Summary:\u00a0 Adam reads a letter from Hoss that makes him realise how much he misses his brothers.\u00a0 Hoss and Joe are missing their bossy older brother, he had his uses!\u00a0 Ben is simply worried about his youngest sons who are MISSING!
\nRating:\u00a0 G\u00a0 (8,510 words)<\/p>\n
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MISSING<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>“Hi, Grandpa, you had a good week?”\u00a0 Adam Cartwright asked as he put his head around the door.\u00a0 With his first year of college behind him, he had taken to sharing rooms at the Yard with his friend James and only came back to visit his grandfather at weekends, an arrangement that suited him and worried his grandfather.<\/p>\n The old man grunted and got to his feet, waving his pipe at his grandson. “I’ve been fine, but I’ve been hearing tales about abolitionists meetings.\u00a0 You wouldn’t have been a part of that near riot the other night would you?”<\/p>\n Adam kept his face inscrutable, “Who me? Now Grandpa you know I’m working too hard to get mixed up in that sort of thing.\u00a0 Boy, it sure is cold in here, you want me to get in some more coal?”\u00a0 He said changing the subject quickly.<\/p>\n Abel Stoddard shook his head\u00a0 “I’ll do that.\u00a0 There’s some letters in your room, one from your Pa and I shouldn’t be surprised if the other isn’t from your brother.\u00a0 He could have put it in the same envelope.\u00a0\u00a0 Sendin’ ’em separate, foolishness, costs too much,”\u00a0 He grumbled.<\/p>\n Adam’s face lit up; news from home was always welcome.\u00a0 He had been waiting for a letter from Pa to say he was home safe and the news that the letter was there meant his fears could be pushed aside.\u00a0 He couldn’t wait to read Hoss’s letter; the only reason it would be sent separately was if it contained things Hoss didn’t want Pa to read.\u00a0 He chuckled with anticipation, what had his young brothers been up to now!\u00a0 He raced up to his room and threw his books on the bed, grabbing the letters and flopping into the center of it himself.\u00a0 Leaning back on one elbow, he read his father’s rather short note, which told him very little; not much more than that he had arrived home safely and all was well.\u00a0 It included several reminders to work hard and behave, which made Adam groan and informed him that they were busy with a new logging project and he would write at length in a week or so when the work was caught up.\u00a0 It did however, include a bank draft which Adam carefully tucked into his pocket to bank on Monday.<\/p>\n He tore open Hoss’s envelope and began to read, gasping at the date.\u00a0 It had been written before Pa had left Utah, heaven alone knows where it had been.\u00a0 He turned the envelope over and grimaced, it appeared to have traveled through a few places before it got here, probably because Hoss had forgotten to put the state and it had been to a couple of Bostons in the west before finding the right one three thousand miles away.\u00a0 He grinned, typical of his little brother.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Dear Adam<\/em><\/p>\n I hope you are well.\u00a0 First I wants to warn you that Pa is hopin mad at you about sumthin your teacher wrote him and he says he’s comin to visit with you.\u00a0 Hope this gets there afore he does, he’s in a fair temper. But as well as that I had to write to tell you about what me and Joe bin doin this summer and ask your advice.\u00a0 I am sending this seprate so as Pa don’t get to know the half of what our little brother got up to.\u00a0 It’ll be me as gets it in the neck if he does find out.\u00a0\u00a0 Mood Pa’s in right now with both of us and with you I’d just as soon he didn’t know no more.\u00a0 How in the heck did you keep track of Joe?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He don’t do nuthin what I tell him to.\u00a0 Well the worse thing was last week when we went up to Eagle Falls, see Pa said we wasn’t to go off the ranch\u2026we was in trouble for cuttin school two days and Pa was real mad already.\u00a0 But you know Joe, he don’t worry none about that.<\/em><\/p>\n Well it was like this\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Adam was already chuckling at the opening paragraphs and he couldn’t wait for what was to come.\u00a0 Because of the delay, Hoss’s warning had come too late and he had weathered his father’s visit but it was reassuring to know the bond between them was still strong enough for Hoss to be concerned.\u00a0 He lay back on his bed and he could almost imagine the beauty of the Lake, the hot sun on his back and the cool water of Eagle Falls.\u00a0 He had been there many times, even climbed the falls once, not that Pa had been aware of it, thank God.\u00a0 He read on completely absorbed in the world of home as if he was there witnessing the events Hoss was describing.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n *****<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Way above the incredible blue of Lake Tahoe, two boys scrambled up the rocks to a vantage-point where they could see the panorama of mountains and meadows that was their home territory.\u00a0 They rested on a flat rock and wiped the sweat from their eyes.\u00a0 Neither was interested in the view, they were intent on reaching a ledge still another twenty feet above them, on which, the older boy was sure, rested an eagle\u2019s nest.\u00a0 They had ridden all morning to get here, disobeying their father\u2019s orders not to go off the ranch.\u00a0 The younger boy had pointed out that the nest was on the ranch, it was just the foot of the mountain where they had started their climb that was over the boundary.\u00a0 The older boy wasn\u2019t so sure that this would go down well as an excuse if they were found out, but as usual he had allowed himself to be persuaded by his brother\u2019s silver tongue.<\/p>\n After a few minutes of labored breathing the younger boy pushed to his feet again. \u201cC\u2019mon Hoss its not much further.\u201d\u201d\u2019 But the youngster was already on the next part of the climb.<\/p>\n Hoss groaned.\u00a0 He\u2019d better keep up.\u00a0 There was no telling what Joe could get into if he wasn\u2019t watched and Pa had said that with Adam away at college, Hoss was to be responsible for Joe during the long summer vacation.\u00a0 He began to climb again, more slowly than his little brother but steadily and carefully.