father.\u00a0 \u201cThere is no one there!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can see that!\u201d Ben shouted.\u00a0 \u201cMy friends have all deserted me, but I won\u2019t desert my sons.\u00a0 I\u2019ll get them out if I have to dig them out alone with my bare hands!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re not there, either!\u201d Sam Sung hollered back.<\/p>\n

The loud voices roused someone in the cabin, and a burly, balding man appeared at the front door.\u00a0 \u201cWho goes there?\u201d he demanded.\u00a0 Seeing the small Chinaman headed for the entrance of his mine, he gave chase.\u00a0 \u201cHey, you there, yeller.\u00a0 What you think you\u2019re doin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung spun around.\u00a0 \u201cMr. Ben go in mine,\u201d he explained, pointing at the entrance.\u00a0 \u201cI try stop him, that all.\u00a0 Sam Sung no want trouble with white man.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, you\u2019re gonna get trouble\u2014and that man in there, too.\u201d\u00a0 The man strode past Sam Sung with determination.\u00a0 \u201cHey, you!\u201d he called when he caught sight of the second trespasser.<\/p>\n

Ben had come to an abrupt halt, for the differences outside the mine were nothing, compared to the changes within it.\u00a0 Wide tunnels stretched in all directions, all shored solidly with the square sets developed by Philip Deidesheimer for the mines in Virginia City . . . and there was no wall of rock.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t look like the same mine . . . and yet it had to be.\u00a0 At the sound of another voice, he spun around and grasped the man by the shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cDid\u2014did you clear the cave-in?\u00a0 Is that why everyone\u2019s gone?\u201d<\/p>\n

The other man frowned in befuddlement.\u00a0 \u201cCave-in?\u00a0 There\u2019s no cave-in here, nor likely to be.\u201d\u00a0 He slapped one of the uprights.\u00a0 \u201cSolid,\u201d he alleged.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no . . .\u201d Ben babbled, trying to make sense of sights that made no sense.\u00a0 \u201cThen . . . then where are my sons?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSons?\u00a0 There\u2019s more of you trespassing in here?\u201d the miner demanded.\u00a0 \u201cChristmas Eve\u2019s a strange time to take up claim jumpin\u2019, ain\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cClaim jumping?\u201d Ben sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cWhat are you talking about?\u00a0 This is the old McCauber mine, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

The man stroked his stubbly chin.\u00a0 \u201cWell, it was.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, yes,\u201d Ben rushed to say.\u00a0 \u201cIt was \u2018til he left it to me and I foolishly sent my sons in to explore and then it caved in\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere ain\u2019t been no cave-in!\u201d the man bellowed.\u00a0 \u201cAnd this is my mine.\u00a0 Picked it up for back taxes after old man McCauber died.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shaken, Ben stumbled backward into another tall upright support.\u00a0 \u201cAmos McCauber . . . dead?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFive years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s jaw hardened as he reared forward.\u00a0 \u201cNow I know you\u2019re lying.\u00a0 I spoke with Amos within the week, when he gave me the deed to this mine . . . though I wish I\u2019d never seen it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The mine owner tightened his fists.\u00a0 \u201cThis is my mine, mister, and I\u2019m askin\u2019 you to leave quiet-like.\u00a0 I\u2019ll only ask once, though, and if you don\u2019t, I\u2019ll throw you out on your head.\u00a0 Don\u2019t want to do that, \u2018cause \u2018pears to me that head of yours is cracked already.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou velly smart man,\u201d Sam Sung said, scurrying to Ben\u2019s side and hooking his elbow.\u00a0 \u201cYou leave poor cracked Mr. Ben to Sam Sung, all light?\u201d\u00a0 He started to pull Ben from the mine.<\/p>\n

\u201cWait,\u201d Ben protested.\u00a0 \u201cMy sons.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere are they?\u201d the mine owner demanded.\u00a0 \u201cI want the whole kit and caboodle of you out of here\u2014now!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo sons,\u201d Sam Sung replied, tapping his index finger to his forehead.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh,\u201d the man said, his anger deflating.\u00a0 \u201cLook, just get this loon off my property, will you, yeller?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLight away, Mr. Boss Man.\u00a0 Get him out chop-chop.\u201d\u00a0 Sam Sung, again displaying surprising strength, yanked Ben away from the other man and out of the mine.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is the matter with you?\u201d Ben cried.\u00a0 \u201cI have to help my sons.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMr. Ben, you have no sons,\u201d Sam Sung said as he continued to drag the tall rancher away from the former McCauber property.<\/p>\n

Ben jerked to a stop.\u00a0 \u201cI have . . . no sons?\u201d he croaked.\u00a0 \u201cYou mean they\u2019re . . . gone?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNot gone . . .\u00a0 not dead, Mr. Ben . . . never born.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNever born?\u201d\u00a0 Ben looked thoroughly perplexed.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou wished you were never born,\u201d Sam Sung explained.\u00a0 \u201cI gave you your wish.\u00a0 But a man who has not been born cannot have sons.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ire replaced Ben\u2019s perplexity.\u00a0 \u201cThat is ridiculous\u2014as, I might add, was your performance back at the mine.\u00a0 Sort of lost your grip on English all of a sudden, didn\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung smiled with self-satisfaction.\u00a0 \u201cPretty fast thinking, hmm?\u00a0 Have to fit in with the locals, you know, and they expect pidgin English from the Chinese.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, maybe they wouldn\u2019t expect it from Chinese angels,\u201d Ben grunted.<\/p>\n

The smile faded from the Oriental face.\u00a0 \u201cThat had better be our little secret, I think.\u00a0 If you tell anyone I\u2019m an angel, they really will think you\u2019re crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t care what anyone thinks,\u201d Ben snorted, \u201cas long as I find my sons.\u201d\u00a0 His eyebrows came together.\u00a0 \u201cThey weren\u2019t in the mine.\u00a0 Maybe they\u2019ve been rescued . . . maybe they\u2019re home.\u201d\u00a0 His brown eyes brightened.<\/p>\n

\u201cMr. Ben,\u201d Sam Sung restated patiently, \u201cyou have no sons.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBah!\u201d\u00a0 Ben stood still, looking in all directions.\u00a0 \u201cWhere\u2019s my horse?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung sighed.\u00a0 \u201cYou have no horse.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben grabbed him by the front of his blue tunic.\u00a0 \u201cWhat have you done with my horse?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have no\u2014\u201d\u00a0 The rancher\u2019s grip tightened, but the little angel vanished out of his hands, reappearing a few steps away.<\/p>\n

Ben stared at his empty hands and then across the snow at the image of Hop Sing.\u00a0 \u201cHow did you do that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBy the grace of God,\u201d Sam Sung said with an inscrutable smile.\u00a0 Seeing the rancher\u2019s gaze harden, he added, \u201cAll right, all right.\u00a0 Heaven\u2019s gone along so far.\u00a0 Maybe they\u2019ll extend us the added grace of a couple of horses.\u201d\u00a0 His left hand swept toward the trees.<\/p>\n

Ben looked that way and saw two horses, saddled and waiting.\u00a0 \u201cBuck and Sport,\u201d he muttered.\u00a0 \u201cWhat have you done with Chubby and Cochise?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing.\u00a0 Oh, and these horses won\u2019t answer to Buck and Sport, either.\u00a0 Those were names given by Ben and Adam Cartwright, neither of whom exists.\u201d\u00a0 Sam Sung patted the buckskin.\u00a0 \u201cThis one is Dunny.\u201d\u00a0 He swung into the saddle of the tall roan.\u00a0 \u201cAnd this is Big Red.\u00a0 Now, where is it you wanted to go?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHome,\u201d Ben said as he mounted the remaining horse.\u00a0 \u201cThe Ponderosa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMr. Ben,\u201d the angel said with a sad shake of his unhaloed head, \u201cthere is no Ponderosa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having had enough of angelic nonsense, Ben turned the buckskin toward home.\u00a0 He knew where the Ponderosa was, and no angel or man or figment of his imagination was going to keep him from going there and hopefully finding his sons, safe and sound.\u00a0 As he rode, however, he noted a change in the landscape.\u00a0 Where before regal pines had swept up and down the snowy slopes, now barren stumps dotted a water-gutted hillside.\u00a0 Ben stopped, stood tall in his stirrups and gazed at the devastation surrounding him on all sides.\u00a0 The halt gave Sam Sung time to catch up, and Ben rounded on him as soon as the Chinaman reached his side.\u00a0 \u201cWhat have you done to my land?\u201d he demanded.<\/p>\n

Sam Sung, too, gazed with sorrow on the ravaged environment.\u00a0 \u201cIt isn\u2019t your land, Mr. Ben.\u00a0 That\u2019s the problem.\u00a0 You were never born, so this land was settled by men who didn\u2019t give your care to it, men like Mr. Potter back at the mine, who care more for profit than conservation.\u00a0 They destroyed the watershed, cutting timber for that mine and others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben swallowed hard, still not quite believing the explanation, but having no other for the evidence of his own eyes.\u00a0 \u201cThe house?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

Sam Sung shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNever built.\u00a0 The land there looks just like this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben slumped in the saddle.\u00a0 \u201cAnd Amos McCauber?\u00a0 He\u2019s dead, like that man Potter said?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung nodded.\u00a0 \u201cHe died five years ago.\u00a0 That was the first time you bailed him out of his financial troubles, remember?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember,\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you weren\u2019t there to do it and no one else would.\u00a0 He tried to get across the mountains to his son, but froze to death in an unpredicted blizzard.\u201d\u00a0 Sam Sung blinked back a tear, for heaven took note of all needless deaths.<\/p>\n

Ben shook himself.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 I can\u2019t accept that.\u00a0 Amos is safe in California with his son, and I still need to find mine.\u00a0 Maybe they took them to Virginia City . . . there is still a Virginia City, isn\u2019t there?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cOf course.\u00a0 You had nothing to do with its settlement, but you won\u2019t find the boys there, Ben.\u00a0 They don\u2019t exist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey do!\u201d Ben shouted and took off at a gallop, quickly leaving Sam Sung behind.<\/p>\n

\u00a0* * * * *<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Virginia City was in festive swing as Ben rode into town.\u00a0 Evergreen garlands, decked with red ribbons, hung looped from all the second-story balconies; candlelit boughs, drooping with tinsel, glimmered behind frosted windows of private homes; a merry tintinnabulation trickled through the batwing doors of a hundred saloons, where men without families celebrated the season with one another.\u00a0 Ben rode past them all, tying up his horse in front of the sheriff\u2019s office.\u00a0 He burst through the door, crying, \u201cRoy, you\u2019ve got to help me!\u201d<\/p>\n

The grizzled sheriff of Storey County rose to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s the trouble, mister?\u201d<\/p>\n

Seeing no sign of recognition in the eyes of one of his oldest friends, Ben felt his jaw drop open.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cRoy, it\u2019s me\u2014Ben Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy Coffee shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t recollect the name, but the way this place is growin\u2019, that don\u2019t surprise me none.\u00a0 Now, you said you needed help?\u00a0 That\u2019s my job, but you got to tell me what the trouble is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know the trouble,\u201d Ben scolded, \u201cwell, most of it.\u00a0 You know about the cave-in at the old McCauber mine, my sons being trapped inside.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alarm flared in the lawman\u2019s eyes, and he reached for his hat, ready to respond to the community crisis.\u00a0 The old McCauber mine wasn\u2019t exactly in his jurisdiction, but Roy Coffee always figured that any place where human life was in danger was his civic responsibility.\u00a0 \u201cHadn\u2019t heard a word of it.\u00a0 You work for Potter, do you?\u00a0 He sent you with this message?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben growled.<\/p>\n

\u201cYour boys work for Potter?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, they work with me\u2014on our ranch.\u201d\u00a0 He stopped short of naming the ranch.\u00a0 On that point, at least, Sam Sung appeared to have been right: the Ponderosa was no more.\u00a0 That didn\u2019t matter now, though; his sons did.<\/p>\n

