{"id":5670,"date":"2014-03-02T17:39:06","date_gmt":"2014-03-02T22:39:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=5670"},"modified":"2025-02-18T19:13:32","modified_gmt":"2025-02-19T00:13:32","slug":"heritage-of-honor-book-5-a-dream-divided","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=5670","title":{"rendered":"Heritage of Honor, Book 5–A Dream Divided (by Puchi Ann)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summary: \u00a0<\/span>Following the death of his wife Marie and his son Adam’s departure for college, Ben Cartwright and his two younger sons struggle to deal with both losses while meeting the challenges of a growing community and the crises in the lives of their friends.<\/p>\n

Rated: T \u00a0 \u00a0 Word Count: \u00a0161850<\/p>\n

Heritage of Honor Series<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

A Dream Deferred
\n<\/a>A Dream’s First Bud
\n<\/a>A Dream Imperiled
\n<\/a>A Dream’s Darkest Hour
\n<\/a> A Dream Divided<\/a><\/p>\n

Heritage Companion<\/strong><\/p>\n

Never Alone<\/a>
\nCentennial! A Journey of Discovery<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER ONE<\/h3>\n

Beginning Again<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Standing rooted in front of the Pioneer Hotel in Carson City, Ben Cartwright stared at the dust of the departing stagecoach, which was carrying fully one-third of his heart away from him.\u00a0 The sound of a low chuckle at his right elbow broke his trance, and he turned toward his long-time friend, Clyde Thomas.<\/p>\n

\u201cReckon if you stare long enough, that stage\u2019ll just turn right around and bring him back?\u201d Clyde teased.<\/p>\n

Slight smile curving his lips, Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cWouldn\u2019t want that if it could.\u00a0 Boy has a right to his dream.\u201d\u00a0 And what a dream that boy had!\u00a0 Ben was still reeling from the recent revelation that his eldest son dreamed of educating himself at one of the most prestigious colleges in America, but if any boy from the far West could accomplish that auspicious goal, it would be bright, studious Adam.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe,\u201d Clyde conceded, clapping a hand to Ben\u2019s broad shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cOn t\u2019other hand, maybe boys ain\u2019t got sense enough to do the pickin\u2019 and choosin\u2019, even for their own dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, hush your fussin\u2019 \u2018bout your own boy and leave Ben in peace \u2018bout his,\u201d his wife Nelly scolded.\u00a0 \u201cBen, you and the boys come on down to my place and, at least, have a cup of coffee before you head back to the Ponderosa.\u00a0 Be better if you stayed to lunch.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat I can\u2019t do,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut coffee sounds good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Satisfied, Nelly lifted Little Joe from the arms of his older brother and, making cooing sounds as she wiped away the trickle of tears on his cheeks, led the way to the yellow frame house on a side street off the plaza.\u00a0 Eleven-year-old Hoss Cartwright trotted at her side.\u00a0 \u201cYou got any cookies, Aunt Nelly?\u201d he asked.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t want no coffee, but I\u2019d favor a cookie or two.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOr twenty,\u201d giggled Inger, Clyde and Nelly\u2019s daughter, who was two years younger than Hoss and thought of him as a big brother\u2014in other words, a God-given object for teasing.<\/p>\n

Nelly reached out to yank one of Inger\u2019s strawberry-blonde braids.\u00a0 \u201cHe can have all he wants.\u00a0 Mind your manners, girl.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Hoss?\u00a0 He ain\u2019t company.\u201d\u00a0 With a mischievous grin that proved her to be a true member of the Thomas clan, the little girl scampered ahead.\u00a0 \u201cCome on, Hoss.\u00a0 Race you home!\u201d\u00a0 With a grin, Hoss gave chase, even though he suspected that she had too much head start to make the race a fair one.<\/p>\n

Little Joe squirmed for release from Nelly\u2019s arms, but she held tight.\u00a0 \u201cOh, no, Sugarfoot, you stay with me.\u201d\u00a0 She lengthened her stride, however, to keep pace with the other youngsters and soon left the ambling men behind.<\/p>\n

\u201cWas that comment about boys not having sense to pick their own dreams meant for Billy?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, Nelly pegged that one right, I reckon,\u201d Clyde admitted, spitting a stream of tobacco juice off to the right.\u00a0 \u201cThat scamp is soon gonna be out of a job with the Pony Express, but he won\u2019t hear of coming to work with his pa in the blacksmith shop.\u00a0 Says he never took to that work, rather work out in the open.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow soon?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

Clyde shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cMonth, month and a half at the outside, I reckon.\u00a0 Soon as the telegraph meets up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd he doesn\u2019t have any plans after that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNary a one . . . but that\u2019s Billy for you, takes one day at a time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, he\u2019s always got a place with me, if he wants it,\u201d Ben offered as they turned onto the Thomas\u2019s street.\u00a0 He grinned.\u00a0 \u201cSo happens I\u2019m short a hand.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clyde laughed at the reference to Adam\u2019s departure.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll mention it to Billy, next time he rides in.\u00a0 Flighty as that boy is, though, he might not have sense enough to settle in with a steady job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBack to that, are we?\u201d Ben scolded.\u00a0 \u201cBilly may be a mite flighty, but he\u2019s got a good head on his shoulders and generally lands on his feet.\u00a0 Quit worrying, Clyde.\u201d\u00a0 He mounted the porch steps and entered the Thomas home, the door of which had been left ajar for their arrival.<\/p>\n

\u201cI will if you\u2019ll quit frettin\u2019 over yours,\u201d Clyde jibed back.<\/p>\n

Nelly came from the kitchen with Little Joe still in her arms.\u00a0 \u201cI put the coffee on,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cBe ready soon.\u00a0 Ben, I\u2019m gonna put this boy down for a nap.\u00a0 He\u2019s plumb wore out from gettin\u2019 up so early to see his big brother off, and you can stay a mite longer than just time to down a cup of coffee.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seeing Joe\u2019s tiny hand scrubbing at his red eyes, Ben nodded.\u00a0 He could ill spare the time, but it had been a difficult day for his youngest and Ben didn\u2019t want to make it any harder.\u00a0 That child\u2014all his sons, for that matter\u2014had endured enough hard days lately without adding needlessly to the load.\u00a0 Maybe if he dozed off soundly now, Little Joe would stay asleep when he was moved to the buckboard and little time would be lost.\u00a0 Following Clyde\u2019s lead, Ben entered the kitchen and sat companionably at the table.<\/p>\n

Inside, Inger was heaping a platter with cookies.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re takin\u2019 \u2018em up to my room to eat,\u201d she told her father.\u00a0 \u201cMa said we could.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLong as you clean up,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t want you makin\u2019 more work for your ma.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI always do\u2014clean up, I mean,\u201d Inger announced with a proud flounce of her head.\u00a0 \u201cCome on, Hoss.\u00a0 We\u2019ll play house.\u201d<\/p>\n

House was far from Hoss Cartwright\u2019s favorite game, though he often good-naturedly consented to play it with the little girl.\u00a0 Having real cookies for their meal this time was a powerful incentive, of course.<\/p>\n

Clyde checked the coffee pot, but it hadn\u2019t even started to boil yet.\u00a0 Since he was up, he took three cups and saucers from the cupboard and brought them to the table before sitting back down.\u00a0 \u201cBill Stewart\u2019s already knocking on doors,\u201d he commented.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cDoesn\u2019t surprise me.\u00a0 He was angling for my vote when I asked him to write that letter of recommendation for Adam.\u00a0 I had to remind him that I reside in District Seven, not Carson City!\u201d<\/p>\n

Clyde slapped his knee.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s a politician for you, fishin\u2019 for votes in any crick he can.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t promise, but I figure he\u2019ll get mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 \u201cNo argument here.\u00a0 He\u2019s ambitious, but on the whole a good man, in my opinion.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, who you votin\u2019 for, come the end of the month?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJames Sturtevant for the House,\u201d Ben answered.\u00a0 \u201cNot sure about the Senate yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019d be a better man than him\u2014or Stewart, either,\u201d Clyde suggested.<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 There was a time I had ambitions, too, but . . . well . . . things change.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clyde nodded, knowing that Ben was referring to the untimely death of his wife Marie.\u00a0 \u201cSomething to consider, though . . . for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy boys need me, will for a long time,\u201d Ben said softly.\u00a0 He\u2019d made the mistake of neglecting those precious boys in his grief over Marie\u2019s death and had vowed that nothing would ever come between him and them again, certainly not something as unimportant as political ambition.\u00a0 What would a seat in the Governor\u2019s office mean, anyway, without her at his side as first lady of the territory?\u00a0 He\u2019d envisioned that so clearly the day he and Marie had dined with Territorial Governor James Nye, seen it almost as their destiny together, never dreaming that they had no destiny together.<\/p>\n

Nelly came back in, gave Clyde a pat of appreciation when she saw the cups and saucers already on the table and started setting out the sugar bowl, cream pitcher and spoons.\u00a0 \u201cBen, I was noticin\u2019 that Hoss\u2019s britches seem a sight short.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled in warm affection for his middle son.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, he\u2019s growing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t think they can be let down enough,\u201d Nelly observed as she brought the coffee pot to the table and poured a cup for each of them.\u00a0 \u201cProbably need new ones before school starts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sighed.\u00a0 Marie had always kept so abreast of the boys\u2019 need for new clothes that he\u2019d paid no attention.\u00a0 Another responsibility he would obviously have to take on, and despite his brave show for Adam\u2019s sake, to keep the boy from giving up his dream, he still felt hard-pressed just to make it through a day, much less do all he ought for his sons.\u00a0 \u201cAppreciate your bringing it to my attention,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t really rig the boy up the way he deserves by the time school starts, though.\u00a0 Been a lot of extra expenses lately, and things are gonna be tight \u2018til I drive some cattle to California.\u201d\u00a0 Another brave show he\u2019d put on for Adam, the fantasy that paying for the boy\u2019s college and travel expenses was no hardship.\u00a0 Adam merited every penny spent on him and would prove it by his performance at Yale, Ben had no doubt, but added to the expense of Marie\u2019s funeral, those pennies meant there weren\u2019t many freely available at home.<\/p>\n

Nelly understood exactly what expenses Ben meant and discerned that he was now feeling guilty about shorting one son to support another.\u00a0 \u201cBen, you shouldn\u2019t be too proud to accept help when you need it,\u201d she began tentatively, for Ben had once been highly touchy on that subject.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve helped us often enough, and I\u2019d be more than happy to make some new clothes for Hoss.\u201d\u00a0 Seeing him start to protest, she hastened to add, \u201cYou can pay me for the cost of the fabric later, but don\u2019t insult me by offering to pay for my labor.\u00a0 That boy\u2019s practically like one of my own.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that,\u201d Ben said with genuine warmth, \u201cand I\u2019ll take you up on that offer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll just go up and take some measurements then,\u201d Nelly said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBest take them cookies away,\u201d Clyde cackled, \u201cor them measurements\u2019ll change before you get his new britches sewed.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben took a final draw on his pipe and set it aside.\u00a0 The hour was late, the house dark, except for the lamp burning beside him, and still, but for the rhythmic ticking of the tall clock on the opposite wall.\u00a0 The boys had long since been tucked into bed, and it was time he joined them, but Ben couldn\u2019t quite bring himself to face the loneliness of that empty bed.\u00a0 It had been a long day and a difficult one.\u00a0 He\u2019d managed to get away from the Thomases in time to get some work in, but he\u2019d found it hard to focus on chores, however needed, when his mind kept wandering . . . to exactly where it was wandering now . . . to a stagecoach rolling east.<\/p>\n

Wonder where<\/em>. . . .\u00a0 He smiled, recalling the boys\u2019 conversation at dinner.\u00a0 \u201cAdam in Haven now?\u201d Little Joe had asked earnestly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNew Haven,\u201d Hoss had been quick to correct, \u201cand \u2018course he ain\u2019t.\u00a0 It\u2019s a far piece, punkin.\u201d\u00a0 His nose had crinkled in thought.\u00a0 \u201cJust how far along is Adam by now, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben had taken a rough guess, as much as he could do now.\u00a0 Adam was still in Nevada Territory, of course, somewhere out in that rough desert country to the east, but having never traveled that direction by stage, Ben didn\u2019t know the schedule well enough to calculate just where.\u00a0 Did it matter?\u00a0 The boy isn\u2019t here; that\u2019s what matters.\u00a0\u00a0 Gone less than a day, and already the house feels empty without him . . . without her . . . emptiness upon emptiness.\u00a0 <\/em>Ben shook himself, made himself get up and bank the fire and head up the stairs.\u00a0 He stopped to look in on Hoss and Little Joe, who had chosen to sleep together in Hoss\u2019s room, no doubt to assuage each other\u2019s loneliness for their big brother.\u00a0 Ben drew up the rumpled sheet, all the cover needed on a warm August night, and placed a kiss on each sweaty temple.\u00a0 Neither boy stirred, although Hoss\u2019s soft snores were momentarily disrupted.<\/p>\n

Across the hall, he quietly opened the door to Adam\u2019s room.\u00a0 Pushed for time as the boy had been, he\u2019d left the room orderly.\u00a0 The only clutter was the items laid out for later shipping: clothes neatly folded, books tidily stacked and, of course, that bulky guitar, lying on the bed.\u00a0 That would take some careful packing, Ben mused with a smile.\u00a0 Well, he had time to figure that one out; he wouldn\u2019t ship anything until he heard from Adam and had an address for him.<\/p>\n

For just the briefest moment he allowed a fleeting thought that perhaps he wouldn\u2019t have to ship those things at all. \u00a0Then, chiding himself for the selfishness of wanting his son home, he breathed a prayer that Adam would successfully pass his entrance exams and start down the path toward his individual dream.\u00a0 I want him to have his dream<\/em>, Ben reminded himself as he walked down the hall.\u00a0 Just never expected it to be divided from my own<\/em>.\u00a0 Entering his own room, he sighed as he contemplated another night alone in a bed too large for one.\u00a0 He\u2019d never expected that, either.\u00a0 Despite his previous losses, he\u2019d never expected to sleep alone again.\u00a0 Should he have foreseen tragedy piled upon tragedy?\u00a0 Ben shook his head.\u00a0 No, a man couldn\u2019t live that way; if he did, he missed all the blessings, too.<\/p>\n

Blessings he\u2019d had, more than many men twice his age.\u00a0 In remembrance of them, he went to the massive rosewood armoire that Marie had selected in New Orleans and from the bottom drawer drew out two framed portraits, one of Hoss\u2019s mother Inger and the other of Adam\u2019s mother Elizabeth.\u00a0 They were in the drawer because Marie had been uncomfortable with having them displayed.\u00a0 Oh, she\u2019d never said anything; he\u2019d just sensed her insecurity, so when they\u2019d moved here, he\u2019d put them away, to be gazed at only in private moments.\u00a0 Now\u2014now that she was with the originals of the portraits\u2014he thought Marie would understand, and he wanted to hold all his blessings close.\u00a0 He set the frames side by side on his bedside table, gazing a long time at the likeness of Elizabeth.\u00a0 \u201cKeep him safe, my love,\u201d he whispered.\u00a0 He kissed his fingers and touched them to her face first and then to Inger\u2019s.\u00a0 Finally, he got into bed, gave Marie\u2019s empty pillow the same sort of kiss and with a strangled cry buried his face in the downy depths that had once cushioned her golden head.<\/p>\n

CHAPTER TWO<\/h3>\n

Trail Lessons<\/p>\n

Chattering with enthusiasm, Little Joe swung his feet frenetically beneath the dining room table.\u00a0\u00a0 His curly head bobbed with energy to emphasize each point he was making.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, that\u2019s all very interesting, Joseph,\u201d Ben said, picking up the child\u2019s fork and placing it once again into his left hand, \u201cbut you need to finish your breakfast.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot hungry, Pa,\u201d Little Joe insisted, letting the fork drop, \u201cand it\u2019s \u2018bout time for us to hit the trail, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s lips twitched with amusement as he picked up the utensil yet again.\u00a0 \u201cSoon, but a real wrangler would never \u2018hit the trail\u2019 on an empty stomach, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe ain\u2019t much of a wrangler,\u201d a glum-faced Hoss mumbled into a plate as neglected as that of his younger brother.<\/p>\n

The amusement faded from Ben\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cWhat was that, Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cNothin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA lie is a poor way to start the day, young man,\u201d Ben said sternly.<\/p>\n

Hoss squirmed and, seeing no alternative, answered honestly this time.\u00a0 \u201cI said he ain\u2019t much of a wrangler.\u201d\u00a0 Ignoring the scowl on his brother\u2019s face, he added, \u201cI\u2019d make a better one, Pa; you know I would.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sighed.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, we\u2019ve been all through this, more than once.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d the boy agreed perfunctorily.\u00a0 Pa had, after all, spoken the plain truth, no arguing that.\u00a0 They had been through all the reasons he couldn\u2019t go on the trail drive, over and over again.\u00a0 Well, there was only one reason, a bad one in Hoss\u2019s book, but there\u2019d been no talkin\u2019 Pa out of it.\u00a0 School had started just one week ago, and Pa insisted that he couldn\u2019t afford to miss a string of days so soon after starting.\u00a0 Missing the trip to California just to bury his nose in a book, on the other hand, seemed a pure waste of time to Hoss.<\/p>\n

He hadn\u2019t gotten truly disgruntled, though, until he\u2019d learned that Little Joe was going on the drive when he couldn\u2019t.\u00a0 He\u2019d come close to earning a trip over Pa\u2019s knee for the fit he\u2019d pitched when that was announced.\u00a0 He understood about Joe, honest he did.\u00a0 The poor little kid had screamed in terror when Pa told him that he was going away for a spell.\u00a0 For Pa to leave, on top of Mama and Adam both disappearing, was just plain more than the little fellow could take, and fearing that Little Joe would have nightmares every night he was gone, Pa\u2019d decided to just take the baby with him.\u00a0 Joe\u2019d been yappin\u2019 a mile a minute ever since.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m a big boy now, Hoss,\u201d he\u2019d chirped gaily.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m goin\u2019 on roundup.\u201d\u00a0 All that eagerness had been hard for Hoss to swallow when he couldn\u2019t share it himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cCheer up, Hoss,\u201d Ben said now with forced brightness.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re going to enjoy staying with your friend.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded.\u00a0 Staying over with Pete Hanson was the one sunny spot on his horizon.\u00a0 It had come about when Diego, who usually handled the chuck wagon on trail drives, had taken a bad fall and broken his arm.\u00a0 Hop Sing had offered to take his place, and for a moment Hoss had thought that meant that he, too, would be going, since he couldn\u2019t very well stay home alone.\u00a0 Then Pa\u2019d come up with the idea of asking the Hansons if he could stay with them and they\u2019d said yes.\u00a0 Pete was excited about it, and Hoss guessed he should be, too, but he sort of felt like he was gettin\u2019 stuck with second best, especially when Pa talked nonsense, like callin\u2019 Little Joe a wrangler.\u00a0 Some wrangler!<\/p>\n

Hop Sing bustled in from the kitchen and stood glowering at the food still on the plates.\u00a0 \u201cWhy boys all-a-time play with food?\u201d he demanded.<\/p>\n

Ben arched a regal eyebrow.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t believe they are.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot eat, same as play,\u201d the cook scolded.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing want leave kitchen clean.\u00a0 No can \u2018til have plates for wash.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gestured toward the one in front of him.\u00a0 \u201cTake mine, then; I\u2019m finished.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too,\u201d Hoss insisted, pushing his forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too,\u201d Little Joe added in chorus.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Joseph, you\u2019re not,\u201d Ben said firmly.\u00a0 \u201cPlease take a few more bites.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced at Hoss\u2019s plate.\u00a0 Not as clean as the boy normally left it, but at least his middle son had eaten enough to tide him over until noon.\u00a0 \u201cIf you\u2019ve finished eating, Hoss, get your things together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI got my bag packed already,\u201d Hoss said, wiping his mouth with a red-checked napkin.\u00a0 \u201cJust got to get it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou pack plenty clean clothes?\u201d Hop Sing asked.\u00a0 \u201cPlenty soap?\u201d<\/p>\n

Halfway to the stairs, Hoss turned.\u00a0 \u201cNot soap.\u00a0 Miz Hanson\u2019ll have soap.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou take,\u201d Hop Sing insisted.\u00a0 \u201cWash hands, behind ears ev\u2019ly day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, that\u2019s not necessary,\u201d Ben began, but the cook interrupted him.<\/p>\n

\u201cVelly nes\u2019saly.\u00a0 Hop Sing not want Missy Hanson think he raise dirty boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben exhaled loudly.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t mean washing wasn\u2019t necessary.\u00a0 Of course, Hoss will wash.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBehind ears.\u201d\u00a0 The cook punctuated his dictate with a crisp bob of his chin.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, behind his ears,\u201d Ben agreed with strained patience, \u201cbut he doesn\u2019t need to take soap.\u00a0 Mrs. Hanson might think we were insinuating that she couldn\u2019t provide for a guest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing pondered a moment.\u00a0 \u201cShe lose face?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben grasped the analogy like a drowning man.\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u00a0 She would lose face.\u201d<\/p>\n

The cook nodded soberly.\u00a0 It was a concept he understood.\u00a0 \u201cAll light.\u00a0 Not send soap.\u201d\u00a0 He frowned.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing bake cookies for Hoss take with him.\u00a0 That make lose face?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, that\u2019s all right, a gift for all to share,\u201d Ben assured him.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll light.\u00a0 Hop Sing wrap for take.\u201d\u00a0 Gathering up the soiled plates, he exited to the kitchen, shaking his head.\u00a0 Soap bad, cookies good.\u00a0 American ways most puzzling.<\/em><\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben rested a broad palm on his middle son\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cAll set?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss finished attaching his book strap to his saddle.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hearing the disconsolate tone in the boy\u2019s voice, Ben smiled gently.\u00a0 \u201cI know you\u2019re disappointed, son, but this really will be for the best.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not trusting himself to speak, Hoss merely nodded, but the gesture conveyed no confidence.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know I don\u2019t have to tell you to be a good boy, \u2018cause you always are.\u201d\u00a0 Ben gave Hoss a hearty hug.\u00a0 \u201cNow, go say goodbye to your little brother and be off.\u00a0 Don\u2019t want you late to school.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir.\u201d\u00a0 Still dragging his feet, Hoss walked toward Little Joe, who was supervising Hop Sing as he loaded the last of the supplies in the cook wagon.\u00a0 \u201cHey, punkin, time to say goodbye.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe looked confused for a moment, and then his face contorted.\u00a0 \u201cNo!\u201d he screamed and grabbed Hoss about the knees.<\/p>\n

Hoss patted his brother\u2019s curly head.\u00a0 \u201cHey, I\u2019ll miss you, too, but I got to go, else I\u2019ll be late to school.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo!\u201d Little Joe shrieked.\u00a0 \u201cYou come with me!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss gulped.\u00a0 There was nothing he\u2019d like better, but Pa had made it clear that he had to stay behind and go to school.\u00a0 Still, staying wasn\u2019t his idea, so he didn\u2019t think he should have to be the one to explain it to Little Joe.\u00a0 He glanced over at his father and shrugged.<\/p>\n

Ben strode swiftly up behind his youngest and took hold of his arms.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph, turn loose of your brother,\u201d he ordered.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Little Joe declared defiantly, clinging all the tighter.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, Joseph, we\u2019ve been all through this.\u201d\u00a0 He stopped short in sudden realization.\u00a0 True, he\u2019d repeatedly been through the subject with Hoss, but he hadn\u2019t discussed it at all with Little Joe.\u00a0 He\u2019d assumed the child had overheard and understood his conversations with Hoss.\u00a0 Evidently, a critical mistake.<\/p>\n

\u201cSon, brother has to go to school,\u201d he explained patiently now, as he gently pulled the recalcitrant arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo!\u00a0 I hate school!\u201d\u00a0 Joe raised pleading eyes to his father.\u00a0 \u201cI want my brother.\u00a0 Him and you and me and Hop Sing, all together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben forcefully detached the clinging vine and gathered the now sobbing child into his arms.\u00a0 \u201cWhy, Little Joe,\u201d he cajoled, \u201cI thought you were a big boy now, big enough to go on roundup.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Hoss.\u201d\u00a0 The little boy\u2019s expressive emerald eyes, so reminiscent of his mother\u2019s, shimmered and threatened to spill over.\u00a0 His lower lip quivered as he added, \u201cI\u2019m big enough to go with Hoss . . . and you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd Hop Sing,\u201d the cook added.<\/p>\n

Ben glared at the Oriental.\u00a0 \u201cThat was not a helpful addition!\u201d<\/p>\n

With an eloquent shrug Hop Sing turned back to his work, resolving to let Number Three Son work his magic alone.\u00a0 Such speaking eyes the child had!\u00a0 His honorable father would read their message, whether he listened to words or not.<\/p>\n

Little Joe patted his father\u2019s cheek urgently.\u00a0 \u201cPlease, Pa . . . Hoss, too.\u00a0 He be lonely without me and I be lonely without him.\u00a0 We needs us, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hope sparkled in Hoss\u2019s alpine blue eyes.\u00a0 Could Little Joe do what he\u2019d found impossible, sway Pa into letting him go to California, too?\u00a0 \u201cWe needs us, Pa,\u201d he whispered tentatively.<\/p>\n

Ben looked from one son to the other, and in that moment he understood that all of them were coping with loss, not just him and not just Little Joe.\u00a0 They\u2019d all lost Marie, and in a way that must seem almost as permanent to his younger sons, they\u2019d all lost Adam.\u00a0 Hoss had said little about his feelings over either loss, but he, too, was aching, Ben realized.\u00a0 He might not have nightmares like Little Joe, but for him, as well, it was too soon to be separated from the only family he had left.\u00a0 Slowly, Ben nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYeah . . . we needs us,\u201d he sighed.\u00a0 He straightened and squared his shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, I want you to mount up and\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo!\u201d Little Joe wailed.<\/p>\n

\u201cHush now,\u201d Ben soothed, patting the small back.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re going to get your way, little tyrant.\u201d\u00a0 He gazed at his middle son.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, first put your carpetbag in the wagon; then mount up and ride over to the Hansons.\u00a0 Tell them I greatly appreciate their willingness to board you, but I\u2019ve decided to take you with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHooray!\u201d Hoss whooped, tossing his hat into the air.\u00a0 \u201cThanks, punkin!\u201d<\/p>\n

Thanks, punkin?<\/em>\u00a0 For a moment Ben looked irked; then his countenance softened.\u00a0 Why should he expect thanks himself?\u00a0 After all, it was Little Joe who had insured that his brother was coming, and everyone in the yard clearly knew it.\u00a0 \u201cGet on with you,\u201d he scolded playfully.\u00a0 \u201cMeet us down at the meadow where the herd is gathered.\u00a0 Oh, and give Mrs. Hanson those cookies to make amends for any trouble she\u2019s gone to.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir!\u201d\u00a0 Hoss snatched his carpetbag from his horse and tossed it into the back of the wagon.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet the books, too.\u00a0 You will be doing some lessons on this trip, boy.\u201d\u00a0 Ben shook his head.\u00a0 Had he taken leave of his senses?\u00a0 Trailing a herd over the mountains was tough enough, without caring for a four-year-old and now tutoring a schoolboy added into the mix.\u00a0 He turned to see Hop Sing gazing at him with a knowing smile.\u00a0 \u201cWhat are you staring at?\u00a0 If you\u2019re loaded, head on out to the herd.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing continued to smile as he slowly shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNot quite loaded, Mistah Cahtlight.\u00a0 Have extra man feed now; need little mo\u2019 food.\u201d\u00a0 He paused, considering Hoss\u2019s appetite.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe lot more.\u00a0 Not Hop Sing fault: you tell him this many men, he take this much food; you not tell him you change mind.\u201d\u00a0 With an inimical smile he turned toward the kitchen, ostensibly to gather extra supplies for that extra hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m gonna gain a reputation as the softest touch on the Comstock,\u201d Ben muttered to himself.\u00a0 He held Little Joe high over his head and grinned broadly.\u00a0 \u201cAnd do you know whose fault that is?\u00a0 Do you, hmm?\u00a0 That\u2019s right, little boy\u2014yours!\u201d\u00a0 He pulled the giggling child close to his chest and joined in the infectious laughter.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0In the flickering firelight Ben saw his two younger sons frolicking in a self-styled version of tag.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, Little Joe\u2014come here,\u201d he called.<\/p>\n

Tired of the chase, Hoss reached for Little Joe\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cCome on, punkin.\u00a0 Pa\u2019s callin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe scampered just out of reach.\u00a0 \u201cI wanna play some more.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThought you wanted to be a wrangler,\u201d Hoss said with just a hint of reproof.<\/p>\n

Little Joe thrust out his lower lip.\u00a0 \u201cI am a wrangler.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cWrangler has to do what the trail boss says and you ain\u2019t, so you must not be a wrangler.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAm, too,\u201d Little Joe insisted, hurrying back to his brother\u2019s side.\u00a0 \u201cWe go see what the trail boss wants now?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned then.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, let\u2019s do that.\u201d\u00a0 Taking Little Joe\u2019s hand, he led him back to their father.\u00a0 \u201cYou wanted us, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sitting near the campfire, Ben patted the ground next to him.\u00a0 \u201cTime for lessons, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss scowled.\u00a0 \u201cAw, Pa, it\u2019s too dark to read.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cAdam wouldn\u2019t have thought so, but I agree.\u00a0 No books tonight, just a geography lesson, of sorts.\u00a0 Sit down, boys.\u201d\u00a0 He reached for Little Joe and placed the child between his legs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t go to school, Pa,\u201d the four-year-old protested.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m too little.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOnly for formal schooling.\u00a0 You\u2019re not too little to learn, sweetheart,\u201d Ben said, kissing the rampant curls.\u00a0 \u201cDid you notice all the bright stars tonight?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe looked up at the pinpoints of light in the sky.\u00a0 \u201cLots,\u201d he agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you know that the stars have names?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s eyes widened at the innumerable lights.\u00a0 \u201cAll of \u2018em?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben rumpled his son\u2019s hair.\u00a0 \u201cWell, maybe not all, but many do.\u201d\u00a0 He pointed to a group.\u00a0 \u201cLike those.\u00a0 I\u2019ll bet Hoss can tell you their name.\u201d\u00a0 He arched an inquiring eyebrow toward his other son.<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t mind lessons one bit when he knew the answers, and Pa had taught him this long ago.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s the Big Dipper.\u201d\u00a0 He traced his finger from star to star, outlining the shape.\u00a0 \u201cSee, Little Joe?\u00a0 Don\u2019t it look just like the dipper that hangs by our well back home?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe nodded vigorously.\u00a0 \u201cWho drinks out of that dipper, huh, Hoss?\u00a0 God, maybe?\u201d\u00a0 His eyes brightened suddenly.\u00a0 \u201cMama?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe,\u201d Ben agreed quickly, seeing Hoss\u2019s perplexed expression.\u00a0 \u201cIt isn\u2019t a real dipper, though, Little Joe, just a picture of one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA star picture,\u201d Little Joe said, sounding awed.<\/p>\n

\u201cA star picture . . . and an important one,\u201d his father continued.\u00a0 \u201cEvery night while we\u2019re on the trail I want you to show me where that star picture is, Little Joe.\u00a0 Do you remember why it\u2019s important, Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, Pa,\u201d the other boy replied readily.\u00a0 He ran his finger on a line from the two stars at one end of the dipper until it pointed to another.\u00a0 \u201cIt shows the way to the North Star, and if we know where north is, we can always find our way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled.\u00a0 \u201cSo, which way is home?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss lowered his finger to the horizon.\u00a0 \u201cThat way\u2014north.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd which way is California?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss pointed to the left, where a range of mountains lay.\u00a0 \u201cWest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow point toward Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a grin Hoss swung his arm to the opposite side.\u00a0 \u201cThat way\u2014back East.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam in Haven now?\u201d Little Joe asked, staring east.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019d better be,\u201d Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s supposed to sit for that entrance exam tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou reckon he\u2019ll pass, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked.\u00a0 \u201cAdam said it was a real hard test.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, probably the hardest he\u2019s ever taken.\u201d\u00a0 A wistful look crossed Ben\u2019s face as he thought of his oldest son, so far away, poised on the brink of a great adventure.\u00a0 \u201cBoys, I think we should pray for your brother tonight, that God will help him on that test tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe crawled over his father\u2019s leg.\u00a0 \u201cNuh-uh.\u00a0 I\u2019m gonna pray he don\u2019t<\/em> do good; so\u2019s he\u2019ll come home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben pulled his youngest back into his lap.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph, that\u2019s a very selfish prayer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t care.\u201d\u00a0 A petulant pout emphasized his point.<\/p>\n

Ben tilted the tiny chin upward.\u00a0 \u201cGod doesn\u2019t like us to be selfish, Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t like God much, either.\u00a0 He takes people \u2018way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe!\u201d\u00a0 Hoss sounded as if he expected a bolt of lightning to strike his baby brother any second.<\/p>\n

Remembering his own brief rejection of God after Marie\u2019s death, Ben smiled softly.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s all right, Hoss.\u00a0 God\u2019s big enough to deal with a little boy\u2019s anger.\u201d\u00a0 He cuddled Joe close.\u00a0 \u201cIt isn\u2019t fair to wish your big brother bad luck, Little Joe.\u00a0 He\u2019s always been good to you, hasn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n

Reluctantly, Little Joe nodded.\u00a0 \u201cHe can\u2019t be good to me in Haven,\u201d he argued.<\/p>\n

Ben brushed a drooping tendril from the child\u2019s forehead.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I don\u2019t know about that.\u00a0 Maybe he can, somehow, but one thing I know for sure: he wouldn\u2019t pray for bad things to happen to you.\u00a0 I bet he\u2019s praying that God will take good care of you and keep you safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2014I want him safe,\u201d Little Joe whispered.<\/p>\n

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

\u201cHappy, too,\u201d Little Joe agreed after a brief hesitation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen you need to pray that he\u2019ll pass that test,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbecause Adam won\u2019t be happy if he doesn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe sighed deeply and slowly.\u00a0 \u201cOkay.\u201d\u00a0 He folded his hands, as his mother had taught him, and his high-pitched voice piped a simple\u2014and remarkably reluctant\u2014prayer: \u201cDear God, keep Adam safe and make him happy in Haven and\u2014and do it fast, so\u2019s he can come home soon, okay?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled as he tousled the child\u2019s chestnut locks.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s a good prayer, though I don\u2019t think that last part\u2019s going to get answered very soon.\u00a0 Now, it\u2019s time for all little wranglers to wrap up in their bedrolls.\u00a0 We have to be up early tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTo make up for today, huh, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked as he spread his bedroll below his upturned saddle.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 Waiting for Hoss to return from the Hansons meant the drive had gotten a late start that morning.\u00a0 As a consequence, the herd was bedded down just north of Genoa, miles shy of where Ben had planned to be tonight.\u00a0 He spread his bedroll not far from Hoss and fixed a pallet of blankets between them for Little Joe.\u00a0 Pulling up his own blanket against the chill of the September evening, he gazed at the stars and let his mind drift eastward to his oldest son.\u00a0 Heavenly Father, be with him.\u00a0 Like Little Joe, I want him home, but not at the cost of his dream.\u00a0 Make it possible for him, as you\u2019ve made my dreams possible for me.\u00a0 You know how tired he\u2019ll be after his long journey, with no time to rest up before that important test.\u00a0 Give him the strength he needs and<\/em>\u2014<\/p>\n

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

A little body snuggled up against him.\u00a0 Ben turned toward his son and saw Joe\u2019s tiny arm stretched over his head.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s north\u2014Ponderosa,\u201d a sleepy voice mumbled.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right.\u201d\u00a0 Ben stroked the boy\u2019s forehead.<\/p>\n

Joe pointed toward the mountains.\u00a0 \u201cWest\u2014California.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShh\u2014go to sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n

The little arm flung itself across Hoss\u2019s slowly rising chest. \u00a0\u201cEast\u2014Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben drew Joe\u2019s arm back before his brother awoke and tucked the covers snugly around him again.\u00a0 \u201cVery good, son.\u00a0 Now, go to sleep!\u201d<\/p>\n

With a gaping yawn Joe cuddled closer and drifted into his dreams.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are a precious nuisance,\u201d Ben whispered just before he dropped a kiss on the smooth forehead.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0The hand holding the reins also encircled the waist of his youngest son as Ben leaned forward in the saddle and pointed ahead with the other hand.\u00a0 \u201cYou know what that is, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe frowned in thought.\u00a0 \u201cWest\u2014California?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cYes, yes, it\u2019s west\u2014well, more like southwest, but close enough\u2014and we\u2019re already in California.\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head, ruing the day he\u2019d shown Little Joe the north star and the points of the compass.\u00a0 Every night since then he\u2019d been awakened by a groggy recitation of the information.\u00a0 \u201cI wasn\u2019t asking the direction, son.\u00a0 Do you recognize that town up ahead?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNot Haven; it\u2019s east.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben rolled his eyes.\u00a0 Would this child never stop with the geographical liturgy?\u00a0 \u201cNo, not New Haven.\u00a0 That\u2019s Placerville, son, and do you remember who lives in Placerville?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMama Zue-Zue\u2014\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe frowned in frustration as the word refused to come out.<\/p>\n

\u201cZuebner,\u201d Hoss, who was riding at his father\u2019s side, finished for him.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah!\u201d Little Joe said, face beaming.\u00a0 \u201cGood food!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s for sure!\u201d Hoss agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd good friends, too, you little greedy bellies,\u201d Ben chided playfully.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, Pa, I wasn\u2019t forgettin\u2019 that,\u201d Hoss cackled, \u201cbut I\u2019m lookin\u2019 forward to somethin\u2019 besides trail grub.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben guffawed and then collected himself.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t let Hop Sing hear you say that, boy, or you\u2019ll be eatin\u2019 my cooking on the trail home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned.\u00a0 \u201cNo, sir, Pa; I got sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sense.\u00a0 Ben had to smile.\u00a0 Nothing about this trip made sense.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen the men\u2019s faces when they realized he was bringing along a four-year-old.\u00a0 Complete disdain, and Ben couldn\u2019t blame them.\u00a0 Little Joe had been every bit as much\u2014no, more\u2014trouble as he\u2019d expected.\u00a0 He\u2019d entertained foolish notions of the child riding with Hop Sing in the cook wagon, but soon learned that Little Joe would have none of that.\u00a0 Oh, no, he was a wrangler; and wranglers, however small, spent all day in the saddle.\u00a0 Ben had lost that battle the first morning and had shared his saddle with his son ever since.\u00a0 Needing to protect, he\u2019d held out against letting Little Joe ride with his brother until late the second afternoon, when there\u2019d been a problem with the herd.\u00a0 Keeping Joe in his own saddle then would have been more dangerous than trusting Hoss, so Ben had made a quick transfer and ordered both his sons to safety.\u00a0 Thereafter, the two older Cartwrights had alternated as saddle companions for the youngest, and while the sight of Little Joe on a horse still reminded Ben vividly of the way the child\u2019s mother had died, he had to admit that Little Joe was just as safe with his brother as with his father.<\/p>\n

The men\u2019s opinion of him as a doting father had only been augmented as they waited for Hoss to join them that first day, for they all knew he hadn\u2019t originally been part of the crew.\u00a0 Accustomed to working with him during the summer, however, they\u2019d quickly accepted him, and Hoss had easily proven his value as a trail hand.\u00a0 For that matter, the men had seemed to delight in having both youngsters along, especially lively Little Joe.\u00a0 No matter how tired they were when camp was made, the men not standing night guard managed to find energy to romp with the little fellow and his bigger brother, who readily switched from willing worker to child-at-play when the opportunity arose.\u00a0 And Ben found that he relished having his children with him, even looked forward to that little body crowding up against his and that groggy recitation of north, east and west, as it related to the Ponderosa, New Haven and California.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201cUncle Ben!\u201d\u00a0 The girlish squeal of delight belied the womanly dignity signified by the upturned flaxen hair.<\/p>\n

Ben still preferred the braids the girl had worn along the trail.\u00a0 \u201cHello, Marta,\u201d he said with a fond smile.\u00a0 \u201cCan you seat three hungry wranglers?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, of course.\u201d\u00a0 She started to lead them toward a table by the front window.\u00a0 \u201cOnly three?\u201d\u00a0 She wagged an admonishing finger.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t tell me you made Adam stay with the herd.\u00a0 You know how I relish seeing him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs would I, my dear, as would I.\u201d\u00a0 Seeing her look of perplexity, he explained quickly.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u2019s gone back East to continue his education.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta touched a slender hand to her rosy cheek.\u00a0 \u201cOh, my, that\u2019s a surprise.\u00a0 I thought . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs did I,\u201d Ben murmured, a trace of sadness tingeing his tone, \u201cbut Adam had other ideas, and young people are entitled to their dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Marta said softly, making Ben wonder what dreams of her own this young woman might be keeping from her mother, as Adam had kept his from his father.\u00a0 \u201cWell, do sit down,\u201d the young woman urged.\u00a0 \u201cWe have oxtail stew today.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd strudel?\u201d Hoss asked eagerly.<\/p>\n

She shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, but Mama did bake a delicious cake with thick, creamy icing, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI want some,\u201d he said with a decisive nod.<\/p>\n

\u201cStew and cake all around,\u201d Ben ordered, \u201cand I\u2019d like to see your mother if she has time to come out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019ll make time,\u201d Marta assured him.\u00a0 She started toward the kitchen and then turned back.\u00a0 \u201cMr. Thomas wrote us of your loss,\u201d she said awkwardly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m so sorry, Uncle Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded acceptance of her condolences, but said nothing.<\/p>\n

When she saw clouds form in Hoss\u2019s sky-blue eyes, the girl bit her lip, fearing she had spoken amiss, and hurried to the kitchen.<\/p>\n

Within minutes Ludmilla Zuebner scurried out from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron.\u00a0 As she squatted down between the chairs occupied by Hoss and Little Joe, she put an arm around each.\u00a0 \u201cAch, meine lieblinge<\/em>,\u201d she cried.\u00a0 \u201cMeine armen lieblinge<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neither of the Cartwright boys had the slightest idea what she had said, but they each understood the sympathy behind the sobbed words, and each fell into her arms.\u00a0 Ben blinked back a tear at this fresh evidence of how much his sons still yearned for a woman\u2019s\u2014a mother\u2019s\u2014affection.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s . . . good to see you, Ludmilla,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Ludmilla stood and wrapped Ben in her warm and ample embrace, just as she had the boys.\u00a0 For a moment he felt embarrassed, fearful of displaying his emotions in public, but then he yielded to the comfort he needed as much as Hoss and Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cI thought this was all behind me,\u201d he choked.<\/p>\n

Realizing he was referring to the loss of two wives before Marie, Ludmilla held him tighter.\u00a0 \u201cIs behind,\u201d she promised.\u00a0 \u201cIs life ahead for you, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben broke and began to sob unashamedly.\u00a0 Life ahead.\u00a0 Exactly what he had promised Marie after the duel at the Plantation Allard, when she had said that death followed her.\u00a0 Life ahead\u2014a promise fulfilled, though cut short of what it should have been\u2014but their brief time together, what vibrant life it had been!\u00a0 He lifted his head from Ludmilla\u2019s shoulder and his loving gaze fell on Little Joe\u2019s sprite-like face, upturned in concern.\u00a0 And what life it had produced!\u00a0 \u201cForgive me,\u201d he whispered, with a swipe at his damp cheeks.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs good you cry,\u201d the German woman insisted.\u00a0 \u201cTo hold in is\u2014is\u201d\u2014she floundered for the right words in English\u2014\u201cgreater pain.\u201d\u00a0 She patted his shoulder consolingly.\u00a0 \u201cYou sit, eat.\u00a0 Tonight, you come to my house.\u00a0 We talk . . . of my Fredrich and your Marie, yah?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYah,\u201d Ben said with gratitude.\u00a0 Sometimes, in his grief, he forgot that others had faced loss, too, and he was grateful for the reminder and for the chance to talk openly with someone who would understand exactly what he felt.\u00a0 \u201cYes, tonight we will talk . . . of your Fredrich and my Marie.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben tenderly tucked the covers around his youngest son and bent to kiss him good night.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa,\u201d Little Joe whimpered plaintively.\u00a0 \u201cI miss Mama.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sat down beside the child.\u00a0 \u201cI know, son.\u201d\u00a0 He smoothed the unruly curls and smiled gently.\u00a0 \u201cI miss her, too.\u201d\u00a0 Words he\u2019d hesitated to speak aloud before, but somehow they came more easily after the evening of sharing with Ludmilla and her family.\u00a0 Probably the reason his baby could say them now, too, for both Joe and Hoss had listened, enrapt, to the conversation.<\/p>\n

Little Joe smiled back, yawned and snuggled down in the covers.\u00a0 \u201cNight, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood night, Little Joe.\u201d\u00a0 Ben stood and made his way back into the outer room of their suite at the El Dorado Hotel.<\/p>\n

Hoss looked up from the table, where he was struggling with an arithmetic problem.\u00a0 \u201cPa, I could use some help with this one.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben at once came to stand over his second son\u2019s chair.\u00a0 \u201cYou forgot to carry the two,\u201d he said, pointing at the column of figures.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss quickly rubbed out the wrong number and added two to it.\u00a0 \u201cThat works.\u00a0 Thanks, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re welcome.\u201d\u00a0 Ben gave the boy\u2019s sandy head a soft pat and started toward the settee across the room.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s voice sounded as plaintive as had his little brother\u2019s earlier.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014I sure liked hearing you talk about Ma with Mama Zuebner.\u00a0 Her and my other ma, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Momentarily, a lump caught in Ben\u2019s throat.\u00a0 \u201cLeave the books for now, Hoss,\u201d he urged.\u00a0 \u201cCome sit with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss came gladly and nestled up against his father on the settee.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt good to talk about them,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cWe haven\u2019t done enough of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cI thought, maybe, you didn\u2019t want to . . . that it . . . hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt does . . . some,\u201d Ben answered honestly, \u201cbut I think Ludmilla was right when she said holding it in made a greater hurt.\u00a0 Anytime you want to talk about your ma, Hoss\u2014either one of them\u2014you let me know, and we\u2019ll talk.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s eyes sparkled, and an almost shy smile touched his lips.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s kinda hard to remember what she looked like\u2014my first ma, I mean.\u00a0 There used to be a picture . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben wrapped an arm about the boy\u2019s shoulders and squeezed.\u00a0 \u201cThere still is; it\u2019s in my room.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCould I see it sometime?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, you can.\u00a0 In fact, I\u2019ve been thinking that I might bring it downstairs and set it on the desk by Mama\u2019s\u2014and Adam\u2019s mother, too.\u00a0 You think that would be all right?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss beamed.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, Pa.\u00a0 I\u2019d like that a lot.\u00a0 I could see her anytime I wanted then.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t think Little Joe will mind?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019ll like seein\u2019 \u2018em, knowin\u2019 what they looked like.\u00a0 They\u2019re\u2014they\u2019re part of him, too, ain\u2019t they, even if he never knew \u2018em?\u00a0 Like Adam\u2019s ma is part mine, \u2018cause she gave me him?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben planted a warm kiss on his middle son\u2019s broad brow.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, my boy, you are wise beyond your years.\u00a0 Yes, they\u2019re all part of all of us, and it\u2019s time we let that be shown plainly.\u00a0 First thing I do when we get home is set all three of those pictures on my desk.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll help you bring \u2018em down,\u201d Hoss offered.<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 He was quite capable of carrying two pictures by himself, but he sensed Hoss\u2019s need to participate.\u00a0 \u201cAll right, son.\u00a0 You can carry your ma\u2019s picture.\u00a0 Now, I think you have a few more arithmetic problems to work out . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

Not even the thought of lessons could dim the brightness of Hoss\u2019s smile.<\/p>\n

CHAPTER THREE<\/p>\n

Fire and Fools<\/p>\n

Ben leaned back in his green leather desk chair and with his right hand massaged the aching muscles at the back of his neck.\u00a0 Paperwork\u2014there was nothing he hated more, especially at the end of a long day.\u00a0 They\u2019d only arrived back on the Ponderosa late that afternoon, and there\u2019d been myriad details to tend to since then.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t found an opportunity to open the books and record the results of the successful cattle drive until after the boys were in bed.\u00a0 He smiled.\u00a0 Nothing unusual about that.\u00a0 The boys always commanded his attention whenever they were up and about, and he wouldn\u2019t have it any other way.<\/p>\n

As his eyes fell on the three framed portraits gracing the corner of his desk, he chuckled.\u00a0 Nothing would satisfy Hoss except bringing those pictures of his mother and Adam\u2019s downstairs the minute they walked through the front door.\u00a0 Pa had said \u201cfirst thing,\u201d and the boy had taken the promise quite literally.\u00a0 Then, since the pictures were completely new to Little Joe, he\u2019d had to take the little lad on his lap and help him understand the family history.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t sure it had all sunk in, but there\u2019d be other nights, and there were definitely more stories to tell.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019ll know you all, my loves,\u201d Ben promised.\u00a0 \u201cBoth of them will.\u201d\u00a0 He spared a wistful wish that Adam could be there, too, to listen to those stories and share his own memories, but Adam was back East, making fresh ones.\u00a0 It would be a long time before that son could join them around the fireplace and share his memories, old or new.\u00a0 When they\u2019d come home this afternoon, a telegram had been waiting, slipped under the door.\u00a0 Just a few brief words, giving the basic facts and his boy\u2019s new address, but Ben could read between the lines well enough to visualize how excited Adam had been to pass his exams at Yale.\u00a0 He was excited for the boy, too, though the thought of four years without his eldest son sometimes seemed as crushing as the lifetime ahead without Marie . . . or Inger . . . or Elizabeth.<\/p>\n

Shaking himself free of the sorrow that came rushing toward him, Ben stood and rounded the desk, just as the clock struck ten.\u00a0 That late?\u00a0 He had a full day\u2019s work ahead tomorrow, and it was time he was in bed, but he turned, instead, toward the front door.\u00a0 If he tried to sleep now, he was certain, all the figures he\u2019d been dealing with for the last couple of hours would just keep marching through his brain.\u00a0 A few minutes out in the cool, pine-scented air would relax him and help him sleep.<\/p>\n

He walked slowly, aimlessly, into the yard, no destination in mind, but found himself strolling toward the open area beyond the corral.\u00a0 Can\u2019t go far<\/em>, he advised himself, just need to stretch my legs a bit and work out the kinks in my muscles.\u00a0 Nothing puts kinks in a man\u2019s back like leaning over a set of figures, however favorable they might be<\/em>.\u00a0 These had been mighty favorable, too, he realized with a satisfied smile.\u00a0 The drive had been a success.\u00a0 Its proceeds would see them through the winter, even leave enough left over to send some extra funds to Adam, in case college expenses turned out to be more than they\u2019d estimated.<\/p>\n

He halted and took a deep breath of the fragrant air.\u00a0 Then his nose wrinkled.\u00a0 Something sharper than pine was wafting toward his nostrils, an acrid odor of wood smoke and . . . burning pitch!\u00a0 Following his nose, he looked toward the northwest, and the auburn reflection of the sky over the far ridge shot alarm through every nerve of his body.\u00a0 He turned and ran back toward the house.\u00a0 \u201cFire!\u201d he shouted.\u00a0 Reaching the house, he grabbed the rope of the bell hung in the front yard to signal an emergency and pulled it again and again, all the time yelling, \u201cFire!\u00a0 Every man out!\u201d<\/p>\n

Men in varying degrees of dishabille stumbled groggily out of the bunkhouse.\u00a0 Most looked first to the house or the barn before noticing the orange-red glow on the horizon.\u00a0 \u201cThat ain\u2019t on the Ponderosa,\u201d mumbled one, a man who had hired on just for the drive.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd we aim to see it stays that way!\u201d snapped Hank Carlton, one of the Ponderosa\u2019s regular hands.<\/p>\n

\u201cFire like that can go \u2018most anywheres,\u201d another agreed, \u201cand there\u2019s other settlers in them hills.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ignoring the discussion, Ben fired orders to gather shovels, hitch the wagon, saddle horses and \u201cstop that fire before it spreads!\u201d\u00a0 A couple of men, who hadn\u2019t been asked to stay on past the night, sneered their disdain of the orders, but most, regardless of whether they still had a job or not, had enough civic responsibility or zest for adventure to join the battle against the encroaching flames.<\/p>\n

As supplies were being gathered and transportation readied, the front door burst open, and the two youngest Cartwrights barreled into the yard, though it was more of a tumble in Little Joe\u2019s case.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong, Pa?\u201d Hoss cried.\u00a0 \u201cI heard the bell and come runnin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a fire up in the hills, son,\u201d Ben explained quickly.\u00a0 \u201cGo back inside and take Little Joe with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFire?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss looked toward the hills northwest of the house, and his eyes widened in alarm.\u00a0 \u201cI wanna help,\u201d he insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe . . . too,\u201d Little Joe chimed in, yawning between the two words.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t have time for this,\u201d Ben muttered, but though he knew that was true, he nonetheless took time to squat down in front of the two boys.\u00a0 \u201cSon,\u201d he said, directing his words toward Hoss, \u201cthe best help you can give is to take your little brother back to bed and make sure he stays there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, Pa,\u201d Hoss whined.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t Hop Sing see to him for once?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben said firmly as he stood to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s your brother, Hoss, and I expect you to \u2018see to him.\u2019\u00a0 No argument.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa,\u201d Little Joe whimpered.\u00a0 He stopped rubbing his eyes long enough to reach his arms up toward his father.<\/p>\n

Though he had no time to spare, Ben couldn\u2019t resist the plea.\u00a0 As men rushed around him, carrying out his orders, he lifted the boy up and instinctively tucked the little cold, bare feet inside his jacket.\u00a0 \u201cPa has to go, son,\u201d he whispered.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s a job to be done.\u00a0 You stay here with brother and be a good boy for Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe laid his head on his father\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cYou stay, Pa.\u00a0 Don\u2019t want you burned up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, precious,\u201d Ben soothed as he gave the child a comforting squeeze.\u00a0 \u201cPa isn\u2019t going to get burned up, I promise, but I have to go, so that fire doesn\u2019t burn up part of the Ponderosa or one of our neighbors\u2019 homes.\u00a0 Now, you go with brother.\u201d\u00a0 He set the child down and gave him a light shove toward the older boy.<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s mouth puckered with dissatisfaction, but he instinctively gathered Little Joe in and put his arm protectively around him.<\/p>\n

\u201cGot your horse saddled, Mr. Cartwright,\u201d Carlton called, leading Ben\u2019s bay gelding toward him.<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks, Hank,\u201d Ben said, taking the reins.\u00a0 He mounted and turned back toward the house, where his sons still stood, wide-eyed with apprehension.\u00a0 \u201cBack inside, boys,\u201d he urged.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s too chilly to be out in your nightshirts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss watched his father ride away and then hoisted Little Joe up on one hip.\u00a0 \u201cCome on, punkin.\u00a0 Time you was in bed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou, too,\u201d Little Joe dictated.\u00a0 \u201cPa said.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, shut up,\u201d Hoss growled, perturbed at the reminder that Pa had lumped him in with the baby.\u00a0 It made no sense to Hoss.\u00a0 Hadn\u2019t he done a man\u2019s work all summer in those same woods that were ablaze now?\u00a0 Didn\u2019t he have as much\u2014or more\u2014at stake as any of those trail hands?\u00a0 The Ponderosa was part and parcel of him, and by all rights he should be out there, protecting their land and their home alongside Pa, not snuggling under the covers like there was nothing going on.\u00a0 He\u2019d earned the right to be treated like a man, hadn\u2019t he?\u00a0 Not according to Pa!\u00a0 No, Pa was treating him like he was no older than Little Joe\u2014well, not much older, anyway.\u00a0 Pa might try to make it go down easier by pretending it was important for him to stay here and look after his baby brother, but what he was really doing was making sure both his little boys stayed safe.\u00a0 \u201cOnly I ain\u2019t a little boy,\u201d Hoss muttered under his breath.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss,\u201d Little Joe whimpered imploringly as his brother carried him up the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cYou sleep with me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, doggone you,\u201d Hoss started to grumble, but then he saw the terror shimmering in the depths of his little brother\u2019s emerald eyes.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I reckon so,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cGuess you best come into my bed, though.\u00a0 Don\u2019t much think I\u2019ll fit in yours.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe giggled at the picture of Hoss all scrunched up in his short bed and for a moment forgot his fear that the fire would take Pa away, the way a horse falling had taken his mother and a team of six of them had ripped Adam away.<\/p>\n

Hoss carried him up and put him in the mahogany four-poster and then crawled in after him.<\/p>\n

Little Joe snuggled close.\u00a0 \u201cPa be okay, Hoss?\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, Pa\u2019ll be fine,\u201d Hoss assured him.\u00a0 \u201cNow, get them cold feet off o\u2019 me and get to sleep!\u201d<\/p>\n

Thirty minutes later the first nightmare struck.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Trickles of perspiration carved rivulets down the sooty landscape of Ben Cartwright\u2019s rugged face as he leaned heavily on the handle of the shovel whose blade was sunk into blackened earth.<\/p>\n

Smudging the soot on his own forehead with a swipe of his sleeve, Hank Carlton ambled toward him.\u00a0 \u201cI think that\u2019s got it, Mr. Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I think so,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 \u201cTake a couple of men and ride the perimeter of the burned area, just to make sure.\u00a0 I\u2019m gonna head up that way, see if I can\u2019t discover what started this blaze.\u201d\u00a0 As he pointed north, he could almost hear his little son lisping, \u201cNorth\u2014home,\u201d and the memory of those nights on the trail brought a gentle smile to his lips.\u00a0 North wasn\u2019t home now\u2014thank God.\u00a0 If it had been, home could have been a huge ash heap tonight.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure you\u2019ll be all right alone, Mr. Ben?\u00a0 I could ride along with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cAppreciate the offer, Hank, but I know this land like the back of my hand.\u00a0 I\u2019ll be fine.\u00a0 Just check the perimeter and then get yourself some shut-eye.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two Ponderosa men walked back to the horses.\u00a0 Then Hank took the shovel from Ben.\u00a0 \u201cYou sure, boss?\u201d he asked again.\u00a0 \u201cIf this was a set fire . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s eyes went from grim to glinting.\u00a0 \u201cIf it was, someone will answer to me!\u201d\u00a0 The thought of an arsonist loose near the Ponderosa, endangering his home and his sons, appalled him, but he had to admit the possibility.\u00a0 There\u2019d been no hint of lightning on this cool September evening, so the fire had to have been the work of man, but whether by accident or intent, the signs, thus far, gave no clue.<\/p>\n

He followed the track of scorched earth to the shore of Lake Tahoe and then rode along its edge, looking for any indication of what could have started the fire.\u00a0 Finally, he came upon a manmade clearing and dismounted for a closer look.\u00a0 There were signs here of habitation: rough-hewn trunks, blackened tin cans, ash-covered plates.\u00a0 Someone had been living here, and by the awkward look of the blade strokes on nearby trees, someone who didn\u2019t possess many pioneering skills.<\/p>\n

Laughter filtered to him through the trees just to his north, but there was no trace of humor on Ben Cartwright\u2019s face as he followed the sound to the shore.\u00a0 Two men were pulling a boat out of the water, one of them shaking soot from his great bush of auburn hair.\u00a0 \u201cSuperb!\u201d he was crying to his companion.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll never see the like of that again, Johnny!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI would hope not!\u201d Ben roared.\u00a0 \u201cAre you two the fools behind this infernal blaze?\u201d<\/p>\n

The men looked startled, but then the auburn-haired one came forward, waving a languid greeting.\u00a0 \u201cHowdy, neighbor,\u201d he drawled.\u00a0 \u201cDid you see the conflagration?\u00a0 Magnificent, wasn\u2019t it?\u201d\u00a0 He swept his hand toward the treetops.\u00a0 \u201cLike blazing banners, a hundred feet in the air.\u00a0 Grand as any Fourth of July fireworks I ever saw.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Cept it\u2019s a good bit past the Fourth, Sam,\u201d his companion snickered.<\/p>\n

Sam scratched beneath his rusty slouch hat.\u00a0 \u201cWell, never too late to celebrate the nation\u2019s birth, eh, friend?\u00a0 We had a splendid view of it from out on the lake.\u00a0 That\u2019s the place for a sight like this, I can tell you!\u201d<\/p>\n

For a moment, in the face of such idiocy, Ben could only stare in consternation.\u00a0 Then his face hardened as he planted clenched fists on his hips, mostly to keep from plowing them into the idiot\u2019s nose.\u00a0 \u201cListen here, Sam, or whatever your name is\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

The man thrust out his hand.\u00a0 \u201cSam Clemens,\u201d he said congenially.<\/p>\n

The scathing words he\u2019d been about to spew withered on Ben\u2019s tongue.\u00a0 \u201cClemens?\u201d he croaked.\u00a0 \u201cAny relation to Orion Clemens?\u201d\u00a0 Though he had yet to meet the man, he knew the name of the new secretary of the territory.\u00a0 Who in Nevada did not?<\/p>\n

Sam beamed.\u00a0 \u201cYes, sir!\u00a0 Orion\u2019s my brother, I\u2019m proud to say.\u00a0 You\u2019ve heard of him, I take it?\u201d\u00a0 He laughed.\u00a0 \u201cWell, of course, you have!\u00a0 Very important man, my brother.\u00a0 I\u2019m secretary to the Secretary, you might say, though the job pays nothin\u2019.\u00a0 That\u2019s why me and Johnny here set out to build ourselves a little timber ranch.\u201d\u00a0 He gazed around at the blackened tree trunks.\u00a0 \u201cGuess that\u2019s come to naught.\u201d\u00a0 He shrugged nonchalantly and tried to grin at Ben, but the grin faded at the sight of Ben\u2019s darkening countenance.<\/p>\n

Ben kept a tight grip on his temper.\u00a0 The secretary of NevadaTerritory was, indeed, an important man, and from all reports, a decent one.\u00a0 Out of respect for the man and his office, Ben restrained himself from the tongue-lashing Secretary Clemens\u2019 idiot of a brother so patently merited, but even as careless an eye as that of Sam Clemens could tell the broad-shouldered rancher was seething.\u00a0 He had a feeling the scent of smoke came from more than just the charred trees.<\/p>\n

\u201cSee here, now.\u201d\u00a0 Sam shot off a fusillade of fast-fired arguments in his defense.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not like we did it on purpose.\u00a0 A pure accident, I assure you.\u00a0 Campfire just got away from us, and we didn\u2019t do any real harm, did we?\u00a0 Just burned off the undergrowth, mostly, right?\u00a0 Maybe a few trees burned.\u00a0 Plenty to spare here.\u201d\u00a0 He forced a grin again.<\/p>\n

That did it.\u00a0 Important brother or no, Ben could contain himself no longer.\u00a0 \u201cNo harm?\u201d he bellowed.\u00a0 \u201cAcres burned, homes endangered.\u00a0 Only by the grace of God none lost!\u00a0 My eleven-year-old boy understands more about the woods than you do.\u00a0 For that matter, my four-year-old has better sense!\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Clemens flinched back with a nervous titter.\u00a0 \u201cWell, as you say, we\u2014uh\u2014we are the proverbial babes in the wood.\u00a0 Maybe Johnny and I had best take up another line of work, eh?\u201d\u00a0 He laughed again, through an obviously tighter throat.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014uh\u2014guess the fire pretty much put us out of operation here, and, anyway, chopping wood is too tough a job.\u201d\u00a0 Step by step, he edged away from Ben.\u00a0 \u201cGot to be an easier way to make a living, don\u2019t you think?\u00a0 Yes, yes, I agree.\u00a0 Maybe we\u2019d best pack up our gear and head back to Carson City, do a little more work for the Secretary.\u201d\u00a0 He clapped his companion on the shoulder, and Johnny\u2019s head bobbed in ready agreement.<\/p>\n

As the two scrambled away in haste, Ben stared at them in dismay.\u00a0 It was hard to know what to do with culprits as ignorant as Clemens and his cohort.\u00a0 Evidently, they had intended no harm . . . nor done much, the rancher was forced to admit.\u00a0 Since the fire had never crowned, it was mostly underbrush and dead sentinels of the forest that had burned.\u00a0 He tried to temper his wrath by reminding himself that his own pioneering skills had once been as primitive as\u2014he shook his head.\u00a0 No, not even at his most na\u00efve had he ever been as careless as those two.\u00a0 It hadn\u2019t been much of an exaggeration when he\u2019d said that even Little Joe would have fared better on his own in the woods, though Ben shuddered at the image that brought to mind.\u00a0 \u201cOne thing for sure,\u201d he grunted as he mounted his horse, eager to get back to his sons.\u00a0 \u201cOrion Clemens may be a fine man, but that brother of his will never amount to much.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The sky was dark, even the stars dimmed by the haze drifting in the air, when Ben returned to a quiet house.\u00a0 Inside, a lamp had been left, burning low, on the round table beside his favorite chair.\u00a0 Ben was tempted to fall into it, but mindful of his soot-stained garments, he delayed that collapse long enough to take a dark wool blanket from the credenza by the door and drape it over the chair.\u00a0 Then he sank into the inviting cushion with a long, slow sigh of gratitude.\u00a0 He reeked of smoke, and his weary muscles yearned for a relaxing soak in a steaming tub.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t have the energy to draw himself a bath, though, and he wouldn\u2019t dream of rousing Hop Sing this early to do it for him.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t long until dawn, anyway; the chair would just have to do for the few hours remaining before time to rise and begin the new day.\u00a0 He\u2019d begin it with that hot tub and a good hard scrub, but for now he\u2019d just rest his eyes.\u00a0 A millimeter at a time, they closed, and his head unwittingly fell against the wing of the chair.<\/p>\n

He woke with a start and threw aside the blanket draped over him.\u00a0 His brow furrowed for a minute, his hand fingering the blanket that still rested beneath him, to protect the upholstery.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t remember taking a second one from the credenza, though.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Had he taken to walking in his sleep?\u00a0 Then he smiled as the obvious answer came to him.\u00a0 Hop Sing, of course, the same person responsible for the tempting aroma of fresh coffee that had no doubt drawn him from his slumber.\u00a0 He stood, yawning and stretching, and moved toward the kitchen, but came to an abrupt halt and stared in disbelief at the window in the dining room.\u00a0 A glance back at the grandfather clock confirmed what the level of light pouring through that window had hinted at: it was late . . . very late.<\/p>\n

Ben hurried on into the kitchen.\u00a0 \u201cWhy didn\u2019t you wake me, Hop Sing?\u201d he chided.<\/p>\n

The little cook looked up from the batch of biscuits he was stirring.\u00a0 \u201cYou much tired, Mr. Ben.\u00a0 Need sleep.\u201d\u00a0 His nose wrinkled disdainfully.\u00a0 \u201cNeed bath, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that,\u201d Ben grumbled.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d already planned to bathe this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chinaman beamed.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing have plenty hot water ready, fixee bath chop-chop.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you,\u201d Ben murmured, whatever disgruntlement he\u2019d felt evaporating like dew on a scorching hot morning.\u00a0 \u201cIf that coffee is ready, I\u2019ll have a cup first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing\u2019s nose again crinkled, but he said nothing.\u00a0 Mr. Ben have hard night; another time mo\u2019 better for remind him wash before eat<\/em>.\u00a0 He poured a cup of coffee and handed it to Ben.<\/p>\n

Ben took a soul-restoring sip.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe still asleep?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe sleep, Mr. Ben,\u201d Hop Sing replied.\u00a0 \u201cThey both sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben looked up.\u00a0 \u201cBoth?\u00a0 Hoss, too?\u00a0 You didn\u2019t get him up for school?\u201d\u00a0 He dashed the tin cup to the table, sloshing coffee over the side.\u00a0 \u201cOh, for goodness\u2019 sake!\u00a0 This whole house is gone to rack and ruin this morning!\u201d<\/p>\n

The little cook drew himself up, his rigid posture the picture of affronted pride.\u00a0 \u201cIs-a not Hop Sing fault, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no, of course not,\u201d Ben agreed quickly.\u00a0 The last thing he needed to deal with right now was a threat to go back to China.\u00a0 \u201cIt isn\u2019t your fault.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhose fault it is?\u201d Hop Sing demanded, for he, too, was displeased with the way this day had begun: meals off schedule, housework not yet started, dirty boss yelling at him and spilling coffee everywhere.<\/p>\n

\u201cSam Clemens!\u201d Ben bellowed as he charged out of the kitchen.<\/p>\n

The cook shuffled to the doorway and peered inquisitively around it.\u00a0 \u201cWho dat Sam man?\u201d he called.\u00a0 \u201cHe come breakfast?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot if I have anything to say about it!\u201d Ben yelled as he bolted up the stairs.<\/p>\n

He rounded the corner at the upper landing and dashed down the hall and through the open door into Hoss\u2019s room.\u00a0 Mouth open, ready to shout out a wake-up call, Ben skidded to an abrupt halt, transfixed by the tender tableau before him.\u00a0 Little Joe, looking absolutely cherubic, without a trace of underlying mischief, lay curled trustingly in the crook of his brother\u2019s arm, while Hoss\u2019s other arm rested on his little brother\u2019s back.\u00a0 With a soft smile Ben gently disentangled his sons\u2019 limbs and lifted his youngest to his shoulder.\u00a0 Then, leaning over the bed, he lightly shook Hoss\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cWake up, son,\u201d he urged.\u00a0 When Hoss didn\u2019t respond, he shook a little harder and spoke a little louder, although still softly enough not to wake his other boy.<\/p>\n

Hoss cracked an eyelid and stared groggily at his father.\u00a0 \u201cHuh?\u00a0 Oh, hey, Pa.\u201d\u00a0 He yawned widely.\u00a0 \u201cIs it mornin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben rolled his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s halfway to being afternoon, son.\u00a0 Now, get up and get dressed.\u00a0 You\u2019re already late to school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss groaned.\u00a0 \u201cAw, Pa, do I got to?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, of course, you \u2018got to,\u2019\u201d Ben said, his voice growing a little gruff.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve already missed quite enough class time, young man, by going on the trail drive.\u00a0 Now here you are late for your first day back and whimpering to be let off the hook, but you will make an appearance and that\u2019s final.\u00a0 Now, get up!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss dragged first one foot and then the other out of the bed and stumbled over to his washstand.<\/p>\n

Ben placed Little Joe back in the bed and tenderly covered him.\u00a0 He brushed aside an errant curl, his hand lingering against the boy\u2019s brow.\u00a0 So like his mother<\/em>, Ben thought wistfully.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow come he gets to sleep?\u201d Hoss grumbled from behind the towel with which he was drying his freshly washed face.<\/p>\n

Ben frowned at his middle son.\u00a0 \u201cBecause he\u2019s only four years old, and unlike you and me, he has no responsibilities to fulfill.\u00a0 I\u2019ve had a hard night, son, and I don\u2019t feel any more inclined to go to work than you do to go to school, but when a man has a job to do, he does it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss yawned.\u00a0 \u201cOkay, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben relaxed, and a loving smile replaced his frown.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s my boy.\u00a0 You get dressed and get down to breakfast.\u00a0 I\u2019m going to have a bath before I join you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss snickered softly, so as not to wake Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, Pa, I reckon you better.\u00a0 Fightin\u2019 fires sure is dirty work, ain\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben clapped his son\u2019s sturdy shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cIt sure is, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben could have happily spent the other half of the morning, easing his muscles in the luxurious tub that Hop Sing had prepared for him, but he made himself climb out and dress for work.\u00a0 He\u2019d lost enough time as it was, and he did want to see Hoss again before the boy left for school.\u00a0 As he walked briskly down the stairs, however, he was surprised to see his middle son, elbow on the table, cheek propped on his palm, his half-finished breakfast being pointedly ignored.\u00a0 Even before he reached the dining room Ben\u2019s ears told him why, as Hoss\u2019s sonorous snores broke the otherwise silent air.\u00a0 \u201cHoss!\u201d he said sharply, sliding into his place at the head of the table.<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s hand fell, striking the edge of his plate. \u00a0He barely managed to keep his head from doing the same.\u00a0 \u00a0\u201cHuh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat on earth is wrong with you this morning, boy?\u201d Ben chided.\u00a0 He opened his napkin and laid it in his lap as Hop Sing placed a plate of bacon and eggs before him.<\/p>\n

Hoss stifled a gaping yawn.\u00a0 \u201cJust plumb tuckered, I reckon, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite his irritation, Ben chuckled lightly.\u00a0 \u201cNow, why are you so tuckered?\u201d\u00a0 A possible explanation suddenly struck him, and he felt ashamed that he hadn\u2019t earlier explored the reasons behind Hoss\u2019s uncustomary lassitude.\u00a0 \u201cI know the fire bell woke you last night.\u00a0 Did you have trouble getting back to sleep, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA mite,\u201d Hoss admitted.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe kept puttin\u2019 his cold feet on my bare leg.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled gently.\u00a0 \u201cYou didn\u2019t have to take him into your bed, you know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cFelt like I did.\u00a0 He was workin\u2019 up a fret \u2018bout you and the fire.\u00a0 He\u2019d\u2019ve ended up there anyway, once them nightmares started.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, dear,\u201d Ben sighed.\u00a0 He looked more carefully at his middle son\u2019s drooping eyes.\u00a0 \u201cNightmares, you said.\u00a0 More than one?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d no sooner get the little feller quieted down and get back to sleep myself than he\u2019d start in screamin\u2019 again.\u00a0 I sure hate it when he does that, Pa.\u00a0 I wanna help him, but don\u2019t seem like I do much of a job of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben reached over to rest a consoling hand on his son\u2019s sturdy arm.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, I\u2019m sure you did as good a job as anyone could.\u00a0 I\u2019m real proud of you, boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss sported a lopsided grin as he picked up his neglected fork.\u00a0 \u201cThanks, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll things considered,\u201d Ben said, \u201cI think, maybe, you should go on back to bed, instead of to school.\u201d<\/p>\n

A sparkle flickered in Hoss\u2019s blue eyes for a moment; then he shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cYou said when a man has a job to do, he does it, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTrue enough, and I\u2019m glad you gave heed to what I said, Hoss,\u201d his father replied with a tender smile, \u201cbut I think you\u2019ve been manly enough for today.\u00a0 Missing school one more day won\u2019t make that much difference.\u00a0 Besides\u201d\u2014his smile widened into a grin\u2014\u201cI don\u2019t think you\u2019ll learn much with your eyes closed, and the noise just might keep the other scholars from learning, too.\u201d\u00a0 He mimicked a resonant snore.<\/p>\n

Hoss cackled.\u00a0 \u201cReckon you might be right about that!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed, too.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s finish up breakfast, son, and then I\u2019ll roust your little brother out of your bed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, you don\u2019t have to,\u201d Hoss said with a good-natured shrug.\u00a0 \u201cHis feet oughta be toasty warm by now!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right, then.\u201d\u00a0 Ben readily accepted the generous offer, for moving Joe always ran the risk of waking him, with the predictable consequence of dealing with a cranky child.\u00a0 He\u2019d gotten off lucky once this morning, and didn\u2019t feel inclined to press his chances.\u00a0 \u201cLater you can help me crate up Adam\u2019s belongings,\u201d he told Hoss, \u201cso we can send them to him the next time we\u2019re in town.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe we could do that this afternoon,\u201d Hoss suggested eagerly.\u00a0 \u201cAdam needs them things bad, I\u2019ll bet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben arched an eyebrow.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I\u2019ll bet he can just get by without them \u2018til a month from Saturday.\u00a0 I do need to get some<\/em> work done today, young man.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss yawned.\u00a0 Pa was probably right.\u00a0 Besides, he\u2019d done enough traveling lately and would probably enjoy a trip to town on Saturday more than he would today.<\/p>\n

CHAPTER FOUR<\/p>\n

Building Bonds in a Broken World<\/p>\n

Frustrated frown on his face, Little Joe sat on the top porch step and with the heel of his shoe, he rhythmically kicked the riser of the step below him.\u00a0 Yipping for attention, a small brown dog bounded up the steps, leaped on the little boy and began licking his face.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s nose scrunched up as he turned away from the slobbering tongue, but the next moment his arms closed around the pup in a heartfelt embrace.\u00a0 \u201cYou miss him, too, doncha, Klam?\u201d he asked with a sniff of sympathy, mixed with a heavy dose of self-pity.<\/p>\n

Little Joe had spent a good part of the morning feeling sorry for himself.\u00a0 During the trail drive he\u2019d come to expect the constant companionship of his father and his big brother, and it had even extended through yesterday, when Pa had let Hoss stay home from school because he was too tired to go.\u00a0 All that had ended this morning, though.\u00a0 Pa\u2019d gone off to work, and Hoss had headed to school right after breakfast.\u00a0 Though Hop Sing was here, he was busy working in the kitchen.\u00a0 He\u2019d told Little Joe to play outside, but Little Joe didn\u2019t feel like playing.\u00a0 He just felt lonely.\u00a0 Mama gone.\u00a0 Adam gone.\u00a0 And now Pa and Hoss gone, too.<\/p>\n

He gave the dog\u2019s short-haired coat a rub.\u00a0 \u201cYou hungry, Klam?\u00a0 Bet you are.\u00a0 I\u2019m gettin\u2019 that way, too.\u00a0 Wanna bone, fella?\u00a0 I\u2019ll ask Hop Sing for you.\u00a0 Come on.\u201d\u00a0 He stood up, and Klamath trotted at his heels as he headed toward the side door to the kitchen.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing, who was chopping vegetables, spun around at the sound of the opening door and scowled at the brown dog following the boy in.\u00a0 \u201cNo let dog in house, Little Joe,\u201d he ordered.<\/p>\n

Little Joe looked up at the cook with the \u201cspeaking eyes\u201d the Chinaman had seen so effectively used to turn Ben Cartwright into moldable mush.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s hungry.\u00a0 Doncha got a bone for him?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle dog is-a not hungry,\u201d Hop Sing declared.\u00a0 \u201cHoss feed him all-a time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss ain\u2019t here.\u201d\u00a0 The diminutive lips puckered into a pout.\u00a0 \u201cAnd it\u2019s \u2018most lunch time.\u00a0 Klam needs lunch, same as me, and Hoss ain\u2019t here to get it for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs-a not lunch time yet, Little Joe.\u201d\u00a0 Then the cook\u2019s eyes filled with concern.\u00a0 \u201cYou hungry?\u00a0 You not eat big breakfast.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe nodded.\u00a0 \u201cLittle bit.\u00a0 Klam, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll light, all light,\u201d Hop Sing muttered with a shake of his head.\u00a0 \u201cI give little dog little bit food after we eat.\u00a0 Not much or he be fat like pig and Hop Sing use for bacon.\u00a0 He go out now.\u00a0 Little dog is-a not belong in kitchen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Satisfied, Little Joe climbed into a chair at the table while Hop Sing shooed Hoss\u2019s pup outside, slipping him a bite of carrot to keep him quiet.\u00a0 \u201cWhat you fixin\u2019 for lunch?\u201d the boy asked, eyeing the array of chopped vegetables on the cutting board.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis not fo\u2019 you; this Hop Sing lunch,\u201d the cook said.\u00a0 \u201cI fixee nice food fo\u2019 you first.\u00a0 Just chopee this fo\u2019 cook after.\u201d\u00a0 Since the little boy had said he was hungry, Hop Sing hurried to finish preparing the vegetables for his own meal, intending then to set them aside and tend to the child\u2019s need.<\/p>\n

On his knees in the chair, Little Joe propped his elbows on the table and leaned closer to scrutinize the food Hop Sing was preparing.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t that nice food?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cVelly nice,\u201d Hop Sing affirmed with a vigorous nod.\u00a0 \u201cIt Hop Sing food\u2014velly nice, velly tasty.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe sat back on his haunches and frowned at the cook.\u00a0 \u201cJoe\u2019s food, too,\u201d he proclaimed, a stubborn pucker at his lips.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no,\u201d the cook remonstrated.\u00a0 \u201cThis Chinese food. \u00a0You little \u2018Melican boy.\u00a0 You not like.\u201d<\/p>\n

The frown deepened, and the lower lip thrust further out.\u00a0 \u201cWould, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot think so,\u201d Hop Sing said.\u00a0 \u201cYou want nice slice beef sandwich, maybe?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe shook his head wildly from side to side.\u00a0 \u201cWant that,\u201d he declared, pointing at Hop Sing\u2019s pile of vegetables.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou not want that,\u201d the cook insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo, too!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll light, all light,\u201d Hop Sing told the red-faced child.\u00a0 \u201cI give you bite or two, all light?\u00a0 You see.\u00a0 Is-a velly different from \u2018Melican food.\u201d\u00a0 He quickly finished dicing the vegetables and bits of beef, added sauce and seasonings to his liking and sizzled it over the fire.\u00a0 The meal was soon prepared, and he served Little Joe a miniscule portion atop a spoonful of fluffy white rice.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat all I get?\u201d Joe protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou like, I give more,\u201d Hop Sing promised.\u00a0 \u201cYou taste now, please.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe maneuvered a small bit of the mixture, along with some rice, onto his fork and raised it tentatively.\u00a0 Slowly he slid the food into his mouth, chewed cautiously and swallowed.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing watched warily and awaited the verdict.<\/p>\n

Little Joe pushed his plate toward the cook.\u00a0 \u201cMore, please,\u201d he chirped.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s good!\u201d<\/p>\n

A broad beaming smile split the Oriental face.\u00a0 \u201cLittle \u2018Melican boy got little bit sense, after all,\u201d he declared.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Hoss\u2019s face twisted in tortured concentration.\u00a0 Greeting his friends out in the schoolyard on his first day back had been fun, but then the bell had rung and all the fun had ended.\u00a0 While he\u2019d hate to admit it to Pa, for fear of future consequences, his trip to California had put him behind everyone else in his class, and if this morning was anything to go by, he was going to find it hard to catch up.\u00a0 The arithmetic problems Miss Appleton had set for him just plain made no sense.\u00a0 Oh, they weren\u2019t hard in themselves, except the teacher had said he wasn\u2019t to use his slate, but add the sums in his head.\u00a0 She\u2019d called it mental arithmetic, and Hoss had already decided he didn\u2019t like it one bit.\u00a0 Arithmetic was hard enough for him, even when he could line the numbers up and see them together, but seeing them sitting sideways from each other, with a bunch of words in between, was pure foolishness in his book\u2014and dad-blamed hard foolishness at that!<\/p>\n

Recitation had been even worse than studying the problems at his seat, for then he couldn\u2019t even use his book.\u00a0 Instead, Miss Appleton read one after another out loud, asked him to repeat it and give the solutions.\u00a0 The first few went well enough, even without being able to see the numbers.\u00a0 After all, the book started with a solution as simple as two plus one and only gradually got harder.\u00a0 Then on one problem the teacher had warned him would take extra concentration, he\u2019d stumbled over repeating it back just right, and there\u2019d been hoots from the back of the room that distracted him into adding the numbers wrong, too.\u00a0 The hoots turned into guffaws before the teacher threatened extra work if it continued.<\/p>\n

His face relaxed when Miss Appleton announced recess.\u00a0 He enjoyed getting away from the schoolroom, at least until his old nemesis, Cal Hulbert, sauntered up to taunt his poor performance.\u00a0 \u201cStill can\u2019t add worth a lick, can you, horse brains?\u201d Cal snorted almost as soon as they were dismissed.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t insult horses,\u201d snickered Walter Grogan, close behind Cal.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve seen trick ponies that can add better than fat boy here!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re right, Walt!\u201d Cal, eager to have the older boy back in his camp, was quick to agree.<\/p>\n

Face grim and eyes narrowed, Hoss came nose-to-nose with Walt.\u00a0 \u201cThought we had a bargain, Grogan.\u00a0 Thought you said you kept your bargains.\u201d\u00a0 Last year he\u2019d fought single-handed against three boys, to make them stop bullying him.\u00a0 Cal\u2019s word had meant nothing, but Walt Grogan had so far kept his promise.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe did\u2014and I do,\u201d Grogan barked, \u201cbut seems to me you\u2019ve forgotten what the bargain was, Cartwright.\u00a0 It was to leave you be \u2018til the end of the school year.\u201d\u00a0 He grinned snidely.\u00a0 \u201cIn case you ain\u2019t noticed, flea brain, it\u2019s a new year.\u00a0 Bargain\u2019s over.\u00a0 If you can\u2019t take some ribbin\u2019, study hard, so\u2019s maybe you can figure out two plus one equals three.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat ain\u2019t the one he missed,\u201d snapped Pete Hanson, who had originally been one of the three boys making sport of Hoss every day.\u00a0 After losing the fight to Hoss and being abandoned by his cohorts, however, Pete had become a steadfast and loyal friend.\u00a0 \u201cThat Mustard problem was a hard one!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTen plus eleven\u2014twenty-one.\u201d\u00a0 Grogan flapped a disparaging hand as he and Cal strode off, laughing.<\/p>\n

Pete shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cThat ain\u2019t right, either.\u00a0 That\u2019s the answer I gave last week, and Miss Appleton said it was wrong.\u00a0 Wouldn\u2019t tell me the right one, though.\u00a0 Just smiled and said to think it through.\u201d<\/p>\n

George Winters, another friend of Hoss\u2019s, chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cWe all missed that one.\u00a0 It\u2019s a trick question, to my mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you mean, George?\u201d red-haired Joe O\u2019Neill asked, pushing into the circle of friends.<\/p>\n

George leaned back against a tree trunk and folded his arms.\u00a0 \u201cOkay, so here\u2019s the problem: \u2018Mustard has 10 sisters and 11 brothers; how many are there in the family?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat kind of name is Mustard?\u201d Joe\u2019s younger brother Robert demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo worse than Hoss, I reckon.\u201d \u00a0Hoss grinned as he shrugged a shoulder.<\/p>\n

\u201cLots worse,\u201d Pete insisted, \u201cbut what matters is his brothers and sisters.\u00a0 I still count twenty-one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhich means his ma was one busy lady,\u201d Joe cackled.<\/p>\n

George grinned.\u00a0 \u201cYou gotta remember to count Mustard hisself in the family.\u00a0 That\u2019s the trick.\u00a0 So, the answer\u2019s twenty-two.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh!\u201d\u00a0 The other four looked satisfied for a minute; then Joe asked, \u201cWhat about his ma?\u00a0 She\u2019s in the family, too, ain\u2019t she?\u201d<\/p>\n

Obviously having not thought of that, George scratched his head.\u00a0 \u201cUh, yeah, guess so, so I guess there\u2019s twenty-three in the family.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOr twenty-four, if you count Mustard\u2019s pa,\u201d Hoss put in.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf he\u2019s got one,\u201d Robbie said.\u00a0 \u201cNot everyone does.\u201d\u00a0 He spoke from experience, since his own father had died before they came west.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot everyone\u2019s got a ma, either,\u201d George, whose mother had died in a steamboat accident, said soberly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss could only get that single syllable past the lump in his throat.<\/p>\n

The awkward silence said that each of Hoss\u2019s friends understood he was thinking about his recent loss, but none of them knew what to say to comfort him.\u00a0 Finally, Joe O\u2019Neill said, \u201cWell, I think we oughta tell Miss Appleton that we can\u2019t work this problem \u2018til we know a heap more about Mustard\u2019s kin.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah!\u201d the others agreed noisily, and since their teacher had just come outside to ring the bell to end recess, they all rushed upon her and demanded to know the exact makeup of Mustard\u2019s family.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Hop Sing stood, arms akimbo, and glared at the child standing in the doorway from the dining room into the kitchen.\u00a0 \u201cWhat for little boy out of bed again?\u201d the cook demanded.\u00a0 He had already tucked the four-year-old into his bed three times and didn\u2019t appreciate the necessity of climbing the stairs again.<\/p>\n

Little Joe flashed a puckish grin.\u00a0 \u201cNap all done.\u00a0 Time to play.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing scowled.\u00a0 \u201cIs-a not time fo\u2019 play.\u00a0 You not take nap yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

The child skittered past the cook.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t need nap.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHonorable father say you do.\u201d\u00a0 Hop Sing strode after the boy, who pranced down to the opposite end of the cook\u2019s worktable.\u00a0 \u201cYou stay one place,\u201d Hop Sing scolded.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo!\u201d Little Joe slapped the tabletop with both palms. The anger disappeared as quickly as it had surfaced and with a giggle, the child cried, \u201cCatch me!\u201d<\/p>\n

As the sputtering Chinaman came toward him, Joe scooted around the table away from him.\u00a0 Around and around they went, Little Joe\u2019s hilarity increasing and Hop Sing\u2019s face flushing more with each circuit.\u00a0 Finally having enough, the cook pulled out a chair behind him, setting it directly in Joe\u2019s path.\u00a0 Then he pretended to carry on the chase, but the minute the child slowed down to get around the roadblock, Hop Sing reversed directions and caught the boy up into his arms.\u00a0 \u201cBad boy,\u201d he stated emphatically.\u00a0 \u201cNow you go bed\u2014and you stay there this time if Hop Sing have tie down!\u201d<\/p>\n

Tears instantly sprang into the boy\u2019s green eyes.\u00a0 \u201cNo, no, please no,\u201d he whimpered.\u00a0 \u201cI-I don\u2019t like it up there all alone.\u00a0 Don\u2019t make me\u2014please!\u201d<\/p>\n

Feeling the little body tremble against his chest, Hop Sing sat down in the chair he had used as a roadblock and began to pat the boy\u2019s back as he rocked back and forth.\u00a0 As many times as he\u2019d waged this naptime war with Little Joe, he\u2019d never before realized that fear lay behind the child\u2019s recalcitrance about going to bed upstairs.\u00a0 \u201cNothing hurt Little Joe,\u201d he soothed.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing not let anything hurt Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe buried his head on the cook\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re too far,\u201d he sobbed.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t like it alone . . . so\u2014so far away.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll light, all light,\u201d Hop Sing said, his calloused hand caressing the child\u2019s soft curls, \u201cbut father say you take nap, so you take nap.\u201d\u00a0 As Little Joe shook his head violently from side to side, the cook arrested the motion with a steadying hand and laid the curly head back against his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cLittle boy must obey father,\u201d he said gently, \u201cbut Hop Sing keep close, all light?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe pulled back so he could look into the Oriental\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cReal close?\u201d he asked hesitantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cVelly close,\u201d Hop Sing promised.\u00a0 He moved down a short hallway just off the kitchen and turned into a small room.\u00a0 He laid the child on a narrow bed.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou sleep here in Hop Sing bed, all light?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe clambered up on his knees to scan the unfamiliar room with interest.\u00a0 Though sparsely furnished, it looked like no room he\u2019d ever been in before, from the lacquered boxes on the bureau to the picture hanging over it of a fascinating creature with fire coming out of its mouth.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d he asked in awe, pointing.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing laid the child down and drew a light coverlet over him.\u00a0 \u201cThat dragon.\u00a0 Him have much power for protect little boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The child\u2019s eyes widened.\u00a0 \u201cWon\u2019t that fire burn things?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no,\u201d the cook assured him.\u00a0 \u201cOnly bad things that try hurt little boy.\u00a0 You not be afraid . . . but maybe best you not tell father about dragon.\u00a0 It be our secret, all light?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cO-okay.\u00a0 I-I like it here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing smiled.\u00a0 \u201cSee?\u00a0 Like Hop Sing say before, little \u2018Melican boy got little bit sense.\u00a0 You sleep now.\u201d\u00a0 Sitting on the edge of the bed, he began to croon a soft Cantonese lullaby he remembered hearing his mother sing, long ago in KwangtungProvince.\u00a0 The words were meaningless, the tune alien to Little Joe\u2019s American ears, but he felt the undertone of love, and that soothed him into dreamless sleep.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing gently stroked the soft chestnut curls.\u00a0 Little \u2018Melican boy like Chinese things . . . \u00a0like Hop Sing, too<\/em>, he thought, surprised at how full his heart suddenly felt.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Hoss slowed his gray mare to a walk as he entered the yard at the Ponderosa.\u00a0 He never knew when Little Joe might be playing outside; and if he were, the little fellow was bound to come running to greet his big brother.\u00a0 No amount of scolding or \u201cnecessary talks\u201d seemed to have any effect on those flying feet.\u00a0 Put something he wanted in front of Little Joe\u2019s eyes, and he just plain forgot everything he\u2019d been taught.\u00a0 It was easier\u2014and smarter, Hoss thought\u2014just to slow down.\u00a0 Charcoal wasn\u2019t skittish like some horses; she wouldn\u2019t kick out at the little boy, but if she galloped in fast, it might happen accidental-like.\u00a0 Hoss chose to be safe, especially where his baby brother was concerned.<\/p>\n

He grinned as he dismounted.\u00a0 Sure enough, there was Little Joe at the kitchen door, pulling against the restraint of Hop Sing\u2019s hand.\u00a0 Once the cook saw that Hoss was on the ground, he let go, and Little Joe came rushing over to throw his arms around his big brother\u2019s legs.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss!\u00a0 I thought you\u2019d never get here!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThought that myself!\u201d\u00a0 With a laugh Hoss scooped the little boy up and swung him around in a circle until both were breathless.\u00a0 Then he set Little Joe in Charcoal\u2019s saddle for his usual ride into the barn.<\/p>\n

Little Joe leaned over to pat Hoss\u2019s head sympathetically.\u00a0 \u201cSchool rotten, like always?\u201d<\/p>\n

It had been, and Hoss was tempted to give an earful to the only audience on the ranch that would commiserate with his complaints.\u00a0 He remembered, though, that Mama hadn\u2019t liked him to say such things to Little Joe, hadn\u2019t wanted him to teach his little brother to hate school before he ever went, so out of respect for her memory, he shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNaw.\u00a0 Just sort of middlin\u2019 bad today.\u201d\u00a0 He figured that if he told Joe out of the blue that school had been great, the poor kid might think he\u2019d lost his mind, so it seemed better to just step down to \u201cmiddlin\u2019 bad\u201d and ease his way into something better\u2014if he could do it without lying.\u00a0 Mama wouldn\u2019t want him to lie, either, he reasoned.<\/p>\n

Little Joe nodded soberly at his brother\u2019s assessment of his day and then smiled brightly.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing\u2019s got cookies waitin\u2019,\u201d he announced, \u201cand milk.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s great!\u201d\u00a0 Hoss returned with enthusiasm.\u00a0 Good ole Hop Sing; just like Mama, he never forgot.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s get Charcoal taken care of, so\u2019s we can get right to \u2018em.\u201d\u00a0 He reached up and pulled Little Joe from the saddle.\u00a0 He set the boy on top of the slats dividing Charcoal\u2019s stall from the empty one next to it and went to work unbuckling the cinch.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan we go fishin\u2019 after the cookies, huh, Hoss?\u201d Little Joe asked, leaning over to stroke Charcoal\u2019s mane.<\/p>\n

\u201cNaw, there ain\u2019t time before supper, punkin,\u201d Hoss said, reaching for the curry brush.\u00a0 \u201cFishin\u2019 is for Saturdays or maybe, once in a while, on a Sunday.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou take me fishin\u2019 Saturday?\u201d Little Joe pressed.<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t this Saturday, punkin.\u00a0 We got to go to town, to mail that box of things to Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe sat up straight, eyes shining with excitement.\u00a0 \u201cMe, too?\u00a0 I wanna go to town, too!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss looked up, his open face communicating both his doubt and his concern for what voicing it might mean.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know, Little Joe,\u201d he said, deciding plain honesty was his safest option.\u00a0 \u201cPa ain\u2019t said.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAsk him,\u201d Little Joe begged.\u00a0 Then he smiled craftily.\u00a0 \u201cTell him we needs us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t so sure that\u2019s gonna work every time, punkin.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it might work this time,\u201d Joe insisted.\u00a0 \u201cAsk . . . okay, Hoss?\u00a0 Please!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I\u2019ll ask,\u201d Hoss said, \u201cbut you keep quiet and let me be the one to do it.\u201d\u00a0 He rolled his eyes.\u00a0 Might as well tell his little brother to stop running at horses; it would do just about as much good.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben barely had time to take off his hat before Little Joe, with poignant pout and pleading puppy eyes, trotted out his \u201cwe needs us\u201d argument.\u00a0 \u201cYou scamp,\u201d Ben chuckled as he scooped the youngster into his arms and carried him to the fireside chair.\u00a0 \u201cYou are just like your mother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe ain\u2019t nothin\u2019 like Mama,\u201d Hoss scoffed, scowling at his little brother.\u00a0 \u201cShe could keep her mouth shut.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben settled into the chair.\u00a0 \u201cWhen it suited her need,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cShe was a master manipulator, just like this one.\u201d\u00a0 He snuggled Little Joe and rumpled his curly head.\u00a0 Seeing Hoss\u2019s mystified look, he explained, \u201cShe knew how to get her own way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh!\u201d Hoss said with a grin.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, she did\u2014and he\u2019s right good at it, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe peeked up at his pa.\u00a0 \u201cI get my own way?\u201d he queried with his sweetest smile.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cYes, little scamp, you do.\u201d\u00a0 He tilted Little Joe\u2019s chin up and looked into his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph, I always intended to take you with us on Saturday.\u00a0 An occasion such as this should definitely be a family affair.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben kissed the boy\u2019s forehead and simplified.\u00a0 \u201cWe needs us. \u00a0And what we needs now\u2014the lot of us\u2014is to get washed up for supper.\u201d\u00a0 He set Little Joe down and patted his backside.\u00a0 \u201cOff you go.\u201d<\/p>\n

After supper Ben suggested that Hoss write a letter to Adam, to be included with their package.\u00a0 \u201cMe, too,\u201d Little Joe insisted.\u00a0 \u201cI write Adam, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t write,\u201d Hoss scoffed.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan, too!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can print your ABCs,\u201d Hoss said with a consoling pat to his little brother\u2019s head, \u201cbut you don\u2019t know how to make words with \u2018em yet, punkin.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s all right,\u201d Ben soothed as he handed his youngest a blank piece of paper.\u00a0 \u201cAdam will enjoy seeing how you\u2019re getting on with your letters.\u00a0 And you could draw him a picture, Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know just what to draw!\u201d Little Joe announced.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou do that, then.\u201d\u00a0 Waving the boys over to the fireside table, he took out stationery of his own and wrote a long, gossipy letter, full of news about everyone Adam held dear.<\/p>\n

\u201cSee, Pa, see!\u201d cried Little Joe, running over to show his completed letter to his father.<\/p>\n

Ben halted his pen and took the paper in hand to peruse the letters of the alphabet at the top of the page and the rather remarkable creature sketched below it.\u00a0 \u201cWell, that\u2019s fine, Little Joe, just fine.\u00a0 Your writing is . . . well . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTipsy,\u201d Hoss, who had come around the desk to look over his father\u2019s shoulder, said.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, Hoss,\u201d Ben chided, \u201che\u2019s just a beginner, and, well, he hasn\u2019t had much help with his letters lately.\u201d\u00a0 Something else I need to take in hand<\/em>, he told himself.<\/p>\n

Remembering that it was Mama who used to work with Little Joe on his writing, Hoss swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cYes, sir.\u00a0 I reckon they ain\u2019t so tipsy as all that.\u201d\u00a0 He laughed to get past the knot in his throat.\u00a0 \u201cYou sure gave Klamath a long tongue, though, punkin.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not Klam,\u201d Little Joe scoffed. \u201cThat\u2019s\u201d\u2014he clapped his hand over his mouth, remembering Hop Sing\u2019s admonition to keep the dragon a secret.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is it, son?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe looked startled.\u00a0 \u201cOh!\u00a0 I mean it\u2019s not Klam\u2019s tongue; it\u2019s a big stick he\u2019s fetchin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I see.\u201d\u00a0 He didn\u2019t, of course.\u00a0 The picture looked nothing like Hoss\u2019s little dog, nor did the thing in the dog\u2019s mouth look much like a stick.\u00a0 He\u2019d never imagined that art would be one of Little Joe\u2019s talents, though, so this drawing was simply confirmation.\u00a0 Nonetheless, it would do its job of bringing a touch of home to Adam, far away in New Haven, and Ben assured the youngster that his big brother would be delighted with it.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201cFor the sixth time, Joseph, sit down!\u201d\u00a0 Exasperation was evident in Ben Cartwright\u2019s voice, and tension tightened his grip on the reins.<\/p>\n

Either unconscious of or unperturbed by his father\u2019s rising irritation, Little Joe sat down, but chattered on about anything and everything that caught his attention.\u00a0 \u201cPa, you got my letter to Adam?\u201d he asked in an abrupt change of subject.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, Joseph.\u201d\u00a0 Ben refrained from mentioning that Little Joe had already asked that question a mile back\u00a0 . . . and a mile or so before that, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou sure?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, Joseph, I\u2019m sure.\u201d\u00a0 He fought to hang on to his patience.<\/p>\n

\u201cReal sure?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben exhaled gusty frustration.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph, I am completely confident that I have your letter to Adam and Hoss\u2019s letter to Adam and my letter to Adam all tucked safely inside my vest pocket.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe you oughta check, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph, that is enough!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay, Pa.\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe\u2019s tone held a hint of offended innocence, but it disappeared as he asked brightly, \u201cCan I drive the team, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cNo, of course not.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seated to Little Joe\u2019s right, Hoss burst out with a loud guffaw.<\/p>\n

A pout puckered Little Joe\u2019s mouth.\u00a0 \u201cAdam let me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, he did not,\u201d Hoss cackled.<\/p>\n

\u201cDid, too!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe just let you think so, punkin,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cYou ain\u2019t big enough to handle a team.\u201d<\/p>\n

Disregarding all previous warnings, Little Joe jumped up from the seat of the buckboard.\u00a0 \u201cAm, too!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph, do you want me to turn this rig around?\u201d Ben asked brusquely.<\/p>\n

Hoss gazed wide-eyed at his father.\u00a0 Pa looked serious, but he couldn\u2019t mean it, could he?\u00a0 Why, they were almost to Carson City!\u00a0 And Adam needed all those things they had packed up in the back of the wagon.<\/p>\n

For the first time Little Joe seemed to comprehend that he was dangerously close to overstepping some line with his father.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Pa,\u201d he said quietly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen, sit down,\u201d Ben ordered, \u201cand no more talk about driving the team.\u00a0 Your brother is right: you\u2019re much too small.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m too small for everything,\u201d Little Joe sulked.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s just about right,\u201d Ben said dryly, and over the head of his youngest he gave his middle son a wink.<\/p>\n

He pulled up in front of the Wells, Fargo office and with Hoss\u2019s help unloaded the crates holding Adam\u2019s books and his carefully packed guitar.\u00a0 As he waited in line inside, a bittersweet smile touched his lips.\u00a0 The last time he\u2019d been in this building, Adam had been at his side.\u00a0 What a flurry they\u2019d been in, those last few days, getting the boy ready for his long journey, and now, standing inside these same four walls again, Ben couldn\u2019t help realizing how much longer the journey seemed now\u2014four years long.\u00a0 Oh, he\u2019d never really doubted that his son would pass the entrance exam for Yale\u2014being Adam, how could he do otherwise?\u2014but until the telegram confirming that arrived, he hadn\u2019t let himself dwell on just how long it would be until he saw his beloved boy again.\u00a0 Four years.\u00a0 How would they ever get by without him for that long?\u00a0 The same way Adam would get by without them, he supposed\u2014one day at a time.<\/p>\n

A short drive from Wells, Fargo brought the trio of Cartwrights to the Thomas\u2019s yellow frame house.\u00a0 \u201cBilly!\u201d squealed Little Joe.<\/p>\n

The lanky redhead stood up, laid down his hammer and sauntered over with an inviting grin.\u00a0 \u201cHey there, Shortshanks.\u00a0 Been awhile since I seen you.\u00a0 Hey to you, too, Hoss.\u201d\u00a0 He rumpled the sandy hair of the boy closest to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd me?\u201d Ben asked with a chuckle.<\/p>\n

Billy thrust out his hand.\u00a0 \u201cAlways good to see you, Uncle Ben.\u00a0 Ma said you was comin\u2019 to dinner tomorrow, but I wasn\u2019t expectin\u2019 you today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed as he stepped down from the buckboard and reached back to lift Little Joe down.\u00a0 \u201cNeither is she.\u00a0 I hope I\u2019m not banking on a welcome I have no deposits to cover.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re always welcome, you know that,\u201d Billy chuckled, \u201cbut we\u2019d better let Ma know, so she can throw an extra potato in the soup.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat kind of soup?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

Billy gave the boy\u2019s sturdy back a sound clap.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t know as we\u2019re havin\u2019 soup at all, buddy.\u00a0 I just meant we need to tell Ma to cook a mite more.\u201d\u00a0 Patting Hoss\u2019s tummy, he sported an impish grin.\u00a0 \u201cOr maybe a lot more?\u201d\u00a0 All humor left his face as he hollered, \u201cLittle Joe, you put that hammer down!\u201d<\/p>\n

As if it were a hot poker, Little Joe dropped the hammer he\u2019d just picked up from the porch step and spun to face Billy with a cherub\u2019s smile.\u00a0 \u201cJust helpin\u2019, Billy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy\u2019s characteristic grin came back as he bent over to pick up the hammer and keep those little fingers safe from it.\u00a0 \u201cI can do without your help, Shortshanks.\u00a0 Besides, I gotta earn my keep, now that I\u2019m back home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh?\u201d Ben looked quizzical for a moment; then his countenance lifted as the implication struck him.\u00a0 \u201cHas the telegraph met up, then?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot yet,\u201d Billy said, \u201cbut it\u2019s covered the ground of my run.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo the Pony\u2019s over.\u201d\u00a0 Ben said it with a hint of regret, and Hoss looked positively glum at the thought of never again seeing a red-shirted Pony rider gallop in and take off in the space of minutes.<\/p>\n

Billy nodded.\u00a0 \u201cFor me, it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLands sakes, what are you yellin\u2019 about, boy?\u201d\u00a0 Seeing the others in the yard, Nelly Thomas pushed open the front door and aimed straight for the two youngsters.\u00a0 \u201cSunshine!\u00a0 Sugarfoot!\u201d she cried, opening wide her arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cNext time I\u2019m just sending the boys,\u201d Ben said wryly as his two sons rushed into Nelly\u2019s warm embrace.\u00a0 \u201cAppears I can\u2019t get a welcome around here myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly flapped a dismissing hand in his direction.\u00a0 \u201cYou know better.\u00a0 Thought you wasn\u2019t comin\u2019 \u2018til tomorrow, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had some packages to mail to Adam,\u201d Ben explained, \u201cand thought we\u2019d stay over.\u00a0 With Billy home, though, maybe you don\u2019t have room for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, sure we do,\u201d Billy said.<\/p>\n

\u201cLands, yes,\u201d Nelly agreed.\u00a0 \u201cI got plenty of blankets to spread a thick pallet for the boys . . . or I reckon one could bunk with you and the other with Billy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben and Billy exchanged a glance of mutual commiseration; then with a smile lifting one side of his mouth, Ben said, \u201cI\u2019m sure the boys would relish the chance to sleep on a nice thick pallet.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben tamped tobacco into his pipe from the stock he kept stored at the Thomas house for his frequent visits.\u00a0 Once he\u2019d lit the pipe, he set it in his mouth and opened the latest copy of the Territorial Enterprise<\/em>, which Clyde had just handed him.<\/p>\n

\u201cBest news is right at the top,\u201d Clyde offered from across the room.<\/p>\n

Ben smiled.\u00a0 \u201cYou mean that the Enterprise<\/em> is going to publish daily, starting next week?\u00a0 It is good news, especially for those of you in town, who can benefit from it.\u00a0 Still, there are occasions when I get in more than once a week, and I must admit I relish news from back East more these days, with all that\u2019s going on . . . and with someone back there it might impact.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWar news ain\u2019t none too good,\u201d Clyde said slowly.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust getting to that,\u201d Ben said, eyes riveted to the column.\u00a0 Clyde was given to understatement, he decided.\u00a0 The war news was bad and, worse, it did impact someone he knew back East.\u00a0 St. Joseph, Missouri, had been captured by the Confederates, and no one was being permitted in or out of there.\u00a0 Not even the mail was being allowed through.\u00a0 That didn\u2019t bode well for the packages he\u2019d just deposited with Wells, Fargo.\u00a0 They\u2019d get through sometime, he was sure, but God alone knew when Adam would get his things.<\/p>\n

He chided himself for not having included a larger draft of credit for his son.\u00a0 The trail drive had been successful, so he\u2019d felt comfortable forwarding fifty dollars against unexpected expenses.\u00a0 Now, however, the territory and the turmoil between them might make it difficult to send more, and he chided himself for being overly cautious with his funds.\u00a0 Who else were they for, if not his sons?\u00a0 But he had two here, as well, and\u2014<\/p>\n

Nelly came into the room.\u00a0 \u201cThe boys are settled on their pallet, Ben, and I think they\u2019ll drop off soon.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d\u00a0 Ben shook himself from his absorption with the news story and its implications for those he loved.\u00a0 \u201cOh, yes.\u00a0 Thank you, Nelly.\u00a0 I should go up and kiss them goodnight.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSomething wrong, Ben?\u201d she asked, sitting down in her chair by the fire.<\/p>\n

Ben nodded, frowning, and briefly mentioned his concern.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy, Ben, you\u2019re not worried about Adam, are you?\u201d she asked as she picked up her latest knitting project from a basket beside the chair.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cI had a wire from Adam after he reached New Haven, so I know he\u2019s safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou knew that, woman,\u201d Clyde chided.\u00a0 \u201cHe told you at supper about Adam wirin\u2019 that he passed that test.\u201d\u00a0 He looked over at Ben.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s that friend of yours you\u2019re worried about, ain\u2019t it?\u00a0 Didn\u2019t he live in St. Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Ben said, \u201cand I am concerned about him.\u00a0 He\u2019s a Union man, and that could put him at risk . . . unless he left with the others.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cInto Kansas, ain\u2019t that where the paper said the Union men went?\u201d Billy, who was lounging on the floor in front of the fire, asked.\u00a0 \u201cTook the ferry with \u2018em, too, so the Rebs couldn\u2019t cross after \u2018em.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what it said,\u201d Ben agreed, \u201cbut it can\u2019t tell me where the one man I\u2019m concerned about is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTrust the Lord and hope for the best, Ben,\u201d Nelly advised as her knitting needles clacked.<\/p>\n

Ben smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll try, Nelly.\u201d\u00a0 He set his pipe down on the occasional table by his chair and stood up.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d better get up to the boys.\u201d<\/p>\n

He lay, wide-eyed, in bed later, his spirit unable to find rest from his concern for Josiah.\u00a0 If only there were some way to know that his friend was safe.\u00a0 There had to be a way!\u00a0 He considered telegraphing Adam, to see if Jamie had heard anything from his father, but two things held him back.\u00a0 Knowing Adam, the boy would perceive the query as urgent and would feel obliged to telegraph back.\u00a0 With his freshly awakened concern that his son might have run into unexpected expenses back East, Ben didn\u2019t want the boy to squander precious resources on a telegram when a little patience would give him the information he wanted in due course.\u00a0 Secondly, any display of apprehension on his part would communicate itself to Adam and automatically on to Jamie, as well, and if the boy hadn\u2019t heard from his father, he certainly didn\u2019t need an old fussbudget friend heightening his own anxiety.<\/p>\n

In the end, the only place of rest Ben found was the one Nelly had suggested.\u00a0 As he sat in church with fellow worshippers the following morning, he finally released Josiah Edwards into the hand of God.\u00a0 His reward came only days later when Billy Thomas rode over to the Ponderosa to deliver the latest news from the now-daily Territorial Enterprise<\/em>.\u00a0 Union forces had retaken St. Joseph, and though some sort of bridge disaster was still hindering passengers and mail, both were slowly getting through.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t a guarantee that his friend was safe, but it raised his hopes.\u00a0 He composed a short letter of inquiry and sent it back with Billy to be posted, knowing he\u2019d have to wait weeks for a response, but trusting that the news, when it came, would be good.<\/p>\n

\u00a0~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

\u00a0George Winters and Joe and Robert O\u2019Neill are historic characters; Cal Hulbert, Pete Hanson and Walter Grogan are fictional.<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s puzzling problem in mental arithmetic is found in The <\/em>Normal<\/em> Mental Arithmetic: a thorough and complete course by analysis and deduction<\/em> by Edward Brooks, published in 1858.<\/p>\n

News items from the East in this chapter, as well as throughout the book, are usually taken from the historic New York Times<\/em> online.\u00a0 Dates any particular news arrived in Virginia City are generally conjectures, based on the date it appeared in New York and communication capabilities available at the time.<\/p>\n

For a full description of how the bridge disaster mentioned in the final paragraph impacted Adam, please see the Heritage Companion, A Separate Dream<\/em>, Book 1, A Fresh Beginning<\/em>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER FIVE<\/p>\n

News From Near and Far<\/p>\n

Ben dropped the final copy of the Territorial Enterprise<\/em> to the floor beside his chair and reached for his pipe, which was sitting on the table at his elbow.\u00a0 It had taken quite some time to read all the back issues Clyde had saved and let him bring home for private perusal.\u00a0 Now that the newspaper was a daily, catching up was a bigger challenge than it used to be, but he couldn\u2019t think of a better way to spend a quiet Sunday evening at home.\u00a0 The boys had romped themselves into exhaustion upon coming home from the Thomases after church and a fine, big meal; and now, with them in bed, Ben had time to sit and read, smoke his pipe and think over the news of the week.<\/p>\n

With a long poker he reached over to stir the embers of the fire.\u00a0 October had brought with it chilly nights, though the days were still pleasant enough.\u00a0 He glanced down at the papers in the floor, wondering how much of the news he should share with Adam.\u00a0 He certainly needed to tell the boy about the opening of a post office in WashoeCity.\u00a0 That meant they wouldn\u2019t have to ride all the way in to Carson to fetch the mail.\u00a0 Hoss could stop by there every day after school and bring the latest letters\u2014hopefully, many from Adam\u2014and they could post more regular letters to Adam, too.\u00a0 It made him seem closer.\u00a0 Yes, he\u2019d definitely need to include their new address in his next letter to Adam.<\/p>\n

He questioned whether he should waste precious letter space on local politics, although had Adam still been home, father and son would, no doubt, have discussed the subject thoroughly.\u00a0 The newspaper had devoted much of its space to the opening of the Territorial Legislature on the first of the month, and Ben had followed each line of its proceedings with a reawakening awareness of the outside world.\u00a0 His interest was tainted with a tinge of regret, however.\u00a0 Once he had envisioned a large role for himself in the shaping of the territory\u2014and then state, should Nevada continue to prosper\u2014but those dreams were dead now, dead and buried with the woman he had expected to share them.<\/p>\n

He smiled softly into the fire.\u00a0 He had a different dream now, one that all along had meant more to him than any political ambition.\u00a0 All he wanted from life these days was to raise three healthy, happy and honorable sons, and, maybe, one day, to see them take places of importance in the development of this wild land into civilized society.\u00a0 Dream enough for a man\u2019s lifetime, he mused as he gazed into the flickering flames, so he said farewell to dreams of political office.\u00a0 His sons\u2014the younger ones, at least\u2014needed him here at home, not always away in some committee meeting or another, and they\u2019d need him for a very long time, long enough for the political power brokers to have long forgotten the name of Ben Cartwright.<\/p>\n

Bill Stewart hadn\u2019t forgotten him yet.\u00a0 The new council member evidently still thought Ben had enough influence with the Governor that he\u2019d invited him to the ball at John Winters\u2019 house that would end the legislative session.\u00a0 Ben was grateful for the honor, but he couldn\u2019t bring himself to attend.\u00a0 It would be too sharp a reminder of similar dances with golden-haired Marie on his arm, especially that last wonderful evening, when they\u2019d driven home beneath the stars and stopped by the lake to . . .<\/p>\n

Ben pushed aside the exquisite pain of recalling that final ecstatic coupling in the grass and stood to his feet.\u00a0 No, he definitely wouldn\u2019t be attending any formal political balls for some time to come.\u00a0 Far better to focus on the fruit of the love that he and Marie had shared.\u00a0 He moved toward the stairs, eager to gaze into the slumbering faces of his beloved boys and to fall asleep thinking of the one far away, whom the new post office would keep in closer touch.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Hearing a horse ride into the yard, Ben rose from his chair behind the desk and looked out the window behind it.\u00a0 Glad of the excuse to get away from the hated bookwork, he threw down his pen and walked to the front door, arriving just in time to answer the rhythmic tap of the brass doorknocker.\u00a0 \u201cEnos,\u201d he greeted his foreman.\u00a0 \u201cNow, what are you doing here on your afternoon off?\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos Montgomery extended a sheaf of envelopes.\u00a0 \u201cWell, first, I picked up the ranch mail while Kat finished her shopping.\u00a0 There\u2019s a couple of pieces I didn\u2019t think could wait,\u201d he said with a grin.\u00a0 \u201cI told \u2018em to forward everything to WashoeCity from here on, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben glanced down at the top two letters on the pile and smiled broadly as he recognized the handwriting of his oldest son.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m obliged,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cI think you know how eagerly I\u2019ve been waiting for this!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir, sure do.\u201d\u00a0 Enos twisted his hat in his hand.<\/p>\n

Noting the nervous gesture, Ben asked, \u201cAnything wrong, Enos?\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos laughed and shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, sir.\u00a0 Everything\u2019s right as rain.\u00a0 Just figure I\u2019m likely to get shot for telling you another piece of news, but I\u2019m about to burst with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

With instant intuition, Ben murmured, \u201cKaterina\u2019s with child.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos\u2019s mouth dropped.\u00a0 \u201cNow, how could you know that?\u00a0 I know she ain\u2019t said nothin\u2019.\u00a0 Blushed red as a beet, just tellin\u2019 me last night.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s just say you\u2019ve got that future-father look in your eye.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos\u2019s brows drew together as he puzzled Ben\u2019s remark.\u00a0 \u201cI thought it was the woman who got a certain glow about her,\u201d he mumbled.<\/p>\n

Ben rested a hand on his foreman\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cOh, it\u2019s hard for man or woman to keep the glow from their eyes when a child\u2019s on the way.\u201d\u00a0 He gave the shoulder a hearty clap.\u00a0 \u201cCongratulations, my man!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust had to tell you,\u201d Enos said with a shrug.\u00a0 \u201cI guess you know how it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI do, indeed,\u201d Ben assured him with a comradely smile.\u00a0 \u201cWhen is the child due?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKat figures sometime in April.\u201d\u00a0 Enos lowered his eyes and then looked up into the face of his employer.\u00a0 \u201cI just hope I can be half the father you are, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope you\u2019ll make only half the mistakes I have,\u201d Ben said modestly, though he flushed with pleasure at the praise, for being a good father had become his highest goal in life.\u00a0 He\u2019d been thinking about that a lot this week, so the praise was especially sweet.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t let Kat know I told you,\u201d Enos warned.\u00a0 \u201cShe thinks it ain\u2019t proper to speak of such things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gripped the other man\u2019s hand in solemn covenant.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019ll be our secret, Enos.\u00a0 Believe me, I have had enough experience to know how women feel about \u2018such things.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201cPa!\u00a0 I caught a big fish!\u201d Little Joe shouted as he blasted through the front door later that afternoon.<\/p>\n

Ben caught the little boy up in his arms and hugged him tight.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s wonderful, Little Joe!\u00a0 Is he big enough to make supper for all of us?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe excitedly bobbed his head up and down.\u00a0 \u201cHoss is takin\u2019 him to Hop Sing right now, Pa!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYum, yum,\u201d Ben said with an exaggerated smack of his lips.\u00a0 \u201cCrispy fried brook trout\u2014just what I was hoping for.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe caught a bunch,\u201d Hoss reported, coming in from the kitchen.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing said he\u2019s real happy to have so many.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben reached over to ruffle the boy\u2019s straight, wheaten hair.\u00a0 \u201cDid you have a good time together?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned.\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 Little Joe\u2019s gettin\u2019 better at fishin\u2019, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cKeeping quieter, you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss returned the laughter.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, that\u2019s what I mean.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe patted his father\u2019s cheek to get his attention.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t scare fish away today, Pa.\u00a0 I do good, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou did well, son, very well.\u201d\u00a0 Ben kissed his youngest and set him down.\u00a0 He walked toward his office alcove.\u00a0 \u201cAs if the day weren\u2019t special enough, with this wonderful supper to look forward to, I have another treat for you boys.\u201d\u00a0 He took two envelopes, one already opened, from his desk.<\/p>\n

\u201cLetters from Adam!\u201d Hoss shouted.\u00a0 \u201cHurray!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHurray!\u201d echoed Little Joe.\u00a0 When Ben handed the unopened envelope to Hoss, Little Joe eagerly reached for the other.<\/p>\n