\u00a0 In the past year since older brother, Adam, had left, Hoss had learned to his cost what being responsible for Joe really meant.\u00a0 It meant hauling him out of fights, covering for him when he cut school or shirked his chores, following him every where in case he got into mischief and worst of all taking the brunt of Pa\u2019s anger when he was less than successful at anyone of these tasks.\u00a0 He often wondered how Joe survived and he no longer wondered why Adam had been so persnickety when asked to mind them.<\/p>\n By the time Hoss reached the ledge, Joe was sitting cross-legged on a pile of sticks and old grass.\u00a0 He shook his head as his older brother approached.\u00a0 \u201cMighta bin once but the chicks have flown long since,\u201d he said regretfully.<\/p>\n Hoss collapsed at his side and stared up at the cobalt blue sky.\u00a0 \u201cBoy that was too much,\u201d\u00a0 He gasped.<\/p>\n Joe pointed across the lake, \u201cI said we shoulda climbed the waterfall it would have bin quicker.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoss shook his head. \u201cIts more\u2019n sixty feet straight up and the rocks are wet with spray.\u00a0 We\u2019d\u2019a bin killed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThought you said Adam did it once as a dare from Rick Bonner,\u201d\u00a0 Joe argued.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, so he said, but then Adam says a lot o\u2019 stuff when he\u2019s showin\u2019 off,\u201d\u00a0 Hoss retorted.\u00a0 His hero-worship and respect for his older brother’s opinions growing less as he too grew to manhood.\u00a0 \u201cWaste of a climb anyways if there ain\u2019t nuthin\u2019 here,\u201d\u00a0 He grumbled.<\/p>\n \u201cNah it weren\u2019t.\u00a0\u00a0 You can see most the whole lake from here, \u2018ceptin\u2019 Zephyr cove and \u2026and Mama\u2019s cove,\u201d\u00a0 He finished softly.<\/p>\n Hoss opened one eye and squinted at his little brother.\u00a0 There were times when boisterous Joe became quiet and thoughtful and it was usually when his mother was mentioned.\u00a0\u00a0 It had been over three years since her death and yet Hoss still felt her presence very strongly at times.\u00a0 Her son was so like her.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we gonna do now?\u201d\u00a0 Joe asked rolling over on to his stomach and poking his older brother in the ribs.\u00a0 \u201cWe still got most of the afternoon left.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoss groaned, \u201cCouldn\u2019t we rest a spell?\u00a0 I\u2019m plumb tuckered out with that climb and it\u2019ll take us more\u2019n two hours to get back down and ride home anyhow.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe shook his head and grinned. \u201cC\u2019mon big brother, let\u2019s see what\u2019s on the other side of this mountain.\u201d\u00a0 He tried to pull Hoss to his feet but could only move one arm.\u00a0 He gave up quickly and started down the slope toward a gully filled with scrub.<\/p>\n Hoss rolled over and leaned his chin on his hands as he propped himself with his elbows and watched his younger brother scrambling down the rocks.\u00a0 Joe sure had lots of energy.\u00a0 He sighed deeply.\u00a0 He missed Adam and his quiet moments with him.\u00a0 It seemed a long time since he’d left and although there had been frequent letters to begin with it had been a long time since the last one.\u00a0 So long that Pa had gotten concerned and written to Adam\u2019s grandfather.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t received a reply as far as Hoss knew, but there had been a letter from some tutor in Boston just a few days ago that had made Pa real angry.\u00a0 He hadn’t told them what was in it, exactly, just said Adam was all right but that he needed to go to Boston to sort out a few things.\u00a0 Hoss had deduced from his manner that it was Adam he planned to sort out.\u00a0\u00a0 It would take him weeks to get there and return home.\u00a0 It meant he\u2019d be gone most of the summer and Hoss hoped he wouldn\u2019t get back until well after school had started.\u00a0 Hoss was determined he wasn\u2019t going back for another year.\u00a0\u00a0 Hell, he\u2019d be fifteen in the fall and he was too big to fit into those stupid desks anyways.\u00a0 He was working out ways of convincing his father, or at least persuading Shaughnessy that he had, when he heard a shout from below.<\/p>\n Joe was standing beside some rocks and staring ahead into a area of scrub and trees and his shout had been one of alarm.\u00a0 Hoss followed his younger brother\u2019s gaze and saw the reason for his shout, a bear, maybe six or seven feet tall and less than ten feet from the youngster.\u00a0\u00a0 There was little he could do, his rifle was in his scabbard and that was still on Chub\u2019s back and on the other side of the mountain.\u00a0 All his father\u2019s warnings ran through his head.<\/p>\n \u201cStand still,\u201d\u00a0 He yelled as he skidded down the slope heedless of damage to himself or his clothes.<\/p>\n The bear saw the movement and for a second it turned its head away from Joe.\u00a0 Joe saw his chance and ducked behind the pile of rocks.\u00a0 The bear dropped back on all fours and ambled towards Hoss, not hurrying and seemingly not too bothered by him.\u00a0 Hoss lay directly in her path and he held his breath.\u00a0 Pa was gonna be awful mad at him for letting Joe get so close to danger, then he realised that maybe he wouldn\u2019t be around for Pa to be mad at this time.\u00a0 He could smell the animal as she drew closer then suddenly she dropped her head and changed direction.\u00a0 Hoss couldn\u2019t believe it, until a small furry cub emerged from the bushes and the mother nuzzled at it.\u00a0\u00a0 Joe must have been between her and her cub, now that they were re-united she wasn\u2019t interested in the boys.<\/p>\n Hoss lay still for what seemed like hours and behind his rock Joe waited, pale and scared.\u00a0 Finally, satisfied with the cub\u2019s safety the mother nudged him downwards and the two ambled off slowly down into the ravine.\u00a0 Hoss breathed again.\u00a0 Then winced as he went to stand.\u00a0 His ankle felt as though it was on fire and he couldn\u2019t put any weight on it.\u00a0 He must have twisted it when he slid down the scree.\u00a0 He swore as the pain hit him.<\/p>\n \u201cPa\u2019ll have your hide if he hears ya,\u201d\u00a0 Joe grinned, standing over his brother and wagging a finger at him.\u00a0 He was now fully recovered from his fright and ready for more excitement.