Summary:<\/b>\u00a0Adam is late coming home from a trip to one of the mines, and gets caught in a dry storm. He takes shelter with one of the Ponderosa`s neighbors, intending to continue home the next morning. Instead, he and his family are caught up in a horrible drama with three runaway prostitutes and their vicious, ruthless vice-lord who is determined to get them back.
\nRating:\u00a0 PG-13\u00a0 (45,870 words)<\/p>\n
Sensitive Material<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Brandsters acknowledge that the authors are the owners of their stories.\u00a0 Should an author included in this project reach out to us and indicate they do not wish their work to be archived in the Bonanza Brand Fanfiction Library, we will remove their stories.\u00a0 We would also be happy to change contact information for any authors who wish to continue to have their stories archived in the Library.<\/p>\n
The Measure of Grace<\/strong><\/p>\n \n As Adam rode into\u00a0Virginia City, he thanked his lucky stars that this ordeal was behind him.\u00a0\u00a0A simple trip out to the mining camp to check on operations and look over the books should never have taken nearly two weeks.\u00a0\u00a0It had been too long since any of the Cartwrights had been out there, and he had found the camp mismanaged, the conditions unsafe, and the overworked men discontent and in a grumbling, dangerous mood, ready to turn on the management and the owners at one more provocation, real or imagined.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0No one wanted to let him get close to the books, and Adam soon found out why when he talked to some of the angry workers.\u00a0\u00a0Adam had fired the foreman and his henchmen, and had recruited the other workers to his side by helping them shore up the weakened tunnels with timber that had been delivered from the Ponderosa some time ago for that purpose, but had instead been sold, little by little, by the foreman and his gang to a rival timber supplier to make an extra profit on the side.\u00a0\u00a0Some of the tunnels still weren\u2019t safe, but Adam told the new foreman to keep his workers out of them until more timber was delivered.\u00a0\u00a0That meant, of course, another trip to the camp in the near future to be certain that this time, things were done right.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam wiped a grimy hand across his forehead.\u00a0\u00a0He knew his face must be as dirty as his hands and clothes.\u00a0\u00a0He watered his weary horse outside the Silver Dollar Saloon, and splashed some of the water over his neck, face, and dark hair.\u00a0\u00a0A drink to wash away the dust and a bite to eat sounded mighty fine right now.\u00a0\u00a0Sport tossed his head and neighed at him.\u00a0\u00a0Adam smiled, and stroked his neck.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019ll be home soon, my friend,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0As he walked around the hitching post onto the board sidewalk, his eyes fell on the alleyway next to the saloon.\u00a0\u00a0His thoughts drifted back to a day about a month earlier, when he and Joe had been in town to get supplies.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0After they had transferred some funds at the bank, Adam had gone to the general store while Joe had driven the wagon to the feed store.\u00a0\u00a0After making his purchases, Adam had carried the box of groceries to the feed store and put it in the back of the wagon.\u00a0\u00a0Joe had just concluded his business, and Adam helped him carry the heavy bags of feed outside and throw them into the wagon.\u00a0\u00a0Suddenly, Joe had stopped working, nearly dropping a bag on Adam\u2019s feet, and had looked across the street behind his brother.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In the alley between the Silver Dollar Saloon and the livery, a young lady in a light blue dress with long sleeves and a\u00a0\u00a0high collar was stooped beside a figure in rags lying on the ground covered with a thin blanket.\u00a0\u00a0The lady spoke to the person lying before her, who stirred, clutched a bottle close, and finally spoke.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam and Little Joe recognized both of them.\u00a0\u00a0The young lady was Jenny, who lived adjacent to the Ponderosa with her parents on a small piece of property.\u00a0\u00a0The person lying on the ground was Roberta, a saloon girl from the Bucket of Blood, who was dying from the pox.\u00a0\u00a0The madam at the saloon threw her out as soon as she discovered the girl had the disease, and refused to let her take refuge in the alley next to that establishment.\u00a0\u00a0Desperate, Roberta drummed up what business she could next to the Silver Dollar with miners and lumberjacks who were either too drunk to notice her condition, or too hopeless and penniless anymore to care.\u00a0\u00a0Her services earned her a moth-eaten, worn blanket, a few extra clothes, and a bottle to ease her pain.\u00a0\u00a0Though many of Virginia City\u2019s decent citizens complained about Roberta, and demanded that she at least move out of view of the main street in town, the madam at the Silver Dollar refused to force the girl to move, and even helped her occasionally by giving her another bottle of whiskey, or another blanket, though she did make it clear that Roberta was to stay out of the saloon and away from the patrons who frequented her girls\u2019 rooms, as well as telling her girls to stay away from her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Roberta was not the first young prostitute to fall prey to a social disease.\u00a0\u00a0Such occurrences were more and more common in\u00a0Virginia City.\u00a0\u00a0Most women in such a position killed themselves rather than go through the horrifying, living death brought on by the pox, or other unmentionable diseases.\u00a0\u00a0Most hoped they would be killed by jealous lovers before they went through the torments of such a horrible death, or became too old and ugly to be attractive to the men.\u00a0\u00a0The young men were warned by Doc Martin and his assistant, as well as by their fathers, but many of the young men winked to one another and watched as their fathers and the doctor\u2019s young assistant visited those women\u2019s rooms late at night and sneaked out either in the early morning or 30 minutes later, depending on how much they paid.\u00a0\u00a0They fully intended to have their fun before they married a decent woman.\u00a0\u00a0How could they possibly get a disease like that?\u00a0\u00a0They were going to settle down later, weren\u2019t they?<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam and Joe watched as Jenny left a little food, a flask of water, and some money with Roberta.\u00a0\u00a0They weren\u2019t the only ones watching.\u00a0\u00a0Most of the citizens of\u00a0Virginia City\u00a0had stopped what they were doing, and stared at her, or so it seemed to Adam.\u00a0\u00a0Matrons\u2019 heads drew together and disapproving stares and whispers began.\u00a0\u00a0Some men looked at one another and laughed knowingly, while others looked on silently or turned aside in shame.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny stood, and with a last compassionate word to the woman before her, went to the sidewalk before the livery and gave her hand to her three year-old niece, whom she had told to stay there and wait for her.\u00a0\u00a0As she returned to her wagon loaded with supplies, women moved out of her way, sweeping their skirts away from her.\u00a0\u00a0Daughters were pulled aside.\u00a0\u00a0Men either gawked at her, or touched their hats and ducked their heads.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny took no notice, but lifted her niece onto the wagon seat, and carefully climbed up beside her.\u00a0\u00a0Adam smiled to himself when he recalled how heedlessly he had seen her ride her horse alone, astride as often as not, with her hair flying in the wind.\u00a0\u00a0Now, her light brown hair was flawlessly curled and pinned under her hat, and her dress was neat and free of dust, despite the dry wind blowing the dust about the hot, dry town.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Two women approached Adam and Joe, pulling their daughters after them along the sidewalk.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cImagine!\u201d exclaimed one.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat hussy!\u00a0\u00a0Who does she think she is?\u00a0\u00a0And with that child of sin, pretending she\u2019s her aunt!\u00a0\u00a0As though we don\u2019t all know what they both are!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt takes one to know one,\u201d the other woman agreed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As they approached the Cartwright brothers, the women smiled, and the daughters inclined their heads ingratiatingly.\u00a0\u00a0Joe and Adam smiled and touched their hats in return.\u00a0\u00a0Joe felt that if he had to force his mouth up any more, he might crack his face.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Without speaking, they threw the last of the feed bags into the wagon, and moved as one toward Jenny\u2019s wagon in front of the general store.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny was trying to turn the wagon so she could go home.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJenny!\u201d called Joe.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked about her, but didn\u2019t see them in the busy street.\u00a0\u00a0Adam reached the wagon and jumped up beside her, followed by Joe, who climbed up the other side.\u00a0\u00a0Startled, Jenny stopped the horses and stared at one, and then the other.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam and Joe just looked at her, uncertain what to say or do, as Jenny returned their gazes with a puzzled look.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d she repeated.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou shouldn\u2019t \u2013 you should \u2013 be more careful,\u201d said Joe apologetically.\u00a0\u00a0As Jenny stared at him, Adam took the reins and pulled the wagon back along the sidewalk.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat we mean,\u201d he said gently, \u201cis that people misunderstand when you help someone like \u2013 like you just did.\u00a0\u00a0Not that you shouldn\u2019t have helped her,\u201d he hastened to add, and Joe sputtered his agreement.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou have to realize that \u2013 well \u2013 people think that \u2013\u201c<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI know what they think,\u201d Jenny replied evenly and quietly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m accustomed to it.\u00a0\u00a0Believe me, I\u2019m used to people\u2019s \u2018misunderstandings\u2019.\u00a0\u00a0It doesn\u2019t really matter to me what they think.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe thought of what the women had just said about Jenny and her niece.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe don\u2019t mean that,\u201d he said earnestly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf you talk to \u2013 help \u2013 a \u2013 a woman like that, then, well\u2026.\u00a0\u00a0Maybe you should\u2026.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He let the sentence dangle lamely, wondering how to tell her not to let people see her do something that obviously needed to be done.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe needs help, Joe,\u201d Jenny almost pleaded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe needs a doctor.\u00a0\u00a0Men have been using her for years.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s why she needs help.\u00a0\u00a0Who will help her now?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe and Adam looked down, unwilling to meet her gaze.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cUh, Ma\u2019am -\u201d\u00a0\u00a0A cough and a series of wheezing gasps drew their attention to the street next to them.\u00a0\u00a0A stooped, grizzled miner stood next to the wagon with his dirty, misshapen hat in his hand.\u00a0\u00a0His greasy hair fell lankly over his face, which was creased with wrinkles.\u00a0\u00a0His clothes were ill-fitting and dirty.\u00a0\u00a0When the coughing fit subsided, he said, \u201cI can tell the doctor about the lady, if it pleases you, Ma\u2019am.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny eyed him suspiciously.\u00a0\u00a0His blue eyes were bleary and his nose reddened from too much alcohol.\u00a0\u00a0She could smell him even over the horse dung and other smells of the city street.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThe doctor can\u2019t do anything for that woman,\u201d said Adam, sounding almost defensive.\u00a0\u00a0He recognized the man as one of the town derelicts, who spent all his time gambling with others down on their luck and drinking up his winnings.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d agreed Joe.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHow do you know?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0asked Jenny.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe could give her some laudanum, Ma\u2019am, if he would,\u201d said the miner.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s \u2018bout the only thing that\u2019s gonna help her now.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He paused as he stared at Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0It had been a long time since he had spoken with a lady, and such a pretty one at that.\u00a0\u00a0Usually, the ladies hurried to the other side of the street as he approached.\u00a0\u00a0Even some of the loose women of the town wouldn\u2019t talk to or associate with him.\u00a0\u00a0He considered this woman before him to be one of the finest ladies he had ever seen or known.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy name\u2019s Charlie, Ma\u2019am.\u00a0\u00a0And I\u2019ve tried to help Miss Roberta here, but I believe that Doc Martin is the only one who can help her now, if he will.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy haven\u2019t you spoken to the doctor before this?\u201d demanded Jenny.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The miner coughed again.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell, Ma\u2019am,\u201d he spluttered, \u201cmost people won\u2019t listen to the likes of me.\u00a0\u00a0But I -\u201d Jenny waited patiently as he again hacked and gasped \u2013 \u201cI took a liking to Miss Roberta a long time ago \u2013 no offense to you, please, Ma\u2019am \u2013 and I try to help her however I can.\u00a0\u00a0Perhaps if you speak to the doctor on her behalf\u2026\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He gave a tremendous sneeze \u2013 \u201che\u2019d listen to you better than me?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He wiped his nose on his dirty sleeve and fixed her with a hopeful stare.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny wondered if she was the object of a practical joke.\u00a0\u00a0She looked at Adam and Joe, but they gave her no indication that her suspicion was correct.\u00a0\u00a0If this miner was making fun of her, or joking with her, Jenny was certain that they would speak up.\u00a0\u00a0But their faces showed only apprehension and concern.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny had been escorted to a dance by Adam, and had gone riding with him several times, and with Little Joe a few times, and she knew that they would never allow this man to take advantage of her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll go speak to Doctor Martin,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam took hold of her wrist.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo!\u201d he exclaimed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny tried to pull away.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut he\u2019ll listen to me!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam held on to her firmly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo,\u201d he repeated.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut Adam\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll talk to him,\u201d said Adam.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked at him, then at Joe.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll go with him, and talk to him, too,\u201d said Joe hesitantly.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou mean it?\u201d asked Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re not just saying this to \u2013 to get me to be quiet and go home?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She looked at the miner, who hadn\u2019t stopped staring at her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019ll listen to the Cartwright boys,\u201d the miner said approvingly.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny still wondered if this was a set-up, but one more look at Adam\u2019s and Joe\u2019s faces convinced her that they were sincere.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAll right,\u201d she said, hoping their sincerity wouldn\u2019t disappear as soon as her wagon was out of sight.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll trust you to go to the doctor, and get her the help she needs.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She took the reins from Adam, and waited for him and Joe to get down.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll ride with you to the edge of town,\u201d said Adam, and gently took the reins back from her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJoe, why don\u2019t you stay with our wagon until I get back?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe climbed down from the wagon, and Adam escorted Jenny through the noisy, disapproving throng in the streets.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n Adam looked at the alley next to the Silver Dollar.\u00a0\u00a0No one was there.\u00a0\u00a0There was no trace of Roberta, her blanket, or her bottle.\u00a0\u00a0As Adam walked into the saloon and greeted the regulars and the bartender, he wondered if the doctor had given Roberta an overdose of laudanum as a measure of mercy.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n The eerie, haunting screech echoed throughout the sky and over the grasslands and forests beneath as the eagle soared on the air currents high above the earth.\u00a0\u00a0Again and again his lonely shriek filled the air, until he began slowly descending in great spirals.\u00a0\u00a0His circling grew tighter and smaller;\u00a0\u00a0then, suddenly, he plummeted like a stone.\u00a0\u00a0A moment later, he was airborne again.\u00a0\u00a0His harsh screams of disappointment and frustration reverberated as a terrified rabbit scuttled to cover after a close brush with the talons of death.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The red-headed woman hidden behind a tree at the top of the bank near the stream watched and listened.\u00a0\u00a0She had heard and seen the eagle, but the rabbit was too far away for her to see.\u00a0\u00a0She knew, however, that the eagle\u2019s prey had just had a close call, and wondered how much longer she and her friends could keep going before they, too, were snared, throttled, slaughtered, and devoured.\u00a0\u00a0She peered around the tree, and looked about cautiously.\u00a0\u00a0There appeared to be no one in sight, but she couldn\u2019t be too careful.\u00a0\u00a0They had seen a fence a while ago, as they came out of the foothills near the\u00a0Sierra Nevada\u00a0range, and had quickly gone out of sight of it, hurrying toward the trees, so they could get under cover, and hopefully near water again.\u00a0\u00a0She stiffened as she heard a shout, and ducked behind the tree again.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A small girl with light brown braids coming undone and dress flying about ran into her view.\u00a0\u00a0She gave a mighty yell accompanied by a flying leap, and landed on a mounded hump of dirt covered with scrubby grass and weeds.\u00a0\u00a0Dust flew up about her and settled upon her hair, face, and clothes, turning her dress from blue to brown.\u00a0\u00a0A young lady with her hair pulled back and fastened under her hat appeared shortly, holding her dress so she didn\u2019t trip over it, hurrying yet managing to appear ladylike as she scurried to catch up with the child.\u00a0\u00a0Before she could reach the hillock where the little girl perched, the child gave a shout, leaped up, and ran toward the stream.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The red-headed woman threw herself to the ground and crawled desperately back down the bank, heedless of the additional dirt and grass stains on her dress.\u00a0\u00a0She heard a tremendous shout \u2013 a man\u2019s shout \u2013 and knew he was after her.\u00a0\u00a0Her breath caught in her throat as she scuttled under the overhanging bush by the stream with her companions. She could only hope the mule was hidden well enough, and he wouldn\u2019t see it, or them.\u00a0\u00a0Terrified, she curled herself into a ball and willed her gasping, wheezing breath to stop and her pounding heart to still.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWho said you could go down by the stream?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0The angry voice approached.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He was coming.\u00a0\u00a0What a fool she\u2019d been, to think she could escape him again.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d run away before, and he\u2019d come after her, always tracking her down, finding her, – and forcing her back.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat do you think you\u2019re doing, running off down here, and no one with you?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He was at the top of the bank.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut Grandpa, Aunt Jenny was right behind me\u201d \u2013 a little girl\u2019s voice began.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo, she wasn\u2019t!\u00a0\u00a0You ran off and left her!\u00a0\u00a0You could fall down the bank and hurt yourself, or fall in the water!\u00a0\u00a0You don\u2019t go down near the stream without someone holding your hand!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0The last statement was spoken with great emphasis given to each word.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In her hiding place, the woman opened her eyes.\u00a0\u00a0His voice didn\u2019t sound the way she remembered.\u00a0\u00a0She lifted her head and twisted her neck around to carefully peer back up the bank.\u00a0\u00a0The same child and young lady she had seen before stood at the top of the bank.\u00a0\u00a0A man with dark, curly hair with more than a touch of gray stood next to them.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m here now, Father,\u201d said the young woman, as she took the little girl\u2019s hand.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t yell at her.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019s just excited.\u00a0\u00a0I can take her down.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo!\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019s too wild right now, and apt to get into trouble.\u00a0\u00a0Stay up here!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe need to get back home, anyway.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0An older woman\u2019s voice from further away floated down the bank.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019ve visited, had our picnic, and run and played and talked.\u00a0\u00a0I need to finish some mending and get dinner started, and the chores need to be done.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The child\u2019s face fell in disappointment.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNever mind, Karen, we\u2019ll go down another time,\u201d said her aunt.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet\u2019s go look at my flowers while Grandma gathers the picnic things.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Karen yielded to the gentle tug on her hand, and allowed the young lady to lead her away.\u00a0\u00a0The man followed them.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A deep longing stirred within Elise from her hiding place.\u00a0\u00a0That and curiosity conquered her fear, and she emerged from the bushes and crawled carefully back up the bank.\u00a0\u00a0A muffled whimper of terror followed her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t worry, Mai Ling,\u201d she said quietly over her shoulder.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt wasn\u2019t him.\u00a0\u00a0Stay with Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll be right back.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Just below the top of the bank, she stopped, then carefully lifted her head and peered over.\u00a0\u00a0The young child and her aunt \u2013 Karen and Jenny, Elise told herself \u2013 were walking up a slight hill, their backs to her, toward a couple of lone trees standing in the midst of open grassland stunted here and there with bushes.\u00a0\u00a0A wagon approached, going slowly over the bumpy ground.\u00a0\u00a0As it came closer, she saw it was driven by a boy of about eight or nine.\u00a0\u00a0A woman sat next to him holding a baby.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d asked the man.\u00a0\u00a0The woman in the wagon said something about bringing the wagon to everyone instead of waiting for everyone to come to the wagon.\u00a0\u00a0The man threw his head back and laughed, a long, loud laugh from his heart.\u00a0\u00a0He took the baby from his wife\u2019s arms and held him closely and carefully to him, stroking his hair and kissing him before giving him back.\u00a0\u00a0Then he turned and gave a trilling whistle.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise followed his gaze.\u00a0\u00a0His granddaughter and her aunt were kneeling by the trees, carefully admiring and touching something Elise couldn\u2019t see.\u00a0\u00a0They looked back at the sound of the whistle, and Jenny waved to him to show she had heard.\u00a0\u00a0After a moment longer, they stood and walked back to the wagon.\u00a0\u00a0The grandfather picked up Karen and threw her in the back, to the sound of much giggling, and helped Jenny in more slowly.\u00a0\u00a0The boy then climbed in the back, and the grandfather stepped up next to his wife, took the reins, turned the wagon, and drove out of Elise\u2019s sight.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise wished they would come back, so she could watch them some more, and listen to the grandfather laugh again.\u00a0\u00a0She swallowed the lump in her throat, and was surprised to find herself fighting off tears.\u00a0\u00a0She hadn\u2019t cried since \u2013 when had she last cried?\u00a0\u00a0Shortly after her parents had died, and she\u2019d had to go live with her uncle and aunt, she had learned not to cry.\u00a0\u00a0She shuddered at the memory of her uncle:\u00a0\u00a0Such a seemingly genteel man, with a kind word for everyone, but who had stared at her all the time.\u00a0\u00a0Shortly after she arrived at his home, the night time visits to her room had begun. At first, she was too horrified to resist. When she finally protested, he immediately warned her that any resistance on her part would make things worse for her.\u00a0\u00a0He also informed her that if she ever told anyone about what they did, he would kill her.\u00a0\u00a0But there was never any chance of her telling anyone about the terrible nights she spent in his house.\u00a0\u00a0She knew that no one would believe her, and even if they had, they would look upon her with the same disgust and hatred that her aunt always had in her eyes whenever they were turned toward her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0When her uncle had tired of her, he sold her to Clint.\u00a0\u00a0What Clint did to her was far worse than anything her uncle had ever done.\u00a0\u00a0She never cried there.\u00a0\u00a0She also learned to instantly obey everything he wanted her to do, and to pretend she liked it, no matter how distasteful it was to her, and to never, ever show fear around him.\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling was so terrified of Clint that she shuddered visibly whenever he came around her.\u00a0\u00a0Clint had fed off her fear as a leech fed on blood.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise emerged slowly from the trees, looking about to be certain no one was watching her.\u00a0\u00a0Keeping low to the ground, she went to the small stand of trees where she had seen Jenny and Karen.\u00a0\u00a0Though it wasn\u2019t far from where she had been hidden, it was further away than it seemed, and the gradual uphill slope winded her easily in her weakened state.\u00a0\u00a0She saw the fabulous blossoms as she approached.\u00a0\u00a0Someone had planted beautiful red roses by the trees, and had transplanted some wild prairie roses about them.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Heedless of the danger of being in the open, Elise stood lost in thought.\u00a0\u00a0Her mother had grown roses which Elise had helped tend.\u00a0\u00a0All of her mother\u2019s flowers had been lovely, just as she was.\u00a0\u00a0Elise remembered how she had followed her mother, listening to her humming and singing to herself as she wandered through the garden, pruning, pulling weeds, and carefully choosing blooms to adorn their dining\u00a0\u00a0room table.\u00a0\u00a0Her father used to say that her mother helped the sun rise in the sky with her singing, and as Elise saw the mornings grow brighter around them, and her mother\u2019s red hair shine in the sun, she believed him.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise swallowed and pushed the memory away.\u00a0\u00a0These flowers looked a bit scraggly.\u00a0\u00a0They needed pruning.\u00a0\u00a0She pulled a knife that she carried at her hip, and proceeded to cut them back.\u00a0\u00a0She wondered how she could remember how to do this after all these years, but she did the task as though she had just done it yesterday.\u00a0\u00a0She cut one blossom and trimmed the thorns.\u00a0\u00a0Surely whoever planted these couldn\u2019t begrudge her one flower.\u00a0\u00a0The soil about them was dry, as was everything about her, but she could water them later.\u00a0\u00a0The stream was nearby.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She went back to her friends much more lighthearted than she\u2019d felt in years.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI brought us a flower,\u201d she announced, as she crawled under the bushes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSomeone planted rosebushes out here!\u00a0\u00a0Isn\u2019t it beautiful?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling looked at the rose, then at Elise.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWho were those people?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cA family.\u00a0\u00a0They must live close by.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDid they see you?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Elise paused.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey seem nice.\u00a0\u00a0Maybe they\u2019d help us.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0But she knew that no matter how nice they seemed, they were respectable, and would want nothing to do with the likes of them.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling looked at Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe\u2019s getting worse.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise looked at their friend.\u00a0\u00a0Open sores covered her face, and could also be seen on her arms and legs through rips in her sleeve and her skirt.\u00a0\u00a0A rash of small blisters was starting to form again, after having disappeared earlier while they rested in the wilderness.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe\u2019s so hot!\u201d exclaimed Mai Ling.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise gingerly touched a part of Marabelle\u2019s face that didn\u2019t have blisters or sores on it.\u00a0\u00a0Her skin felt hot and leathery.\u00a0\u00a0As she brushed her friend\u2019s neck, she could feel swollen glands.\u00a0\u00a0She moved her hand down to the enlarged belly, and felt the muscles contract briefly.\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle groaned and drew her hands over her belly, curling into a ball on her side, squeezing her swollen red eyes tightly shut.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise whispered to Mai Ling, \u201cIt can\u2019t be her time yet!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling just looked at her with huge, frightened eyes.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet\u2019s get her a drink and sponge her off,\u201d said Elise.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMaybe we can wash our clothes out here.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0A fish splashed in a low-lying pool isolated from the stream during this dry spell by a fallen tree and other debris piled against it.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet\u2019s make a fire, too,\u201d said Elise, grateful for the Indians they\u2019d encountered in the wilderness who had taught them how.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSomeone will see it,\u201d whimpered Mai Ling.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe have to chance it,\u201d Elise countered.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe can\u2019t eat raw fish, and I\u2019m sick of jerky.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019re running low on food, anyway.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She nodded toward Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGive her a drink and wipe her face, while I try to catch some fish.\u00a0\u00a0She needs something good to eat.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise fashioned a hook and line from a twig and light-weight branches the way she had seen the Indians do a short while ago, and persisted until she had three fish.\u00a0\u00a0Then she built a small fire in a hollowed-out semi-circle under the bank, prayed that the fire wouldn\u2019t smoke or that the smoke would not be seen, let it burn low, and laid the fish on the hot coals.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Meanwhile, Mai Ling lifted Marabelle\u2019s head, brushed her dirty blonde hair out of the way, and gave her a drink of tepid water.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf only it would rain!\u201d thought the Chinese girl.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe could be a little cleaner just by standing in it!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She glanced at the sluggish, muddy water in the stream.\u00a0\u00a0They might wash in that, only to come out dirtier than when they came in.\u00a0\u00a0Perhaps they had to drink it, but they didn\u2019t have to wash in it.\u00a0\u00a0She wet the corner of her shawl in the water, and wiped her sick friend\u2019s face and hands.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As Elise brought a fish to Marabelle, she wondered if she would be able to eat it.\u00a0\u00a0But the girl sat up, and despite the tremors that racked her body, reached hungrily for the food.\u00a0\u00a0Elise looked at her stringy hair, the dirt covering her from head to toe, along with the sores ravaging her body, and wondered how much longer she could last.\u00a0\u00a0They had to get to shelter;\u00a0\u00a0they had to find someone with a kind heart who would help them, before the baby came;\u00a0\u00a0before it was too late.\u00a0\u00a0But Elise knew, despite her young age of not-quite-seventeen, that kind hearts would turn to stone against the three of them.\u00a0\u00a0She also realized that no help would be freely given.\u00a0\u00a0Everything had a price, and no one would do anything for her unless something was in it for them.\u00a0\u00a0And all she knew how to give would be repulsed with disgust as long as anyone knew about Marabelle.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat a pity,\u201d Elise thought, as she watched her hungry friend devour the fish.\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle used to be so pretty.\u00a0\u00a0Everyone wanted her.\u00a0\u00a0Men even paid extra for her.\u00a0\u00a0But now\u2026they never knew her.\u00a0\u00a0No one wanted her.\u00a0\u00a0Nobody cared.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle ate two fish and some jerky.\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling ate the other fish.\u00a0\u00a0Elise just had jerky.\u00a0\u00a0Elise and Mai Ling washed as well as they could in the muddy stream, and washed Marabelle as much as they dared.\u00a0\u00a0As the sun set, they huddled under their thin blankets and went to sleep.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n As Adam took a seat at the bar, he flipped a coin on the counter.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMake it a cold one,\u201d he joked.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jake, the bartender, laughed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYeah, right, Adam!\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019d all like that about now.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He dispensed some brew in a glass and put it in front of his customer.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere have you been?\u00a0\u00a0Looks like you\u2019ve been gone for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam took an appreciative sip.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOff to check on some mining operations,\u201d he said, hoping Jake wouldn\u2019t ask any more questions.\u00a0\u00a0He was sick of dealing with the problems there, and definitely wasn\u2019t anticipating telling his father about how they\u2019d been swindled.\u00a0\u00a0No telling how much money they\u2019d lost in that crooked scheme, not to mention the additional timber they\u2019d have to cut now to shore up the mine.\u00a0\u00a0He took another long drink.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019ve been gone for a while.\u00a0\u00a0Your pa was in town about \u2013 oh, maybe a couple days ago now, wondering if you\u2019d been around.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam maintained his composure.\u00a0\u00a0Of course his father had good reason to be concerned, but he didn\u2019t want Jake knowing that.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt just took me a little longer than usual, that\u2019s all.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jake hurried away to answer the call of another customer.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A few minutes later, Adam asked for another beer.\u00a0\u00a0As Jake set it before him, Adam asked, \u201cWhat happened to that girl in the alley?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat girl in the alley?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou know,\u201d said Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cRoberta.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOh!\u00a0\u00a0Her!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jake shook his head and waved his hand in a dismissive gesture.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe\u2019s gone, about three, four weeks now.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam looked thoughtfully at his friend.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat happened to her?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jake stared at him, and raised his eyebrows.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat do you think happened to her?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI mean, did she die, get driven away, get taken away, what happened to her?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAll I know is, she\u2019s gone.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jake leaned close to him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSome say the doctor helped her,\u201d he whispered.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat she died right after he saw her.\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t know;\u00a0\u00a0I didn\u2019t see it.\u00a0\u00a0But lots of them didn\u2019t, either.\u00a0\u00a0They carted her away shortly after his visit to her.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He wiped a few glasses.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat\u2019s your interest in it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam put his empty glass down.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJust wondering.\u00a0\u00a0I asked the doc to see her.\u00a0\u00a0Wondered how she was.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell, now you know.\u00a0\u00a0Doctor can\u2019t do anything for someone like that.\u00a0\u00a0Jake picked up his empty glass to refill it, but Adam held up his hand to stop him.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m heading home.\u00a0\u00a0Don\u2019t bother.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He tossed another coin on the counter.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou sure?\u201d asked Jake.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe got lots of entertainment here later on, if you want to spend the night in town.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He winked.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam wondered how Jake could even suggest such a thing after seeing what had happened to Roberta.\u00a0\u00a0He shook his head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNope.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve had enough trail dust to choke my horse, and seen enough \u2018entertainment.\u2019\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll see you around.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He strode out the door, waved to some men playing cards by the window, and left the saloon.\u00a0\u00a0Jake shrugged his shoulders as he watched him leave.<\/p>\n \n Later that night<\/p>\n \n Mai Ling woke before dawn, certain she heard someone at the top of the bank.\u00a0\u00a0She strained her ears for the stealthy footsteps through the grass she was sure she had heard, and the soft crunch of booted feet in the dirt.\u00a0\u00a0She barely muffled a scream as she heard some pebbles and small clods of dirt rustle through the grass and bushes near her.\u00a0\u00a0She held her breath, pressing her face in the dirt beneath her, hoping that whoever it was wouldn\u2019t notice them, and that their mule would be silent.\u00a0\u00a0But the startled animal scrambled to its feet and strained against its tether.\u00a0\u00a0A screeching bray echoed through the pre-dawn air, and the terrified girl wrapped her arms about her head.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0After what seemed to Mai Ling like several minutes of noise and struggle that could wake the dead, the mule settled back down with several loud snorts.\u00a0\u00a0When the girl mustered the courage to uncover her head and look, she could see the animal\u2019s shadow in the late moonlight that still glimmered over the very edge of the shallow ravine in which they were hiding.\u00a0\u00a0She looked carefully about, but saw nothing and no one.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The coyote that had caused the disturbance trotted nervously along the top of the ravine, searching for a place where it could get water undisturbed.\u00a0\u00a0He was roaming far from his usual hunting grounds, looking for water and food after being driven away by roaming Indian tribes and increasing numbers of settlers searching for the same during this drought.\u00a0\u00a0He had scented water and easy prey, but humans were also near by, and seemingly all about him, and he was nervous as he ran on.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The minutes passed like hours as Mai Ling strained her ears to hear the slightest sound of anyone about them.\u00a0\u00a0She heard only the soft wind in the trees, the call of a lonely owl, and the barely audible ripple of water in the disappearing moonlight.\u00a0\u00a0Finally, she sat up slowly and carefully, cringing at the crackle of dead leaves and the snapping of twigs beneath her.\u00a0\u00a0The moon set over the lip of the ravine, and she could barely see the darker shadow of the mule as it slept again.\u00a0\u00a0She looked next to her, but it was too dark under the dense bushes where they hid to see her companions.\u00a0\u00a0She could hear their breathing, but reached over and touched them blindly in the dark just to reassure herself of their presence.\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle, next to Mai Ling, jumped when she was touched.\u00a0\u00a0Elise, on the other side of Marabelle, stirred, yawned, and turned over.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Driven by an impulse she did not understand, Mai Ling left the shelter of her tangled bush and stood for a moment in the dark beside it.\u00a0\u00a0She looked in vain for a glimmer of light reflecting from the water she could barely hear, then turned the other way.\u00a0\u00a0Blackness met her eyes.\u00a0\u00a0She raised her head, and finally saw light far above her.\u00a0\u00a0She wandered blindly forward, and stumbled on her hands and knees up the bank, until she reached the top.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The moonlight still shone over the grassy meadow about her.\u00a0\u00a0Bushes and trees stood out starkly against the flowing silver grass drenched in lustrous white.\u00a0\u00a0She peered out at this strange world, feeling like a small, lost child. She hadn\u2019t looked upon such a sight since her childhood in\u00a0China.