The sheriff slowly dropped his hat back onto its peg and turned to eye the stranger with suspicion.\u00a0 This report bore investigation before he ran off and left his town undefended.\u00a0 \u201cThen how do you know there\u2019s been a cave-in?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cI was there,\u201d he said, determining to stick to simple facts, \u201cand my three sons were trapped inside.\u00a0 Now the cave-in\u2019s been cleared, the mine shored up like it never happened, but my boys are missing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey didn\u2019t find their bodies?\u201d Coffee asked, his sympathy aroused.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u00a0 I\u2014I hope they\u2019re still alive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy nodded.\u00a0 He had no children of his own, but easily identified with this distraught father.\u00a0 Of course, the man hoped his sons were still alive.\u00a0 \u201cAre you sure they were in that mine?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cPositive!\u201d Ben cried.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd they didn\u2019t come out\u2014alive or dead?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right, and I want you to help me find them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEasy now, easy, mister,\u201d the sheriff soothed.\u00a0 \u201cLet me take down a description.\u00a0 Three boys, you say?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Ben replied tersely.\u00a0 \u201cAdam, Hoss and Little Joe.\u00a0 You must remember them, Roy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo more than I do you, mister, for all you keep callin\u2019 me by my first name.\u201d\u00a0 The sheriff took out a pencil and paper and sat at his desk.\u00a0 \u201cThree boys.\u00a0 Cartwright, you said the name was?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cYes, Cartwright.\u00a0 For the love of mercy, you\u2019ve known me for years and the boys practically all their lives!\u201d<\/p>\n

That remark brought a peculiar look to the sheriff\u2019s eye, but he just wrote down the first name.\u00a0 \u201cOkay, let\u2019s have a description, starting with Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

A dreamy look came over Ben Cartwright\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u2014he\u2019s the oldest, soon be thirty.\u00a0 Tall, dark hair and hazel eyes, high forehead.\u00a0 Dressed in black shirt and pants.\u00a0 Highly intelligent, a college graduate, studied architecture back East.\u00a0 A bit aloof at times, but a better friend no man could find, dependable no matter what the\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMister, that\u2019s a mite more information than I need,\u201d the sheriff interrupted to say.\u00a0 \u201cYour second boy\u2014Hoss, you said?\u00a0 Unusual name.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor an unusual boy,\u201d Ben returned with a fond smile.\u00a0 \u201cBuilt big as the mountains with a heart larger still, brings home every stray man or beast in the territory and can\u2019t turn his back on any living soul in need.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coffee sighed.\u00a0 \u201cMister, what I need is a physical description.\u00a0 Think you could be a trifle more specific than just \u2018big\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook himself.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u00a0 Adam is over six feet tall and Hoss taller yet, and he\u2019s a big man in every other dimension, as well.\u00a0 He has straight, sandy hair and eyes as blue as Lake Tahoe.\u00a0 He was wearing brown pants, a light shirt and a leather vest when he went in the mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right, that\u2019s better, and the third boy\u2014the youngest, I take it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYoungest and smallest.\u00a0 Joseph\u2014his friends call him Little Joe\u2014comes to about Hoss\u2019s shoulder, curly hair, bright green eyes that twinkle with mischief, always laughing and smiling, smart as a whip, a bit of a trouble magnet, but a magnetic personality in all the right ways, too.\u00a0 Handsome enough to turn the eye of every woman within view and\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMister,\u201d the sheriff protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know, I know, too much information,\u201d Ben said, rubbing his aching temple.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s just that I miss them so.\u00a0 It\u2019s been two days now, and I\u2019ve been half out of my mind with worry, and\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo days!\u201d\u00a0 Roy Coffee threw down the pencil.\u00a0 \u201cIf this cave-in happened two days ago, I\u2019d\u2019ve been told long before now.\u00a0 Two days is long enough for it to show up on the front page of the Enterprise<\/em>, if it happened!\u00a0 Sounds to me like your youngest came by his penchant for mischief honestly if his old man can spin a wild tale like this\u2014and on Christmas Eve, too!\u00a0 You oughta be ashamed of yourself.\u00a0 Now, get out of my office before you find yourself behind bars for the holiday.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is no wild tale,\u201d Ben protested.\u00a0 \u201cI need your help\u2014to find my sons.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sheriff bounded to his feet and pointed toward the door.\u00a0 \u201cOut!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s your sworn duty to help citizens at times like this!\u201d\u00a0 Ben emphasized his point by pounding his fist on the sheriff\u2019s desk.\u00a0 Then he pointed a long finger in the sheriff\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cSee if I serve as your campaign manager next year, you miserable excuse for a lawman!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat does it,\u201d Roy Coffee growled ominously.\u00a0 He came from behind the desk, but before he could throw his irate visitor out bodily, the door creaked open timidly and a small figure in padded blue cotton shuffled in on soft slippers.<\/p>\n

\u201cExcuse, please,\u201d Sam Sung said deferentially, again throwing himself into the role of nineteenth-century Chinese emigrant.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you want, boy?\u201d the sheriff demanded.\u00a0 \u201cI hope you ain\u2019t come to lay more troubles on my doorstep, \u2018cause I got me a situation here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, no, honorable sheriff,\u201d the Chinaman assured him, bowing subserviently from the waist.\u00a0 \u201cSam Sung no bring trouble; he take situation off your hands.\u00a0 Velly good, yes?\u201d\u00a0 He bowed again, this time to the red-faced rancher.\u00a0 \u201cPlease to come with me, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know this fellow?\u201d Roy inquired, jerking a thumb over his shoulder in Ben\u2019s direction.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, know him velly well,\u201d Sam Sung proclaimed.\u00a0 \u201cHe no make mo\u2019 trouble for honorable sheriff, Sam Sung promise.\u00a0 I take him home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t have a home, remember?\u201d Ben sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cThe Ponderosa is no more.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease, Mr. Ben,\u201d the almond-eyed angel implored urgently.\u00a0 \u201cIs best we leave\u2014now.\u201d\u00a0 He took Ben by the arm and headed toward the door.<\/p>\n

Roy moved to block their path.\u00a0 \u201cNobody\u2019s going anywhere \u2018til I get me some answers.\u201d\u00a0 Since the one calling himself Ben Cartwright wasn\u2019t making much sense, the sheriff turned toward the Chinese man.\u00a0 \u201cThis fellow says there\u2019s been a cave-in at the Potter mine.\u00a0 You know anything about that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo cave-in.\u00a0 Mr. Ben just a little mixed up, is all.\u201d\u00a0 Sam Sung tittered nervously.<\/p>\n

Coffee folded his arms across his chest and eyed the pair with severity.\u00a0 \u201cI guess he\u2019s mixed up about having three sons trapped in there, too, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

Almond skin blanching to pasty beige, Sam Sung gave a sick nod.\u00a0 \u201cNo sons there; no sons anywhere.\u00a0 He a little\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMixed up,\u201d the sheriff finished flatly.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the love of mercy, I am not mixed up,\u201d Ben shouted, \u201cthough it\u2019s a wonder, with this imposter switching from English proper enough to have come from my college-graduate son to this mangled up mess of good grammar and back again at the blink of an eye.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chinaman sniffed loudly.\u00a0 \u201cSam Sung try best he can talk like good \u2018Melican.\u00a0 Is hard when new to country.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re doin\u2019 just fine,\u201d the sheriff consoled.\u00a0 \u201cGood as any Celestial I\u2019ve ever met.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed wildly.\u00a0 \u201cWhat you don\u2019t realize, my fine badge-toting friend, is that you\u2019re dealing with a whole different kind of celestial here.\u201d\u00a0 He waved his hand toward the ceiling to indicate Sam Sung\u2019s true origin and added, \u201cHe\u2019s not even Chinese!\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy Coffee stared at the small man\u2019s golden skin and slanted eyes.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s not?\u00a0 Then what is he?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Mr. Ben!\u201d Sam Sung cried.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed again.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s afraid you\u2019ll think I\u2019m crazy if I tell you where he\u2019s really from.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sheriff slowly licked his lips.\u00a0 \u201cUh-huh.\u00a0 I was just thinkin\u2019, mister, that it might be a good idea if we walked down and talked to this doctor friend of mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Sam Sung moaned, hiding his face in his hands.<\/p>\n

\u201cHush up, boy,\u201d the sheriff hissed.<\/p>\n

\u201cDr. Martin?\u201d Ben asked.\u00a0 A smile spread across his face.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s good thinking, Roy.\u00a0 If the boys were hurt, they would have been taken to the doctor.\u00a0 Of course!\u00a0 That\u2019s where they\u2019ll be.\u00a0 Should have thought of that myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, you\u2019ve been a little\u2014uh\u2014mixed up, haven\u2019t you?\u201d Roy asked, keeping his voice calm and soothing.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, yes.\u00a0 It\u2019s been a most confusing night,\u201d Ben admitted.<\/p>\n

Roy nodded soberly.\u00a0 \u201cRight.\u00a0 Maybe a little talk with the doc will clear things up.\u201d\u00a0 He took his hat from the peg on the wall and put it on his head.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll just walk down to his office together.\u00a0 My job to look into disappearances like this, you know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what I\u2019ve been trying to tell you,\u201d Ben stated with unmasked irritation.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight, right.\u00a0 My sworn duty, like you said.\u201d\u00a0 Roy Coffee turned a hard gaze on the Chinese man.\u00a0 \u201cYou comin\u2019, boy?\u201d\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t really a question.<\/p>\n

Eyes filled with misery, the celestial Celestial bobbed his head and followed the other two men.\u00a0 He had a dreadful premonition about what was about to transpire in the doctor\u2019s office\u00a0 and would have preferred to skip the experience.\u00a0 Guardian angels were never accorded the luxury of jumping ship in the middle of an assignment, however, no matter how difficult their charges seemed determined to be.<\/p>\n

Hands thrust into the wide sleeves of his tunic, Sam Sung skittered along behind the larger men, using them for a windbreak against the piercing gusts that blew icy pellets into their uncovered faces.\u00a0 He resolved at that moment to request that his next assignment be some frazzled soul in the Sandwich Islands, but as the sheriff opened the door to the doctor\u2019s office and set the bell above it tinkling, a look of positive delight crossed the Oriental face.\u00a0 \u201cFantastic!\u201d he cried.\u00a0 Then seeing the way Ben, Sheriff Coffee and Dr. Martin stared at him, he quickly rectified the out-of-character expression.\u00a0 \u201cUh\u2014I mean, velly good, velly good.\u201d\u00a0 He pointed at the bell above the door.\u00a0 \u201cAncient Chinese saying: every time bell ring, angel get wings.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled broadly, proud once again of his quick thinking.<\/p>\n

Roy Coffee cocked his head, staring at the Chinaman with suspicion.\u00a0 The other fellow had said there was more to the little man than met the eye, and Roy was beginning to think there just might be.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t know the Chinese went in much for angels,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cThought ancestor worship was more in your line.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung scrambled for a way out of the pickle he\u2019d just talked himself into.\u00a0 \u201cOh, no, honorable sheriff.\u00a0 Not this Chinaboy.\u00a0 Sam Sung is velly good Baptist.\u00a0 He believe in angels.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKind of easy when you are one, isn\u2019t it?\u201d Ben scoffed.\u00a0 \u201cThat has nothing to do with why we\u2019re here, though.\u00a0 Paul, have you\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHold on a minute,\u201d the sheriff interrupted authoritatively.\u00a0 \u201cYou think this Celestial is an angel?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, of course,\u201d Ben snapped.\u00a0 \u201cI told you he was a whole different kind of celestial, didn\u2019t I?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure did,\u201d Roy acknowledged with a knowing nod, \u201cand I think it\u2019s got a whole lot to do with why we\u2019re here.\u201d\u00a0 Turning toward the doctor, he tapped his index finger to his forehead two times.<\/p>\n

Paul Martin cupped his chin, one finger stroking his cheek as he assessed the two unfamiliar faces before him.\u00a0 \u201cI see,\u201d he intoned slowly.\u00a0 \u201cAnd do you think you\u2019re an angel?\u201d he asked the Chinese man.<\/p>\n

\u201cHah!\u00a0 Get out of that one, if you can,\u201d Ben snorted, planting his palms on his hips.\u00a0 \u201cI assume Heaven frowns on outright lying.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung gulped.\u00a0 Heaven did frown on lying\u2014outright or otherwise\u2014but he couldn\u2019t afford to tell the truth, either.\u00a0 Trying to make light of the idea, he looked first over his right shoulder and then his left.\u00a0 \u201cNot see wings,\u201d he chuckled a trifle edgily.\u00a0 \u201cAngels have wings, yes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot \u2018til they earn them!\u201d Ben roared.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t get yours \u2018til you help me find my sons, remember?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung shook his head.\u00a0 Finding the sons was not his assignment; helping Ben Cartwright find himself was, and the emissary from heaven decided that assignment would be best served by keeping his mouth shut at this point.<\/p>\n

Ben grabbed the doctor by the lapels of his white coat.\u00a0 \u201cPaul\u2014you know me, don\u2019t you, Paul?\u201d<\/p>\n