<\/p>\n \u201cIt ain\u2019t funny Little Joe.\u00a0 I cain\u2019t walk and we gotta get outta here in case that ol\u2019 she bear comes back,\u201d\u00a0 Hoss said hobbling to a rock and sitting down.\u00a0 He pulled off his boot and sock to look at his ankle.\u00a0 It was already turning shades of red and swelling badly.\u00a0\u00a0 He realised his mistake when he tried to replace the boot, it wouldn\u2019t go back on and trying was so painful he yelled out.<\/p>\n Joe\u2019s smile turned to alarm.\u00a0 \u201cWhat we gonna do, its miles back the horses.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoss tried to think calmly, he was the oldest and he had to get them out of this.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll have to go fetch the horses,\u201d he suggested.<\/p>\n Joe gave him a look, which said he was crazy.\u00a0 \u201cThey won\u2019t make that climb.\u00a0 Pa\u2019d have a fit if they broke a leg tryin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoss grunted.\u00a0 \u201cPa\u2019s gonna have a fit anyway you look at it,\u201d he said gloomily.<\/p>\n He considered the other options.\u00a0 Sending Joe for help; even if he could make it alone, it would take maybe four or five hours to get back to the house and bring anyone, and apart from a few line shacks there wasn\u2019t much anyone nearer.\u00a0 Maybe Shaughnessy\u2019s place was closer or the settlers around the south end of the valley but he doubted it.\u00a0 He tried to recall what settlements there were over on the California side of the lake but he wasn\u2019t sure and sending his little brother into unknown territory alone was foolish.\u00a0\u00a0 Maybe the best option was to get Joe to help him back to the horses.\u00a0 There had to be an easier way down than the way they had come up.<\/p>\n He hauled himself painfully to his feet and leaned on his little brother but after a few yards it became obvious that it was too painful and the younger boy couldn\u2019t support his weight.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s no good Joe, you\u2019ll have to go for help,\u201d he sighed, sitting down again.\u00a0 \u201cD\u2019you know the way back to the horses?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSure I do,\u201d\u00a0 Joe scoffed.\u00a0 \u201cI ain\u2019t stupid.\u00a0 An\u2019 I can find my way home.\u201d\u00a0 He said quickly before Hoss could ask.\u00a0 He helped his brother get as comfortable as he could under the shade of the rocks and bushes and then set off back to the top of the gradient.<\/p>\n It didn\u2019t take the Joe long to get back down, with no older brother to reprimand him, he slid most of the way, his boots and pants taking most of the punishment.\u00a0 At the bottom of the slope he looked around to get his bearings and in five minutes he was back at the site where they had tethered the ponies a couple of hours before.\u00a0 He patted Shadow and Chubby and unhooking his canteen took a long swig of water.\u00a0 Then guilt assailed him.\u00a0 Hoss had no water and no real shelter.\u00a0 He looked at the sky, overhead it was still a harsh blue but away to the west clouds were gathering and if he wasn\u2019t mistaken he could hear far off thunder.\u00a0 It would take him maybe an hour to get home and another two for help to reach Hoss, by the time they got Hoss back to the house it would be dark.\u00a0 He stood undecided by his pony, his eight-year-old mind awhirl with possibilities.\u00a0 What if the bear came back or worse a cougar? What if Hoss died of thirst?\u00a0 He shook his head, nope he\u2019d have to go back and take Hoss water and a gun, then go for help.\u00a0 He felt rather pleased with himself once the decision was made.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t see why Adam and Hoss made such a big thing about being the oldest and making decisions, he could do it fine.<\/p>\n The canteen was no problem.\u00a0 It was almost full and he swung it over his shoulder securely.\u00a0 Then he approached Chubby and rested his hand on Hoss\u2019s rifle.\u00a0 He bit his lip and swallowed hard.\u00a0 Just last month Pa had caught him with a rifle, albeit an unloaded one, in his hands.\u00a0 He had been warned in no uncertain terms that he would get a tanning if he touched a gun again without permission.\u00a0 Firmly he grasped the stock; this was an emergency wasn\u2019t it?\u00a0 Pa couldn\u2019t be mad at him for wanting to protect his brother.\u00a0 The gun had no strap and carrying it would be a problem.\u00a0 He fished in the debris in his pockets and found a length of string, tied to the sight and the trigger guard it made a passable strap.<\/p>\n He quickly made it back to the path he had descended.\u00a0 He reckoned the climb would take about an hour but he was beginning to feel tired.\u00a0 He glanced at the waterfall.\u00a0 It had to be quicker.\u00a0 Hoss was only a hundred yards from the head of the falls.\u00a0 If Adam could do it, so could he.\u00a0 He could do anything his oldest brother could do, \u2018ceptin\u2019 maybe real hard arithmetic.<\/p>\n He stood under the falls and watched the water cascading down to the lake below, then looked up to his goal.\u00a0 The path he was on was maybe a bit over halfway up, he had perhaps fifty or sixty feet to climb and there were clear ledges.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t look so tough.\u00a0 He reached out and took hold of the first rock.\u00a0 If he kept to one side most of the hand and footholds were relatively dry.\u00a0 He had gone about twenty feet when he realised that to continue climbing he would have to get closer to the falls themselves, all the protruding rocks were now further over.\u00a0 He rested for a moment and then side stepped nearer.\u00a0 The icy cold spray hit him and he shivered and almost lost his tenuous hold.\u00a0 He grabbed for another rock and felt the rifle bang against him.\u00a0 This was more difficult than he had expected.<\/p>\n He climbed another twenty feet and rested again.\u00a0 His legs ached and his arms and hands were cut and blistering.\u00a0 He made the mistake of looking down and began to shake.\u00a0 It looked an awful long way.\u00a0 He glanced upwards and to his horror he saw a rock overhang immediately in his path.\u00a0 He felt a wetness on his cheek and realised it wasn\u2019t the cool water form the falls but hot tears of fear and frustration.