\u00a0\u00a0She recalled the last sight of her homeland three years earlier, as her brother traveled with her to a ship to take her to\u00a0America.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She remembered the night before they arrived at the ship.\u00a0\u00a0It was a beautiful, cloudless, moonlit night like this, with the shimmering grass flowing up the hillsides and the trees standing like sentinels.\u00a0\u00a0She and her brother had slept one last night in the open, and he had told her, once again, that she would meet her cousin in\u00a0San Francisco.\u00a0\u00a0She was to travel with him to his home, where she would keep house for him, and he would eventually find her a suitable husband.\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling had clung to the memory of that last night of her free life with her brother many times during the years since then.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She wished she could erase her memories from then on.\u00a0\u00a0Her cousin had not taken her to his home, but had sold her to men of her own country who trained her for a life she never wanted to live.\u00a0\u00a0Unable to escape from them, and with no place to go in a foreign country often hostile to her people even if she had managed to flee, she learned to please the men who came to her in order to survive.\u00a0\u00a0She often wished to kill herself to end her misery, but lacked the courage to do so.\u00a0\u00a0She was locked in the brothel, unable to leave.\u00a0\u00a0Clint had bought her during one of his trips to\u00a0San Francisco.\u00a0\u00a0She had not seen a nighttime sky until the three of them had fled from Clint.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Clint.\u00a0\u00a0Was it he she had heard earlier?\u00a0\u00a0Surely not.\u00a0\u00a0He would have found them, with all the noise their mule had made.\u00a0\u00a0Then again, perhaps he was waiting.\u00a0\u00a0Waiting for daylight.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The moonlight seemed suddenly revealing instead of beautiful, and Mai Ling shivered.\u00a0\u00a0She moved away from the edge of the trees and slipped back down by the stream.\u00a0\u00a0As she crawled about, vainly trying to locate her friends in the dark, she bumped into the mule.\u00a0\u00a0She curled up next to him and lay sleepless until dawn.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny sighed inwardly as she fixed dinner.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d had a very trying day, trapped in the house with the children for most of the day.\u00a0\u00a0Jared and the children, she grimly corrected herself.\u00a0\u00a0At age eight (going on nine, Jared insisted, though he was closer to eight than nine), he did not consider himself a child, and frequently reminded her of the fact.\u00a0\u00a0With the responsibility he accepted, she usually admitted he was right.\u00a0\u00a0Today, however, ever since the dry storm had begun at midmorning, he had done nothing except deliberately irritate the younger children.\u00a0\u00a0Karen was in tears and David, the baby, had been fussy the entire day.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked out the window.\u00a0\u00a0The gusts of wind blew clouds of dust along the ground with tumbleweeds, leaves, and branches.\u00a0\u00a0Spidery flickers of lightning briefly illumined the blackening sky, occasionally accompanied by thunder, but no rain fell.\u00a0\u00a0The dust was getting in the house, despite the tightly shut windows and curtains.\u00a0\u00a0She was sure it would be in their food.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She looked about carefully.\u00a0\u00a0A few hours ago, the cat, who had been sleeping soundly, had suddenly sat up, listened intently, then rushed to the window.\u00a0\u00a0He jumped behind the curtains onto the windowsill, then exploded from there and hid under the bed in Jenny\u2019s room.\u00a0\u00a0Shortly after, Karen insisted she saw someone by the barn.\u00a0\u00a0Jared had scoffed, making fun of her imaginary friends, but Jenny kept checking outside after that.\u00a0\u00a0No one had been to the barn since early morning.\u00a0\u00a0There was no sign of anyone outside now that she could see.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny wondered why her father had to leave now on business, and why her mother had accompanied him.\u00a0\u00a0She realized that her father\u2019s job representing a company that sold mining equipment, as well as his investigation into the sale of equipment needed for the establishment of factories in some parts of the West, kept him traveling, but there seemed\u00a0\u00a0to be an unusual number of trips to\u00a0Silver\u00a0City\u00a0lately.\u00a0\u00a0Both of her parents went on those trips, while her father traveled alone on his other journeys.\u00a0\u00a0Her father said\u00a0Silver\u00a0City\u00a0wasn\u2019t that far away, and it was a chance for her mother to get away with him, but Jenny doubted that was the only reason.\u00a0\u00a0She wondered why her father would have to travel to one place so many times, even a boom mining town like\u00a0Silver\u00a0City.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She dropped the curtain and went back to the stove.\u00a0\u00a0They could eat an early supper, Jared could do the chores, and she\u2019d put the younger children to bed.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d had Jared fill the bathtub for their evening bathing that morning, when she saw the storm coming, and it only needed some hot water added.\u00a0\u00a0She knew after all the dust, they\u2019d want to wash up thoroughly before bed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As she set the table, the cat emerged from hiding and watched her expectantly.\u00a0\u00a0She looked at his sleek form and glossy black fur, and reminded herself that he didn\u2019t need any tidbits during their meal.\u00a0\u00a0She scraped the fat and meat scraps that she had saved for him from their stew onto a plate, and put it on the floor.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHere you go, Comet,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0He ran over to the plate with his tail waving in anticipation, sniffed at the offering, then moved in front of the stove and looked longingly at the pot of simmering stew above him.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSupper\u2019s almost ready!\u201d she called.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWash your hands.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Karen and Jared came in the kitchen.\u00a0\u00a0Karen pushed her stepstool to the sink, bumping it into Jared\u2019s foot as he pumped the water.\u00a0\u00a0Impatiently, he kicked it aside.\u00a0\u00a0She shoved it right back, and before the incident could escalate into a major confrontation, Jenny spoke sharply.\u00a0\u00a0David fussed and called from his cradle near one of the windows.\u00a0\u00a0As Jenny took him to the bedroom to change him, she called over her shoulder, \u201cKaren, finish setting the table, please.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She returned to the kitchen a few minutes later to find her niece pumping water into the sink.\u00a0\u00a0As the flow reduced to a trickle, the cat put his head under it and drank.\u00a0\u00a0When it stopped, he meowed loudly, and waited for her to pump some more.\u00a0\u00a0She giggled and complied.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny opened her mouth to reprimand the girl for wasting water during the drought and not finishing setting the table as she was told, when Comet suddenly took fright, leaped out of the sink, and bolted toward her.\u00a0\u00a0He ran into her legs, nearly knocking her over, then almost tripping her.\u00a0\u00a0As she caught her balance, she heard a horse whinny, and there were several loud raps on the door.\u00a0\u00a0Karen leaped from her stool and ran across the kitchen.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cKaren!\u201d Jenny spoke sharply.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet me get it!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She put David back in his cradle, and hurried to the door, where she had to pull the girl out of the way.\u00a0\u00a0She pulled the door open, letting in the hot wind and dirt.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A tall man stood there.\u00a0\u00a0The lower half of his face was covered with a bandana.\u00a0\u00a0He was so plastered with dirt and grime that she couldn\u2019t tell what color his clothes were.\u00a0\u00a0She stepped back in alarm.\u00a0\u00a0He pulled the bandana below his chin and hurriedly caught the door with his other hand as she tried to close it.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s me, Jenny.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAdam!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She recognized his voice, and let him in.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m sorry, I didn\u2019t recognize you!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She gave him a glass of water, and he gratefully washed the grit from his mouth while she rinsed out his dirty canteen at the sink.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat are you doing out in this storm?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m on my way home from business at the mines,\u201d he replied.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI saw the storm coming after I left\u00a0Virginia City, and should have gone back to town, but I was too anxious to get home.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can stay here tonight,\u201d she told him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAt least eat supper with us.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She turned.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJared, see to Adam\u2019s horse.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo need for that,\u201d assured Adam firmly.\u00a0\u00a0He preferred to care for Sport himself.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll take care of him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked at Jared.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGo do the chores, anyway.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019ll eat after you both get back.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jared and Adam worked in the barn with minimal conversation.\u00a0\u00a0Adam was weary from his journey and frustrated with the problems from the mining camp, and Jared was rather in awe of this tall, handsome man who seemed larger than life to him.\u00a0\u00a0Adam made some small talk with the boy, and discovered his grandparents were not at home.\u00a0\u00a0He frowned.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny staying alone with the children disturbed him, even after Jared assured him that Adam\u2019s pa had agreed to look in on them a few times.\u00a0\u00a0Adam determined then to spend the night in the barn.\u00a0\u00a0Staying in the house would not be proper in these circumstances.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0After he cared for Sport, Adam helped Jared finish the chores.\u00a0\u00a0Jared knew he shouldn\u2019t let him, as Adam was a guest, but Adam insisted.\u00a0\u00a0When they finished, and Jared was following Adam out of the barn, Jared heard a thump and a rustle, and what sounded like a gasp, followed by a suddenly stifled moan.\u00a0\u00a0He turned quickly and looked behind him, but Adam had the lantern, and he could see nothing.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam returned to his side.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSomething wrong?\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0They both listened intently and heard only the wind, some far-off thunder, and the animals contentedly munching in their stalls.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMaybe we should go take a look,\u201d suggested Adam.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt was probably just the wind, the rats or mice, and maybe some of the barn cats,\u201d said Jared.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s some new kittens that are probably getting big up in the loft.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jared laughed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf you had, you would have heard them.\u00a0\u00a0I did it myself, once.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Laughing together, they locked the barn door and went back to the house.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The table was set, and Jenny was reading a story to the children when the man and boy returned from the barn.\u00a0\u00a0She looked up as they entered.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJared, there\u2019s warm water in the pitcher.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She pointed to the wash stand near the door.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAdam, there\u2019s a bath waiting for you, and I\u2019ve heated water to put in it.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She rose and went to the stove, and started to lift the pan of water that was steaming on it.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam stopped her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJenny.\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t need a bath right now.\u00a0\u00a0If I stay here, and it looks as though I have to, I\u2019ll sleep in the barn, and take a bath when I get home tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNonsense!\u201d Jenny exclaimed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s no need for you to sleep in the barn, especially in this storm!\u00a0\u00a0And,\u201d she added with a twinkle in her eye, \u201cif you\u2019re eating with us, you need to bathe first.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam couldn\u2019t help laughing.\u00a0\u00a0He was tired, filthy, and knew he must stink.\u00a0\u00a0A bath certainly did sound delightful right now.\u00a0\u00a0He decided to bathe now and argue later.\u00a0\u00a0As he lifted the heavy pan of hot water from the stove, he said, \u201cJust don\u2019t hold dinner for me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny smiled politely and led him to the bathroom.\u00a0\u00a0As he added the hot water to the tub, she asked, \u201cDo you have some clean clothes, or do you need me to wash some?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI have some that are clean enough,\u201d he replied.\u00a0\u00a0When he\u2019d realized his supposedly brief trip to the mines was going to be a long one, he had washed his own clothes in a nearby stream, and he had some that would do for tonight.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey\u2019re in my saddlebags, by the door,\u201d he added.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny brought the bags to him.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0After sweeping out the dirt tracked in by the door, she brought down from the shelves above the stove an apple pie that had been baked earlier in the week.\u00a0\u00a0Her chief thought while preparing dinner had been to get one step closer to getting the children into bed and out of her hair, not feeding company.\u00a0\u00a0Thank goodness she had made stew.\u00a0\u00a0That would feed all of them, though it was a good thing, she thought, that it was Adam and not Hoss, Adam\u2019s\u00a0\u00a0bigger \u201clittle\u201d brother, who had happened by.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam hurried through his bath, and entered the kitchen as he finished buttoning his cream-colored shirt.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI would wear a tie for the occasion,\u201d he said, \u201cbut I\u2019m afraid I lost it while I was in the mines.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny and Jared laughed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat were you doing at the mines?\u201d asked Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYour father was by early this morning, and mentioned that you\u2019ve been gone for two weeks.\u00a0\u00a0He seemed worried about you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam sighed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s a long story.\u00a0\u00a0It was supposed to be a short trip, but it turned into a nightmare, which I will discuss with my father when I get home.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny took the hint, served the stew, and steered the conversation in a different direction.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Everyone was hungry, and for the first several minutes, there was no talk except requests for more biscuits or stew.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny had pushed back her plate with a sigh of satisfaction, and noticed happily that Adam seemed to be enjoying his meal (though he was probably so hungry that a two-by-four and a can of nails would have been appetizing).\u00a0\u00a0Suddenly, she heard a familiar and aggravating sound:\u00a0\u00a0Comet sharpening his claws on the doorjamb by the hall near the bedrooms.\u00a0\u00a0She turned toward him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cComet!\u201d she exclaimed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He looked at her with huge green-rimmed eyes filled almost completely with black pupils, twitched his tail, and climbed the doorjamb to the ceiling.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGet down!\u201d she shouted.\u00a0\u00a0The cat climbed part way down, leaped to the floor, and in two bounds was on the table.\u00a0\u00a0He snatched a piece of stew meat from Karen\u2019s plate and jumped from the table like a jackrabbit, knocking over Karen\u2019s milk in the process.\u00a0\u00a0As she hurriedly mopped up the milk, Jenny saw him running to her bedroom with his tail held high and his trophy in his mouth.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny was angry for a moment, but soon joined everyone else in their laughter.\u00a0\u00a0Adam laughed so hard that he nearly choked.\u00a0\u00a0Even David smiled and laughed until he hiccuped with the effort.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet\u2019s hope he\u2019s happy with just one piece.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny threw the three napkins she had used to wipe up Karen\u2019s milk toward the sink, and got another glass of milk from the pail brought in earlier.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMaybe you should feed him, Aunt Jenny,\u201d said Karen.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI did \u2013 before dinner.\u00a0\u00a0He has fat scraps and some meat, with a little gravy.\u00a0\u00a0He wouldn\u2019t eat it.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s still by the stove.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe doesn\u2019t like his water, either,\u201d said Karen.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s why I have to run water in the sink for him.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s how he likes to drink it.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Adam nearly choked again.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny removed the dishes and served the apple pie.\u00a0\u00a0Adam pronounced it the best he had ever eaten, but swore everyone at the table to secrecy, as Hop Sing, the Cartwright\u2019s cook and housekeeper, would be very upset if he knew that Adam like anyone\u2019s cooking better than his own.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny, pleased and proud, smiled and thanked him.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jared looked timidly at Adam, swallowed a bite of pie, and said, \u201cIt\u2019s a good thing you weren\u2019t here the last time Aunt Jenny fixed dinner, Adam.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He glanced slyly at his aunt, who frowned at him.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy is that?\u201d asked Adam.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJenny made supper while Grandma and Grandpa were packing to go away,\u201d said Jared a little more boldly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThe broccoli\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI suggest you hold your tongue, young man, unless you don\u2019t want to go fishing and camping with your friends and their fathers in a couple of weekends,\u201d said Jenny firmly.\u00a0\u00a0She needed no tales of the worm-covered broccoli she had put on the table.\u00a0\u00a0Her mother had laughed, thrown it away, and told her to soak it in salted water the next time.\u00a0\u00a0But Jenny wasn\u2019t about to let Jared get away with regaling Adam with this tale at her expense.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can\u2019t stop me from going on that trip!\u201d Jared hotly shouted.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s up to Grandpa, not you!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou think I can\u2019t talk him out of it?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny raised her eyebrows.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cTry me!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cUh, Jared,\u201d Adam intervened.\u00a0\u00a0He leaned close to the boy.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cTell me later,\u201d he whispered loudly enough for everyone to hear.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe might be able to use it as blackmail sometime.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He winked at the boy.\u00a0\u00a0Almost triumphant but still half scared, Jared glanced at his aunt.\u00a0\u00a0To his surprise, she was laughing.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny made some tea as she washed the dishes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAdam, you can sleep in Mother and Father\u2019s room.\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t expect them back for at least a week, and there\u2019s no reason for you to go out to the barn tonight.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s too nasty outside, and you\u2019ve been on the trail long enough.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWould your father consider that proper?\u201d asked Adam.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny was silent for a moment.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe definitely would not consider it acceptable for you, a good friend of the family who has escorted me to dances and other events, whose father is a friend and neighbor, to sleep in the barn in a storm like this, especially after you\u2019ve been on the road.\u00a0\u00a0Please, if you won\u2019t sleep in my parents\u2019 room, sleep out here, on the couch.\u00a0\u00a0It may not be long enough for you, though.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She paused for a moment as she rinsed a glass.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s not as though I\u2019m alone.\u00a0\u00a0Jared is here, and the younger children.\u00a0\u00a0Besides, who is going to find out about it?\u00a0\u00a0No one will see you as you leave in the morning , and we\u2019re not doing anything improper, anyway.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She looked at him as she finished the dishes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPlease stay in the house.\u00a0\u00a0I can\u2019t let a guest who is a friend stay in the barn, especially on a night like tonight.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam gave in.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAll right,\u201d he smiled.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll sleep out here, by the door, on the couch.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked sternly at Karen.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut everyone had better be good, behave, and go to bed on time.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Karen nodded solemnly, but Jared smiled.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny dried her hands and poured Adam a cup of tea, then began putting the Karen and David to bed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0About an hour later, Jenny joined Adam in the sitting room, an area next to the kitchen in their small house.\u00a0\u00a0She refilled Adam\u2019s cup of tea, and got one for herself.\u00a0\u00a0Jared crept into a chair across from Adam, while Comet leaped on Jenny\u2019s lap, curled up, and murred and meowed, demanding to be petted.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI didn\u2019t sleep well last night,\u201d Jenny confessed as she attempted to stifle a yawn.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI woke up suddenly in the middle of the night, sure I had heard something.\u00a0\u00a0It sounded for all the world like a donkey braying.\u00a0\u00a0A crazy dream for sure!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGrandma heard it, too!\u201d exclaimed Jared.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI heard her telling Grandpa about it before they left this morning.\u00a0\u00a0Grandpa was wondering where a donkey would have come from, and Grandma just said\u00a0\u00a0don\u2019t worry about it, it was either a stray donkey from a ranch or farm nearby, or a silly dream.\u00a0\u00a0But she and Grandpa both wondered why she\u2019d be dreaming about a donkey!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell, at any rate, it took me a long time to get back to sleep,\u201d continued Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd Karen was certain that she saw someone by the barn today\u2026.though she does \u2018see\u2019 lots of things, and has plenty of imaginary \u2018friends\u2019\u2026.and the cat was acting strangely around the time that she insisted she saw someone, too.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201c\u2018Cat behaving strangely\u2019 seems to me, in this case, to be a contradictory description,\u201d said Adam as his dimples showed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019d say strange behavior from him is perfectly normal.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He took a sip of tea without taking his eyes from Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf he ever began acting \u2018normally\u2019, I\u2019d say you\u2019d best assume he was sick.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He put his cup on the table before him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThe best \u2018cure\u2019 for that cat is for him to go live in the barn and fend for himself.\u00a0\u00a0Catch a few mice, or rats.\u00a0\u00a0Fight the other cats.\u00a0\u00a0Teach him a few lessons, and be good for him, too.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny laughed as she rubbed her tired eyes, then petted Comet.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNot a chance,\u201d she scoffed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s the household baby.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Comet prrowed in approval.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam raised his eyebrows.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI thought David was the baby?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNoooo,\u201d hedged Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell, he\u2019s around a year old, so he\u2019s not really a baby so much anymore.\u2026\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She didn\u2019t mention their worry that he wasn\u2019t moving about or developing as he should.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam watched her, smiling.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy don\u2019t you just put the diapers and baby clothes on Comet?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jared spoke up.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cKaren already tried.\u00a0\u00a0He won\u2019t wear them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0They all laughed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI need to go to bed,\u201d said Jenny, \u201cand so do you, Jared.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll bring some sheets out for you, Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The next morning, the storm was over.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny woke up early to a clear pre-dawn sky, with a few stars still\u00a0\u00a0glimmering in the west.\u00a0\u00a0She moved about the kitchen more quietly than usual so as not to wake Adam, who was still asleep on the couch by the door.\u00a0\u00a0As she put wood in the stove, drew the water for washing, made the coffee, and put some biscuits in the oven, Adam stirred, stretched, and sat up.\u00a0\u00a0As he put his boots on, and exchanged sleepy morning pleasantries with Jenny, Jared peered around the corner, not yet fully dressed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIs Adam still here?\u201d he asked.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny pointed to the couch.<\/p>\n Jared looked at him with barely concealed admiration.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI was thinking you might have left already.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWithout breakfast?\u00a0\u00a0The way your aunt cooks?\u00a0\u00a0Never!\u201d said Adam.\u00a0\u00a0He stood up.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy don\u2019t you finish dressing, and we\u2019ll go do the chores?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny bit her tongue and refrained from asking if he was referring to the stew from the previous night or the tale he had heard about the wormy broccoli.\u00a0\u00a0She knew a guest should not be doing their chores, but also knew the uselessness of attempting to talk Adam out of it.\u00a0\u00a0Besides, he seemed to be a calming influence on Jared.\u00a0\u00a0He hadn\u2019t once pestered the younger children since Adam had arrived the night before, and even his table manners had improved.\u00a0\u00a0So she kept quiet and continued to fix breakfast, and tended to Karen and David when they awakened.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0At Adam\u2019s request, Jared instructed him on the chores with the horses and milk cow.\u00a0\u00a0Jared went up in the loft and began pitching hay down, after they had both mucked out stalls.\u00a0\u00a0Suddenly, Adam called, \u201cHey, Jared!\u00a0\u00a0I didn\u2019t know you had a mule!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe don\u2019t,\u201d Jared called down.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s one here, by the back door, around the corner, behind the wall with the tools,\u201d returned Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s not in a stall.\u00a0\u00a0He just has some hay thrown around him.\u00a0\u00a0And\u2026\u201d he paused as he examined the floor.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt seems he\u2019s been given some oats, from the looks of things.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jared dropped the pitchfork and walked across the loft to the back wall of the barn, above where Adam was.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe don\u2019t have a mule,\u201d he insisted.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHow did you find him?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe was just here, across from all the tack and supplies, and behind the wall with the tools,\u201d repeated Adam.\u00a0\u00a0He looked him over with a critical eye, noting the matted fur, worn shoes, protruding ribs, and the head drooping from exhaustion.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s been worked pretty hard, from the looks of him.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He picked up the animal\u2019s right foreleg.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHas a shoe missing, too.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jared moved to the edge of the loft and looked down at Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s not ours.\u00a0\u00a0Where\u2019d he come from?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo telling,\u201d replied Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAt least, not yet.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jared turned to go back toward the center of the barn so he could descend the ladder and see this mule.\u00a0\u00a0He noticed that some of the hay was scattered about toward the edge of the loft, in an area where he hadn\u2019t been throwing it down below, and kicked and threw it away from the edge as he walked.\u00a0\u00a0He heard a gasp and a rustle, and saw some movement in the mound of hay. He thought he saw a flash of color:\u00a0\u00a0blue, perhaps?\u00a0\u00a0He couldn\u2019t be sure.\u00a0\u00a0Narrowing his eyes, he walked slowly toward the piled up hay.\u00a0\u00a0He began pulling down the stack where he thought he had seen and heard something.\u00a0\u00a0What should have been a high and solid wall, fairly tightly packed, easily collapsed before him.\u00a0\u00a0Behind a thin wall of hay, Jared saw, in the dusky light of the loft, three emaciated, dirty women, peering at him through their stringy hair with terrified, desperate eyes.\u00a0\u00a0One of them held a knife, poised for action;\u00a0\u00a0another looked too frightened to move, while the third lay between them, breathing heavily.\u00a0\u00a0A groan escaped from the last one while Jared stared at them.\u00a0\u00a0The frightened one made a whimpering noise, while the one with the knife simply stared at him, daring him with her eyes to come closer.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jared couldn\u2019t move or speak for a long minute.\u00a0\u00a0Finally, he backed up until he almost fell from the loft.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAdam?\u00a0\u00a0Adam!\u00a0\u00a0I think you\u2019d better come up here!\u00a0\u00a0Quick!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam bounded up the ladder in a few seconds, and was at Jared\u2019s side.\u00a0\u00a0He had his hand on his gun, and started to draw when he saw the crouching figures back in the loft.\u00a0\u00a0But when he saw they were women, he hesitated, even when he saw the knife in Elise\u2019s hand.\u00a0\u00a0He stared in amazement at them.\u00a0\u00a0Elise\u2019s stone-cold blue eyes met his unflinchingly, while Mai Ling\u2019s huge brown eyes were filled with terror.\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle\u2019s knowing glance spoke volumes, of pain expected and misery anticipated.\u00a0\u00a0After looking at him with a piercing gaze, she closed her eyes, curled up, and groaned as another wave of pain consumed her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam took his hand from his gun.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGo get your aunt,\u201d he told Jared tersely, when he finally found his tongue.\u00a0\u00a0Jared shuffled backwards, then sideways, until he found the ladder.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam hadn\u2019t taken his eyes from the women.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWho are you?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise gripped her knife and raised it higher.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cStay away, Mister,\u201d she hissed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019re doing you no harm.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam raised his hands palm outward.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI just want to know who you are,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy are you here?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0His eyes drifted toward the woman lying on her side, groaning in pain.\u00a0\u00a0He moved closer to look at her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise scooted in front of Marabelle and stood up, the knife before her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cStay away from her!\u201d she snarled, doing her best to conceal her fear.\u00a0\u00a0He was a big man.\u00a0\u00a0He could easily overpower her, even with the knife, and Mai Ling was too terrified to fight, and too small to help her, anyway. Marabelle couldn\u2019t help her, nor could she deal with any man\u2019s attentions right now, should this man take it into his head to avail himself of her services, or to beat her due to her condition.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She decided to change tactics.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLook, Mister,\u201d she said coaxingly, \u201cjust be patient.\u00a0\u00a0Give me some water, and I\u2019ll get cleaned up a bit.\u00a0\u00a0Then, you can have me, if you want.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0When Adam didn\u2019t respond except by staring at her, she added, \u201cIt won\u2019t cost you anything, of course.\u00a0\u00a0Just leave them alone -\u201d she jerked her head toward the other two \u2013 \u201cand you can have your pleasure with me.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0When she saw his incredulous face, she added, \u201cI\u2019ve been on the road for a long time.\u00a0\u00a0Let me get cleaned up, and I think you\u2019ll be right pleased.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Her voice was almost sultry. Adam could practically see her in a satin gown trimmed with lace, and with ribbons in her hair, in a fancy parlor, or in a saloon. Her voice sounded exactly like the voices of such women.\u00a0\u00a0Even the desperation evident behind her proposition didn\u2019t sound out of place.\u00a0\u00a0He continued staring speechlessly at them, wondering almost frantically where Jenny was.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He heard footsteps on the ladder behind him and felt the floor of the loft vibrate as Jared and Jenny hurried to his side.\u00a0\u00a0Elise shifted her gaze from Adam to Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0She frowned, and her eyes narrowed.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked at the desperate, emaciated girl with the knife, the trembling Chinese girl crouching behind her, and an obviously ill girl huddled on the floor, clutching her distended belly and groaning in pain.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny attempted to approach them, intending to speak with and comfort the sick one, but Adam put out his arm to stop her even as Elise raised her knife and glared at her with murder in her eyes.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t,\u201d said Adam quietly.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny stopped, but looked in wonder and concern at the ragged figures before her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWho are you?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Stony silence met her question.\u00a0\u00a0Elise glared at her, recognizing the lady from near the stream a couple of days before.\u00a0\u00a0She wasn\u2019t going to talk to\u00a0her.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em>\u00a0Nice as she and her family had seemed the other day, she knew the type.\u00a0\u00a0This was a woman who would cross to the other side of the street if she saw Elise coming.\u00a0\u00a0Should they be near one another, she would turn away and refuse to speak to her.\u00a0\u00a0The only reason this little miss wasn\u2019t scorning her now was because she didn\u2019t know what she was.\u00a0\u00a0Well, this gent with her would inform her, if she was so na\u00efve.\u00a0\u00a0Then she could show her true colors.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Without looking away from them, Jenny said to Adam and Jared, \u201cGo back to the house, please, both of you.\u00a0\u00a0There\u2019s some stew in the kettle on the back of the stove.\u00a0\u00a0Get some in a big bowl and bring it here, along with three bowls and forks.\u00a0\u00a0The biscuits are in the drawer in the counter near the stove.\u00a0\u00a0And you might as well bring a pitcher of milk and some glasses, too.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll stay here,\u201d replied Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou go in and help get that together.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo, Adam.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny shook her head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re scaring them.\u00a0\u00a0Let me talk to them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI can help,\u201d volunteered a small voice behind her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny turned about and saw Karen behind her.\u00a0\u00a0Fury seethed through her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat are you doing here?\u201d she demanded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou were to stay in the house!\u00a0\u00a0The baby may be crying, and no one is with him!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Karen looked at Jenny, then at the three figures in the loft with a sober and troubled expression that made her appear far older than her three years.\u00a0\u00a0When Jenny saw the look on her niece\u2019s face, she stopped scolding.\u00a0\u00a0Karen moved beside Jenny and continued to look solemnly at the sight before her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny laid her hand on the girl\u2019s head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGo in the house and help Adam and Jared,\u201d she said softly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMake sure you show them where all the dishes are.\u00a0\u00a0Then stay in the house with David.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She wiped away a tear that fell from Karen\u2019s eye, hugged her close, and sent her and Jared back to the house.\u00a0\u00a0At Jenny\u2019s insistence, Adam reluctantly followed the children, but had a whispered consultation with Jared at the bottom of the ladder, after which the youngsters went to the house while Adam stayed at the foot of the ladder, his ears attuned for any trouble that might arise.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise frowned.\u00a0\u00a0This was no good at all.\u00a0\u00a0The man should have stayed.\u00a0\u00a0She could handle a man.\u00a0\u00a0The only one she never could fully control was Clint.\u00a0\u00a0Now, some men were mean.\u00a0\u00a0They were harder to handle, but she could still manage them.\u00a0\u00a0She had studied this man while he was talking with this girl.\u00a0\u00a0This\u00a0lady.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em>He\u00a0\u00a0didn\u2019t look mean, but he didn\u2019t seem very controllable, either.\u00a0\u00a0He knew his own mind, and wasn\u2019t going to run off after a momentary diversion \u2013 unless she could convince him of it.\u00a0\u00a0If that was the only way he would leave Marabelle alone, or promise not to tell about them, well, she\u2019d simply have to persuade him.\u00a0\u00a0But it sure would be a\u00a0\u00a0lot easier to do if she was cleaned up!<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWho are you?\u00a0\u00a0What are you running from?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0The soft voice interrupted Elise\u2019s thoughts.\u00a0\u00a0She glared at Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0This \u201cgood\u201d girl was being nice now, but just give her time:\u00a0\u00a0Time to realize what the three of them were, time to realize that she couldn\u2019t have anything to do with them.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s all she needed:\u00a0\u00a0time.\u00a0\u00a0She would turn on them.\u00a0\u00a0Her kind always did.\u00a0\u00a0They acted so high and mighty, so hoity-toity, that they usually made fools of themselves.\u00a0\u00a0If Elise hadn\u2019t been so desperate, she would have enjoyed watching it happen, and might even goad her along a bit.<\/p>\n \u201cMy name is Jenny.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise finally spoke to her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd the little girl\u2019s name is Karen.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I saw you and your family near the stream the other day.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She continued to watch Jenny suspiciously.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy didn\u2019t you come to the house?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise laughed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd have your father throw us out, and your mother threaten us with the sheriff?\u00a0\u00a0No, thank you!\u00a0\u00a0We take what we can get how we can get it, which usually means sneaking around.\u00a0\u00a0Guess you wouldn\u2019t know much about that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny privately thought that this woman didn\u2019t know anything about her past, or any of the painful events in it, but knew it was best to leave that be for now.\u00a0\u00a0She had to admit that this stranger was right in assuming that she herself never had known the kind of suffering this woman was apparently acquainted with.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny glanced at the other women behind the one speaking with her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat are your names?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI tell my friends my name.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny wondered at the rebuff.\u00a0\u00a0She was obviously desperate.\u00a0\u00a0Why would she be so hostile to her?\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI might be able to help you if you\u2019ll tell me where you\u2019re going and why you\u2019re running.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere are we going?\u00a0\u00a0Anyplace where there\u2019s no men.\u00a0\u00a0You know someplace like that, besides a convent?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She laughed bitterly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey wouldn\u2019t take too kindly to us!