Eyes grave with concern, Paul Martin shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, I\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben clutched the coat more frantically.\u00a0 \u201cMy sons\u2014Adam, Hoss, Little Joe\u2014Paul, you must remember Joseph, at least.\u00a0 You brought him into this world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think so,\u201d Dr. Martin said gently.\u00a0 \u201cI think I\u2019d know if I had.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is why I brought this fellow here, Doc,\u201d Roy explained.\u00a0 \u201cBeen ravin\u2019 about these lost boys ever since he came to my office, but this other fellow\u2014you know, the angel?\u201d\u00a0 Roy winked.\u00a0 \u201cHe says there ain\u2019t no sons, ain\u2019t never been no sons.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have sons!\u201d Ben bellowed.\u00a0 \u201cThree sons\u2014or, at least, I did \u2018til he came along and fixed it so I was never born.\u201d\u00a0 He pointed an accusative finger at Sam Sung, who was cringing back against the wall.\u00a0 How on earth could he help Mr. Ben if the man persisted in sounding like a blithering idiot?\u00a0 All hope of earning his wings on this assignment was melting like the snow on the street outside.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou were never born?\u201d\u00a0 The doctor uttered each word as if it had been a separate sentence.\u00a0 \u201cI see.\u00a0 Well, I think I have just the place for you, a place where you can find the help you need, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust what I was thinking,\u201d Roy said, nodding his agreement, \u201cbut it\u2019s gonna be kind of hard to get him all the way to Stockton.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStockton!\u201d Ben roared.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not going to Stockton.\u00a0 Why would I . . .\u201d\u00a0 Suddenly, he recognized the reference to the state mental facility in that California town.\u00a0 \u201cYou think I\u2019m crazy.\u201d\u00a0 He struck his head with open palm.\u00a0 \u201cI admit I sound that way, but, no, I\u2019m not.\u00a0 I don\u2019t need to go to Stockton; I need to find my sons.\u00a0 If they\u2019re not here, I need to look elsewhere.\u201d\u00a0 He started toward the door, but Roy Coffee grabbed him on one side and Dr. Martin on the other.\u00a0 \u201cLet me go!\u201d Ben yelled, struggling to break free.<\/p>\n

\u201cHere now,\u201d the doctor soothed.\u00a0 \u201cLet us help you, my good man.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung came forward, hands folded together as if in prayer.\u00a0 \u201cPlease, honorable sirs, Mr. Ben only little mixed up.\u00a0 Please let Sam Sung take him home and he be all light.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t have a home!\u201d Ben cried.\u00a0 \u201cPeople who weren\u2019t born never build them, remember?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy home,\u201d Sam Sung suggested quickly.\u00a0 \u201cI take him my home.\u00a0 Safe there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour home?\u00a0 You mean heaven?\u201d\u00a0 Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not ready for that!\u00a0 For now, the thousand square miles of my Ponderosa would be heaven enough for me, so long as my sons were there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThousand square miles?\u201d Roy asked weakly.\u00a0 \u201cYou think you have a ranch of a thousand square miles?\u00a0 I sure never heard of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s because this second class excuse for an angel vanished it!\u201d Ben shouted, pulling against the men holding him.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou had a ranch of a thousand square miles, but . . . it . . . vanished.\u201d\u00a0 Roy shook his head, apparently finding it hard to believe that even a raving maniac could come up with a story that wild.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause he was never born\u2014don\u2019t forget that part.\u201d\u00a0 Paul looked past Ben to Roy.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s get him into the examining room, and I\u2019ll give him a shot of a strong sedative, so you can get him where he needs to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot sure I can hold him by myself while you get that ready,\u201d Roy warned.\u00a0 Ben was still struggling against his captors, and for a man who had never been born, he was putting up quite a fight.<\/p>\n

Dr. Martin looked back at Sam Sung.\u00a0 \u201cYou there, can you help us?\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chinaman\u2019s head bobbed frenetically up and down.\u00a0 Help.\u00a0 Yes, he absolutely had to help, though not quite in the way the doctor meant.\u00a0 Having his charge end up in an insane asylum would do absolutely nothing toward his acquisition of wings!\u00a0 He followed the trio into the examining room and took Ben\u2019s arm when the doctor released it and moved across the room to prepare the syringe.\u00a0 Then Sam Sung also released Ben\u2019s arm and, lowering his head, rammed Sheriff Coffee in the stomach, knocking him to the floor.\u00a0 \u201cRun, Mr. Ben!\u201d the angel cried, as he stretched a leg out to trip the doctor.<\/p>\n

Ben needed no urging.\u00a0 He turned and barreled through the still-open door to the outer office.\u00a0 The door to the street was shut, but that barrier slowed him only a moment.\u00a0 Then he was free and running down the street before sheriff or doctor could disentangle themselves from the arms and legs Sam Sung flung recklessly to impede their pursuit.<\/p>\n

Roy Coffee finally got upright and clasped tight hold on the Oriental.\u00a0 \u201cAll right,\u201d he snarled.\u00a0 \u201cMan or angel, you\u2019re going down to my jail, and then I\u2019m gonna track down that crazy man, if it takes \u2018til Christmas morning!\u00a0 Come on.\u201d\u00a0 He pulled the smaller man along roughly.<\/p>\n

As soon as they reached the street, Sam Sung looked both directions.\u00a0 Mr. Ben was nowhere in sight.\u00a0 Good.\u00a0 He was safe, for the moment, but he was still in need of help.\u00a0 And Sam Sung could not render it from a jail cell!\u00a0 He sent an imploring glance toward heaven and spoke a one-word prayer.\u00a0 \u201cPlease?\u201d\u00a0 The answer came swiftly, and to Roy Coffee\u2019s amazement, his prisoner simply disappeared.<\/p>\n

\u00a0* * * * *<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The slopes of Sun Mountain were sparsely covered with stunted pi\u00f1on pine, much of it cut down to feed the fires of Virginia City.\u00a0 The scant vegetation offered little cover to Ben Cartwright as he fled, but the descending blanket of darkness aided his escape.\u00a0 He\u2019d quickly concluded that his best hope of eluding Sheriff Coffee, whom he personally knew to be diligent in the pursuit of either lost boys or lawbreakers, lay in getting outside town\u2014fast.\u00a0 He\u2019d run hard \u2018til he reached rough terrain and had finally collapsed, thoroughly winded, behind a man-sized boulder.\u00a0 Drawing his knees up, he laid his throbbing head on the arms folded across them.\u00a0 How had he gotten himself into a bind like this?\u00a0 All he\u2019d done was give in to despair and make one silent wish that he\u2019d never been born.\u00a0 Now no one recognized him and he was running for his life from men he\u2019d counted friends, men he\u2019d counted on for help.\u00a0 He might not be crazy, as Roy and Paul thought, but the world sure seemed to have turned that way.<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, here you are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben raised his head, scowling as he recognized a familiar face.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t suppose there\u2019s a snowball\u2019s chance that you\u2019re the real Hop Sing this time,\u201d he grunted.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, still Sam Sung,\u201d the angel replied.\u00a0 \u201cBesides, there is no real Hop Sing, not anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben staggered to his feet and gripped the man\u2019s shoulders with iron fingers.\u00a0 \u201cWhat have you done with Hop Sing?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing.\u00a0 It\u2019s what you didn\u2019t do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben threw his hands into the air.\u00a0 \u201cCrazy as it sounds, I\u2019m beginning to believe that I really wasn\u2019t born, but what on earth does that have to do with Hop Sing?\u00a0 I wasn\u2019t his father; he can be born without me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung nodded, but said sadly, \u201cHe can be born, but he cannot live without you, Mr. Ben.\u00a0 Remember how you met?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course.\u00a0 I was riding home when I overheard sounds of a struggle.\u00a0 Four white miners were beating this little Chinese man, barely half their size.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou fought those four men,\u201d Sam Sung reminded Ben.\u00a0 \u201cYou saved Hop Sing\u2019s life that night and earned his undying loyalty.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shrugged off his heroism.\u00a0 \u201cHe repaid me many times over.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the life you knew, yes,\u201d the angel continued, \u201cbut in this new reality you have chosen\u2014the one in which you were never born\u2014those four men beat Hop Sing to death because you weren\u2019t there to stop them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben stared at him, aghast.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing . . . dead?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMany years.\u201d\u00a0 Sam Sung\u2019s expression saddened still more.\u00a0 \u201cAnd there are others, Ben Cartwright, who lie in lonely graves because you were not there in their hour of need.\u00a0 You see, you really did have a wonderful life.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the first time that night Ben seemed to consider the idea.\u00a0 \u201cI can\u2019t complain, I suppose,\u201d he admitted.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s been a hard life, full of loss, but . . .\u201d\u00a0 Slowly his head rose.\u00a0 \u201cMy wives!\u201d he cried.\u00a0 \u201cIf I wasn\u2019t born, I couldn\u2019t have led them into the dangers that took their lives.\u00a0 Are they . . . still alive . . . in this new reality?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung backed away.\u00a0 \u201cSome questions, perhaps, you should not ask.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jaw rigid, Ben stalked toward him.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I am asking.\u00a0 They are alive, aren\u2019t they?\u00a0 Alive and well.\u00a0 That\u2019s why you\u2019re hedging the question; you don\u2019t want me to know.\u00a0 But I have a right to know!\u00a0 Now, tell me: my Elizabeth, my Inger, my Marie\u2014did they live?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cEach lived beyond the time she would have if she had met you.\u00a0 Each married and bore a son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHah!\u00a0 I knew it!\u00a0 Then they were better off without me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot necessarily.\u00a0 Please, Mr. Ben,\u201d the angel pleaded.\u00a0 \u201cHaven\u2019t you seen enough yet to choose life over nonexistence?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben declared.\u00a0 \u201cNot \u2018til I know the world is really better for having me in it, and for me, the world revolves around my wives and my sons.\u00a0 If I spare the lives of those wonderful women and save my sons from a horrible death by not being born, then that\u2019s my choice.\u201d\u00a0 His manner softened.\u00a0 \u201cCould I see them, just once, the loves of my life?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou might not like what you would see,\u201d Sam Sung warned.<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head in denial.\u00a0 \u201cIf you think it would hurt me to see them happy without me, you\u2019re wrong.\u00a0 I\u2019d rejoice in that.\u201d\u00a0 He paused and pleaded again.\u00a0 \u201cPlease?\u00a0 Is it possible?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u00a0 Heaven might not approve.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAsk!\u201d Ben demanded.<\/p>\n

Sam Sung looked heavenward, and after a long pause his gaze returned to the face of Ben Cartwright.\u00a0 \u201cYou have been granted a great gift, Mr. Ben, a chance to see the world as it would have been without you.\u00a0 We cannot journey so far in a single night, however, without my transmitting special powers to you, and that, too, Heaven has granted.\u00a0 Come; take my hand and let the journey begin!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben hesitated only a moment before taking the small gold-hued hand in his.\u00a0 Suddenly, he felt himself rising, higher and higher into the air as his stomach plummeted earthward.\u00a0 The ground below rushed past at an alarming speed, and he closed his eyes against the dizziness that assaulted him.\u00a0 He had a sense that they were moving east, back toward the New England town where he had first met Elizabeth Stoddard.\u00a0 When he felt the movement stop and opened his eyes, however, he found himself standing on the deck of a ship in the midst of a turbulent sea, with no land in sight.\u00a0 His legs, long unaccustomed to the roll of the sea, buckled, and he reeled against the railing.\u00a0 Then his muscles seemed to recover the once familiar feeling, and he stood upright, his eyes scanning the line of the ship, which was also remarkably familiar.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s The Wanderer<\/em>!\u201d he cried.\u00a0 Facing the angel, he asked, \u201cBut surely Elizabeth isn\u2019t on board.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Sam Sung admitted.\u00a0 \u201cElizabeth is no more, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you said . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat she lived beyond what she would have as your wife,\u201d Sam Sung explained, \u201cbut in Elizabeth\u2019s case, it was only a year longer.\u00a0 She married and gave birth to a son and died soon afterward.\u00a0 It was the plan for her life, Mr. Ben, not something you made happen.\u00a0 An internal weakness made her incapable of surviving childbirth, whether your child or that of another man.\u00a0 I warned you that you might not like what you would see.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen why bring me here, if she\u2019s gone?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung sighed.\u00a0 \u201cTo see her son, if you insist, but I implore you, Mr. Ben: let me take you home now.\u00a0 Just say you want to live!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben searched the deck with eager eyes.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u2019s here?\u00a0 Where?\u00a0 Let me see him; let me know he\u2019s well and happy, not trapped in some slow, suffocating death . . . like my boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung offered a wry smile.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s Milton, not Adam.\u00a0 Named for the poet, the one concession her husband made to her romantic nature.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben coughed out his shock.\u00a0 What had possessed his first love to name her son Milton?\u00a0 Oh, he knew her love of poetry, of course, especially that of John Milton, but how could she?\u00a0 Didn\u2019t she realize the trouble a name like that could cause a boy, from his school days through adulthood?<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, it did,\u201d Sam Sung agreed, again reading Ben\u2019s thoughts, \u201cbut she never lived to see the beatings he took in the schoolyard.\u00a0 It made him tougher, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMade a man of him, strong of purpose, able to defend himself.\u201d\u00a0 Ben nodded in satisfaction.\u00a0 \u201cAnd he\u2019s here, sailing with his grandfather?\u00a0 A good life, then.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cAbel Stoddard died a broken man.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCaptain Stoddard . . . gone?\u201d\u00a0 Though he had hoped for a different future for his old captain, Ben realized that Stoddard had been an old man when last he saw him.\u00a0 He would be dead by now, with or without Ben Cartwright in his life.\u00a0 \u201cYes, he would be . . . but you said broken?\u201d\u00a0 Before the angel could respond, a tall, olive-skinned man with windswept raven hair came on deck.\u00a0 \u201cAdam!\u201d Ben cried.<\/p>\n