\u00a0 For a moment he froze then his worries for Hoss overrode his fears and he carefully inched his way along the ledge until his hands could reach a rock projecting from the overhang.\u00a0 There was only one foothold but it would have to do.\u00a0 For a few seconds he appeared to hang in space as he reached out for the handhold above his head and then lifted his foot to the next projection.\u00a0 Once this difficult manoeuvre was accomplished successfully he could rest a little before attempting the final ten feet to the top.<\/p>\n He collapsed on the final ledge and gasped for breath.\u00a0 Then elation took over.\u00a0 He\u2019d done it; he\u2019d climbed the waterfall just like his big brother.\u00a0 He’d be able to write to Adam and boast about it.\u00a0 He gathered the canteen and rifle to him and started off down the short slope to where Hoss was still resting.<\/p>\n Hoss had settled in for a long wait, he knew it would almost certainly be dark before he was rescued and he had closed his eyes and tried to think of pleasant things to take his mind of the pain in his ankle.\u00a0 He started off all right, thinking of the fall round up and how he planned to go with Jose and Jake.\u00a0 Then his thoughts turned to Adam and his latest letters and from that to his father, no, he wouldn’t think about Pa right now.\u00a0 He sighed, what else was pleasant to think about?\u00a0 He settled for Hop Sing and food, but it only made him realise how hungry he was and how long it would be before he could eat.\u00a0\u00a0 Suddenly he heard a noise in the scrub and bushes.\u00a0 Oh No! The bear had come back.\u00a0 He looked around for some place to hide himself or a weapon to make him at least feel he was doing something but there was nothing.\u00a0 He looked toward the sound and couldn\u2019t have been more amazed at the sight.<\/p>\n \u201cLittle Joe\u2026 what in tarnation are you doing back here?\u00a0 I thought you was halfway home by now,\u201d he exclaimed, raising himself on one elbow to glare at his younger brother.<\/p>\n Joe wasn\u2019t in the least put out at Hoss\u2019s expression.\u00a0 He knew Hoss would be pleased when he showed him what he\u2019d brought.\u00a0 \u201cI fetched the canteen and your rifle,\u201d\u00a0 Joe said proudly.<\/p>\n Hoss kept his glare and Joe worried just a little.\u00a0 \u201cPa told you, you wasn\u2019t to touch guns didn\u2019t he?\u00a0 An’ how\u2019d you get back here so fast.\u201d\u00a0 He gasped as he noted the flecks of water on his brother\u2019s shirt.\u00a0 \u201cYou didn\u2019t climb the falls?\u201d<\/p>\n Joe nodded not so sure of himself now.\u00a0 \u201cIt weren\u2019t hard, don\u2019t what Adam made such a fuss about,\u201d he replied nonchalantly, shaking off the fear he had felt when his hands had slipped.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019tcha\u2019 want the water?\u201d he said nervously as Hoss continued to glare at him.<\/p>\n \u201cDadburnit, Joe, cain\u2019t you ever do what you\u2019re told.\u00a0 Pa\u2019ll skin us alive when he finds out,\u201d Hoss said angrily, moving himself to get more comfortable.\u00a0 The pain in his ankle was making him feel crosser than usual.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s gonna be worried sick about us and you know when he worries he gets mad at us.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe frowned and placed the rifle and canteen beside his brother.\u00a0 This wasn’t the reception he had expected when he had made his wonderful decision.\u00a0 Maybe it wasn’t so clever after all.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll go now and he won\u2019t have time to get worried,\u201d he said quickly, nervous of Hoss’s angry expression.<\/p>\n Hoss sighed and looked up at the sky. \u201cYou ain\u2019t goin\u2019 no place.\u00a0 It\u2019ll be dark in an hour or so and you\u2019ll only be half way home by then.\u00a0 I ain\u2019t havin\u2019 Pa mad at me about that too.\u00a0 We\u2019ll have to find some shelter for the night and maybe my ankle will be good enough for me to get back to the horses by mornin\u2019.\u201d\u00a0 He gave a deep sigh as he tried to heave himself upright.\u00a0 \u201cPa is gonna bust his vest \u2018bout this.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n At the moment Hoss spoke Ben was indeed losing his temper.\u00a0 The boys had been gone all day and it was more than an hour past chore time.\u00a0 He had fed the hens and the pigs, Joe\u2019s chores, and chopped the firewood and milked the cow, Hoss\u2019s chores and now he was getting very angry.\u00a0 He dropped the pile of kindling into the basket by the kitchen stove and hauled himself upright, clutching his back.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing, did the boys say where they were going?\u201d<\/p>\n The Chinese cook shook his head,\u00a0 \u201cMr Hoss take \u2018nough food for one meal, no more.\u00a0 They be back soon.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt can\u2019t be soon enough.\u00a0 They\u2019d better have a good explanation or they\u2019ll be doing yard chores for the rest of the month,\u201d Ben said sharply.<\/p>\n Hop Sing watched him go back into the yard and begin to pace.\u00a0 Boss not just cross, he worried, Hop Sing knew.\u00a0 He watched as Ben took a crumpled sheet of paper from his pocket and read it for the hundredth time.\u00a0 Hop Sing knew what that was too; not much escaped his notice.\u00a0 Letter come from Boston, Mr Adam in trouble too.\u00a0 He moved back into his kitchen and began preparing vegetables.\u00a0 He\u2019d try to think of a way to soothe the boss\u2019s worries.<\/p>\n Ben sat down on the porch to wait.\u00a0 Those boys would get the sharp edge of his tongue when they finally put in an appearance.\u00a0 He re-read the letter from Professor Maitland.\u00a0 It seemed that the silence from Adam had been more than a problem with the mail.\u00a0 The last letter from Adam had arrived in June but had been written back in April, then there had been over a month of silence until this had arrived a few days ago. This professor wrote of drinking and failed studies, of disobedience and insolence.\u00a0 He said that Adam was falling into bad company and wanted to know what Ben wished him to do about it.\u00a0 Ben hadn\u2019t forgotten his threat to his oldest son before he left for college. The first hint of trouble and your allowance will be stopped and you will be on your way home.\u00a0 <\/em>Well this was more than a hint, but it was so unlike Adam; Ben had to go and see for himself.