\u00a0\u00a0The \u2018why\u2019 is our business.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf you\u2019re on my father\u2019s property, it becomes our business,\u201d Jenny replied gently.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut I\u2019m not asking you to tell me anything you haven\u2019t a mind to.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She heard Jared coming across the barn.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019ve brought some food for you.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She took the tray of bowls and glasses, then the tray of food.\u00a0\u00a0As she ladled the stew into bowls, she realized there were no utensils.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere are the forks?\u201d asked Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0Jared ran back in the house to get them.<\/p>\n Jenny handed the food to their visitors, and started to tell them that the forks were coming.\u00a0\u00a0Her three guests, however, pounced upon the stew as wolves upon prey.\u00a0\u00a0She noticed that even the sick one lying down took on new strength as she struggled mightily to sit up, and desperately consumed the food before her.\u00a0\u00a0Burned fingers scooped mouthfuls of meat, vegetables, and gravy, which were hastily gulped down.\u00a0\u00a0The biscuits were devoured, the bowls licked clean, and crumbs even picked from the straw before Jared could return with the forks.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny and Adam looked at each other.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise looked at them hopefully for more.\u00a0\u00a0Adam shook his head firmly.<\/p>\n \u201cNo,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou eat too much now, you\u2019ll get sick.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou can have more later,\u201d Jenny promised.\u00a0\u00a0She walked hesitantly to them to retrieve their bowls, expecting to be challenged with the knife again.\u00a0\u00a0Sated with the food, however, the exhausted trio lay back against the hay, and their eyelids drooped.\u00a0\u00a0As Jenny stooped to take Marabelle\u2019s bowl, she saw the all-too-familiar sores and rash on her face, as well as on her legs and arms through the tears in her dress.\u00a0\u00a0She gasped sharply.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJust like that woman in the alley,\u201d\u00a0\u00a0she thought.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJust like Roberta.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She turned to find Elise watching her curiously.<\/p>\n \u201cNow you know,\u201d said Elise.\u00a0\u00a0She closed her eyes wearily, then opened them a moment later.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI suppose you want us to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShe needs a doctor,\u201d said Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll send someone into town for him.\u201d<\/p>\n Elise smiled bitterly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cA doctor can\u2019t help her.\u00a0\u00a0And he probably wouldn\u2019t see her, anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDoc Martin will see her,\u201d Jenny assured her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s gone right now,\u201d said Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI heard yesterday in town that he won\u2019t be back for a while.\u00a0\u00a0Visiting family, I guess.\u00a0\u00a0His assistant, Doctor Young, is there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny hesitated.\u00a0\u00a0She didn\u2019t like Doctor Young.\u00a0\u00a0She was afraid of the way he stared at her, the ingratiating way he spoke to her, and how he tried to put his arm around her or brush up against her.\u00a0\u00a0She hadn\u2019t told her father about that.\u00a0\u00a0She was too embarrassed and didn\u2019t want any trouble.\u00a0\u00a0So she stayed away from him, and determined that if she needed a doctor, they would only see Doc Martin.\u00a0\u00a0She had a feeling that Doctor Young had heard the rumors about her and Karen, and believed every one of them.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She turned to Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI guess you\u2019d better go to town and get him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam shook his head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll stay here.\u00a0\u00a0You go get him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny swallowed and looked down.\u00a0\u00a0Of course, Adam didn\u2019t know about Doc Young\u2019s behavior toward her.\u00a0\u00a0She thought of Jared, and immediately dismissed any idea of sending him to town.\u00a0\u00a0How could she instruct an eight year-old to say, \u201cDoc, there are three women at our place. They\u2019re all half-starved and filthy, and one has the pox and is with child.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0No, she would have to do this.\u00a0\u00a0Adam was right.\u00a0\u00a0He should stay in case there were problems.\u00a0\u00a0She turned toward the ladder.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJared can stay with the little ones, then.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll go make sure everything is settled with them before I leave.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She stopped as she saw Jared at the top of the ladder.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI brought the milk out,\u201d he said, and pointed to the tray on the barn floor.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHand it up here.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny took the covered pitcher as he handed it to her.\u00a0\u00a0She placed it near Adam, next to the empty glasses.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMaybe they can have a little of this when they wake up.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0With one glance back at the exhausted women, she left.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll be back with help.\u201d<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0About an hour later, Elise opened her eyes.\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle and Mai Ling were still sleeping near her.\u00a0\u00a0She sat up and looked about her, and noticed the tray with the glasses and pitcher on it.\u00a0\u00a0She tried to swallow the dust in her throat, and walked unsteadily to it.\u00a0\u00a0A drink sure sounded good right now.\u00a0\u00a0As she stooped next to it and tried to uncover the pitcher, a low male voice said, \u201cI wouldn\u2019t just yet.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise jumped and turned about, feeling vainly at her hip for her knife.\u00a0\u00a0Damn!\u00a0\u00a0Where was it?\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d just had it, when Jenny had tried to get too close.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d gone to sleep with it in her hand.\u00a0\u00a0It must be in the hay back where she\u2019d slept.\u00a0\u00a0She ran desperately back toward her two friends, but tripped over her skirt.\u00a0\u00a0Her head swam as she tried to rise to her feet.\u00a0\u00a0She couldn\u2019t do it, not as weak as she was.\u00a0\u00a0Harsh travel conditions and too little food had sapped her strength.\u00a0\u00a0As her head cleared, she saw booted feet before her.\u00a0\u00a0Her eyes looked up the black pants and cream-colored shirt to the hazel eyes observing her with a mixture of wary caution and concern.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAre you looking for this?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He held up her knife.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She stared at him.\u00a0\u00a0He returned her gaze evenly.\u00a0\u00a0His expression was inscrutable.\u00a0\u00a0He made no move toward her, and the usual leer or poorly concealed lust that she always saw in men\u2019s faces was missing from his.\u00a0\u00a0Well, of course it was!\u00a0\u00a0She was a mess!\u00a0\u00a0But that sure hadn\u2019t stopped some men as they\u2019d fled from Clint and their old way of life.\u00a0\u00a0Elise glanced at Marabelle and Mai Ling.\u00a0\u00a0They were still sleeping.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou dropped the knife while you were asleep,\u201d Adam explained.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI took it before you rolled over on it.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll keep it, for now.\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t like having knives pulled on me, especially when I haven\u2019t done anything, and the people threatening me are someplace where they don\u2019t belong.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise\u2019s eyes never left his face.\u00a0\u00a0He didn\u2019t seem angry, and still he made no move toward her. What\u00a0did<\/em>\u00a0he want of her?\u00a0\u00a0He wasn\u2019t an easy one to figure out.\u00a0\u00a0She could hear the madam of Clint\u2019s parlor house talking to her, shortly after Clint had tired of keeping her to himself and she had begun entertaining customers, \u201cThey all want the same thing, Elise, honey.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s how they want it that\u2019s different.\u00a0\u00a0Study them.\u00a0\u00a0Figure them out.\u00a0\u00a0Give them what they want, how they want it.\u00a0\u00a0And don\u2019t make \u2018em mad:\u00a0\u00a0An angry man is dangerous.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Well, she could play the ingratiating, apologetic part for threatening him with the knife, if that\u2019s what this man wanted.\u00a0\u00a0But she needed more time to figure him out.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Carefully schooling her face to show no fear, she said, \u201cI sure am thirsty, Mister.\u00a0\u00a0Think I could have a drink of whatever\u2019s in that pitcher over there?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Without taking his eyes from her, Adam slowly nodded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll get it for you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOh, there\u2019s no need,\u201d Elise protested in her best coaxing voice.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t want to trouble you, any more than I already have.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cStay there,\u201d ordered Adam.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise shrank into the floor as he passed her, silently cursing herself for acting afraid of him.\u00a0\u00a0When Adam gave her a scant half glass of milk, she smiled as graciously as possible and let her hand linger against his as she accepted it.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThank you,\u201d she said demurely.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDrink it slowly,\u201d said Adam as he pulled his hand away from hers.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou don\u2019t want to get sick by eating or drinking too much of anything too quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise nearly choked with anger.\u00a0\u00a0Why wasn\u2019t he responding to her?\u00a0\u00a0But it had been a long time since she\u2019d had any milk, and she drank it quickly despite his warnings.<\/p>\n He pulled the glass away from her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWait a minute before you drink the rest of it.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked at her as she watched him.\u00a0\u00a0Her stringy red hair was tangled and greasy, with wisps of hay in it.\u00a0\u00a0Her dress might have been a pretty shade of sapphire once, but was now ripped and soiled beyond repair.\u00a0\u00a0Her blue eyes, however, were clear and piercing, and Adam could see, despite her valiant efforts to hide it, that she was afraid of him.\u00a0\u00a0Beneath the dirt covering her and beyond the hardness of her face, he could read depths of pain that it disturbed him to contemplate.<\/p>\n Elise smiled timidly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMister, I\u2019m sorry I pulled that knife on you.\u00a0\u00a0Really, I am.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s just, well, with the three of us on our own, we need to be careful, you know?\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m real sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam looked sharply at her, and Elise\u2019s hopes withered.\u00a0\u00a0He knew her.\u00a0\u00a0He knew what she was trying to do.<\/p>\n \u201cYou need to get cleaned up,\u201d Adam said, as he returned the glass to her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve told Jared, the boy, to heat some water, and we\u2019ve found an old tub in the barn that you can use.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny left some dresses for you to change into after you wash.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019ve set it up down below, in the barn.\u00a0\u00a0Of course, with the drought, there\u2019s not a whole lot of extra water, so you\u2019ll have to be sparing.\u00a0\u00a0But you\u2019ll at least be cleaner than you were.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He stood up.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll finish getting it ready, and you can bathe first.\u201d<\/p>\n Elise smiled knowingly.\u00a0\u00a0This was finally going her way.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI think you\u2019ll like me, Mister, once I get cleaned up.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She tossed her head confidently, and flashed him her best seductive smile.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI know I\u2019m not much to look at now, but- \u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMy name is Adam.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She was surprised at his interruption.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cCall me \u2018Adam\u2019.\u00a0\u00a0And I should make it clear to you that I\u2019m not in the habit of frequenting the company of ladies who sell their services.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0His voice was quiet and calm, and she looked at him in trepidation again.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt has happened on occasion,\u201d he continued with a rueful smile, \u201cbut I\u2019m rather selective about the company I keep.\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t want that from you.\u201d<\/p>\n Elise was furious.\u00a0\u00a0Why didn\u2019t he just say she wasn\u2019t good enough for him?\u00a0\u00a0There were few men she had met whom she couldn\u2019t bend to her will.\u00a0\u00a0Of course, she didn\u2019t stop to think that most men came to her for that express purpose.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMister \u2013 uh, Adam \u2013 please,\u201d she begged, \u201cdon\u2019t bother Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll do anything you want, just don\u2019t bother her.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not going to bother any of you,\u201d replied Adam gently yet firmly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo one here wants anything from any of you.\u00a0\u00a0We just want to help you.\u00a0\u00a0Now, I\u2019ll call you when the water\u2019s ready.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0As he went toward the ladder, Elise didn\u2019t know whether to be relieved or offended.\u00a0\u00a0She decided she simply hadn\u2019t yet figured him out, and hoped that he really wouldn\u2019t bother Marabelle while he made her bathe.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d scratch his eyes out if he did.<\/p>\n Adam stopped before he came to the ladder.\u00a0\u00a0He pointed to the sick woman. \u201cShe must be Marabelle,\u201d he said to Elise.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat\u2019s your name?\u201d<\/p>\n There was no point in not telling him.\u00a0\u00a0He was obviously a man accustomed to having his own way.\u00a0\u00a0She bit her lip, and replied, \u201cElise.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam looked at the Chinese girl, then back at Elise.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd hers?\u201d<\/p>\n Elise hesitated.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMai Ling,\u201d she whispered.<\/p>\n Adam nodded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThank you.\u00a0\u00a0Good to know who I\u2019m talking to.\u201d<\/p>\n Elise wanted to cry or scream, but didn\u2019t dare.\u00a0\u00a0What had he heard about them?\u00a0\u00a0Clint was after them, she knew.\u00a0\u00a0Did Adam know Clint?\u00a0\u00a0Had word of them come to this area before they arrived?\u00a0\u00a0Would Adam betray them?\u00a0\u00a0If he didn\u2019t want her, or either of the other two, he surely would sell them off somewhere.\u00a0\u00a0That couldn\u2019t happen.\u00a0\u00a0They wouldn\u2019t go back to their old life.\u00a0\u00a0They had made a pact that they would die first.\u00a0\u00a0They had all sworn on Marabelle\u2019s rosary that if they couldn\u2019t escape, they would kill themselves.\u00a0\u00a0If any of them lacked the courage to do that, they would kill each other.\u00a0\u00a0Elise had run away from Clint twice before, and each time, he had brought her back.\u00a0\u00a0She broke out in a cold sweat as she remembered what he had done to her.\u00a0\u00a0But worse than that was what he had done to the men who had aided her flight.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She felt sick to her stomach as she tried to block out those memories.\u00a0\u00a0Was Adam was having her bathe, so he could sell her to someone?\u00a0\u00a0That must be it.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise felt like crying, but had forgotten how long ago.<\/p>\n \n Later that day<\/p>\n \n Jenny stopped her horse outside Doc Martin\u2019s office.\u00a0\u00a0She dragged her feet up the steps and reluctantly opened the door.\u00a0\u00a0The few people in the room looked at her curiously.\u00a0\u00a0She smiled hesitantly and waited with them, dreading to see Doc Young.\u00a0\u00a0When a patient emerged from the back room, she rose, and under the scrutiny of all the people waiting, went to the door of that room and knocked.\u00a0\u00a0She hated to be in a room alone with this man, but she could hardly present her request to him before a roomful of people.\u00a0\u00a0Under the disapproving eye of the others waiting their turn, she entered the room at the doctor\u2019s query.<\/p>\n Doctor Young watched Jenny appraisingly and greedily as she entered the room.\u00a0\u00a0His light brown hair fell over his forehead, and his mouth tipped slightly upward in a calculating smile.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny left the door cracked, and walked halfway across the room.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGood morning, Doctor.\u201d<\/p>\n The young doctor barely tipped his head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGood morning, Miss Barnhart.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve had some unexpected visitors at my place this morning,\u201d said Jenny, aware that her heart was pounding and her face flushed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere are three women who are half-starved and ill, and they need to see a doctor.\u00a0\u00a0One of them, I\u2019m afraid, has \u2013 well, an unmentionable disease, and appears to be \u2013 with child.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny knew that most properly bred Eastern ladies would never speak of such things, but this wasn\u2019t the East, and besides, with Doc Martin, she would not be judged.\u00a0\u00a0But this wasn\u2019t Doc Martin.<\/p>\n The young mans eyes narrowed, and he smiled a most unpleasant smile.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIndeed,\u201d he said soothingly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd how did you happen to become \u2013 acquainted \u2013 with such \u2013 \u2018visitors\u2019?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0His eyes ran over Jenny\u2019s figure.<\/p>\n Jenny wanted nothing more than to run from the room, but knew she couldn\u2019t.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey were in our barn this morning,\u201d she explained, knowing this man heard almost nothing of what she said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey\u2019re sick, and need to be seen right away.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd your father and mother sent you to tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny didn\u2019t want to tell him that her parents were gone, much less that Adam had been there overnight.\u00a0\u00a0She simply nodded.<\/p>\n The doctor smiled as though he could guess what she had left unsaid.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPerhaps we could arrange something,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI believe that I heard from \u2013 someone? \u2013 that your mother and father are gone right now.\u00a0\u00a0Is that correct?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0When he received no reply, he continued, \u201cPerhaps, I could be persuaded to make the rest of my patients \u2013 some of whom have been waiting for quite a while \u2013 to wait a bit longer.\u00a0\u00a0You and I could have lunch, perhaps?\u00a0\u00a0And then, I might be persuaded to go to your home and see these women.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He approached her with a hungry look on his face.<\/p>\n Jenny backed away.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNever mind,\u201d she whispered.\u00a0\u00a0She turned and fled from the room, wishing she had never come.\u00a0\u00a0She had known it would be a mistake.\u00a0\u00a0Why had she bothered?\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d had to try, but had known that this vile man would press his advantage with her.\u00a0\u00a0She stopped by her horse and attempted to compose herself.\u00a0\u00a0A couple of cowboys who had spotted her as they left the saloon across the street approached her and asked if she was all right.\u00a0\u00a0She assured them that she was, mounted her horse, and rode carefully down a maze of several side streets, unaware that Doc Young was following her.<\/p>\n She stopped before a ramshackle building. As she tied her horse to the hitching post before it, she looked about her apprehensively. Shabbily dressed men recovering from hangovers and a night of celebration leered at her.\u00a0\u00a0Scantily clad women passed by, looking at her suspiciously.\u00a0\u00a0The steps creaked and snapped beneath her as she gingerly climbed them, and she noticed that some of the wood was rotted about the door as she knocked on it.\u00a0\u00a0She wasn\u2019t even sure that this was the right place.\u00a0\u00a0She had heard many people talk about the man who lived here, and several of them knew only that he lived \u201cover on the wrong side of town\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0It was finally Charlie, the miner who had approached her about Roberta about a month before, who had privately told her (some time after she had helped the girl) exactly where this man lived, and that he doctored the poor.\u00a0\u00a0Charlie had also told Jenny that this man had done what he could for poor Roberta, but couldn\u2019t be convinced to do what it took to release her from her suffering.<\/p>\n Jenny was about to flee in a panic when the door opened, and a man dressed in clean working clothes stood before her.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny stared at him for a moment.\u00a0\u00a0Was this the man she was searching for?\u00a0\u00a0Doc Gabriel, as he was known, was supposed to be half Negro and half Indian.\u00a0\u00a0Word was that Gabriel had fetched Doc Martin during an outbreak of influenza in one of the poorer districts.\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel had shown such skill and compassion in caring for the ill that Doc Martin offered to teach him medicine when he learned that Gabriel\u2019s parents had just died and he was all alone. Gabriel was still a young man when the doctor had taken him under his wing, and Paul Martin had taught the younger man much of his own medical knowledge.\u00a0\u00a0He had to be careful while doing it, of course.\u00a0\u00a0Many of the proper citizens of Virginia City and the people scattered around the countryside\u00a0\u00a0did not approve of him practicing medicine with them.\u00a0\u00a0As a result, Doc Martin had taken Gabriel on trips to Indian villages and to the poor sections of town, to help people who either couldn\u2019t afford most doctors or who were frowned upon when soliciting a doctor\u2019s care.<\/p>\n Jenny had no idea if any of that was true.\u00a0\u00a0She had heard of this man a number of times, but only knew that people called him \u201cDoc Gabriel\u201d, not because he was a doctor, or because his name was Gabriel, but because those in the poorer sections of town considered him to be an angel of mercy who often cared for the poor at no or little charge.\u00a0\u00a0She held her breath as she looked at the man before her.\u00a0\u00a0He could be Doc Gabriel.\u00a0\u00a0She didn\u2019t know.<\/p>\n \u201cAre you the man they call \u2018Doc Gabriel\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s what they call me.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked at her steadily.<\/p>\n Uncertain as to how her request would be received, she told him the same story she had just told Doc Young.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI told Doctor Young, but I\u2019m not sure that he\u2019ll come.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She shut her mouth firmly.<\/p>\n Doc Gabriel nodded knowingly and sympathetically.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet me get my bag.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He opened the door.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cCome in while I get ready.\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny wondered if that was proper, but decided it was more risky to stay outside.\u00a0\u00a0The doctor quickly gathered his instruments, placed them in his bag, and left.\u00a0\u00a0He carefully locked his door.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cTell me more while we ride to your place,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n As Jenny spoke, she led them back through the streets to the main road out of town, unaware that she was being watched.\u00a0\u00a0As she rode past Doctor Martin\u2019s place, she didn\u2019t notice Doc Young on the porch, smiling as he jingled several gold coins in his pocket.<\/p>\n She also didn\u2019t see the man in front of the saloon.\u00a0\u00a0His hard brown eyes followed her and Doc Gabriel, and he pushed his gray hat up to get a better view.\u00a0\u00a0His face was hard, shrewd, and devoid of emotion as he studied them.\u00a0\u00a0He thought of what Doc Young had told him:\u00a0\u00a0three women, one with \u201can unmentionable disease\u201d and also with child, as this little lady put it.\u00a0\u00a0He would have laughed with glee if he\u2019d known how.\u00a0\u00a0Not wanting to draw attention to himself \u2013 not yet \u2013 he went to the hitching rail and untied his horse.\u00a0\u00a0He wore a ghoulish grin that was as cold as the grimace on the frozen face of a corpse. This sounded perfect to him:\u00a0\u00a0A young lady taking care of three young children, her parents gone, and the women he was hunting taking refuge with her.\u00a0\u00a0His caricature of a smile spread across his face.\u00a0\u00a0This was easy pickings, indeed.\u00a0\u00a0It was worth the gold he\u2019d paid to Doc Young for the information.\u00a0\u00a0He had known these women would be forced to seek out medical care sooner or later, and he\u2019d given every doctor who would listen in every town near where they\u2019d fled a description of them and a few coins of gold , with promise of more to come if they gave him any leads.<\/p>\n This time, he\u2019d make Elise pay for what she\u2019d done.\u00a0\u00a0She thought, and so did he, that she\u2019d paid before, the other times she\u2019d run away.\u00a0\u00a0But this time, she\u2019d really pay.\u00a0\u00a0She would see what she had done to those around her.\u00a0\u00a0She would watch every single person, those who had come with her as well as those who had aided her, pay.\u00a0\u00a0One by one.\u00a0\u00a0Person by person.\u00a0\u00a0Inch by inch.\u00a0\u00a0Drop by drop.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d pay.\u00a0\u00a0Elise would know who owned her.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She was his.\u00a0\u00a0He had bought her.\u00a0\u00a0He owned her.\u00a0\u00a0He possessed her.\u00a0\u00a0And he vowed right now that she would know that, realize that, and never, ever forget it again.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He followed Jenny and Doc Gabriel as they rode out of town, far enough behind them not to be noticed, but close enough to see where they were going.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n Jenny and Gabriel arrived at the house.\u00a0\u00a0Both were hot, sweaty, and thirsty.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWater your horse,\u201d Jenny said, \u201cwhile I check on the young ones.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She went in the stuffy house and found David napping in his bed near the window.\u00a0\u00a0The sun was starting to shine through the window onto him.\u00a0\u00a0She pulled the bed away from the sun, and drew the drapes.\u00a0\u00a0Karen sat listlessly at the table, doodling on the slate that was sometimes used for Jared\u2019s school lessons.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere are Jared and Adam?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny asked.<\/p>\n \u201cThey just drew water for one of the women to take a bath,\u201d replied Karen.<\/p>\n Jenny got a glass of water for Doc Gabriel.<\/p>\n \u201cAunt Jenny,\u201d continued Karen, \u201cwho are those women?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not sure.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy are they so dirty?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause \u2013 they don\u2019t have anyplace to stay right now.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCan\u2019t they stay here?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019ll help them.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve brought the doctor.\u201d<\/p>\n Karen looked up for the first time since Jenny had entered the house.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s not the doctor out there!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDoc Martin isn\u2019t in town, but he taught this man to take care of people.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019s the only doctor who would come.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot too many people want to take care of – women like this.\u201d<\/p>\n Before Karen could ask \u201cwhy\u201d again, Jenny heard voices.\u00a0\u00a0She hurried outside.\u00a0\u00a0Adam and Jared were exchanging greetings with Doc Gabriel.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny handed Gabriel the glass of water, and he drank it thirstily.<\/p>\n \u201cKaren said something about one of the women taking a bath?\u201d Jenny asked.<\/p>\n \u201cElise has finished,\u201d replied Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMai Ling is bathing now.\u00a0\u00a0I gave them the clothes you left.\u00a0\u00a0You sure you can spare them?\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny nodded.\u00a0\u00a0The clothes had belonged to her, her mother, and her sister.\u00a0\u00a0For a moment, she was overcome with sadness at the memory of her sister, whom she hadn\u2019t seen in a few years, but she pushed the thoughts aside.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cElise?\u201d she asked.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMai Ling?\u00a0\u00a0How did you find out their names?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She had witnessed their fear of Adam and Elise\u2019s contempt of her.<\/p>\n \u201cI asked.\u201d Adam smiled slightly.<\/p>\n \u201cI asked, too,\u201d said Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey wouldn\u2019t tell me their names.\u00a0\u00a0Which one is the sick one?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s Marabelle,\u201d replied Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe\u2019s still in the loft.\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny led Doc Gabriel to the barn, while Adam and Jared went into the house.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey were in the loft this morning,\u201d she explained.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJared found them hiding there when he was in the barn doing the chores with Adam.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She explained how Adam had arrived during the storm the previous night and had slept on the couch.\u00a0\u00a0She marveled at the na\u00efvet\u00e9 of her words to Adam that no one would know if he spent the night at her house while her parents were away.\u00a0\u00a0She believed Doc Gabriel would mention it to no one, but still had the uneasy feeling that by the time this was over, the entire Nevada Territory would know.\u00a0\u00a0As they climbed the ladder to the loft, Jenny could hear Marabelle panting.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThis is the one who is sick.\u201d<\/p>\n Doc Gabriel stooped beside the woman, put his bag down, and looked at her with a critical eye.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny saw him close his eyes and shake his head.\u00a0\u00a0Obviously the pox, he thought, and possibly the clap as well.\u00a0\u00a0He pulled her lower lid down to examine her swollen, inflamed eye, and pushed her hair from her face, observing her open sores and the rash spread over her face, arms, and legs.\u00a0\u00a0Hell, this woman could have as many as three social diseases, and was with child as well.\u00a0\u00a0He felt a surge of anger.\u00a0\u00a0Did she know what this would mean for her unborn child?\u00a0\u00a0These diseases affected the children in the womb, so if they weren\u2019t stillborn, they died shortly after birth, as the disease was usually far more progressed in the children than in the mother.\u00a0\u00a0No, he concluded, she probably didn\u2019t know.\u00a0\u00a0He figured she most likely didn\u2019t care, either.\u00a0\u00a0She probably didn\u2019t even know who the father of her child was.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel had seen many women die of the diseases associated with prostitution.\u00a0\u00a0He had also known of men afflicted with them who infected their wives.\u00a0\u00a0He had been ushered in the back door of many fine houses, because people were too proud to go to Doc Martin or Doc Young with a problem of this nature.\u00a0\u00a0Many figured that since he worked with the poor people, Doc Gabriel would know more about \u201cthis sort of thing.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Where the hell did they get that idea?\u00a0\u00a0If it wasn\u2019t for the people who paid for the services of these women, \u201cthis sort of thing,\u201d as they so delicately put it, wouldn\u2019t even exist.\u00a0\u00a0Many people didn\u2019t even know they were infected until they broke out in a rash, had some kind of discomfort they were only willing to whisper in his ear about, or gave birth to a child severely affected.\u00a0\u00a0Many \u201crespectable\u201d men wanted to blame their wives, and that was one situation in which Doc Gabriel stood firm.\u00a0\u00a0He had made it clear to many men on countless occasions that they had themselves to blame for their own, their wife\u2019s, and their child\u2019s condition.\u00a0\u00a0He had made a number of enemies that way, but no matter.\u00a0\u00a0What were the men going to do, protest that he shouldn\u2019t have come to see them because he blamed them for an unmentionable social disease that was in their household?\u00a0\u00a0No, their lips were sealed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle opened her eyes and looked at Gabriel.\u00a0\u00a0She tried to say something, but he couldn\u2019t understand her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGet me some water,\u201d he said tersely.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny ran back to the house.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel tried to make Marabelle more comfortable.\u00a0\u00a0She looked at him for a long time, and finally whispered so he could understand, \u201cWho are you?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can call me Doc Gabriel.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019re getting you some water.\u00a0\u00a0Try to relax.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0The woman was breathing hard.\u00a0\u00a0He elevated her head and gave her the water that Jenny handed to him.\u00a0\u00a0She drank a little.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHas she had anything to eat?\u201d he asked Jenny.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYes, she had some beef stew earlier.\u00a0\u00a0Not much.\u00a0\u00a0I was afraid they\u2019d make themselves sick if they ate too much at once.\u00a0\u00a0She went to sleep before we brought the milk out, though.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked at her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe needs a bath, but I don\u2019t see how we can get her out of the loft.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s the least of her worries,\u201d Doc Gabriel assured her cryptically.\u00a0\u00a0He turned to Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDo you know when your baby is due?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle shook her head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNot sure,\u201d she said in a raspy voice.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMaybe a couple more months.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re having labor pains, and you\u2019re also bleeding,\u201d Gabriel told her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat means you\u2019re about to give birth.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle tossed her head in agitation.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNot time, yet.\u00a0\u00a0Not time!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She looked at the doctor, then at Jenny, who thought, despite the redness of Marabelle\u2019s swollen eyes, that they must once have been a beautiful shade of blue.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy baby! Don\u2019t take this one away from me!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She tried to rise from her bed in the hay, but sank back down, clutching her abdomen and groaning.\u00a0\u00a0Her face broke out in a sweat and she panted shallowly.\u00a0\u00a0When the wave of pain passed, she looked at Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI need this baby!\u00a0\u00a0You can\u2019t take him \u2013 her \u2013 away!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo one is going to do anything to hurt you,\u201d Jenny assured her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe only want to help.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She glanced at Doc Gabriel, who avoided her gaze.\u00a0\u00a0The sooner Jenny learned that the best help for this woman lay in an overdose from a bottle in his bag, the better.\u00a0\u00a0He had seen this type of situation too many times before, and hated to see someone as gentle as Jenny drawn into it.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle stared at Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI know you,\u201d she whispered.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve seen you before.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny shook her head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo, I don\u2019t think so.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYes,\u201d insisted Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIn Silver City.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve seen you there, several times.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny smiled.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve never been to Silver City,\u201d she told her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou must have seen someone else.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt was you,\u201d Marabelle insisted.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSometimes you were with your mother and father.\u00a0\u00a0I saw you talking to them, and heard you call the woman \u2018Mother.\u2019\u00a0\u00a0You looked happy.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She sounded envious.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny opened her mouth to deny it again, and froze.\u00a0\u00a0Silver City.\u00a0\u00a0Her parents were in Silver City right now, before heading on to Carson City, supposedly on her father\u2019s business.\u00a0\u00a0She thought of her missing sister.\u00a0\u00a0Her parents had sent her away long ago, and Jenny hadn\u2019t known her whereabouts.\u00a0\u00a0Yet, Jenny knew that her parents would never throw her out.\u00a0\u00a0All those trips to Silver City\u2026.could it be\u2026?<\/p>\n Jenny heard a sound on the ladder behind her, and turned as her niece shuffled through the hay to her side.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMai Ling is finished with her bath,\u201d Karen said.\u00a0\u00a0She put her thumb in her mouth and looked cautiously at Marabelle.<\/p>\n Marabelle looked at Karen, then at Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYour daughter?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, my niece.\u201d<\/p>\n Marabelle smiled sadly and knowingly.\u00a0\u00a0She gave Jenny a piercing look.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe looks just like you.\u00a0\u00a0And like the woman I saw in Silver City.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She closed her eyes as she rode another wave of pain.<\/p>\n Jenny watched uncertainly, unsure of what to do.\u00a0\u00a0When Marabelle opened her eyes again, Jenny asked cautiously, \u201cYou\u2019re from Silver City?\u201d<\/p>\n Marabelle nodded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYes, that\u2019s the last place we lived.\u00a0\u00a0I think we were going to move on to California soon, though.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She grimaced as another pain took her, then looked at Karen.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI bet it\u2019s the little girl\u2019s mother I saw in Silver City, isn\u2019t it?\u201d Marabelle asked<\/p>\n Jenny froze.<\/p>\n \u201cShe looks a lot like you, that lady I saw.\u00a0\u00a0Unless it was you, of course,\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle continued.<\/p>\n Jenny knew she mustn\u2019t mention her sister.\u00a0\u00a0She should deny ever having one. That was what she had always been told to do:\u00a0\u00a0Never mention having a sister, and present Karen as the daughter of her brother and his wife, both dead.\u00a0\u00a0But Karen\u2019s mother was very much alive, though her parentage must be hidden and always disguised as acceptable.\u00a0\u00a0As Jenny longed to see and remember her sister, this was often very difficult for her to do.<\/p>\n She stared at Marabelle, wondering at her perceptivity and discernment.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t know who you saw,\u201d she said carefully,\u00a0\u00a0as she struggled with her tears.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut the girl is my niece.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0Marabelle\u2019s knowing look pierced her.\u00a0\u00a0She laughed mirthlessly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI had a child five years ago, when I was sixteen.\u00a0\u00a0My mother and father took it away from me, and threw me out of the house.\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny swallowed, and looked at\u00a0\u00a0the shadow of a woman before her with pity.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy mother and father would never see any of us turned out, no matter what.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLucky you,\u201d whispered Marabelle, \u201cto have a father like that.\u00a0\u00a0My mother would have let me stay, but my father wouldn\u2019t hear of it.\u00a0\u00a0I had to leave.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She closed her eyes as she waited for another wave of pain.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI tried to find a job, but no one would hire me.\u00a0\u00a0The church wouldn\u2019t help me.\u00a0\u00a0The priest said I had to pay for my sin.\u00a0\u00a0Clint was the only one who would help.\u00a0\u00a0He took me in, and gave me a home; fed me and clothed me.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She tried to laugh.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve been paying for my sin ever since.\u00a0\u00a0And my sins have grown.\u00a0\u00a0I keep paying, and owing, every day.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0After a malevolent glance at Jenny, Marabelle shut her eyes, and turned away.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny sent Karen back to the house.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Doc Gabriel opened his bag and pulled out a bottle.\u00a0\u00a0He administered some laudanum, and the woman finally fell into a stupor.\u00a0\u00a0He didn\u2019t tell Jenny that if he\u2019d had enough courage, he would have administered an overdose and put the woman, as well as her unborn child, out of their misery.