\u201cMilton,\u201d the angel corrected, \u201cand he can\u2019t see or hear you.\u00a0 We\u2019re nothing more than shadows to him and the others you\u2019ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut he looks the same,\u201d Ben whispered in amazement.<\/p>\n

Sam Sung smiled.\u00a0 \u201cThere are subtle differences, but your sons all took more after their mothers than after you, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew the younger boys did, but I always thought Adam looked like me.\u201d<\/p>\n

The angel nodded.\u00a0 \u201cMore than Hoss and Little Joe, but as you see, there was much of Elizabeth in him . . . and now in Milton.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben proudly noted the captain\u2019s hat on his son\u2014well, hers, at least.\u00a0 He saw also Milton\u2019s smile of complete self-content and wondered if he himself were the reason that expression had so rarely crossed the face of his Adam.\u00a0 \u201cHe looks well . . . fit . . . satisfied with his life,\u201d Ben mused, \u201cthough I would have thought he\u2019d choose a scholar\u2019s path.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy?\u00a0 He didn\u2019t in your reality.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I suppose not.\u201d\u00a0 That his eldest son had chosen to return to the Ponderosa after his college years was one of the joys of Ben\u2019s life.\u00a0 He smiled as he watched this alternate incarnation of Adam stride the deck with forceful confidence and then turned to the angel.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s a man among men, a leader.\u00a0 If you\u2019re trying to convince me that this young man would have been better off with me as his father, you\u2019ve failed completely.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen you haven\u2019t seen enough,\u201d Sam Sung said harshly.\u00a0 \u201cKeep watching, Mr. Ben.\u201d\u00a0 He pulled the man back to the railing, as if inviting him to a seat in a theater.\u00a0 Sailors, oblivious to their presence, moved back and forth on the deck as they tended to the normal routines of life at sea.<\/p>\n

\u201cHave you checked the condition of the cargo this morning, Thompson?\u201d the captain, the man Ben knew only as Milton, asked his first mate.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust going there now, sir,\u201d Thompson said.\u00a0 He touched his forehead in a cursory salute and moved toward the hatch to the hold.<\/p>\n

As the first mate threw back the hatch and descended to the deck below, an unbelievable stench, an acrid odor reminiscent of vomit and diarrhea and rotting flesh, arose from the dark depth to assault the nostrils of Ben Cartwright.\u00a0 What on earth?\u00a0 What kind of cargo was Captain Milton, last name unknown, hauling?\u00a0 A dark suspicion surfaced in his mind, but he quickly threw it aside.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t possible.<\/p>\n

Grim-faced, the first mate reappeared after several minutes below and went directly to the captain.\u00a0 \u201cWell?\u201d the captain demanded, dark eyes flashing.\u00a0 \u201cMore lost?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFive more, sir,\u201d Thompson reported.\u00a0 \u201cThe air\u2019s foul down there with their filth, and we\u2019re like to see similar losses every day unless we take action.\u00a0 Much as it goes against the grain, sir, I think we\u2019d better get \u2018em all up top and hose down the entire hold.\u201d<\/p>\n

Captain Milton exhaled with disgust.\u00a0 \u201cVery well, then.\u00a0 Turn out all hands and see to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAye, aye, sir.\u201d\u00a0 Thompson saluted, more crisply this time and began to bellow, \u201cAll hands on deck!\u201d\u00a0 When the crew had assembled, he ordered some to move the cargo up from below and others to man the hoses.<\/p>\n

Ben watched, appalled, as naked, ebony-skinned men, women and children, chained in groups of three, stumbled out onto the deck.\u00a0 Dark eyes widened at sight of the roiling sea\u2014or, more accurately, at sight of nothing but sea in every direction; women and children screamed in fear; men blazed with indignation and fierce anger.\u00a0 \u201cA slaver?\u201d Ben sputtered, brown eyes snapping in outrage at Sam Sung.\u00a0 \u201cMy son would never command a slaver!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t your son,\u201d Sam Sung reminded him sharply.<\/p>\n

\u201cKeep your eye on them,\u201d Milton shouted.\u00a0 \u201cSome of them look ready to bolt.\u00a0 Drive them forward and hose them down, as well.\u201d\u00a0 His nose wrinkled in distaste.\u00a0 \u201cThe filth of these savages is unendurable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAye,\u201d the first mate agreed readily, \u201cand costly, too.\u00a0 Cleanin\u2019 \u2018em up and gettin\u2019 some fresh air in \u2018em should cut our losses, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt had better,\u201d Milton snarled, \u201cor I won\u2019t have enough to meet the contract with Rodriguez by the time we reach San Paulo.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCould put some salve on them sores,\u201d the mate suggested.\u00a0 \u201cExtra expense, but might be worth it in the end, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

Milton cursed and spat on the deck.\u00a0 \u201cAll right, try it, but only on the strongest bucks and best potential breeders.\u00a0 Not worth the expense on the others, especially not the little pickaninnies, so I\u2019ll waste none there, understood?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAye, sir.\u00a0 Understood and in full agreement.\u201d\u00a0 Thompson hurried off to put the economic measures into operation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t possible,\u201d Ben protested.\u00a0 \u201cAdam has always believed in the equality of all men; he could never be party to enslaving men or so heartless as to treat them like\u2014like cattle\u2014no more than a notation in the profit or loss column.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t Adam,\u201d Sam Sung said again.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that!\u201d Ben barked.\u00a0 \u201cBut Elizabeth believed just as firmly in the rights of all men to equal treatment and justice, and this is her son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung laid a consoling hand on Ben\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cElizabeth died before she could pass on her values to her son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut Captain Stoddard . . . he would never . . .\u201d\u00a0 Ben stopped, for suddenly he remembered that there had been a time when, in his despair over never going to sea again, a drunken Abel Stoddard had signed on as captain of a slave ship.<\/p>\n

Eyes grave, Sam Sung nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYou begin to see, don\u2019t you?\u00a0 Because you were not there to prevent it, Abel Stoddard did sign that contract with Mandible and, without help, could find no way out.\u00a0 He did become captain of a slave ship, and though he earned enough to purchase The Wanderer<\/em>, for him that first voyage was a living hell, a hell whose flames he could only drown in whiskey and Jamaican rum.\u00a0 He tried to take on other cargoes after that, but his reputation was ruined.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben swept salt water from his face, not all of it put there by the spray of the sea.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s what you meant when you said he died a broken man.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d the angel acknowledged sorrowfully.\u00a0 \u201cUnable to face the wretchedness you see on this deck, he drank himself to death.\u00a0 His first mate, however, was able to harden himself and, in fact, came to relish the traffic in human misery . . . although not as much as his son.\u201d\u00a0 He inclined his head toward the new captain of The Wanderer<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cMilton was . . . that man\u2019s son?\u201d Ben asked.\u00a0 \u201cElizabeth married the captain of a slaver?\u00a0 I can\u2019t believe she would!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, he was just first mate of The Wanderer<\/em> when they married,\u201d the angel explained.\u00a0 \u201cHe was a decent enough man then, and he did love her, though not with the affection she would have received from Ben Cartwright, had he been born.\u00a0 It was the slave trade that changed him, hardened him, even to her, and destroyed the love they once had known.\u00a0 Her grief over that and over her father\u2019s demise contributed to her death when Milton was born.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen she wasn\u2019t happy, even for that one extra year,\u201d Ben concluded with a sigh.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe wasn\u2019t happy,\u201d Sam Sung confirmed, \u201cand she had no impact on her son\u2019s life.\u00a0 He lived with his paternal grandparents \u2018til he was old enough to serve as cabin boy on The Wanderer<\/em>, which his father inherited, but he spent most of his tender, formative years seeing sights like this every day.\u201d\u00a0 His hand swept toward the bow of the ship, where dark bodies writhed as cold salt water surged onto them from the hoses held by laughing crewmen.\u00a0 \u201cWhen his father died, he became captain, and he is, as you said earlier, completely satisfied with his life\u2019s work, an active participant in the enslavement of human beings that your Adam would have fought to prevent.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben buried his face in his hands.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 Dear God, no,\u201d he pleaded.<\/p>\n

Sam Sung again placed his palm on Ben\u2019s broad shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s time to go,\u201d he said softly.\u00a0 \u201cWe have two more stops to make.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben looked up.\u00a0 \u201cYes,\u201d he said urgently.\u00a0 \u201cTake me from this pit of hell.\u00a0 Take me to Inger.\u00a0 Surely, her life and that of her son will be better than this.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJudge for yourself,\u201d Sam Sung urged, his hand slipping down to grasp that of the man in his charge.<\/p>\n

Again Ben felt himself rise into the air, and even though he was prepared this time, the velocity with which they moved through time and space again made his stomach lurch and his senses reel.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t we slow down?\u201d he implored, eyes squeezed shut.<\/p>\n

The angel made no response, but soon Ben felt himself descending again, felt his feet touch solid earth once more and breathed a sigh of heartfelt relief.\u00a0 He opened his eyes and smiled in recognition at the scene before him.\u00a0 The Illinois House stood directly across the street, and to his left was the tree in the middle of the dusty road, beneath whose verdant boughs, now stripped bare in winter\u2019s grip, he had proposed to his love, Inger.\u00a0 Instinctively, he turned toward the store where he had met her, and his brow wrinkled, for the sign above it read \u201cMcWhorter\u2019s Emporium.\u201d\u00a0 He pointed it out to Sam Sung.\u00a0 \u201cIt should say \u2018Borgstrom\u2019s Emporium,\u2019\u201d he chided.\u00a0 When the angel only folded his wide-sleeved arms across his chest and stared back at him,\u00a0 Ben felt his face flush, first with embarrassment at his continuing forgetfulness and then in anger at the man whose name Inger\u2019s store now bore.\u00a0 \u201cThat scoundrel,\u201d he growled low in his throat.\u00a0 \u201cHe took it from her, didn\u2019t he?\u00a0 Tricked Gunnar into selling it, just as before.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u201d Sam Sung stated flatly.\u00a0 \u201cThere was no Ben Cartwright to stop him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I couldn\u2019t then, either.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung thrust his index finger at the other man\u2019s chest and added, \u201cAnd no Ben Cartwright to rescue Inger from the fate that awaited her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s gaze narrowed.\u00a0 \u201cYou said she lived, married, had a son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll true,\u201d the angel replied.\u00a0 \u201cDo you want to see her?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s eyes brightened.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s here?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung nodded.\u00a0 \u201cWhere you first met her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben moaned.\u00a0 \u201cShe works for McWhorter?\u201d\u00a0 Poor Inger must have married a man as penniless as he himself had been if she were still working outside the home.\u00a0 Not a pleasant prospect, of course, especially for a homebody like Inger, but money wouldn\u2019t matter, so long as the man loved her.\u00a0 At least, unlike Elizabeth, she was alive . . . and he could see her; all he had to do was walk through that door.\u00a0 \u201cWill she see me or will I be a shadow, like on the ship?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA shadow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 That was best, he supposed.\u00a0 Since she was married to another man, it wouldn\u2019t be right for him to embrace her and kiss her, as his heart longed to do.\u00a0 No, it would be enough for him to see her sunny smile once more, to see again in her eyes the love that encompassed all of humanity.\u00a0 Licking his suddenly dry lips, he approached the emporium with tentative steps and, turning the handle, entered.<\/p>\n