Ben held it out of reach.\u00a0 \u201cNo, no, baby; that\u2019s Pa\u2019s letter.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere\u2019s mine?\u201d Little Joe cried.<\/p>\n

Ben squatted down to take the toddler in his arms.\u00a0 \u201cThere isn\u2019t one to you this time, Little Joe, but I\u2019m sure there will be soon.\u00a0 I\u2019m going to read my letter to you, though, and perhaps Hoss will share his.\u201d\u00a0 Seeing the hesitant look on his other son\u2019s face, he added quickly, \u201cIf it isn\u2019t private, that is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, Pa,\u201d Hoss quickly agreed, \u201cif\u2019n it ain\u2019t private.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s \u2018private\u2019 mean?\u201d Little Joe demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cSort of secret,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

Little Joe folded his arms and glared at his brother.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t like secrets.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss gave him a quick squeeze.\u00a0 \u201cAh, don\u2019t fret, punkin; I bet there ain\u2019t much private to it.\u00a0 Let\u2019s open \u2018er and see.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled his approval, and they all went over to the seating area near the fire.\u00a0 He sank into his padded armchair, while the two boys perched, side by side, on the settee.<\/p>\n

Hoss quickly scanned his letter and grinned.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t nothin\u2019 private,\u201d he assured his little brother, \u201cso I\u2019ll just read the whole thing out loud.\u00a0 Okay, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss, that sounds wonderful,\u201d Ben replied.<\/p>\n

Hoss held the letter with both hands and began to read:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dear Hoss:<\/p>\n

I thought I\u2019d write the first letter to you, but please tell Pa and Little Joe I will write to them also, as soon as I can.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cHe didn\u2019t write me,\u201d Little Joe said, pouting.\u00a0 \u201cAdam lied.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHush now, Little Joe,\u201d his father urged.\u00a0 \u201cYou know that isn\u2019t so.\u00a0 You can see from Hoss\u2019s letter that Adam is thinking about you.\u00a0 And your brother is a man of his word:\u00a0 if he said he\u2019ll write, you can depend on it that he will.\u00a0 Your letter will probably be at the post office the next time we pick up the mail.\u201d\u00a0 He nodded to his other son.\u00a0 \u201cPlease go on, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Be glad, little brother, that you have never had to ride a stagecoach all the way to the Missouri River.\u00a0 Bump, bump, bump!\u00a0 It\u2019s a wonder I don\u2019t have bruises head to toe.\u00a0 It was interesting to see so much of our great country so quickly, though, and I know you would enjoy that.\u00a0 At a couple of stage stations, I picked up some interesting rocks that I will be sending to you and Little Joe.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cMe?\u00a0 He\u2019s sendin\u2019 \u2018em to me?\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe bounced on the settee.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere now, you see,\u201d Ben soothed.\u00a0 \u201cYour brother hasn\u2019t forgotten you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen\u2019ll they get here?\u201d Little Joe asked urgently.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen they get here,\u201d Ben said firmly.\u00a0 \u201cNow let your brother finish the letter, please, or it\u2019ll be your bedtime before he gets to the end.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe giggled.\u00a0 \u201cSilly Pa.\u00a0 We gotta eat trout first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cSo we do; so we do.\u00a0 Now, let your brother read, Joseph.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss began again where he\u2019d left off:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The rocks are obsidian, granite, flint and quartz in different colors.\u00a0 I tried to make your set and Little Joe\u2019s as nearly alike as I could, but all rocks are a little different, you know.\u00a0 If either of you thinks you\u2019ve gotten the short end of the stick with the way I divided them up, let Pa settle any fusses between you.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hoss frowned at his little brother.\u00a0 \u201cThere ain\u2019t gonna be no fussin\u2019, is there?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo fussin\u2019 . . . long as Adam plays fair.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure he will,\u201d Ben interjected.\u00a0 \u201cHoss . . . the letter?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d Hoss said and continued to read:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

We ran into some bad weather just east of Courthouse Rock.\u00a0 (Ask Pa to tell you where that is.)\u00a0 I had never seen a tornado before, and it\u2019s something to see, but dangerous, too.\u00a0 It\u2019s a big windstorm that circles around on itself, and when it touches down to the ground, it looks a little like the funnel Hop Sing sometimes uses in the kitchen. The tail came twisting toward us, whipping up a cloud of dust, but we were safe inside the sod station.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s good Adam didn\u2019t get blowed away,\u201d Little Joe offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I\u2019m sure we\u2019re all glad that your brother came through the storm safely,\u201d his father agreed.\u00a0 \u201cAnything more, Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust a mite,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cAdam says to tell you he\u2019ll write you next, Pa, and then Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy I gotta be last?\u201d Little Joe demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Cause you can\u2019t read yet,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whatever Adam\u2019s reason had been, Ben was quite sure that wasn\u2019t it, but as long as Little Joe was satisfied, he was content to accept Hoss\u2019s explanation.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnyway, the last thing Adam says is about you, punkin,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally?\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe\u2019s eyes grew wide.<\/p>\n

Hoss bobbed his head.\u00a0 \u201cYup, sure \u2018nough.\u00a0 He says, \u2018Give Little Joe a hug from me\u2014not a bear hug, though; you\u2019ll squish him.\u2019\u00a0 Then he says \u2018Love, Adam,\u2019 and that\u2019s all.\u201d\u00a0 Taking Adam\u2019s directive literally, Hoss put his arms around his little brother and squeezed gently.\u00a0 \u201cThere!\u00a0 That\u2019s from Adam.\u201d\u00a0 He looked over at his father.\u00a0 \u201cNow, what\u2019d Adam write to you, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou come suppah now,\u201d Hop Sing ordered as he set the platter of crispy fried trout and fried potatoes on the table.\u00a0 \u201cEat fish while hot.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s when it\u2019s best,\u201d Ben agreed, standing up.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll save the letter for dessert.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t there no real dessert?\u201d Hoss asked, his face drooping dolefully.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cYes, I\u2019m sure there is, Hoss, but I think I\u2019ll write to your brother and tell him just how well he stacks up against apple pie!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, Pa, you know I\u2019d a lot druther have a letter from Adam than even a whole pie,\u201d Hoss protested<\/p>\n

\u201cI want pie and a letter,\u201d Little Joe declared adamantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, you always want it all, you scamp,\u201d Ben scolded jovially as he swung Little Joe to his back and trotted him to the table.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben slid the single sheet from the envelope and spread it open on the desk.\u00a0 The boys were in bed, and he wanted to get his letter to Adam written before time for him to retire, as well.\u00a0 Still, he couldn\u2019t resist reading Adam\u2019s letter just one more time before he framed his reply.\u00a0 Some of it had been disturbing and would require a well-worded response.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dear Pa,<\/p>\n

I am so full of news I scarcely know where to start.\u00a0 In fact, there wouldn\u2019t be room in this letter to tell you everything I\u2019d want to say if we could just sit down together and talk.\u00a0 The most important thing, I suppose, is that I started classes today, and they are all I\u2019d hoped for and more.\u00a0 Thank you again for allowing me this opportunity; I promise to make the most of it.\u00a0 I had to put down two hundred dollars as bond, and Jamie and I are intending to join a freshman society together, so finances may be tight, but I\u2019ll manage.\u00a0 My Greek professor, a wonderful man and outstanding teacher, has loaned me the use of an old text of his until I can afford my own.\u00a0 (Jamie and I had hoped to share, to curtail expenses, but because we are separated during class that won\u2019t work.)\u00a0 We joined an eating club, the Vultures, which is helping with that expense.\u00a0 (Tell Hoss I\u2019ll write him more about the club in my next letter.)<\/p>\n

The trip here was amazing. \u00a0I couldn\u2019t help contrasting it with the journey you and I and Inger\u2014and then Hoss\u2014made together.\u00a0 The stagecoach went whizzing past landmarks that we\u2019d strain our eyes for weeks, hoping to see.\u00a0 (Remember Chimney Rock and how much it meant to me to finally reach it?)<\/p>\n

You know about the tornado from my letter to Hoss, but the trip was mostly uneventful, until just before I reached the Missouri River.\u00a0 That\u2019s where I learned about the Confederates burning the bridge over the Little Platte River.\u00a0 I was frantic to get to St. Joseph then, to make certain that Josiah\u2014Mr. Edwards says I should call him that, now that I\u2019m a man\u2014was all right and whether I\u2019d be able to continue on or not.\u00a0 Fortunately, he had thought ahead and had everything worked out.\u00a0 It took some doing, but I made connections with the railroad past the bridge and was on my way again.<\/p>\n

There was one incident on the train.\u00a0 We were about halfway down the line when I saw riders coming toward us.\u00a0 At first, I thought they were another Union patrol, as I\u2019d seen soldiers riding along the railroad earlier, but they were Rebel raiders.\u00a0 Thanks to Josiah\u2019s warning, I had my gun with me and was able to help defend the train until Union soldiers arrived to drive off the attackers.\u00a0 Frightening, but only for a few minutes.\u00a0 I was beginning to think I\u2019d never make it to New Haven, but I finally did\u2014with not a single day to spare.\u00a0 I was exhausted, but somehow I made it through two days of entrance exams, and it has all been worth it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

There\u2019d been no problem with that part of the letter.\u00a0 Oh, it had been a little too stimulating to the boys when they heard about that attack on the train.\u00a0 Little Joe had immediately said that he wanted to ride that train in Missouri and fight off bad men, but Ben had put a short end to that nonsense.\u00a0 He\u2019d been concerned, too, about Adam\u2019s mention of tight finances.\u00a0 Thankfully, the cattle he\u2019d sold on the last drive had enabled him to send the boy a draft of credit to help with that, and since St. Joseph was now in Union hands again, he could send another with his next letter.<\/p>\n

What followed, however, what Adam had written for his father\u2019s gaze alone, had unsettled him.<\/p>\n

FOR YOU ONLY:<\/p>\n

As happy as I am to be here, sometimes I still fear I\u2019m doing the wrong thing.\u00a0 I still feel I\u2019m abandoning you, Pa, but I won\u2019t say more about that, as we\u2019ve been through it all before.\u00a0 The only way I can validate your sacrifice is to get the most benefit possible from my time here, and I will.<\/p>\n

Maybe it\u2019s because of all I saw in Missouri, but it\u2019s hard sometimes to think that it\u2019s right to sit in a classroom, enjoying myself, when men my age\u2014and some younger\u2014are giving their lives for a cause in which I also believe.\u00a0 Don\u2019t worry, Pa; I remember my promise to you to stay out of the \u201ceastern conflict,\u201d and I\u2019ll keep it.\u00a0 That will be easy, as it lines up with my own desire.\u00a0 It just seems selfish, somehow, but maybe my weariness is keeping me from thinking clearly.\u00a0 Maybe I\u2019ll feel better in the morning.\u00a0 I guess I shouldn\u2019t have poured out my heart like this and caused you unnecessary concern, but I can\u2019t take the words off the paper, and I don\u2019t have either the supplies or the time to start a new letter.<\/p>\n

Please don\u2019t worry about me.\u00a0 I am happy and healthy.\u00a0 I miss you and the boys so much.\u00a0 Give them both my love, and tell Little Joe I will write him soon.\u00a0 I was going to put a short note in with this, but I knew the little fellow would feel left out if he didn\u2019t get a letter all his own.\u00a0 All my love to you, too, Pa.\u00a0 I owe you everything.<\/p>\n

Your grateful son,<\/p>\n

Adam<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Laying Adam\u2019s words where he could see and refer to them, Ben began his own letter.\u00a0 He wrote the easy part first, telling Adam how much they missed him, how much Hoss had enjoyed his letter and how eagerly Little Joe was looking forward to his and to the promised collection of rocks.\u00a0 He thanked his son for being so thoughtful in selecting that remembrance of his trip for his brothers.\u00a0 Then he wrote homey news of family and friends, including Hoss\u2019s response to his remark about serving up Adam\u2019s letter as dessert and Little Joe\u2019s insistence on having it all.\u00a0 Knowing that Adam was far enough away to keep the secret, he shared the good news of an upcoming birth on the Ponderosa.\u00a0 Then he turned to more serious matters:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

My dearest boy, never fear that you should withhold from me any thought of your heart.\u00a0 Though parted by thousands of miles, I am still your father and, as such, am intended to help carry such loads.\u00a0 My shoulders are broad, Adam, and strong enough to share your concerns.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m sure that you were much affected by what you experienced on the trip, and I can understand that you might feel drawn to the service of your country when you see others answering that call.\u00a0 However, I believe you are wrong in referring to what you are doing as sitting in a classroom, enjoying yourself.\u00a0 That is not what you are doing, my boy, just seeking your own pleasure; you are preparing yourself for the future beyond this terrible conflict that separates our country.\u00a0 Remember, Adam, that your goal is to become a builder, and how greatly our country will need builders when this cruel war is over!\u00a0 You are doing the right thing, and I hope you will no longer waste precious time second-guessing your decision.\u00a0 Though it is hard to be parted from you, I know\u2014I absolutely know\u2014that you have made the right decision.<\/p>\n

Let us hear from you often.\u00a0 As Hoss said, a letter from you rates higher than even an entire apple pie\u2014with all of us.<\/p>\n

With a heart filled with love and longing,<\/p>\n

Pa<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Hoss began to dread coming home from school each day.\u00a0 His little brother had always looked so happy to see him before, but now all Little Joe wanted to see was his letter from Adam and his special package of pretty rocks.\u00a0 Though it was a little out of his way, Hoss checked the post office every day; but every day he had to disappoint his little brother.\u00a0 Today would be no different.\u00a0 There\u2019d been a letter for Pa from Uncle John, back in Denver, but nothing from Adam.<\/p>\n

Little Joe scampered out to greet Hoss as soon as Hop Sing released him from the kitchen.\u00a0 Seeing the envelope in his brother\u2019s hand, he whooped, \u201cIt came!\u00a0 It came!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss bent down and hugged his little brother to his heart.\u00a0 \u201cNo, punkin,\u201d he said sadly, \u201cit ain\u2019t from Adam; it\u2019s from Uncle John.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe broke away, and Hoss cringed as he saw a single tear trickle from the corner of one eye.\u00a0 \u201cAh, don\u2019t do that, punkin,\u201d he begged.\u00a0 \u201cThat letter\u2019s comin\u2019 soon, I promise you it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe shook his head wildly from side to side and turned and ran around the corner of the house.<\/p>\n

Hoss gave chase and quickly caught up with the shorter-legged child.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t you go runnin\u2019 off,\u201d he scolded as he pulled Little Joe into his arms again.<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t; I\u2019m just runnin\u2019,\u201d Little Joe said, \u201c\u2018cause I just plain need to, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss stood up and held his brother by one hand.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I can understand how you might, but let\u2019s run together, okay?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joe used his free hand to wipe his sniffling nose and bobbed his head up and down.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, let\u2019s run together.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two boys ran around the house and then the yard until they were breathless.\u00a0 Hoss thought the exercise had pushed all thoughts of the missing letter from Little Joe\u2019s mind until their father came home and the first thing from his brother\u2019s mouth was the report that \u201cthat letter still ain\u2019t come, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben lifted his youngest son and carried him to the chair beside the fireplace.\u00a0 Sitting down, he held Little Joe in his lap and said, \u201cI\u2019m sorry, son.\u00a0 It should have been here by now, except there has been some problem with mail getting through from the East.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYours did and Hoss\u2019s did.\u00a0 Even that\u2019n from Uncle John,\u201d Little Joe said through pouting lips.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, Uncle John\u2019s didn\u2019t have to come as far,\u201d Ben explained.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s been no disruption from Denver.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh?\u201d Joe asked, and Hoss looked confused, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo mail problems from Denver,\u201d Ben said more simply, \u201cbut there were some further east.\u00a0 Remember Adam\u2019s letter to me, when he told about the problems he had getting to New Haven because a bridge had been destroyed?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cMail might have trouble the same way, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think so,\u201d Ben said, stroking his youngest son\u2019s unruly curls.\u00a0 \u201cThe Enterprise<\/em> said that mail was getting through now, but I\u2019m sure it got backed up some.\u00a0 I think that\u2019s the explanation, boys.\u00a0 The letter\u2019s on its way . . . just delayed by war problems.\u00a0 Try to keep trusting just a little longer, all right, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

After frowning thoughtfully for a moment, Little Joe looked into his father\u2019s face and said, \u201cI\u2019ll try, Pa . . . just a little longer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gave his son\u2019s smooth cheek a kiss.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s my boy.\u00a0 Now, let\u2019s see what news Uncle John has to share.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Still clad in his nightshirt, Little Joe lay sprawled across the foot of his father\u2019s bed as Ben stowed a change of clothing and grooming necessities into a saddlebag.\u00a0 \u201cWhy you gotta go, Pa?\u201d the boy demanded.<\/p>\n

Ben fastened the saddlebag\u2019s buckle.\u00a0 \u201cI can\u2019t say no to the Governor, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can,\u201d Little Joe declared stoutly as he scrabbled up to his knees.<\/p>\n

Laying a caressing hand on the child\u2019s curls, Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cYou say no entirely too easily, little boy.\u201d\u00a0 He bent down to Little Joe\u2019s level and looked into his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s important that we keep up good relations with the Paiutes, son, and Governor Nye feels he needs the help of someone who knows them well.\u00a0 I\u2019m honored that he asked me to go along on this mission.\u00a0 Do you understand?\u201d<\/p>\n

Stubborn frown on his face, Little Joe shook his head from side to side.<\/p>\n

\u201cI understand, Pa,\u201d Ben\u2019s other boy said quietly, \u201cbut I sure wish you didn\u2019t have to go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben crossed the room to place a hand on Hoss\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t enjoy leaving my boys, either, but this is important.\u00a0 You\u2019ll look after Little Joe for me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, Pa.\u00a0 Always do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gave the boy a hearty hug.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s right; you always do.\u00a0 I can always count on my good boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too, Pa,\u201d Little Joe said, bouncing up.\u00a0 \u201cI can count\u2014one . . . two . . . three.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben grinned.\u00a0 \u201cNot that kind of counting, sweetheart.\u201d\u00a0 He caught Little Joe in mid-bounce and held him close for a moment.\u00a0 \u201cBe a good boy for brother . . . and for Hop Sing.\u00a0 Pa\u2019ll be back in just a couple of days.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTake me with you,\u201d Little Joe pleaded.<\/p>\n

Ben smiled, remembering his first trip to the Paiute encampment.\u00a0 He\u2019d taken a very young Hoss, diapers and all, with him and Adam, but those days of innocence were gone.\u00a0 Though the Pyramid Lake War was over and the Indians established on reservations, relations were still strained.\u00a0 He expected no trouble on this trip, but he wouldn\u2019t risk his child\u2019s life on that assumption, not in these times.\u00a0 \u201cI can\u2019t, Little Joe,\u201d he said as he set the boy\u2019s bare feet back on the bed.\u00a0 \u201cBe a brave boy for Pa now . . . please?\u201d<\/p>\n

Reluctantly, Little Joe nodded.\u00a0 As his father left the bedroom, he slid to the floor and followed in his wake, right behind Hoss.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, I\u2019m a big enough boy to see myself off,\u201d Ben chuckled when he noticed the parade behind him.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, you help your brother get dressed and down to breakfast, please, and then get off to school on time.\u00a0 Start the week right.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir, I will,\u201d Hoss promised.\u00a0 Taking Little Joe\u2019s hand, he went as far as the head of the stairs, and they both waved until Ben disappeared through the front door.\u00a0 \u201cCome on, punkin,\u201d he said then.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s get dressed and see what Hop Sing\u2019s got that\u2019s good to eat.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0There was a pleasant crispness in the air that morning as Ben rode toward WashoeLake, where he would meet the Governor\u2019s party.\u00a0 His spirits were soaring high enough to reach the fluffy white clouds drifting above.\u00a0 Was it only two weeks ago that he\u2019d decided his usefulness to the territory was finished, that he had no role to play in its development?\u00a0 Now, in about an hour, he\u2019d be riding at the Governor\u2019s side on a special mission.\u00a0 He still didn\u2019t believe he should hold any regular office, for that would take too much time from his growing sons.\u00a0 It felt wonderful, however, to discover that he could, in unofficial ways like this, influence the growth of Nevada, as well.<\/p>\n

As planned, he reached the lake early; and while his horse grazed, he walked the shore, reliving memories of gatherings here with family and friends.\u00a0 We\u2019ll have to make a point of having Hoss\u2019s birthday party here<\/em>, he mused.\u00a0 The boy got short-changed last year, and I\u2019ll not allow that again.<\/em><\/p>\n

Looking up, he saw enough dust on the horizon to herald the Governor\u2019s arrival, evidently with a considerable entourage.\u00a0 Maybe I shouldn\u2019t flatter myself with his invitation<\/em>, Ben chuckled.\u00a0 Looks like half of <\/em>Carson City<\/em> came along for the parley<\/em>.\u00a0 When the caravan came closer, however, he saw that most of the dust was being raised by two wagons full of supplies.\u00a0 It was the first thing he commented on after greeting the Governor.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m glad to see that the government is sending food to our Paiute friends.\u00a0 They need that sort of help with winter coming.\u201d<\/p>\n

Governor Nye\u2019s rueful smile looked more like a scowl.\u00a0 \u201cIt isn\u2019t food, Ben, and I doubt what\u2019s in most of those crates will be much help in preparing for winter.\u00a0 Apparently, the Federal Government has a very poor understanding of needs out here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben was almost afraid to ask, but he did.\u00a0 \u201cWhat is it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Nye shook his head apologetically.\u00a0 \u201cHoops,\u201d he grunted.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s jaw dropped.\u00a0 \u201cHoops?\u00a0 Barrel hoops?\u201d<\/p>\n

Nye pursed his lips.\u00a0 \u201cBarrel hoops would be an improvement, Ben.\u00a0 No, what Washington, in its infinite wisdom, has sent me to deliver to our Paiute friends is the kind of hoops ladies wear beneath their dresses.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re joking,\u201d Ben gasped.<\/p>\n

The flabbergasted look on Ben\u2019s face made Nye laugh.\u00a0 \u201cI wish I were . . . and I\u2019m appointing you to come up with some way to explain this to the Paiutes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, thanks!\u201d Ben sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cI believe, Governor Nye, that you have confused me with Solomon.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Governor gave Ben his most charming smile.\u00a0 \u201cI have the utmost confidence in you.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben had never felt more grateful for Paiute ritual than he did that afternoon as the pipe made its way around the circle of men.\u00a0 He took a puff and again passed it to the man on his right.\u00a0 How many circuits had it made now?\u00a0 Four\u2014or just three out of the traditional five?\u00a0 He hoped it was only the third, so he\u2019d have a little more time to think.\u00a0 Not that he was sure it would help.\u00a0 He\u2019d wracked his brain every mile of the trail here to PyramidLake, but still didn\u2019t know how he could explain those blasted hoops.\u00a0 The Paiutes valued honesty, so maybe he should just put it to them straight: It\u2019s like this, Winnemucca, the white leaders in <\/em>Washington<\/em> are a bunch of blathering idiots<\/em>.\u00a0 No, he could scarcely say that.\u00a0 Gracious a man as he normally was, Governor Nye might yield to the temptation to string him up to the nearest tree on their way home!\u00a0 But he couldn\u2019t come up with some cock-and-bull lie, either.\u00a0 Winnemucca\u2019s daughters had lived among white people long enough to know exactly what those hoops were really used for.\u00a0 Ben rubbed his crossed legs to keep from clinching his fists and wondered where the wisdom of Solomon was when a man needed it.\u00a0 If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God<\/em> . . . didn\u2019t the Scripture say something like that?\u00a0 I\u2019m asking, God!<\/em><\/p>\n

He saw Winnemucca pass the pipe to the Governor, seated on his right.\u00a0 Once more around, then; at least that much respite.\u00a0 As his troubled gaze fell on the circular and open-topped structure behind the chief, an idea slowly started to take shape.\u00a0 The ritual ended, and the Governor began to speak, telling the assembled chiefs that the white father in Washington had sent gifts to his friends, the Paiutes.\u00a0 \u201cThe White Winnemucca will present them,\u201d Nye said with a significant look at Ben.<\/p>\n

Ben stood slowly and motioned the soldiers forward with the first crate.\u00a0 He ordered it opened for the chiefs\u2019 inspection and was surprised to see that this crate, at least, contained something more useful than dress hoops.\u00a0 \u201cWool blankets to keep your people warm through the cold winter nights, Winnemucca,\u201d he said with relief.<\/p>\n

One by one the crates were opened and their contents described for the assembled Paiutes.\u00a0 Some were useful, some not readily so, but Ben managed to find some explanation that satisfied the Indians.\u00a0 The sixth crate contained the dreaded hoops.\u00a0 Sending one last prayer winging heavenward, Ben took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cWinnemucca, you know I always speak the truth to my friend.\u201d\u00a0 He swallowed hard and continued.\u00a0 \u201cI am not sure what the white father intended you to do with these.\u00a0 They are used by the women of our villages, and perhaps your women will find things to do with them that a man such as myself cannot think of.\u201d \u00a0He lifted one hoop from the crate.\u00a0 \u201cI have thought of one thing, though.\u201d\u00a0 He pointed to the dwelling behind the chief, tracing its domed shape in the air and then ran his hand over the smooth curve of the hoop.\u00a0 \u201cPerhaps the curve of these hoops will be useful as a foundation for your karnees.\u00a0 It is all I know to suggest, but I am sure that the wisdom of the Paiute will show you even better uses for these\u2014these wonderful mechanisms.\u201d<\/p>\n

Winnemucca took one of the \u201cwonderful mechanisms\u201d and began to stroke the wood as Ben had.\u00a0 He still looked puzzled, but grunted acceptance of the gift.<\/p>\n

From across the circle the voice of Winnemucca\u2019s nephew Numaga rang out.\u00a0 \u201cThe trinkets of the white man are of little importance,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cWhat we must learn is why you build such a high fence through our land.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben now looked as confused as the chief examining the hoop.\u00a0 \u201cFence?\u201d he asked, looking to the Governor for enlightenment.\u00a0 Clearly bewildered, the Governor shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI know of no high fence on your land, Numaga,\u201d Ben replied slowly.<\/p>\n

Numaga\u2019s keen black eyes did not flinch.\u00a0 \u201cThe White Winnemucca says he always speaks truth, but only the blind cannot see this fence.\u00a0 Poles that stretch to the sky, tied with long ropes.\u00a0 Which side must the Paiute stay on?\u00a0\u00a0 We do not wish war again, but we must know which side is ours or war may come.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s mind raced.\u00a0 Poles that stretch to the sky . . . tied with long ropes . . . what on earth had the man seen?\u00a0 Then it hit him, and he smiled in relief.\u00a0 \u201cIt is not a fence, Numaga,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cIt is a telegraph line.\u00a0 It sends the words of the white men from one side of our country to the other.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Paiutes all exchanged skeptical glances.<\/p>\n

Sensing their befuddlement, Ben tried again.\u00a0 \u201cIt is like the Paiute signal fires that sent word of Captain Truckee\u2019s death from hill to hill.\u00a0 The ropes\u2014they are called wires\u2014carry news in a similar way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some nodded in polite recollection of the memorable event at which Ben had been present; others still shook their heads.\u00a0 A signal fire could be seen, and all knew its meaning, but ropes to carry words?\u00a0 It made no sense . . . but, then, many things about the white man made no sense. To the Paiutes\u2019 minds, however, only one question mattered.\u00a0 \u201cWhich side ours?\u201d Winnemucca demanded.<\/p>\n

Governor Nye took over.\u00a0 \u201cThe Government is grateful that you allow our telegraph poles to be planted on your land,\u201d he said, \u201cbut they are not intended to restrict your movement in any way.\u00a0 You may ride, hunt, do what you will on both sides, Chief Winnemucca.\u00a0 Treat them as if they were not there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben could tell that the Indians still didn\u2019t understand the purpose of the \u201chigh fence,\u201d but relief also was evident on their faces.\u00a0 The Paiutes wanted peace as much as the white man, Ben realized, and though his contribution had been small, he felt warm satisfaction in the part he\u2019d played this afternoon in keeping it.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The hem of his nightshirt brushed his kneecap as Hoss Cartwright propped his elbows on the windowsill and gazed out at the dark sky.\u00a0 Ma would have noticed that he needed new nightclothes, that the old ones were getting too short, but Pa didn\u2019t take note of such things as quick. \u00a0Hoss hated to ask, \u2018cause he knew Pa\u2019d spent a heap of money on sendin\u2019 Adam back East to school and had even had to borrow the goods to make his new school clothes from Aunt Nellie.\u00a0 Nobody saw him under the sheets, so the nightshirt could wait . . . not much longer, if he kept growing, but a little while.\u00a0 That wasn\u2019t what was keeping him awake in the middle of the night.<\/p>\n

It was a pretty night, the kind he liked best, with the stars all twinkly and the air still enough to hear a bird twitter, except most of them had already taken off south for the winter.\u00a0 The setting didn\u2019t give him the usual sense of serenity tonight, though, and he knew why.\u00a0 The house just didn\u2019t feel right with Pa gone. \u00a0Hop Sing was right downstairs, if they needed anything, but at night, up here, it was just him and Little Joe, and the house felt mighty lonesome without Pa . . . and Adam . . . and Ma.<\/p>\n

A piercing cry knifed through the stillness.\u00a0 Hoss jumped back and padded across the room and down the hall on bare feet, as if he\u2019d been waiting for that cry to come.\u00a0 Maybe he had.\u00a0 There at the window he\u2019d felt like he was waiting for something, but he hadn\u2019t put words to what it was.\u00a0 Now he knew.\u00a0 Little Joe\u2019d started having nightmares right after Ma died and then again when Adam left.\u00a0 It had happened the night Pa went off to fight the fire, too; so, deep down, Hoss had known it could happen tonight\u2014or anytime Pa was gone, \u2018cause Little Joe was plumb scared of losing folks.\u00a0 He felt the same himself, but he was bigger and handled it better.\u00a0 At least, he tried.<\/p>\n

He raced into the next room and saw Little Joe sitting in the middle of his bed, wide-eyed and wailing.\u00a0 Hoss climbed up behind him, and on bended knee he pulled his little brother back against his chest.\u00a0 \u201cHush now,\u201d he soothed.\u00a0 \u201cEver\u2019thing\u2019s all right, little punkin.\u00a0 You\u2019re just havin\u2019 a bad dream.\u201d\u00a0 He brushed the boy\u2019s damp curls as he\u2019d seen Pa do.\u00a0 \u201cWanna tell brother \u2018bout it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPaiutes!\u201d the little boy cried, near hysteria.\u00a0 \u201cScalpin\u2019 Pa!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss held the quivering little body even tighter.\u00a0 \u201cNo such thing,\u201d he said firmly.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t never heard of a Paiute scalpin\u2019 nobody, even when they was at war.\u201d\u00a0 He knew what had planted that fear in his little brother\u2019s head.\u00a0 It was all that fool talk after church yesterday about what was goin\u2019 on in Arizona with the Apaches.\u00a0 \u201cI know there\u2019s some injuns that do,\u201d Hoss explained as calmly as he could over the anger he felt at people who\u2019d let a little boy hear such talk, \u201cbut not the ones Pa went to see\u2014not ever.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot ever?\u201d Little Joe asked, leaning his head back to look up at his brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot ever.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s voice was solid and sure.\u00a0 \u201cYou just put that right out of your head.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t like Pa goin\u2019 off,\u201d Little Joe whimpered, tears trickling down his face.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, neither,\u201d Hoss admitted, \u201cbut it\u2019s gonna happen from time to time, so there ain\u2019t no use cryin\u2019 about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe responded with a fresh stream.<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, now,\u201d Hoss said, hugging his brother close.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t mean to make you feel worse.\u00a0 What can brother do to make it better, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe shook his head, as if to say that nothing could make him feel better.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow \u2018bout I sing you a little ditty?\u201d Hoss offered, casting desperately for an idea.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t sing,\u201d Little Joe sniffed as he shifted around to look directly at his brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan, too.\u00a0 Maybe not good as Adam, but good enough when it\u2019s just you and me, I reckon.\u201d\u00a0 Unable to think of a song that fit the occasion, Hoss started to hum whatever notes came into his head and then he slowly put words to them.\u00a0 \u201cWhatcha gonna do when your tears run dry?\u201d he crooned, slightly off key.\u00a0 \u201cWhatcha gonna do then, punkin pie?\u201d\u00a0 He held an imaginary pitcher over his eyes and mimicked a pouring motion.\u00a0 \u201cGonna pour a little more water in?\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head in wild negation.\u00a0 \u201cOr gonna give in\u2014and grin?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe laughed at the big, silly grin that spread across his brother\u2019s face and clapped his hands.\u00a0 \u201cSing it \u2018gain, Hoss; sing it \u2018gain.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss obliged, complete with motions:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Whatcha gonna do when your tears run dry?<\/p>\n

Whatcha gonna do then, punkin pie?<\/p>\n

Gonna pour a little more water in?<\/p>\n

Or gonna give in\u2014and grin?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

When Little Joe demanded yet another repetition, Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNope. \u00a0That\u2019s lullaby enough. \u00a0Bedtime now.\u201d\u00a0 Seeing his little brother start to pucker up again, he slid off the bed and, wrapping the younger boy in a light coverlet, lifted him into his arms.\u00a0 \u201cYou can sleep with me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Little Joe immediately settled.\u00a0 \u201cBun-bun,\u201d he said, hand stretching toward his stuffed rabbit.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd Barker,\u201d Hoss agreed, with his free hand gathering up both the rabbit and the seal that Aunt Nelly had made for the little boy.\u00a0 He carried his brother into his own room, put him into bed and handed him his cuddle critters.\u00a0 Then he crawled in beside his brother, who immediately snuggled up against him and started to doze.\u00a0 As Hoss drifted off himself, his last coherent thought was Shoulda done this to start with.\u00a0 House don\u2019t feel half so lonesome when we\u2019re together<\/em>.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0As he neared home after school the next day, Hoss had a big grin on his face.\u00a0 Not only was Pa due home today, but he had something in his saddlebag guaranteed to add to the joy of that.\u00a0 Rounding the final curve, he saw Little Joe jump up from the porch step, where he was seated.\u00a0 Hoss immediately dismounted, so that he could better control both his horse and his little brother.<\/p>\n

However, Little Joe didn\u2019t come running toward him, as usual.\u00a0 Instead, the light in his eyes faded and his chin drooped.\u00a0 \u201cI thought you was Pa,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Leading Charcoal, Hoss walked over to his brother.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t Pa back yet?\u201d he asked, fret lines furrowing his forehead.\u00a0 \u201cI thought for sure he would be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cYou real sure Paiutes don\u2019t take scalps?\u201d\u00a0 He looked up, and Hoss could see again the fear that had been in his brother\u2019s eyes the previous night.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m real sure, punkin.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss wrapped Charcoal\u2019s reins around the hitching rail.\u00a0 Ordinarily, the first thing he did when he came home each afternoon was to tend to his horse\u2019s needs, but he thought Pa would understand why he let the animal wait today, \u2018cause another little critter needed tending even more.\u00a0 He opened his saddlebag and took out an envelope.\u00a0 He put his arm around his brother and led him back to the porch.\u00a0 \u201cPa\u2019s just runnin\u2019 late\u2014maybe had some extra parleyin\u2019 to do with the Paiutes, but he\u2019ll be home soon.\u00a0 And look here what I got for you.\u201d\u00a0 He waved the envelope.<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s eyes widened.\u00a0 \u201cIs it . . . mine?\u201d he asked hesitantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure is.\u00a0 Want me to open it and read it for you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah!\u201d<\/p>\n

With his pocketknife Hoss carefully slit the envelope and drew out the single sheet.\u00a0 \u201cDear Little Joe,\u201d he began:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I told a lot about my trip in the letters to Pa and Hoss, but there was one place we passed that made me think of you.\u00a0 Just past Courthouse Rock we crossed a small creek called the Little Punkin.\u00a0 Now, how do you suppose they named a creek after you when you\u2019d never been there?\u00a0 Isn\u2019t that funny?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Little Joe giggled.\u00a0 \u201cMy creek,\u201d he chirped.\u00a0 \u201cAll mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned.\u00a0 \u201cSure sounds like it.\u00a0 Now, why you reckon there ain\u2019t a creek called the Little Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBig Hoss,\u201d Little Joe tittered.<\/p>\n

Hoss laughed.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I reckon it ought to be, at that.\u201d\u00a0 He again read from the letter:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

You\u2019ll probably think it\u2019s funny, too, that I took a nap this afternoon, just like a certain baby brother of mine.\u00a0 I know you don\u2019t like them, but I really needed one, because it was hard to sleep in a stagecoach, and I couldn\u2019t rest when I got here, either, because I had tests to take.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cBad ole tests,\u201d Little Joe said with a scowl, \u201cto wear Adam out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTests wear me out, too,\u201d Hoss agreed.\u00a0 He scanned ahead in the letter and chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cThis is more like it.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

We met a black man named Candy Sam, who sells candy to students here.\u00a0 He\u2019s blind\u2014that means his eyes don\u2019t work\u2014but he can make change just as if he could see.\u00a0 His fingers see for him.\u00a0 Jamie and I bought some divinity, and it was really good.\u00a0 I think Candy Sam will get plenty of our business!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019d get plenty of mine, too,\u201d Hoss said with a lick of his lips.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u00a0 MaybePa\u2019ll bring us some candy,\u201d Little Joe suggested.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the Paiute camp?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss made a face.\u00a0 \u201cNaw, they just suck on tule shoots for sweetening.\u00a0 It ain\u2019t too good, punkin.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh.\u00a0 That all Adam says?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust a little bit more.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss finished the letter:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It will soon be time for supper, so I will say good-bye until next time, and I\u2019ll mail this on our way to the meal.\u00a0 I will be sending a gift from the trail at the same time.\u00a0 I hope you enjoy it.<\/p>\n

Your big brother,<\/p>\n

Adam<\/p>\n

\u201cOur rocks!\u201d Little Joe cried.\u00a0 \u201cDid they come, too?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the saddlebags,\u201d Hoss said as he folded the letter and put it back in the envelope.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll get \u2018em out later, but first I gotta stable Charcoal.\u00a0 Poor pony\u2019s waited long enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe looked disappointed, but he solemnly nodded his head.\u00a0 Young as he was, he already understood Pa\u2019s feelings about keeping a horse waiting for proper care.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Little Joe scampered at his brother\u2019s side as Hoss carried the pail of milk, fresh from the cow, out of the barn.\u00a0 Hearing hooves coming up the road that led around the barn, Joe sprang forward happily.<\/p>\n

Hoss dropped the pail of milk and chased down his brother, just as their father rode into the yard.\u00a0 \u201cDoggone you,\u201d he scolded as he grabbed Little Joe\u2019s hand, pulling him back from the horse\u2019s path just in time.\u00a0 \u201cLook what you gone and made me do.\u201d\u00a0 He pointed at the pail, lying on its side, milk draining into the dirt.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry,\u201d Little Joe muttered, but he pulled against Hoss\u2019s restraint, crying, \u201cPa!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben, who had reined in and dismounted as soon as he saw his little son rushing toward him, opened his arms wide.\u00a0 \u201cLet him come, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss released his brother and then stalked over to the tipped pail and set it upright.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s \u2018most all spilt,\u201d he grumbled.\u00a0 Feeling a hand on his shoulder, he looked up to see his father, holding Little Joe in one arm while reaching out to him with the other.\u00a0 He moved into the warm embrace.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all right, son,\u201d his father said.\u00a0 \u201cYour little brother\u2019s more important than any amount of spilled milk.\u00a0 Thank you for watching out for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded.\u00a0 \u201cProud to, Pa, but he oughta know better by now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, he should,\u201d Ben said, turning grave eyes on his youngest.\u00a0 \u201cWhat should you know by now, Little Joe?\u201d he asked, keeping his voice gentle.<\/p>\n

Little Joe hung his head.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t run at horses.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced up with brimming eyes.\u00a0 \u201cBut I missed you, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s parental resolve melted.\u00a0 \u201cPa missed you, too, baby\u2014and you, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou was kind of later than I \u2018pected, Pa,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 \u201cWe didn\u2019t get off as early as I expected this morning.\u00a0 The Governor had some extra talking to do with Winnemucca.\u201d\u00a0 He felt his hat falling back from his head and made an unsuccessful grab for it.<\/p>\n

\u201cOops,\u201d murmured Little Joe.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat are you doing, son?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust checkin\u2019,\u201d the boy said.\u00a0 \u201cYou got hair.\u201d\u00a0 He looked relieved.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, of course, I have hair,\u201d Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cA little grayer, thanks to you, but it hasn\u2019t fallen out yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think he was more afeared it might\u2019ve got lifted, Pa,\u201d Hoss explained.\u00a0 \u201cRemember all that talk about the Apaches after church?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh.\u201d\u00a0 Ben held his little son closer.\u00a0 \u201cI wasn\u2019t with the Apaches, Little Joe,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cThe Paiutes are our friends and would never hurt me, son.\u00a0 There\u2019s no need for you to fear when I\u2019m with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what I told him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gave Hoss a nod of approval.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s right.\u00a0 And you can always trust your big brother, Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGuess what, Pa!\u201d Little Joe exclaimed.\u00a0 \u201cI got a letter!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s eyes sparkled.\u00a0 \u201cFrom Adam?\u00a0 That\u2019s wonderful, Little Joe!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd pretty rocks, too!\u00a0 Wanna see?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI surely do.\u201d\u00a0 Ben set the boy down.\u00a0 \u201cRun get them for me.\u201d\u00a0 As Little Joe ran toward the house, Ben smiled at Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s a relief.\u00a0 I was afraid that letter had gotten lost in the mail.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t want to say that to Little Joe, but it\u2019s a risk with war-torn country between us and Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI sure was glad to see it at the post office this afternoon,\u201d Hoss agreed.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t know how I was gonna keep \u2018splainin\u2019 it to the little feller.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben ran a tender hand through his son\u2019s wheaten hair.\u00a0 \u201cOh, Hoss, that\u2019s not your job; that\u2019s mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMine, too,\u201d Hoss insisted.\u00a0 \u201cI got to be a good big brother to Little Joe, like Adam always was to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben patted his head.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s right\u2014and you are.\u00a0 Any problems I should know about, while I was gone?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss had already decided not to mention Little Joe\u2019s nightmares.\u00a0 If Pa knew that, he\u2019d most likely feel he shouldn\u2019t have gone with the Governor, and Hoss figured it was important for Pa to do that kind of thing.\u00a0 \u201cNary a one,\u201d he started to say; then he faltered.\u00a0 \u201cWell, just one little un.\u00a0 Joe liked my yellow quartz better than his, \u2018cause it was smoother, so I just traded with him, and then he was happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben pulled the boy into a one-armed embrace.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, I think you\u2019ve got this big brothering down just about pat.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

\u00a0The Government really did send the Paiutes a collection of women\u2019s dress hoops with James Nye, and according to the San Francisco Bulletin<\/em>, one of their chiefs came into Carson to inquire about the high fence and which side belonged to the Indians.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER SIX<\/p>\n

Unwanted Offer<\/p>\n

The last half of October flew by, like Hermes on his winged feet.\u00a0 Ben smiled to himself as that comparison came to his thoughts, for it seemed like something his bookish son back East might have said.\u00a0 He found his mind working more like Adam\u2019s these days, a way to keep the boy closer, he supposed.\u00a0 The completion of the transcontinental telegraph near the close of the month made the distance between them seem shorter, although he doubted that there would be need for either of them to send an expensive telegram to the other.\u00a0 Expense hadn\u2019t bothered the territorial legislature, however, when it was accorded the privilege of sending the first telegram east over the completed wire.\u00a0 Like true politicians, the legislators had waxed verbose:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Resolved by the council, the house concurring, that:<\/p>\n

Whereas, the privilege of forwarding the first telegraphic message across the continent, has been given to the legislature of NevadaTerritory, therefore be it,<\/p>\n

Resolved, that the said communication shall consist of the following language, viz:<\/p>\n

NevadaTerritory, through her first legislative assembly, to the president and people of the United States\u2014<\/p>\n

Greeting:<\/p>\n

Nevada for the Union, ever true and loyal!\u00a0 The last born of the nation will be the last to desert the flag!\u00a0 Our aid, to the extent of our ability, can be relied upon to crush the rebellion.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

While Ben approved the patriotism of that pledge of loyalty, he didn\u2019t see his territory offering much real aid to the war effort.\u00a0 In money, maybe; in men, unlikely.\u00a0 The telegraph, on the other hand, would prove an invaluable aid in providing up-to-date news of the war, but the first news transmitted west\u2014in answer to the question, \u201cHow goes the war?\u201d\u2014was not encouraging.\u00a0 The Union had sustained yet another defeat at Ball\u2019s Bluff, this time with 1,900 Northern casualties and, Ben assumed, about that many, more or less, from the South.\u00a0 As he bowed his head in church the following Sunday, he thanked God that both his family here in Nevada and his son in Connecticut were secure from such devastation.<\/p>\n

With the final amen of the benediction, Ben rose from his seat and began to herd his sons down the aisle behind the Thomases, who were with them today at the WashoeCity church and would take dinner at the Ponderosa.\u00a0 His intentions of getting out quickly were blocked, quite literally, when Nelly stopped at the exit to tell the Reverend Bennett how much she had enjoyed the sermon.<\/p>\n

\u201cBen, oh, Ben,\u201d called a sharp voice behind him.\u00a0 \u201cBen Cartwright!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sighed, but quickly disguised his frustration at being trapped by the widow Hunter.\u00a0 \u201cGood morning, Elvira,\u201d he said, \u201cor I suppose \u2018good afternoon\u2019 would be more appropriate, given the hour.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elvira Hunter chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cMy, yes, the good reverend did run a mite overlong, didn\u2019t he?\u201d she observed in a conspiratorial whisper.<\/p>\n

\u201cI found his message most edifying,\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, to be sure,\u201d she said quickly, \u201cand goodness knows, there\u2019s heathen enough in this territory to call for even longer sermons.\u00a0 I just wanted to see how you and yours were gettin\u2019 along these days.\u201d\u00a0 She patted Little Joe\u2019s curly head.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t be easy, runnin\u2019 a ranch and raisin\u2019 two boys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben felt somewhat perturbed that she\u2019d omitted his oldest son, but magnanimously concluded that she might have assumed that one was already raised.\u00a0 \u201cOh, we manage,\u201d he said, for he was catching the drift of this conversation and didn\u2019t care to encourage it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure,\u201d Elvira said, not sounding the least bit certain.\u00a0 \u201cI just wanted to remind you that we\u2019re close enough neighbors for you to call on me, any time you need\u201d\u2014she veiled her eyes demurely\u2014\u201ca woman\u2019s touch with these younguns.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben felt outraged at the thought of any woman taking the place of his beloved Marie, but tried to give Elvira Hunter the benefit of the doubt as simply a concerned neighbor.<\/p>\n

Nelly Thomas was far from that generous.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s on the prowl for a man,\u201d the woman who was like a sister to Ben snorted as they drove away.\u00a0 \u201cYou be on your guard, Ben Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI assure you I have no interest in Elvira Hunter,\u201d Ben said, glancing over his shoulder to the back seat of the surrey, where Clyde, Nelly and young Inger were sitting.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe \u2018pears to have plenty in you,\u201d Clyde snickered.<\/p>\n

\u201cMa\u2019s right, Uncle Ben,\u201d Billy, who was riding his horse beside the surrey, chimed in.\u00a0 \u201cBest keep your guard up or you\u2019ll find yourself hitched before you know it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHitched?\u00a0 To her?\u00a0 Pa, you wouldn\u2019t!\u201d Hoss protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I wouldn\u2019t\u2014and that\u2019s the end of this subject!\u201d Ben growled.<\/p>\n

\u201cWouldn\u2019t what?\u201d Little Joe asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cNever you mind, boy.\u201d\u00a0 Seeing the child shrink back from his irritated tone, Ben leaned over to drop a kiss on the curly head and softened his voice.\u00a0 \u201cNothing for you to worry about, Little Joe.\u00a0 Just grownup nonsense.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI like nonsense,\u201d Little Joe said, bright smile returning.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t we just know it!\u201d Clyde cackled.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Toward the middle of that Sunday afternoon everyone decided to indulge in a second piece of pie before the Thomases headed back to Carson City.\u00a0 Billy was helping Hop Sing corral the three youngsters in the kitchen, an appropriate place for him, his parents had teased, saying he was little more than an overgrown youngster himself.\u00a0 Ben had chuckled, but assured Billy that he knew a man when he saw one.<\/p>\n

\u201cKnow which side your bread\u2019s buttered on, you mean,\u201d Clyde had cackled, referring to the fact that Billy would be staying over at the Ponderosa for a few days to help with the haying.<\/p>\n

The pie was about half consumed when someone knocked on the door.\u00a0 Hop Sing answered and ushered a man and woman into the room.\u00a0 With a wide smile on his face, Ben rose to meet them.\u00a0 \u201cEilley, Sandy,\u201d he called.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s good to see you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat it is,\u201d Nelly added.\u00a0 \u201cWe don\u2019t see near enough of you folks, now that you\u2019re livin\u2019 in Gold Hill.\u201d\u00a0 Her arms automatically reached for the baby girl in Eilley\u2019s arms.<\/p>\n

Eilley didn\u2019t look nearly as glad to see Nelly as Nelly to see her, but she quickly schooled her face to cordial courtesy.\u00a0 \u201cYes, indeed!\u201d she said as she reluctantly surrendered her child to the other woman.\u00a0 \u201cHow\u2019ve you been, Mrs. Thomas?\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly clucked her tongue.\u00a0 \u201cNow, it\u2019s Nelly to old friends.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u201d Eilley said, but the condescending way she said it made Nelly frown.<\/p>\n

The frown fled, however, as Nelly gazed down at the baby, who was just waking.\u00a0 \u201cMy, isn\u2019t she a beauty?\u201d she cooed.\u00a0 \u201cEyes like wild violets.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eilley warmed at the compliment.\u00a0 \u201cOh, yes, and such a joy!\u00a0 Perfectly formed and putting on weight just as she ought.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly nodded compassionately, remembering that Eilley\u2019s first child, a sickly boy, had passed away last summer, a day shy of being two months old.\u00a0 Having experienced both the loss of a son and the joy of a daughter born thereafter herself, she could readily relate to the other woman\u2019s present contentment.<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing, is there any of that wonderful blackberry pie left?\u201d Ben asked as he directed Sandy to the blue chair that sat at right angle to the settee where he led Eilley.<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle bit left, Mr. Ben,\u201d the cook said with a smile.\u00a0 \u201cJust enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, my, I shouldn\u2019t,\u201d the plumpish Eilley demurred.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy, of course, you should,\u201d Ben insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll polish off whatever you don\u2019t eat,\u201d her husband offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Sandy,\u201d she chided.\u00a0 \u201cThese folks\u2019ll think I never feed you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot at all,\u201d Ben assured her congenially.\u00a0 \u201cA long drive like the one you\u2019ve just made works up a man\u2019s appetite, that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYah, sure does,\u201d Sandy agreed spiritedly.\u00a0 He greeted the arrival of blackberry pie and coffee with even greater enthusiasm.\u00a0 \u201cLong time since I eat anything this good,\u201d he said, wiping a dribble of blackberry juice from his chin with the back of his hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cDelicious,\u201d his wife concurred, daintily dabbing her mouth after each bite.\u00a0 \u201cI wish I could send our cook to your Chinaman for lessons.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tickling the baby under the chin, Nelly chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing puts together a right fine feed, I must admit, but I brought the pie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh.\u201d\u00a0 Eilley looked nonplussed.\u00a0 \u201cWell, then, that explains it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re always appreciative of Nelly\u2019s contributions to any meal,\u201d Ben said with a wink at Sandy, who was clearly enjoying his wife\u2019s discomfiture.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny news over to Gold Hill?\u201d Clyde asked, hoping to steer the conversation to a more interesting topic than compliments to his wife\u2019s cooking, much as he enjoyed the fruits of her labors.<\/p>\n

\u201cBiggest news is the Chollar Mine falling in,\u201d Sandy said, \u201cbut maybe you heard that already.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clyde nodded.\u00a0 \u201cRead about it in the Enterprise<\/em>.\u00a0 Sounded like a pretty severe cave-in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDreadful,\u201d Eilley said.\u00a0 \u201cJust up and swallowed a two-story building above it\u2014and the racket!\u00a0 In the middle of the night, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYah, it was loud,\u201d Sandy said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnyone hurt?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy a miracle, no,\u201d Eilley replied.\u00a0 \u201cBein\u2019 eleven at night, the grocery was closed, of course, and the bookkeeper who lived on the second floor said his dog woke him up, scratchin\u2019 and whinin\u2019 to be took for a walk.\u00a0 Reckon he\u2019s countin\u2019 his blessings that he obliged the critter.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCave-in happened while they was out,\u201d Sandy added.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat young man does have reason to count his blessings,\u201d Nelly said, \u201cand I hope he has the sense to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes . . . well . . .\u201d\u00a0 Eilley glanced back at the grandfather\u2019s clock near the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, you\u2019re not going to eat and run, are you?\u201d Ben scolded, a twinkle in his eye.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s too long a trip for so short a visit.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell\u201d\u2014she looked awkwardly at the Thomases\u2014\u201cwe were hoping to talk with you, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope you\u2019re not wanting your land back,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve got a good long lease on it, if you recall.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, no, no,\u201d she said, biting her lower lip as she again glanced at the other guests.<\/p>\n

Clyde caught the hint and stood up.\u00a0 \u201cReckon it\u2019s time we started back, else we\u2019ll be drivin\u2019 after dark.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, now, Clyde,\u201d Nelly said with a suspicious cast of her eye at the other woman in the room, \u201cif you\u2019re frettin\u2019 over that, I reckon we could stay over, just this once.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clyde\u2019s look of astonishment was exceeded only by Eilley\u2019s expression of horror.\u00a0 She relaxed, however, when Clyde exploded, \u201cHave you lost your senses, woman?\u00a0 If you don\u2019t have work to do tomorrow, I do!\u00a0 Now, get your gear together, so we can head out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGear,\u201d Nelly sputtered as she reluctantly stood and handed the baby back to its mother.\u00a0 \u201cA fine way to talk about your own daughter!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s right, Clyde.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure Sandy would never speak of little Teresa here that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot in front of her mother, for sure,\u201d Sandy guffawed.<\/p>\n

Amidst the men\u2019s merriment Nelly marched huffily to the kitchen to collect Inger, who was trailed back into the great room by the Cartwright boys and Billy.\u00a0 Minor pandemonium ensued for a few minutes as farewell hugs and kisses and promises to see each other again soon were exchanged all around.\u00a0 As her family moved across the yard to the buggy, Nelly pulled Billy aside.\u00a0 \u201cStick close in there,\u201d she ordered.\u00a0 \u201cSomething\u2019s up and I want to know what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy sported an impish grin.\u00a0 \u201cWhy, Ma, I never figured you\u2019d want me to be a spy when I growed up.\u201d<\/p>\n

She swatted his arm.\u00a0 \u201cNone of your smart talk!\u00a0 That woman\u2019s up to something; you keep an eye on her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yes, ma\u2019am,\u201d Billy snickered.\u00a0 \u201cIf there\u2019s one thing I\u2019m good at, it\u2019s keepin\u2019 an eye on women.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOoh!\u201d\u00a0 With a gusty exhale of exasperation, Nelly stalked to the buggy and got in, but as they drove away, she kept a concerned watch over her shoulder until the Ponderosa ranch house was out of sight.<\/p>\n

Inside, Little Joe had wandered over to the visitors, drawn especially to the infant gurgling in Eilley\u2019s lap.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s a baby,\u201d he informed the doting mother.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not; I\u2019m a big boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eilley beamed at the child as she stroked his smooth cheek.\u00a0 \u201cThat you are, and such a handsome, bright little fellow, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe patted Teresa\u2019s back.\u00a0 \u201cDoes she cry much?\u00a0 I like babies, but not when they cry.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, no, she\u2019s a happy girl,\u201d Eilley said with a smile.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sure you and Teresa will get along together just fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Ben, Billy and Hoss came back in from saying their farewells to the Thomases, Hoss perched on the settee at Eilley\u2019s side.\u00a0 \u201cHowdy,\u201d he offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh . . . hello, child,\u201d Eilley said absently as she continued to drink in the interaction between the two younger children with satisfied eyes.<\/p>\n

The men discussed territorial affairs for a while, but soon all that could be said on that subject had been said, and a blanket of silence seemed to fall over the room.\u00a0 \u201cYou said there was something you wanted to talk to me about?\u201d Ben invited.<\/p>\n

Eilley glanced uneasily at Billy.\u00a0 \u201cWell, yes, but . . . well, perhaps, this young man would like to take the children out for a romp while we talk?\u201d<\/p>\n

When Billy didn\u2019t appear disposed to volunteer, Ben cleared his throat.\u00a0 \u201cWould you mind, son?\u201d he asked.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sure the boys\u2014and possibly you, as well\u2014would find a business discussion uninteresting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy gave his adopted uncle a cunning grin.\u00a0 \u201cOh, I\u2019d be interested\u2014and Ma even more. \u00a0I can take a hint, though.\u00a0 Don\u2019t mind wrastlin\u2019 the boys, but I\u2019m no hand with babies.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, no,\u201d Eilley said quickly.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019ll be just fine here with me.\u201d\u00a0 As if she\u2019d ever trust her precious Teresa Fortunatus to that red-headed lout\u2014the very idea!<\/p>\n

Billy gathered up both Hoss and Little Joe, who were eager to play outdoors awhile before the autumn air grew too cold.\u00a0 An awkward silence again descended over those remaining in the room.\u00a0 Ben shifted uncomfortably in his armchair and finally turned to Sandy with a shrug.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s woman\u2019s business,\u201d Sandy muttered, and with a roll of his eyes, Ben looked back toward Eilley.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, that\u2019s not so, Sandy!\u201d his wife protested.\u00a0 \u201cWe both agreed\u201d\u2014she bit her lip and composed herself.\u00a0 \u201cBen,\u201d she began again, \u201cI want you to know how much I sympathize with you in the loss of your wife.\u00a0 I\u2014I\u2019ve had a loss of my own this last year, and I know how hard it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben swallowed the rising lump in his throat.\u00a0 \u201cYes,\u201d he finally said.\u00a0 \u201cMarie and I both were saddened to hear of the death of your little boy.\u00a0 She lost a son once herself\u2014from her first marriage\u2014so she understood better than most what that pain was like.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a pudgy pinky Eilley dabbed at the corner of her left eye.\u00a0 \u201cShe . . . never mentioned that, but she spoke so kindly when John Jasper passed away that\u2014well, never mind.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t come here for sympathy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben dearly wanted to ask what she had come for, but good manners prevented him.<\/p>\n

After another moment of silence, Eilley took a deep breath and said, \u201cI can only imagine how hard it\u2019s been for you, being both father and mother to your little lad.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe manage,\u201d Ben said quietly, realizing with some chagrin that he\u2019d already said those same words once this afternoon.\u00a0 There were times, he knew, when he had managed very ill, but he was trying his best now to be a true father\u2014and mother, when needed\u2014to all his sons.\u00a0 That everyone in his acquaintance seemed to question his fitness to do so was decidedly disconcerting.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I\u2019m sure,\u201d Eilley said, \u201cbut I do think that it\u2019s best for a child to be raised by both a father and a mother, don\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps,\u201d Ben said cautiously.\u00a0 He had a sudden horror that Eilley was about to propose some friend or relative as a prospective bride.\u00a0 Then, with rising apprehension, it occurred to him that she might even be applying for the position herself.\u00a0 In her faith polygyny was more common than polyandry, but it was not unheard of for a Mormon woman to have more than one husband, and that notion would certainly explain Sandy\u2019s evident discomfort.\u00a0 \u201cMarrying again is not something I\u2019m ready to consider yet,\u201d he said bluntly, deciding that it was best to nip any such suggestion in the bud, \u201cso I guess I\u2019ll just have to muddle along alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eilley\u2019s face flushed crimson.\u00a0 \u201cOh, no, Ben!\u00a0 I wasn\u2019t suggesting . . . I mean . . . oh, dear!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSpit it out, woman!\u201d Sandy snapped, striking his knee with his fist.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re driving Ben and me both daft with this blathering.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, honestly, Sandy,\u201d she sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a delicate matter, and I\u2014well, I suppose it might be best to say it straight out.\u00a0 It\u2019s about the child, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe child?\u201d\u00a0 Ben shook his head in continuing confusion.\u00a0 Slowly, comprehension dawned.\u00a0 \u201cMy child?\u201d he asked hesitantly; then his spine stiffened and he demanded, \u201cWhich one?\u201d<\/p>\n

Eilley uttered a nervous laugh.\u00a0 \u201cWhy, the youngest, of course.\u00a0 The other boy is half-grown, but think what a blessing it would be to your little one\u2014to everyone, in fact\u2014if we were to adopt him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben erupted out of his chair.\u00a0 \u201cAdopt him?\u00a0 You think I\u2019d turn over my own flesh and blood to someone else to raise?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy not,\u201d Eilley pressed, leaning forward, \u201cif it\u2019s for the child\u2019s own good?\u201d\u00a0 Ignoring Ben\u2019s wildly shaking head, she plunged ahead.\u00a0 \u201cWith our mine turning out silver faster than we can spend it, we can offer him so much, Ben: food, clothing, playthings, the best education, everything money can buy, and, of course, a loving home with two doting parents.\u201d\u00a0 Tears misted her eyes as she continued, \u201cIt would be like having my own sweet son back again, and while your boy is a little older than Johnny would have been, he\u2019ll still make a wonderful older brother for Teresa, and it would be so much easier on you, too, if\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease stop,\u201d Ben interrupted, his face anguished.\u00a0 \u201cI appreciate your kindly intended suggestion, but I cannot consider it.\u00a0 I am not a rich man; no doubt I will never be able to give Joseph all the advantages a silver baron can afford, but I am convinced that no one can offer him greater love.\u00a0 I\u2019ve made many mistakes as a father, but this is one I refuse to make: I will not give my child away, not for what others may see as his benefit and certainly not to make my life easier.\u201d\u00a0 Seeing Eilley\u2019s crestfallen face, he softened his voice.\u00a0 \u201cSurely, you, who have lost a son yourself, can understand how I would feel if I were to lose mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, yes,\u201d Eilley murmured, wringing her hands, \u201cbut\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYah, sure we can,\u201d Sandy said, rising abruptly.\u00a0 \u201cI told you this was foolishness, Eilley.\u201d\u00a0 He moved toward the credenza and picked up his hat.\u00a0 Fumbling it in his hands, he looked sheepishly at his host.\u00a0 \u201cForgive her, Ben.\u00a0 She meant well, but this was poorly done.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u201d Ben said perfunctorily.\u00a0 Normally, he would, at least, have said that there was no need to rush off, but today he couldn\u2019t wait to see the back of these visitors.<\/p>\n

Eilley rose slowly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m afraid we\u2019ve offended you, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not at all,\u201d Ben assured her, hoping that he wasn\u2019t stretching the truth too far.\u00a0 \u201cAs I said, I know it was kindly intended.\u201d\u00a0 That much he was determined to believe; nonetheless, he was finding it enormously difficult to keep his emotions in check long enough for the Bowers to leave.<\/p>\n

Once their buggy had disappeared, Billy Thomas skittered over with the two youngsters at his heels.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019d she want?\u201d he asked with eager curiosity.<\/p>\n

Ben spun on his heels and threw the full brunt of his anger on the young man\u2019s hapless red head.\u00a0 \u201cWhat she\u2019ll never get!\u201d he shouted.\u00a0 \u201cHow could she . . . how could anyone?\u201d he sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cI may not be all I should be as a father, but\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho says so?\u201d Billy demanded.\u00a0 \u201cHer?\u00a0 Is that what she wanted, to take you to task for a poor father?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat ain\u2019t so!\u201d Hoss hollered, his reddening cheeks puffing with outrage.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re the best, Pa!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe best!\u201d Little Joe chimed in.<\/p>\n

Ben caught the child up in his arms and hugged him close.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa, you\u2019s squeezin\u2019 too tight,\u201d the four-year-old protested.<\/p>\n

With an effort Ben relaxed his arms.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry, precious,\u201d he whispered.\u00a0 \u201cPa doesn\u2019t mean to squeeze too tight.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d Little Joe said, content now to rest his head on his father\u2019s broad shoulder.<\/p>\n

Billy caught sight of a tear trickling down Ben\u2019s cheek, and putting that together with his tenacious grip on his little boy, intuitively knew what the Bowers woman had been after.\u00a0 \u201cOh, lands,\u201d he gasped.\u00a0 Wait\u2019ll Ma hears this!<\/em>\u00a0 Then he placed a supportive hand against the older man\u2019s back.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t never let her sway you to that, Uncle Ben.\u00a0 You\u2019re the best father I know, second only to my own\u2014and sometimes I wonder about him.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the final phrase with a wink and a wicked grin that made Ben smile despite the emotions gripping him so intensely.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll do you a favor and not repeat that to your father, young man,\u201d Ben chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cObliged,\u201d Billy said, grin widening.\u00a0 \u201cWant me to romp with the boys some more?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, I\u2019m going to reserve that privilege for myself this afternoon.\u201d\u00a0 He set Little Joe down and pointed to a tall pine across the yard.\u00a0 \u201cRun to that tree, Little Joe, and you, too, Hoss.\u00a0 Let\u2019s see if you can beat Pa in a race.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can!\u201d Little Joe declared and took off.\u00a0 Ben let both boys get a sizable lead and then slow-trotted after them, his eyes shining with renewed love and determination.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Late that night, however, the troubling questions that Ben had evaded all evening kept him restless in his solitary bed.\u00a0 Was he really doing right by his son\u2014by either of them, for that matter\u2014in letting him grow up without a mother\u2019s love?\u00a0 His mind drifted back to the day a lonely Adam\u2019s life had been transformed by gentle Inger\u2019s loving touch and remembered as if it were yesterday how Hoss had soaked in Marie\u2019s love like a thirsty sponge.\u00a0 Did his youngest not need and deserve a mother\u2019s love as much as either of his brothers?\u00a0 How could he, rough man of the frontier that he was, hope to provide that sort of nurture for the boy?<\/p>\n

He raked his fingers through his disheveled hair.\u00a0 He\u2019d been incensed by Eilley\u2019s suggestion, however well meant, but scarcely less odious had been Elvira Hunter\u2019s hints at sharing his bed.\u00a0 His parenting called into question twice in one day!\u00a0 And on Sunday, to boot, when a man was most drawn to considering his ways.\u00a0 Was God trying to tell him something?\u00a0 Was he so unfit to be a single father that everyone but him saw it?\u00a0 Or were these women simply opportunists, eager to satisfy their own needs, without real regard for his or those of his sons?\u00a0 He chose to believe the latter, but agonized, hour upon sleepless hour, over the former.<\/p>\n

Give Little Joe up?\u00a0 Separate the child not only from his only living parent, but from the brothers who adored him?\u00a0 Unthinkable!\u00a0 Ben smiled for a moment as he recalled Little Joe\u2019s frequent assertion, \u201cWe needs us.\u201d\u00a0 We do, indeed<\/em>, he decided.\u00a0 No, separation would do them all irreparable harm, so adoption was clearly out of the question.<\/p>\n

Remarriage, then?\u00a0 Not to the widow Hunter, of course.\u00a0 Oh, he\u2019d heard of instances where marriages of convenience had blossomed into true love, but having known genuine passion and deep commitment with three wonderful women, he could not imagine a union in which those qualities were missing.\u00a0 Would he find another woman to compare with Elizabeth, Inger and Marie?\u00a0 Impossible<\/em>! his heart cried, but he\u2019d thought that before and been proven wrong twice.<\/p>\n

Smiling sadly, he touched the vacant pillow beside him.\u00a0 Months now since golden-haired Marie had lain there with him, yet his heart still wrenched with every fleeting memory of what they had shared.\u00a0 Marry again?\u00a0 Maybe someday<\/em>, he conceded without genuine belief, but not now\u2014not while all I yearn for is to twine your silken tresses around my fingers and to taste the sweet honey of your lips<\/em>.\u00a0 Burying his face in her pillow as he once had pressed it into her rose-scented bosom, he wept\u2014for what had been and seemed likely never to be again.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben waited with growing expectation for the theater curtain to rise.\u00a0 After a long, hard week of haying, second only to bookwork on his list of hated chores, he felt he had earned this reward, and he had insisted that the Thomases be his guests for the Saturday matinee appearance of renowned Shakespearean actor James Stark.\u00a0 Originally, he had hoped to leave Little Joe with Sally Martin, but with Mark Wentworth\u2019s regiment due to leave the territory any day, she had been reluctant to share a last chance to be with her betrothed.\u00a0 Then Billy had offered to look after both Little Joe and his sister Inger, saying, \u201cDon\u2019t worry, Uncle Ben.\u00a0 I\u2019ll guard him with my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSee that you do!\u201d Nelly had snapped, and the significant glances exchanged between mother and son told Ben that the latest gossip had been transmitted and that Nelly was as furious as only an adopted aunt could be at the notion of Sandy and Eilley Bowers taking off with her little Sugarfoot.<\/p>\n

In the darkness of the theater, Clyde leaned over to whisper in Ben\u2019s ear, \u201cAin\u2019t so sure me and this Shakespeare feller will get along too well.\u00a0 Kinda for educated folks, ain\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019ll use some words we\u2019re not familiar with, because English has changed since his day, but I\u2019ve always found that the action on the stage helps me make sense of the dialogue.\u00a0 Just concentrate on that, Clyde, and don\u2019t worry about what you\u2019re supposed to be getting out of it.\u00a0 Just enjoy yourself.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled down at his young son.\u00a0 \u201cSame advice for you, Hoss.\u201d\u00a0 He\u2019d been somewhat concerned about bringing the boy to this particular production.\u00a0 Hoss had always loved going to the theater, since seeing that first production of Pocahontas<\/em>, but tonight\u2019s offering was King Lear<\/em>, deep waters indeed for an eleven-year-old.\u00a0 Still, Hoss had worked as hard as anyone at the hated haying, and he couldn\u2019t deny the boy the same reward.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, Pa,\u201d Hoss said, eyes alight with anticipation.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll just mind what they do and not what they say.\u201d<\/p>\n

Giving the boy\u2019s light hair an affectionate rumple, Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s not quite what I said.\u00a0 Let one help you with the other, son; that\u2019s what I meant.\u201d\u00a0 He had little hope that Hoss would do more than endure Shakespeare\u2019s play, but since the scheduled afterpiece was a comedy, he should enjoy that, at least, and his enjoying dinner afterwards at the finest restaurant Virginia City could boast was a given.<\/p>\n

A finely proportioned man in a frock coat and cravat stepped through the curtain and addressed the audience.\u00a0 \u201cGood evening, gentlemen,\u201d he said and as he spotted the few women scattered across the hall, added, \u201cand especially you ladies who have graced us with your presence tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly blushed as if the compliment had been addressed specifically to her.\u00a0 Given the small number of ladies in the audience, it wasn\u2019t an unreasonable conclusion, Ben thought with a smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cI must apologize to you all for the quality of our production tonight,\u201d the man continued after introducing himself as James Stark. \u00a0\u201cSnow in the mountains has prevented our costumes from arriving, but we have done our best to provide the actors with suitable apparel locally.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled puckishly, inviting his hearers to share the humor with him as he added, \u201cSurprisingly few of your shops carry robes designed for ancient British kings and maidens.\u201d\u00a0 When the laughter died down, he concluded, \u201cWe will, however, do our best to provide you with an evening of entertainment that will meet your expectations in every other way.\u00a0 To that end, I now offer you an additional recitation before the drama begins.\u201d<\/p>\n

He raised his head and stood taller, emphasizing his imposing carriage, and began to recite \u201cThe Battle of Bunker Hill.\u201d\u00a0 When he finished, no one applauded with greater enthusiasm than Hoss, for he\u2019d been studying the American Revolution in school and Stark\u2019s powerful delivery had brought the battle to life for him.\u00a0 No longer would Bunker Hill be only a list of names and dates to memorize.\u00a0 The people involved had become real, and he knew he\u2019d remember them the same way he remembered anyone he met in the territory.\u00a0 For once, Hoss felt confident of doing well on his next history test.<\/p>\n

After a brief intermission, the main production began.\u00a0 Ben had seen James Stark perform in California, so he couldn\u2019t help contrasting the amateurish costumes on stage today with those he\u2019d seen before.\u00a0 Once the actor began to speak, however, nothing mattered but his deep, resonant voice with its subtle interpretation of emotion.<\/p>\n

Hoss didn\u2019t even recognize the white-bearded King Lear as the same man who had earlier recited the poem.\u00a0 At first, he didn\u2019t understand what the men on stage were talking about, but he leaned forward when the girls started to tell how much they loved their father.\u00a0 The first two could sling words together fancier than Adam, but Hoss\u2019s sensitive spirit went out to the youngest when she said, \u201cI cannot heave my heart into my mouth.\u201d\u00a0 He had the same problem!\u00a0 He wanted to tell Pa and Adam and Little Joe how much he loved them, but the right words just wouldn\u2019t come.\u00a0 He thought back to what had happened Sunday, when that Bowers lady had made Pa feel like he wasn\u2019t a good father.\u00a0 He\u2019d wanted then and there to tell Pa everything that was in his heart, but all he\u2019d been able to come up with was \u201cYou\u2019re the best!\u201d\u00a0 It was true, but it wasn\u2019t enough.\u00a0 Maybe that wasn\u2019t his fault, though.\u00a0 Maybe there just plain weren\u2019t words enough in the whole blame dictionary to tell what a great father Pa was.\u00a0 Hoss sensed that that was what Cordelia felt, too, and his heart was won from that moment.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Hoss had been so groggy by the time they finally arrived in Carson City that night that Ben had found it necessary to help the youngster change into his nightshirt. \u00a0Nelly had laid a thick pallet on the floor of the guest room for the Cartwright boys, but it remained unoccupied.\u00a0 Though he wasn\u2019t sure what had possessed Billy Thomas to invite squirmy Little Joe into his bed, Ben guessed that his youngest had probably pitched a fit over going to sleep alone on that pallet.\u00a0 With Billy\u2019s sterling example of hospitality set before him, Ben didn\u2019t feel right about asking Hoss to sleep on the floor, so he\u2019d told the boy they could sleep together \u201cjust this once.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss had accepted with delight and now lay beneath the covers, watching his father get ready for bed.\u00a0 \u201cI want to tell ya somethin\u2019, Pa,\u201d he said slowly, rising up to lean back on his elbows.<\/p>\n

Ben draped his ruffled shirt over the back of a chair and started to unbuckle his belt.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s that, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI just want you to know that you got nothin\u2019 to worry about,\u201d Hoss declared earnestly, \u201cwhen you get real old and white-headed, I mean, \u2018cause me nor Adam, neither one, wouldn\u2019t act like them gals in that play done, and turn you out and take the Ponderosa away from you. \u00a0We know how lucky we are to have a pa like you, and\u2014and I\u2019m gonna see to it that Little Joe understands and does right by you, too.\u201d\u00a0 He emphasized his purpose with a vigorous nod of his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re going to explain King Lear<\/em> to your little brother?\u201d Ben choked out with as serious a mask as he could don.\u00a0 Wouldn\u2019t he just love to be a fly on the wall when that discussion took place!<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d Hoss replied, his solemn intent completely artless and genuine.\u00a0 He blushed slightly.\u00a0 \u201cThe best I can, anyway.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t understand ever\u2019thing that went on in that play, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sat on the bed beside his son and tousled the boy\u2019s corn tassel hair.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, don\u2019t worry about that.\u00a0 I think you caught the main meaning just fine\u2014probably better than most of the men in that theater.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned, the expression ending in a prodigious yawn as he nuzzled into his pillow.\u00a0 Ben soon joined him in the bed, but he lay awake for a while, wondering if Hoss\u2019s comments had been sparked more by what had happened the previous Sunday than by the drama on stage this afternoon.\u00a0 The boy was too young to be weighed down with such heavy matters, but when Ben had imprudently let his anger and frustration flare out in Hoss\u2019s hearing, he\u2019d felt obliged to explain everything, emphasizing that the Bowers had meant well, so his son would bear them no ill will.\u00a0 Hoss had been upset, but had accepted his father\u2019s assurances that the family would stay together, no matter who thought they\u2019d do better apart.<\/p>\n

Little Joe, of course, remained in innocent ignorance of the whole affair, knowledge of which could do nothing but undermine his fragile sense of security in the wake of his mother\u2019s death and his oldest brother\u2019s departure.\u00a0 Ben had debated whether to keep it from Adam, too, not wanting to distract him from his studies, but wondered whether he had the right to withhold news of such importance.\u00a0 He\u2019d finally decided that no one had a greater right to know what concerned Joseph than the young man who had born the burden of his father\u2019s failures during those grief-fogged days of collapse, so he\u2019d written a full account and posted the letter upon arriving in town today.<\/p>\n

Now, as he listened to his middle son\u2019s soft snores, he smiled with pure pride and joy.\u00a0 If this good-hearted boy, like Adam before him, was the product of his parenting, maybe he didn\u2019t need to entertain those haunting self-doubts one minute longer.\u00a0 He\u2019d done all right by them, even if it had been largely without a mother\u2019s aid, and with their help he\u2019d raise Little Joe to be just as fine a man as his older brothers were turning out to be.<\/p>\n

\u00a0~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

\u00a0The ends of the transcontinental telegraph met on October 26, 1861, and the new territory of Nevada was granted the privilege of inaugurating it by sending the first telegram east.<\/p>\n

Having lost her first child, John Jasper at just short of two months of age, Eilley Orrum Bowers must have been thrilled by the birth of a daughter, Theresa Fortunatus, in June, 1861, although that child, too, was not destined to survive.<\/p>\n

Near the end of October, Shakespearean actor James Stark arrived by stage in Virginia City, although his costumes, shipped separately, were delayed for weeks by the swirling snow.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER SEVEN<\/p>\n

Chasing a Kitty and a Kid<\/p>\n

Ben pulled the buckboard to the edge of C Street in Virginia City and peered at the stock board outside his broker\u2019s office.\u00a0 He shook his head in disbelief.\u00a0 Stock prices had been rising sharply of late, higher every time he came to town, and the soaring numbers had led to a frenzy of stock manipulation.\u00a0 \u201cStay right here, Little Joe,\u201d he said as he climbed down from the wagon.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis ain\u2019t the store, Pa,\u201d Little Joe argued.\u00a0 \u201cYou said we was goin\u2019 to the store.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, yes, we are,\u201d Ben said, patting the boy\u2019s head, \u201cbut Pa has a couple of errands to run first, son.\u00a0 Now, be a good boy and wait here.\u00a0 I won\u2019t be long.\u201d<\/p>\n

He went inside the office and made a few prudent sales of stocks he considered risky, investing some of his profit in shares of more solid mines.\u00a0 The rest he\u2019d bank with Wells, Fargo, for he felt certain that the stock prices were being artificially elevated and was unwilling to gamble that they\u2019d stay high, especially when he could put the money to better use.\u00a0 Just yesterday he\u2019d received a letter from Adam, informing him, to his relief, that Josiah Edwards had reached New Haven safely, but, to his distress, that his old friend was virtually penniless, the war having disrupted the school system in St. Joseph and left him without an income.\u00a0 Josiah would find a new position eventually, Ben was certain, but until he did, he\u2019d likely be doing without himself to insure that his son had sufficient funds for college.\u00a0 Ben well knew how expensive that was and was only grateful that his profits made it possible for him to help the man whose friendship had meant the world to him back in St. Joe.<\/p>\n

Occupied with folding his papers and tucking them into his vest pocket, Ben didn\u2019t look at his wagon until he was standing next to it.\u00a0 When he saw the empty seat, he exhaled with exasperation.\u00a0 That boy!\u00a0 Was he incapable of following one simple instruction?\u00a0 Wisdom usually dictated having Hoss along to help corral his youngest, but Hoss was in school today.\u00a0 Ben had been so concerned about getting much needed funds to Josiah that he hadn\u2019t wanted to wait for the weekend.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t been able to resist Little Joe\u2019s pleas to come along, especially since he saw the boy so rarely during the day, but he was definitely reconsidering that decision now.\u00a0 Where was that boy?\u00a0 Ben looked down the rough-planked walkway, but heard a chuckling voice call from the opposite direction.\u00a0 \u201cLose something?\u201d<\/p>\n

He spun around and smiled in relief, for there was his youngest son, standing next to a man who looked familiar, although Ben couldn\u2019t put a name to the face at first.\u00a0 Then with a shudder he remembered that cold rainy night when the whole countryside, including this man, Roy Coffee, had turned out to search for his runaway child.\u00a0 \u201cIt appears I did,\u201d he said, striding over to the lawman.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph,\u201d he rebuked sternly, \u201cI told you to stay with the wagon.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s right over there,\u201d Little Joe insisted.\u00a0 \u201cI was just talkin\u2019 to the sheriff.\u201d\u00a0 He looked offended that his father would scold him when he hadn\u2019t done anything wrong at all.\u00a0 Nothing ever dampened the child\u2019s spirits for long, though.\u00a0 \u201cSee that, Pa?\u201d he asked, pointing to the shiny silver star pinned to Coffee\u2019s shirt.\u00a0 \u201cThat means he\u2019s a sheriff.\u201d\u00a0 Just in case his father didn\u2019t know, he added, \u201cSheriffs keep bad men from making trouble in town.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey do a fair job of tracking down naughty little boys, too,\u201d Ben chuckled, reaching out to clasp Coffee\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cI can never thank you enough for your help that night.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDidn\u2019t do anything,\u201d Coffee said, returning the handshake warmly.\u00a0 \u201cWas you that found the boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBy the grace of God,\u201d Ben murmured.\u00a0 He could never think of that night without large doses of both guilt and gratitude.\u00a0 He cocked his head to look closer at the badge on Coffee\u2019s chest.\u00a0 \u201cSay, the boy\u2019s right: that is a sheriff\u2019s badge.\u00a0 You were a deputy last time I saw you.\u201d\u00a0 His eyebrows knitted in thought.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you worked out of Carson City then, didn\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Coffee almost beamed with pride.\u00a0 \u201cRight on both counts.\u00a0 Been a couple of changes in my life.\u00a0 I\u2019m sheriff over this area now, office right down the street in the new jail.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m glad to hear that\u2019s been built,\u201d Ben observed.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m afraid there\u2019s been a growing need for that sort of accommodation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coffee nodded gravely.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s why I was hired.\u00a0 And I insisted on a decent jail before I\u2019d take the job.\u00a0 You seen that disgraceful excuse for one they had down in Carson?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben flashed a mischievous grin.\u00a0 \u201cNot from the inside, thankfully, but I know what you mean.\u201d\u00a0 The log shanty that had housed lawbreakers in Carson City had been a farce: prisoners found escape easy and recapture rarely attempted.\u00a0 \u201cLosing a qualified lawman such as yourself must have inspired them to rectify that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coffee laughed.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I no sooner left than they started building a better jailhouse.\u201d\u00a0 He touched the brim of his hat in a farewell tip as he prepared to return to his rounds.\u00a0 \u201cGood seein\u2019 you, Mr. Cartwright,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHope you\u2019ll come by and share a cup of coffee sometime when you\u2019re in town.\u00a0 Promise not to make it from roasted barley, neither.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben joined the lawman in laughing at the jest, for he, too, had read that suggested substitute in Placerville\u2019s Mountain Democrat<\/em> in the wake of the heavy duties recently imposed by Congress on the genuine article.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll do it,\u201d he said, \u201cand I want you to come out to the Ponderosa for dinner, where I also vow to serve nothing but real coffee.\u00a0 Least I can do to say thanks for your help with this one.\u201d\u00a0 He affectionately tousled Little Joe\u2019s rampant curls.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll do it,\u201d Roy responded.\u00a0 \u201cWidower like me don\u2019t get many chances for a home-cooked meal.\u201d<\/p>\n

For a moment pain clouded Ben\u2019s eyes, but when he realized that here, too, was a man who had known the loss of a wife, he felt a kinship with Roy Coffee and with it a desire to strengthen that bond. \u00a0\u201cCome on Sunday,\u201d he suggested.\u00a0 Then his brow wrinkled in thought. \u00a0\u201cSunday week, that is.\u00a0 I\u2019ll be in Carson this Sunday, so make it the next, and come hungry.\u00a0 Hop Sing, our cook, sets a fine table, especially on Sunday.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coffee nodded enthusiastically.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll be there.\u00a0 You keep track of that youngun, now.\u201d\u00a0 He gave Ben a sassy wink.<\/p>\n

Ben rolled his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m trying.\u00a0 It\u2019s a chore, I can tell you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coffee laughed and chucked Little Joe under the chin before continuing down the street.<\/p>\n

Ben plunked his son onto the wagon seat and climbed up after him. \u00a0Taking the reins, he guided the horses back into the busy street.<\/p>\n

Little Joe tapped his father\u2019s arm.\u00a0 \u201cStore now, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not yet, Little Joe.\u00a0 Pa has a couple more errands first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe frowned.\u00a0 This trip to town wasn\u2019t turning into quite the adventure he\u2019d hoped.\u00a0 \u201cWhere we goin\u2019 now?\u201d he asked, lips forming a pout.<\/p>\n

\u201cWells, Fargo,\u201d his father replied.\u00a0 \u201cI need to bank some money and get a draft to send to an old friend.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s a draft?\u201d the boy asked.<\/p>\n

Ben did his best to explain how a simple slip of paper could be transformed into money at a distant destination, but as he pulled up to the bank on the corner of A Street and Sutton Avenue, he felt pretty certain that he\u2019d failed to get the concept across.\u00a0 Not trusting his son to stay with the wagon, he lifted the boy down and took tight hold of his hand as he led him into the Wells, Fargo office.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s banking business was quickly transacted, and the next stop was the post office, where a letter containing the draft was dispatched to Adam, for transmission to Josiah Edwards.\u00a0 Then, at last, it was time for the promised visit to the general store.<\/p>\n

Little Joe ran in ahead of his father and made a beeline for the row of glass jars filled with colorful confections.\u00a0 Certain that contemplation would keep his young son occupied throughout the visit, Ben handed his list of supplies to Will Cass and moved toward a display of detachable collars and cuffs.\u00a0 \u201cNew line of merchandise?\u201d he asked lightly.<\/p>\n

Cass chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cThought I\u2019d give it a try, but they\u2019re not selling too well.\u00a0 I reckon folks that want that kind of finery are more apt to look for it at a regular haberdashery.\u00a0 Do me a favor and take a set off my hands.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMake me a good price and I might,\u201d Ben returned with a smile.<\/p>\n

Cass bent down to Little Joe\u2019s level.\u00a0 \u201cAnd how about you, young fellow?\u00a0 What you plan to take off my hands?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCandy,\u201d Little Joe said, \u201cbut I don\u2019t know what kind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cass straightened up and lifted the lid from a jar of peppermint sticks.\u00a0 Taking one out, he handed it to the child.\u00a0 \u201cWell, give that a lick while you\u2019re thinkin\u2019 on it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe grinned and took the candy.<\/p>\n

\u201cSay \u2018thank you,\u2019 Little Joe,\u201d his father directed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you, Mr. Cass,\u201d the boy said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll spoil that child\u2019s dinner,\u201d declared a woman looking down her narrow nose at Ben.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I don\u2019t know,\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I do,\u201d the woman insisted.\u00a0 \u201cIf you\u2019d raised six children the way I have, you\u2019d have more sense.\u00a0 Just look how scrawny that child is!\u201d<\/p>\n

As directed, Ben looked at Little Joe, but saw nothing to raise his concern.\u00a0 Certainly, the boy was slim, but Dr. Martin had long ago assured him that his youngest was perfectly healthy and that his size was as natural for him as Hoss\u2019s larger frame was for the older boy.\u00a0 He turned back to the woman.\u00a0 \u201cMa\u2019am, I appreciate your concern, but I doubt one stick of candy will irreparably damage his health.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s where you\u2019re wrong.\u201d\u00a0 The woman launched into a lecture on the upbringing of children, emphasizing the importance of proper diet on everything from bone strength to moral rectitude.<\/p>\n

Ears wincing at the woman\u2019s strident voice, Little Joe backed toward the door and slipped through it.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t want to be anywhere near that woman who wanted to take away his candy, so he decided he\u2019d just wait for Pa out by the wagon.\u00a0 He was moving toward the buckboard when a ginger-coated cat came streaking out the door of the shop next to Cass\u2019s mercantile.\u00a0 With a grin of delight, Joe tucked his peppermint stick into his pocket and gave chase.<\/p>\n

Ben was doing his best to extract himself from the clutches of the self-proclaimed expert on child-rearing when he suddenly realized that Little Joe wasn\u2019t any longer standing next to the candy jars.\u00a0 Frantically, he called the boy\u2019s name, and when there was no answer, he asked Will Cass, \u201cDid you see where he went?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry, Ben,\u201d Cass said.\u00a0 \u201cGuess I was distracted.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben well knew by what.\u00a0 He groaned and rushed out the door, with a piercing accusation following him:\u00a0 \u201cSee?\u00a0 This is just what I was warning you about.\u00a0 Sweets before dinner naturally leads to a child thinkin\u2019 he can have every little thing his own way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben scarcely heard her.\u00a0 He was too busy frenetically looking up and down the street.\u00a0 Little Joe was nowhere in sight.\u00a0 Ben hurried back inside, hoping the child was simply playing a game of hide-and-seek, but he soon exhausted all possible hiding places and was forced to admit that his four-year-old son was somewhere in Virginia City, all on his own.\u00a0 Having no idea which way the child had gone, Ben turned south and began walking down C Street, gazing into each store or saloon along the way, asking every man or woman he passed if they\u2019d seen a curly-headed tyke of four.<\/p>\n

No one had.\u00a0 The longer Ben looked, the more apprehensive he became.\u00a0 Virginia City wasn\u2019t a spot on the hillside anymore, no longer the tent camp of a few miners.\u00a0 Now it was a town of over four thousand, well on its way to earning its moniker of city.\u00a0 Businesses lined both sides of C Street, and the town didn\u2019t stop there.\u00a0 A and B streets ranged up the mountain from the main business area, while D Street ran below and down beyond it were the mines and their hoisting works.\u00a0 A thousand places for a little boy to hide.<\/p>\n

Why on earth had the child taken off like this?\u00a0 He\u2019d been perfectly content, picking out the candy promised to him.\u00a0 Then that interfering busybody had stuck her oar in,\u00a0 Ben had gotten occupied with defending himself, and the next thing he knew, his son was gone.\u00a0 Had that shrill biddy frightened him?\u00a0 Perhaps . . . perhaps enough to make him run outside, and once there, it wouldn\u2019t take much to lead inquisitive Little Joe astray.\u00a0 Even at home the child was into everything, and the temptations here far exceeded any on the Ponderosa.<\/p>\n

He reached the southern end of C Street and stood outside one of the seedier saloons, trying to decide which way to go next.\u00a0 Back up C Street?\u00a0 But what about the side streets and alleys?\u00a0 Weren\u2019t they just as likely to entice a small boy\u2019s capricious interest?\u00a0 Ben closed his eyes in anguish.\u00a0 Too many choices.\u00a0 Too many places for one man alone to search.\u00a0 He had to have help, just as he had that dreadful night when his son had run away from home, hoping to find his mother.\u00a0 Here, however, his resources for mounting a search were far fewer than they\u2019d been on the Ponderosa.\u00a0 No older sons, no ranch hands, no neighbors.\u00a0 Ben had business acquaintances among the mine owners in Virginia City, but which among them could he really call upon for anything other than business?\u00a0 He was just about desperate enough to try them, though, when he suddenly remembered the one man here in town who had responded to a plea for help before.\u00a0 He turned and began to run up C Street.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Little Joe plopped down on the dusty stoop of a small shack framed haphazardly with pieces of scrap lumber.\u00a0 He\u2019d chased the ginger cat up one street and down another until it dashed out of sight.\u00a0 Then he\u2019d tried to retrace his steps back to the store, but since he hadn\u2019t been paying attention to anything but the cat, he never even made it back to C Street.\u00a0 He\u2019d heard some interesting banging down below him and hurried that way, where he stood, fascinated by the hoist mechanism lowering men into a mine, until a burly man roughly told him to be off.\u00a0 He\u2019d started to make his way back up the hill when he\u2019d realized that he didn\u2019t know if that was the right direction, either.<\/p>\n

Now he sat in a forlorn heap, wondering how he\u2019d ever get back to Pa . . . and what Pa might do to him when he did.\u00a0 Pa\u2019d been upset with him, just for going the teensiest bit away from the wagon to talk to the sheriff, and he was much more than a teensy away this time.\u00a0 He had a feeling a \u201cvery necessary little talk\u201d would be waiting for him if he ever found his way back to Mr. Cass\u2019s store, but while he dreaded that, even worse was the thought of losing Pa.<\/p>\n

As he sat staring at the dirt between his boots, a swish of satin caught his eye just as a soft voice said, \u201cMon petit ami<\/em>?\u00a0 Pourquoi \u00eates-vous ici ?<\/em> \u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s head bounced up in anticipation.\u00a0 \u201cMama?\u201d\u00a0 His face fell for a moment; then his eyes lighted again, for while the woman stooping down to him was not his mother, as the French phrases had made him hope, she was someone he recognized.\u00a0 \u201cI couldn\u2019t catch the kitty,\u201d he told her mournfully, adding with a catch in his voice, \u201cand now I can\u2019t find Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

She stood and reached her hand toward him.\u00a0 \u201cCome, mon petit<\/em>,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cWe will find your pap\u00e1<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben paused outside the door to the sheriff\u2019s office to gather his frayed nerves.\u00a0 It went against a man\u2019s pride to admit he couldn\u2019t keep track of his own child, but pride was a commodity he couldn\u2019t afford at present.\u00a0 He needed help, and the only way to get it was to admit he needed it.\u00a0 Taking a deep breath, Ben turned the knob and opened the door.<\/p>\n

Roy Coffee looked up from his desk and smiled warmly.\u00a0 \u201cWell!\u00a0 Did you decide to take me up on that cup of coffee?\u201d\u00a0 He looked beyond Ben.\u00a0 \u201cSay, where\u2019s the young fellow?\u00a0 You didn\u2019t leave him out by the wagon again, did you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 I\u2014I lost him.\u201d<\/p>\n

One side of the sheriff\u2019s mouth quirked up.\u00a0 \u201cThis is getting to be a habit, Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben closed his eyes and murmured painfully, \u201cI know.\u201d\u00a0 The sheriff\u2019s rebuke was a mild one, compared to the castigations he\u2019d already poured on his own soul, but it was an extra tablespoon of salt rubbed into his wounded heart.\u00a0 He felt a hand pressed to his shoulder and looked up to see warm compassion in the other man\u2019s eyes.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry, Ben,\u201d the sheriff apologized.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s no laughing matter, and I shouldn\u2019t make light of it.\u00a0 When did you see the boy last?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben spread his hands in self-disgust at his inability to answer the simplest of questions.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014I didn\u2019t check the time.\u00a0 He was right there and then\u2014not.\u201d\u00a0 He collected himself.\u00a0 \u201cI searched from Will Cass\u2019s store to the south end of C Street and then came directly here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coffee scratched the back of his neck.\u00a0 \u201cLong enough for him to be anywhere,\u201d he muttered.\u00a0 \u201cWell, we best get some help and find that boy before harm comes to him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHarm?\u201d\u00a0 Ben couldn\u2019t keep the panic from his face.\u00a0 \u201cBut, surely, no one would harm a child.\u201d\u00a0 On the Comstock, a child had always been considered a cherished rarity, although more of them were around, now that the town was growing.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no, I\u2019m sure no one would,\u201d Coffee explained, \u201cbut this town\u2019s littered with abandoned shafts and prospect holes from the old days, every one of \u2018em big enough for a little boy to fall through.\u00a0 Why, just last week an eight-yoke team of oxen disappeared into one!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDear God,\u201d Ben whispered in stricken prayer.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ve got to find him!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd we will,\u201d Coffee said firmly.\u00a0 \u201cFirst, let\u2019s get some help.\u201d\u00a0 Taking the ring of keys from its peg on the wall, he moved toward the cell block.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t worry,\u201d he said in answer to Ben\u2019s fretful frown.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t settin\u2019 hardened criminals after your boy, just a couple of fellers locked up \u2018til they settle down after gettin\u2019 into a ruckus.\u00a0 Except for that, they\u2019re a decent sort of gents.\u201d\u00a0 He walked in and stood before the cells.\u00a0 \u201cHow about it?\u201d he asked.\u00a0 \u201cYou two willing to help find a little lost boy and earn yourselves some time off for good behavior?\u201d<\/p>\n

Both men quickly assented, and Sheriff Coffee unlocked their cell doors.\u00a0 The four men moved out onto C Street and were in the midst of discussing who would search what part of town when they heard a happy cry of \u201cPa!\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe broke away from the hand of the woman who had been leading him and raced into his father\u2019s open arms.<\/p>\n

Ben pressed his cheek against the boy\u2019s windblown hair. \u00a0\u201cOh, baby,\u201d he murmured.\u00a0 Then he looked at the woman, who was dressed with surprising modesty, given her profession.\u00a0 \u201cMiss Bulette,\u201d he acknowledged her awkwardly and immediately felt ridiculous.\u00a0 Why try to deny familiarity with the woman, especially when she\u2019d obviously done him such a great service?\u00a0 \u201cJulia,\u201d he said more warmly and extended one hand as the other continued to hold Little Joe close.<\/p>\n

\u201cMonsieur<\/em> Cartwright . . . Ben,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cI think I have found something you lost, oui<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOui<\/em>,\u201d Ben replied, as he had so often to Marie.\u00a0 \u201cI am eternally grateful.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was on D Street, near my home,\u201d she said, \u201cand I must return there now.\u201d\u00a0 She looked hesitantly at the other men, who were gawking at their interchange.\u00a0 \u201cBen,\u201d she said softly, \u201cI was much saddened to hear of the death of your wife.\u00a0 She was a true and faithful friend.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cShe . . . felt the same.\u201d<\/p>\n

Julia Bulette ran tender fingers through Little Joe\u2019s curls.\u00a0 \u201cGood-bye, mon ami<\/em>,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cYou will not chase any more kitties, non<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Little Joe promised.\u00a0 \u201cThey run too fast.\u201d<\/p>\n

Laughing, she kissed his cheek, nodded to the assembled men and turned away.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, sheriff,\u201d one of the recent residents of his new jail snickered, \u201cwhat\u2019s our chances now of gettin\u2019 any time off, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

Coffee chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon you still earned it, just by showin\u2019 yourselves willin\u2019 to be good citizens.\u00a0 Now, if you\u2019ll shake hands and swear not to tear into each other once my back\u2019s turned, you can go along home.\u201d\u00a0 The two men, their quarrel forgotten as soon as the whiskey had worn off, shook hands willingly and departed, each heading a different direction.\u00a0 Looking at the little boy as Ben set him down, the sheriff shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cD Street, huh?\u00a0 A mite young for that sort of thing, ain\u2019t you, boy?\u201d\u00a0 He winked at the boy\u2019s father.<\/p>\n

The reference to what generally went on in the small houses of the red-light district sailed meaninglessly over Little Joe\u2019s head, of course.\u00a0 Ben favored the sheriff with a reproachful smile.\u00a0 \u201cThe two of them . . . with my wife and middle boy . . . were holed up together in a miserable excuse of a sanctuary during the Paiute War,\u201d he explained.\u00a0 \u201cI understand Miss Bulette was a major asset in keeping this one entertained.\u201d\u00a0 He affectionately tousled Little Joe\u2019s hair.<\/p>\n

\u201cStill a major asset in keeping men entertained, from what I hear,\u201d Coffee said with a grin.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, will you stop?\u201d Ben chided.\u00a0 He stooped down, eye-to-eye with his son.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe, that was very naughty of you to run off.\u00a0 I\u2019m afraid you and I will need to have a very necessary little talk about that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGot me a couple of empty cells now, if you decide the boy needs more than a talk,\u201d the sheriff teased.<\/p>\n

Ben gave the other man a significant look.\u00a0 \u201cThe sort of conversation I have in mind should do the trick.\u201d<\/p>\n

Comprehending, Roy Coffee laughed.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cGood luck, young fellow,\u201d he said to Little Joe as he headed back toward his office.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you again, sheriff . . . Roy,\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

Roy gave him a nonchalant wave.\u00a0 \u201cJust part of the job,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Ben took tight grip on his son\u2019s small hand, determined not to release it again until they reached the Ponderosa or, at least, the wagon headed there.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry, Pa,\u201d Little Joe whimpered as he was dragged along.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou will be,\u201d Ben said sternly.\u00a0 He tried to ignore the child\u2019s sniffling all the way back to Will Cass\u2019s place, but like the dripping from the lip of a pump, it demanded attention.\u00a0 Be firm<\/em>, he told himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, well,\u201d said the storekeeper, bending over with his hands on his knees to look at Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cI see the lost has been found.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, thankfully,\u201d Ben replied.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlready loaded your wagon, from the list you left,\u201d Cass said.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t you see it, comin\u2019 in?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled ruefully.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t seen much but red on the way here.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t look . . . but thanks.\u00a0 Give me the tally, and I\u2019ll settle up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cass turned back to the counter and handed Ben the bill.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s what\u2019s in the wagon.\u00a0 If you want anything different, either more or less, let me know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben scanned the list.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s everything\u2014no more, no less,\u201d he said and started to dig into his pocket.<\/p>\n

Little Joe tugged at his father\u2019s britches.\u00a0 \u201cPa?\u201d he asked tentatively.\u00a0 \u201cCandy, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCandy!\u201d Ben Cartwright exploded.\u00a0 \u201cYou think you\u2019ve got candy coming after today\u2019s shenanigans!\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe shrank away, lips tight, head waving sadly from side to side.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s resolve melted.\u00a0 The boy wasn\u2019t the real culprit here; the blame rightfully belonged to that interfering woman.\u00a0 In the name of good health, she\u2019d tried to deprive his child of a simple, and rarely indulged in, treat.\u00a0 To punish him now was not only unjust, but it would reward the very one who most deserved censure for this misspent afternoon.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I did promise, didn\u2019t I?\u201d he said and then, lest he lose all credibility as a man to be obeyed, added, \u201cBut only two pennies\u2019 worth.\u00a0 It would have been more, if you\u2019d done as you were told.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s mouth flew open in delight.\u00a0 To him, two pennies\u2019 worth of candy was a fortune.\u00a0 Running back to the row of glass jars, his eyes sparkled as they moved from one to the next.\u00a0 Ben groaned, feeling that his trip back to the Ponderosa would probably be delayed another hour, while the boy decided.\u00a0 He was wrong, though.\u00a0 Not wanting that mean lady or another like her to come back and rob him, Little Joe made his choices quickly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks, Pa,\u201d the boy said, as he sat on the wagon seat, holding a paper bag surprisingly full for two pennies\u2019 worth, in his father\u2019s opinion.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re welcome, son,\u201d Ben said, his sanity and good humor restored, now that they were safely headed home.\u00a0 \u201cNow, tell me, what was it Miss Julia was saying about chasing kitties?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

\u00a0The high stock prices mentioned at the beginning of this chapter were being artificially manipulated.\u00a0 Many sank every dollar into these wildcat claims, but the bottom fell out of the market by winter, when San Franciscans realized the fraud.\u00a0 The savings of Virginia City were wiped out, and even worthy stocks sold at cents on the dollar.\u00a0 Many of those bankrupted returned to California, and the area suffered a serious depopulation.<\/p>\n

Shopkeeper Will Cass was a character in \u201cBroken Ballad,\u201d an episode of Bonanza<\/em> written by John T. Kelly.<\/p>\n

Roasted barley was suggested as a substitute for coffee in the October 5, 1861, issue of the Mountain Democrat<\/em>, available online.<\/p>\n

Virginia City\u2019s first jail was constructed in November, 1861.\u00a0 The Carson City jail had been as big a farce as described here.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

CHAPTER EIGHT<\/p>\n

Nothing Short of Murder<\/p>\n

With a bounce of enthusiasm, Hoss pointed at the line of blue-coated soldiers entering the Carson City plaza on the chilly Sunday morning of November 10th.\u00a0 \u201cThere he is!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben caught his son\u2019s arm as he lunged forward.\u00a0 \u201cSally first,\u201d he chided.\u00a0 \u201cThe troops won\u2019t stop here long, and Mark will prefer to spend most of that time with his fianc\u00e9.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReckon so,\u201d Hoss said with a sigh.\u00a0 He liked Mark Wentworth, almost as much as his sister Mary, and didn\u2019t get near enough chances to see him, even with him being posted at nearby FortChurchill.\u00a0\u00a0 Now the Sixth Infantry was being marched off to fight in that war back East, so he likely wouldn\u2019t see his friend again for a long time, same as Adam.\u00a0 That \u201cback East\u201d had a way of swallowing up people he loved that Hoss didn\u2019t care for one bit.\u00a0 Sally planned to marry Mark, though, so she looked even sadder about his going away.\u00a0 There were tears in her eyes as she threw her arms around Mark after he came running across the plaza, and that made Hoss feel like crying, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I wish you didn\u2019t have to go,\u201d Sally moaned, as the others, including her father and the Thomases, as well as the Cartwrights, looked on in sympathy.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo do I, sweetheart,\u201d Mark said, \u201cbut that\u2019s part of the bargain I made.\u201d\u00a0 Everyone knew he was referring to his original reason for joining the army, so that he could march with the rescue forces sent to Nevada at the height of the war with the Paiutes.\u00a0 He\u2019d done it for love and in Paul Martin\u2019s mind had well earned the reward of his daughter\u2019s hand. \u00a0There was a price to be paid for enlistment in the army, however, and the army was now set to collect it in wartime service.<\/p>\n

Still holding Little Joe in his arms, Ben stepped forward to lay a supportive hand on the girl\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cAt least, Mark will be serving as a surgeon\u2019s assistant,\u201d he reminded her.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019ll keep him behind the lines.\u201d\u00a0 He looked across at Mark, who nodded soberly.\u00a0 The glance they exchanged communicated their mutual realization that service in the medical corps did not guarantee his safety, but at least he wouldn\u2019t be quite as exposed to enemy fire as the combat troops.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll be praying for you, my boy,\u201d he promised, \u201cjust as if my own Adam were going to war.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all will,\u201d Nelly Thomas put in.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam?\u201d Hoss asked, his brow crinkling with anxious thought.\u00a0 \u201cHe gonna soldier, too?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no, of course not,\u201d Ben assured him, bouncing Little Joe to soothe his sudden disturbance, for while the child had no understanding of war, he readily picked up on other people\u2019s emotions, especially Hoss\u2019s.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u2019s a student, far from where the battles are taking place.\u00a0 I\u2019ll show you on the map when we get home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s right about me working behind the lines,\u201d Mark was saying to Sally while Ben was settling down his boys, \u201cand just think of the surgical experience I\u2019ll get.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMore varied than here, to be sure,\u201d Paul Martin said, putting an arm about both his daughter and his future son-in-law.\u00a0 \u201cInvaluable experience for someone who hopes to become a skilled surgeon.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I know,\u201d Sally sighed, \u201cbut it\u2019s hard to remember that when all I can think of is how much I\u2019ll miss. . . .\u201d\u00a0 With determination she brushed at a tear moistening the corner of her eye.<\/p>\n

Little Joe reached for the black visor of Mark\u2019s blue forage hat, all he\u2019d had eyes for since the young soldier had come over to them.\u00a0 \u201cI like that hat,\u201d he hinted.\u00a0 Laughter at the easy way he tossed worry aside and the frankness with which he expressed his desire chased away everyone\u2019s tears.<\/p>\n

Mark took the hat off and put it on the youngster\u2019s head.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll need it back when I leave,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d Little Joe agreed reluctantly.\u00a0 When Ben set him down, he strutted off across the green sward to demonstrate how fine he looked in the new headgear.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, don\u2019t go far,\u201d Mark called.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss, go watch him,\u201d Ben ordered.\u00a0 \u201cSee he doesn\u2019t stray.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t do a worse job than you,\u201d Clyde cackled, for while they\u2019d stood around waiting for the regiment to arrive, Ben had regaled them with his four-year-old\u2019s solo excursion around Virginia City earlier in the week.\u00a0 Nelly gave her husband a sharp jab in the ribs, while their daughter Inger snickered into her cupped hand.<\/p>\n

Ben shuddered.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t remind me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSounds like a story I need to hear,\u201d Mark observed, \u201cbut time\u2019s short.\u00a0 You\u2019ll write me, sir?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI will,\u201d Ben promised, \u201cand you let us know how things are going with you back there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I don\u2019t hear once a week, I\u2019ll be frantic with worry,\u201d Sally warned him.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s an incentive!\u201d her father chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cMark, son, please spare me that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll write faithfully,\u201d Mark said.<\/p>\n

Hoss, who had stoically gone after Little Joe, dragged him back over to the group.\u00a0 \u201cI still ain\u2019t had a proper chance to say good-bye,\u201d he complained.<\/p>\n

Mark thrust out his hand.\u00a0 \u201cGood-bye, then, Hoss.\u00a0 Take care of my girl for me, okay?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell . . . sure,\u201d Hoss said slowly, not sure whether Mark was serious or funning with him.\u00a0 \u201cI wouldn\u2019t let no harm come to Miss Sally.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mark chucked him under the chin.\u00a0 \u201cI know, but don\u2019t you go stealing her heart away from me, either, you hear?\u201d<\/p>\n

Realizing now that he was being teased, Hoss grinned.\u00a0 \u201cI wouldn\u2019t do that, neither.\u201d\u00a0 He motioned for Mark to bend down to his level.\u00a0 \u201cI wouldn\u2019t trust that Billy too far, though,\u201d he whispered just loud enough for everyone to hear.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I know better than to trust him,\u201d Mark said with a lopsided smirk.\u00a0 \u201cBilly and me go way back, you know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, further back than him and me, even,\u201d Hoss said, \u201cso I reckon you know he\u2019s plumb ornery.\u201d\u00a0 He tried to keep a straight face, but his shoulders shook with the effort to hold back his amusement at his own joke.<\/p>\n

From behind, Billy hoisted Hoss up by the elbows and plunked him down again with a solid thunk.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey!\u201d Hoss protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo more than you deserve, you backstabber,\u201d Billy said with a forced growl.\u00a0 Then he grinned at Mark.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t worry about Sally for one minute, pal.\u00a0 I\u2019ll see to it she don\u2019t get lonely.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what I\u2019m afraid of!\u201d Mark laughed.\u00a0 \u201cNow, if the rest of you don\u2019t mind, I\u2019ll let her walk me back over to the regiment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo\u2019s they can smooch some more,\u201d Billy confided to Hoss, bumping the boy\u2019s shoulder with his hip.<\/p>\n

\u201cExactly!\u201d Mark laughed, as he plucked his hat from Little Joe\u2019s head and placed it on his own.\u00a0 \u201cOh, here\u2019s the books you loaned me, Dr. Martin.\u201d\u00a0 He offered three volumes to the doctor.<\/p>\n

\u201cKeep them, if they\u2019ll be of any help to you,\u201d Paul Martin urged.<\/p>\n

Mark placed one in his other hand and extended the remaining two to the doctor.\u00a0 \u201cJust this one, if you don\u2019t mind.\u00a0 I haven\u2019t finished it yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStudy hard,\u201d the doctor admonished with a smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut first, go kiss that girl,\u201d Ben ordered.\u00a0 He pointed off in the direction of the regiment.\u00a0 \u201cOff with the both of you!\u201d<\/p>\n

Laughing, the young couple made a quick, arm-in-arm exit, Mark calling back good-byes over his shoulder.\u00a0 Everyone waved wildly and shouted their wishes for him to keep safe and keep in touch.<\/p>\n

\u201cLands, I\u2019m gonna miss that boy,\u201d Nelly said with a sniff.\u00a0 \u201cYou all are comin\u2019 by the house, ain\u2019t you?\u00a0 I\u2019ve got a jelly cake set out and coffee ready to brew.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss smacked his lips.\u00a0 \u201cJelly cake!\u00a0 That\u2019s one of your best, Aunt Nelly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI want cake,\u201d Little Joe chimed in.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cCount me in.\u00a0 I was hoping to come by, anyway, at least long enough to drop a line to Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a wry grin Clyde wagged his head.\u00a0 \u201cThought you already wrote that boy once this week, when you sent him money for your schoolteacher friend.\u00a0 Two letters in one week\u2019s bound to spoil him close to rotten.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gave his friend a rough slap on the back. \u201cI\u2019ve had quite enough advice on that score this week,\u201d he declared.\u00a0 \u201cIn my opinion, you can\u2019t spoil a boy by loving him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAmen to that,\u201d Nelly agreed.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll head on to the house, get the coffee started.\u00a0 You younguns want to come with me or stay to see Mark off?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStay,\u201d said Hoss, who wanted to watch the soldiers march in step.<\/p>\n

\u201cStay,\u201d Little Joe echoed, well satisfied that his big brother would make the best choice possible.<\/p>\n

\u201cSee you soon, then,\u201d Nelly said, drawing her woolen shawl close, for the wind was picking up and turning sharp.\u00a0 Inger trotted along at her side, eager to help her mother play hostess.<\/p>\n

The others saw Mark march away and waited for Sally to join them before they all walked down to the Thomas house.\u00a0 Ben slipped an arm around the forlorn girl.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019ll be in my prayers nightly,\u201d he assured her, \u201cand I\u2019m sure God will keep him safe; he has such potential.\u201d\u00a0 He felt a momentary rebellion as his thoughts turned to a young woman with great potential who had nonetheless been taken from him.\u00a0 He\u2019d already struggled through his crisis of faith, however, and wouldn\u2019t allow the things he could not understand to strip him of it again.\u00a0 All of them here and all those they loved back East rested in God\u2019s strong and loving hands, and to that conviction he would cling, as trustingly as Little Joe now held to his own hand.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The rest had all gathered in the parlor after enjoying jelly cake and coffee together and had left Ben alone at the dining table to compose his letter to Adam on a sheet of borrowed stationery.\u00a0 As he considered how to begin, he chuckled at Clyde\u2019s notion that two letters in one week would spoil his son.\u00a0 Ridiculous idea!\u00a0 regular communication of love was the best antidote to spoiling that he knew.\u00a0 Besides, the territory was changing, almost daily it seemed. \u00a0Adam would not only be interested in that, but would feel less a stranger when he finally returned if he\u2019d been kept abreast of those changes.<\/p>\n

With that in mind, Ben started his letter with general news.\u00a0 He told Adam about recent acts of the Territorial Legislature.\u00a0 Just this week they\u2019d passed a bill permitting construction of a railroad across Nevada.\u00a0 \u201cWouldn\u2019t it be wonderful, son,\u201d he wrote, \u201cif that were completed by the time you returned to us?\u00a0 Your journey would be so much faster and more comfortable than your recent trip back East.\u201d<\/p>\n

Next, Ben mentioned talk he\u2019d heard recently about plans for a new private school, to be called Sierra Seminary.\u00a0 \u201cIt will be located in Carson City and will offer elementary courses, with some advanced work.\u00a0 Don\u2019t you wish you\u2019d had that available when you were so eager to learn?\u00a0 Hoss, of course, doesn\u2019t have your zeal for learning\u2014well, book learning, that is.\u00a0 He seems to absorb information about the outdoors and animals and ranch work, but still struggles at times with his three R\u2019s.\u00a0 His friend Pete Hanson is a good influence, though, and Hoss seems to benefit from their studying together.\u00a0 Maybe it\u2019s just that having someone to share the lessons makes them more enjoyable and, therefore, more likely to stick in his head, but his marks have shown steady improvement this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

He hadn\u2019t meant to get into family news so soon, but decided he might as well proceed with Little Joe\u2019s latest antics, including that frustrating chase through Virginia City earlier in the week.\u00a0 \u201cNext time, I take a rope,\u201d he vowed to his eldest, who would know an idle threat when he read one.<\/p>\n

Ben wrote, lastly, about the arrival of volunteer forces from California to take over FortChurchill.\u00a0 \u201cThat means that Mark is headed back East. \u00a0After he leaves San Francisco, he\u2019ll be stationed in Washington, D. C., but who knows what the future holds for a soldier in a nation at war?\u00a0 Keep him in your prayers and write to him, son\u2014Sixth United States Infantry, Company H.\u00a0 You well know what it\u2019s like for a young man to be away from home, alone, for the first time, and I hope, at least, that our letters have eased that separation for you.\u00a0 I know yours to us make all the difference, though we continue to miss you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly Thomas came to the doorway.\u00a0 \u201cHate to rush you, Ben, but you might want to finish that up and head for home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s mouth quirked up at one corner.\u00a0 \u201cWorn out our welcome, have we?\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly flapped a reproachful hand at him.\u00a0 \u201cYou know better, but it\u2019s starting to snow, so it might be a case of leave now or stay the night . . . which you\u2019re more than welcome to do, of course.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben stood and hustled over to the window.\u00a0 Snow was coming down, though not heavily, as yet.\u00a0 That could change quickly, though, as he knew from experience.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re right.\u00a0 We\u2019d better leave right away.\u00a0 I\u2019ll just add a line or two in closing and address this.\u00a0 Could you get Little Joe bundled up for me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right: give me the hard job,\u201d Nelly laughed.\u00a0 Then she said, \u201cBe glad to, and Clyde can post that letter for you.\u00a0 You just might have a race on your hands with them snowflakes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben hurriedly told Adam that it was starting to snow and closed the letter with more assurances of his love.\u00a0 Then he sealed and addressed it and left it, with a few coins to cover the postage, on the dining table.<\/p>\n

Good-byes said, Ben bundled his boys into the buggy.\u00a0 Sliding a package of jelly cake slices beneath the seat, he climbed aboard and directed the horses out of town.\u00a0 They\u2019d barely passed the edge of Carson City when Hoss spoke up. \u00a0\u201cI just don\u2019t understand, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat don\u2019t you understand, son?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy the army didn\u2019t just send them Californy soldiers back East and leave Mark here, instead of switchin\u2019 everybody back and forth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cDoesn\u2019t seem to make much sense, does it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, sir, it sure don\u2019t,\u201d Hoss declared.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s because we\u2019re dealing with two different kinds of soldiers, Hoss,\u201d his father tried to explain.\u00a0 \u201cYou see, Mark\u2019s with the regular army, which is supposed to be more trained for battle, while the soldiers from California are volunteers, most of whom haven\u2019t been soldiers for very long.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMark ain\u2019t, either,\u201d Hoss alleged.<\/p>\n

\u201cBetter than a year,\u201d his father corrected.\u00a0 \u201cWith the volunteers, it\u2019s more like a few months or even just weeks.\u00a0 I guess the army figured they\u2019d do better close to home, fighting Indians, if need be, while freeing up the professional soldiers to fight back East.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cStill seems like a powerful lot of marchin\u2019 around for no good reason.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben reached behind Little Joe to rub Hoss\u2019s back.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s the army for you, son.\u00a0 Might as well try to argue with the weather.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s snowing, Pa,\u201d Little Joe put in at the mention of the weather.\u00a0 \u201cLots of pretty snowflakes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Ben agreed, \u201cand starting to come down heavier, too.\u00a0 We\u2019d better make tracks for home, boys, before we get snowbound in WashoeValley.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Seven days later the snow was still falling.\u00a0 The flurries hadn\u2019t been heavy enough to keep Hoss from school the previous week or to keep them from attending church in WashoeCity that morning, but he hadn\u2019t been surprised when the Thomases didn\u2019t join them, as they generally did on alternate Sundays.\u00a0 Carson City was a long, cold drive when snow lay on the ground.\u00a0 Sometimes they braved it anyway, as he and the boys did on their turn to visit Carson City, but little Inger had shown signs of coming down with a cold last Sunday.\u00a0 He hoped it hadn\u2019t grown worse, but even if not, her mother wouldn\u2019t want to risk the frosty air for a recovering child.\u00a0 What did surprise him was the knock at the door after he\u2019d sent the boys upstairs to change after church.\u00a0 He was even more surprised to see who stood at his door when he answered.\u00a0 \u201cSheriff Coffee!\u201d<\/p>\n

Coffee awkwardly twisted his hat in his hand.\u00a0 \u201cThought I was invited to dinner.\u00a0 Did I get the wrong Sunday?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no, not at all,\u201d Ben said, opening the door wider.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m surprised, though, that the prospect of a long ride in this weather didn\u2019t dampen your enthusiasm for a home-cooked meal.\u201d\u00a0 To tell the truth, he had forgotten the invitation he\u2019d extended that frenzied day in Virginia City, but he blamed his lapse of memory on the weather, too.\u00a0 It had kept him so busy, finalizing preparations for winter, that he\u2019d had little time to think of anything else.<\/p>\n