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked on, relieved that Marabelle was temporarily out of pain, but knowing that, but for the grace of God and the love of her parents, she might have been looking at her sister.\u00a0\u00a0She couldn\u2019t help but wonder why the grace of God was greater and more merciful for some people than for others.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ben Cartwright emerged from the bank.\u00a0\u00a0He had come into town to transfer some funds, as well as pick up a few supplies.\u00a0\u00a0Both could have waited for a while, but he was worried about Adam.\u00a0\u00a0His eldest son shouldn\u2019t have been gone for more than a week at most, and he should at least have heard from him by now.\u00a0\u00a0He had sent Joe to the saloon to ask around about him.\u00a0\u00a0If someone had seen him, Joe should be able to find out.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss was riding fence along the northern line of the Ponderosa, in case Adam tried to return from that direction instead of going through Virginia City.\u00a0\u00a0Ben knew that if anyone could detect signs of Adam, Hoss could.<\/p>\n As Ben untied Buck from the rail before the bank, Joe ran toward him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPa!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He hurried across the street to his father.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI just talked to Jake, in the saloon, and he said Adam was in the saloon yesterday.\u00a0\u00a0Looked like he had just come into town, he said.\u00a0\u00a0He tried to get Adam to stay, but he said he was heading home.\u00a0\u00a0Jake said that was shortly before the storm hit.\u00a0\u00a0You don\u2019t suppose Adam got caught in it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAdam has enough sense to stay out of a storm like that,\u201d mused Ben.<\/p>\n \u201cUnless he was in such a hurry to get home that he decided to ride through it,\u201d countered Joe.<\/p>\n Ben shook his head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe would have stopped someplace safe, someplace where he could have stayed out of the way of the lightning strikes.\u00a0\u00a0And he would have been home by now,\u201d he added emphatically.<\/p>\n \u201cWe should ride toward home and check along the way,\u201d said Joe, unwilling to spend more time speculating rather than searching.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Barnhart place is along the way.\u201d said Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI told Thomas I\u2019d keep an eye on the place, and on his daughter and the young ones, while he\u2019s gone.\u00a0\u00a0We might as well stop there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, and a few other places as well,\u201d said Joe.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut he knows the Barnharts the best.\u00a0\u00a0I think he\u2019d be more likely to stop there, but he may not have had much choice about where to stop, once that storm was in full swing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, I\u2019m waiting for a wire back from one of the bankers in San Francisco,\u201d said Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet\u2019s go eat supper at the hotel, and send word to Hoss with Pete.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Pete was the hired hand who had accompanied them to town to get the supplies and bring them back to the Ponderosa.<\/p>\n Once they had eaten supper, Ben returned to the telegraph office.\u00a0\u00a0He read it with a grim face, and turned to Joe and Pete with brows drawn low over his eyes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThis says that the bank has seen diminishing returns on the mine that Adam just went to check on,\u201d he reported.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSomething must be wrong, and Adam probably found out what it was.\u00a0\u00a0He either hasn\u2019t had a chance to send a wire about it, or is in trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd now, we can\u2019t find him,\u201d said Joe.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe need to keep looking, Pa.\u00a0\u00a0He was here, and was heading home.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben turned to Pete.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGo back to the Ponderosa,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cUnload the supplies, and tell Hoss as soon as possible that something is wrong with the mine that Adam went to investigate.\u00a0\u00a0Tell him Adam was seen in town yesterday, and that Joe and I are looking for him.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019ll stop at the places between here and the Ponderosa, including the Barnhart place.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSure you don\u2019t want me to come with you, Mr. Cartwright?\u201d asked Pete.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m sure,\u201d said Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou get home, and talk to Hoss tonight.\u00a0\u00a0Joe and I will keep looking.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0As Pete drove the wagon toward the Ponderosa, Joe and Ben made a few more inquiries in town, and then slowly rode into the late afternoon sun, looking for signs of their brother and son.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n Clint watched from a distance, trying to get a feel for the place, and learn where his quarry was before he sprang his trap.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He saw the \u201cdoctor\u201d and woman disappear into the barn, and saw a little girl \u2013 no more than three or four years old, he figured \u2013 follow them and then return to the house a few minutes later.\u00a0\u00a0He smiled delightedly.\u00a0\u00a0This was better than he ever could have hoped for:\u00a0\u00a0A young child, amenable for training, and a lovely young lady, young and pretty enough to attract many new customers, and who would respond well if given a choice between her life and health, or a beating and death to herself and the child.\u00a0\u00a0He saw good potential here, enough to compensate him for money and time lost for the three ungrateful women who had deserted him, one of whom was worthless to him now.<\/p>\n Jenny had left Marabelle and Doc Gabriel in the barn, and was returning to the house when Clint rode boldly up to her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGood afternoon, Ma\u2019am,\u201d he drawled in his most polite voice.<\/p>\n Jenny turned to look at him, and felt a chill creep up her legs and down her arms to freeze her heart.\u00a0\u00a0This man had the hardest eyes of anyone she had every seen.\u00a0\u00a0The smile curving his lips didn\u2019t reach his eyes.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny shivered as she saw his cruel eyes travel over her, the house, and the yard.\u00a0\u00a0He finally looked at her, and for a brief moment, she couldn\u2019t breathe under the calculating, cold gaze he passed over her.\u00a0\u00a0She took a deep breath, thinking that she had appraised horses and cattle with more feeling.<\/p>\n She suddenly realized, in an almost total panic, where she had seen him before.\u00a0\u00a0No, no:\u00a0\u00a0She hadn\u2019t seen him anywhere, but someone just like him.\u00a0\u00a0They had been living in Chicago, and she had just left a store with her family.\u00a0\u00a0As they gathered their belongings on the sidewalk, a man standing near them had looked at her and through her, appraising her as so much merchandise, just as this man was doing.\u00a0\u00a0It had taken her breath away and frightened her so she couldn\u2019t move.\u00a0\u00a0Her father had come to her side, speaking her name, and leading her away.\u00a0\u00a0He had succeeded in staring the man down, so that he turned away, realizing that she wasn\u2019t easy pickings.\u00a0\u00a0This man was like that other one. This time, however, her father wasn\u2019t with her.\u00a0\u00a0She was home alone, with three children to care for, and three vagabond women relying on her for help.\u00a0\u00a0She stood paralyzed, unable to move, staring at his unfeeling brown eyes.\u00a0\u00a0She wished for her father to come and chase this man off, or for Adam to emerge from the house and defend her.<\/p>\n Clint\u2019s smile changed from cold to triumphant as he saw the effect he had on her.\u00a0\u00a0This would be easy \u2013 too easy.\u00a0\u00a0He rode closer so he could tower over her. \u201cHow are you this fine afternoon?\u00a0\u00a0A mite hot and dry now, isn\u2019t it?\u00a0\u00a0A cold drink of water sure would go down smooth right now.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Clint\u2019s gentility was as smooth as oil.\u00a0\u00a0She stood her ground for a moment, then thought better of it and put the hitching rail between them.<\/p>\n Jenny didn\u2019t want to refuse him hospitality, but she also didn\u2019t want to turn her back on him, or bring him in the house where the children were.\u00a0\u00a0She watched him carefully while she caught her breath.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m afraid our water isn\u2019t cold,\u201d she replied.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIs there a reason for your visit, Mr. -\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She hoped this stranger couldn\u2019t hear her pounding heart.<\/p>\n Clint looked icily at Jenny, and she could tell he was angry at her evasiveness.\u00a0\u00a0His glance strayed to Doc Gabriel\u2019s horse tethered to the hitching rail.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou have other guests,\u201d he observed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDid you refuse them water, too?\u00a0\u00a0Are you always so inhospitable to strangers?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0His frown was as sudden as a cloud obscuring the sun, and his hard eyes threatened her.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny felt chills run down her back.\u00a0\u00a0She was convinced that this was a man she could not turn her back on.<\/p>\n \u201cYou still haven\u2019t told me your business, Mr-?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny watched him evenly, not flinching from his stare despite her sweaty palms.\u00a0\u00a0Clint feared this wasn\u2019t as easy as it had first appeared.\u00a0\u00a0Well, she had obviously been gently reared.\u00a0\u00a0She wasn\u2019t being very polite to him by refusing him a drink, and perhaps he could still get the upper hand by changing his tactics.<\/p>\n He dismounted from his horse.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can call me Clint.\u00a0\u00a0And I\u2019m looking for somebody, some people dear to me.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0His eyes darted about the yard as he tethered his horse to the rail.<\/p>\n Jenny hoped that she would never be \u201cdear\u201d to such a ravenous wolf.<\/p>\n Clint smiled as brightly as possible, changing his demeanor from that of the hungry wolf to a circling vulture.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cCould you please, Miss – ?\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t know your name!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He paused, but Jenny didn\u2019t respond.\u00a0\u00a0His smile grew no less, but much colder.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPlease, may I have a drink of water?\u00a0\u00a0And may I sit a spell?\u00a0\u00a0Then I can tell you my business.\u201d<\/p>\n I\u2019m sorry.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny tried unsuccessfully to keep her voice from trembling.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy parents are not home, and I can\u2019t have a stranger in the house.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She was prepared to get him a drink while he waited outside, but Clint\u2019s eyes narrowed, and he stopped smiling.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have other company here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFriends, yes,\u201d replied Jenny.<\/p>\n \u201cAnyone else?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0His eyes never left her face.<\/p>\n Jenny\u2019s eyes fell from his.\u00a0\u00a0Resolutely, she looked back at him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy do you ask?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI told you, I\u2019m looking for someone.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Clint\u2019s voice was clipped, with a threatening undertone.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSome three, to be exact.\u00a0\u00a0And I know they\u2019re here, so why don\u2019t you just let me have them, and save yourself \u2013 and that pretty little child I saw with you \u2013 a lot of heartache?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He watched the fear creep across her face with satisfaction.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou won\u2019t like what I do to you, or especially that little one, if you don\u2019t show me where they are,\u201d he said in a low voice.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd I would like a drink of water first.\u00a0\u00a0Please?\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny looked at him, fighting her fear.\u00a0\u00a0This was a ruthless, cruel man, and it was no wonder that the women in the loft had been so frightened of her and Adam, and reluctant to tell their names.\u00a0\u00a0If it was Clint they were running from\u2026.<\/p>\n The door opened suddenly behind her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt sounds to me as though you\u2019ve outstayed your welcome, Mister.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny stepped aside and looked gratefully at Adam.\u00a0\u00a0She knew she could never have handled this man by herself.\u00a0\u00a0She glanced back at the door, hoping that Karen would not come out, too, but would stay in the house.<\/p>\n Jenny\u2019s quick glance was not lost on Clint, but the child could wait until he had dealt with this stranger.<\/p>\n His mouth pulled into a straight line, and his narrowed eyes never left Adam\u2019s face.\u00a0\u00a0His hand strayed toward his gun.\u00a0\u00a0He had dealt before with men who had championed Elise\u2019s cause.\u00a0\u00a0They had just wanted her all to themselves. This one should be no different than the others.\u00a0\u00a0The ends of his mouth twisted as he thought of the man who had run away with her the last time, as well as the Indians in the Sierra Nevada foothills who had obviously aided the three of them recently.\u00a0\u00a0Anyone who helped Elise escape from him either wasn\u2019t around to talk about it, or didn\u2019t dare come near her again.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGet on your horse and leave,\u201d ordered Adam.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Clint glared at him, and his smile grew.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWho\u2019s gonna make me, Mister?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0His drawl was so genteel that it seemed impossible that his face was so hard.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGet out!\u201d repeated Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019ve insulted the lady, and threatened her and her niece.\u00a0\u00a0Go, before I shoot you!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Clint threw his head back and laughed uproariously.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy, Mister, I do believe you\u2019re mistaken!\u00a0\u00a0First of all, I don\u2019t see any \u2018lady\u2019 here!\u00a0\u00a0I see a woman who is entertaining two men, one of them Negro\u201d- he spat the last word \u2013 \u201cwhile her parents are gone!\u00a0\u00a0Isn\u2019t that right, Miss?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy friends are always welcome here,\u201d retorted Jenny, shivering at the hate implicit in his reference to Doc Gabriel, and wondering how Clint knew\u00a0\u00a0he was there.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJenny, get in the house,\u201d said Adam shortly.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0At the same time, Clint laughed again.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOf course they are!\u00a0\u00a0Some \u2018lady\u2019s\u2019 friends\u2019 are always welcome, day and night!\u00a0\u00a0And \u2013 did you call the little girl her \u2018niece\u2019, Sir?\u00a0\u00a0There\u2019s a few in town who say otherwise!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He continued to laugh.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam didn\u2019t answer, but moved around the hitching rail and approached Clint menacingly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGo!\u201d he said quietly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo one insults a lady while I\u2019m around.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Both men\u2019s hands drifted toward their guns.\u00a0\u00a0They circled each other, one looking like a wolf ready for the kill; the other like a lion defending his cubs.<\/p>\n Jenny watched with mounting horror.\u00a0\u00a0She had to do something, or this ruthless man would kill Adam.\u00a0\u00a0She hurried to the hitching rail and started to untie Clint\u2019s horse, prepared to drive it off if necessary to distract the man.\u00a0\u00a0But Adam was the one who was distracted.\u00a0\u00a0His eyes moved toward her, watching her, worried for her safety.\u00a0\u00a0Clint saw his adversary\u2019s distraction, turned, grabbed Jenny by the hair, and pulled his gun in one fluid motion.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNow it\u2019s your turn to get lost, Mister,\u201d he gloated.\u00a0\u00a0He held the gun to Jenny\u2019s head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cUnless you want this \u2018lady\u2019 you\u2019re so fond of to die.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam had no doubt that he\u2019d do it.\u00a0\u00a0He had overheard most of the conversation between Jenny and Clint, and had no doubt who he was, or rather what he was, and why he was there.\u00a0\u00a0He recognized the type of man, and thought he might even recognize him from someplace a while back.\u00a0\u00a0Adam figured that Clint would rather not kill anyone, as that would put the law on his trail.\u00a0\u00a0He wanted Jenny \u2013 and Karen \u2013 alive, for his own purposes. But he would kill her without hesitation if Adam didn\u2019t cooperate with him.\u00a0\u00a0But this was hardly the time for speculation.\u00a0\u00a0He had to act quickly, or disaster could follow.<\/p>\n \u201cLet her go,\u201d he said in a low voice.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf you need a hostage, take me, and leave her alone.\u201d<\/p>\n Clint smiled, amused at the offer.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd what would I do with you?\u00a0\u00a0I know just what to do with her.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He pulled Jenny closer to him, releasing her hair and grabbing her about the waist while still holding the gun to her head.\u00a0\u00a0The hitching rail still stood between them, digging painfully into Jenny\u2019s side, but made no difference to his hold on her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf you make me shoot her, there\u2019s others around just as good.\u00a0\u00a0Especially her little \u2018niece\u2019 inside!\u201d<\/p>\n Furious, Adam stepped toward him, reaching for his gun.\u00a0\u00a0Clint cocked his weapon and held it closer to Jenny\u2019s head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI wouldn\u2019t,\u201d he said softly.<\/p>\n A haze descended about Jenny\u2019s eyes.\u00a0\u00a0She tried to breathe, but couldn\u2019t.\u00a0\u00a0She knew what this man intended, and knew death was better, but was too frightened of dying.\u00a0\u00a0She gasped, and a whimper escaped her lips.\u00a0\u00a0Clint\u2019s hand moved to her throat.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cQuiet!\u201d he hissed.\u00a0\u00a0Despite his order, Jenny\u2019s breath rattled in her throat.<\/p>\n From the shadows of the bushes by the front door, Comet observed the scene.\u00a0\u00a0His eyes grew ever bigger, making him totally black and therefore invisible in the shade beneath the shrubbery.\u00a0\u00a0Ever since this stranger had ridden into the yard, he had smelled danger.\u00a0\u00a0Initially, he had growled when he heard the man approach, and run and hid when he saw him.\u00a0\u00a0But when Adam had left the house, Comet had slinked unseen out the door with him.\u00a0\u00a0This man who smelled rotten was talking with his favorite person, and she was very afraid.\u00a0\u00a0Comet could smell her fear.\u00a0\u00a0He didn\u2019t like this man.\u00a0\u00a0This was someone he would never approach and rub on.\u00a0\u00a0When Clint grabbed Jenny, Comet stifled a growl, unwilling to reveal himself.\u00a0\u00a0Instead, he waited. When he saw Clint put his hand on Jenny\u2019s throat, he ran under Clint\u2019s horse, intending to claw and bite this man who would dare threaten his person.<\/p>\n But the horse, unused to the feel of a cat running about his legs, started, whinnied, and reared.\u00a0\u00a0His foot kicked Comet, who gave a loud yowl.\u00a0\u00a0He grabbed hold of the offending leg with all four of his, clawed, bit, and dodged back toward the bushes.\u00a0\u00a0The panicked horse reared repeatedly, breaking his rope that Jenny had already loosened, and galloped back the way he had come.<\/p>\n Clint swore freely, and looked about for the black creature he had seen flash past.\u00a0\u00a0His hand tightened on Jenny\u2019s throat, and she gave a strangled cry.\u00a0\u00a0Furious, Comet leaped onto Clint\u2019s arm, clawed, and climbed onto his head.\u00a0\u00a0In a couple of seconds, he had done his work, and Clint released Jenny, holding his hands to his slashed and bleeding face and saying words that Jenny had never known existed.\u00a0\u00a0She tried to go toward the house, but everything was fading into a black mist with tiny stars running throughout it.\u00a0\u00a0She fell on the ground.<\/p>\n Adam ran around the hitching rail, and kicked Clint backwards, away from his gun which he had dropped on the ground.\u00a0\u00a0Adam pulled his gun and pointed it at Clint.\u00a0\u00a0Jared came outside cradling the rifle his grandfather kept above the front door, poised to shoot at this stranger.\u00a0\u00a0Jared couldn\u2019t use the rifle.\u00a0\u00a0His grandfather wouldn\u2019t let him.\u00a0\u00a0He was too small.\u00a0\u00a0But Clint, though he probably knew that handling the rifle was beyond the boy, also knew that point-blank range from\u00a0\u00a0two weapons was certain death.\u00a0\u00a0Continuing his string of curses, he rose and attempted to take Doc Gabriel\u2019s horse.<\/p>\n \u201cLeave it alone!\u201d shouted Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGet away from it!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He had seen the rifle next to the saddle, and couldn\u2019t allow Clint to get his hands on it.<\/p>\n Clint wiped the blood out of his eyes and tried to stop the bleeding from his scalp.\u00a0\u00a0He hurled constant venom at the semi-conscious girl on the ground, and started toward her.\u00a0\u00a0Adam stepped between them.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGo,\u201d he said softly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s a long walk back to town, or wherever you came from.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou won\u2019t get away with this,\u201d Clint snarled.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll be back with the sheriff.\u00a0\u00a0You attacked me, you have a vicious animal that attacked me and my horse, and I know you\u2019re harboring three criminals who belong to me!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou bring the sheriff back,\u201d Adam shot back.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe have a few claims of our own to make against you.\u00a0\u00a0Attempted kidnapping and threatening to murder someone is a crime around here, in case you didn\u2019t know.\u00a0\u00a0So get the sheriff.\u00a0\u00a0Bring him back.\u00a0\u00a0I just hope you catch your horse soon, or you have an awful long trip ahead of you, and I don\u2019t like to be kept waiting.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He gestured the man away from Jenny and away from the house.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGet out of here!\u201d<\/p>\n Clint complied, but not without a stream of invective.\u00a0\u00a0This was the first time in years that anyone had gained the upper hand with him, and all because of that damned cat.\u00a0\u00a0At least, he thought it was a cat.\u00a0\u00a0It had flashed by so quickly he couldn\u2019t be sure.\u00a0\u00a0Stuffing his blood-soaked handkerchief in his pocket, he searched in vain for another one to stop the bleeding from the numerous gashes on his face, scalp, and arm.\u00a0\u00a0Finally, he stripped off his jacket and used it.\u00a0\u00a0If he saw that cat, he\u2019d shoot it.\u00a0\u00a0Then he realized he didn\u2019t have a gun.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll be back!\u201d he promised.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll be back, and you\u2019ll see what happens to anyone who does this to Clint.\u00a0\u00a0You\u2019ll wish you were dead before I\u2019m through with you!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He glared at Jenny, still lying motionless on the ground.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll see her in my establishment, and that fine little girl will come with me, too, and there will be nothing you can do to stop me!\u00a0\u00a0No one crosses me without paying a price!<\/p>\n \u201cRight, Elise?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He suddenly shouted as he turned toward the barn, then the house.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI know you\u2019re here!\u00a0\u00a0I know that so-called \u2018doctor\u2019 is here with you.\u00a0\u00a0And Mai Ling and Marabelle are here, too.\u00a0\u00a0See?\u00a0\u00a0I know where you are!\u00a0\u00a0You can\u2019t get away from me.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll always find you!\u00a0\u00a0You owe me money, remember?\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve spent a lot of gold on all of you, to put clothes on your backs and feed you, and you need to get on your backs to pay me!\u00a0\u00a0You\u2019ll come with me!\u00a0\u00a0You just remember who you belong to!\u00a0\u00a0You\u2019ll never run fast enough or far enough to get away from me!\u00a0\u00a0There\u2019s no place you can hide!\u00a0\u00a0And don\u2019t even think of running back to the hills to those Indians you stayed with.\u00a0\u00a0There\u2019s not too many of them left after I tracked you all there!\u00a0\u00a0But they did have some nice women there that I got to sample, all because of how you led me to them!\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019d like to thank you kindly for -\u201d<\/p>\n Adam fired a shot that grazed his right arm, already gouged by the scratches.\u00a0\u00a0Clint whirled about, a horrible specter with blood streaking his face.\u00a0\u00a0He raised his fist toward Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou won\u2019t get away, either, Mister-\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam fired a shot next to his head.\u00a0\u00a0Clint jumped back, and with one final venomous glare, turned and staggered toward town, wiping blood from his eyes as he went, and cursing himself for not simply shooting that unexpected stranger while he had the chance.\u00a0\u00a0Of course, that would have put the law on his trail, but if he was careful, that could be hard to follow, especially with the lead he would have had.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019d always been careful not to run afoul of the law, but he figured if he ever did, he probably had enough money, and attractive bait, to wriggle out of any charge.\u00a0\u00a0But murder?\u00a0\u00a0He wasn\u2019t sure about that.\u00a0\u00a0He cursed anew as he realized he\u2019d been defeated by a cat.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n Once they were certain he was leaving, Adam and Jared turned their attention to Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0Adam lifted her carefully and carried her into the house.\u00a0\u00a0Jared drew some water while Adam attempted to comfort Karen, who had hidden behind David\u2019s bed during the entire incident, and sobbed and trembled anew at the sight of her aunt\u2019s limp form and incoherent mumbling, as well as the bruises on her throat.<\/p>\n While Adam washed Jenny\u2019s face and examined her neck where Clint had grabbed her, Jared said, \u201cThe doctor\u2019s in the barn.\u00a0\u00a0We should take her out there.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0David stirred and cried as he spoke.<\/p>\n \u00a0Adam nodded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe should all be in one place, anyway.\u00a0\u00a0Bring the rifle,\u201d he told Jared.\u00a0\u00a0He looked at Karen.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cCan you carry the baby out to the barn?\u201d<\/p>\n Karen nodded.\u00a0\u00a0David was heavy, but she wasn\u2019t going to stay alone in the house.\u00a0\u00a0Adam lifted David from the bed, and for safety\u2019s sake tied him about Karen\u2019s body with his blankets.\u00a0\u00a0He grabbed a few diapers stacked near the bed and stuffed them in his saddlebags that remained by the door.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cFill my canteen, and grab a few towels, too.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jared hurried to comply.\u00a0\u00a0Adam lifted Jenny in his arms, and they hurried out the door and to the barn.<\/p>\n As soon as they entered the barn,\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel met them.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThank God you\u2019re all right!\u201d he exclaimed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe heard the shots, but I couldn\u2019t see enough from the windows to tell what was going on.\u00a0\u00a0The women were absolutely terrified as soon as they heard that man\u2019s voice.\u00a0\u00a0It was all I could do to keep them \u2013 except Marabelle, of course;\u00a0\u00a0I had to give her some laudanum earlier – from running out the back door in a blind panic.\u00a0\u00a0I left my gun on my horse, at the hitching rail by the house.\u00a0\u00a0A mistake I won\u2019t make again!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked at Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHas she been shot?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo,\u201d replied Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe grabbed her, about the waist and the throat, and she\u2019s bruised.\u00a0\u00a0He held a gun to her head, but she\u2019s not shot.\u201d<\/p>\n Gabriel motioned them to an empty stall, and examined her after Adam laid her down.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHow did she get away from him?\u201d<\/p>\n Adam sighed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s a long story.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll go get your horse.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He came back several minutes later with not only the horse, but with a basket full of food and drink for everyone.<\/p>\n Jared was attempting to comfort David, who was thrashing and fussing.\u00a0\u00a0Adam pulled out a cup from a basket loaded with the food, and spooned some stew broth into his mouth.\u00a0\u00a0David stopped crying, swallowed, and opened his mouth for more.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere is Karen?\u201d Adam asked.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d replied Jared.<\/p>\n Doc Gabriel was replacing his stethoscope in his bag.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe went up into the loft a few minutes ago.\u00a0\u00a0I thought I heard her talking to something – one of the barn cats, I suppose – before she went up the ladder.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He stood up.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJenny will be all right.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019s talking a little, and responding to me.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019s been through a big scare and an awful shock.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam turned over David\u2019s feeding to Jared and knelt by Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He touched her face in concern.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJenny!\u00a0\u00a0Can you hear me?\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny opened her eyes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAdam \u2013 Is he gone?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes,\u201d Adam assured her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s gone.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhere are the children?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re here, in the barn with us.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m taking care of them.\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny closed her eyes in relief.<\/p>\n Adam climbed the ladder to the loft and looked around.\u00a0\u00a0All three of the women lay close together, far back in the loft, sound asleep in their exhaustion, or, in Marabelle\u2019s case, from the effects of the drug Gabriel had given her.\u00a0\u00a0A short distance from them lay Karen, with her thumb in her mouth, covered with her favorite quilt cross-stitched with a picture of a house, a tree, a red cat, a blue dog, and a brown horse, which Adam had used to tie David to her.\u00a0\u00a0Next to her, curled up in contentment, lay Comet, sound asleep.\u00a0\u00a0Adam approached Karen and made certain that she was comfortable.\u00a0\u00a0He wiped a stray tear from her cheek.<\/p>\n As he looked at Marabelle, he frowned.\u00a0\u00a0He stepped over Karen, stooped down beside the drugged woman, and pulled something from the hay next to her.\u00a0\u00a0The thorns on the wilted rose pricked his fingers as he picked it up.\u00a0\u00a0He brushed the hay from the petals, wondering how a rose came to be in the barn.\u00a0\u00a0He looked at Elise and Mai Ling as they slept in fearful exhaustion, and saw a rose partly buried near each of them.\u00a0\u00a0He gathered them together, looked at them in wonder, and finally laid one rose next to each woman.\u00a0\u00a0Glancing once more at Karen, he went back down the ladder.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n Jenny was sitting up and sipping water when they heard the hoofbeats approach.\u00a0\u00a0Adam grabbed Gabriel\u2019s rifle and tossed it to him.\u00a0\u00a0He drew his own gun as he went to the window.\u00a0\u00a0Up in the loft, Comet growled threateningly, and beat his tail against Karen.\u00a0\u00a0Elise suddenly sat up, looking in alarm toward the window at the end of the loft.\u00a0\u00a0She scrambled to it, but could see nothing.\u00a0\u00a0She heard Adam\u2019s voice beneath her in the barn.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s all right.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s my father and brother.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise crawled to the edge of the loft and peeked over in time to see Adam striding out the door.\u00a0\u00a0That doctor was still there.\u00a0\u00a0She hadn\u2019t seen him until after he had examined Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0He told her what he had done with her friend, and had wanted to examine her, but she wasn\u2019t about to let him touch her.\u00a0\u00a0No man would touch her again, unless she had to let them, to preserve her freedom from Clint, or to protect Marabelle.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ben and Joe walked into the barn, followed by Adam, who was explaining about the storm, and how quickly it had come on.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSo that\u2019s why I stayed here last night.\u00a0\u00a0I couldn\u2019t leave this morning, because there were other problems.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He stopped by the stall where Jenny sat next to Doc Gabriel, who assisted her as she drank.\u00a0\u00a0Ben and Joe looked in horror at the dark bruises about her throat.\u00a0\u00a0Ben\u2019s face became dark with anger.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny attempted to smile and whispered \u201chello\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Doc Gabriel nodded and said, \u201cHi, Ben, Little Joe,\u201d before turning his attention back to his patient.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat happened?\u201d demanded Joe.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe had some company this morning,\u201d Adam replied.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In the silence that followed, Ben said, \u201cPerhaps you\u2019d care to explain?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam pierced Jenny for a moment with a brooding gaze, then gestured curtly to his father and brother.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cFollow me.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He led them up the ladder to the loft.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Comet leaped to his feet and gave a menacing growl.\u00a0\u00a0Karen stirred for the first time since ascending the ladder.\u00a0\u00a0She pulled her thumb from her mouth, and slowly sat up, looking sleepily about.\u00a0\u00a0Not recognizing her surroundings, she cried out softly for her aunt.\u00a0\u00a0As Adam\u2019s head appeared at the top of the ladder, she drew back and gasped softly.\u00a0\u00a0Comet growled again, then twitched his tail and sniffed as he scented Adam.\u00a0\u00a0He laid down and made no protest as Adam approached Karen.\u00a0\u00a0When Ben, followed by Joe, climbed into the loft, Comet sniffed at them cautiously, and allowed them to pass unchallenged.\u00a0\u00a0As they gathered about Karen, Comet went to the edge of the loft, turned about, and quickly backed down the side of the ladder as though he was climbing down a tree.\u00a0\u00a0He ran to Jenny and sat by her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam lifted Karen into his arms.\u00a0\u00a0He pointed to the two women sleeping behind her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThese women were here in the barn this morning,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJared found them, as we were doing the chores.\u00a0\u00a0But there was one more.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0As he looked about, he saw Elise, creeping back from the far edge of the loft.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise was not pleased to see three men.\u00a0\u00a0Three men and three women:\u00a0\u00a0It had to have been planned this way.\u00a0\u00a0Well, she and Mai Ling would just have to keep them happy.\u00a0\u00a0The two of them had bathed and changed, so that would help.\u00a0\u00a0These dresses they had been given weren\u2019t exactly designed to entice men, but she could make the most of it.\u00a0\u00a0So could Mai Ling, even though her ways were different from Elise\u2019s ways.\u00a0\u00a0She was sweeter, quieter, more docile, and many men found that enticing.\u00a0\u00a0Unfortunately, it often drew the most brutal of the men back over and over, as they loved to dominate someone like her.\u00a0\u00a0Elise shuddered as she recalled the way Clint loved to intimidate, then dominate and possess, Mai Ling.\u00a0\u00a0But they couldn\u2019t let these men touch Marabelle, so they\u2019d have to get busy right away.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0For a brief second, a flash of anger flared up within Elise.\u00a0\u00a0It wasn\u2019t fair!\u00a0\u00a0She hadn\u2019t asked for her parents to die, to live with an abusive uncle, or to be sold to Clint.\u00a0\u00a0If she wanted to survive, what choice had she but to do as\u00a0\u00a0she had done?\u00a0\u00a0She had run away with her friends not only to get away from Clint and her old way of life, but also to prevent Marabelle from being dispatched by Clint, as she had all too often\u00a0\u00a0seen him do with other pregnant, diseased girls.\u00a0\u00a0She didn\u2019t want to do this.\u00a0\u00a0She hated men;\u00a0\u00a0hated being used by them;\u00a0\u00a0hated what they wanted her to do;\u00a0\u00a0and above all, hated them for despising her after they had used her.\u00a0\u00a0But that was her life.\u00a0\u00a0She, Mai Ling, and Marabelle had all been bred for it by cruel twists of fate.\u00a0\u00a0She long ago believed she had been born for that purpose:\u00a0\u00a0to be used.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Thrusting these thoughts behind her, she forced a smile on her face.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHello,\u201d she said, tossing her long, glossy red hair over her shoulder.\u00a0\u00a0Despite the hardships and privations of her flight, she still was beautiful, and knew how to use her charms to beguile a man.\u00a0\u00a0She liked the feel of her clean hair, and knew that it fanned out and glistened about her shoulders.\u00a0\u00a0She wished she\u2019d been able to curl it, and put on some paint, and was painfully conscious of her covered shoulders and bosom, but she knew her business.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d been doing it for most of her short life.\u00a0\u00a0She glanced at each of the three men in turn.\u00a0\u00a0Adam barely merited a glance.\u00a0\u00a0She already knew him, and he knew her.\u00a0\u00a0He wasn\u2019t fooled by her for a moment.\u00a0\u00a0She looked from under sultry lashes at the older man next to him.\u00a0\u00a0Handsome, he was!\u00a0\u00a0What a catch he might be!\u00a0\u00a0He looked angry, though.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d have to soothe him, and assure him things would be better, and she could make them better, or he might hurt her or one of the others.<\/p>\n When she saw the third one, she smiled triumphantly.\u00a0\u00a0Here was a young man who looked like a lamb ready to be led to the slaughter.\u00a0\u00a0She slowly approached him, tossing her head and swaying her hips.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell!\u00a0\u00a0Hello, stranger!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She stopped just before him, looking from the corner of her eye to see if Mai Ling was awake.\u00a0\u00a0She was, and was watching her.\u00a0\u00a0Why didn\u2019t she get up and help her?\u00a0\u00a0They needed to keep these men occupied, not only so Marabelle wouldn\u2019t be hurt, but so the men would\u00a0\u00a0protect them from Clint, at least until they could get away and run a little farther.\u00a0\u00a0Elise didn\u2019t know how they could do that with Marabelle\u2019s condition, or how much longer they could keep on running, but one thing, one day, at a time.<\/p>\n \u201cHey, handsome!\u00a0\u00a0I can show you a real good time!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She ran her hand down Joe\u2019s face, throat, and down his chest, lingering at the top of his unbuttoned shirt.\u00a0\u00a0Joe swallowed hard, and wanted to step back and protest, but felt mesmerized and paralyzed at this woman\u2019s brazen approach.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy don\u2019t you come with me, and one of the others can take Mai Ling ?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She nodded toward Mai Ling, who schooled her face into a careful mask to conceal her fear.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s lots of places where we can have some privacy up here, you know?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She smiled and laughed with the false happiness she was accustomed to project.\u00a0\u00a0Most men bought it;\u00a0\u00a0were enslaved by it.\u00a0\u00a0She had no doubt this young man would come, and the others should follow.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter we\u2019re finished,\u201d Elise continued, \u201cI can take another one.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She thought of suggesting that they could both come with her at the same time, but couldn\u2019t do it.\u00a0\u00a0She had been forced to do that once, before the Madam could stop it, and the memory was still a horror that she couldn\u2019t afford to dwell on.\u00a0\u00a0Not even for Marabelle could she endure that again.\u00a0\u00a0She beamed her best seductive\u00a0\u00a0smile, and unobtrusively started to unbutton Joe\u2019s shirt.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019ll be real pleased with me, I\u2019m sure,\u201d she whispered.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd I\u2019ll do a good job with two of you, twice over, if you want.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She glanced at the men next to him, positive that her words would be lulling them into her clutches, readying them for her spell.\u00a0\u00a0She should be able to get any promises she wanted from them, at least for the next half hour or so.\u00a0\u00a0Her smile almost faded and her confidence faltered when she saw the glowering glares of Adam and the older man with him.<\/p>\n What was wrong with these men?\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019d done everything she knew to do.\u00a0\u00a0It should have worked!\u00a0\u00a0It had worked, countless times, on their road to \u201cfreedom\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0Men had seen them as they fled.\u00a0\u00a0Some had recognized them from Silver City, and for a \u201cprice\u201d, had not turned them in to Clint, who had followed close behind them, or the authorities, who wouldn\u2019t take kindly to runaway prostitutes.\u00a0\u00a0A couple of self-righteous ones had finally promised not to reveal who and what they were in exchange for the girls\u2019 favors.\u00a0\u00a0They had to be convinced, but Elise was real good at that.