His heart leaped; his breath stopped.<\/p>\n

She stood behind the same counter where he\u2019d first seen her, her blonde head bent as she wrapped a loaf of bread in brown paper for a customer huddled inside a frayed gray flannel cape.\u00a0 \u201cAre you sure this is all?\u201d she inquired, concern in each soft Swedish accent.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s\u2014it\u2019s all I can afford,\u201d the other woman sighed.\u00a0 \u201cThank God we still have our cow, though bread and milk will make a poor Christmas dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inger looked as though her heart would break.\u00a0 \u201cAnd the children?\u00a0 Have you nothing to put in their stockings?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d replied her customer with a sad shake of her head.\u00a0 She held out a protesting hand when she saw Inger turn toward the jars of candy lining the counter to her left.\u00a0 \u201cI can\u2019t pay for that . . . and you mustn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, you mustn\u2019t,\u201d a loud voice announced as a wheat-haired and blue-eyed giant of a youth strode vigorously from the back room.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss,\u201d Ben whispered in awe, for the young man was almost a carbon copy of the son he and Inger had sired, except for the fancy suit and shirt.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one calls him that,\u201d Sam Sung inserted, \u201cthough she did still name the boy after her father.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know Papa wouldn\u2019t approve, Mama,\u201d the young man scolded.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it is Christmas Eve, Eric,\u201d Inger pleaded, her alpine eyes shimmering with unshed tears, \u201ca time for giving.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eric clapped the lid back on the apothecary jar of peppermint sticks.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s never a time for charity.\u00a0 Charity does nothing but take from those who deserve, to squander on those who don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2014I must be going,\u201d the customer said.\u00a0 \u201cGod bless you for your kindness, Inger, but please don\u2019t quarrel on my account.\u00a0 The last thing I want is to cause you trouble.\u201d\u00a0 She tucked the bread beneath her flannel cape, to keep it warm, and hurried out the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Eric, they have nothing.\u201d\u00a0 Inger almost sobbed.\u00a0 \u201cNothing but bread and milk for Christmas dinner and nothing at all for the children, when we have so much.\u00a0 What would it hurt to give them a little candy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would hurt you, Mama,\u201d Eric said, \u201cwhen Papa found out.\u00a0 A disobedient wife deserves to be chastened, but I would not like to see him hit you again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe hits her?\u201d\u00a0 Ben glowered.\u00a0 \u201cThis miserable excuse of a man makes her work to support him and then he\u201d\u2014Ben stopped, for an unspeakable thought had just crossed his brain.\u00a0 Why would Inger\u2019s husband care if she gave away candy . . . unless . . . he owned the store?\u00a0 \u201cMcWhorter?\u201d he croaked.\u00a0 \u201cShe married McWhorter?\u00a0 But why?\u00a0 She didn\u2019t care anything about him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMcWhorter was most persistent,\u201d Sam Sung explained, leaning on the counter, \u201cand she had few options once Gunnar sold the store out from under her.\u00a0 No Ben Cartwright to carry her off to a new beginning, remember?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd he beats her?\u201d\u00a0 Nostrils flaring, Ben clenched his fists.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll kill him!\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung snorted.\u00a0 \u201cHard task for a shadow.\u201d\u00a0 He looked sadly at Inger. \u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s more a case of occasional slapping than brutal beating\u2014at least, so far.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSlapping is brutal enough!\u201d Ben cried.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s a gentle soul; she should never be touched but in love.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo woman should,\u201d Sam Sung agreed.\u00a0 \u201cEven discounting the violence, though, hers has not been a happy marriage . . . nor a happy motherhood.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s gaze snapped back to the young man still arguing with his mother.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s not as loving as my Hoss, but he seems to care for her,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe does,\u201d Sam Sung admitted, \u201cto the extent he\u2019s able to care about anything but money, that is, but he doesn\u2019t have her tender heart.\u00a0 His father saw to that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMama, I have no more time to argue,\u201d Eric was saying.\u00a0 \u201cIt is time for me to work with Papa now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inger grasped his forearm. \u00a0\u201cYou will not tell him?\u201d\u00a0 The importunity in her voice wrenched Ben\u2019s heart.\u00a0 His Inger, begging her own son for protection from her brute of a husband.\u00a0 The sight was unbearable.<\/p>\n

Eric frowned in strong rebuke as he pulled free of his mother\u2019s clutching hand.\u00a0 \u201cI will not tattle, Mama,\u201d he promised, his voice harsh, \u201cbut you must not foolishly give away our stock in trade.\u00a0 If Papa misses anything, I will not lie to protect you.\u00a0 It is my future you give away, too!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Eric, a handful of candy will not threaten your future,\u201d his mother pleaded, though feebly, for her heart ached too sorely for stronger words.\u00a0 \u201cAnd God would bless you,\u201d she added almost in a whimper.<\/p>\n

\u201cEnough, Mama!\u201d\u00a0 His broad palm struck the countertop, only inches from her slender hand, and she flinched away.\u00a0 \u201cOne more word, and I will tell Papa, and you know what will come of that!\u201d<\/p>\n

Inger drew back from him, and the young man, face flushed with anger, left abruptly, slamming the door behind him.\u00a0 She peered through the window until he disappeared from sight.\u00a0 Then, wiping a tear from her eye, she lifted the lid from the jar of peppermint sticks and counted out six, one for each of the children in the destitute family.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow does she dare?\u201d Ben whispered, shaking his head.<\/p>\n

Sam Sung smiled with heavenly affection at the Swedish woman.\u00a0 \u201cShe has a big heart, a giving heart, and it is Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, it won\u2019t be a merry one for her if he . . . will he?\u201d Ben demanded.\u00a0 \u201cWill he find out?\u00a0 Will he strike her?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t answer that,\u201d the angel replied.\u00a0 \u201cThat lies in the future, and the future is not for me or you to know.\u201d\u00a0 He opened the door to the emporium.\u00a0 \u201cCome.\u00a0 Let\u2019s follow the boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve seen enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think not,\u201d Sam Sung said severely and closed supernaturally strong fingers around the man\u2019s arm.<\/p>\n

If there was one place in town Ben Cartwright did not wish to go, it was the Illinois House, toward which Sam Sung dragged him.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen quite enough of that tavern when he worked there for McWhorter.\u00a0 It hadn\u2019t seemed different from any other saloon at first, and McWhorter had seemed like a decent, even a caring man when he offered the virtually penniless Ben a job.\u00a0 Ben had come to know him, however, as a manipulator of weaker-willed souls like Gunnar Borgstrom and a man who could become violent if manipulation failed.\u00a0 He\u2019d come close to beating Gunnar to death, and now, apparently, he controlled his wife with violence.\u00a0 His son, too?\u00a0 Probably not, at least not past childhood.\u00a0 Like Hoss, the boy was big enough to defend himself, and McWhorter had been no match, even for a man the size of Ben.\u00a0 No, Eric was probably safe from his father\u2019s fists, probably had been since he was ten or so.\u00a0 Could even have defended his mother, had he not absorbed his father\u2019s chauvinistic attitude toward women.<\/p>\n

As Sam Sung towed him through the door, Ben\u2019s eyes fell on the man behind the bar, and his upper lip twisted in a sneer.\u00a0 He\u2019d long since forgiven McWhorter for his injuries to Gunnar and his robbery of Inger.\u00a0 Inger herself had led Ben down the path of forgiveness as she laughingly assured him that McWhorter\u2019s treachery had only speeded the happiness of their marriage.\u00a0 She\u2019d been right then, but now there were fresh offenses to add to the brute\u2019s tally, offenses not only fresh, but ongoing.\u00a0 For those, particularly for the ill treatment of his beloved Inger, Ben felt no forgiveness.\u00a0 If he\u2019d had the power, he\u2019d have pummeled McWhorter\u2019s face to a bloody pulp.\u00a0 As the provoking angel had reminded him, however, shadows had no power, either to punish or to protect.<\/p>\n

Sam Sung led him to a table in a back corner.\u00a0 \u201cSit down,\u201d he suggested.\u00a0 \u201cThis may take awhile.\u201d<\/p>\n

Twilight gave way to full darkness, and the Illinois house grew more crowded and more rowdy with each tick of the clock.\u00a0 McWhorter, just as in the days Ben knew him, played the congenial host, urging \u201cjust one more drink\u201d on each patron, so long as they had coins to pay.\u00a0 The sight sickened Ben.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s Christmas Eve,\u201d he growled.\u00a0 \u201cWhy doesn\u2019t he close the place and spend the evening with his wife?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung clucked his tongue against his straight, white teeth.\u00a0 \u201cYou know why.\u00a0 There is money to be made.\u00a0 Whenever there is money to be made, Inger must wait.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a fool,\u201d Ben grunted.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s not your concern,\u201d the angel chided.\u00a0 \u201cYou had no impact on his life.\u00a0 You\u2019re here to see the boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben focused on the young man behind the bar, who was busy drawing beer from wooden kegs, washing up shot glasses and mugs and keeping bowls filled with salty nuts\u2014all the duties Ben himself used to perform.\u00a0 The boy was a hard worker, Ben noted, just like his own Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cHe seems a decent enough lad,\u201d he commented.\u00a0 \u201cOh, it\u2019s not the kind of life I\u2019d want for a son of mine, but at least he doesn\u2019t trade in human flesh, like Milton.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust the destruction of human flesh and human souls,\u201d Sam Sung snorted.<\/p>\n

Ben folded his arms across his chest.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re talking about the father, not the son.\u00a0 He\u2019s doing no more here than I did, years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs that so?\u201d the angel asked gently.\u00a0 \u201cKeep watching, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

To keep his eyes on young Eric posed no hardship.\u00a0 Though Ben kept reminding himself that this wasn\u2019t Hoss, that round face and muscular frame looked exactly like the son he loved and feared lost forever, buried behind a ton of rock, worthless however much it might assay.\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s image, even if it wasn\u2019t the real man, was a feast for a father\u2019s starving eyes.<\/p>\n

The night wore on, the din increasing as liquor loosened inhibitions, but it was for the most part a festive din.\u00a0 Spirits were high on the eve before Christmas, and McWhorter encouraged them with ebullient toasts to the coming holiday.\u00a0 \u201cDrink hearty, my friends,\u201d he urged.\u00a0 \u201cAfter all, a man must fortify himself to face all that Christmas cheer!\u201d\u00a0 He laughed, as if the statement were a great joke, and most laughed along with him.\u00a0 Some, those who would be spending the day alone or, worse, surrounded by relatives they avoided at other times of the year, took the admonition seriously and drank as if life or sanity depended on numbness of mind.<\/p>\n

Occasionally a man became inebriated enough to cause trouble, and then McWhorter would call his son from behind the bar to evict him.\u00a0 That Eric did so with greater force that seemed necessary concerned Ben, but he told himself that it was only because Hoss would have handled the situation so differently.\u00a0 Just how differently became apparent when a thoroughly besotted customer called for another bottle of whiskey.\u00a0 McWhorter, of course, snapped his fingers for Eric to bring one over, but when he held his palm open for the cost of the bottle, the drunk fumbled through his pockets, finally turning them inside out in a vain attempt to find some money.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo money, no whiskey,\u201d McWhorter declared.<\/p>\n

\u201cPut it on my tab,\u201d the man slurred.<\/p>\n

McWhorter shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cYou haven\u2019t been very prompt about paying them in the past, Lambert.\u00a0 No credit.\u00a0 I think it\u2019s time for you to leave.\u201d\u00a0 He reached for the whiskey bottle.<\/p>\n

Not quickly enough.\u00a0 The customer grabbed it first, hugging it to his chest as he headed for the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cEric,\u201d his father commanded.<\/p>\n

Eric obeyed without a second\u2019s delay.\u00a0 \u201cGive me the bottle, Mr. Lambert,\u201d he ordered, \u201cor I\u2019ll take it from you.\u201d<\/p>\n

With liquor-induced confidence in his own invulnerability, Lambert snorted.\u00a0 \u201cThink you can, sonny?\u00a0 Come and try!\u201d<\/p>\n

A smile lifted one side of Eric\u2019s mouth, as if he\u2019d been waiting for this opportunity all evening.\u00a0 When he reached for the bottle, however, Lambert jerked his arm back, striking the wall behind him.\u00a0 Glass shattered; whiskey sprayed across the room, and both men were momentarily stunned.\u00a0 Then with a snarl Lambert brought the broken bottle forward, waving its jagged edge at Eric\u2019s chest.\u00a0 \u201cLook what you done!\u201d he bellowed.<\/p>\n

Eric jumped to the side and grabbed Lambert\u2019s forearm, wresting the bottle from him.\u00a0 Ben breathed a sigh of relief that the young man was out of danger, but his eyes widened as Eric doubled his massive fist and plowed it into Lambert\u2019s face.\u00a0 Lambert cringed back into the corner, but Eric followed him, striking blow after blow at the disabled man.\u00a0 McWhorter stood back, watching with fatherly pride.<\/p>\n