Coffee grinned.\u00a0 \u201cNothing dampens that!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood!\u201d Ben said enthusiastically, as he closed the door after ushering the sheriff in.\u00a0 \u201cCome over by the fire and warm up.\u00a0 I\u2019ll get us some coffee.\u201d\u00a0 And warn Hop Sing that we have a guest!<\/em>\u00a0 No doubt the cook would rant in Cantonese, but he wouldn\u2019t really mind.\u00a0 He would have planned food with the Thomases in mind, anyway, so there\u2019d be plenty.\u00a0 There always was.<\/p>\n

Little Joe clattered down the stairs, with Hoss right behind him. \u00a0\u201cHowdy, Sheriff,\u201d he called as he jumped on the lower landing with both feet.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowdy,\u201d Roy Coffee chuckled.\u00a0 He cast a mischievous side glance at Ben.\u00a0 \u201cI see you\u2019ve managed to keep a rein on him for a mite over a week now.\u00a0 Sure would\u2019ve hated to chase after the youngun in this weather.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben moaned.\u00a0 Everyone of his acquaintance seemed determined to remind him of his failure to keep track of Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cKeep it up,\u201d he warned, \u201cand I\u2019ll manage to misplace your share of dessert.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, you\u2019re right good at misplacin\u2019 things,\u201d Roy snickered; then, seeing Ben\u2019s glower, he decided he\u2019d pushed his luck far enough for a new acquaintance.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing soon called them all to dinner, and after eating a good portion Roy raved about the tender roast beef.\u00a0 \u201cHow\u2019d a Chinaman learn to make Yorkshire pudding?\u201d he asked when the cook was out of the room.<\/p>\n

\u201cGoodness only knows,\u201d Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cI think he\u2019s a regular recipe thief.\u00a0 Just mention a yearning for some dish in his hearing, and it\u2019s likely to turn up on the table within a week.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy grinned.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll keep him in mind the next time I need some detective work done.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben leaned toward his guest with a conspiratorial whisper.\u00a0 \u201cI think it only works for recipes.\u00a0 The only crime he\u2019s interested in is failure to appreciate a good meal.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot appreciating this meal would be a felony,\u201d Roy declared.<\/p>\n

\u201cI fell on my knee once,\u201d Little Joe announced.\u00a0 \u201cIt bled and everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe!\u201d Hoss scolded.\u00a0 \u201cIt ain\u2019t proper to talk about bleedin\u2019 at the table.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe did,\u201d Little Joe accused, pointing a finger at the sheriff.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s enough, boys.\u201d\u00a0 Ben shook his head as he worked to keep his mouth from twitching.\u00a0 \u201cNever underestimate the ability of a four-year-old to misinterpret anything you say,\u201d he muttered to Coffee.<\/p>\n

The sheriff grinned.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll take your word for it.\u00a0 He\u2019s a fine little fellow.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled across the table at Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cAnd his big brother\u2019s a good, strapping boy, too.\u00a0 The oldest one ain\u2019t around today?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right, you wouldn\u2019t have heard,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u2019s back East, attending YaleUniversity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe miss him,\u201d Hoss added.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can see as how you would,\u201d Coffee said kindly.\u00a0 \u201cAll the way to the east coast, huh?\u00a0 Reckon he\u2019ll be gone a good, long time, then.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cToo long,\u201d Ben agreed and quickly changed the subject.\u00a0 \u201cDid you save room for dessert?\u00a0 I believe we\u2019re having dried apple pie.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sheriff poked his stomach with two fingers.\u00a0 \u201cYep, there\u2019s a spot right there, so bring it on!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI got a spot, too,\u201d Hoss said with a grin, imitating the sheriff\u2019s gesture.<\/p>\n

Roy Coffee chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cI figured you would!\u201d\u00a0 He reached over to poke a tickling finger into Little Joe\u2019s tummy.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I reckon there\u2019s another pie-sized spot right . . . about . . . there!\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe giggled.\u00a0 \u201cPie spot, Pa!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, that makes it official,\u201d Ben said and called, \u201cFour pieces of pie, please, Hop Sing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing hear plenty good without yell all-a time,\u201d the little cook muttered from just beyond the doorway, his favorite spot for eavesdropping during meals.\u00a0 He quickly produced the pie, however, serving the sheriff first with an approving smile, for he had heard the compliments to his cooking.<\/p>\n

After the pie was consumed and more compliments issued, Ben requested coffee by the fire.\u00a0 \u201cDo you play chess, by chance?\u201d he asked Roy.<\/p>\n

Roy shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNever could get the knack of that, but I play a fierce game of checkers, if you got a board.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe got one!\u201d Hoss cried, springing up to fetch it.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you have time for a game?\u201d Ben asked as Little Joe clambered up into his lap.<\/p>\n

\u201cI reckon it won\u2019t take long to wallop you a time or two,\u201d Roy replied with an almost wicked grin.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll see about that!\u201d Ben retorted to the challenge.\u00a0 What he soon saw was that the new sheriff from Virginia City was more than a match for him, defeating him soundly in two games.<\/p>\n

Hoss, who had settled companionably next to their guest, proclaimed, \u201cYou\u2019re \u2018bout as good as Uncle Clyde.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDidn\u2019t know there was any more Cartwrights hereabouts,\u201d Roy said as he set the board for a third match.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cNo, just a friend who\u2019s close as kin.\u00a0 Perhaps you met him when you were deputy in Carson City\u2014Clyde Thomas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy\u2019s mouth screwed up in concentration.\u00a0 \u201cRed-haired fellow?\u00a0 Walks with a limp?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy nodded.\u00a0 \u201cKnew him to speak to, but that\u2019s all.\u00a0 Wish I\u2019d known he was a checkers player.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCheckers master,\u201d Ben declared, \u201cand I\u2019d love to watch a match between the two of you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHave to be here,\u201d Roy said.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t in Carson much these days.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re welcome any time,\u201d Ben assured him, \u201cand if you come on a Sunday, you might find Clyde here, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll look forward to it,\u201d Roy said, \u201cand to more of that fine cooking.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a smile of satisfaction, Hop Sing peered around the corner from the kitchen and disappeared back inside to wash the dishes.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben pulled the collar of his sheep-skin coat up around his neck, thankful for the warmth of its wooly lining.\u00a0 Snowflakes drifted slowly earthward on the mercifully light wind to join the six inches already there.\u00a0 He viewed it as a harbinger of fiercer cold to come and felt an urgency to get the weaker cattle and particularly the newly weaned calves into feed lots nearer the house.\u00a0 The handful of men he was keeping on over the winter had fanned out across the Ponderosa, searching out animals in need of critical care for that purpose.<\/p>\n

Something\u2014an unexpected sound or perhaps just instinct\u2014made him look toward the south, and his eyes squinted as he spotted a group of riders moving toward him.\u00a0 Too many to be his own men, but he couldn\u2019t imagine any reason for anyone else to be on the Ponderosa, especially in this weather.\u00a0 The haze in the air at first kept him from distinguishing individual riders; when he did, he felt even more concern.\u00a0 Sheriff Coffee?\u00a0 Yes, that was him, with Clyde and Billy Thomas among the group of nine behind him.\u00a0 He had a fleeting thought that his two friends had met up and decided to hold a checkers match at his house.\u00a0 Then he shook his head at the ridiculous notion.\u00a0 A group this large, led by a sheriff, could only mean one thing: official business.<\/p>\n

He waited for the men to reach him and then, to forestall what he was sure was more serious, teasingly asked Roy, \u201cCouldn\u2019t go more than two days without Hop Sing\u2019s cooking?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWish it were that,\u201d Roy said. \u201cWe\u2019re here on\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not in charge here,\u201d another man with a badge pinned to his coat snapped.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrue enough,\u201d Roy conceded, keeping his voice civil, although Ben could detect a note of irritation at the younger man\u2019s interruption.\u00a0 \u201cBen, let me introduce you to Deputy Tim Harrison of Carson City.\u00a0 Deputy Harrison, Ben Cartwright of the Ponderosa, the land you\u2019re riding on.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that,\u201d Harrison growled and then turned to Ben, \u201cand I\u2019m acting sheriff of Carson City, Mr. Cartwright.\u201d\u00a0 He emphasized the more prestigious title with a glare of offense at Roy.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s forehead wrinkled with misgiving, but he asked, more hopefully than expectantly, \u201cSheriff Blackburn resigned?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMurdered,\u201d Clyde Thomas spoke up, and Billy chimed in, \u201cWe saw it!\u201d<\/p>\n

The furrows in Ben\u2019s brow deepened.\u00a0 He had a thousand questions, but most of them he preferred to ask his friends in private.\u00a0 To Harrison, he asked only, \u201cYou\u2019re after the man who did it?\u00a0 And you think he could be on my land?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe headed this way,\u201d Harrison said and then asked sharply, \u201cYou friendly with William Mayfield, Cartwright?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t even know the name,\u201d Ben answered honestly.<\/p>\n

\u201cGambler,\u201d Clyde inserted.<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cThat explains why I don\u2019t know him.\u00a0 I\u2019m not attracted to games of chance.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll well and good,\u201d Harrison said brusquely, \u201cbut the last word we had placed him this direction.\u00a0 Of course, the snow\u2019s covered any tracks now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHave you seen any sign of strangers on your land, Ben?\u201d Roy Coffee asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust this posse,\u201d Ben responded.\u00a0 \u201cI can ask my men, when I meet up with them this evening.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced up to note the position of the sun, whose light filtered weakly through the cloud-covered sky.\u00a0 \u201cAbout three hours \u2018til then.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll be using those hours of daylight to search your land,\u201d Harrison announced.\u00a0 Then, seeming to remember his manners, he added, \u201cAssuming you have no objection.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have no objection; in fact, I welcome it,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut I would like to ride with you, if only to ensure than you don\u2019t mistake any of my men for this Mayfield or his accomplices, if there were any.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLooking for three men,\u201d Coffee offered, \u201cand I\u2019m sure we\u2019d welcome another posse member, eh, Harrison?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight,\u201d Harrison agreed, although clearly perturbed with what he considered the other sheriff\u2019s preemption of decisions rightfully his.<\/p>\n

Realizing what time it was, Ben felt a sudden concern knot his stomach.\u00a0 \u201cBilly, would you do me a favor?\u201d he asked urgently.<\/p>\n

Billy moved forward.\u00a0 \u201cSure . . . I reckon,\u201d the young man said a little hesitantly, for he had a feeling this favor might be of the sort to interfere with his own plans.<\/p>\n

\u201cWould you ride over to the Franktown school and see Hoss home safely?\u201d Ben asked.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t like the idea of him riding home alone with armed assassins lose on my land.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, Uncle Ben,\u201d Billy protested weakly, for he knew in the long run he\u2019d have to do as he was asked, much as he preferred staying with the posse.\u00a0 Grown man though he now considered himself, he would be expected to show respect for his elders, especially for one as close in affection as Uncle Ben.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s just that I was hopin\u2019 to earn a share of the reward, me bein\u2019 without a job now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re welcome to my share if we find the fugitive before you get back,\u201d Ben offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t necessary,\u201d Clyde said firmly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not necessary,\u201d Billy agreed quickly, wanting to forestall any further display of parental authority.\u00a0\u00a0 He knew full well that Ben would keep any promise he made, so he squared his shoulders, and mostly so the other posse members wouldn\u2019t think he was just giving in to his pa, like a blame kid, he said, \u201cYeah, you\u2019re right.\u00a0 Protecting the innocent is more important than catching up with the guilty.\u00a0 I\u2019ll see to Hoss and then join back up once he\u2019s safe in the house with Hop Sing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood thinking, son,\u201d Ben stated firmly, quite willing to feed the young man\u2019s need for esteem in return for the favor.\u00a0 \u201cMake sure Hop Sing knows the danger, and tell him to keep both Hoss and Little Joe inside\u2014oh, and tell him there\u2019ll be extra mouths to feed for supper.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight!\u00a0 Be back soon,\u201d Billy announced and took off.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben knew his boys were safe because Billy had returned to report a mission successfully accomplished, but he still felt a surge of relief when his two younger sons charged out the front door as he rode into the yard at dusk.<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you catch \u2018em?\u201d Hoss asked, clearly excited by the prospect of bad men on the Ponderosa.<\/p>\n

Ben scooped an equally animated Little Joe up in his arms.\u00a0 \u201cNo, not yet.\u00a0 We\u2019ll be going out again tomorrow, so I\u2019d like you to stay home from school, Hoss, and look after your little brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking after Little Joe did not top Hoss\u2019s list of favorite activities, but skipping school certainly did, so he readily agreed to accept the responsibility.<\/p>\n

Since he knew exactly what inspired the easy compliance, Ben smiled, but then turned his attention to the other men dismounting in the yard.\u00a0 \u201cSheriff Harrison,\u201d he said, using the title he knew the man preferred, justified or not, \u201cyour men are welcome to the use of my bunkhouse, but I can offer you a bed in the house.\u201d\u00a0 Frankly, he would have preferred to relegate Harrison to the bunkhouse, too, but the man\u2019s position did dictate a little more consideration, even if his presence would add nothing to the congeniality of the rest of the house party.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019ll be hot food for everyone soon,\u201d he added and was rewarded with warm smiles and expressions of thanks from the rest of the posse.<\/p>\n

He moved close to Roy Coffee, so that he could say quietly to him, \u201cYou\u2019ll stay inside with us, as well, unless you\u2019d prefer the company in the bunkhouse.\u201d\u00a0 He winked at the sheriff from Virginia City.<\/p>\n

Roy winked back his understanding of Ben\u2019s poke at the almighty \u201cacting sheriff\u201d of Carson City.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon the company inside will be mostly<\/em> to my liking,\u201d he whispered back.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you\u2019ll definitely tip the balance to my liking,\u201d Ben chuckled back.<\/p>\n

To his surprise, however, Harrison proved a perfectly pleasant dinner guest. \u00a0After the meal was finished, the youngsters were sent upstairs for baths and bed; and even then, as the men began to discuss the incident that had brought them to the Ponderosa, Harrison did not exhibit the need to take charge, seeming willing to let Clyde and Billy describe what had happened two nights before in a Carson City saloon.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa and me\u2019d been patchin\u2019 the roof on the barn.\u00a0 Took most of the day, but we finally finished up a mite before supper time,\u201d Billy related.\u00a0 \u201cTo take the chill off our bones, he suggested we traipse over to the St. Nicolas for a drink.\u201d\u00a0 He tossed his adopted uncle an impish grin.\u00a0 \u201cReckon you know how rare it is for Pa to treat to a drink, so, of course, I said yes right quick.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s only rare to you, you young scalawag,\u201d Ben snorted.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you can see why,\u201d Clyde chipped in.\u00a0 \u201cUngrateful little wretch.\u201d\u00a0 He grinned when he said it, though, so even those in the room who didn\u2019t know him well realized that his son was actually the proverbial pride and joy of his life.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs that where the killing took place?\u201d Ben asked, surmising that Sheriff Blackburn must have been dealing with a rowdy drunk.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cMe and Billy was in the back corner, at a table by ourselves, and didn\u2019t realize what was happenin\u2019 at first.\u00a0 Heard later that Blackburn had tried to arrest this Mayfield earlier in the day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot exactly right,\u201d Harrison put in.\u00a0 \u201cMan he was trying to arrest was a fugitive murderer from California, name of Henry Plummer.\u00a0 We\u2019d heard that Mayfield might be hiding him out, so we\u2019d gone to search Mayfield\u2019s cabin earlier that day\u2014that\u2019d be Monday, Mr. Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 He\u2019d gathered as much from the brief conversations exchanged while they\u2019d been searching for Mayfield that afternoon.<\/p>\n

\u201cMayfield admitted that Plummer had been there, but left,\u201d Harrison continued. \u00a0\u201cThen he commenced to taunt the sheriff about it, saying he\u2019d never find Plummer.\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head with dismay.\u00a0 \u201cWe should\u2019ve arrested him then and there, while we had him outnumbered.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor aiding and abetting?\u201d Roy asked.\u00a0 \u201cMight have held up in court; might not.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAt least, he\u2019d\u2019ve been behind bars,\u201d Harrison grunted, \u201cnot free to\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMight have just come for Blackburn later, all the more set on harming him,\u201d Ben suggested.\u00a0 \u201cNever possible to predict where a different road will lead. . . at least, so I\u2019ve found.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReckon you\u2019re right,\u201d Harrison conceded.\u00a0 \u201cStill, I keep asking myself what would have happened if I\u2019d been with the sheriff that night in the saloon.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the man stared soberly into the fire, Ben wondered if his brusque manner throughout the day had been motivated more by the guilt stirred by that unanswered question than by the prideful assertion of his new mantle of authority, as Ben had presumed.\u00a0 With Clyde or Billy or even Roy Coffee, he might have felt free to speak the thought directly and hopefully provide a fresh perspective to release that guilt, but since Harrison was still a stranger to him, he hesitated and the opportunity was lost.<\/p>\n

\u201cWouldn\u2019t have mattered,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cBlackburn had too many friends in that saloon as it was.\u00a0 Would you have done any different than them?\u201d<\/p>\n

Harrison looked up sharply.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I think I would!\u201d he snapped.\u00a0 \u201cI had more reason to suspect Mayfield of foul play than them others did.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry.\u00a0 Wasn\u2019t meaning to cast blame,\u201d Clyde said quickly.\u00a0 \u201cEverything happened so fast that everyone was just actin\u2019 on pure instinct . . . and their instincts was bad.\u00a0 Yours might\u2019ve been better, but it still might not have made any difference.\u00a0 I was there, and there wasn\u2019t a thing I could\u2019ve done to stop it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe was trapped back in that corner,\u201d Billy explained.\u00a0 \u201cHeard some sort of argument goin\u2019 on, and when we looked up, Blackburn was reaching for his gun, hollerin\u2019 that Mayfield was under arrest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe friends with him grabbed his arm, though,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cReckon they meant to prevent a fight, but all it did was give Mayfield a chance to come at the sheriff with a Bowie knife.\u00a0 Stabbed him four or five times before Blackburn got loose and tried to shoot, but he couldn\u2019t before he fell over.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd all those friends weren\u2019t able to prevent Mayfield\u2019s escape?\u201d Ben asked, incredulous.<\/p>\n

\u201cMayfield had friends, too,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cThey kept the rest of us hemmed in while he got away.\u00a0 After that, most of us focused on getting help for Blackburn, though it did no good.\u00a0 A few tried to follow Mayfield, but dark came on and they had to turn back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFuneral was yesterday morning, and no one would hear of forming a posse \u2018til that was past,\u201d Harrison said sourly.\u00a0 \u201cNo tracks to be found by then, of course, so we just headed this way \u2018cause that\u2019s the direction he took when he left Carson.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFittin\u2019 and proper for folks to show their respect for Sheriff Blackburn,\u201d Roy put in.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s what brought me to Carson.\u00a0 We\u2019ll get Mayfield, Harrison.\u00a0 Too many respected Blackburn for them to rest easy \u2018til his killer\u2019s brought to justice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded his agreement.\u00a0 While he hadn\u2019t personally known John Blackburn well, he knew that, at least earlier in his career, he\u2019d been a respected lawman.\u00a0 Lately, he\u2019d lost some of his sharpness, due to excessive alcohol consumption, but he\u2019d died in the line of duty and merited the honor due such a man, especially when he had served faithfully for so many years.\u00a0 \u201cHe had a wife, didn\u2019t he?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cA girl of just twenty,\u201d Roy responded, \u201cand a baby girl, no more than seven or eight months old.\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head, grieved for the man under whom he had once served and for the family left behind.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a shame,\u201d he said and could say no more without losing control of his emotions.<\/p>\n

Wanting to lighten the atmosphere, Ben turned to Clyde, \u201cMy friend, I\u2019ve discovered that our new sheriff from Virginia City just might be able to take you at checkers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clyde\u2019s eyes lit up with the spark of challenge.\u00a0 \u201cThat so?\u00a0 Well, now, if\u2019n he ain\u2019t too tired, I just might let him take his best shot at it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The competitor in Roy couldn\u2019t resist.\u00a0 \u201cBest two of three?\u201d he suggested.\u00a0 \u201cThen the winner takes whoever wins between Ben and Harrison here?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben looked over at the acting sheriff of Carson City and saw an awkward frown form.\u00a0 Correctly guessing that Harrison wasn\u2019t much of a player, he said, \u201cThey won\u2019t drag us into this, will they, Harrison?\u00a0 We\u2019ll leave this battle to the masters.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking relieved, Harrison readily agreed and settled back to root for Roy, out of loyalty to a fellow lawman.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0After showing his guests to their respective rooms, Ben checked on his sons before turning in himself.\u00a0 Little Joe was sleeping soundly, his blankets in typical disarray.\u00a0 Ben untangled them, tucked the boy in snugly, dropped a kiss on his forehead and then moved to the room next door.<\/p>\n

Hoss rose up on his elbows as his father entered.\u00a0 \u201cHey, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHey yourself, young fellow,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cHaving trouble sleeping?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014uh\u2014wanted to talk to you, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

A son who needed to talk always took precedence over his own need for sleep, so Ben sat down on the edge of the bed.\u00a0 \u201cWhat about, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss twisted the sheet between his fingers.\u00a0 \u201cWell\u2014uh\u2014it\u2019s about Little Joe.\u00a0 He\u2019s\u2014uh\u2014kind of worried \u2018bout you trackin\u2019 down them bad men.\u201d<\/p>\n

Recalling the peacefully sleeping child he\u2019d just left, Ben raised a skeptical eyebrow.\u00a0 \u201cHe is?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss bit his lip.\u00a0 \u201cUm, yes, sir; you know how he gets when you\u2019re away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not away, Hoss; I\u2019m right here on the Ponderosa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, but . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben took his son\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not going to take any foolish chances, son, but I can\u2019t let a man like that run around loose on my land.\u00a0 None of us would feel safe.\u201d\u00a0 He chuckled as he patted his boy\u2019s soft cheek.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you don\u2019t really want to be trapped in the house with Little Joe on a permanent basis, do you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Remembering how hard it had been to keep his restless little brother occupied that afternoon, Hoss winced.\u00a0 \u201cNot forever . . . just \u2018til them men leave.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben stood up.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re going to do that a lot sooner with encouragement, my boy.\u201d\u00a0 He tucked the covers up to Hoss\u2019s chin and bent over to kiss him good night.\u00a0 \u201cYou tell Little Joe not to worry,\u201d he said with a wink that told Hoss his father had figured out who was really fretting.\u00a0 \u201cTell him his pa knows how to take care of himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir, I will,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cJust\u2014just do a good job of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben again promised that he would, gave Hoss another kiss and slipped quietly out.\u00a0 Smiling and shaking his head, he made his way down the hall to his own room.\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s protectiveness for him seemed so out of the natural order of things that he found it almost comical, and the thought that his tiny youngest son might share the sentiment bordered on ludicrous.\u00a0 Still, he mused as he changed into his nightshirt, perhaps it was understandable when he was all his boys had.\u00a0 He slipped into bed and gently touched the empty pillow at his side.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll take care of myself . . . for them . . . for you,\u201d he promised.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Following Ben\u2019s proposed plan, the posse split up the next morning.\u00a0 He had suggested that the miserable weather might have influenced Mayfield to hole up somewhere, and the snug line shacks of the Ponderosa represented the best shelter near to hand.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll send one of my men with each pair of posse members,\u201d Ben offered.\u00a0 \u201cThey know where the line shacks are, and that way, there\u2019ll be three men in each group, in case they do run into Mayfield\u2019s bunch.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEven odds,\u201d Roy Coffee said with an approving nod.<\/p>\n

Harrison also agreed.\u00a0 \u201cA solid plan.\u00a0 Much obliged for the idea and the help, Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

After assigning each of his hands a line shack to check, Ben teamed up with Sheriff Coffee and a man named John Bartholomew, who had a ranch west of Carson City.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure hope we find \u2018em today,\u201d Bartholomew said.\u00a0 \u201cWork\u2019s pilin\u2019 up back at my place.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSame here,\u201d Ben commiserated, \u201cbut I won\u2019t feel comfortable going back to it until I\u2019m certain the ranch is clear of danger.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d feel the same, if it was my place,\u201d Bartholomew assured Ben.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t stay away from Virginia City much longer myself,\u201d Roy put in, \u201cso we\u2019re all in agreement: this needs to end today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled ruefully.\u00a0 He\u2019d learned, by oft-experienced frustration, that things didn\u2019t necessarily get done just because they needed to.\u00a0 He hoped it would prove otherwise today, though, and could only count his blessings that the busier seasons of the ranching year had already passed.<\/p>\n

His group rode north into a biting wind that snaked down their mufflers and up the sleeves of their jackets.\u00a0 Typical November weather, if weather in Nevada could ever be described as typical, Ben mused.\u00a0 November temperatures could range from the seventies down to single digits, and skies could vary from clear to the deadly obscurity of a sudden blizzard.\u00a0 Today was relatively moderate, except for the sharp wind that blew snow from the ground into the air, making it appear to still be falling, when it was actually just being redistributed.<\/p>\n

Knowing that any tracks would long since have been covered by the snow, they didn\u2019t bother looking, but kept their horses to a steady pace as they rode straight for the northernmost line shack.\u00a0 Ben never wanted it said of him that he had asked another man to do what he would not, so he\u2019d assigned himself the longest ride.\u00a0 Sheriff Coffee had offered to ride with him, and Bartholomew had just accepted the fact that someone had to make the harder ride and it might as well be him.<\/p>\n

Conversation was held to a minimum because all of them had their mufflers pulled up over their mouths and noses.\u00a0 During a brief halt, however, Ben pulled his down so that he could take a drink from his canteen.\u00a0 He started to put the woolen scarf back over his face; then his nose wrinkled as he caught a faint whiff of wood smoke.\u00a0 He reported it to the sheriff, adding, \u201cIt looks like they are holed up in that line shack; it\u2019s about a mile from here, as the crow flies.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow close can we get without being seen?\u201d Roy asked.<\/p>\n

Ben exhaled gustily.\u00a0 \u201cWell, we try to keep the surrounding trees cut back, to lessen the fire hazard, but we could get fairly close if we came in from the west.\u00a0 Take longer that way, but probably safer, especially as we\u2019d be coming in at the back side of the shack.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDoor on the opposite side?\u201d Roy asked.<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 \u201cAnd one window on that side, too.\u00a0 With a bit of luck, we should be able to get right up to the back wall without being seen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSounds good.\u00a0 Let\u2019s circle around to that side, then,\u201d Roy said and both ranchers concurred.\u00a0 Though willing to do their civic duty, neither of them were gunmen, and Ben, in particular, was mindful of his promises to Hoss and to Marie to take no foolish chances.<\/p>\n

They altered their course to detour through the trees.\u00a0 When they drew close to the shack, they dismounted and tethered their animals, for fear that they might scent the fugitives\u2019 horses and reveal the posse\u2019s presence with an ill-timed neigh.\u00a0 Moving cautiously forward, they came to the edge of the trees and huddled together beneath that final shelter.<\/p>\n

\u201cWalk easy \u2018til we get to the back of the shack,\u201d Roy directed.\u00a0 \u201cThen we\u2019ll move slowly around to the front, the two of you on one side and me on the other.\u00a0 Is there a lock on that door, Ben?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust a latch,\u201d Ben replied, \u201cbut it can be drawn in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cMight be hard to bust through, if they did that . . . and they probably did.\u00a0 Wish there was some way to draw them out in the open.\u201d\u00a0 Neither of the other men suggested anything, so he shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cWell, at my signal we rush the door together, then, and just pray it gives way quick enough to catch them off guard.\u201d<\/p>\n

Realizing the risks of such a plan, Ben took a deep breath and exhaled a prayer for their safety.\u00a0 Then, softly and silently, the three men made their way through the cushioning snow to the back of the shack and, once there, began to move around both sides.\u00a0 Just as they got into position, Ben heard Bartholomew begin to whistle \u201cDixie\u201d behind him.\u00a0 \u201cShh!\u201d he cautioned, but Bartholomew persisted.<\/p>\n

As the door opened, the posse members pulled back to the side, so they wouldn\u2019t be seen.\u00a0 A man came out the door and looked around.\u00a0 \u201cNo one in sight,\u201d he called back inside, \u201cbut I\u2019m sure I heard whistling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another man appeared in the doorway.\u00a0 \u201cAw, you\u2019re hearin\u2019 things,\u201d he snorted.<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t, neither!\u201d the first man snapped.\u00a0 \u201cI heard \u2018Dixie.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Gun drawn, Roy rounded the corner.\u00a0 \u201cHands up!\u201d he ordered.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re not in the land of cotton, mister; you\u2019re under arrest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seeing only one man, both of the fugitives slapped leather, but not fast enough to outshoot the sheriff, who winged one man.\u00a0 Ben fired a warning shot into the air. \u00a0The other man swung around to fire on him, and Ben pulled the trigger, hitting the man in the shoulder.\u00a0 A third man crouched in the doorway, firing first one direction and then the other.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re surrounded, Mayfield,\u201d Coffee called.\u00a0 \u201cGive yourself up and we\u2019ll see to it you get a fair trial.\u201d<\/p>\n

A few more shots were exchanged before Mayfield realized the futility of his ammunition outlasting three opponents and threw his gun out the door.\u00a0 Snapping on a set of handcuffs as Ben and Bartholomew wrestled the wounded men to their feet, Roy asked, \u201cWhich one of you had the bright idea to whistle \u2018Dixie\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

Bartholomew grinned.\u00a0 \u201cMe, but I wasn\u2019t sure if it was a bright idea or suicide, to be honest, sheriff.\u00a0 Kept thinking about what you said about getting them out in the open.\u00a0 Then I suddenly remembered that Mayfield was secesh\u2014no secret to anyone who ever gambled with him\u2014and figured, maybe, if he heard \u2018Dixie,\u2019 he\u2019d think it was friends and come out less suspicious.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy chuckled as he secured the other prisoners.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re right, Bartholomew.\u00a0 Could just as easily been suicide.\u00a0 As it is, though, you read them right and we\u2019re alive to tell the tale.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alive to tell the tale.\u00a0 Ben shook his head a bit ruefully.\u00a0 As entertaining as the boys would probably find the story, he doubted that this was a tale he\u2019d be telling his sons\u2014at least, not before they turned twenty or thirty.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Predictably, the boys rushed out the door the minute the posse rode into the yard, prisoners in tow.\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s eyes widened at the sight of real, live bad men right in the front yard.\u00a0 \u201cThat them?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, son, that\u2019s them,\u201d Ben said, dismounting and lifting Little Joe into his arms.\u00a0 He waved to Clyde and Billy and another man, who had followed the youngsters out the door.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing scurried out the side door.\u00a0 \u201cHot coffee all ready,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cSorry not see you in time for stop boys run out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not sure that\u2019s ever possible,\u201d Ben said with a smile.\u00a0 \u201cCan you put some sandwiches together quickly, Hop Sing?\u201d<\/p>\n

The cook pointed at the handcuffed men.\u00a0 \u201cThem, too?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben glanced at the sheriff.\u00a0 \u201cAny objection?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHarrison probably would have,\u201d Roy replied with a wry smile, \u201cbut I believe in feeding prisoners.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGo in and help yourselves to some of that hot coffee,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cMe and Billy and the minister here can guard these three.\u201d\u00a0 He was referring to the third member of his segment of the posse, the man who had preached John Blackburn\u2019s funeral and had been largely responsible for inspiring so many men from Carson City to join the search for the lawman\u2019s killer.<\/p>\n

Ben carried Little Joe inside and headed toward the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cCome up with me, Hoss,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cDoncha want a sandwich, Pa?\u201d Little Joe asked.<\/p>\n

Ben squeezed him tight as he reached the landing and made a left turn to ascend the rest of the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cI sure do, but they\u2019re not ready yet.\u00a0 Come up and help me pack.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPack?\u201d Hoss asked, clambering up behind them.\u00a0 \u201cYou goin\u2019 somewheres, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, son, I am,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m going to help escort those men back to jail in Carson City, and I\u2019ll stay the night with Uncle Clyde.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan I go, too?\u201d Hoss asked eagerly.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too?\u201d Little Joe pleaded.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed as he made his way down the hall and into his room.\u00a0 Setting Little Joe on the bed, he said, \u201cNo, Hoss.\u00a0 You have school tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI skipped today,\u201d Hoss pointed out.<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head, smiling with amusement as he chucked the boy\u2019s chin.\u00a0 \u201cAll the more reason to show up tomorrow, young fellow.\u201d<\/p>\n

As glum-faced Hoss sat down in a chair, Little Joe bounced on the bed.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t got school; I can go with Pa!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not you, either,\u201d Ben said, wrestling the boy to the mattress and tickling his tummy.\u00a0 \u201cYou are much too young to ride with a posse.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe frowned eloquently.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m much too young for everything,\u201d he complained.<\/p>\n

\u201cI agree,\u201d his father chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cWell, maybe you\u2019re not too young to pick Pa out a shirt and pants to wear tomorrow.\u00a0 Think you can do that, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Course, I can,\u201d the boy declared and hopped off the bed to forage in his father\u2019s dresser drawers.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust the one night, right, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s all I\u2019m planning,\u201d his father said, \u201cbut something could come up in town.\u00a0 Don\u2019t fret if I\u2019m not back tomorrow night, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss pointed at Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cTell him.\u00a0 You know how he gets . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I\u2019m away,\u201d Ben finished, recalling their conversation of the night before.\u00a0 He sat on the bed.\u00a0 \u201cCome here, boys.\u201d<\/p>\n

When they had settled, one on either side, he put an arm around each.\u00a0 \u201cNow, listen to me good: there will be times when I\u2019m away for a day or two.\u00a0 It\u2019s just the nature of life out here.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t mean that anything\u2019s wrong or that anything bad is happening to your pa.\u00a0 It just means something has delayed me: bad weather or business I need to tend to or a dozen other things that come up unexpectedly.\u00a0 But I will come back; I\u2019ll always come back to you, because you boys are my life.\u00a0 You understand?\u201d<\/p>\n

Both boys nodded, Hoss mostly for Little Joe\u2019s sake and Joe because whatever big brother Hoss did must be right.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cNow, give me your best hugs and kisses and let me be on my way.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben had originally agreed to ride into Carson with the prisoners simply out of obligation to finish a job he\u2019d started.\u00a0 As he rode down the street toward the log building that served as the town\u2019s jail, however, he began to realize that taking Mayfield and his accomplices into custody just might have been the easiest part of the job.\u00a0 Crowds lined the way, cheering Mayfield\u2019s capture, but some voices sounded a more chilling call.\u00a0 \u201cWhy bother locking him up?\u201d a man shouted above the roar.\u00a0 \u201cString him up to the nearest tree!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEcho the sentiment,\u201d Harrison mumbled.<\/p>\n

Though Ben knew the words hadn\u2019t been loud enough for the crowd to hear, he felt a shiver run up his spine and a fervent wish fill his heart that Roy Coffee had not felt obliged to return to Virginia City that night.\u00a0 Harrison was a decent man, but was he strong enough to resist the urge for revenge, especially when he had to do so at the risk of his own life?\u00a0 Ben just didn\u2019t know the man well enough to answer that, and the uncertainty was worrisome.<\/p>\n

Perhaps it was unnecessary, he decided as the acting sheriff had the posse form a cordon flanking the path to the jail\u2019s door.\u00a0 Harrison prodded the prisoners between the ranks of armed men, who filed into the jail as soon as the lawman had passed inside.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou think this place\u2019ll hold us, once our friends get word we\u2019re here?\u201d Mayfield taunted.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think this\u2019ll hold you,\u201d Harrison growled, bringing over a set of irons.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll pay for this, Harrison, sure as your hero Blackburn did,\u201d Mayfield snarled.<\/p>\n

Harrison backhanded the man.\u00a0 \u201cShut up!\u00a0 Keep John Blackburn\u2019s name out of your filthy mouth!\u201d\u00a0 He hit the man again.<\/p>\n

Ben lurched forward to grab Harrison\u2019s arm.\u00a0 \u201cStop it, Harrison!\u00a0 This isn\u2019t the way to honor Sheriff Blackburn.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRightly said,\u201d declared the minister on the posse.\u00a0 \u201cI want justice for Blackburn as much as you do, Sheriff Harrison\u2014we all do\u2014but not at the price of injustice, even to such men as this.\u00a0 That wasn\u2019t Blackburn\u2019s way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harrison still seethed with anger, but he let himself be pulled away from the prisoner.\u00a0 \u201cGet him out of my sight,\u201d he grunted, and a couple of posse members quickly put the irons on Mayfield and the other prisoners and led them back to the cells.<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo of them need medical attention,\u201d Ben said softly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ll get it,\u201d Harrison snapped.\u00a0 \u201cSomebody fetch Doc Martin.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI will,\u201d Billy offered and moved toward the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll go with you,\u201d Clyde said, concerned for his son\u2019s safety in the unruly crowd.\u00a0 \u201cYou need us back here, Harrison?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCould use you later,\u201d the acting sheriff said.\u00a0 \u201cYou and the boy and your friend Cartwright can go have yourselves some supper and be back here by eight, if you don\u2019t mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGlad to help out,\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny of the rest of you willing to help out, stick around long enough for me to work out a schedule,\u201d Harrison ordered.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll guard these men by shifts through the night.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben pushed back from the table and patted his stomach.\u00a0 \u201cNelly, a superb meal, as always, for which I give heartfelt thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly blushed, as pleased with the compliment as if it had been her first.\u00a0 Much as she liked to hear her cooking commended, however, she found it hard to accept high praise for such a simple meal.\u00a0 \u201cSure you wouldn\u2019t rather save your thanks for Sunday?\u201d she asked lightly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want me to stand up and testify to your excellence in church?\u201d Ben teased.<\/p>\n

She wagged her finger at him.\u00a0 \u201cI meant no such thing and you know it.\u00a0 You are still planning to take Thanksgiving dinner with us this Sunday, ain\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sobered.\u00a0 \u201cStill planning to, yes.\u00a0 As I told the boys this afternoon, though, you never know what can intervene in this territory, whether from wild weather or wild men.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou worried about this Mayfield business?\u201d Clyde asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t like the looks\u2014or the sound\u2014of that crowd,\u201d Ben admitted.\u00a0 \u201cI think I\u2019ll head back over to the jail, in case Harrison needs the extra help before time for my turn at guard duty.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReckon we both should,\u201d Clyde said with a sour scowl.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t favor leaving his warm hearth tonight, but he felt obligated.\u00a0 Carson City was his town, so he had more responsibility to see justice done here than Ben did, though he\u2019d be grateful to have his friend\u2019s help.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want a second piece of pie first,\u201d Billy put in, reaching for the pie plate.\u00a0 \u201cThen I\u2019ll come on down and join you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, don\u2019t all of you need to go crowding in there,\u201d Nelly protested.<\/p>\n

Reading her concern for her son\u2019s safety, especially with a husband already putting himself at risk, Ben agreed, saying, \u201cNo need to come before your time, Billy.\u00a0 A couple of extra men is about all that jail will hold.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled mischievously.\u00a0 \u201cStay here and help your mother with the dishes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy shook his head as he eased a slice of dried peach pie onto his plate.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s Inger\u2019s job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I wouldn\u2019t mind sharing it!\u201d the nine-year-old girl announced with a fling of one strawberry blonde braid over her shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cWouldn\u2019t kill you to help out; ain\u2019t like you got any other job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHush, now, girl,\u201d Nelly scolded.\u00a0 \u201cNo need to be tauntin\u2019 your brother \u2018cause the Pony quit runnin\u2019.\u00a0 He\u2019ll find work soon enough, and in the mean time he\u2019s a big help to your pa in the smithy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight enough,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll see you over at the jail around eight, son.\u00a0 You ready, Ben?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReady,\u201d Ben replied.<\/p>\n

The two of them bundled into their coats and walked out into the crisp, cold air of the November night.\u00a0 The wind had died down, but the dropping temperature had formed a crust on top of the snow that crunched beneath their steps.\u00a0 Carson City was usually quiet during the dinner hour, but tonight the air resounded with angry words, some hissed so low only the speaker\u2019s closest companions could hear them, others shouted loud enough to be heard across the plaza.<\/p>\n

As they neared the jail, Ben and Clyde could hear exuberant strains of \u201cDixie\u201d from an off-key choir of sorts, assembled in front of the log building.<\/p>\n

\u201cGuess we know which side they\u2019re on,\u201d Clyde grunted.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou knew Mayfield had southern sympathies?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

Clyde spat to one side.\u00a0 \u201cCouldn\u2019t be around him long without knowing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben clucked his tongue.\u00a0 \u201cHave you been gambling, my friend?\u00a0 And does sister Nelly know?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t, so there ain\u2019t nothin\u2019 for her to know,\u201d Clyde snorted.\u00a0 \u201cJust seen the man around town enough to know who he pals with, and they\u2019re secesh, every one.\u00a0 Well, either that or fellow gamblers\u2014or both.\u201d<\/p>\n

They pressed through the crowd, ignoring the protests of both factions: Mayfield\u2019s friends calling them blasted Yankees, while the other side hollered for the killer\u2019s hanging.\u00a0 Ben banged his fist on the jail door and shouted, \u201cHarrison, it\u2019s Cartwright and Thomas.\u00a0 Let us in.\u201d<\/p>\n

The door opened a crack, and a hand reached out to pull Ben in, with Clyde pushing through in his wake.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re early,\u201d Harrison said.<\/p>\n

Ben shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cThought you could use the help, and I had nothing else to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSame here,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cIf you don\u2019t want us, say so.\u201d\u00a0 Frankly, he wished that Harrison would say exactly that and give him good reason to go home.<\/p>\n

Harrison relaxed.\u00a0 \u201cNo, you\u2019re more than welcome.\u00a0 Thanks for coming in.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced out the front window.\u00a0 \u201cSorry if I was abrupt.\u00a0 The noise outside tends to make a man edgy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGonna get edgier before morning,\u201d called Mayfield from his cell.<\/p>\n

\u201cShut up!\u201d Harrison hollered.\u00a0 To Ben and Clyde, he said, \u201cNoise outside ain\u2019t bad enough, but I got to put up with that.\u201d\u00a0 He jerked a thumb in the direction of the cell block.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou think there\u2019ll be trouble?\u201d Ben asked, just as a knock came at the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, there\u2019ll be trouble\u2014for you!\u201d came the taunting yell from the cell.\u00a0 \u201cBlackburn couldn\u2019t hold me, much less this sorry runt.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harrison stormed back to the cell.\u00a0 \u201cShut your mouth, Mayfield, before I shut it for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMake me,\u201d Mayfield said, spraying spittle into the acting sheriff\u2019s face.<\/p>\n

With his left hand Harrison reached through the bars to grab Mayfield by the shirt and slammed him up against the iron barrier.\u00a0 Drawing his gun, he held it inches from the prisoner\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cOne word, Mayfield; one more word, and it\u2019ll be your last,\u201d he threatened.<\/p>\n

\u201cHarrison, no!\u201d Ben cried, rushing forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cStay out of this, Cartwright,\u201d Harrison hissed.\u00a0 \u201cMayfield\u2019s been asking for this ever since we brought him in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStop at once!\u201d rang out an authoritative voice, and Ben spun around to see the governor of the territory, whom Clyde had just admitted.\u00a0 \u201cI order you to release your hold on that man,\u201d Nye demanded.<\/p>\n

Harrison did, but his chest continued to heave.\u00a0 \u201cHe had it coming, Governor.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA judge and jury will decide what he has coming,\u201d the governor declared, \u201cand if you think otherwise, you are not fit to serve as sheriff.\u00a0 Give me your gun, Mr. Harrison, and turn in your badge.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou got no right,\u201d Harrison protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs chief executive of this territory, I have every right.\u201d\u00a0 James Nye held out his hand.\u00a0 \u201cYour gun and your badge, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harrison looked around the room for support.\u00a0 Seeing none, he tossed his gun onto a nearby table and unpinned the star from his chest.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll be sorry,\u201d he warned.\u00a0 \u201cGood luck on getting Mayfield to that fair trial you\u2019re so keen on without my help.\u201d\u00a0 He strode to the door, flung it open and stalked out, slamming the door shut behind him.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood riddance to bad rubbish,\u201d muttered one of the posse members assigned to that guard shift.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not rubbish,\u201d Ben said quietly.\u00a0 \u201cHe wasn\u2019t all bad, just so loyal to Blackburn that he let it cloud his judgment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps,\u201d Nye said severely, \u201cbut that makes him unfit for duty.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 \u201cFor now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, but . . . but who\u2019s g-gonna be in ch-charge now?\u201d asked a young deputy \u00a0named Baker, who had served under Harrison.\u00a0 His anxious face and stammering tongue reflected his obvious concern that the duty would now fall upon his inexperienced shoulders.<\/p>\n

A hush fell over the room, punctuated by the rising roar outside, and all eyes turned to James Nye.\u00a0 His reflective gaze surveyed the group and finally came to rest on Ben\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cMr. Cartwright, would you accept the responsibility?\u201d<\/p>\n

Overwhelmed, Ben found his tongue almost as unmanageable as had young Baker.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014I\u2019m not a resident of Carson City, you realize?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOnly makes you more suitable, in my opinion,\u201d Nye stated.\u00a0 \u201cNo feelings about Mayfield one way or the other\u2014am I right?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re right,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 \u201cHe was found on my land, so I helped to bring him in, but that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour only interest is in seeing justice done,\u201d Nye reiterated, \u201cand I remember how well you acquitted yourself on our visit to the Paiutes.\u00a0 I believe you\u2019re the man for this job, Cartwright.\u201d\u00a0 He stretched out his palm, in which rested Harrison\u2019s badge.\u00a0 \u201cWill you accept this?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s mind swirled.\u00a0 To accept that badge seemed tantamount to turning his back on vows made to those most precious to him, but the governor\u2019s deep, dark eyes pleaded so eloquently that he found his fingers, almost of their own volition, closing on the tin star.\u00a0 \u201cThis can\u2019t be permanent,\u201d he said, his voice croaking a bit.\u00a0 \u201cI have obligations to my own home . . . and family.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nye placed a supportive hand on Ben\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cJust for the night,\u201d he said with a smile.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve already sent to Ft.Churchill for military support, and I expect them by morning.\u00a0 I should have told you sooner.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou certainly should have!\u201d Ben laughed in relief.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll check back with you during the night,\u201d Nye said as he reached out to shake Ben\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re not alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBe careful out there,\u201d Ben said as the governor prepared to take his leave.<\/p>\n

Shrugging, Nye shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo one will bother me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Probably right, Ben thought, as he followed the man out, ready to offer protection, if needed.\u00a0 Nye was popular, and his previous experience as New York Police Commissioner heightened people\u2019s respect, especially regarding law enforcement.\u00a0 Suddenly, the weight on Ben\u2019s shoulders didn\u2019t seem as heavy, even though he could hear the crowd buzzing with questions like \u201cWho\u2019s that?\u201d when they saw him sporting the sheriff\u2019s badge.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t feel obliged to answer; in fact, if pondering that kept them from stewing over the Mayfield mayhem, so much the better.<\/p>\n

A lanky young body pushed through the crowd while it was distracted by Nye\u2019s departure and conjectures about the new lawman.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s going on?\u201d Billy asked, tapping the badge on Ben\u2019s shirt.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet inside,\u201d Ben ordered crisply.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir!\u201d\u00a0 Billy popped a sassy salute, but when he saw Ben glower at him, he sobered and moved quickly for the door.<\/p>\n

Ben backed through after him, exhaling with gusty relief as the door closed behind him.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s going on?\u201d Billy asked again.<\/p>\n

\u201cYour Uncle Ben\u2019s decided to turn lawman,\u201d the boy\u2019s father announced with a lopsided grin.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s the new sheriff of Carson.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cActing sheriff\u2014and only for one night,\u201d Ben reminded him firmly.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened to Harrison?\u201d Billy asked.<\/p>\n

After a brief explanation Ben addressed the men gathering around him.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sure any of you could have handled this job as well as I,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t know as I could have,\u201d Baker admitted.\u00a0 \u201cI only signed on as deputy last week, and I ain\u2019t never seen the likes of that crowd out there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOut there\u2019s where they\u2019re going to stay, son, so don\u2019t worry about them,\u201d Ben advised.\u00a0 \u201cNow, does anyone know the schedule of guards that Harrison had worked out?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI do,\u201d Baker said and proceeded to fill the new acting sheriff in on who was expected to return and when.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhatever else may be said about him, Harrison knew how to organize,\u201d Ben observed.<\/p>\n

\u201cHarrison was a fool to think he could fill Blackburn\u2019s shoes,\u201d came a jeering voice from the cell, \u201cand you ain\u2019t even fit to walk in Harrison\u2019s, rancher man.\u201d<\/p>\n

His two cohorts chortled with glee at the jest. \u00a0Imagine that fool governor thinking a mere rancher could hold them in line!\u00a0 \u201cIs he even fit to traipse after cows?\u201d one hooted.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d advise you to keep your mouths shut,\u201d Ben warned.<\/p>\n

\u201cOr what, mister?\u00a0 You\u2019ll ram your gun barrel down it, like Harrison did?\u201d Mayfield heckled.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t do it in front of the governor or you\u2019ll get yourself fired, too, and then who\u2019ll these brave souls get to lead them?\u201d<\/p>\n

Refusing to be baited, Ben smiled judicially as he shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, but I might consider putting a gag down your throat\u2014and I doubt the governor would object.\u201d<\/p>\n

The laughter died down in the cells, and Mayfield threw himself down on his cot, feigning a sudden desire for sleep.<\/p>\n

Sleep was a luxury not afforded Ben or his assistants throughout that long night.\u00a0 The noise outside ebbed and flowed like waves on the ocean he used to sail, without the rhythmic comfort of their lapping against the sides of the ship.\u00a0 Ben kept a steady watch through the window, while the others inside dealt with the tension in whatever way they could.\u00a0 Restless Billy couldn\u2019t sit still, even when his father sharply ordered him to \u201cstop that confounded pacing.\u201d\u00a0 Baker handled his nerves by constantly talking about them, while others tried to relax by swapping yarns or retelling their favorite Dan Dequille quaint from the Territorial Enterprise<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure wish there really was an ammonia tank hat like he wrote about,\u201d one man said.\u00a0 \u201cWould have come in handy to keep my head cool, crossin\u2019 the Forty-MileDesert.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, but you gotta remember what happened to the inventor,\u201d Clyde reminded them.<\/p>\n

The other man slapped his leg.\u00a0 \u201cCouldn\u2019t shut the blasted thing off and froze to death, with an icicle drippin\u2019 off his nose!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEven with it bein\u2019 a hun\u2019erd seventeen in the shade!\u201d another recalled.<\/p>\n

Loud as the hoots of laughter were, they couldn\u2019t drown out the noise from outside, which suddenly rose to a level of frenzy unheard before.<\/p>\n

Rushing over to stand by Ben, Billy tried to see out the window.\u00a0 \u201cThey comin\u2019?\u201d he asked anxiously.<\/p>\n

Ben peered earnestly through the spattered window.\u00a0 \u201cNo,\u201d he said, \u201cthey\u2019re fighting among themselves.\u201d\u00a0 He moved for the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you doin\u2019?\u201d Clyde demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet \u2018em kill each other off, if\u2019n they\u2019s a mind to,\u201d said another man, who\u2019d been as fidgety as Billy, if not more.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t do that,\u201d Ben grunted, and he slipped through the door, shutting it behind him.\u00a0 For a moment he stood, surveying the situation.\u00a0 Too busy battling each other, the opposing factions ignored him until he pointed his rifle to the sky and fired.<\/p>\n

As one, the crowd turned toward him.\u00a0 \u201cNeighbors, this behavior isn\u2019t gaining any of you what you want, and it needs to stop now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho do you think you are, mister?\u201d called a spokesman, pushing his way to the front.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust some rancher, mixin\u2019 in where he don\u2019t belong,\u201d another man snorted.\u00a0 \u201cThis is a Carson City matter, Cartwright, so why don\u2019t you hightail it back to the Ponderosa afore you get hurt?<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I\u2019m a rancher,\u201d Ben agreed, \u201cbut there\u2019s one thing you need to remember about ranchers.\u201d\u00a0 He paused until he had everyone\u2019s full attention and then raised his rifle, though careful not to point it at anyone in the crowd.\u00a0 \u201cRanchers grow proficient in the use of firearms, in providing both meat for our tables and protection for our land.\u00a0 Mayfield learned that the hard way, and so will any man who tries to take him from custody\u2014for whatever purpose.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWords I\u2019d give heed to, gentlemen,\u201d said Governor Nye as he mounted the steps to stand beside Ben.\u00a0 \u201cI advise you all to disperse and go to your own homes.\u201d\u00a0 He turned toward Ben.\u00a0 \u201cShall we go inside, Sheriff Cartwright, and give our friends the opportunity to mull over your wise words?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI trust they will,\u201d Ben said loudly enough for the crowd to hear him.\u00a0 Matching the courage shown by the governor, he turned his back on the murmuring men below him, and they walked into the jail together.<\/p>\n

He exhaled with relief as soon as the door shut behind them.\u00a0 \u201cGovernor,\u201d he said, stretching out his hand, \u201cI was never happier to see you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI said I\u2019d be back,\u201d Nye reminded him as he returned the handshake, \u201cbut it seemed to me you had the situation well in hand.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe, maybe not,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cNevertheless, thank you for your timely intervention.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nye made his way to each man there, gave them words of commendation and encouragement and then took his leave again.\u00a0 As promised, he returned every couple of hours to ascertain that all was well and to lend his support.\u00a0 The crowd seemed to quiet down after Ben\u2019s confrontation with them, and from his frequent observations through the window, he thought the numbers had dwindled, as well, especially as midnight approached.\u00a0 The men taking turns at the guard post were able to enter and exit without hindrance.\u00a0 Some elected to stay, once they arrived, catching a few winks by turn; but others, like much of the crowd outside, evidently decided that it was time to be in their beds and seemed content to let others decide the outcome of the night.<\/p>\n

To Ben, the night seemed endless, and despite the people surrounding him, he felt alone\u2014alone in the responsibility and alone with thoughts and feelings that sent him reeling from one extreme to the other, like a drunken sailor.\u00a0 Fear battled with intrinsic courage, pride in the governor\u2019s confidence in him with undulating feelings of inadequacy, hopes for a larger role in territorial affairs with the guilt of potentially leaving his children orphans.<\/p>\n

Finally, the first faint light of daybreak disclosed a sight Ben\u2019s eyes had searched for throughout the long, lonely night.\u00a0 He turned from the window and smiled at the men who had stayed with him during those dark, tense hours.\u00a0 \u201cThe soldiers from Ft.Churchill are here,\u201d he said. \u201cRouse the others, so we can turn this responsibility over to them in an orderly manner.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTurnin\u2019 it over to \u2018em will be a pleasure,\u201d Clyde said with a grin as he shook the shoulder of his slumbering son.<\/p>\n

\u201cHeads high, men,\u201d Ben said as fifteen soldiers formed a line in front of the jail and a lieutenant stepped toward the door.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve done work to be proud of this night.\u201d<\/p>\n

The men, civilians though they were, formed a line almost as regimented as that of the soldiers.\u00a0 Eyes shining with pride in them, Ben turned and opened the door.\u00a0 \u201cLieutenant,\u201d he greeted the man approaching him, \u201cyou are a sight for sore\u2014and I do mean sore\u2014eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n

The lieutenant stepped through the door and introduced himself.\u00a0 \u201cWe are proud to assist you, Sheriff Harrison.\u201d\u00a0 He seemed surprised by the round of laughter that met his greeting.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not Harrison,\u201d Ben explained.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2014uh\u2014had to resign suddenly.\u00a0 Governor Nye appointed me to take his place, just until you arrived.\u00a0 My name is Ben Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking dazed, the lieutenant absently accepted the hand Ben extended.\u00a0 \u201cResigned?\u00a0 But I was told to report to Harrison,\u201d the lieutenant almost babbled; then military discipline reasserted his self-control, and he asked with an authoritative voice, \u201cIs there no lawman here at all?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust me,\u201d young Baker admitted hesitantly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m the deputy\u2014the new<\/em> deputy.\u201d\u00a0 The very way he said the word \u201cnew\u201d emphasized his lack of experience and confidence.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe rest of us are just volunteers, lieutenant,\u201d Ben explained, \u201cand more than pleased to turn this responsibility over to the professionals.\u201d<\/p>\n

The lieutenant nodded crisply.\u00a0 \u201cThe professionals will be more than pleased to accept the responsibility until such time as sufficient local law enforcement can be established.\u201d<\/p>\n

The turnover was handled efficiently, and soon the men who had guarded the three prisoners throughout the night were on their way home for some much-needed sleep.\u00a0 At Clyde\u2019s invitation, Ben borrowed a bed for a few hours\u2019 rest, but he refused Nelly\u2019s insistence that he should stay the night before returning home.\u00a0 \u201cThe boys will be worried,\u201d he said, and she let him go without further argument after obtaining his promise to return with his sons for a meal of Thanksgiving on Sunday.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201cPass me some more of that goose Billy shot, please,\u201d Hoss requested.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are a goose,\u201d Inger Thomas tittered.<\/p>\n

\u201cMind your tongue, Inger,\u201d her big brother ordered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not the boss of me,\u201d the girl declared, letting about a quarter inch of her tongue slip out in Billy\u2019s direction.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I am,\u201d her father thundered, \u201cand I won\u2019t have you sassin\u2019 a guest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just Hoss,\u201d Inger mumbled, so low that no one but Hoss heard her.\u00a0 He just scowled at her and took the plate Billy was passing to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, Clyde,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s only teasing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cManners is manners,\u201d Clyde insisted and Ben nodded.\u00a0 He would have demanded no less of his own boys, had this meal been held at the Ponderosa.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust don\u2019t see why anyone would pick Billy\u2019s old goose over that fat turkey,\u201d Inger said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve frequently wanted to cook Billy\u2019s goose,\u201d Ben observed dryly.<\/p>\n

\u201cMa does a better job,\u201d Billy thrust back with a saucy grin.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want \u2018em both!\u201d Hoss exclaimed with enthusiasm.\u00a0 \u201cGoose and turkey.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too,\u201d Little Joe chimed in.\u00a0 \u201cGoose and turkey, just like Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019d best eat what\u2019s already on your plate before asking for more, Little Joe,\u201d Ben said with an indulgent chuckle.\u00a0 He was so thankful to be safely back with his boys that either one of them could have gotten away with just about anything short of\u2014murder, he might ordinarily have finished that phrase, but with Blackburn\u2019s death and its dangerous aftermath so recent a memory, murder was nothing to joke about.<\/p>\n

Ben counted himself among the most blessed of men.\u00a0 It had been a difficult year, no denying that, but there had been bountiful blessings, too.\u00a0 The nights still seemed lonely without Marie at his side, but he had his boys: here at home, Hoss and Little Joe with all their challenges and charms and Adam off at school, doing him proud.\u00a0 He had life\u2014vibrant, promising life\u2014and family and friends to help him enjoy it.\u00a0 If there were times he still yearned for more, he could only trust that God, in ways known only to Him, would satisfy every desire of his heart.<\/p>\n

\u00a0~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

\u00a0In November, 1861, California volunteers replaced the regular army at FortChurchill, so the Sixth Infantry could be sent to the eastern battle zone.<\/p>\n

John Blackburn was stabbed and killed on November 18, 1861, by William Mayfield under the circumstances described in this chapter.\u00a0 Although Harrison is a fictional character, Governor Nye did have to disarm a former deputy and send to Ft.Churchill for a military guard, as depicted here.\u00a0 Mayfield was tried and convicted on February 28, 1862, but escaped on March 15th<\/sup>.\u00a0 He was eventually killed in a saloon brawl in Montana.<\/p>\n

Dan De Quille was the pen name for William Wright, a man more esteemed in his time than his colleague on the Territorial Enterprise<\/em>, Samuel Clemens.\u00a0 His \u201cquaints\u201d entertained the newspaper\u2019s readers with a gentler humor.\u00a0 A contemporary contrasted the two in this way:\u00a0 \u201cMark Twain, with his droll humor, would lead his victim up to the shambles he had in waiting for him and the unconscious creature would never suspect what was going to happen until the ax fell.\u00a0 But Dan had a softer way.\u00a0 The intended victim would know all the time after the first ten lines that he was going to be sacrificed, but he was under a spell, enjoyed the process, and laughed after he was downed.”\u00a0 Today, De Quille is best known for The Big Bonanza<\/em>, his history of the Comstock Lode, although collections of his humorous works are also available.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

CHAPTER NINE<\/p>\n

Follow the Star<\/p>\n

Forehead furrowed in thought, Ben nibbled the end of his pen.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t recall when he\u2019d had such trouble writing a letter to Adam.\u00a0 Ordinarily, there was so much going on that there scarcely seemed room enough on a sheet of stationery to tell all the news, but after the excitement of the previous week, this had been a quiet one.\u00a0 Even Little Joe hadn\u2019t pulled any shenanigans!\u00a0 Once Ben had described their Thanksgiving feast with the Thomases the previous Sunday, there just didn\u2019t seem to be much else worth writing, unless he related that miserable business with Mayfield, and he found himself strangely reluctant to remind his oldest son just how violent and dangerous a land Nevada could be.\u00a0 He finally added a paragraph about how warm the weather had been and then scowled at the words he\u2019d written.\u00a0 News really was scarce if he\u2019d been reduced to writing about the weather, unusual as it was to have warm days at this time of year.<\/p>\n

When Enos Montgomery had returned from town with a copy of the Territorial Enterprise <\/em>just before supper, Ben had hoped that he\u2019d find some news to share, but other than the heavy wind blowing down the Catholic Church in Virginia City on Sunday night, there hadn\u2019t been much he\u2019d thought would interest Adam.\u00a0 The Territorial Legislature had been busy passing laws, all right, but he didn\u2019t think marriage and divorce, much less statutes on miscegenation an appropriate topic to discuss with a young man.\u00a0 Adam would be as outraged as he to learn that marrying any Chinese, Indian or Negro now carried a penalty of up to two years in jail.\u00a0 For lack of anything else to share, Ben lifted his pen to write that anyway and then, shaking his head, laid it down.\u00a0 No need for Adam to worry about such things.\u00a0 Nothing he could do about it, so he wouldn\u2019t risk distracting the boy from his studies to no good purpose.<\/p>\n

He finally ended the letter with a few questions about how Adam was doing, whether that eating club of his had provided a good Thanksgiving meal, if he thought he\u2019d do well on his upcoming term exams and if he had any plans during the holiday break.\u00a0 He addressed and sealed it and laid it aside with intentions of sending it back to town with the Thomases tomorrow afternoon or, if the weather turned bad suddenly and hindered their coming to Sunday dinner, with Hoss on Monday, when he rode into Washoe City after school.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Billy Thomas sliced into Hop Sing\u2019s tender roast beef.\u00a0 \u201cHey, Uncle Ben, you want anything brung back from California?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCalifornia?\u201d Ben chuckled as he speared a chunk of roasted potato and one of carrot onto his fork.\u00a0 \u201cWho\u2019s going to California this time of year?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMe!\u201d Billy announced and popped the beef into his mouth.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too,\u201d Little Joe burbled.<\/p>\n

Billy almost choked on his mouthful of meat.\u00a0 \u201cNot on your life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOr on yours,\u201d Ben scoffed.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s rather late in the year for that sort of excursion, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I know,\u201d Billy admitted, \u201cbut the weather\u2019s holdin\u2019 fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCould change any minute,\u201d his mother scolded.\u00a0 \u201cI said all along this was a fool notion, and you can see that Ben agrees with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t drag Ben into this,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cWe been all over it, and the boy\u2019s old enough to make up his own mind.\u00a0 I think the weather\u2019ll hold, and if it don\u2019t, I reckon he knows how to handle hisself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 Billy was young, but he did know the ways of the land, including how to protect himself in inclement weather.\u00a0 If Clyde had already agreed to the trip, there wasn\u2019t much point in arguing; so, although he secretly agreed with Nelly that Nevada\u2019s winter weather wasn\u2019t to be trusted, he asked conversationally, \u201cIs this a pleasure trip or do you have some serious shopping . . . or sparking . . . to do?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGot hired to haul in a load of supplies,\u201d Billy explained, \u201cbut there\u2019d be room if you wanted me to bring back something . . . special.\u201d\u00a0 He grinned as his gaze flicked significantly between Hoss and Little Joe.<\/p>\n

Ben stifled his own telling smile.\u00a0 \u201cWell, maybe,\u201d he agreed, thinking that he\u2019d like to show the boys an especially fine Christmas this year.\u00a0 \u201cHow far you going?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust to Sacramento,\u201d Billy said.\u00a0 \u201cNot as many fancy goods to choose from, but I wouldn\u2019t want to risk going as far as San Francisco.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGlad to hear you\u2019ve got some sense,\u201d Ben chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cPrecious little,\u201d Nelly groused.<\/p>\n

\u201cNone I ever seen,\u201d Billy\u2019s sister chirped.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, neither,\u201d Hoss piped in with a conspiratorial wink at the little girl.<\/p>\n

\u201cReckon I won\u2019t be loading any extra sweetening, then, seein\u2019 as how you likely don\u2019t think I got the sense to pick out any prime candy,\u201d Billy said, wrinkling his nose at Hoss.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome to think of it, I reckon you got lots of sense,\u201d Hoss said hurriedly, \u201cespecially when it comes to candy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe a mite,\u201d Inger added coyly. \u00a0\u201cBringing me something extra nice might raise my opinion.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho says I give two cents for your high opinion, little sis?\u201d Billy retorted with a yank on her braid that produced the expected squeal.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want mine, don\u2019t you?\u201d\u00a0 The look on Hoss\u2019s open face was practically pleading.<\/p>\n

Billy laughed.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon as how I might, on account of us bein\u2019 pals.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood pals,\u201d Hoss affirmed, and Little Joe echoed the same words.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll make you a list of what I\u2019d like,\u201d Ben chuckled, resolving then and there to add some extra \u201csweetening\u201d to it.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0An old frontier adage said that only fools and tenderfeet tried to predict the weather, but Billy had proven a pretty good prognosticator.\u00a0 Or maybe, Ben mused, another old adage, God looks after fools and little children, applied in this case.\u00a0 At any rate, the happy-go-lucky redhead ran into no foul weather on his trip to Sacramento, and he returned safely with everything Ben had requested and, to forever insure Hoss\u2019s high opinion of his sense, a carefully wrapped package of Ludmilla Zuebner\u2019s best apple strudel.\u00a0 \u201cFeels like Christmas already!\u201d Hoss had declared when Hop Sing served the pastry for dessert that night.<\/p>\n

It began to feel even more like Christmas the next day, at least to those who favored a white wonderland for the season.\u00a0 No sooner had Billy made his deliveries to the Ponderosa than the snow started down with a vengeance to make up for all the warm days before.\u00a0 And it didn\u2019t stop for ten days . . . ten long days.\u00a0 Ben thought he would go stark, raving mad with two active boys cooped up inside that long.\u00a0 As he had once before, he conserved their wood supply by building a fire only in the kitchen on the worst days.\u00a0 The memories aroused were bittersweet, for the last time Marie had shared this confinement with him, and her presence had eased the challenge of keeping the boys occupied.<\/p>\n

Hoss needed to keep up with his schoolwork, so Ben decided to turn the kitchen into a makeshift schoolroom.\u00a0 For lack of anything else to do with Little Joe, he began giving the little lad reading lessons from Adam\u2019s old primer.\u00a0 When he caught Hop Sing repeatedly peeking over the boy\u2019s shoulder, he invited the cook to join the class, and somehow Hank Carlton from the bunkhouse heard about the lessons and asked if he could join in, too.\u00a0 \u201cWhy not?\u201d Ben said, and soon the kitchen was so crowded that Hop Sing grumbled that he had no room to cook when mealtimes arrived.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll work around you,\u201d Ben assured him.\u00a0 \u201cThis is your domain, Hop Sing, and what you say goes.\u201d<\/p>\n

His honor satisfied\u2014even inflated, Ben feared\u2014Hop Sing decreed exactly when lessons could take place and when it was time for men to do chores and bundled-up boys to play games of hide-and-seek in the cold regions of the house.<\/p>\n

Somehow, they survived, and on the morning of December 22nd<\/sup>, Ben welcomed the sun and the cloudless sky.\u00a0 \u201cSnow or no snow, we\u2019re going to church,\u201d he declared.\u00a0 Not only did he feel the need for spiritual replenishment, but the outing would hopefully burn a bit of his boys\u2019 boundless energy.\u00a0 He found himself whistling \u201cJoy to the World\u201d as he hitched the horses to the sleigh; then, piled beneath lap robes, the three Cartwrights sang one exuberant Christmas carol after another all the way to Washoe City.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Sitting on the hard wooden pew, Little Joe swung dangling legs back and forth, and then, for variety, began alternately pulling them apart and bringing his heels together with a satisfying smack.<\/p>\n

Ben grunted as one of those little shoes barked his shin, and he made a restraining grab for the errant legs.\u00a0 Bending down, he whispered, \u201cBe still, Little Joe, and pay attention to the preacher.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe frowned eloquently until a stern glance from his father made him straighten up and rivet his eyes on the man in the pulpit.\u00a0 Paying attention to the preacher was not his idea of the best way to spend a Sunday morning.\u00a0 It was a far sight better than having his britches tanned, though, so he kept his feet painfully still and tried to look like he was listening.\u00a0 Suddenly, his eyes brightened with genuine interest.\u00a0 The preacher was talking about three men coming from the East.\u00a0 East!\u00a0 That\u2019s where Adam was!\u00a0 Maybe Adam was one of them; maybe he was coming home for Christmas!<\/p>\n

Beside his brother, Hoss tried to concentrate earnestly on what the preacher was saying.\u00a0 Unlike Joe, he knew that the three men were from much further east than Adam had gone and from a long time past, back when Baby Jesus was born.\u00a0 Reverend Bennett was saying that they needed to be like those wise men, to go looking for Baby Jesus, to follow the star of Bethlehem until it led them to the Savior.\u00a0 \u201cWhich star is it, Pa?\u201d he asked when they\u2019d loaded into the sleigh and headed for home.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d asked his father, pulling the reins away from the grasping fingers of his youngest son.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe star Reverend Bennett wants us to follow,\u201d Hoss explained.\u00a0 \u201cWhich star is it?\u00a0 Can we really see it, still today?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cNo, son, not exactly.\u00a0 The reverend wasn\u2019t speaking of a literal star.\u00a0 He meant to follow the light of God\u2019s Word and let it lead you to the Lord.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh,\u201d Hoss said, satisfied.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam\u2019s following that star,\u201d Little Joe piped up cheerily.<\/p>\n

Ben smiled wistfully as he thought of his eldest sitting reverently in chapel at YaleCollege, worshipping there as they had in church here.\u00a0 \u201cI certainly hope so.\u201d\u00a0 He tweaked Joe\u2019s tiny nose.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I hope you will, too, wiggle worm.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe cocked a puzzled glance at his father.\u00a0 Then he pointed a tentative finger.\u00a0 \u201cEast\u2014Haven\u2014Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben eased the horses around a curve in the road.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u00a0 Oh, yes\u2014yes, of course, Adam\u2019s east, in New Haven.\u201d\u00a0 He exhaled gustily.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t count the number of times he\u2019d heard that particular litany in the last three months, and he was half-sorry he\u2019d ever taught that trailside geography lesson to Little Joe.\u00a0 Certainly, the child needed to learn his directions and how to chart his course by the stars, but perhaps\u2014for his own sanity\u2014he should have held that lesson back a couple of years.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s enough chatter, boys,\u201d he said firmly.\u00a0 \u201cTime we got home . . . before Hop Sing throws a fit.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Hop Sing did, indeed, pitch a fit, as he tended to do when anyone was a minute late for mealtime.\u00a0 The Cartwrights, oldest to youngest, appeased him by giving due diligence to the food on their plates, so it was not until the cook had cleared the table that Little Joe asked eagerly, \u201cWhen\u2019s Adam comin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gazed blankly at the boy and then said gently, \u201cSon, we\u2019ve told you again and again that Adam will be back East for four years.\u00a0 I know it\u2019s hard for you to comprehend how long that is, but it\u2019s a very long time, Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe stared back at his father.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not long \u2018til Christmas, is it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben chuckled, amused by, although grateful for, the abrupt change of subject.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s only three days.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought so,\u201d Little Joe said with a bounce, \u201cand that\u2019s when Adam\u2019ll be here\u2014for Christmas!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head in consternation.\u00a0 Not a fortuitous change of subject after all, then, just a complete muddling of the things his youngest wanted most.\u00a0 He reached out to stroke the little lad\u2019s curls with a comforting hand.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Joseph.\u00a0 I\u2019m sorry, but Adam will not be coming home for Christmas.\u00a0 It\u2019s too far, sweetheart.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, punkin,\u201d Hoss added.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t you remember?\u00a0 Adam never did come home for Christmas, even when he just went to school in Sacramento, and that was a heap closer than where he is now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s head bobbed and he pointed a finger toward the west.\u00a0 \u201cMountains that way . . . and snow.\u00a0 That\u2019s why.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben pointed the opposite direction.\u00a0 \u201cMountains that way, too . . . and snow and plains and rivers and more mountains and more snow.\u00a0 It\u2019s a very long way, Joseph.\u00a0 I know how much you want to see your brother\u2014goodness knows, I do, too\u2014but he simply cannot come home for Christmas.\u00a0 It\u2019s too far.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe is, Pa!\u201d Little Joe insisted.\u00a0 \u201cThe preacher said so, and he don\u2019t lie.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben stared at the earnest face, trying to fathom how even as overactive an imagination as Little Joe\u2019s could have interpreted the morning\u2019s sermon as having anything to do with his older brother.\u00a0 Failing completely, he finally asked, \u201cJoseph, what are you talking about?\u00a0 The reverend didn\u2019t so much as mention your brother Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe folded his arms.\u00a0 \u201cHe did!\u201d he exclaimed.\u00a0 \u201cYou didn\u2019t pay \u2018tention!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI<\/em> didn\u2019t pay attention?\u201d Ben sputtered.\u00a0 He turned to Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cDid you hear anything about your older brother in that sermon?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNope, not a word,\u201d Hoss assured him.\u00a0 \u201cThe youngun\u2019s gone plumb crazy, Pa.\u00a0 It ain\u2019t like the sermon was about the garden of Eden.\u00a0 At least, there\u2019s an Adam in that one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, but how did this child manage to hear \u2018Adam\u2019 when the reverend spoke of nothing but the three wise men this morning?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the East,\u201d Little Joe chimed in excitedly.\u00a0 He held up one finger.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u201d\u2014he lifted another thoughtfully\u2014\u201cand his friend\u201d\u2014he raised a third finger, beaming\u2014\u201cand one more\u2014all coming for Christmas.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled brightly.\u00a0 \u201cWe got \u2018nough beds or we gonna need a pallet?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben dropped his head into his hands, his fingers kneading his temple, where a dull ache was starting to form.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2014you think your brother is one of the three wise men?\u201d he croaked, finally making the connection.<\/p>\n

Hoss snickered.\u00a0 \u201cWell, Adam is mighty smart, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben reared up to glare at his middle son.\u00a0 \u201cThat was not helpful, Hoss!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss gulped and shrunk back.\u00a0 \u201cSorry, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben lifted Little Joe and set the child in his lap.\u00a0 \u201cBaby, I don\u2019t know how you got such an idea in your sweet little head, but Adam is not one of the wise men from the Bible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe pointed in approximately the correct direction.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u2014east\u2014Haven,\u201d he said, his voice almost a whimper.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I know,\u201d Ben soothed patiently, \u201cbut the wise men the preacher was talking about are not from New Haven, and Adam is definitely not one of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s lower lip trembled.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2014he is,\u201d he insisted with a quavering voice.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, he is not,\u201d Ben said firmly, \u201cand that\u2019s the last I want to hear on the subject.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe wiped away the single tear trickling down his cheek and pressed his face into his father\u2019s vest.<\/p>\n

Ben was overcome with instant remorse.\u00a0 \u201cOh, baby,\u201d he cried, cradling the crop of chestnut curls close to his heart.\u00a0 \u201cPa didn\u2019t mean to be harsh with you.\u00a0 I just don\u2019t want you to build your hopes up to a bigger hurt later on.\u00a0 Hush now,\u201d he soothed as he felt the little body quivering against his chest.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll have a merry Christmas, even though Adam can\u2019t be here.\u201d\u00a0 Later, as he tucked a still inconsolable Little Joe into bed, he wondered if that were true.\u00a0 With Marie gone and Adam away, there were two holes in the heart of this family that no amount of holiday merriment could fill.\u00a0 But he\u2019d do his best for the two precious boys who would be here with him this Christmas, and if his own heart could not be whole, somehow he would see to it that theirs were.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Knees hugged tight to his chest and tiny toes tucked under the hem of his nightshirt, Little Joe huddled in the cushioned rocker beside his bed and contemplated the dream that had awakened him.\u00a0 It hadn\u2019t exactly been a nightmare, like the ones he\u2019d had after Mama died and right after Adam left, but it bothered him.\u00a0 It left him feeling that something was wrong and he needed to fix it, but he didn\u2019t know how.<\/p>\n

The dream had made him happy at first, for he\u2019d seen his oldest brother in it.\u00a0 Adam was sitting at a desk in a room Little Joe had never seen before, but he knew it had to be where Adam was staying back East, just as Joe knew, though he\u2019d never met him, that the other boy in the room had to be Adam\u2019s old friend Jamie, \u2018cause that\u2019s who Adam lived with now.\u00a0 Jamie was trying to talk to Adam about going home for Christmas, but Adam wasn\u2019t paying any attention.\u00a0 He just kept his nose stuck in a book, the way he used to when he was here at home.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when the dream had started to bother Little Joe.\u00a0 He had never liked Adam doing that\u2014except when he was reading a story to his little brother, of course.\u00a0 Adam read stories real good, \u2018most as good as Pa\u2014and even better than Mama, although the youngster felt a moment\u2019s disloyalty at such a thought.\u00a0 No, he decided, Mama wouldn\u2019t mind him thinking Adam read better, \u2018cause he really did; he just didn\u2019t do it often enough.<\/p>\n

He wasn\u2019t reading a story in the dream, either.\u00a0 Little Joe could tell, \u2018cause the book was one of those big thick ones that Adam liked and no one else did.\u00a0 Well, except maybe Jamie, since he was back East at that same school and seemed to be a lot like Adam, from what Joe had heard.\u00a0 Even Jamie, though, was ready to quit the books and take time for Christmas, but not Adam.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s too far,\u201d Little Joe heard his big brother say.<\/p>\n

Just then a man all dressed in red with white fur had come bursting into Adam\u2019s room.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not too far!\u201d the man, who could only be Santa himself, cried.\u00a0 \u201cWe only have to follow the star!\u201d<\/p>\n

In the dream Adam had shaken his head sadly and said, \u201cIt\u2019s not a real star,\u201d and then he\u2019d gone back to that awful book.\u00a0 That\u2019s when Little Joe had awakened, not with a scream, as if it had been a real nightmare, but with an anguished whisper, \u201cIt is<\/em> a real star, Adam.\u00a0 It is, and you\u2019re s\u2019posed to follow it home\u2014you and Jamie and Santa, too.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Frown lines deepened in the child\u2019s forehead as he worried whether Santa could convince Adam the star was real or Adam would convince Santa it was not.\u00a0 If that happened, there wouldn\u2019t be any Christmas at all at the Ponderosa, and that horrid thought was enough to propel the little boy out of the rocker.<\/p>\n

Bare feet pattered across the icy floor, down the hall and into the empty room across it.\u00a0 Little Joe rushed to the window of Adam\u2019s room, and climbed into the chair beneath it to peer out through the frosty pane.\u00a0 He\u2019d always felt like he could see more through Adam\u2019s window than his own, the view from which was largely obscured by tall pines.\u00a0 He looked up into the heavens and smiled as he spotted the North Star.\u00a0 \u201cSee, Adam?\u201d he whispered as he tapped the glass.\u00a0 \u201cThere it is.\u00a0 That\u2019s the star that\u2019ll lead you home.\u00a0 Pa says so.\u00a0 He taught Hoss and he taught me.\u00a0 Didn\u2019t he teach you?\u00a0 Or did all that book learnin\u2019 push the \u2018portant stuff out of your head?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe nodded soberly.\u00a0 That must be it.\u00a0 There was only so much room inside a person\u2019s head, and Adam had pushed in so much book learning that there wasn\u2019t room for the star lesson anymore.\u00a0 That must be why Pa had only said that he hoped<\/em> Adam was following the star.\u00a0 Pa couldn\u2019t be sure that Adam would still remember, and it looked like he\u2019d been right to worry.<\/p>\n

Then Little Joe remembered what Pa had said right after that, and his countenance lifted.\u00a0 Pa had said that he hoped Little Joe would follow that star, too, and the little boy suddenly realized that the same star that should have led Adam home could lead him straight to Adam.\u00a0 Adam had forgotten how to follow the star, and what Pa had meant, though he hadn\u2019t said it straight out, was that he was hoping Little Joe would follow it to Adam and bring him home for Christmas.\u00a0 Adam and Jamie and Santa, too\u2014they were the three wise men coming from the East, and it was Joe\u2019s job to get them here!<\/p>\n

With a gasp at the awesome responsibility, Little Joe hopped down from the chair and hurried back to his room to ready himself for the journey.\u00a0 He dressed as quickly as he could, for the room was cold and it would be colder still outside under the stars.\u00a0 Then he scurried to gather extra clothes.\u00a0 Pa had said it was real far to Haven, so it would probably take a couple of days to get there\u2014and it was only three days \u2018til Christmas.\u00a0 He really needed to hustle!<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s fingers fumbled as he unbuttoned the case from his pillow.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t good with buttons, and this was taking much too long.\u00a0 He had to have something to carry things in, though, and the pillowcase was the best he had.\u00a0 He needed saddlebags, of course, like Pa and Hoss had, but theirs would be too big for him.\u00a0 Little Joe smiled vibrantly.\u00a0 Maybe he\u2019d have a chance, on the way back, to talk to Santa Claus about his need for saddlebags\u2014and a horse to go with them.\u00a0 If anyone could talk Pa into that, it would be Santa, but the important thing now was to get to Adam and bring him home for Christmas.\u00a0 That\u2019s the only present I really need<\/em>, Joe thought, \u2018cept it\u2019d be nice if Mama could come, too, just for Christmas Day.\u00a0 Adam and Mama, home for Christmas\u2014that\u2019d be the perfect present!\u00a0 You listenin\u2019, Santa?<\/em><\/p>\n

Little Joe put the loaded pillowcase over his shoulder, looking like a miniature Santa himself as he slipped quietly out of his room and tiptoed down the stairs.\u00a0\u00a0 He could not have explained why he sensed such a need for stealth since he was supposedly carrying out his father\u2019s wishes.\u00a0 Perhaps at some deep level he knew that he was twisting Pa\u2019s words to mean exactly what he wanted them to mean, but Little Joe was too young to analyze what made him act as he did.\u00a0 He just felt strongly that what he was doing was right, but that at the same time it was something he should do very, very secretly.<\/p>\n

Secretly described the way he entered the kitchen, too, peering cautiously around the doorjamb from the dining room.\u00a0 Though it was the middle of the night, he wouldn\u2019t have been surprised to find Hop Sing in that kitchen at any hour, and he instinctively knew that little boys who snitched food from the pantry were likely to be in big trouble with the cook.\u00a0 As he stuffed a loaf of bread, some leftover cookies and a hunk of roast beef into his pillowcase, Little Joe was proud of himself for remembering to pack food.\u00a0 The last time he\u2019d taken off from home without permission he hadn\u2019t taken anything with him\u2014no food or water or even a jacket.\u00a0 He\u2019d been little then, of course, and now he was a big boy\u2014well, bigger, anyway, and smarter, too.\u00a0 Satisfied with his preparations, he quietly opened the door to the yard and went outside.<\/p>\n

The sky was as black as Little Joe had ever seen it and the moonlight only half as bright as it might have been, but the stars were twinkling brilliantly, just like the ones in the child\u2019s eyes as he found the North Star.\u00a0 Purposely positioning it in line with his left shoulder, he started to trot in as straight a line as he could while climbing over fence rails and dodging around thick tree trunks.\u00a0 The cold night air made his breath puff like the smoke from Pa\u2019s pipe as he whistled a happy tune to start off his urgent quest.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t long before the trot turned into a walk and then into flagging footsteps accompanied by wide-mouthed yawns.\u00a0 Little Joe hadn\u2019t slept much the early part of the night, and weariness quickly caught up with him.\u00a0 The snow on the ground was deep in places and hard to push through, and the wind pushed him ways he didn\u2019t want to go.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t see any good places to take shelter from it, though, and he was afraid he\u2019d catch cold if he fell asleep with that whistling in his ear.\u00a0 Besides, he had a long way to go, and it was too soon to stop.<\/p>\n

So on he trudged, coming at last out of the trees into sage-covered flatland.\u00a0 Even less favorable places to rest here, so he kept going, though his feet dragged through the snow and the pillowcase felt heavy enough to hold toys for all the children in the territory.\u00a0 He set it down for a minute and stretched his aching arms as he gave the biggest yawn yet.\u00a0 When he picked up the pillowcase again, he checked the position of the North Star, and as his eyes lowered to the horizon, he spotted a house perhaps a quarter mile away.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t recognize the place, but figured that \u2018most any neighbor wouldn\u2019t mind him resting up a bit in the barn that stood nearby.\u00a0 He\u2019d get out of the wind for a while and snatch a little sleep before heading east again.\u00a0 With renewed energy, Little Joe ran toward the barn.\u00a0 The heavy bar across its door was hard to lift, but he managed; then he pushed the door open a crack, and slipped in.\u00a0 Looking up, he saw piles of hay in the loft, and with a grin he climbed up, burrowed into its sweet-smelling comfort and promptly fell asleep.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben scrubbed the sleep from his eyes and splashed his face with cold water from his washbasin.\u00a0 As he rubbed himself dry, he pondered why he always found it so hard to get started on Monday mornings.\u00a0 You\u2019d think taking a day to rest, like the Good Lord intended, would make a man feel rested and ready for a new week<\/em>, he mused, but all I seem to feel is a lazy urge to stay beneath the covers.\u00a0 Natural depravity, I suppose.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cCome in,\u201d he called in answer to the light tap on his door.<\/p>\n

As expected, Hop Sing came in with a hot cup of coffee, a kindly habit he had fallen into since Marie\u2019s passing.<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing, you spoil me,\u201d Ben said, reaching for the coffee with an appreciative smile.\u00a0 He sighed with contentment as the warmth from the cup comforted his chilly hands.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust do job,\u201d the Chinese cook insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore than that\u2014in every way,\u201d Ben returned.\u00a0 \u201cThe boys up yet?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing not hear peep.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss isn\u2019t any fonder of Monday mornings than his father,\u201d Ben chuckled, \u201cbut I\u2019ll have to get him up soon or he\u2019ll be late to school.\u00a0 With the break in the weather, I think they\u2019ll hold it today.\u00a0 No need to fix Little Joe\u2019s breakfast until you see him, though.\u00a0 I suspect he can use a little extra sleep; he had a rough start to his night.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing nodded soberly.\u00a0 \u201cHe miss brother.\u201d\u00a0 He added in a more tentative tone.\u00a0 \u201cYou, too, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all miss Adam,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s just harder for Little Joe to understand time and distance.\u201d\u00a0 He settled on the edge of the bed and sipped his coffee as the cook quietly slipped out to return to the kitchen.\u00a0 Spoiled or not, he had to admit he relished the pampering Hop Sing gave him every morning.\u00a0 Even Monday morning seemed easier to face after that first cup of hot coffee had warmed him through and through, especially compared to last Monday, when all he\u2019d had to look forward to was another day snowbound in the house.<\/p>\n

Setting the empty cup on his bedside table, Ben finished dressing and made his way down the hall to Hoss\u2019s room.\u00a0 The snores he could hear through the door told him that Hoss was still dead to the waking world, and with a shake of his head, Ben went in to rouse the boy.\u00a0 \u201cCome on, son, wake up,\u201d he said as he patted Hoss\u2019s shoulder.<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss woke with a start and then a soft groan.\u00a0 \u201cOh, hey, Pa.\u00a0 Mornin\u2019 already?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAlready,\u201d Ben chuckled, tousling the sleep-tangled hair.\u00a0 \u201cTime you were up.\u00a0 School this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I reckon,\u201d Hoss said with a discontented grunt.<\/p>\n

Ben pulled back the covers and tickled Hoss\u2019s bare foot until the boy squealed.\u00a0 \u201cUp\u2014now,\u201d Ben said, giving the foot a final light slap.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 Yawning widely, he swung one leg and then the other over the side of the bed.<\/p>\n

\u201cSee you downstairs,\u201d his father said.\u00a0 Ben walked down the hall to the next door.\u00a0 Even pressing an ear against the door, he couldn\u2019t hear a sound from Little Joe\u2019s room, and since he intended to let the child sleep, he started to leave.\u00a0 Then he remembered Little Joe\u2019s tendency to toss off blankets as he slept and thought he should, at least, check to make sure his little boy was covered.<\/p>\n

The sight of an empty bed brought a troubled frown to his face.\u00a0 Poor little lad, he must not have slept well at all.\u00a0 I\u2019ll need to spend some extra time with him this morning, try once more to help him understand.<\/em>\u00a0 He didn\u2019t begrudge the time, of course.\u00a0 Work never ceased on a growing ranch like the Ponderosa, but his sons came first.\u00a0 He did, however, wonder if he had the wisdom to deal with the parenting challenges that seemed much tougher to face without Marie at his side.<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe!\u201d he called as he descended the stairs.\u00a0 There was no answer, and a quick scan of the great room with its easy flow from one area to another revealed that his youngest wasn\u2019t there, either.\u00a0 The kitchen, then?\u00a0 With long strides Ben made his way across the room and through the doorway into Hop Sing\u2019s domain.<\/p>\n

The Chinese cook turned from the stove.\u00a0 \u201cBleakfast leady soon.\u00a0 You want mo\u2019 coffee?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head as his eyes searched the room.\u00a0 \u201cNo, I want my little son to come out from wherever he\u2019s hiding.\u00a0 Have you seen Little Joe, Hop Sing?\u201d<\/p>\n

The diminutive Oriental looked perplexed.\u00a0 \u201cNot see.\u00a0 Hop Sing tell you dat befo\u2019, Mr. Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know, I know,\u201d an appeasing Ben said.\u00a0 The last thing he needed to deal with right now was an offended cook.\u00a0 \u201cI thought he might have gotten up while I was dressing.\u00a0 He\u2019s not in his bed.\u201d<\/p>\n

The cook\u2019s face wrinkled with concern.\u00a0 \u201cNot see little boy.\u00a0 You want I look?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben waved aside the offer of help.\u00a0 \u201cNo, just get Hoss\u2019s breakfast cooked.\u00a0 Don\u2019t want him late for school.\u00a0 I\u2019ll see if I can locate the little mischief.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHope he not go far, like befo\u2019,\u201d Hop Sing mumbled.<\/p>\n

Ben shivered as he grabbed his coat from the pegged rack beside the door.\u00a0 \u201cLike before,\u201d he muttered.\u00a0 \u201cDear God, not that!\u201d\u00a0 It had been only months since his youngest son had run away from a father so wrapped in his own grief that he\u2019d had no strength left to soothe his sons\u2019.\u00a0 That harrowing night, searching for Little Joe and finally finding him at the treacherous top of Eagles\u2019 Nest, had snapped Ben from his emotional stupor, and he\u2019d thought he had successfully rebuilt his relationship with his boys.\u00a0 Maybe not as well as he\u2019d hoped, however, if disappointment over his big brother\u2019s absence for Christmas could once again propel Little Joe into flight.\u00a0 No, it couldn\u2019t be that, Ben assured himself.\u00a0 Joe seemed happy enough these days; he was just being his usual mischievous little self.\u00a0 Dear God, let it be mischief!<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe!\u201d he called as he left the house.\u00a0 \u201cTime to come in.\u201d\u00a0 He deliberately kept his voice calm and steady as he added, \u201cYou better show yourself, little boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking across the yard, he saw the barn door standing partway open.\u00a0 Ah, that must be it.\u00a0 Joe loved to visit the barn and the animals there.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t supposed to go in alone, of course, but Ben felt lenient this morning.\u00a0 He\u2019d let the boy off with a soft scolding.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe, you in here?\u201d he called as he entered the out building.<\/p>\n

A ranch hand holding a pitchfork turned as the boss came in.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t seen the youngun this mornin\u2019, Mr. Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe,\u201d Ben called loudly, aiming his voice into the loft.\u00a0 \u201cIf you\u2019re hiding up there, you\u2019d better come out.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other man shook his head in the silence that followed.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t reckon he\u2019s up there, Mr. Cartwright.\u00a0 I been in here a spell, and I think I\u2019d\u2019ve heard him by now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cProbably,\u201d Ben conceded.\u00a0 Little Joe wasn\u2019t noted for long spells of quiet.\u00a0 Ben left the barn and tried to puzzle where else a four-year-old might hide.\u00a0 He tried the outhouse, the smokehouse and the springhouse without success before finally turning back to the main house.\u00a0 Maybe the little scamp had been hiding inside all along.\u00a0 If so, he\u2019d probably tired of the game by now and was ready to sit down to breakfast.<\/p>\n

Hoss was seated at the table when his father walked in, but he immediately sprang to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cDid you find him?\u201d he asked anxiously.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot yet,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cSit down and finish your breakfast, son.\u00a0 I\u2019m gonna check around the house again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI already did that,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cI checked all the places he likes to hide, Pa.\u00a0 He ain\u2019t in here, and if he ain\u2019t outside, neither . . .\u201d\u00a0 He gave his lower lip a nervous nibble.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s gone missin\u2019 again, ain\u2019t he, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sighed deeply.\u00a0 \u201cIt looks that way, Hoss, but don\u2019t you worry; I\u2019ll find him.\u201d\u00a0 He noticed the half-full plate in front of Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cFinish up your breakfast, son, and get on to school.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, sir!\u201d Hoss declared adamantly.<\/p>\n

Ben arched a surprised eyebrow at this response from his normally tractable middle son.\u00a0 \u201cAre you defying me, young man?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess so.\u201d \u00a0Hoss wasn\u2019t entirely sure what \u201cdefying\u201d meant, but he figured from the look on Pa\u2019s face that he was probably guilty of whatever it was.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll finish my breakfast, Pa,\u201d he announced clearly, \u201cbut I ain\u2019t goin\u2019 to school today\u2014not \u2018til we find Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Understanding the concern that lay behind Hoss\u2019s unaccustomed willfulness, Ben said gently, but firmly, \u201cI can find your brother without your help, Hoss, and you need to be in school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s chin began to quiver.\u00a0 \u201cPa, I wouldn\u2019t learn a thing, not with worryin\u2019 over Little Joe; I just know I wouldn\u2019t.\u00a0 Let me help.\u00a0 Please!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben hurried across the room and, kneeling beside Hoss\u2019s chair, took the boy in his arms.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re right, son,\u201d he said, his voice choking.\u00a0 \u201cOf course, you\u2019re right.\u00a0 Some things are more important than school work or ranch work, and finding your brother heads the list.\u00a0 Neither of us will be able to think of anything else until he\u2019s home safe.\u00a0 You\u2019ll come with me, and once we find Little Joe, you can go on to school.\u201d\u00a0 It was his way of assuring Hoss\u2014and himself\u2014that they would find the child quickly.\u00a0 \u201cNow, finish up that breakfast, so we can get started.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou, too, Pa,\u201d Hoss insisted urgently.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing said you ain\u2019t et yet, \u2018cause you was out lookin\u2019 for Joe, and you gotta \u2018fore we can leave.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smoothed his son\u2019s tawny locks with the tender touch this tender-hearted boy, so like his mother, seemed to draw out of him.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re right again, my wise young son.\u00a0 We both need to fuel up before we head out into the cold.\u201d\u00a0 He shivered involuntarily at the thought of his youngest son out there in the cold, wondering if the child had given a thought to fuel for himself or even warm clothing.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t last time, but that had been summer.\u00a0 Maybe, since he was never allowed out without a coat these days, the little lad had, at least, had sense enough to dress warmly.\u00a0 He\u2019d check to see whether Joe\u2019s little coat was missing as soon as he finished the breakfast Hop Sing was now setting at his place at the table.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0As she left the warmth of her kitchen and headed across the yard, the woman turned up the collar of her coat and pulled it snug about her neck.\u00a0 It had become habit as she went about her daybreak chores.\u00a0 Her lean flesh felt the chill of the early morning, and lately each had seemed chillier than the one before it.\u00a0 Snow drifts piled against the house, but that was as it should be, so close to Christmas.\u00a0 It takes a blanket of snow<\/em>, she thought, to make a proper <\/em>New England<\/em> Christmas, and from the looks of that sky, the blanket just might get thicker<\/em>.<\/p>\n

It would be a comfort to have a touch of home, this first Christmas without her man.\u00a0 She hadn\u2019t wanted to come out here to this God-forsaken barrenness in the first place.\u00a0 That had been Obadiah\u2019s doing, and then he\u2019d up and died on her and left her the care of a place she didn\u2019t much want and scarcely knew what to do with.\u00a0 Somehow she\u2019d kept it going and even put a little aside from the sale of her eggs and butter, enough for a Christmas dinner with all the trimmings . . . if only she\u2019d had someone to share her table.<\/p>\n

Brushing self-pity aside, for that went against her New England grain, she headed for the barn, but as she approached the door, she saw that it was slightly ajar.\u00a0 \u201cI know I closed that door,\u201d she muttered.\u00a0 She remembered putting the bar across it, too, so no amount of wind could blow it open and risk the health of her precious dairy stock, precious because upon their lives rested her own livelihood.<\/p>\n

Someone had opened that door, she reasoned, and that someone might still be inside, maybe even planning to rustle himself a milk cow from a poor, defenseless widow woman.\u00a0 It was at times like this that she keenly missed Obadiah, for purely practical reasons.\u00a0 She didn\u2019t fancy facing down some thievin\u2019 varmint, but she wasn\u2019t about to let anyone waltz off with her best stock.\u00a0 That varmint was about to find out that this widow woman wasn\u2019t as helpless as he\u2019d hoped!<\/p>\n

First she put a cautious ear to the doorway.\u00a0 She couldn\u2019t hear anyone moving around inside, so she slipped in quietly, thankful that her spare bones enabled her to squeeze through the scant opening.\u00a0 She lifted the pitchfork from its place beside the door and advanced, step by guarded step.\u00a0 She still didn\u2019t see or hear anything except the soft lowing of her cows.\u00a0 She checked each stall and breathed a sigh of relief as she tallied the presence of each animal.\u00a0 Not rustlers, then.\u00a0 Had she simply been so addle-pated last night that she only thought she\u2019d shut and barred that door?<\/p>\n

Then in the faint light that filtered through the partially opened door, she saw straw flutter down through the cracks in the loft floor and heard a slight rustle of movement.\u00a0 Someone was up there!\u00a0 Not a rustler, then, but a vagrant.\u00a0 She wouldn\u2019t have begrudged any man shelter on a cold December night, but one that took without asking might take other things without asking, too\u2014like the virtue of a defenseless widow woman.<\/p>\n

Her grip tightened on the pitchfork as she held it warily before her.\u00a0 \u201cYou up in the loft!\u201d she yelled.\u00a0 \u201cShow yourself!\u201d<\/p>\n

She heard no response except the same soft rustling as before, but more straw trickled through the cracks.\u00a0 Finally, a small head peered over the edge of the loft, and wide eyes stared down at her.<\/p>\n

\u201cLand sakes,\u201d she gasped when she saw the tiny boy.\u00a0 \u201cWho\u2019s up there with you, child?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe shook his head. \u00a0\u201cJust me, ma\u2019am.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust you?\u201d\u00a0 The woman looked dumbfounded.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s a little thing like you doin\u2019 out on such a night?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust travelin\u2019, ma\u2019am,\u201d the boy lisped.<\/p>\n

\u201cTravelin\u2019!\u201d\u00a0 She collected herself.\u00a0 \u201cWell, you can just travel down from that loft right now, boy!\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe stood up slowly and pointed a shaky finger at the pitchfork.\u00a0 \u201cPut that down,\u201d he quavered.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, lands, I\u2019m not gonna hurt you,\u201d the woman said, hastily setting the implement aside.\u00a0 She cocked her head and studied the child.\u00a0 \u201cWhy, I know you.\u00a0 You\u2019re that little mite of a Cartwright boy, ain\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u2019m,\u201d Little Joe said, relieved to be recognized, for surely no one who knew his family would use a pitchfork on him.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, get on down here, child,\u201d she ordered.\u00a0 \u201cFor the love of mercy, don\u2019t Ben Cartwright never keep a watch on you?\u201d\u00a0 It hadn\u2019t been that long back, she recalled as the youngster climbed down from the loft, that half the countryside had been turned out to look for this boy, who\u2019d run off looking for his dead mama, or so gossip at the time had said.\u00a0 She\u2019d thought then, as she had almost from the first moment she\u2019d heard of Marie Cartwright\u2019s passing, that Ben ought to take himself a new wife to look after those three boys of his.\u00a0 Boys needed a mother, especially boys as young as this one, and if Ben Cartwright needed proof of that, this child\u2019s traipsin\u2019 ways ought to give it to him.<\/p>\n

She met the boy at the foot of the loft ladder and brushed stray straw from his curls.\u00a0 \u201cYou know me, don\u2019t you, boy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u2019m, you\u2019re the widow Hunter, from church,\u201d Little Joe said.<\/p>\n

Mrs. Hunter scowled.\u00a0 She hated being known by that title.\u00a0 It reminded her of her still-painful loss and of a marital status she utterly loathed.\u00a0 Still, it wasn\u2019t the child\u2019s fault; he was, no doubt, only repeating what he\u2019d heard.\u00a0 Touching his red cheeks, she exclaimed, \u201cLands, you\u2019re cold!\u00a0 And no wonder, drafty as this barn is, me havin\u2019 no man to mend it.\u00a0 You come in the house right this minute, child, and we\u2019ll get you warm and fill you up with a nice hot breakfast.\u201d<\/p>\n

A warm kitchen and a hot breakfast sounded just about perfect to Little Joe, so he took her hand amiably, offered her his charming cherub\u2019s smile and skipped at her side as they made their way across the snowy yard to the house.\u00a0 For a childless widow woman, that was just about as perfect a start to a morning as she\u2019d had in many a day.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben\u2019s steps were brisk with determination as he left the ranch house.\u00a0 He\u2019d been relieved to discover that Little Joe was evidently wearing his warm coat, and Hop Sing\u2019s tirade about a loaf of bread and some other items missing from the pantry indicated that his little lad had provided himself with breakfast, as well.\u00a0 Still, Nevada winters could be highly unpredictable.\u00a0 Ten days of snow and then the break in the weather yesterday, but the cloud-filled sky this morning looked primed to send down another deluge.<\/p>\n

Struggling to keep close to his father\u2019s heels, a bundled-up Hoss asked, \u201cWhere we gonna look first, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEagle\u2019s Nest,\u201d Ben answered brusquely.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere he run off before?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d\u00a0 Ben\u2019s clipped response indicated his inner turmoil, his sense of failure as a parent.\u00a0 His little boy was unhappy and had once again run from him, rather than to him.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t take enough note<\/em>, Ben chastised himself.\u00a0 I thought we\u2019d worked past the problems we had\u2014that I caused\u2014after Marie\u2019s passing.\u00a0 I thought my boy knew now that I loved him and that he could trust me.\u00a0 Now, this.\u00a0 He\u2019s hurt and it\u2019s her he wants, her he trusts.\u00a0 Must be.\u00a0 What else could it be?\u00a0 We\u2019ll find him soon.\u00a0 Have to.\u00a0 Dear God, let it be before he starts up Eagle\u2019s Nest again.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know how he made that steep climb before, and I don\u2019t relish carrying him down during a snow storm.\u00a0 <\/em>He recalled how raindrops had splattered them on that terrifying earlier descent, but snow . . . or even sleet?\u00a0 A thousand times worse.<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks,\u201d he said to Hank Carlton, who had saddled his horse and Hoss\u2019s.<\/p>\n

\u201cGlad to help,\u201d Hank said.\u00a0 \u201cAnything else I can do, Mr. Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I know where he is,\u201d Ben replied, \u201cbut if Little Joe turns up back here or you hear anything new, ride out to Eagle\u2019s Nest and let me know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure will, Mr. Cartwright, and I\u2019ll be prayin\u2019 you find the little feller.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you,\u201d Ben said, giving the man an earnest handshake.\u00a0 He swung into the saddle and once he saw that Hoss was securely mounted, he headed out toward Eagle\u2019s Nest, where he confidently hoped to find his lost child.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Mrs. Hunter slid a plate of sizzling ham with fried egg, fried potatoes and a piping hot biscuit already spread with butter and honey before Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cThere!\u201d she announced with satisfaction.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll bet you\u2019re glad to get some woman-cooking for a change.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing cooks good,\u201d Little Joe replied just before he took a bite of biscuit.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell enough for his kind, I suppose,\u201d Mrs. Hunter said, \u201cthough you don\u2019t have enough meat on your bones to prove it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe flashed her a mischievous grin.\u00a0 \u201cHoss does.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mrs. Hunter laughed.\u00a0 \u201cTrue enough.\u00a0 Do you like the biscuit?\u00a0 My Obadiah always prized my biscuits.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s real good,\u201d Little Joe said with enthusiasm.<\/p>\n

The woman patted his head.\u00a0 \u201cEat everything on your plate and you can have another.\u201d\u00a0 She went back to the stove and after filling her own plate came back to sit across from the little boy.\u00a0 \u201cNow, what\u2019s this nonsense about you travelin\u2019 somewhere by yourself?\u00a0 Were you lookin\u2019 for your mama again, little lamb?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, no, ma\u2019am, she\u2019s in heaven,\u201d Little Joe said.<\/p>\n

Mrs. Hunter scowled, but knowing it wouldn\u2019t set well with Ben Cartwright, she kept to herself her opinion of the eternal destination of Catholics.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m goin\u2019 to fetch my brother home for Christmas,\u201d Little Joe offered between bites of egg.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t tell me he\u2019s taken off, too!\u201d Mrs. Hunter cried, dropping her fork.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u2019m, all the way to Haven,\u201d the child told her, \u201cbut I know how to find him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHaven?\u201d\u00a0 Mrs. Hunter looked confused for a moment.\u00a0 Then comprehension slowly spread across her countenance.\u00a0 \u201cOh, you mean New Haven, where Ben\u2019s oldest boy went off to school?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right!\u201d Little Joe declared.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u2019s in Haven\u2014east.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mrs. Hunter tucked a straggling strand of jet black hair behind her ear.\u00a0 \u201cI thought you meant your other brother, the one with meat on his bones.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe shook his head, clearly confounded by such a colossal error.\u00a0 \u201cHoss?\u00a0 He\u2019s already home, ma\u2019am.\u00a0 \u2018Sides, he could find his way anywhere; he knows about the star.\u201d\u00a0 Chattering on, he reached for the glass of milk.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u2019s comin\u2019 home for Christmas,\u201d he explained, \u201cbut I think, maybe, he\u2019s forgot how to get here, so I\u2019m goin\u2019 to fetch him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mrs. Hunter rested her elbows on the table, her chin in the palms of both hands, and stared at the child.\u00a0 \u201cDoes your pa have the slightest notion of this nonsense?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yes, ma\u2019am!\u201d Little Joe assured her brightly.\u00a0 \u201cHe wants me to find Adam.\u00a0 He said he hoped I would.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mrs. Hunter\u2019s dark eyes widened as she chewed on that, along with her breakfast.\u00a0 Ben Cartwright was twelve kinds of a fool for trying to raise a little handful like this on his own, but she didn\u2019t believe any man could be a big enough fool to send such a tiny tot to the East Coast by himself.\u00a0 \u201cChild, that just can\u2019t be,\u201d she said when her mouth was empty.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yes,\u201d Joe insisted, head bobbing emphatically.\u00a0 \u201cHe told me to follow the star and bring the wise men home.\u00a0 Adam\u2019s one of them\u2014and Jamie and Santa\u2019s the others.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat!\u201d\u00a0 What sort of Popish sacrilege had Ben Cartwright\u2019s late wife drilled into these innocent ears?\u00a0 The sooner Ben was made to realize this boy\u2019s need of a god-fearing mother, the better!\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll just see what your father has to say about that, child.\u00a0 Soon as we\u2019ve finished breakfast and I wash up these dishes, I\u2019ll hitch the team and take you home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t go home,\u201d Little Joe said, a stubborn frown forming on his lips.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t found Adam yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you ain\u2019t a-gonna find Adam, not today,\u201d the woman declared, hands on her hips.\u00a0 \u201cThe very idea of a little mite like you traipsin\u2019 off to the East Coast by hisself!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa said to!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf he did, his ears\u2019ll be burnin\u2019 by the time I get through tellin\u2019 him my opinion on that subject,\u201d Mrs. Hunter snorted.\u00a0 \u201cNow, finish up your milk quick-like, child, so we can be on our way.\u00a0 If things stand the way I think they do, your pa\u2019s likely frettin\u2019 hisself silly \u2018bout this time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cO-okay,\u201d Little Joe said, his head dropping, though he managed to keep her face within his line of sight.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t want Pa to worry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anyone who knew Little Joe would have been suspicious of such easy acquiescence, but Mrs. Hunter had not been blessed with experience with any child, much less one who might be generously described as crafty.\u00a0 She simply assumed that her child-rearing theories were being vindicated.\u00a0 All any parent had to do, she firmly believed, was state plainly the way things were to be, and a child would automatically comply.\u00a0 \u201cThere now, that\u2019s a good boy,\u201d she cooed.\u00a0 \u201cAnd look how you\u2019ve cleaned up your plate.\u00a0 Would you like another biscuit?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe smiled sweetly.\u00a0 \u201cYes, please.\u201d\u00a0 He accepted another light and airy biscuit, every bit as good as Hop Sing\u2019s, and took a nibble before lowering it into his lap.<\/p>\n

Attention fixed on her own plate, Mrs. Hunter didn\u2019t seem to notice.\u00a0 Little Joe sat quietly watching her, and anytime she looked up, he moved his mouth as if he were chewing the bread he had eventually slipped into his pocket.\u00a0 Grub this good should not be left behind when hitting the trail.<\/p>\n

When the woman finished her breakfast, she looked across at the child\u2019s empty plate.\u00a0 \u201cAll done?\u201d she asked, and when Little Joe nodded, she stood and carried both her own plate and the boy\u2019s to the basin of soapy water waiting for dirty dishes.<\/p>\n

\u201cMa\u2019am?\u201d Little Joe asked as he walked up behind her.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d best go to the outhouse now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her hands in the dishpan, Mrs. Hunter looked at him over her shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll take you before we leave.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I need to go now!\u201d Little Joe wailed piteously.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, my goodness!\u201d the woman ejaculated.\u00a0 \u201cI wish you\u2019d spoke up before I got my hands all soaped up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can go by myself; I\u2019m a big boy,\u201d Little Joe assured her.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s out back, I guess?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, it is,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I reckon you are big enough to manage, at that.\u00a0 You go on and do what needs doin\u2019.\u00a0 That\u2019ll give me a chance to wash up.\u00a0 Then we\u2019ll head out to the barn.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u2019m,\u201d Little Joe said, adding as he scooted out the back door, \u201cI\u2019ll meet you there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWait, child!\u201d she called, but the door shut with a slam.\u00a0 \u201cGoodness!\u201d she said, vigorously scrubbing the cast iron skillet in which she\u2019d fried the eggs.\u00a0 \u201cWhat a whirlwind!\u00a0 Ben definitely needs help with that one.\u00a0 Well, there\u2019s nothing in the barn to hurt him; won\u2019t hurt to leave him there alone a few minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n

The whirlwind slunk around to the side of the house, the opposite direction from the outhouse.\u00a0 He paused there only long enough to unbutton his fly and give the icy garden plot a sprinkle.\u00a0 His immediate need met, he hurried over to the barn, scrambled up into the loft to retrieve his pillowcase of supplies and scurried back down again.\u00a0 Spotting a back door to the barn, he quickly darted to it and through it.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t see the star, now that it was morning, but Hoss had told him that the sun always came up in the east, so Little Joe grinned at the golden orb rising in the cloudy sky and was soon running as fast as his legs could carry him\u2014east, toward Adam and the other wise men.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Staring up at the top of Eagle\u2019s Nest, Ben breathed a sigh, whether of relief or dismay he couldn\u2019t say.\u00a0 Both, he decided.\u00a0 Relief that Little Joe wasn\u2019t perched precariously atop that craggy pinnacle, dismay that he didn\u2019t know where to look now.\u00a0 After staring thoughtfully at the rock formation for a long time, he asked pensively, \u201cHoss, does your brother have a strong enough sense of direction to find his mother\u2019s grave?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss lowered the muffler wrapped around his nose and mouth.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe,\u201d he said, but he sounded doubtful.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you think he might go there?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s forehead crinkled in thought.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t sure he could, Pa.\u00a0 I don\u2019t recollect you ever talkin\u2019 \u2018bout what direction that was from the house.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat he can or can\u2019t do may not be the right question, son,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s what he might try to do that we have to ask ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded soberly.\u00a0 \u201cHe might try.\u00a0 Him and me\u2019s been there a time or two on our own, and he might recollect which way we went.\u00a0 He does seem to like it there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sighed heavily.\u00a0 A shot in the dark, but so would be every other choice he might make.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s look there, then.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Best bonnet tied on with an attractive bow beneath her left ear and wrapped in her warm woolen cape, Elvira Hunter came into the barn.\u00a0 \u201cChild, where are you?\u201d she called when she saw no sign of the little boy.\u00a0 \u201cAre you up in that loft again?\u201d\u00a0 When only silence met her ears, she raised her voice.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019d best answer me, boy!\u201d\u00a0 There was still no answer, so gritting her teeth with resolve, she marched toward the loft ladder.\u00a0 Just as she mounted the first rung, however, a gust of wind blew open the back door, which Little Joe had failed to latch.\u00a0 \u201cOh, my gracious!\u201d Mrs. Hunter cried as she stepped back down and ran to the door.\u00a0 Looking through it, she could see no trace of the child, but she knew, sure as the world, that the little hellion had taken off again.<\/p>\n

Hurriedly she harnessed the team to her buckboard, mourning again the lack of a man to switch the wheels for runners.\u00a0 \u201cEast, he said,\u201d she muttered.\u00a0 \u201cNot sure he knows which way that is, but it\u2019s the best place to start.\u201d\u00a0 She climbed into the seat, flicked the reins and took off, head swiveling every few seconds, so she could search both sides of the road.\u00a0 After she\u2019d gone two miles, she pulled the team to a stop.\u00a0 A child on foot couldn\u2019t have come this far in the time that had passed, so either he\u2019d gone a different direction or he wasn\u2019t traveling along the road.\u00a0 She couldn\u2019t take the team across uneven, snow-covered terrain in a buckboard.\u00a0 With snow up to the hubs, she could barely manage on the road.\u00a0 Regretting the delay for the child\u2019s sake, she turned the team around and headed back the opposite direction, keeping up her constant search of the roadsides.\u00a0 She still saw no sign of Little Joe, but she kept going this time and even quickened her pace as a flutter of snowflakes sprinkled her maroon felt bonnet.\u00a0 The road would ultimately lead her to the Ponderosa, where she could give Ben a piece of her mind and tell him that he needed to mount a search on horseback.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Little Joe wedged himself inside a nest of boulders.\u00a0 No one had to tell him that the widow Hunter would come chasing after him as soon as she realized he was gone.\u00a0 She was a nice lady, and she really thought that taking him home to Pa was the right thing to do, so he couldn\u2019t be mad at her.\u00a0 But he couldn\u2019t let her stop him, either.\u00a0 He had a job to do, a job Pa was trusting him to do, so running away and hiding from her was the right thing for him to do.\u00a0 He\u2019d run as hard as he could, as long as he could; then he\u2019d spotted the boulders and decided they\u2019d be a safe place to rest a spell.\u00a0 He pulled the biscuit from his pocket and nibbled it.\u00a0 Still good, even though it was cold now, and he\u2019d been smart to take an extra one and save Hop Sing\u2019s loaf of bread for later.\u00a0 The lady was a good cook, and it had been good to start the morning with a hot breakfast, especially since it seemed extra cold again this morning, like those mornings they\u2019d all spent huddled up in the kitchen.<\/p>\n

A snowflake plopping on his nose startled Little Joe and made him grin with delight.\u00a0 More snow for Christmas\u2014perfect!\u00a0 The pines on the Ponderosa were beautiful when they were dusted with snow, and Adam would think so, for sure.\u00a0 One of the letters his big brother had written when he was going to that old academy in Sacramento talked about how he missed seeing snow at Christmas.\u00a0 Little Joe wondered for a minute if there was snow in Haven or if Adam was missing it now.\u00a0 He shrugged.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know, but Adam could tell him when they met up\u2014or, maybe, if he had to go all the way east, he\u2019d just see for himself.<\/p>\n

Little Joe finished the biscuit, stood up and peeked over the boulders to make sure the nice widow lady hadn\u2019t caught up with him.\u00a0 Then he stepped out and began walking toward the fading light of the cloud-covered sun, catching the falling snowflakes with his outstretched tongue as he crunched through the ice-crusted snow covering the ground.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0A shot in the dark.\u00a0 That\u2019s all it had been, and like most of its kind, it had struck nowhere near its target.\u00a0 Dejected, Ben dismounted and, gathering the reins in one gloved hand, led the buckskin toward the familiar grove of pines.\u00a0 Sensing his father\u2019s need to be alone, Hoss held back and watched as his father knelt by the engraved headstone.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Marie,\u201d Ben sighed, his face falling into his right hand, \u201cI\u2019ve failed you once again\u2014failed him again\u2014failed to understand how lonely his little heart was\u2014for you, for Adam\u2014especially at this time of year, when family ought to be together.\u00a0 I\u2019ve lost our little boy, Marie, and I\u2019ve looked everywhere I can think of.\u00a0 God and good angels brought him back to me once before, and I have no right to ask such grace again.\u00a0 But I am asking, because I must, and, perhaps, because God is gracious, He will hear . . . again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lifting his tear-streaked face, Ben addressed his Creator directly.\u00a0 \u201cLord, You know the heart of a father, for You are one Yourself.\u00a0 At this season of the year we\u2019re reminded of how You were parted from Your Son, but You knew that He was on a mission the two of You had planned together before the earth was formed.\u00a0 I feel that way about Adam.\u00a0 Much as I miss him, I know he\u2019s working toward Your mission for him, and I\u2019m comforted in the separation, knowing it\u2019s for good purpose and that it won\u2019t be forever.\u201d\u00a0 His voice broke.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2014It\u2019s different with Little Joe.\u00a0 He\u2019s not on a mission; he\u2019s just lost.\u201d\u00a0 Snowflakes mingled with salt droplets on his upturned face.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s so little, Lord, and it\u2019s turning so cold that if we don\u2019t find him soon, he may never even start whatever mission You have for him in this life.\u00a0 Oh, please, please show me what to do, which way to turn.\u00a0 I have no other hope.\u201d<\/p>\n

He ended with a broken sob, but just as he reached the end of himself, an inexplicable peace settled over his troubled heart.\u00a0 He rose from his knees and walked back toward Hoss with purposeful strides.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s go, son,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere now, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

Ben smiled, though his lips quavered.\u00a0 \u201cHome, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou think Little Joe\u2019s found his way back there?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben swung into the saddle.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u00a0 I just know we need to go home.\u00a0 I can\u2019t explain, Hoss, but I feel it in my heart.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss, who of all Ben\u2019s sons best understood being led by the heart, immediately turned his horse around.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s go home, then.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Sitting in the ample armchair beside the great stone fireplace, Elvira Hunter sipped a hot cup of tea and surveyed the interior of the Ponderosa.\u00a0 There was a grand majesty about the way the room flowed from one function to another, but the d\u00e9cor lacked a certain polish, she thought.\u00a0 Odd, since Ben\u2019s woman had seemed to carry herself with a sort of flair that one might have expected to carry over to the house.\u00a0 What I could do with this place!<\/em> Elvira mused as she took another sip of the warm drink. \u00a0It\u2019ll never look like a print from<\/em> Godey\u2019s Lady\u2019s Book, but a few well placed doilies would soften all this rugged masculinity, give the place some genteel grace.<\/em>\u00a0 She swirled the beverage around in her mouth.\u00a0 The child had been right about one thing: the Chinaman could cook\u2014well, at least, he could brew a decent cup of tea, which made a certain amount of sense, she supposed, with tea coming from China.<\/p>\n