\u00a0\u00a0If Mai Ling was too frightened or tired, Elise took on more than one.\u00a0\u00a0They had gained food, money, and freedom that way.\u00a0\u00a0Other times, they had traded guns, knives, or other items they had stolen from Clint or unsuspecting customers on the way for supplies.\u00a0\u00a0But Clint was always after them, asking about them, and finally they had fled into the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, in the opposite direction they intended to flee, to get away from him.\u00a0\u00a0But Clint had tracked them there, too, according to what he had just shouted as he left, and probably had killed most of the Indians who had helped them, the same way he had killed or destroyed anyone who ever tried to help her get away from him.<\/p>\n The young, curly-headed man with the big, expressive eyes yanked away from her as she took him by the hand to lead him away.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHey!\u00a0\u00a0Cut that out!\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m not going with you!\u201d<\/p>\n Elise schooled her face into her best hurt expression as he pulled away.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong, little handsome man?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She pouted.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAren\u2019t I pretty enough for you?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She looked sidelong at him, then away, as though she was hurt.<\/p>\n \u201cUh \u2013 no, it\u2019s not that!\u201d protested Joe.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s just \u2013 I \u2013 I don\u2019t -\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat my brother means,\u201d Adam interjected, \u201cis that he really isn\u2019t any more accustomed to frequenting the company of \u2018ladies\u2019 who sell their services than I am. That\u2019s not what we intend with you.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He pierced Joe with a quick glance.\u00a0\u00a0Joe dropped his eyes from his brother\u2019s penetrating gaze,\u00a0\u00a0and looked apprehensively at his father.<\/p>\n \u201cI suggest you go back with your friends, and stay there,\u201d said Ben.\u00a0\u00a0One look at his smoldering eyes and angry face told Elise she\u2019d best not argue with him.<\/p>\n As she dejectedly returned to Mai Ling\u2019s side, Ben said, \u201cAll right, Adam!\u00a0\u00a0Tell me what happened!\u201d<\/p>\n Adam briefly related to his father how Jared had discovered the three women in the loft, and he had discovered the mule below.\u00a0\u00a0He told of feeding them, sending Jenny to town for the doctor while he and Jared readied baths for the women, and the arrival of Clint.\u00a0\u00a0Ben\u2019s face hardened as soon as he heard the name.<\/p>\n \u201cThis man, Clint, threatened Jenny if she didn\u2019t tell him where these three women were,\u201d Adam continued.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe told her that he\u2019d hurt Karen if she didn\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He glanced down at the girl in his arms, who had buried her face in his shoulder as he spoke.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOf course, he didn\u2019t know I was there at the time.\u00a0\u00a0When I came out, he managed to get hold of Jenny, and pulled a gun.\u00a0\u00a0But -\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He hesitated, wondering if his father would believe what had really happened.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJenny got away,\u201d he finished lamely.<\/p>\n \u201cDoes Clint have light brown hair, and was he chasing a horse?\u201d asked Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd did he have scratches and gashes all over his face?\u201d<\/p>\n Adam nodded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDid you see him?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, not far away from here.\u00a0\u00a0He was after a horse that had stopped a little ways off the road.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPa asked him if he needed help,\u201d added Joe, \u201cbut he cursed a blue streak, and told us exactly where to go.\u00a0\u00a0His face was all covered with blood, and he looked mad enough to be in league with the devil.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think he was the devil,\u201d said a voice just below the loft.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut Adam and I ran him off.\u201d<\/p>\n The men looked at the ladder as Jared\u2019s head emerged.\u00a0\u00a0He was slowly and carefully climbing, and seemed out of breath.\u00a0\u00a0As he climbed into the loft, they saw he was carrying David.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJared!\u201d exclaimed Joe.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He ran to take the child from the boy.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you ask for help?\u00a0\u00a0You could have dropped him, or fallen!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI wouldn\u2019t drop David!\u201d Jared exclaimed indignantly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd I don\u2019t need help, thanks!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He walked to the rest of the men and looked them over, then hesitantly looked at the female visitors.\u00a0\u00a0All were awake and watching him.\u00a0\u00a0His eyes dropped and his face turned red.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy did you come up here?\u201d asked Adam.<\/p>\n \u201cI got tired of staying down there with a baby,\u201d said Jared.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAunt Jenny can\u2019t take care of him right now, so I brought him up here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI heard you say that you and I ran Clint off,\u201d said Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAren\u2019t you forgetting someone?\u00a0\u00a0Or should I say, something?\u201d<\/p>\n Jared looked at him with a puzzled expression.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOh, you mean Comet,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe doesn\u2019t count, does he?\u00a0\u00a0I mean, we had the guns.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0His chest swelled and his face glowed as he smugly claimed his prowess in protecting the household.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd Comet had the claws and the element of surprise,\u201d said Adam.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you talking about?\u201d demanded Ben.<\/p>\n \u201cJenny\u2019s cat, Comet, startled Clint\u2019s horse, and it ran off,\u201d replied Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe also attacked Clint when he grabbed Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0Comet scratched his face up.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cComet?\u201d exclaimed Joe.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat cat never once batted an eye around me!\u00a0\u00a0The only thing he ever did to me was rub on me and trip me up!\u00a0\u00a0He wouldn\u2019t hurt anyone!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe hurt Clint,\u201d assured Adam.<\/p>\n \u201cHe didn\u2019t like that man,\u201d said Karen.\u00a0\u00a0She struggled in Adam\u2019s arms, and he put her down.\u00a0\u00a0She went to Little Joe and pulled at David\u2019s blanket, indicating that she wanted to see the baby.\u00a0\u00a0Joe stooped down, and she stroked her hand over David\u2019s brown curls and kissed him on the cheek.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere\u2019s Aunt Jenny?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s still down below, with the doctor,\u201d replied Ben.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Suddenly, Marabelle, who had been quietly watching them for a few moments, cried out and thrashed about.\u00a0\u00a0Elise ran to her side, and looked threateningly at Ben when he approached.\u00a0\u00a0Ben looked down in horror as he fully realized the seriousness of the young prostitute\u2019s condition.\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel rushed up the ladder to the loft, and ordered them to leave.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cEverybody down the ladder, NOW!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Elise hovered, knowing that her friend needed the doctor\u2019s attention, but reluctant to leave her.\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel glared at her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou, too!\u00a0\u00a0Both of you!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI can help you, Doc,\u201d offered Elise, but Gabriel rebuffed her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf I need help, I\u2019ll shout,\u201d he responded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNow, go!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Elise and Mai Ling followed the others down the ladder.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Karen huddled next to her aunt, frightened by Marabelle\u2019s\u00a0\u00a0lonely, pain-filled cries.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny heard the girl, and felt she should be in the loft, assisting the doctor if she could, but knew she was too dizzy and exhausted to help him.\u00a0\u00a0She asked if someone could take the children to the house, but Ben said they had to stay together.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThis man, Clint,\u201d Ben said, \u201clooked and sounded familiar to me, even with his injuries.\u00a0\u00a0If he is who I think he is, he owns a parlor house in Silver City.\u00a0\u00a0He is also involved in politics there, and is in the pockets of the mayor and all the other governing officials.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019s a hard and ruthless man, very cruel;\u00a0\u00a0and will stop at nothing to get what he wants.\u00a0\u00a0If he is after these three women, he\u2019ll see to it that he gets them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe can\u2019t let him get them!\u201d exclaimed Jenny.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ben looked at her, wishing he could get her away from there.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo, we can\u2019t.\u00a0\u00a0But he finds ways to get what he wants.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019ll be back \u2013 with others, you can be sure.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWith the condition he was in when he left, it\u2019ll be a while before he gets back here,\u201d said Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDo you know if he caught his horse?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYeah, he caught it,\u201d said Joe.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe was riding hell-bent-for-leather as we left him behind.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJoe!\u201d exclaimed Ben.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOh \u2013 er \u2013 sorry, Jenny,\u201d said Joe, his face turning red.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny pretended she hadn\u2019t heard.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHas he run up against the law before?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo,\u201d said Ben, \u201cnot to my knowledge.\u00a0\u00a0At least, he keeps his dirty dealings a secret from the law.\u00a0\u00a0Or he pays the law to turn the other way.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIsn\u2019t it illegal for him to be chasing these women?\u201d Jenny asked.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNot if they owe him money, like he said,\u201d Adam replied.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked at Elise, who sat outside the edge of the circle of people about her and Karen.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIs it true, that you owe him money?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise raked her scornful gaze over the girl.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYeah, I imagine it is.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She gave a small laugh.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe all owe Clint money.\u00a0\u00a0That never ends.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat do you owe him?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny asked.\u00a0\u00a0Adam pressed her hand, indicating, she knew, that she should be quiet and stay out of it, but she impatiently pulled her hand from his grasp.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise laughed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cEverything,\u201d she replied.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cEverything.\u00a0\u00a0Money for food, fancy clothes, housing, sheets, towels, baths\u2026.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She laughed again.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou name it, we owe it.\u00a0\u00a0We never get out of debt.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe looked at Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPa, does he have any legal claim on them?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ben nodded reluctantly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf they owe him money, and he can document it, yes, he has a claim on them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut if they can\u2019t pay him?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0asked Joe.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe can bring legal action against them, I suppose,\u201d Ben replied slowly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut most likely, he wants them, not legal action.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked at the two women.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHow long have you been \u2013 been with Clint?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling looked down, frightened and silent.\u00a0\u00a0Elise glared derisively at Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat does it matter to you?\u201d she spat in disgust.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked at the woman in concern.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMarabelle told me that she had a child when she was 16.\u00a0\u00a0Her parents threw her out.\u00a0\u00a0Is that what happened to you?\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf you tell us, we might be able to help you,\u201d offered Ben.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise whirled on him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy would you help us?\u00a0\u00a0What do you want from us?\u00a0\u00a0Why would you care?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She pulled back and looked at him suspiciously.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLook, Mister,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMarabelle, up there -\u201d she gestured toward the loft \u2013 \u201cshe was real beautiful once.\u00a0\u00a0Men stood in line for her, fought over her, said they loved her.\u00a0\u00a0Lots of them spent all their gold and silver on her.\u00a0\u00a0But where are they now?\u00a0\u00a0Do any of them care?\u00a0\u00a0Are they here?\u00a0\u00a0No.\u00a0\u00a0They just wanted her body, for one night, or one-half hour, whichever they paid for.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s all you care about.\u00a0\u00a0And then you go and marry a \u2018lady\u2019, like her-\u201d she pointed at Jenny \u2013 \u201cand don\u2019t care a whit about us.\u00a0\u00a0Oh, we\u2019re used to it!\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s what we\u2019re here for, for sure.\u00a0\u00a0But we never asked for it.\u00a0\u00a0I didn\u2019t.\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle didn\u2019t.\u00a0\u00a0And Mai Ling here, she didn\u2019t ask for it, either.\u00a0\u00a0But that\u2019s what we\u2019re stuck with.\u00a0\u00a0And we know you!\u00a0\u00a0We know you men!\u00a0\u00a0You only want what you can get from a woman, and then you leave her, settle down with a \u2018lady\u2019, and come back for a few treats on the side.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She laughed contemptuously.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd you have the nerve to say we\u2019re the bad ones!\u00a0\u00a0So don\u2019t offer me your \u2018help\u2019.\u00a0\u00a0We just stopped in here to get out of the storm.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019ll be moving on as soon as we can.\u00a0\u00a0You don\u2019t need to trouble yourselves about us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe watched her with troubled eyes as he listened to her.\u00a0\u00a0How differently she acted down here than she had in the loft!\u00a0\u00a0He thought back to his conversations and dalliances with women of questionable reputation. Not that there had been that many;\u00a0\u00a0after all, he didn\u2019t want his father hearing about anything of the sort.\u00a0\u00a0And he really wasn\u2019t too comfortable with women like that.\u00a0\u00a0He preferred to do the seeking after and pursuing himself.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0How many of those women who had flirted with him and tried to lure him upstairs secretly harbored the hate and animosity he was now witnessing?\u00a0\u00a0He had nearly gone with her up in the loft.\u00a0\u00a0If his father and brother hadn\u2019t been there, he would have had a hard time turning her down.\u00a0\u00a0She certainly was alluring, and knew how to please a man.\u00a0\u00a0He wondered how she could act so enticing, yet possess such venom and bitterness of spirit.\u00a0\u00a0What had happened to make her so desperate that she would run through the wilderness, filthy and hungry, to get away from a man who had apparently nearly enslaved her, yet then turn about and attempt to entice him into a corner of the barn?<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam watched her, too, with a guarded expression.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny could see that he was deeply troubled, but Elise, after one glance at him, dismissed him as a hard man;\u00a0\u00a0in other words, one who could not be easily persuaded.\u00a0\u00a0They were some of the hardest men to please in her business.\u00a0\u00a0If they came calling, it was hard to read what they wanted, and hard to deliver how they expected.\u00a0\u00a0Men like that were often the most dangerous type of customer.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The older man, the one the other two called \u201cPa\u201d, was glaring at her, but his expression was softening. He still didn\u2019t look much more pliable than Adam.\u00a0\u00a0She might be able to work her way around him, but he wouldn\u2019t be much easier, if any easier, than Adam.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam broke into her thoughts.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPa, you said this man, Clint, is from Silver City.\u00a0\u00a0I thought he looked familiar.\u00a0\u00a0I think I\u2019ve seen him, possibly, on one of my trips there.\u00a0\u00a0But not from any place of\u00a0\u00a0his \u2018business\u2019,\u201d he added hastily.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJust about town.\u00a0\u00a0It seems to me that he\u2019s an important man in that town.\u00a0\u00a0But I can\u2019t believe he is the same man whom I remember seeing there before.\u00a0\u00a0He seemed -\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Adam hesitated \u2013 \u201cmuch less dangerous.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam looked at Elise, then at Mai Ling.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI think I can see why.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Weak cries from the loft startled them.\u00a0\u00a0They suddenly realized no one had heard a sound from Marabelle for some time, and that these cries were those of an infant.\u00a0\u00a0Everyone rose and looked up.<\/p>\n Adam held Jenny\u2019s arm.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou should stay down here.\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny tried to pull her arm free.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI need to go up there!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She attempted to follow Karen, who was scuttling\u00a0\u00a0the bottom rungs of the ladder far ahead of Joe.<\/p>\n Adam held her fast.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou shouldn\u2019t be seeing this!\u00a0\u00a0Your father and mother would not approve of any of this!\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny looked at him, wondering what he meant.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAdam, Mother and Father would not turn these women away!\u00a0\u00a0They would do their best to help them!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know that,\u201d he softly replied.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut they wouldn\u2019t want you involved.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI am involved!\u201d she exclaimed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t try to coddle me!\u201d<\/p>\n Ben gently took hold of her other arm.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAdam is right.\u00a0\u00a0You need to rest, after what you\u2019ve been through.\u00a0\u00a0Joe and I will go up with him.\u00a0\u00a0You stay down here.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0When he saw Jenny about to protest, he added, \u201cYour father did ask me to stop by and keep an eye on you.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Realizing that further protest was useless, Jenny sat down.\u00a0\u00a0Adam sat next to her.<\/p>\n Ben was not even halfway up the ladder behind Joe before he heard Gabriel\u2019s sharp cry.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe climbed into the loft just in time to see the doctor stop Karen from touching a tiny bundle on a blanket near Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0Joe raced to them and grabbed the girl.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t touch it!\u201d hissed Gabriel.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGet her out of here!\u201d he said to Joe.\u00a0\u00a0Joe saw the baby, partially wrapped in a blanket, covered with sores and blisters.\u00a0\u00a0He stared in horror for a moment, then turned hastily away, and bumped into his father.<\/p>\n Ben looked at the sight before him.\u00a0\u00a0His dark eyes moved from the baby to Marabelle to Gabriel.\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel met his gaze, and his hard eyes and set mouth told Ben the hopelessness of the situation.<\/p>\n \u201cI need some water,\u201d said Gabriel.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd some needle and thread.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben put his hand on Joe\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSon, you and your brother get what Doc Gabriel needs.\u00a0\u00a0Leave Karen with her aunt.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0As Joe hurried to comply, Ben turned back to the doctor.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAre they alive?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe baby died right after birth.\u00a0\u00a0Too small, too early to survive.\u00a0\u00a0If she hadn\u2019t died from being too early, though, she\u2019d have been dead in a short while, anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHow about the girl?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s still alive.\u00a0\u00a0For a while.\u00a0\u00a0Be best if she\u2019d die soon.\u201d<\/p>\n Marabelle opened her eyes and whispered.\u00a0\u00a0Ben approached her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy baby,\u00a0\u00a0I want to see my baby.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMiss\u2026.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Ben didn\u2019t know how to break the news to her.<\/p>\n \u201cYour baby is dead,\u201d Doc Gabriel was gentle but forthright.<\/p>\n \u201cI know,\u201d whispered the girl.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI want to see it.\u201d<\/p>\n Reluctantly, Gabriel carefully picked up the tiny bundle, and moved it next to Marabelle\u2019s face.\u00a0\u00a0She turned her head, pulled the blanket aside, and examined her daughter.\u00a0\u00a0Ben realized she was counting the fingers and toes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe would have been perfect, if not for me,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0She carefully covered the baby, and let her hand rest on her child.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMister,\u201d she whispered, and looked at Ben.\u00a0\u00a0Ben stooped next to her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWill you have a preacher say something over her when she\u2019s buried?\u00a0\u00a0Please!\u201d<\/p>\n Ben nodded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI promise you, I\u2019ll have a preacher say a service over her.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBen!\u201d Gabriel whispered.\u00a0\u00a0The doctor led him several steps away.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBen, we have to get that child in the ground!\u00a0\u00a0You saw her!\u00a0\u00a0She didn\u2019t just die from being early, she\u2019s -\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know,\u201d Ben assured him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut the preacher can give a service even after the burial.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He turned and saw that Marabelle had overheard the conversation.<\/p>\n She closed her eyes wearily, then opened them, and struggled to speak.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI never had a chance to see my other babies.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She spoke slowly, as though every word was battle.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cFather took my other child from me before I could see it.\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t even know if it was a girl or a boy.\u00a0\u00a0He threw me out.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She gently moved the dead child onto her breast.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhen Clint took me in, I got pregnant there, too.\u00a0\u00a0He made a doctor get rid of the baby.\u00a0\u00a0I didn\u2019t want to, but he made me.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She hugged her daughter close to her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThis is the first child I\u2019ve been able to keep.\u00a0\u00a0I want to name her \u2018Grace.\u2019\u00a0\u00a0Mister,\u201d she looked back at Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI went to two churches, after my father threw me out, and they wouldn\u2019t help me.\u00a0\u00a0Promise me you\u2019ll get someone who is kind to say the words over her.\u00a0\u00a0Someone like you, or your family.\u00a0\u00a0If there is such a thing as a kind preacher.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She closed her eyes.<\/p>\n \u201cI promise you, it will be done,\u201d Ben assured her.<\/p>\n Gabriel moved next to her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI need to get her cleaned up and the baby ready for burial,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Ben turned to go, and saw Adam and Joe standing behind him, with a pan of water and a sewing basket they had found in the house.\u00a0\u00a0Ben hadn\u2019t even heard them lug the items into the loft.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Both men were frozen in place, looking in sad realization at the sight before them.\u00a0\u00a0Ben wondered how much they had overheard.\u00a0\u00a0He knew that none of them could ever look at the women who sold their services in the same light again.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n Jenny rested in the musty hay after Adam left with Joe to fetch water for the doctor.\u00a0\u00a0Specks of dust flew about in the sunlight shining through the window.\u00a0\u00a0She wished she could take the children back to the house, but Adam had insisted that she stay out here.\u00a0\u00a0He was afraid Clint would return, and that he would bring other men as cruel as himself.\u00a0\u00a0She had been relieved to see Ben and Joe arrive, but worried that if Clint didn\u2019t get these women, he would come back even later and take her, or worse, Karen.<\/p>\n Jenny realized that her mother and father\u00a0\u00a0weren\u2019t coming back for at least a week.\u00a0\u00a0She might be able to send a telegram to one of her father\u2019s business contacts, the only one whose name she recalled, in Carson City, but wasn\u2019t sure when her father would be there.\u00a0\u00a0Then it would take time for them to return home.\u00a0\u00a0If anything was to be done, it would have to be done by her and the Cartwrights.<\/p>\n Jared had wanted to help Adam and Joe fetch the items the doctor needed, but when they refused, he busied himself polishing a saddle and mending some of the tack, as his grandfather had shown him how to do.\u00a0\u00a0Karen stirred restlessly next to Jenny, kicking hay into her face and raising lots of dust.\u00a0\u00a0David fussed in the heat.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny picked him up, attempting to quiet him, and gave him something to drink.\u00a0\u00a0She patiently answered Karen\u2019s questions about Marabelle\u2019s baby as best as she could, but since Joe hadn\u2019t told her anything when he brought Karen to her,\u00a0\u00a0she wasn\u2019t sure what to say.\u00a0\u00a0From the child\u2019s questions, she gathered that the baby was sick, which didn\u2019t surprise Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0She hadn\u2019t heard the baby cry in several minutes, and feared the worst.<\/p>\n Jenny pulled at the cloth that Doc Gabriel had bound about her bruised neck.\u00a0\u00a0It was no longer either wet or cold, but dry, scratchy, and hot, and it came off as she scratched under it.\u00a0\u00a0She propped David up near her, and gave him a string of colored beads she found in her pocket to keep him occupied.\u00a0\u00a0She found a few cookies in the basket Adam had brought from the house, and gave one to Karen.\u00a0\u00a0Seeing Elise and Mai Ling sitting silently at the edge of the stall, she took two more to offer to them.\u00a0\u00a0They looked up at her in surprise.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWould you like a cookie?\u201d she finally asked.\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling turned her face down and whispered her thanks as she timidly took it.\u00a0\u00a0Elise stared at her, measuring her up and grudgingly decided she might be worthy of some respect. As she ate the cookie, she watched Jenny dig through the basket and bring out some tin cups, which she filled with water from a nearby canteen.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny set two cups near the women, and gave the other one to Karen.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat happened to your neck?\u201d asked Elise.<\/p>\n Jenny self-consciously put her hand to her throat.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOh \u2013 that man \u2013 Clint \u2013 he grabbed me.\u201d<\/p>\n Elise looked her up and down.\u00a0\u00a0She had a nice figure, long, glossy, and wavy brown hair that shone in the sunlight, and pretty brown eyes with a touch of green.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019d want you,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0She took a drink of water.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019d want her, too.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She indicated Karen.<\/p>\n Jenny looked at him in horror.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat could he possibly want with her?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat do you think?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Elise watched her as she took another bite.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cClint has a hankering for little girls.\u201d<\/p>\n She was serious.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny didn\u2019t believe anyone could do what Elise was saying, but she remembered Clint\u2019s cruel eyes and cold smile, and shuddered at the thought of her niece in his hands.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s only three,\u201d Jenny told her.<\/p>\n Elise gave a humorless laugh.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe likes them young.\u00a0\u00a0Real young.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She recalled her own time with Clint at age nine, and knew he had taken much younger girls unfortunate enough to be sold to him.<\/p>\n \u201cHas he been following you long?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEver since we left.\u201d \u201cAbout three months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny glanced at Mai Ling, and found the shy Chinese girl was watching her.\u00a0\u00a0As soon as she saw Jenny look at her, she dropped her eyes.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAre you all from Silver City?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat was our last place.\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny tried to imagine what their lives must have been like, running through the country about here, trying to survive, with Clint always ready to tighten the noose about their necks again.\u00a0\u00a0She hesitated, then decided to ask again, \u201cHave you been with Clint very long?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLong enough,\u201d Elise snapped.\u00a0\u00a0Her blue eyes flashed fire, and Jenny wisely changed the subject.<\/p>\n \u201cThe men who are here are my friends,\u201d she told them.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey live on a big ranch next to us, and they won\u2019t let anything happen to you.\u00a0\u00a0I won\u2019t, either.\u201d<\/p>\n Elise smiled at the unworldly promise.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy, Miss, that\u2019s very kind of you, but see, you don\u2019t know Clint.\u00a0\u00a0Once he decides on something, it goes his way.\u00a0\u00a0He wants us, and he\u2019ll see to it that he gets us.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019ll try to get you, too, eventually, and your fine friends may die for helping us.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m very sorry we stopped in to trouble you, but the storm, and Marabelle\u2019s condition, didn\u2019t leave us much choice.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m just sorry that you\u2019re in Clint\u2019s way now.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s a bad place to be.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She spoke in a straightforward and matter-of-fact voice, as though discussing the weather.<\/p>\n \u201cThings didn\u2019t exactly go his way this afternoon,\u201d said Jenny.<\/p>\n Elise looked at the bruises on her neck.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLooks like they didn\u2019t go your way, either.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf it\u2019s so hopeless, why did you run away?\u201d<\/p>\n Elise looked at the girl.\u00a0\u00a0She wasn\u2019t about to tell this lady about being locked in a room at age nine, a room to which two people had the key:\u00a0\u00a0the madam who brought her meals and switched the chamber pot, and the man who abused her.\u00a0\u00a0Nor was she about to share the details of what had happened to anyone who had attempted to help her before.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She knew this gently reared girl would never understand the abuse she endured from her uncle, either.\u00a0\u00a0A bitter smile crossed her face as she thought of what Jenny\u2019s reaction would be to their suicide pact.\u00a0\u00a0But that reminded her:\u00a0\u00a0She needed her knife back.\u00a0\u00a0Adam had it.\u00a0\u00a0They had traded the guns they\u2019d stolen from Clint and other people along the way for food and supplies.\u00a0\u00a0That knife was the only weapon they had left.\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle couldn\u2019t run anymore.\u00a0\u00a0Elise was tired of running.\u00a0\u00a0She knew Mai Ling was too frightened to keep running much longer.\u00a0\u00a0Clint had finally caught up to her once again.\u00a0\u00a0The thought of a quiet release at the sharp edge of a knife brought relief and contentment almost unknown to her.\u00a0\u00a0It was the only peace she was ever likely to find.<\/p>\n David dropped his beads, reached for them, and slid slowly onto his side, giving a cry of dismay.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny lifted his limp form from the hay, sat him on her lap, and attempted to brush the hay off of him, but it stuck to his sweaty skin.\u00a0\u00a0She stood, pulled him over her shoulder, and started to leave the stall, intending to go outside where they might be able to catch a breeze, however slight.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong with him?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Elise watched him with a puzzled and startled expression. \u201cWhy did he fall over like that?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe can\u2019t move much on his own,\u201d explained Jenny, as she shifted his floppy head on her shoulder.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe have to do most things for him, and put his toys within his reach.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019s not strong at all.\u201d<\/p>\n Mai Ling watched the boy\u2019s dangling arms and legs, and said softly, \u201cIn China, children like that are left to die.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She cowered in shame as soon as she had spoken.\u00a0\u00a0Her words sounded judgmental, as though this child should not be permitted to live.\u00a0\u00a0But what she meant to express was admiration for this woman who would care for a child such as this.\u00a0\u00a0Unlike Elise, she liked this lady.\u00a0\u00a0Though she was still afraid of the men, she liked Jenny, and wished that such a lady would consider being friends with her.<\/p>\n Jenny looked at her in surprise, both at the girl speaking to her and at what she said.\u00a0\u00a0She had heard that the Chinese did not value life as other people did, but had no idea if that was true.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell, someone left him here, in America,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe was abandoned at an orphanage.\u00a0\u00a0A family took him from there, but when they found out he was weak like this, they didn\u2019t want him, and left him with us.\u00a0\u00a0So, some people here don\u2019t want children like this, either.\u201d<\/p>\n Elise looked incredulously at the weak child in Jenny\u2019s arms.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf he\u2019s not yours, why do you keep him?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u201cBecause we love him,\u201d came the gentle reply.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny wondered what this hardened young girl knew of love, and what her life had been like before she was unfortunate enough to meet the horrible man Jenny had encountered earlier.<\/p>\n Mai Ling looked at her in gratitude for not taking her words amiss.\u00a0\u00a0She wished that they would not bring harm to this lady, but she feared that they would.\u00a0\u00a0The men here had not hurt or used them \u2013 not yet, anyway \u2013 and Mai Ling knew that Jenny could have thrown them out after Clint\u2019s visit, or even during it.\u00a0\u00a0Neither she nor the men had done so.\u00a0\u00a0She thought of Clint so close, and shuddered, knowing that even without Marabelle, they could not outrun him now.\u00a0\u00a0She trembled and paled at what she knew would happen when Clint returned.<\/p>\n Adam entered the stall with Joe.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere are you going?\u201d he asked Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0He had heard most of the conversation, but had waited around the corner, unwilling to interrupt, as he knew that his presence would make the women uneasy.<\/p>\n \u201cOutside to try to cool him off.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny indicated the baby in her arms.<\/p>\n \u201cYou need to stay close to the barn door,\u201d Adam said brusquely.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe may have some unpleasant company sooner or later.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked at Elise and Mai Ling, wondering how or if to tell them about Marabelle\u2019s baby.<\/p>\n \u201cThe doctor said you may go up and see your friend.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Ben spoke from behind Adam.\u00a0\u00a0As the women silently ascended the ladder, Ben said, \u201cYou two may as well start digging the grave.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGuess we should just dig two and be done with it now,\u201d said Joe glumly.\u00a0\u00a0Adam grabbed a couple of shovels by the tools, and led his brother behind the barn.<\/p>\n Jenny looked at Ben.\u00a0\u00a0Tears brightened her eyes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI knew this would happen,\u201d she said, \u201cbut it\u2019s still no easier.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben put his hand on her shoulder.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDeath never is easy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMr. Cartwright, why are some people\u2019s lives so hard, and others have it so easy?\u00a0\u00a0She didn\u2019t ask for all of this!\u00a0\u00a0And I don\u2019t believe the other two did, either.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d Ben gently replied, looking at her with a furrowed brow and troubled eyes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAll we can do is make it easier for them.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe angrily hurled aside one shovelful of dry, drought-hardened dirt after another.\u00a0\u00a0Adam worked more methodically, thinking about the shape of the grave and the size of body each one would hold.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJoe, it needs to be a little wider,\u201d Adam said as he looked at the hole Joe was digging.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cEven for the baby, it\u2019s going to need to be bigger.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe rammed his shovel into the hard, dry earth, and shouted, \u201cHow can you think about something like that right now?!\u00a0\u00a0There\u2019s a baby dead up there, through no fault of its own!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI know, but we still – \u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIs that all you care about?\u00a0\u00a0How big the graves should be?\u00a0\u00a0Who they\u2019re each for?\u00a0\u00a0Which one we\u2019re digging?\u00a0\u00a0Don\u2019t you care about anything else?\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell, I don\u2019t see any sign of it!\u00a0\u00a0You just looked at those women and walked away!\u00a0\u00a0You hate them, don\u2019t you?\u00a0\u00a0Why, Adam?\u00a0\u00a0Why?\u00a0\u00a0Could it be you had something to do with them once?\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou just said a mouthful,\u00a0little\u00a0<\/em>brother,\u201d said Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMaybe even bit off more than you can chew.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYeah?\u201d challenged Joe.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI think I just hit the nail on the head!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell, maybe you need someone to hit you on the head to knock some sense into you!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe picked up his shovel and started for him.\u00a0\u00a0When he tried to swing it, Adam grabbed it, wrested it away from him, and tossed it away.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat is the matter with you?\u201d he demanded.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe leaped on him without warning, and knocked Adam on his back.\u00a0\u00a0He tried to pummel him, but Adam shoved him away, got to his feet, and dodged him as he rushed back.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJoe, stop it!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Adam exclaimed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe rose to his feet and watched his older brother.\u00a0\u00a0Suddenly, he dived for his legs, knocking him down again.\u00a0\u00a0He hit him once in the stomach, then hesitated.\u00a0\u00a0Adam clutched his abdomen, and tried to breathe, but couldn\u2019t.\u00a0\u00a0Suddenly, Joe was lifted off of him, and Adam heard Hoss say,\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat the blazes do you two think you\u2019re doin\u2019 out here?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet me go!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe struggled furiously in Hoss\u2019s grasp.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss lifted him off the ground and held him at arm\u2019s length, so his legs kicked and arms punched the air.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLittle Joe!\u00a0\u00a0Stop it!\u00a0\u00a0Unless you want me to knock some sense into you and the air outta ya!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0When Joe responded with more kicks and punches to the empty air about him, Hoss tossed him onto the pile of dirt by the grave Adam had been digging.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam stepped quickly near Hoss, bracing himself for Joe\u2019s attack.\u00a0\u00a0But it never came.\u00a0\u00a0Joe lay still, looking at the brassy, cloudless sky above him, breathing hard.