Ben could take no more.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, no!\u201d he shouted as he lunged toward the young man so like his son in visage, so different in behavior.\u00a0 He tried to get between Eric and Lambert, but neither man seemed aware of his presence.\u00a0 Though with all his strength he pulled on Eric\u2019s arm, the young man continued beating the drunk with forceful, punishing fists.\u00a0 Ben\u2019s restraining hand had no more effect than a fly lighting on the brawny arm of Inger\u2019s son.<\/p>\n

Sam Sung wrapped his arms around Ben and dragged him back.\u00a0 \u201cHe can\u2019t feel you, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019ll kill him!\u201d Ben shouted, struggling to break free.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not this time.\u00a0 It\u2019s over.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eric hauled Lambert to his feet and wrestled him toward the door.\u00a0 Laughing at the crack that reverberated as he bent one arm behind the man\u2019s back, he tossed Lambert\u2019s limp body out into the snow and brushed his hands together in satisfaction.\u00a0 He made his way back to the bar, grinning broadly when his father rewarded him with an energetic clap on the back.<\/p>\n

Ben stared at his guardian angel.\u00a0 \u201cNot this time?\u00a0 You mean, he\u2019s killed before?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not yet,\u201d the angel assured him.<\/p>\n

Ben felt his lower lip tremble.\u00a0 \u201cBut he will?\u00a0 Wait!\u00a0 You can\u2019t know that!\u00a0 You said it wasn\u2019t for you or me to know the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung nodded.\u00a0 \u201cNo, I don\u2019t know the future.\u201d\u00a0 He gazed gravely at the youth now drying beer mugs behind the bar as if nothing had happened.\u00a0 \u201cIt doesn\u2019t take a prophet, though, to guess where that young man is headed.<\/p>\n

Ben slumped in exhausted defeat.\u00a0 \u201cA killer?\u00a0 My Hoss would never\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t your Hoss!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben massaged his pounding forehead.\u00a0 \u201cI know, I know, but I\u2019m not the one who made Hoss gentle.\u00a0 It\u2019s always been in his nature.\u00a0 It comes from her, not me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung led him back to their corner table and sat him down.\u00a0 \u201cNature must be nurtured, Mr. Ben,\u201d he said kindly.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t you remember how it was when Hoss was a child?\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head in grieved recollection.\u00a0 \u201cThe taunts, the bullying that soft-hearted boy endured in the schoolyard\u2014\u2018til the day he learned he could silence his tormenters with his fists.\u00a0 It was no different with Eric.\u00a0 He started out with Inger\u2019s sweet and tender nature, but when the crisis came, he didn\u2019t have Ben Cartwright to sit him down and tell him that he had to learn to live with who he was.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHis father?\u201d\u00a0 Ben shook his head.\u00a0 He remembered that talk he\u2019d had with a young Hoss and in his wildest dreams couldn\u2019t imagine McWhorter uttering similar words.\u00a0 \u201cNo, he wouldn\u2019t,\u201d he muttered.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u00a0 Eric heard just the opposite message from his father,\u201d Sam Sung reported.\u00a0 His voice altered as he recited words McWhorter had often repeated to his son during his developing years.\u00a0 \u201cStand up for your rights; don\u2019t let any man walk on you; make them respect the power of your fists.\u201d\u00a0 The angel sighed.\u00a0 \u201cInger tried to teach him tolerance and compassion, to warn him against misusing his strength, but McWhorter shouted his message louder and punctuated it with punishing blows.\u00a0 Your son learned to control his strength; McWhorter\u2019s learned to use it to his advantage.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd if it were to his advantage to kill . . .\u201d\u00a0 Ben couldn\u2019t bear to finish the sentence.\u00a0 \u201cIt would break his mother\u2019s heart.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been broken a long, long time,\u201d the angel said with brimming eyes.\u00a0 \u201cHave you seen enough?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes . . . yes!\u00a0 Take me from this horrid place,\u201d Ben pleaded.<\/p>\n

A now-familiar feeling gripped his stomach as they again rose skyward, but having become accustomed to the dizzying sensation, Ben was able to keep his eyes open as he and Sam Sung sped westward.\u00a0 He saw the wide expanse of the mighty Mississippi as no man to that point in history ever had, and his heart leaped into his throat as they turned to follow its serpentine path south.\u00a0 New Orleans!\u00a0 They were going to New Orleans, to his Marie, to see once more her beautiful face.\u00a0 He could hardly contain his excitement as the waters of the Gulf of Mexico loomed before them and they began to slow down for their descent.<\/p>\n

Man and angel went right through the roof of a building, and as soon as they were inside, Ben recognized the gold-and-ivory elegance\u2014all too well.\u00a0 \u201cThis is D\u2019Arcy\u2019s salon,\u201d he muttered through gritted teeth.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t tell me my Marie still works in this portal of hell.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Sam Sung replied.\u00a0 \u201cMarie married into wealth and has no need to work for her living, but since there was no Ben Cartwright to show her the perfidy of her cousin, she still believes him her benefactor.\u00a0 Is it so hard to believe that she would choose to spend Christmas Eve with her family?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWith her family?\u00a0 No,\u201d Ben replied.\u00a0 \u201cShe loved Christmas time on the Ponderosa and did much to enrich it for all of us, but she stayed at home, gathering family and friends about her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHer husband, Monsieur Devereaux, prefers the gaiety of the salon, as, you surely notice, do many others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then Ben saw her, coming in on the arm of a stout man dressed elegantly in the richest burgundy brocade.\u00a0 She wore satin and silk in a slightly lighter shade of the same hue, the dark color setting off her golden hair, which shone like precious metal beneath the crystal chandeliers, although now there were platinum strands among the gold.\u00a0 Edward D\u2019Arcy came at once from behind the bar to greet his cousin, and kissed her on both cheeks.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoyeux No\u00ebl, mon cousin<\/em>,\u201d Marie said, returning the kiss in like fashion<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, you are lovely tonight, my dear.\u00a0 Don\u2019t you think, Devereaux?\u201d<\/p>\n

Devereaux shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cShe looks well enough when she makes the required effort.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd a Merry Christmas to you, as well, monsieur.\u201d\u00a0 Edward made a mocking bow to the man.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell enough!\u201d Ben protested.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s beautiful.\u00a0 How can he not appreciate that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was her beauty Monsieur Devereaux coveted,\u201d the angel explained, \u201cand beauty fades with time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s still beautiful to me,\u201d Ben insisted, unable to tear his eyes from the vision of loveliness that had been his third wife.<\/p>\n

Sam Sung smiled.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou look through eyes of love, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe doesn\u2019t love her.\u201d\u00a0 Ben made the statement flatly, as if it were inevitable after what he\u2019d seen at their first two stops.<\/p>\n

Sam Sung shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cNeither does she love him, but she wasn\u2019t looking for love.\u00a0 All her romantic dreams were crushed in the disillusionment of her first marriage.\u00a0 This one had all the ardor of a business contract: security for her, a pretty show thing for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

They watched as Marie\u2019s husband guided her to a table and with courtly, though rather perfunctory, manners held the chair as she seated herself.\u00a0 He motioned for a waiter and ordered a bottle of the finest champagne.\u00a0 \u201cI know how you like champagne, ma femme ch\u00e9rie<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 His voice held a rough edge.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you always give me what I like, do you not, mon mari<\/em>?\u00a0 Am I not of all women most blessed to have such a man as you?\u201d\u00a0 Though Marie smiled for public display, her tone was cynical.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo not be unpleasant, Marie,\u201d Devereaux warned.<\/p>\n

She laughed\u2014not with the silvery sound Ben remembered, but with the tinny clamor of a brass bell.\u00a0 \u201cOh, never!\u00a0 We must never be unpleasant\u2014except in our own home.\u201d\u00a0 The final phrase was hissed for his ear alone.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere we shall go at once if you cannot behave as a wife should,\u201d he hissed back.<\/p>\n

The champagne was served, and for a while both lost themselves amid the bubbles.\u00a0 Marie drained her second glass and looked to Devereaux to pour her another.\u00a0 She frowned as she followed his distracted gaze to a prettily painted face at the next table.\u00a0 \u201cYou will not cast your eyes on a strumpet such as that while in my presence, monsieur,\u201d she warned haughtily.<\/p>\n

Devereaux slowly turned to face her, scorn evident in his expression.\u00a0 \u201cThis from the Great Strumpet of New Orleans?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben instinctively stepped forward to defend his wife, but Sam Sung took his elbow and pulled him back, shaking his head.\u00a0 \u201cShadows,\u201d he reminded Ben.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow dare he speak to her like that?\u201d Ben cried.\u00a0 \u201cHow dare he display such disrespect for his wife\u2014for any woman?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung sighed.\u00a0 \u201cHe but repeats the name by which she is known to many in this town.\u00a0 You know her story; you know the false accusations of adultery under which she suffered.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, but D\u2019Arcy admitted his complicity with Madame D\u2019Marigny!\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Sung wearily shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cAfter Ben Cartwright fought him and forced the truth from him.\u00a0 But since Ben Cartwright was never born, the lies went unchallenged.\u00a0 Everyone in New Orleans believes Marie to be a woman of low repute.\u00a0 Everyone\u2014including her own husband.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Ben and the angel were in conversation, Marie, her face flushing as dark as her dress, stood abruptly.\u00a0 \u201cVery well, then.\u00a0 Seek entertainment where you will, monsieur\u2014as will I!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gasped.\u00a0 \u201cShe wouldn\u2019t!\u00a0 However much her reputation may have fallen, you cannot make me believe that Marie would ever be unfaithful.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t in her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Sam Sung assured him quickly.\u00a0 \u201cThe Ursuline sisters trained her too well for that, but it is the company of another she seeks.\u00a0 Shall we follow and see who it is?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben wasn\u2019t sure he wanted to see this other man in Marie\u2019s life, but since he trusted her implicitly, he followed Sam Sung across the room.\u00a0 He smiled as he saw the youthful face at the table Marie was approaching.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph,\u201d he whispered.\u00a0 Then he lifted his hand before the angel could correct him.\u00a0 \u201cI know, I know.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t Joseph, but he looks exactly like my son, more so than Milton resembled Adam, more even than Eric favored my Hoss.\u00a0 Natural, I suppose.\u00a0 I always did think Joe was the picture of his mother, and this lad is, too . . . but he looks younger.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo years younger,\u201d Sam Sung said with a nod.\u00a0 \u201cIt took two more years for her to become cynical enough to accept a marriage of mere convenience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSixteen?\u201d\u00a0 For a moment Ben just looked surprised, and then he exploded.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s sixteen, and they let him spend Christmas Eve in a gaming parlor!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy not?\u00a0 You must remember that his mother was almost as young when she first came to this place, and, to her, it is a second home, as it is becoming to him.\u00a0 The boy\u2019s parents both dote on him and deny him nothing his willful heart desires.\u00a0 Besides, here he has dear Cousin Edward to watch over him and to teach him all he knows of gaming . . . and other things.\u201d\u00a0 Sam Sung again gave an eloquent shrug.\u00a0 \u201cThe boy has been a regular here for almost a year.\u00a0 And quite a popular one, as you can see.\u201d<\/p>\n

Indeed, Ben could see, and even though this wasn\u2019t really his son, he felt outrage at what he saw.\u00a0 The boy was obviously in his element with a lovely lady on each side, each vying for his favor with caresses and kisses and fingers running through his luxuriant chestnut curls, but he was too young, far too young for such attentions.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoyeux No\u00ebl<\/em>, Philippe,\u201d Marie said with tender affection.<\/p>\n

The boy stood at once and lit the room with his dazzling smile.\u00a0 \u201cJoyeux No\u00ebl, ma petit m\u00e8re<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 Genuine love shone in his emerald eyes and was reflected in her matching set as he kissed her on both cheeks.\u00a0 Ben felt his heart pulse faster at the endearing sight.\u00a0 No wonder Marie preferred the company of her son to that of her husband!<\/p>\n

\u201cGive your chair to Mam\u00e1, ma ch\u00e9rie<\/em>,\u201d Philippe dictated to the pretty companion on his left.<\/p>\n