She shivered as the front door flew open and two snow-frosted figures came in, along with a strong gust of frosty air.\u00a0 \u201cLands!\u00a0 You\u2019re lettin\u2019 all the warm air out,\u201d she called sharply, setting the china cup and saucer down with a clunk as she came to her feet.<\/p>\n

\u201cEl\u2014Elvira?\u201d\u00a0 Ben blinked in bewilderment.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen the unfamiliar buckboard outside, of course, but would never have guessed that a solitary woman would be out on a day like this.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014uh\u2014it\u2019s good to see you, of course, but I\u2019m afraid I haven\u2019t the time for a social call just now.\u00a0 I\u2019ve got a bit of a problem on my hands.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOut of your hands, don\u2019t you mean?\u201d Mrs. Hunter snorted.\u00a0 \u201cI know all about your problem, Ben, and you\u2019ve got my sympathy, tryin\u2019 to keep track of that one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing told you?\u201d Ben surmised.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs if I needed to be told!\u201d\u00a0 Elvira marched across the room and stood before Ben, knuckles planted on her hips.\u00a0 \u201cI know all about it, Ben Cartwright, all about your oldest boy and Santa Claus bein\u2019 wise men and followin\u2019 a star to fetch \u2018em back here for Christmas.\u00a0 Of all the mixed up batch of ferdoodlement I ever heard!\u201d<\/p>\n

Goggle-eyed, Ben stared at her.\u00a0 It was the most mixed up batch of whatever ferdoodlement was that he\u2019d ever heard, too, and he found himself wondering if Elvira Hunter had completely lost her mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam is mighty smart,\u201d Hoss suggested hesitantly.<\/p>\n

Ben spun to glare at his middle son.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, that is not helpful!\u201d\u00a0 He stopped short as he recognized that he and Hoss had had this conversation before.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t mean . . . ?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss had winced when his father started yelling, and the worry lines remained etched around his mouth as he slowly nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI think . . . maybe . . . yeah.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWould one of you start talkin\u2019 sense?\u201d Elvira demanded.\u00a0 \u201cThis is no time to be blatherin\u2019; that child is out alone, Ben, with a storm comin\u2019 on again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seeing genuine concern reflected in the woman\u2019s eyes, Ben set aside his own fears for a moment and laid a consoling hand on her bony shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll find him, Elvira,\u201d he said with more confidence than he felt.\u00a0 \u201cCome back over by the fire and tell me what you know about this.\u00a0 Who told you about the wise men and a star?\u201d he asked as he led her back to the warmth of the blazing logs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy, the child himself,\u201d she said as she took the offered seat.\u00a0 \u201cGoodness, Ben, what were you thinking to fill an innocent child\u2019s head with that Popish nonsense?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head to clear it.\u00a0 \u201cIt isn\u2019t Popish nonsense,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s just childish nonsense.\u00a0 Little Joe told you?\u201d\u00a0 The implication of that suddenly struck him, and his face lit up.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve seen him?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSeen him?\u00a0 I fed him breakfast,\u201d Elvira declared.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s hands raised in an automatic gesture of praise.\u00a0 \u201cOh, thank God!\u00a0 Where is he, Elvira?\u00a0 You brought him home?\u201d\u00a0 He closed his eyes and gave his head another shake.\u00a0 \u201cNo, no, you said he was out alone . . . but . . . you fed him breakfast.\u201d\u00a0 He stared blankly into her eyes.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t understand.\u00a0 They can\u2019t both be true, can they?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey can when you\u2019re dealin\u2019 with that child,\u201d Elvira Hunter grunted.\u00a0 Her gruff expression crumbled.\u00a0 \u201cOh, Ben, I been chidin\u2019 you for a fool, but I\u2019ve been just as big a one.\u00a0 I let that little conniver trick me into thinkin\u2019 he was just goin\u2019 to the outhouse, but he took off on me, still headed east, I reckon.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEast?\u00a0 He\u2019s headed east?\u201d Ben babbled.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo get Adam, Pa,\u201d Hoss, who had trailed them over to the fire, inserted.\u00a0 \u201cThe wise men came from the East, remember?\u00a0 And he knows that\u2019s where Adam is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben reached over to massage his son\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cYes, yes, of course,\u201d he said, as if everything they were saying made perfect sense.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s trying to get to New Haven, then.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what the child said,\u201d Elvira reported, \u201cand he said you\u2019d sent him there to fetch his brother home for Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

At the sound of that wild bellow, Elvira shriveled back in the armchair, as cowed as Hoss had been moments before.\u00a0 \u201cWell, it\u2019s what he said, and I said to myself, \u2018Ben may be twelve kinds of a fool for tryin\u2019 to raise this child without a woman\u2019s help, but he couldn\u2019t be that big a fool.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMake it thirteen kinds of a fool, and you\u2019ll about hit the mark,\u201d Ben muttered.\u00a0 \u201cWhy didn\u2019t I think about him heading east?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Cause it\u2019s plumb loco,\u201d Hoss said, plopping down on the settee and dropping his chin into his hands.<\/p>\n

Elvira nodded her agreement.\u00a0 \u201cI hitched up the buckboard and tried to follow him,\u201d she went on, \u201cbut he wasn\u2019t on the road and I couldn\u2019t leave it with a wagon, deep as the snow was.\u00a0 I told the first hand I spotted when I got to your ranch, and he sent another one out toward my place, while he took off after you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe didn\u2019t find me,\u201d Ben said, realizing that he had left Eagle\u2019s Nest by the time his man had searched for him there.\u00a0 \u201cElvira, I can\u2019t tell you how much I appreciate your driving over here to tell me this.\u00a0 It means we know which way to search now.\u00a0 You\u2019re welcome to stay here, but I need to get saddled and head out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, you do,\u201d Elvira declared.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t that what I\u2019ve been sayin\u2019 all along?\u201d\u00a0 Recollecting her manners, she stood up.\u00a0 \u201cI thank you for the invite, Ben, but I\u2019d best be headin\u2019 on home.\u00a0 I\u2019ve got stock to tend.\u201d\u00a0 She looked over at Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cYou reckon you could help me hitch my team back up, boy?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss looked anxiously over at his father.\u00a0 Ordinarily, he would have agreed at once, knowing that he was expected to do whatever he could to help a neighbor.\u00a0 But Pa\u2019d said he could help search for Little Joe, and they needed to leave quick as they could.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, he can,\u201d Ben answered for his son.\u00a0 \u201cIn fact, he can drive the team for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, Pa . . .\u201d Hoss protested.\u00a0 \u201cYou said . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben took his son\u2019s face between his hands.\u00a0 \u201cI know, but that\u2019s as far as I can let you go, Hoss.\u00a0 There\u2019s a storm brewing, and I won\u2019t have two sons out in it.\u201d\u00a0 He looked over at his neighbor.\u00a0 \u201cHe can stay with you until I return for him?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, he can.\u201d\u00a0 Her tone was an unmistakable rebuke for thinking her answer might be anything else.\u00a0 \u201cYou get on your way, Ben, and find that little tyke.\u00a0 I\u2019ll take good care of your other boy for you \u2018til you get back with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBless you, Elvira,\u201d Ben said in benediction for her faith that he would find Little Joe.\u00a0 Impulsively, he planted a kiss on her forehead and hurried out the door.<\/p>\n

Blushing with elation at how this morning\u2019s events were advancing her relationship with the elusive Mr. Cartwright, Mrs. Hunter turned toward Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cCan you handle a team, boy?\u00a0 You look big enough, but I know you\u2019re younger than you seem, and there\u2019s snow on the road.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yes, ma\u2019am.\u00a0 I\u2019m real good with stock.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss still looked wistfully after his father, but knowing that Pa trusted him to drive the lady, even with a storm coming on, swelled his pride and eased his disappointment at not helping to find Little Joe.\u00a0 He squared his shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019d best get on, ma\u2019am, before the roads get worse.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re right, boy,\u201d she replied as she took her coat from the peg by the door.\u00a0 She tied on her bonnet and followed him out into the barn to get her horses.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Spinning round and round, Little Joe frantically scanned the sky.\u00a0 The snow was still pretty, but it was coming down so thick and fast now that he couldn\u2019t see the sun, and dark as it was, the star still wasn\u2019t shining to guide his way, either.\u00a0 His pant legs were wet, up to the knees, and he was cold and miserable . . . and scared.\u00a0 The same uneasiness that had made him sneak out of the house earlier was creeping over him.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t quite ready to admit that he\u2019d known all along that Pa didn\u2019t really want him to go after Adam\u2014that admission might lead to one of Pa\u2019s \u201cvery necessary little talks\u201d\u2014but that conclusion was slowly working its way up to the surface of his mind.<\/p>\n

The little boy stomped the numbness from his feet, while he pulled on his lower lip with his mittened left hand.\u00a0 Which way was east?\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t tell.\u00a0 Should he go home then?\u00a0 Real panic hit when he realized he didn\u2019t know which way that was, either.\u00a0 Instinctively, he bolted forward, not sure whether he was trying to get to Adam now or back to Pa.\u00a0 He just knew that he had to get out of the cold, wet snow, and one direction seemed about as good as another.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Slackening his speed only enough to spare his mount needless risk, Ben had ridden hard until he reached the Hunter ranch.\u00a0 Then, heading east from there, he\u2019d slowed down.\u00a0 In the fast-falling snow, there were no tracks to follow, so he had to rely on sighting the child, and no one knew better than he what a wild stroke of luck\u2014or more likely, the guidance of Providence\u2014it would take to spot one small boy in this swirling white nightmare.\u00a0 Eyes stretched to both horizons, he kept going, as near due east as he could, even though he knew Little Joe\u2019s sense of direction couldn\u2019t be strong enough to keep him on that steady a course.\u00a0 What other alternative did he have, though?\u00a0 The sage plains were broad expanses of sparsely settled territory, where neither Nature nor man provided much by way of shelter.\u00a0 They could easily swallow up a child as small as Little Joe.<\/p>\n

How would I bear that?<\/em> Ben asked himself.\u00a0 Merciful God, You can\u2019t let it happen\u2014not again!<\/em>\u00a0 I\u2019ve lost two good women to this difficult land; I can\u2019t lose my son, too.\u00a0 Show me where he is!<\/em>\u00a0 The wise men followed the star until they came to where the young child lay<\/em>, he recalled from Scripture, but I\u2019m no wise man and there is no star\u2014no sun, either, now, no way for Little Joe to find his bearings.\u00a0 Or me, either.\u00a0 Which way should I go?<\/em><\/p>\n

Not east.\u00a0 He suddenly knew that as certainly as if he\u2019d heard a voice from heaven.\u00a0 Not due east, at least.\u00a0 He\u2019d been foolish to try to keep that course, when he knew Little Joe couldn\u2019t.\u00a0 No, his son was at the mercy of the elements, and his path would be more directed by the force of the wind than by the unseen sun and stars or landmarks the father might recognize, but the son would not.\u00a0 He slackened the reins and let his horse pick its own path, hoping that somehow it would respond as a child might.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Little Joe stumbled and fell forward into a deep drift of snow.\u00a0 Clawing his way out, he clambered wearily to his feet.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cPapa,\u201d he whimpered.\u00a0 No answer came, but a trickle of tears did, and he furiously wiped them away with his damp mittens before they could freeze on his face and tattle that he wasn\u2019t a big boy.\u00a0 He was ready to admit now that he\u2019d done a bad thing in sneaking out of the house.\u00a0 Pa would be mad, but he didn\u2019t care anymore.\u00a0 Pa could be as mad as he wanted\u2014even mad enough for that necessary little talk\u2014just so long as he found him.\u00a0 Little Joe was sure he would, even without a star to follow.\u00a0 Pa was very smart about finding things.\u00a0 In the meantime, though, it was cold\u2014real cold.\u00a0 Little Joe knew he couldn\u2019t just stand still in the freezing wind.\u00a0 He had to find some rocks or something to hide behind until Pa came for him.\u00a0 He walked on, though it was harder with each step through the deepening snow.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0As his buckskin plodded forward according to instinct, Ben raised his eyes to the leaden gray sky.\u00a0 Was it his imagination or was the snow easing up?\u00a0 And was it his imagination, too, that the terrain seemed more level?\u00a0 No, that sensation was definitely real, and Ben smiled with sudden understanding.\u00a0 The horse, taking the path of least resistance, had made his way back to the road.\u00a0 Would Little Joe have done the same?\u00a0 He wouldn\u2019t know where to look for it, but if he stumbled across it?\u00a0 Yes, he might stay with the road then, choosing it for the same reason the horse had, since the cross-country route he\u2019d charted before must be increasingly hard for those short, tired legs to maneuver.\u00a0 The road led more north than east, but Ben had long since given up the notion that his son was still headed east.\u00a0 He\u2019d follow the road for a while and see where it took him . . . hopefully toward Little Joe.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Little Joe trudged through the snow, but the going didn\u2019t seem as hard as before.\u00a0 The ground felt different, somehow, and now the snow didn\u2019t seem like a wild monster, eager to gobble him up.\u00a0 Just pretty snow again, drifting down real slow . . . but there was so much of it already.\u00a0 The wind was still cold, too, and he hadn\u2019t found a good place to get away from it.<\/p>\n

Then, up ahead, he saw something.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t sure what at first, but it was big.\u00a0 Boulders, maybe? he thought as he cocked his head for a closer look.\u00a0 Funny shape for boulders, but they could be \u2018most any shape, couldn\u2019t they?\u00a0 As Little Joe squinted, trying to puzzle out what he was seeing, the wind blew aside some of the snow piled against the object, and he saw\u2014spokes!\u00a0 A wheel!\u00a0 A wagon\u2014it was a wagon!\u00a0 And wagons meant people and maybe a house nearby.\u00a0 Hope pouring energy into his exhausted legs, Little Joe ran for the wagon.\u00a0 \u201cHello!\u00a0 Hello!\u201d he called, loud as he could, but no one answered.<\/p>\n

He was almost up to the wagon when he skidded to an abrupt halt.\u00a0 Something was wrong.\u00a0 The wagon had a cover over its top, like people used when they were traveling far, and harness was trailing on the ground, but there were no horses.\u00a0 Cautiously, he approached the still-silent wagon and slowly climbed up onto the seat.\u00a0 He peeked through the front opening in the wagon cover and immediately tumbled inside, eyes wide with excitement.<\/p>\n

Presents!\u00a0 The wagon had packages, wrapped in paper and tied with ribbon.\u00a0 Oh, it had the usual stuff people packed for a trip, too\u2014trunks and bags and pots and pans and odds and ends of all kinds\u2014but this wagon had presents, too.\u00a0 It must be Santa\u2019s wagon!\u00a0 Then puzzlement furrowed across his brow.\u00a0 But where was Santa?\u00a0 And where were the other wise men?\u00a0 Most importantly, where was Adam?<\/p>\n

Little Joe nodded in sober decision.\u00a0 Lost, just as he\u2019d feared.\u00a0 Maybe he hadn\u2019t been wrong, after all, to come out looking for his brother, except now they were both lost in the snow, without a star to guide them.\u00a0 If he could just find Adam, though, they\u2019d at least be together, and Pa wouldn\u2019t have to look for the both of them.\u00a0 That would help Pa be less mad . . . but where had Adam and Santa and Jamie gone?<\/p>\n

His tummy was rumbling, so he retrieved his pillowcase from beside the wagon, where he\u2019d dropped it, and took out the cookies.\u00a0 Cookies always seemed to perk Hoss up when he came home from school.\u00a0 Maybe they\u2019d help him think better, too.\u00a0 As he brushed the last crumbs from his lap, however, he still had no idea where the wise men might have gone.<\/p>\n

He crawled over the assorted goods and gifts in the wagon until he could peer out the small oval opening in the back.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t sure what he had expected to see, but not such a clearly marked trail.\u00a0 Of course!\u00a0 The horses\u2014or were they reindeer?\u2014would leave a broad path like that, even through the snow.\u00a0 All he had to do was stay in the path and it would lead him straight to Adam\u2014and Santa, too.\u00a0 Maybe he\u2019d even get an extra present for finding them!<\/p>\n

The back opening was laced too tightly for even so small a child as Joe to fit through, so he scrambled back to the front of the wagon and clambered out the way he\u2019d come in, dragging his pillowcase behind him.\u00a0 He jumped off the wagon, and once he\u2019d picked himself up out of the cushioning snowdrift, he raced for the back and followed in the path of whatever animal had been pulling the wagon.\u00a0 It was better than a star, \u2018cause it was wider and harder to miss.\u00a0 His eyes shone with expectation, and his heart sang for joy.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0We need more men<\/em>, Ben thought.\u00a0 Too much territory to cover.\u00a0 Even in good weather it would take an army, stretched out in a line, to be certain we weren\u2019t riding right past him.<\/em>\u00a0 Just two searchers now.\u00a0 Earlier he\u2019d spotted Hank Carlton, the hand who had tried to find him at Eagle\u2019s Nest, across the road; and after checking the bounds of that man\u2019s search, he\u2019d sent him back to the Hunter place.<\/p>\n

Hank had protested at first.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m mighty fond of that little youngun, Mr. Cartwright, and finding him\u2019s the important thing.\u00a0 We can all rest up later.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know, and I appreciate your help, more than I can say,\u201d Ben had told him, \u201cbut you\u2019re half frozen, man.\u00a0 Get Mrs. Hunter to give you a cup of coffee, at least, and warm up awhile.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat about you, Mr. Cartwright?\u201d Hank had challenged.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s my son,\u201d Ben had stated in a voice that brooked no argument.\u00a0 Hank had acquiesced and gone on his way, promising to get back to searching soon.<\/p>\n

Good man<\/em>, Ben mused now.\u00a0 Not many who would ride out in a snowstorm to find one wayward little boy.<\/em>\u00a0 Actually, he knew a good number of neighbors who would have readily joined the search, but they lived far apart and he hadn\u2019t wanted to waste time riding around to inform them.\u00a0 Once he knew which direction Little Joe had gone, he had hoped to find the boy quickly, without needing to disturb his neighbors so close to the holiday.\u00a0 Fool<\/em>, he chided himself.\u00a0 Will I never stop making foolish mistakes, mistakes that could cost me all I hold dear?<\/em><\/p>\n

With a shake of his head, he tossed aside the condemning thoughts.\u00a0 Waste of time, such thoughts.\u00a0 If he let such foolishness distract him, so that he missed that one vital sign that would lead him to Little Joe, he\u2019d have a lifetime remaining for self-accusation.\u00a0 No need to waste time on it now.\u00a0 With renewed determination he again began to scan every inch of the snowscape around him before moving further down the road.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Though the snow had stopped, the sun was still obscured by clouds.\u00a0 Even had it been out, however, the light from Little Joe\u2019s face would have beamed brighter.\u00a0 A barn\u2014the wise men had found a barn!\u00a0 While he\u2019d set out looking for them, they\u2019d been the ones to lead him to shelter.\u00a0 Shoulda known<\/em>, the boy acknowledged with a grin, \u2018cause Adam is real smart, like Hoss said<\/em>, and his wise men friends would be smart, too, especially Santa<\/em>.<\/p>\n

He ran now, knowing he was only a few steps from Adam\u2019s arms.\u00a0 He pulled eagerly at the bright red door.\u00a0 It was heavy, so he only cracked it as far as he needed to get in.\u00a0 \u201cAdam!\u201d he called as he came into the dark interior.<\/p>\n

He froze as he heard a clicking sound, and in the dim light from the doorway, he saw the barrel of a rifle, pointed straight at him.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben dismounted and slowly approached the abandoned wagon.\u00a0 At least, he assumed it had been abandoned, since the team that had pulled it was obviously gone.\u00a0 Still, it would have made an ideal shelter for a small boy, if Little Joe had come this way.\u00a0 \u201cHello . . . the wagon!\u201d he called with rising hope.<\/p>\n

There was no answer, but he had to check, so he climbed up and looked inside, just as his son had done before him.\u00a0 No sign of life, but there were indications that life had been here . . . and not too long ago.\u00a0 The wrapped gifts told him someone had been traveling to some sort of Christmas gathering, but something\u2014probably the snowstorm\u2014had gone wrong and caused them to leave the wagon.<\/p>\n

He circled the wagon and soon spotted the problem, a wheel broken after slipping off the icy road.\u00a0 But where were the people?\u00a0 He could see, by the wake of the draft animals they\u2019d taken with them, that they\u2019d gone back the way they\u2019d come.\u00a0 Did they have a destination in mind or were they strangers to this territory, aimlessly floundering through the snow?\u00a0 If so, he really would need to take time to notify neighbors, and he could ill afford interrupting his search for Little Joe that long.\u00a0 It could mean his child\u2019s death.\u00a0 However, he couldn\u2019t ignore the imminent danger to those others, either.<\/p>\n

Where could they have gone?\u00a0 Where would someone who knew the land go?\u00a0 The Hunter place was the closest ranch, but these people hadn\u2019t headed that way.\u00a0 Suddenly, Ben\u2019s head reared up.\u00a0 No, there was shelter closer than that, and even a stranger might have seen it, coming down this road.\u00a0 He mounted quickly and rode as hard as he could.\u00a0 He\u2019d check on the strangers, make sure they were all right, and then get back to searching for his son.\u00a0 Maybe, depending on what kind of folks these were, he might even enlist some help.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201cMarty, don\u2019t!\u201d a high-pitched voice cried.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a child!\u201d<\/p>\n

The rifle lowered and a loud exhale of relief could be heard.\u00a0 \u201cLand o\u2019 Goshen, boy, where\u2019d you come from?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Ponderosa,\u201d Little Joe said, his voice still quavering, though he no longer felt threatened.\u00a0 \u201cWh-where\u2019s the wise men?\u201d<\/p>\n

The woman, who had been reclining at the rear of the barn, rose on one elbow.\u00a0 \u201cCome in, child,\u201d she said gently, waving him forward with a welcoming gesture.<\/p>\n

Little Joe moved slowly toward her, as the man passed him to look out the barn door.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one out there,\u201d Marty reported.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s a youngun like this doin\u2019 out alone in a snowstorm?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLost, same as us, I reckon,\u201d said the woman.\u00a0 \u201cThat about the size of it, boy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess,\u201d Little Joe admitted.\u00a0 \u201cI was lookin\u2019 for the wise men.\u00a0 I found their wagon . . . I thought.\u201d<\/p>\n

The woman smiled softly.\u00a0 \u201cIt was our wagon you found.\u00a0 You followed us here?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe nodded.<\/p>\n

\u201cSmart youngun,\u201d Marty said, coming back over to the woman.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s your name, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe,\u201d the child lisped.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe Cartwright.\u00a0 You know my pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Marty shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, we\u2019re new to these parts.\u201d\u00a0 He extended his hand as if the little fellow before him had been a grown man.\u00a0 \u201cPleased to make your acquaintance, Little Joe Cartwright.\u00a0 We\u2019re the Maguires.\u00a0 I\u2019m Martin\u2014you can call me Marty\u2014and this is my wife\u201d\u2014he broke off with a cackle.\u00a0 \u201cWell, we\u2019ve got a Joseph to go with you now, Mary, and we got the stable.\u00a0 Now all we need\u2019s the baby.\u201d\u00a0 He reached down to give his wife\u2019s ample belly a loving pat.<\/p>\n

\u201cBaby Jesus?\u201d Little Joe asked in an awed whisper.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m mighty tempted to name him that,\u201d Marty chuckled, \u201call things considered.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is not funny,\u201d Mary said through gritted teeth.\u00a0 She held her stomach until the mild contraction ceased.\u00a0 \u201cAt least,\u201d she panted, \u201cthat other Mary had a manger . . . and some hay to lay her baby in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, gotta admit this is the barest barn I\u2019ve ever seen,\u201d her husband agreed.\u00a0 \u201cOur horses the only stock and not a stray strand of straw for them.\u00a0 Lumber even smells fresh-cut.\u00a0 It\u2019s shelter, though, and we oughta be grateful for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou seen the wise men yet?\u201d Little Joe asked, sitting down and companionably cozying up to the woman.\u00a0 \u201cGuess not, or they\u2019d still be here.\u00a0 They\u2019ll be comin\u2019 to see Baby Jesus, though, so can I wait with you?\u00a0 My brother Adam\u2019s one of them, and I need to take him home.\u201d\u00a0 His face puckered as he wondered just where home might be from here.\u00a0 \u201cOr, maybe, he needs to take me home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat on earth?\u201d Marty exclaimed.<\/p>\n

\u201cTell us, child, what you mean and how you came to be here,\u201d Mary said, stroking the curls lying against her breast.<\/p>\n

Little Joe sat up and dug into his pillowcase.\u00a0 \u201cWant some bread and beef?\u201d he asked, holding out all he had left.\u00a0 \u201cYou look hungry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marty took the food gratefully and, using his pocketknife, roughly cut the bread and beef for sandwiches.\u00a0 Little Joe accepted his share with a smile, but he didn\u2019t eat yet; happily and confidently he began at the beginning, his nonstop chatter accompanied by sounds of munching and accentuated from time to time by Mary\u2019s low moans.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben dismounted and walked cautiously toward the building.\u00a0 \u201cHello . . . the barn!\u201d he called, following the frontier tradition of announcing himself.<\/p>\n

The door opened, and a thin young man wearing a bedraggled felt hat came out, rifle in hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou the people from the wagon back a ways?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

The man held his rifle warily.\u00a0 \u201cWe don\u2019t mean no harm, just needed shelter.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI assumed as much,\u201d Ben said, \u201cAre there more of you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy wife,\u201d Marty said, lowering the rifle, \u201cand a stray youngun . . . that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStray youngun?\u201d Ben asked, rising hope making his voice squeak.\u00a0 \u201cCurly hair, green eyes?\u00a0 About yea tall?\u201d\u00a0 He held his hand at Little Joe\u2019s height.<\/p>\n

Marty grinned.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, and if he\u2019s got an imagination twice as tall as that, I reckon I\u2019ve got what you\u2019re lookin\u2019 for, mister.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank God,\u201d Ben murmured.<\/p>\n

Marty opened the door wider and Ben went in.\u00a0 As soon as his figure filled the doorway, Little Joe scrambled to his feet and ran pell-mell into him.\u00a0 \u201cPapa!\u201d he cried.\u00a0 \u201cI knew you\u2019d find me!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben dropped to his knees and engulfed the little boy with hugs.\u00a0 \u201cOh, baby,\u201d he whispered between kisses on the wind-reddened cheeks.\u00a0 \u201cPa is so glad he did find you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe pulled back and gave his father a rebuking pout for calling him a baby, but it faded a moment later and he threw himself back into his father\u2019s arms.\u00a0 \u201cI couldn\u2019t find the wise men,\u201d he said sadly into his father\u2019s ear.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe wise men are exactly where they should be,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut we\u2019ll talk about that later.\u201d\u00a0 He stood up, still holding his son on his shoulder, and walked further into the barn.\u00a0 \u201cGood evening, ma\u2019am,\u201d he said, touching his hat brim with his free hand.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know how you managed it, but thank you for finding my little boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mary smiled.\u00a0 \u201cHe found us.\u00a0 If this is your barn, sir, we\u2019re mighty obliged for the use of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not mine,\u201d Ben replied.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s Thee Winters\u2019 barn, and there\u2019ll be a fine new house to go with it in time.\u00a0 His family\u2019s staying in Carson City until it\u2019s built, and I know he wouldn\u2019t begrudge shelter to anyone in need.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCarson City!\u201d Mary cried.\u00a0 \u201cWhy, that\u2019s where we were headed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marty moved alongside his wife.\u00a0 \u201cShouldn\u2019t\u2019ve been, I reckon, with my wife \u2018great with child,\u2019 like the Good Book says.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMarty,\u201d his wife chided, blushing furiously.\u00a0 \u201cSuch things ain\u2019t spoke of.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe man has eyes, Mary,\u201d Marty said, rolling his own.\u00a0 \u201cAnyway, the baby wasn\u2019t supposed to come \u2018til after the new year.\u00a0 Her folks are in Carson, so when the weather broke yesterday, we thought we could make it there for Christmas and stay on \u2018til the baby was born.\u00a0 Fool notion, as it turned out, but Mary wanted to be with her ma when the baby came.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBaby Jesus,\u201d Little Joe supplied with a wide yawn.<\/p>\n

The adults all laughed.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t think so, Joseph,\u201d Ben chuckled, patting his son\u2019s back, \u201cbut a child just as precious to these folks.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe weren\u2019t expecting the snow to start up again,\u201d Marty explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cOr the broken wheel?\u201d Ben added with a smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cOr the broken wheel,\u201d Marty agreed with a shake of his head.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019d seen this building from the road when we passed, so we made our way back here.\u00a0 Never thought my boy\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOr girl,\u201d Mary interrupted.<\/p>\n

Marty nodded.\u00a0 \u201cOr girl would be born in a barn, but it\u2019s sure beginnin\u2019 to look that way . . . unless Carson is closer than I think.<\/p>\n

\u201cToo far for your need,\u201d Ben said soberly, \u201cbut if you think you could manage about five miles, ma\u2019am, we can do better than this barn.\u00a0 Solid walls, a bed and even a woman to help with the birthing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA woman!\u201d Mary cried.\u00a0 \u201cOh, Marty!\u201d<\/p>\n

Her husband looked dubious.\u00a0 \u201cMary, I\u2019m not sure even five miles is close enough.\u201d\u00a0 He looked at Ben.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s havin\u2019 pains.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow far apart, ma\u2019am?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

Mary glanced away for a moment.\u00a0 Then, eased of her embarrassment by Ben\u2019s solicitous manner, she answered plainly, \u201cCloser than I\u2019d like, but my water\u2019s not broke yet.\u201d\u00a0 She turned pleading eyes on her husband.\u00a0 \u201cOh, please, Marty, let me try.\u00a0 A woman, Marty, and a proper bed!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right, Mary, all right,\u201d Marty said, still sounding concerned.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll try, but you gotta promise to hold off long as you can.\u00a0 I don\u2019t relish layin\u2019 you down in the snow for this business.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was a promise no woman could realistically make, of course, but Mary made it anyway, and the two men felt they had no choice but to let her have her way.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201cCome away from that window, boy,\u201d Elvira Hunter said sharply, looking up from her knitting.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re puttin\u2019 prints all over it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry, ma\u2019am,\u201d Hoss said, reluctantly pulling back from the window, to which his face had been pressed.\u00a0 He came back over and perched next to the woman on the hard settee.\u00a0 \u201cI was just hopin\u2019 to see someone comin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that, and . . . well, I reckon, it\u2019s understandable,\u201d she said more softly, \u201cbut a watched pot never boils, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh?\u201d<\/p>\n

Elvira chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cJust an old saying.\u00a0 In this case, it means you won\u2019t make \u2018em come sooner by smearing your nose on my windowpane.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss gave her a lopsided grin.\u00a0 \u201cGuess not.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t mean to mess your window, ma\u2019am.\u00a0 If you tell me how, I\u2019ll clean it for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elvira waved the offer aside.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s no matter,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cJust you and me to see it.\u201d\u00a0 One of Ben\u2019s men had been here earlier, but had left again after having a hot cup of coffee and a good warm by the fire, so it was just her and the boy now, as it had been most of the afternoon.\u00a0 Seeing him wistfully eyeing the window again, she patted his arm.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re a good boy, and you\u2019ve been plenty of help to me today.\u00a0 I\u2019ve got a nice hot soup simmering and fresh bread in the oven.\u00a0 Be ready soon.\u201d\u00a0 She\u2019d made a big pot, since she\u2019d invited the hand to come back for supper and bring the other man with him, if they crossed paths.\u00a0 And she was especially looking forward to sitting across the supper table from Ben Cartwright.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt smells good, ma\u2019am,\u201d Hoss said, smiling politely at her; then his eyes strayed back to the window.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, lands, if that\u2019s the only thing that comforts you, go smear up the window some more,\u201d she ordered, giving his shoulder a push.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll check on the bread.\u201d<\/p>\n

The bread was almost ready, so Elvira puttered around in the kitchen awhile, setting out bowls and spoons, a glass for Hoss\u2019s milk and a cup for her coffee.\u00a0 She peered out the kitchen window, not looking for anyone, since it faced a direction no one was likely to come from, but gazing anxiously at the sun dipping toward the horizon.\u00a0 Surely, Ben Cartwright would be back before nightfall . . . one way or the other.\u00a0 She shook her head sadly.\u00a0 She\u2019d known loss in her own life, but to lose a child . . . she couldn\u2019t even imagine the hurt of that, especially so soon after losing the boy\u2019s mother.\u00a0 Her heart had sent up silent prayers all through the long afternoon of trying to distract Hoss from his fretting, but the more time passed, the less likely it seemed that they would be answered.<\/p>\n

She had just pulled the bread from the oven and set it aside to cool when she heard Hoss call from the other room, \u201cThey\u2019re comin\u2019!\u00a0 They\u2019re comin\u2019!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStay where you are, boy!\u201d she cried as she hurried from the kitchen.\u00a0 She\u2019d learned her lesson from Little Joe and knew now how fast boys could disappear.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it\u2019s them, I know it is!\u201d Hoss cried.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope so, boy, I do, but you ain\u2019t traipsin\u2019 out in your shirtsleeves, even if it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll get my coat.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss tried to rush past her, but Elvira gripped his shoulder with her strong, lean fingers.\u00a0 \u201cStay put, boy.\u201d\u00a0 She maneuvered him back to the window and looked out herself.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s your pa, right enough, but lands sakes, he\u2019s got a whole caravan with him.\u201d\u00a0 She turned Hoss loose.\u00a0 \u201cAll right.\u00a0 Go get your coat . . . and mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u2019m!\u201d Hoss shouted and took off.<\/p>\n

Bundling into their winter wraps, they made their way outside just as the \u201ccaravan\u201d was arriving.\u00a0 \u201cPa!\u201d Hoss shouted.\u00a0 \u201cYou found him!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShh,\u201d Ben hissed.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll wake your brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs the child all right, Ben?\u201d Elvira called from the front step.<\/p>\n

Ben smiled broadly.\u00a0 \u201cExhausted, but otherwise fine.\u201d\u00a0 He motioned Hoss forward and handed Little Joe down to him.\u00a0 \u201cGet your brother inside, son, and then get the animals into the barn.\u00a0 We\u2019ll groom them later.\u201d\u00a0 He dismounted and stepped briskly over to Elvira.\u00a0 \u201cI came across some stranded travelers,\u201d he explained.\u00a0 He leaned close to whisper, \u201cThe woman\u2019s in labor.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, good lands!\u201d Elvira cried.\u00a0 \u201cGet her in the house.\u00a0 Hurry now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marty helped his wife down from the back of the draft horse he had been leading, and, making a saddle of their interlaced hands, he and Ben carried the expectant mother inside.\u00a0 Elvira led the way.\u00a0 \u201cHere . . .\u00a0 into the bedroom,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry to land on your doorstep like this, ma\u2019am,\u201d Mary said, sinking onto the bed.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t think a thing of it,\u201d Elvira said.\u00a0 Scowling at the men standing around like stiff and stupid fence posts, she shooed them out.\u00a0 \u201cOne of you might set some water on to boil, if you aren\u2019t so useless you never learned how.\u00a0 And there\u2019s soup and fresh-baked bread waiting in the kitchen for anyone who\u2019s hungry.\u00a0 Help yourselves.\u201d\u00a0 She turned her attention back to Mary.\u00a0 \u201cThere now, dear, let\u2019s get you settled.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben clapped Marty on the back.\u00a0 \u201cI guess we\u2019ve got our orders.\u201d\u00a0 He led the stupefied father-to-be from the room and into the kitchen.<\/p>\n

Hoss came in next, leading a very groggy Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cSorry, Pa,\u201d Hoss said meekly.\u00a0 \u201cGuess I woke him up after all.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben, who was pulling open cabinet doors, right and left, turned.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s all right, Hoss.\u00a0 He needs to eat.\u00a0 Just set him at the table, and I\u2019ll serve you both up some of Mrs. Hunter\u2019s good soup . . . as soon as I can find a pot to boil some water.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned and, dropping Little Joe\u2019s hand, hurried over to his father.\u00a0 \u201cHere, Pa,\u201d he said, swinging open the one door Ben hadn\u2019t tried.\u00a0 \u201cI saw her get the soup pot from here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you, son,\u201d Ben said with an absent-minded brush of the boy\u2019s sandy hair.\u00a0 Only dropping the pot once on the way to the pump, he filled it with water and set it on the stove to boil.\u00a0 \u201cNow for the soup,\u201d he said.\u00a0 He looked back at his middle son.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t suppose you know where she keeps soup bowls.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDishes is up high,\u201d Hoss said, \u201cbut I ain\u2019t sure what kind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since this had been a two-person household, there weren\u2019t enough soup bowls to go around, but between those and serving dishes Ben managed to find enough for everyone.\u00a0 Then he sliced the warm, aromatic bread and saw that each person had a piece.\u00a0 Little Joe was so sleepy that he could barely lift a spoon, so Ben set the child in his lap and encouraged him to eat, bite by bite.<\/p>\n

Little Joe leaned his head back against his father\u2019s chest and raised his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cYou mad, Papa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben dropped a kiss on the curly head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Joseph, Papa isn\u2019t mad.\u00a0 I\u2019m too tired and too relieved to be angry, but you do know that you were very naughty to run off like that, don\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cVery naughty,\u201d Hoss added emphatically as he reached for a second slice of bread.<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cI can handle this, Hoss.\u00a0 Joseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

A trace of a pout touched the boy\u2019s lips.\u00a0 \u201cI tried to follow the star, like you told me, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike I told you?\u201d\u00a0 Ben shook his head in bewilderment.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph, I never said anything of the kind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUh-huh,\u201d Little Joe insisted.\u00a0 \u201cYou said you wanted Adam to follow the star and me, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben turned dazed eyes on his other son.\u00a0 \u201cDo you have any idea what your brother\u2019s talking about, Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss rested his chin in his palm and slowly nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, sort of.\u00a0 Don\u2019t recollect it real clear, but seems like you said something about him and Adam followin\u2019 a star on the way home from church, when I asked you if the preacher was talking about a real star.\u201d<\/p>\n

Memory gradually filtered back.\u00a0 \u201cBut I said it wasn\u2019t a real star,\u201d Ben recalled, dragging a frustrated hand over his face.\u00a0 \u201cI said that clearly, didn\u2019t I?\u201d\u00a0 He looked to his middle son for confirmation.<\/p>\n

Hoss just shrugged.\u00a0 As he\u2019d had many opportunities to observe, clear wasn\u2019t always clear to Little Joe.<\/p>\n

The youngest Cartwright tugged at his father\u2019s sleeve.\u00a0 \u201cI tried, Pa, but I couldn\u2019t find him; I couldn\u2019t find Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

He sounded so sorrowful that Ben cuddled him close.\u00a0 \u201cBaby, didn\u2019t I tell you that Adam couldn\u2019t come home for Christmas, that New Haven was too far?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe rubbed his face up and down against his father\u2019s vest.<\/p>\n

\u201cHas Pa ever lied to you?\u201d<\/p>\n

The little head moved sideways.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen will you trust me in the future?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe yawned in response.\u00a0 \u201cSleepy, Papa,\u201d he mumbled.<\/p>\n

Ben smiled, acknowledging the futility of further discussion.\u00a0 \u201cAll right.\u00a0 Let\u2019s bed you down then.\u201d\u00a0 He carried his son into the parlor and laid him on the settee, covering him with the crocheted coverlet draped across its back.\u00a0 With a kiss he tucked the boy in and wished him a good night.<\/p>\n

As Ben again took his seat at the table, Marty said, \u201cI hope you\u2019re not gonna be too hard on the little fellow, Mr. Cartwright.\u00a0 If it hadn\u2019t been for him findin\u2019 us and then you findin\u2019 him . . . well, things sure would\u2019ve been a lot tougher for my Mary.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019ll probably get a lot less than he deserves,\u201d Ben admitted wryly, \u201cespecially since, according to both my boys, I\u2019m the one to blame for this massive confusion.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t say that, Pa,\u201d Hoss protested.<\/p>\n

A sharp cry from the other room forestalled Ben\u2019s response.\u00a0 Marty flinched and winced in commiseration<\/p>\n

Ben laid a steadying hand on the other man\u2019s arm.\u00a0 \u201cBear up, man,\u201d he urged.\u00a0 \u201cI can tell you from personal experience\u2014thrice over\u2014it\u2019ll get worse before it gets better.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marty shook all over, like a wet-furred dog.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t know how I can stand it.\u00a0 Don\u2019t know how she can.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWomen are strong creatures,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 He leaned close and said in a conspiratorial whisper, \u201cJust between you and me, though, I think we\u2019ve got the harder job.\u00a0 Not to make light of what the women endure, but to sit and wait, listening to the love of your life screaming in pain and feeling nothing but useless, as Mrs. Hunter put it\u2014that\u2019s about the hardest work a man ever does.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The pain and the heart-wrenching cries went on and on.\u00a0 Ben and Hoss had gotten away from it long enough to tend the stock, but it only seemed more intense when they returned.\u00a0 Well past dark, Ben\u2019s two men finally showed up at what they viewed as headquarters for the search and were overjoyed to discover that the lost had been found.\u00a0 Ben dished them up what was left of the soup, after setting aside some for Elvira and Mary, and filled them in on how he\u2019d found Little Joe and what was taking place in the next room.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t often that single men had the chance to be in on the birthing of a baby, so after they\u2019d eaten, the two men joined the others lounging around the parlor.\u00a0 Marty was beside himself by this time, and no amount of reassurance could stop his restless pacing.\u00a0 The commotion eventually woke Little Joe, who crawled into his father\u2019s lap and refused to be soothed back to sleep with so much to interest him going on.<\/p>\n

Finally, the men all broke into broad smiles as the distinctive cry of an infant interrupted their conversation.\u00a0 Marty was slapped, punched and pounded in masculine expressions of congratulations, and then Elvira stepped into the room to announce that he could come back to the bedroom.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, what is it?\u201d one of Ben\u2019s hands demanded, but she just shook her head in disgust at the ways of men and followed Marty.<\/p>\n

It was a good ten minutes before he returned, carrying a blanket-wrapped bundle.\u00a0 Little Joe stood up in his father\u2019s lap for a better look.\u00a0 \u201cYou gonna name him Jesus, like you said?\u201d he asked eagerly.<\/p>\n

Marty walked over to the little boy and uncovered the baby\u2019s face for him to see the delicate features and wisps of dark hair.\u00a0 \u201cI think Jessica might suit this little mite better,\u201d he chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, it\u2019s a gal,\u201d said Hank, as everyone crowded around for a look at the little girl.<\/p>\n

\u201cMercy sakes, give that child air to breathe,\u201d Elvira scolded.<\/p>\n

With the grace to look a little shame-faced, Ben stepped back.\u00a0 \u201cWe should be going,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ve imposed on your hospitality long enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elvira planted both fists on her hips.\u00a0 \u201cBen Cartwright, you will not take these boys out into the cold night air.\u00a0 It\u2019s miles to the Ponderosa!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I know, but\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut nothing,\u201d she declared stoutly.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019ll be crowded, but we\u2019ll manage.\u00a0 The Maguires can take my bed, I\u2019ll sleep here on the settee, and we\u2019ll lay a pallet for the young ones.\u201d\u00a0 She spread her hands, looking at the others with some abashment.\u00a0 \u201cThe best I can offer you men is my barn, but a stable was good enough for our Lord, so it ought to do you for one night.\u00a0 Might even give you a kinship with Him at Christmas.\u00a0 I got plenty of quilts to go \u2018round, and if you choose to stay\u2014and I think you should\u2014I\u2019ll send you off tomorrow morning with a hot, hearty breakfast.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe makes real good biscuits,\u201d Little Joe offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cReal good everything,\u201d Hoss, who had sampled two meals of Elvira\u2019s cooking, added.<\/p>\n

After seeing the agreeable nods from his men, Ben took the hand of the suddenly flushed widow.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re pleased to accept your fine hospitality.\u00a0 Thank you, Elvira.\u201d<\/p>\n

The crimson in her countenance deepened while his hand held hers.\u00a0 \u201cWell, never let it be said there was no room in this here inn,\u201d she said with a coy lowering of her eyes.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The clouds had parted, and the stars shone clearly as Ben, quilt over his arm, made his way from the house to the barn, where his men had already turned in for the night.\u00a0 He paused and searched the sky for the North Star.\u00a0 \u201cEast\u2014Haven\u2014Adam,\u201d he whispered.\u00a0 \u201cMerry Christmas to you, my son.\u00a0 I wish you could be here with us, but you still have that dream to find, and once you have, you\u2019ll find your way back to us.\u00a0 Just follow the star, Adam; follow the star.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

\u00a0While his family stayed in Carson City, Theodore (Thee) Winters built a tall frame house in WashoeValley at approximately the time of this chapter.\u00a0 That he built the barn first is the author\u2019s surmise, but it fits the practice of the times to provide first for the livestock and then for the family.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER TEN<\/p>\n

Tidings of Comfort and Giving<\/p>\n

The barn door opened and Hoss slipped through.\u00a0 \u201cPa,\u201d he called, \u201cMiz Hunter says to come to breakfast before it gets cold.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hank Carlton set aside the pitchfork with which he\u2019d been tossing fresh straw into one of the cows\u2019 stalls.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t know about you, Mr. Cartwright, but I sure don\u2019t have to be called twice.\u00a0 That woman\u2019s a right good cook.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m with you,\u201d Ben\u2019s other hand agreed quickly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI won\u2019t argue,\u201d Ben chuckled, \u201cbut as soon as we\u2019ve eaten, we need to get out of this good woman\u2019s hair.\u00a0 We\u2019ve imposed on her hospitality long enough.\u201d\u00a0 He circled an arm around Hoss\u2019s shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cWhere\u2019s your little brother, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, he\u2019s in pesterin\u2019 that lady that had the baby,\u201d Hoss reported.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Hoss,\u201d Ben chided as they walked across the snowy yard.\u00a0 \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t have let him bother them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMiz Hunter said to leave \u2018im be, said he had less chance of sneakin\u2019 out from the back bedroom.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s face scrunched with worry as he looked up at his father.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t reckon he\u2019d take off out a window, do you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben squeezed the boy closer.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t think so.\u00a0 I think that little boy\u2019s wandering days are over . . . for a week or two, at least.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe,\u201d Hoss said, mouth quirking up.\u00a0 \u201cI gave him a good talkin\u2019 to.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure that will have great impact,\u201d Ben said wryly.\u00a0 Then he shrugged.\u00a0 For all he knew, Little Joe might pay more attention to his big brother than to anyone else.\u00a0 Goodness knows, that boy needed to learn to pay attention to someone!<\/p>\n

He opened the door and walked into the kitchen, pleased to see that Little Joe was no longer \u201cpesterin\u2019 that lady that had the baby.\u201d\u00a0 Giving the boy\u2019s curls an affectionate tousle, he turned to his hostess.\u00a0 \u201cElvira, it\u2019s good of you to feed this crowd again, but I know we\u2019re using up a lot of your supplies, and with the Maguires staying on with you for a spell, too . . . I\u2019d be pleased to send over enough to replenish your cupboards.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elvira Hunter battled against opposing instincts.\u00a0 On the one hand, her sense of hospitality took umbrage at the thought of repayment.\u00a0 Still, if Ben were to deliver the supplies himself . . . well, such opportunities shouldn\u2019t be rejected out of hand.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon as how you might bring me over some extra flour and such,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cIt can wait \u2018til after the holidays, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right; it\u2019s Christmas Eve!\u201d Hoss cried suddenly, sliding into a seat at the table next to his baby brother.\u00a0 \u201cWe gonna get a tree on the way home, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah!\u201d Little Joe chimed in gleefully.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed aloud.\u00a0 \u201cYou think we should tie it to my saddle, boys?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned sheepishly as he reached for a biscuit.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe we oughta go home and get the sleigh first, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe we oughta go home and stay home,\u201d Ben said dryly.\u00a0 \u201cOne of us in particular needs practice at that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The remark sailed right over Little Joe\u2019s head, and he was so busy with his breakfast that he didn\u2019t notice the glare his brother aimed in his direction, either.<\/p>\n

Everyone dallied over breakfast, seeming reluctant to leave the warm fellowship in the kitchen for a long ride in the bitter cold.\u00a0 At length, however, the men could hold no more coffee and the boys no more biscuits, so they bundled up and said their farewells.\u00a0 Ben set Little Joe in the saddle in front of him, while Hank Carlton invited Hoss to a seat behind the cantle of his mount.\u00a0 It made for slow-going, and by the time they reached the Ponderosa, everyone was eager for warm drinks and some of Hop Sing\u2019s Christmas cookies.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa, we gonna get that tree now?\u201d Hoss asked between munches of sugary cutouts.<\/p>\n

Ben groaned.\u00a0 \u201cFor the love of mercy, boy, we just got home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, Pa,\u201d Hoss protested.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s Christmas Eve.\u00a0 Ain\u2019t we gonna have a tree?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben leaned his head back and exhaled his exhaustion.\u00a0 As far as he was concerned, they could skip the entire celebration this year, but he\u2019d promised himself that he\u2019d make this Christmas special for his boys, who had lost so much in the last few months.\u00a0 And had almost lost more yesterday, he reminded himself.\u00a0 If anything merited a celebration, it was Little Joe\u2019s safe return, so regardless of how tired he was and how little he relished a return to the cold air outside, he forced enthusiasm into his voice.\u00a0 \u201cOf course, we are!\u201d he declared.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s warm up and have Hop Sing\u2019s good lunch before we set out, but then we\u2019ll find the best tree there is . . . close at hand.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss noticed the qualifier and, thoughtful boy that he was, quickly perceived that his father was doing more than he felt up to, just for their sakes.\u00a0 The least he could do was not demand more, even if it meant that this year\u2019s tree wouldn\u2019t match up to ones they\u2019d had before.\u00a0 Besides, they were getting a late start, so they wouldn\u2019t have time to go far and still get the tree decorated tonight.\u00a0 \u201cYeah,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cI bet there\u2019s some right pretty trees nearby, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0It\u2019s amazing what a good meal can do for a man\u2019s disposition<\/em>, Ben mused as he guided the team over the snow.\u00a0 He really hadn\u2019t wanted to go on this expedition, but now, with two laughing boys beside him and warm food coddling his stomach, he felt like a new man, and he was enjoying the afternoon out in the bracing air.\u00a0 I don\u2019t tell Hop Sing often enough how much he adds to this family, <\/em>he thought.\u00a0 The special gift he\u2019d purchased was a good start, of course, but when he considered how far the little Cantonese cook had gone beyond his kitchen duties, especially in looking after Little Joe, no gift seemed special enough to convey his gratitude.\u00a0 Appreciation of that magnitude should be expressed verbally, as well as visibly.<\/p>\n

He glanced over at his youngest son.\u00a0 There, if ever he\u2019d seen one, was a child in desperate need of a nap . . . and a properly tanned bottom.\u00a0 He\u2019d get neither today, and if that made him a poor father, so be it.\u00a0 Sooner, rather than later, he\u2019d need to set the boy down and make him understand that there were dangers out beyond the ranch yard which made strict obedience to the rules an absolute necessity.\u00a0 But not today.\u00a0 Today was a day for celebration, not discipline.\u00a0 \u201cHow about a carol, boys?\u201d he suggested.\u00a0 \u201cWhich one would you like?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoy to the World!\u201d Little Joe cried.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s laughter echoed through the trees.\u00a0 \u201cWell, it would scarcely be \u2018Silent Night\u2019 with you, would it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss hooted at the joke.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s a good \u2018un, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah!\u201d Little Joe burbled, missing the point.\u00a0 Reading the exchange as approval of his choice, he burst into the first line of the carol.<\/p>\n

They had barely finished the song when Hoss excitedly pointed ahead.\u00a0 \u201cAnd there\u2019s a great tree!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben reached over to playfully shake his older son\u2019s neck.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d still be chopping on that by this time tomorrow,\u201d he snickered.\u00a0 \u201cSet your sights a little lower, my boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReckon you\u2019re right, Pa,\u201d Hoss admitted.\u00a0 Having worked alongside tree fellers in the woods, he knew how long it took to bring down the big pines and felt a bit put out with himself for letting his Christmas spirit make him overlook something so obvious.\u00a0 Pa didn\u2019t seem irked, though, so he let it go easily and peeled his eyes for a tree they could cut in the time they had.\u00a0 Soon he spotted one and pointed it out to his father.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss, that\u2019s perfect,\u201d Ben declared.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re developing a real good eye, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s heart swelled with pride as they climbed out of the sleigh and his father set to work on a beautifully shaped, if somewhat smaller than usual, Christmas tree.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0As Ben guided the team into the yard, he spied another sleigh just outside the barn and shook his head in wonderment.\u00a0 \u201cWe certainly seem to be a magnet for company these snowy days, don\u2019t we, boys?\u201d he asked cheerily.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t be Miz Hunter this time,\u201d Hoss returned with a grin, \u201c\u2018cause she ain\u2019t got a sleigh.\u00a0 \u2018Sides, Little Joe\u2019s still with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd he\u2019s going to stay with us, aren\u2019t you, Little Joe?\u201d\u00a0 Ben lifted his youngest from the sleigh and gave him a light toss into the frosty air.<\/p>\n

Little Joe squealed with delight, which was answer enough for Ben.<\/p>\n

The front door opened, and a tall young man exited.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Enos, it\u2019s you,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cKat\u2019s not with you, is she?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure is,\u201d Ben\u2019s foreman announced.<\/p>\n

\u201cAunt Kat!\u201d Little Joe cried, trying to squirm out of his father\u2019s arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right, down you go,\u201d Ben said, setting the boy down and giving his backside a soft pat in the right direction.\u00a0 Little Joe took off at a run, and it was clear from the look on Hoss\u2019s face that he wanted to follow.\u00a0 \u201cGo along, Hoss,\u201d Ben urged, correctly discerning that his older son\u2019s dutiful adherence to the oft-repeated adage that the stock came first was all that was holding him back.\u00a0 \u201cEnos and I can see to the team.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss needed no further invitation and took off at a run.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood to see you, son,\u201d Ben said to Enos as they worked together to unhitch the horses.<\/p>\n

Enos chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cYou see me \u2018most every day, Mr. Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed back.\u00a0 \u201cTrue, but Katerina is an unexpected\u2014and most welcome\u2014addition.\u00a0 What brings the two of you out on a day like this?\u00a0 Just making Christmas Eve calls?\u201d\u00a0 New Year\u2019s Day, of course, was more traditional for that sort of socializing, at least back East, but out here people came when they could, and this had been a day off for his foreman.<\/p>\n

Stripping harness from the team, Enos grinned.\u00a0 \u201cSomething like that.\u00a0 Kat\u2019s got a special gift for you and the boys, and she brought some lebkuchen, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUmm,\u201d Ben murmured appreciatively.\u00a0 \u201cAll such gifts find a welcome home here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Hoss\u2019s tummy?\u201d Enos teased.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd mine,\u201d Ben said with a wink.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut not Joe\u2019s?\u201d Enos quipped back.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot if we beat him to them,\u201d Ben chuckled, \u201cand that\u2019s usually not hard to accomplish.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d be ashamed to take advantage of them short legs of his,\u201d Enos observed with a grin.<\/p>\n

They finished the work quickly and went inside, bringing the tree with them.\u00a0 Ben frowned when he saw Little Joe sitting in Katerina\u2019s lap.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph . . .\u201d he began in a chiding tone.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, don\u2019t scold, Uncle Ben,\u201d Katerina inserted quickly.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s just where I want him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t\u2014uh\u2014push yourself beyond your comfort, my dear.\u201d\u00a0 Ben didn\u2019t quite know how to tactfully suggest that, given Katerina\u2019s condition, she might prefer to avoid taking a fidgety boy into her lap.<\/p>\n

Katerina guessed his concern and laughed.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m fine.\u00a0 Men worry too much.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cProbably,\u201d Ben conceded, recalling how well Mary Maguire had handled the dire circumstances surrounding her child\u2019s birth yesterday.\u00a0 As he\u2019d said then to the frantic father, women were strong, stronger than men gave them credit for.\u00a0 Marie had been and\u2014he could get no further, for the rush of memories overwhelmed him.<\/p>\n

\u201cUncle Ben?\u201d Katerina asked, her face reflecting concern.<\/p>\n

Ben shook himself from his painful reverie.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s so good to see you, Katerina\u00a0 . . . so nice to have friends to share the holiday with.\u201d\u00a0 The pain throbbed through him again as he recalled the joy of earlier Christmases, with friends and family . . . Marie . . . filling this great room with laughter and warmth, children gazing enthralled as he and Dr. Martin read A Christmas Carol<\/em>, adults toasting one another with wishes for a happy new year.\u00a0 He\u2019d felt unable to host such a party this year, believing that a quiet celebration with the boys was all he could muster strength for.\u00a0 The inclement weather, making it impossible for distant friends to come, had seemed to validate that decision; yet here were two who had braved it, solely for the pleasure of sharing the season with him.\u00a0 On the spur of the moment, he chose to turn this afternoon into a celebration, slapped together as it must, of necessity, be.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll stay and help us put up the tree, won\u2019t you, and for dinner?\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina clapped her slender hands.\u00a0 \u201cOh, can we, Enos?\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos scratched his head.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know, Kat.\u00a0 Weather might set in again, make it hard to get home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMore than welcome to stay over, if it does,\u201d Ben offered, \u201calthough perhaps you\u2019d rather be alone on Christmas morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s chance it,\u201d Katerina urged.\u00a0 \u201cWe didn\u2019t have room for a tree at home, and I\u2019d love to help with theirs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, all right,\u201d Enos gave in, \u201cbut no complaints if your Christmas present comes late, little lady.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina smiled.\u00a0 \u201cNo complaints, I promise.\u00a0 This will be a\u2014a\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cForetaste of things to come?\u201d Ben supplied.\u00a0 His gaze rested tenderly on the slight bulge in the young woman\u2019s abdomen.\u00a0 \u201cToo late to turn back now, little mother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t want to!\u201d Katerina declared as she snuggled Little Joe closer.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cEvidently, you haven\u2019t heard about that one\u2019s lastest hair-raising escapade.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, we did,\u201d Enos said soberly.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing told us; then I checked with Carlton, to make sure I\u2019d heard it straight.\u00a0 Surprised you can sit comfortable, little fellow.\u201d\u00a0 He gave Joe\u2019s curls a tousle.<\/p>\n

\u201cHush,\u201d Katerina scolded, drawing the child close again.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it is,\u201d Ben announced and with a fond glance at his youngest added, \u201cPeace on earth and goodwill to men . . . even to naughty little boys.\u201d\u00a0 He ended with a laugh and plucked the youngster from Katerina\u2019s lap for an indulgent bear hug.<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t we better get that tree set up?\u201d practical Hoss suggested.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight,\u201d his father said.\u00a0 \u201cYou and Enos work on that, and Katerina and I will see about sweet-talking Hop Sing into popping some corn for a garland.\u201d\u00a0 He offered the young woman his free arm and led her toward the kitchen.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, Hoss, seein\u2019 as how you and me got the easy chore, let\u2019s get to it,\u201d Enos suggested.<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, they got Joe,\u201d Hoss snickered.\u00a0 \u201cHe sweet-talks better\u2019n anybody I know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, well, you\u2019re better with trees,\u201d Enos said, clapping the boy\u2019s sturdy shoulder.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight!\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

By the time they had the crosspieces nailed to the base of the tree and had set it in place, the others returned from the kitchen with heaping bowls of popped corn.\u00a0 \u201cAll hands on deck,\u201d Ben called and began distributing needles and string.\u00a0 \u201cNot you,\u201d he said, avoiding Little Joe\u2019s outstretched hand.\u00a0 \u201cNaptime for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot sleepy,\u201d Little Joe insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen get sleepy,\u201d his father ordered, plunking the boy onto the settee.\u00a0 Pulling a coverlet over the child, he added, \u201cYou can watch as long as you lie down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe gave in with only a small pout, but though he fought hard against the drowsiness, even the merry voices in the room couldn\u2019t keep him awake.\u00a0 He slept through most of the afternoon, while the others, including the two hands from the bunkhouse, threaded kernels of corn and an occasional whole cranberry into long strands.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201c\u2018Bout time,\u201d Hoss grunted when Little Joe finally sat up, yawning and stretching.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Bout time for what?\u201d Little Joe asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cTime to decorate the tree, sweetie,\u201d Katerina said.\u00a0 \u201cWe wouldn\u2019t dream of starting without you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe looked at the strands of popcorn and cranberry circling the tree.\u00a0 \u201cYes, you did,\u201d he pouted.<\/p>\n

The others laughed.\u00a0 \u201cJust the garland,\u201d Enos chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cTrust me, boy; ain\u2019t nothin\u2019 but work to that!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAmen!\u201d Ben agreed heartily.\u00a0 He held out a small carved bird to his youngest.\u00a0 \u201cWant to make this fly through the branches, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes!\u201d Joe chirped happily.<\/p>\n

They took turns, each person placing the ornament of his or her choice until the tree was full.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd now for the crowning glory,\u201d Ben announced as he held forth the metal star for the treetop.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou might want to use this, instead,\u201d Katerina suggested shyly, handing him a small, soft package, wrapped in tissue paper.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, is this the gift for the boys you mentioned?\u201d Ben inquired.<\/p>\n

Katerina nodded.<\/p>\n

Ben extended the package toward his sons.\u00a0 \u201cWell, then, boys, I guess you\u2019d better open it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss outreached Joe for the gift and eagerly tore off the paper.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s an angel!\u201d he cried.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s Mama,\u201d Little Joe whispered in awe.<\/p>\n

As Ben examined the handcrafted angel, tears came to his eyes.\u00a0 No doll could do justice to the original, of course, but this angel was clearly meant to resemble Marie.\u00a0 The carved features of the wooden head closely captured her countenance, the hair had been painted in her exact shade, and the eyes were emerald green to match the flowing silk gown, a detailed replica of one Marie had often worn to parties and balls.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnybody\u2019d know that was the missus,\u201d Hank Carlton said with an approving smile at Katerina.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs it all right?\u201d the young woman asked anxiously.\u00a0 \u201cIt won\u2019t make you sad to see it, will it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben put his arms around her and kissed her cheek tenderly.\u00a0 \u201cOh, my dear.\u00a0 It will be like having her shining down on us this Christmas.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled at his foreman.\u00a0 \u201cEnos, I had no idea you were such a craftsman at woodcarving.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos waved off the praise.\u00a0 \u201cOh, no, Mr. Ben.\u00a0 That ain\u2019t my work.\u00a0 Mr. Thomas did the carving; I just painted it, and Kat did the rest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA three-fold blessing, then,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cThank you so much.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan I put it on the tree?\u201d Hoss asked, eyes misting.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet Little Joe,\u201d his father suggested softly.\u00a0 \u201cYou opened it, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBesides, he\u2019s easier to lift,\u201d Enos chuckled to lighten the mood.<\/p>\n

Everyone laughed at that, even Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cReckon so,\u201d he admitted.\u00a0 \u201cCan I hold him up?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou bet,\u201d Ben agreed quickly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m always glad to hand off that chore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another round of laughter circled the room as Hoss lifted his little brother over his head and Ben bent the tree\u2019s top down so the boy could set the angel\u2019s skirt over it.\u00a0 \u201cPut it on the tree, Little Joe,\u201d Ben urged.\u00a0 \u201cBrother can\u2019t hold you forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan, too,\u201d Joe insisted.\u00a0 \u201cHoss is strong, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph,\u201d Ben drawled warningly.\u00a0 His face softened, though, as he saw Little Joe gently kiss the angel\u2019s face before putting it into place and heard him whisper, \u201cMerry Christmas, Mama.\u201d<\/p>\n

From that moment it was as though Marie\u2019s presence hovered over the celebration.\u00a0 The slapped-together activities flowed as seamlessly as if they\u2019d been planned.\u00a0 Ben had earlier told Hop Sing to keep supper simple and hadn\u2019t considered asking more, just because the guest list had grown.\u00a0 The cook, however, had produced what Inger would have called a smorgasbord.\u00a0 Was she, too, smiling down on them this Christmas?\u00a0 He knew that if there were any way possible, his second wife would want to be near her son at a time like this.\u00a0 He closed his eyes and searched to feel Elizabeth\u2019s spirit.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t, but perhaps she would be hovering near Adam this Christmas.\u00a0 Perhaps the whole notion was too fanciful, and he wasn\u2019t sure how it fit in with theology, either, but it didn\u2019t matter.\u00a0 He opened his eyes and smiled at the happy faces around the table.\u00a0 They were what mattered, and he suddenly realized that he was no longer making an effort to give the boys a good Christmas.\u00a0 They, in conjunction with the other loving hearts around the table, were giving him one, too.<\/p>\n

The after-supper reading of A Christmas Carol<\/em> and the exuberant singing of carols together made the evening\u2019s activities run late, so Enos and Katerina did elect to spend the night, once assured that their presence on Christmas morning would not be an intrusion.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll have to resign yourselves to an early rising, though,\u201d Ben teased as everyone headed upstairs.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s no keeping these youngsters in bed on Christmas morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Given that early rising, Ben knew he should turn in at once, but he had a problem to solve first.\u00a0 His gifts to his sons only needed to be placed beneath the tree as soon as he was sure they were asleep.\u00a0 He also had small gifts of appreciation for each of his hands, including his foreman Enos\u2014goodness knows when the snow would have permitted delivery of that had the man not turned up on his doorstep\u2014but nothing for Katerina, an unexpected though most welcome Christmas guest.\u00a0 For her to be the only person with nothing to unwrap in the morning was unthinkable, but what could he possibly give her?\u00a0 The only things he possessed suitable for a woman had belonged to Marie, and at first to give away anything of hers, even to so cherished a friend as Katerina, seemed unthinkable, as well.<\/p>\n

Ben smiled softly as he let his mind consider what Marie would have said to such reasoning as that.\u00a0 He could almost see the scorn in her eyes at the very notion of holding on to everything her hands had touched while on earth.\u00a0 What was he saving them for, anyway?\u00a0 Little Joe, of course, should have some remembrance of his mother, just as Adam had Elizabeth\u2019s music box and Hoss dear Inger\u2019s Swedish Bible.\u00a0 In Joe\u2019s case, there was plenty to choose from and still would be, even after selecting a gift for Katerina.<\/p>\n

He opened the armoire, where Marie\u2019s dresses still hung, pulled one out and just as quickly put it back.\u00a0 No, he couldn\u2019t give away the dress she\u2019d been wearing when they first met; it held memories too poignant.\u00a0 Besides, it was too grand a frock for Katerina.\u00a0 Perhaps something more practical.\u00a0 Even Marie\u2019s everyday dresses had been more elegant than anything Katerina ever wore, but perhaps she could use one for church.\u00a0 He drew another dress from the armoire, and as he pulled it toward him, a whiff of Marie\u2019s scent wafted into his nostrils.\u00a0 With a groan he buried his face in the fabric and breathed in deeply.\u00a0 Her scent had faded from her pillow, and he couldn\u2019t, he just couldn\u2019t part with something that still carried it.\u00a0 He quickly hung the dress back in the armoire and shut the door.\u00a0 Perhaps this had been a bad idea in the first place.<\/p>\n

He shook his head.\u00a0 No, not a bad idea, although the man who\u2019d thought of it seemed too weak to carry it out.\u00a0 Get a grip on yourself<\/em>, Ben<\/em>, he chided himself.\u00a0 He did need a gift for his young guest, and when he thought of how she\u2019d come to them the morning after Marie passed and ministered such loving comfort to his sons, desire to give her a tangible expressions of his esteem superseded even the obligations of a good host.<\/p>\n

He still had nothing but Marie\u2019s belongings to give; that truth hadn\u2019t changed. \u00a0Not something as personal as a dress, though.\u00a0 Katerina might even have been uncomfortable wearing that, although Nelly hadn\u2019t felt that way about Inger\u2019s blue satin dress the year he gave that to her for Christmas.\u00a0 Goodness, he\u2019d forgotten that.\u00a0 Ten\u2014no, eleven\u2014years ago he\u2019d faced this same struggle.\u00a0 He\u2019d chosen then to give, rather than cling to his beloved\u2019s possessions, and he\u2019d felt the richer for the giving.\u00a0 Surely, he would again.<\/p>\n

His purpose reinvigorated by the memory, he gazed around the room in search of inspiration, and his eyes strayed to the jewel case sitting atop the chest of drawers.\u00a0 He walked across the room, picked it up and carried it back to the bed.\u00a0 Sitting down, he opened the case and began lifting out necklaces and earrings, considering them one by one.\u00a0 This one seemed too intimately associated with Marie, that one too ornate for Katerina\u2019s simple taste, until finally Ben raised a strand of creamy pearls with a single teardrop pendant of glass so beautifully cut that it sparkled like a diamond\u2014perfect!\u00a0 Needing some container to hold it, he pawed through Marie\u2019s drawers, located a small sachet bag and dropped the necklace down onto the lavender inside.\u00a0 Then he tiptoed down the stairs and hung the bag from a high branch.\u00a0 He quickly took the boys\u2019 gifts and those for his men from their hiding place and arranged them beneath the tree. \u00a0Just before going back up to bed, he let his eyes rest on the angel with Marie\u2019s face, and though he knew he was being fanciful, he was almost certain he\u2019d seen her smile of approval.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Ben woke early the next morning, but not because of the boys. \u00a0He woke to the sound of rain pattering on the roof and groaned.\u00a0 What sort of winter was this, anyway?\u00a0 Snow for ten days and now rain?\u00a0 The heavens were conspiring to keep him cooped up inside with two rambunctious boys.\u00a0 He chuckled.\u00a0 Oh, well, he didn\u2019t mind that on Christmas; tomorrow would be soon enough to fret over how to keep his sons occupied.\u00a0 At least, all those new trinkets waiting beneath the tree should be an asset in that regard.<\/p>\n

He rose and dressed quickly, wanting to get downstairs and build up the fire before the others woke.\u00a0 As he descended the stairs, however, he saw that Enos was already performing that task, while Katerina huddled in Ben\u2019s armchair, her stocking feet tucked up beneath her rumpled skirts.\u00a0 The young man looked up when he heard a stair creak beneath Ben\u2019s foot.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a mess outside, boss,\u201d Enos said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Uncle Ben,\u201d Katerina moaned.\u00a0 \u201cWe should have gone last night.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNonsense,\u201d Ben pronounced.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe it\u2019ll stop by afternoon,\u201d Enos suggested.\u00a0 At Ben\u2019s urging, he and Katerina had planned to stay for the Christmas Day feast, currently scheduled for around two o\u2019clock.<\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully,\u201d Ben agreed, moving across the room to give Katerina a good morning kiss on the cheek.\u00a0 \u201cHowever, if it doesn\u2019t, you\u2019re not to think of taking this dear girl out in a storm.\u00a0 We have plenty of room, and you\u2019re more than welcome to stay as long as necessary.\u00a0 I only regret that your own private little celebration may be delayed; I know how meaningful that can be to a young couple.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina reached up to circle his neck with her slender arms.\u00a0 \u201cUncle Ben, you mustn\u2019t think that.\u00a0 Being here with you is making this such a memorable Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cI think you can thank\u2014or blame\u2014the weather for that, more than me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Suddenly, there was a rumble on the stairs and an anxious call, \u201cDid he come?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben hurried across the room to catch his youngest up in his arms.\u00a0 \u201cDid who come, Little Joe?\u201d\u00a0 He hoped the boy wasn\u2019t back to hoping that Adam had come home for Christmas; he wasn\u2019t sure he was up to another round of that discussion.<\/p>\n

\u201cSanta!\u201d Little Joe cried.\u00a0 Then his gaze fell on the pile of presents beneath the tree.\u00a0 \u201cHe did!\u00a0 He did come!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, he did,\u201d Ben declared enthusiastically, \u201cbut there will be no tearing into gifts until your brother is up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe immediately squiggled out of his father\u2019s arms and tore up the stairs, yelling, \u201cHoss!\u00a0 Get up!\u00a0 Santa came!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether by boat or sleigh, I couldn\u2019t say.\u201d\u00a0 Ben winked at Katerina, who laughed in delightful anticipation of the day she would share such moments with her own boy or girl.<\/p>\n

Soon Hoss thundered down the steps in his brother\u2019s wake.\u00a0 \u201cDoggone it, you\u2019re right, Joe,\u201d he said with a meaningful grin at his father.\u00a0 \u201cLooks like Santa did make it through.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWas there ever any doubt?\u201d Ben chuckled.<\/p>\n

Pandemonium reigned for the next several minutes as the youngsters uncovered their treasures.\u00a0 \u201cPut them aside for now, boys,\u201d Ben ordered gently, \u201cand get yourselves cleaned up and dressed for breakfast.\u00a0 There\u2019ll be plenty of time to play later.\u00a0 No, Hoss, you cannot have any of that candy before breakfast.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss sheepishly dropped the lemon drop back into his stocking and hung it back up on the mantle, the better to resist its temptations.\u00a0 Little Joe just left his lying beneath the tree and headed upstairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot exactly what I meant by \u2018put them aside,\u2019\u201d Ben chuckled as he placed his sons\u2019 gifts in an orderly pile.\u00a0 \u201cWhy, goodness me, if there isn\u2019t something here for the best foreman in the territory,\u201d he said, handing a small package to Enos.<\/p>\n

Having received yearly gifts from Ben, the foreman wasn\u2019t surprised, at least until he unwrapped an obviously expensive wallet.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s prime leather, Mr. Ben,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor a prime man,\u201d Ben assured him.\u00a0 He reached up to take the sachet bag from its branch and walked over to place it in Katerina\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cAnd this for the fine young lady who graces our home this Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow sweet of you to think of me,\u201d Katerina murmured.\u00a0 She held the bag to her nose and sniffed in the scent.\u00a0 \u201cOoh, lavender, my favorite.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m glad,\u201d Ben said, smiling, \u201cbut there\u2019s something inside besides lavender, my dear.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh?\u201d\u00a0 She loosened the drawstring, and her blue eyes widened and her mouth formed an \u201cO\u201d as she gazed inside.\u00a0 \u201cOh, my,\u201d she said, drawing out the pearl necklace.\u00a0 \u201cUncle Ben, it\u2019s beautiful, but I can\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0 Eyes shimmering with compassion, she looked up at him.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2014it was hers, wasn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Ben said softly, \u201cbut I want you to have it.\u00a0 I think she would, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos took the necklace, noting how the teardrop glistened in the firelight.\u00a0 \u201cNo, sir, Mr. Ben, this is too much.\u00a0 We\u2019re much obliged, but we can\u2019t accept a diamond.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s just glass, son.\u00a0 The pearls are real, of course, but it\u2019s not an expensive piece.\u00a0 Please let Katerina have it and wear it in honor of Marie.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos still seemed unsure of the propriety of such a gift.\u00a0 \u201cWell,\u201d he drawled out to give himself a few seconds more to reflect, \u201cI guess, seeing as how you put it that way, my Kat would be pleased to do Marie that honor.\u00a0 She sure deserved that much.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd more,\u201d Katerina whispered.\u00a0 She rose and, coming to Ben\u2019s side, stood on tiptoe to kiss his cheek.<\/p>\n

Ben pointed to the angel atop their tree.\u00a0 \u201cYou brought her to us this Christmas; it\u2019s only right that you take a piece of her with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Teary-eyed, Katerina nodded.<\/p>\n

Ben kissed her forehead.\u00a0 Then, gathering up the gifts for the hands in the bunkhouse and one for Hop Sing, he disappeared into the kitchen.<\/p>\n

The rain continued throughout the day, but so much warmth and happiness surrounded the occupants of the ranch house that no one seemed to mind until mid-afternoon, when Katerina said, \u201cI\u2019m afraid we\u2019re going to have to impose on your hospitality a bit longer, Uncle Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cImposition!\u201d Ben scoffed.\u00a0 \u201cWhy, Katerina, I\u2019d be ready to tear my hair out if you hadn\u2019t been here to help with these rowdy youngsters.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina smiled, but shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019ve been very well behaved and you know it.\u00a0 I only wish I\u2019d foreseen this happening and brought a change of clothes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben hesitated only a moment.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re welcome to one of Marie\u2019s dresses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina laughed.\u00a0 \u201cThey wouldn\u2019t fit, Uncle Ben . . . especially now.\u201d\u00a0 Her eyes dipped toward her rounded belly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI suppose not,\u201d Ben conceded somewhat sheepishly, \u201cbut you could have one of her nightgowns to sleep in, if you like.\u00a0 They might fit loosely enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d appreciate that,\u201d Katerina said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think Adam left a nightshirt here that might do for you, Enos,\u201d Ben offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks,\u201d the foreman said.\u00a0 \u201cSure hope this downpour eases up by tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The rain continued the next day and the day after that, melting the accumulated snow, but freezing a sheet of ice over it every night.\u00a0 The constant drizzle began to weigh on everyone\u2019s nerves, especially the young couple who had not expected to be stranded when they made their Christmas Eve call at the Ponderosa.\u00a0 Hop Sing generously did their laundry overnight, but as their clothes were not yet dry the next morning, both Enos and Katerina appeared at the breakfast table in borrowed nightclothes and robes.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you suppose it will ever end?\u201d Katerina sighed.<\/p>\n

\u201cProbably in time for the spring showers,\u201d Ben commented dryly.<\/p>\n

Katerina wagged a chiding finger at him.\u00a0 \u201cIn that case, I hope you\u2019re prepared to play midwife.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t you dare,\u201d a flushing Ben growled menacingly.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a mess out there,\u201d Enos observed.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon the Carson River\u2019s flooded.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBound to be,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 \u201cIn fact, CarsonValley\u2019s probably a lake by now.\u00a0 All that melting snow has to go somewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe going to the lake?\u201d Little Joe asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, son,\u201d Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cJust step outside the front door and wade right in.\u201d\u00a0 He grabbed hold of the boy when he jumped up, apparently intending to do just as he was told.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s all we need,\u201d he scolded, \u201cyou tracking in mud and making Hop Sing stomp off for old China.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot a chance, Pa,\u201d Hoss said with a grin.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019d need a boat, and they don\u2019t sail over the mountains.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother day or two of this and they will,\u201d Ben groused.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, the rain ended that night, but Ben persuaded Enos and Katerina to stay on one more day, to let the ground dry out a little.\u00a0 When the trip was finally deemed safe, Ben loaned them his buckboard, for with the snow gone, their sleigh was no longer a practical choice.\u00a0 Enos could load his wagon wheels into the buckboard when he returned to work and switch them out for the runners then.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to ride along with you,\u201d Ben insisted, leading his horse from the barn.<\/p>\n

\u201cHate to put you to the trouble,\u201d Enos demurred, although he looked grateful.<\/p>\n

Ben waved the objection aside.\u00a0 \u201cNo trouble.\u00a0 I need an excuse to get away from those boys for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina laughed.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you\u2019ll be just as eager to get back to them, you know you will.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben admitted it with a smile, as he mounted his horse.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, the trip was uneventful, and after sharing a cup of coffee at the Montgomery place, Ben rode on south, wanting to see for himself the extent of the flooding.\u00a0 The roads were still bad, though, so he didn\u2019t make it all the way in to Carson City.\u00a0 That was a disappointment, for he\u2019d hoped to catch up with the Thomases and to buy a newspaper to discover what was going on in the outside world.\u00a0 He was beginning to feel cut off, but he decided, after all, that it didn\u2019t much matter, since the people who meant the most to him were right on the Ponderosa\u2014with the exception of Adam, of course; no way to keep in touch with him but by mail.\u00a0 He\u2019d try tomorrow to get into WashoeCity and see if there was a letter waiting, and with that thought in mind he hurried home to make certain that he had a letter ready to post to his boy.<\/p>\n

\u00a0~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

\u00a0From mid-December of 1861 on, the weather was every bit as cold, wet and miserable as depicted in this and the previous chapter.\u00a0 The storm that started then was described by long-time residents as the worst \u201csince Fr\u00e9mont forced the mountains,\u201d and the warm rain that began on Christmas and continued for three days did, indeed, make a massive lake of CarsonValley.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER ELEVEN<\/p>\n

Keeping in Touch<\/p>\n

Ben tucked his letter to Adam into his inner coat pocket and buttoned the garment snugly.\u00a0 As he buckled his gun about his hips, he spotted a small figure out of the corner of his eye, jumping up in an attempt to pull a jacket from the peg by the door.\u00a0 \u201cJust what do you think you\u2019re up to, little boy?\u201d he asked as he caught his youngest son in mid-leap.<\/p>\n

\u201cGoin\u2019 with you, Pa,\u201d Little Joe declared, \u201c\u2018cept I need my coat and I can\u2019t reach it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t need it,\u201d Ben chuckled, \u201c\u2018cause you\u2019re not going anywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAm, too,\u201d Little Joe insisted.<\/p>\n

Ben set the boy on the credenza and shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Little Joe, you are not.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut . . . we needs us,\u201d the youngster said with a cunning smile.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cWe may needs us,\u201d he said, \u201cbut we don\u2019t need you, not on this expedition.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s for sure,\u201d Hoss chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019d just be one more thing to tote in at the widow\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMrs. Hunter to you, boy,\u201d Ben said firmly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir . . . Miz Hunter,\u201d Hoss at once corrected himself.<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s lips pushed out in a pout.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s my friend, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

That makes one of us<\/em>, Ben thought, though he knew he was being unfair.\u00a0 Elvira Hunter had certainly been a friend to them last week, but he felt reluctant to admit even that much when her eyes and her manner so visibly stated that she wanted to be more\u2014much more\u2014than just a friend and a good neighbor.\u00a0 Still, he\u2019d promised to bring her supplies, in return for the ones she\u2019d expended, and it was time he kept his word.\u00a0 The way the weather had been lately, he couldn\u2019t count on having another chance soon.<\/p>\n

Lifting Little Joe, he gave him a hug.\u00a0 \u201cNot today, sweetheart,\u201d he soothed.\u00a0 \u201cThis is not a friendship visit, just a brief, working stop on the way into town.\u201d\u00a0 The minute he said it, he knew he shouldn\u2019t have.<\/p>\n

\u201cI<\/em> want to go to town,\u201d Little Joe insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben said, setting the boy onto the floor.\u00a0 \u201cPa doesn\u2019t want you out in the cold that long.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s face puckered, and he glared at his brother.\u00a0 \u201cHoss gets to be in the cold that long.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss is older.\u201d\u00a0 Ben automatically offered the time-honored excuse.\u00a0 \u201cNow, you run along into the kitchen and . . . and . . .\u201d\u00a0 and let Hop Sing deal with you<\/em>, he finished silently, sending the boy on with a soft pat to his backside.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd what, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked with a grin after his little brother had scooted off in a snit.<\/p>\n

Ben bent down and answered in a conspiratorial whisper, \u201cAnd get out of our hair.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah!\u201d Hoss whispered back.\u00a0 He was delighted at the prospect, not only of a trip to town, but time alone with his father.\u00a0 Much as he enjoyed playing with Little Joe, he\u2019d had his fill of it since Christmas, especially with the weather keeping them indoors, and being with Pa made him feel grown up.\u00a0 It was a good feeling; he relished it as they walked out together, hitched the team and began loading the supplies into the buckboard.<\/p>\n

Hank Carlton, coming out of the bunkhouse, hefted the final sack of flour into the wagon.\u00a0 \u201cThese the things for Mrs. Hunter?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d Ben replied.\u00a0 \u201cAn obligation it\u2019s high time I fulfilled.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBe glad to take \u2018em over for you,\u201d Hank offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Hank, you don\u2019t have to do that.\u00a0 It is your day off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hank tipped his hat forward, putting his reddening face into shadow.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, but I don\u2019t mind.\u00a0 Well . . . fact is, I\u2019d sort of like to, Mr. Cartwright.\u00a0 Got some thank yous of my own to say to the lady.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben inhaled sharply and pursed his lips, to keep his sudden sense of exhilaration contained.\u00a0 \u201cWell, if you\u2019re sure,\u201d he said slowly.<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, Pa,\u201d Hoss whined.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t we goin\u2019 no place, after all?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben felt an instant\u2019s shame, as he admitted to himself, for the first time, that the reason he\u2019d wanted Hoss along was to act as a shield against the widow Hunter\u2019s advances.\u00a0 That wasn\u2019t fair to his son; nor was depriving him of a day out, when he\u2019d undoubtedly been looking forward to it.\u00a0 Ben rested a consoling hand on Hoss\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cOf course, we are, son.\u00a0 We\u2019ll still go into WashoeCity . . . . unless you\u2019d prefer to visit the wid\u2014Mrs. Hunter with Hank.\u201d\u00a0 He raised a questioning eyebrow at Hank, who, oddly enough, looked reluctant to have Hoss along.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2014uh\u2014could be a good help to you with unloading the supplies,\u201d Ben suggested hesitantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, if\u2019n you was especially wanting to see Mrs. Hunter,\u201d Hank said without enthusiasm, though he smiled at Hoss.<\/p>\n

Ben stepped in before Hoss could answer.\u00a0 \u201cOn the other hand, there aren\u2019t that many supplies, so maybe you\u2019d prefer to come with me, Hoss.\u00a0 We\u2019ll pick up the mail and post our letters to Adam and then have lunch at the Antelope restaurant and see what\u2019s on offer at the mercantile.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss pondered for a moment.\u00a0 He\u2019d been hoping for an invite to Mrs. Hunter\u2019s table, but the restaurant sounded right good, too\u2014and more definite. \u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll go along with you, Pa,\u201d he decided.\u00a0 \u201cAnd maybe we could find some candy at that mercantile\u2014for Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou think we\u2019re gonna have to buy our way back into his good graces?\u201d Ben asked with a chuckle.<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s mouth skewed to one side.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon as much.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s mouth twitched.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you wouldn\u2019t mind having a share of that candy yourself, I suppose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss responded with his characteristic, gap-toothed grin.\u00a0 \u201cNo, sir, not a bit.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Stopping by the post office, the Cartwrights discovered no mail waiting for them, but the postmaster assured them there was a stage due in just past noon.\u00a0 \u201cWell, that fits our plans fine, doesn\u2019t it, Hoss?\u201d Ben said with forced enthusiasm.\u00a0 \u201cWe were staying over for lunch, anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight!\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

Taking a page from his young son\u2019s book, Ben decided to simply savor whatever pleasures the day offered, one of which, obviously, was just being with this sunny, easy-to-please son of his.\u00a0 \u201cMight as well check out the mercantile first, hmm?\u201d he asked as they left the post office.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah!\u201d Hoss cried with enthusiasm.\u00a0 Whistling, he walked along the board slats of the sidewalk at his father\u2019s side, clearly content with the way the day was unfolding.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t even mind when Pa stopped to talk to friends or acquaintances along the way.\u00a0 They had the whole day before them, after all, and nothing to do but enjoy it.<\/p>\n

When they turned in to the mercantile, Ben said, \u201cI\u2019m putting you in charge of the candy, Hoss.\u00a0 You probably know your little brother\u2019s tastes better than I do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss wasn\u2019t sure he did, since he normally paid more attention to his own taste when buying candy.\u00a0 He knew Little Joe didn\u2019t care for horehound drops, and he didn\u2019t seem to be partial to the lemon drops Hoss favored.\u00a0 Taffy, maybe?\u00a0 Hoss didn\u2019t especially like the sticky stuff, but sticky might be right up Little Joe\u2019s alley, seein\u2019 as how he generally was makin\u2019 a mess of one sort or another.\u00a0 Hoss frowned.\u00a0 Hop Sing probably wouldn\u2019t appreciate sticky hands all over the house, though.\u00a0 He stared at the glass jars holding the penny candy and pondered what was becoming an increasingly difficult decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving trouble making up your mind, Hoss?\u201d a treble voice inquired.<\/p>\n

Grin spreading across his face, Hoss spun around.\u00a0 \u201cHowdy, Miss Appleton.\u00a0 Sure been a spell since I seen you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSince you saw me, Hoss,\u201d she corrected gently.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u2019m, I meant \u2018saw,\u2019\u201d he said quickly, and she smiled her approval.<\/p>\n

Ben came up to stand beside his son.\u00a0 \u201cMiss Appleton . . . a pleasure to see you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA pleasure to be out for a change,\u201d Miss Appleton laughed.<\/p>\n

Ben smiled cordially.\u00a0 \u201cThat it is.\u00a0 Is school still scheduled to start again on the second?<\/p>\n

\u201cWeather permitting,\u201d Miss Appleton said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss will be there, weather permitting,\u201d Ben assured her.<\/p>\n

Hoss shrugged.\u00a0 School was never his favorite place to be, but he liked his teacher and he missed his friends.\u00a0 All in all, he found himself looking forward to that Tuesday\u2014weather permitting<\/em>, he thought with a soft snicker\u2014and if it didn\u2019t, well, he\u2019d just look forward to whatever came.\u00a0 \u201cI am havin\u2019 trouble pickin\u2019 out some candy for my baby brother, Miss Appleton,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cWhat kind do you like?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMmm,\u201d Miss Appleton murmured as she thought.\u00a0 \u201cI believe peppermint sticks are my favorite, Hoss.\u00a0 Do you think your brother would like that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u2019m, I\u2019ve seen him eat them\u2014uh, those\u2014uh, that\u2014aw, shucks.\u201d\u00a0 He gave up in frustration over the intricacies of English grammar.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Them\u2019 is fine, so long as you end your sentence there, Hoss,\u201d his teacher chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what I\u2019ll get him, then,\u201d Hoss replied, relieved.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m glad I could help.\u00a0 I\u2019ll see you next Tuesday.\u201d\u00a0 She shook his hand and that of his father and went back to looking at the meager supply of dress goods on display.<\/p>\n

Ben and Hoss finished their shopping and took their few purchases to the buckboard.\u00a0 Due to the inclement weather of late, the mercantile hadn\u2019t had much in stock, but there were plenty of foodstuffs, at least, at home.\u00a0 Ben had learned years ago never to trust a Sierra winter and always laid in his supplies early and in abundance.\u00a0 This year, with weather far more severe than usual, was proving the wisdom of that practice.<\/p>\n

They meandered down the street, enjoying the smell of fresh air and the sight of fresh faces.\u00a0 Finally, they turned in at the Antelope, sat at a small, round table and perused the menu written on a chalkboard nailed to the wall.\u00a0 \u201cThe plate lunch is the best deal, huh, Pa?\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you want a full meal,\u201d his father replied.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I do,\u201d Hoss declared at once.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s mouth twitched at the predictability of that answer.\u00a0 When had Hoss ever opted for less than a full meal.\u00a0 Only when he was sick, and that was next to never.\u00a0 \u201cI think I\u2019ll have that, too,\u201d he said.\u00a0 Fricasseed rabbit was on the plate lunch today, with baked beans, biscuits and gravy on the side.\u00a0 Ben would have preferred some greens, but it wasn\u2019t the season for such things.\u00a0 Dried apple cobbler came with the plate lunch, so it seemed well worth the fifty cents charged, especially when he figured in the pleasure of a meal out with his middle son.\u00a0 He loved being with the whole family, but spending time with just one at a time carried its own special magic.\u00a0 He should plan some time alone with Little Joe soon, too, he decided.\u00a0 Then he sighed as he thought of Adam, far away.\u00a0 It would be a long time before he could spend a day with his eldest.\u00a0 Suddenly, he missed the boy more than ever and hoped all the harder that there\u2019d be a letter on that afternoon stage.<\/p>\n

As if in answer to his yearning, the stage rumbled past the window by which they were sitting.\u00a0 \u201cThere it is!\u201d Hoss cried.\u00a0 \u201cAnd there\u2019s gonna be a letter from Adam: I just know it!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure hope you\u2019re right,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 He dug into his pocket, pulled out a coin and handed it to Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cRun down and pick up the mail, all right, son?\u00a0 That should be more than enough to cover the postage.\u00a0 And if there is a letter from Adam, we\u2019ll just have ourselves another cup of coffee\u2014milk, in your case\u2014and read it right here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned ear to ear, clinched the coin in his fist and trotted out the door.\u00a0 Soon he was dancing back, waving a letter in each fist.\u00a0 \u201cOne\u2019s from your friend back East,\u201d he reported, \u201cbut this one\u2019s from Adam!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, let\u2019s have that one!\u201d Ben declared with enthusiasm to match that of his young son.\u00a0 Much as he\u2019d enjoy the letter from Josiah Edwards\u2014he assumed that was the \u201cfriend back East\u201d to whom Hoss referred\u2014it didn\u2019t hold a candle to one from his oldest son.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan we really read it right here and now?\u201d Hoss asked eagerly as he took his seat back at the table.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t we gotta wait for Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben leaned across the table and said in a conspiratorial whisper, \u201cI won\u2019t tell if you won\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss gave a little bounce in his chair.\u00a0 \u201cNo, sir.\u00a0 You can count on me.\u201d<\/p>\n

With an affectionate smile at his son, Ben unsealed the envelope and gave the letter\u2019s contents a quick scan, just in case there was something private he should withhold, and then began to read:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dear Pa, Hoss and Little Joe,<\/p>\n

Merry Christmas!\u00a0 Although I\u2019m sure it will be past the holiday when you receive this, I send you greetings and gratitude for the unexpected, but much appreciated Christmas draft you sent to me.\u00a0 I will spend it carefully and promise not to waste it on frivolous things\u2014well, except for some of Candy Sam\u2019s divinity.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure Hoss, at least, will agree with me that that is not a frivolous purchase.\u00a0 How about you, Little Joe?\u00a0 Mr. Edwards was deeply touched, as well, by what you sent to him, Pa.<\/p>\n

I have wonderful news to share on his behalf.\u00a0 He has, at last, obtained a teaching position.\u00a0 Jamie and I, of course, are well pleased for his sake, but less so for our own, as the position is in Springfield, Massachusetts.\u00a0 That is close enough for visits between terms, depending on the type of housing he\u2019s able to locate, but we will miss having him here close at hand.\u00a0 He has in a sense filled your shoes for me in his encouragement and concern, so perhaps I\u2019ll be even more lonely for you, once he, too, is far from me.\u00a0 He doesn\u2019t have lodgings there yet, but I will send you his new address as soon as I learn it.<\/p>\n

Term exams begin soon, but while I feel some natural nervousness, I am certain that my preparation has been diligent and that I\u2019ll do you proud.\u00a0 Once they are finished, Josiah, Jamie and I will be off to New York City for a few days.\u00a0 Because he\u2019s found a teaching position, Josiah wasn\u2019t as much in need of the funds you sent as when you posted that draft, so he wants to spend a portion of it on this final fling together.\u00a0 He insists on paying for everything, but I will, of course, be mindful not to impose on his generosity.\u00a0 I expect we\u2019ll see some shows and some sights, and I\u2019ll be sure to send you a full description of our activities after we return to New Haven.<\/p>\n

To all of you I wish a happy New Year.\u00a0 May it be as full of joy as the last one was of sorrow.<\/p>\n

Your loving son and brother,<\/p>\n

Adam<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cPa, what\u2019s \u2018frivolous\u2019 mean?\u201d Hoss asked as his father finished reading.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, something of little importance,\u201d Ben replied.\u00a0 \u201cAdam was certain you wouldn\u2019t think candy was an unimportant purchase,\u201d he explained with a chuckle.\u00a0 \u201cI think he knows you, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss cackled with delight.\u00a0 \u201cSure does!\u201d\u00a0 Then his face wrinkled in thought.\u00a0 \u201cHave I ever had divinity, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure,\u201d his father said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s that light, fluffy candy with nutmeats that Aunt Nelly sometimes makes at Christmas time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah,\u201d Hoss said dreamily.\u00a0 \u201cSure wish we coulda had some this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI wish we could\u2019ve had the Thomases\u2019 company for Christmas, too.\u201d\u00a0 Need to get over to <\/em>Carson<\/em> and check on them<\/em>, he thought.\u00a0 Hope they made out all right in all this weather<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cUmm . . . Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Slowly, Ben came out of his reverie and looked across to see his son nervously licking his lower lip.\u00a0 \u201cYes, son, what is it?\u201d\u00a0 Though he tried to keep his tone even, his voice was laced with concern.<\/p>\n

Hoss kept his eyes glued to his finger as he drew figure eights on the rough-planked table.\u00a0 \u201cThat last part of Adam\u2019s letter . . . about this year bein\u2019 happier than the last un . . . he was talkin\u2019 about Ma, wasn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s hand closed gently over the boy\u2019s restless fingers.\u00a0 \u201cYes, I think so.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss looked up hesitantly.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t think she\u2019d mind, do you, if\u2019n we was happy this year?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s smile was warm with compassion and love.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, I know for a fact that your mother hopes that 1862 will be one of your happiest ever, and she\u2019ll wish the same every year of your life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2014I thought so,\u201d the boy murmured.\u00a0 \u201cI was just checkin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a pat Ben released his son\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cYou can always check anything you need to with me, Hoss.\u00a0 You know that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir, I know . . . and I\u2019m real grateful for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gratitude . . . another notion the boy had picked up from his brother\u2019s letter, and Ben found himself feeling it, too . . . for the blessing of having a son like Hoss . . . and Adam . . . and that little scalawag he\u2019d left at home today.\u00a0 \u201cWell, we need to get back on the road soon, son,\u201d he said, \u201cbut maybe we should warm\u00a0 up with a cup of cocoa for you and coffee for me before we leave.\u201d\u00a0 At Hoss\u2019s eager acceptance he signaled the restaurant keeper and then opened his letter from Josiah to read while he waited for their drinks to arrive.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Brow furrowing deeper with every step, Ben let his horse pick its way down the muddy main street of Carson City.\u00a0 The place sure was a mess: mud marks on the sides of the buildings and the plaza strewn with tangled brush, both evidence that the river had overflowed its banks and left behind deposits that only garnered the interest of extra work.\u00a0 All around the square people were hard at it, scrubbing and sweeping and setting things right again.\u00a0 Some places, the damage was worse.\u00a0 Coming in, he\u2019d seen a mill washed away and a couple of adobe buildings that had simply dissolved to join the mass of mud he was now slogging through.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey musta got lots more snow than us, Pa,\u201d Little Joe, perched in front of him in the saddle, said.\u00a0 He was clearly awed by the sight of so much enticing mud.<\/p>\n

In keeping with his new resolve to spend time separately with each of his sons, Ben had brought Little Joe with him today, but he was beginning to think he should have chosen another time and place for that.\u00a0 Odds were, his friends would need help cleaning up, and bringing this little mud magnet into the house would do nothing but add to the chaos.\u00a0 Still, he\u2019d enjoyed the child\u2019s chatter all the way to town and couldn\u2019t really regret having him underfoot, even now.\u00a0 He leaned over to rub his rough cheek against the boy\u2019s smooth one.\u00a0 \u201cMore in the mountains, son, which fed the river, once the rains came.\u00a0 That\u2019s what made the Carson flood.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t like floods,\u201d Little Joe declared.<\/p>\n

Ben tousled the boy\u2019s curls.\u00a0 \u201cI suspect that puts you right in line with everyone else in town.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moving down a side street, he found Nelly Thomas on her knees, scouring her front porch.\u00a0 \u201cExcuse me, ma\u2019am, but could you put up a couple of weary travelers for the night?\u201d he asked saucily.<\/p>\n

Dropping her scrub brush, Nelly got to her feet.\u00a0 \u201cWhy, if it ain\u2019t my little Sugarfoot,\u201d she said, reaching up to pull Little Joe down from the horse.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowdy, Aunt Nelly,\u201d Little Joe chirped.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowdy, Sugarfoot.\u00a0 Well, light down, Ben,\u201d she ordered, balancing the little boy on one hip.\u00a0 \u201cYou know better than to ask if you can spend the night: you\u2019re always welcome.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI was teasing, Nelly,\u201d Ben chuckled as he dismounted and looped the reins around the porch rail.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re heading back this afternoon.\u00a0 I just wanted to check on you and Clyde, see how you made out in all this weather.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTook some water in the cellar, like most folks,\u201d Nelly sighed.\u00a0 \u201cEven Governor Nye, I heard.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWater is no respecter of persons,\u201d Ben observed.\u00a0 \u201cNow, what can I do to help?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cClyde and Billy are down in the cellar, tryin\u2019 to clear out the muck, so\u2019s it\u2019ll dry faster.\u201d\u00a0 She jounced Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll get Inger to watch our boy here, while I finish up, and then I\u2019ll get dinner on.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNelly, don\u2019t you dare go to any trouble on a day like this,\u201d Ben scolded as he followed her inside.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomething simple,\u201d she promised, \u201cbut the Good Books says the workman is worthy of his pie . . . or something like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure the Reverend Bennett would sanction that interpretation,\u201d Ben said with a wink.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like pie,\u201d Little Joe offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou and every other man I ever met,\u201d Nelly laughed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like vinty, too,\u201d the little boy hinted.<\/p>\n

Nelly cocked her head quizzically.\u00a0 \u201cVinty?\u201d<\/p>\n

Heading toward the entrance to the cellar, Ben paused and turned around.\u00a0 \u201cI think he means divinity.\u00a0 Adam mentioned it in his last letter and whetted his brothers\u2019 appetite for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly laughed.\u00a0 \u201cSo happens I\u2019ve got a mite left from Christmas, and you\u2019re welcome to take it home with you.\u00a0 Goodness knows, we\u2019ve eaten enough of it to last us another year.\u00a0 I\u2019ll be expectin\u2019 to hear all about Adam\u2019s news at dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFair exchange,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 He made his way down the steps into the cellar, where Clyde and Billy were shoveling mud into tin pails.\u00a0 \u201cLittle old for mud pies, aren\u2019t you?\u201d he suggested dryly.<\/p>\n

\u201cDone lost my sense of humor on the subject,\u201d Clyde groused, \u201cso unless you wanna take a bath in this here mud, hobble your lip.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy flashed Ben a grin.\u00a0 \u201cReal congenial, ain\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t say as I blame him,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cHand me that shovel, Clyde, and take a breather.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clyde promptly thrust the shovel at his friend and sat down on the bottom cellar step.\u00a0 Streaking his forehead with mud as he wiped his brow with the back of his hand, he said, \u201cI ain\u2019t turnin\u2019 down an offer like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Course, it\u2019ll cost you,\u201d Ben said, scooping up a shovelful of mud.<\/p>\n

Clyde snorted.\u00a0 \u201cName your price.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNews of the day,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cI haven\u2019t seen a newspaper in so long, for all I know the eastern seaboard\u2019s collapsed into the Atlantic.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBe kind of hard on Adam, wouldn\u2019t it?\u201d Billy cackled.<\/p>\n

Ben conceded the point with a tilt of his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfraid you won\u2019t get much salary that way,\u201d Clyde said grumpily.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t nothin\u2019 been over the Sierras since that blame Christmas storm started up.\u00a0 From what I hear, road\u2019s closed up so tight not even a horseman can get through.\u00a0 They say there won\u2019t be a deluge like this for another generation, and it feels like it\u2019ll take about that long to get any news this side of the mountains.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, there\u2019s some,\u201d Billy offered.\u00a0 When his father looked at him as if he\u2019d lost his mind, he said, \u201cThe new warden.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clyde scowled.\u00a0 \u201cTerritory done appointed Abe Curry warden of the prison.\u201d\u00a0 A bit of his usual mischief sparked in his eye as he added, \u201cMaybe they figured he could talk the prisoners to death.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCould be a powerful incentive to staying on the right side of the law,\u201d Ben agreed with a grin.\u00a0 If there was one thing Abraham Curry loved, it was the sound of his own voice, and a captive audience would suit him to a T.<\/p>\n

\u201cOr give \u2018em all the more reason to stage a jailbreak,\u201d Billy suggested with a grin.<\/p>\n

With a chiding frown at the sass, Ben promptly changed the subject.\u00a0 \u201cAny war news?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNah, nothin\u2019s come over the wire.\u00a0 Reckon they\u2019re in camp for the winter,\u201d Clyde replied.<\/p>\n

\u201cProbably,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 He started to heft his full bucket when Billy reached for it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll take it up,\u201d the boy offered.<\/p>\n

Ben joined Clyde on the step.\u00a0 Glancing around the room, he noticed that the shelves that normally bulged with preserved foods were almost bare.\u00a0 \u201cYou lose a lot?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not much,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cFirst sign of trouble, Nelly had us tote out everything that was stored low.\u00a0 I balked at the notion, but was glad I gave in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhich means, I presume, that there\u2019s plenty of potatoes for dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd biscuits, if you\u2019re lucky.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cWith lots of \u2018gavvy,\u2019 as Hoss used to say.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe with you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo . . . school, but Little Joe\u2019s here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLord, help us,\u201d Clyde quipped with a roll of his eyes.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0It snowed off and on for the next week, though not as heavily as before.\u00a0 Some days Hoss was able to get to school, but other times Ben felt it not worth the risk.\u00a0 He rode into school with the boy on January 14th<\/sup> and continued on into town for elections in the newly organized WashoeCounty.\u00a0 After filling in his ballot for the officials to serve until September, he made a stop by the post office and had his hopes fulfilled when he was handed another letter from Adam.\u00a0 That and the prevailing cold made a hot cup of coffee suddenly enticing, so he ambled down to the Antelope and placed his order.\u00a0 Then he opened the envelope and noticed with approval that it also held a separate note addressed jointly to Adam\u2019s brothers.\u00a0 His own letter was short this time, merely discussing Adam\u2019s final exams for the first term.\u00a0 He described them as being different from what he was accustomed to, but assured his father that he thought he\u2019d done well.\u00a0 A good school report was always gratifying, of course, and probably uppermost in Adam\u2019s mind, but Ben hoped there\u2019d be something more remarkable in the note to the boys.\u00a0 After all, Adam always did well with his studies; that was scarcely news, Ben thought with a smile into his coffee cup.<\/p>\n

The boys\u2019 letter was both longer and more interesting, for it gave a better picture of what college life was like for his son.\u00a0 When Hoss came in from school that afternoon, they all gathered before the fire, and Hoss read the letter aloud to his father and younger brother.\u00a0 In it, Adam described what he called a \u201cpeanut bum\u201d at his freshman society meeting, and Hoss smacked his lips at the thought of all the peanuts and cocoa a boy could hold.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can supply the cocoa,\u201d Ben chuckled, \u201cbut you\u2019ll have to settle for popcorn.\u00a0 We don\u2019t have any peanuts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPopcorn bum!\u201d Little Joe demanded.\u00a0 \u201cRight now!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben leaned close to the boy\u2019s face and scowled with mock ferocity.\u00a0 \u201cAfter supper . . . and only then if you eat well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe will,\u201d Hoss promised and fixed his younger brother with a commanding stare.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny more news?\u201d Ben asked, gesturing with his chin toward the letter in Hoss\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust a mite,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cAdam says again that he\u2019ll write about all the fun he has in New York City, once he gets back, and he wants me to tell all about Christmas on the Ponderosa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan you remember back that far?\u201d his father teased.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa!\u00a0 \u2018Course, I can.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTell \u2018bout the angel,\u201d Little Joe urged.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou do that, Little Joe,\u201d his father said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll write down whatever you want to say to Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay . . . and I can draw a picture,\u201d Little Joe declared happily.<\/p>\n

Remembering the last drawing his youngest son had sent to his eldest, the one that had convinced him for all time that Little Joe had no artistic bent, Ben smiled ruefully, but he said only, \u201cSure\u201d and went to get a sheet of paper for the project.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Floods surely were a nuisance to clean up after, Ben decided.\u00a0 The house had been in no danger, but fences had been swept away and landslides had dumped debris on good pastureland.\u00a0 He had only a couple of hands held over from last summer, and he kept them and himself busy, clearing the land and making sure the cattle had feed and water and a clear path to them.\u00a0 The fences would have to wait until spring, maybe even later if the ground stayed spongy, as it was now.<\/p>\n

Trips to town were few and far between for Ben, but Hoss, on the days he could get in to school, stopped by the post office in WashoeCity.\u00a0 Toward the end of the month, he rode in, excitedly waving another letter from Adam.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a thick un, too,\u201d he announced to Little Joe as he plopped the youngster onto Charcoal\u2019s back for his regular ride into the barn.<\/p>\n

\u201cGimme,\u201d Little Joe demanded, stretching out of the saddle for the letter.<\/p>\n

Hoss held it just out of reach.\u00a0 \u201cYou can hold it, but don\u2019t try to open it; it\u2019s addressed to Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s mouth formed an expressive pout as he took the envelope and stared at the written inscription on its front.\u00a0 \u201cMy turn,\u201d he insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cNaw, not really,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cWe had a letter last time, remember?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa, too,\u201d Joe argued.<\/p>\n

Hoss pulled his brother out of the saddle and set him on the side of the stall.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, he does write to Pa more, but that\u2019s as should be, I reckon.\u00a0 He is Pa, little brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d a slumped Little Joe muttered grudgingly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I mean it,\u201d Hoss said as he unfastened the cinch of his saddle.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s like when Pa took me to WashoeCity and then you to Carson.\u00a0 Sometimes a feller just needs to have pa to hisself, and them letters is the only way Adam can have that.\u00a0 Understand?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe,\u201d Little Joe conceded, though reluctantly.<\/p>\n

Hoss hefted the saddle over the side of the stall, next to Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cThick as that letter is, I bet it\u2019s got something for us in it, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe sat up straighter, and his eyes brightened.\u00a0 \u201cYeah?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m guessin\u2019,\u201d Hoss admitted, \u201cbut you just wait and see if\u2019n I ain\u2019t right.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, hurry up, then,\u201d Little Joe demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know better\u2019n that,\u201d Hoss scolded.\u00a0 \u201cCharcoal here deserves a proper rubdown, and she\u2019s gettin\u2019 one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d the youngster agreed quickly.\u00a0 He knew there was no arguing against Pa\u2019s adage that caring for the stock came first, especially since, if anything, Hoss had even stronger feelings about it.\u00a0 Besides, Charcoal was a nice horse and, like Hoss said, deserved the attention she was getting.<\/p>\n

After what seemed like an eternity to Little Joe, the chores were done, and he and Hoss were settled on the floor with a plate of cookies between them on the table before the fireplace.\u00a0 Ben was seated in his favorite chair and after taking a draw on his pipe, unsealed the envelope and pulled from it several sheets.\u00a0 As he opened them, a couple of small cards fluttered to the floor, and Little Joe was quick to snatch them up.\u00a0 \u201cOoh, pictures,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Ben held out his hand.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe, give those to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMine,\u201d Little Joe insisted. \u00a0\u201cHoss said.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI said I figured Adam had sent us something,\u201d Hoss scolded, \u201cand I did say \u2018us,\u2019 not just \u2018you,\u2019 doggone it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben wiggled his fingers.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe,\u201d he said sternly, and the boy reluctantly handed over the pictures.\u00a0 Ben set them aside and turned back to the letter.\u00a0 \u201cMy, isn\u2019t this a nice, newsy letter?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLots longer than usual,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

Ben, who had scanned a few lines ahead, smiled.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s about his trip to New York City, and it looks like your brother has lots of adventures to tell.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRead \u2018em!\u201d Little Joe demanded.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cAll right, Little Sir Impatience, I will.\u201d\u00a0 He began to read Adam\u2019s\u00a0 account of his Christmas trip to New York City with the Edwards, which was so detailed that they could easily picture every place the travelers had seen, every performance they\u2019d attended and every bit of fun they\u2019d enjoyed. \u00a0Adam recounted the items he\u2019d purchased in stores along Broadway and elsewhere and at that point mentioned the cards included with his letter:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The cartes de visite<\/em> are for the boys.\u00a0 The picture of Whittier\u2019s Barefoot Boy<\/em> reminded me so much of Hoss that I wanted to buy it for him, and I chose The Little Match Girl<\/em> for Little Joe.\u00a0 I understand that collecting cartes de visite<\/em> is quite the rage here in the East, so perhaps I\u2019ll find others to send them on future trips.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cI want the boy,\u201d Little Joe whined.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou will take what your brother sent or go without,\u201d Ben said firmly.<\/p>\n

Little Joe weighed the gravity of going without for a moment, but he couldn\u2019t stop himself from muttering, \u201cBut I don\u2019t like girls.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFine.\u00a0 Hoss can have both, then,\u201d Ben said, picking up both cards and extending them to his middle son.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019ll probably take better care of them, anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo!\u201d Little Joe protested.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s mine.\u00a0 Adam said.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you\u2019re content with that?\u201d\u00a0 Ben eyed his youngest inquiringly as he slowly drew back the cards.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll share,\u201d Hoss inserted quickly.\u00a0 \u201cYou can borrow the boy part time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d Little Joe agreed readily.<\/p>\n

Ben wasn\u2019t sure whether to hug Hoss for his selfless generosity or scold him for interfering with an obviously needed lesson, but he let it go and simply handed each boy the carte de visite<\/em> intended for him.\u00a0 Then he continued reading Adam\u2019s letter:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And there will be future trips to New York City.\u00a0 That is probably the most exciting news I have to share with you.\u00a0 At Josiah\u2019s suggestion I visited the offices of several architects, seeking their advice on how to better prepare myself for that profession.\u00a0 Most were polite, but not particularly helpful.\u00a0 Mr. Addison Bracebridge, however, not only took a genuine interest in me and gave me sound counsel; he also extended an offer of a job with him during my summer break from Yale.\u00a0 While I\u2019ll gain practical experience, I\u2019ll also earn some money toward my college expenses and be less a burden to you, Pa.\u00a0 He\u2019s also asked me to submit sketches to him from time to time, and I intend to begin my first, of the State House on the Green, tomorrow after we see Josiah off to Springfield.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t Adam comin\u2019 home for the summer?\u201d Little Joe asked, his face troubled.<\/p>\n

Ben sighed.\u00a0 \u201cSweetheart, we have been over and over this: Adam is not coming home this summer.\u00a0 It\u2019s too far.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t comin\u2019 home next summer, neither,\u201d Hoss put in glumly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, and let\u2019s leave it at that,\u201d Ben said with a warning glance at Hoss, who nodded understanding of the message.\u00a0 \u201cAdam will be gone a long time,\u201d he continued.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s why letters\u2014from him to us and us to him\u2014are so important.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd presents,\u201d Little Joe added.<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cEspecially when they\u2019re to you, right?\u201d\u00a0 He reached over to tousle the child\u2019s curls.\u00a0 \u201cBetter drink down that glass of milk and then put your card in a very special place, where it\u2019ll be safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll help him find one,\u201d Hoss offered, earning his father\u2019s grateful smile.<\/p>\n

\u00a0~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

\u00a0The Antelope was a historic restaurant in WashoeCity, and fifty cents was the price of a plate dinner there.\u00a0 Regular diners could obtain meals for $8 a week.<\/p>\n

The winter of 1861-62 was one of the most brutal the Comstock would experience.\u00a0 The unparalleled snowfall, followed by rain, washed out every dam on the Carson River and flooded towns throughout California and Nevada.\u00a0 Landslides crashed down the mountains, taking out everything in their path, and Lake Tahoe rose higher than any white man had ever seen it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER TWELVE<\/p>\n

Damsel in Distress<\/p>\n

Snow was falling outside again on the first of February, its powder fine as lace against the evening sky, but a roaring fire on the Ponderosa\u2019s grate kept the Cartwrights snug and warm.\u00a0 Sitting in his favorite chair, Ben was deep into the Territorial Enterprise,<\/em> which Hank Carlton had obligingly brought back from town when he\u2019d returned from his day off.\u00a0 \u00a0With wrinkled face and puckered lips Hoss was wrestling with some stubborn arithmetic problems.\u00a0 Disinclined to accept the lack of attention he was getting from the pair of them, Little Joe pushed his head beneath the newspaper his father held in both hands and peered up at him.\u00a0 \u201cWhatcha readin\u2019, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHmm?\u201d\u00a0 Spotting the curly head between his knees, Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cWhat are you doing there, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

Taking the question as an invitation, Little Joe crawled up into his father\u2019s lap.\u00a0 \u201cWhatcha readin\u2019, Pa?\u201d he asked again.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, just a description of a new ship the government is building.\u201d\u00a0 Ben set the paper aside and cuddled his boy closer.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s covered in iron.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan somethin\u2019 that heavy float, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked, propping his elbow on the table and leaning his head on his palm.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeems it can, Hoss,\u201d his father replied.\u00a0 \u201cHomework done?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss frowned.\u00a0 \u201cI got a couple left.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, time enough tomorrow, I suppose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss closed his arithmetic book with a bang that brought a frown to his father\u2019s face.\u00a0 Hoss crinkled his nose and then relaxed when the frown faded and was followed by a wink.\u00a0 He got up and came to lean on the arm of his father\u2019s chair.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s it say about the ship, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHmm?\u00a0 Oh, the Monitor<\/em>?\u00a0 It\u2019s intended for the war, son,\u201d Ben explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo bullets can\u2019t get through?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the general idea,\u201d his father chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you ever sail a ship like that, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d his father scoffed.\u00a0 \u201cMy ships were all sailing vessels.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTell \u2018bout it, Pa,\u201d Little Joe demanded.<\/p>\n

Ben ruffled the boy\u2019s curls.\u00a0 \u201cOh, it\u2019s stories of the high seas you want, is it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, Pa!\u201d Hoss chimed in with enthusiasm.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell,\u201d Ben said slowly, drawing out the word until it was as long as one of three or four syllables, \u201cI\u2019m afraid I couldn\u2019t possibly tell any stories tonight without\u201d\u2014he let the pause linger another few beats and finally said, \u201cPopcorn!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPopcorn bum!\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe bounced so hard on his father\u2019s thigh that Ben momentarily regretted having burst that surprise so abruptly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll tell Hop Sing!\u201d Hoss cried and hurried out to the kitchen.<\/p>\n

Soon all three were ensconced in the roomy armchair, with Joe perched on his father\u2019s right thigh and Hoss on the opposite arm of the chair.\u00a0 The bowl of buttery popcorn rested on Ben\u2019s left thigh, but since Ben had an arm around each of his sons, he couldn\u2019t reach it.\u00a0 Little Joe\u2019s sharp eyes noticed that, and he helpfully grabbed a fistful of the warm, fluffy kernels and crammed it into his father\u2019s mouth just as he started to speak.<\/p>\n

\u201cMmff,\u201d Ben sputtered, shaking his head at the offer of more.\u00a0 He chewed as quickly as he could and protested, \u201cThank you, Joseph, but Pa can\u2019t tell stories with his mouth full.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh,\u201d Little Joe accepted without chagrin.\u00a0 \u201cTell, then.\u201d\u00a0 He took a handful of popcorn for himself and munched expectantly into his father\u2019s face.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, Pa, tell,\u201d Hoss ordered with a lop-sided grin.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, Hoss, I was just about a year older than you when I first went to sea,\u201d his father began.\u00a0 \u201cUncle John had found me a place as cabin boy under Captain Stoddard.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam\u2019s grandpa?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI got a grandpa?\u201d Little Joe asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, you did,\u201d his father answered awkwardly.\u00a0 \u201cTwo of them, in fact, but they\u2019re both . . . in heaven now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s face lengthened.\u00a0 \u201cLike Mama?\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Ben answered softly.\u00a0 He dropped a kiss onto the boy\u2019s curls and hurried on with his story.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d been with Captain Stoddard for several months and fancied myself quite the sailor.\u00a0 As the captain\u2019s messenger, I\u2019d run up and down that ship a hundred times, and I\u2019d kept my eyes open and learned about all the sails, lines and ropes, but we\u2019d had such beautiful sailing weather that I\u2019d never seen them put to use in a storm.\u00a0 And that\u2019s just what was blowing our way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sensing excitement blowing their way, the two boys leaned in closer, and Ben continued, \u201cThe clouds grew darker and the wind fiercer, like nothing I\u2019d ever seen on shore.\u00a0 The ship began to pitch and reel, and waves splashed over the deck.\u00a0 When I skidded back to the captain\u2019s side after delivering a message aft, he took pity on my youth and told me to get to his cabin and stay there until I was called.\u00a0 And what do you think I did?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWent to the cabin and stayed put,\u201d Hoss said at once.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t fathom the notion of Pa, who set such store by obedience, ever doing other than he was told.\u00a0 Little Joe, who couldn\u2019t fathom the notion of anyone hiding in a cabin when there was an exciting storm going on, just looked puzzled.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what I should have done,\u201d Ben chuckled, \u201cbut I\u2019m afraid your pa wasn\u2019t a perfect little boy, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Feeling a certain sense of relief that Pa hadn\u2019t always been perfect, Hoss grinned.\u00a0 \u201cWhat did you do?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