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss and Adam looked at each other.\u00a0\u00a0Finally, Hoss approached his little brother.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou finished with all this nonsense, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe didn\u2019t answer.\u00a0\u00a0He sat up, dangling his legs into the grave before him, and bowed his head in his hands.\u00a0\u00a0Adam moved to his side.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJoe.\u00a0\u00a0Tell me what\u2019s wrong!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe moved his hands to his side, and stared into the hole.\u00a0\u00a0After what seemed like several minutes, he said, \u201cAdam, how many women do you suppose there are in Virginia City, in the saloons and girls\u2019 boarding houses, like that?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam was reluctant to answer.\u00a0\u00a0Finally, he said, \u201cI don\u2019t know, Little Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe came to me!\u201d Joe exclaimed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe wanted me!\u00a0\u00a0I would\u2019ve had a hard time not going with her, if you and Pa hadn\u2019t been there!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked at his brother, the torment evident in his eyes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd then, she hated me!\u00a0\u00a0She hated both of us!\u00a0\u00a0She hated her life!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam looked at him, wondering what to say.\u00a0\u00a0He didn\u2019t want to tell his littlest brother that Elise had come to him because he appeared to be the most gullible of the three of them.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDo you – \u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe was hesitant \u2013 \u201cdo you think that they all \u2013 women like that – feel that way?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam wondered.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u00a0\u00a0Maybe.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s likely, at least.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHow did they end up like this?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe wiped a tear from his eye.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d replied Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe \u2013 Marabelle –\u00a0\u00a0had a baby a few years ago – \u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYes, she had a baby!\u201d exploded Joe.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHow many women, unmarried women, have babies?\u00a0\u00a0Most of them get married before the baby arrives!\u00a0\u00a0And even if they don\u2019t, do they end up like this?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Dying, with a dead child?\u00a0\u00a0Running for their lives, and freedom?\u00a0\u00a0Hating everyone about them?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t know, Joe – \u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe stood, retrieved his shovel from the ground where Adam had thrown it, and began digging a hole that Adam thought might reach to China.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou wanna tell me what\u2019s goin\u2019 on, Adam?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam looked at Hoss, and wondered how to explain.\u00a0\u00a0He saw Jared, standing back, watching and waiting for the fight to be over, and wondering if he should now come back.\u00a0\u00a0Adam beckoned to him.\u00a0\u00a0When the boy approached him, Adam said, \u201cHelp Joe with the digging.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m going to talk to Hoss.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Adam put his arm about his brother, led him aside, and explained as well as he could what had happened.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Hoss\u2019s brow furrowed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhen I rode up here, I went to the house.\u00a0\u00a0No one was there, so I went to the barn.\u00a0\u00a0I heard someone up in the loft, but then I heard you \u2018n Little Joe in a row, so I ran out back.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He glanced\u00a0\u00a0back at his brother and Jared.\u00a0\u00a0He could tell by the vicious jabs of the shovel that Joe was still angry.\u00a0\u00a0He\u00a0\u00a0knew that what Joe and Adam had seen in the barn, and what had transpired in the yard with Clint earlier, was enough to make any decent person angry, but he wondered what was really bothering his brother.\u00a0\u00a0He suspected that it was more than his strong sense of justice that was disturbed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAdam,\u201d Hoss continued, \u201cwhen do you think this Clint fellow will come back?\u00a0\u00a0You know he will come back \u2013 with lots of people or in secret.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDepends on how long it takes him to get back to town, or wherever he\u2019s going, and make his plans,\u201d replied Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI wish I had more of an idea what he was going to do.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAt any rate, Jenny and the young\u2019uns had better get inside,\u201d replied Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd we all need to stay in one place.\u00a0\u00a0Either the house, or the barn.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam nodded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThe barn is the best for now.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m gonna go find Pa.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Hoss left Adam and took determined strides toward the back door of the barn.\u00a0\u00a0Adam went to tell Jenny to get in the barn with the children.<\/p>\n Hoss saw his father climbing down the ladder, with a bundle of cloth in his arms.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPa!\u201d he called.<\/p>\n Ben turned.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHoss!\u201d he exclaimed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGood to see you!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPete told me what was goin\u2019 on after you sent him home,\u201d said Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI came here as soon as I could.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe found Adam,\u201d Ben said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know,\u201d replied Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI just talked to him and Little Joe, outside.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked at the small stitched-up bundle in his father\u2019s arms.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIs that the baby Adam was telling me about?<\/p>\n Ben nodded solemnly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n A noise above them made them all look upward.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss quickly averted his gaze as he saw two women coming down the ladder with their dresses flapping about as they descended.\u00a0\u00a0As they reached the floor of the barn, Hoss glanced guardedly at them.\u00a0\u00a0He saw two attractive women, conservatively dressed, who looked him over and huddled back, as though afraid of him.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss removed his hat and bowed his head courteously.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMa\u2019am,\u201d he said,\u00a0\u00a0nodding to each of them.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI beg your pardon.\u00a0\u00a0I didn\u2019t mean to be \u2013 well, lookin\u2019 at you as you came down that ladder.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m sorry.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He watched them shyly.<\/p>\n Elise and Mai Ling looked at this new man.\u00a0\u00a0Was he ever big!\u00a0\u00a0They didn\u2019t know that they\u2019d ever seen such a big man.\u00a0\u00a0He certainly had good manners \u2013 at least outwardly.\u00a0\u00a0No telling how he\u2019d act if they were alone, which they might be, soon enough.\u00a0\u00a0Elise watched him from a distance, while Mai Ling tried to hide behind her and ducked her head.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss could tell that they were afraid to go past him, and he said, \u201cI don\u2019t intend to hurt you none.\u00a0\u00a0My brother outside there, he\u2019s just been telling me about you all.\u00a0\u00a0We don\u2019t intend to let no one hurt you.\u201d<\/p>\n The women still hung back, unwilling to go near him.\u00a0\u00a0Ben cleared his throat and stepped between them.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHoss, why don\u2019t you take this baby outside – \u201d\u00a0\u00a0He was interrupted as Jenny entered the barn, with David in her arms and Karen clinging to her skirts.\u00a0\u00a0Adam followed closely behind them.<\/p>\n Mai Ling felt dizzy, and sank down on the floor.\u00a0\u00a0She had had little to eat all day, except for some stew and bread early that morning, and a cookie that afternoon.\u00a0\u00a0And now there was this big man in the barn; this huge man, who reminded her of a gent who used to come to Clint\u2019s parlor house to see her.\u00a0\u00a0She hated him.\u00a0\u00a0He hurt her, and she was afraid of him.\u00a0\u00a0She hadn\u2019t dared tell Clint about it, as she was afraid of him, too.\u00a0\u00a0But she had told the Madam about him.<\/p>\n The Madam had said, \u201cNever mind, Mai Ling.\u00a0\u00a0You know what he wants:\u00a0\u00a0Give it to him.\u00a0\u00a0Act grateful.\u00a0\u00a0Act pleased.\u00a0\u00a0Act afraid.\u00a0\u00a0Act however he wants you to act.\u00a0\u00a0The men pay for you, and you give them what they want, no matter what.\u00a0\u00a0He always leaves you with a smile, so you must be doing something right.\u00a0\u00a0Just think about something else, honey, while he\u2019s there.\u00a0\u00a0That may help.\u00a0\u00a0Just so long as he doesn\u2019t know,\u201d she quickly added.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSomeone like him could get dangerous if he suspects you\u2019re doing that.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Seeing the terrified look on the celestial\u2019s face, she said, \u201cDon\u2019t worry.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019s likely to be movin\u2019 on soon.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019s a drifter.\u00a0\u00a0He likes you, and likes what you give him, but he likely won\u2019t be here long.\u00a0\u00a0Most of these men aren\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Seeing she was still reluctant, the Madam had added, \u201cRemember, we\u2019re here to serve these men.\u00a0\u00a0We all have our problems, honey, and our own sad stories about our past, and how we came to be here.\u00a0\u00a0Some of them are worse than yours.\u00a0\u00a0You\u2019ve had a bad break.\u00a0\u00a0You make the best of it.\u00a0\u00a0If you don\u2019t, I\u2019ll send Clint up to help you sort it out.\u201d<\/p>\n With that threat hanging over her head, Mai Ling had entertained her customer countless times, attempting to down as much whiskey as possible and still remain coherent before he came to see her.\u00a0\u00a0Every time he left, she cried, then cleaned herself up, repaired her damaged paint, and learned to greet the next customer with a smile.\u00a0\u00a0She became so good at it that the Madam of the house made certain that she didn\u2019t drink too much, and that there were no knives or guns within her reach.\u00a0\u00a0She knew her girls.\u00a0\u00a0After all, she had once entertained such men herself.<\/p>\n Jenny saw the women huddled near Ben, and noted the puzzled, strained expression on Hoss\u2019s face.\u00a0\u00a0She stepped forward.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHoss, why don\u2019t you take the ba \u2013go outside with Joe and Adam?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She took the stitched up sack from Ben with her free hand, and attempted to give it to Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0But Karen grabbed the bundle and pulled on it, crying and moaning as she did so.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny pulled it away from her, and gave it to Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0Karen grabbed hold of his legs, and refused to let go.<\/p>\n Finally, Adam stepped forward.\u00a0\u00a0He took the bundle from Hoss, and quickly left for the yard.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny futilely attempted to loosen her niece\u2019s grip on Hoss\u2019s legs.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss finally picked Karen up and held her close.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s all right, honey, it\u2019s ok,\u201d he assured her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m sorry, darling.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s all right.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He stroked her hair as he continued calming and assuring her, and when she finally stopped sobbing, carried the child to the same stall she had been in earlier.<\/p>\n As he set her down, she looked about.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere\u2019s the baby?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n Before Hoss could respond, Jenny replied, \u201cThe baby\u2019s not here anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut where is she?\u201d asked Karen.<\/p>\n Jenny wondered how Karen knew that the baby was a girl.\u00a0\u00a0She must have heard some of the talk since the child had been born.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe was very sick, and died, Karen.\u00a0\u00a0That happens sometimes.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She fumbled for comforting words.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019ll get to say goodbye at the funeral, later.\u201d<\/p>\n Karen looked upset, but said no more.\u00a0\u00a0She put her thumb in her mouth and sucked hard on it, trying to find comfort.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny lay David in the hay, and tried to pick Karen up, but David screamed, and Karen wriggled away from her.\u00a0\u00a0Finally, Jenny left them both alone.\u00a0\u00a0Karen went to David and put a corner of her favorite blanket over him.\u00a0\u00a0She held another corner of the blanket in her hand, and sucked her thumb hard.\u00a0\u00a0David was suddenly quiet as he watched her, and his eyes began to droop.\u00a0\u00a0He went to sleep, and Karen sank into slumber shortly after.<\/p>\n Elise and Mai Ling watched as Hoss comforted Karen.\u00a0\u00a0After the children were asleep, they continued to stare at him.\u00a0\u00a0He looked at them, and they dropped their eyes.\u00a0\u00a0When Elise dared to look back at him, he was directly in front of her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMa\u2019am,\u201d he said, \u201cwhy don\u2019t you both come here and rest near Miss Jenny and the young\u2019uns?\u00a0\u00a0You both most be tuckered out from your long trip.\u201d<\/p>\n Elise couldn\u2019t believe the gentleness of his touch as he took her by the arm and led her into the stall.\u00a0\u00a0This was one man she wouldn\u2019t mind entertaining, if he was as gentle in other ways as he was right now.\u00a0\u00a0But Hoss spread a blanket out for her, helped her down upon it, and then went back to Mai Ling.\u00a0\u00a0She shrank in fear from him as he stooped near her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI won\u2019t hurt you, Ma\u2019am,\u201d he quietly assured her, as he lifted her and laid her next to Elise.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou all just go to sleep, y\u2019hear?\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s been a rough day for you, from what I\u2019ve heard.\u00a0\u00a0No one here is gonna let anything happen to you.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0With one final look at them, he went back to his father.<\/p>\n Elise and Mai Ling looked at one another.\u00a0\u00a0They watched and waited for a man, or men, to return, but no one did.\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling heard soft, regular breathing next to her, and saw her friend had fallen asleep.\u00a0\u00a0She suddenly realized how exhausted she was, and thought perhaps, for now, she could sleep without fear.\u00a0\u00a0Maybe these people really wouldn\u2019t allow anything else to happen to her.\u00a0\u00a0Perhaps they could get away from Clint after all.\u00a0\u00a0She could at least sleep for a little while\u2026.a few minutes\u2026.\u00a0\u00a0Her eyes closed, and she sank into an exhausted slumber.<\/p>\n Adam approached his brother.\u00a0\u00a0Joe was helping Jared finish the second, bigger grave now.\u00a0\u00a0Adam desperately hoped that the second grave would not be necessary, but after what he had witnessed in the loft, he knew it would be.\u00a0\u00a0Cradling his burden in one arm, he laid a hand on Jared\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGo back into the barn,\u201d he told the boy. \u201cThere\u2019s a pie in the basket I brought in.\u00a0\u00a0You might want to help yourself, and pass it around.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jared looked from Adam to the bundle he carried, then to Little Joe.\u00a0\u00a0He started to say something, but thought better of it.\u00a0\u00a0He leaned his shovel against a nearby tree and went back to the barn.<\/p>\n Little Joe had stopped working, and watched his brother lay the baby in the smaller grave.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPa promised he\u2019d get a preacher to say something over her.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019ll have to be later,\u201d said Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s no preacher here right now, and we need to get her into the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe can at least say something ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam looked at his brother.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAll right, Joe.\u00a0\u00a0Do you want to, or shall I?\u201d<\/p>\n Joe glared at Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI can do it, if you\u2019re afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam ignored the insult, and bowed his head, waiting.<\/p>\n Joe cleared his throat, and said in a small voice, \u201cDear Lord, accept this little soul into heaven, and let her rest in peace with you forever.\u00a0\u00a0And Lord,\u201d Joe\u2019s voice broke at this point, and his breath trembled as he drew a deep gulp into his lungs, \u201cprepare her mother to meet you.\u00a0\u00a0Let her find her peace, at last.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe\u2019s head remained bowed as tears spilled down his cheeks.\u00a0\u00a0He took a deep breath, turned his back to his brother, and impatiently wiped his face.<\/p>\n Adam began shoveling dirt into the grave, hoping his brother would have time to compose himself.\u00a0\u00a0After a moment, Joe helped him.\u00a0\u00a0Together they tamped the hump of loose dirt down, and put their shovels against the tree.\u00a0\u00a0Adam pulled his brother down into the shade next to him, and took a swig from a canteen resting on the ground near him before offering it to his brother.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cTime we rested a while,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0After a moment\u2019s silence, he asked, \u201cYou want to tell me what else is bothering you?\u201d<\/p>\n After a long silence, Joe began to speak in such a quiet voice that Adam could hardly hear him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAbout a year ago, I met this girl.\u00a0\u00a0I was on my way home, after running some errands in town for Pa, and thought I\u2019d stop off at the Silver Dollar for a drink or two before I left town.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He swallowed, looked at his brother, then continued.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere was this new girl there.\u00a0\u00a0Usually, the girls in those places are all over you, but not her.\u00a0\u00a0She hung back;\u00a0\u00a0seemed a little shy.\u00a0\u00a0I left the table where I was with my friends, and went over to her.\u00a0\u00a0She was – \u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe searched for the right word \u2013 \u201csweet.\u00a0\u00a0I know that doesn\u2019t seem right, for a girl in a place like that, but she was.\u00a0\u00a0I talked with her for a while, and found out, when I asked, that her parents and brother had died.\u00a0\u00a0She didn\u2019t have anyplace to go, and had ended up there.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe hung his head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt didn\u2019t seem fair to me, that she didn\u2019t have any more of a chance than that.\u00a0\u00a0I thought she deserved better, and I told her so.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He paused for a long time.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, I went back several times, to see her.\u00a0\u00a0And one time, she was real upset.\u00a0\u00a0She tried to hide it from me, but I could tell.\u00a0\u00a0I asked her what was wrong, but she wouldn\u2019t tell me.\u00a0\u00a0Finally, I insisted she tell me.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe looked at the dusty road beyond the house, and the wilted leaves on the trees beyond it.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSuddenly, this guy appeared from out of nowhere.\u00a0\u00a0He said he wouldn\u2019t have men like me hassling his girls.\u00a0\u00a0He grabbed her by the arm and dragged her upstairs.\u00a0\u00a0I tried to stop him, but several of the guys in the saloon pulled me away, saying he owned the place and all the girls in it.\u00a0\u00a0There was no way to stop him, they told me.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe impatiently wiped another tear away.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI finally had to give up and leave, but I went back.\u00a0\u00a0First, they wouldn\u2019t let me in to see her.\u00a0\u00a0I got thrown out that day.\u00a0\u00a0Then, later – \u201d\u00a0\u00a0He squeezed his eyes closed and sobbed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLater,\u201d he continued when he could speak, \u201cthey said she had left.\u00a0\u00a0I finally bribed one of the other girls with a lot of money.\u00a0\u00a0She told me this girl had been pregnant, and that man had made her get rid of the baby, and had taken her away.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Another tear escaped.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe didn\u2019t deserve that Adam;\u00a0\u00a0she didn\u2019t deserve that!\u00a0\u00a0She was a sweet girl, who never had a chance!\u201d<\/p>\n Adam glanced about him, glad to see that Jenny and the children were out of sight and couldn\u2019t hear the conversation.\u00a0\u00a0He tightened his arm about Joe, attempting to comfort him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat was her name?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe lifted his head from his hands.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSylvia.\u00a0\u00a0Her name was Sylvia.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDid you ever find out what happened to her?\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam put his hand firmly on his brother\u2019s shoulder, careful not to baby him, but enough to offer him comfort.\u00a0\u00a0He stared at the mounded hump of dirt before him, the mute testimony of a futile life, and wished he\u2019d realized what his brother had been going through those times he\u2019d insisted he accompany their pa on trips over the mountains.\u00a0\u00a0He would have been more understanding of Joe\u2019s desire to go, and might have been able to help him, had he known.\u00a0\u00a0Instead, he\u2019d been resentful of being the one stuck on the ranch, the responsible one who could help negotiate the timber contracts, the reliable one who could check out the mining operations, or the oldest son who had to take charge of the ranch simply because he was the oldest.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWere you – \u201d\u00a0\u00a0Adam hesitated.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWere you the \u2013 the father?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe looked up sharply.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo!\u201d he exclaimed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo!\u00a0\u00a0Never!\u00a0\u00a0I couldn\u2019t have done that to her, Adam!\u00a0\u00a0Not after I found out about what had happened to put her there!\u00a0\u00a0But I still would have helped her!\u00a0\u00a0I wanted to help her!\u00a0\u00a0But I couldn\u2019t find her, Adam, I couldn\u2019t find her anywhere!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam nodded.\u00a0\u00a0He understood.\u00a0\u00a0He understood all too well.\u00a0\u00a0He looked at the second gaping grave, and wondered how long they had to wait before it was filled.\u00a0\u00a0He wished he could take his brother away from what he knew had to come, but realized that they all had to stay together.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019ve done all we can out here,\u201d he finally said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019d best go back in the barn.\u00a0\u00a0You know that fellow, Clint, won\u2019t be long now in coming back.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe nodded.\u00a0\u00a0He wiped his face, both men gathered their shovels, and returned to the barn.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n Hoss scoured his plate clean of all the crumbs.\u00a0\u00a0He loved Miss Jenny\u2019s blackberry pie, and her mother\u2019s pies as well.\u00a0\u00a0They were both such good cooks that he couldn\u2019t tell one\u2019s cooking from another.\u00a0\u00a0He thrust down a pang of guilty conscience as he thought of what Hop Sing might think.\u00a0\u00a0He wouldn\u2019t dare say anything about how good their cooking was at home.\u00a0\u00a0But he wasn\u2019t at the Ponderosa.\u00a0\u00a0He looked anxiously at Jared, who had given him the piece of pie.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHey, Jared, is there any more of that pie there left?\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s one good piece of home cookin\u2019 if I ever tasted it.\u201d<\/p>\n Jared shook his head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNope.\u00a0\u00a0Sorry, Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0You got the last piece.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDadburn it!\u00a0\u00a0How can that be?\u00a0\u00a0You have a piece, so do I, and who else?\u00a0\u00a0Ain\u2019t no one else here to have one!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAw, Hoss, c\u2019mon!\u201d exclaimed Jared.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI gave a piece to Aunt Jenny, and saved some for these women who are here.\u00a0\u00a0I had to save pieces for Adam and Joe, or they\u2019d be sore.\u00a0\u00a0And your pa and the doctor, too.\u00a0\u00a0So the pieces had to be small.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, some of them are asleep!\u201d exclaimed Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOr busy!\u00a0\u00a0They can eat something else later, can\u2019t they?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Hoss licked his plate.<\/p>\n \u201cNo!\u201d exclaimed Jared.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey\u2019ll all be hungry.\u00a0\u00a0We need to save them something!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSave us what?\u201d came a voice from the doorway.<\/p>\n \u201cA piece of blackberry pie,\u201d replied Jared, relieved to see someone who was actually in time to retrieve some food before Hoss claimed it.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou told me to pass it around, and I\u2019ve had a dickens of a time saving a piece for everyone!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t imagine why,\u201d replied Adam dryly.<\/p>\n After witnessing the near battle that took place over distribution of the remaining slivers of pie, Jenny announced she was going back to the house for more food.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s a good idea,\u201d said Hoss enthusiastically.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll go with you, and help you carry it out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh, no you don\u2019t!\u201d protested Joe and Adam together.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf you go with her, there won\u2019t be anything left to carry out!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0After more discussion, it was agreed that Joe would go with Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss insisted that neither of them eat anything while in the house.\u00a0\u00a0They returned with apples, cheese, some loaves of bread, and fruit preserves, as well as some more water.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny shooed the men away, and distributed the food.<\/p>\n Mai Ling stirred, and Hoss hastened to her side.\u00a0\u00a0He poured her a cup of water, and offered it to her as she sat up.\u00a0\u00a0Seeing the big man hovering over her, she shrank away.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s all right, Ma\u2019am,\u201d Hoss assured her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAre you thirsty?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0With trembling hands she accepted the cup.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe got some food right here beside you, Ma\u2019am,\u201d Hoss continued, pulling back the napkin from the plate next to her to show her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cEat up, when you feel like it.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Hesitantly, Mai Ling lifted the plate onto her lap.\u00a0\u00a0She hungrily ate the cheese, bread, and apple, and shyly refused the preserves when Jenny and Hoss offered it to her for her bread.<\/p>\n Hoss watched her as she ate.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny noticed that the Chinese girl trembled under his gaze, and started to invent a reason for Hoss to go outside.\u00a0\u00a0But before she could speak, Hoss said, \u201cMa\u2019am my name is Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss Cartwright.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0When he received no response, he said, \u201cWould you mind tellin\u2019 me your name, Ma\u2019am?\u201d<\/p>\n For a moment, he thought she wouldn\u2019t answer.\u00a0\u00a0Looking down at the floor, she finished a bite of cheese.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMai Ling,\u201d she whispered.<\/p>\n \u201cMai Ling,\u201d mused Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s a right pretty name.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He watched her for a moment, noticing that she sat completely still, not eating any longer.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAren\u2019t you hungry any more, Ma\u2019am?\u00a0\u00a0Uh, I mean, Mai Ling?\u00a0\u00a0There\u2019s plenty more food \u2013 don\u2019t be shy!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0When she only looked at the floor and shuddered, Hoss\u2019s brow furrowed in concern.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMai Ling?\u00a0\u00a0Is something wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny had watched the interaction between the gentle giant and the tiny Chinese girl, and took a deep breath.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMai Ling,\u201d she said softly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo one here will hurt you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, Ma\u2019am!\u201d Hoss agreed whole-heartedly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe won\u2019t let anyone hurt you, will we, Adam?\u00a0\u00a0Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHoss won\u2019t hurt you, either,\u201d Jenny added.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo one here will.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoss stared at Jenny in shock.\u00a0\u00a0He looked back at Mai Ling, realizing for the first time that she was still afraid of him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMa\u2019am,\u201d he said contritely, \u201cI\u2019m sorry I\u2019ve frightened you.\u00a0\u00a0I wouldn\u2019t hurt you.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll go and \u2013 and just leave you be.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0As he rose to go, Mai Ling\u2019s shoulders slumped forward, and tears rolled down her cheeks.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny went to her side and put her arm about the young girl.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss looked back at her, troubled and unable now to leave.\u00a0\u00a0He slowly returned, and stooped down\u00a0\u00a0a few feet from her side.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMa\u2019am \u2013 Miss Mai Ling,\u201d he said, \u201cis there anyone we can contact for you?\u00a0\u00a0Any family, or friends, who could come and help you?\u00a0\u00a0You sure do seem to need some friends, and if there\u2019s anyone else who we can get in touch with who would do something for you, we\u2019d be glad to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n When she didn\u2019t answer, Jenny added, \u201cWe\u2019d be glad to help you.\u00a0\u00a0We can wire someone, or write a letter, if you need us to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n Mai Ling shook her head as the tears rolled down her cheeks.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere is no one, no one,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOnly my two friends here.\u00a0\u00a0No one else.\u00a0\u00a0They are my only friends.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDo you have any family?\u00a0\u00a0Perhaps in San Francisco?\u201d asked Jenny, with a glance at Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0She felt the girl tremble, but received no answer for a long time.<\/p>\n \u201cNo, no family,\u201d Mai Ling finally cried.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo family, only two friends.\u00a0\u00a0No one else.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She cried harder as she remembered Clint\u2019s visit\u00a0\u00a0to this place, and knew he would be back.\u00a0\u00a0She wished again for the courage to take her life, not only so she would not have to endure his revenge, which she knew would be unspeakably brutal, but so she would not be forced to watch what he would do to these kind people.\u00a0\u00a0She knew what he could do.\u00a0\u00a0He had related to her, with great relish, what he had done to the men who had tried to assist Elise in eluding him before.<\/p>\n \u201cIs your family dead?\u201d asked Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPerhaps we can help you.\u201d<\/p>\n Mai Ling continued to cry.<\/p>\n \u201cWere you sold into this life?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked up, surprised to hear Adam\u2019s question.\u00a0\u00a0All eyes turned to him, then back to Mai Ling.<\/p>\n Mai Ling buried her head in her arms and refused to answer.\u00a0\u00a0The others exchanged glances.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere are you from, Mai Ling?\u201d Jenny asked.<\/p>\n \u201cI am from China,\u201d the girl hiccuped between sobs.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat happened, to bring you to this life?\u201d Adam persisted.<\/p>\n Mai Ling stopped crying.\u00a0\u00a0She was drained, and wished these people would leave her alone.\u00a0\u00a0She could not reveal her shame, or bring shame on her father, by revealing her people.\u00a0\u00a0But she was tired of running, and weary of her life.\u00a0\u00a0What did it matter, if these people knew?\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy father, he had my brother take me to a ship,\u201d she finally said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhen my cousin meet me in San Francisco, he supposed to take me to his home.\u00a0\u00a0But he sell me instead, and I \u2013 I live this life I hate.\u00a0\u00a0I wish to die, but I cannot.\u00a0\u00a0Now, I run away, with friends, but Clint, he owns me, and will come and take me back.\u00a0\u00a0He is very bad man.\u00a0\u00a0I wish to leave him, but have no place to go.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She shut her eyes and willed herself to stop before mentioning their suicide pact.\u00a0\u00a0These people would not understand such things.<\/p>\n Hoss slowly stood.\u00a0\u00a0His brow furrowed and his mouth drew into a hard, straight line.\u00a0\u00a0He turned around, and said, \u201cDon\u2019t you worry, Miss Mai Ling.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019ve got a Chinese cook at our place, and he\u2019s like a member of the family.\u00a0\u00a0He has lots of relatives in San Francisco.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019ll know who your cousin is, Ma\u2019am, or he\u2019ll be able to find out, and we\u2019ll get him!\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019ll pay for what he\u2019s done to you!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, no!\u201d cried the Chinese girl.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe is my honorable father\u2019s brother\u2019s son!\u00a0\u00a0You must not do this!\u201d<\/p>\n They stared at her in amazement.\u00a0\u00a0Ben came around the corner, the expression on his face revealing that he had heard the conversation .\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHer family would probably disown her, if they knew what happened,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf she needs help, and she certainly does, it\u2019s up to us to provide it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s not gonna stop me from dealin\u2019 with this cousin of hers!\u201d exclaimed Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll get him, and Hop Sing can at least help me, if it\u2019s the last thing I do!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat won\u2019t help her now,\u201d said Jenny.<\/p>\n At the same time, Ben said, \u201cSon, we need to think about right now.\u00a0\u00a0We can deal with her cousin later.\u201d<\/p>\n A horse neighed outside.\u00a0\u00a0Everyone turned nervously toward the window.\u00a0\u00a0Adam grabbed a rifle and looked carefully outside.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss and Ben grabbed their guns, and went to the barn door.\u00a0\u00a0Joe drew his gun and stayed near Jenny, who huddled near the children.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019re in trouble.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Adam\u2019s grim report made chills run down Jenny\u2019s spine.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHere\u2019s the sheriff, the Baptist preacher, and many fine citizens of Virginia City, along with many of the not-so-fine citizens, all headed up by our friend, Clint.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Adam rested the rifle in the window, and loosened his gun in his holster.\u00a0\u00a0He noted silently that someone had given Clint a gun since they had last seen him.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ben started to swing the barn doors shut.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey lock from the outside,\u201d Jenny told him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can\u2019t lock them out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling huddled down into the hay, curling herself up and hiding her face in her hands.\u00a0\u00a0Her weeping and gasps could be heard by all of them, and Jenny was convinced that they could also be heard outside.\u00a0\u00a0Elise sat up straight, reaching instinctively for the knife at her hip.\u00a0\u00a0It wasn\u2019t there.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She looked at Adam, standing near the window above her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAdam,\u201d she said, \u201cI need my knife.\u00a0\u00a0The one you took from me.\u00a0\u00a0We need to help you, with all these folks here against you.\u00a0\u00a0That knife is all I have left.\u00a0\u00a0Unless you want to give us some guns?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam looked at her with a distracted yet penetrating gaze.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo guns to spare, Ma\u2019am.\u00a0\u00a0Sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThen give me my knife!\u201d she insisted.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam didn\u2019t respond.\u00a0\u00a0There was as yet no challenge from outside. Suddenly, he caught Elise\u2019s hands as she felt around his belt.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSit down!\u201d he commanded.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cStay out of the way, and keep away from the windows and the door!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Elise looked at his lowered brows, clenched jaw, and flashing eyes, and backed away from him.\u00a0\u00a0As she slumped down next to Mai Ling, Adam turned his attention back outside.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0To his surprise, Clint was talking quietly with the crowd.\u00a0\u00a0When someone raised his voice in anger, and a murmur of agreement was heard rumbling throughout the mob, Clint raised his hand and spoke softly, so quietly that Adam couldn\u2019t hear what was said, though he cocked his head and strained his ears.\u00a0\u00a0He saw Sheriff Roy Coffey approach Clint.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Roy shook his head and looked intently at Clint as he spoke to him.\u00a0\u00a0Clint smiled, waved his hand in a deprecating gesture, and attempted to subdue the lawman with a soft word.\u00a0\u00a0Roy nodded reluctantly, or so it seemed to Adam, and looked apprehensively at the barn.\u00a0\u00a0The crowd drifted back, and seemed willing to wait.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam noticed several men go into the house, and watched closely.\u00a0\u00a0They soon came out, shaking their heads and said something to Clint, who spoke to them, approached the barn door from a respectful distance, and waited.\u00a0\u00a0Adam saw the men and women behind Clint fan out about the barn.\u00a0\u00a0Once they stopped moving, Clint raised his hand above his head.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHellooo!\u00a0\u00a0Cartwrights!\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Miss Barnhart!\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019d like to talk to you, if you don\u2019t mind!\u00a0\u00a0Please come out where we can see you.\u00a0\u00a0No one here means you any harm!\u00a0\u00a0We just want to talk!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam didn\u2019t take his eyes off Clint.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny watched Adam, wondering what to do.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe know you\u2019re harboring three fugitives,\u201d Clint continued.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey\u2019ve done a lot of people around here harm, stealing from them, corrupting their menfolk, and spreading lies about these parts.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve come here to undo the damage, make reparations for the harm they\u2019ve done, and to take them back into my care.\u00a0\u00a0Surely you\u2019re not going to try to stop me from making amends to these fine folks who\u2019ve come with me?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny listened in disbelief.\u00a0\u00a0How could this man sound so charitable and solicitous?\u00a0\u00a0She put her hand on her throat, wincing as she pressed on a bruise left by Clint\u2019s ruthless grasp.\u00a0\u00a0She looked at Adam, but he didn\u2019t turn his eyes from the window where he stood guard above her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI only want to help,\u201d said Clint solicitously.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThese girls have strayed, but I\u2019ll take them back.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s my duty, after all.\u00a0\u00a0Now, I know they\u2019ve stolen from you and other folk about here, as well as further away on their roaming about.\u00a0\u00a0You have a strange mule in your barn, don\u2019t you?\u00a0\u00a0They gave it some of your horses\u2019 feed, didn\u2019t they?\u00a0\u00a0They stole that mule, and stole the feed from you.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m willing to take full responsibility for these young girls, and you won\u2019t have a thing to explain or account for.\u00a0\u00a0Just come out, and we\u2019ll talk about it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s not going to work, Clint,\u201d Adam shouted out the window.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe know too much \u2013 about you, and about these girls.\u00a0\u00a0Don\u2019t think you\u2019ll get away with this so easily!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Clint smiled forbearingly and spread his hands.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy friend, I don\u2019t blame you,\u201d he said expansively.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDoubtless, you\u2019ve heard tales about me, stories that malign my character.\u00a0\u00a0These young girls are rebellious, and need a firm hand.\u00a0\u00a0When they ran away, they felt they had to tell hard-luck stories to survive.\u00a0\u00a0Unfortunately,\u201d he continued reluctantly, \u201cthey did a lot more than that.\u00a0\u00a0But I\u2019m willing to take them back and do my duty by them.\u00a0\u00a0That can\u2019t be done at the end of a gun, Adam Cartwright.