\u00a0 There was no problem with the ranch, Jake and Jose would run it fine while he was away; they had done it before.\u00a0 He had almost made the arrangements to go back east but how could he ask Kate Shaughnessy and Hop Sing to take care of the boys for maybe three months or more when they did stupid things like this.<\/p>\n He glanced up at the sky it was almost dark.\u00a0 This was most unlike Hoss, he was usually more aware of the weather and the time of day than any of his sons.\u00a0 Now the anger began to turn back to worry.\u00a0 He hurried across the yard and into the barn, taking his saddle from the partition and fetching Buck\u2019s bridle.\u00a0 He had almost finished the task of saddling up the buckskin when Jake, his long time friend and foreman wandered into the barn.<\/p>\n \u201cYou gonna go look for \u2018em,\u201d he said laconically.\u00a0 \u201cThey ain\u2019t usually this late.\u00a0 Hoss said summat about goin\u2019 looking for an eagle\u2019s nest.\u00a0 That\u2019d put \u2018em west of here in the mountains.\u201d\u00a0 He nodded to himself.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s an awful lot o\u2019 riding to cover, I\u2019ll fetch the boys.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben started to say that he didn\u2019t need to do that, but Jake was gone.\u00a0 He sighed gratefully. The men would search as diligently as if it was one of their own children.\u00a0 It had never ceased to amaze him at the loyalty he got from his ranch hands in times of trouble.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Under Hoss\u2019s direction Joe had cut some small saplings with his older brother\u2019s hunting knife and Hoss had tied them together with the remains of the string to make a small shelter.\u00a0 Joe was then despatched to find more branches to weave in between the saplings.\u00a0 After an hour or so they had a makeshift shelter from the night air and as darkness descended they crawled inside.\u00a0 Hoss\u2019s ankle was throbbing by the time he was resting again and he was very hungry.\u00a0 He wished they had blankets and some food, then the night in the open wouldn’t be so bad.\u00a0 When they had left home they hadn’t expected to be gone much after five or six o’clock.\u00a0 Hoss sighed deeply.\u00a0 He knew that had Adam been there he would have taken bedrolls and some beef jerky just in case, as he always put it.\u00a0 Hoss had always thought him over cautious now he could see the sense of his brother’s detailed planning.<\/p>\n Outside the sky darkened quickly as night fell and the storm clouds rolled in.\u00a0 Inside the shelter the brothers tried to make themselves comfortable on the hard ground.\u00a0 Hoss stretched out and rested his ankle on some pine branches Joe had gathered but it still hurt.\u00a0 Joe sat hunched up with his arms around his knees, feeling cold and miserable.\u00a0 The sound of thunder and then the steady drumming of rain on the leaves and branches made him move closer to his big brother.<\/p>\n \u201cIts warmer if we sit close, ain\u2019t it?\u201d he said softly.<\/p>\n Hoss nodded and put an arm around him.\u00a0 \u201cYeah it sure is,\u201d he reassured his brother.<\/p>\n They stayed quiet for a while then Joe decided to lie down and try to sleep.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t think the bear will come back do ya?\u201d he worried.<\/p>\n Hoss chuckled,\u00a0 \u201cNah, I bet she\u2019s holed up in a nice dry den someplace.\u201d\u00a0 He looked upwards wondering how long the shelter would continue to stay dry with the amount of water it was fending off.<\/p>\n Joe tossed and turned unable to get comfortable.\u00a0 \u201cI bet Pa\u2019s real mad by now,\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 He groaned.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, if he gets cold and wet lookin\u2019 for us, it ain\u2019t gonna help none neither,\u201d\u00a0 Hoss added.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWanna bet we ain\u2019t gonna sit comfortable for a week when he catches up with us,\u201d\u00a0 He grumbled. \u201cI sure wish Adam was here.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe looked up at his brother in surprise.\u00a0 \u201cWhy?\u00a0 What difference would that make?\u201d\u00a0 He was worried now, surely Hoss wasn\u2019t scared.<\/p>\n Hoss gave a grim smile, \u201c’cos if Adam was here I wouldn\u2019t be the oldest and Pa would have someone else to yell at \u2018sides me.\u00a0 You know, I used to be jealous of him always gettin\u2019 to do stuff first and bein\u2019 allowed to do things I weren\u2019t, but now I know it ain\u2019t all its cracked up to be.\u00a0 There was lots of times when he got into trouble \u2018stead of us and more times than I can count he took the blame for us and never said nuthin\u2019 to Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe nodded, thinking of his older brother.\u00a0 He kinda missed him too.\u00a0 \u201cHe ain\u2019t wrote for ages, you think he\u2019s all right?\u00a0 I mean Pa\u2019s just goin\u2019 visiting ain\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n Hoss was glad the darkness hid his expression.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t want to lie to Joe but he didn\u2019t want to worry him either.\u00a0 \u201cSure he\u2019s all right.\u00a0 Last time he wrote me he had a girlfriend, I \u2018spect he\u2019s courtin\u2019 her and\u2019s too busy to write us.\u201d\u00a0 He closed his eyes and recalled Adam\u2019s last letter.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s the most beautiful girl in the world little brother and I\u2019m going to ask her to marry me.\u00a0 You\u2019ll love her.\u00a0 Don\u2019t say anything to Pa, Grandpa isn\u2019t very happy about it because she\u2019s Irish and a Catholic and works in a bar.\u00a0 I know Pa will understand.\u00a0 I mean Mama Marie was Catholic and Pa loved her.\u00a0 I\u2019m going to write and explain to him sometime soon when I\u2019ve asked her and she\u2019s said yes.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Hoss recalled his father\u2019s face when he had read the letter from that teacher.\u00a0 Maybe Adam weren\u2019t as smart as he thought.\u00a0 Hoss didn\u2019t know what the letter said but it had sure made Pa angry.\u00a0 Perhaps Adam had married this girl already or maybe Pa disapproved of her working in a bar.\u00a0 He had sure disapproved of that Suzie that Adam had sparked last year.