Reading his boy\u2019s thoughts on his open face, Ben smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t want to stay a cabin boy forever, you see.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t have dreams of becoming a captain or even a mate back then, but I wanted to be an able-bodied seaman, like my big brother, so I told myself that it was important to learn all I could about handling a ship in all kinds of conditions, good and bad.\u00a0 So I hid myself behind some tackle and prepared to advance my education in seamanship.\u201d\u00a0 He framed his features into a serious countenance.\u00a0 \u201cYou boys realize, of course, that I was just making excuses for doing what I wanted and that this was very wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUh, yeah, Pa,\u201d Hoss muttered, squirming on the chair arm.<\/p>\n

Little Joe frowned.\u00a0 Was this a story or a lesson in how to behave?\u00a0 Steering his father toward the former, he asked quickly, \u201cWhat\u2019d you see from back there, Pa?\u00a0 More big waves?\u201d<\/p>\n

Drawn in, Ben said, \u201cWell, not as much as I\u2019d hoped . . . and that\u2019s when things started to go wrong.\u00a0 I wanted to see more, so I gradually inched out of that hiding place and stood gawking as the men struggled with the sails.\u00a0 I had my eyes so fixed on them that I didn\u2019t notice the huge wave that came surging across the deck until it knocked me off my feet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both boys gasped, and the kernel of popcorn headed toward Little Joe\u2019s mouth never made it there.\u00a0 \u201cDid\u2014did it wash you over, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked urgently.<\/p>\n

Ben patted the boy\u2019s back.\u00a0 \u201cSon, I wouldn\u2019t be here now if it had, but it came mighty close.\u00a0 I went sliding down the deck as the ship plunged down a tall wave.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever been more afraid in my life because I knew that I was about to be thrown overboard.\u00a0 Then I felt a hand close around my arm and haul me back.\u00a0 I found myself face to face with the captain, and the scowl on his face made me tremble for my life all over again.\u00a0 \u2018Get below,\u2019 he bellowed, \u2018or I\u2019ll feed you to the sharks myself!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGrandpa was mean!\u201d Little Joe declared.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cNow, how can you say that, Little Joe, when he saved my life.\u00a0 Why, if it weren\u2019t for Grandpa Stoddard, there would never have been an Adam . . . or a Hoss . . . or a Little Joe.\u201d\u00a0 He tapped the nose of each boy in his reach as he mentioned his name.\u00a0 \u201cBut I must confess: at that moment I thought Captain Stoddard was pretty mean, too,\u201d he added with a chuckle.<\/p>\n

\u201cBet you got below right quick, huh, Pa?\u201d Hoss snickered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou bet I did!\u201d his father declared.\u00a0 \u201cThen, when the storm had passed, and the captain had calmed himself, he set me down and explained to me that the first duty of any seaman was to obey his captain\u2019s orders and that I\u2019d never amount to anything if I didn\u2019t learn that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe pouted.\u00a0 \u201cIs this a lesson?\u00a0 It\u2019s \u2018sposed to be a story, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben tousled the boy\u2019s curly mop.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s a lesson in every story, Little Joe, and wise little boys learn from them, so they don\u2019t have to learn everything from their own mistakes.\u00a0 What we learn in each adventure prepares us with what we\u2019ll need for the next one.\u00a0 You understand?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe,\u201d Little Joe conceded.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss lifted his right hand in a snappy salute.\u00a0 \u201cAye, aye, Captain.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben returned the salute.\u00a0 \u201cI believe you\u2019ve got it, matey.\u00a0 Now, did I spin you a good enough yarn to earn some of that popcorn?\u201d<\/p>\n

With an impish grin Little Joe grabbed a handful and pushed it into his father\u2019s mouth.<\/p>\n

\u201cMmff,\u201d Ben sputtered, catching the hand headed for his mouth with a second load.\u00a0 \u201cPa\u2019s a big boy, Little Joe,\u201d he said. \u201cHe can feed himself!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hearing the laughter from the front room, Hop Sing peered around the corner and then with a secret smile of satisfaction, slipped back into the kitchen to finish his evening chores.\u00a0 Too long after Missy Cartwright went away, the walls of this house heard no laughter<\/em>, he thought as he scoured the final kettle.\u00a0 As our Chinese proverb says, one joy scatters a thousand griefs<\/em>.\u00a0 Mr. Ben is learning that now.<\/em>\u00a0 Softly he began to hum a tune he had learned at his mother\u2019s knee.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0During the early weeks of February, the streets of Virginia City rang with exultant shouts, as the Territorial Enterprise<\/em> reported Union victories at FortHenry, Roanoke Island and FortDonelson.\u00a0 But the fighting continued, seemingly with no end in sight.\u00a0 Ben kept abreast of the national concerns, but those faraway battles paled by comparison with the civil war that soon broke on the Ponderosa itself.<\/p>\n

On the twenty-second day of the month, he was headed into Carson City for supplies, and since the skies were clear, he decided to risk taking the boys with him.\u00a0 Nelly Thomas, especially, always delighted in seeing the youngsters and hadn\u2019t had much chance recently, with the changeableness of the weather.<\/p>\n

Thinking that, perhaps, the weather might have kept the Montgomerys tied to home, too, Ben stopped by his old cabin to see if he could pick up anything for Katerina while he was in town.\u00a0 She opened the door in response to his knock, but only by the space of about six inches.\u00a0 \u201cYes?\u201d she asked hesitantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cAunt Kat!\u201d Little Joe squealed and held up his arms, expecting to be picked up, as he always was.\u00a0 Katerina did not respond except with a pursing of her lips.<\/p>\n

Sensing that something was wrong, Ben hesitantly said, \u201cPerhaps we\u2019ve come at a bad time.\u00a0 I just wondered\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

Before he could finish, Little Joe squeezed through the narrow opening in the door, and with dismay Katerina spun around with a soft cry of dismay.<\/p>\n

\u201cHi!\u00a0 I \u2018member you,\u201d Ben heard his youngest son chirp.\u00a0 With a frown he followed Katerina in, to retrieve the boy, with Hoss at his heels.<\/p>\n

Hoss spotted the other occupant of the small room first.\u00a0 \u201cHey, Marta!\u201d he cried.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy, Marta, what a pleasant surprise,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cWhen did you arrive?\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta looked up from her task of peeling potatoes at the kitchen table.\u00a0 \u201cJust two days ago, Uncle Ben,\u201d she said quietly.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s\u2014it\u2019s good to see you and\u2014and the boys.\u201d\u00a0 She quickly lowered her eyes, however.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut . . . how did you get here?\u201d Ben asked, perplexed.\u00a0 Not only had the weather been chancy for travel over the mountains, but he couldn\u2019t imagine her making the trip alone.\u00a0 It simply wasn\u2019t the sort of thing a single young woman did.<\/p>\n

\u201cStef\u00e1n brought her,\u201d Katerina replied crisply.<\/p>\n

\u201cStef\u00e1n is here?\u00a0 Enos never said a word,\u201d Ben chided lightly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, he returned home the next day,\u201d Katerina said.\u00a0 \u201cWere you looking for Enos?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sensed her urgency to tend to whatever had brought him here and get him out of her house, so he answered hastily, \u201cNo, no.\u00a0 I just stopped by on my way into Carson, to see if I could bring anything back for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Keeping her eyes averted, Katerina smoothed her muslin apron.\u00a0 \u201cNo, we need nothing.\u201d\u00a0 Fearing her abruptness might be construed as rudeness, she added, \u201cThank you for thinking of us, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, we\u2014uh\u2014should be on our way, then,\u201d Ben said awkwardly.\u00a0 \u201cCome along, boys.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, Pa, cain\u2019t we visit some with Marta?\u201d Hoss asked.\u00a0 \u201cWe ain\u2019t seen her in ages.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seeing Katerina\u2019s face tighten and Marta\u2019s gaze drop even lower, Ben said, \u201cNo, not this time.\u00a0 Come along now.\u201d\u00a0 As the boys reluctantly moved toward the door, Ben said softly, \u201cCome over to the Ponderosa whenever you feel able.\u00a0 We\u2019d like to see more of you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina flushed deeply.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014I don\u2019t get out much these days, Uncle Ben.\u201d\u00a0 She touched her rounded stomach, as if to blame her reluctance on her advanced pregnancy.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u201d Ben said, though he didn\u2019t understand at all.\u00a0 He knew from experience that pregnant women could be moody, but this tense lady seemed totally unlike the light-hearted girl who had brought such warmth to their home at Christmas.\u00a0 He touched the brim of his hat in farewell.\u00a0 \u201cGood day, Katerina, and to you, too, Marta.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta glanced up and for a moment a ghost of a smile touched her lips.\u00a0 She said nothing, but the wells of unaccustomed sadness in her eyes sent shivers of apprehension down Ben\u2019s spine.\u00a0 He longed to take her in his arms and ask what was wrong, but restrained himself.\u00a0 Much as he loved these children from the wagon train, they were not his daughters, and they were entitled to\u2014and obviously wanted\u2014their privacy.<\/p>\n

As they drove toward Carson City, it became apparent that Hoss, too, had noticed the uneasy atmosphere in the Montgomery kitchen.\u00a0 \u201cIs there somethin\u2019 wrong at Aunt Kat\u2019s, Pa?\u201d the boy asked.<\/p>\n

Ben made a shushing gesture with his lips as his chin dipped toward the child seated between them on the buckboard seat.\u00a0 \u201cProbably just busy,\u201d he said aloud, but the significant glance he exchanged with his middle boy communicated his concern, and Hoss nodded his understanding that he wasn\u2019t to speak of it before Little Joe.<\/p>\n

Ben was less restrained with the Thomases, though.\u00a0 After dinner, while the two boys and Inger played in her room, the adults gathered in the parlor for a final cup of coffee. \u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve never seen those girls act like that,\u201d Ben said, \u201cand I can\u2019t understand Stef\u00e1n coming all this way and not bothering to pay me a call.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDidn\u2019t call here, either,\u201d Clyde said, nodding his agreement over the peculiarity of it.<\/p>\n

\u201cDownright worrisome,\u201d Nelly said.\u00a0 \u201cIf the weather stays clear, maybe I\u2019ll just pay \u2018em a call myself.\u00a0 They might speak easier to another woman.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe I could have a word with Enos, man to man.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy stood to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon I might just mosey over to their place now.\u00a0 Marta\u2019ll talk to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBilly,\u201d Ben cautioned, \u201cyou might want to reconsider rushing in where angels fear to tread.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t seen any wings sproutin\u2019 off your shoulders yet,\u201d Billy said with an impish grin and headed into the hall for his coat and hat.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0For the third time Billy Thomas pounded on the Montgomery door.\u00a0 This time an exasperated Katerina opened it.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you want, Billy?\u201d she demanded, not inviting him in.<\/p>\n

Billy spread his arms disarmingly wide and sported his most enticing smile.\u00a0 \u201cTo see Marta, of course.\u00a0 Uncle Ben said she was visiting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina stiffened and with an uplifted chin declared, \u201cMarta is not receiving visitors.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy\u2019s mouth gaped.\u00a0 \u201cAw, come on, Kat.\u00a0 It\u2019s just me, your old pal from the trail; she always sees me when I go through Placerville.\u201d\u00a0 He again donned his winsome smile.\u00a0 \u201cI know it\u2019s short notice, but there\u2019s this drama company puttin\u2019 on a show over to Silver City tonight, something called Ingomar<\/em> and then a piece by our own Dan DeQuille.\u00a0 Calls it Sage Stuck Yankee<\/em>,\u201d he added with a laugh.\u00a0 \u201cJust the way to welcome Marta to the territory, don\u2019t you reckon?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI do not,\u201d Katerina said crisply.\u00a0 \u201cMarta will not be gallivanting around the territory with you or any other man.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you got against me, all of a sudden?\u201d Billy demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing, Billy,\u201d she said wearily, \u201cbut please go.\u00a0 Your invitation is kind, but Marta cannot accept.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy stubbornly thrust out his jaw.\u00a0 \u201cLike to hear that from her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Katerina said and promptly shut the door in his face.<\/p>\n

Billy stood in shock, staring at the closed door.\u00a0 Then, clinching his fists, he walked to his horse, mounted and rode back toward home.\u00a0 Spotting the Cartwright wagon traveling home from Carson City, he halted and waited until they reached him.<\/p>\n

Ben reined in the team.\u00a0 \u201cWell, how did it go?\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cCouldn\u2019t get past the door,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cDoggone sure is somethin\u2019 wrong, Uncle Ben.\u00a0 I ain\u2019t never seen Kat act like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong with Aunt Kat?\u201d Little Joe demanded, looking worried.<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing, sweetheart,\u201d his father assured him with a pat on the leg.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s just got a lot on her mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I could just get to Marta, she\u2019d tell me; I know she would,\u201d Billy grumbled, \u201cbut that sister of hers is doing a mighty good job of playing guard dog, and I just can\u2019t figure why.\u00a0 It ain\u2019t never been this way, Uncle Ben!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know Billy, I know.\u201d\u00a0 He didn\u2019t point out that he\u2019d said the same thing himself back in town.\u00a0 \u201cNow, don\u2019t fret, son; we\u2019ll get to the bottom of it.\u201d\u00a0 Ben gave his friend\u2019s son a determined nod, gathered up the reins of his team and once again headed for the Ponderosa.<\/p>\n

Getting to the bottom of the girls\u2019 strange behavior proved harder than anyone could have imagined, however.\u00a0 Ben tried his hand at prying something out of Enos on Monday morning, but got no more than that Marta would be staying several months past the birth of Katerina\u2019s baby, \u201cto help out,\u201d Enos said, but his honest face denied the words forced through his lips.\u00a0 That child wasn\u2019t due until April, which left plenty of time for a more seasonable trip over the mountains for its young aunt-to-be, and Enos\u2019s excuse that needs at Stef\u00e1n\u2019s brewery had forced his immediate return made no sense whatsoever, either.\u00a0 Uncomfortable pressing the issue, Ben shrugged his acceptance of the explanations and turned their conversation to the work of the ranch.<\/p>\n

Nelly Thomas paid her social call, and while she was allowed in the cabin, the visit was awkward and she didn\u2019t learn any more than the men had.\u00a0 \u201cBunch of poppycock that Marta\u2019s here to help with the baby,\u201d Nelly ranted to Ben when she stopped by the Ponderosa afterwards.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t likely Kat needs her here more than her mama does back across the mountains, with that restaurant to run all by herself now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t buy it for a minute, either, Nelly,\u201d Ben said as he poured them both a cup of coffee, \u201cbut it\u2019s not really our business.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly sighed.\u00a0 \u201cReckon not, but you can\u2019t turn off carin\u2019 for folks like the spigot on a water barrel, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no, you can\u2019t,\u201d Ben agreed, resting his chin in his hand, but neither of them could figure out how to show their concern without prying where they obviously weren\u2019t wanted.<\/p>\n

Billy, on the other hand, seemed to be working on the theory that if he knocked on that cabin door enough times, he\u2019d eventually wedge a toe, then a boot and then his entire, charming self inside.\u00a0 However, whether he asked to escort Marta to church on Sunday or to the Grand Social Ball at Genoa later in the week, the answer was always the same\u2014no.\u00a0 And it was always delivered by Katerina.\u00a0 For all he saw of Marta, she might still have been across the Sierras in her mama\u2019s restaurant.\u00a0 \u201cThey got her under lock and key, and I just plain don\u2019t understand it,\u201d he fumed as his family gathered around the Ponderosa table after church on the second of March.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one does, son,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut maybe you ought to just leave them be.\u00a0 If they want to talk, they\u2019ll do it in their own good time, and that might come a lot sooner if we quit pushing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s words proved more prophetic than he could have dreamed.\u00a0 The next afternoon, while Hoss was still at school and Little Joe napping in the downstairs bedroom and he himself wrestling with the hated bookwork, a timid knock sounded at the door.\u00a0 Welcoming the interruption, Ben waved Hop Sing back to the kitchen and answered the door himself.\u00a0 On his doorstep stood a bedraggled figure, clutching a worn carpetbag.\u00a0 \u201cMarta!\u201d he exclaimed in surprise and then quickly smiled in welcome.\u00a0 \u201cCome in, my dear,\u201d he said as he took the carpetbag from her blue-knuckled grip.\u00a0 Peering beyond her into the yard, he saw neither buggy nor horse nor any other person.<\/p>\n

\u201cKaterina didn\u2019t come with you?\u201d he asked as he took her elbow and steered her inside.\u00a0 Marta shook her head.\u00a0 Troubled by her forlorn face and haunting silence, he concentrated on her practical needs.\u00a0 \u201cGoodness, child, you\u2019re chilled to the bone,\u201d he scolded as he set her carpetbag beside the credenza.\u00a0 He wondered, of course, why she was carrying baggage for an afternoon\u2019s call, but such questions could wait.\u00a0 He led her to his roomy fireside chair and urged her to sit.\u00a0 \u201cNow, you just get yourself warmed up, young lady, and I\u2019ll tend to your horse.\u00a0 Did you put it in the barn?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cN-no,\u201d Marta stammered.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014I walked.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s eyebrows rose as what he\u2019d first feared was confirmed.\u00a0 \u201cYou walked?\u00a0 From the cabin?\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta bit her lips and nodded as she looked away.<\/p>\n

Taking a seat on the low table before her, Ben gently turned the girl\u2019s face toward him and saw tears shimmering in her eyes.\u00a0 \u201cMy dear, what\u2019s wrong?\u201d he asked tenderly.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Uncle Ben!\u201d she cried, and the tears began to stream down her face.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014I know this is a terrible imposition, but\u2014but could I stay here . . . with you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s no imposition,\u201d Ben said slowly, \u201cbut I don\u2019t understand.\u00a0 Do\u2014do Enos and Katerina know you\u2019re here?\u201d\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t imagine that either of them would have knowingly allowed her to walk so far in such weather, and his suspicion was confirmed by the girl\u2019s hesitant shake of her head.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease, Uncle Ben, please let me stay with you,\u201d Marta pleaded, her face anguished, her fingers interlaced almost as in prayer.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014I just can\u2019t stay with them any longer.\u00a0 I can\u2019t bear Katerina\u2019s cold looks or\u2014or the shame of being hidden away, when I\u2019ve done nothing wrong!\u00a0 And though they\u2019d never say it, I\u2019m in the way in that little cabin, sleeping in their parlor, making every mealtime conversation uncomfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben took her icy hands between his warm ones and began to chafe them.\u00a0 \u201cSweetheart, you and your family are always welcome here,\u201d he told her, \u201cbut you must remember that there is no longer a woman in my household.\u00a0 Happy as I\u2019d be to have you stay here, it could damage your reputation.\u201d\u00a0 He gave her an encouraging smile.\u00a0 \u201cI know it\u2019s crowded in that cabin\u2014was when it was just me and the two boys\u2014but I\u2019m sure they don\u2019t really feel you\u2019re in the way, and it would be better\u2014for you, my dear\u2014if you stayed with family, whatever the problems are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta laughed bitterly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll soon have no reputation to protect, Uncle Ben.\u201d\u00a0 She touched her rounded belly and glanced shyly up to see if he\u2019d understood.\u00a0 The shock on his face told her that he had, so she said hastily, \u201cI suppose I wasn\u2019t thinking about what having me under your roof could do to your reputation.\u00a0 Forgive me, Uncle Ben.\u201d\u00a0 She rose to go.<\/p>\n

Ben immediately sprang to his feet and took her trembling body into his arms.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not concerned about my reputation, Marta dear,\u201d he said as he stroked her damp hair.\u00a0 \u201cYou have a home here as long as you need it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Uncle Ben!\u201d \u00a0She collapsed on his shoulder, heaving sobs of relief and gratitude.<\/p>\n

\u201cShh, shh,\u201d he soothed, continuing to stroke her gently.\u00a0 \u201cThere now; it\u2019s going to be all right.\u201d<\/p>\n

She pulled back, wiped the tears from her cheeks and smiled weakly.\u00a0 \u201cYou haven\u2019t even asked about . . .\u201d\u00a0 Her gaze fell to her abdomen.<\/p>\n

\u201cWould it help to talk about it?\u201d he asked softly.\u00a0 When she nodded, he seated her back in his armchair and sat once again on the table before her, this time holding her hands.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re so kind; you remind me of Papa,\u201d she said, looking down at the strong hands whose gentle touch conveyed such love and acceptance.\u00a0 \u201cI like to think he would have believed me, but . . . perhaps . . . no one can.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll believe you,\u201d Ben promised, instinctively knowing that that confidence would inspire her frank openness.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m with child,\u201d she said plainly, though she was certain he had already surmised that.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd the father?\u201d he queried, careful to keep any hint of judgment from his voice.<\/p>\n

She sighed.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d\u00a0 Her head came up abruptly.\u00a0 \u201cBut that doesn\u2019t mean what Stef\u00e1n thinks, that\u2014that I\u2019ve \u2018played the harlot,\u2019 as he puts it.\u00a0 I haven\u2019t, Uncle Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe you,\u201d Ben said firmly.\u00a0 \u201cTell me what did happen, Marta.\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked into the fire, as if seeing the scenes of that fateful night dancing in the flames.\u00a0 \u201cI was alone in the restaurant,\u201d she began, her hands slipping from his to rest in her lap.\u00a0 \u201cMama wasn\u2019t feeling well, and I had begged her to leave early.\u00a0 I could finish up the dishes and sweeping alone, I promised her, and I did that with no problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou weren\u2019t afraid?\u201d<\/p>\n

Briefly turning back toward him, Marta spread her hands.\u00a0 \u201cWhy would I be?\u00a0 Placerville\u2019s rough, of course, like any other mining town, but we\u2019ve always been treated with respect, even kindness.\u00a0 And the restaurant was closed, the front door locked.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot the back,\u201d he suggested, his apprehension rising.<\/p>\n

She smiled.\u00a0 \u201cNo, but no one came in, if that\u2019s what you were thinking.\u201d\u00a0 Turning her gaze back to the flames, she continued, her fingers tightening on the arm of the chair.\u00a0 \u201cI finished my chores, except for taking out the garbage.\u00a0 We dump it in a ditch in the woods behind the restaurant, to keep from drawing flies.\u00a0 Stef\u00e1n always shovels dirt over it the next morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fearing the worst, he closed his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cYou went into the woods alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked back at him.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve done it a thousand times, Uncle Ben, and no one\u2019s ever bothered me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUntil that night,\u201d he said grimly, looking at her suddenly veiled eyes.<\/p>\n

She nodded sadly.\u00a0 \u201cUntil that night.\u00a0 I\u2014I heard a twig snap behind me, but it was dark, a moonless night.\u00a0 I couldn\u2019t see anyone, so I called out, asking who was there. \u00a0No one answered, but I felt a\u2014a presence, so I dumped the garbage quickly and started back toward town.\u00a0 That\u2019s when . . . someone grabbed me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy God,\u201d Ben murmured.<\/p>\n

Tears again leaked from the girl\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 \u201cI cried out to Him, too, but . . . but it happened anyway.\u00a0 I couldn\u2019t stop him, Uncle Ben,\u201d she sobbed.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2014he\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe raped you,\u201d Ben finished, to spare her the necessity of speaking the painful words.<\/p>\n

She nodded; then she looked up sharply.\u00a0 \u201cYou believe me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u201d he said.\u00a0 He reached toward her, but she drew back.<\/p>\n

Again she uttered a bitter laugh.\u00a0 \u201cWhy is it so easy for you and so hard for Stef\u00e1n?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe didn\u2019t take your word?\u201d Ben asked.\u00a0 \u201cWas there no evidence of what had happened?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA tear in my skirt,\u201d Marta replied, \u201cbut I told Mama that I\u2019d caught it on some brush in the woods.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou didn\u2019t tell them?\u201d\u00a0 Ben was incredulous.<\/p>\n

Marta shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cI should have, of course; I know that now, but I was so ashamed. \u00a0I felt so stupid and so\u2014so dishonored and . . . dirty.\u201d\u00a0 Her voice had dropped to a whisper and rose but little as she continued. \u00a0\u201cI was afraid Stef\u00e1n would shout his outrage to the world, trying to find who\u2019d done it, and then everyone would know.\u00a0 I thought it was better to keep it to myself, but then I . . . I missed my time,\u201d she finished awkwardly, for a woman\u2019s monthly cycle was not something she\u2019d ever mentioned to a man.\u00a0 \u201cI had to tell Mama then.\u00a0 She told Stef\u00e1n, and he\u2014he called me a liar . . . and worse.\u00a0 He talked of nothing but the shame I would bring to his house and to our mother, when my belly swelled with the fruit of my\u2014my fornication.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Marta.\u201d\u00a0 Ben took her damp face in his hands, and this time she leaned into the cradle of his palms.\u00a0 \u201cDid your mother not believe you, either?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2014I\u2019m not sure.\u00a0 I think Mama felt caught between the two of us, and Stef\u00e1n is head of the house now.\u00a0 What he says is law, as has always been our way.\u201d\u00a0 As she pressed her left cheek into his tender touch, tears poured down to dampen his hand.\u00a0 \u201cOver and over he demanded that I tell him the name of my lover.\u00a0 I couldn\u2019t, of course, because there was no lover.\u00a0 He finally said that if I stuck to that story, so that there was no possibility of marrying the father of my child, I would have to leave their house before my disgrace became known.\u00a0 Mama agreed I should go, because I would soon begin to show, and most people would believe what Stef\u00e1n did; they\u2019d gossip and ruin any chance I had for a happy marriage, ever.\u00a0 She\u2014she thinks I should give the baby to Katerina to raise, come home and pretend it never happened, but my sister doesn\u2019t want it, I can tell.\u00a0 Why should she, with a child of her own on the way?\u201d\u00a0 Marta stepped back, clinching her small fists.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s my child, however it was conceived, and it would be better off with someone who loves it, don\u2019t you think?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s time enough to think through all your options,\u201d Ben said slowly.\u00a0 His own mind was racing, trying to figure some way to solve the girl\u2019s problem.\u00a0 Marry her himself?\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t bear the thought so soon after losing Marie, but it was a solution of sorts.\u00a0 He shook his head, and his next words were directed as much to himself as to Marta.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t make a hasty decision either way.\u201d<\/p>\n

The girl gave a weary nod.\u00a0 \u201cI couldn\u2019t leave until the roads cleared, but Stef\u00e1n brought me here, to Katerina, with the first break in the weather.\u201d\u00a0 Her chin dropped.\u00a0 \u201cHe told her what he believed, those terrible lies . . . and she has treated me like\u2014like a scarlet woman from then until now.\u201d\u00a0 She looked up at him and said through trembling lips, \u201cI can\u2019t bear it, Uncle Ben.\u00a0 Send me away, if you must for decency\u2019s sake, but I can\u2019t go back there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben stood, lifting her and pulling her into his arms.\u00a0 \u201cMarta, my dear, you\u2014and your child, when the time comes\u2014are welcome here.\u00a0 We\u2019re delighted to have you, and if tongues must wag, we\u2019ll just let them wag.\u201d<\/p>\n

She slipped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek.\u00a0 \u201cThank you; thank you so very much.\u201d<\/p>\n

Slowly he moved out of her embrace, which had taught him one thing: his feelings for her were those of a father, not a husband.\u00a0 From that moment he knew that he couldn\u2019t consider a marriage of convenience; it wasn\u2019t fair to either of them.\u00a0 Smiling at her with encouragement, he said, \u201cNow, let\u2019s get you settled in your room.\u00a0 Then while you wash your face and freshen up, I\u2019ll have Hop Sing brew us a cup of\u2014shall it be coffee or tea?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTea, please,\u201d Marta said, wiping her cheeks.<\/p>\n

Ben moved to the carpetbag.\u00a0 \u201cAre these all your things or do I need to collect the rest from the cabin?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s all,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

As they walked up the stairs together, he suggested that he should, at least, let Enos and Katerina know where she was.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sure Kat\u2019s frantic with worry by now.\u201d\u00a0 Enos, he assumed, was out working and wouldn\u2019t learn of her disappearance until later that evening.<\/p>\n

\u201cKaterina was taking a nap when I left,\u201d Marta said. \u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s how I was able to slip out, but I suppose she would have wakened by now.\u00a0 I think they\u2019ll probably be relieved not to have to put up with me, but I hate making trouble for you, Uncle Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo trouble at all,\u201d Ben assured her, knowing he\u2019d probably have to repeat it many times before the humiliated girl could accept it.\u00a0 He walked her down the hall to the well lighted guest room at the back corner of the house.\u00a0 \u201cThis is where Mary Wentworth stayed when she was with us,\u201d he explained.\u00a0 \u201cI hope you\u2019ll enjoy it as much as she did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta laughed.\u00a0 \u201cAfter that settee in the parlor, any room would seem like heaven, and this is lovely.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll send Hop Sing up with some fresh water,\u201d Ben promised and then left her to stow her belongings as she saw fit.\u00a0 After delivering the request for water to his Chinese factotum, he moved to his desk.\u00a0 With a shake of his head he closed the books.\u00a0 No time to finish them today.\u00a0 As soon as he finished having a cup of tea with Marta, he\u2019d need to ride over to the Montgomery place and, somehow, explain that she would now be staying with him.\u00a0 Would Katerina be outraged at his interference?\u00a0 Would he lose a good foreman because of it?\u00a0 He shrugged.\u00a0 Sometimes a man had to do what was right, even if his actions brought unwanted consequences, and taking Marta in was, he felt absolutely certain, right.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d barely finished putting his books away when he heard a door creak open and a soft voice call, \u201cPa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHere, Little Joe,\u201d he said, coming around the corner of the alcove.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll through with books?\u201d the little boy asked hopefully as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I\u2019m through for now,\u201d Ben chuckled, \u201cbut I\u2019m going to have to go out for a while, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe brightened immediately.\u00a0 \u201cCan I go, too?\u00a0 Town, maybe?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben lifted the boy into his arms and tickled his tummy.\u00a0 \u201cNo, no.\u00a0 I\u2019m just going over to Katerina\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanna go!\u201d Little Joe insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot this time, son,\u201d his father said, stroking the child\u2019s smooth cheek.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m going to\u2014to talk business,\u201d he finished lamely.\u00a0 Then he lifted the diminutive chin.\u00a0 \u201cBesides, I need you to take care of something for me here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe looked puzzled.\u00a0 Other than a few small chores, Pa never gave him much to do, certainly never anything \u201cto take care of.\u201d\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t sure whether to feel proud or worried.\u00a0 \u201cI think I\u2019m too little,\u201d he said slowly.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed aloud.\u00a0 \u201cNot for this.\u00a0 In fact, I think you\u2019re just the right size for this job.\u00a0 I want you to entertain our company, Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s eyes lit up again.\u00a0 \u201cCompany?\u00a0 What company?\u201d<\/p>\n

Catching sight of Marta coming down the stairs, Ben spun the boy around in his arms and said, \u201cThat company!\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe squealed with delight, wriggled out of his father\u2019s arms and ran to meet Marta on the landing.\u00a0 \u201cHi!\u201d\u00a0 He cried.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m glad you came!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh!\u201d Marta cried as she dropped to the floor and gathered him into her arms.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m glad, too!\u201d\u00a0 She nuzzled her nose into his curly crop and sighed in deep contentment.<\/p>\n

\u201cI imagine the tea\u2019s ready now,\u201d Ben suggested.\u00a0 \u201cI have time for one cup with you, and then I\u2019ll have to leave Little Joe here to keep you company.\u201d<\/p>\n

The look on Marta\u2019s face said that she couldn\u2019t possibly have had better company.\u00a0 Standing, she took the child\u2019s hand and led him to the table.\u00a0 \u201cDo you drink tea, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

He wrinkled his nose, making both Ben and Marta laugh.<\/p>\n

\u201cMilk for him, I think,\u201d Ben suggested.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd cookies\u2014for company,\u201d Little Joe hinted.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re the host; you tell Hop Sing,\u201d Ben chuckled, and Little Joe ran into the kitchen to comply.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s darling,\u201d Marta said, her eyes shining for the first time since arriving.<\/p>\n

Noting that, Ben nodded his agreement.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not sure how attentive a host he\u2019ll be, but Hoss will soon be home from school.\u00a0 If you need anything, you ask him.\u201d\u00a0 He finished his tea as quickly as politeness permitted and with further admonitions to Little Joe to take care of their guest, departed.<\/p>\n

Since he needed time to form his thoughts, to consider the best way to present the rather controversial idea of allowing Marta to stay in the home of an unmarried man, he rode slowly.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t sure he\u2019d found the right words by the time he dismounted in the Montgomery\u2019s yard, but there was no point in further procrastination.\u00a0 He walked to the door and knocked on it.\u00a0 There was no answer.\u00a0 He knocked again with the same result.\u00a0 \u201cKat, it\u2019s Uncle Ben,\u201d he called.\u00a0 \u201cI have news about Marta.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still no response.\u00a0 Ben frowned.\u00a0 Was it possible that Katerina was sleeping that soundly?\u00a0 He didn\u2019t think so.\u00a0 Hesitantly, he opened the door, which was unlocked as usual, and entered.\u00a0 A few steps through the parlor to the open bedroom door confirmed his suspicion that the house was empty.\u00a0 Rebuking himself now for that slow trip from home, he pondered his next step.<\/p>\n

Obviously, Katerina had awakened, found Marta gone and set out to look for her, but he hadn\u2019t seen her on the road here.\u00a0 He instantly chided himself for the self-centered notion that she should have automatically known that her younger sister would seek refuge at the Ponderosa.\u00a0 There was, of course, no reason for Marta to go there, instead of to other friends.\u00a0 Here in Nevada, though, there weren\u2019t many: only him and the Thomas family.\u00a0 Nelly had been here to visit, so maybe Katerina had assumed that Marta would view the older woman was her best source of support.<\/p>\n

Then he groaned.\u00a0 No, there was a more disheartening possibility, and he knew instinctively that it was the one driving Katerina right now.\u00a0 There\u2019d been another Thomas who\u2019d come calling, one who had proven more persistent than any of them in trying to contact Marta during her imposed isolation.\u00a0 Given Katerina\u2019s belief that her sister was a wanton woman, wouldn\u2019t she naturally assume that Marta would head for the man likeliest to take her in?\u00a0 Ben checked the barn quickly, saw that the buggy was missing and rightly concluded that if he wanted to speak to Katerina, he\u2019d have to ride into Carson City.\u00a0 And if he didn\u2019t ride quickly, he\u2019d be having that conversation with an ear-pricked audience.<\/p>\n

As the red-orange sun slipped toward the western hills, he rode hard down the road to Carson City, but when he finally acknowledged that he wasn\u2019t going to overtake that buggy, he slowed down.\u00a0 Procrastination again possessed him, but gained him nothing.\u00a0 Little as he wanted an audience, he was going to have one, and it didn\u2019t change the facts he needed to relate.\u00a0 He\u2019d start there and try to build a case convincing enough to earn even Nelly Thomas\u2019s strait-laced approval.<\/p>\n

The raised voices he heard as he climbed the steps to the Thomas\u2019s porch told him he was walking into a raging inferno of charged accusations.\u00a0 It was young Inger who finally responded to his knocks at the door.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not supposed to be listening,\u201d she whispered in his ear, \u201cbut how can I help it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo way I can see,\u201d he whispered back.\u00a0 \u201cJust scoot on back to wherever your mother sent you, and I\u2019ll pretend I let myself in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inger nodded solemnly.\u00a0 \u201cPa\u2019s in the smithy, if you came to see him.\u00a0 Reckon you can hear where everyone else is,\u201d she said and hurried back to the kitchen and whatever chores her mother had assigned her.<\/p>\n

As Ben made his way to the parlor, he winced as he heard Katerina demand, \u201cWhere are you hiding her?\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly took that about as well as he figured she would.\u00a0 \u201cI told you before: she ain\u2019t here; if she was, I\u2019d tell you straight out.\u00a0 I got no reason to be hidin\u2019 anyone; it plain ain\u2019t the sort of foolishness I\u2019d ever take to!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure Katerina knows that, Nelly,\u201d Ben said from the doorway.\u00a0 \u201cShe knows you for an honest woman, don\u2019t you, Kat?\u201d\u00a0 He arched an eyebrow toward the younger woman that invited her to pour some oil on the waters she\u2019d troubled.<\/p>\n

Katerina blanched, as if suddenly aware of the ugliness of her accusation.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014I accept your word, Nelly, and . . . no . . . it isn\u2019t the sort of foolishness you\u2019d condone.\u201d\u00a0 Her anger still simmered beneath the surface, however, and bubbled over as she pointed an accusing finger at the Thomas son, who was standing by the fire, his face a study in bewilderment.\u00a0 \u201cBut he\u2019s been at our house every day, trying to see Marta, and I think he got his chance today, while I was napping.\u00a0 And I want to know where you\u2019ve taken her, Billy?\u00a0 You tell me now!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t even seen her!\u201d Billy declared.\u00a0 \u201cYou saw to that!\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly bristled.\u00a0 \u201cIf you think accusing an innocent boy is\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStop!\u201d Ben shouted, and in shock at his sharpness, everyone did.\u00a0 He lowered his voice and said, \u201cMarta is at the Ponderosa, Katerina.\u00a0 She walked there this afternoon.\u201d\u00a0 Seeing the young woman begin to sway, he hurried to her side and helped her to a chair.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou feelin\u2019 faint, child?\u201d Nelly asked.\u00a0 \u201cLet me get you a glass of cool water.\u201d\u00a0 She hurried out to the kitchen to get one.<\/p>\n

\u201cKaterina, dear, are you all right?\u201d Ben asked anxiously.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t mean to startle you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I . . . I\u2019m all right,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014the Ponderosa, you said?\u00a0 Marta is there?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Ben replied.<\/p>\n

Nelly hurried back in with the water and held it to the young woman\u2019s lips.\u00a0 \u201cThere now, honey,\u201d she said, \u201cyou drink that down and settle yourself.\u00a0 It ain\u2019t good for a woman in your condition to get herself all wrought up like this.\u201d\u00a0 Gone from her demeanor was any hint of offense over the unfounded accusations she\u2019d been fielding since the other woman arrived.<\/p>\n

Katerina tenderly touched her ample abdomen.\u00a0 \u201cI know.\u201d\u00a0 She looked up at Nelly, tears in her eyes.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry . . . for . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t speak of it,\u201d Nelly soothed.\u00a0 \u201cBein\u2019 with child can put all sorts of notions in a body\u2019s head.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brow furrowed, Billy asked.\u00a0 \u201cMarta walked to the Ponderosa from Kat\u2019s place?\u00a0 Why\u2019d she do a thing like that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot happy with the situation as is,\u201d Ben said plainly.<\/p>\n

Katerina gathered herself together and sat up straight.\u00a0 \u201cI am sorry that Marta has caused you such trouble, Uncle Ben.\u00a0 I will come at once and bring her back home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s been no trouble,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 That wasn\u2019t strictly true, of course; Marta\u2019s situation had already cost him a frantic ride into Carson City and thrust him into an incredibly awkward position, but he didn\u2019t hold any of that against the girl.\u00a0 He knelt beside the chair and took Katerina\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cI hope you\u2019ll let her stay on at the Ponderosa, my dear.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly Thomas gasped.\u00a0 \u201cBen, you can\u2019t be serious.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m serious,\u201d Ben said, his eyes fixed on Katerina\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019ll be happier there, and there\u2019ll be less stress on you at a time when you should be receiving the tenderest of care.\u201d\u00a0 He gently stroked her cheek.<\/p>\n

The young woman shook her head.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNo, that can\u2019t be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCertainly not,\u201d Nelly put in.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease,\u201d Ben urged.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s best for everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t understand,\u201d Katerina murmured, staring into her lap.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I do,\u201d Ben said softly.\u00a0 \u201cMarta told me the . . . circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina paled again, causing Nelly to reach for the glass of water and offer it again.\u00a0 \u201cNow, Ben, you\u2019re actin\u2019 just like a man,\u201d Nelly scolded, \u201cnot thinkin\u2019 things through.\u00a0 Kat here was wrong in thinkin\u2019 what she did about my Billy, but not wrong in tryin\u2019 to protect young Marta\u2019s reputation.\u201d\u00a0 She stopped short at the sound of Katerina\u2019s bitter laugh, and then hurried on to make her point.\u00a0 \u201cYou ain\u2019t married; she ain\u2019t married; so she can\u2019t stay under your roof; it ain\u2019t decent.\u201d\u00a0 She frowned again as Katerina almost collapsed in hysterical, hiccupping laughter.\u00a0 \u201cGet hold of yourself, girl,\u201d she ordered.<\/p>\n

Ben exhaled gustily.\u00a0 \u201cYou might as well tell them,\u201d he said to Katerina.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not the kind of secret that keeps well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tears began to leak from the corners of Katerina\u2019s closed eyes, and her hands flew to cover her mouth, as if to hold the secret in; yet she nodded her permission.<\/p>\n

Ben put it as simply and as kindly as he could.\u00a0 \u201cMarta\u2019s with child,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat!\u201d Nelly cried.<\/p>\n

Jaw dropping, Billy jerked erect.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m going to see her,\u201d he said and headed for the door.<\/p>\n

Ben sprang up and caught him by the elbow.\u00a0 \u201cOh, no, you\u2019re not.\u00a0 You leave that girl be for now, Billy Thomas.\u201d\u00a0 Don\u2019t complicate what I\u2019m trying to do here<\/em>, he wanted to say, but for Katerina\u2019s sake kept that to himself.\u00a0 Maybe the message was communicated by his face, for Billy slumped and shuffled back over to the settee, where he flopped down to listen to the discussion between Kat and his Uncle Ben.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m so ashamed,\u201d Katerina said, the tears now streaming down her face.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt ain\u2019t you that needs to feel that,\u201d Nelly said stiffly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNelly, please,\u201d Ben implored.\u00a0 He turned back to Katerina.\u00a0 \u201cMy dear, unless you intend to lock your sister inside until she gives birth, this . . . situation . . . is going to be known.\u00a0 As Marta says, at that point she will have no reputation to protect, and I\u2019m not concerned about mine.\u00a0 Those who know me will know the truth, and it\u2019s only their respect I cherish, anyway.\u00a0 Marta will be treated like a daughter in my house . . . and I think she\u2019ll be happier there.\u00a0 I think it\u2019ll make things easier on you, too.\u00a0 Nelly rightly points out that you shouldn\u2019t become overwrought so near your time.\u00a0 It\u2019s not good for your little one, and, of course, the same is true for the child Marta is carrying.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the first thing you\u2019ve said that makes sense,\u201d Nelly grunted.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2014I need to talk with Enos,\u201d Katerina whispered.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u201d Ben agreed at once.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you\u2019ll let Marta stay with me tonight, while you talk it over?\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina slowly nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI know she\u2019s safe with you, Uncle Ben, and one night shouldn\u2019t cause too much talk . . . I suppose.\u00a0 As you say, the people who matter most know now, and I hope they won\u2019t think ill of me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot of you,\u201d Nelly said bluntly.\u00a0 \u201cLands, what were your folks thinkin\u2019, puttin\u2019 you in a fix like this with a child comin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina uttered a nervous titter.\u00a0 \u201cStef\u00e1n thought I could pass the child as my own.\u00a0 Just five months between the two!\u00a0 How did he think I could explain that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMen,\u201d Nelly snorted.\u00a0 \u201cThem and thinkin\u2019 just naturally don\u2019t go together.\u201d\u00a0 She patted Katerina\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cNow, sweetie, you\u2019ve had yourself a hard day\u2014whole string of \u2018em, most likely\u2014and I think the best thing for you to do is stay the night here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, no, I can\u2019t,\u201d Katerina objected, though weakly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, I insist,\u201d Nelly pressed.\u00a0 \u201cYou gotta think about that child you\u2019re carryin\u2019, girl!\u00a0 I promise you not another word\u2019ll be said about this sad business.\u201d\u00a0 She fixed an authoritative glare on her son, who shrugged and looked away.\u00a0 \u201cIn fact, if you want your dinner on a tray in your room, that\u2019ll be just fine.\u00a0 Might be the best thing, so you can have yourself some peace and quiet for a change.\u00a0 Ben here can let Enos know where you are and what\u2019s goin\u2019 on.\u00a0 He\u2019s welcome to come stay the night, too, if he pleases, or if\u2019n he needs to stay home to tend to chores or whatever, he can pick you up in the mornin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll tell Enos,\u201d Ben promised to forestall any further objections from Katerina, \u201cand keep him from worrying.\u00a0 But if I\u2019m going to do that, I\u2019d best ride out now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell . . . all right,\u201d Katerina agreed.\u00a0 \u201cI am tired, and I thank you for your hospitality.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWish you could stay to supper, too, Ben,\u201d Nelly said, \u201cbut you\u2019re right: Enos\u2019ll be frettin\u2019 if he comes home and finds Kat gone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd the boys and Marta would worry, too,\u201d Ben added.\u00a0 \u201cNone of us were expecting me to come quite so far to find this young lady.\u201d\u00a0 He kissed Katerina on the cheek, shushing her whispered apology, and then impulsively hugged Nelly in appreciation for her help that afternoon.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet on with you now,\u201d Nelly chuckled and hurried him toward the door with a slap to his back.<\/p>\n

Billy followed Ben out to his horse.\u00a0 \u201cTell Marta I want to see her,\u201d he said gruffly.\u00a0 He flushed as he added, \u201cThat other stuff you\u2019re sayin\u2019 . . . it don\u2019t matter to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut give it a few days, son.\u00a0 Let her family sort things out first.\u201d\u00a0 When Billy agreed, Ben mounted and rode back toward home.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t procrastinate this time.\u00a0 It was a long ride back to the Ponderosa, and with a possibly difficult conversation with Enos added on to the day\u2019s duties, home seemed a long way away.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Hurrying toward home, Ben saw a figure flying the opposite direction.\u00a0 When the rider recognized him, however, he pulled up.\u00a0 \u201cMr. Cartwright, I gotta find the girls,\u201d Enos Montgomery said.\u00a0 He\u2019d never been able to call his employer \u2018Uncle Ben,\u2019 as his wife did.\u00a0 In private, he might say \u2018Mr. Ben,\u2019 but in front of other hands it was always \u2018Mr. Cartwright,\u2019 and by habit the more formal term spurted out now.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know where they are,\u201d Ben said with a smile, \u201cso slow down, son.\u00a0 There\u2019s nothing to worry about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos took off his hat and wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand.\u00a0 \u201cYou sure?\u00a0 When I got home and saw that they was both gone, I just knew that Kat had done somethin\u2019 rash . . . like push Marta on a stage for Placerville, maybe, or even back East.\u201d\u00a0 The mask of pretense that there was nothing going on at their house but a sisterly visit cracked and fell.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarta\u2019s at my house,\u201d Ben told him, \u201cand Kat\u2019s with the Thomases.\u201d\u00a0 He quickly explained that he knew about the difficult situation his foreman had been dealing with.<\/p>\n

Enos slumped with relief.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m glad of that, Mr. Ben,\u201d he said, relaxing into their more family-like relationship.\u00a0 \u201cPained me to lie to you like I did, but Kat felt shamed and wanted to keep it secret.\u00a0 Don\u2019t see as how we could have for long, things bein\u2019 the way they are.\u00a0 Didn\u2019t want to upset her, though, so near her time, you know?\u201d\u00a0 His eyes pleaded for understanding.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know,\u201d Ben assured him in commiseration over a man\u2019s need to spare the woman who carried his child from all needless stress.\u00a0 Pregnancy could be mighty hard on a man, he recalled.\u00a0 \u201cI think we\u2019ve come up with a plan that will ease things at your place.\u201d\u00a0 He extended his offer for Marta to stay with him, giving the reasons he thought it the best, though scarcely an ideal, solution.\u00a0 \u201cYou and Kat talk it over and let me know what you decide.\u201d\u00a0 Emphasizing that his wife was fine, though exhausted, he mentioned Nelly\u2019s invitation for her to spend the night, which Kat had accepted.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you\u2019re welcome to stay there, too,\u201d he finished, \u201cor to pick up Kat in the morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos grinned.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m halfway to town now.\u00a0 Think I\u2019ll just go on in and stay there, but it might put me some late for work in the morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTake tomorrow off,\u201d Ben urged.\u00a0 \u201cI can run my own ranch for one day,\u201d he added with a chuckle, \u201cand I think the two of you need some time alone, to relax . . . and talk.\u00a0 Come to supper tomorrow night, and we\u2019ll talk things over.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks,\u201d Enos said sincerely, thanking his lucky stars, as he had so many times in the past, that he worked for a man like Ben Cartwright.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The sky was dark, lighted with twinkling stars, by the time Ben arrived home.\u00a0 He handed his horse over to Hank Carlton and went directly to the house.\u00a0 As soon as he came through the door, he was trampled by a stampede.\u00a0 \u201cPa!\u201d both his boys cried as they rushed to engulf him in hugs.\u00a0 Ben knelt and drew them both into his embrace.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re late, Pa,\u201d Little Joe scolded, the quaver in his voice showing just how much that bothered him.<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing ain\u2019t a bit happy,\u201d Hoss said under his breath.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure he\u2019s not,\u201d Ben said as he rose, \u201cbut it couldn\u2019t be helped.\u201d<\/p>\n

He saw Marta watching him anxiously and hurried to set her mind at ease.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s all right . . . for now,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

She came forward shyly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014we were worried; you were gone so long.\u00a0 You must have done some fancy talking to make it all right . . . for now.\u201d\u00a0 Her glance at the children told him she understood that detailed explanations would have to wait.<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle bit,\u201d Ben acknowledged, \u201cbut that wasn\u2019t what took the extra time. \u00a0Finding Katerina did that.\u00a0 She was . . . out looking for you, my dear.\u201d\u00a0 The way he said it indicated that there was more he could not say in the presence of two young boys.<\/p>\n

Marta\u2019s hand flew to her lips.\u00a0 \u201cOh, dear,\u201d she sighed.\u00a0 \u201cIt never crossed my mind she\u2019d do that.\u00a0 I have been selfish, haven\u2019t I?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMisery can turn a person\u2019s thoughts inward,\u201d Ben said, his smile softening what might otherwise have come across as censure.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho\u2019s miserable?\u201d Hoss asked, nose crinkling in puzzlement.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all will be if we don\u2019t get to the table right quick!\u201d his father declared.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe done ate,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too,\u201d Little Joe put in.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarta?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

She shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cI . . . couldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, that means the two of us are in a heap of trouble,\u201d Ben told her.\u00a0 Seeing the girl\u2019s troubled expression, he gave her a wink to let her know he was teasing.\u00a0 Time in this household would soon teach her to take Hop Sing\u2019s oft-expressed disgruntlement with a tablespoon of salt.\u00a0 He took her arm and led her to the table, calling out to the cook.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy you late?\u201d Hop Sing demanded, coming to the doorway.\u00a0 \u201cAll-a time Hop Sing make good food nobody eat.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, don\u2019t you call my boys nobody,\u201d Ben chided with a chuckle.<\/p>\n

For once, the cook seemed caught off guard.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing not mean that, but Mr. Cartlight, Missy Marta need eat, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd that\u2019s what we\u2019re here to do,\u201d Ben pointed out.\u00a0 \u201cI apologize for the delay, Hop Sing, and, of course, I\u2019ll understand if you can\u2019t provide a meal for us, but\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you say?\u201d the cook demanded.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing always have food ready; you know that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou do, indeed, spoil us,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cSo, could we please have some of that good food now?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll light, all light; keep shirt on,\u201d Hop Sing scolded, muttering Cantonese under his breath as he headed back into the kitchen.<\/p>\n

\u201cHomework done, Hoss?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d the boy replied.\u00a0 \u201cMarta helped.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood.\u00a0 Now, unless you boys intend to eat more, I think it\u2019s time you headed up to bed.\u00a0 Can you get Little Joe changed?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d Hoss said reluctantly.\u00a0 He had a feeling there was going to be some interesting talk going on down here in the dining room, but even if what his father\u2019d just said sounded like a request, he knew an order when he heard one.\u00a0 \u201cCome on, punkin, time for bed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope they weren\u2019t too much trouble,\u201d Ben said to Marta once the boys had disappeared upstairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrouble!\u201d\u00a0 Marta\u2019s eyes sparkled.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re precious, Uncle Ben.\u00a0 They . . . they gave me back my laughter.\u00a0 Well, they and you, of course.\u00a0 I couldn\u2019t even have smiled if you hadn\u2019t been so kind, so\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, now, enough of that,\u201d he chided.\u00a0 \u201cLet me tell you where things stand.\u201d\u00a0 And over supper, under Hop Sing\u2019s watchful eye, he shared what had transpired in Carson City, being careful to omit any of the stated or implied criticism that had been directed her way.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Dinner the next night was a stiff and formal affair, compared to the meals the group gathered around the table had shared previously.\u00a0 The presence of the two youngsters provided the only light-hearted conversational moments, and what godsends they were in the midst of adult anxiety!\u00a0 As soon as the meal ended, however, Ben suggested that the boys play upstairs.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll be up to tuck you in at bedtime,\u201d he assured them.<\/p>\n

He had taken Hoss aside earlier in the day and asked for his help in keeping Little Joe corralled up there after supper.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s going to be some serious conversation,\u201d was the only explanation he offered, and Hoss\u2014bless him\u2014had asked no questions.\u00a0 No doubt his sweet, discerning heart had told him something was amiss with their friends and that Pa needed private time with them to fix it.<\/p>\n

Ben hadn\u2019t bothered talking with Little Joe earlier, for the four-year-old couldn\u2019t hold onto such explanations long enough to make them anything but pointless.\u00a0 No matter what he\u2019d said earlier, Ben knew that by the time several hours had passed, he would have gotten exactly the same reaction that he now did.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t wanna go up there yet,\u201d the child declared.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s early, Pa, and I wanna see Aunt Kat some more.\u201d\u00a0 Enos was less of a draw, since he saw the foreman regularly, but Katerina was one of his favorite people, and he saw no reason he should be deprived of her company before bedtime.<\/p>\n

Ben picked the boy up and gave him a hug.\u00a0 \u201cNow, Little Joe, I understand that, but we need to have some grown up talk.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s lips puckered.\u00a0 \u201cI wanna talk grown up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite the apprehension everyone was feeling about the upcoming conversation, they all laughed at that.\u00a0 Still chuckling, Ben said, \u201cWell, son, if you want to talk grown up, you\u2019re just going to have to grow up first . . . and it\u2019s a known fact that little boys do all their growing while they\u2019re asleep.\u00a0 Maybe you should just skip playtime and go straight to bed, so you can start growing faster.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe frantically wagged his head from side to side.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t wanna talk grown up that bad,\u201d he said as he squirmed to get down.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought not,\u201d Ben observed dryly, struggling, as was everyone else in the room, to keep from laughing out loud.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome on, punkin,\u201d Hoss snickered.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll let you see my bird egg collection.\u201d<\/p>\n

That in itself was a \u201cgrown up\u201d enticement, as Hoss had always protected his prized collection from his younger brother\u2019s careless hands, so Little Joe contentedly said his good nights, giving hugs and kisses to one and all, and allowed Hoss to lead him up the stairs.<\/p>\n

Once the boys were gone, an awkward silence descended on the group gathered around the fireplace.\u00a0 Ben sat in his customary chair, with Marta opposite him in the blue one that had been Adam\u2019s favorite.\u00a0 Between them, on the settee, Enos and Katerina sat side by side.\u00a0 All the others fixed their eyes on Ben, and he shifted uncomfortably, wondering why all these children of their trail family seemed to think he was possessed of the wisdom of Solomon, when he so definitely knew he was not.\u00a0 He cleared his throat.\u00a0 \u201cWell . . . Enos, Katerina . . . have you had time to consider my proposal?\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina sighed heavily.\u00a0 \u201cIf only it were a proposal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta blanched, and then her cheeks reddened with embarrassment as she gripped the arms of the chair.\u00a0 \u201cOh, Katerina, how could you?\u201d she cried.<\/p>\n

Sparks of ice flashed in Katerina\u2019s alpine blue eyes.\u00a0 \u201cHow could I?\u00a0 You dare to ask that!\u00a0 As if, to you, marriage to a decent man were an act of shame.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKaterina,\u201d her husband said sharply, and his rare use of her full first name brought her up short.\u00a0 \u201cNo one\u2019s talking marriage here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben said quickly.\u00a0 \u201cI did consider it.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled at Marta\u2019s surprised expression, but shook his head sadly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m still grieving Marie\u2019s loss,\u201d he said, rekindling the sympathy of the other three, \u201cand even if I weren\u2019t . . . my feelings for Marta are . . . well . . . fatherly.\u00a0 It just wouldn\u2019t work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one expects that of you, Mr. Ben,\u201d Enos said firmly, and reluctantly Katerina nodded.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I\u2019m offering Marta,\u201d Ben said, \u201cis a home, for as long as she needs it.\u00a0 I\u2019ve told Katerina my reasons, and I assume she\u2019s passed them on to you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos\u00a0 nodded.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s bound to be talk,\u201d he pointed out.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnless you keep her out of sight,\u201d Katerina put in.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople will gossip,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 \u201cAs I told Marta and you, I\u2019m not concerned for my reputation.\u00a0 For the sake of hers, perhaps we could come up with some story . . . the daughter of an old friend . . . recently widowed . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOnly a man could think that would wash,\u201d Katerina scoffed in a way that made Ben wonder how much of Nelly Thomas had rubbed off on the girl in one night\u2019s stay.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I suppose people would see through that,\u201d Ben conceded as he saw Marta nod.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny woman would,\u201d Katerina sniffed disdainfully.<\/p>\n

\u201cLook, Mr. Ben,\u201d Enos broke in, \u201cwe know you\u2019re a good man and would never do nothin\u2019 improper with a woman.\u00a0 We got no fears on that account about lettin\u2019 Marta stay on here with you.\u00a0 Goodness knows, it\u2019d be a help to us, but it sure don\u2019t seem fair to you.\u00a0 You say you ain\u2019t worried about your reputation, but maybe you oughta be.\u00a0 Whether you think it or not, you\u2019re an important man in this territory.\u00a0 Folks look up to you, might even run you for office someday, but a spot like this on your record could spoil any chance of such as that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cThere was a time I thought about public office, but that\u2019s all in the past.\u00a0 All I want now is to make a good home for my boys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos leaned forward, folded hands dropping between his knees.\u00a0 \u201cWhat about them?\u201d he asked.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe ain\u2019t likely to understand what\u2019s going on; a baby\u2019s just a baby to him, but what about Hoss?\u00a0 You really want him around . . . well\u201d\u2014he nodded toward Marta as he groped for words that would not offend\u2014\u201cthis sort of situation?\u00a0 Even if it didn\u2019t bother him\u2014and bein\u2019 your boy, it might not\u2014still, younguns hear the bad-mouthin\u2019 of their parents, and they carry it to school and can jab it into a fellow like a pointed stick.\u00a0 I\u2019d sure hate to see that boy hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was the one argument that could have weakened Ben\u2019s resolve.\u00a0 The thought of his tender-hearted boy, who was still grieving the loss of his mother, being exposed to taunts and jeers on behalf of a friend, pierced him as if the pointed stick of Enos\u2019s metaphor had been stabbed into his own heart.\u00a0 He paused for a moment and then slowly shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI know children can be cruel,\u201d he admitted, \u201cand that does concern me, but I\u2019ll take care of Hoss.\u00a0 He\u2019s a strong boy; he\u2019ll survive schoolyard bullying, already has on his own behalf.\u00a0 But I don\u2019t think he would survive knowing that I\u2019d turned away someone who needed our help, just to spare him.\u00a0\u00a0 That would break his heart.\u201d\u00a0 So much of his mother in him<\/em>, he thought wistfully.<\/p>\n

Marta turned her face into the wings of the blue chair, her left hand covering her cheek, to hide the tears trailing down it.\u00a0 Though she knew herself innocent of the accusations her brother had railed against her, she felt unworthy of such sacrifice, especially on the part of a young child.\u00a0 Maybe I should go back with Enos and Katerina<\/em>, she thought, though a stone sank to the bottom of her heart.\u00a0 She felt a hand on her arm and turned to see Ben kneeling at the side of her chair.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything\u2019s going to be all right, dear,\u201d he soothed.<\/p>\n

His eyes were so filled with love and compassion that the tears ran down her face more swiftly.\u00a0 What had she done, what could anyone do, to merit such gracious acceptance?\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014I would like to stay,\u201d she whispered.\u00a0 She looked shyly across at the Montgomerys.\u00a0 \u201cPlease, Katerina?\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina looked to her husband, who nodded and said, \u201cSeems like it\u2019s for the best, Kat . . . for the both of you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStef\u00e1n will rage,\u201d she said hesitantly.<\/p>\n

Enos circled her waist with his arm, at least as far as he could reach.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll deal with Stef\u00e1n,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cHe needs to remember that you\u2019re my wife, and a husband\u2019s word weighs more than a brother\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina laid her head on his shoulder, relaxing into his strength; then, chin trembling, she looked over at Ben and nodded.\u00a0 \u201cWe thank you, Uncle Ben, but grateful as we are, this doesn\u2019t solve the biggest problem.\u00a0 What are we to do with this child that\u2019s coming?\u201d<\/p>\n

As Ben rose and returned to his chair, everyone again looked at him; again he had that uncomfortable feeling that he was supposed to play the part of Solomon in these weighty decisions.\u00a0 \u201cCut the living child in half\u201d certainly wasn\u2019t going to work here the way it had back in Solomon\u2019s day.\u00a0 \u201cDo we have to solve that tonight?\u201d he asked almost desperately.\u00a0 \u201cWe do have a few months to weigh the alternatives.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you plan to keep her hidden away in this house?\u201d Katerina demanded sharply.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Like you did?<\/em> Ben might have thrust back, but to avoid making matters worse, did not.\u00a0 He did, however, say decisively, \u201cThis is not a prison, and I am not a warden.\u00a0 Marta is my guest, free to come and go as she pleases.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen I think we do have to make some decisions tonight,\u201d Katerina insisted.\u00a0 \u201cWe do not have months, Uncle Ben.\u00a0 She is beginning to show already!\u00a0 There will be questions, and we must have answers.\u00a0 What is to be our story?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy not the truth?\u201d Marta suggested hesitantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Marta, don\u2019t be such a child!\u201d her sister scolded.\u00a0 \u201cYou can\u2019t do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy not?\u201d Marta demanded, standing to her feet and staring down at them.\u00a0 \u201cWhatever lie we concoct tonight, no one will believe it!\u00a0 I\u2019ve had enough of lies, Katerina; lying is what kept Stef\u00e1n from believing me when I finally did tell the truth.\u00a0 I was raped!\u00a0 If that makes me a scarlet woman in people\u2019s eyes, so be it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben kneaded his aching temple.\u00a0 \u201cAnd the child?\u00a0 Do you realize what hell people can put an illegitimate child through?\u201d<\/p>\n

Her eyes filled with tears, but she drew herself up with courage and faced them all with steadfast intent.\u00a0 \u201cYou said you would teach Hoss to survive schoolyard bullying.\u00a0 I have all these months to watch you do that and learn from you how to teach my child to be strong like Hoss.\u00a0 He, too\u2014or she\u2014will survive.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other three all stared at her, open-mouthed.\u00a0 None of them seemed to know whether to applaud her bravery or be appalled by her audacity.\u00a0 Ben swallowed hard and with what he hoped was wisdom granted from above, said, \u201cThat would be a hard road to walk, my dear: I urge you to consider it carefully, but if that\u2019s the road you choose, I\u2019ll walk it at your side.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katerina lumbered to her feet.\u00a0 \u201cI want nothing to do with such nonsense, nor will Stef\u00e1n.\u00a0 You think he will welcome you back into Mama\u2019s house if you bring this\u2014this\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t say it, Kat,\u201d Enos urged as he stood up and put a supportive arm behind her back.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re much obliged to you, Mr. Ben, for all you\u2019ve said and done.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease don\u2019t leave in anger,\u201d Ben pleaded.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one\u2019s angry,\u201d the foreman said calmly.\u00a0 \u201cMarta, we wish you the best, honest we do, but like Mr. Ben says, you need to think this through before you start a road there ain\u2019t no turnin\u2019 back from.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI will,\u201d Marta promised.\u00a0 \u201cI know there\u2019s more lives than just mine to think about.\u00a0 I\u2019ll try to do what\u2019s best.\u00a0 Oh, but Katerina, I wish you could believe me!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2014I\u2019ll try,\u201d her sister said, but she could not bring herself to look at Marta as Enos helped her into her coat and they left.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER THIRTEEN<\/p>\n

Knight in Homespun Armor<\/p>\n

Holding both sides of his back, Ben stretched this way and that as he came out of the barn after grooming his riding horse.\u00a0 Amazing how a day\u2019s work could kink up a man\u2019s muscles, especially after a winter of semi-idleness.\u00a0 This had been a short day, too!\u00a0 Hoss wasn\u2019t even home from school yet, and if he were lucky, Little Joe might still be napping.\u00a0 He hoped so; he could certainly use a few minutes to unwind before that little instrument of perpetual energy demanded his undivided attention.<\/p>\n

The sound of hooves halted him halfway across the yard.\u00a0 Hand shielding his eyes against the sun, he watched as the rider rounded the barn and came into sight.\u00a0 He grinned and shook his head.\u00a0 Well, all he\u2019d asked for was a few days, and to a young fellow like Billy Thomas, three probably more than met that requirement.\u00a0 He waved a greeting as the young man dismounted.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarta to home?\u201d Billy asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust got here myself,\u201d Ben chuckled, \u201cbut I\u2019m sure she is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan I see her?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUp to her,\u201d Ben replied, adding wryly, \u201cI\u2014uh\u2014forgot to tell her you wanted to see her, but I doubt it\u2019ll come as much surprise.\u201d\u00a0 After all, the young scamp had all but beaten down the Montgomerys\u2019 door for days running.\u00a0 \u201cCome on; I\u2019ll walk you in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta was sitting in the blue chair, reading a book from Ben\u2019s shelf, when they walked in.\u00a0 Her face lighted when she spotted Billy and she set the book aside.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, Marta,\u201d the boy said.\u00a0 \u201cI been hopin\u2019 to see you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know,\u201d she said, and her smile was one of appreciation for his steadfast effort in pursuit of that hope.<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe still asleep?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cThankfully,\u201d she answered.\u00a0 \u201cIf he didn\u2019t need the rest, I did.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, he\u2019ll wear you out, that one,\u201d Ben agreed with a fond smile.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll\u2014uh\u2014go check on him and try to keep him out of your hair for a spell.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo need,\u201d Billy said.\u00a0 Then his face reddened.\u00a0 \u201cI mean, it\u2019s a right nice day, and I thought me and Marta could take us a walk . . . if that\u2019s all right with you, that is, and if that youngun ain\u2019t plumb wore you out today.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot quite,\u201d the girl laughed.\u00a0 \u201cA walk sounds lovely, Billy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn that case,\u201d Ben said, \u201cI\u2019m claiming the settee for a lie-down until \u2018that youngun\u2019 gets up on his own.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWise decision,\u201d Marta said with a smile as she stood up and went to take Billy\u2019s arm.<\/p>\n

They walked in silence past the corral and into the greening meadow.\u00a0 \u201cAll that snow we had sure is makin\u2019 the spring grass sprout up,\u201d Billy observed.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s beautiful here,\u201d Marta said.\u00a0 \u201cI . . . haven\u2019t had much chance to see it yet, except that day I walked here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy\u2019s mouth hardened.\u00a0 \u201cWeren\u2019t right, you havin\u2019 to do that.\u00a0 I\u2019d\u2019ve brought you here myself, if I\u2019d knowed you wanted to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that, Billy,\u201d she said softly.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s . . . good to see you . . . at last.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d he said.\u00a0 They walked again in companionable silence.\u00a0 Then Billy stopped abruptly and turned to face her.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t reckon there\u2019s any point in skirtin\u2019 around it: I know you got yourself a problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her fingers instinctively touched her abdomen, but she quickly dropped her hand.\u00a0 \u201cYes,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t the scalawag that got you in this fix willin\u2019 to marry up with you?\u201d Billy demanded.<\/p>\n

Marta lifted her chin proudly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not willin\u2019 to marry up with him,\u201d she declared, \u201ceven if I knew who he was.\u00a0 Any brute who\u2019d take a woman against her will . . .\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Having said more than she intended, she bit her lip and looked away.<\/p>\n

With a gentle hand Billy turned her face back toward him.\u00a0 \u201cIs that the way of it?\u201d he asked.\u00a0 \u201cSome feckless piece of trash force himself on you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Tears shimmered in her eyes as she nodded.\u00a0 \u201cUncle Ben believes me; Stef\u00e1n does not.\u00a0 That\u2019s why he brought me here, so no one back home would ever need to know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSeems like Kat and Enos have their doubts, too,\u201d Billy said grimly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ve been kind, for the most part,\u201d Marta said. \u00a0\u201cEven keeping me out of sight was meant to protect me, but like Mama, they don\u2019t seem to know what to believe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy took her hand.\u00a0 \u201cI know what to believe.\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked up and smiled through her tears at the look of trust in his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cThank you,\u201d she murmured.<\/p>\n

They walked further into the meadow.\u00a0 Then Billy stopped again.\u00a0 \u201cIf you don\u2019t mind me askin\u2019, what you aim to do about it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta sighed.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m still pondering that one.\u00a0 Stef\u00e1n wanted me to give the baby to Katerina to raise, but she doesn\u2019t really want it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t hardly blame her,\u201d Billy said, mouth skewed to one side.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t blame her,\u201d Marta said quickly.\u00a0 \u201cShe had a mess landed on her doorstep and didn\u2019t know what to do with it. \u00a0I don\u2019t know what to do, either.\u00a0 I guess it sounds odd, knowin\u2019 how it all came about, but I love this baby, Billy.\u00a0 I\u2019d like to keep it, raise it myself, but there\u2019s no good way to do it.\u00a0 Either I tell the unvarnished truth and hear my child called bastard all its life.\u201d\u00a0 She choked on the word; then she tossed her head and plunged ahead.\u00a0 \u201cEither that or I come up with some lie, like a husband who died right after planting his seed.\u00a0 I know I\u2019m talkin\u2019 too plain, but . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re friends,\u201d Billy said firmly, \u201cand friends talk plain to each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

She touched her head to his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cThank you.\u201d<\/p>\n

They stopped at the woods edging the meadow and headed back toward the house.\u00a0 Billy gave his lips a nervous lick and said, \u201cYou said there was only them two choices, and you don\u2019t really like either of \u2018em, right?\u00a0 What\u2014what if there was another way?\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta gave a short laugh.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m willing to listen to anything . . . even a hair-brained Billy Thomas notion.\u201d<\/p>\n

He planted himself in her path.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s hair-brained about marryin\u2019 up . . . with me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Her eyes opened wide with surprise.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u00a0 Oh, you\u2019re not serious.\u201d<\/p>\n

He took both her hands in his.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, yeah I am.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still dazed, she shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019d do that?\u00a0 You\u2019d marry a\u2014a soiled woman and raise a baby that\u2019s not yours . . . out of friendship?\u201d<\/p>\n

He looked awkwardly at his toes.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t so sure friendship\u2019s all there is between us, Marta.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, you\u2019re not gonna tell me you\u2019re in love with me,\u201d she scolded.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s one lie I won\u2019t stand for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking up, he gave her a lopsided grin.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t sure it\u2019s real love I feel for you,\u201d he said honestly. \u00a0\u201cMaybe it ain\u2019t the kind my folks have or like what I saw between Uncle Ben and Inger and then Marie, but I do know seein\u2019 you hurt hurts me . . . right here.\u201d\u00a0 He thumped his chest with a closed fist.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s gotta be some kind of love, don\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that\u2019s called sympathy,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, it\u2019s more than that,\u201d he insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut is it enough to last?\u201d she probed.\u00a0 \u201cEspecially knowing there\u2019s some hard times ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some of Billy\u2019s devil-may-care cockiness sprang back into his face.\u00a0 \u201cAw, I bet we can make it last, if\u2019n we work at it.\u00a0 We always got on good together, Marta; I think we\u2019d make a good team.\u201d<\/p>\n

She pulled her hands back and walked away from him.\u00a0 Then she turned back toward him.\u00a0 \u201cOh, I shouldn\u2019t,\u201d she said, holding her flaming cheeks in her hands.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s purely selfish of me to use you that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t feel used.\u201d\u00a0 Billy hurried to her and pulled her hands away from her face.\u00a0 \u201cAnd, hey, it ain\u2019t like you\u2019re gettin\u2019 some bargain in me, you know.\u00a0 Why, Ma\u2019d say I was lucky to find any woman willin\u2019 to take me on trial.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta laughed then.\u00a0 \u201cOh, Billy!\u00a0 One thing is sure: we\u2019d never get bored.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen you\u2019ll have me?\u201d<\/p>\n

She couldn\u2019t hold back the tears.\u00a0 \u201cI should say no; for your sake I should, but Billy, I can\u2019t remember the time I didn\u2019t love you.\u00a0 I always hoped you\u2019d look to me, once you were ready to settle down, but I hate having it happen this way.\u00a0 I wanted it to be for love.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy pulled her into his arms.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll be loved, girl,\u201d he promised.\u00a0 \u201cCount on it.\u00a0 Seems to me, love is a thing a man can learn, like sittin\u2019 a horse or poundin\u2019 an anvil.\u201d<\/p>\n

She gave him a playful shove backwards.\u00a0 \u201cBilly Thomas!\u00a0 Only you could talk about love and blacksmithing, like they were one and the same!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t no Shakespeare,\u201d he cackled.\u00a0 \u201cShucks, I can\u2019t even spin words as fancy as Adam Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re fancy enough for me,\u201d she said, stepping back into his embrace.<\/p>\n

He kissed her and then, grasping her hand, swung it back and forth.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s tell Uncle Ben,\u201d he said.\u00a0 She nodded happily, and hand in hand, they ran back to the Ponderosa ranch house.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201cThat you, Billy?\u201d Nelly called as she heard the front door open and close.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, Ma,\u201d he called back.\u00a0 He stood in the entry a moment, gathering the courage to enter the parlor and face his parents.\u00a0 Telling the news to Uncle Ben had been a piece of cake, compared to this.\u00a0 He\u2019d been surprised, but once he realized that the two young people were serious, he\u2019d given them all the encouragement either could have hoped for.\u00a0 Putting off the telling wouldn\u2019t make it any easier, though, so Billy took a deep breath and walked through the doorway.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, you\u2019re late enough,\u201d Nelly scolded, looking up from the stockings she was darning.\u00a0 \u201cWouldn\u2019t\u2019ve thought there\u2019d be that much for you to say to that girl.\u201d\u00a0 Truthfully, she didn\u2019t see the need for anything to be said to the likes of Marta Zuebner.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpent more time ridin\u2019 there and back than talkin\u2019,\u201d Billy said with an attempt at his usual grin.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrue enough,\u201d Clyde cackled.\u00a0 \u201cNever could figure why Ben had to move hisself so far into the hills.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was an old joke, but nobody but Clyde laughed at it tonight.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s a plate for you in the warming oven,\u201d Nelly told Billy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll have it in a bit.\u00a0 Inger already in bed?\u201d\u00a0 The last thing he needed was having his baby sister walk in on this discussion!<\/p>\n

\u201cNot yet,\u201d his mother said, frowning.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s up in her room, but not likely to be sleepin\u2019 this early.\u00a0 Why you askin\u2019 about your sister?\u201d she asked suspiciously, for while Billy had a brother\u2019s affection for Inger, he wasn\u2019t in the habit of asking her whereabouts of an evening.<\/p>\n

Billy decided to be direct.\u00a0 \u201cNeed to tell you something that may not sit well on first hearing, and\u2014well\u2014I\u2019d just as soon the girl didn\u2019t have to listen to you yell at me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou robbed a bank?\u201d Clyde asked dryly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Pa, \u2018course not.\u201d \u00a0Billy scoffed at the idea.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen I don\u2019t reckon you\u2019re likely to hear any yellin\u2019,\u201d his father said, reaching for his tin of tobacco.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re a man now, fit to make your own decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy exhaled with a measure of relief, although the guarded look on his mother\u2019s face was still disquieting.\u00a0 \u201cGlad to hear you say that, Pa, \u2018cause what I need to tell you is that I\u2019ve decided to get married.\u201d<\/p>\n

The plug of chewing tobacco heading toward Clyde\u2019s mouth hung in midair, and his eyes all but popped out as he looked up at his son.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t even know you was sparkin\u2019 any gal,\u201d he said, and then evidently feeling the need to chew that one over, tucked the tobacco into his cheek.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Clyde, don\u2019t be a fool,\u201d Nelly snapped.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s that Zuebner hussy he\u2019s talkin\u2019 about.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t call her that, Ma,\u201d Billy entreated.<\/p>\n

Nelly\u2019s nostrils flared.\u00a0 \u201cI could use worse words.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNelly, hear the boy out,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cShe right?\u00a0 It the Zuebner girl you\u2019re plannin\u2019 to marry up with?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, it\u2019s Marta,\u201d Billy replied.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s why I went out to the Ponderosa, to ask her, and I\u2019m pleased to say she accepted.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t see nothin\u2019 pleasin\u2019 in that,\u201d Nelly spat out.<\/p>\n

\u201cMa, please,\u201d he pleaded.<\/p>\n

Clyde shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cGotta side with your ma on this one, son.\u00a0 Friend or not, a gal like that, who ain\u2019t kept herself pure, just ain\u2019t the right woman for you\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy wanted to defend Marta\u2019s honor, but unsure how she\u2019d feel about the circumstances of her pregnancy being known, he couldn\u2019t decide what to say.\u00a0 His lip quirked up with a stubborn curl.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve already asked her . . . and I got no regrets.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll have plenty if you keep to this fool notion,\u201d his mother warned.\u00a0 \u201cWhy\u2019d you even want to raise another man\u2019s bastard, boy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt ain\u2019t another man\u2019s bastard!\u201d Billy shouted.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhoa, whoa,\u201d Clyde broke in, while Nelly gasped.\u00a0 \u201cYou sayin\u2019 you fathered this baby, boy?\u201d<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t what Billy had meant at all: he\u2019d only been objecting to the use of the word \u2018bastard\u2019 in speaking of Marta\u2019s child, but suddenly he realized that his parents\u2019 wrong assumption had provided the best possible reason for them to accept this marriage.\u00a0 If he\u2019d had time to think it through, he might have discarded the wild scheme, but since he\u2019d always been a speak-first, think-later kind of fellow, he grabbed the opportunity.\u00a0 \u201cYes, sir,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, it ain\u2019t possible,\u201d his mother sputtered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, yeah it is, Ma,\u201d Billy insisted.\u00a0 He did a quick calculation of the time that had passed since his last trip to California.\u00a0 Early December\u2014three months ago\u2014yeah, that would work, almost perfectly, in fact.\u00a0 \u201cMust\u2019ve happened when I did my Christmas shopping over in California . . . remember?\u201d<\/p>\n

The pallor of Nelly\u2019s face said that she did and that she\u2019d counted the months herself.\u00a0 \u201cOh, lands,\u201d she moaned.\u00a0 \u201cTo think that a boy of mine . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMa, I\u2019m sorry,\u201d Billy said.\u00a0 Seeing her pain, he almost retracted the lie, but to do that would bring disgrace back onto Marta\u2019s innocent head.<\/p>\n

While he was weighing the heartache of the two women, his father spoke up and said, \u201cIf that\u2019s the way of it, the only honorable thing for you to do is marry the girl and give the child your name.\u00a0 Right, Nelly?\u201d<\/p>\n

She nodded mutely.<\/p>\n

Billy knelt in front of her.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t fret, Ma,\u201d he soothed.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019ll be a good marriage, see if it ain\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2014I hope it will be,\u201d she said and, picking up the mending that had dropped into her lap, began darning with all her might.<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The next night Billy was back at the Ponderosa.\u00a0 Ben came around the corner of the alcove just as Hop Sing ushered the young man inside.\u00a0 \u201cWell, well,\u201d he chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cAre we going to be privileged with your company for supper every evening, young fellow?\u00a0 You\u2019re always welcome, of course, but if that\u2019s the case, we should warn Hop Sing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot every night, Uncle Ben,\u201d Billy grinned back, \u201cbut I figured me and Marta had some things to talk over . . . about the wedding, I mean.\u00a0 We oughta fix on a date, leastwise, so I can get a wire off to her folks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sobered.\u00a0 \u201cYou think they\u2019ll come?\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t know, but only seems right to give \u2018em the chance.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood thinking,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 \u201cAlways good to get off on the right footing with the in-laws\u2014so I hear, at any rate; I never had much opportunity in that line.\u201d\u00a0 He had known Captain Stoddard, of course, but he\u2019d been on a good footing with him before marrying Elizabeth.\u00a0 He\u2019d known Gunnar, too, though only briefly.\u00a0 They\u2019d parted on friendly terms, but he had no idea what had become of Inger\u2019s brother.\u00a0 Marie, of course, had been an orphan, and neither of them had ever had any desire to keep in touch with her cousin Edward, even if he was her only family.<\/p>\n

Billy twisted his hat in his hand.\u00a0 \u201cMarta to home?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cNearby,\u201d Ben said with a welcoming gesture toward the fireside.\u00a0 \u201cHoss had something in the woods he wanted to show her, and Little Joe tagged along with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFigures,\u201d Billy snickered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u201d\u00a0 Ben acknowledged his youngest son\u2019s penchant for getting underfoot as he settled into his well padded armchair.\u00a0 \u201cSo, how\u2019d your folks take the news?\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy winced.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat bad, huh?\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMa was.\u201d\u00a0 Billy shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t never seen her so contrary, Uncle Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re her baby boy, son,\u201d Ben offered with a wry smile.\u00a0 \u201cLikely, no woman would be good enough for you, but this situation . . . well, it\u2019s not exactly the fulfillment of a mother\u2019s hopes and dreams.\u201d\u00a0 Or a father\u2019s<\/em>, he added to himself.<\/p>\n

Billy gave his lips a nervous lick.\u00a0 \u201cGuess I might as well tell you I\u2014uh\u2014wasn\u2019t exactly honest with \u2018em about the way things are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Propping his elbow on the arm of the chair, Ben rested his head in the palm of his hand and scrutinized the young man with narrowed eyes.\u00a0 \u201cBilly Thomas, what have you done?\u201d he asked soberly.<\/p>\n

The young man swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cI told \u2018em I was the baby\u2019s father.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben bolted upright.\u00a0 \u201cWhat!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI told \u2018em\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI heard you the first time,\u201d Ben interrupted bluntly.\u00a0 \u201cI just couldn\u2019t believe my ears.\u00a0 Why on earth would you concoct such a lie?\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy shrugged sheepishly.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t exactly concoct it; they sort of misunderstood something I said and took it to mean that, and then I thought it might go down easier\u2014for Ma, at least\u2014if I just didn\u2019t say different.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDoes Marta know?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

Billy shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, sir, but I\u2019ll tell her.\u00a0 Just figured I ought to let you know, so you wouldn\u2019t spill the beans on me.\u00a0 You won\u2019t tell \u2018em, will you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben exhaled in stuttering puffs.\u00a0 \u201cOh, no worries there.\u00a0 Wild horses couldn\u2019t drag me into that!\u201d\u00a0 He leaned forward, hands on his knees.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d advise you to be honest with your family, though . . . and with hers.\u00a0 I understand why you did it: it does tend to silence objections; but I doubt it\u2019ll really help for them to think ill of both Marta and you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the way I want it,\u201d Billy insisted with a stubborn jut of his chin.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, and you do insist on your own way, don\u2019t you, young man?\u201d\u00a0 Ben exhaled another gusty whoosh of air and fell back into his chair.<\/p>\n

Unperturbed, Billy grinned at him.\u00a0 \u201cWhen I think I\u2019m right\u2014and I \u2018most always am.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rolling his eyes toward the ceiling, Ben moaned softly.\u00a0 What could he possibly say to this impudent young idiot?\u00a0 That really would take the wisdom of Solomon, and if he\u2019d doubted before whether there was any resemblance between him and the ancient Israeli king, this latest challenge had forever settled that question.\u00a0 Solomon would keep his reputation as the wisest man ever born\u2014and welcome to it!<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Over supper that night, the young couple settled on March 16th<\/sup> as the date for their wedding.\u00a0 Short notice for Marta\u2019s family, certainly, but it was long enough to make the trip possible, though neither of them thought it likely, with Stef\u00e1n\u2019s brewery and Ludmilla\u2019s restaurant to run.\u00a0 Hoss almost bounced in his excitement over the joining of two of his favorite people, and Little Joe\u2019s attention could scarcely be drawn to his supper when things so much more interesting than eating were going on at the table.\u00a0 Hop Sing frowned at everyone as he cleared the plates of half-eaten meals, and he muttered indecipherable calumnies on them all as he took the dishes into the kitchen.<\/p>\n

Even in the short time she\u2019d lived under the Cartwrights\u2019 roof, Marta had come to understand that the little Oriental\u2019s tirades were mostly bark with no bite, so she merely covered her mouth to hide the laughter that bubbled up.\u00a0 The last two days had witnessed the resurrection of her natural effulgence, and Ben thought he had never seen her look more radiant.\u00a0 Could her countenance be any brighter, even on her wedding day?<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat kind of wedding do you want?\u201d Billy asked.<\/p>\n

Marta sobered momentarily.\u00a0 \u201cOh, a quiet one, I suppose.\u201d\u00a0 Her hooded eyes conveyed her lingering shame over the circumstances of this wedding.<\/p>\n

Sensing that, Ben said brightly, \u201cNow, you mustn\u2019t deprive us of a celebration.\u00a0 This calls for a grand party at the Ponderosa, right, boys?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight!\u201d Hoss declared with an enthusiastic bob of his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight!\u201d Little Joe echoed.\u00a0 \u201cA big party with cake and ice cream!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, maybe not the ice cream,\u201d Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s still a shade cold for that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI . . . don\u2019t know,\u201d Marta said, looking to Billy for guidance.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe could have it here, Uncle Ben?\u201d Billy asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure.\u00a0 Not the first wedding the Ponderosa\u2019s seen, you know.\u201d\u00a0 Ben smiled benevolently at Marta.\u00a0 \u201cThat staircase makes a mighty elegant procession for the bride.\u201d\u00a0 He saw her purse her lips and at once understood what her main concern was.\u00a0 \u201cIf Stef\u00e1n isn\u2019t able to come\u201d\u2014or won\u2019t, he added silently\u2014\u201cthen it will be my pleasure to give the bride away.\u201d<\/p>\n

She smiled then.\u00a0 \u201cA real wedding\u2014more than I\u2019d hoped for, that\u2019s for sure, but\u201d\u2014she hesitated\u2014\u201cwe will keep it simple, yes?\u00a0 No big crowds?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo big crowds,\u201d Ben promised.\u00a0 \u201cJust family, maybe a few close friends.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy gave Marta a questioning look, and face beaming, she nodded happily.\u00a0 \u201cThen we accept,\u201d Billy said.\u00a0 \u201cThanks, Uncle Ben\u2014and, hey, Shortshanks, I\u2019m with you about that ice cream.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe clapped his hands in glee, while Ben shook his head in wonderment.\u00a0 He could only hope that as his son grew older, his inclinations wouldn\u2019t always match those of that scapegrace, Billy Thomas.\u00a0 Looking at Marta, however, and remembering that scapegrace\u2019s generosity and loving-kindness in taking a desperate girl under his sheltering wing, he decided maybe he wouldn\u2019t mind all that much if his youngest did turn out to model some of the traits of that young man.<\/p>\n

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

\u201cWow, Marta, you look gorgeous!\u201d Hoss announced as the girl walked down the stairs Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy, thank you, kind sir,\u201d she said with a ladylike curtsey, spreading the skirts of her burgundy taffeta dress.<\/p>\n

\u201cMuch too pretty for the likes of Billy Thomas,\u201d Ben said with a wink.<\/p>\n

She smiled, but wagged a reproachful finger at him.\u00a0 \u201cNow, I won\u2019t hear a word against my intended.\u201d\u00a0 She felt a pull on her skirt and looked down at Little Joe, who held up his arms toward her.<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, leave \u2018er be, Joe,\u201d Hoss chided.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll get her pretty dress all smudged.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta knelt down and cuddled the child.\u00a0 \u201cNo harm if he does,\u201d she said and pressed a kiss to his cheek.\u00a0 She laughed lightly.\u00a0 \u201cI guess I really should have saved it for the wedding, but Billy insisted on going out tonight, and I don\u2019t have anything else fit for that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMarie had some very nice dresses,\u201d Ben suggested softly, \u201cif you\u2019d care to make one of them over for your wedding.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta\u2019s hand flew to her cheek.\u00a0 \u201cNice!\u201d she cried.\u00a0 \u201cHer gowns were fit for a princess.\u00a0 I\u2014I couldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re pretty as a princess,\u201d Hoss declared.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt won\u2019t bother me, if that\u2019s your concern,\u201d Ben assured her.\u00a0 He\u2019d had some trouble letting go of Marie\u2019s things, but Katerina\u2019s stay at Christmas had convinced him that sharing them was the best way to let her spirit live on.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat about . . . ?\u201d\u00a0 Marta\u2019s chin dipped toward the child who remained in her arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe, come here,\u201d Ben called, and the child ran into his open arms.\u00a0 Ben lifted the boy and set him on his knee.\u00a0 Smoothing the tousled curls, he asked, \u201cIs it all right with you if Marta wears one of Mama\u2019s dresses for her wedding?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe grinned ear to ear.\u00a0 \u201cMama has pretty dresses!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, but may Marta wear one of them?\u201d Ben pressed.<\/p>\n

Little Joe looked confused, but finally said, \u201cIf it fits.\u201d\u00a0 He leaned close to his father\u2019s ear and attempted to whisper, although the sound carried across the room, \u201cI think Mama was a little bit bigger, maybe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cThat can be fixed.\u201d\u00a0 He looked across at Marta.\u00a0 \u201cDoes that answer your question?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Marta said, eyes shining.\u00a0 \u201cIt also tells me I\u2019d better get busy.\u00a0 Maybe I should tell Billy to forget about taking me to this play.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd have him take my head off for luring you away?\u00a0 Nothing doing!\u201d Ben declared.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanna wait outside for Billy,\u201d Little Joe announced, slipping from his father\u2019s knee.<\/p>\n

\u201cExcellent idea,\u201d Ben agreed quickly.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, you\u2019d better go along and keep an eye on him.\u00a0 You know how he is about running to meet horses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss got up and dragged toward the door after his little brother.\u00a0 He had a feeling Pa was about to talk more secrets with Marta and would rather have stayed to listen in.\u00a0 He\u2019d overheard enough whispers the last few days to know that something more than just a wedding was going on with their guest, but hadn\u2019t figured out just what.\u00a0 He knew Pa was right, though: left to himself, Little Joe would run right at Billy\u2019s horse, and no secret was worth taking a chance on that.\u00a0 He had only to remember his mother to know what damage a horse could do to anyone that got in their way.<\/p>\n

Ben took a draw on his pipe after the boys left and then set it aside.\u00a0 \u201cLooking forward to tonight?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really am.\u201d\u00a0 Marta sat down in the blue chair, smoothing her skirt carefully.\u00a0 \u201cIt feels like being courted, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled.\u00a0 \u201cBrief courtship.\u00a0 Maybe that\u2019s why Billy wants to pack it as full as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it\u2019ll look like a real romance?\u201d\u00a0 Marta stared soberly into the fire.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s brows came together in a straight line.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s as real as any romance I\u2019ve ever seen or read about in literature, my dear.\u201d<\/p>\n

She glanced timidly at him.\u00a0 \u201cOn my part, yes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOn his, too,\u201d Ben stated confidently.\u00a0 \u201cDo you think he\u2019d allow people to think what they\u2019re bound to think of him for anything less than real romance?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d\u00a0 Her voice was so soft Ben could barely hear it.\u00a0 \u201cI still don\u2019t know the right or wrong of that, Uncle Ben.\u201d\u00a0 She looked at him more directly.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t like lies, but Billy\u2019s insisting on this one.\u00a0 With all he\u2019s doing for me, I don\u2019t feel able to cross him, but it really bothers me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHave you told him that?\u201d Ben asked gently.<\/p>\n

She nodded.\u00a0 \u201cHe pointed out\u2014and I had no answer for this\u2014that people will count the months and know the baby comes too early.\u00a0 He says he means to be a real pa to our child, so folks might as well think that\u2019s what he is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a certain wisdom in it,\u201d Ben admitted.\u00a0 \u201cPeople will think what they please, but most won\u2019t come out and ask.\u00a0 No need for you to volunteer anything to them; your private affairs are none of their business.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut his family?\u201d Marta asked.<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve already told Billy that I think he should be honest with them.\u00a0 And what about your family?\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta laughed bitterly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve already told them the truth; I think they\u2019ll prefer the lie, Uncle Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, maybe.\u201d\u00a0 His head turned at the sound of shouts from outside.\u00a0 \u201cAh, there\u2019s your Prince Charming, I believe.\u00a0 Pinch your cheeks and put that pretty smile back on.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a laugh she followed orders to the letter.\u00a0 He took her arm and escorted her outside to her betrothed.<\/p>\n

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

Over the next few days Ben wondered why Billy Thomas didn\u2019t just move in, for he seemed to spend more time at the Ponderosa than he did at home.\u00a0 Of course, there were decisions the young couple needed to make, and make quickly.\u00a0 Where they would live was the first question.\u00a0 Since Billy still worked with his father in the smithy, the natural expectation might have been for them to stay with the Thomases, at least until he could provide a home of their own.\u00a0 However, the underlying animosity that Nelly, in particular, felt toward Marta would have meant a miserable existence for the young bride, so Billy ruled that out at once, to Marta\u2019s obvious relief.<\/p>\n

Ben offered them a room at the Ponderosa \u201cuntil you get on your feet,\u201d and while both Hoss and Little Joe thought that was the ideal solution, Billy pointed out its main problem.\u00a0 \u201cI work in Carson,\u201d he said, \u201cand that\u2019s a long ride to make every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDoesn\u2019t seem to be bothering you lately,\u201d Ben muttered wryly, and Billy responded with a sheepish grin.\u00a0 \u201cYou know you always have a job here, if you want it,\u201d Ben added.<\/p>\n

Billy thought that over for a minute, but then shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t want to make things worse with my folks than they already are.\u00a0 I might need to take a better-payin\u2019 job sometime, but I don\u2019t want to leave Pa high and dry, right off.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, you don\u2019t want to build more resentment,\u201d Ben sighed.<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s ears perked up.\u00a0 The big word had meant nothing to Little Joe, of course, but Hoss knew what \u201cresentment\u201d meant.\u00a0 It had been on a spelling list at school.\u00a0 And Pa\u2019d said \u201cmore<\/em> resentment,\u201d meaning there was already some going on over at the Thomas place.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t make sense to Hoss, who knew of no reason that Billy and Marta should be on the outs with Uncle Clyde and Aunt Nelly.\u00a0 He opened his mouth to ask if they were and then closed it just as quickly.\u00a0 All asking would get him was an early trip upstairs to bed, and there\u2019d been too many of those lately, as it was.\u00a0 The best thing to do, he decided, was just keep on playing Noah\u2019s Ark in front of the fireplace with Little Joe and keep his ears stretched for any more hints about the big secret that the grownups were hiding.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I think you\u2019re just going to have to look for a place in Carson City, then,\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomething small,\u201d Marta urged.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou wanna come with me, scout out the prospects?\u201d Billy asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t imagine there are many, Billy!\u00a0 Find what you can and then take me to see it.\u00a0 Just remember\u2014small\u2014I don\u2019t need much.\u201d\u00a0 She laughed.\u00a0 \u201cAfter camping in Katerina\u2019s parlor, anything will seem like a mansion.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s a mansion?\u201d Little Joe asked as he walked his giraffe up the ramp into the ark.<\/p>\n

\u201cA big house, sweetie,\u201d Marta replied.<\/p>\n

The boy looked up at her with a bright smile.\u00a0 \u201cLike this one?\u201d<\/p>\n

The adults laughed.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Little Joe,\u201d his father said.\u00a0 \u201cA mansion is both big and fancy . . . like the Larrimore\u2019s house in San Francisco.\u00a0 You remember that?\u201d<\/p>\n

The boy\u2019s nose wrinkled as he shook his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt ain\u2019t such a much,\u201d Hoss grunted.\u00a0 \u201cI like the Ponderosa better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d have to agree,\u201d Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cHaven\u2019t those animals all made it into the ark yet, boys?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re in,\u201d Little Joe announced, depositing the giraffe on board.\u00a0 He stood up and trotted toward the kitchen.\u00a0 \u201cNow it\u2019s time for the rain!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, no,\u201d Ben said, catching the boy around the waist.\u00a0 He well remembered the fate of the floor the last time Little Joe had tried to simulate forty days and nights of rain.\u00a0 Hop Sing had hollered for hours about that mess!\u00a0 \u201cTime for all animals and little boys to head up to bed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cToo early, Pa,\u201d Little Joe squealed.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, it is not.\u201d\u00a0 Ben stood up, lifting Little Joe to his shoulders for a piggy back ride upstairs.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, put the toys away, please, and get into your night clothes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI gotta go to bed, too?\u201d Hoss protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, just get dressed; then you can stay up a bit longer, but not much.\u00a0 School tomorrow, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss scowled at the reminder, but said only, \u201cYes, sir.\u201d\u00a0 He got into his nightshirt, robe and slippers and came back downstairs, but since the grownups were only talking about the wedding ceremony, who\u2019d do the preaching and who\u2019d bake the cake and such, he soon said his good-nights and headed up to bed.<\/p>\n

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

To call the Ponderosa a madhouse the afternoon before the wedding would have done disservice to the madhouse.\u00a0 Hop Sing was in a frenzy with final household tasks and preparation for the wedding feast the next day.\u00a0 Ben and Marta were busy decorating the mantel and the stair rail with the pink blossoms of the wild peach tree and the delicate yellow petals of antelope brush, and the boys were busy getting underfoot and in the way at every turn.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore antelope brush, you think?\u201d Ben queried, as he and Marta stepped back to survey their work.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe more, the better,\u201d Hoss put in.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t asking you,\u201d Ben grunted.\u00a0 \u201cNor you, either,\u201d he added when he saw Little Joe start to open his mouth.<\/p>\n

Marta cocked her head first one way and then the other.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not sure,\u201d she sighed.\u00a0 \u201cCould we ask Hop Sing?\u201d\u00a0 She\u2019d noticed that he seemed to have a natural instinct for placing things in a way that made a room feel welcoming and serene, two qualities she hoped would reign at the ceremony tomorrow.<\/p>\n

Ben lifted an eyebrow.\u00a0 \u201cHe might have our heads, but we can try.\u00a0 Hop Sing!\u201d he called.<\/p>\n

Dark eyes snapping, Hop Sing stormed into the main room.\u00a0 \u201cWhat you need now?\u00a0 Hop Sing much busy!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry, Hop Sing,\u201d Marta said, lips trembling.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s my fault.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no,\u201d Hop Sing said quickly when he saw her eyes mist.\u00a0 To his mind, there could be no greater offense than upsetting the bride as she prepared for her special day.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing allays happy help Missy Martee.\u00a0 What Missy need?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour advice,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cWe can\u2019t decide if we need more antelope brush or if that would be too much.\u00a0 You have such good taste, I was sure you\u2019d know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing\u2019s chest puffed out with pride.\u00a0 \u201cMissy show good sense.\u00a0 Chinese people have much knowing of how place flowers.\u00a0 Allays remember: little better than much.\u201d\u00a0 Deftly he began to rearrange the flowers as he moved up the staircase, thinning them out and placing them in more balanced groupings..\u00a0 Little Joe clambered up after him, tucking the discarded stems into his shirt.\u00a0 When Hop Sing reached the top of the stairs, he handed a final blossom to his less-than-helpful young assistant and looked down at the bride.\u00a0 \u201cYou like?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes . . . yes!\u201d\u00a0 She clapped her hands in appreciation.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s just what it should look like.\u201d<\/p>\n

The cook walked down to the landing, where he paused to frown at Ben.\u00a0 \u201cYou think you can do same for mantel?\u201d\u00a0 The skeptical look on his face said that he doubted Ben had it in him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure we can,\u201d Marta said quickly, \u201cand we\u2019ll try not to bother you again, Hop Sing.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the cook returned to the kitchen, Little Joe jumped with both feet on each step as he came downstairs with his shirt full of flowers.\u00a0 He had to stop several times to pick up blossoms he\u2019d dropped, so by the time he reached the first floor, his father was already on the ladder, rearranging the flowers on the mantel.\u00a0 \u201cWhere you want these, Pa?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, put them in that bucket of water with the others,\u201d Ben said absently.<\/p>\n

Little Joe did exactly as told, although with decidedly less care than his father might have hoped.\u00a0 He dropped the whole load at once, splashing water out of the bucket.\u00a0 \u201cUh-oh,\u201d Little Joe said, hiding his hands behind his back and looking up nervously at his father.<\/p>\n

Ben turned and groaned.\u00a0 \u201cNot . . . like . . . that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, you is a mess waitin\u2019 to happen every other minute,\u201d Hoss scolded.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet a towel and clean it up, would you, Hoss?\u201d Ben asked.\u00a0 Lowering his voice, he added, \u201cAnd don\u2019t tell Hop Sing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta tittered as the boys took off after towels.\u00a0 When they returned, she helped them mop up the floor, and then Ben sent them into the woods for a little more greenery.\u00a0 \u201cAnd to keep them out of our hair,\u201d he added to Marta as they raced outside<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd now, young lady,\u201d Ben charged, \u201cjust keep your eyes on this mantel and make sure I\u2019m doing this right.\u201d<\/p>\n

He had, of course, refused to allow her on the ladder and, therefore, had to do the job himself, but he felt a genuine lack of confidence in his decorative instincts.\u00a0 Marta made suggestions here and there, and they finally decided it looked as well as it could.\u00a0 \u201cBeautiful, in fact,\u201d the girl declared.\u00a0 She bent to straighten the flowers that remained in the water bucket.\u00a0 \u201cI wish now that I hadn\u2019t sent Billy to find more.\u00a0 This should be enough for my bouquet, don\u2019t you think?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben started to declare himself incompetent to answer such a question, but stopped when he heard the knock at the door.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s probably him now,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cIf I were you, I wouldn\u2019t mention that the flowers are unneeded.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta giggled.\u00a0 \u201cAnd scare him off the day before the wedding, you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot a chance,\u201d Ben chuckled.\u00a0 Both he and Marta knew that if what the young man already knew hadn\u2019t scared him off, nothing was likely to.\u00a0 He walked over to the door and opened it.\u00a0 \u201cCome on in, Bil\u2014.\u201d\u00a0 His eyes widened and his mouth gaped for a moment, but he quickly regained his composure.\u00a0 \u201cStef\u00e1n\u2014an unexpected, but most welcome surprise.\u00a0 Come in, come in.\u201d\u00a0 Then he spotted the woman standing behind the man.\u00a0 \u201cLudmilla!\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta\u2019s face, which had looked fearful at the announcement of her brother\u2019s name, brightened when she heard her mother\u2019s.\u00a0 \u201cMama!\u201d she cried and ran to the door.<\/p>\n

Ludmilla squeezed past her son to engulf her daughter in her arms.\u00a0 \u201cAch, mein M\u00e4dchen<\/em>,\u201d she cried.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Mama,\u201d Marta sighed, lying her head on her mother\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cThis is more joy than I had hoped for.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOr deserved,\u201d said Stef\u00e1n severely.\u00a0 \u201cSo now we know, little sister, who took you into the woods\u2014or was it his hotel room?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStef\u00e1n!\u201d pleaded his mother.\u00a0 \u201cIs it not enough that Billy will now do what is right by your sister?\u201d<\/p>\n

Face red with embarrassment, Marta looked to Ben, who spread his hands as if to say that the decision was hers.\u00a0 Billy had been adamant about claiming responsibility as the natural father of Marta\u2019s child and had personally told that story to Katerina and Enos, and Marta had reluctantly gone along with it.\u00a0 \u201cI guess you\u2019ve come from Katerina\u2019s house,\u201d was all she said now.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, we stopped there,\u201d Stef\u00e1n said stiffly, \u201cand she has told us all.\u201d\u00a0 He turned to face Ben.\u00a0 \u201cI will stay with them, sir, but Mama would find more comfort here, if it does not trouble you too much.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo trouble at all,\u201d Ben assured him, \u201cand there\u2019s plenty of room for you as well, Stef\u00e1n.\u201d\u00a0 His mouth twitched.\u00a0 \u201cI know from experience that there\u2019s not at the Montgomerys\u2019 cabin.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though Ben would not have thought it possible, Stef\u00e1n\u2019s stance grew more rigid.\u00a0 \u201cI will not stay under the same roof where soiled linen is welcome.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s jaw hardened.\u00a0 \u201cStef\u00e1n, I understand your anger, but that was uncalled for.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI apologize to you,\u201d the young man said; then his eyes snapped, \u201cbut not to her!\u00a0 I am sure, Mr. Cartwright, that your intentions are honorable, and that is why I can allow Mama to stay here with you, but I will not sleep where that teller of lies is welcome.\u201d\u00a0 His chin jerked once in Marta\u2019s direction.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s not\u2014\u201d, but Ben broke off in the sudden awareness that Marta was lying, not in the way Stef\u00e1n thought, but lying nonetheless.\u00a0 And since he\u2019d been sworn to silence by Billy Thomas, he was implicated in the lie, as well.\u00a0 While he was debating whether to break that promise, he heard shouts of greeting outside and realized that not only were his young sons back, but so, evidently, was Billy Thomas.\u00a0 And with his usual aptness, he was showing up at the worst possible time.<\/p>\n

The door banged open and Hoss came through first.\u00a0 \u201cHey, Pa, we\u2019re back,\u201d he cried.<\/p>\n

\u201cBilly, too,\u201d Little Joe announced happily, \u201cand lots of flowers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Face beaming and arms full of wild peach blossoms, Billy sprang through the door.\u00a0 \u201cIf this ain\u2019t enough, girl, I plumb give up,\u201d he called.\u00a0 Then he caught sight of the visitors.\u00a0 \u201cOh, hey, your folks made it, after all.\u00a0 Glad you could come, Stef\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

Before Billy could finish his welcome, Stef\u00e1n stormed across the room and plowed an iron-hard fist into Billy\u2019s jaw.\u00a0 Blossoms scattered everywhere as Billy fell down, his head striking the doorsill.\u00a0 Stef\u00e1n fell prostrate on him, pummeling the other man.\u00a0 Marta and Ludmilla shouted for him to stop; Little Joe shrieked, while Hoss stood back, stunned at the sight of two good friends battling on their doorstep.<\/p>\n

Ben rushed forward, wading through the women and pushing the boys out of the way.\u00a0 He yanked Stef\u00e1n off Billy and wrapped his arms around the other man\u2019s torso.\u00a0 Stef\u00e1n was younger, however, and well muscled, so he broke free and lunged for Billy again.\u00a0 \u201cNot in my house!\u201d Ben bellowed.<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n stopped, breathing hard.\u00a0 \u201cNo,\u201d he gasped.\u00a0 Then he scowled down at Billy.\u00a0 \u201cWe take this outside.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy scrambled to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cFine by me,\u201d he retorted.<\/p>\n

Ben grabbed each combatant by an arm.\u00a0 \u201cNot by me!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot by me, too,\u201d Ludmilla cried.\u00a0 \u201cAch, mein Sohn, denkt on di Kinder<\/em>!\u201d<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n twisted free of Ben\u2019s grip.\u00a0 \u201cI think of the child . . . the child that should not be . . . the child this spoiler has fathered.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMarta, take Hoss and Little Joe upstairs,\u201d Ben ordered sharply.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I should stay,\u201d she started to say, but Ben\u2019s voice interrupted her.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow!\u201d he roared, and the girl at once reached for Little Joe\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s he sayin\u2019?\u201d Hoss demanded, looking at Stef\u00e1n.\u00a0 He\u2019d known for days that some sort of secret was being whispered in this house, and though he still couldn\u2019t put the pieces together, he was beginning to get an inkling.\u00a0 To be sent upstairs now, when it might all become clear, seemed intolerable.<\/p>\n

\u201cGo with Marta, boys,\u201d Ben said, softening his voice when he saw his youngest trembling.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll talk with you later, but now I need to speak to these rowdy young men in private.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marta took Hoss\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cCome on, sweetie.\u00a0 I\u2019ll tell you a story.\u201d\u00a0 Blushing, she looked up at Ben.\u00a0 \u201cNot that story,\u201d she whispered, and he nodded his understanding.<\/p>\n

With anxious looks over his shoulder, Hoss reluctantly let himself be led off.\u00a0 Little Joe, on the other hand, was only too glad to escape that room where Pa was yelling at everyone.\u00a0 A story from Marta sounded much more appealing, so he happily skipped up the stairs at her side.<\/p>\n

Once the trio disappeared, Ben rounded on the men\u2014 mere boys in Ben\u2019s sight.\u00a0 \u201cYou . . . will . . . not . . . shout such accusations in front of my innocent children again,\u201d he said tersely, eyes snapping.<\/p>\n

Ludmilla buried her tear-stained and shame-flamed face in her hands, but none of the men appeared to notice.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am sorry,\u201d Stef\u00e1n replied awkwardly.\u00a0 \u201cIt was wrong to speak of such evil before them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEvil.\u201d\u00a0 Ben all but spat the word.<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n\u2019s head rose proudly.\u00a0 \u201cYes, evil.\u00a0 I call it what it is.\u00a0 To take the honor of a young girl is evil.\u201d\u00a0 He turned a glowering glare on Billy Thomas.\u00a0 \u201cAnd he has done\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing,\u201d Ben snapped.\u00a0 \u201cHe has done nothing . . . at least, nothing you think he\u2019s done.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUncle Ben . . . no!\u201d Billy protested, for he sensed what was coming.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t tell me no, Billy Thomas,\u201d Ben said hotly.\u00a0 \u201cThe time for lies is past.\u00a0 They\u2019re doing more harm than good.\u00a0 Can\u2019t you see that?\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy slumped in resignation.\u00a0 Stef\u00e1n eyed him warily, while Ludmilla peered hesitantly through her sheltering fingers.<\/p>\n

Seeing her, Ben hurried over to her.\u00a0 \u201cLudmilla, my dear friend, please sit down. \u00a0I am sorry to upset you in any way, but there is something you and Stef\u00e1n need to hear.\u201d\u00a0 He led her to the blue armchair and seated her gently.\u00a0 He waved toward the settee.\u00a0 \u201cStef\u00e1n . . . Billy . . . opposite ends, please.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still eyeing one another with suspicion, the young men took their designated positions, Stef\u00e1n on the end nearest his mother.\u00a0 He reached over to stroke her hand soothingly.<\/p>\n

Ben noted the tender gesture with approval, but continued to look sternly at the two young men facing him as he stood before the fire, arms folded.\u00a0 \u201cI can only hope that when my boys grow up, none of them is as stubborn as the two of you!\u201d<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n\u2019s features hardened, and he pointed an accusing finger at Billy.\u00a0 \u201cHe has done\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing,\u201d Ben said again.\u00a0 \u201cHe has done nothing . . . except ask your sister to marry him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2014he is not father?\u201d Ludmilla asked hesitantly.\u00a0 \u201cBut Katerina told us\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat she believed to be true,\u201d Ben said softly.\u00a0 \u201cBilly told them, as well as his own family, that he had fathered Marta\u2019s child.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t true.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n snorted.\u00a0 \u201cIt is as I have said from the beginning: Marta has lied.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben said sharply.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Billy jumped in, in defense of his bride.\u00a0 \u201cThe lie\u2019s my doing, not hers; she said all along we should just tell the truth\u2014to the whole world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhich might be going a bit too far,\u201d Ben grunted.\u00a0 \u201cThe whole world has no right to know . . . but you do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ludmilla tilted her head and looked at Billy.\u00a0 \u201cYou are not the father?\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy reluctantly shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo, ma\u2019am.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you still will marry my girl?\u201d\u00a0 Ludmilla\u2019s eyes were dazed with disbelief.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, ma\u2019am,\u201d he said earnestly.\u00a0 \u201cI want to very much.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy?\u201d Stef\u00e1n demanded.\u00a0 \u201cWhy do you want soiled linen?\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy reared up like a cock, fists clenched for battle.\u00a0 \u201cYou take that back!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth of you settle down!\u201d Ben ordered.\u00a0 \u201cStef\u00e1n, I told you once before that that language was uncalled for, and as long as we\u2019re dealing with truth here, it\u2019s not only uncalled for, but untrue.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe is unmarried and with child,\u201d Stef\u00e1n growled.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Ben said gravely, \u201cand there was evil done, not by your sister but by the man who forced himself on her.\u00a0 His soul is soiled, I agree, but hers as pure as the snow on the Sierras.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou believe her story,\u201d Stef\u00e1n asserted, \u201cbut you cannot know it to be true; you were not there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou do not believe her story,\u201d Ben retorted, \u201cbut you cannot know it to be untrue; you were not there.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the first time doubt crossed Stef\u00e1n\u2019s face, and he sat back in solemn thought.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf only she had come to us when it happened,\u201d Ludmilla sighed.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Ben said sadly.\u00a0 \u201cIt was a mistake; Marta knows that now and is paying dearly for it.\u00a0 Must she pay forever?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d Stef\u00e1n said hesitantly.\u00a0 \u201cYou have given me much to think about, and I must have time to search my heart.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced toward the far end of the settee.\u00a0 \u201cI see now that I have misjudged you, Billy.\u00a0 I ask your forgiveness.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou got it,\u201d Billy said, stretching out his hand.\u00a0 \u201cAlways thought highly of you, Stef\u00e1n, and I\u2019ll be proud to call you brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other man shook the extended hand briefly before turning to Ben.\u00a0 \u201cI ask your forgiveness, too.\u00a0 I should not have spoken of these things before your children.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben acknowledged that statement with a nod and then added, \u201cI\u2019ll see to them.\u00a0 They\u2019ll be all right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n stood.\u00a0 \u201cI will tell Katerina and Enos the truth of this marriage.\u00a0 They should know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy licked his lips uncomfortably.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, all right, but don\u2019t say anything to my folks tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBilly,\u201d Ben chided.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know, I know,\u201d he sighed.\u00a0 \u201cI ought to tell \u2018em the truth . . . and I will.\u00a0 Just let me do it in my own way . . . and when I see fit.\u00a0 I want to get through tomorrow in peace.\u00a0 I want that for Marta, more than for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right,\u201d Ben agreed, thinking that Marta, indeed, deserved peace and happiness on her wedding day, though it was likely to come at the expense of that of Clyde and Nelly.<\/p>\n

\u201cStef\u00e1n?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI will say nothing,\u201d the other man promised.\u00a0 He moved to his mother\u2019s side and leaned down to kiss her cheek.\u00a0 \u201cRest well, Mama, and I will see you tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben saw him to the door.\u00a0 \u201cCome early tomorrow,\u201d he urged, and Stef\u00e1n said that he would.\u00a0 Ben closed the door and, exhaling slowly, walked back toward the others.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I\u2019m glad we got that cleared up.\u201d\u00a0 He arched an eyebrow in Billy\u2019s direction to invite his comment.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I guess I am, too,\u201d Billy admitted.\u00a0 \u201cMarta didn\u2019t like lyin\u2019 to you, ma\u2019am,\u201d he told Ludmilla.\u00a0 \u201cIt was all my doin\u2019, like I said.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ludmilla was all smiles.\u00a0 \u201cYou can do no wrong in my eyes, mein Sohn<\/em>.\u00a0 For what you do for mein M\u00e4dchen<\/em>, I thank you forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy\u2019s face flushed red.\u00a0 \u201cAw, it weren\u2019t nothin\u2019; I\u2019m gettin\u2019 myself a mighty fine girl, ma\u2019am.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ludmilla wagged a finger at him.\u00a0 \u201cNot ma\u2019am now . . . Mama.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy grinned then.\u00a0 \u201cMama.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hearing that the shouting had stopped, Hop Sing came in from the kitchen.\u00a0 He took one look at the flowers strewn over his carefully polished floor and began crying out in words no one understood, but whose meaning no one doubted.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll clean it up,\u201d Ben promised.\u00a0 \u201cNow, if you could bring some coffee for our guest, I would appreciate it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat why I come in,\u201d Hop Sing grunted, \u201cbut not expect find big mess.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBilly, get to work,\u201d Ben growled out the corner of his mouth.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m gettin\u2019 \u2018em, Hop Sing, don\u2019t you fret,\u201d Billy said, jumping up and picking up flowers as fast as he could.\u00a0 He looked up at Ben.\u00a0 \u201cThen you reckon I could see Marta?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll send her down,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 He smiled at Ludmilla.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry to leave you so soon after you\u2019ve come, but I need to talk to my sons.\u00a0 We\u2019ll have a chance to visit at supper, all right?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ludmilla glanced over at Billy and smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI have good company.\u201d\u00a0 She looked back to Ben and said softly, \u201cGott sei mit ihnen<\/em>, my friend.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mounting the stairs, Ben also implored God to be with him, to give him, once again, the wisdom he did not possess, to speak the right words to his boys.\u00a0 He found them in Marta\u2019s room, sitting enthralled at the foot of her bed, while she spun a tale of a boy and girl and a house made of gingerbread.\u00a0 \u201cYou can go downstairs now, dear,\u201d Ben told her.<\/p>\n

\u201cFinish the story first,\u201d Little Joe demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, son, Marta needs to go to her mother; she\u2019ll finish the story another time.\u201d\u00a0 Seeing Marta hesitate, he added, \u201cIt\u2019s all right.\u00a0 I need to explain some things to my sons.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry,\u201d she whispered, knowing the conversation might be difficult and, but for her, unnecessary.<\/p>\n

Ben stroked her smooth cheek.\u00a0 \u201cNot your fault, dear.\u00a0 Go on now.\u00a0 Billy\u2019s anxious to see you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her eyes brightened at the mention of that name, and she hurried from the room.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to hear that story,\u201d Little Joe pouted.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou will . . . for bedtime, if you\u2019re a good boy,\u201d his father said, picking his youngest up and setting him on his knee.\u00a0 \u201cYou were upset, seeing Billy and Stef\u00e1n fight, weren\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

The child\u2019s face clouded.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t like you yelling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben cuddled him close.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry for yelling; I didn\u2019t mean to frighten you.\u201d\u00a0 Just those two big scalawags<\/em>, he thought.\u00a0 \u201cIs there anything you want to know about what happened?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s nose crinkled.\u00a0 \u201cWhat they fightin\u2019 \u2018bout?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStef\u00e1n thought that Billy had done a bad thing,\u201d Ben explained as simply as he could.<\/p>\n

\u201cBilly wouldn\u2019t do nothin\u2019 bad,\u201d Little Joe declared loyally, for Billy Thomas was one of his favorite people.<\/p>\n

Ben had his doubts about the complete accuracy of that statement, but in this case, his young son was right and he quickly agreed.\u00a0 \u201cOf course not.\u00a0 Stef\u00e1n had him mixed up with someone else, and that\u2019s why he hit Billy.\u00a0 I straightened him out, and they\u2019re not fighting anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s good,\u201d Little Joe said, his face clearing.\u00a0 \u201cI like \u2018em both.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo do I.\u201d\u00a0 Ben tousled the boy\u2019s curls and set him down.\u00a0 \u201cBilly\u2019s still downstairs.\u00a0 Why don\u2019t you run down and see if he or Marta needs your help?\u201d\u00a0 The odds that they did were, of course, nonexistent, but he wanted his youngest out of the room before this conversation went further.<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay!\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe trotted out the door.<\/p>\n

Nibbling his lower lip, Hoss looked up at his father.\u00a0 \u201cThat ain\u2019t all there is to it,\u201d he said, not wanting Pa to think he was some baby like Little Joe, who could be as easily put off.<\/p>\n

Ben sighed.\u00a0 \u201cNo, that\u2019s not all there is to it.\u00a0 Hoss, I wish you hadn\u2019t seen that fracas, but I don\u2019t want you imagining things worse than they are, so you ask me anything you want, and I\u2019ll try to answer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStef\u00e1n said somethin\u2019 about a child that shouldn\u2019t be,\u201d Hoss said, \u201cand he said Billy was the father.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStef\u00e1n was wrong about that,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cSon, this is a big secret: you can\u2019t tell anyone.\u00a0 Now, I know you\u2019re a big enough boy to understand that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s chest swelled.\u00a0 \u201cYou bet I am.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben pulled him close to his side.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, Marta is going to have a baby.\u201d<\/p>\n