\u00a0\u00a0Please, put your guns away, and come outside.\u00a0\u00a0Let\u2019s talk like civilized men.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He glanced at the crowd behind him, and exulted inwardly.\u00a0\u00a0They were waiting, hanging on his every word.\u00a0\u00a0This was going just the way he wanted it to go.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny rose from her place beside the slumbering children, and walked toward the barn door.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere are you going?\u201d demanded Adam.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny stopped behind Ben and Hoss, who were peering out through a crack in the barn door.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m going out there,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThis is my parents\u2019 property.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re not going out there,\u201d said Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHoss and I will go out, and talk to them.\u00a0\u00a0You stay in here.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He swung one of the wide doors open, and walked slowly outside, followed by Hoss.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ben and Hoss stopped several paces outside the barn door.\u00a0\u00a0They noticed that several men near the edges and back of the crowd drew their guns and aimed straight for them.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat do you want, Clint?\u201d demanded Ben roughly.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy, Mr. Cartwright, I\u2019ve told you what I want,\u201d Clint protested mildly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI want to help these girls, and\u00a0\u00a0take them back home, but you keep me from doing so!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t play games with me!\u201d Ben\u2019s eyes flashed angrily.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThese young ladies have had more than a few things to say about you and about their life with you, and I have no intention of turning them over to you.\u00a0\u00a0You and I, as well as more than a few citizens gathered here, know that you are not what you\u2019re pretending to be!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Clint smiled patiently.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMr. Cartwright,\u201d he said, \u201clet me explain the situation to you.\u00a0\u00a0These young ladies are \u2013 well, they\u2019re free spirits; wild and independent.\u00a0\u00a0They don\u2019t like anyone telling them what to do.\u00a0\u00a0Now, many of these folks will attest that I\u2019m a member in good standing in the Congregational Church in Silver City.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Several folks murmured, and Hoss and Ben saw several heads nod.\u00a0\u00a0They noted that the ones with the guns drawn did most of the nodding and affirming, and that others followed their lead.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThese girls,\u201d Clint continued reluctantly, \u201care rebellious.\u00a0\u00a0They\u2019re disobedient, and ungrateful.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Several angry exclamations came from the crowd.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNow mind you,\u201d Clint continued, raising his voice above the disruption, \u201cI won\u2019t turn them away.\u00a0\u00a0They\u2019re young, and can mend their ways.\u00a0\u00a0But they\u2019ve committed many crimes, many of them of a grievous nature;\u00a0\u00a0crimes that may stain them for the rest of their lives.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He sighed, and looked gloomily at the ground as though burdened with the weight of the trespasses of his young charges.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m willing to reimburse Miss Jenny\u2019s folks for the cost of the feed they stole for that mule, as well as for any other expenses they\u2019ve incurred or inconveniences they\u2019ve encountered with these young ladies, just as I\u2019m willing to repay the cost of the mule they stole from the folks near Carson City, and to recompense you, Mr. Cartwright, for the time and effort you\u2019ve spent on them.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He smiled graciously.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNow, I understand that some of their \u2013 sins \u2013 cannot be atoned for with money.\u00a0\u00a0But if you hand them over, I promise you that I will do my best to see that they are reformed.\u00a0\u00a0They just need a firm hand, that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Even Adam felt a chill run down his back as he watched from the side window of the barn.\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling pulled away from Elise, who had gathered her close and hugged her fiercely, and stumbled away.\u00a0\u00a0Joe glanced at her, but turned his attention again to the mob outside.\u00a0\u00a0Adam kept his eyes fixed on the men at the back of the crowd.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny could tolerate no more.\u00a0\u00a0She suddenly rose and went out the door, standing first behind Ben and Hoss, then moving beside them.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t listen to this man,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s not what he wants you to think he is.\u00a0\u00a0He was by here earlier, and he did this.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She pulled down her collar and revealed her neck.\u00a0\u00a0Many in the crowd murmured and gasped at the sight of the dark bruises.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe grabbed me and threatened me, and my niece, when I wouldn\u2019t tell him where those young ladies were,\u201d she continued.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe claims to care about them.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s not what he said while he was here!\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019s angry, vengeful, and hateful, and has anything but protective and fatherly instincts toward them.\u00a0\u00a0They\u2019re scared to death of him!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThe fact is,\u201d said Hoss, \u201cthis fine man, Clint, runs a parlor house in Silver City.\u00a0\u00a0These young girls hiding here are trying to get away from him, and away from that kind of\u00a0\u00a0life.\u00a0\u00a0And we aim to see to it that they do.\u00a0\u00a0My brother Adam, he saw this man threaten Miss Jenny and her niece.\u00a0\u00a0We have no intention of watching him walk away free, or giving him these girls.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The crowd rumbled, and a few people shouted their disbelief.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re lying, Cartwright!\u201d came a voice from the back of the crowd.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019ve heard how these women have been going from one place to another, tempting the men, and stealing from decent folk, just to live like hussies!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Clint stepped forward.\u00a0\u00a0He glared at Jenny with pure hatred, and said, \u201cIt wasn\u2019t me who gave her those bruises about her throat!\u00a0\u00a0I heard the girls were here, and came just in time to see that so-called Negro doctor, Doc Gabriel, grab her around the throat, and tell her what a slut she was for even trying to help my girls!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere, you see?\u201d came an angry shout from the edge of the mob.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe tries to help them, and gets run off, because they\u2019d rather believe those hussies than decent folk!\u00a0\u00a0Look what they did to him!\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019s all scratched up!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0The crowd advanced.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny, Ben, and Hoss stood their ground.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIs getting these girls, whom you don\u2019t even know, worth some of you getting killed?\u201d shouted Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBecause that\u2019s what\u2019s going to happen if this goes on.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The crowd stopped and quieted, but one man pushed his way to the front.\u00a0\u00a0A silver star glinted from Roy Coffey\u2019s vest as he approached.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBen,\u201d\u00a0\u00a0he said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI agreed to give Clint here a chance to present his case to you before I started talking.\u00a0\u00a0I didn\u2019t intend for any of this to come to shooting.\u00a0\u00a0These folks all insisted on coming along, and they\u2019re all riled up.\u00a0\u00a0Ben, there have been rumors of \u2013 of \u2013 disreputable women stealing from folks, among other things, all around these parts.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Roy looked down and cleared his throat.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNow, rumors aren\u2019t fact, I realize that.\u00a0\u00a0And since no one has made any complaint of theft, or of \u2013 well, of any kind – to me, I don\u2019t have any call to arrest anyone.\u00a0\u00a0Ben, this man has documents claiming that the young women he says are hiding here are in debt to him.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He started to pull some papers from his pocket inside his vest, but Ben waved him aside.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou don\u2019t need to show me his documents,\u201d said Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m sure they\u2019re all legal and binding. He\u2019s too smart to do otherwise.\u00a0\u00a0If they\u2019re good enough to convince you, I don\u2019t need be convinced. But I tell you, these girls have been in the business of\u00a0\u00a0\u2018entertaining\u2019 so-called gentlemen, and they want out.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s why they ran away, and I intend to see to it that he doesn\u2019t get his hands on them, no matter what \u2018documents\u2019 he may have putting them in his debt.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Roy Coffey nodded knowingly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI just wanted you to know exactly what you\u2019re\u00a0\u00a0getting into, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny mustered her courage and spoke up.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDoc Gabriel did not give me these bruises,\u201d she repeated, touching her throat.\u00a0\u00a0She pointed at Clint.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat man did.\u00a0\u00a0He wants these girls, and for no good purpose, either.\u201d<\/p>\n Many in the crowd shook their heads.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re helping them because you\u2019re like them!\u201d someone shouted.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI believe some of you gentlemen can explain why your friend, Clint, wants these young ladies,\u201d said a voice behind her.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny turned to see Doc Gabriel in the doorway to the barn.\u00a0\u00a0His hands were bloodstained, as were his clothes;\u00a0\u00a0his face and hair were drenched with sweat, and he clenched his fists as he emerged outside.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI know many of you fine men.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel looked about the crowd.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t I?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0As his eyes swept across the crowd, faces dropped, one by one, before his stare.\u00a0\u00a0The men at the back turned their guns toward him, unsure of what to do.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat?!\u201d mocked Gabriel.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIsn\u2019t anyone going to come forward, and say what this fine gentleman wants? You\u2019re all gentlemen yourselves, aren\u2019t you?\u00a0\u00a0There\u2019s nothing to fear from telling the truth, is there?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The only response he received was a slight movement toward the edges of the mass of people, as men moved outward and back.\u00a0\u00a0Ben and Hoss instinctively moved in front of Gabriel.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny felt a hand on her arm, and turned to see Joe pulling her into the barn.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cStay inside,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0Once she was back near Adam, Joe moved to the back door of the barn, listening closely.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy, gentlemen, I\u2019m surprised at you!\u201d mocked Gabriel.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHow many of you have told me that you\u2019re men, real men, not afraid to face anything, and that any man would do as you have done?\u00a0\u00a0Do I really have to say what you\u2019ve done?\u00a0\u00a0Or why I\u2019ve needed to come to your houses, in secret, instead of Doc Martin, or Doc Young?\u00a0\u00a0Do I have to repeat what I\u2019ve told you, and the unfortunate news I\u2019ve had to give to \u2013 well, let\u2019s say, other members of your families?\u00a0\u00a0Of course, in normal circumstances, that news is confidential, but these are not normal circumstances!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He looked about.\u00a0\u00a0No one would meet his eyes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet me tell you, gentlemen, these young ladies are not being gently reared by this man!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He nodded toward Clint.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe may claim that they have strayed, but just let me say that I find evidence of a long history of misuse of these women!\u00a0\u00a0Now, I could go into details, but I\u2019m afraid I\u2019d embarrass some of the fine folk here.\u00a0\u00a0And I know that some of you in particular would not care to hear it for other reasons!\u00a0\u00a0Am I right?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0People backed away, muttering to one another.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cTell me,\u201d shouted Gabriel, \u201cwould a man interested in the welfare of his young female charges allow them to be abused in the way I have witnessed these women to be abused?\u00a0\u00a0Would he threaten them?\u00a0\u00a0Would he threaten someone who tried to give them shelter, the way he threatened Miss Jenny?\u00a0\u00a0And would he bring men to support him who know nothing about the situation, but who know everything about his \u2018business\u2019?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel\u2019s eyes traveled about the crowd again.\u00a0\u00a0No one would meet his angry glare.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPerhaps I should tell something about this business,\u201d said Gabriel slowly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOr, perhaps, one of you \u2018gentlemen\u2019\u00a0\u00a0who is more familiar with it should tell it instead?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Several men began walking hurriedly away.\u00a0\u00a0One by one, others followed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Clint shouted, \u201cDon\u2019t listen to him!\u00a0\u00a0I saw him grab Miss Jenny about the throat, and threaten her!\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s what she gets, for going to someone like him for help!\u00a0\u00a0She talked to Doctor Young first, and he told her to report these girls to the sheriff.\u00a0\u00a0But she didn\u2019t do it.\u00a0\u00a0She went for this man.\u00a0\u00a0Now, he has attacked her!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He turned to the crowd behind him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAre you going to stand for this outrage?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The angry murmur of the men who were left rumbled about the barn.\u00a0\u00a0The men at the edges of the crowd drew in, pushing the mob about them closer to the Cartwrights.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet\u2019s get them!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGet that so-called \u2018doctor\u2019!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThose women are a menace to decent folk everywhere!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe won\u2019t stand to have this kind of thing around here!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cStand back!\u00a0\u00a0If you won\u2019t take care of this, we will!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ben was about to fire a shot over the crowd and retreat into the barn when he saw an old man ride up on a run-down, tired horse.\u00a0\u00a0He stopped next to Ben and Hoss, sniffed loudly, and wiped his nose.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHowdy, folks,\u201d the man shouted.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI think I might be able to help, if you\u2019ll be so good as to listen for a few minutes.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked about, and the\u00a0\u00a0crowd slowly quieted.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI know a lot of you,\u201d he continued, as he looked at them.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve seen you here in\u00a0Virginia City, and I used to see some of you in\u00a0Silver\u00a0City\u00a0back when I lived there.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked the men before him in the eye.\u00a0\u00a0Some of them returned his gaze in skeptical bewilderment.\u00a0\u00a0The rest dropped their eyes and shuffled their feet.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u201cI heard Clint, here-\u201d\u00a0\u00a0he bobbed his head politely toward Clint, who was glowering at this unexpected interruption- \u201cin town earlier, talkin\u2019 about these women that are here.\u00a0\u00a0He talked about these ladies as though they\u2019re dear to him.\u00a0\u00a0When he mentioned them by name, and described them a little, I remembered who they were.\u00a0\u00a0I think some of you may remember them, too,\u201d he went on.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAs a matter of fact, I know you do, because I\u2019ve seen you with them, in the past.\u00a0\u00a0But you don\u2019t know them because they\u2019re friends, or your sisters, or your friends\u2019 daughters.\u00a0\u00a0You know them for another reason.\u00a0\u00a0The same reason I know them.\u00a0\u00a0You visited them at Clint\u2019s parlor house, for the same reason I visited there, a while back.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Dead silence met this revelation.\u00a0\u00a0Some of the men glanced suspiciously at one another, but no one dared say a word.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNow, I\u2019m not saying I\u2019m better than any of you,\u201d the man continued.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou all know who I am.\u00a0\u00a0At least, most of you do.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m Charlie, the old washed-out miner who everyone makes fun of now.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m the old drunk who can always be counted on to give everyone a laugh.\u00a0\u00a0Once in a while, though, I win a few poker games against some of you gents \u2013 right? \u2013 and then, I know how to spend it.\u00a0\u00a0Same as you do.\u00a0\u00a0See, I\u2019m not really that much different from the lot of you.\u00a0\u00a0I just don\u2019t hide it so well.\u00a0\u00a0And I knew these girls from Silver City,\u00a0\u00a0just like some of you do.\u00a0\u00a0Problem is, I want to help them.\u00a0\u00a0You want to help yourselves.<\/p>\n \u201cYou see, I can\u2019t just sit by, get drunk like I usually do when things go wrong, and let you do somethin\u2019 bad to these girls.\u00a0\u00a0And when I heard that you were comin\u2019 out here, to Miss Jenny\u2019s place, well, I can\u2019t see nothin\u2019 happen against Miss Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0She\u2019s a real lady.\u00a0\u00a0One of the finest I ever seen.\u00a0\u00a0She took an interest in Miss Roberta, when she was sick, back a couple months, outside the Silver Dollar.\u00a0\u00a0And she talked to me, real nice-like.\u00a0\u00a0Some ladies, they won\u2019t even look at the likes of me.\u00a0\u00a0Most of \u2018em cross to the other side of the street.\u00a0\u00a0But Miss Jenny, she talked to me, and was polite, and saw to it that Miss Roberta, who was a friend of mine, got some help.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Some of you knew Miss Roberta, didn\u2019t you?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked at the crowd.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYep, lots of you did.\u00a0\u00a0So did I.\u00a0\u00a0Ain\u2019t no shame in that.\u00a0\u00a0Is there?\u201d<\/p>\n Charlie turned aside and gave a loud series of coughs, holding his chest as he bent over.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMany of you know these ladies, just like you knew Roberta.\u00a0\u00a0You should be glad that there\u2019s someone around who will help them.\u00a0\u00a0Why don\u2019t you step in, and lend a hand?\u00a0\u00a0After all, you\u2019ve been quick enough to show up at other times.\u00a0\u00a0Why not now, when they need someone helpin\u2019 them?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Another man suddenly rode away.\u00a0\u00a0Someone else quickly followed.\u00a0\u00a0Several others left in quick succession, first trotting from the crowd, then galloping toward town.\u00a0\u00a0Many who were left shook their heads in bewilderment and stepped away from Clint.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell, Clint?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Ben met his adversary\u2019s eyes unflinchingly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat now?\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019re not giving you these young ladies, or anyone else.\u00a0\u00a0And I have the feeling if you show your face around here again anytime soon, you\u2019ll be less than welcome, to put it mildly.\u201d<\/p>\n Clint\u2019s venomous glare nearly made Ben\u2019s hair stand on end.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re forgetting something, Ben Cartwright,\u201d he hissed from behind clenched teeth.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNot only do I feel obliged to see to it that these women mend their ways, they owe me money.\u00a0\u00a0The sheriff has documents proving that.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0His menacing, sibilant voice and narrowed eyes reminded Ben of a poisonous snake coiling and readying itself for a strike.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI have every right to take them with me, so they can \u2018work off\u2019 their debt, and neither you nor anyone else can stop me.\u00a0\u00a0Isn\u2019t that right, Sheriff?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s within his rights, Ben,\u201d Sheriff Coffey reluctantly said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI can\u2019t prove otherwise \u2013 not yet.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Clint glanced sharply at the sheriff\u2019s last remark, but smiled triumphantly.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019d just like to ask one thing,\u201d said Charlie.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMr. Clint, I understand that there was a question in Silver City a while ago about the dead body of a little girl, no more than seven or eight years old -\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShut up, old man!\u201d interrupted Clint.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat do you know about that, or anything in Silver City?\u00a0\u00a0You\u2019re just an old drunk, who nobody listens to anymore!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI used to live in Silver City,\u201d an undeterred Charlie explained.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd when that little girl was found, why, a couple of witnesses swore they saw some of your men throw her in that alley the night before.\u00a0\u00a0And -\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShut up!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Clint\u2019s shout was accompanied by several choice epithets that made Jenny wince and cover her sleeping niece\u2019s ears.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNone of that had anything to do with me!\u00a0\u00a0Those men lied, just to malign my character, and nothing was ever proven against me!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo, it wasn\u2019t,\u201d said Sheriff Coffey, who remembered the incident.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd the witnesses mysteriously disappeared.\u00a0\u00a0Their bodies were found cleverly hidden in an abandoned silver mine a couple of months later.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSo somebody performed justice for me,\u201d snarled Clint.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDid me a favor, and I never had the chance to thank them, because I don\u2019t know who they are.\u00a0\u00a0But they saved me from defending myself against a murder I never committed!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOnly problem is,\u201d continued Charlie, \u201cI saw the little girl in your establishment the night she was murdered.\u00a0\u00a0I wondered what she was doin\u2019 there, child that she was, and so did several other men there.\u00a0\u00a0The Madam of the place at the time saw her same time we did, and ran to her, and got her out of sight quick, but the damage was done.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019d seen her, a little girl, dressed like a fast woman, in a place like that.\u00a0\u00a0Apparently, she wasn\u2019t supposed to be anywhere in sight, was she?\u00a0\u00a0What happened, Clint?\u00a0\u00a0Were you so angry with her that you beat her to death?\u00a0\u00a0Or did you quickly kill her and get rid of her, so no one could see her there again?\u00a0\u00a0Maybe you used her so hard that she died.\u00a0\u00a0Whichever way it was, you took care of the problem, didn\u2019t you?\u00a0\u00a0Did you kill the men who dumped her body, since they\u2019d been seen, too?\u00a0\u00a0No one saw them after that night, either.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Fear entered Clint\u2019s eyes as he stared at Charlie.\u00a0\u00a0The old drunk!\u00a0\u00a0Who could have thought that he\u2019d ever know so much?\u00a0\u00a0He would\u2019ve shot him back in Virginia City had he known he was such a threat.\u00a0\u00a0He couldn\u2019t do that now.\u00a0\u00a0The sheriff was here, and too many other people as well.\u00a0\u00a0They would see, and he\u2019d be charged with murder.\u00a0\u00a0He glanced out the corner of his eye at his henchmen, whom he had told to stay at the fringes of the crowd and keep their eye on everyone and their guns on the Cartwrights.\u00a0\u00a0They were looking at each other, realizing they were found out.\u00a0\u00a0One of them backed away, and the others followed.\u00a0\u00a0They hadn\u2019t counted on this.\u00a0\u00a0These people knew too much.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI heard about that little girl,\u201d said Roy Coffey.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere were too many strange circumstances surrounding her death, and too many people afraid to say anything afterwards.\u00a0\u00a0It looks as though your luck is changing, Clint.\u00a0\u00a0Perhaps you\u2019d like to come with me to my office in town, and answer a few questions?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMaybe the good people of Virginia City would like to know about that little girl,\u201d said Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe should tell them, the first chance we get.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019d be happy to help you do that, Mr. Cartwright,\u201d said Charlie.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll tell them.\u00a0\u00a0I may be old Charlie the drunk to some, but I do know what I and a few others of this town and Silver City saw that night.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s about time that the truth came out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Clint backed away as his friends left him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t think you\u2019ll get away with this,\u201d he snarled.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI may have to wait, but I\u2019ll be back.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ll get all of you!\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve never lost a battle yet!\u00a0\u00a0Just wait!\u00a0\u00a0I have friends in high places, not only in Silver City, but everywhere I\u2019ve ever been or plan on going.\u00a0\u00a0Even if you take me in, you won\u2019t be able to make any charges stick to me!\u00a0\u00a0No one can prove a thing!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ben didn\u2019t doubt it.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThen it\u2019s a good thing that you and your friends won\u2019t ever be in Virginia City or Silver City again, isn\u2019t it?\u00a0\u00a0That way, no one who has been here or there will ever have to bring up any of your \u2013 questionable behavior.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGo, Clint!\u201d Roy commanded, holding his gun on him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIf you or any of your friends show your faces around here again, you\u2019ll be shot on sight.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Clint glanced at Ben, who met his gaze evenly.\u00a0\u00a0He looked at Hoss, and then saw Adam\u2019s rifle pointed at him from the side window.\u00a0\u00a0This battle wasn\u2019t for him.\u00a0\u00a0At least, not now.\u00a0\u00a0He turned and rode away, not without a few choice words which made even the Cartwrights wince.\u00a0\u00a0He rode toward the road, as though to go back to Virginia City.\u00a0\u00a0Once near the back of the barn, he suddenly turned toward the building and drew a gun.\u00a0\u00a0Joe pressed against the wall and watched him carefully.\u00a0\u00a0Clint saw him move, and fired quickly.\u00a0\u00a0The bullet ricocheted off the doorway close to Joe, who dodged, then immediately fired back.\u00a0\u00a0Shots rang out as the other men ran around the barn.\u00a0\u00a0Clint\u2019s horse reared.\u00a0\u00a0He fired wildly, yanked on the reins, and galloped away.\u00a0\u00a0Ben, Hoss, and Roy watched as he left the road and headed across the dusty ground and parched grass toward the hills in the distance.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere do you suppose he\u2019s goin\u2019?\u201d asked Hoss.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cSomeplace where nobody knows him,\u201d replied Ben grimly.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019ll get as far away as possible until he feels it\u2019s safe to come back,\u201d said Roy.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd if I know him, he knows he won\u2019t be safe in these parts for a long, long time.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPa!\u00a0\u00a0Adam!\u00a0\u00a0Hoss!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe\u2019s scream tore through the silence following Clint\u2019s departure.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cCome here!\u00a0\u00a0Quick!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Ben, Adam, Hoss, and Gabriel raced into the barn.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOver here!\u201d shouted Joe.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ben charged toward his son\u2019s voice, and nearly ran into several people.\u00a0\u00a0He shoved through them, and found Joe stooped by Mai Ling.\u00a0\u00a0He held her lower arm clasped tightly in his hand.\u00a0\u00a0Despite his efforts, bright red blood seeped from her arm, staining her dress, running onto her hand, onto Joe\u2019s hand and clothing, and the straw and floor beneath them.\u00a0\u00a0A scythe lay half buried in the straw next to her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDoctor!!\u201d shouted Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cCome quick!!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel was right behind him.\u00a0\u00a0He combined his efforts with Joe\u2019s to stem the blood flow, and curtly directed Ben to his medical bag in the loft above them, near Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0Finally, he managed to slow Mai Ling\u2019s bleeding, and sew up her arm.\u00a0\u00a0He looked at her pale face, and knew that she may not survive.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Slowly and wearily he rose, and slipping through the dark red puddle on the floor, went through the barn to wash his hands at the pump outside.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cExcuse me.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0A deep voice interrupted his thoughts as he walked toward the door.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel looked up.\u00a0\u00a0A tall man in clerical garb stood next to him.\u00a0\u00a0Beads of sweat stood out on his face, his loosened collar was askew, and his clothes were dusty.<\/p>\n Gabriel wiped some of the blood from his hands onto his pants.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat is it?\u201d he asked skeptically. He had seen too much this day to be very polite, or to grant this man much faith, whether or not he was a man of the cloth .<\/p>\n The minister wiped his brow with his hand, leaving a dirty smear across his face.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy name is Alden.\u00a0\u00a0Though I have not yet had the pleasure of making your acquaintance, I have seen you in town, and know you to be a man who helps those in need.\u201d<\/p>\n Gabriel looked at him suspiciously.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat is it you want?\u201d<\/p>\n Alden looked at him in awe, noting his bloodstained clothing, the weariness in his face, and his stooped shoulders.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m a circuit preacher, Doctor,\u201d he replied.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI come here about every four to six weeks, and I am acquainted with the Barnhart family.\u00a0\u00a0When I heard this crowd was coming here, I had to come along, to try to help the family however I could.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He smiled apologetically.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI haven\u2019t been much help yet,\u201d he admitted.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou and the Cartwrights seem to have gotten rid of the troublemakers with no assistance from me.\u00a0\u00a0But I would like to speak to Miss Barnhart, and the young ladies who are taking refuge here, if they are able to speak to me?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked with concern at the men gathered about the other end of the barn, and at the doctor\u2019s bloody hands and clothes.<\/p>\n Gabriel stared at him with narrowed eyes.\u00a0\u00a0Reverend Alden shifted uncomfortably, wondering at his scrutiny.\u00a0\u00a0Finally, Gabriel pointed behind him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMiss Jenny is back there.\u00a0\u00a0The girl in the loft, Marabelle, is dying.\u00a0\u00a0You\u2019d best see to her quickly.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Raking the clergyman with a final doubtful glare, he left the barn and washed up at the pump.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam and the other men stepped aside, allowing the minister to draw near to Mai Ling, but watching him closely.\u00a0\u00a0The man stepped carefully over the bloody straw and slick floor.\u00a0\u00a0He stooped next to the girl without regard for his clothes, and took her hand carefully in his.\u00a0\u00a0He rubbed her tiny hand between his two large hands, and moved his lips in silent prayer.\u00a0\u00a0As he rose and turned to Jenny, everyone around him saw the tears in his eyes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMiss Barnhart,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cReverend Alden,\u201d she replied.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThank you for coming, but\u2026.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Her eyes strayed toward Mai Ling\u2019s limp form and pale face.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI can only hope I\u2019m not too late,\u201d he said in a strained voice.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIn town, I heard talk about a woman who was very ill having a baby.\u00a0\u00a0Of course, it wasn\u2019t put in quite those words, but-\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe\u2019s in the loft,\u201d said Jenny quickly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t know if she\u2019s \u2013 how she is.\u00a0\u00a0Her baby \u2013 well, she -\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny\u2019s voice faltered.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHer baby died,\u201d said Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe buried her out back, before everyone showed up.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He led the Reverend to the ladder.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny followed.<\/p>\n Suddenly, Elise ran past, nearly knocking them over as she pushed past Reverend Alden and Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d she demanded.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re going to see Marabelle,\u201d explained Jenny.<\/p>\n \u201cShe asked for a minister to say something over her baby,\u201d said Adam quickly.<\/p>\n \u201cI only want to speak to her,\u201d the minister assured Elise.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI intend no harm to her.\u201d<\/p>\n Elise stared at him hesitantly before she ascended the ladder ahead of them.<\/p>\n Adam led the Reverend to Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0As the minister stooped next to her, the others stared in shock.\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle\u2019s eyes were dull and sunken into her waxen and pale face.\u00a0\u00a0Her breaths were shallow, lifting slightly but swiftly the blanket which covered her.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Reverend Alden rested on his knees, and grasped the young prostitute\u2019s hand.\u00a0\u00a0He touched her hot, fevered cheek, heedless of the sores on it.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMarabelle,\u201d he said quietly, \u201ccan you hear me?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle\u2019s eyes fluttered open, and she looked at him steadily.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat do you want?\u201d she panted.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m a minister, a man of God,\u201d the Reverend replied.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThe doctor tells me you\u2019re dying.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle tried to laugh.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMister,\u201d she said, \u201cyou may be dressed like a minister, but you\u2019re no more a man of God than that Negro is a doctor, or I\u2019m a lady.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d asked Alden.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAny doctor who isn\u2019t white, and who tends publicly to the likes of me, is no real doctor,\u201d panted Marabelle.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJust ask the people who\u2019ve been around here today.\u00a0\u00a0They\u2019ll tell you.\u00a0\u00a0They\u2019ll also inform you that I\u2019m no lady.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She shut her eyes and gasped for breath.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd since you\u2019re around here, talking to me, you must not be any man of God.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Reverend Alden\u2019s brow knitted in solicitous concern as he studied her, and he grasped her hand tightly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy do you say that?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle tried to laugh again, but coughed instead.\u00a0\u00a0She swallowed the blood and bile that had risen into her mouth.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI talked with men of God a long time ago, when I first needed them real bad.\u00a0\u00a0They turned me away.\u00a0\u00a0They told me I deserved whatever I had coming to me.\u00a0\u00a0Is that what you\u2019ve come here to tell me?\u00a0\u00a0If so, you might as well save your breath.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve no interest in hearing you tell me that my life is a monument to the wages of sin.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI came here because I was told a woman was ill and dying, and because I\u2019m a friend of the\u00a0Barnharts.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0The Reverend lifted her other hand.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve also been told that your baby died.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle turned her face away from him, and cursed her softness as tears streamed from her eyes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYeah, well, it isn\u2019t the first baby I\u2019ve had.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She yanked one hand free and impatiently wiped her tears.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve had three, Mister, you hear?\u00a0\u00a0Three!\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t know anything about the first one.\u00a0\u00a0My father threw me out right after it was born.\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t even know if it was a boy or a girl.\u00a0\u00a0The second one, Clint made me get rid of.\u00a0\u00a0He brought a doctor in, had me tied down, and the doctor took it, before it could ever be born.\u00a0\u00a0I didn\u2019t want that to happen, but that didn\u2019t matter much, now, did it?\u00a0\u00a0I didn\u2019t even know who the baby\u2019s father was!\u00a0\u00a0Might have been Clint;\u00a0\u00a0it might have been someone else.\u00a0\u00a0I didn\u2019t mean to be with child, but Clint, he was furious.\u00a0\u00a0I did everything he said to do, and the Madam too, but I still got pregnant.\u00a0\u00a0And now, there\u2019s this baby, and she\u2019s dead.\u00a0\u00a0I guess she\u2019s the final payment for my sins, huh?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She laughed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo \u2013 no.\u00a0\u00a0The final payment is yet to come.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s what the priests and preachers told me before.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve lived in sin, and now I\u2019ll die in sin.\u00a0\u00a0Right?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Reverend Alden took her face in both of his hands.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere is no sin that God will not forgive,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle stared back at him. \u201cWell, why didn\u2019t somebody tell me that before?\u201d she hissed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhen I needed help, why didn\u2019t they tell me that, and help me, instead of telling me how bad I was, and how my life from now on must be payment for past sins?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Tears streamed down her face as she stared at the man of God.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cClint was the only person who would help me!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The minister abruptly let go of her and buried his face in his hands.\u00a0\u00a0When he lifted his eyes, they were wet with tears.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t know why no one would help you.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019re supposed to help one another, but people often fail each other.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He took hold of her right hand. \u201cSomeone should have given you the help you needed years ago, instead of preaching on the wages of sin.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He was interrupted by a gasp and a wheeze, Marabelle\u2019s attempt at a laugh.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMister,\u201d said Marabelle, \u201cLet me make myself clear.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Her voice was raspy, and she was breathing harder.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s help, and there\u2019s \u2018help.\u2019\u00a0\u00a0Many people have tried to \u2018help\u2019 me in the years since I had my first baby.\u00a0\u00a0Lots of them have been \u2018good\u2019 people. Sometimes, they\u2019re the first ones to show up when things get really awful.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0They think they\u2019ll be bad with me, have their fun, and then go back to being good again.\u00a0\u00a0Trust me, they only make things worse.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Tears coursed down Reverend Alden\u2019s face.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPlease forgive us,\u201d he whispered.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cForgive me, for not being there when you needed me;\u00a0\u00a0for not helping you when you needed me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle\u2019s eyes squeezed shut, and she gasped and coughed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cReverend, you\u2019re only a man, and one man at that,\u201d she whispered.