\u00a0 At almost fifteen, Hoss thought about girls a lot but he sure didn\u2019t get to talk to many.\u00a0 Most girls at school laughed at him because he was big and clumsy and stupid.\u00a0 The ones that did like him only wanted to be friends because he could protect them from the bullies.\u00a0 He wished he was as handsome and smart as his older brother.\u00a0 Heck even Little Joe was smarter than he was and the girls already fought to sit next to him.<\/p>\n He lay back and dreamily began to imagine what it would be like to have a girlfriend, to hold her hand and even maybe kiss her.\u00a0 A dainty little girl with blond curls was what he really dreamed of, but the only girl who seemed to like him was Bessie Sue Hightower and she was almost as big as he was.\u00a0 He chuckled softly at the thought of Bessie Sue being called dainty.<\/p>\n “What’s so funny?”\u00a0 Joe asked, he couldn’t see anything amusing in their current situation.\u00a0 He was cold, hungry and a little scared.\u00a0 Oh he wasn’t scared of sleeping out at night; he’d done that before but never without his Pa or Adam.\u00a0 He wasn’t sure Hoss was as confident as Adam would have been and he sure missed his oldest brother right now.<\/p>\n Hoss shrugged in the darkness.\u00a0 “Nuthin’, just thinking about sumthin’ that’s all.”<\/p>\n Joe shifted closer to his brother but it was no warmer and then they both felt the steady plop of raindrops on their shirts.<\/p>\n “Aw hell.”\u00a0 Hoss swore.\u00a0 “I figured it would stay dry for longer than this.\u00a0 Adam’s shelters used ta keep out everythin’ ‘ceptin’ the worst storms.\u00a0 I shoulda built it meself.”<\/p>\n Joe was already fed up and this last roused his temper.\u00a0 “You sayin’ I ain’t no good at it?”\u00a0 He growled.<\/p>\n “Well it’s leakin’, ain’t it?”\u00a0 Hoss pointed out in an aggrieved voice.<\/p>\n It only took a few more angry words and the boys were rolling on the ground in a fight.\u00a0 Joe’s hot temper never stopped to consider the consequences.\u00a0 The fact that Hoss was now man sized compared to him, a slightly under sized eight year old, didn’t enter his head.\u00a0 It took only a few seconds for Hoss to recover from the surprise attack and despite his throbbing ankle to over power his little brother, pinning his arms behind him.<\/p>\n “Cool off,” Hoss shouted then began to laugh.\u00a0 The rough and tumble had brought down the shaky structure over their heads and the rain was now cooling them off far more than they needed.\u00a0 “I guess we’re too wet for it to matter much ’bout a shelter.”\u00a0 He chuckled and Joe joined in.<\/p>\n They scrambled out of the tangle of branches and stood in the now torrential rain.\u00a0 It was cold and Joe shivered.<\/p>\n “We gotta find somewheres warmer, Joe.”\u00a0 Hoss was worried now.\u00a0 He was supposed to take care of his little brother.<\/p>\n “There ain’t nowheres nearby,” Joe responded.\u00a0 “There’s some shelter in the rocks but it ain’t much.”<\/p>\n Hoss nodded.\u00a0 “It’ll have to do.\u00a0 I’ll crawl and you lead the way.”<\/p>\n Joe bit his lip, he could see that every time Hoss put any weight on his ankle he was in agony but to watch his brother crawling through the wet undergrowth made him realise how desperate their plight really was.\u00a0 It took more than half an hour to reach the shelter of the rocks and Joe’s explorations in the darkness found them a small cave.\u00a0 He helped Hoss up a small slope and inside.<\/p>\n “There’s a bigger one further along but it goes in deep and I kinda think it might already have a owner.”\u00a0 He tried a grin, which didn’t quite come off.<\/p>\n Hoss nodded grimly\u00a0 “I bet we got that ol’ she bear for a neighbour, hope she sleeps real sound.”<\/p>\n “There’s some sticks and dried grass back there like someone’s used it before.\u00a0 You got matches, we could make a small fire and maybe dry off a bit?”\u00a0 Joe suggested.<\/p>\n Hoss reached into his pocket and pulled out a small tin, well at least he’d remembered one of Adam’s lessons.\u00a0 “I got matches in here.”\u00a0 He tapped the tin confidently.\u00a0 “You go get the sticks.”<\/p>\n Ten minutes later Hoss’s confidence had gone along with the five matches, two had been too damp to strike, one had broken and flown out into the night and the other two wouldn’t stay alight long enough for the damp grass and twigs to catch light.\u00a0 Hoss sighed.\u00a0 “I guess we stay wet and cold and hungry.\u00a0 I sure am hungry.”<\/p>\n Hoss stayed awake most of the night; if he wasn’t worrying about how they’d get out of here he was worrying about what Pa would say, and when he did manage to doze the throbbing of his ankle woke him.\u00a0 He was pleased to see that Joe had fallen asleep and he watched over him as the cold night dragging itself slowly to morning.<\/p>\n At first light he inched himself toward the cave entrance, he was stiff and hurting but he had to find out exactly what their situation was.\u00a0 Grim, he decided after his first look at the gray morning.\u00a0 It was still raining, a slow, steady, misty, drizzle which blotted out most of the landscape but he knew that whichever way they went they had a difficult descent to the main trails.<\/p>\n He looked down at his little brother, sleeping peacefully on the remains of the dried grass with his head pillowed on Hoss’s jacket and the weight of responsibility hit him.\u00a0 This was why Adam was so serious most of the time, so methodical, so confident\u2026 or was he? Did even Adam have moments of self-doubt.\u00a0 Hoss sighed and tried to bring his practical mind to bear on their problems.<\/p>\n Joe stirred and groaned.\u00a0 He opened his eyes reluctantly his dream of a hot breakfast dispelled as the cold mist wrapped itself around him as he came to stand by his brother.\u00a0 “How’s your ankle?” he asked.<\/p>\n Hoss was standing with his weight on his other foot and he grinned.\u00a0 “Oh, it will be okay once I get movin’,” he lied.\u00a0 “And we’d better do that soon, we’ve got a long ways to go.”\u00a0 He leaned back against the cave wall.\u00a0 “Joe you gotta listen and this time you gotta do what I tell ya,” he said seriously.<\/p>\n Joe was about to protest but something in Hoss’s manner stopped him, this time his older brother meant business.\u00a0 “Whaddya want me to do?”<\/p>\n “You’re gonna go back to the horses\u2026” Hoss hated to think how hungry and thirsty Chubby and Shadow must be by now.\u00a0\u00a0 “You gotta find them some water and let ’em graze a bit then bring them the long way around to that lake we saw on the way up here.