The twenty-year-old woman\u2019s lips curled in a petulant pout.\u00a0 \u201cWhy waste your time with this old crone, Philippe?\u00a0 We were having such a good time before she came.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor shame, Angelique!\u00a0 You behave not at all in keeping with your name, and since you cannot, you must leave now!\u201d Philippe ordered crisply, grasping her by one elbow and pulling her to her feet.\u00a0 Then he tipped her chin up with the index finger of his left hand.\u00a0 \u201cBut do not stay away long,\u201d he urged with a provocative smile, \u201clest my heart pine for you, eh, ma petit chou<\/em>?\u201d\u00a0 He pressed his lips to hers in a long, lingering kiss full of promised passion that Ben fervently prayed would not be fulfilled.<\/p>\n

\u201cPrecocious lad, isn\u2019t he?\u201d Sam Sung grunted.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Ben growled, \u201cand I don\u2019t understand why his mother allows it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, she\u2019s tried to steer him in straighter paths,\u201d the angel explained, \u201cbut with both Devereaux and D\u2019Arcy pulling him the other way . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHere, Mam\u00e1,\u201d Philippe said, guiding his mother toward the vacated chair.\u00a0 \u201cIs Pap\u00e1 being difficult again?\u00a0 You will sit with me awhile and be my good luck charm, oui<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n

Marie dipped her chin in eager acquiescence and, with a swish of her satin skirts, sat down.\u00a0 \u201cAre you winning?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cMais oui<\/em>,\u201d Philippe replied, as if no other answer should be expected.\u00a0 \u201cDo not fret for me, ma petit m\u00e8re<\/em>.\u00a0 I am skilled with the cards.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIndeed, you are, monsieur,\u201d said a man across the table with a suspicious narrowing of his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cVery skilled, indeed, for a youth of such tender years.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, did you hope to take advantage of my youth, Monsieur Anglais?\u201d Philippe tossed back with a saucy tilt of his head.\u00a0 \u201cSomeone should have warned you that this would not easily be done!\u201d\u00a0 He flashed a smile of supreme confidence around the table, and those who had played him before met it with good-humored chuckles.<\/p>\n

Five more hands of poker were played, with Philippe winning all but one.\u00a0 After each successful venture he accepted a kiss of congratulations from his mother on one cheek and one on the other from the dark-haired beauty to his right.\u00a0 Angelique returned, draping herself penitentially over the back of his neck, but the added attention proved no distraction whatsoever to young Philippe.<\/p>\n

Ben Cartwright shook his head in disapproval.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s really quite used to all this, isn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, he will make a fine riverboat gambler someday,\u201d Sam Sung returned with a hint of sarcasm.<\/p>\n

Ben arched an eyebrow.\u00a0 Had the Oriental angel read his thoughts again or did this alternate incarnation of his son simply portray the part so well that the analogy sprang to mind naturally?\u00a0 A bit of both, perhaps.\u00a0 Philippe was certainly dressed for the role of professional gambler, with his frilled white shirt and fancy cravat, his shoulder-length curls of golden chestnut and, above all, his easy air of practiced confidence.<\/p>\n

The next three hands all went to Philippe, but as he was accepting the congratulatory kisses he obviously relished as much as the victory itself, Monsieur Anglais sprang to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cNo one could win so consistently\u2014in a honest game!\u201d<\/p>\n

Philippe disengaged himself from the bevy of beautiful arms and slowly stood.\u00a0 \u201cDo you accuse me of cheating, sir?\u201d he demanded sharply.<\/p>\n

Marie grasped at his arm.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Philippe, I am sure he did not mean that.\u201d\u00a0 She looked imploringly to the other man.\u00a0 \u201cPlease, sir, withdraw this accusation, I beg of you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anglais drew himself haughtily erect.\u00a0 \u201cTo the contrary, Madame, I maintain it most vigorously.\u00a0 I should not be surprised, I suppose, to find dishonest fruit falling from a dishonest tree!\u201d<\/p>\n

Philippe cast aside Marie\u2019s restraining arm.\u00a0 \u201cHow dare you speak to my mother in this manner?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe should be used to it by now,\u201d Anglais sneered.\u00a0 \u201cAll of New Orleans knows of her . . . virtue.\u201d\u00a0 The final word was spoken with bitter mockery.<\/p>\n

Philippe lifted his glass of champagne and flung it, glass and all, into the face of his accuser.\u00a0 \u201cFor this insult, monsieur, I demand satisfaction!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPhilippe, no!\u201d Marie cried.\u00a0 \u201cNot on my account, I beg you!\u201d<\/p>\n

Her son stroked her cheek tenderly.\u00a0 \u201cOn both your account and my own, ma ch\u00e8re m\u00e8re<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 With gaze as hard and cold as emerald ice, he glared at his opponent.\u00a0 \u201cWe will meet at dawn at the Plantation Allard,\u201d the youngster declared, \u201cand the weapon will be the \u00e9p\u00e9e.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marie buried her distraught face behind slender hands as she sank into the satin-upholstered chair.\u00a0 \u201cPhilippe, no,\u201d she pleaded softly.\u00a0 \u201cI cannot lose you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAt dawn,\u201d Philippe repeated to his dueling opponent, adding with an imperious wave of his hand.\u00a0 \u201cNow, be gone.\u00a0 You sully this place with your vile suggestions.\u201d\u00a0 He knelt beside his mother.\u00a0 \u201cDo not weep, ma petit m\u00e8re<\/em>,\u201d he soothed.\u00a0 \u201cYou are of all women most virtuous, and you know I cannot allow this insult to stand.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marie sobbed inconsolably.\u00a0 \u201cYou are all I have.\u201d<\/p>\n

The boy cradled his mother in his arms, as if she were the child and he the parent.\u00a0 \u201cYou will not lose me,\u201d he promised.\u00a0 \u201cI am as skilled with the \u00e9p\u00e9e as with the cards.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs he?\u201d Ben demanded of his guardian angel.<\/p>\n

The angel reflected for a moment.\u00a0 \u201cQuite possibly,\u201d he said, \u201calthough he is as yet untested in the duel at arms.\u00a0 He learned the craft from Edward D\u2019Arcy, and I am sure you remember what a master duelist he was.\u201d<\/p>\n

Images swam before Ben\u2019s eyes: he and Marie bending over the fading figure of her old fencing master, Marius Angierville, as he stretched beneath the moss-draped oaks of the Plantation Allard.\u00a0 Oh, yes! he remembered all too well D\u2019Arcy\u2019s skill with a blade.\u00a0 The man was a killer, and now he had passed that skill on to Marie\u2019s young son.\u00a0 Ben could only pray, as he was sure Marie was, that he had not also passed on that killing instinct.\u00a0 Despite the warmth of the southern night, Ben shivered.<\/p>\n

\u00a0* * * * *<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Time seemed to fly as fast as angels\u2019 wings as Sam Sung transported his charge to the Plantation Allard, over whose popular dueling ground mighty oaks, hung with curtains of Spanish moss, stood sentinel.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not sure I want to see this,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t you just tell me that the boy will live?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know I can\u2019t,\u201d Sam Sung chided.\u00a0 \u201cThe future . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs not for you or me to know,\u201d Ben recited in singsong.\u00a0 \u201cI know.\u00a0 If only I could know that much, though.\u00a0 If I could know Marie would not be left bereft of the one person who loves her . . . or if I could just know that my own sons would survive their ordeal . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

The angel shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cBut you cannot.\u00a0 Your decision must be made without knowledge of the future, Mr. Ben, for all men must live, all must make their daily decisions without foreknowledge of the future.\u00a0 Heaven requires a certain measure of faith from all men, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, it\u2019s really disconcerting to hear all this philosophy pouring from Hop Sing\u2019s lips,\u201d Ben groaned, \u201cespecially in such impeccable English.\u00a0 Couldn\u2019t you talk more like him, too, in the interest of greater familiarity?\u00a0 That was the idea of the experiment, wasn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat ghastly pidgin?\u201d\u00a0 Sam Sung shuddered.\u00a0 \u201cNo, I don\u2019t think so.\u00a0 It was incredibly hard to maintain the few times I tried it.\u00a0 And you\u2019d be well advised to pay more attention to Hop Sing\u2019s philosophy, Mr. Ben, if you choose to return to life.\u00a0 That is a man who knows how to maintain his faith!\u201d<\/p>\n

Their discussion came to an abrupt halt as a carriage stopped beneath the oaks.\u00a0 The door in its side opened, and Edward D\u2019Arcy stepped down, reaching back inside to assist his fair cousin.\u00a0 Young Philippe followed and, finally, Monsieur Devereaux descended the steps, pulling his great cloak about him.<\/p>\n

Marie searched the lawn beneath the oaks and looked relieved when she saw no one else there.\u00a0 \u201cPerhaps he will not come,\u201d she murmured.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, he will come.\u201d\u00a0 Devereaux scoffed at her naivet\u00e9.\u00a0 \u201cYou, Madame, may not understand the meaning of honor, but I can assure you that he does.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPap\u00e1, do not dishonor Mam\u00e1,\u201d Philippe scolded.\u00a0 \u201cI would regret being forced to duel with you!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t be a fool, boy,\u201d his cousin Edward reprimanded, \u201cand I must say the same to the two of you, as well.\u00a0 The boy must keep his wits about him for his first affair of honor, and you do nothing but distract him with such petty bickering.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe is right, Antoine,\u201d Marie whispered contritely.\u00a0 \u201cIt is our son that matters now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOui<\/em>, Madame.\u00a0 On that, at least, we agree.\u201d\u00a0 The harshness of his tone, however, told his listeners, including the two unseen ones, that he still held her to blame for the jeopardy in which their son now stood.<\/p>\n

To no one\u2019s real surprise, but to their infinite regret, another carriage pulled up beneath the oaks.\u00a0 Monsieur Anglais and his second sprang out.\u00a0 Edward, acting as Philippe\u2019s second, met with his counterpart to establish the rules of the contest.\u00a0 \u201cMonsieur Anglais has no wish to kill a child,\u201d the second stated, \u201cso we suggest that the contest be only to the drawing of blood.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe agree,\u201d Edward accepted quickly, \u201calthough you may be surprised at whose blood is drawn first, monsieur.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy did you agree to that?\u201d Philippe hissed when he was told the terms.\u00a0 \u201cHe should die for what he said about ma m\u00e8re<\/em>!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you, you little popinjay, deserve to die for your foolishness in making this challenge,\u201d Edward hissed back, circling his young cousin\u2019s upper arm tightly.\u00a0 \u201cWhen you have defeated many opponents, you may consider a fight to the death, but not in your first affair at arms!\u00a0 Do you understand?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOui<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 Philippe flounced away.\u00a0 Anger flamed in his cheeks, and seeing that, Edward drew him aside, determined to calm the young man down before he met his opponent.\u00a0 He succeeded to some degree, but Philippe was a hot-blooded youth, whose temper had been honed, rather than restrained, all his life.\u00a0 To Edward\u2019s regret, for he knew the dangers of fighting with a hot head, he could not cool the boy down completely before the duel began.<\/p>\n

Soon the oaks echoed with the clash of thin, triangular blades, and the lump in Ben\u2019s throat rose and fell with each thrust and parry.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s good,\u201d he admitted.\u00a0 \u201cI thought Joseph was, but this boy is a master.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd yet still a boy,\u201d Sam Sung pointed out.<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 Philippe was as skilled as Monsieur Anglais, but the longer reach and stronger lunge of the grown man were obvious advantages.\u00a0 Still, the talented boy held his own through many a blow and counterblow until with a vindictive thrust Anglais\u2019 \u00e9p\u00e9e skewered Philippe\u2019s shoulder and he collapsed with a cry.<\/p>\n

\u201cMon fils<\/em>!\u201d Marie screamed, running to him.<\/p>\n

Ben, too, started toward the boy, but the angel held him back.\u00a0 \u201cHe is not your son,\u201d Sam Sung reminded him.\u00a0 \u201cLeave him to his parents.\u201d<\/p>\n

Antoine Devereaux thrust his wife aside.\u00a0 \u201cKeep back, you slut.\u201d\u00a0 He bent over his son.\u00a0 \u201cMon fils, mon fils<\/em>,\u201d he murmured.<\/p>\n

Philippe\u2019s emerald eyes flickered.\u00a0 \u201cPap\u00e1<\/em>?\u00a0 Mam\u00e1<\/em>?\u201d\u00a0 Then they rolled back in his head.<\/p>\n