A wide grin split Hoss\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cHey, that\u2019s great!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben squeezed him tighter.\u00a0 \u201cWell . . . it\u2019s not that simple, son.\u00a0 You see, if people knew that Marta was with child before her marriage . . . well, they\u2019d think she\u2019d done something wrong.\u201d\u00a0 He quickly added, \u201cAnd she didn\u2019t.\u00a0 She did nothing wrong; it\u2019s important you understand that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that,\u201d Hoss said, as if Pa should have known he wouldn\u2019t believe any such nonsense about his friend.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut other people don\u2019t know her as well as you do,\u201d Ben explained, \u201cso they might think she did.\u00a0 That\u2019s why we have to keep the baby a secret.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d Hoss said slowly.\u00a0 \u201cThat why the child shouldn\u2019t be . . . \u2018cause they ain\u2019t married yet?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s just earlier than it should be, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss looked pensive and finally said, \u201cLittle Joe was born early.\u00a0 That what you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gasped and then uttered a short laugh.\u00a0 \u201cWell, not exactly, but Marta\u2019s baby will be born sooner than most folks expect, like your brother was.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s lips began to tremble.\u00a0 \u201cAunt Nelly said he might die from comin\u2019 early.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben took the boy\u2019s cheeks between his hands.\u00a0 \u201cShe told you that?\u00a0 Oh, Hoss, I never knew.\u201d\u00a0 He swallowed the lump in his throat.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s true.\u00a0 Little Joe was premature\u2014that\u2019s one kind of coming early\u2014and he was in some danger.\u00a0 Marta\u2019s baby isn\u2019t premature, though; it\u2019s coming early for another reason, and so there shouldn\u2019t be any risk at all.\u201d\u00a0 Please, please don\u2019t let him ask what that reason is<\/em>, Ben\u2019s heart implored.<\/p>\n

Hoss breathed a sigh of relief.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s good, then.\u201d\u00a0 He frowned.\u00a0 \u201cBilly ain\u2019t the father?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe will be . . . when the baby comes.\u201d\u00a0 Ben licked his lips.\u00a0 \u201cUh\u2014Stef\u00e1n thought Billy was making the baby come early and\u2014uh\u2014that\u2019s what made him mad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded solemnly.\u00a0 \u201cI bet he thought it was that other kind of early . . . like Little Joe . . . and he was scared for Marta.\u201d<\/p>\n

Close enough<\/em>, Ben decided with relief.\u00a0 He certainly didn\u2019t want to explain rape to his eleven-year-old son, if it could possibly be avoided.\u00a0 \u201cWe don\u2019t want anyone else being scared,\u201d he said, \u201cso you can\u2019t even tell Uncle Clyde or Aunt Nelly.\u00a0 Billy will do that himself, when the time is right.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen they won\u2019t be scared,\u201d Hoss concluded.\u00a0 \u201cFair enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd whatever you do,\u201d Ben said in a conspiratorial whisper, \u201cdon\u2019t tell your little brother.\u00a0 He can\u2019t keep a secret for anything!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa,\u201d Hoss reproved with a patient shake of his head, \u201cI got me some<\/em> sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

The air was crisp and cold on Sunday, but the sky was relatively clear, with only a few dusky gray clouds drifting overhead.\u00a0 The wedding had been set for three o\u2019clock that afternoon, to accommodate those who wished to attend church, and, of course, the reverend wasn\u2019t available until afternoon, anyway.\u00a0 Ben sent Hoss and Little Joe off to morning worship with Hank Carlton, mostly to get them out from underfoot.\u00a0 He had other reasons, too, however, and hoped Stef\u00e1n would come early, as requested.\u00a0 There was still something he needed to discuss with that young man.\u00a0 It would have been better to have settled everything yesterday, of course, but he hadn\u2019t wanted to lay more on those already overburdened shoulders\u2014shoulders that had carried too heavy a load from a very early age and obviously still did.\u00a0 Stef\u00e1n had said he needed time to think, and that had seemed reasonable to Ben.\u00a0 In fact, it had given him time to do some thinking of his own and come to some conclusions.<\/p>\n

The boy\u2019s reaction from the first had bothered Ben.\u00a0 Why was Stef\u00e1n so willing to believe the worst of his little sister?\u00a0 To his knowledge, the girl had always been forthright and honest, and surely Stef\u00e1n knew that better than he.\u00a0 Ben wondered if it wasn\u2019t the responsibility he\u2019d carried since his father died along the trail that had hardened him.\u00a0 He\u2019d accepted the load willingly, but how heavily it must have weighed on the young man to find himself suddenly charged with providing for three women and for helping his mother to rear two fatherless young girls.\u00a0 Having seen Adam bear a similar burden after Marie\u2019s death, Ben knew how taxing it could be, how it could strain a young man almost to the breaking point; and Stef\u00e1n had carried that burden for\u2014what was it?\u2014a dozen years now.<\/p>\n

Did Marta\u2019s situation make him feel that he had failed to bring her up properly?\u00a0 Stef\u00e1n was a young man who took his responsibilities seriously, who had possibly put his own dreams of marriage and family aside for the sake of his mother and sisters.\u00a0 Was he now so harsh and bitter because, in the light of this family crisis, the sacrifice seemed meaningless?\u00a0 Ben couldn\u2019t, with certainty, answer those questions, but as he had pondered them late into the night, he found himself thinking that they might carry more than a grain of truth.<\/p>\n

The hustle and bustle of that morning, however, left little time for further contemplation.\u00a0 There were baths to be drawn for both Ludmilla and Marta, last minute touches he and Hop Sing needed to give the house, moving furniture to accommodate the ceremony and double-checking that everything was in order for the wedding itself and the wedding feast afterwards.\u00a0 Given the short notice, Hop Sing had outdone himself with a three-course dinner.\u00a0 Oyster stew would open the meal, to be followed by New England favorites like roast beef and chicken and accompanying vegetables and topped off with Charlotte Russe, an elegant dessert the Cantonese cook had picked up from Marie.\u00a0 For those who arrived early, there would be finger sandwiches, pickled eggs and peaches, olives and cheeses, bowls of walnuts and a variety of cookies, including an almond one that Hop Sing insisted would bring good luck to the new couple.<\/p>\n

It was nearly noon when George and Laura Dettenrieder arrived, bringing the two-tiered wedding cake.\u00a0 Though the guest list had been purposely kept short, they were, of course, invited to stay and gladly accepted.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t know Marta, but were well acquainted with the Thomases, and now that they lived in Dayton, rarely saw old friends like them or Ben, either.\u00a0 \u201cGlad you asked me to bake the cake,\u201d Laura said after she\u2019d supervised its placement on the reception table.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve been too long in coming to see you, Ben.\u00a0 You getting along since Marie passed?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re managing,\u201d Ben said quietly.\u00a0 Much as he appreciated her concern, today was not a day to dwell on the sorrow of a love lost, but on the joy of one just beginning.<\/p>\n

She seemed to understand and excused herself into the kitchen to see if Hop Sing needed any help.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re a guest today,\u201d Ben protested, but she just laughed and waved his objections away as she kept moving through the dining room.\u00a0 Ben shrugged and, finding himself finally with nothing to do, he showed George to a seat and the two men were soon wrapped up in a discussion of news local and distant, everything from the new mint to be built at Carson City and the government\u2019s first issuance of paper money, both having been announced earlier that month, to the battle of the ironclads, Monitor and Merrimac, in the war back East.<\/p>\n

The boys came back about half an hour later, Little Joe tearing off his tie as he scampered in.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no, Joseph,\u201d Ben scolded.\u00a0 \u201cYou have to stay dressed today, for the wedding, remember?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll day?\u201d Little Joe whined.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, all day.\u201d \u00a0Ben slowly drew out each word.\u00a0 He started to cinch the tie around the boy\u2019s neck again and then laughed at the futility.\u00a0 \u201cNever mind,\u201d he said as he dropped it into his pocket, instead.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll wait until closer to the ceremony to make you miserable again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, Mr. Dettenrieder,\u201d Hoss said with a big grin.\u00a0 \u201cJimmy come with you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOut in the kitchen with his ma, son,\u201d George replied.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome on, Joe,\u201d Hoss called as he headed that direction.\u00a0 It had been far too long, in his opinion, since he\u2019d seen his old friend.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet something to eat while you\u2019re there,\u201d Ben called.\u00a0 Then he shook his head at his own foolishness.\u00a0 When had he ever had to remind Hoss to eat?<\/p>\n

Marta was an entirely different matter, but with Ludmilla\u2019s help he did persuade her to take a little nourishment.\u00a0 The other guests who began to trickle in had either eaten already or willingly nibbled at the sandwiches and other tidbits as Hop Sing circled the room, tray in hand.<\/p>\n

The Montgomery party arrived about one o\u2019clock, and Katerina immediately went upstairs, where Ludmilla and Marta were beginning to arrange their hair and lay out their dresses.\u00a0 After greeting George Dettenrieder, Enos sat on the settee; Stef\u00e1n started to join him, but Ben asked if he could speak to him privately.\u00a0 \u201cWhy don\u2019t we walk outside, get some fresh air?\u201d Ben suggested.<\/p>\n

In deference to his host, Stef\u00e1n agreed, and the two men walked outside together.\u00a0 Ben led the way toward the meadow.\u00a0 Bending over to pluck a blade of new spring grass, he rubbed it between his fingers, and his eyes were focused on it as he asked, \u201cHave you had time to think over what we were discussing yesterday, Stef\u00e1n?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou mean whether I can believe Marta?\u201d the young man asked.<\/p>\n

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

\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d Stef\u00e1n said.\u00a0 He looked up at Ben, who instinctively raised his own gaze to meet that of the other man.\u00a0 \u201cI can never know,\u201d he murmured.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t you?\u201d Ben asked softly.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve grown up with her, Stef\u00e1n.\u00a0 Would you have ever thought her capable of such behavior or of lying about it?\u201d<\/p>\n

For a moment Stef\u00e1n stiffened; then his shoulders slumped.\u00a0 \u201cNo, never before.\u00a0 I\u2014I tried to teach her what was right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben placed a hand on the other man\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cYou didn\u2019t fail, Stef\u00e1n.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n flinched away.\u00a0 \u201cThat is worse!\u201d he cried.\u00a0 \u201cIf it happened as she said, then\u2014then . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

In that moment Ben realized that he had only half guessed the source of Stef\u00e1n\u2019s torment.\u00a0 \u201cYou want it to be true, don\u2019t you?\u201d he suggested.\u00a0 \u201cYou want her to have been dissolute, because as bad as that would be, it\u2019s far worse to believe that she was violently attacked and you failed to protect her.\u201d<\/p>\n

A guttural groan of anguish ripped from Stef\u00e1n throat.\u00a0 \u201cGott<\/em> forgive me if that is true!\u201d he cried.<\/p>\n

Ben moved closer and again gripped the young man\u2019s shoulder, more tightly this time.\u00a0 \u201cStef\u00e1n, this was not your fault.\u00a0 You have stood in the place of a father to Marta all these years, but you cannot stand in the place of God.\u00a0 You are not all-knowing and all-powerful, as He is; there was no way for you to foresee her danger that night, no way to prevent it without foreseeing it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d Stef\u00e1n said, shaking his head slowly.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t want what you say to be true, but I think . . . maybe . . . it could be.\u00a0 I cannot decide.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cListen to your heart,\u201d Ben advised, giving the shoulder one final squeeze before releasing it.\u00a0 \u201cIf you set aside your fears and just listen to that, you\u2019ll find the truth.\u201d\u00a0 He took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cThere is one other thing I need to ask you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n looked up warily.\u00a0 \u201cIf it is as hard as this, I don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt shouldn\u2019t be,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 He paused and then asked, \u201cWill you give the bride away?\u201d<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n looked puzzled.\u00a0 \u201cBut Katerina said that you would do that.\u00a0 That is what you and Marta planned.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cOnly because we feared that you would not be able\u2014or willing\u2014to do it yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI . . . don\u2019t know,\u201d Stef\u00e1n replied, looking at the ground.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt should be you,\u201d Ben urged.\u00a0 \u201cWhat will people think if you don\u2019t?\u00a0 Won\u2019t they suspect that something is amiss, and once that sort of gossip starts, won\u2019t it tear holes in the shelter that Billy has offered her?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Stef\u00e1n admitted breathlessly.<\/p>\n

\u201cStef\u00e1n,\u201d Ben said and waited for the young man to meet his probing eyes.\u00a0 \u201cAre you so sure of Marta\u2019s guilt that you\u2019re willing to put her to public shame?\u201d<\/p>\n

They stared into each other\u2019s eyes for a long moment, and it was Stef\u00e1n who first broke away.\u00a0 \u201cNo,\u201d he whispered.\u00a0 \u201cNo . . . I . . . I am not sure at all, and I have been wrong to punish where there was no proof of wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTell her,\u201d Ben urged.\u00a0 \u201cUndo the damage by taking her on your arm to meet her new husband.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n nodded decisively and turned at once back toward the house.\u00a0 As he walked inside, George and Enos turned, but he ignored them and moved directly up the stairs.\u00a0 At the top, however, he stopped, for he had no idea in which room to look for his sister.\u00a0 Ben, who had followed him in, said, \u201cDown the hall, turn right and straight to the back of the house, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stef\u00e1n nodded his appreciation of the directions and proceeded down the hall.\u00a0 He rapped on the closed door to the bedroom, and his mother came to answer his knock.\u00a0 She paled when she saw him standing there, perhaps in fear that he would spoil this day for her daughter with more harsh words.\u00a0 However, when he asked if he could come in, she naturally stepped aside and admitted him.\u00a0 Her son was now head of the family, and from girlhood she had been taught to respect that position.<\/p>\n

He entered and saw Marta standing at the foot of the bed, dressed in a blue gown that was simply styled, but matched the shade of her eyes and brought out the bloom in her cheeks.\u00a0 \u201cYou look beautiful, little sister,\u201d he said softly.\u00a0 \u201cA beautiful bride.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her mouth, tense before, curved upward.\u00a0 \u201cThank you, Stef\u00e1n.\u201d<\/p>\n

He gazed at the floor for a moment; then he raised his head and looked forthrightly into her face.\u00a0 \u201cI will be proud to give you away, if you wish it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ludmilla cried out for joy, for, to her, the day would now be perfect.<\/p>\n

Tears shimmered in Marta\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 \u201cYes,\u201d she murmured.\u00a0 \u201cI wouldn\u2019t let myself hope for it, knowing what you think of me, but it is what I have wanted most\u2014my family with me and you at my side.\u00a0 Oh, yes, Stef\u00e1n.\u00a0 Thank you!\u201d<\/p>\n

Man that he was, Stef\u00e1n\u2019s lips began to quiver.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2014I think I may have wronged you, little sister.\u201d<\/p>\n

She swayed on her heels and might have fallen had she not grasped the bed post with one hand.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2014you believe me?\u201d she whispered.<\/p>\n

He hesitated only a moment.\u00a0 \u201cYes,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cBen has made me see that I have no reason to doubt you, except my own guilt.\u00a0 I\u2014I am only sorry that I could not have been there for you that night.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Stef\u00e1n,\u201d she cried softly, \u201cI never blamed you for that.\u201d\u00a0 Her eyes fell to her abdomen.\u00a0 \u201cAnymore than I blame this child inside me for how it got there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAch, meine Kinder<\/em>,\u201d Ludmilla cried, stretching an arm toward each of them.\u00a0 \u201cYou make me proud\u2014and so happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

They both came into her embrace, and with tears in her eyes, Katerina hurried forward to join them.\u00a0 For the first time since Stef\u00e1n had dropped Marta off at her cabin, she knew, without doubt, that her sister had been telling the truth all along, and she wept with her sister over the violent attack she had suffered and the bitter disbelief of her own family, which had hurt far more.\u00a0 But those tears, hers and those of the others, were mingled with tears of joy at a family reunited.<\/p>\n

While the Zuebners celebrated the restoration of their family, Ben struggled to deal with a fractured one downstairs\u2014or, rather, to keep himself from dealing with it, since he\u2019d promised not to.\u00a0 The Thomases had finally arrived, so late that he had, for a few disturbing minutes, feared they weren\u2019t coming at all.\u00a0 And if one judged by the expressions on their faces\u2014Clyde\u2019s and Nelly\u2019s, that is\u2014their hearts had remained at home in Carson City.\u00a0 It appeared to be all Nelly could do to respond politely to the congratulations of friends, such as Dr. Martin and Sally and the Dettenrieders, who were among the few invited to the ceremony.\u00a0 Billy was so excited and filled with nervous energy, however, that no one seemed to notice his parents\u2019 lethargic attitudes toward what should have been a joyful occasion.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you think of them making Warren Wasson a U.S. Marshal?\u201d Clyde asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d\u00a0 Ben gathered his distracted thoughts.\u00a0 \u201cOh . . . I\u2019m sure he\u2019ll do well.\u00a0 I\u2019d hate to lose him as Indian Agent, though, so I only hope that he can handle both jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy not apply for the vacancy yourself, Ben?\u201d Dr. Martin suggested.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve certainly had the training for it.\u201d\u00a0 He laughed as he nodded toward Little Joe, who had just come running in from the kitchen and when he saw nothing but grownup chatter going on, just as promptly run back out.<\/p>\n

Ben smiled.\u00a0 \u201cOne wild Indian does not a tribe make.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat one does,\u201d Clyde cackled.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t say as I\u2019ve noticed you havin\u2019 much success keepin\u2019 him on the reservation, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben groaned at the bad joke, but at that point he was grateful for anything to lighten the mood in the room.<\/p>\n

The Reverend W. S. Blakely, who had succeeded Jesse Bennett, at the church in WashoeCity, was the last to arrive, and shortly thereafter the ceremony began.\u00a0 Billy\u2019s nervous energy had by this time turned into absolute shakiness, and his freckles flamed in his overheated face as the fiddle player struck up a wedding march.<\/p>\n

All eyes turned to the staircase.\u00a0 Little Inger appeared first, scattering peach blossom petals on the stairs, and Katerina, happily serving as matron of honor now that Stef\u00e1n had sanctioned the wedding, followed her. Then everyone\u2019s gaze riveted on the blushing bride as she descended on the arm of her brother.\u00a0 Hers, however, were fixed only on that freckled face waiting to receive her, and they shone with the love she\u2019d felt for him since childhood and gratitude for what he was doing for her now, in her hour of crisis.<\/p>\n

Ben felt his eyes misting.\u00a0 Marta was not his daughter, but he felt almost a father\u2019s fondness for her, especially since, in that hour of crisis, she had turned to him.\u00a0 Some of the emotion may have been due, as well, to seeing her float down those stairs in his wife\u2019s dress.\u00a0 Marta had picked one of Marie\u2019s simpler gowns, primarily because she wasn\u2019t comfortable wearing those with a lower neckline, and she had made some alterations, but Ben could still picture Marie in that dress, and the memories were both endearing and excruciating.\u00a0 Today was a day for joy, however, and he willingly pushed aside the pain and smiled with pride and pleasure as the young couple shyly exchanged their vows.<\/p>\n

When the two were proclaimed man and wife and Billy had planted an exuberant kiss on his bride, a wild whoop rang out, and Ben was somewhat chagrined to discover that it had come from his own son.\u00a0 However, when Billy turned around and with a broad grin echoed Hoss\u2019s outburst, the room erupted with laughter, and everyone rose to surround the newlyweds and offer their congratulations.\u00a0 Ben invited all the guests to stay for the wedding feast, which would be served shortly, and everyone accepted.\u00a0 Home was a distant drive for most of them, and even those who lived close at hand weren\u2019t about to turn down the opportunity to enjoy a meal prepared by Hop Sing.<\/p>\n

Immediately after the feast Billy and Marta said their farewells and, with shouts of goodwill called after them, drove off for their overnight stay in Genoa.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t much of a honeymoon, being both brief and close to their new home in Carson City, but Billy had insisted on that one special night before carrying his bride over the threshold of their new, rented home.<\/p>\n

The other guests lingered long into the afternoon.\u00a0 The Dettenrieders, Martins and Thomases were invited to spend the night, but only the Dettenrieders accepted.\u00a0 Doctor Martin had patients scheduled to be seen in his office the next morning, and Clyde insisted that he had to work, too.\u00a0 Ben knew an excuse when he heard one, but knowing what a strain the afternoon had been on them, he didn\u2019t press.\u00a0 When he walked them out to their wagon, he reminded them of the planned outing on Saturday.\u00a0 As a sort of wedding present, although both Billy and Marta insisted that he\u2019d done too much already, he had offered to take them, as well as all their family members, to see Dan DeQuille\u2019s second play.<\/p>\n

\u201cAppreciate the invite,\u201d Nelly said, \u201cbut we won\u2019t be able to make it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, why not?\u201d Ben asked, perturbed, for he thought he knew the reason.<\/p>\n

Her eyes snapped.\u00a0 \u201cI may need to break bread with that girl from time to time, for decency\u2019s sake, but it gives me no pleasure to be in her company any more than I got to.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t judge her too harshly,\u201d Ben urged.\u00a0 He wanted to say more and could have cheerfully throttled young Billy for forcing a gag into his mouth, but he kept his promise.<\/p>\n

\u201cSee how you feel when some hussy traps one of your boys into this kind of marriage,\u201d she snorted.<\/p>\n

\u201cI understand,\u201d Ben said, and if he hadn\u2019t before, her example made the situation more personal, \u201cbut \u2018judge not, that ye be not judged,\u2019 the Scripture says.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTurnin\u2019 preacher now, are you?\u201d Clyde grunted.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, of course not,\u201d Ben said quickly.\u00a0 \u201cJust a reminder.\u00a0 They\u2019ll need your support, my friends, as all young couples do . . . and their child will be your first grandchild. Surely, you\u2019ll love it.\u201d\u00a0 There was a note of hesitance in his voice that almost turned the statement into a question.<\/p>\n

Nelly paled visibly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll try, of course,\u201d she said tautly.\u00a0 \u201cI wouldn\u2019t want any child to suffer for the sins of its parents, but I doubt I\u2019ll ever be able to look at it without remembering all the pain, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Nelly,\u201d Ben sighed.\u00a0 \u201cI know all about that sort of pain, and believe me, it only leads to more.\u00a0 That\u2019s how I felt about Little Joe after his mother\u2019s death; I just couldn\u2019t bear to look at him, with him reminding me so much of Marie . . . until the night I almost lost him.\u00a0 Don\u2019t make the mistake I did.\u00a0 It nearly cost me what I cherish most.\u00a0 Love your grandchild for himself or herself, and don\u2019t attach other memories to him or her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood words, Ben,\u201d Clyde said, \u201cand I reckon we\u2019ll make a spot in our hearts for the little tyke.\u00a0 The girl\u2014that\u2019s harder.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNigh impossible,\u201d Nelly said, \u201cafter her leading my boy astray.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s eyebrows rose.\u00a0 For her, as a woman, to automatically assume the woman in the situation was at fault, surprised him.\u00a0 Maybe that\u2019s the way it was with mothers, though . . . or fathers.\u00a0 Maybe he\u2019d be just as prone to assuming his boys could do no wrong in a similar case.\u00a0 Thank God, he was years away from having to consider such questions!\u00a0 Except for Adam, of course, who was barely younger than Billy.\u00a0 Goodness only knew what his oldest was getting up to, far from the influence of a father\u2019s oversight.\u00a0 Ben shook that unwelcome idea from his head and said, \u201cYou think about it.\u00a0 I guess I\u2019d better get back inside or George and Laura will wonder what\u2019s become of me.\u00a0 Remember: if you change your mind, the invitation for Saturday stands.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t likely, but thanks again for the invite,\u201d Clyde said, clucking to the horses.\u00a0 As Ben watched them drive away, he thought, Billy Thomas, you\u2019d better get them told\u2014and pronto!<\/em><\/p>\n

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

They made a large party as they filed into Barnum\u2019s Restaurant: Billy and Marta Thomas, Enos and Katerina Montgomery, Ludmilla Zuebner and Ben and Hoss Cartwright.\u00a0 Stef\u00e1n had returned home the day after the wedding, while Ludmilla planned to stay for an extended visit.\u00a0 Little Joe had been left at home with Hop Sing, as Ben felt that he was still too young for an evening at the theater, but he didn\u2019t want to deprive Hoss of the sort of outing he always enjoyed, even if he was the only youngster in the group.<\/p>\n

Ben could scarcely keep from laughing as he saw Ludmilla scrutinizing the menu as if it were a student\u2019s textbook.\u00a0 \u201cSo, how\u2019s it stack up?\u201d he asked, a saucy twinkle in his eye.<\/p>\n

Caught in the act, she blushed.\u00a0 \u201cSome things, the same, but I get some ideas, maybe, ja<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s always good,\u201d he said with a smile.\u00a0 \u201cGoodness knows you deserve a vacation, Ludmilla, and I know Kat\u2019s thrilled that you\u2019ll be here for the birth of her baby, but aren\u2019t you afraid your customers will all have been lured away by the time you get back home?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ludmilla chortled deep in her throat.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 I think, maybe, they miss me so much I have even more business then.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cAh, yes.\u00a0 Absence makes the heart grow fonder . . . and I\u2019m sure that applies to stomachs, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Everyone at the table laughed at the joke, Hoss loudest of all.\u00a0 \u201cI know I sure been missin\u2019 Mama Zuebner\u2019s stew and strudel,\u201d he said in the broadest hint Ben was sure he\u2019d ever heard.<\/p>\n

\u201cI make for you,\u201d Ludmilla promised.\u00a0 She had consented to stay on at the Ponderosa until closer to the baby\u2019s scheduled arrival.\u00a0 Neither she nor Ben feared the wagging tongues of gossips.\u00a0 They were mature, both widowed, and neither saw in the other anything more than a good friend.<\/p>\n

After dinner they walked down to the theater.\u00a0 Inside, Ben gestured for the others to precede him into the row.\u00a0 He wanted to seat Hoss on the aisle, lest he be caught behind someone tall enough to block his view.\u00a0 As Billy led Marta in first, he paused and thanked Ben once again for the fine evening.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy pleasure,\u201d Ben assured him.\u00a0 \u201cI just wish your parents had come.\u201d\u00a0 He\u2019d ascertained at dinner that Billy still hadn\u2019t admitted his falsehood to them, and while that irritated him, he couldn\u2019t really blame the young man for avoiding a confrontation during his first week of marriage.\u00a0 Goodness knows, there were enough adjustments to be made inside their new home without adding fresh ones outside it, but the telling needed to be done, and he\u2019d told Billy so.\u00a0 Still, he wasn\u2019t sure whether knowing the truth would have made Clyde and Nelly more willing to come tonight or more likely to stay away.<\/p>\n

Enos settled in on Ben\u2019s right.\u00a0 \u201cSure appreciate the invite, boss.\u00a0 That Dan DeQuille always makes me laugh with his quaints, so I\u2019m expectin\u2019 this play he wrote to be a hoot.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI trust that it will be,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 He would have personally preferred something of better quality than \u201cThe Wheelers in Washoe! Or Taking in a Stranger from the Bay\u201d was likely to be, but everyone else in the party would probably like DeQuille\u2019s comedy better.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou been readin\u2019 the stuff that new feller, Josh, sends in to the Enterprise<\/em>?\u201d Enos asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve seen it,\u201d Ben replied.\u00a0 \u201cHis pieces are amusing, but DeQuille\u2019s quaints are better, to my mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReckon so,\u201d Enos admitted, \u201cbut anything that makes me laugh is right up my alley.\u201d<\/p>\n

Remembering the crisis that Enos and his family had just come through, Ben suddenly sensed that \u201cThe Wheelers in Washoe!\u201d was exactly what the doctor ordered.\u00a0 The Good Book had said it best: \u201cA merry heart doeth good, like a medicine.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

Ben stifled a yawn and tried to concentrate on the Reverend Blakely\u2019s sermon.\u00a0 Left to himself, he\u2019d have probably slept in this morning after their late night at the theater and the long drive home from Virginia City.\u00a0 Ludmilla, however, had professed a strong desire to be in church this morning, \u201cto say dank zu Gott<\/em>\u201d for the provision He\u2019d made for Marta\u2019s happiness and for the reuniting of her family.\u00a0 He\u2019d left Hoss at home asleep, but had brought Little Joe with them to church.\u00a0 After all, that youngster had had a full night\u2019s rest, and to Ben\u2019s amusement, he seemed delighted to be having a special outing with Ludmilla and his pa that Hoss wasn\u2019t party to.\u00a0 Ben pursed his lips to keep from chuckling right in church.\u00a0 Maybe, to Little Joe, a stage play or a Sunday sermon were pretty much alike, nothing more than grownups putting on a show for his entertainment.<\/p>\n

As soon as the final amen was said, however, Little Joe bounced out of his seat and spread his energy throughout the congregation, as he greeted everyone he knew, old and young.\u00a0 Ben let him go, knowing the boy couldn\u2019t come to harm in the churchyard . . . or in the whole of WashoeCity, for that matter.\u00a0 Besides, he was busy introducing his friend from California.<\/p>\n

One fellow worshiper was especially interested in the matronly lady on Ben Cartwright\u2019s arm.\u00a0 She snared Little Joe as he trotted past her and demanded, \u201cWho\u2019s that with your Pa, child?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s head spun around to look for his pa.\u00a0 Then he grinned and said, \u201cOh, that\u2019s Mama Zuebner.\u00a0 She\u2019s stayin\u2019 with us \u2018til the baby comes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elvira Hunter gasped.\u00a0 The woman was staying right in the house at the Ponderosa?\u00a0 And already had the child calling her mama?\u00a0 And a baby on the way?\u00a0 Maybe she\u2019d be wise to rethink her chances of changing her name to Mrs. Ben Cartwright.<\/p>\n

~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

Congress passed a bill establishing a branch mint at Carson City on March 3, 1862.<\/p>\n

On March 6, 1862, Warren Wasson was appointed by Abraham Lincoln as U. S.Marshall of NevadaTerritory.\u00a0 Subsequent events indicate that he may have retained his old position as Indian Agent, as well.<\/p>\n

The Federal Government issued the first paper money, in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1,000 dollars, on March 10, 1862, just one day following the historic battle of the ironclads, Monitor<\/em> and Merrimac<\/em>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER FOURTEEN<\/p>\n

Birth, Blizzard, Business and Battle<\/p>\n

As Ben came out of the barn one April morning after tending the stock, he pulled up the collar of his coat against the frosty air. \u00a0His nostrils curled.\u00a0 The air not only felt chillier than it had in weeks, but it smelled odd. \u00a0Not quite like the sea had before a squall, but somehow he sensed a kinship between the two scents.\u00a0 He glanced up and the disturbed feeling within him grew.\u00a0 The sky didn\u2019t look right; the whole atmosphere didn\u2019t feel right.\u00a0 There was a stillness that felt like hovering doom, a feeling he recognized from long ago.\u00a0 He still wasn\u2019t as confident at reading the weather on land as he had been back in his sailing days, but he trusted his instincts.\u00a0 Hurrying into the house, he spotted Hoss at the breakfast table.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll get right to the chores, soon as I finish eatin\u2019, Pa,\u201d Hoss said between bites of sausage and eggs.<\/p>\n

Ben ruffled the boy\u2019s hair as he passed behind him and took his own seat.\u00a0 \u201cNo hurry,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, Pa, there is,\u201d Hoss insisted, \u201cif I\u2019m gonna get \u2018em done before school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo school for you today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss looked stunned, but he couldn\u2019t hold back his grin.\u00a0 \u201cYeah?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo need to look that pleased,\u201d Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll set you some lessons to do here, but I don\u2019t want you riding into town today.\u00a0 That\u2019s a storm sky out there, if ever I saw one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRain?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cCold as it is, it\u2019s likely to be snow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSnow!\u201d\u00a0 Hoss almost scoffed.\u00a0 \u201cPa, it\u2019s April.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, well, it\u2019s happened before,\u201d Ben reminded him, \u201cand no telling how much we\u2019ll get, so I\u2019m keeping you home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHurray!\u201d Hoss shouted.<\/p>\n

\u201cHurray!\u201d came an echoing cry from the stair landing, followed by jumping thumps on each step down to the ground floor.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother country heard from,\u201d Ben muttered.\u00a0 Oh, well, he wouldn\u2019t begrudge his boys their pleasure in extra time together.\u00a0 It was good for brothers to share days like this, and if there really were going to be a heavy snowstorm, he could use Hoss\u2019s help in corralling his youngest.<\/p>\n

Ludmilla Zuebner bustled out of the kitchen, bearing another plate of fluffy biscuits.\u00a0 \u201cI thought I heard more hungry stomachs call.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben grinned.\u00a0 What she\u2019d heard wasn\u2019t really the rumble of hungry stomachs, certainly not whatever faint murmurs ever issued from Little Joe\u2019s pint-sized one, but he welcomed the hot bread, the perfect compliment to the plate of food Hop Sing slid before him.<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle boy want egg or flapjack?\u201d Hop Sing asked the youngest Cartwright.<\/p>\n

\u201cEgg\u2014like them!\u201d Little Joe insisted, pointing at his father and brother.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing nodded in approval and scurried back to the kitchen.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe didn\u2019t offer me a choice,\u201d Hoss pouted.<\/p>\n

Ben cut him a significant side glance.\u00a0 \u201cBecause he knew you\u2019d pick both!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, yeah,\u201d Hoss said, wondering why both his father and Mama Zuebner thought that was so funny.<\/p>\n

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

Ben shook his head as he walked into the kitchen for a cup of coffee about mid-morning.\u00a0 \u201cLudmilla, will you please try to remember that you\u2019re our guest?\u00a0 You don\u2019t have to spend the whole day in the kitchen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMissy Marty mama help Hop Sing make . . . what you call?\u201d\u00a0 Hop Sing turned inquisitive eyes toward Ludmilla.<\/p>\n

\u201cStrudel,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing sighed at the hopelessness of ever saying the German word the way she did.\u00a0 \u201cApple cake,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cVelly good apple cake.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPastry,\u201d Ben amended.\u00a0 \u201cVery good apple pastry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing\u2019s brow furrowed again.\u00a0 Another \u201cr\u201d sound.\u00a0 Too hard, even if Mr. Ben did say it softer than Missy Lu . . . Lu . . . another name hard to say.\u00a0 \u201cApple cake,\u201d he insisted stubbornly.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right,\u201d Ben capitulated.\u00a0 It never paid to argue with Hop Sing in his own kitchen, and if the little Chinaman could learn Ludmilla\u2019s baking techniques, that boded well for future meals.\u00a0 Yes, this was a good time to keep his mouth shut.<\/p>\n

He wandered over to the kitchen window and peered out.\u00a0 The snow had started about an hour ago and was falling pretty briskly.\u00a0 As he peered past the falling flakes, he saw a rider round the corner of the barn.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s Enos,\u201d he said and hurried into the other room to get his coat.\u00a0 Enos had been told to stay close to home in these final days before his baby\u2019s due date, particularly if the weather turned bad.\u00a0 Katerina was, in the Biblical term, \u201cgreat with child,\u201d and might need to send for help at any moment.\u00a0 The fact that Enos had left her and come out in this storm could mean only one thing, in Ben\u2019s mind, and obviously in Ludmilla\u2019s, too, for she threw her apron aside and followed him right to the front door.<\/p>\n

Enos sprang from his horse and rushed toward Ben.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s comin\u2019!\u201d he yelled.\u00a0 \u201cKat needs her mama\u2014now!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEasy, son, easy,\u201d Ben said, resting calming hands on the young man\u2019s shoulders.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t understand, Mr. Ben,\u201d Enos said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s snowin\u2019!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d noticed,\u201d Ben said dryly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat means I can\u2019t get the doc here,\u201d Enos announced.\u00a0 \u201cHe could be trapped here for days!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know, I know,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cRelax, son; women have been having babies without doctors\u2019 help for centuries.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I gotta have\u2014”<\/p>\n

\u201cLudmilla,\u201d Ben finished for him.\u00a0 \u201cYou need Ludmilla.\u00a0 Of course.\u201d\u00a0 He turned to his guest and suggested that she get her things together.<\/p>\n

\u201cJa, ja<\/em>,\u201d she babbled.\u00a0 \u201cAch<\/em>, I knew I should go before.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben followed, trying to reassure her that she would get to her daughter in plenty of time.<\/p>\n

Enos grabbed his arm, jerking him back outside. \u201cMr. Ben, Mr. Ben, can I borrow your buckboard?\u201d he asked urgently.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, son,\u201d Ben said, but before he could explain Enos seized him by both arms and held them in an unyielding vise.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I need it\u2014to get Mama home.\u00a0 You gotta loan it to me, Mr. Ben; you just gotta!\u201d the panic-stricken father-to-be jabbered.<\/p>\n

\u201cEnos!\u00a0 Get hold of yourself,\u201d Ben ordered, and Enos instinctively let go and backed off.\u00a0 This was, after all, his boss.\u00a0 \u201cNow, take a deep breath,\u201d Ben told him, and again Enos instinctively obeyed.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s better,\u201d Ben said, keeping his own voice calm and matter-of-fact.\u00a0 \u201cNow, you get on that horse, son, and get back to Kat.\u00a0 I\u2019ll bring Ludmilla.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t want to put you out,\u201d Enos mumbled.<\/p>\n

\u201cEnos, son, your wife needs you, and you can make better time on a horse than in a buckboard.\u201d\u00a0 Ben spun him around and pointed him toward his mount.\u00a0 \u201cNow, get home, boy, and I\u2019ll follow as soon as Ludmilla is ready.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTell her to get a move on,\u201d Enos said as he swung into the saddle.\u00a0 \u201cI got no notion what to do if he . . . she . . . it . . . comes before she does.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t leave Kat to face that alone,\u201d Ben declared, pointing toward the road.\u00a0 \u201cNow, ride!\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos wheeled the horse and tore out of the yard.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd ride careful!\u201d Ben hollered after him, though he doubted that the words would carry to his jittery young foreman, hurtling pell-mell down the road.\u00a0 \u201cYoung fool,\u201d he grunted as he turned back toward the house.\u00a0 Then he grinned.\u00a0 He\u2019d scarcely been less edgy at the birth of his own firstborn, and he\u2019d been living in town then, with a doctor only minutes away.\u00a0 His eyes saddened for a moment.\u00a0 Liz had had a doctor\u2019s attention, but it hadn\u2019t been enough.\u00a0 The best medicine had to offer hadn\u2019t been enough to keep her at his side, and suddenly the pain was as fresh as yesterday.\u00a0 No, he wouldn\u2019t fault Enos for his fears; sometimes they were all too well founded.<\/p>\n

He entered to a cacophony of Cantonese.\u00a0 Clinching his fists at his sides, he roared, \u201cWhat\u2019s your problem?\u201d\u00a0 As the ranting Hop Sing turned on him, Ben was almost certain he saw smoke blasting from each nostril.\u00a0 \u201cIn English!\u201d he snapped.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow Hop Sing cook apple cake if Missy go?\u201d the cook demanded.\u00a0 \u201cIs-a velly hard cake for make.\u00a0 Why you take away in middle?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben raked a hand down his face.\u00a0 \u201cBelieve me, Hop Sing, Missy Kat needs her more than you do.\u00a0 The baby\u2019s coming.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chinaman\u2019s jaw dropped.\u00a0 \u201cBaby come?\u00a0 Why you not say so?\u00a0 Why you dilly dally?\u00a0 You take mama to Missy Kat, chop chop!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben threw his hands to the ceiling, and Hop Sing apparently deemed it prudent to make a fast retreat to the kitchen.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, Pa, what\u2019s all the yellin\u2019 about?\u201d Hoss called as he tromped down the stairs with Little Joe at his heels.<\/p>\n

Ben took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cCome on down, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe dropped to his knees on the landing and peered through the stair posts.\u00a0 \u201cMe, too, Pa?\u201d he asked, voice quavering.<\/p>\n

Ben gave a weary chuckle.\u00a0 \u201cYes, you, too, Joseph.\u201d<\/p>\n

At that moment the door to Ludmilla\u2019s room opened and she came in carrying her carpetbag.\u00a0 \u201cI am ready, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded at her.\u00a0 \u201cI still need to hitch the team,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cWhy don\u2019t you go on back to the kitchen and give Hop Sing some final advice on that strudel \u2018til I\u2019m ready.\u201d\u00a0 As Ludmilla hurried to the kitchen to comply, he turned back to his sons.\u00a0 \u201cBoys, I have to take Ludmilla over to the Montgomery place.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo!\u201d Little Joe wailed.\u00a0 \u201cI want Mama to stay here!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph, I don\u2019t have time to argue,\u201d Ben said, an edge of irritation creeping back into his voice.\u00a0 \u201cAunt Kat is having her baby and\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now?\u201d Hoss asked, eyes widening.<\/p>\n

Ben exhaled gustily.\u00a0 \u201cYes, right now and\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss sprang to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll hitch the team for you, Pa,\u201d he cried.<\/p>\n

Ben grabbed his arm as he rushed past.\u00a0 \u201cJust a minute.\u201d\u00a0 He took a breath.\u00a0 \u201cThat would be real helpful, Hoss, but I want you to understand that I\u2019ll need you\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTo look after Little Joe,\u201d Hoss interrupted.\u00a0 \u201cI know all that, Pa.\u00a0 We\u2019re wastin\u2019 time!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed and released his middle son.\u00a0 \u201cRight you are.\u00a0 I\u2019ll just leave it all in your capable hands, then, Hoss.\u00a0 We\u2019re taking the buckboard.\u201d\u00a0 With a wide grin Hoss took off, and Ben turned back to his youngest.\u00a0 He set the boy on his knee and tried to explain that, however much Little Joe would miss Mama Zuebner, she needed to take care of her own little girl at a time like this.\u00a0 Little Joe responded with a string of questions, most of which Ben had neither time nor inclination to answer.\u00a0 Somehow he put the boy off, and after a few more words of explanation and firm admonishment to \u201cmind Hoss and Hop Sing,\u201d Ben took Ludmilla\u2019s carpetbag in one hand and her elbow in the other, and they went out to the buckboard.<\/p>\n

Ben kept up a steady stream of conversation all the way to the Montgomery cabin.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t have said afterwards exactly what he\u2019d talked about; he was only speaking to the anxiety in Ludmilla\u2019s face anyway, and it did little good.\u00a0 As she jumped from the wagon and ran into the house, she seemed as frantic as ever to reach her daughter.\u00a0 When Enos came out to help with the team, Ben started to shoo him back to his wife, but suddenly realized that, now that Ludmilla was here, he\u2019d probably be banished from Kat\u2019s side for the duration.\u00a0 It was the way women handled birth, and what man was fool enough to thwart them in the midst of that process?\u00a0 No, best to keep Enos busy, so Ben made that his particular responsibility.<\/p>\n

That task became harder once the barn chores were finished and they had nothing to do but sit in the parlor and, in Enos\u2019s case, flinch at every groan coming from the bedroom.\u00a0 \u201cNow, quit jumping,\u201d Ben chided.\u00a0 \u201cBelieve me, I\u2019ve heard much worse.\u201d\u00a0 The look on his foreman\u2019s face immediately told him that he\u2019d said exactly the wrong thing.\u00a0 \u201cWith Little Joe, I mean,\u201d he stumbled to explain.\u00a0 \u201cHe came out breach, but there\u2019s no need to think your child will do the same.\u201d\u00a0 No need to tell him, either, that the groans would get worse as time went on, even in a normal birth.<\/p>\n

The ruse worked.\u00a0 Enos gave him a nervous grin and said, \u201cLittle fellow always did like to do things the hard way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben forced a chuckle.\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 Still does.\u00a0 You want some more coffee?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUh, yeah, I guess,\u201d Enos muttered, eyes fixed on the bedroom door.\u00a0 He shook himself and started to stand.\u00a0 \u201cI should be servin\u2019 you,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re company.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then Ben genuinely laughed as he pushed the other man down.\u00a0 \u201cCompany!\u00a0 Why, I\u2019m that child\u2019s uncle, aren\u2019t I?\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos sank back into the settee.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s right.\u00a0 You\u2019re family; help yourself, Uncle Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

And help you, too<\/em>, Ben told himself, turning away to hide his twitching lips.\u00a0 Several pots of coffee later he mused that although Katerina\u2019s baby hadn\u2019t presented itself breach, according to Ludmilla, it was certainly rivaling Little Joe in stubbornness about entering the world.\u00a0 Afternoon slipped into evening, and since everyone else was either too occupied or distracted, Ben prepared a simple supper.\u00a0 As he moved about the tiny kitchen, he was reminded of the many meals he\u2019d served his boys here.\u00a0 Tonight\u2019s supper was a replica of one of them: chipped beef in gravy, served over biscuits.\u00a0 Back then he\u2019d always made it with \u201clots of gavvy,\u201d as Hoss used to say, to stretch their meager supplies, but he\u2019d made it a little richer in meat tonight.\u00a0 Enos choked it down gratefully, while Ludmilla consumed hers hastily before hurrying back to Katerina.<\/p>\n

\u201cWould she want some?\u201d Ben asked as she moved back toward the bedroom.<\/p>\n

Ludmilla frowned and shook her head fiercely and then disappeared.<\/p>\n

A wry smile twisted Ben\u2019s lips.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t blame her.\u00a0 Any similarity between his supper and what regularly appeared on the menu at Mama Zuebner\u2019s Caf\u00e9 in Placerville probably existed only in the realm of unfounded hopes.\u00a0 And he supposed Katerina was far too occupied with other matters to care for food at all.<\/p>\n

The increasing intensity of the cries issuing from the bedroom was only exceeded by the thickening snow falling outside.\u00a0 \u201cGonna be a heavy one,\u201d Ben mused from the window, inviting Enos to share the view with him.\u00a0 \u201cGood thing you came for us when you did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enos gaped at the snow-covered yard.\u00a0 \u201cYou won\u2019t get home tonight,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s all right,\u201d Ben assured him.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing is there with the boys; they\u2019ll be fine.\u201d\u00a0 Inwardly, he sighed.\u00a0 The boys would be safe and well cared for, of course, but Little Joe, in particular, would be upset that Pa was not home with him, and even his older brother might worry.\u00a0 Pity there wasn\u2019t some way to communicate house-to-house and let them both know that everything was all right.\u00a0 With the next cry from the bedroom, Enos lurched from the window and stood staring at the closed bedroom door.\u00a0 Ben shook his head and moved back to the coffee pot, to make sure the supply would last through the siege.<\/p>\n

The siege lasted into the wee hours of the morning.\u00a0 Having exhausted every line of conversation he could think of, Ben drifted in and out of a light sleep and could only hope that Enos did, too.\u00a0 Finally, he was roused by an infant\u2019s instinctive protest against entering a strange new world.\u00a0 He clapped his foreman on the back and exclaimed, \u201cCongratulations!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs it a boy or a girl?\u201d Enos asked blearily.<\/p>\n

Ben stared at him in wide-eyed consternation.\u00a0 \u201cHow should I know?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI figured, maybe, you could tell,\u201d Enos babbled.\u00a0 \u201cBy the sound, I mean.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gape-mouthed, Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo,\u201d he gasped, wondering when he had become the expert on all things pertaining to childbirth.\u00a0 Then he chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll know soon enough, my boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

As he had predicted, before long Ludmilla bustled into the sitting room with a blanket-wrapped bundle.\u00a0 \u201cYou like to hold your baby girl, Papa?\u201d she asked, extending the child to its father.\u00a0 Enos looked terrified, but Ben gave him a shoulder nudge forward and Ludmilla placed the tiny girl in his trembling arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cA little beauty,\u201d Ben said, peering over his foreman\u2019s shoulders.<\/p>\n

Obviously overcome, Enos nodded.\u00a0 Then he looked anxiously at his mother-in-law.\u00a0 \u201cKat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKaterina is tired, but fine,\u201d Ludmilla said.\u00a0 \u201cYou come see her and then she will sleep.\u201d\u00a0 She took the child again and nodded Enos toward the bedroom.\u00a0 \u201cYou come, too, Ben,\u201d she directed.<\/p>\n

Though he felt somewhat out of place, Ben dutifully followed, but remained standing in the door until Kat called, \u201cUncle Ben,\u201d and reached toward him.\u00a0 He went in then and took her hand.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s a lovely little lady, just like her mother,\u201d he said tenderly.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd her namesake,\u201d Kat whispered.\u00a0 \u201cIf you don\u2019t mind, Uncle Ben, I\u2019d like to name her after Marie\u2014and Marta.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMarie Marta,\u201d Ben said awkwardly, the syllables feeling strange on his tongue.<\/p>\n

Kat laughed lightly.\u00a0 \u201cThe other way around.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAh,\u201d he said, smiling.\u00a0 \u201cMarta Marie.\u00a0 Yes, that sounds better.\u00a0 Thank you, my dear; it\u2019s a great honor.\u201d\u00a0 Moisture welled in his eyes.\u00a0 For the second time one of his wives had been so honored by a friend from the Larrimore train, and he felt profoundly touched that little Inger and now little Marie, although she\u2019d surely be familiarly known by her first name, would remind all those who knew them of their beautiful and loving predecessors.\u00a0 For Katerina to extend that honor to her sister, too, was a thoughtful and healing gesture of the family\u2019s acceptance of the much-maligned Marta.<\/p>\n

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

Ben woke to the sound of water dripping from the roof.\u00a0 He was getting too old to sleep comfortably on a pallet on the floor, he ruefully admitted, and the steady plop of melting snow onto the windowsills had kept him from going back to sleep.\u00a0 What tricks isn\u2019t the weather here in <\/em>Nevada<\/em> capable of?<\/em> he mused.\u00a0 That afternoon a blanket of snow had stretched as far as the eye could see, and by this time tomorrow the world outside their door would probably be an equally expansive mud puddle.\u00a0 He\u2019d better plan on heading for home at first light, while there was still some solid ground underfoot.<\/p>\n

He had trouble getting away that quickly, however.\u00a0 Ludmilla, who had slept on the settee in the sitting room, rose with the sun, and he got up then, too, since his pallet was spread on the kitchen floor.\u00a0 She, of course, insisted that he have a hot breakfast before he left.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t deny the attraction of that, so he\u2019d helped her start the fire and find whatever supplies and cooking utensils she needed.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d just finished eating when Enos awakened, and the two men discussed a division of responsibilities over the next few days that would enable the new father to stick close to home.\u00a0 Then Ben finally thought he was ready to leave, but Katerina woke, and he certainly couldn\u2019t leave without seeing her and Marie\u2019s beautiful little namesake one more time.\u00a0 By the time he got away, patches of sodden earth were showing, for the snowed had melted away as quickly as it had come, and he began to wonder whether he could make it home in a buckboard.<\/p>\n

He was about halfway home when he heard an ominous rumble and instinctively looked to the north.\u00a0 The land in that section of the mountains had proven unstable before, and with the sudden snowmelt undermining the ground, he was almost certain what was happening, even before the rumble escalated to a roar. \u00a0Rocks tumbled and mud cascaded into the valley below.\u00a0 He started to whip the team toward the site of the slide, but then he realized that he couldn\u2019t risk taking the buckboard there.\u00a0 He\u2019d only end up stuck in the mud himself.\u00a0 Better to get the wagon home, reassure the boys and then take a horse to check out the damage and whether anyone had gotten caught up in it.<\/p>\n

When he rode into the yard, both his sons came charging out of the house.\u00a0 \u201cPa!\u201d Little Joe cried.\u00a0 \u201cWe heard a big boom!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I heard it, too,\u201d Ben said, catching the boy up in his arms, heedless of the muddy little boots soiling his trousers.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a landslide, son, up north.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSlideMountain again, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked, worry lines wrinkling his broad forehead.<\/p>\n

\u201cSlideMountain?\u201d\u00a0 Not having heard that geographical term before, Ben was confused for a moment.\u00a0 Then he nodded.\u00a0 \u201cProbably, Hoss.\u201d\u00a0 Trust a schoolboy to come up with the perfect name for the site of the previous landslide, and since that land was already undermined, it was likely that it had given way again.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnybody out there?\u201d Hoss asked anxiously, remembering that a man had been buried there before.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d his father replied soberly.<\/p>\n

Hoss squared his shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cWell, we\u2019d best go check it out, huh, just in case?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d best go check it out,\u201d Ben said firmly.\u00a0 \u201cI need you here, son, to take care of things at home.\u201d\u00a0 He gave Hoss a significant look as he ran his hands through Little Joe\u2019s unruly curls and handed him over to his brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, Pa,\u201d Hoss grumbled, but his arms closed around his little brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss, I\u2019m counting on you,\u201d Ben said, the look on his face leaving no room for argument.\u00a0 \u201cBy the way, it\u2019s a girl.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cAunt Kat\u2019s baby,\u201d Ben reminded him, since the excitement of the landslide had obviously driven all else from the boy\u2019s mind.\u00a0 \u201cShe had a little girl, named her Marta Marie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss grinned.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s good, Pa.\u00a0 Right nice to give her Ma\u2019s name like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanna play with her,\u201d Little Joe insisted.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cLet her grow a bit, you cradle robber.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Hoss joined in the laughter, Little Joe frowned.\u00a0 They were making fun of him; he wasn\u2019t sure how, but he just knew it.\u00a0 Old people were really bad about that.<\/p>\n

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

Ben returned late that afternoon, riding double with another man and leading a limping horse.\u00a0 When they\u2019d dismounted, he said, \u201cI\u2019d appreciate it if you didn\u2019t mention your companion, Mr. Spurgeon\u2014not in front of the boys, that is.\u00a0 I\u2019m certainly available if you need to talk later.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spurgeon shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo need.\u00a0 We were acquaintances, traveling together, but that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry for his loss, nonetheless,\u201d Ben said, \u201cas well as for the interruption of your trip.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spurgeon laughed.\u00a0 \u201cInterruption\u2019s a mild word for it, Cartwright, but your hospitality makes up for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cWell, let\u2019s start that hospitality with a hot bath, shall we?\u201d\u00a0 The suggestion couldn\u2019t be considered an insult, since Spurgeon was covered, head to foot, in the dirt and debris that had rained on him in his mad flight away from the landslide.\u00a0 His slower traveling companion had been caught up in the avalanche and now, without doubt, lay crushed beneath a mountain of rock.\u00a0 It was that fact that Ben wished to keep from his children, especially his tender-hearted middle boy.<\/p>\n

\u201cBath sounds like just what I need,\u201d the other man said.\u00a0 \u201cThanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

A hot bath, a hot meal and the chatter of children seemed to revive Spurgeon\u2019s spirits, and when Ben invited him to stay over a day or so, to rest up from his ordeal, the man gladly accepted, knowing that his horse needed the rest even more than he did.\u00a0 When he mentioned that, Ben suggested, \u201cIf you\u2019d prefer, I could buy the animal and you could purchase stage fare into California.\u00a0 I think that would be wiser, since the horse really needs more than a couple of days\u2019 recruiting.\u201d\u00a0 Fearing that he\u2019d left the impression that his visitor wasn\u2019t welcome beyond that, he quickly explained, \u201cI\u2019d planned to drive into town on Saturday, if the roads permit, so that would be a good time to take you to the stage, but you\u2019re certainly welcome to stay with us longer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSaturday will be fine\u2014ideal, even,\u201d Spurgeon said, \u201cso I think I will take you up on that offer to buy my horse.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

Ben had originally planned to drive into Carson City on Saturday, but an urgent message from the president of the Ophir mine changed his destination.\u00a0 The boys were excited by the opportunity to visit the larger town, and Mr. Spurgeon had no objection to taking the stage from there, instead.\u00a0 Ben quietly added enough to make up the difference in the price of the ticket to what he\u2019d planned to pay for Spurgeon\u2019s horse.\u00a0 The animal wasn\u2019t in good shape now, but it had fine lines, and a few weeks on good Ponderosa grass should bring them out.<\/p>\n

With the coming of spring an influx of new prospectors was arriving daily from California.\u00a0 Since there were now six stage lines running from the neighboring state, the journey was an easy one and invited even the less intrepid silver-seekers over the mountains.\u00a0 \u201cThe way Virginia City is booming and sprawling down GoldCanyon,\u201d Ben observed to his guest, \u201cit\u2019s hard to tell where the town begins these days.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe, who was standing behind the seat and had been regaling Spurgeon with anything and everything that popped into his fertile mind, pointed ahead.\u00a0 \u201cThere, Pa,\u201d he offered.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s where it starts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, you\u2019re sure of that, are you?\u201d Ben asked, amused by the certainty in his little boy\u2019s voice.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you say, Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cGood a guess as any.\u00a0 Some of them shacks look like they\u2019re about to fall down, though, so I ain\u2019t so sure Virginia City\u2019ll claim \u2018em.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spurgeon laughed.\u00a0 \u201cSnowmelt\u2019ll do that, unless a place is built solid.\u00a0 Might be good for your business, Cartwright.\u201d\u00a0 Ben had told him about the Ponderosa\u2019s timber operations, which were just starting up again after the winter break.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe,\u201d Ben conceded.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t relish profiting at others\u2019 expense, so he\u2019d give a generous price to anyone who\u2019d lost his home in the inevitable flooding, but the mine owners could afford to pay full price and he\u2019d let them.\u00a0 The mines using Deidescheimer\u2019s square sets would have survived, but those who had not installed the more costly timbering would no doubt pay for their stringency when falling debris, rocks and clay forced the closing of their mines.\u00a0 Those who gave heed to the warning and decided to put in square sets could well bring their business to the Ponderosa.\u00a0 In fact, he was almost certain that the flooding had somehow prompted the message from the Ophir\u2019s president.\u00a0 That mine, he knew, did have the square sets, but they didn\u2019t extend through all the tunnels and slopes as yet.\u00a0 Maybe James Maynard wanted to renew his timber contract before all those others mines made a bid.\u00a0 Either way, the Ponderosa was likely to profit.<\/p>\n

Ben pulled up before the Wells, Fargo building, where the Pioneer Stage Company maintained its Virginia City office.\u00a0 He introduced Mr. Spurgeon to the agent, William Simmons; then he shook the man\u2019s hand and took his leave.\u00a0 Driving down C Street, he pulled up to Will Cass\u2019s store and got down to tether the team, while Hoss lifted Little Joe from the wagon.\u00a0\u00a0 Ben pulled a list from his shirt pocket and handed it to the older boy.\u00a0 \u201cGive that to Mr. Cass and help him load the supplies,\u201d he instructed.\u00a0 \u201cThen I want you to walk over to the post office and mail our letters to Adam.\u00a0 You still have them?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss patted his shirt pocket.\u00a0 \u201cSure thing, Pa.\u201d\u00a0 Scanning the list of supplies, he noted a critical omission.\u00a0 \u201cPa, can we get us some sweetenin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I guess so,\u201d Ben said indulgently.\u00a0 \u201cPennyworth for each of you for now, and you can ask Mr. Cass to make up a bit package to take with us.\u00a0 Now, once you\u2019ve mailed the letters, just go across the street and have Mr. Flick give you each a haircut.\u00a0 He knows how I like it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want no haircut,\u201d Little Joe declared, lower lip pooching out.<\/p>\n

\u201cWould you prefer to be mistaken for a girl?\u201d his father asked dryly.<\/p>\n

Little Joe grimaced and shook his head vehemently.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, that\u2019s what\u2019s likely to happen if you don\u2019t get that winter mane of yours shorn.\u201d\u00a0 As long as they\u2019d all gone since their last shearing, there was danger that even he and Hoss might be taken for the opposite sex, Ben thought with a frown, but Little Joe, with the natural beauty of his features, was at even greater risk.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome on, Joe,\u201d Hoss said, reaching out his hand.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s go pick us out that sweetenin\u2019 first thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust one more thing, Hoss,\u201d Ben said, resting a hand on each boy\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 His face was firm as he looked from one upturned face to the other.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t let your brother out of your sight.\u00a0 You know how fast he can get away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss sighed elaborately.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, Pa, I know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben squatted down to meet his youngest eye to eye.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you hear me good, little boy: when Hoss tells you to stay put\u201d\u2014he tapped his finger against the boy\u2019s chest with each of the next three words\u2014\u201cyou stay put.\u00a0 Understood?\u201d\u00a0 Contradictory orders, if he\u2019d ever heard them, he conceded to himself, since he could scarcely expect Hoss to load a wagon without once in a while taking his eyes off his little brother.\u00a0 If the boys tried to follow both, though, maybe there was an even chance that one of his orders would get followed.<\/p>\n

His frown declaring that he considered the question unreasonable, Little Joe nonetheless nodded.<\/p>\n

Standing, Ben crossed the street, where he turned back for one more anxious look before continuing down the hill toward the Ophir mine office.\u00a0 He\u2019d done all he could to avert catastrophe, but a father worried anyway.\u00a0 He smiled as he saw Hoss take his brother\u2019s hand and lead him inside the store.\u00a0 He was a good boy, that middle son of his; with the help of God and good angels, no one was better able to keep that little scamp of his in line.\u00a0 After all, it shouldn\u2019t take more than an hour to transact whatever business the Ophir\u2019s president had in mind.\u00a0 Even Little Joe could stay out of trouble for a single hour, couldn\u2019t he?<\/p>\n

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

\u201cCome on, Little Joe,\u201d Hoss directed, taking his brother\u2019s hand.\u00a0 He led his brother inside, directly to the row of apothecary jars that held a treasure trove of penny candy of every type.\u00a0 \u201cWhatcha want?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI want jelly beans\u2014every color there is,\u201d Little Joe readily replied.<\/p>\n

Hoss laughed.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, that sounds good.\u00a0 I reckon I\u2019ll have the same for now.\u201d\u00a0 He grinned up at the storekeeper.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll have two pennyworth of jellybeans, Mr. Cass, and then could you please make up a mix of everything in a separate package for about a bit?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, sure,\u201d Will Cass said with an indulgent beam at two of his favorite young customers.\u00a0 \u201cYour Pa ain\u2019t with you today?\u00a0 You didn\u2019t ride into town on your own, did you, boys?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNaw,\u201d Hoss said, \u201cbut Pa\u2019s got business down to the Ophir.\u201d\u00a0 He handed over the list his father had given him.\u00a0 \u201cHere\u2019s what we need, Mr. Cass, and I\u2019d be obliged if\u2019n you could help me load \u2018em.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell now, Hoss,\u201d Mr. Cass said, stroking his chin as he read down the list, \u201cI reckon it\u2019s me that\u2019s obliged to you for help with the loading.\u00a0 Let me get it all together, and then we\u2019ll start toting it out.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two boys ambled over to watch a game of checkers, in progress over a cracker barrel at one end of the store, until Mr. Cass called that he was ready to load.\u00a0 Then they both scurried over, and Hoss thrust the bag of jellybeans that they\u2019d been nibbling into his little brother\u2019s hands.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t eat \u2018em all,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou eat twice as many as me,\u201d Little Joe accused.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I\u2019m twice as big,\u201d Hoss returned.\u00a0 It was a poor excuse and he knew it.\u00a0 Pa expected him to share the candy fairly, but it was hard when Joe ate so little and so slowly that the brightly colored candies just seemed to beg for more attention.\u00a0 Hoss hefted a crate up and walked toward the door, with Little Joe right at his heels.<\/p>\n

The youngster, in fact, weaved in and out between Hoss\u2019s and Mr. Cass\u2019s legs until the storekeeper stopped dead still and said, \u201cThis ain\u2019t gonna work, Hoss.\u00a0 You gotta plant that youngun somewheres.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss scowled.\u00a0 He recognized the need, but he didn\u2019t know how he was supposed to plant his brother somewhere and still keep him in sight, like Pa\u2019d said. \u00a0He set the crate down and grabbed Joe up.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey!\u201d Joe protested.<\/p>\n

Hoss plopped him on the seat of the buckboard.\u00a0 \u201cYou stay put,\u201d he said, tapping his finger on the boy\u2019s chest, just as his father had.<\/p>\n

The memory clicked, and Little Joe frowned, as he had when his father had done it.\u00a0 \u201cOkay,\u201d he groused.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, it ain\u2019t so bad,\u201d Hoss soothed.\u00a0 \u201cYou got the jellybeans, and I\u2019m a right fast loader.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay.\u201d\u00a0 Sounding less discontent this time, Little Joe opened the bag of candy and with a grin held one out to his brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cNaw, I\u2019ve had my share,\u201d Hoss said, though his mouth watered.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t mind,\u201d Little Joe insisted and popped a jellybean right in his brother\u2019s mouth.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a sweet boy,\u201d Hoss said, patting Joe\u2019s head and grinning as he returned for another load.\u00a0 From then on, every time he came out to the wagon with another load of supplies, Little Joe fed him another jellybean, which sweetened the chore for Hoss and made the time pass faster for his little brother.<\/p>\n

In no time the wagon was loaded, and the two brothers were headed for the post office.\u00a0 Little Joe demanded that he be the one to carry the letters to Adam.\u00a0 Though he looked concerned, Hoss conceded.\u00a0 \u201cJust don\u2019t drop \u2018em,\u201d he cautioned.<\/p>\n

\u201cI won\u2019t,\u201d Little Joe promised, clenching the envelopes in his midget fist.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t scrunch \u2018em, neither,\u201d Hoss said sharply, and Little Joe eased his grip.\u00a0 \u201cOkay, now.\u00a0 Soon as we get \u2018em posted, we\u2019re going right across the street to Mr. Flick\u2019s,\u201d he reminded his little brother.<\/p>\n

The small face wrinkled in a grimace of distaste.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t want no haircut!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, you\u2019re gettin\u2019 one,\u201d Hoss stated flatly.\u00a0 \u201cPa said so.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d Little Joe asked, head cocked and eyes suddenly alert.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s what?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat!\u00a0 Don\u2019t you hear it?\u00a0 Drums!\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe started to jump up and down.\u00a0 \u201cI know: it\u2019s a parade!\u00a0 Bet there\u2019s fire engines in it.\u00a0 Come on!\u201d\u00a0 He took off at a run, the opposite direction from the post office.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, you come back here!\u201d Hoss yelled, but he might as well have been yelling at the wind.\u00a0 \u201cDoggone you!\u201d he hollered, charging after his brother.\u00a0 Suddenly, he saw scraps of paper floating back toward him and knew instinctively that they were the precious letters to Adam.\u00a0 He had to rescue those, so he stopped to scoop them up and counted\u2014one, two, three\u2014good, all there.\u00a0 He looked up and groaned when he realized Little Joe had disappeared.\u00a0 Well, if he followed his ears, he was likely to come across the parade, and that was where the kid was headed, so he stowed the letters inside his shirt and headed in the direction of the drums.<\/p>\n

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

Hearing raised voices, Ben paused outside the office door.\u00a0 Then he shrugged.\u00a0 He\u2019d been summoned, after all.\u00a0 He\u2019d better, at least, make his presence known.\u00a0 He rapped loudly on the closed door.<\/p>\n

The door flew open, thankfully inward or Ben would have had his nose knocked flat.\u00a0 James Maynard, president of the Ophir mine, stood there, face florid.\u00a0 \u201cWell, what do you want?\u201d he demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou sent for me, remember?\u201d Ben said sharply. \u00a0\u201cIf this is a poor time, set another, but I\u2019ll remind you that it\u2019s a long way in from the Ponderosa.\u201d<\/p>\n

The president caught his breath.\u00a0 \u201cOh, it\u2019s you, Cartwright.\u00a0 Yes, yes, come in.\u201d\u00a0 He stepped aside and gestured for Ben to enter.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou appear to be busy,\u201d Ben said hesitantly.\u00a0 He was reluctant to do business with a man already in a temper.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, please come in,\u201d Maynard urged.\u00a0 \u201cDeidescheimer here and I\u2019ve been knocking heads for an hour.\u00a0 Maybe what we need is a cooler point of view, eh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJah<\/em>,\u201d Deidescheimer declared.\u00a0 \u201cCome and help me make this fool see sense, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

Holding his hands up, palms outward, Ben walked in.\u00a0 \u201cA neutral third party, that\u2019s all I am,\u201d he insisted.\u00a0 \u201cIf a fresh perspective can help, I\u2019m content to give it, but you\u2019re both more knowledgeable about mining than I am.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re a stockholder,\u201d Maynard insisted.\u00a0 \u201cThat, in itself, gives you the right to an opinion.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOne among many,\u201d Ben pointed out.\u00a0 \u201cIf this is a stockholders\u2019 matter, call a meeting.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHa!\u201d Deidescheimer exclaimed.\u00a0 \u201cYou see?\u00a0 This is just what we need, someone with common sense.\u00a0 Cartwright, you know the melting snows have caused much flooding?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Ben admitted.\u00a0 \u201cIn fact, I assumed that was the purpose of my invitation here, to discuss the need for further shoring material?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, yes, we\u2019ll get to that,\u201d Maynard sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cWhat this fool is trying to sell me, though, is a pump.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe mines are still flooded, then?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cJah<\/em>,\u201d Deidescheimer said firmly.\u00a0 \u201cNow, what I propose is a 45-horsepower engine to drive an eight-inch pump and strong hoisting machinery.\u00a0 It is needed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is expensive,\u201d Maynard countered.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo not be\u2014what is the English phrase?\u2014penny wise and pound foolish,\u201d Deidescheimer snorted.<\/p>\n

Maynard waved a negating hand.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ve been all through this\u2014over and over.\u00a0 What we need from you, Cartwright, is that fresh perspective you mentioned.\u00a0 So, what do you say?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben exhaled slowly.\u00a0 They wanted him to make the decision?\u00a0 Ridiculous, on the face of it, but as Maynard had said, he was a stockholder and tied by timber to the welfare of this mine.\u00a0 Maybe he was entitled to an opinion.\u00a0 \u201cSo long as you don\u2019t take this as the final word,\u201d he began hesitantly, \u201cI have to say that a proven track record is a man\u2019s best recommendation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both miners frowned in thought.\u00a0 \u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d Maynard finally asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWas Deidescheimer right about the square sets?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

Though he saw the direction this was going, Maynard had to admit that his opponent had been right that time.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was expensive, too,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut worth the cost, I think you\u2019d agree.\u00a0 As I said, I don\u2019t know much about mining or engineering, but Mr. Deidescheimer here has proven that he does.\u00a0 I think I\u2019d follow his advice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAh!\u201d\u00a0 Deidescheimer beamed in triumphant.<\/p>\n

Maynard\u2019s mouth slid one way and then the other, as if it were full of something he was reluctant to swallow.\u00a0 Finally, he drew a long sigh and said, \u201cOh, all right.\u201d\u00a0 He looked at Ben.\u00a0 \u201cNow, as to that timber contract I asked you here to negotiate, I\u2019m afraid I may need you to cut me a better deal, due to certain impending expenses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Phillip Deidescheimer apparently felt that Ben should not lose any profit for siding with him.\u00a0 \u201cRemember,\u201d he said as he left the office, \u201ca proven track record is a man\u2019s best recommendation\u2014in timber as much as mining\u2014and deserving of reward.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOut!\u201d Maynard ordered, though he was choking back a chuckle.\u00a0 \u201cBetween the two of you, I\u2019m likely to go bankrupt!\u201d<\/p>\n

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

Hoss ran down C Street, dodging the crowd that was beginning to form in response to the advancing drums.\u00a0 As he darted in and out, he kept his eyes peeled for Little Joe, but he couldn\u2019t spot his brother amongst all the taller folks lining the main street of Virginia City.\u00a0 \u201cThere they come!\u201d someone yelled, and Hoss instinctively turned to see what sort of parade was headed their way.\u00a0 He saw two young drummer boys marching down the street with a flag bearer about two paces behind.\u00a0 Kind of a small parade<\/em>, he thought, wondering what it was about.<\/p>\n

Suddenly a man rushed from the onlookers lining the street, savagely tore a drum from one of the boys and smashed his fist through it.\u00a0 Tossing it aside, he moved toward the other boy.\u00a0 Then, as Hoss gaped at the commotion, the flag bearer knocked down the assailant and a man as big as Hoss one day hoped to become rushed out of the Sazerac Saloon to help him.\u00a0 Recognizing Tom Peasley, Hoss began to yell his support, and some other men, probably firemen like Peasley, helped him wrestle the assailant up against a wall and invited him and anyone who sympathized with him to make themselves scarce.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, all right for now,\u201d the man said, and calling to a few of his friends, he slunk off down an alley.<\/p>\n

The crowd had grown when it appeared that a good fight was in order.\u00a0 While some were obviously disappointed that it had ended so quickly, they all fell in behind the single remaining drummer and the flag bearer, and the small parade became a grand procession down the center of C Street.<\/p>\n

Hoss suddenly remembered his responsibilities.\u00a0 Doggone it, where was that kid?\u00a0 Little Joe had to be somewhere in the crowd, so Hoss joined the procession, again moving through the crowd in search of one small face.\u00a0 Pa\u2019s gonna kill me<\/em>, he moaned to himself, and he\u2019d have cause<\/em>.\u00a0 Greater than his concern for his own backside, however, was his growing anxiety about his little brother.\u00a0 Little Joe was just plumb too little to get caught up in a crowd like this.\u00a0 They might trample him . . . or worse, \u2018cause some of these folks were still hankering for a fight, Hoss could tell.\u00a0 More determined than ever, he began moving through the crowd again.<\/p>\n

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

Ben normally hated the long, steep climb up to B Street from the mining district, but today there was a spring in his step.\u00a0 Not only had his opinion been sought and accepted, but he\u2019d concluded a very favorable agreement for his timber operation.\u00a0 They hadn\u2019t signed a contract yet, but they\u2019d shaken hands to seal the terms.\u00a0 Now Maynard would have his attorney draw up the legal papers, but Ben anticipated no changes.\u00a0 He\u2019d worked with the man before; and since Maynard obviously wanted their relationship to continue, Ben felt he could trust him.\u00a0 Still, it was wise to verify things, to avoid misunderstanding, so he would have his own lawyer look over the contract before he signed it.<\/p>\n

When he reached C Street, the militaristic cadence of a drum caught his ear; and about a block beyond him, he saw a crowd moving toward City Hall.\u00a0 Curious, he started to follow, but then he remembered that he was supposed to meet the boys at the barber shop.\u00a0 He shook his head, mouth curling ruefully.\u00a0 Who was he kidding?\u00a0 If the boys had been anywhere around when those drums started, they wouldn\u2019t have been able to resist the pull, any more than the others in the crowd.\u00a0 He could be wrong, of course.\u00a0 They might actually be waiting for him up at Flick\u2019s like good little boys, but the odds were against it.\u00a0 He\u2019d be wiser to check here first than to climb up another block and then back down again.\u00a0 Besides, this way he could find out for himself what was going on.<\/p>\n

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

Once the crowd reached City Hall, they stopped moving, and Hoss was able to search more systematically for his straying brother.\u00a0 Speeches started up\u2014something about the war\u2014but the boy had no interest in those.\u00a0 He just kept winding his way through the sea of legs until he spotted an especially short pair.\u00a0 That set turned out to be another youngster, though, so Hoss moved on, until he finally caught sight of a curly head, right in the front row.\u00a0 He grabbed an arm and hauled his howling brother to the edge of the crowd.\u00a0 \u201cYou ornery scalawag,\u201d Hoss sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cYou was s\u2019posed to stay put.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLet me go!\u201d Little Joe yelled.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll let you go all right,\u201d Hoss snorted.\u00a0 \u201cStraight to the post office.\u201d\u00a0 He began dragging his brother back down C Street, so intent on his task that he plowed right into a man.\u00a0 \u201cSorry, mister,\u201d he said.\u00a0 Then, looking up, he swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cHey, Pa,\u201d he mumbled weakly.\u00a0 \u201cI can explain.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo need,\u201d Ben grunted.\u00a0 \u201cI can figure this one out all by myself.\u201d\u00a0 He snatched Little Joe up into his arms and shook his head in the child\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cYou didn\u2019t mind brother, did you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a parade,\u201d Little Joe said, puppy eyes pleading for understanding.\u00a0 \u201cA parade, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cYes, I guess it was.\u201d\u00a0 He lifted his head.\u00a0 \u201cAnd a political speech, unless my ears deceive me.\u00a0 I guess we might as well stay and hear it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s nose crinkled.\u00a0 He\u2019d been hoping to hear the drum again, but if all that was happening was some grownup speech, he saw no point in staying.\u00a0 \u201cWe gotta go to the post office, Pa,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not going anywhere,\u201d Ben snorted.\u00a0 He moved closer and listened to several rousing speeches that led up to a call for recruits.\u00a0 A rumble of boos met that suggestion, for Virginia City was a town of divided loyalties, but a large number of men stepped up to sign enlistment papers for a California regiment, since Nevada had not yet been given permission to raise military companies of its own.<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head as he walked away with the boys, heading up the hill toward B Street.\u00a0 It was easy to get caught up in war fervor, but most of those new bluecoats would never see the gray uniforms of the Confederates.\u00a0 Most of them would find themselves guarding the mail routes and posted at forts throughout their own territory.\u00a0 Not that that was unimportant.\u00a0 Goodness only knew he wanted the mails to get through safely; they were, after all, his only link with Adam.\u00a0 For those young men who enlisted with visions of the glories of war, however, it would come as a rude awakening to find themselves doing little but eating sand on desert roads.\u00a0 They wouldn\u2019t stop to think that they just might be the lucky ones.<\/p>\n

\u201cPost office, Pa,\u201d Little Joe insisted, pointing across the street from his father\u2019s apparent destination.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaircut, son,\u201d Ben said firmly, walking into the barber shop.\u00a0 \u201cYou first, Hoss.\u00a0 Your brother and I are going to have a little talk.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe paled, but Pa hadn\u2019t said a \u201cvery necessary little talk,\u201d and Joe breathed a sigh of relief when his father sat down, setting him on his knee.\u00a0 What followed was a lecture on the importance of following instructions, but the words were spoken calmly and patiently, and Little Joe deemed it wise to sit quietly and nod his head in apparent agreement.<\/p>\n

As soon as Hoss left the barber\u2019s chair, Ben tossed him a coin.\u00a0 \u201cPost those letters first,\u201d he instructed, \u201cand then buy me a copy of the Territorial Enterprise<\/em>\u2014and get back here fast.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned.\u00a0 He knew exactly what Pa meant.\u00a0 He wanted a haircut himself and wasn\u2019t about to get in that chair until Hoss got back to keep Joe from trotting off.<\/p>\n

Little Joe whined when his father placed him in Mr. Flick\u2019s black leather-covered chair, but Ben glowered at him and he sank back into it to face the ordeal with nothing more than puckered lips.<\/p>\n

Finally, all three Cartwrights had their winter manes sheared and were ready to turn their attention to dinner.\u00a0 \u201cFour good choices close at hand,\u201d Ben said, \u201cso what shall it be: the Chop House, the New World, the Young American or Winn\u2019s?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYoung, like me,\u201d Little Joe declared with a bounce that emphasized his youth as much as his choice.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry, Little Joe,\u201d his father said soberly, \u201cbut you gave up your right to a choice when you decided not to mind your brother.\u00a0 He\u2019s done all I asked of him to the best of his ability\u2014without a speck of cooperation, I might add\u2014so Hoss has earned the right to pick the restaurant.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo fair!\u201d Little Joe protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cEminently fair,\u201d his father retorted, \u201cand if you care to argue the point, little boy, we can just step into the alley for a very necessary little talk on the subject.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe shook his head violently.\u00a0 No meal was worth that.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell,\u201d Hoss drawled, \u201cto be fair, Joe cooperated just fine until that parade came along, but . . . well . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGo ahead, Hoss,\u201d Ben said with an encouraging pat to the boy\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cI can tell you have a preference, so don\u2019t be reluctant to voice it.\u00a0 As I said, you\u2019ve earned the right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned broadly and said, \u201cI been smelling the Chop House grub, Pa, and it\u2019s plumb tempting me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood choice, son.\u00a0 That aroma\u2019s been tempting me, too,\u201d his father agreed, turning toward the establishment next door to Flick\u2019s Barber Shop.<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s tongue fluttered out from his lips, but he quickly drew it back in, lest Pa see and suggest another talk in the alley.<\/p>\n

Fare at a chop house tended to be hearty, and this one was no exception.\u00a0 Ben told Hoss to order whatever he liked, but decided that he would share a plate with Little Joe.\u00a0 The five-year-old certainly couldn\u2019t manage a full meal on his own, but he complained nonetheless that he wasn\u2019t being treated fairly.\u00a0 \u201cI wadn\u2019t that bad,\u201d he pouted.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not punishing you,\u201d Ben soothed, \u201cjust being practical.\u00a0 Now, what looks good to you?\u201d\u00a0 If it were anything reasonable, he\u2019d let his youngest decide what they would share, and in the unlikely event that the boy ate so much that the father was still hungry, he could always pick up some cheese and crackers back at Cass\u2019s Mercantile.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you havin\u2019, Hoss?\u201d Little Joe demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cChop and taters,\u201d Hoss said at once.<\/p>\n

Coming up to the table, the proprietor overheard him and said, \u201cExcellent choice, young man.\u00a0 And what for you, Mr. Cartwright? \u00a0We\u2019ve got some fine Pismo clams, fresh in from California.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben looked tempted.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I was planning to share a plate with my youngest here, Mr. Chapman, and I doubt that would be his choice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Face puckered as if he\u2019d eaten a sour lemon, Little Joe shook his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cTell you what I\u2019ll do,\u201d Mr. Chapman offered.\u00a0 \u201cYou order the clams, if that\u2019s what you want, Mr. Cartwright, and I\u2019ll fix up a small plate of whatever the lad would like at a fair price.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI appreciate that,\u201d Ben said, knowing that it was a concession from the usual one-size-fits-all menu.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want taters, like Hoss, but I ain\u2019t sure about the chop,\u201d Little Joe said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s big, ain\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIsn\u2019t it,\u201d Ben corrected.\u00a0 \u201cAnd, yes, it\u2019s quite thick.\u00a0 I think you\u2019d be happier with a beef plate, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt usually comes with mashed turnips and roasted potatoes, like the chop,\u201d Chapman explained.\u00a0 \u201cYou want all that, little fellow?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, please,\u201d Little Joe replied politely, making his father proud.<\/p>\n

\u201cSmall portions,\u201d Ben reminded the proprietor.\u00a0 \u201cNow, how are the clams prepared?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can have them roasted with bacon and onions,\u201d Chapman said, \u201cor we have a fine chowder, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cChowder!\u201d Hoss exclaimed.\u00a0 \u201cGet that, Pa.\u201d\u00a0 He grinned sheepishly.\u00a0 \u201cAnd give me a taste or two?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cOnce you dip your spoon into my bowl, son, that\u2019s the last bit of soup I\u2019ll get!\u201d\u00a0 He reached over to ruffle the boy\u2019s sandy hair indulgently.\u00a0 \u201cTwo bowls of chowder, Mr. Chapman, and I\u2019ll have a plate of the roasted clams, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cVery good, sir.\u00a0 Be right out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks, Pa,\u201d Hoss said as the man walked away to fill their order.\u00a0 \u201cI was wantin\u2019 a whole bowl, but didn\u2019t like to ask for two things.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss, I told you to order whatever you wanted,\u201d Ben reminded him, \u201cand in your case, there\u2019s not much chance you won\u2019t finish what you ask for.\u201d\u00a0 He only hoped the same could be said for his youngest.<\/p>\n

Soon Mr. Chapman brought out the bowls of chowder, along with Little Joe\u2019s pint-sized portion of sliced beef and vegetables.\u00a0 Ben willingly shared a few spoonfuls of the chowder with his youngest, who agreed that it was good, but seemed more interested in his own plate, to Ben\u2019s gratification.\u00a0 The clam chowder was delicious, and he was pleased to have his bowl mostly to himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan I have some of that bacon?\u201d Little Joe asked when his father received his plate of roasted Pismo clams.<\/p>\n

Seeing that his son had already eaten more than half of his beef plate, Ben agreed.\u00a0 \u201cHow\u2019s your chop, son?\u201d he asked his other boy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThick, like you said,\u201d Hoss replied with a grin as he cut through a piece of tenderloin more than an inch thick.\u00a0 \u201cJuicy, too.\u201d\u00a0 Between bites, he shared what had transpired before Ben joined them.\u00a0 \u201cTom Peasley and the rest of the fire boys showed that drum buster what for,\u201d Hoss concluded.<\/p>\n

\u201cUmm,\u201d Ben murmured in response.\u00a0 Like Peasley, he favored the Union, but preferred to keep the conflict back East, where it belonged.\u00a0 With the contract he\u2019d concluded this morning and the others almost certain to follow, he was likely to find himself spending his days in town, rather than on the ranch, and that would give him an opportunity to keep up with the war news. \u00a0If today\u2019s fracas was any example, though, he wouldn\u2019t have to wait for telegrams from the East to hear of battles between North and South. \u00a0They could just as easily happen right on C St., for Nevada was still a divided territory.<\/p>\n

Dinner finished, the Cartwrights walked down to Cass\u2019s to pick up their wagon and were soon headed home.\u00a0 Ben asked Hoss to read the newspaper to him as he drove, and, as usual, war news filled the columns of the Territorial Enterprise<\/em>.\u00a0 The Army of the Potomac had advanced toward Yorktown, on the peninsula between the James and York rivers; the South had suffered a crushing defeat at Shiloh, in Tennessee, with appalling casualties on both sides; and FortPulaski, commanding the approach to Atlanta, Georgia, had fallen just days before.\u00a0 \u201cSounds like the Union\u2019s gonna win, huh, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know, Hoss,\u201d his father admitted.\u00a0 \u201cWar has its ups and downs, and I imagine we\u2019ll see more of both before this business is finished.\u201d\u00a0 He wanted to see it finished, of course\u2014the sooner, the better\u2014but men were always slow to admit that they might have charted a wrong course, and that was probably even more true of sovereign nations.\u00a0 That was what they were fighting about, after all\u2014whether one set of states had the right to declare themselves a sovereign nation\u2014and a dream like that would be hard to relinquish.\u00a0 For the sake of all the young men\u2019s lives hanging in the balance, Ben could only hope and pray that the Union victories would continue and the South would give up that dream of sovereignty, but the winds of war could be as wayward and unpredictable as any Washoe zephyr.<\/p>\n

~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

On April 10, 1862, a Mr. Spurgeon and his companion were caught up in a landslide.\u00a0 It may or may not have been the same one that occurred at SlideMountain on the same date, but this account presumes that.<\/p>\n

Both William H. Simmons, agent for the Pioneer Stage Company, and C. L. Flick, barber opposite the post office on B Street, are listed in the 1862 Directory of Virginia City.<\/p>\n

All the restaurants mentioned here actually existed in Virginia City, and Chapman\u2019s Chop House specialized in Pismo clams.\u00a0 The rest of the Cartwrights\u2019 meal is based on typical fare at a chop house.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER FIFTEEN<\/p>\n

A Party and a Parley<\/p>\n

As Ben walked into the second story parlor of the International Hotel one evening in late April, he scanned the room uncomfortably.\u00a0 Though he was dressed in his best suit, silk cravat and brocade vest, he felt dowdy, compared to the roomful of millionaires.\u00a0 The Comstock\u2019s silver kings spared no expense on their apparel or their homes, many of them being rebuilt of brick after the recent flooding.\u00a0 Since even brick buildings used wood, that meant profit for him, of course, and if business kept thriving as it had the last few weeks, he just might indulge in a fancy new suit himself, something befitting the circles in which he was beginning to move.<\/p>\n

Tonight\u2019s invitation, on the other hand, had nothing to do with new circles and everything to do with old ones.\u00a0 He\u2019d known the Bowers since before they were married, long before they\u2019d harvested a fortune in silver from their adjoining mine claims; he\u2019d known them back when Sandy was a teamster and Eilley made her living by washing laundry and baking the best batter biscuits in the territory.\u00a0 Old friends they remained, even if they were starting to put on airs, and it was only fitting to bid them farewell as they prepared for a momentous journey.<\/p>\n

\u201cAirs\u201d might be putting it mildly, Ben decided as he walked through the crowded parlor, greeting men he\u2019d dealt with in business transactions and meeting their wives or companions for the evening.\u00a0 The Bowers had obviously spared no expense on this send-off.\u00a0 It looked as though the entire town had been invited, which took a bit of the wind from Ben\u2019s sails at being included, and apparently every luxury imaginable had been imported from San Francisco.\u00a0 Waiters in black-and-white livery, almost as elegant as the guests\u2019 suits, circulated the room with trays of oysters on ice and chilled glasses of champagne.\u00a0 As if that weren\u2019t lavish display enough, at one end of the hall, scarcely guarded, sat an oak chest filled with silver bars the Bowers planned to carry with them on their trip.<\/p>\n

The banquet proper began with steaming bowls of terrapin soup, followed by fricassee of chicken, sole cooked with tomato sauce and roast loin of beef from the Ponderosa itself, with side dishes by the score.\u00a0 Dessert was a dish of brandied fruit atop ice cream.\u00a0 When everyone had eaten to the point of bursting, Sandy Bowers ordered champagne all around again and raised a glass to toast himself.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve been in this yer country among the first that came here,\u201d he announced.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve had powerful good luck.\u00a0 I\u2019ve got money to throw at the birds.\u00a0 Thar ain\u2019t no chance for a gentleman to spend his coin in this yer country and thar ain\u2019t nothing much to see, so me and Mrs. Bowers is agoin\u2019 to Yoorop to take in the sights.\u00a0 One of the great men of this country was in this region a while back.\u00a0 That was Horace Greeley.\u00a0 I saw him and he didn\u2019t look like no great shakes.\u00a0 Outside of him the only great men I\u2019ve seen in this country is Governor Nye and Old Winnemucca.\u00a0 Now me and Mrs. Bowers is goin\u2019 to Yoorop to see the Queen of England and the other great men of their countries and I hope you\u2019ll all jine in and drink Mrs. Bowers\u2019 health.\u00a0 I have planty of champagne and money ain\u2019t no object.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was somewhat of a graceless toast, having basically punctured the pretensions to greatness of any man there, but Sandy was well enough liked to get away with it.\u00a0 Ben wished him well, and he was certainly happy to drink to Eilley\u2019s good health.\u00a0 She\u2019d need it for the long ocean voyage and the likely disappointment at its end, for he couldn\u2019t see the Queen of England lowering herself to receive the Queen of the Comstock, as Eilley liked to style herself now.\u00a0 He raised his glass and enthusiastically cheered the lady.<\/p>\n

After several more rounds of champagne and some coffee to guard against the chill of the night, the tables were pushed back for dancing, but Ben didn\u2019t plan to stay for that.\u00a0 To hold another woman in his arms only reminded him of the woman he longed to embrace, so he made his way over to the hosts.\u00a0 Sandy was, unfortunately, holding court with his opinions of the current national administration.\u00a0 \u201cI think the rights of the Southern people ought to be pertected,\u201d he was saying as Ben walked up.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m a Northern man, with a Northern man\u2019s rights, and I got a right to say so.\u00a0 What you say, Ben?\u201d<\/p>\n

The one topic Ben had absolutely no intention of getting into.\u00a0 Instead, he smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI say that I\u2019m a rancher, with a rancher\u2019s right\u2014make that duty\u2014to get up early in the morning, so I\u2019ve come to bid you and your dear wife good night.\u00a0 It\u2019s been a wonderful evening, Sandy, and I hope this trip will be all that you and Eilley hope for.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood of you, Ben; good of you,\u201d Sandy said, shaking his hand warmly.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t be so quick to go, though; is plenty champagne left.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEnough to leave me tipsy in the saddle,\u201d Ben chuckled, eliciting the same response from the others gathered around the Bowers.\u00a0 He lifted Eilley\u2019s hand and kissed it suavely in the European style he knew would delight her.\u00a0 \u201cHave a wonderful journey, Eilley.\u00a0 Are you taking Theresa with you or will she be staying with someone?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, she\u2019ll be with us, of course,\u201d Eilley replied enthusiastically.\u00a0 \u201cI couldn\u2019t possibly be away from my baby that long.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, that\u2019s always difficult,\u201d Ben agreed, remembering the times he\u2019d had to leave his boys behind when traveling on business, the longest separation having been that trip to New Orleans, where he\u2019d met\u2014the memories rushed close, and he hastily said his final farewells and walked out the B street exit from the hotel.\u00a0 He stood in the crisp evening air and blinked back the tears that sprang uninvited to his eyes.\u00a0 Would the pain never end?\u00a0 It hadn\u2019t been a year yet, of course, so he knew he should expect moments like this from time to time, but somehow they still caught him off guard as easily as if he hadn\u2019t gone through this grieving process twice before.\u00a0 Each grief was fresh and new, charting its own unique path, he was beginning to understand, but for the sake of his sons, he\u2019d find his way down this one, too.<\/p>\n

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

As always, Hoss rode slowly into the yard, eyes watchful, and as always, his little brother bounced up from the porch step, where he sat waiting.\u00a0 Hoss held up a hand and ordered, \u201cStay put.\u201d\u00a0 Wonder of wonders, Little Joe did just that, like he had ever since their last trip to town with Pa, which must have somehow taught him something about minding.\u00a0 Hoss grinned as he dismounted.\u00a0 \u201cOkay, come on,\u201d he called.<\/p>\n

Little Joe ran over and held up his arms to be boosted up onto Charcoal\u2019s back.\u00a0 \u201cMilk and cookies inside,\u201d he reported.\u00a0 That wasn\u2019t particularly news, since Hop Sing had that snack waiting for Hoss most days when he came home from school, but Hoss liked to hear it nonetheless.<\/p>\n

\u201cSoon as we get Charcoal settled,\u201d he said with a smack of his lips.\u00a0 It seemed like an eternity since he\u2019d emptied the contents of his lunch pail.<\/p>\n

When the horse was thoroughly groomed, watered and fed, the two boys went to the kitchen.\u00a0 A plate of cookies already sat on Hop Sing\u2019s work table, but the cook waited until they appeared to pour two glasses of milk.\u00a0 \u201cYou have good day at school?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was all right,\u201d Hoss said, taking an oatmeal cookie, one of his favorite\u2019s.\u00a0 He never actually enjoyed school, except for the time he spent in the schoolyard with his friends, but today had been one of his better days: no problems with his lessons and no mean-spirited taunts from bullies during break times.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou home early,\u201d Hop Sing said, busily chopping root vegetables for the stew he was preparing for supper.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlways am, nowadays,\u201d Hoss said between bites.\u00a0 \u201cThey opened up a post office in Franktown a week or so back, remember?\u00a0 So I don\u2019t have to ride over to WashoeCity to fetch the mail no more.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat good,\u201d Hop Sing said.\u00a0 \u201cMore time for work in garden.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I reckon,\u201d Hoss muttered, brushing the cookie crumbs from his shirt.\u00a0 He\u2019d a heap rather work up at the timber camp than putter around Hop Sing\u2019s truck garden, but he didn\u2019t really mind the work, especially at planting time.\u00a0 Hoeing weeds was another matter, but he wouldn\u2019t have to face that for a while yet.\u00a0 \u201cIs it ready to plant?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs-a ready,\u201d Hop Sing reported.\u00a0 \u201cMr. Enos have man plow and\u2014what word?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHarrow,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s ready, then.\u00a0 What we plantin\u2019 today?\u00a0 Onions and taters first, then turnips and carrots tomorrow, maybe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat right,\u201d Hop Sing said, grateful that he didn\u2019t have to say those difficult \u201cr\u201d English words.\u00a0 \u201cI start cabbage and tomato in window box.\u201d\u00a0 He pointed at the kitchen window.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, that\u2019s good,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cLots of good eatin\u2019 soon, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood eatin\u2019 all-a time,\u201d Hop Sing insisted, bristling at the perceived affront to his cooking abilities.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Hoss agreed quickly.\u00a0 \u201cEverything you fix is good, Hop Sing, but fresh things taste even better, \u2018cause you got better stuff to work with.\u201d<\/p>\n

The cook beamed then.\u00a0 \u201cFresh better, yes. \u00a0You plant garden chop-chop, so can have fresh things again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou gonna help, Little Joe?\u201d Hoss asked, ignoring the sudden scowl with which Hop Sing favored him.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah!\u201d Little Joe crowed.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing harrumphed and pointedly took away the plate of cookies.\u00a0 \u201cLittle boys need get work now.\u00a0 More cookie when done\u201d\u2014his eyes pierced into those of the older child\u2014\u201cif garden look right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss got the message.\u00a0 If he let Little Joe make a mess of something as important as the Ponderosa\u2019s food supply, there\u2019d be no cookies for him\u2014no taters or turnips, either, for that matter, he realized.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll do good, won\u2019t we, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lowering his glass of milk, Little Joe wiped off his milky mustache and gazed at his brother with cherubic innocence.\u00a0 \u201cAlways do good,\u201d he alleged.<\/p>\n

Hoss rolled his eyes.\u00a0 He was in for it, all right, but at breakfast Pa had clearly said that \u201cyou boys\u201d were to help Hop Sing plant the garden that afternoon and every afternoon until it was done.\u00a0 \u201cBoys\u201d meant at least two; he\u2019d learned that much in school, and they were the only two boys on the Ponderosa, so Pa must be expecting him to teach Little Joe to do a good job.\u00a0 The day\u2019d come, Hoss mused, when he wouldn\u2019t be a school kid anymore; he\u2019d be a man and he\u2019d be working the timber this time of year, like he wanted.\u00a0 He smiled at the prospect as he took his brother\u2019s hand and led him out to the garden plot.\u00a0 Once all that happened, Little Joe would have to take over the planting, and now, while he was too little to be much use, was the time to teach him.\u00a0 And Pa was trusting him to teach Joe right.\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s smile broadened into a grin.<\/p>\n

He expected nothing but trouble from his little brother, who he\u2019d always thought was blessed with too much energy to do anything slow and careful.\u00a0 Little Joe surprised him, though.\u00a0 Slow and careful still wasn\u2019t in his nature, but he evidently was proud to be chosen for some \u201cbig boy\u201d work, and so he listened to everything Hoss taught him about how to plant each seed so it would grow right.\u00a0 Minding better about not running at horses and now trying his best to help out with a chore\u2014Hoss thought those might be signs that his baby brother was growing up, and he bragged all over him in Joe\u2019s hearing and later in Pa\u2019s.<\/p>\n

Little Joe basked in the sunshine of praise, and the good behavior continued.\u00a0 He still needed to be reminded about the horses from time to time, and there were days he whined to go fishing, instead of planting, but Hoss reminded him of all the good things that would be on the table this summer, even if the cold of the recent snow had given them a later start than usual.\u00a0 Guided by his brother\u2019s calm, gentle instructions and corrections, Little Joe learned a lot about how things grow that spring, as they planted beets and parsnips and finally lettuce in the garden.\u00a0 When May came, they helped Hop Sing move the seedlings of cabbage and tomatoes to the garden and then planted cucumbers, melons, corn, beans and herbs.<\/p>\n

Often Hoss arrived home from school to find the porch step vacant and his little brother, Klamath at his heels, racing around the side of the house from his latest trip out to the garden to see how their plants were doing.\u00a0 Those were the days he needed the reminders about the horses, but Joe always stopped when Hoss yelled, \u201cStay put,\u201d and as the little boy took his daily ride into the barn on Charcoal\u2019s back, he\u2019d report to Hoss on how many fingers high each plant was.<\/p>\n

Little Joe was less enthusiastic when Hoss started him out pulling weeds.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t trusted with a hoe yet, so he had to do his weeding by hand, a slow and tedious task that only emphasized that he was still a little boy.<\/p>\n

\u201cClearin\u2019 weeds ain\u2019t no fun, no matter which way you do it,\u201d Hoss told him as he chopped his way down the row next to his brother, \u201cbut it\u2019s gotta be done or the weeds\u2019ll choke out the good things.\u00a0 Ain\u2019t no use in you fussin\u2019 about it, nor me, neither, cause we want them good things on the table, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight,\u201d Little Joe said.\u00a0 His ready agreement and the way he always took every word Hoss said as gospel brought a warmth the older boy basked in as much as the younger one did words of praise.\u00a0 And the times Little Joe said, \u201cYou\u2019re the smartest man I know\u201d took all the sting out of every schoolyard taunt Hoss had ever endured.<\/p>\n

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

Little Joe\u2019s eyes lighted with joy as Nelly Thomas presented the cake with five lighted candles after dinner on Sunday.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m five now,\u201d he announced to everyone seated at the table, which included all the Thomases, including Billy and Marta, as well as the Montgomerys, along with the newest member of the family and her doting German grandmother.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot quite,\u201d Ben reminded him.\u00a0 Little Joe\u2019s birthday was actually tomorrow, and he\u2019d saved his son\u2019s gifts back for then, but he was grateful to Nelly for planning this get-together today.\u00a0 Last year Marie had invited practically the entire community to Little Joe\u2019s birthday party, but Ben hadn\u2019t felt up to anything that grandiose this year.\u00a0 A quieter celebration with family and close friends seemed more fitting and less likely to inundate them all with memories of the mother who had planned such gatherings to perfection.<\/p>\n

\u201cFive now,\u201d Little Joe insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right,\u201d Ben conceded, not willing to let the technicality of a few hours spoil the boy\u2019s enjoyment of his special moment.\u00a0 \u201cMake a wish and blow out those candles before they melt.\u201d\u00a0 He had a good idea what that wish would be and knew that it was destined for disappointment.\u00a0 Little Joe had made no secret that what he wanted most for his birthday was a horse, but Ben still couldn\u2019t bear the thought of seeing his boy alone on a mount.\u00a0 It brought the memories much too close.\u00a0 He\u2019d have to get over that fear sometime, he knew, but not yet.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t risk losing Marie\u2019s boy this soon after losing her.<\/p>\n

Little Joe took a deep breath and blew out three of the candles, with Hoss quickly leaning in to finish off the other two.\u00a0 Everyone applauded, Little Joe with the greatest enthusiasm of all.\u00a0 Nelly cut the cake and passed plates around to everyone and refilled coffee cups for anyone who wanted more.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all set now,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cSit down and enjoy this marvelous cake with us, Nelly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMav\u2019lous,\u201d Little Joe echoed, crumbs tumbling from his mouth.\u00a0 Ben didn\u2019t have the heart to correct him today; after all, it was his birthday they were celebrating.\u00a0 Instruction in table manners could wait until tomorrow\u2014well, day after tomorrow, he supposed, since the same argument would hold on the following day.<\/p>\n

After every crumb had been consumed, for the cake was that tasty, the women and Inger trooped upstairs to put little Marta Marie down for her nap, and Billy took the boys outside to play a game of chase.\u00a0 The rest of the men gathered in the parlor with still more coffee to digest their dinner and the news of the day.\u00a0 They touched on the war news first.\u00a0 After a month\u2019s siege the Army of the Potomac had occupied Yorktown and also Williamsburg in Virginia and planned to press on to the Confederate capital at Richmond.\u00a0 Though everyone hoped that might signal an end to the conflict, they spent more time discussing the implications of another recent landslide near Genoa.\u00a0 A number of men had been injured or buried, as well as horses, oxen and everything else in the rockslide\u2019s path.<\/p>\n

\u201cCertainly been a lot of that sort of instability this year,\u201d Ben commented.<\/p>\n

\u201cNature of the territory, I reckon,\u201d Clyde observed.\u00a0 \u201cHated to hear that the new sawmill at the mouth of the canyon got caught up in it, though.\u00a0 Cost seven thousand to build and gone, just like that.\u201d\u00a0 He snapped his fingers to emphasize the swiftness with which that investment had been swept away.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, we could use another sawmill,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 \u201cThe one I\u2019ve been using is filling my orders slower all the time, simply due to the amount of business they\u2019re having to handle.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOught to build your own,\u201d Clyde advised, \u201cmuch timber as you have.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I don\u2019t know,\u201d Ben said, trying and failing to disguise how much the idea tempted him.\u00a0 \u201cSometimes it feels like my business is so far-flung now that I can\u2019t keep up with it.\u00a0 Maybe if Adam were home. . . .\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head in self-chiding.\u00a0 Adam was entitled to his own dreams.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, but a mill fits in with your timber operation, don\u2019t it?\u201d Clyde pressed.\u00a0 \u201cMight be that havin\u2019 your own mill would bring things closer, not fling \u2018em further apart.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe could do it, Mr. Ben,\u201d Enos said.\u00a0 \u201cLike Clyde says, milling our own timber could end up saving us time and money in the long run.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded slowly.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, that it could.\u00a0 It would mean some investment up front, though, in supplies and more men.\u00a0 Let me think about it a few days, assess where I\u2019m at and what I can afford to risk and then . . . maybe.\u201d\u00a0 He stood and stretched.\u00a0 \u201cWish I could stay longer, Clyde,\u201d he said, \u201cbut we\u2019ve got a full day ahead tomorrow.\u201d\u00a0 Spring always brought full days, work having piled up during the long hiatus of winter, and he wanted to spend some extra time the next day with Little Joe.\u00a0 Most of the time Joseph seemed like a happy little boy, untouched by tragedy, but Ben saw occasional signs of lingering distress.\u00a0 Sometimes he caught the boy looking wistfully at the chair where his mother used to sit and sometimes at the one Adam had regularly occupied with the same longing.\u00a0 Other times, Little Joe would cling to him so tightly that Ben would wonder if the boy were remembering those dark days when his pa had seemed lost to him, as well as his mother.\u00a0 Tomorrow was a chance to heal some of that, and he planned to take it, work be hanged.<\/p>\n

\u201cWants a chance to get away and start thinkin\u2019 about the mill, he means,\u201d Clyde cackled.<\/p>\n

\u201cBetter stay here, then,\u201d Enos joshed along with him, \u201c\u2018cause you know those boys won\u2019t give him a minute\u2019s peace for thinkin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben favored them with a sour smile.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m hoping that Billy has worn them out enough that they\u2019ll want to sleep in the back all the way home.\u201d<\/p>\n

The others hooted, and Ben admitted ruefully to himself that all that romping around outside would probably do nothing but work the boys up to a frenzy that could only be settled by chattering all the way back to the Ponderosa.<\/p>\n

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

Celebrating a birthday with a visit to a grave might seem wrong to most people, but Ben had instinctively felt that it was right.\u00a0 He wanted Little Joe to realize that his mother was still part of their family, so as he stopped there after their just-for-two noontime picnic at the lake, he emphasized how very proud the boy\u2019s mother would have been to see him reach his fifth birthday.\u00a0 A few tears were shed by both father and son, followed by fierce hugs, and Ben sensed that these few moments together meant more to Little Joe than the toys he\u2019d received that morning.<\/p>\n

The boy\u2019s birthday happiness increased even more when Hoss rode in after school with a present from Adam, which was, predictably, a book.\u00a0 Little Joe flipped hastily through the pages, relieved to see that there were lots of pictures.\u00a0 \u201cRollo Learning to Talk<\/em>,\u201d Hoss read from the title page.\u00a0 He looked up at his father.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t think Joe much needs a book about learning to talk,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cHe jabbers too much now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cAdam\u2019s note says that it\u2019s the first in a series, and if Little Joe likes it, the next volume would be Rollo Learning to Read<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, he needs that one,\u201d Hoss said, \u201cbut I guess it\u2019s better to start with the first and get to know ole Rollo.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a feeling I\u2019ll be the one reading both volumes,\u201d Ben chuckled.<\/p>\n

Little Joe thrust the book at him.\u00a0 \u201cRight now, Pa,\u201d he dictated.<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head, for he was trying to draw together enough facts to decide about building a new mill. \u00a0When he saw the boy\u2019s eyes cloud over, though, he immediately caved in.\u00a0 \u201cWell, since it\u2019s your birthday,\u201d he said slowly, \u201cbut it\u2019s for bedtime after today, understood?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, Pa,\u201d Little Joe chirped, hopping up into his father\u2019s lap.\u00a0 \u201cRead now and read more for bedtime.\u201d\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t exactly what Ben had said, but he had a feeling things would turn out precisely as the birthday tyrant dictated.<\/p>\n

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

Ben decided to build the mill, but before he could put his plans into operation, his attention was distracted by disturbing news from the Walker River Reservation: Wahe had returned.\u00a0 After Ben and Warren Wasson had broken up his plot against Fort Churchill last year, he\u2019d headed back to Bannock territory in Oregon and had, as far as Ben knew, been there ever since.\u00a0 No doubt he had meant to stir up trouble here again, and enough Paiutes still feared Winnemucca\u2019s ruthless brother to reawaken fear in every white heart.<\/p>\n

The trouble never materialized, however, at least in the manner expected.\u00a0 Two of the Paiute chiefs had been convinced by the events of the previous spring that Wahe was not a true spirit chief, but an ordinary man who could be killed; and so, to protect the tribe, they took his life.\u00a0 Still, Wahe\u2019s reputation remained so strong that some of the Indians feared even death could not defeat him.\u00a0 To dispel their suspicions that he might somehow resurrect himself, the murderers cut his body into minute pieces and scattered them so far apart that not even the most superstitious believed they could ever reunite.<\/p>\n

That should have dissipated any concern, but there\u2019d been an unrelated uprising just across the California border, near Owens River, and Nevada\u2019s Paiutes seemed to fear that they\u2019d suffer reprisals for the actions of those Indians.\u00a0 As Governor, James Nye also held the office of Superintendent of Indian Affairs, and in that capacity he sent a message to Ben Cartwright within a week of Wahe\u2019s death.<\/p>\n

While Ben packed his saddlebags late one night, Hoss slipped into his room and hugged one of the bedposts.\u00a0 \u201cDo you gotta go, Pa?\u201d he asked quietly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Governor\u2019s asked, Hoss,\u201d Ben said, \u201cand if he needs my help, I think I should give it.\u201d\u00a0 He turned to see the boy\u2019s lips press tightly together.\u00a0 \u201cSomething wrong, son?\u201d he asked gently.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust wish you wouldn\u2019t, is all.\u201d\u00a0 He kept his eyes on his big toe as it scuffed the carpet beneath his bare foot.\u00a0 \u201cYou know how Little Joe gets when you\u2019re gone someplace.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 He did know that; he also knew that Little Joe wasn\u2019t the only boy who worried when Pa disappeared for a day or so.\u00a0 That was why he didn\u2019t seek out opportunities for community service that would keep him away from home; this one, however, had sought him out, and he didn\u2019t feel he should refuse.\u00a0 He pushed the saddlebags aside and, sitting down, patted the edge of the bed beside him.\u00a0 \u201cSit down, son,\u201d he urged.<\/p>\n

Hoss hopped onto the bed and snuggled close to his father\u2019s side.<\/p>\n

Ben wrapped an arm around him.\u00a0 \u201cNow, what exactly is Little Joe worried about?\u201d he asked, maintaining the pretense that only the younger boy was concerned.<\/p>\n

Hoss gave his lips a nervous lick.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s sort of worried about you goin\u2019 around all them injuns . . . after what happened to Wahe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sobered.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you know about that?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss gulped, fearing he\u2019d said too much.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I heard some talk at school . . . \u2018bout him bein\u2019 killed and . . . well . . . cut up and . . . uh . . . sent ever which way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben groaned.\u00a0 \u201cPlease tell me Little Joe doesn\u2019t know that part.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss looked appalled.\u00a0 \u201c\u2018Course not, Pa!\u00a0 I wouldn\u2019t let such as that get to his little ears.\u00a0 I got me some sense, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben squeezed him tighter.\u00a0 \u201cOf course, you do, Hoss.\u00a0 You\u2019ve told me before, and I should remember that.\u00a0 So, then, it really isn\u2019t Little Joe who\u2019s worried, is it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, it is,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s always worried when you go off anywheres, Pa.\u201d\u00a0 His fingers twisted the tail of his nightshirt.\u00a0 \u201cBut . . . well . . . it ain\u2019t him about that Wahe business.\u00a0 I reckon that\u2019s sort of . . . me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t need to worry about that, Hoss,\u201d Ben said gently.\u00a0 \u201cWahe is gone; he can\u2019t do anyone any harm now, and I\u2019m convinced that the other Paiutes don\u2019t want trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEven his kin?\u201d Hoss asked.\u00a0 \u201cHe was Chief Winnemucca\u2019s brother, wasn\u2019t he?\u00a0 I sure don\u2019t think it\u2019d go down easy if anyone was to do Adam or Little Joe like they done his brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure it doesn\u2019t go down easy,\u201d Ben said gravely, \u201cbut in the first place it wasn\u2019t white men who killed Wahe; it was their own people.\u00a0 In the second place, there\u2019ll be a hundred cavalry men escorting us to this meeting.\u00a0 Winnemucca is too wise to go against a force like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The worry lines in Hoss\u2019s forehead smoothed out.\u00a0 \u201cA hundred?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what Governor Nye\u2019s message said,\u201d Ben confirmed, \u201cso you see, son, your pa will be perfectly safe.\u00a0 I don\u2019t expect trouble anyway, but I\u2019d have that many trained troopers backing me up if it came.\u00a0 Feel better now?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Hoss said with relief, \u201cand I\u2019ll keep Little Joe from frettin\u2019 the best I can.\u00a0 Can I tell him \u2018bout the soldiers?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure,\u201d Ben said, tousling the boy\u2019s hair, \u201cif you think it\u2019ll help.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure glad I have a boy like you I can count on.\u201d\u00a0 He paused thoughtfully for a moment.\u00a0 \u201cNow, like I said, I don\u2019t expect trouble, but do you know what to do if . . . well, if the worst happened and I didn\u2019t make it home?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t say that, Pa,\u201d Hoss whimpered.<\/p>\n

\u201cShh,\u201d Ben soothed.\u00a0 \u201cNothing\u2019s going to happen, but the best way to ward off trouble is to be prepared for it.\u00a0 If anything should ever happen to me, Hoss, the first thing you should do is send a telegram to your brother Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the way to New Haven?\u201d Hoss asked, eyes wide and jaw dropping.<\/p>\n

Ben nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYes, all the way to New Haven.\u00a0 It might take him as much as a month to settle his affairs back East and get home, but he\u2019ll come to you as soon as he can.\u00a0 He\u2019s a good boy.\u201d\u00a0 Much as he would hate to take his eldest away from his dream of an education, he couldn\u2019t expect a boy as young as Hoss to run the ranch and look after his brother.\u00a0 And he knew that Adam would never shirk the responsibility, whatever personal sacrifice was involved.\u00a0 \u201cIf you need any help before he can get here, you go to Uncle Clyde.\u00a0 All right?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right,\u201d Hoss said slowly, \u201cbut I sure hope it don\u2019t never come to that, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think it will,\u201d Ben assured him.\u00a0 \u201cJust thought it might give you some peace to know how to handle things if you ever needed to.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss looked up and smiled into his father\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I reckon it does, Pa, but I don\u2019t think I\u2019ll be telling Little Joe that, neither.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou got you some sense,\u201d Ben chuckled with another squeeze.\u00a0 \u201cNow, off to bed with you.\u00a0 I\u2019ll be leaving early, so I probably won\u2019t see you in the morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss scooted off the bed and headed for the door, but his father\u2019s voice stopped him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hate to even put this idea in your head,\u201d Ben said with a conspiratorial grin, \u201cbut if your brother seems too upset in the morning, you might want to skip school and stay home with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss returned the grin.\u00a0 He could almost guarantee that he\u2019d feel the need to stay home tomorrow to tend to Little Joe.<\/p>\n

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

Ben rode at ease at the Governor\u2019s side.\u00a0 They weren\u2019t intimate friends, but they\u2019d worked together more than once and held a mutual respect that came close to friendship.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re only going as far as the lower bend of the Truckee,\u201d Nye confided.\u00a0 \u201cWinnemucca refused to allow us past that point . . . and has the warriors to back him up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow do you know this?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWarren Wasson,\u201d Nye replied.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019ll be bringing them in to the conference, and he said Winnemucca plans to bring along two hundred mounted warriors and that many on foot, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben whistled softly.\u00a0 Suddenly, those one hundred cavalrymen didn\u2019t seem like much of an escort, after all.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t expect trouble, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI do not,\u201d Nye said firmly, \u201cbut don\u2019t tell Captain Pierce about the possible odds.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe doesn\u2019t know?\u201d\u00a0 It scarcely seemed like the sort of information one would keep from the man in charge of the cavalry troops.<\/p>\n

\u201cNever sure whether I can trust troops from California,\u201d Nye admitted, looking a bit sheepish.\u00a0 \u201cNevada men, like you and Wasson, I trust, but a man who doesn\u2019t know the background of the situation . . . well, he might overreact, make demands, provoke a clash.\u00a0 I know nothing against Pierce, mind you; let\u2019s just say I don\u2019t want to give him time to plan a confrontation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben was feeling more and more glad that he\u2019d had that talk with Hoss the night before.\u00a0 Until now he\u2019d had no real concern for his safety.\u00a0 He trusted Winnemucca not to make trouble, but a military man who didn\u2019t understand the old chief might read his ceremonial show of force as genuine animosity.\u00a0 \u00a0And it would only take a spark of that sort of misunderstanding to light a conflagration that could burn through the territory.\u00a0 Yes, he was very glad he had told Hoss what to do if things went wrong.<\/p>\n

They made camp that afternoon at the lower bend of the Truckee and waited, for there was not a Paiute in sight.\u00a0 Late that evening Warren Wasson and Winnemucca appeared at the head of a large procession.\u00a0 Captain Pierce hurried over to the Governor.\u00a0 \u201cSir, would you like me to arrange safe conduct home for you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy on earth would I want that?\u201d Nye demanded.\u00a0 \u201cI came here for a conference with these men.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of them?\u201d Pierce asked scornfully.\u00a0 \u201cSurely, you didn\u2019t expect. . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI am neither surprised nor alarmed by the size of Winnemucca\u2019s entourage,\u201d the Governor stated with lifted head, his eyes drilling into those of the cavalryman.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s for show, Captain Pierce,\u201d Ben suggested.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ve seen this sort of demonstration before, and I assure you that the Governor is in no danger.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps,\u201d Pierce said stiffly, \u201cbut I will be posting extra guards, especially around your person, sir.\u201d\u00a0 He saluted sharply, turned on his heel and marched off.<\/p>\n

Ben looked at the Governor and shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cCould have been worse.\u201d<\/p>\n

James Nye gave him a wry smile.\u00a0 \u201cAs overreactions go, that one wasn\u2019t too dangerous.\u00a0 My hope for a successful conference is restored.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the next two days, however, the white men began to wonder if the conference would even take place.\u00a0 The Paiute warriors kept up a round-the-clock war dance, demonstrating their bravery and endurance by dancing on live coals, while Winnemucca sulked in his tent, to use Warren Wasson\u2019s description.\u00a0 \u201cWill he talk to us or not?\u201d Governor Nye finally demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn his time,\u201d Wasson sighed.\u00a0 \u201cIn his time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s he waiting for?\u201d Ben asked; then his eyebrow raised as an idea struck him.\u00a0 \u201cNumaga?\u201d\u00a0 In the day and a half that they\u2019d camped by the Truckee, he hadn\u2019t seen the tribe\u2019s war chief.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was told that he\u2019s away in the north,\u201d Wasson reported.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s lips set in an uneasy line.\u00a0 \u201cWith Wahe\u2019s people?\u201d<\/p>\n

Wasson gave a noncommittal shrug.\u00a0 \u201cPossibly.\u00a0 No one in Winnemucca\u2019s lodge mentions that name.\u201d<\/p>\n

Closing his eyes, Ben shook his head.\u00a0 He had always considered Numaga the most reasonable man among the Paiutes, the man he\u2019d most want included in any conference.\u00a0 Wahe, however, had been his uncle, and any man could lose his sensibility when blinded by a grievance that personal.\u00a0 While Ben had tried to console Hoss with the reminder that Wahe had been killed by his own people, fear of white reprisals had probably motivated the swift action those Paiute chiefs had taken against the rebel.\u00a0 In fact, for Wahe\u2019s death to have fed any residual bitterness toward the white man that the Paiutes camped here by the Truckee felt was more than probable: it was likely.\u00a0 The tension on both sides of the Truckee was almost palpable.<\/p>\n

Finally, at dusk that evening of May 25th<\/sup>, a shout rang out from across the river, where the Paiutes were camped, and the war dance abruptly ceased.\u00a0 Captain Pierce came running over.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s up?\u201d he demanded anxiously.\u00a0 \u201cDo we brace ourselves for attack or\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cConference,\u201d Nye said, standing up.\u00a0 \u201cWe brace ourselves for the conference, Captain.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thank you, President Lincoln<\/em>, Ben thought, as he had a number of times before, for appointing this caliber of man to be our governor<\/em>.\u00a0 Political appointments tended to be rewards for services rendered during a campaign, and it was no different with James Nye.\u00a0 Nevada had been blessed, however, to be sent a man who governed well and genuinely cared about its people, regardless of the color of their skin.\u00a0 He\u2019d faced down an angry mob in Carson City; and now, outnumbered four to one, he was facing war-chanting Paiutes with single-minded determination and courage.\u00a0 They were here to parley; they\u2019d waited patiently for the right moment and this appeared to be it.<\/p>\n