\u00a0 You think you can do that?”<\/p>\n Joe nodded\u00a0 “You mean in the valley between here and the pass?”\u00a0 He asked not sure if his brother meant that lake, it sure was a long way off.<\/p>\n “Yeah that’s the one.\u00a0 I think I can walk or slide most of the way down to there, it\u2019s all downhill with no climbs.\u00a0 If you walk around the lake you’ll come to a place with water on both sides of the trail, wait there.”\u00a0 He looked sternly at Joe.\u00a0 “Keep the horses at a walk and don’t try to ride Chubby.\u00a0 And no matter how long it is, you wait, you don’t try to get home on your own and you don’t come looking for me\u2026” he stopped and re-considered\u00a0 “\u2026’less it gets to past noon, then you leave Chubby for me and ride home for help.\u00a0 You know how to tell when it’s noon don’tcha?”<\/p>\n At this Joe gave a pained sigh.\u00a0 “Sure I do, Adam taught me and I could climb up to meet ya too\u2026”\u00a0 His voice trailed away as Hoss moved toward him and growled.<\/p>\n “You do as I tellya, got it?”<\/p>\n “Sure, sure, I got it,” Joe complained.<\/p>\n \u201cGood, I\u2019ll keep the canteen but I cain\u2019t carry the rifle you\u2019ll have to take it back with ya, \u2018an don\u2019t tell Pa you even touched it.\u201d\u00a0 He glared.\u00a0 He started to hand it to his little brother and then re-considered and emptied the shells into his pocket before handing it to a disgusted Little Joe.<\/p>\n \u201cI wasn\u2019t gonna use it…\u201d\u00a0 Joe protested.<\/p>\n \u201cWell now you cain\u2019t,\u201d Hoss retorted.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll see you at the lake in a couple of hours.\u201d<\/p>\n Two hours later Hoss was tired, hot and bruised.\u00a0 He had tried walking and sliding and even rolling to cover the ground and his clothes were torn to shreds.\u00a0 He could see the lake but it was still a good half an hour before he reached the shore, it was with relief that he saw his younger brother sitting on the bank, dangling his feet in the water.\u00a0 That sure looked good.<\/p>\n Joe had been at the spot for more than an hour and he was bored.\u00a0 He had been tempted to go and look for Hoss, but the expression on his brother\u2019s face when he\u2019d given the orders had deterred him.\u00a0 Hoss didn\u2019t often get mad with him, least not as often as Adam had, but when he did, he was a force to be reckoned with.\u00a0 He had practiced sighting the rifle but had made sure it was back in Chub’s scabbard long before the two hours were up and he had tried his hand at grabbing for fish but without much success. \u00a0He glanced up now and again at the mountain behind him and jumped to his feet when he saw Hoss slithering down the scree toward him.<\/p>\n \u201cYou okay?\u201d Joe asked his face creased with worry.\u00a0 There was blood on Hoss\u2019s shirt and pants and dirt and blood streaked on his face.\u00a0 He held out a hand to help his brother to the lake edge.<\/p>\n Hoss gratefully plunged his face into the cold water and came up spluttering.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I\u2019m okay, it\u2019s only scratches.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe nodded only to willing to take his brother\u2019s word for it; the scratches looked awful deep to him, and now that Hoss had dunked his head, the blood was flowing freely.\u00a0 He reached into his pocket and pulled out a grubby handkerchief and handed it over.<\/p>\n Hoss mopped his face and then hauled himself painfully to his feet.\u00a0 \u201cGet me over to Chubby,\u201d he ordered.\u00a0 \u201cWe gotta get home.\u00a0 Pa\u2019s gonna be worried sick.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe moved in closer to allow Hoss to lean on him and helped him to mount.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s gonna be mad too, ain\u2019t he?\u201d\u00a0 Joe said nervously.<\/p>\n Hoss nodded. \u201cYep, and don\u2019t you go tellin\u2019 him about climbing waterfalls and foolin\u2019 around with guns, neither.\u00a0 We gotta enough troubles as it is.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe swallowed hard, he had no intention of volunteering any information to his father, that\u2019s what you had older brothers for. He sure wished Adam was here.\u00a0 He didn’t have much confidence in Hoss’s ability to stay truthful and yet give nothing away.\u00a0 Adam was kinda good at that.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Ben reached for his coat as the first gray light of dawn crept into the living room of the Ponderosa ranch house.\u00a0 Last night’s search had been fruitless and they had broken it off when darkness fell.\u00a0 He had hardly slept, spending the night pacing up and down his room and waiting for dawn.\u00a0\u00a0 He tried to be quiet, but Hop Sing hadn\u2019t slept either and he found a cup of hot coffee thrust into his hand as he reached the door.\u00a0 He nodded at Hop Sing,\u00a0 \u201cThank you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou go look for boys, I do chores,\u201d The Chinaman reassured him\u00a0 \u201cThey al\u2019light, Mr Hoss take care Lil\u2019 Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben tried to smile but it didn\u2019t reach his eyes.\u00a0 Something had happened out there, he was sure of it.<\/p>\n As he drank he heard sounds in the yard and looked out to see the hands already saddling up.\u00a0 He hurried outside to find every one of them ready to ride.<\/p>\n “Mornin’ boss,”\u00a0 Jake said solemnly.\u00a0 “We thought we’d take the a look around, Jose’s gonna take a party up north around the bay and I thought maybe we could ride south.\u00a0 Joe’s bin talkin’ about that waterfall at the south end of the lake and Charlie says there’s an old eagle’s nest there, might be that’s where they headed.\u00a0 You ‘member how fascinated the boys always was by them falls?”<\/p>\n Ben nodded half in the past. “Adam always wanted to climb the rocks alongside it, probably would’ve tried it if I hadn’t threaten to take a strap to him if he even thought about it.”<\/p>\n Jake looked away, now wasn’t the time to tell the boss what he knew; he’d kept the secret for nigh on ten years, it wouldn’t hurt to keep it a while longer.\u00a0 He just hoped Adam had never boasted about that climb to Little Joe, it would be all the incentive the boy would need to try to emulate his older brother.