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can only do so much, right?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The Reverend Alden took both of her hands in his as he prayed, asking forgiveness for her sins and his, and the sins of those about her.\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle watched him, and slowly closed her eyes.\u00a0\u00a0He spoke softly to her, and clasped her hands tightly.\u00a0\u00a0When the girl\u2019s lips began moving slowly, Adam gently escorted Jenny and Elise away from the scene.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0When she finished praying, Marabelle whispered to Reverend Alden, \u201cYou\u2019ll say a service and prayer over Grace?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI promise you, I will,\u201d he staunchly replied.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe\u2019ll receive a Christian burial service.\u00a0\u00a0And so will you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle weakly squeezed his hand in gratitude.\u00a0\u00a0Her breathing was growing more shallow.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked at her ashen face, and called the doctor in alarm.\u00a0\u00a0Gabriel hurried up the ladder, took one look at the girl, and reported there was nothing more he could do.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise pulled away from Adam, and went to her friend\u2019s side.\u00a0\u00a0As she took Marabelle\u2019s hand, the Reverend Alden left the two alone.\u00a0\u00a0He gathered those left in the loft, and ushered them down the ladder.\u00a0\u00a0As Adam climbed down, he saw Elise, her face wet with tears, lay her head next to her friend.<\/p>\n ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Dark clouds gathered over the small group of people as they huddled in the dusty barnyard.\u00a0\u00a0Adam, Hoss, Joe, Ben, and Jared stood close together on one side of the graves.\u00a0\u00a0The women and children were next to them.\u00a0\u00a0Doc Gabriel, Charlie, and the few other men left from town faced them on the other side. The men stood silently, hats in their hands, and their faces solemn and unmoving.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny wiped her eyes, while her niece clutched her skirt.\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling, pale and weak from loss of blood, sat, with her arm bandaged and in a sling, in a chair brought from the house. Elise stood next to her friend.\u00a0\u00a0Her eyes were red with weeping, but she had carefully mastered herself, and stood straight and still.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Reverend Alden stood at the head of the graves, and somberly looked at the faces of those gathered about him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy friends,\u201d he said softly, \u201cwe are gathered here to mourn the loss of two young lives, Marabelle, and her baby, Grace.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0As he spoke, he realized he had no idea what Marabelle\u2019s last name was.\u00a0\u00a0How could he pray with someone, watch them die, bury them, and not know their last name?\u00a0\u00a0Swallowing hard, he brought himself back to the duty at hand.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThese two lives, in the brief time they have been here, have not only touched our lives, they have shaken us \u2013 hard.\u00a0\u00a0Hopefully, we\u2019ve been shaken hard enough to wake up.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked at the small hump of mounded dirt on the baby\u2019s grave, then at the body, sewn head to toe in the blanket which served as a shroud, and shuddered as he recalled the effort it had taken to prepare Marabelle\u2019s filthy, diseased body for burial.\u00a0\u00a0He was glad that this day would be behind him soon, and only hoped he could fulfill his duty.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe listened as the Reverend spoke of their obligation to help those about them, and to give to others as they had received.\u00a0\u00a0This duty went beyond helping the poor, he emphasized.\u00a0\u00a0Anytime they saw someone in distress, even if the trouble seemed to be of the person\u2019s own making, they needed to give their assistance.\u00a0\u00a0\u201c \u2018Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin,\u00a0+<\/sup>\u2019\u00a0<\/sup>\u201d\u00a0<\/sup>Reverend Alden continued.\u00a0\u00a0Joe bowed his head to hide his tears as the man of God emphasized how the woman dead before them had been trapped in a life she did not want to live, and was never offered the forgiveness of either God or those about her.\u00a0\u00a0Those she had turned to for help had self-righteously sent her on her way, and the only man who would offer her any help did so in order to use her and to profit from other\u2019s misuse of her.\u00a0\u00a0The social disease she and her baby died from was the result, and those who thought to lightly use her and then despise her, as well as those who refused to help her, were just as guilty of her predicament as the man who had brought her to this life.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joe wiped his eyes as he remembered the gentle girl from the Silver Dollar.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m sorry, Sylvia,\u201d he thought.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI tried to help you;\u00a0\u00a0I really did.\u00a0\u00a0I would\u2019ve found you if it could\u2019ve been done.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Hoss thought of Mai Ling and the cousin who had betrayed her, and his brow knotted in anger.\u00a0\u00a0He resolved to see that the gentle Chinese girl received any help she needed to get a new start in life.\u00a0\u00a0As for that cousin\u2026.Hoss\u2019s face darkened in fury as he recalled the sight of Mai Ling on the floor of the barn, with the life draining from her arm.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Reverend Alden reminded the men of the biblical admonition to treat women \u201cas mothers or sisters, in all purity,\u00a0++<\/sup>\u201d\u00a0<\/sup>even those who might seek them out for another purpose.\u00a0\u00a0Yes, they may well be scorned when doing so, by their friends, and even by the women whom they wish to treat decently.\u00a0\u00a0But if they wouldn\u2019t treat all people, even those least deserving of it, with respect, who were they fooling when they looked in the mirror, or sat in church on Sunday morning?<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam glanced at Elise.\u00a0\u00a0She stared straight ahead, her lips in a hard, straight line, with one hand resting on Mai Ling\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0\u00a0Adam thought of her icy blue stare, bold smile, and brazen propositions.\u00a0\u00a0He remembered the fear that he had seen behind her eyes, and the poisonous hatred she had flung at them later.\u00a0\u00a0As his brother had done earlier, Adam wondered what had happened to give her such a cold, impenetrable shell.<\/p>\n Reverend Alden scooped up a handful of hard dirt, and ground it into powder in his other hand.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWe now commit this body to the ground, and give them both, Marabelle and Grace, into your hands, O Lord.\u00a0\u00a0\u2018The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away\u2026.\u00a0\u00a0Earth to earth\u2026.ashes to ashes\u2026 dust to dust\u2026.in sure and certain hope of resurrection unto eternal life\u2026.\u2019\u00a0\u00a0Amen.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0As he concluded the service, he sifted the dirt over the grave and the body.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The men lowered Marabelle\u2019s body into the empty grave, and silently buried her.\u00a0\u00a0The men from town tipped their hats to Jenny and the other women, and after rinsing their hands and getting a drink outside, mounted their horses and rode back to their homes.\u00a0\u00a0The rest of them stumbled wearily into the house.\u00a0\u00a0Adam picked up Karen, who was yawning and stumbling, and Hoss hurried to Mai Ling\u2019s side, and helped her to a chair indoors.<\/p>\n Hoss got a drink of water for Mai Ling and himself.\u00a0\u00a0As he handed the cup to the girl, he said, \u201cWhy\u2019d you do it, Mai Ling?\u00a0\u00a0Why\u2019d you try to hurt yourself like that?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The Chinese girl looked at the floor.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI not go back to that man,\u201d she softly replied.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNever again.\u00a0\u00a0I go with no one who make me live like that.\u00a0\u00a0I die first.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She looked resolutely at Hoss, but after one glance at his furrowed brow as he towered over her, she trembled and looked back at the floor.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Hoss sat down next to her, and reached for her shoulders.\u00a0\u00a0She flinched, and cowered away.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHey, Mai Ling!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Hoss gently turned her toward him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI won\u2019t hurt you!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He watched her for a moment, then brushed her hair from her face.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy are you still afraid of me?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Still trembling, she allowed him to draw her close, and leaned her head on his shoulder.\u00a0\u00a0He stroked her hair.\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling began to weep.\u00a0\u00a0All of the long, endless years of misuse, betrayal, and despair rose within her, choking her with gulping sobs, and blinding her with tears that would not stop.\u00a0\u00a0Hoss held her tightly, kissing her forehead and stroking her hair, murmuring comforting words to her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s all right, sweetheart.\u00a0\u00a0You can start over now.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019ll help you get a fresh start, and you can put this horrible time behind you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As Hoss comforted Mai Ling, the room darkened.\u00a0\u00a0Adam lit a couple of lamps as Jenny wearily prepared some food for the exhausted but hungry crowd.\u00a0\u00a0Suddenly, lightning flickered about, illuminating the blue-black clouds about the house, and thunder resounded.\u00a0\u00a0As everyone silently ate some soup, bread, and beans, a downpour beat against the windows and roof, replenishing the parched ground.\u00a0\u00a0The darkness of the storm was so complete that those inside the house could barely see one another or their food while eating.<\/p>\n \n 2 weeks later<\/p>\n \n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut I don\u2019t understand why you even tried to help us.\u00a0\u00a0Why didn\u2019t you just throw us out, or give us to Clint?\u00a0\u00a0That would have been lots less risky for you.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Elise stood next to Jenny in front of the roses, near the stream.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny inwardly sighed.\u00a0\u00a0She was weary of this girl\u2019s skepticism and antagonism.\u00a0\u00a0The antagonism had gradually faded since Clint had been run off, but she was still skeptical, and believed Jenny, her family, and the Cartwrights wanted something from her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy would we give you to a man \u2013 a monster \u2013 like Clint?\u201d asked Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou heard what he said to me, and about me and my niece, to me and the Cartwrights!\u00a0\u00a0And you saw what he did to me!\u00a0\u00a0You know what kind of a man he was.\u00a0\u00a0Why would I want to see anyone in his hands?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise looked at her doubtfully.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny turned her attention to the roses before her. The ground about them was damp, even muddy, after the rains that had finally come during the last couple of weeks.\u00a0\u00a0The grass had changed from a dry, brittle brown to a lush green.\u00a0\u00a0The stream, which had been low, muddy, and stagnant, could be heard running briskly behind them and was densely shadowed by tall trees which had suddenly grown an abundance of thick leaves.<\/p>\n \u201cThese look a lot better than I thought they would.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny lovingly touched the roses, and thought longingly of her dead brothers, in whose memory she had planted them.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI haven\u2019t been out here, not since you came.\u00a0\u00a0They were very dry then.\u00a0\u00a0I thought they\u2019d be half dead from the drought, or choked with weeds since the rain.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve been taking care of them,\u201d said Elise.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked at her in amazement.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou have?\u00a0\u00a0When?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMost every day, since we came here.\u00a0\u00a0I saw you by these flowers the day before we met you.\u00a0\u00a0You were with your family, and almost came down to the stream with your little niece, Karen.\u00a0\u00a0I pruned them and watered them after you left.\u00a0\u00a0If you had come down the bank, you probably would have seen us.\u00a0\u00a0We were hiding near the stream until the dry storm hit.\u00a0\u00a0Marabelle was real sick.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Elise\u2019s eyes grew misty, and she fought to keep tears from falling.\u00a0\u00a0She still couldn\u2019t think of Marabelle without almost crying, and speaking of her was nearly impossible.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI guess if you\u2019d found us that day, your father would have run us off, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny glanced at her with a perceptive eye.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cNo more so than he has right now.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny had been amazed to see her parents arrive home two days after the confrontation with Clint and the townspeople.\u00a0\u00a0They had quickly concealed their panic when they saw that she and the children were all right.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny later learned that one of her father\u2019s business associates and friends in Virginia City had telegraphed him as soon as he heard Clint rousing a mob against them in town.\u00a0\u00a0Her father had immediately concluded or postponed his business out of town, and had hurried home as speedily as possible.\u00a0\u00a0He and her mother had been surprised to see the young working girls at their home, but once they heard the story from Jenny and the Cartwrights, were willing to let them stay and help them get started in a new life.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t think my parents could ever throw out anyone who needed help.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny turned her attention back to the flowers before her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou must have weeded and trimmed these.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She didn\u2019t say that the girl had done it much better than she ever could have done.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise looked proudly yet wistfully at the roses and wild prairie roses before her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve been meaning to ask you something.\u00a0\u00a0Someone went to a lot of trouble to plant these roses way out here, away from everyone, near the stream.\u00a0\u00a0Who did it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI did,\u201d Jenny whispered.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy?\u201d asked Elise.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s nicer places close to the house, that get a lot of sun.\u00a0\u00a0Why plant them out here, where no one can see them?\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny fought back tears.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI wanted a quiet, lonely place, to honor –\u00a0\u00a0people who were dear to me who have died.\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t have a grave to sit by.\u00a0\u00a0They\u2019re buried back\u00a0\u00a0East.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise looked at her with sympathy, without a shred of doubt or scorn in her face.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny changed the subject.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou must have taken care of flowers before.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Flowers and gardening were not Jenny\u2019s areas of expertise.\u00a0\u00a0Unlike some who could make blooms of paradise appear within a desert, she was did not have that gift, and struggled even to take care of their vegetable garden.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise looked at the roses, then at the green grass and ever-encroaching weeds surrounding them.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy mother had flowers.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYour mother?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0When the girl didn\u2019t answer, Jenny said, \u201cTell me about your mother.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise swallowed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe loved flowers.\u00a0\u00a0She grew roses, and every kind of flower that she could.\u00a0\u00a0She used to walk around the garden in the early morning, singing as she tended it, and my father – \u201d\u00a0\u00a0she fought back tears \u2013 \u201cmy father said that she made the sun rise with her singing.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She stopped talking, and valiantly kept the tears from falling.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat happened to them?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny was fearful that she\u2019d be stingingly rebuked and verbally abused, but Elise shut her eyes and bowed her head.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0After a long moment of silence, Elise finally said, \u201cThey died, in an accident.\u00a0\u00a0The horses pulling their wagon spooked at some gunshots, and they were killed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat happened to you then?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny asked gently.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise kept her eyes closed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI had to go live with my aunt and uncle.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She deliberated whether or not to continue, and finally concluded that what this girl already knew about her could hardly be any worse than the truth of her earlier life.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMy uncle\u2026..\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She clenched her fists and kept her eyes tightly closed.\u00a0\u00a0Best to skip that part.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOnce my uncle was \u2013 finished\u00a0\u00a0– with me – \u201d\u00a0\u00a0She took a deep breath.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cOnce he was finished, he \u2013 he \u2013 sold me \u2013 to Clint.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She opened her eyes, and stared at the ground.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t think I need to tell you any more.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She looked at Jenny defiantly, looking for accusation within her eyes, and waiting to hear recrimination from her lips.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0She found neither.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny was looking at her with compassion and sympathy, a very different attitude than that to which Elise had become accustomed.\u00a0\u00a0When she saw tears stream down this properly bred lady\u2019s face, she could hardly believe that they were shed for her.\u00a0\u00a0Mockery, scorn, disgust, and hatred Elise was accustomed to, especially from ladies, but pity?\u00a0\u00a0That was something new.\u00a0\u00a0She stiffened, and her eyes hardened.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t want your pity!\u201d she hissed.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPity?\u201d asked Jenny in a trembling voice.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou don\u2019t have my pity.\u00a0\u00a0Or at least, not just my pity.\u00a0\u00a0Do you know how many ladies could have traded places with you, and not even realized it was possible until it happened?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny thought again of her sister, and wondered once more where she was.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can start over now,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can begin a new life.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019ll help you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise stared at her.\u00a0\u00a0Did this girl really think it was so easy to put her former life and all the abuse she\u2019d endured behind her?\u00a0\u00a0Did she actually think she could just forget it?\u00a0\u00a0She shook her head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve never done anything else.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve been a prostitute for so long, I don\u2019t know\u00a0how<\/em>\u00a0to do anything else!\u00a0\u00a0No matter where I go, no matter what I try to do, I\u2019ll always go back to that.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s meant to be.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s who and what I am.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve been a whore since I was nine years old!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0The last statement was hissed desperately, and she turned away.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBetter tell your parents not to waste any more time on me!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny looked at the hardened girl, wondering what to say.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re a smart young lady,\u201d said a voice behind her.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019ll learn how to do something else, and how to stick with it.\u00a0\u00a0You know you don\u2019t have to do stay in your old profession, or keep going back to it.\u00a0\u00a0You can do something different, if you decide you want to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise whirled about, and glared at Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhere\u2019d you come from?\u201d she snarled.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cA few cattle decided to break through the fence,\u201d Adam replied, \u201cso while some of the hands rounded them up, we had to make repairs.\u00a0\u00a0I sent the men off on another chore, so I could play hooky to visit Jenny and her folks.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He winked at Jenny.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI saw you two, and came over here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise stared at him suspiciously.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI didn\u2019t hear you.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She wondered how much he had heard.\u00a0\u00a0She saw both Adam and Jenny looking at her, and wished she could disappear.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t know how to change!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She was angry when she heard her voice catch and felt tears spilling down her cheeks.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve never done anything else!\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jenny put her arm about the girl\u2019s shoulders.\u00a0\u00a0Angrily, Elise shook it off.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThe reason I wanted to come out here with you is, since I took care of these flowers for you, even back before I met you, I figured that you wouldn\u2019t care if I took some.\u00a0\u00a0After I watered and pruned them, I picked one for each of us, before we hid in your barn.\u00a0\u00a0Mind if I take some more now, to put on the graves?\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny shook her head.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGo ahead.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elise pulled a knife, which Jenny recognized as one from the kitchen, and proceeded to cut some flowers.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Once she had cut several blooms, Elise trimmed the thorny stems, then walked toward the house.\u00a0\u00a0When she reached the graves behind the barn, she knelt before them, and carefully arranged the flowers into a circle between the graves, with the stems interlacing.\u00a0\u00a0Adam and Jenny stood back to give her privacy.<\/p>\n \u201cI miss you, Marabelle,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI know you\u2019re with your baby now, and no harm can touch you.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She wiped her face, and gave a soft laugh.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhen I was little, and I asked Mama if I could help her with the roses, she always said,<\/p>\n Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,<\/p>\n Old time is still a-flying;<\/p>\n And this same flower that smiles today<\/p>\n Tomorrow will be dying.+++<\/sup><\/p>\n I wish I could give you and your baby flowers that aren\u2019t dying. I\u2019ve not seen roses since I was young, and living with Mama and Papa.\u00a0\u00a0They\u2019re so pretty.\u00a0\u00a0I wish they\u2019d still be alive tomorrow.\u00a0\u00a0I wish my mama and papa had never died.\u00a0\u00a0I wish you were still here, and none of this had ever happened to us.\u00a0\u00a0I wish we could both start over, and just pretend everything, including us, was fresh and new.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling came out of the house, and knelt beside her friend.\u00a0\u00a0They\u00a0\u00a0held each other and wept.<\/p>\n Adam and Jenny watched and waited from a respectful distance.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat\u2019s going to happen to them now?\u201d Jenny asked softly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cFather said something about friends of your pa\u2019s in San Francisco, and that they would give them a respectable job.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d said Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cPa telegraphed a couple of his old friends, and one of them has a wife who runs a dress shop in San Francisco.\u00a0\u00a0They\u2019ve offered to take on one of them, and teach her how to work there.\u00a0\u00a0The other one runs a dry good store, and he and his wife said they\u2019d take one of them, too.\u00a0\u00a0They can learn to live another life, and have a chance.\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny looked at the two grief-stricken girls before her, and wondered if they would ever fully be able to put the horrors of their lives behind them.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cDo you think they can do it?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s up to them,\u201d said Adam.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThis is the opportunity they say they\u2019ve been looking for.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ll need a lot of help,\u201d Jenny managed to say.\u00a0\u00a0Words seemed so inadequate to express the hurdles these young ladies needed to overcome.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ll have it,\u201d Adam assured her, but Jenny wondered if he really understood;\u00a0\u00a0if anyone could understand.<\/p>\n Once Mai Ling and Elise went into the house, Jenny and Adam approached the graves, and looked at the flowers.\u00a0\u00a0Elise certainly had a knack for arranging them.\u00a0\u00a0In the short period of time that the girls had been with them, Elise had helped with the garden, and it was growing better than ever before.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny hoped that this gift would not be neglected or ignored once she left.<\/p>\n Boards stood at the head of each grave, which would suffice for markers until headstones could be made.\u00a0\u00a0Adam had burned the names \u201cMarabelle\u201d and \u201cGrace\u201d into them with a hot poker.\u00a0\u00a0Not even Marabelle\u2019s friends knew her last name.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0When Adam realized that, he had wondered how anyone could notify the girl\u2019s family of her death.\u00a0\u00a0Then he remembered that her family would not wish to know, and most likely would not care.\u00a0\u00a0He recalled the first time he had seen her in the loft, and how stung he had been by her obvious terror that he would beat or otherwise abuse her.<\/p>\n Jenny broke into his thoughts.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAdam, this woman lived with one horror after another, and anyone who might have helped her only gave her judgment and scorn.\u00a0\u00a0I doubt that many, if any at all, of the men who claimed to love her really did so.\u00a0\u00a0How did she get through it?\u00a0\u00a0How did any of them get through it?\u201d \u201cNo, she didn\u2019t,\u201d Jenny softly replied.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut she must have had an awful lot of iron determination to last as long as she did, and to die free, as nobody\u2019s chattel, even though the odds were so against her.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She heard the door slam, and glanced at the house.\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling began gathering vegetables from the garden, while Elise, obviously grumbling beneath her breath, assisted Jenny\u2019s mother with the washing.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThey all must be so strong, simply to have lived from one day to the next.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She didn\u2019t add that she probably would have chosen Mai Ling\u2019s way of escape long before, had she been in their position.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s that kind of strength and iron will that will see them through to a new life in San Francisco,\u201d said Adam.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople there \u2013 men, especially \u2013 may recognize them,\u201d worried Jenny.<\/p>\n \u201cThey may,\u201d Adam agreed.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBut the families they\u2019ll be with will protect them, and stand up for them, if need be.\u00a0\u00a0The rest is up to them.\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny knelt and touched the roses.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhy did she have to die to find peace?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0She crumbled some dirt from the baby\u2019s grave in her fingers.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAnd why did her baby have to die?\u00a0\u00a0Why couldn\u2019t she have found some grace from others, from God, sooner?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0A tear splashed on the ground.<\/p>\n Adam remembered the near-angelic peace on Marabelle\u2019s face as he helped sew the shroud about her before burial.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe found grace, finally,\u201d replied Adam, looking intently at Jenny, and wiping the tear from her cheek.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cShe found it, with some help.\u00a0\u00a0What a shame no one helped her sooner.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He looked at the other two women.\u00a0\u00a0Mai Ling was now snapping beans, while Elise was wringing and hanging clothes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s not too late for those two.\u00a0\u00a0They can start a new life, and have a new beginning.\u00a0\u00a0With some help, they can come to terms with their past, and find their own measure of grace.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He helped Jenny up, and they started toward the house.<\/p>\n Suddenly, Jared\u2019s pony cantered past them.\u00a0\u00a0Jared reined him in, and quickly dismounted.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m hungry!\u201d he announced.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIs dinner ready?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He led his pony into the barn.<\/p>\n Adam pulled his watch from his pocket and smiled.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s not even 11:00, Jared,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll eat in an hour,\u201d promised Jenny.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m hungry now!\u201d came the howl of protest from the barn.<\/p>\n Jenny rolled her eyes.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s always hungry!\u201d<\/p>\n Jared caught up with them as they approached the house.\u00a0\u00a0He slowed down long enough to snatch a few beans from Mai Ling\u2019s bowl.<\/p>\n \u201cHey!\u201d<\/p>\n They all turned at the shout.\u00a0\u00a0Elise was standing, hands on her hips, in front of a pair of trousers she had just hung on the clothesline.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGet your grubby paws out of the green beans!\u201d<\/p>\n Adam tried not to laugh.\u00a0\u00a0If he had harbored any doubts that Elise would be all right in San Francisco, he had them no longer .<\/p>\n \u201cI\u00a0gotta\u00a0wait an hour for dinner, \u2018cause you women are all so slow!\u201d returned Jared hotly.<\/p>\n \u201cJared!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Jenny remonstrated.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGo take care of your pony.\u00a0\u00a0You couldn\u2019t have groomed him already.\u00a0\u00a0Then, you can help weed the garden.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s women\u2019s work!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou can always do the laundry,\u201d suggested Adam.<\/p>\n Jared scowled and dragged his feet all the way to the barn.<\/p>\n Adam and Jenny looked at each other.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny said, \u201cYou don\u2019t suppose he could find a little grace somewhere in the corners of the barn, do you, so we could have a bit of peace here?\u201d<\/p>\n Adam started to laugh, but the smile died on his face as he looked behind Jenny.<\/p>\n \u201cHey, Adam!\u201d<\/p>\n Jenny turned to see Joe near the barn hailing his brother.\u00a0\u00a0He approached the house, dismounted, and tied his horse to the hitching rail.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat are you doing here, Adam?\u00a0\u00a0Pa had a job out at the north pasture he wanted you to do, after you finished with that fence.\u00a0\u00a0He wasn\u2019t too happy that you missed breakfast this morning.\u00a0\u00a0He was going to tell you about the job then.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI ate breakfast,\u201d said Adam quickly.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI just ate it early, that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMust have been plenty early,\u201d said Joe, noticing his older brother\u2019s discomfort and taking pleasure in riling him.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cGuess you had some other mighty important business to attend to, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been fixing that fence all morning!\u201d started Adam.<\/p>\n \u201cOh, all right, all right!\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m just kidding!\u00a0\u00a0But really, Adam, Pa wants to discuss that mining camp with you.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam scratched his ear nervously.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cMining camp?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, mining camp!\u00a0\u00a0You know:\u00a0\u00a0the one you left at least a month ago to check on?\u00a0\u00a0And were way late getting back from?\u00a0\u00a0Pa was worried about you. He figured something must have happened to you, and was looking for you.\u00a0\u00a0We all were, but no one has had a chance to talk about it yet.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019s been waiting for you to give him a report on it, Adam. There was an awful lot going on here the past couple weeks, ever since you got back, so he knew it had to wait.\u00a0\u00a0But now, things are back to normal, and, well, he thought you\u2019d give him a report on it finally this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2026Uh, I\u2026.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Adam wasn\u2019t looking forward to telling his pa about firing the foreman and some of the workers, the swindling, the illegal sale of their timber, the unsafe mine, or of the additional timber he\u2019d already arranged to have sent out to that camp. He hadn\u2019t talked with his father about that trip at all, and the longer he waited to do so, the more ominously it loomed over him.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Adam glanced at Jenny, then at Elise and Mai Ling, hoping for a way of escape.\u00a0\u00a0They all looked back at him.\u00a0\u00a0Joe and Elise particularly enjoyed his discomfort.<\/p>\n Jenny took pity on Adam, and took him by the arm.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cActually, Joe, Adam was going to join us for dinner in a little while.\u00a0\u00a0Why don\u2019t you tell your father he\u2019ll be home later?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m sure he\u2019ll discuss the mining camp with your father then.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cUh, yeah, that\u2019s right!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Adam hurried through the door with Jenny, nearly getting them both stuck in the doorway.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cTell Pa I\u2019ll be home later,\u201d he called over his shoulder.<\/p>\n \u201cLater?\u00a0\u00a0When?\u201d<\/p>\n Comet raced out the door, nearly tripping Adam as he yelled, \u201cJust later, Joe!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0The door\u00a0\u00a0banged shut, nearly cutting off his words.\u00a0\u00a0Joe stared dumbfoundedly at the closed door.\u00a0\u00a0He heard peals of laughter behind him, and turned to see both Elise and Mai Ling laughing heartily.\u00a0\u00a0He realized that he hadn\u2019t yet heard Mai Ling laugh, and that the only humor he had so far observed in Elise was biting sarcasm.\u00a0\u00a0The change in the women was astounding.\u00a0\u00a0They actually looked and sounded happy!\u00a0\u00a0He wondered how long it had been since they had laughed like that.<\/p>\n Joe mounted his horse.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell, ladies,\u201d he said, \u201cit appears that I need to get ready for an interesting discussion this evening.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m sure it will be worth the wait!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He tipped his hat to them, and rode toward the Ponderosa, hearing their laughter follow him for a long time before it finally faded into the heat of the Nevada summer and the sound of his horse\u2019s hooves.<\/p>\n \n \n THE END<\/strong><\/p>\n \n +<\/sup>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0James 4:17, King James Version<\/p>\n ++<\/sup>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I Timothy 5:2, King James Version<\/p>\n +++<\/sup>\u00a0by Robert Herrick, 1591-1674<\/p>\n \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Summary:\u00a0Adam is late coming home from a trip to one of the mines, and gets caught in a dry storm. He takes shelter with one of the Ponderosa`s neighbors, intending to continue home the next morning. Instead, he and his family are caught up in a horrible drama with three runaway prostitutes and their vicious, ruthless vice-lord who is determined to get them back. Sensitive Material<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12436,"featured_media":41001,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"template-full-width-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[1005,23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-63144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-adam-cartwright","category-drama","wpcat-1005-id","wpcat-23-id"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/Preserving-Their-Legacy.png?fit=732%2C477&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63144","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/12436"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=63144"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63144\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/41001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=63144"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=63144"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=63144"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\u201cI thought I heard something \u2013 or somebody.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\u201cThere are?\u201d Adam smiled.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI hope I didn\u2019t throw any of them down with the hay!\u201d<\/p>\n
\nShe didn\u2019t add that she was desperate for adult company, or that she often was nervous when her parents were away.\u00a0\u00a0Though she liked living in the wide open spaces, far enough from town to be alone, yet close enough to be within riding distance of help if necessary, taking care of three children, the house, and outdoor tasks by herself, with no help within calling distance, made her feel too responsible and frightened.\u00a0\u00a0She would welcome his presence in the house, even for just one night.<\/p>\n
\nElise turned on her in fury.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cI told you before, lady, I don\u2019t tell anyone \u2013 not ANYONE \u2013 about myself!\u00a0\u00a0No one knows!\u00a0\u00a0No one will ever know!\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\u201cHe\u2019s an important man, all right,\u201d replied Ben.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s involved in the city\u2019s politics, and is a prominent member of a church there.\u00a0\u00a0He knows how to project a good image, and most folks who know him see him as a good, honorable man who wants to do the best for the town.\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019s a charismatic man:\u00a0\u00a0very good at winning people to his side;\u00a0\u00a0getting people to see things his way.\u00a0\u00a0Most of the men and women in Silver City would not believe that he is capable of what you have witnessed here, much less that he could possibly be involved in the type of business that he\u2019s in. Many people who suspect his dealings on the side can\u2019t prove anything against him.\u00a0\u00a0Everyone is either too well-paid by him to keep quiet, or they\u2019re too afraid to speak up.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\u201cWhen was that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\u201cWe\u2019re a little late for that, aren\u2019t we?\u00a0\u00a0After everyone else has finished using them?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Tears flowed down her cheeks.\u00a0\u00a0She heard a stifled sob behind her, and turned to see Karen crying.\u00a0\u00a0Jenny knelt down and put her free arm about the girl.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cLet\u2019s go outside,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt may be cooler in the shade.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0They went out back, and sat in the shade of a large tree not far from the barn.\u00a0\u00a0They could see Joe and Adam digging two separate graves further away.\u00a0\u00a0Jared had followed them out and was attempting to help, which Jenny gratefully saw was tolerated by the two men.\u00a0\u00a0She turned aside Karen\u2019s questions with \u201cI\u2019ll tell you later\u201d, and sat in somber thought with her two young charges.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cOf course I care!\u201d<\/p>\n
\nAdam looked at his youngest brother in amazement.\u00a0\u00a0His green eyes were flashing fire, and his face lit up with fury.\u00a0\u00a0He knew Joe wasn\u2019t thinking or speaking rationally, but that last accusation, phrased as a question, made Adam\u2019s blood boil.\u00a0\u00a0Whatever his brother may think of him, whatever Joe may have considered to be his \u201cexploits\u201d, whether here at home, on business, or while away at college many years back, he had never treated women with anything less than consideration and respect.\u00a0\u00a0Yes, he had loved women, physically as well as emotionally, but he would never thoughtlessly use any woman and then toss her aside.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cNo.\u00a0\u00a0No.\u00a0\u00a0I never did.\u00a0\u00a0I was told she went to San Francisco, and I looked there, when I went there with Pa, but I never found her.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s why I wanted to go on those trips with Pa so bad a couple of times, because of her.\u00a0\u00a0I looked all over, and asked, too.\u00a0\u00a0No one had ever heard of her.\u00a0\u00a0I offered to pay people a lot of money if they could tell me about her.\u00a0\u00a0But nobody knew anything.\u00a0\u00a0I never found out any more about her.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Joe hung his head and cried, impatiently wiping his face, only to find more tears.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cShe didn\u2019t,\u201d Adam starkly replied.<\/p>\n
\nRating:\u00a0 PG-13\u00a0 (45,870 words)<\/p>\n