Later that night, as the ceremonial pipe passed around the circle of conference, Ben recognized Numaga seated across from him at the side of Winnemucca, who had finally come out of his tent.\u00a0 He should have known: no one was as likely to advise talk as that clear-headed Paiute, but would he offer the same sane advice he had before or would personal bitterness, still etched on his face and that of his uncle, direct his thoughts toward war this time?\u00a0 Numaga\u2019s headgear disturbed Ben, though he thought it unlikely that the other white men, with the exception of experienced Indian Agent Warren Wasson, realized the significance of that cap made from an entire otter skin and decorated with large, sweeping eagle plumes: it was his war bonnet.<\/p>\n

The conference that night achieved nothing but the acceptance of an invitation to continue their parley the next day.\u00a0 Finding it hard to settle in his bedroll, Ben lay there for hours, looking at the stars.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t concerned about an attack, like the skittish Captain Pierce, who had men patrolling the perimeter of the camp throughout the night; Winnemucca had too much honor to violate a parley of peace, though his heart was clearly not in idle talk with white men.\u00a0 Numaga, too, had been stoical and noncommittal throughout the evening, so Ben had no idea what his state of mind might be.<\/p>\n

He tried to assess that again the next morning, as the pipe made its five ceremonial circles through the group, but the war chief\u2019s countenance revealed nothing. There was a traditional presentation of gifts, and then Governor Nye brought up the touchy matter of Wahe\u2019s death, emphasizing that white men had neither sought it nor perpetrated it.\u00a0 As the government\u2019s final gift, Warren Wasson presented such personal effects of Winnemucca\u2019s brother as they had been able to find, including a photograph.<\/p>\n

As the Indian Agent tried to hand the picture to him, Winnemucca waved it away in obvious alarm.\u00a0 \u201cNo want it,\u201d he declared firmly.\u00a0 \u201cMe see him too much all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

That, Ben suddenly realized, was what lay behind Winnemucca\u2019s apparent sulking in his tent.\u00a0 Not sulking, but the brooding of an overwhelmed heart.\u00a0 What had happened to Wahe was the stuff of nightmares, and the superstitious old chief would, no doubt, view those nighttime visitations as a haunting by the man who had claimed to be the spirit chief of the Paiutes, although his blood was mixed with that of the Bannocks.\u00a0 \u201cWe grieve with you, my friend,\u201d Ben said quietly.\u00a0 \u201cThe death of a brother brings special pain.\u201d\u00a0 Thank God, he hadn\u2019t learned that by personal experience, but even his young son had instantly understood what it would mean to lose a brother.\u00a0 There were few relationships on earth as close.<\/p>\n

Winnemucca looked across at him and nodded slowly.\u00a0 This was one white man whose heart he knew and could trust.\u00a0 \u201cWhat does the White Winnemucca seek?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeace,\u201d Ben said plainly.\u00a0 \u201cWe want only peace from you and your people, for you and your people.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have not broken the peace,\u201d Numaga said bluntly, a harsh edge to his voice.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Governor Nye broke in, \u201cyou have not and that is good.\u00a0 Let us continue the good beginning we have made by making a new treaty, promising peace between your people and mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is the need?\u201d Numaga demanded.\u00a0 \u201cWe have kept our promises of peace.\u00a0 What has changed to bring need for new promises?\u201d<\/p>\n

The white men exchanged glances, and Ben shrugged at the Governor.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t deny Numaga\u2019s logic.\u00a0 If the original treaty remained unbroken, there was nothing to gain by making a new one\u2014nothing, that is, except insulting the Paiute\u2019s integrity, probably the worst thing they could do.\u00a0 Governor Nye squared his shoulders and faced the Paiute leader.\u00a0 \u201cYou speak wisdom, Numaga,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cI offer, then, only my pledge that our promises to the Paiute will be kept and my personal gratitude for the way in which your people have kept theirs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Numaga stood.\u00a0 \u201cIn token of our pledge, I make this gift.\u201d\u00a0 He removed from his head his war bonnet and handed it to the Governor.\u00a0 Then he signaled to another brave, who brought forward a tomahawk, a magnificent bow and a quiver with arrows.\u00a0 \u201cThese I have used in all my battles,\u201d he said. \u00a0\u201cI need them no more.\u201d<\/p>\n

There could have been no more eloquent manner of saying that he would keep the peace than to relinquish his symbols and weapons of war.\u00a0 Governor Nye was wise enough to comprehend the message and to graciously accept the gifts.\u00a0 While nothing would be written down, he\u2019d successfully reestablished the treaty with the Paiutes, and as they rode away from the Truckee that afternoon, he told Ben that he couldn\u2019t have done it without him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did nothing,\u201d Ben protested.\u00a0 He considered his contribution small, no more than a few words spoken in the council.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo have the White Winnemucca at my side is never nothing,\u201d Governor Nye insisted.\u00a0 \u201cAs always, you have served your country well.\u201d<\/p>\n

When their paths parted, Ben mulled those words.\u00a0 He still considered the praise undeserved, but he felt gratified nonetheless.\u00a0 To serve his country well\u2014that was always a worthy task, and when he could achieve it without neglecting higher responsibilities, he would.\u00a0 To raise his sons to be good, strong and courageous men, though: that was the task that stirred the most fervor in his heart.\u00a0 Too many days had passed since he\u2019d seen those precious faces; it was time to go home.\u00a0 He touched his heels lightly to his horse\u2019s flanks and urged him on to the Ponderosa.<\/p>\n

~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

The Bowers\u2019 hosted a lavish farewell party at the International House on April 24, 1862.\u00a0 Almost everyone in Virginia City was invited and offered every luxury San Francisco could supply, including terrapin and champagne that flowed as freely as water.\u00a0 Sandy\u2019s speech, including phonetics and misspellings, is a verbatim quote from a historical source.<\/p>\n

Franktown\u2019s post office opened on April 22, 1862.<\/p>\n

Yet another landslide occurred near Genoa in early May, 1862.<\/p>\n

Rollo Holliday, the creation of Jacob Abbott, was one of the most popular and educational characters in antebellum children\u2019s books.\u00a0 Rollo Learning to Talk<\/em>, the first in the series, was actually intended for children just learning to speak, but even a child of Little Joe\u2019s age would enjoy having the stories read to him.\u00a0 If Adam ever sends him Rollo Learning to Read<\/em>, he\u2019ll probably like that less, since it has no pictures.<\/p>\n

Wahe returned in May of 1862 and was killed and his body mutilated in the manner described.\u00a0 The conference with the Paiutes occurred, virtually as written, on May 23.\u00a0 Winnemucca\u2019s reaction to seeing his dead brother\u2019s photograph is a direct quote.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER SIXTEEN<\/p>\n

Making a Move<\/p>\n

Ben glanced across his youngest\u2019s curly head to grin at his middle son.\u00a0 \u201cIs it just me or are we starting spring roundup later every year?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss guffawed.\u00a0 \u201cWhy, Pa, I thought June was when we did it every year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gave him a mock scowl to belie the pinch of truth.\u00a0 Paiutes kicking up a ruckus had delayed roundup the previous two years, and fear of the same had kept him occupied with an all-but-pointless conference this spring.\u00a0 Here it was the second of June, and they were only now gathering supplies for the roundup.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m shooting for July next year,\u201d he joshed, and that set Hoss laughing all the harder.<\/p>\n

The humor was lost on Little Joe, who was simply excited about a trip to town, even if it was just WashoeCity and not the bigger and more exciting Virginia City.\u00a0 He\u2019d be spending the whole day with Pa and Hoss, and they\u2019d be eating in the best restaurant in town and visiting the general store and the post office.\u00a0 And then something happened that upped the excitement beyond what even Virginia City could have offered.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d he cried, bouncing to his feet and pointing.<\/p>\n

Ben didn\u2019t even have time to look at what had caught his son\u2019s animated attention, for the team, normally a slow and plodding pair, suddenly reared up in their harness and took off down the main street of town.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, grab your brother!\u201d he hollered as he strained on the reins with both hands.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhee!\u201d Little Joe exulted, arms spread wide, the sheer joy of his expression dampened only slightly when his brother pulled him down and held on tight.\u00a0 \u201cGo, Pa, go!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShush, Joe,\u201d Hoss ordered sharply, wondering\u2014if it came to that\u2014whether he could hold onto Joe and jump without landing on his little brother\u2014or any of the other folks scrambling to get off the street, away from the careening wagon.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t about to leave the smaller boy behind, so he wrapped Joe close with one arm and held onto the buckboard seat with the other hand.<\/p>\n

Ben sawed frantically on the reins, but that made little difference, so he pulled back with both reins, repeatedly yelling, \u201cWhoa!\u201d\u00a0 The horses kept running.\u00a0 What had gotten into them, anyway?\u00a0 They weren\u2019t the sort to stampede like this.\u00a0 Something must have really spooked them. \u00a0No time to think about that now, though.\u00a0 Suddenly, he thought to put on the brake, to make the wagon harder to pull.\u00a0 It slowed the horses down some, but on they ran, all the way through town and out into the open land beyond.\u00a0 With more room to maneuver now, he pulled the reins hard to one side, to make the horses circle.<\/p>\n

The boys screamed as the wheels on their side of the wagon left the ground, but Ben quickly widened his circle, and they hit ground again with a jolt.\u00a0 \u201cWhoa!\u201d Hoss hollered in concert with his father, while Little Joe all the while yelled, \u201cGiddyup!\u201d\u00a0 Fortunately, Ben later thought, he and Hoss had enough lungpower to drown out the opposing command.\u00a0 He kept the horses circling, kept yelling at them to stop until the exhausted animals slowed to a trot, then a jog and finally a walk before standing still and panting.<\/p>\n

Panting for breath himself, Ben slumped over for a full minute and then rose up to stare at his youngest.\u00a0 \u201cGiddyup?\u201d he croaked.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was fun, Pa,\u201d Little Joe insisted, though his eyes clouded a bit with concern.<\/p>\n

\u201cFun,\u201d Ben muttered, mouth swirling as if he didn\u2019t quite know how to get the taste of that out of his mouth.\u00a0 \u201cWell, keep it up, boy, and we might just see how much fun you get from a trip across my knee.\u201d\u00a0 He sighed in self-reproach when he saw Little Joe shrink back against his brother\u2019s chest and Hoss\u2019s arms close protectively around him.\u00a0 He was upset, of course, but he needed to choose his words better than that.\u00a0 After all, it wasn\u2019t Joe\u2019s fault that the horses had run; they were quite used to him standing up and hollering out his excitement over some sight or other.\u00a0 It had to have been something else.<\/p>\n

\u201cSaying \u2018giddyup\u2019 is not the way to stop a runaway team,\u201d Ben instructed, gentling his voice.\u00a0 \u201cNow, what do you think made them run away?\u00a0 What was it you saw back there in town, son?\u201d\u00a0 He\u2019d been too busy trading jests with Hoss to notice whatever had caught Little Joe\u2019s eye, but the horses clearly had seen it, too, and been terrified.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know, Pa,\u201d Little Joe whispered, lower lip still trembling from his father\u2019s rebuke.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s why I asked.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a weary exhale Ben rested his head in his hand.\u00a0 Well, he could sit here, playing a game of twenty questions with a five-year-old or he could just drive back into town and find out for himself.\u00a0 Reluctant as he was to do that, they still needed those supplies.\u00a0 Straightening up, he turned the team around and, eyes peeled for any hint of danger, walked them back toward WashoeCity.<\/p>\n

He managed to get the team to Mears\u2019 and Kinkead\u2019s general store without problem. \u00a0Isaac Mears stepped outside to welcome his customer with a bit of good-natured ribbing.\u00a0 \u201cGlad you thought better of your decision to pass us by,\u201d he chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cBelieve me, passing you by\u2014especially at that pace\u2014wasn\u2019t my idea,\u201d Ben grunted as he tied the horses\u2019 reins to the hitching rail.\u00a0 He checked their mouths, hoping he hadn\u2019t damaged them by the way he\u2019d sawed on the reins during those first moments of panic.\u00a0 Stupid thing to do, anyway, and he knew better.\u00a0 Not only was it rough on the poor horses\u2019 mouths, but with a team harness, it didn\u2019t work the way it did with a single mount.\u00a0 \u201cSorry, boys,\u201d he whispered to the animals.<\/p>\n

Mears just kept grinning at him.\u00a0 \u201cYours ain\u2019t the first team to make a trip through town at that clip, you know.\u00a0 Sorry to say, some of \u2018em don\u2019t never make it back.\u00a0 Them vile, tobacco-spittin\u2019 brutes sure is a drain on business.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTobacco-spitting brutes?\u201d Ben asked.\u00a0 \u201cThen you know what spooked my horses?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, sure,\u201d Mears said.\u00a0 \u201cThem beasts they brought in to haul salt and such.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBeasts to haul salt and such,\u201d Ben repeated blankly.\u00a0 No mule or pack horse had ever spooked his team before, and he doubted that such a common creature could have spooked them now.\u00a0 Nor, to his knowledge, had any mule or pack horse ever spat tobacco.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2014uh\u2014have two heads, these mules, the better to spit tobacco?\u201d he asked wryly, wondering if the storekeeper was spinning one of Dan DeQuille\u2019s latest quaints.<\/p>\n

Mears bent double, slapping both legs.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s a good one, Cartwright.\u201d\u00a0 He got control of himself and straightened up.\u00a0 \u201cThey ain\u2019t mules, and it ain\u2019t really tobacco they\u2019s spittin\u2019.\u00a0 Wish it was, \u2018cause they spray their foul spittle further than any man ever chewed and spewed tobacco.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe tugged urgently on his father\u2019s pant leg.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re big, Pa,\u201d he advised, holding his hand as far over his head as he could reach, \u201cand they got a whole mountain on their backs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben rolled his eyes as he snorted.\u00a0 \u201cA mountain of salt and such, I suppose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gasping for breath between cackles, Mears leaned against the upright post outside his store.\u00a0 \u201cCartwright, you\u2019re gonna do me in with them wise cracks of yourn.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not wisecracking!\u201d\u00a0 Ben threw his hands up.\u00a0 \u201cIf you\u2019re not going to tell me what these ten-foot, mountain-toting, tobacco-spitting salt haulers actually are, maybe I\u2019d better take my business elsewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, no need to get your hackles up,\u201d Mears said, suddenly sober at the thought of lost business.\u00a0 \u201cFact is, the boy was close to right.\u00a0 I reckon that hump on the critter\u2019s back does sort of look like a mountain.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTold you,\u201d Little Joe declared with obvious pride.<\/p>\n

Ben pondered the description for a minute and then slowly asked, \u201cA camel?\u00a0 Are you telling me there\u2019s a camel here in town?\u201d\u00a0 In all his travels over land and sea, he\u2019d never encountered one, although he\u2019d heard of some on exhibition back East.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore than one.\u00a0 Whole corral of \u2018em at the edge of town,\u201d Mears snorted, \u201cand the sooner we get shed of \u2018em, the better.\u00a0 Horses can\u2019t stand the sight or smell of \u2018em, and I can\u2019t blame \u2018em one bit.\u00a0 Ought to give the boys a chance to look \u2018em over, though; it\u2019s quite a sight.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA real camel?\u201d Hoss, who\u2019d read about the animal in school, asked.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d sure like to see that, Pa!\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe jumped up and down.\u00a0 \u201cCan we, Pa?\u00a0 Can we, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben was finally able to laugh.\u00a0 \u201cWell, in the interest of education, I guess we\u2019d better.\u201d\u00a0 He pulled out his list of supplies and handed it to Mr. Mears.\u00a0 \u201cIf you could get those things together, we\u2019ll be back to help with the loading after dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFine, fine,\u201d Mears said.<\/p>\n

Ben stroked the back of the horse nearest him.\u00a0 \u201cWell, fellow, you\u2019ve had yourself a rough morning, haven\u2019t you?\u00a0 Not every day a horse meets his first camel.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced at Hoss, who was tenderly stroking the other draft horse and whispering soothing words in his ear.\u00a0 \u201cI think we\u2019d better take these fellows down to the livery and get them some oats and some rest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, Pa,\u201d Hoss agreed, quickly starting to unharness the team.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d recommend Miller\u2019s,\u201d Mears offered dryly.<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled and said he\u2019d take that advice.\u00a0 Miller\u2019s Livery was as good as any, and being at the opposite end of town from the camels\u2019 corral gave it an unrivaled attraction today.\u00a0 He and the boys could more safely investigate what had frightened them on foot.\u00a0 As soon as he had the horses situated, Ben pulled Little Joe up for a piggyback ride.<\/p>\n

\u201cGiddyup,\u201d Little Joe ordered, giving his father\u2019s ribs a light kick.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am not your horse,\u201d Ben said huffily, \u201cand the word you need to practice, little boy, is \u2018whoa.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Whoa\u2019 won\u2019t get you nowhere, Pa,\u201d Hoss teased, falling into step beside Ben.<\/p>\n

\u201cBetter that than a runaway,\u201d Ben tossed back, and he wasn\u2019t teasing.\u00a0 He\u2019d put his youngest on his back precisely to prevent him from running straight toward the fascinating new creatures at the edge of town.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen pictures, of course, but when he actually saw the herd of camels across the corral rails, he was almost as awestruck as the boys.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re big,\u201d Hoss said in wonder.<\/p>\n

\u201cTold you,\u201d Little Joe said, again raising his arms to the sky.\u00a0 \u201cBig as a house.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAlmost,\u201d his father admitted.\u00a0 The animals had to be at least six to seven feet tall at the shoulder, and their heads, of course, went up from that.<\/p>\n

\u201cSee the mountain?\u201d Little Joe asked, pointing.\u00a0 He seemed to take special pride in having been the first in the family to spot the camel and to require validation of his description.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a whole mountain range over there,\u201d Hoss laughed, reaching up to give his brother\u2019s leg a playful tug.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s called a hump, Little Joe,\u201d Ben explained, since this was supposed to be an educational expedition.\u00a0 He went on to tell the boys everything he knew about the \u201cship of the desert.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss filled in what he\u2019d heard in school, his nose wrinkling as he finished.\u00a0 \u201cMiss Appleton sure never told us how bad they smell.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cProbably never smelled one,\u201d Ben grunted.\u00a0 \u201cNevada isn\u2019t exactly their natural habitat.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere they normally live,\u201d Ben amended.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah, that\u2019d be the desert, way across the sea,\u201d the boy said.\u00a0 \u201cHow\u2019d they get here, you reckon?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s talk about that over lunch,\u201d Ben suggested.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m starving, and if I get one more whiff of that odor, it\u2019s likely to take my appetite.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPlumb away,\u201d Hoss added, nodding in agreement.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan I ride the camel first?\u201d Little Joe pleaded.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, absolutely not,\u201d his father said firmly, and to remove that particular temptation from his son\u2019s sight, headed back into town, almost at a trot.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s stop by the post office and see if there\u2019s a letter from Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMail goes to Franktown now, Pa,\u201d Hoss reminded him.\u00a0 \u201cI been bringin\u2019 it from there a week now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben rested a hand on the boy\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cI know that, son, but any letter from Adam was probably posted before I wrote him of our change of address; it might have come here, instead.\u201d\u00a0 It was probably a futile hope, but he was so hungry for news from his boy that he had to check.\u00a0 As he\u2019d feared, however, there was no mail for the Ponderosa at all, much less anything from far-off New Haven.\u00a0 That boy<\/em>, Ben groused inwardly, he\u2019s all but quit writing the last few weeks.\u00a0 Hope he\u2019s not in some sort of trouble<\/em>.\u00a0 He smiled wryly.\u00a0 Truth was, he strongly suspected that Adam was in trouble\u2014of a sort.\u00a0 The last letters Ben had received from his son had repeatedly mentioned a certain feminine charmer.\u00a0 Hope she\u2019s not causing him to neglect his schoolwork as much as he is us<\/em>, he mused, wondering whether he should put a fatherly word of advice into his next letter to Adam.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa?\u00a0 Wasn\u2019t we gonna eat at the Antelope?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHmm?\u201d\u00a0 Ben looked down at Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cYes, son, that\u2019s where we\u2019re headed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what we just walked past,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, sorry,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 He turned around and lifted Little Joe from his shoulders, so they could walk into the restaurant.\u00a0 \u201cOrder whatever you want,\u201d he said, and while they waited for their food to arrive, he told all he knew about the Army\u2019s experiment in bringing camels to the southwest part of America.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t work out too well,\u201d he concluded, \u201cso that\u2019s why they sold to camels to private businessmen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor hauling salt and such,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d his father muttered, thankful that the food arrived just then and he could do something besides think about camels.\u00a0 He thought of them again when he hitched up his team after loading the supplies, and just to be safe, he guided them out the opposite end of town from where he\u2019d originally entered.\u00a0 It might take a little longer by this circuitous route, but today he was in no mood for speed.\u00a0 \u201cAnd if I hear a single \u2018giddyup\u2019 the rest of this trip,\u201d he said, eyes locked with those of his youngest son, \u201cI promise you that I\u2019ll be having a very necessary little talk with whoever utters it . . . as soon as I can get the horses stopped.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

Pout on his face, Little Joe pushed fried potatoes in and out of the pool of egg yolk on his plate.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph, would you please stop playing with your food and eat it?\u201d Ben suggested with an edge to his voice.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what kids do\u2014play,\u201d Little Joe argued, taking another cube of potato in for a swim.<\/p>\n

Ben blotted his lips and set his napkin aside.\u00a0 \u201cI have had just about enough of your sulkiness.\u00a0 You are not going out to the roundup camp and that is that!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I\u2019m a wrangler, Pa,\u201d the boy whined.\u00a0 \u201cRemember?\u00a0 You said so.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sighed.\u00a0 He\u2019d had ample opportunity to regret that foolish designation, but who could have dreamed that the boy would take it so literally\u2014or so persistently?\u00a0 \u201cYes, Joseph, I remember,\u201d he said, \u201cbut you are a wrangler who is going to stay home and help Hop Sing with the garden this time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing, who was clearing away the empty plates, scowled at his employer and stalked off, chattering in Cantonese.\u00a0 Though Ben couldn\u2019t speak a word of Chinese, not even enough to know Cantonese from Mandarin, he felt certain he could have interpreted that message, word for word.\u00a0 Hop Sing neither needed nor wanted such help in his garden.\u00a0 Well, he\u2019d just have to learn, as would the youngest Cartwright, that anyone who worked on this ranch was expected to work where he was told and with whom.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know how,\u201d Little Joe whimpered.\u00a0 A crafty gleam glittered in his eye.\u00a0 \u201cUnless Hoss stays and shows me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNuh-uh,\u201d Hoss protested.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing can show you ever\u2019thing you need to know.\u00a0 And don\u2019t make them puppy eyes at me.\u00a0 I\u2019m goin\u2019 and you\u2019re stayin\u2019 and that\u2019s that, right, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight,\u201d Ben said firmly.\u00a0 Tempting as it was to use his peaceable middle boy to assuage the younger, it wasn\u2019t fair to Hoss.\u00a0 He\u2019d done his duty at school and deserved his reward.\u00a0 Besides, he really was becoming a good enough wrangler to be a big help at roundup.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, Pa,\u201d Little Joe pleaded, pulling out his best and most time-proven tactic, \u201cwe needs us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben only laughed.\u00a0 \u201cNot this time.\u201d\u00a0 Giving up on the boy finishing his breakfast, he picked up his son and carried him to the chair by the fire for a final cuddle.\u00a0 \u201cNow, I know it\u2019s hard,\u201d he soothed, \u201cbut we\u2019re not leaving the ranch, just camping out with the men until the job\u2019s done.\u00a0 We\u2019ll be close at hand, and if you really need us, Hop Sing will get word to us.\u201d\u00a0 He wiped away the tears that were trickling from the corners of Joe\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 \u201cShh, now.\u00a0 Tell you what, Little Joe, there is one job you could do better than any other.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe perked up.\u00a0 \u201cAt roundup?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben said drawing out the word, \u201chere at home.\u00a0 We need to send another letter to Adam, and\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe don\u2019t write us,\u201d Little Joe countered with outthrust lip.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe will,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 Or he\u2019ll answer to me<\/em>, he added to himself.\u00a0 \u201cSo, I want you to work on a special picture for Adam while we\u2019re away.\u00a0 Draw him a picture story of our trip to WashoeCity, camel and all.\u201d<\/p>\n

The green eyes were sparkling with interest now.\u00a0 \u201cHas Adam ever seen a camel?\u201d Little Joe asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, you\u2019re one up on him there, Little Joe,\u201d the father answered, certain that would please his youngest.<\/p>\n

It did.\u00a0 Little Joe fairly beamed with excitement now.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll get started right away!\u201d he declared, sliding off his father\u2019s lap.\u00a0 He trotted over toward the alcove to get paper, but turned back.\u00a0 \u201cCan I sit at your desk, Pa?\u00a0 You won\u2019t need it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou may sit at my desk,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut don\u2019t touch anything you don\u2019t need.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay.\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe moved another step or two toward the desk and stopped again.\u00a0 \u201cI gotta do a good job for Adam, Pa,\u201d he said, \u201cespecially since he ain\u2019t never seen a camel.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d Ben called, pleased with himself for choosing the perfect distraction.<\/p>\n

\u201cProbably won\u2019t have much time for working in the garden,\u201d Little Joe suggested slyly.<\/p>\n

Ben coughed into his hand and turned toward the fire, lest his son see his response.\u00a0 \u201cPerhaps not,\u201d he said once he got control of his countenance.\u00a0 And so much the better to keep me in Hop Sing\u2019s good graces if you don\u2019t<\/em>, he thought.\u00a0 He motioned to Hoss for them both to get out while the getting was good.<\/p>\n

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

Whatever outrage Little Joe felt at being left behind was forgotten as he rushed into his father\u2019s arms when the older Cartwrights returned near suppertime a few days later.<\/p>\n

\u201cWere you a good boy?\u201d Ben asked, tossing his reins to Hoss and catching the child up in his arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlways good,\u201d Little Joe typically responded.<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 Why did he ask?\u00a0 As if this one would ever report wrongdoing!\u00a0 \u201cMaybe I\u2019d better check with Hop Sing about that, hmm?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe frowned for a moment and then favored his father with a dazzling smile.\u00a0 \u201cI drew pictures for Adam, just like you said.\u201d\u00a0 The bob of his head was unmistakably intended to emphasize what a good, obedient boy he\u2019d been.<\/p>\n

\u201cGlad to hear it,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 He\u2019d need to get a letter of his own written tonight, so they could post them on their trip to town tomorrow.\u00a0 He\u2019d promised that trip to Hoss, as a chance to spend some of the wages now burning a hole in his pocket, and unless Hop Sing said that Little Joe had been an unholy terror the last few days, he\u2019d take him along, too.\u00a0 They\u2019d only been apart four days, but he\u2019d missed his little boy and wouldn\u2019t want to leave him behind again this soon, even if only for a few hours.\u00a0 He set Joe down and suggested he welcome his brother home, too.<\/p>\n

Joe did, with a hug that was just as exuberant as the one he\u2019d given Pa.\u00a0 His playmate was back, even if their \u201cplay\u201d was sometimes otherwise known as working in the garden.\u00a0 They were together, and that, to Little Joe, was what mattered.\u00a0 \u201cWe needs us\u201d might not work on Pa anymore, but the boy still felt the urgency of having everyone he loved, Adam excepted, close at hand.\u00a0 As Hoss unsaddled his horse and his father\u2019s, Little Joe chattered about how tall the plants in the garden were now and asked question after question about what Hoss had done on roundup.<\/p>\n

\u201cMostly brought in strays,\u201d Hoss said with a grin.<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s lip curled.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t sound like fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss laughed.\u00a0 \u201cIt ain\u2019t fun, punkin; it\u2019s work.\u201d<\/p>\n

The younger boy cocked his head and gave him a dubious look.\u00a0 \u201cHow come you wanna do it, then?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI like workin\u2019,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s what a man does.\u201d\u00a0 He didn\u2019t like the branding part, of course, but Pa hadn\u2019t made him actually burn any of the young calves.\u00a0 He decided that Joe was too young to be told such as that, so he just talked about riding in the saddle all day and roping calves and what he\u2019d had to eat from the chuck wagon.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had better food than that,\u201d Little Joe boasted.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing fixed me anything I wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, you got the best deal there,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 He was still glad he\u2019d gone on roundup with Pa, but he sure had missed Hop Sing\u2019s cooking.\u00a0 \u201cWhat you reckon he\u2019s fixin\u2019 for supper?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI already know,\u201d Little Joe bragged.\u00a0 \u201c\u2018cause I got to pick.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDoggone,\u201d Hoss groused, wishing they\u2019d gotten home early enough for him to put in a vote.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019d you pick?\u201d<\/p>\n

With his index finger Little Joe gestured for Hoss to come closer and then conspiratorially whispered, \u201cChicken and dumplin\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cChicken and dumplin\u2019s!\u201d Hoss cried.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s my favorite.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe shushed him with a finger to his lips.\u00a0 \u201cI know; that\u2019s why I picked it . . . but don\u2019t tell Pa; he likes beef better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, you\u2019re the best little brother there ever was,\u201d Hoss declared, tossing the boy toward the rafters and catching him as he dropped down, squealing.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s get in there and give them dumplin\u2019s a good home.\u201d\u00a0 Hefting Little Joe on his right hip, he patted his tummy with his left hand.\u00a0 Joe gave a happy chortle and copied the gesture as they left the barn together.<\/p>\n

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

\u201cLeast you could\u2019ve done was sent word you were all right,\u201d Nelly Thomas scolded as she sat at the Ponderosa dinner table the next Sunday.\u00a0 \u201cLands, Ben, when are you gonna stop traipsin\u2019 off to palaver with hostile injuns?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen there cease to be hostilities between white men and Indians, I suppose,\u201d he said as he carved the roast beef.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s like sayin\u2019 \u2018never,\u2019\u201d Clyde opined.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019re making progress,\u201d Ben asserted.<\/p>\n

\u201cLeast you could\u2019ve done was sent word,\u201d Nelly reiterated.\u00a0 \u201cI fret over you every time you take it on yourself to treat with them Paiutes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben might have pointed out that he never took it upon himself to attend treaty conferences with the Paiutes, but Nelly wouldn\u2019t have appreciated the subtle difference between that and going only at the Governor\u2019s request.\u00a0 \u201cI apologize,\u201d he said, passing her a plate of beef, \u201cbut I don\u2019t know who I could have sent.\u00a0 All my men were working roundup.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEven me,\u201d Hoss inserted proudly, passing the bowl of peas on to Inger.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot me; I coulda gone.\u201d\u00a0 Cutting a significant glance at his father, Little Joe added with a discernable pout in his voice, \u201cIf I had a horse.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can just see me using you as a messenger,\u201d Ben chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, probably couldn\u2019t even find your way to Carson,\u201d Hoss teased and Inger snickered in agreement.<\/p>\n

\u201cCould, too, good as you,\u201d Little Joe snapped.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s enough, boys,\u201d Ben said firmly.<\/p>\n

\u201cMight have to find your way a whole lot further before long,\u201d Clyde observed, reaching over to tousle Little Joe\u2019s errant curls.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, don\u2019t bring up that nonsense, Clyde,\u201d Nelly chided.\u00a0 \u201cWith Ben sportin\u2019 around with injuns and you sportin\u2019 around with fool notions, I\u2019m just betwixt and between the whole time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sliced his own portion of beef and sat down.\u00a0 \u201cOh?\u00a0 What sort of fool notions is Clyde entertaining now?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNary a one,\u201d Clyde snorted.\u00a0 \u201cAll my notions make good sense.\u00a0 Nelly\u2019s just got her hackles up \u2018cause she don\u2019t fancy movin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMovin\u2019?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss looked alarmed.\u00a0 \u201cWhy would you wanna do that, Uncle Clyde?\u00a0 You got a real fine place in Carson.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy feelings exactly,\u201d Nelly said with an emphatic nod and a glower at her husband.<\/p>\n

\u201cMine, too,\u201d Inger hesitantly put in and then turned her attention to her plate at sight of her father\u2019s stern glower.<\/p>\n

Little Joe dropped his fork with a clatter.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t want you to move!\u201d he cried.\u00a0 \u201cEverybody goes away!\u201d\u00a0 His lower lip began to tremble.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, see what you done,\u201d Clyde scolded his wife.<\/p>\n

Nelly was out of her chair in an instant and hurried to fold the youngster in her arms.\u00a0 \u201cThere now, Sugarfoot,\u201d she cooed.\u00a0 \u201cIt ain\u2019t a settled thing\u2014and even if we was to move, it wouldn\u2019t be far.\u00a0 We\u2019d still see you right regular.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe peered up hopefully.\u00a0 \u201cLike now?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery bit as often,\u201d Clyde promised.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe more, seein\u2019 as how your pa spends more time up to Virginia City these days than in Carson.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat where you\u2019re goin\u2019\u2014Virginia City?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt ain\u2019t settled,\u201d Nelly said sharply, giving Clyde another glare.<\/p>\n

\u201cAin\u2019t settled,\u201d Clyde admitted, \u201cbut I\u2019m leanin\u2019 that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Standing up beside Little Joe, Nelly planted her hands on her hips.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I\u2019m not!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, see here, woman!\u201d<\/p>\n

As they traded hot words, another voice entered the fray.\u00a0 His posture an exact duplicate of Nelly\u2019s, Hop Sing cried out, \u201cWhy you let food go cold?\u00a0 Sit down, eat now or I thlow away!\u201d<\/p>\n

Whether they took the threat seriously or suddenly realized that they were being ill-mannered guests, both of the Thomases shut up and took their seats.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, how\u2019s the war going?\u201d\u00a0 Ben asked, roguishly adding, \u201cThe one back East, that is.\u201d\u00a0 He still hadn\u2019t learned why Clyde was considering a move to Virginia City, but prudently decided that question could wait until after dinner\u2014and dessert.<\/p>\n

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

Now that Hoss was out of school and roundup was over, he spent every day with his little brother.\u00a0 They worked in the garden at least a part of each day, but when those light chores were finished, they roamed the Ponderosa, having adventures together in the woods and streams that only boys can.\u00a0 Some days they fished and brought home their bounty to a grateful Hop Sing; others, they pulled off their shoes and waded in the creek among the fish.\u00a0 As the weather grew warmer, they shed their clothes altogether and skinny-dipped in some secluded pond or rivulet.\u00a0 Occasionally, on a Sunday afternoon, Ben would join them, but most of the time the boys romped alone, Ben implicitly trusting his older son to watch over the younger, even in the water.\u00a0 Hoss seemed to have overcome his earlier fear of drowning, and Ben was amused when he recalled that he had once feared that his baby son, who had taken to the water like a fish, would someday have to rescue his hefty brother.\u00a0 Hoss not only swam well enough now to care for himself, but to be a protector of his little brother, who had plenty of swimming skill, but little sense about where and when to plunge in.<\/p>\n

Around the summer solstice the garden work increased, for it was time to cultivate and hill the corn, as well as replant vegetables such as beans, whose bounty they were already enjoying at the table.\u00a0 Hoss seemed to have a knack for making the work seem like play to his little brother or perhaps it was just being with Hoss that made everything seem fun to Little Joe because he certainly pitched a fit whenever Hoss got called away for more manly work around the ranch.<\/p>\n

There had been a string of such days prior to the 28th<\/sup> of June, so Little Joe decided to pitch a preemptive fit.\u00a0 \u201cI need to go, too,\u201d he insisted at a very early breakfast.\u00a0 \u201cThey need lots of help to get moved.\u201d\u00a0 Nelly had finally caved in to Clyde\u2019s insistence that they move to Virginia City, where he could find more lucrative work as a blacksmith for the Gould and Curry.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, is that so?\u201d Ben inquired with a puckish curl of his mouth, for he knew full well that he intended to take his youngest, along with the more helpful Hoss.\u00a0 What other reason could he possibly have had for waking the little rascal this early?\u00a0 \u201cAnd what exactly do you think a little fellow like you can tote for Aunt Nelly?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe frowned in thought and then he brightened.\u00a0 \u201cHer big mixing spoon!\u00a0 She needs it for baking cookies.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t afford to lose that, Pa,\u201d Hoss, who recognized that his little brother was being teased, impishly put in between bites of sausage and egg.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon we better take \u2018im along for just such as that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know, Hoss.\u00a0 I have a feeling you might give that spoon more loving care.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Pa, me!\u201d Little Joe insisted, his face reddening.<\/p>\n

Recognizing the signs of an impending tantrum, Ben warned, \u201cYou watch your tone, little boy.\u201d\u00a0 Then, feeling that he\u2019d contributed to his son\u2019s bad mood, he reached over to pat the smooth cheek.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph, Joseph, of course, you\u2019re coming, too; I always intended that, son.\u201d\u00a0 No doubt the boy who was now rewarding him with such a radiant smile would be underfoot all day, but it was a family occasion, after all.\u00a0 Little Joe was as much a part of the Thomas family as he and Hoss\u2014and, sadly, still more a part of the family than Marta, who now shared their name.<\/p>\n

When Nelly had volunteered her new daughter-in-law to look after Little Joe and Marta Marie, \u201csince she ain\u2019t fit for nothin\u2019 else in her condition,\u201d she\u2019d referred to the older Marta as \u201cthat Zuebner girl.\u201d\u00a0 Ben wasn\u2019t sure whether that indicated that Billy had finally told his parents the truth or that Nelly still thought \u201cthat Zuebner girl\u201d had led her innocent boy astray.\u00a0 He suspected the latter, but wasn\u2019t sure that it would make much difference to Nelly. \u00a0If she were this recalcitrant about accepting the mother of her own grandchild, how would she react when she discovered that the baby wasn\u2019t Billy\u2019s at all?\u00a0 Probably even Little Joe couldn\u2019t pitch a fit that furious.\u00a0 He certainly hoped Billy wouldn\u2019t pick today for that particular revelation; moving a household was challenging enough without that!<\/p>\n

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

Both boys ran up the familiar porch steps, yelling, \u201cAunt Nelly!\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly came out the door and immediately dropped to her knees to welcome Hoss and Little Joe with hugs and kisses.<\/p>\n

Folding his arms, Ben leaned against a porch post and surveyed the scene with twinkling eyes.\u00a0 \u201cSince you wouldn\u2019t visit the Paiutes with me, I thought I\u2019d bring a couple of wild Indians to you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly laughed.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t have a thing against this tribe, just grateful for the help.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m gonna carry your mixin\u2019 spoon,\u201d Little Joe announced.<\/p>\n

Nelly kissed his forehead.\u00a0 \u201cYou know, Sugarfoot, I was just thinkin\u2019 that you\u2019d be the best one for that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd very little else,\u201d Ben observed dryly.\u00a0 \u201cIs Marta keeping the young ones here or down at her place?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHers, of course,\u201d Nelly said.\u00a0 \u201cLands, Ben, you know all the commotion would keep that baby squalling the whole time.\u201d\u00a0 She shooed the boys inside.\u00a0 \u201cClyde and Billy\u2019s takin\u2019 the beds apart upstairs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd Enos?\u201d Ben asked as he followed her through the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot here yet,\u201d she called over her shoulder.<\/p>\n

\u201cHard to get an early start with a baby,\u201d Ben suggested.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure you\u2019re right,\u201d Nelly said, turning at the kitchen door.\u00a0 \u201cOnce they get here, you reckon we\u2019d best send Little Joe down to that girl\u2019s place, too?\u00a0 Inger\u2019s gonna take the baby then, so he can go with her.\u201d\u00a0 She chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cAfter he loads in my spoon, of course.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u201d Ben intoned slowly and solemnly.\u00a0 With a grin he added, \u201cYes, I think he\u2019d better go on over to Marta\u2019s.\u201d\u00a0 Noting that Nelly still wasn\u2019t using her new daughter-in-law\u2019s name, he made a point of emphasizing it, but Nelly gave no indication that she\u2019d caught the hint.<\/p>\n

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

When Ben saw the house in Virginia City to which his friends were moving, he immediately understood why Nelly had been so upset.\u00a0 Oh, it was a decent enough building, unlike many of the ramshackle places about town, but its construction showed none of the careful attention to detail that Clyde had built into their home in Carson City.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t imagine that his adopted sister would be as happy here as she had been there, but knowing Nelly, she\u2019d make do.\u00a0 And if she couldn\u2019t, she could always take her exasperation out on Clyde\u2019s ornery hide.\u00a0 Serve him right, Ben concluded, for putting a few paltry coins above contentment.\u00a0 He was all for a man bettering himself and had personally moved across the continent to do it, but he wasn\u2019t sure that living in Virginia City could be considered bettering oneself.\u00a0 With the mines and mills running round the clock, it was noisy, dirty and crowded, and the water was terrible.\u00a0 There were some cultural advantages in the larger city, he supposed, but had he been contemplating a move to any town, he\u2019d have chosen the peace and quiet of Carson over the rowdy excitement of Virginia City.<\/p>\n

Ben pulled out of his reverie just in time to keep Little Joe from clambering over the seat into the back of the buckboard.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you think you\u2019re doing, boy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGettin\u2019 the spoon,\u201d Little Joe announced.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s my job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not in this load, and right now your job is to stay put until I find a safe place to put you,\u201d Ben snorted.\u00a0 He had no idea where that might be.\u00a0 At Marta\u2019s house young Inger, the new baby and a next-door neighbor boy, had proven to be attractive distractions from the fascination of moving, but Marta hadn\u2019t made the trip from Carson City and Katerina had remained behind to keep her company and spare the baby the long drive.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s little,\u201d Little Joe advised as his father lifted him down.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo much the less to clean,\u201d Ben said brightly, knowing that Nelly had overheard the child\u2019s remark, for she\u2019d just walked out to meet them.\u00a0 Billy had driven her up with the first wagonload, while Clyde, Enos and Hoss remained behind to load the other two.\u00a0 Inger, who wanted to stay with the baby as long as possible, would ride up on the final wagon with her brother-in-law.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t need a big house now,\u201d Nelly admitted, reaching for Little Joe, \u201cwith just the three of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I\u2019m sure you\u2019ll have company,\u201d Ben suggested, resting a consoling hand on her bony shoulder.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, you know you\u2019re always welcome,\u201d Nelly scolded.\u00a0 \u201cWe still got a spare room, thank goodness, though I do have to pack the three of you into it like sardines.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMuch appreciated,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut I wasn\u2019t talking about myself.\u00a0 I was thinking of the patter of little feet running all through these rooms.\u201d\u00a0 Nelly\u2019s scowl told him that wasn\u2019t the best encouragement he could have offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, Uncle Ben.\u201d\u00a0 Billy came outside to drape his lanky frame over the wagon\u2019s sideboard.\u00a0 \u201cWhew!\u00a0 You bring all the heavy stuff with you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben grimaced.\u00a0 \u201cFelt that way, coming up the Geiger Grade.\u00a0 Must say, you did a good job of unloading your wagon all by yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy grinned broadly.\u00a0 \u201cHelped that it was the light stuff.\u201d\u00a0 Except for the kitchen table and chairs, his wagon had been filled with crates that one man could easily carry.<\/p>\n

\u201cStuff,\u201d Nelly snorted.\u00a0 \u201cIs that what you call my kitchen goods?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKitchen?\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe looked alarmed.\u00a0 \u201cNot my spoon!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHush now,\u201d Ben scolded.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s Aunt Nelly\u2019s spoon, and if she wants to carry it into her own house, she can.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTell you what, Sugarfoot,\u201d Nelly soothed.\u00a0 \u201cI haven\u2019t unpacked that spoon yet; let\u2019s you and me go on in and figure out the best place to store it.\u201d\u00a0 She sighed wearily.\u00a0 \u201cAnd then I guess I\u2019d best think up some sort of supper.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, I won\u2019t hear of it,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cYou just concentrate on getting things put away the way you want them, and I\u2019ll take us all out for supper this evening.\u00a0 Least I can do for you putting us up tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I couldn\u2019t,\u201d Nelly protested, but weakly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can and will.\u00a0 I insist.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy patted his lean stomach.\u00a0 \u201cNot sure I\u2019ll want much supper, either way.\u00a0 That was some dinner we had.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled his agreement and his approval of Billy\u2019s subtle way of bragging on his wife.\u00a0 Marta had kindly prepared the noon meal for everyone, although that had to be a strain on the newlyweds\u2019 budget.\u00a0 Ben had slipped her a five-dollar gold half eagle when he\u2019d picked up Little Joe, and though she had protested, he had insisted, calling it a late wedding present.\u00a0 \u201cAs if you haven\u2019t done enough already,\u201d Marta had scolded, but she\u2019d taken the gift gratefully.<\/p>\n

Nelly, who had eaten as much of the savory pork potpie, greens and apple strudel as anyone, nonetheless had offered only cursory thanks and not a single compliment to Billy\u2019s wife.\u00a0 Maybe it was only cook\u2019s jealousy, since not even Nelly could bake a crust as flaky as someone trained by Ludmilla, but Ben had a feeling it was an emotion even sourer than that.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, least I can do is pour you a cup of coffee before you start unloading.\u201d\u00a0 As if to demonstrate that she wouldn\u2019t take no for an answer, Nelly turned and carried Little Joe inside.<\/p>\n

\u201cNever occurred to me to turn it down,\u201d Ben grunted to Billy.\u00a0 \u201cIt was a long drive up here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve already had two or I\u2019d join you,\u201d the young man chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll join me anyway,\u201d Ben ordered tersely.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re not leaving me alone with a woman on moving day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t figure Little Joe is protection enough?\u201d Billy teased, to which Ben responded by snaring an elbow and dragging the young man inside.<\/p>\n

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

Despite the hefty portions of potpie that everyone had consumed at noon, they were all starving again by the time they sat down to supper at the New World Restaurant.\u00a0 Including the tough haul up the Geiger Grade, it had been a daylong task, and the men, in particular, were tired.\u00a0 They hadn\u2019t allowed Nelly to do much lifting, of course, but she\u2019d run her legs off, telling them where to place each item as they brought it in, as well as trying to get her kitchen in order for cooking the next day.<\/p>\n

Over Nelly\u2019s protests against driving after dark, Enos and Billy headed back to Carson City as soon as they\u2019d finished eating.\u00a0 They both had wives waiting; besides, there weren\u2019t enough beds at the Thomas place for everyone, and neither of the young men cared to waste money on a hotel room.\u00a0 For lack of space, one bed had been left behind at the old Thomas home, so Enos and Katerina would spend the night there before heading home the next morning.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think this one has had just about all the excitement he can tolerate for one day,\u201d Ben commented as the rest of the party made their way back to the house on B Street.\u00a0 He patted the back of the child drooping on his shoulder.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, he should be tired,\u201d Nelly said fondly.\u00a0 \u201cHe was a big help to me today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chortled.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll just bet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFetched and carried everything I asked for,\u201d Nelly insisted.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t know what more you could ask of a child of five.\u201d\u00a0 Arriving at the house, she reached for Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cGo on in the parlor and jaw with Clyde for a while; I\u2019ll put the boy to bed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll help, Ma,\u201d Inger offered, although Little Joe didn\u2019t quite stir the same mothering instincts as little Marta Marie had all day.<\/p>\n

Ben handed him over to Nelly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll be up soon, son,\u201d he promised.<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d Little Joe yawned.\u00a0 \u201cNight, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood night, sweet boy.\u201d\u00a0 Ben turned toward Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cYou going to bed now, too?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t tired yet, Pa,\u201d Hoss insisted.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t exactly the truth.\u00a0 Hoss just didn\u2019t want to be sent to bed with his baby brother, even though he was worn out and it was almost his bedtime anyway.\u00a0 Staying up would prove that he belonged more with men than with children, happy as he was to romp with his brother any other day of the week.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right, but just a bit longer,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cBeing Sunday, we can sleep in, but we don\u2019t want to be late to church.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Spect we\u2019ll all want to turn in early tonight,\u201d Clyde said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m \u2018bout done in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo more than the rest of us, old man,\u201d Nelly said, coming back in.\u00a0 \u201cThe boy\u2019s tucked in snug, Ben, and your pallet is spread, anytime you\u2019re ready, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u2019m,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 He hid his mouth behind his hand, stifling a yawn and hoping his father wouldn\u2019t see.<\/p>\n

The adults fared no better in their attempts to stay awake.\u00a0 At length, they all gave up and headed to bed, falling asleep as quickly and as soundly as Little Joe.<\/p>\n

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

Though Ben begged her not to, Nelly bustled around the kitchen early the next morning to prepare a full and hearty breakfast.\u00a0 \u201cNo one stays under my roof without a decent breakfast,\u201d she declared.\u00a0 \u201cCheck on those biscuits, would you, Inger?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust did, Ma,\u201d the girl said.\u00a0 \u201cThey need about five more minutes, I\u2019d say.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re getting to be just as fine a cook as your mother, young lady,\u201d Ben told her between sips of coffee.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t certain that Inger had actually cooked any of the food at noon yesterday, but she had helped Marta serve the table and clear it afterwards.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s a big help around the house,\u201d Nelly said with obvious pride.<\/p>\n

Ben bestowed the same fond look on his boys.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ve certainly been blessed in our children.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t a child, Pa,\u201d Hoss protested.<\/p>\n

Ben just chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cAlways my child, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss gave him a sheepish grin.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon that\u2019s so.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe surfaced from his cup of milk.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s so?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat you\u2019re my child,\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

Little Joe shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNuh-uh.\u00a0 I\u2019m a big boy, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben wiped the milky mustache from the boy\u2019s upper lip. \u00a0\u201cAre you?\u00a0 I wonder why I can\u2019t seem to remember that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMust be old age,\u201d Clyde snorted.\u00a0 \u201cMe, I got no problem rememberin\u2019 exactly what size this little feller is\u2014sort of spoon-sized, wouldn\u2019t you say?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss hooted, and though he didn\u2019t get the joke, Little Joe knew when he was being laughed at and turned to glare at his brother.<\/p>\n

Breakfast over, Nelly and Inger quickly cleaned up the kitchen, while Ben struggled with the harder task of untangling Little Joe\u2019s sleep-tousled curls.\u00a0 Then they all walked to church, the adults in the lead with the three youngsters skipping along behind them.\u00a0 Though it was two streets down the hill, it was still easier and just as fast to walk, rather than hitch up a team and wagon.<\/p>\n

As they crossed C Street, Clyde pointed out the banner stretched across the street.\u00a0 \u201cLooks like they\u2019re plannin\u2019 quite a celebration for the Fourth.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFancy dress ball,\u201d Ben said, forcing enthusiasm.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re putting on a party to welcome you to Virginia City, Nelly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHush your nonsense,\u201d she muttered.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do I care about their fancy dress ball?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOught to, \u2018cause you\u2019re goin\u2019,\u201d her husband announced.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy, I won\u2019t know a soul there,\u201d Nelly protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood way to meet the neighbors,\u201d Clyde insisted.\u00a0 \u201cBesides, you know Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben wagged his index finger in the other man\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t drag me into your schemes.\u00a0 I have no intention of attending a ball on the Fourth or any other time.\u201d\u00a0 The thought of attending such a function without Marie at his side still pierced like a hot poker.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you good,\u201d Nelly exhorted, knowing exactly what was holding him back.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re the best dancer I know, Ben Cartwright, and I just can\u2019t see goin\u2019 to the fool thing myself if\u2019n you ain\u2019t around to spare my toes some of Clyde\u2019s trompin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I\u2019ll be,\u201d Clyde snorted.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s the thanks I get, is it?\u201d<\/p>\n

She squeezed his hand and gestured toward Ben with her head.\u00a0 Clyde took the hint and began plying Ben with pleas to help him \u201chandle this woman.\u201d\u00a0 Ben tried to protest that they could all have a better celebration at the Ponderosa, but it was two against one\u2014actually, five against one, since the children added their two cents, as well\u2014and just as they reached the little wooden church at the corner of D and Taylor, he caved in.\u00a0 He entered the unpretentious building, hoping that the sermon would supply at least a spoonful of the courage he\u2019d need to face the coming ordeal.\u00a0 Not a teaspoon, either<\/em>, he groaned to himself.\u00a0 What I need is that big mixing spoon that Little Joe\u2019s taken such a shine to<\/em>.<\/p>\n

~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

In May of 1862 a small herd of camels was cared for in WashoeCity corrals.\u00a0 Isaac Mears and J. H. Kinkead were among the first to open a mercantile in the town.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN<\/p>\n

Birthday Celebrations<\/p>\n

Little Joe frowned up at his father.\u00a0 \u201cWhen we gonna get there, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, Little Joe, you can see as well as I where we are,\u201d Ben scolded gently.\u00a0 \u201cWe haven\u2019t even started up the Geiger Grade, so you know it\u2019s going to take awhile.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, but how long, Pa?\u201d the boy persisted.\u00a0 \u201cWe won\u2019t miss the picnic, will we?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gave the boy\u2019s knee a consoling pat.\u00a0 \u201cCertainly not.\u00a0 We\u2019ll be there long before noon.\u201d\u00a0 When they\u2019d attended church with the Thomases the previous Sunday, they\u2019d learned that there was to be a church picnic in honor of the Fourth of July, and the boys had begged to come.\u00a0 Since he considered that a more attractive proposition than the dance he\u2019d been finagled into later, Ben had readily agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven if we\u2019re late, we got plenty of grub for our own picnic,\u201d Hoss offered with a fond glance at the back of the buckboard.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t be late,\u201d Little Joe pleaded.\u00a0 \u201cI want Aunt Nelly\u2019s pie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs do we, boy, as do we,\u201d Ben chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah,\u201d Hoss said, smacking his lips in anticipation.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s makin\u2019 blackberry and<\/em> apple, Pa.\u201d\u00a0 It was obvious from his expression that he was describing double bliss.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, and it\u2019s not all for you,\u201d his father teased.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa, I wouldn\u2019t,\u201d Hoss protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know, son,\u201d Ben soothed.\u00a0 \u201cJust joshin\u2019 you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe looked puzzled.\u00a0 \u201cPa, what is this Fourth of July thing?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou mean the reason for the celebration, son?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s when the Declaration was signed,\u201d Hoss put in.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d Ben agreed, proud that his boy had been paying attention in school.\u00a0 For his youngest, however, he felt he needed to simplify the lesson.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s the day we honor of the birth of our country, Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s eyes opened wide.\u00a0 \u201cA birthday party?\u00a0 Like mine?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, but bigger,\u201d Ben explained, \u201cbecause July 4th<\/sup> is a birthday that belongs to all of us, for everyone from Adam back East to our friends in San Francisco.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, boy!\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe bounced on the seat.\u00a0 \u201cIs Adam gonna be there?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph, sit down!\u201d Ben ordered sharply, adding when the boy complied, \u201cNo, your brother can\u2019t come home yet, but I\u2019m sure there\u2019ll be a big birthday party back there for him, just as there is here for us.\u201d\u00a0 He was so wrapped up in keeping his youngest in the wagon and soothing his disappointment that he completely missed the troubled frown that settled on Hoss\u2019s face.\u00a0 Even if he\u2019d seen it, he would have assumed that Hoss, too, was just sad that his older brother couldn\u2019t be with them today.<\/p>\n

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

Ben dropped his hands, letting the ends of his crimson cravat dangle down his shirt, and frowned in exasperation at the image in the small mirror Nelly had placed in her spare room.\u00a0 He\u2019d tried three times to get that rope cinched around his neck, and if anything, it looked worse with each attempt.\u00a0 Why on earth wouldn\u2019t his hands work tonight?\u00a0 He scowled sourly.\u00a0 Because he didn\u2019t want them to, obviously.\u00a0 He had not the slightest interest in attending this fancy dress ball; he was only going for Nelly\u2019s sake and already regretting the sacrifice.<\/p>\n

Why couldn\u2019t she\u2014or more accurately, Clyde\u2014have been satisfied with the simple church picnic?\u00a0 The boys certainly had been.\u00a0 The ladies had set out a veritable banquet, and the men had organized traditional games, like the three-legged race, that reminded Ben of the Fourth of July the Larrimore train had celebrated along the trail.\u00a0 He smiled as he recalled Little Joe\u2019s fascination with the firecrackers exploding at odd moments throughout the day.\u00a0 He\u2019d finally indulged his own sons by letting Hoss purchase a few, cautioning him that he alone was allowed to handle them.\u00a0 Although he hadn\u2019t seen it happen, he was pretty sure that at some point that afternoon his youngest had managed to get hold of a firecracker or two of his own.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t spotted any burns, though, so he\u2019d decided not to investigate.\u00a0 Let the little rascal think he\u2019d gotten away with something, just this once.<\/p>\n

\u201cWant me to do it for you, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben spun around and grinned sheepishly.\u00a0 \u201cThanks for the offer, Hoss, but I\u2019m determined to conquer this.\u201d\u00a0 And with that statement there arose within him the same determination to conquer the entire evening.\u00a0 So what if his heart didn\u2019t feel like dancing?\u00a0 Couldn\u2019t he force a little gaiety for the sake of someone else\u2019s pleasure?\u00a0 Especially when that someone else was a dear and deserving friend?\u00a0 He faced the mirror again, tackled the challenge and then turned to accept the appreciative applause of his audience of two.\u00a0 Maybe the applause was merited, he decided.\u00a0 After all, his performance tonight on the dance floor would be the first ever mounted at the unfinished Topliffe Theater.\u00a0 Some fellow named McKean Buchanan and his daughter Virginia were scheduled to appear tomorrow night, and the Thomases had urged him to stay over and attend.\u00a0 Though the boys had pleaded, too, Ben had insisted that he couldn\u2019t afford two straight days of idleness; he had work to do and needed to get home.\u00a0 True enough, although he probably had declined out of an instinct that he\u2019d need the peace of the Ponderosa to recover from the ordeal of tonight\u2019s Independence Ball.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, are you sure you\u2019re all right with being in charge here?\u201d he asked his older son.\u00a0 One of the disadvantages of Virginia City was that there were no close friends with whom to leave the children while he and the Thomases attended the ball, but they\u2019d all decided there was no real need.\u00a0 Hoss, even though he wasn\u2019t quite twelve yet, was a responsible boy.\u00a0 He took charge of his little brother all the time at the ranch, and certainly Inger would give him no problems.\u00a0 In fact, she seemed to be viewing this evening as a glorified opportunity to play house, complete with husband and child.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure, Pa,\u201d Hoss replied.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll be right as rain, so you just have yourself a good time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Ben muttered bleakly and then schooled his face to look more pleased with the prospect.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I\u2019ll do that.\u201d\u00a0 He squatted down to give his youngest a hug.\u00a0 \u201cYou be a good boy, Little Joe, and don\u2019t give Hoss any problems\u2014and go to bed when he tells you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAlone?\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe\u2019s lip started to pooch out.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, if that\u2019s what Hoss tells you,\u201d Ben said firmly.\u00a0 He stood and looked significantly at Hoss, although still addressing Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sure you won\u2019t be alone in that bed for too long.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, sir, not too long,\u201d Hoss promised.\u00a0 Like his father, he\u2019d foreseen that his friend Inger wanted to play house, and he figured he\u2019d get his fill of that pretty fast.\u00a0 After all, he was practically a man now.\u00a0 \u201cThanks for lettin\u2019 me use the bed, Pa,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou might as well,\u201d his father said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s likely to be a late night for me.\u201d\u00a0 To avoid disturbing his sons when he came in early the next morning, Ben planned to finish the night on the settee.\u00a0 He buttoned his gray brocade vest and reached for his coat.\u00a0 \u201cSure you\u2019ll be all right?\u201d he asked again.\u00a0 Much as he trusted Hoss, it was the first time he\u2019d left the boys without any adult supervision.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa, we\u2019ll be fine,\u201d Hoss insisted, looking a little put out.\u00a0 \u201cBesides, that neighbor lady\u2019s close by.\u201d<\/p>\n

The neighbor lady, a widow who had lost her husband in a mining accident, had offered to keep an eye on the house and be available if anything arose that Hoss couldn\u2019t handle.\u00a0 One of the benefits of town life, Ben conceded, was having neighbors that close; of course, it was also one of the detractions, always someone close at hand to meddle in your business.\u00a0 The boys trotting after him, he joined Clyde and Nelly in the parlor, and after another round of good-byes and admonitions, they walked out and headed down the mountain to C Street.<\/p>\n

Nelly pulled her cloak around her, for even though it was summer, evenings tended to be cool on SunMountain.\u00a0 \u201cHate to think what winter\u2019ll be like up here,\u201d she muttered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou, huddled up in your thickest quilt, sitting by the stove,\u201d Ben chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe whole winter long,\u201d Nelly agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo point in crossing bridges we ain\u2019t got to yet,\u201d Clyde sagely suggested.<\/p>\n

Nelly laughed then.\u00a0 \u201cRight enough, especially on a night for pure fun, like this one.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pure fun.\u00a0 Walking behind them, Ben scowled.\u00a0 He wished he could see it that way, but hard as he tried to work up a positive attitude toward this ball, he found himself more reluctant with each step.\u00a0 Clyde was right, though: there was absolutely no point in crossing bridges he hadn\u2019t reached as yet and, maybe, never would.\u00a0 The evening might turn out to be enjoyable, might even be pure fun, as Nelly\u2019d said.\u00a0 If it wasn\u2019t, well, then he\u2019d cross that bridge somehow, but at least not until he got to it.\u00a0 He squared his shoulders, like a soldier preparing for battle, and marched into Topliffe\u2019s Theatre.<\/p>\n

While Clyde took Nelly\u2019s cloak, Ben looked around the hall.\u00a0 It was easy to see why the ball was being held here: the room was large.\u00a0 Without the theater seats the floor could accommodate any number of dancers, certainly more than had danced in the basement of the International, the night he\u2019d taken Marie.\u00a0 He winced, pushing the memory away.\u00a0 People were here to celebrate, not to watch a grown man cry over his lost love.\u00a0 He breathed easier when the band struck up.\u00a0 Music would help, the livelier the better, although the first dance was a waltz.\u00a0 Clyde escorted his wife to the dance floor, with Ben claiming his \u201csister\u201d for the next dance.\u00a0 After that, he had no idea what he\u2019d do.<\/p>\n

\u201cHavin\u2019 a good time?\u201d Nelly asked when Ben partnered her.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am now,\u201d he said, smiling into her face.\u00a0 \u201cThe real question is: are you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yes,\u201d she said, eyes shining.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, you\u2019re feeling better about living in Virginia City now?\u201d\u00a0 He spun her around so quickly that she couldn\u2019t answer for a moment.<\/p>\n

\u201cGuess I\u2019m resigned to it,\u201d Nelly said when she caught her breath.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not the place Carson was, and I miss friends like the Martins and the folks I knew at church, but there\u2019s decent folks here, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gave her an encouraging smile.\u00a0 \u201cI thought the people at the church picnic were real friendly, and Mrs. Parker was certainly accommodating.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I think she\u2019ll be a good neighbor,\u201d Nelly agreed.\u00a0 \u201cBrought me over a jar of jam to welcome us to town, and I know she could ill afford it, especially with two little ones to feed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded soberly.\u00a0 A widow always had a hard row to hoe.\u00a0 \u201cWhat does she do for a living?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cTakes in laundry and does some plain sewing,\u201d Nelly told him.\u00a0 \u201cHoss is shootin\u2019 right out of his britches, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben cocked his head at her.\u00a0 \u201cIs that a hint?\u201d<\/p>\n

She slapped his arm as the music ended.\u00a0 \u201cLike you needed one.\u00a0 I remember how you used to help Laura Ellis that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLaura Dettenrieder now,\u201d he reminded her as he handed her back to Clyde.\u00a0 He scanned the room, hoping against hope that his old friends were there.\u00a0 They weren\u2019t, of course.\u00a0 He rarely saw them since their move to Dayton, which probably had its own Independence Day festivities to offer.\u00a0 He spotted a few ladies seated at the side of the room and was tempted to run the opposite direction.\u00a0 Then, reminding himself that the ones his age might very well be widows like Mrs. Parker, seeking a few minutes of companionship in a life of solitary struggle, the gentleman within him rose up, and he walked across the room and asked the first one if he could have the next dance.<\/p>\n

Flustered hands flew to her cheeks, and for a moment Ben thought she would refuse.\u00a0 Then she smiled, rose and took his hand.\u00a0 A trill of envious sighs rippled down the row of single women as they watched the handsome man lead the lady to the dance floor.\u00a0 \u201cI suppose I should be more reticent,\u201d the woman twittered.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t even know your name.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBen Cartwright,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cAnd yours?\u201d<\/p>\n

She gave it, and as they moved to the music, she peppered Ben with questions about himself.\u00a0 By the time that dance ended, she knew all the most important facts: he was recently widowed, he had three sons and a prosperous ranch, and he was frequently in Virginia City to conduct timber business with the mines.\u00a0 He was, in sum, an eminently eligible bachelor, and that information rippled down the row even faster than that original sigh of envy.<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t take long for Ben to realize that he had become a target, and with each dance he grew more miserable.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t ready for this sort of thing, and none of these women held a candle to his Marie.\u00a0 Still, he didn\u2019t have the heart to disappoint them, so he gritted his teeth and literally faced the music with each one of them.\u00a0 When he returned the final one to her seat, however, he made as gracious and as fast an exit as he could.<\/p>\n

His mouth dry as cotton, he made his way to the punch bowl, where he found a group of men discussing the news of the day and with a sigh of relief, joined them.\u00a0 Everyone was excited that President Lincoln had signed the Pacific Railroad Act.\u00a0 Like the other men, Ben viewed with approval the idea of a railroad to link the eastern and western parts of the country.\u00a0 If only it were already built!\u00a0 Then Adam truly could have come home once a year to see his family.\u00a0 How he wished the boy could be here right now, sharing the fun of the picnic and the misery of this\u2014no, Ben corrected himself with a smile, Adam wouldn\u2019t be miserable at a dance.\u00a0 He\u2019d enjoy every minute of it, even if\u2014perhaps especially if\u2014every woman in the place were chasing him.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t likely the newly approved transcontinental railroad would be built in time to personally benefit his boy, but even so, Ben viewed it as a good thing.<\/p>\n

The same day that Congress had passed the Pacific Railroad Act, it had also outlawed polygamy, and that was a topic of more heated debate among the men around the punch bowl.\u00a0 Though few, if any, openly practiced polygamy now, Mormons had played a huge role in the settlement of this territory, and even those who didn\u2019t follow the church\u2019s custom still felt sympathy for it and argued that the Federal Government had no business in what went on in a man\u2019s bed chamber.<\/p>\n

The discussion of the end of the Peninsular Campaign, just two days before, was even more contentious.\u00a0 Union hopes had been high at its beginning, when it appeared that the Army of the Potomac might take the Confederate capital at Richmond, but it had ended in defeat.\u00a0 \u201cMcClellan\u2019s too blame cautious,\u201d one commentator complained about the Union commander, and though Ben always and deliberately avoided discussions about the war, he nodded his agreement.\u00a0 So long as he was opposed by the equally cautious Joseph Johnston, McClellan\u2019s superior forces had been poised for success, raising hopes that the war might soon end.\u00a0 Then Johnston had been wounded and replaced by Robert E. Lee.\u00a0 \u201cNow, that\u2019s a man with sand; he\u2019ll be hard to beat,\u201d the commentator holding court opined to the general agreement of his audience, though there was wide variance in their conclusion of whether that was good or bad.\u00a0 To Ben, anything that prolonged the killing was bad, so he could only view with dismay the arrival of a gifted and determined commander for the South.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you think about this fellow Josh\u2019s letters to the Enterprise<\/em>?\u201d he asked, mainly to change the subject to one he hoped would be lighter.\u00a0 Grins and guffaws met the question.\u00a0 Nobody knew who Josh might be, but everyone agreed that he had a right laughable way with words.\u00a0 Like his description of the sound made by Washoe crickets as \u201chalf coyote and half California lion, with a sprinkling of coffee mill and buzz saw.\u201d\u00a0 Ben still thought the writer\u2019s first piece about a man he dubbed Professor Personal Pronoun was the best, but everyone had a favorite.\u00a0 Soon the men were swapping Josh-isms, instead of divided opinions about the progress of the war, and Ben finally found his hoped-for refuge from the pursuit of Virginia City\u2019s eligible women.<\/p>\n

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

In some ways visiting the Thomases was easier, now that they lived in Virginia City; in other ways, harder.\u00a0 Certainly, it was a longer, harder drive up SunMountain than to CarsonValley, but business often took Ben to the larger town these days.\u00a0 If he had time, he usually stopped by; but Nelly and Clyde, and especially Inger, were always disappointed when the boys weren\u2019t along.\u00a0 For that reason they\u2019d decided to continue their long-time practice of visiting each other\u2019s homes on alternating weekends, unless something else intervened.\u00a0 The first weekend after the move, the Thomases had come to the Ponderosa, arriving for the noon meal, but Nelly was so disturbed by missing church that Ben had suggested they come the night before next time.\u00a0 \u201cNot sure we can,\u201d Clyde had said.\u00a0 \u201cWith me workin\u2019 Saturday, we couldn\u2019t get here \u2018til near bedtime, but we\u2019ll try it once and see how it works.\u201d<\/p>\n

The next weekend it was the Cartwrights\u2019 turn to travel, and Ben elected to drive in on Saturday and spend the night with his friends, as they had invited him to do.\u00a0 \u201cJust as long a drive for you,\u201d Nelly had pointed out, \u201cand then you can go to church with us, just like we used to do in Carson.\u201d\u00a0 Ben had liked the plan, although it meant stopping work early on Saturday.\u00a0 To add purpose to the trip, he came in early enough to stop at the mercantile and pick up some supplies, including a lengthy list from Hop Sing.<\/p>\n

As his father lifted him down from the buckboard, Little Joe asked, just as he\u2019d been coached by Hoss, \u201cCandy, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFive cents\u2019 worth each,\u201d Ben replied, \u201cand choose the same amount of something you think Inger will enjoy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d Little Joe asked his brother in a stage whisper that turned heads on the boardwalk.\u00a0 Fortunately, most of them smiled fondly at the boy, especially those who had left their own little ones back in the States to seek their fortunes in the mines.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnything but horehound,\u201d Hoss instructed.\u00a0 \u201cCome on!\u201d\u00a0 The two boys hustled inside.<\/p>\n

Ben was about to follow when a raised voice caught his ear.\u00a0 Turning toward it, he spotted a man haranguing a crowd about half a block away and at first assumed that it was just another man spouting his political opinions.\u00a0 He normally avoided such gatherings like the plague, but when he saw people beginning to sign some sort of document, he decided to investigate.\u00a0 Probably just another recruitment drive, but he did like to stay abreast of anything that concerned his local territory.\u00a0 Trusting the boys to stay occupied with their candy selection long enough for him to determine what was going on, he moved toward the crowd, though careful to stay on its outskirts.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t let them get away with it!\u201d he heard one man shout, with others echoing, \u201cThat\u2019s right.\u201d\u00a0 Another hollered, \u201cOnly burned out 150 this time.\u00a0 Give \u2018em another chance and it might be the whole town!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben instantly realized what the agitation was about.\u00a0 He\u2019d received a message, requesting the postponement of a business meeting on Thursday, because of a fire raging between C and D streets.\u00a0 It was obvious that someone had discovered who had caused it\u2014or perhaps just a convenient scapegoat.\u00a0 Wanting to know who was being blamed, he edged closer.\u00a0 At first, the accusations were so general that they could have applied to anyone, but as he listened more closely, he began to pick out a phrase here and there that told him exactly who was being targeted: filthy heathens, yellow terrors, slant-eyed menace.\u00a0 Finally, having tolerated all the bigoted finger pointing he could handle, he called out, \u201cWhat proof do you have that the Chinese started this fire?\u201d<\/p>\n

The man who appeared to be the chief spokesman pushed through the crowd and faced Ben, nose to nose.\u00a0 \u201cWho wants to know?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBen Cartwright,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cWhat proof do you have?\u201d he asked again.<\/p>\n

\u201cProof?\u00a0 Who needs proof?\u201d someone in the crowd hollered, and half a dozen others echoed the cry.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny law-abiding citizen!\u201d Ben yelled back, keeping his eyes fixed on the spokesman.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody knows the yellers live like rats, down there in Chinatown,\u201d the spokesman alleged.<\/p>\n

Ben folded his arms and glared at the man.\u00a0 \u201cHasn\u2019t been my experience.\u00a0 If that were true, I doubt that so many of our fine citizens would hire them as cooks and laundrymen.\u201d\u00a0 He sensed the crowd quieting and hoped that some of the men and women behind him were thinking about what he was saying, although his words were obviously making no impression on the man he was addressing directly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can take my word for it,\u201d the man growled.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd that\u2019s your proof, your word?\u201d Ben pressed.<\/p>\n

The man\u2019s nostrils flared.\u00a0 \u201cYou calling me a liar, mister?\u201d<\/p>\n

Expression rigid, Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 Just saying I wouldn\u2019t convict any man on that sort of evidence . . . unless you were there when it happened, and then I\u2019d be asking why you didn\u2019t put that fire out yourself before it spread.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe didn\u2019t see nothin\u2019,\u201d another voice called out.\u00a0 \u201cHe came runnin\u2019 out of the Bucket of Blood, same as me, when that fire started up.\u201d<\/p>\n

The man\u2019s eyes flitted nervously from Ben\u2019s face to those of others in the crowd, but he didn\u2019t back down.\u00a0 \u201cFire bugs or not, we don\u2019t need their kind,\u201d he alleged.\u00a0 \u201cNow, I\u2019m circulatin\u2019 a petition to get rid of the yeller scum, and you\u2019re gonna sign it, mister.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think so.\u201d\u00a0 Ben turned his back on the man and started to walk away.\u00a0 For a moment he thought he\u2019d be allowed to leave in peace, but then he felt a hand roughly grab his shoulder and spin him around.<\/p>\n

\u201cSign it, Cartwright!\u201d the man bellowed, flapping the petition in his face.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben said tersely.\u00a0 The fist that came flying at him was not unexpected, and Ben easily deflected it and landed a solid return punch to his assailant\u2019s jaw.\u00a0 The man jumped to his feet, and came after Ben again as the crowd circled around them, yelling, \u201cFight!\u201d\u00a0 The petition flew into the air and someone scooped it up.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t much of a fight.\u00a0 Though the other man was strong enough, he obviously didn\u2019t have the fighting skill Ben had honed in a score of rough ports during his sailing days.\u00a0 He landed a few good blows to Ben\u2019s face, but never knocked him down, while Ben sent him sprawling three times and finally left him panting in the dirt.\u00a0 Then, seeing the petition, Ben grabbed it, intending to tear it in two.\u00a0 Then he stopped.\u00a0 Much as he decried its contents, America still guaranteed freedom of speech to all its citizens, those who spoke wisely and those who spouted trash like this.\u00a0 He thrust the petition back at the man he\u2019d taken it from.\u00a0 He saw a look of shame cross that man\u2019s face and watched as he took a pen from someone in the crowd and scratched out his name.<\/p>\n

As the roar of blood in his ears died down, Ben finally defined a sound he recalled hearing earlier, but hadn\u2019t had time to process:\u00a0 \u201cYay, Pa!\u201d\u00a0 The boys\u2014how could he have forgotten the boys?\u00a0 He looked up and there they both were, Hoss looking on with pride, while Little Joe jumped up and down, whooping at the top of his lungs.\u00a0 Ben strode forcefully toward them and pressed down on his youngest\u2019s shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cStop that,\u201d he ordered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou whupped him good, Pa!\u201d Little Joe proclaimed.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou done good, Pa,\u201d Hoss said more quietly.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd how do you know I was the one in the right?\u201d Ben demanded.<\/p>\n

Hoss looked up at him with wide-eyed innocence and trust.\u00a0 \u201c\u2018Cause you\u2019re Pa.\u00a0 You wouldn\u2019t hit a man for no reason.\u00a0 Like you taught me, though, there\u2019s times a man\u2019s just gotta fight.\u201d<\/p>\n

How did a man argue when his own teaching was thrust back in his face?\u00a0 \u201cBut most times, he doesn\u2019t,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cYou remember that, boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss gulped.\u00a0 \u201cYes, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben caught a glimpse of Little Joe\u2019s still excited little face.\u00a0 \u201cAnd that goes for you, too!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss snickered.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe fight?\u00a0 Now you\u2019re bein\u2019 plumb silly, Pa.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t flatten a good-sized rabbit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gave up all attempts to portray the stern parent and joined Hoss in the laughter.<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s face puffed up and reddened, and he demonstrated how little attention he\u2019d paid to his father\u2019s admonition by plowing his diminutive fist into his brother\u2019s belly.<\/p>\n

Hoss doubled over, holding his stomach, and fell to the ground, groaning so convincingly that for a moment Ben almost believed the boy was hurt, although he knew that wasn\u2019t possible.\u00a0 Little Joe, however, took it all seriously and dropped to his knees beside his brother, touching his belly gingerly.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry, Hoss!\u00a0 I didn\u2019t mean it.\u201d\u00a0 Then Hoss grabbed him and started to tickle him, making the younger boy squeal and kick to get away.<\/p>\n

Ben came to his aid, lifting the boy out of his brother\u2019s reach.\u00a0 \u201cAll right now,\u201d he said gruffly.\u00a0 \u201cI think Virginia City\u2019s seen just about enough of the Cartwrights for one afternoon.\u201d\u00a0 As he glanced back at the crowd behind them, though, he saw that the petition was being circulated again, but this time man after man was scratching through his signature.\u00a0 Ben didn\u2019t kid himself that he\u2019d single-handedly won a lasting victory over bigotry.\u00a0 No doubt the man he\u2019d fought today would try again, and he\u2019d probably find plenty of folks to join his attempt to oust the Chinese from town.\u00a0 Maybe not today, but quite likely tomorrow.\u00a0\u00a0 Still, for today Ben had stopped him, and he\u2019d given some of these people time to think about what they were doing and let their better judgment override their fears.\u00a0 As Hoss had reminded him, there were some causes worth fighting for, and this was one battle Ben felt a great deal of satisfaction in having entered.\u00a0 \u201cCome on, boys,\u201d he said, moving toward Cass\u2019s Mercantile.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s get our supplies and head over to Aunt Nelly\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

As Nelly\u2019s head rose after her husband had said grace, she was still shaking it and her lips were still set in a disapproving frown.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve heard it all before,\u201d Ben said, his own mouth twitching wryly.\u00a0 \u201cQuite recently, in fact.\u201d\u00a0 Nelly had given him an earful when he\u2019d showed up at her door with a face bearing obvious, though only superficial, marks of a fight.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve said it all before,\u201d she retorted, \u201cbut I ain\u2019t so sure you heard it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSome battles have to be fought,\u201d he reiterated with a wink at Hoss, who grinned at the notion of sharing a secret with Pa.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, it\u2019s not battles I want to discuss over my supper table, anyway,\u201d Nelly said as she passed him the bowl of mashed potatoes.\u00a0 \u201cI want to talk about a party.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe clapped his hands in delight.\u00a0 His memory of the Fourth of July celebration was fresh, and even his birthday party recent enough that he connected parties with good food and friends and fun.\u00a0 To his left, Inger, who knew exactly what party her mother meant, beamed a smile at Hoss, though it wasn\u2019t returned, and beyond her, Clyde smacked his lips in anticipation of tasty things to come.<\/p>\n

Ben, on the other hand, expressed an eloquent, albeit contrived, groan.\u00a0 \u201cIt can\u2019t be time for another party already!\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly, in the midst of handing him the gravy, pulled it back.\u00a0 \u201cIt most certainly is!\u00a0 Don\u2019t tell me you\u2019ve forgot your own boy\u2019s birthday,\u201d she scolded.<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s brow wrinkled in perplexity.\u00a0 He\u2019d just had his birthday, hadn\u2019t he?\u00a0 Could it be time for another one already?\u00a0 He didn\u2019t think so, but if Aunt Nelly\u2019s mistake meant another party, he wouldn\u2019t be the one to correct her!<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, I almost had,\u201d Ben teased, \u201cbut in his honor, I\u2019ll take \u2018lots of gavvy,\u2019 please.\u201d<\/p>\n

She set the bowl on her other side.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll get none if you don\u2019t start talkin\u2019 sense.\u00a0 Now, it would be our turn to come to the Ponderosa next weekend, so what I want to know is if you\u2019re plannin\u2019 to celebrate then or wait \u2018til the next and have it here.\u00a0 I know Thursday\u2019s his actual birthday, but there\u2019s no way we can make it in the middle of the week, and I do want to bake him a cake, like I did for Little Joe, so when\u2019s it to be?\u201d<\/p>\n

The wrinkles smoothed out as light dawned in the youngest boy\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 Not his birthday, then, but Hoss\u2019s.\u00a0 Just as good.\u00a0 He turned excitedly toward his brother, but when Hoss didn\u2019t grin back, the wrinkles returned.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, we haven\u2019t actually discussed it,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut I was thinking we might have a picnic out by WashoeLake, as we\u2019ve done before.\u00a0 Now, as to next weekend or the one following, I\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

No one but the other two children had noticed Hoss\u2019s darkening visage until he interrupted the discussion with a loud and determined, \u201cNo!\u201d that set them all back in their chairs.<\/p>\n

Ben turned to stare at Hoss, seated on his right hand.\u00a0 \u201cHoss?\u00a0 What on earth?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI said, \u2018No,\u2019\u201d Hoss barked.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t want no party.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy, Sunshine,\u201d said Nelly, shocked, as was everyone at the table.\u00a0 \u201cWhatever\u2019s wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou got no right to be plannin\u2019 things without askin\u2019 me,\u201d the boy sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s my birthday, and I don\u2019t want no party!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLower your voice right now, young man,\u201d Ben ordered sharply.\u00a0 He was still stunned by the boy\u2019s behavior, but stunned or not, he wouldn\u2019t put up with rudeness.\u00a0 He was used to this sort of tantrum from Little Joe, but it was completely out of character for his gentle-hearted middle boy.\u00a0 And for the offer of a birthday party to bring it on was . . . well, completely inexplicable.<\/p>\n

\u201cDone said all I need to,\u201d Hoss muttered, jabbing a fork into his pile of green beans.<\/p>\n

Ben ripped the napkin from his lap and tossed it onto the table.\u00a0 \u201cCome with me, boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Ben, no,\u201d Nelly protested, raising a restraining hand.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t mean to make trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t mix in, gal,\u201d her husband, a firm believer in a man ruling his own younguns, ordered.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou did nothing wrong,\u201d Ben assured Nelly as he stood to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cThis young man and I just need to have a little talk.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo!\u201d Little Joe cried frantically.\u00a0 \u201cNot a nessary talk, Pa . . . please!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no,\u201d Ben soothed.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t say \u2018necessary talk,\u2019 did I?\u00a0 I just said, \u2018Talk.\u2019\u201d \u00a0Why Little Joe always seemed so distressed over that simple phrase was beyond Ben.\u00a0 No child enjoyed the prospect of a spanking, of course; that\u2019s what made its threat effective, but so far Ben wasn\u2019t even considering one for Hoss, much less for his innocent (for once) youngest son.\u00a0 He stiffened when he saw that Hoss had yet to move.\u00a0 \u201cCome with me, son,\u201d he said again, this time keeping his voice firm, but calm.\u00a0 A raised voice would only set Little Joe off again, and dealing with one intractable child at a time was challenge enough.<\/p>\n

Hoss reluctantly pushed back from the table and stood up.\u00a0 He almost flinched when his father pressed an encouraging palm to his back to speed him along to the spare bedroom.<\/p>\n

Glancing back through the kitchen door as he left, Ben noticed that Nelly had gathered Little Joe into her lap to comfort his fears about what was about to happen to his brother.\u00a0 Ben wasn\u2019t sure anything was, but he knew that Nelly\u2019s first question was the right one.\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s behavior was a clear indication that something was wrong, and his father urgently needed to find out what.\u00a0 He opened the bedroom door and ushered Hoss inside.\u00a0 Sitting on the bed, he patted a place beside him and when Hoss shook his head, breathed a prayer for patience, smiled and patted it again.\u00a0 Hoss sat down beside him, keeping his eyes fixed on the floor.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, what\u2019s this all about?\u201d Ben asked.<\/p>\n

Scuffing his boot across the floor, Hoss shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cJust what I said.\u00a0 I don\u2019t want no birthday party.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy?\u201d Ben pressed.\u00a0 \u201cYou always enjoyed them before.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot last year,\u201d Hoss grunted and then, obviously fearing he\u2019d said too much, clamped his mouth shut.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast year.\u201d\u00a0 Ben barely breathed the words, his eyes closing against the pain as images of this time last year surged to the front of his mind.\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s birthday had come at a difficult time last year, less than two weeks after his mother\u2019s death, so they\u2019d cancelled the plans that Marie had made and settled for something with just the four of them.\u00a0 A fishing trip, wasn\u2019t it?\u00a0 \u201cWell, yes, last year was hard for all of us,\u201d he said cautiously.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry I didn\u2019t feel up to hosting a big picnic then, but you had a nice time, fishing at Franktown Creek, didn\u2019t you?\u201d\u00a0 To be honest, he\u2019d been in such a daze that day that he couldn\u2019t remember how the boys had responded to that feeble effort at a celebration, and now, looking at Hoss\u2019s reddening face, he feared it hadn\u2019t gone as well as he\u2019d assumed.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, what is it?\u201d he asked gently.\u00a0 \u201cTell me, boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou hurt Joe!\u201d Hoss cried.\u00a0 \u201cYou made him cry.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u00a0 What did I do?\u201d \u00a0Though he racked his brain, Ben couldn\u2019t remember what he\u2019d said or done, what he could possibly have said or done, to hurt his youngest son.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t been a good father to any of his sons, especially the youngest, during that season of deep grief, so he didn\u2019t deny the accusation, but he couldn\u2019t recall any specific\u00a0\u00a0 injury he\u2019d caused that day.\u00a0 His sensitive middle boy obviously did and apparently felt it even more strongly than his brother.\u00a0 \u201cHow did I make Little Joe cry?\u201d he asked soberly.<\/p>\n

Hoss forced the words out between heaving breaths.\u00a0 \u201cAll he wanted was to show you that fish he thought he caught and you\u2014you\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI-I don\u2019t remember,\u201d Ben said feebly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou paid him no mind!\u201d Hoss sobbed.\u00a0 \u201cYou acted like he weren\u2019t there, like you didn\u2019t want him to be there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s arms encircled the shaking boy and pulled him close.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, son, I\u2019m so sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s him you oughta tell,\u201d Hoss mumbled into his father\u2019s vest.<\/p>\n

Ben ran his fingers through the tawny hair with soothing strokes.\u00a0 \u201cWell, Hoss, I would, if I thought he remembered that hurt, but to bring it up if he doesn\u2019t would just hurt him all over again, wouldn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss pulled up, looked into his father\u2019s face and sighed.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon.\u00a0 Anyway, that\u2019s why I promised myself that night that I wouldn\u2019t never have a birthday party again: they only make folks sad.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Hoss!\u201d\u00a0 Ben pulled him tighter.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t remember ever feeling worse in his entire life.\u00a0 Even the grief of losing Marie wasn\u2019t as razor-edged as the guilt of robbing his own son of such a simple childhood pleasure.\u00a0 \u201cOh, Hoss, they don\u2019t make folks sad; they\u2019re times of joy, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head in wild negation.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Pa, they ain\u2019t.\u00a0 Not always.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben stilled the boy\u2019s head between his strong hands.\u00a0 \u201cAlways,\u201d he insisted, his heart making the word a vow, \u201cand I want that joy for you.\u00a0 I understand now that you have bad memories of your birthday last year\u2014and I take full blame for that\u2014but the only way I know how to make amends is to make better memories for you this year\u2014and every year.\u00a0 Will you let me, son?\u00a0 Will you let me plan a party for you this year?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI-I don\u2019t want Little Joe to cry again,\u201d Hoss whimpered.\u00a0 \u201cIt wasn\u2019t just at the creek, Pa; he woke up screamin\u2019 that night, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think he did that most nights back then, Hoss,\u201d Ben said softly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, but I was the cause of it that night, don\u2019t you see?\u201d Hoss persisted.<\/p>\n

Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 I was the cause of it, that night and many others, but I promise you that nothing will make him cry on your birthday this year.\u201d\u00a0 He lifted the boy\u2019s chin and looked into his eyes. \u00a0\u201cHoss, did you see your little brother\u2019s face when we brought up the subject tonight?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, then, let me tell you, young man, that he was so excited he could barely sit still,\u201d Ben began.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe can\u2019t never sit still,\u201d Hoss muttered.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed.\u00a0 \u201cWell, that\u2019s true, but his little face was just shining at the idea of a party for his big brother.\u201d\u00a0 He pulled Hoss close again.\u00a0 \u201cI understand that I hurt him last summer, more times than I can count, but I\u2019ve tried to mend my fences with him and I think I have.\u00a0 At his age I\u2019m not sure how much he remembers of the bad times\u2014some, I\u2019m sure\u2014but I think he\u2019s forgiven me and put them behind him.\u00a0 I know it\u2019s harder for you, because you can remember things better and, maybe, feel them stronger, but can you try to do the same?\u00a0 Can you forgive me and give me a second chance?<\/p>\n

Hoss was clearly uncomfortable with the notion of forgiving his father.\u00a0 Forgiving was something fathers did for sons, when they\u2019d been bad, not something sons did for fathers.\u00a0 Or was it?\u00a0 Pa had done a bad thing, even though he hadn\u2019t meant to.\u00a0 Did he need forgiving as much as Hoss did, when he messed up at school or forgot to do his chores or broke something without meaning to?\u00a0 He looked up into his father\u2019s eyes and saw the same need there that he\u2019d often felt himself.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, Pa,\u201d he said slowly.\u00a0 \u201cI forgive you, but I still ain\u2019t sure about a party.\u00a0 I mean, you didn\u2019t give Little Joe one, so he might think\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben interrupted firmly.\u00a0 \u201cI know we kept things quiet for Little Joe this year, but he was perfectly happy with what we did.\u00a0 And he\u2019ll share a party with his big brother without one trace of hard feelings.\u00a0 You know that, Hoss, so don\u2019t use him as an excuse.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled as he ruffled the boy\u2019s hair.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s time we made room for joy in our lives again, son.\u00a0 I know it\u2019s what your mother would want.\u201d\u00a0 He could almost feel Marie\u2019s kiss of approval brush his cheek.<\/p>\n

Maybe Hoss felt it, too, for his features softened, and his customary peaceful countenance returned.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I reckon it\u2019s time,\u201d he said, \u201cbut I\u2019d just as soon keep it quiet, like Joe had.\u00a0 Can we save the picnic for next year, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can,\u201d Ben agreed.\u00a0 \u201cSo, a quiet party.\u00a0 Here or at home?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHome,\u201d Hoss decided, \u201cbut I want everybody there, all right?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right,\u201d his father said.\u00a0 Just who \u201ceverybody\u201d included was something they could work out later.\u00a0 \u201cYou ready for dinner now, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned with relief.\u00a0 \u201cYes, sir, I sure am.\u201d\u00a0 Food wasn\u2019t the main thing on his mind when they returned to the kitchen, however.\u00a0 He went straight to Nelly Thomas and hugged her tight.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry I pitched such a fit, Aunt Nelly,\u201d he said, \u201cand I\u2019d be much obliged if\u2019n you\u2019d bake me a cake\u2014chocolate with boiled white icing, please\u2014and bring it to the Ponderosa next weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d be pleasured,\u201d Nelly said simply, and the sparkle returned to young Inger\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 Clyde just nodded in silent satisfaction.\u00a0 Like he\u2019d always felt, correcting children was best left to men, and watching Ben Cartwright handle his boys over the years had only strengthened that opinion.<\/p>\n

\u201cHurray!\u201d Little Joe shouted, almost bouncing out of his seat.\u00a0 \u201cWe get a party!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss wrapped his arms around the younger boy.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I reckon we do.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

The rest of the evening passed in a haze for Ben, not the sort he\u2019d walked through a year ago, but thick enough that he hated to think what he must have been like back then.\u00a0 Tonight he made conversation, discussed current events with his friends, and their reactions indicated they noticed nothing different from usual.\u00a0 But it felt different to Ben; it felt . . . unimportant.\u00a0 When he finally lay silent in bed that night, he understood why: he had much to think over and must have been drifting toward this quiet moment alone all evening.\u00a0 His conversation with Hoss had been hovering at the back of his mind all through supper and the chit-chat afterwards, and now it surged forward with demanding questions.<\/p>\n

How could he have been so blind?\u00a0 All this time he\u2019d thought his boys were doing just fine\u2014feeling their grief from time to time, of course; that was natural, but coping, moving on, putting the sorrow behind them, as boys\u2014and men\u2014had to, if they were to go on living.\u00a0 He\u2019d thought they were happy, but now he wondered how many of the smiles were genuine, how many put on, perhaps for his sake, as he often put them on for theirs.<\/p>\n

Hoss, his most even-keeled son, had seemed so strong, so settled into the new situation, but deep within this intense agony and anger had sunk its talons into his sensitive soul.\u00a0 And his ignorant father had just lumbered on, like nothing was amiss with his middle boy.\u00a0 Ben shook his head in self-disgust, and his eyes came to rest on the curly pate of his youngest son, sharing the bed with him.\u00a0 Had his youngest also been hiding hurts deep in his little heart?\u00a0 Hurts put there by a negligent father?\u00a0 As poor a father as he\u2019d been to Adam last year, forcing responsibilities rightfully his own onto the young man\u2019s slim shoulders, and as insensitive as he\u2019d been to Hoss\u2019s needs, he knew he\u2019d been worse with Little Joe, barely able to look at his sweet, sad face a year ago, when the boy had needed him most.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d put fear in his boy\u2019s heart during those awful days, and he still saw it, from time to time, when he had to rebuke some childish misdeed.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s why you get away with so much, you scamp,\u201d he whispered to the cherubic face on the pillow beside him.\u00a0 He\u2019d been a much tougher disciplinarian with Adam and\u2014no, not with Hoss, so good-natured a boy that he\u2019d rarely needed correction. \u00a0Ben knew that he should take a firmer hand with his youngest, but when correction brought that flicker of fear to the emerald eyes, so like hers, he just couldn\u2019t.\u00a0 \u201cI love you, little one,\u201d he murmured.\u00a0 \u201cI hope you know that.\u201d<\/p>\n

As if in answer, Little Joe, smiling in sweet contentment, burrowed into his father\u2019s side.<\/p>\n

With a chuckle Ben cuddled him closer, and as he settled into his pillow, his gaze fell again on his middle son, sleeping on a pallet nearby.\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s sense of justice wouldn\u2019t let him take more than his baby brother had received, but at least Joe had had a nice celebration the year before.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t right, letting his own grief deprive Hoss of his birthday party last year and now letting the boy deprive himself a second time in misguided sacrifice.\u00a0 He\u2019d given Hoss the choice, and he\u2019d honor it, but Ben felt that he had to find some way to make that day special for his son.\u00a0 As special a boy as Hoss deserved no less.<\/p>\n

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

When Hoss insisted that the only people he wanted at his birthday celebration were the Thomases and the Montgomerys, \u201cjust like Little Joe had,\u201d Ben became more determined than ever to mount a better celebration.\u00a0 Even pointing out that Little Joe had had one more guest, since Ludmilla was still with them then, wouldn\u2019t budge Hoss into inviting a friend.\u00a0 \u201cI guess he got a streak of the Cartwright stubbornness, after all,\u201d Ben grunted to himself.\u00a0 He\u2019d never have thought it of his placid middle boy.<\/p>\n

He wracked his brain for a couple of days, trying to think of something different enough not to seem like a party, but festive enough to inject some childhood joy into the occasion.\u00a0 Then he remembered a poster he\u2019d seen in town and decided that nothing could be more perfect than what it advertised, the sort of activity no youngster could turn down.\u00a0 If Hoss did put up any argument, he\u2019d soon learn from whom he\u2019d inherited that streak of Cartwright stubbornness.<\/p>\n

When he announced at breakfast on Wednesday morning that they would all be attending Bartholomew\u2019s Circus the next evening, Little Joe whooped with delight.\u00a0 Adam had taken them to their first circus last summer, and he remembered how much fun it had been.\u00a0 And this time Pa would go with them\u2014perfect!\u00a0 He clapped his hands and bounced up and down until his father told him to settle down and eat his breakfast.<\/p>\n

At first Hoss\u2019s eyes shone, too, but then they narrowed.\u00a0 \u201cTomorrow?\u201d he asked.\u00a0 \u201cBut that\u2019s my birthday.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo what?\u201d Ben said. \u00a0\u201cWe had your celebration on Sunday, remember?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s forehead wrinkled.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, but . . . I mean, Thursday?\u00a0 It\u2019s the middle of the week, Pa.\u00a0 Most times, you say we can\u2019t get away for such as that in the middle of the week, \u2018cause of work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, this time we\u2019re splurging,\u201d Ben insisted.\u00a0 \u201cWork can just wait.\u201d\u00a0 When he saw a smile slowly spread across Hoss\u2019s face, he ventured his next surprise.\u00a0 \u201cWell, that\u2019s settled, then.\u00a0 As soon as you finish your chores, you can ride over to the Hanson\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Hanson\u2019s?\u00a0 What for?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy, to ask if Pete can accompany us tomorrow evening,\u201d Ben said as if the reason should have been obvious.\u00a0 \u201cHe can spend the night, of course, since we\u2019ll be late getting back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss frowned slightly.\u00a0 \u201cThis is beginning to sound like a party, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, Hoss, we already had your party, just the way you wanted it,\u201d Ben reiterarted.\u00a0 \u201cYou can\u2019t be changing your mind now, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t!\u201d Hoss protested.\u00a0 \u201cBut this sounds like another party.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t sound like a party to me,\u201d Ben observed, schooling his face to look innocent.\u00a0 \u201cDoes it sound like a party to you, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes!\u201d the younger boy cried jubilantly.<\/p>\n

Ben rolled his eyes.\u00a0 He should have known better than to expect help from that direction.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a night at the circus . . . which just happens to be the night of your birthday,\u201d he finished lamely.\u00a0 Then he straightened up.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not like you to be selfish, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s blue eyes flared open in shock.\u00a0 \u201cSelfish, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNear as I can tell, the Hansons don\u2019t have much cash to spare for things like circuses; the boy probably has never been to one,\u201d Ben said, \u201cso I thought it would be nice to invite Pete along, but if you don\u2019t want to share . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI do,\u201d Hoss insisted.\u00a0 \u201cI do want to share, and\u2014and Pete\u2019s my best buddy, Pa.\u00a0 It\u2019d be extra fun with him along.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, good, then.\u00a0 That sounds more like my Hoss,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cSo . . . we\u2019ll ride in early and pick up Inger.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHer, too?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben clucked his tongue.\u00a0 \u201cNow, son, surely you wouldn\u2019t deprive the girl of a good time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, no, but she lives in Virginia City,\u201d Hoss argued.\u00a0 \u201cShe can go any time she wants.\u201d\u00a0 Seeing his father\u2019s arched eyebrow, he stammered, \u201cBut\u2014but I reckon she\u2019d enjoy it more with other kids, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI would think so,\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like Inger,\u201d Little Joe put in.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s nice.\u201d\u00a0 He frowned.\u00a0 \u201c\u2018Cept when she plays house and makes me the baby!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe won\u2019t do that at the circus,\u201d Ben inserted quickly.\u00a0 He glanced at Hoss.\u00a0 \u201cSo, Pete for you and Inger for Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Hoss agreed.\u00a0 \u201cAnd popcorn for everybody, right, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight!\u201d Ben said enthusiastically.\u00a0 Popcorn, hot nuts, anything it took to keep that toothy grin on his boy\u2019s face.<\/p>\n

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

Pete\u2019s eyes all but popped out of his head when he was handed a menu at the restaurant Thursday evening.\u00a0 While such treats weren\u2019t unheard of for the other children, they were rare, especially when accompanied by the invitation to \u201corder anything you want.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s choice of eatery was, as predicted, the reasonably priced Chapman\u2019s Chop House, so Ben had no concern that the resulting bill would be high, especially since neither Inger nor Little Joe ever had particularly large appetites.\u00a0 Hoss was the only one who did, for that matter, but having evidently taken his father\u2019s lecture about selfishness more to heart than had been intended, he urged his friend to order both a plate of chops and a bowl of chowder, saying he\u2019d be happy to polish off whatever Pete couldn\u2019t finish.\u00a0 Surprisingly, crawny Pete proved up to the challenge.<\/p>\n

However, it wasn\u2019t only Pete who stared, wide-eyed, at the attractions of the side show.\u00a0 All four of the children did, as they gazed at one wonder after another, from the fattest hog they\u2019d ever seen to the man swallowing a rusty old army cutlass.\u00a0 They were enthralled as they gathered around an iron tank, where the recent battle between the Monitor<\/em> and the Merrimac<\/em> was being reenacted.\u00a0 When both miniature ships burst, Ben rolled his eyes.\u00a0 So much for historical accuracy<\/em>, he thought, but the children didn\u2019t mind; to them, it was all the more exciting to see two ships sink.<\/p>\n

All the other exhibits paled in comparison to the three-headed chicken, however.\u00a0 So much for biological accuracy<\/em>, Ben groaned inwardly.\u00a0 He had no intention of pointing that out to the children, at least not tonight, but the chicken took that duty upon itself when, as it ran around its wire enclosure, one of the heads dropped off into the dirt, to the accompaniment of shrieks from every woman and child there and loud guffaws from all the men.\u00a0 Ben quickly gathered his four chicks and hurried them into the main circus tent.\u00a0 Telling Hoss to locate the vender and purchase popcorn and nuts for everyone, he put an arm around each of the younger two children and tried to quiet them with assurances that it had all been a hoax, not a living chicken head falling off.\u00a0 Inger was still sniffling when Hoss and Pete returned with the treats, but before long all four youngsters were happily munching as they waited for the circus acts to start.<\/p>\n

And what acts they were!\u00a0 Acrobats and gymnasts and clowns cavorted around the ring to cries of delight, but the stars of Bartholmew\u2019s circus were, without doubt, Wonder and Young America, horses that could not only perform equestrian feats, but were able to kneel and to count with their dainty hooves.\u00a0 Oohs and ahs circled the ring as often as the ponies went around, and Little Joe, in particular, stared with gape-mouthed wonder and obvious adoration.\u00a0 After leaving Inger with her parents, Ben bedded the three boys in the back of his buckboard, but they were all so excited that they chattered halfway back to the Ponderosa before yawns finally began to separate their words and they settled under the blankets.\u00a0 Even then occasional whispers were exchanged until, at last, the air was punctuated only by soft snores.\u00a0 To Ben, elated with the success of the evening, no orchestra could have produced a sweeter symphony.<\/p>\n

~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

Robert E. Lee took command of the Confederate Armies of Northern Virginia on June 2, 1862, only accentuating Abraham Lincoln\u2019s dissatisfaction with his own commander of the Army of the Potomac, George McClellan, a man convinced that his own troops were never quite as prepared or as large as the force opposing him.<\/p>\n

Lincoln signed the Pacific Railroad Act, and the Congress passed a bill outlawing polygamy on July 1, 1862.<\/p>\n

Samuel Clemens signed his earliest contributions to the Territorial Enterprise <\/em>with the pseudonym, \u201cJosh.\u201d\u00a0 His article on Professor Personal Pronoun was one of the selections that led to his being hired by the Virginia City newspaper.<\/p>\n

Sometime in the summer of 1862, a fire burned out 150 people between C and D streets.\u00a0 The Chinese were blamed and a petition circulated to get rid of them.\u00a0 Ben\u2019s intervention and its immediate aftermath are, of course, fiction.<\/p>\n

Chocolate cake with boiled white icing was my favorite as a child, so I have donated it to Hoss for his birthday.\u00a0 J<\/p>\n

Bartholomew\u2019s Circus, with all the acts described here, played on the Comstock during the summer of 1862.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN<\/p>\n

A Matter of Loyalty<\/p>\n

To Hoss, it seemed that his birthday celebration just went on and on.\u00a0 Oh, it was back to chores, as usual, the day after, but then on Saturday afternoon Pa took time off work to give Hoss instruction in how to use his new gift, a Sharps Model 1853 rifle.\u00a0 The boy paid close attention as his father loaded the .52 caliber paper cartridge into the breech, took aim and knocked a tin can off the corral fence on the first try.<\/p>\n

Then Ben handed the gun to his son.\u00a0 \u201cNow, it\u2019s a little heavy, but I think you\u2019re strong enough to handle it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d Hoss said as he hefted the rifle to his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cAw, Pa, this ain\u2019t nothin\u2019.\u00a0 Little Joe weighs more\u2019n this, and it don\u2019t squiggle like he does.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben laughed. \u00a0\u201cNo, but it does have just about as hard a kick.\u00a0 Line up the sight and squeeze the trigger, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss tried to do exactly as he\u2019d been taught, but excitement made him jerk the trigger.\u00a0 Though the gun\u2019s kick caught him off guard, he had his feet planted solidly enough that he didn\u2019t fall over.<\/p>\n

\u201cKeep that up and you\u2019ll have a real bruised shoulder by morning,\u201d Ben said wryly.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry, Pa.\u00a0 I forgot.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all right, son.\u00a0 Rome wasn\u2019t built in a day,\u201d Ben observed.<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben patted the boy\u2019s back.\u00a0 \u201cJust a saying.\u00a0 It means it takes time to build important things like a city\u2014or a skill.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah, I reckon,\u201d Hoss said, squinting his eyes as he sighted the gun again and this time squeezed the trigger.\u00a0 He exhaled in puffy exasperation at sight of the tin can still perched on the corral rail, untouched.\u00a0 \u201cDoggone it!\u00a0 At this rate, we ain\u2019t never gonna get Rome built,\u201d he muttered.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt takes practice.\u201d \u00a0Ben ruffled the boy\u2019s hair.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, you\u2019re always so patient with your little brother when you\u2019re teaching him something new; you need to be patient with yourself, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned shyly at the compliment and nodded.\u00a0 He continued to fire the weapon, careful to follow his father\u2019s corrections and was soon rewarded with the sight of a tin can flying off the rail.\u00a0 \u201cWhoo\u2014ee!\u00a0 I did it, Pa!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou sure did, son!\u201d Ben enthused right along with his boy.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s see if you can do it again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss missed the next shot, but gradually he started to have more hits than misses, and Ben declared himself well satisfied with the boy\u2019s progress.\u00a0 Over the next few days he tried to give Hoss some practice time each evening, and after Friday\u2019s session, he announced that he thought it was time to try shooting at a live target.<\/p>\n

Hoss gulped.\u00a0 Much as he hated to hurt any living thing, he knew that this was a lot like branding: something that had to be done.\u00a0 Unless he lived in town, a man had to provide meat for his table by hunting it or slaughtering the animals he raised.\u00a0 Either one involved killing, and Hoss knew he\u2019d have to brace himself to it, just like he had the branding.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll do my best, Pa,\u201d he promised.\u00a0 \u201cWe gonna go after a deer, like Adam did?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s try something smaller first,\u201d Ben suggested.\u00a0 \u201cSquirrel, maybe?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s nose crinkled.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019s awful little\u2014harder to hit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben massaged the boy\u2019s shoulder with his strong fingers.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, you\u2019ll either hit one or miss it altogether, and I think at this stage, that\u2019s what we want.\u00a0 You wouldn\u2019t want to merely wound an animal, would you, son?\u201d\u00a0 He didn\u2019t think the boy\u2019s tender heart could bear having to track down a wounded animal and put it out of its misery.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, sir!\u201d Hoss declared.\u00a0 His nose again crinkled in thought.\u00a0 \u201cDoes Hop Sing know how to cook squirrel?\u201d he asked, for he couldn\u2019t remember seeing that meat come out of the Chinaman\u2019s kitchen.<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll just tell him to treat it like chicken and fry it crisp.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over supper that evening they planned their trip for the next day.\u00a0 Little Joe bubbled with excitement.\u00a0 \u201cWhat time we gonna leave?\u201d he asked.\u00a0 \u201cReal early?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben arched an eyebrow.\u00a0 \u201cHoss and I will leave before sunup.\u00a0 You, however, may sleep in as late as you like, since you\u2019re not coming.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy?\u201d Little Joe demanded, face reddening.\u00a0 \u201cWhy can\u2019t I go, too?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cToo little,\u201d Hoss stated flatly.\u00a0 \u201cDoggone it, Joe.\u00a0 I ain\u2019t even been hunting before, and you\u2019re a heap younger\u2019n me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d Ben said firmly.\u00a0 \u201cNow, I\u2019ll hear no more argument, Joseph.\u201d\u00a0 He did, of course.\u00a0 Little Joe\u2019s protests continued, rising in intensity and volume until Ben finally advised him that one more word would lead to a \u201cvery necessary little talk.\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe clamped his mouth shut after that, but as he sulked through the rest of the meal, his eyes declared the unfairness of life in general for the youngest in the family.<\/p>\n

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

The banging of pots and loud Cantonese ejaculations that emerged from the kitchen the next night made Ben wince apologetically at his guests.\u00a0 \u201cSorry,\u201d he told the Thomases.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s me he\u2019s upset with, but the whole ranch has to listen to the tirade.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clyde cackled.\u00a0 \u201cWhat you done to rile the feller this time?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s mouth skewed ruefully to one side.\u00a0 \u201cMade him serve fried squirrel to honored guests.\u00a0 Apparently, it risks loss of face.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot a thing wrong with squirrel,\u201d Nelly declared stoutly, \u201cso long as it ain\u2019t overcooked.\u00a0 Reckon I ought to mention that to him?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot if you value your life,\u201d Ben muttered dryly.<\/p>\n

She chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cWell, so happens I do, so I reckon I\u2019ll just sit here and hope for the best.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI shot the squirrels,\u201d Hoss bragged.<\/p>\n

Nelly smiled proudly at him.\u00a0 \u201cWell, now, that\u2019ll make \u2018em taste all the better, I just know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat blackberry cobbler you brought is what will make the meal,\u201d Ben said, a sentiment quickly echoed by both his sons.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we\u2019d known, we could\u2019ve churned some ice cream,\u201d Hoss opined with a smack of his lips.<\/p>\n

Ben snorted.\u00a0 \u201cGoodness, boy, we barely made it home in time to give Hop Sing those squirrels.\u00a0 Where would we have found the time to churn a batch of ice cream?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShould\u2019ve set your other boy to that,\u201d Clyde snickered.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah, that would work real well,\u201d Ben scoffed, though he smiled at the image of those pint-sized arms turning the churn, especially when the custard started to freeze and the handle got harder to move.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can do it!\u201d Little Joe, who hated being laughed at, announced through puffed-out cheeks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll try you at it sometime,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 About ten or twelve years from now!<\/em> he added mentally.\u00a0 To change the subject, he quickly asked Clyde, \u201cAny important news from town?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHear tell that Josh feller is gonna come to work full time at the Enterprise<\/em>,\u201d Clyde replied.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, we can use a few good laughs,\u201d Ben opined, \u201cto offset all the war news.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNeeds offsettin\u2019, for a fact,\u201d Clyde agreed.\u00a0 The Seven Days\u2019 Battles of late June and early July had taken thousands of lives, and while the Union hadn\u2019t lost every battle, neither had McClellan been able to take Richmond and thereby end the war.<\/p>\n

A disgruntled Hop Sing called them to dinner.\u00a0 As they all rose to answer the summons, Ben whispered, \u201cPlease brag on that squirrel, whatever it tastes like, and I promise we\u2019ll do better by you tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly laughed and flapped a disdaining hand.\u00a0 By meal\u2019s end, though, no one had to brag falsely.\u00a0 In Hop Sing\u2019s hands even squirrel tasted like banquet fare.\u00a0 Ben promised himself, though, that the next time he took Hoss out hunting, it would be for better game.\u00a0 The boy had proved himself ready, but Ben wasn\u2019t sure they could work in a longer hunting trip before fall roundup.<\/p>\n

After the others headed for bed that night, he took a few minutes to peruse the back newspapers that Clyde had obligingly brought from Virginia City.\u00a0 The biggest news was a proclamation from Colonel P. Edward Conner, Commander of the 3rd<\/sup> Regiment of California Volunteers, reported to be headed for FortChurchill.\u00a0 The proclamation made it a crime to express any sentiment against the Federal Government and prohibited any purchases from any person who had, by word or act, ever manifested disloyalty.\u00a0 Ben didn\u2019t foresee any problem for him personally.\u00a0 No one had ever questioned his loyalty, and if he should have the opportunity to sell something to the Government, he\u2019d willingly take the oath of allegiance.\u00a0 While he bore no ill will to anyone on either side of the conflict, the United States was his country; and if pushed to choose, he\u2019d always stand for the preservation of the Union.<\/p>\n

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

Colonel Conner\u2019s edict affected Ben more quickly than he could possibly have guessed.\u00a0 Only a few days after reading that item in the Territorial Enterprise<\/em>, he learned of bids being accepted for a contract to supply FortChurchill with beef.\u00a0 What a boon that would be, if he could market his cattle so close to home!\u00a0 If he didn\u2019t have to trail them all the way to California, he could charge less and still make more profit.\u00a0 Ben sat up late into the night, calculating and recalculating his bid on the evening before the deadline of noon Saturday, but he was still nervous as he sealed it early the next morning.<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe, quit dawdling over your breakfast,\u201d he scolded as he pulled on his jacket.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t dawdle,\u201d Little Joe protested.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI do not!\u201d Hoss sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re the one always playin\u2019 with your vittles, instead of eatin\u2019 \u2018em.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t have time to argue, boys,\u201d Ben insisted.\u00a0 \u201cEat what you\u2019re going to eat, and let\u2019s get on the road.\u00a0 I cannot be late.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d Hoss said, leaning across the table to whisper, \u201cEat up \u2018fore he decides to just leave us behind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taking that threat seriously, Little Joe stuffed the final bites of his breakfast into chipmunk cheeks and left the table, still munching.<\/p>\n

Ben rolled his eyes, but decided not to waste time with a lecture on table manners this morning.\u00a0 They mounted up, Little Joe riding in front of Hoss, and stayed together until they reached the Virginia City road.\u00a0 \u201cSure you can manage him up the Geiger Grade, Hoss?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cSure thing, Pa.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss leaned over to look Little Joe in the face.\u00a0 \u201cYou ain\u2019t gonna squirm none, are you, punkin?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Course not,\u201d Little Joe declared.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right.\u00a0 You mind your brother, then,\u201d Ben advised as he gathered the reins of his own horse.<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s head bobbed.\u00a0 \u201cAnd Aunt Nelly and Uncle Clyde.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right.\u201d\u00a0 Ben smiled his approval.\u00a0 \u201cTell Aunt Nelly I\u2019ll try to be there for dinner, but not to hold it on my account.\u201d\u00a0 Though it was his turn to act as host at the Ponderosa, the trip to FortChurchill made it more convenient for everyone to meet in Virginia City again this weekend.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir, Pa\u2014and good luck!\u201d Hoss called as he started up the steep and winding Geiger Grade.<\/p>\n

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

Ben paced the dusty compound of FortChurchill, his feet keeping almost as steady a beat as the soldiers drilling nearby.\u00a0 He\u2019d gotten his bid in well before noon, but though he\u2019d been offered a meal in one of the company mess halls, he couldn\u2019t eat.\u00a0 Ridiculous to be this nervous<\/em>, he told himself.\u00a0 If I don\u2019t get the contract, I\u2019ll still have a market in California<\/em>.\u00a0 There was no denying, though, that winning it would simplify his life and give him more time with his boys.\u00a0 The growing ranch, with its diversified interests, demanded more and more of that precious commodity these days, and this was an opportunity to buy back some of it.<\/p>\n

He glanced at his competition.\u00a0 He knew neither of them well, although Samuel Nevers had settled in CarsonValley some five years ago.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t even met Rufus Pike before this morning, although he understood that the man had a sizeable spread south of Genoa.\u00a0 Being closer to FortChurchill might give Pike an advantage, since he could probably transport his cattle at less cost.\u00a0 Certainly, he didn\u2019t look worried as his long, lean body lounged bonelessly against a post outside the officers\u2019 quarters.\u00a0 He was even whistling, carefree as a bird.\u00a0 Straining his ears to catch the tune, Ben arched an eyebrow when he recognized \u201cDixie.\u201d\u00a0 Scarcely the song to select within these gates!<\/p>\n

Finally, the headquarters door opened, and the commanding officer stepped out.\u00a0 All three potential contractors stepped toward him, Nevers hanging back slightly behind the other two ranchers.\u00a0 \u201cGentlemen, we have carefully examined all your bids,\u201d the colonel announced, \u201cand have decided to award the contract to Mr. Pike.\u201d<\/p>\n

Turning away slightly, lest his disappointment show, Ben saw Samuel Nevers nod as if he\u2019d expected the outcome.\u00a0 After directing Pike to enter the office to finalize the contract, the commander stepped down from the porch and walked toward the men whose bids had not been accepted.\u00a0 \u201cMy apologies, gentlemen,\u201d he said, \u201cfor your long and, unfortunately, unrewarded ride.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nevers shook the man\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t say as I\u2019m surprised.\u00a0 My spread bein\u2019 smaller than either of these other gents, I\u2019d\u2019ve been stretched to meet your quotas.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPrecisely,\u201d the colonel said.\u00a0 He turned toward Ben.\u00a0 \u201cI do wish we could have done business with you, Cartwright.\u00a0 Your previous dealings with the fort have shown you to be dependable, and I understand that Ponderosa beef is the best in the territory.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d like to think so, Colonel Conner,\u201d Ben said, shaking the man\u2019s hand with a smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately, I was required to accept the lowest bid,\u201d Conner explained, \u201cand Pike\u2019s offer was a dollar a head lower than yours.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a significant savings for the government,\u201d Ben admitted.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I trust Mr. Pike will do a good job for you.\u00a0 However, if you should discover that you need more beef than he can supply, I hope you\u2019ll grant me the privilege of serving you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, you can count me in on that, too,\u201d Nevers put in with a grin, \u201cso long as you don\u2019t want too many beeves.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCertainly,\u201d Colonel Conners said.\u00a0 \u201cIf you\u2019ll excuse me now, I need to finish my business with Mr. Pike.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nevers blew out a long, slow exhale.\u00a0 \u201cWell, a long, hot ride for nothin\u2019 but the chance to do it again t\u2019other direction.\u00a0 Longer for you, though, Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat it is,\u201d Ben chuckled, \u201calthough not quite as far as you\u2019re figuring.\u00a0 I\u2019m spending the night with friends in Virginia City.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMight even make it for supper, if you leave pronto,\u201d Nevers suggested.\u00a0 \u201cI know that\u2019s my aim!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, mine, too,\u201d Ben admitted.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m gonna take time to eat that sandwich my cook sent with me, though.\u00a0 Had no appetite for it earlier.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKnow what you mean,\u201d Nevers agreed.\u00a0 \u201cWish I\u2019d thought to bring one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHappy to share what I\u2019ve got,\u201d Ben offered.\u00a0 \u201cKnowing Hop Sing, there\u2019s a good chance there\u2019s more than one in my pack.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other rancher slapped him companionably on the back.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll take you up on that, Cartwright!\u201d<\/p>\n

However, the two men had no sooner found a shady spot and divied up the contents of Hop Sing\u2019s packet than the door to the headquarters office was flung open with such force that it hit the wall behind it.\u00a0 Rufus Pike stormed outside, shouting, \u201cIt\u2019s tyranny, pure and simple!\u00a0 Government\u2019s got no right to tell a man what to believe!\u201d<\/p>\n

Colonel Conner appeared in the doorway and shouted, \u201cConfine that man to the guard house!\u00a0 And instruct Lieutenant Saunders to follow the prescribed procedure for traitors.\u201d\u00a0 A sergeant crossing the compound quickly motioned a couple of foot soldiers forward to obey the order.<\/p>\n

\u201cFreedom of speech is dead in this country!\u201d Pike yelled as he was dragged away.<\/p>\n

Ben and Sam Nevers both jumped to their feet and stared at the confrontation.\u00a0 \u201cWhat on earth?\u201d Nevers asked, jaw dropping in consternation.<\/p>\n