<\/p>\n A couple of hours later Ben and Jake were riding alone, the other hands had been despatched to various points as they rode south and now the two of them rounded the end of the lake only a few miles from the waterfalls.<\/p>\n Ben slowed Buck to a walk and then stopped.\u00a0 “Let’s give the horses a rest, if we have to climb up into the mountains from here it’s going to be tough on them,” he suggested.<\/p>\n Both dismounted and Ben dropped Buck’s reins as he searched the terrain as far as his eyes could see.\u00a0 “Nothing,” he sighed.\u00a0 “We haven’t seen a sign of anyone.”<\/p>\n Jake nodded but kept silent.\u00a0 A man could disappear without trace in these mountains, many had.\u00a0 Two boys in this vast wilderness could wander for weeks and never see another soul.<\/p>\n Ben could tell what Jake was thinking, he had pushed the same thoughts away several times on the morning ride.\u00a0 Hoss was a sensible boy, almost a man now.\u00a0 He had lived here all his life, if anyone could survive, he could.\u00a0 Ben knew all this, but he couldn’t help wishing Adam was with them. Adam had always brought his little brothers safely home no matter what the dangers.\u00a0 Maybe he had relied too much on his oldest son; given him too much responsibility; maybe that was why he had thrown away his father’s values as soon as he got to college.\u00a0 It was no use speculating, that problem would have to wait, a more pressing one presented itself.<\/p>\n “There\u2026”\u00a0 Jake pointed away to his left.\u00a0 “\u2026by them trees, I saw sumthin’ move, a horse maybe?”<\/p>\n Ben followed the direction Jake pointed and saw it too, clearer now but still only a glimpse, a horse and rider; a gray horse and a small rider and behind it another horse and a larger rider.\u00a0 “I’ll kill them,” he muttered, as relief flooded through him.<\/p>\n Almost at the same moment Joe spotted the two men standing on the trail by one of the smaller finger lakes.\u00a0 “It’s Pa and Jake!”\u00a0 he yelled happily at Hoss as he dug his heels into Shadow and raced off to meet them.<\/p>\n Hoss followed more slowly, no sense in rushing to his fate.\u00a0 His stomach hurt a whole lot more than his ankle right now.\u00a0 Now how would Adam have tackled this?\u00a0 Well they were on the Ponderosa, just!\u00a0 If Joe kept quiet about guns and waterfalls, maybe Pa wouldn’t be too mad, after all it was an accident that had kept them from getting home.\u00a0 He began to plan his story in his head as he drew nearer to the welcoming committee.\u00a0 He moved the incident with the bear to this side of the mountain, and made a few other adjustments to the truth and by the time he slide gratefully from Chub’s saddle he had a passable story.\u00a0 He winced as his ankle took his weight and allowed the pain to show on his face, sympathy was a good start.<\/p>\n Ben rushed to his son’s side and put an arm around him lowering him to the ground.\u00a0 “How did this happen?”<\/p>\n “I don’t think it’s broke, Pa.\u00a0 You see I was tryin’ to get between Joe and a big ole Momma bear an’ I slipped on the rocks\u2026”\u00a0 Hoss began.<\/p>\n Ben held up a hand “A bear!\u00a0 Around the lakes, they don’t usually come this side of the mountain near the settlements\u2026she must be hurt.”\u00a0 He fixed Hoss with a stern stare.<\/p>\n “Was she hurt, Hoss?”<\/p>\n “I didn’t notice nuthin’, Pa\u2026she was\u2026”\u00a0 Hoss faltered and blushed at the look his father was giving him.<\/p>\n “She was what, Hoss?\u00a0 In Eagle Valley?\u00a0 Is that what you meant to say?”\u00a0 Ben’s voice was quiet.<\/p>\n “Uh oh!”\u00a0 Joe thought as he moved a little away from his father.\u00a0 Adam would never have made that mistake.\u00a0 It was all gonna come out now, Hoss was just no good at avoiding the truth.<\/p>\n Ben signalled to the boys to mount up.\u00a0 “We’ll finish this discussion at home.”\u00a0 He said ominously as he helped Hoss into the saddle.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n So I bet you can guess the rest, and one o’ Pa’s lectures and stuff can sure last a while ‘ceptin’ for Joe who’ll be in trouble agen before Pa’s bin gone five minutes.\u00a0\u00a0 I’m gonna send this with Jake tomorra, since we got a week of yard chores and we ain’t allowed nowheres near town for a month.\u00a0 Jake never told Pa ’bout you climbin’ the falls, hope Joe’s as lucky.\u00a0 Pa was mad enuff without that.\u00a0 I can see now what you meant about bein’ the oldest, I sure do miss you.\u00a0 Like I said I need your advice about how to stop Joe doing such dangerus stuff, or he’ll really get hurt.\u00a0 How do I make him listen?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n At this Adam laughed out loud, if he knew the answer to that he’d be real happy; Pa couldn’t achieve it and Adam seriously doubted that either he or Hoss would ever succeed.\u00a0 Joe just wasn’t the kind of kid who learned from advice. He learned from experience, painful experience, mostly.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Hope you don’t mind but I comes into your room sometimes, it makes me feel you ain’t so far away.\u00a0 I’m writin’ this sittin’, well more standin’, at your desk.\u00a0 Write soon and tell me about Pa’s visit, sorry we made him mad before he left, hope he cooled off before he got there.\u00a0\u00a0 Like I said I sure do miss you big brother.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Your loving brother<\/p>\n Hoss<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Adam folded the letter with a smile.\u00a0 Yes, he could guess the rest.\u00a0 In his head he could hear one of Pa’s lectures on responsibility and he could sure remember a few of the tannings he’d received.\u00a0 He could see poor old Hoss shifting from one foot to the other as Pa listed all the things they had done and he could recall the feelings of shame when Pa gave him a look that said he was disappointed in him.\u00a0 Being the oldest Cartwright had never been easy, he wondered if Joe would ever know how much his brothers suffered on his behalf.<\/p>\n He sighed.\u00a0 While he had been reading it was as if he was there with them.\u00a0 He glanced around his bedroom and a sadness came over him.\u00a0 He was enjoying college and he was happy most of the time with his new life. Brothers were a pain, they caused him trouble and meant he was never free of responsibility but \u2026oh hell.\u00a0 He threw a pillow at the wall in frustration\u2026\u00a0\u00a0 he sure missed them all.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n THE END<\/p>\n