Marie screamed again, and Edward slapped her face.\u00a0 \u201cBe still!\u00a0 It is a flesh wound only; he will live.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTo fight another day?\u201d she shrieked.\u00a0 \u201cI am sick to death of the Code!\u00a0 I will not sacrifice my son to it!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s right, isn\u2019t she?\u201d Ben whispered hoarsely.\u00a0 \u201cThis is only the first of many such mornings for Philippe, and on one of them . . .\u201d\u00a0 He waved aside the angel\u2019s remonstrance.\u00a0 \u201cOh, I know, we don\u2019t know the future, but as you said about Eric, it doesn\u2019t take much of a prophet to see where this boy is headed\u2014toward one futile duel after another in defense of his mother\u2019s honor.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m afraid so,\u201d Sam Sung admitted, \u201cbut Philippe is not your concern.\u00a0 The time has come, Mr. Ben, to make your decision.\u00a0 Choose wisely, for you will not be given this gift a second time.\u00a0 Will you return to the world you have known or will all you have seen come to pass, instead?\u201d\u00a0 He swept his arm toward the scene of grief beneath the oaks, and the gesture seemed to encompass scenes in New England and Illinois, as well.<\/p>\n

Ben stared, as the woman who had been his third wife gathered her bleeding son into her arms, and he sighed deeply.\u00a0 \u201cNone of them knew real love, even with their longer lives,\u201d he said weakly.\u00a0 \u201cAnd\u2014and their sons\u2014so like my own and yet so . . . so without a compass.\u00a0 Their lives haven\u2019t been better, either.\u201d\u00a0 With resolve he drew himself upright and grasped the small Oriental by both shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cTake me back!\u201d he implored.\u00a0 \u201cWhatever I must face, let me live!\u00a0 I want to live!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0* * * * *<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201cBen!\u00a0 Ben!\u201d<\/p>\n

The last Ben remembered, he was shaking his guardian angel, but now it seemed as if it were his own shoulders being vigorously shaken.<\/p>\n

\u201cBen boy!\u00a0 Wake up!\u201d<\/p>\n

The gravelly voice sounded strange, accustomed as he\u2019d become of late to the accents of New England, Sweden and France. Yet somehow familiar. Ben opened his eyes and instantly drew back as he saw bending over him the grizzled face of the man who wanted him committed to an insane asylum in California.\u00a0 Behind him he felt the rough-barked solidity of a huge ponderosa pine.\u00a0 Trapped!\u00a0 But then something in the sheriff\u2019s rambling words registered.\u00a0 \u201cYou called me Ben,\u201d he said slowly.<\/p>\n

Coffee chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cWell, what else would I call you, Ben boy?\u00a0 You must\u2019ve drifted off when the doc sent you to rest, but you\u2019re gonna want to wake up for this!\u201d\u00a0 He squeezed his friend\u2019s shoulders more firmly.\u00a0 \u201cDid you hear what I said, Ben?\u00a0 They\u2019ve broken through!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBroken . . . through?\u201d\u00a0 Ben was still having a hard time moving from one reality to another.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe cave-in,\u201d Roy explained.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019ve broke through!.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe cave-in.\u201d\u00a0 Ben blinked.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s been a cave-in?\u00a0 Oh, thank God!\u201d\u00a0 He grasped Roy by the arms.\u00a0 \u201cYou know about the cave-in?\u201d<\/p>\n

A puzzled look came across the sheriff\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cBen, of course, I do.\u00a0 I got word two days ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you\u2019re going to help me find my boys?\u201d\u00a0 The warm chocolate of Ben\u2019s eyes seemed to melt.<\/p>\n

Roy Coffee helped his obviously overwrought friend to his feet and explained patiently, \u201cThat\u2019s what I\u2019ve been trying to tell you, Ben: they\u2019ve broke through.\u00a0 We\u2019ve found your boys!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve found . . .my boys?\u00a0 Alive?\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy gave him a wide grin.\u00a0 \u201cYou bet they\u2019re alive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joy radiated Ben\u2019s face as he took off at a run.\u00a0 His boys\u2014alive!<\/p>\n

\u201cBen, easy, easy,\u201d Dr. Martin urged, but Ben ran past him to the small, ragged opening in the wall of rock.\u00a0 The workers automatically stepped back to let him through.\u00a0 \u201cAdam!\u00a0 Hoss!\u00a0 Joseph!\u201d he called frantically.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re here, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Never had Ben heard a more beautiful sound than the voice of his oldest son, nor had he seen a more beautiful sight than the face that appeared behind that small opening.\u00a0 \u201cAdam,\u201d Ben whispered in awe.\u00a0 His voice broke as he asked, \u201cYour brothers?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all here, Pa,\u201d the warm voice assured him, \u201cand I can\u2019t tell you how glad we are to see you!\u201d\u00a0 A hand reached out through the opening.<\/p>\n

Ben grasped it, pressing kisses against the callused palm.\u00a0 \u201cAre\u2014are you hurt?\u201d he asked anxiously.<\/p>\n

\u201cA little battered and bruised, a little short of breath\u2014the air\u2019s a bit stale in here,\u201d Adam reported, \u201cbut nothing serious . . . well, except Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

A tight ball of fear rose in Ben\u2019s throat, and he couldn\u2019t force it down.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph?\u201d he croaked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019d you go worryin\u2019 him like that for?\u201d came a petulant protest from further within the cavern.<\/p>\n

Adam turned toward the voice.\u00a0 \u201cBecause he\u2019s your father, and he expects to be told the truth,\u201d he said bluntly.<\/p>\n

The other boy\u2019s voice sounded closer as he called out a second time, \u201cI\u2019m all right, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, sure you are!\u00a0 You keep still, Shortshanks.\u201d\u00a0 The same voice then added, \u201cWe\u2019re okay, Pa, \u2018cept I\u2019m about half-starved; fact is, I was just about to start nibblin\u2019 on little brother here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s face shone brighter as he recognized the wrangling voices of his two younger sons.\u00a0 \u201cWell, you hold off a little longer, son, and we\u2019ll get you a better meal than that!\u201d\u00a0 Ben laughed out his relief, and then he choked abruptly.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2014you mind your brothers now and keep still, Little Joe,\u201d he called.\u00a0 Looking at Adam, he asked in a broken whisper, \u201cHow bad is he?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCracked ribs, I think,\u201d Adam whispered back.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019ll mend, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, yes, he\u2019ll mend; everything will mend.\u201d\u00a0 Ben wiped tears of joy from his cheeks and resolved to quit babbling like a fond fool.\u00a0 \u201cYou boys just rest easy, and we\u2019ll soon have you all out of there.\u201d\u00a0 With a final squeeze of Adam\u2019s hand, he backed away and let the men get back to the task of carefully tearing down the wall between them.<\/p>\n

It took longer than the impatient father would have preferred, but soon the opening had been widened enough for even Hoss to get through.\u00a0 Fresh tears coursed unrestrained down Ben\u2019s face as he wrapped first Adam and then Hoss in his arms.\u00a0 As he reached for Little Joe, he remembered the injured ribs and, instead of an embrace, took his son\u2019s face in his hands and tenderly kissed him on both cheeks, as he\u2019d seen the boy\u2019s mother do to Philippe.\u00a0 Joe looked a little surprised, but accepted the unaccustomed gesture with the same readiness with which he always responded to expressions of affection.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s hands dropped to his youngest son\u2019s shoulders, but his loving gaze encompassed them all.\u00a0 \u201cI could just eat you up!\u201d he cried, not knowing how else to express his relief and overflowing excitement.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Pa,\u201d Adam chuckled dryly.\u00a0 \u201cWe could eat you up\u2014literally.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cOh, forgive me; forgive me, boys.\u00a0 I wasn\u2019t thinking.\u00a0 You must be starving!\u00a0 We\u2019re gonna get you home and fill up all the empty places, I promise.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss smacked his lips.\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 I\u2019ll start with a beef steak, about two inches thick and\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBeef broth . . . chicken soup,\u201d Paul Martin teased as he made a cursory examination of the three boys.<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, Doc!\u201d Hoss protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cBah, humbug!\u201d Adam declared in his best Dickensian voice.<\/p>\n

Little Joe just giggled, and though the sound broke into a gasp as he clasped his ribs, Ben thought the boy\u2019s laughter had never seemed more infectious.<\/p>\n

\u00a0* * * * *<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Opening the front door, Ben led Little Joe into the great room, with Roy Coffee and Paul Martin assisting Adam and Hoss in right behind them.\u00a0 \u201cHey, Pa!\u201d Joe cried, one arm cradling his ribs while the other pointed toward the alcove by the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cWhen\u2019d you find time to put up the tree?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head and stared at the ceiling-scraping evergreen, bedecked with popcorn garland, candy canes and cherished ornaments.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0 Hearing a shuffling sound behind him, he turned and saw a Chinese man standing in the dining room.\u00a0 For a moment he mistook the family cook for his guardian angel, but he quickly realized that he had the real article this time.\u00a0 \u201cYour work?\u201d he asked softly.\u00a0 \u201cYou are<\/em> a man of faith.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Cantonese cook bowed.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing know in his heart all be here for Christmas.\u00a0 Mr. Charlie and Mr. Wilt, they chop tree, help make beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBeautiful it is.\u201d\u00a0 Adam smiled his appreciation.\u00a0 \u201cA lovely sight to come home to.\u00a0 Thank you, Hop Sing\u2014for your faith and your hard work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss made his way directly to the tree to snare one of the candy canes.\u00a0 \u201cAppetizer,\u201d he told the doctor, holding his treasure aloft.<\/p>\n

\u201cGo ahead,\u201d Paul Martin chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t think a little sugar\u2019s gonna hurt in the least, but you all belong in bed\u2014especially this young man.\u201d\u00a0 He touched Joe on the shoulder.<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, no, Doc,\u201d Joe pleaded, lips pooching out in an endearing, child-like pout.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s Christmas Eve; we gotta be together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTogether,\u201d Ben affirmed with a smiling nod at the family doctor.<\/p>\n

Dr. Martin knew better than to fight the entire Cartwright clan.\u00a0 \u201cOh, all right,\u201d he conceded, \u201cbut I want everyone down, resting . . . you on the settee, Little Joe, as soon as I get those ribs wrapped.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGet me a candy cane,\u201d Joe ordered as his father lowered him to the settee.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too,\u201d Adam demanded, while Roy Coffee seated him in the familiar blue chair.<\/p>\n

As Hoss stretched to pluck two more striped canes from the evergreen branches, he brushed against one that held a tiny bell-shaped ornament and set it tinkling.<\/p>\n

Little Joe giggled.\u00a0 \u201cHey, Hoss, you remember what Miss Abigail used to say around Christmas time?\u00a0 \u2018Every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings!\u2019\u00a0 You just made an angel, Hoss!\u201d<\/p>\n

Amidst the laughter that met this remark, no one noticed the broad smile that crossed the face of Ben Cartwright.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d he said to no one in particular.\u00a0 He winked at the bell on the tree.\u00a0 \u201cAtta boy, Sam Sung!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess you know there ain\u2019t gonna be no gifts from me under that tree,\u201d Joe said.<\/p>\n

Hoss pulled the candy cane from his mouth long enough to say, \u201cTypical.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam nodded, adding with a grin, \u201cLast-minute Charlie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I piddled around again,\u201d Joe admitted with a shrug, \u201cbut I got something nice planned for you, Pa, and even for those two nuisances over there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben moved to the settee and put an arm around his youngest son.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t worry about it, Joe.\u00a0 I have all the gifts I need.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got one more for you,\u201d Adam offered.\u00a0 \u201cFrom what I could see of the vein that cave-in opened up, we\u2019ve hit a real bonanza.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben was gratified to hear that the mine could be worked profitably, but silver and gold no longer seemed important to him.\u00a0 He squeezed his youngest son close, while gazing with lingering love on each of the others.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve already had my bonanza, boys.\u00a0 In fact, you might say, my life\u2019s been one bonanza after another, and right now it feels so full I don\u2019t know if I could hold another one!\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy Coffee and Paul Martin lighted the candles on the tall tree, while Hop Sing served steaming bowls of chicken soup all around.\u00a0 Since everyone was exhausted, there were no traditional readings this year, no voices lifted in rousing carols, but the candles\u2019 soft glow illuminated a scene of enduring love as tender as any the Ponderosa had ever known\u2014and Ben blessed the day he had been born to see it.<\/p>\n

\u00a0The End<\/p>\n

\u00a9 December, 2003<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summary: \u00a0In this Bonanza adaptation of the Frank Capra holiday classic, Ben Cartwright is facing a Christmas so bleak that he finds himself wishing he’d never been born.\u00a0 Enter one slightly unusual guardian angel with the offer to let him see what the world would have been like without him.<\/p>\n

Rated: K+ \u00a0WC 20,000<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48,"featured_media":5083,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"template-full-width-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[23,1008],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5082","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-drama","category-family","wpcat-23-id","wpcat-1008-id"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/WonderfulLife.jpg?fit=369%2C136&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5082","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/48"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5082"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5082\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5083"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5082"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5082"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5082"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}