Evidently, Conners heard him, for he turned that direction and then quickly walked over to them.\u00a0 \u201cYou haven\u2019t left, then, Mr. Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben held up his sandwich.\u00a0 \u201cJust taking time enough for a bite to eat, if that\u2019s all right, Colonel.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m gratified you did,\u201d Conners said.\u00a0 \u201cAs it turns out, Mr. Cartwright, the Army will be pleased to contract with you for that fine Ponderosa beef.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben cast a quick glance at the guard house, into which Rufus Pike was being roughly shoved.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t understand,\u201d he said slowly.\u00a0 \u201cWas there a problem with Mr. Pike\u2019s bid?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot with the bid,\u201d the colonel said tersely.\u00a0 \u201cWith the man making it.\u00a0 He refused to take the oath of allegiance and went so far as to insult President Lincoln while he was at it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, boy,\u201d Nevers muttered.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Army will not transact business with a disloyal citizen,\u201d Colonel Conners stated sharply.\u00a0 \u201cYou have no problem with the oath of allegiance, Mr. Cartwright?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, of course not,\u201d Ben replied soberly.\u00a0 \u201cI support my country, but I\u2019d be much more comfortable if I\u2019d won the contract outright, sir.\u00a0 Hate to get it this way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Conners\u2019 face softened.\u00a0 \u201cYes, I understand, and I apologize for the unpleasantness, but I hope you won\u2019t consider withdrawing your bid.\u00a0 The Army needs that beef, Mr. Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd it will be my honor to supply it,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 Beyond the honor, it was, of course, good business, and he could scarcely afford to pass it up.\u00a0 He handed his sandwich to Sam Nevers.\u00a0 \u201cBe my guest,\u201d he said with a grin.<\/p>\n

With a grin even wider, Nevers took it.\u00a0 \u201cThanks,\u201d he said, \u201cand congratulations!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben followed Colonel Conners into headquarters, took the oath and signed the appropriate papers.\u00a0 As he came out, he noticed a man carrying a heavy bag over his shoulder, as he walked around the flagpole at the end of a twenty-foot chain attached to his ankle.\u00a0 When the man circled back toward him, Ben gasped in recognition.\u00a0 It was his former competitor, Rufus Pike.\u00a0 \u201cIs that necessary?\u201d he asked the sergeant who had escorted him out of the office.<\/p>\n

\u201cTraitors deserve no better, sir,\u201d the soldier said before turning briskly on his heel and returning to headquarters.<\/p>\n

Ben pursed his lips and walked toward the stables, unable to tear his eyes away from the man under punishment.\u00a0 Pike had been a fool, of course, to voice anti-administration sentiment inside a fort full of Union soldiers, but he had been right about one thing: if it had come to this, freedom of speech was no longer a fundamental right in the United States of America.\u00a0 There was nothing Ben could do to help the man, but the thought of profiting by the denial of another\u2019s rights turned his stomach so sour that he was glad he\u2019d given his sandwich to Samuel Nevers.\u00a0 And as he walked his horse toward the stockade gate, Pike threw him a glare of such piercing hatred that not even the blazing August sun could stop the shiver up Ben\u2019s spine.<\/p>\n

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

Fall roundup took on an unprecedented urgency that year.\u00a0 Never before had Ben had a specific contract to fulfill, with deadlines to meet and penalties for failure to do so.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t too worried about that, though.\u00a0 He had enough mature steers ready for market and a good crew of men to get them there.\u00a0 He wanted to drive them to the fort as soon as possible, however, because of a couple of events looming on his horizon.\u00a0 He had a birthday coming up, and while he never threw himself a party, as he did for the boys, he did like to take that day off to celebrate another year\u2019s accomplishments.\u00a0 At least, the date for that was fixed, but he wasn\u2019t sure when the other event would take place.\u00a0 Babies were notorious for showing up when they chose, and that was rarely at the convenience of family or friends.\u00a0 He felt a special responsibility to be available to welcome this little one into the world, especially now that Billy Thomas had accepted a position with the newly formed Virginia City Pony Express.\u00a0 The way things still stood with the child\u2019s nearest grandparents, it wasn\u2019t likely Nelly would feel obliged to help when Marta\u2019s time came.\u00a0 Of course, Dr. Martin was right there in town, if Billy were away on a run, but some family ought to be in attendance, even if it were just an unofficial uncle.<\/p>\n

Hoss had been disappointed at the loss of the trail drive to California, so Ben made a special effort to give the boy added responsibilities during the roundup and bragged on how well he was handling the cattle.\u00a0 \u201cCan I help drive \u2018em to FortChurchill?\u201d Hoss asked eagerly.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell . . . maybe,\u201d Ben conceded.\u00a0 School would have started again by the time he\u2019d scheduled that drive, but he was considering letting Hoss take a day or two off.\u00a0 The boy really was getting to be a good wrangler, and he\u2019d worked hard enough to earn a small reward.\u00a0 On the other hand, Little Joe would be starting school this year\u2014it didn\u2019t seem possible!\u2014and Ben hesitated to send his youngest off alone with only a few days\u2019 introduction to school routine under his belt.<\/p>\n

By the end of the week, virtually all the four-year-old steers had been gathered in a lush lowland meadow, to rest and put on a little more flesh for the upcoming drive.\u00a0 Maybe five days of that, and they\u2019d be ready to leave, with plenty of time to deliver the cattle before his birthday.\u00a0 Things couldn\u2019t have looked better.<\/p>\n

Ben even gave in to the pleas of his youngest on Saturday morning to come to the camp and \u201chelp wrangle\u201d the cattle.\u00a0 The youngster wasn\u2019t doing any actual work, of course, but he sat proudly in front of his father in the saddle, and as they rode around the herd, Ben attempted to explain what the cattle needed and how the hands were providing for them.<\/p>\n

They were riding along easily when the first shot rang out.\u00a0 Though Ben saw one of the young steers drop to the ground, his first thought, of course, was the safety of his sons.\u00a0 \u201cHoss!\u201d he yelled and spurred his horse toward his middle boy as shots continued to rain into the herd and startled cattle began to run.<\/p>\n

Stunned by the gunfire, Hoss hesitated a moment; then he urged his horse forward.\u00a0 \u201cWho\u2019s shootin\u2019, Pa?\u201d he called as he met his father.<\/p>\n

Putting himself between the shootist and his sons, Ben handed Little Joe over to his brother.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t know.\u00a0 Get your brother behind the chuck wagon\u2014and stay there!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded.\u00a0 Instinctively turning his back to shield his little brother from the continuing gunfire, he raced for the wagon, dismounted and pushed Little Joe behind the front wheel before crowding into its scant shelter himself.\u00a0 Hop Sing, who had been heating stew over a campfire, ran to cringe behind the wagon\u2019s rear wheel.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey gonna shoot Pa?\u201d Little Joe cried.<\/p>\n

Hoss hugged the shivering body close to his own.\u00a0 \u201cNo such a thing,\u201d he declared, although the same fear was surging through him.\u00a0 The more he watched, though, the less worried he felt\u2014at least, about Pa\u2019s safety.\u00a0 Whoever was doing the shooting wasn\u2019t aiming at Pa\u2014or any other man; the cattle were the targets, and Hoss winced each time he saw one go down.<\/p>\n

The shooting stopped as suddenly as it had started, perhaps because the cattle had scattered too far to make easy targets.\u00a0 It took the cowhands a few moments to realize that the bullets had stopped flying their way and to run for their horses and give chase.\u00a0 Before he rode out, Ben stopped at the chuck wagon.\u00a0 \u201cStay here,\u201d he ordered, after ascertaining that both boys were unharmed.\u00a0 Spotting the cook, he said, \u201cIf all seems quiet after about fifteen minutes, Hop Sing, drive the wagon home and take the boys with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll light, Mistah Cawtlight,\u201d the Chinaman replied.\u00a0 \u201cYou be plenty careful, yes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPlenty careful,\u201d Ben promised.\u00a0 Then with an encouraging smile at his sons, he added, \u201cI\u2019ll see you at the house, boys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded, taking it for a promise, but Little Joe only twisted his fists into his eyes, too terrified to even voice the fear gripping his heart.\u00a0 Hoss snaked an arm around his brother\u2019s shaking shoulders to show Pa that he\u2019d look after the younger boy.<\/p>\n

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

Squatted down in the dusty roadway, Hank Carlton scowled at the overlapping maze of horseshoe prints.\u00a0 He stood slowly and, shaking his head, looked up at his boss.\u00a0 \u201cSorry, Mr. Cartwright.\u00a0 No way to pick out the mounts we\u2019re after now.\u00a0 All mixed in with everybody else headed south.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben exhaled gusty exasperation.\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 Time to bring in the law, I suppose.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf even that\u2019ll help,\u201d Hank said, mouth skewing sideways in a morose grimace.<\/p>\n

Ben conceded the slim odds with a grim nod as he turned toward his foreman.\u00a0 \u201cEnos, get back to camp,\u201d he ordered.\u00a0 \u201cHave the men round up the cows that strayed and then set a round-the-clock guard on the remaining herd.\u201d\u00a0 And<\/em> pray there\u2019s enough to fill that contract<\/em>, he groaned inwardly.\u00a0 Odds were against it.<\/p>\n

\u201cStraight away, Mr. Ben,\u201d Enos said, immediately turning his horse toward the ranch.<\/p>\n

Carlton mounted, intending to follow the foreman, but Ben stopped him.\u00a0 \u201cHate to ask this, Hank; it\u2019s no job for a top hand.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAsk anything, boss,\u201d Hank replied earnestly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo point in that beef going to waste,\u201d Ben sighed, \u201cand it\u2019s more than we can use ourselves.\u00a0 Let our close neighbors know they\u2019re welcome to whatever they can tote off.\u00a0 I definitely want the Hansons to have some, anyone else you know that\u2019s in real need.\u00a0 I\u2019m afraid some of them may need help with the butchering.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hank\u2019s nose wrinkled.\u00a0 Like Mr. Cartwright had said, butchering beef didn\u2019t normally fall into the duties of a top wrangler, but when a man worked a place, he did what was needed, whether it was herding, branding or, on a bad day, slaughtering.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll take care of it, boss,\u201d he promised.\u00a0 \u201cOkay to take some to Miz Hunter, too?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben looked startled for a moment and then replied absently, \u201cYes, of course, if you think she can use it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI reckon as how she can, sir,\u201d Hank said, and all the frown lines of the frustrating day seemed to fade from his forehead.\u00a0 With a tip of his hat, he turned and rode away.<\/p>\n

Ben had just started in the opposite direction when he suddenly looked over his shoulder at the wrangler.\u00a0 Goodness, but the man was raising dust faster than a devil wind!\u00a0 No way to call him back now for a few words of admonition, but Ben certainly hoped that Elvira Hunter wouldn\u2019t perceive the gift of beef as meaning more than it did.\u00a0 Last thing he needed was to encourage that husband-hunting lady, good-hearted as she was.\u00a0 He had problems enough without that!\u00a0 Shrugging off the hopefully unwarranted concern, he set his face toward WashoeCity to report the attack on his cattle.<\/p>\n

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

As Ben tied his horse to the rail outside the sheriff\u2019s office, he found himself wishing that he could ask Roy Coffee to investigate this case.\u00a0 In the short time he\u2019d known the lawman, he\u2019d developed a respect, as well as a genuine liking, for the man.\u00a0 Didn\u2019t make sense this time, though.\u00a0 The bulk of the Ponderosa was in WashoeCounty, and its capital was certainly closer than StoreyCounty\u2019s Virginia City. \u00a0\u00a0T. A. Read was younger than Sheriff Coffee\u2014younger, even, than Ben, for that matter\u2014and certainly less experienced as a lawman, having only taken office that year, but he was a steady man and a farmer himself, which might give him greater understanding of a land-related issue like cattle rustling.<\/p>\n

\u201cRustlin\u2019, you say?\u201d Read asked when Ben had described the attack at the Ponderosa.\u00a0 \u201cDoesn\u2019t sound like rustlin\u2019, Mr. Cartwright.\u00a0 Doesn\u2019t seem like these fellers were much interested in the cattle, more like they just hurt the beeves to strike at you.\u00a0 You had trouble with anyone recently, anyone holdin\u2019 a grudge against you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben stared at him, stunned, for until that moment he hadn\u2019t considered that the assault on his cattle had been directed at him personally.\u00a0 \u201cNot that I\u2019m aware of,\u201d he said slowly, his spread hands reflecting his bewilderment.<\/p>\n

\u201cThing like this could be aimed to hit you in the pocketbook,\u201d Read suggested.\u00a0 \u201cAny business rivals, anyone who might feel cheated out of a deal by you, anything like that?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben started to deny it, but then broke off abruptly as he remembered the scene at FortChurchill, when he\u2019d first lost and then won the bid to supply the army.\u00a0 \u201cWell . . . possibly,\u201d he began hesitantly and then shook his head. \u00a0\u201cI wouldn\u2019t want to accuse anyone on nothing more than suspicion.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sheriff Read smiled wryly.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I wouldn\u2019t want you doin\u2019 my job for me.\u00a0 Any accusations need makin\u2019, I\u2019ll make \u2018em, but if I\u2019m going to investigate this thing, Cartwright, you got to give me a place to start.\u00a0 Now, just give me the facts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lips fluttering, Ben exhaled roughly and described, as accurately as he could remember, what had transpired at the cattle bidding.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t think it could be Nevers,\u201d he finished.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s been in the territory a long time\u2014built the third house in CarsonValley, in fact\u2014and our relations have always been casual, but cordial.\u00a0 Besides\u201d\u2014Ben chuckled\u2014\u201che didn\u2019t seem to expect to win the bid, just sort of hoped.\u201d\u00a0 Though he didn\u2019t recognize it at the time, the thought planted a seed that would sprout later, as he rode home.<\/p>\n

Read leaned back, balancing on the rear legs of his chair.\u00a0 \u201cWouldn\u2019t be the first man to hide malice behind a friendly face,\u201d he observed dryly.\u00a0 Letting the chair rock forward, he propped his elbows on his desk and rested his chin on his interlaced fingers.\u00a0 \u201cStill, I know Nevers, too, and he doesn\u2019t seem the type.\u00a0 I\u2019ll have to talk to him, of course, but this Pike sounds like a more probable prospect.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was angry, certainly,\u201d Ben agreed, \u201cbut enough to do a thing like this?\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cHard for me to imagine anyone would sanction such senseless slaughter.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sheriff cocked his head to one side.\u00a0 \u201cSomeone did,\u201d he pointed out, and Ben nodded reluctant agreement.\u00a0 \u201cLet me look into it,\u201d Read continued.\u00a0 \u201cIn the meantime keep a close watch on your stock, Cartwright\u2014and keep your boys close to home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s head jerked up.\u00a0 \u201cSurely, no one would hurt an innocent child!\u201d<\/p>\n

Read stroked his chin.\u00a0 \u201cHard to say \u2018til we know who we\u2019re dealing with and what his reasons are.\u00a0 After all, Mr. Cartwright, a cow\u2019s an innocent creature, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read\u2019s words haunted Ben all the way home.\u00a0 Though he tried to concentrate on some way to meet the army\u2019s contract despite the setback and the seed planted in the lawman\u2019s office did sprout into the beginnings of a solution, his mind continually swerved to the sheriff\u2019s warning to protect his sons.\u00a0 True as it was that cattle were innocent creatures, they were still mere property.\u00a0 A business rival without integrity might consider them fair game, but surely only a truly depraved soul would attack a helpless child.\u00a0 Try as he would to dismiss the threat, however, he couldn\u2019t, and it would be easy enough to order both boys to stay home.\u00a0 School hadn\u2019t started yet, so even the slight danger of a ride to Franktown could be avoided, at least for a few more days.\u00a0 Hoss would be bitterly disappointed, of course.\u00a0 He had looked forward to helping on this short cattle drive and had earned the privilege, but Ben wouldn\u2019t take chances with the boy\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, Pa, you promised,\u201d Hoss said when Ben gave him the bad news that evening after his younger son had been put to bed.<\/p>\n

Ben put an arm around the boy, surprised by just how broad those young shoulders were, and pulled him close.\u00a0 \u201cNow, Hoss, I only said maybe.\u00a0 Even if I had promised, sometimes circumstances intervene, and a promise has to . . . change.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGet broke, you mean,\u201d Hoss said with an outthrust lower lip.<\/p>\n

\u201cBe delayed,\u201d Ben corrected soberly.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt ain\u2019t fair,\u201d Hoss protested stormily.\u00a0 \u201cFirst, we ain\u2019t goin\u2019 to California, like we always done before, and now not even FortChurchill!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, it\u2019s not fair,\u201d Ben admitted.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re old enough to know that life isn\u2019t always fair, but I will make it up to you, son.\u00a0 You have my word on that, and you know I\u2019m a man of my word.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss crinkled his eyes to keep unmanly tears from seeping out.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t keep the whine from his voice, though, as he asked, \u201cBut, why, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben sighed.\u00a0 He would have preferred not to answer that question, to keep his boy unaware of any threat, but Hoss was a young man now and mature enough, Ben believed, to hear the truth.\u00a0 Choosing his words carefully, he explained what the sheriff had suggested might be behind the attack on their cattle and the possibility, although Ben assured his son it was a small one, that someone with as much ill will as that might be just as willing to hurt a boy as a cow.\u00a0 \u201cThe sheriff said that I should keep you and Joseph close to home, and I think it\u2019s best that we follow that instruction,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can shoot, Pa,\u201d Hoss insisted, \u201cand I wanna protect our cattle, same as you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben squeezed his shoulder, but answered soberly, \u201cThere\u2019s something much more important for you to protect, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cLittle Joe, you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben smiled tenderly.\u00a0 \u201cYes\u2014Little Joe.\u00a0 Without him\u2014and you and Adam, as well\u2014this ranch means nothing.\u00a0 I\u2019d rather lose every steer on the Ponderosa than one hair on any of your heads.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss flushed shyly.\u00a0 \u201cAw, Pa, hair ain\u2019t worth such an almighty much.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled as he tousled his son\u2019s sandy head.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t underrate it, young man.\u00a0 Time comes in a man\u2019s life when he wishes he could have a few hanks of it back.\u201d\u00a0 He pulled Hoss in for a one-armed hug.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll do as I ask, then, and keep close to the house?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss nodded in somber acceptance of the commission.\u00a0 \u201cAnd look out for Little Joe,\u201d he promised, adding with a grin, \u201cand his thick ole thatch of hair.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

The following Sunday, after dinner with the Thomases, Ben drove the buckboard west of Carson City.\u00a0 He\u2019d no sooner made the turn that direction than a small hand tugged on his sleeve.\u00a0 \u201cWrong way, Pa,\u201d Little Joe announced with a look of concern.<\/p>\n

Holding the reins in his left hand, Ben gave the boy\u2019s back a consoling pat.\u00a0 \u201cNot this time, son.\u00a0 We\u2019re making another call on the way home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho we know out this way, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going by the Nevers place, Hoss,\u201d his father replied.\u00a0 \u201cKnow who I mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s face screwed in thought.\u00a0 \u201cI think so.\u00a0 We ain\u2019t never had naught to do with \u2018em, though, have we?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cNot much.\u00a0 Just a passing acquaintance, but I\u2019m hoping to change that today.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh,\u201d Hoss said, satisfied.\u00a0 Making new friends was always a good thing, and Sunday, bein\u2019 a day of rest, was a proper time to go callin\u2019.\u00a0 \u201cThey ain\u2019t got no kids, have they?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle girl, maybe a year old,\u201d Ben answered and then laughed at the look on both his sons\u2019 faces.\u00a0 Obviously, neither of them considered a girl of that age a worthy playmate.\u00a0 As he reined up before the Nevers\u2019 house, he suddenly wondered if having the boys along was such a good idea, after all.\u00a0 It was purely coincidence that this Sunday had been his turn to visit the Thomases in Virginia City and purely convenient to swing by Nevers\u2019 ranch on the way home.\u00a0 However, the convergence of those two purities automatically put the boys in the wagon with him, and that could be either blessing or curse, depending on how this afternoon\u2019s business went.\u00a0 Having them there made this seem more like a social call, but he didn\u2019t want Hoss and, especially, Little Joe to get an earful if Sam Nevers wasn\u2019t in a particularly friendly frame of mind after a visit from Sheriff Read.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s knock brought Nevers himself to the door.\u00a0 \u201cSam,\u201d Ben said in as amiable a tone as he could muster past the lump in his throat, \u201cwe were on our way home from seeing other friends and thought we might stop in to visit with you a few minutes, if you can spare the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nevers was caught speechless for a moment by the sight of the two youngsters on either side of Ben Cartwright.\u00a0 Then he started to say something, but was cut off by the appearance of an amiable woman in her early thirties with a curly-headed child perched on her hip.<\/p>\n

\u201cAsk \u2018em in, Sam,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cWe don\u2019t get so much company that I\u2019m like to turn any away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Nevers held the door open and gestured inside with a tilt of his head.<\/p>\n

Ben had experienced warmer welcomes in his time, but he took the invitation at face value, removing his hat as he entered.<\/p>\n

\u201cMake yourself to home,\u201d the woman said.\u00a0 \u201cI think there might be some coffee left in the pot.\u201d\u00a0 She started toward the kitchen.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, none for me, thanks,\u201d Ben said quickly.\u00a0 \u201cI just wanted a quick word with Sam, and then we\u2019ll be on our way.\u00a0 Still a long drive home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe the younguns would like some of your lemon criss-cross cookies,\u201d her husband suggested.<\/p>\n

Despite the wide slice of cake he\u2019d consumed at Aunt Nelly\u2019s, Hoss\u2019s face lit up in anticipation.\u00a0 \u201cYes, ma\u2019am!\u201d he cried.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss,\u201d Ben chided, the redness of his face finally bringing a grin to the face of his host.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy Mary\u2019s lemon criss-cross ain\u2019t to be missed,\u201d Sam said.\u00a0 \u201cLet the boys go along with her, and then say what you got to say.\u201d\u00a0 It was Nevers, however, who spoke first, once the boys had disappeared into the other room.\u00a0 \u201cI never touched your cattle,\u201d he said soberly, with a tinge of bitterness.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never thought you did, Sam,\u201d Ben said softly, \u201cand I\u2019m sorry the sheriff felt it necessary to bother you about it.\u00a0 He just felt it was his duty to question anyone involved in that cattle deal with FortChurchill.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nevers shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon it was, but it bothered me considerable to think you had such a low opinion of me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot at all,\u201d Ben assured him.\u00a0 \u201cI told Sheriff Read I didn\u2019t think it could be you, but he . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHad to do his duty,\u201d Sam finished.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I\u2019m glad you came by and straightened that out, Ben.\u00a0 Always like to be on good terms with my neighbors, even kind of distant ones.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs do I,\u201d Ben agreed, \u201cbut I stopped by with a more specific purpose, a matter of business, if you don\u2019t object to discussing it on the Sabbath.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI try to keep the day holy,\u201d Nevers said, \u201cbut I reckon the good Lord understands how things are out here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll make it brief,\u201d Ben said, \u201cand let you get back to your day of rest.\u201d\u00a0 He leaned forward, his hands dropping between his knees.\u00a0 \u201cFact of the matter is, this sorry business has left me short of beef to supply the Army.\u00a0 Back when we thought Pike had won the bid, you and I both offered to step in if the Army discovered it needed more beef than he could supply.\u00a0 Now it\u2019s me that can\u2019t supply what\u2019s needed, and I\u2019m wondering if you\u2019d still be willing to step in and help me meet that contract.\u00a0 You\u2019d have to accept the price per head that I agreed to\u2014less than you originally bid, I presume\u2014but you can have the full price, same as if you\u2019d contracted the beef yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou won\u2019t make any profit on my beeves that way,\u201d Nevers pointed out.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ben admitted, \u201cbut I will demonstrate to the Army that they can depend on me to meet my obligations, and that could stand me in good stead in future negotiations.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not,\u2019\u201d Nevers recited.<\/p>\n

Recognizing the quote from Psalm 15, Ben replied, \u201cExactly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFeel the same way about my good name,\u201d Nevers said, \u201cand I\u2019ll be pleased to help you save yours\u201d\u2014he grinned\u2014\u201cat a tidy profit to me, I might add.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGlad it can be that way.\u201d\u00a0 With a warm smile Ben extended his hand.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll seal the deal with a handshake, then\u2014and a couple of Mary\u2019s famous lemon criss-cross cookies.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere you go, tryin\u2019 to sweeten the deal for yourself again,\u201d Sam chuckled as he took firm hold of Ben\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n

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

August was almost over by the time Ben had put together a herd large enough to accommodate the Army\u2019s contract.\u00a0 He\u2019d felt it necessary to make an extra ride over to FortChurchill and inform Colonel Conner of his recent loss in cattle and make certain that the substitution of Sam Nevers\u2019 animals, as well as a few head from another neighbor, would be acceptable.\u00a0 Colonel Conner agreed, so long as the cattle were of equal quality to Ben\u2019s own.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s smile had been colored with both pride and rue.\u00a0 \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say equal quality, sir,\u201d he\u2019d said, \u201csince I believe Ponderosa beef to be the best in the territory, but they\u2019re good stock, close to that standard.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thankfully, the colonel had taken the remark as being pure pride and merely laughed in response.\u00a0 He\u2019d sobered, however, when he asked whether Ben had ascertained the perpetrator of the decimation.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot definitely,\u201d Ben had answered cautiously.\u00a0 \u201cSheriff Read of WashoeCounty questioned a couple of men and definitely suspects one, but has no proof to warrant bringing charges.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPike?\u201d the colonel suggested.<\/p>\n

Unwilling to accuse any man without solid evidence, Ben had merely shrugged in response.\u00a0 Sheriff Read had, indeed, said of Pike, \u201cHe\u2019s your man.\u00a0 Can\u2019t prove it, but at least he knows he\u2019s being watched now.\u00a0 Hopefully, that\u2019ll slack his appetite for further mischief.\u201d\u00a0 Ben fervently hoped so, too, but he had still insisted on keeping his sons close to home.<\/p>\n

Even that precaution would have to end soon, however, for school was scheduled the begin the first of September.\u00a0 Ben had, of course, intended to enroll his youngest personally before leaving for FortChurchill, but with the recent upheaval putting him behind schedule, he felt he couldn\u2019t spare the time.\u00a0 The night before school was to start, he took Hoss aside and explained the change in plans.\u00a0 \u201cYou think you can manage getting your little brother enrolled and settled in?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir, sure I can,\u201d Hoss assured him, \u201cand I\u2019ll make sure no one messes with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled as he tousled the boy\u2019s sandy hair.\u00a0 \u201cNow, who would mess with such a small fish, hmm?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss pressed his lips together and, when his father turned away, shook his head.\u00a0 Old as Pa was, it had probably been a powerful long time since he was in school, \u2018cause he\u2019d sure forgot how rough a schoolyard could get, especially for small fish.\u00a0 Pa might not think so, but Hoss figured his little brother might need more protecting from schoolyard bullies than he ever would from that ole Pike feller Pa\u2019d fretted so over.<\/p>\n

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

Little Joe all but bounced down the stairs the next morning.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s go, Hoss,\u201d he demanded.<\/p>\n

Hoss scowled at him from the table.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t finished my breakfast yet, and you ain\u2019t even started yours.\u00a0 What you so all-fired eager to get to school for, anyway?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe planted both fists on his waist.\u00a0 \u201cI been waitin\u2019 just forever, my whole long life!\u201d he declared.\u00a0 \u201c\u2018Sides, don\u2019t Pa always tell you to get there on time?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOn time!\u201d Hoss sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cIf we take off now, we\u2019ll be there \u2018most an hour early!\u00a0 Now, sit down and eat them eggs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t hungry,\u201d Little Joe insisted, although the eggs were starting to look pretty good.<\/p>\n

\u201cEat \u2018em anyway,\u201d Hoss ordered.\u00a0 \u201cWe ain\u2019t startin\u2019 out the day by making Hop Sing mad.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d Little Joe said, only half as reluctant as he sounded.\u00a0 He sat down and scooped up a huge spoonful of scrambled egg.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd don\u2019t gulp \u2018em down in two bites, neither,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cChew before you swallow.\u00a0 Pa always says that, too. \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay.\u201d\u00a0 The younger boy sounded perturbed, but complied with the direction, at least for that first mouthful.\u00a0 \u201cPa took off early again, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe, you know he\u2019s gotta,\u201d Hoss explained with strained patience, for he\u2019d had this conversation before.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s got a powerful lot of work to catch up on.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe gave his eggs a grudging push.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t like him bein\u2019 gone so much, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s expression softened.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, me neither, but it ain\u2019t gonna be much longer, punkin.\u00a0 By the time you finish your first week of school, or maybe a mite longer, that cattle drive\u2019ll be over and Pa\u2019ll come home.\u201d\u00a0 Still disappointed about missing the drive himself, he sighed softly and then quickly covered it.\u00a0 \u201cBetter finish up,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cReckon we should leave some early, after all, since I gotta enroll you first thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d Little Joe said, brightening again and scooping up a spoonful of eggs exactly the size he\u2019d been admonished against moments before.\u00a0 He cleaned his plate in record time and announced, \u201cLet\u2019s go, Hoss!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right, all right; keep your shirt on.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss grabbed up two biscuits and some bacon to stuff in them and headed toward the door, where his younger brother was already thrusting his arms through his jacket.<\/p>\n

\u201cWait, wait!\u201d\u00a0 Hop Sing shuffled quickly toward them and thrust two round tin pails toward the boys.\u00a0 \u201cYou no forget lunch.\u00a0 Must eat good, for study good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss grinned as he took firm, loving hold of his lunch pail after passing the shiny new one to his brother.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t forget that!\u00a0 Your lunches are the best part of goin\u2019 to school, Hop Sing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat right,\u201d the Chinaman said, head bobbing at this confirmation of his firm belief that a good meal made everything better.\u00a0 \u201cYou be good boys for Hop Sing and honorable father, yes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir, sure will,\u201d Hoss promised.<\/p>\n

He and Joe walked to the barn, where Hoss saddled Charcoal and tied the lunch pails on with leather straps before swinging his little brother into the saddle and leading the horse into the yard.\u00a0 He mounted behind Joe and walked the horse out toward the road.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t you make him go any faster, Hoss?\u201d the younger boy complained.<\/p>\n

Hoss snuffled.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s your hurry? \u00a0That school ain\u2019t goin\u2019 noplace.\u00a0 Maybe I oughta smarten you up some, little brother,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cSchool ain\u2019t as much fun as you think.\u00a0 It\u2019s just plain hard work most of the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam likes it,\u201d Little Joe argued.\u00a0 \u201cHe likes it so much he\u2019s still<\/em> goin\u2019 to school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss rolled his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s \u2018cause Adam\u2019s smart.\u00a0 Learnin\u2019 comes easy to him.\u201d\u00a0 He suddenly remembered how Mama had hated for him to downmouth school to Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201c\u2018Course, you\u2019re a smart little whippersnapper, too,\u201d he said in a quick about-face, \u201cso maybe you will like school.\u201d<\/p>\n

When the Cartwright brothers finally arrived at the Franktown schoolhouse, Little Joe abruptly lost all his eagerness to go to school.\u00a0 The simple building seemed suddenly overwhelming, and Little Joe hung back behind Hoss, who was amazed by his younger brother\u2019s unexpected and unnatural attack of timidity.\u00a0 Hoss practically dragged the youngster up to the teacher\u2019s desk to introduce him.\u00a0 \u201cThis here\u2019s my little brother, Miss Appleton,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Warm mud-brown eyes shining, Lucinda Appleton smiled at the youngster.\u00a0 She drew out her register book and asked, \u201cWhat is your name, young man?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe,\u201d the new scholar answered, flashing her an endearing grin.<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean your full name,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n

Little Joe sent a puzzled look toward Hoss, who answered for him.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s Joseph, Miss Appleton.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph Cartwright?\u201d she asked.\u00a0 \u201cNo middle name?\u201d\u00a0 She expected none, since Hoss\u2019s only formal name was Eric.<\/p>\n

Hoss flushed.\u00a0 \u201cUh, no, ma\u2019am, he\u2019s got another handle; it\u2019s\u2014uh\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all right if you don\u2019t remember, Hoss,\u201d his teacher said kindly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI \u2018member,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s just sort of hard to say. \u00a0It\u2019s Franswus or somethin\u2019 like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFrancis?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n

Close enough, Hoss figured, and not near as likely to cause problems for the little feller as that Frenchified name Ma had stuck him with.\u00a0 He only hoped she\u2014or Pa, for that matter\u2014would forgive him.\u00a0 He fretted over it all through the day until Pa got in, just before suppertime and then openly confessed what he\u2019d done.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t mean no harm, Pa,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cI just couldn\u2019t say it the right way, and, well, it does sound more American the way Miss Appleton put it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s mouth twitched as he leaned back in his desk chair.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not sure his mother would approve, but I have a feeling it\u2019s all for the best, son.\u00a0 Joseph Francis Cartwright it is, then.\u201d\u00a0 As a relieved Hoss ran off, Ben shrugged toward the framed portrait of his third wife.\u00a0 \u201cSorry, Marie,\u201d he said with a chuckle, \u201cbut this is one battle you\u2019re not going to win.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

Ben left the next morning, before the boys were even up, and drove the herd to the place he and Sam Nevers had agreed to combine their herds.\u00a0 He was glad he\u2019d thought to ask his neighbor for help, for Sam brought along his crew, too.\u00a0 That meant that they had more men than they needed, just to push the cattle down the trail, and could post some further out to watch for anyone who might try a repetition of the previous decimation.\u00a0 Hopefully, the drive to FortChurchill would be straightforward and uneventful.<\/p>\n

Back in Franktown, however, a small war was being waged.\u00a0 The first skirmish, such as it was, started the second day of school.\u00a0 Hoss was still keeping Little Joe close to him, whenever they weren\u2019t in the classroom, so the younger boy was eating lunch with Hoss\u2019s friends that day.\u00a0 Joe O\u2019Neill, who always liked to tease, said, \u201cHow\u2019d you ever manage to get yourself such a little brother, Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

George Winters, catching the jist of the joke, spoke up before Hoss could say anything, \u201cHoss probably grabs all the food before the little \u2018un gets a chance.\u201d\u00a0 Joe and his brother Robert, along with their other constant companion, Pete Hanson, all snickered, and it bothered Little Joe until he glanced up and saw Hoss grinning good-naturedly.\u00a0 Feeling no harm had been meant, the younger boy settled back to enjoy his sandwich and apple.<\/p>\n

That afternoon at recess, however, Little Joe ran off to play with youngsters his own age.\u00a0 He was playing a game of hide-and-seek and thought he\u2019d found a good hiding place, but someone not in the game spotted him and sauntered over.\u00a0 Towering over the youngster, Walter Grogan taunted, \u201cYour brother sure is fat, ain\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe cocked his head and stared intently at the bigger boy.\u00a0 He looked serious, but maybe he just hid his teasing better than the younger kids.\u00a0 \u201cNo, he ain\u2019t,\u201d he said slowly.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s just big and strong.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walter snorted.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s fat,\u201d he spat out, \u201cand dumb, too, dumber than an ox.\u00a0 Reckon the fat all goes to his head and clogs up his brains.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s eyes narrowed, and his lips pursed.\u00a0 \u201cYou take that back!\u201d he demanded, doubling both fists.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou gonna make me, inchworm?\u201d\u00a0 Walter threw back his head and roared with laughter.<\/p>\n

That was enough for Little Joe.\u00a0 Having undauntedly wrestled with both Adam and Hoss at home, he paid no attention to his taunter\u2019s greater size, but began pummelling Walter\u2019s belly with all the power he possessed.\u00a0 The diminutive fists didn\u2019t make a dent.\u00a0 Unlike his brothers, however, who generally laughed off Little Joe\u2019s angry assaults, Walter swung back with enough force to knock down a boy twice Joe\u2019s size.\u00a0 Just then, the boy who\u2019d been \u201cit\u201d in the game of hide-and-seek caught sight of them and hollered, \u201cFight!\u00a0 Fight!\u201d loud enough to bring everyone within earshot running.<\/p>\n

At first Hoss didn\u2019t see his brother sprawled on the ground, but he did see Walter Grogan and knew from experience that whoever he was fighting would be someone smaller.\u00a0 As he had reason to know, Walt was a bully, through and through, and while Hoss tried to restrain himself from fighting, he wasn\u2019t about to let Walt beat up on some little kid, especially when he realized just who that little kid was.\u00a0 \u201cLay off him, Walt,\u201d Hoss ordered, running up before the bigger boy could take a second punch.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou gonna make me?\u201d Walt snarled.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I gotta,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 Seeing Little Joe scramble to his feet, Hoss stepped between him and Walter.<\/p>\n

Grogan gave Hoss his most menacing scowl, but the determination on Hoss\u2019s face didn\u2019t fade.\u00a0 Looking the other boy up and down, Grogan realized that the boy he had bullied last year had done some growing over the summer and didn\u2019t look nearly as easy to take as he had the previous fall.\u00a0 He took a step back.\u00a0 \u201cAw, he ain\u2019t worth it, a little runt like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe lunged forward, but Hoss hauled him back.\u00a0 \u201cSettle down,\u201d he ordered, and when he felt the boy still struggling in his arms, he dragged him away to administer a stern scolding in private.\u00a0 \u201cWhat you thinkin\u2019, Joe, fightin\u2019 someone that much bigger\u2019n you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe said you were fat and dumb, and he called me an inchworm!\u201d Little Joe yelled.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat ain\u2019t worth fightin\u2019 about,\u201d Hoss said, \u201cso don\u2019t you never let me catch you carryin\u2019 on like that at school.\u00a0 Pa don\u2019t like it, and he\u2019d probably whup you good if he found out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou gonna tell?\u201d Little Joe asked, fret lines forming on his forehead.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, of course not,\u201d Hoss said, looking indignant at the suggestion.\u00a0 Then he gave his little brother a stern look.\u00a0 \u201cNot unless I have to,\u201d he amended.\u00a0 \u201cYou just keep away from Walt Grogan.\u00a0 He\u2019s a real troublemaker, so you stay out of his way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut he said you were dumb,\u201d Little Joe explained with an angry pout.\u00a0 \u201cYou ain\u2019t dumb, Hoss.\u00a0 You\u2019re smarter\u2019n anyone I know, \u2018ceptin\u2019 Pa and, maybe, Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAw, shucks,\u201d Hoss said, flushing.\u00a0 He knew, of course, that his little brother\u2019s opinion was highly biased and a long way from accurate, but it made him feel good, anyway.\u00a0 Just then, the school bell rang, announcing time to come in for the afternoon session, so Hoss took his brother\u2019s hand and led him back inside.<\/p>\n

In spite of Hoss\u2019s warning, Little Joe participated in a couple more small fights that first week of school, always in defense of his brother\u2019s honor.\u00a0 Hoss, who had waged an arduous inner battle to learn not to defend himself with his fists, felt humiliated by having so small a champion; but in spite of himself, he was pleased by his younger brother\u2019s display of fierce love and loyalty.\u00a0 For the sake of his own pride and his brother\u2019s safety, however, Hoss continued to try to keep Little Joe from fighting, with a disheartening lack of success.\u00a0 Little Joe had a fiery temper, easily triggered by any disparagement of the big brother he idolized, and he saw no reason whatsoever to restrain it.\u00a0 Hoss repeated to Joe all the arguments Ben had successfully used when he had first experienced the taunts of his schoolmates, but they had little effect on his stubborn little brother.<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s attitude encouraged attack, and boys who were afraid to arouse huge Hoss soon learned\u00a0 how easily they could start a fight with Hoss\u2019s younger brother.\u00a0 Some who felt no animosity whatsoever toward Hoss teased Little Joe because it struck their funny bones to see such a little boy fly into a rage.\u00a0 Vigilant Hoss was usually able to stop these skirmishes before Little Joe was actually harmed.\u00a0 In fact, most of Joe\u2019s mockers, while they enjoyed arousing his temper, were not really interested in hurting him, and so far, not even Miss Appleton was aware of the minor scuffles going on out in the schoolyard.\u00a0 As for Pa, Hoss could only hope that by the time he got home, any telltale bruises would have faded to nothing noticeable.<\/p>\n

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

September 10th<\/sup>\u2014four days past his birthday, but Ben felt like celebrating as he rode into Carson City. \u00a0Despite the delay, the drive had gone well.\u00a0 Maybe Pike, or whoever else had perpetrated the initial attack, felt he\u2019d done enough damage, or perhaps he\u2019d seen the posted guards and considered the risk of a second assault too great.\u00a0 Either way, he and Nevers had delivered the herd within the deadline, without a single loss, and had reaped a gratifying profit, which Ben deposited with Wells, Fargo as soon as he reached town.<\/p>\n

He was anxious to get home to his sons, of course, but it was growing late and he was tired.\u00a0 Besides, he wanted to check on Marta, to see how things were coming along and to make sure she had everything she needed.\u00a0 She might even have already had her baby; if so, he certainly wanted to pay a brief visit and see what blessing the stork had brought.\u00a0 Hopefully, Paul Martin wasn\u2019t tending the sick, and he\u2019d be able to have a belated birthday beer with his friend and, perhaps, borrow a bed for the night.\u00a0 If not, he was feeling rich enough to splurge on a room at the reportedly stylish St. Charles Hotel.\u00a0 It had begun construction on April Fools Day and, hopefully, was now open for business, and if it weren\u2019t, there were older hotels and restaurants that could meet the same need.<\/p>\n

He stopped by the Martin house first, in hopes of catching them before Sally started supper.\u00a0 If he were going to invite himself to a night\u2019s lodging, the least he could do was invite the two of them to dinner.\u00a0 Tie it in to his birthday celebration, and there was no way they could refuse.\u00a0 However, no one responded to his knock, and there was not a single light within.\u00a0 Odd<\/em>, he thought.\u00a0 While the sun was only beginning to set, he knew that Dr. Martin considered good light important to the examination of any patient.\u00a0 Paul might easily be making a house call, but Sally, at least, should be home at this hour.\u00a0 Then he chided himself for the foolish presumption that he was their only friend.\u00a0 They might easily be having dinner with some other Carson City resident or even at a local restaurant.<\/p>\n

Well, if he hurried, perhaps he could extend the same invitation to Billy and Marta, instead. \u00a0Goodness knows, a young couple just starting out weren\u2019t likely to eat out often, and if Billy were gone on a Pony run, a night out might be just the cheering up a lonely wife needed.\u00a0 Even if she had prepared some dab of food for herself, she could just save it back for the next day and share a bit of her Uncle Ben\u2019s good fortune.\u00a0 Yes, that\u2019s just how he\u2019d put it to her, if she balked at the invitation.<\/p>\n

As he approached the small house, however, he spotted a young man seated on the porch steps, head in his hands.\u00a0 \u201cBilly?\u201d he called.\u00a0 \u201cHey!\u00a0 Good to find you at home, son.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy raised his head, and Ben saw a pair of fear-frozen blue eyes.\u00a0 \u201cUncle Ben!\u201d he cried, jumping to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cAm I glad to see you!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is it?\u00a0 What\u2019s wrong?\u201d Ben asked with a father\u2019s instinct for trouble.<\/p>\n

\u201cWrong?\u201d\u00a0 Billy gasped out a broken laugh pitched about an octave above his usual range.\u00a0 \u201cWhat could possibly be wrong?\u00a0 Tell me nothing is!\u201d<\/p>\n

Reaching the porch, Ben grasped the young man\u2019s shaking shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cBuck up, boy,\u201d he ordered, \u201cand tell me what\u2019s\u2014\u201d\u00a0 Suddenly, a cry of pain shattered the air, and he knew that a new husband\u2019s hardest hour was upon them.\u00a0 The grip turned into a consoling massage of tense shoulder muscles.\u00a0 \u201cEasy now, son.\u00a0 Nothing\u2019s wrong; of course, nothing\u2019s wrong, and bad as it sounds, it\u2019ll be over soon.\u00a0 Anyone with her?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDoc\u2014and Sally,\u201d Billy sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cKicked me out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTypical,\u201d Ben commisserated.\u00a0 And in a house as small as the young Thomases\u2019, out, apparently, meant all the way out.\u00a0 Motioning toward the step, he sat down himself as an example to the younger man. \u00a0Billy plopped down beside him, and to Ben, nothing had ever shouted as plainly as the silent finger-raking of his already askew red hair that what Billy felt for Marta was the anxious concern of true love.<\/p>\n

He smiled at the thought, but he was tired, and his mind soon drifted to more practical matters, like the growing growl in his stomach.\u00a0 So much for his taking even himself out to dinner!\u00a0 At this rate, he wasn\u2019t likely to taste a single bite tonight, and if this vigil lasted as long as the one for Marta\u2019s older sister had, he might find himself spending the night on this doorstep, instead of in a comfortable bed at a hotel.\u00a0 So much for his birthday celebration!\u00a0 Right now, he\u2019d settle for a pallet in the Thomas parlor-kitchen, though the sound of a woman in travail wasn\u2019t likely to induce sleep.<\/p>\n

\u201cTold your folks yet?\u201d Ben asked when the silence grew burdensome.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood glory, no, Uncle Ben!\u201d Billy sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cI can\u2019t leave Marta long enough to traipse up to Virginia City!\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben rolled his eyes and observed dryly, \u201cRemarkable new device they\u2019ve come up with.\u201d\u00a0 Then, seeing that Billy hadn\u2019t understood his wry comment, he said plainly, \u201cThe telegraph.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah.\u201d\u00a0 Billy jumped up.\u00a0 \u201cReckon I ought to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSit down,\u201d Ben ordered gruffly.\u00a0 \u201cThis is not the time to desert your ship, captain.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben decided to save nautical metaphors for a less distracted audience.\u00a0 \u201cIf you want a telegram sent, I\u2019ll do it for you, but at this point you might as well wait until you have more news to send.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMore news?\u201d Billy babbled.\u00a0 \u201cAin\u2019t a baby enough?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben exhaled his exasperation.\u00a0 \u201cBoy or girl, maybe?\u00a0 You can fit that in ten words, surely.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah.\u201d\u00a0 Billy dropped back to the porch.\u00a0 \u201cGuess we oughta wait for that . . . if\u2019n it ain\u2019t much longer, I mean.\u00a0 Hate to get deeper in Ma\u2019s disgraces by puttin\u2019 it off too long.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sighing, Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cWhich means, I presume, that you still haven\u2019t had a very pertinent conversation with your parents.\u201d<\/p>\n

Billy\u2019s finger circled a knothole in the porch step.\u00a0 \u201cUh, no, \u2018fraid not.\u00a0 Never seemed like the right time.\u201d<\/p>\n

And it never will<\/em>, Ben realized.\u00a0 He straightened up and fixed his most paternal frown on Billy.\u00a0 \u201cNo more dawdling, young man.\u00a0 You\u2019re not likely to find a better time that while she holds your baby in her arms.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy baby.\u201d\u00a0 Ben could barely hear the wistful, awe-filled whisper.\u00a0 \u201cMe, a pa.\u00a0 Never thought I\u2019d ever\u201d\u2014overwhelmed, Billy broke off.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t say I ever thought you\u2019d ever, either,\u201d Ben joked and was relieved to see the young man beside him flash a nervous grin.<\/p>\n

Another husband-harrowing cry ripped through the door.\u00a0 White-knuckled grip on the step tightening, Billy asked, \u201cOver soon, you said?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I can\u2019t promise,\u201d Ben replied, remembering the long siege at the Montgomery cabin.\u00a0 \u201cThey say first babies tend to take longer than later ones, but I never had anything but first babies, so I can\u2019t really say.\u201d\u00a0 Technically, Little Joe had been Marie\u2019s second child, but Ben didn\u2019t bother to correct the inadvertant misstatement.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat ain\u2019t much help, Uncle Ben,\u201d Billy chided.<\/p>\n

Ben shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cSorry, son; best I can do.\u201d\u00a0 What he wouldn\u2019t have given at that moment for Nelly Thomas or Ludmilla or even young Katerina to come riding up!\u00a0 Of course, knowing women, they\u2019d all have been inside, hovering over Marta, instead of bolstering up the one who really needed their support.<\/p>\n

Marta\u2019s strong<\/em>, he mused.\u00a0 She can handle a long labor<\/em>, but he found himself praying that she wouldn\u2019t have to. \u00a0She\u2019s already fought more battles for her baby than most<\/em>, Lord.\u00a0 Couldn\u2019t You see fit to shorten this siege for her?<\/em>\u00a0 He chuckled, so softly that the distracted Billy didn\u2019t notice.\u00a0 For her?\u00a0 More like, for Billy; for me, for that matter<\/em>.<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t think it likely that the Almighty would honor so selfish a request, so the infant\u2019s first cry took him completely by surprise.\u00a0 Of course, he had no idea how long Marta had been in labor before he arrived, but he, at least, had not been waiting here as long as he had for little Marta Marie\u2019s arrival.\u00a0 He clapped Billy on the back and clasped his hand in a hearty handshake.\u00a0 It was a good thing his grip was strong; otherwise, Billy would have immediately dashed inside.\u00a0 \u201cSoon,\u201d Ben promised as he held the young father back.\u00a0 \u201cSoon.\u201d<\/p>\n

And, sure enough, it wasn\u2019t long before Dr. Martin came out onto the porch.\u00a0 \u201cBen!\u00a0 Didn\u2019t know you were here.\u201d\u00a0 Then, bringing himself back to his duty, he announced with a look of proud satisfaction, \u201cYou have a fine, healthy son, Billy.\u00a0 Congratulations!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMarta?\u201d the new father panted out.<\/p>\n

\u201cFine, fine,\u201d the doctor assured him.\u00a0 \u201cGive Sally a few minutes to get everything squared away inside, and you can see both of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the meantime, I\u2019ll go send that telegram for you,\u201d Ben offered.\u00a0 \u201cGonna get myself a bite to eat while I\u2019m out.\u00a0 Can I bring anything back for the rest of you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSally\u2019s got a soup simmering for Marta,\u201d the doctor said, \u201cbut if you can hold off on that meal until I\u2019m finished here, I\u2019ll join you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d like that,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cHow about you, Billy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh?\u00a0 Oh, no, thanks.\u00a0 I\u2019ll stay here, have some soup with Marta,\u201d the young man replied.<\/p>\n

The doctor chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cGood choice.\u00a0 Best thing for new mothers and nervous fathers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sally came to the door and told Billy he could come in.\u00a0 Dr. Martin followed them both back into the house, and Ben walked to the telegraph office at Carson and 3rd<\/sup> Street to send a wire to the elder Thomases in Virginia City, as well as one to Stef\u00e1n and Ludmilla in Placerville.\u00a0 He\u2019d stop by the next morning, on his way home, and give the news to Enos and Katerina, since a telegram couldn\u2019t get it to them any quicker.<\/p>\n

By the time he returned, Dr. Martin felt that he could leave his patient, but he told Ben that Marta wanted to see him before they left.\u00a0 As he entered the bedroom, Marta uncovered the baby and said, \u201cWhat do you think, Uncle Ben?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBeautiful, just like his mother,\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

She laughed lightly.\u00a0 \u201cI think he\u2019s beautiful, too, but that\u2019s not what I meant.\u201d\u00a0 More soberly, she asked, \u201cWill he pass?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs your son and Billy\u2019s?\u201d\u00a0 Ben cocked his head and tried to scrutinize the infant with the eyes of a gossipy female.\u00a0 The baby looked nothing like Billy, of course.\u00a0 The fiery hair of the Thomas clan was missing, and the eyes were dark brown, rather than their typical blue.\u00a0 The dark fuzz covering the small head was nothing like Marta\u2019s fair hair, either, but there was still something familiar in the features.\u00a0 \u201cYou know, he looks a bit like Fredrich to me,\u201d Ben finally concluded.<\/p>\n

Marta smiled in relief.\u00a0 \u201cDo you really think so, Uncle Ben?\u00a0 That would please me so much!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo we could say the youngun takes after his grandpa, if anyone questions us, right?\u201d Billy put in.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think you legitimately could,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 Then he arched an eyebrow at the young man, whose natural ebullience had snapped back into place.\u00a0 \u201cTo casual acquaintances,\u201d he added firmly.\u00a0 \u201cFamily should know the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd they will.\u201d\u00a0 This time the promise came from Marta.\u00a0 \u201cNow that no one can tear us apart, I\u2019d like to live honest, Billy, except to outsiders.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho got no right to know.\u201d\u00a0 Billy nodded his affirmation.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll live honest\u2014to family and real friends.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, then,\u201d Ben said, beaming his satisfaction with their decision.\u00a0 \u201cHave you thought of what to call this little lad?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know exactly,\u201d Marta said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve known ever since Billy asked me to marry him.\u201d\u00a0 She looked toward her husband.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I will have my way on this.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour baby, your choice,\u201d Billy was quick to say.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur baby,\u201d she corrected softly.\u00a0 \u201cOur baby, William Benjamin Thomas, after the two men that have given him the love and acceptance he needs to grow up right.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, wow,\u201d Billy murmured, overcome, while Ben smiled warmly and said, \u201cYou do us great honor, my dear.\u00a0 We\u2019ll try to be worthy of it, won\u2019t we, Billy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are worthy of it,\u201d Marta insisted, and this time she had eyes only for the man who had given her child a legitimate name.<\/p>\n

Ben slipped quietly from the room and joined Dr. Martin in the small parlor-kitchen.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m famished,\u201d he announced.\u00a0 \u201cHow about you?\u00a0 I\u2019m buying.\u201d<\/p>\n

The doctor laughed.\u00a0 \u201cNormally, I\u2019d settle for the soup, but I can\u2019t afford to miss an opportunity like that!\u00a0 You do this every time someone names a baby after you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReason enough to celebrate,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut I\u2019d already planned this, in honor of my birthday, just past, and I\u2019m inviting you in appreciation for the bed I\u2019m confident you\u2019re going to offer me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paul Martin called out to Sally that he\u2019d return soon and threw an arm around his friend\u2019s shoulders as they walked out together.\u00a0 \u201cI think Sally\u2019s planning to stay here tonight, just in case Marta needs anything,\u201d he said, \u201cso you\u2019re welcome to her bed, instead of sharing mine or borrowing one in my sickroom.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSounds good.\u201d\u00a0 Since he\u2019d noticed that the St. Charles was dark when he\u2019d gone to the telegraph that stood at the same intersection, Ben directed them toward the Alcove Restaurant, where they had a satisfying supper and that long-awaited birthday toast.<\/p>\n

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

Ben had originally planned to ride home the next morning, but just before retiring, he concluded that there was no real reason to hurry.\u00a0 After all, the boys would already be at school by the time he reached the Ponderosa, so he couldn\u2019t see them until that afternoon, anyway.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t intended to do anything his first day back except bring the bookwork up to date, and he was always happy to find a reason\u2014well, call it what it was: an excuse\u2014to put that off.\u00a0 Certainly, a new namesake to dandle on his knee was excuse enough to delay his departure an hour or so.\u00a0 That decision made, he granted himself the unaccustomed luxury of sleeping in.<\/p>\n

Dr. Martin was already at work by the time he arose and stumbled into the kitchen in hopes of finding a cup of coffee.\u00a0 He found Sally there, as well, and asked her how the new mother was doing.<\/p>\n

\u201cBetter than the new father,\u201d Sally said with a laugh.\u00a0 \u201cWe did finally get him to hold his own child after assuring him for the better part of half an hour this morning that the boy wouldn\u2019t break.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cBilly\u2019s still home, then?\u00a0 I\u2019d thought he might have a Pony run scheduled, since he was, apparently, off yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe said something about having an understanding with one of the other riders to take his run whenever the baby came,\u201d Sally explained.\u00a0 \u201cI know Marta\u2019s thrilled to have him with her these first couple of days.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, that\u2019s always best,\u201d Ben said, eyes misting.\u00a0 He\u2019d had that opportunity with Inger and Marie, but his time with Elizabeth after Adam\u2019s birth had been cut short and he\u2019d always regretted it.\u00a0 \u201cThought I might drop by and see the little lad one more time before I head home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure they\u2019ll be pleased,\u201d Sally said.\u00a0 \u201cRemind Billy to check on that roast I put in the oven for them, would you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI will,\u201d Ben promised.\u00a0 \u201cI think I\u2019ll just walk around town awhile, see how it\u2019s growing before I head over there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLet me get you some breakfast first,\u201d Sally offered.<\/p>\n

Ben tried to refuse, saying that he could easily grab a bite at a local eatery, but Sally insisted that she be given a chance to show off her cooking, \u201ceven if it doesn\u2019t come up to Mrs. Thomas\u2019s standard.\u201d\u00a0 Ben gave in graciously and declared her bacon, eggs and biscuits as good as he\u2019d had anywhere.\u00a0 He kissed her cheek in thanks and, since the doctor\u2019s office was already filled with waiting patients, asked her to thank her father for the night\u2019s lodging before heading out for his leisurely stroll around Carson City.<\/p>\n

Though the town was growing, it still didn\u2019t take long to cover its commercial area.\u00a0 Passing the site of the St. Charles, Ben noticed that it wasn\u2019t open yet, although the exterior appeared complete.\u00a0 Probably taking care of finishing touches inside<\/em>, Ben surmised.\u00a0 On impulse, he turned into Rosenstock and Price, which carried a full range of boys\u2019 clothing.\u00a0 Not seeing anything he wanted for his own sons, he was about to leave when he suddenly snapped his fingers.\u00a0 Of course!\u00a0 This was just the place for a gift for the new arrival.\u00a0 Picking something, predictably, took forever, but he finally decided on a pale blue baby dress, with plain tucks instead of frilly lace, to show that it was meant for a boy.<\/p>\n

Beginning to feel guilty about his long delay in getting the news to Enos and Katerina, Ben hurried toward the Thomas house, determined to keep his visit short.\u00a0 That determination dissipated the moment he saw a familiar buckboard parked outside.\u00a0 Goodness only knew what was going on inside that house right now, and he wanted no part of it! \u00a0Had it not been for the gift tucked under his arm, he might have just slipped away and set off for the Ponderosa.\u00a0 His lip curled, though, in scorn for such cowardice, so however reluctantly, he knocked on the door.<\/p>\n

Billy opened it and welcomed him in.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I wasn\u2019t expecting you\u2019d have other company this early,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t want to intrude on family.\u00a0 Just came to leave this.\u201d\u00a0 He held out the package wrapped in brown paper.<\/p>\n

Ignoring it, Billy stared at him as if he\u2019d taken leave of his senses.\u00a0 \u201cYou are family,\u201d he finally said.\u00a0 \u201cCome on in, Uncle Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a taut smile of grim determination, Ben entered.\u00a0 \u201cClyde, Nelly,\u201d he greeted the couple seated in the small parlor-kitchen.\u00a0 \u201cHadn\u2019t expected you down from Virginia City this early.\u00a0 Surprised you could take off work on such short notice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cChanged shifts with another smith,\u201d Clyde said, adding with a grin, \u201cCan\u2019t say he was much pleased to be roused so early, but he\u2019s a grandpa hisself and understood.\u00a0 Gotta leave soon, though, so\u2019s I can work his shift this afternoon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben nodded his understanding and purposed that he\u2019d be leaving the same time, if not sooner.\u00a0 Taking grip on his courage, he finally looked Nelly\u2019s direction . . . and relaxed.\u00a0 She was paying him no mind; she was paying no mind to anyone except the baby in her arms, and she was practically cooing over him.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I\u2019d hoped to dandle that little man on my own knee, but I can see there\u2019s no hope of that this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cMight be, if\u2019n you stay long enough, but I reckon my grandson is just where he needs to be for a good while to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLooks real natural there,\u201d Ben said, at the same time throwing a chiding side glance at Billy.<\/p>\n

The young father correctly interpreted it and, to Ben\u2019s surprise, said quietly, \u201cShe knows.\u201d<\/p>\n

Flint flashed from Nelly\u2019s brown eyes.\u00a0 \u201cYes, she knows, and no thanks to you, Ben Cartwright!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, thanks to me, more than you know,\u201d Ben snorted back.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve been counseling these young fools to come clean from the very beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOnly young fool here is me,\u201d Billy insisted.\u00a0 \u201cMarta sided with Uncle Ben from the get-go, Ma.\u00a0 I told you that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo you did, son; so you did,\u201d Clyde inserted, eyes fixed on his wife.<\/p>\n

Nelly gave a crisp nod.\u00a0 \u201cTrue enough.\u201d\u00a0 Looking back at Ben, she said, \u201cStill, you should have told us, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI was sworn to secrecy, and,\u201d he said, frowning at Billy, \u201cI was persuaded this conversation would happen much sooner than it did.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUh, yeah,\u201d Billy sputtered.\u00a0 \u201cWell, that\u2019s my fault, too.\u00a0 I just wanted things peaceful while Marta was carryin\u2019 the child.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly\u2019s expression softened.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s the first thing you\u2019ve said that makes any sense.\u201d\u00a0 She rubbed noses with the baby.\u00a0 \u201cWouldn\u2019t want anything bringin\u2019 risk to this little darling, would we?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cSomeone\u2019s had a sudden change of heart.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nelly blushed and pursed her lips.\u00a0 \u201cNot as sudden as it looks,\u201d she finally said.\u00a0 \u201cI-I been thinkin\u2019 on what you said, Ben, after the wedding, about loving the child for himself, no matter what I thought of the mother, and I reckon that idea\u2019s been growin\u2019 in my mind all these weeks and . . . well, the first minute I saw him, I knew the love was there, and even when Billy up and told us this morning that he ain\u2019t really our blood, I just plain couldn\u2019t turn loose of him.\u00a0 I want this boy to be my grandson . . . even though he ain\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, he is,\u201d Ben said, resting his hand on the infant\u2019s dark head.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s love, not blood, that bonds us.\u00a0 Same as with you and me, Sister Nelly.\u201d<\/p>\n

She smiled at the reminder of their old joke about being kin.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon it is, Brother Ben.\u00a0 Well, seein\u2019 as I\u2019m stayin\u2019 on to help out and will have more chances than you, maybe I could turn loose of our wee Willie long enough for you to hold him a minute.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWee Willie?\u201d\u00a0 Ben arched his eyebrow in distaste as he took the child into his arms.\u00a0 \u201cSeems to me Benjy might suit the little lad better.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clyde cackled.\u00a0 \u201cReckon you might better do what you done with Hoss: give him both names and see which sticks.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLands, we\u2019re likely to end up with something like Tadpole at that rate,\u201d Nelly scolded.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t put up with any such nonsense, Billy.\u00a0 I\u2019m gonna see if our girl needs anything.\u201d\u00a0 She stood and walked into the next room.<\/p>\n

Our girl<\/em>.\u00a0 Ben smiled at the change in phrasing.\u00a0 Evidently, Nelly\u2019s attitude toward Marta had undergone some softening over the weeks, too.\u00a0 And how could it not, when she saw the love shining between \u201cthat girl\u201dand her son?\u00a0 As he\u2019d told her only moments before, love made the bond, and once made, true love\u2019s bond was unbreakable, even by death.\u00a0 As soon as he could politely do so, he left with thoughts of those with whom he held that bond: his three loves in heaven and the three their love had produced.<\/p>\n

~ ~ ~ Notes ~ ~ ~<\/p>\n

Samuel Nevers came to EagleValley in 1857 and developed a ranch west of Carson City.\u00a0 While Rufus Pike is a fictional character, the treatment he received at FortChurchill accurately portrays that prescribed for Southern sympathizers, as someone who refused to sign the loyalty oath would be construed.<\/p>\n

T. A. Read was sheriff of WashoeCounty from 1862 to 1866.<\/p>\n

The Virginia City Pony Express was inaugurated August 11, 1862 and ran until March 17, 1865.\u00a0 It had no connection with the original Pony Express, but was entirely a Wells, Fargo service between the mining towns of Nevada and the business centers of Sacramento and San Francisco.<\/p>\n

Rosenstock and Price, merchants of custom-made clothing, mattresses, quilts, blankets and a full stock of boys\u2019 clothing, is listed in the First Nevada Directory, 1862.<\/p>\n

The St. Charles Hotel began construction on April 1, 1862, George W. Remington and Albert Muller being partners in the business with Dan Plitt, who had owned the bakery and restaurant previously on that corner.\u00a0 Its first newspaper advertisement appeared on October 1, shortly past the time of Ben\u2019s visit.\u00a0 The building, the second oldest hotel in Nevada, still stands in Carson City today.\u00a0 The Alcove Restaurant appeared in the First Directory of Nevada in 1862, but is long gone.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CHAPTER NINETEEN<\/p>\n

The Dream Divides<\/p>\n

Ben returned home that day much later than he had planned, and his hard-working New England heart at first chastised him for the unnecessary delays.\u00a0 But, then, how could the short time he\u2019d spent cradling his new little namesake be considered unnecessary?\u00a0 For that matter, how could the time spent in seeing little Benjy\u2019s\u2014Ben refused to call him anything else\u2014family reconciled be considered unnecessary?\u00a0 He\u2019d waited a long time for that rascal, Billy Thomas, to tell his parents the truth, and it was beyond gratifying to realize that his estimation of Clyde and Nelly had proven out.\u00a0 They might not like the situation, and Nelly, in particular, might still harbor some feeling that Marta had trapped her innocent son into a marriage of convenience, but no one, seeing the young couple\u2019s happiness could harbor ill feeling for long.<\/p>\n

Stopping by to tell Katerina and Enos of their new niece had been absolutely necessary, of course.\u00a0 Staying for lunch had probably not been, but Ben hadn\u2019t had the heart to say no.\u00a0 After all, what was waiting for him at home, except that pile of neglected bookwork?\u00a0 Well, that and an irate cook, who skewered him over hot coals the minute he returned and basted him thickly in a sauce of Chinese ranting.\u00a0 For once, Ben took it meekly and apologized for not sending word\u2014by whom, he couldn\u2019t have guessed\u2014that he would not be home for lunch.<\/p>\n

At least, he\u2019d made it home before the boys and even had time, unfortunately, to make a start on the hated books.\u00a0 He\u2019d no more than sat down to the task, however, than he heard a knock at the door.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll get it,\u201d he called to Hop Sing, who needed all the placating his boss could offer.\u00a0 The cook huffed his grudging acceptance and went back into the kitchen.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s eyes widened when he saw his caller.\u00a0 \u201cWhy, Hank, I thought you\u2019d be up to Virginia City, spending that big bonus you earned, along with the rest of the hands.\u00a0 You did remember that you had today off, didn\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hank Carlton grinned.\u00a0 \u201cI remembered, Mr. Ben, but I got bigger plans for that bonus.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFine, fine,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cAlways knew you were a steady man.\u201d\u00a0 He opened the door wider.\u00a0 \u201cCome in; have a cup of coffee; keep me from this accursed bookwork a little longer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo coffee, thanks,\u201d Hank said, sweeping off his hat as he entered, \u201cand I won\u2019t keep you from your bookwork for long.\u00a0 Just wanted to tell you about them big plans of mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben ushered the man toward the settee.\u00a0 \u201cNow, Hank, what you do with your money is your own business.\u00a0 You owe me no explanation.\u201d\u00a0 He settled into his comfortably cushioned armchair.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn this case I do,\u201d Hank said, \u201con account of it affecting you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, well, in that case, of course,\u201d Ben said, although he could imagine no way in which his employee\u2019s finances could affect him.\u00a0 Since Hank was still standing, fumbling his hat in his hands, he again motioned toward the settee.<\/p>\n

Hank perched on its edge and took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cWell, fact is, I been hopin\u2019 for a long time to have a place of my own.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh.\u201d\u00a0 Ben\u2019s breath caught in his throat for a minute.\u00a0 \u201cWell, that\u2019s good, Hank.\u00a0 I always like to see a man try to better himself . . . though I\u2019d hate to lose you as a hand, of course.\u00a0 You\u2019re saving your bonus toward the purchase of some land, then, I take it?\u201d\u00a0 He bit back the question he really wanted an answer to: just how close to that goal was the man?\u00a0 Surely, on a ranch hand\u2019s wages, it would take years to achieve it, years before he\u2019d have to find a replacement for a man whose work and loyalty he valued highly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was,\u201d Hank said.\u00a0 \u201cWell, still am, on account of wantin\u2019 to do my share, but, well . . .\u201d\u00a0 He twisted his hat in a nervous circular motion.\u00a0 \u201cWhat I\u2019m tryin\u2019 to tell you, Mr. Ben, is that I\u2019m gonna have to be leavin\u2019 here soon, on account of I\u2019m gettin\u2019 married, and I\u2019ll be runnin\u2019 my wife\u2019s place.\u201d\u00a0 He hastily added, \u201cPuttin\u2019 what I have into it, of course, but the land\u2019s already there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMarried,\u201d Ben repeated, dumbfounded.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t even know you were courting, Hank.\u00a0 Not that it\u2019s any of my business.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hank chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cThought it might be, at first.\u00a0 Thought you might have some feelin\u2019s for the lady yourself.\u00a0 Kind of felt like I was goin\u2019 behind your back, boss.\u00a0 That\u2019s why I\u2019ve kept real quiet about it, but she says you weren\u2019t never interested in her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not interested in anyone,\u201d Ben assured him.\u00a0 More than a year past Marie\u2019s death, and the thought of another woman was still unthinkable, but he masked the pain.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d Hank said.\u00a0 \u201cKnow that now.\u201d\u00a0 He twisted the hat again, as if he still weren\u2019t as sure as he professed.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust who is this fortunate lady?\u201d Ben asked, covering the extent of his curiosity with ebullient encouragement.<\/p>\n

The words came out hesitantly.\u00a0 \u201cWell, uh, it\u2019s, uh . . . Miz Hunter.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s jaw dropped.\u00a0 \u201cMiz . . . Mrs. Hunter?\u00a0 Elvira Hunter?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hank eyes flicked from floor to fire to Ben\u2019s face and back again.\u00a0 \u201cYeah,\u201d he said, with a chuckle that staggered out with a catch in his throat between almost every syllable.\u00a0 \u201cWeren\u2019t expectin\u2019 that, were you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell . . . no.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s a fine woman,\u201d Hank said in response to his boss\u2019s dumbfounded expression.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d\u00a0 Ben\u2019s face warmed in recollection of how helpful his neighbor had been when Little Joe had run off at Christmastime.\u00a0 \u201cYes, she is,\u201d he said with more strength.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you\u2019ve thought this through, Hank?\u00a0 You\u2019re sure she\u2019s the right woman for you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yes, sir,\u201d the ranch hand said.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s all I want in a woman, and I think I\u2019m what she needs in a man.\u00a0 We\u2019ll make a matched team, I\u2019m thinkin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell . . . congratulations, then!\u201d\u00a0 Ben\u2019s voice carried more enthusiasm than he felt.\u00a0 \u201cWill this be happening . . . uh . . . soon?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe ain\u2019t set the date,\u201d Hank admitted.\u00a0 \u201cElvira wants some time to . . . well . . . do whatever brides do, I reckon, but we figure to be hitched by Christmas.\u00a0 That\u2019s as far as we got, but since you\u2019ve always asked me to stay on over the winter, I figured I should let you know now, in case you want to ask someone from the drive to stay, instead.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike you to stay on until the wedding . . . and beyond, if you like,\u201d Ben said, \u201cbut if there\u2019s one of the men you\u2019d care to recommend, I\u2019ll keep him, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking relieved about his own continued employment, Hank nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYou know that new feller, Dan?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDan Tolliver?\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 Seems to know what he\u2019s about . . . although you\u2019d probably know more about his day-to-day work than I do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s steady,\u201d Hank assured Ben, \u201cwhich you might figure, him bein\u2019 a mite older than the rest of us.\u00a0 Knows cattle better than most and he\u2019s honest.\u00a0 Puts in a full day\u2019s work for a full day\u2019s pay.\u00a0 I think you\u2019d be pleased with him, Mr. Ben, and I\u2019ve heard him say he wished he could stay on here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll speak to Enos about him,\u201d Ben said, \u201cand if his opinion matches yours, then we\u2019ll keep Tolliver on.\u00a0 Don\u2019t say anything to him, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, sir, I won\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0 Hank started to stand, but Ben waved him back into his seat.<\/p>\n

\u201cMiddle of the day or not, Hank,\u201d Ben said as he stood, \u201cthis news calls for a toast.\u00a0 Brandy or sherry?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUh, brandy, I reckon.\u201d\u00a0 Hank had never tasted anything finer than rotgut whiskey, but brandy sounded more like a man\u2019s drink than some sissified sherry he pictured a lady sipping.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrandy it is,\u201d Ben said and went to fetch it.\u00a0 Pouring two small libations, since it was the middle of the day, he raised his glass.\u00a0 \u201cTo the happy couple.\u00a0 To you, Hank, and to Elvira.\u00a0 Best wishes for all the happiness a house can hold.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the toast and mutual agreement that Hank would be willing to help out anytime the Ponderosa needed an extra hand and Ben would be pleased to have him, Hank left for the Hunter ranch and Ben stalwartly faced the bookwork once again.\u00a0 By the time the boys returned from school, he\u2019d made good progress, but willingly set work aside to wrestle with the wild animals barreling through the front door.\u00a0 Within moments all three were tumbling and tickling all over the entry floor until they spied a pair of soft slippers and looked up to see a scowling face wagging from side to side.\u00a0 \u201cToo much foolishment,\u201d Hop Sing grunted.\u00a0 \u201cYou want cookies or not?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah!\u201d both boys yelled as they scrambled up and ran for the dining room, where two glasses of milk sat on either side of a platter of sugar cookies, fresh from the oven.<\/p>\n

Propped on one elbow, Ben shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNice to see where I rate,\u201d he called.\u00a0 Then with a grin he pushed himself up and headed for the table himself.\u00a0 Snatching up Little Joe, he took his son\u2019s seat, set the boy on his knee and reached for a cookie.\u00a0 \u201cNow, let\u2019s hear all about school.\u00a0 Have you been a good boy, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAlways good.\u201d\u00a0 Cookie crumbs spilled from his mouth as the youngster offered his traditional answer.<\/p>\n

His father, however, had not missed the eye-rolling of his other son.\u00a0 \u201cAnything I should know, Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

There was plenty that Little Joe\u2019s father should know, but Hoss wasn\u2019t such a traitor as to tattle on his little brother.\u00a0 He scrambled for something he could say and finally came up with, \u201cWell, he is havin\u2019 a mite of trouble sittin\u2019 still.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben guffawed.\u00a0 \u201cTell me something I don\u2019t know!\u201d<\/p>\n

Figuring that Pa didn\u2019t really mean him to do that, Hoss just gave him a sheepish grin.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s doin\u2019 all right, Pa.\u00a0 Picks up things quicker than I ever did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s eyes were warm with affection as he looked across the table.\u00a0 \u201cAnd how about you, Hoss?\u00a0 How are you getting on this year?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight good,\u201d Hoss said with enthusiasm.\u00a0 \u201cI mean, it\u2019s only the first week or so and Miss Appleton is mostly goin\u2019 over stuff we learned last year, but seems like I remember it better than I used to.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot surprising,\u201d his father said.\u00a0 \u201cYou may take a little longer to settle things in your head than some\u2014Adam, for instance\u2014but once they\u2019re in, they\u2019re in to stay.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss flushed in appreciation of the compliment, more welcome than his father knew after hearing what the likes of Walter Grogan had been saying about him.\u00a0 \u201cI reckon Miss Appleton knows how to make stuff stick, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMiss Appleton is a good teacher,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll hate to see her leave.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLeave?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s open face registered alarm.\u00a0 \u201cWhy\u2019s she leavin\u2019, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEasy, son, easy,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t mean anytime soon, but a lady as lovely and sweet-natured as Miss Appleton is likely to marry someday, and if that happens, she\u2019d probably stop teaching to start a family of her own.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll tell her not to,\u201d Little Joe said with a determined frown.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll do no such thing,\u201d his father chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cMiss Appleton tells you what to do, not the other way around, understood?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe quickly ducked his head and grabbed another cookie.\u00a0 \u201cSure, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd speaking of starting families,\u201d Ben said, \u201cguess who has a new baby boy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss guessed first.\u00a0 \u201cBilly and Marta!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right . . . and they named him William Benjamin Thomas,\u201d Ben added with beaming pride.<\/p>\n

\u201cAw . . . Billy Ben . . . ain\u2019t that nice?\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

Ben shuddered.\u00a0 \u201cYou are not going to call my namesake that!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss favored his father with a big, toothy grin.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I am.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too,\u201d Little Joe chimed in.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, another country heard from, is it?\u201d\u00a0 Ben began to tickle his youngest in retaliation, and soon all three Cartwrights were again tumbling about the floor with Hop Sing scurrying to protect any chairs, table legs or dragging tablecloths that might get in the way.<\/p>\n

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

The next day\u2019s homecoming could not have been more different.\u00a0 When the boys rode into the yard, at a noiseless walk, Hoss took Charcoal directly to the barn, as usual; but when he saw his father\u2019s horse in one of the stalls, he deliberately dawdled over the care of his own animal.\u00a0 Finally, there was no way to put off the inevitable, so just before they left the building, he took his little brother by both shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t you say a word,\u201d he cautioned.\u00a0 \u201cAny talkin\u2019 needs to be done, you let me do it.\u201d\u00a0 And in complete silence, totally alien to his ebullient nature, Little Joe nodded solemnly.<\/p>\n

Hand in hand, they walked across the yard, and with a finger held to his lips, Hoss eased open the front door, and they all but tiptoed through.\u00a0 However, as meticulously well oiled as Hop Sing kept the door hinge, it squeaked, and both youngsters bit their lips when they heard, \u201cThat you, boys?\u201d coming from the alcove.<\/p>\n

\u201cUh, yeah, Pa,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

The quietness, both of entry and reply, made Ben\u2019s brow furrow in suspicion.\u00a0 Someone didn\u2019t want to be noticed, which meant that a wise father had better take notice.\u00a0 He rounded the corner, passing the tall grandfather\u2019s clock, before the boys had time for more than four steps.\u00a0 One look at Hoss\u2019s face explained everything.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve been fighting,\u201d he said tersely.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust a mite,\u201d Hoss said, hurrying to add, \u201cSorry, Pa, but it couldn\u2019t be helped.\u00a0 That Walt Grogan, he was pickin\u2019 on one of the little kids, Pa, and I just couldn\u2019t stand by and let \u2018im.\u201d\u00a0 He saw no reason to mention that the little kid being picked on was his own baby brother.\u00a0 No need at all to tell Pa that Little Joe had, in fact, thrown the first puny punch.<\/p>\n

Ben sighed, but his facial muscles relaxed.\u00a0 \u201cGrogan again, hmm?\u00a0 Well, of course, I hate to hear of any fighting at school, son, but I don\u2019t expect you to stand by and let him bully some little child.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the very littlest,\u201d Hoss assured his father.\u00a0 He started to say that it was a first-year student, but decided that would narrow the possibile victims too close to their own doorstep.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd, I suppose, it would have taken too long to summon Miss Appleton?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah, Pa.\u00a0 She was all the way inside, havin\u2019 her lunch.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s head bobbed in near-frantic affirmation.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see.\u201d\u00a0 Ben patted his son on the shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cWell, if it couldn\u2019t be helped . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss sent a chiding side-glance at his little brother that might have been a dead giveaway, had his father seen it.\u00a0 It could\u2019ve been helped, all right<\/em>, that chiding glance said, and next time it better be!<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em>Hop Sing appeared at the edge of the dining table.\u00a0 \u201cCookies for boys?\u201d he asked tentatively.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, of course,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0 \u201cYou go ahead, boys.\u00a0 I came in early to finish wrestling with this confounded bookwork, and I think I\u2019d better stick to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 \u201cWe got us some confounded bookwork to do, too, so I reckon we\u2019ll go right upstairs after havin\u2019 them cookies.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFine, fine,\u201d Ben muttered absently as he headed back toward his desk.\u00a0 \u201cBest to do your homework early.\u201d\u00a0 It didn\u2019t occur to him until afterwards that he hadn\u2019t heard a peep from his youngest son, but he shrugged it off as a boy\u2019s natural inclination to stay out of the line of fire when a parental scolding was anticipated.<\/p>\n

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

At breakfast on Saturday morning, Ben announced that it was \u201call hands on deck\u201d for the hay harvest.\u00a0 From his enthusiasm no one would have guessed that haying was his least favorite occupation of the year\u2014well, excepting bookwork, of course, but that was a year-round hatred.\u00a0 At this time of year, even that was outedged by haying.\u00a0 Hoss, however, had heard enough complaints over the years of working at his father\u2019s side that he wasn\u2019t fooled for a moment; nor, thankfully, did he share his father\u2019s sentiments.\u00a0 To him, any job that kept him outdoors was a good one, and he relished the smell of new-mown hay, even when stray pieces drifted down his collar and set his neck to itching.\u00a0 The easy solution to that was just to take off his shirt and let the straw blow free.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t excited about haying, but he didn\u2019t much mind it, either.<\/p>\n

The only person Ben\u2019s beaming countenance and hearty voice did excite was the one person he had no desire to entice into the hayfield.\u00a0 \u201cOh, boy!\u201d Little Joe said, with a bounce in his chair for emphasis.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no, no,\u201d Ben said, instantly realizing his mistake.\u00a0 \u201cI think you\u2019re still a little small to swing a scythe, son.\u00a0 Not that Hoss will be doing any of that, either.\u00a0 The men have already made a good start on the cutting and should be able to finish without help from either of you.\u00a0 Hoss, you\u2019ll help rake and turn the hay, and you, Joseph, will help Hop Sing harvest the garden.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe slammed his fork to the table.\u00a0 \u201cI wanna rake hay!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou wanna play in the hay, you mean,\u201d Hoss scoffed from across the table, to which remark Little Joe responded with an outthrust tongue.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, Joseph,\u201d Ben soothed.\u00a0 \u201cThere might be a way you can help with the hay later, but today I need you to help bring in the last of the vegetables, so Hop Sing can preserve them.\u00a0 That\u2019s important, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanna be with you,\u201d Little Joe whined.\u00a0 \u201cHoss always gets to be with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben reached over to tenderly tousle the boy\u2019s curly locks.\u00a0 \u201cThere, there now.\u00a0 Pa\u2019ll spend some special time with you, once the crops are in.\u00a0 All right?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s face screwed in thought.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe,\u201d he said slowly, \u201cif it\u2019s real special.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cWell, you decide what \u2018special\u2019 means, and if it\u2019s not outrageously unreasonable, I\u2019ll try to make it happen.\u00a0 How\u2019s that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d Little Joe finally agreed and went back to his breakfast.<\/p>\n

It was Hoss\u2019s face now that scrunched.\u00a0 Somehow, it didn\u2019t seem right that he was the one doing the work, while his little brother would be getting the special attention.\u00a0 He\u2019d be with Pa all day, though, so maybe he\u2019d get a chance to make a bid for some special time of his own.\u00a0 Little Joe was a doggone crafty little conniver, but two could play at that game.<\/p>\n

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

By the end of the day, however, Hoss hadn\u2019t thought of anything, and Little Joe had apparently forgotten all about demands for special time.\u00a0 Probably having a new baby to tickle under the chin was special enough for the easily distracted lad.\u00a0 Both branches of the Thomas clan showed up Saturday evening, somewhat later than usual as they had awaited Billy\u2019s return from Placerville.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t have to ride again \u2018til Monday morning,\u201d he informed the Cartwrights, \u201cso I figured I might as well let the boys make my new little man\u2019s acquaintance.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo that\u2019s Billy Ben, is it?\u201d Hoss asked with a mischievous grin.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, that is young Benjy,\u201d his father insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cWee Willie,\u201d Inger put in, having decided to side with her mother.<\/p>\n

Clyde just tucked a chaw of tobacco into his cheek and opted to stay out of the fray.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, what do you think, Shortshanks?\u201d Billy asked the youngest Cartwright.<\/p>\n

Ben laughed aloud.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t ask him!\u00a0 You\u2019re liable to hear something from the latest fairy tale or Aesop\u2019s fable someone read him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust don\u2019t go readin\u2019 him that one about Rumplestiltskin,\u201d Billy joshed back.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe one person we haven\u2019t heard from is this baby\u2019s mother,\u201d Ben said as he took the youngest Thomas from his grandmother\u2019s arms and, setting him against his own broad shoulder, patted the small back.<\/p>\n

Marta just smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d vote for Billy, except my husband vows he\u2019ll have no tag of junior added to any son of his.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, never favored that myself,\u201d Ben admitted.\u00a0 \u201cWell, Benjy will have to do, then.\u201d\u00a0 Shouts from all directions met his pronouncement.<\/p>\n

\u201cWee Willie!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBilly Ben!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRumple Still Skin!\u201d\u00a0 The last, syllable by labored syllable, came from Little Joe.<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry,\u201d Ben chuckled in response to the sour look on Billy\u2019s face, \u201cbut you should know better than to put ideas in that one\u2019s head.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

As always, Ben had felt refreshed by his weekend visit with friends and his visit with the Almighty in church Sunday morning, but by the time the Thomases, old and young, left that afternoon, he had started to feel concerned by the appearance of the sky.\u00a0 Monday morning\u2019s sky confirmed the concern and, in fact, turned it into downright worry.\u00a0 Hurrying upstairs, he roused his older son with news he was certain Hoss would welcome.\u00a0 \u201cWell, son, looks like you\u2019ll be staying home from school today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss rubbed sleep from his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cHuh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStorm coming,\u201d his father explained.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ve got to get that hay under cover, and I do mean now.\u201d<\/p>\n

A grin started to form on Hoss\u2019s face, only to be replaced by a look of panic.\u00a0 \u201cBut, Pa, I can\u2019t,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cI gotta go to school!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can miss a day,\u201d Ben said.<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head frantically.\u00a0 \u201cNo, no, I can\u2019t.\u00a0 I\u2019ll\u2014I\u2019ll get left behind.\u201d\u00a0 It was a lame excuse, and he knew it, but it was all he could come up with on short notice, and he could not\u2014absolutely could not\u2014leave Little Joe to face the likes of Walter Grogan on his own.\u00a0 The only reason Pa and even Miss Appleton had missed the signs of the schoolyard scuffles this long was his stepping in to stop things before they went too far.\u00a0 Without him there. . . . \u00a0\u201cPa, I just gotta go to school,\u201d he insisted again to his flabbergasted father.<\/p>\n

As pressed for time as Ben felt, he sat down on the edge of the bed.\u00a0 Nothing, not even something as vital to the ranch\u2019s welfare as that hay crop, was more important than a son in trouble.\u00a0 \u201cAre you having problems keeping up, son?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

Hoss instinctively answered honestly.\u00a0 \u201cOh, no, sir.\u00a0 I\u2019m doin\u2019 right well.\u201d\u00a0 Then he winced.\u00a0 He\u2019d just blurted away his best excuse for his unaccustomed urgency to go to school.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s just\u2014uh\u2014well, you see, it\u2019s like this, Pa . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like what?\u201d Ben probed, adding with some impatience, \u201cI\u2019m waiting, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLittle Joe,\u201d Hoss muttered mournfully.\u00a0 But just as he resigned himself to telling the ugly, unadulterated truth, inspiration struck.\u00a0 \u201cI mean, you ain\u2019t never let him ride by hisself, and if I don\u2019t go to school, he\u2019ll have to do that.\u00a0 I know Charcoal\u2019s old and gentle and all, but first time, all by hisself?\u201d\u00a0 Lips pressed tight, Hoss shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s kind of worrisome, ain\u2019t it, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019d struck the right chord.\u00a0 \u201cWorrisome\u201d didn\u2019t begin to describe his father\u2019s feelings on that subject.\u00a0 Ben blanched as the familiar image of his wife riding up to the house and falling rushed through his mind, and he sputtered,\u00a0 \u201cYes, yes, I see what you mean.\u201d\u00a0 Slapping his knee in sudden decision, he said, \u201cWell, Little Joe will just have to stay home, too.\u201d\u00a0 His face brightened.\u00a0 \u201cIn fact, those little feet might be just what we need to trample down the hay in the ricks,\u201d he added as he stood.\u00a0 \u201cNow, hustle into your work clothes, son, and then wake your little brother.\u00a0 It really will be all hands on deck this morning!\u201d\u00a0 He breezed out of the room, entirely missing the look of intense relief that flooded his son\u2019s face.<\/p>\n

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

Inevitably, some of the hay crop was lost when the storm hit, but hard work preserved most of it.\u00a0 Ben kept the boys out of school one more day, due to the long and exhausting hours they\u2019d worked on Monday.\u00a0 Besides, it was still raining, and even Ben himself was reluctant to be out in such weather.\u00a0 By Wednesday, though, the sun was shining again, and he gladly sent the two youngsters off to school.\u00a0 Being trapped indoors with two rowdy boys was scarcely his concept of heaven, even though he had somehow managed to bring the hated books up to date, despite the distracting noise.<\/p>\n

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

October blew in on a gale worthy of any Ben had seen at sea, although he\u2019d never witnessed anything to top the description of it that appeared in the Territorial Enterprise<\/em>.\u00a0 The article he read in the pile of papers Clyde had saved back for him made him grateful that the only damage the Ponderosa had sustained was some shingles off the barn roof and some fencing blown down.\u00a0 Both had been easily and quickly repaired, even with the skeleton crew he\u2019d kept on after the fall roundup.\u00a0 At least, the house hadn\u2019t been picked up off its foundation and set down some ten or twelve feet back of its original location as the paper had reported as fact in Virginia City.\u00a0 Blatant exaggeration, of course, as he\u2019d confirmed with the Thomases.<\/p>\n

The trouble with that Josh fellow, who\u2019d written the article, was that a man never knew when to take him seriously.\u00a0 The same issue of the Enterprise<\/em> had also reported Indian trouble on the Overland Trail, and that article had seemed straightforward and unvarnished, listing names of victims and specific geographical locations, such as the City of Rocks.\u00a0 Ben remembered that as a place of pleasant fun with the children of the wagon train.\u00a0 How he\u2019d enjoyed putting that scamp, Billy Thomas, in the \u201ccity\u201d jail!\u00a0 Now, sadly, it was a scene of death, which seemed to have wrapped the nation in an iron grip.\u00a0 Not content with the loss of life in the war back East, the Grim Reaper apparently needed to fill its greedy maw with fresh meat from the West.<\/p>\n

Ben tossed the paper aside and banked the fire before heading up to bed.\u00a0 The gloomy thoughts were well justified, considering the massive loss of life in the latest battle at Antietam, but at least, the news of the Presidential proclamation had given greater purpose to the war.\u00a0 By the first of the year, the slaves in the Confederacy would be declared free, although it would take still more blood to make that proclamation more than mere words on paper.\u00a0 Did the soldiers see themselves as sacrifices for a greater good or mere fodder for the maw of the Grim Reaper?\u00a0 Did it even matter to the young men, killed or maimed for life, or to the grieving mothers and fathers back home?<\/p>\n

He shuddered as he slowly climbed the stairs.\u00a0 Thankfully, his own boy was safely back at Yale, although he hadn\u2019t had a letter from Adam since he\u2019d left New York.\u00a0 Probably busy with new classes, the flurry of starting a new term.\u00a0 The last letter his son had sent, however, had mentioned getting an exemption from service to continue his schooling.\u00a0 That should keep his boy safe another three years, and, hopefully, the war would have ended by then, though no one any longer believed that it would be the three-months\u2019 wonder they had originally envisioned.<\/p>\n

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

After supper the next night Ben ascertained that both boys had finished their school assignments and offered to reward them with an entertaining story, penned by Josh, from the final issue of the Enterprise<\/em> that he\u2019d picked up from Clyde.\u00a0 \u201cA petrified man was found some time ago in the mountains south of Gravelly Ford,\u201d Ben began.<\/p>\n

\u201cI been there, ain\u2019t I, Pa?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe, too,\u201d Little Joe inserted.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, you ain\u2019t, neither,\u201d Hoss scoffed.<\/p>\n

\u201cHave to!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Joseph, you have not,\u201d Ben corrected.\u00a0 \u201cHoss has, though how he knows that, I can\u2019t imagine.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t even toddle back then.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam told me all about us comin\u2019 west and the different places on the trail, Pa,\u201d Hoss explained.\u00a0 \u201cI sure wish he was headin\u2019 back past them places now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all do, Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdam comin\u2019 home?\u201d Little Joe asked, sitting up eagerly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, son, not anytime soon,\u201d his father answered, \u201cthough if he doesn\u2019t, at least, write soon, I may have to consider having a very necessary little talk with your older brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe\u2019s nose crinkled in consideration.\u00a0 \u201cHow you gonna get that in a letter?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cIf need be, I\u2019ll find a way.\u00a0 Now, do you boys want to hear about the petrified man or not?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s petrified?\u201d Little Joe asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cTurned to stone.\u201d<\/p>\n

The little boy\u2019s eyes widened, and he urged his father to get on with the story.<\/p>\n

Ben read on, but soon wished he\u2019d never started, for it began to look as though he wouldn\u2019t be able to finish the short article any time before the next morning.\u00a0 Josh had used far too many words that a youngster of five (or even one of twelve) didn\u2019t understand, and Ben could scarcely get a sentence out without one or the other of his sons asking, \u201cWhat\u2019s that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow listen carefully, without interrupting,\u201d Ben finally decreed, \u201cand see if you can show me just how the stone man looked.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d Hoss said and then added, leaning close to his brother\u2019s ear, \u201cHe means no more questions.\u201d\u00a0 He buttoned his lip with his thumb and forefinger, while Little Joe nodded solemnly and imitated the gesture.<\/p>\n

\u201cFine,\u201d Ben said, hoping the magic would last long enough for him to get the description read.\u00a0 \u201cThe body was in a sitting posture, and leaning against a huge mass of croppings.\u201d<\/p>\n

The boys promptly sat side by side, leaning back against the massive stone hearth.\u00a0 Ben gave them a nod of approval and continued, \u201cThe attitude was pensive, the right thumb resting against the side of the nose; the left thumb partially supported the chin, the forefinger pressing the inner corner of the left eye and drawing it partly open.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Joe, t\u2019other hand,\u201d Hoss said.\u00a0 Then he whispered, \u201cSorry, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben gave a grave nod this time and went on with his description.\u00a0 \u201cThe right eye was closed and the fingers of the right hand spread apart.\u201d\u00a0 He looked up to check the boys\u2019 progress and burst out laughing.\u00a0 \u201cWell, if anyone caught a glimpse of the two of you, he\u2019d never take this story seriously!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss, looking at his younger brother\u2019s thumb on his nose, guffawed.\u00a0 \u201cIs it a joke, then, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think so, son,\u201d Ben chuckled, \u201cbut according to Josh some three hundred people have visited the hardened creature over the last few weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan we go visit him?\u201d Little Joe said, bouncing up as if ready to take off right then.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo!\u201d both his father and brother declared.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never get to go no place,\u201d Little Joe said, lips puckering.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I\u2019m gonna let you go someplace right now,\u201d Ben said, struggling to control his merriment.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m gonna let you go straight up to bed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo!\u201d\u00a0 Unfortunately, Little Joe\u2019s wail produced nothing but even louder laughter from his audience of two.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, come on now,\u201d Ben said, scooping the boy up and heading for the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll read you another story from Rollo Learning to Talk<\/em>.\u00a0 I think that\u2019ll be more to your taste, anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not wanting to miss Pa\u2019s reading a story, even one as simple as the Rollo ones, Hoss trailed upstairs after them.\u00a0 One story turned into three, as first Joe and then Hoss begged for \u201cjust one more\u201d and Ben complied.\u00a0 He finally got the two of them tucked in with reminders that tomorrow was a school day and headed to his own room.\u00a0 He slept well, not realizing that he\u2019d enjoyed his last merry evening for some time to come, or that it would, in fact, be closer to a year before he\u2019d draw another carefree breath.<\/p>\n

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

Leaving his little brother in the saddle, Hoss almost tiptoed Charcoal into the barn after walking him cautiously the last hundred or so yards home.\u00a0 Once inside, he closed the door and lifted Little Joe down.\u00a0 \u201cYou think you can curry her by yourself, if\u2019n I take the gear off?\u201d he asked in a hushed whisper.<\/p>\n

\u201cCourse, I can,\u201d Little Joe whispered back, taking his cue for quiet from his older brother.<\/p>\n

Hoss quickly took the saddle and blanket off the gray mare and tied her off in the stall.\u00a0 \u201cOkay.\u00a0 Just comb her good.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd water and feed her,\u201d Little Joe added.<\/p>\n

Hoss shook his head wildly.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 No, you gotta stay inside here, not be traipsing over to the water trough or anywheres out in the open, you understand?\u201d\u00a0 He held up a slim envelope.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m gonna trot this here letter in to Pa.\u00a0 You ain\u2019t got no better chance of puttin\u2019 him in a good mood than with a letter from Adam, and we doggone sure need Pa to be in a good mood before he gets a look at you.\u00a0 So, stay here; I\u2019ll come fetch you when it\u2019s safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay.\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe winced as he gave his bruised lower lip a nervous nibble.\u00a0 \u201cSweeten him good for me, huh, Hoss?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss waved the letter in the air as he headed toward the door.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s Adam\u2019s job, punkin.\u201d\u00a0 He hurried across the yard, but stopped just outside the front door to take a deep, bolstering breath before bursting in and yelling, \u201cHey, Pa, guess what come!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s that, Hoss?\u201d his father called from around the corner.<\/p>\n

Hoss hurried over to lay his trophy on his father\u2019s desk.\u00a0 \u201cWhatcha think of that?\u201d he asked with an enthusiastic grin.<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s mouth widened to match that of his son.\u00a0 \u201cIs that what I hope it is?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure is!\u201d Hoss declared.\u00a0 \u201cA letter from Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, that boy certainly took his good, easy time about writing,\u201d Ben scolded his absent eldest, though the smile never left his lips as he picked up the long-desired missive.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir, he\u2019s been right slow about it,\u201d Hoss agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, not really,\u201d Ben admitted.\u00a0 \u201cThis would\u2019ve been sent right after he returned to New Haven.\u00a0 It just seems long to us when we\u2019re waiting for news.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReckon you\u2019ll want t\u2019read it right away,\u201d Hoss said, \u201cso I\u2019ll just finish up in the barn.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNonsense,\u201d Ben said, beginning to move around his desk.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sure Adam intended this for all of us.\u201d\u00a0 Suddenly, he realized there was someone missing.\u00a0 \u201cWhere\u2019s your little brother?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUh, well, uh, he\u2019s . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor mercy\u2019s sake, Hoss, stop the hemming and hawing around.\u00a0 Where is Joseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the barn,\u201d Hoss muttered, mouth skewing to one side sheepishly.<\/p>\n

By the time a man had birthed three sons, he developed a certain instinct for suspicious behavior, and Hoss\u2019s expression made Ben\u2019s ears begin to tingle with it.\u00a0 \u201cIn the barn,\u201d he repeated.\u00a0 \u201cIs he playing in there . . . or hiding?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, uh, he ain\u2019t playin\u2019.\u201d\u00a0 Realizing how that sounded, Hoss quickly added, \u201cHe\u2019s curryin\u2019 Charcoal for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s pursed lips worked from side to side.\u00a0 \u201cLittle short for the job, isn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, yeah, I reckon he is.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s titter had a desperate edge to it.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s why I figured to get back out and help him . . . while you read that letter from Adam.\u201d\u00a0 He nodded toward the envelope in his father\u2019s hand.\u00a0 \u201cI know how you been lookin\u2019 forward to that, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben exhaled a veritable gale of exasperation.\u00a0 \u201cYou are seriously trying my patience, boy.\u00a0 Now, I\u2019m gonna give you exactly one chance to tell me what\u2019s going on, and I would strongly advise you to take it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss gulped down a sizable lump in his throat and said, \u201cJoe had a mite of trouble at school, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat sort of trouble?\u201d Ben demanded.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, uh, he was sort of, uh . . . fightin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFighting!\u201d\u00a0 Ben exploded.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, Pa, it ain\u2019t his fault,\u201d Hoss declared in loyal defense.\u00a0 \u201cThat Walt Grogan\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGrogan?\u00a0 That boy that bullied you last year?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir, that\u2019s the one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe dared start a fight with a boy Joe\u2019s size?\u201d\u00a0 Ben looked ready to strap on his gun and holster and head for the Grogan place.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, uh, not exactly.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s face reddened.\u00a0 \u201cHe didn\u2019t exactly throw the first punch.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen . . . who?\u201d\u00a0 Ben\u2019s eyes widened in astonishment.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph?\u00a0 Little Joe started the fight?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell . . . yeah,\u201d Hoss drawled out reluctantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph started a fight with a boy four times his size?\u201d\u00a0 Ben shook his head in disbelief.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, but it ain\u2019t altogether his fault, Pa,\u201d Hoss insisted.\u00a0 \u201cThat Walt\u2019s been baitin\u2019 him somethin\u2019 fierce \u2018most every day, and, well, you know Joe and his temper, Pa.\u00a0 He flies off the handle and tears into Walt, and I mostly been able to break it up, but today\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben clamped the boy\u2019s shoulder with iron fingers.\u00a0 \u201cWait a minute.\u00a0 Are you saying this has happened before?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell . . . yeah . . . a few times.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss heaved a heavy sigh and decided he might as well tell the whole ugly truth the first time, instead of Pa dragging it out of him.\u00a0 \u201cWell, lots of times.\u00a0 Like I said, I been around to stop it \u2018til today.\u00a0 Miss Appleton kept me in at recess to help me with some sums that was bamboozlin\u2019 me, and then all of a sudden that little Devlin boy come runnin\u2019 in and said I better come quick \u2018cause Walt was at it again, and me and Miss Appleton run out and I stopped it, and she give \u2018em both a good talkin\u2019 to and gave \u2018em extra work and said to tell you what happened and\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGet your brother in here!\u201d Ben bellowed.<\/p>\n

\u201cPa, it truly ain\u2019t his fault.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, Hoss!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss ran for the door.<\/p>\n

Ben absently laid Adam\u2019s letter on his desk and shook his head in consternation.\u00a0 How was it even possible?\u00a0 He could understand Joseph\u2019s having a schoolyard squabble with one of his little friends\u2014not approve, but understand.\u00a0 Attacking a boy bigger than Hoss, however, made no sense whatsoever.\u00a0 Grogan had baited his boy, Hoss had said, but why would the bully bother with such a small child?\u00a0 Well, attacking the defenseless was what bullies did, he supposed, yet Hoss had also said that it was Little Joe doing the actual attacking.\u00a0 That was utter lunacy, and that he would put a stop to immediately!<\/p>\n

The door creaked slowly open.\u00a0 \u201cGet in here now,\u201d Ben ordered, trying to avoid shouting.\u00a0 Talk to the boy first<\/em>, he lectured himself.\u00a0 Talk; don\u2019t yell<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Hoss walked in, pulling behind him a very reluctant younger brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, my gracious,\u201d Ben said as he caught first sight of the little boy\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cCome here, baby.\u201d\u00a0 When, with a small push from his brother, Little Joe stumbled forward, Ben lifted him and carried him to the armchair by the fire.\u00a0 With the boy in his lap, he tenderly touched the bruised face.\u00a0 \u201cDoes it hurt, baby?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe wavered for a moment, quickly seeing the benefit of eliciting his father\u2018s sympathy, but flinching from the appelation of \u201cbaby.\u201d\u00a0 He finally settled on quavering out, \u201cLittle bit,\u201d but trying to look as if he were taking the pain in stride, as a man should.<\/p>\n

\u201cMiss Appleton cleaned him up, Pa,\u201d Hoss said, though he kept a safe distance, just in case Pa was still mad.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, that\u2019s good,\u201d Ben said as he continued to examine the injuries.\u00a0 Nothing but bruises, thank God, but still worse than he had expected.\u00a0 The bully obviously hadn\u2019t checked the force of his blows much, although the bruised knuckles should more likely be considered self-inflicted.\u00a0 Ben\u2019s resolve hardened again.\u00a0 \u201cNow, what\u2019s this I hear about you fighting, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI dunno, Pa,\u201d Little Joe said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t know?\u201d\u00a0 Ben\u2019s voice raised a half-step.<\/p>\n

Little Joe drew back an inch.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019 know what you heard.\u201d<\/p>\n

The parsing of his words made Ben\u2019s eyes narrow.\u00a0 \u201cOh, you don\u2019t.\u00a0 Well, do you suppose I might have heard that you, little boy, actually started this fight?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe,\u201d the boy conceded, adding with a disgruntled look at his older brother, \u201cif\u2019n someone told you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI had to, Joe,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIndeed, he did,\u201d Ben said sternly.\u00a0 \u201cNow, I think you know my feelings on the subject of fighting at school, don\u2019t you, Joseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe fixed his gaze on his father\u2019s center vest button.\u00a0 \u201cSort of.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben blew out some of the steam that was building up.\u00a0 \u201cWell, why don\u2019t you tell me what you do know about my feelings on that subject, Joseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUm, I guess you, uh, don\u2019t like it much.\u201d\u00a0 Little Joe took a quick peek at his father\u2019s face and rattled out with a hint of desperation, \u201cBut you think there\u2019s times a fellow\u2019s gotta fight\u2014like when someone\u2019s bein\u2019 picked on and can\u2019t fight back themselves.\u00a0 I\u2019ve heard you tell Hoss that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben\u2019s eyebrows drew ominously together.\u00a0 \u201cAre you trying to tell me that you were defending someone smaller than you, Little Joe?\u201d\u00a0 At first he couldn\u2019t credit the utter obsurdity of the idea, but it was remotely possible that there was a child in that schoolyard smaller than Joseph himself.\u00a0 One of the girls, perhaps?<\/p>\n

\u201cNot smaller, zactly,\u201d Little Joe admitted slowly.\u00a0 Then, taking courage, he added, \u201cBut he needed defendin\u2019, Pa.\u00a0 He really did.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right.\u201d\u00a0 Ben held on to his fragile suspension of disbelief long enough to ask, \u201cJust who is it that needed you to defend him?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss!\u201d Ben exploded.\u00a0 He threw an inquiring look at his other son, who winced and shook his head with closed eyes.\u00a0 Turning back to Little Joe, he pressed, \u201cDon\u2019t you think Hoss is big enough to fight his own battles?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, but he don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, good for Hoss!\u00a0 It comforts me to hear that I have one son who respects and obeys my instructions!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut that Walt says awful things about him, Pa,\u201d Little Joe protested, \u201cand they ain\u2019t true, and I just can\u2019t\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yes, you can!\u201d\u00a0 Ben took the child from his lap and planted him in front of him.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t approve of my boys punching their way through life, especially over so small a matter as name-calling.\u00a0 There are better ways to solve problems, Little Joe, and I expect you to use them.\u00a0 Now, do you understand what I\u2019m saying?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe hung his head.\u00a0 \u201cYes, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo there won\u2019t be any more fighting at school, will there?\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe glanced up.\u00a0 \u201cNo, sir.\u00a0 Not unless someone says bad things about Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben stared back, flabbergasted.\u00a0 Had the child not heard a single word he\u2019d said?\u00a0 Unable to restrain himself, he asked the question aloud.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, I did, Pa,\u201d his young son replied, \u201cbut I can\u2019t let that Walt say them things about Hoss.\u00a0 They ain\u2019t true, and even if they was, he\u2019s my brother, Pa.\u201d\u00a0 The boy gazed into his father\u2019s face with such complete conviction that Ben was lost for words.\u00a0 Finally finding his tongue, he sputtered, \u201cYou go up to your room, Joseph, and give some serious thought to what I\u2019ve just said\u2014and to the consequences of disobeying your father!\u201d<\/p>\n

Little Joe gulped and ran for the stairs.\u00a0 Even before he reached the top, Ben\u2019s angry gaze fell on his other son.\u00a0 \u201cYou knew about this,\u201d he charged, \u201cand didn\u2019t see fit to tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n

The only explanation Hoss could offer was the same one his younger brother had just tried.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s my brother, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n

It worked just as well as it had for Little Joe.\u00a0 \u201cYou get up to your room, too, young man,\u201d Ben dictated, stabbing his finger toward the stairs, \u201cand give some serious thought to where your real obligation lies!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d Hoss said and fled.<\/p>\n

Ben sat in the chair, blowing fumes at the fire, in hopes that he could exhaust the fuel within.\u00a0 He\u2019d almost succeeded in calming down when Hop Sing slipped in and said hesitantly, \u201cCookies and milk all ready for boys.\u00a0 You want me take up or bring boys down?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCookies!\u201d Ben bellowed.\u00a0 \u201cNo cookies for those two today!\u201d<\/p>\n

Just as quickly as the two youngsters, Hop Sing vanished into the relative safety of his kitchen.<\/p>\n

Closing his eyes, Ben leaned his head against the back of the chair and willed himself to calm down, with only moderate success.\u00a0 How much plainer did he have to make it before they\u2019d understand?\u00a0 He\u2019d thought he\u2019d succeeded with Hoss, but Joseph\u2014well, his youngest was as hard-headed as his eldest had ever been.\u00a0 A smile suddenly softened his lips as he recalled the letter lying on his desk.\u00a0 Just the thing to pour gladness back into his heart, to remind him that he hadn\u2019t entirely failed as a father.<\/p>\n

He moved to the desk and carefully slit the envelope with a letter opener.\u00a0 The first words he read, however, sent his heart racing into his throat, for Adam had begun by saying, \u201cDear Pa, Please read this in private before sharing any part with the boys.\u201d\u00a0 His eyes instinctively gazed upward, as if petitioning for strength to face what he was about to read.\u00a0 Oh, Adam had sent him private messages before, but they usually came at the close of a letter to the family.\u00a0 An opening like this almost shouted that the entire contents were serious.\u00a0 But what could possibly have happened?\u00a0 Why, the boy was barely back at school.\u00a0 He should have been bubbling over with excitement about his new classes, his impressions of his new teachers, his pleasure at reuniting with Jamie.\u00a0 Could that be it?\u00a0 Had something happened to Adam\u2019s friend?\u00a0 The lad had never been strong physically.\u00a0 Or\u2014his throat tightened\u2014was it his own friend, Josiah, to whom something dire had befallen?\u00a0 The man worked in an arms factory, after all; accidents happened and\u2014unable to bear the pounding questions, Ben lowered his eyes and began to read:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cI must now share with you news that you will not want to hear.\u00a0 I have made a decision I fear will not please you\u2014to be honest, I\u2019m sure it will not please you\u2014but I feel that this is an action I must take.\u00a0 There is a great conflict in this country, a great cause in which I believe, and I can no longer watch others take arms in that cause while I sit idly by.<\/p>\n

President Lincoln has put out a call for men to serve a nine-month term, and I feel that I cannot deny that brief a commitment to my country at this critical time.\u00a0 I have enlisted in the Union Army, in the new 27th<\/sup> Connecticut regiment.\u00a0 It only means delaying my education for one year, Pa; I will return to Yale when the term of enlistment ends.\u00a0 I know you urged me to stay out of the \u201ceastern conflict;\u201d I know I promised that I would, that I would concentrate on my schooling and prepare myself to rebuild the nation after this terrible war is over.\u00a0 I honestly thought I could, but I find myself unable to keep that promise.\u00a0 I hope you will forgive this breach of my word, knowing that conscience requires it.\u00a0 At any rate, the deed is done; I am a soldier.<\/p>\n

At present, I am still in New Haven, at CampTerry, but I am not sure where I\u2019ll be by the time you receive this letter.\u00a0 Our regiment should be filled by then, and I would expect to march out shortly thereafter, so I would suggest that you address any correspondence to Jamie until I can give you a more definite address.\u00a0 Being closer, I can more readily keep him advised of my movements.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The letter fluttered to the desktop as it fell from Ben\u2019s suddenly lifeless fingers.\u00a0 Adam, a soldier?\u00a0 Fear and fury waged war in his breast, as surely as it was being fought on the battlefields back East, one feeding the other until he was certain both heart and mind would explode, shattering his soul in a million pieces.\u00a0 How could Adam do this?\u00a0 How dare he?\u00a0 Yet, \u201cthe deed is done.\u201d\u00a0 No way to undo it.\u00a0 \u201cThe deed is done,\u201d and with its doing came mind-numbing danger, fears Ben refused to name for fear they might come true, if spoken aloud or even in the roar of his storm-tossed thoughts.<\/p>\n

He crumpled the letter and threw it from him; then he took out a clean sheet of paper and began to write.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t stop to choose his words; he just let them gush, and since he could not bear to see his fears in black and white, what spewed forth was the anger, the disappointment, the frustration that his arm was too short to reach across the continent and jerk his little boy back where he belonged, under his father\u2019s guidance and protection.\u00a0 Finally, exhausted, he stopped, folded the letter and thrust it into an envelope, which he addressed to his son, care of Jamie Edwards at YaleCollege.<\/p>\n

He sealed the envelope; then, he shouted for Hoss as he came around the desk.\u00a0 When his middle son didn\u2019t arrive as quickly as he thought he should, he yelled even louder, \u201cHoss, get down here!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss appeared at the head of the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cYou want me, Pa?\u201d he asked timidly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I want you,\u201d Ben said tersely.\u00a0 \u201cNow, get down here.\u201d<\/p>\n

With almost palpable reluctance Hoss walked down the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m awful sorry, Pa,\u201d he said as he reached the landing.<\/p>\n

Eyes glazed, Ben stared at the boy.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout not tellin\u2019 you,\u201d Hoss started, but Ben waved his words aside.<\/p>\n

\u201cNever mind that now.\u201d\u00a0 Ben thrust the envelope toward his son.\u00a0 \u201cI want you to ride into Franktown and post this for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hoss\u2019s eyes widened.\u00a0 \u201cRight now, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, right now!\u201d Ben ordered.<\/p>\n

Hoss grabbed the letter and ran for the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cTake your coat, for mercy\u2019s sake,\u201d his father grunted.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss hurried into the garment, fumbling with the buttons since his fingers suddenly seemed to be all thumbs.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss?\u201d\u00a0 Ben\u2019s voice relaxed a little as he finally noticed his boy\u2019s nervousness.\u00a0 \u201cThis is nothing to do with you, son, so ease up and ride careful.\u201d He raised an admonishing finger.\u00a0 \u201cBut don\u2019t dawdle; I want you home before dark.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir.\u201d\u00a0 The boy\u2019s sigh of relief was audible as he snatched up the letter and left.\u00a0 On the porch he chanced stopping long enough to check the address.\u00a0 Like he\u2019d thought, it was to Adam, but that part about Jamie looked odd, not the way Pa had addressed letters to his brother before.\u00a0 An awful feeling stirred in the pit of Hoss\u2019s stomach as he headed for the barn.\u00a0 Was Adam sick?\u00a0 Was that why the letter was going to Jamie, \u2018cause Adam was too sick to check his own mail?\u00a0 No, Pa would\u2019ve looked worried, if that were it, and he didn\u2019t.\u00a0 He looked mad.\u00a0 Hoss had a feeling that Adam was in trouble, big enough trouble to take Pa\u2019s mind off what he and Joe had done, at least for now.\u00a0 He figured he should be grateful for that, but all he felt, as he saddled Charcoal, was plumb scared for his big brother.\u00a0 Just yesterday they\u2019d joked about Pa sending Adam a \u201cnecessary little talk\u201d through the mail, but Hoss was pretty sure that was exactly what he was about to post.\u00a0 For a minute he considered just losing the letter along the road, but then shook his head.\u00a0 Trying to be a good brother had already landed him in enough trouble for one day.<\/p>\n

Inside, Ben paced endlessly back and forth before the fire, his thoughts frenetically circling until he couldn\u2019t even follow them; and he finally fell, exhausted, into his armchair.\u00a0 \u201cFool boy,\u201d he muttered.\u00a0 \u201cThinks he knows better than his father what\u2019s best for him.\u201d\u00a0 No, that wasn\u2019t fair.\u00a0 Adam wasn\u2019t a boy anymore; he was a man.\u00a0 \u201cConscience requires it,\u201d his eldest son had written, and no man, not even a father, had the right to dictate a man\u2019s conscience.\u00a0 He\u2019d done his part in forming that conscience, as he was now trying to do with Hoss and Little Joe.\u00a0 If anything, he\u2019d been all too successful with Adam.\u00a0 He\u2019d raised his son to form strong convictions, and it was plain hypocrisy to expect anything less of him.\u00a0 But I never thought we\u2019d stand on opposite sides of any issue<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Suddenly, Ben remembered crumbling and throwing away his boy\u2019s letter.\u00a0 With Adam heading into battle, who knew whether they might be the last words he ever heard from his son?\u00a0 He hurried across the room to pluck the wadded paper from the floor.\u00a0 Sitting at his desk, he carefully smoothed out the wrinkles, but then added a few more as he crushed the precious words to his heart.\u00a0 Adam!<\/em> his mind screamed in torment.\u00a0 Dear God, what if I never see him again?\u00a0 What if the last words he hears from me are the angry ones I just spewed at him? What a fool I\u2019ve been.<\/em><\/p>\n

He pulled out the pocket watch to check the time and shook his head.\u00a0 Hoss would have already reached Franktown by now, and by the time he could ride in himself, the post office would be closed.\u00a0 All he could do now was write a second, more thoughtful letter and send it as quickly as possible.\u00a0 Chances were, by the time mail caught up with the young soldier, they\u2019d both arrive together.\u00a0 He took out pen and stationery; then he pushed them aside.\u00a0 No, not tonight.\u00a0 His emotions were still roiling.\u00a0 Better to sleep out his ire with all three of his sons, wake with a fresh perspective and write more considered words, words that a boy might take to his grave and rest in peace, if need be.<\/p>\n

Stifling a groan, Ben came to his feet.\u00a0 His arms ached to hold his eldest son, to enclose him in the protection of a father\u2019s embrace, but his arms couldn\u2019t span a continent.\u00a0 There was only one son in the house, and although that little lad was probably the least deserving of a hug right now, Ben had to hold someone.\u00a0 He moved around the desk and headed for the stairs, praying with all his heart that the dream that now seemed so divided would one day unite him and all his sons once again.<\/p>\n

~ ~ Notes ~ ~<\/p>\n

Lincoln signed a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862, to take effect on the following New Year\u2019s Day.\u00a0 Only slaves in the Confederacy were freed by this act; however, those outside the seceding states were accorded the same status by separate legislation.\u00a0 Though reaction was mixed, the majority of Northerners opposed the proclamation, and in some areas it even resulted in violent attacks on people of color.<\/p>\n

Samuel Clemens, still writing under his penname, Josh, published a report on the Indian attack near the City of Rocks in the October 1, 1862, issue of the Territorial Enterprise.\u00a0\u00a0 His hoax of \u201cThe Petrified Man\u201d appeared either the 4th<\/sup> or 5th<\/sup> of the same month.<\/p>\n

Though only briefly mentioned in this chapter, the characters of Dan Tolliver and \u201cthat little Devlin boy\u201d are derived from two episodes of Bonanza<\/em>, Tolliver from \u201cA Time to Step Down,\u201d written by Frank Chase and Mitch Devlin from \u201cBetween Heaven and Earth,\u201d written by Ed Adamson.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re interested in what Adam Cartwright was doing during the time frame of this novel, you may read about that in the new Heritage Companion series, A Separate Dream<\/em>, the first volume of which is \u201cA Fresh Beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The End<\/p>\n

\u00a9 March, 2014<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Heritage Companion<\/strong><\/p>\n

Never Alone<\/a>
\nCentennial! A Journey of Discovery<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

<\/g><\/svg><\/i> \"Loading\"<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summary: \u00a0Following the death of his wife Marie and his son Adam’s departure for college, Ben Cartwright and his two younger sons struggle to deal with both losses while meeting the challenges of a growing community and the crises in the lives of their friends.<\/p>\n

Rated: T \u00a0 \u00a0 Word Count: \u00a0161850<\/p>\n

Heritage of Honor Series, links to all the stories within the series included.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48,"featured_media":5695,"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_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[23],"tags":[15,18,17,16],"class_list":["post-5670","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-drama","tag-ben","tag-hop-sing","tag-hoss","tag-joe","wpcat-23-id"],"a3_pvc":{"activated":true,"total_views":4212,"today_views":0},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/YankRebjpg.jpg?fit=290%2C174&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":20275,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=20275","url_meta":{"origin":5670,"position":0},"title":"From Adam’s Pen (by DJK)","author":"DJK","date":"March 10, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary: Three poems in the voice of Adam Cartwright. 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Rating: K+\u00a0 Word Count: 667","rel":"","context":"In "Humor"","block_context":{"text":"Humor","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5637,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=5637","url_meta":{"origin":5670,"position":3},"title":"The Dash (by Dogwood)","author":"Dogwood","date":"May 2, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary:\u00a0The Cartwrights have faced many challenges in their lives.\u00a0 Now they face one that will be with them always. \u00a0 Rated:\u00a0K (1,075 words)","rel":"","context":"In "Drama"","block_context":{"text":"Drama","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/Bonanza24.jpg?fit=526%2C372&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/Bonanza24.jpg?fit=526%2C372&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/Bonanza24.jpg?fit=526%2C372&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9739,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=9739","url_meta":{"origin":5670,"position":4},"title":"Never Alone (by Puchi Ann)","author":"Puchi Ann","date":"June 19, 2000","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary: \u00a0The first weeks after the death of Inger Cartwright, as seen through the eyes of young\u00a0Adam. \u00a0The time and location of her death correspond to the Heritage of Honor series, which differs to a minor degree from the series. 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