Summary: \u00a0Joe Cartwright\u2019s friends are dying and he doesn\u2019t know why.\u00a0 The opening scene of Choices was provided as a part of an SJS for the Devonshire writing challenge.<\/p>\n
Rated: \u00a0MA (subject matter) — \u00a0WC \u00a022,000<\/p>\n
Choices Series:<\/strong><\/p>\n Choices<\/a> Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author.\u00a0 The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise.\u00a0 No copyright infringement is intended.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Choices<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cMan is made or unmade by himself.\u00a0 By the right choice he ascends.\u00a0 As a being of power, intelligence, and love, and the lord of his own thoughts, he holds the key to every situation.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0James Allen<\/p>\n Joe always forgot how cold the middle of the night could get when he was sitting still, doing nothing but watching a bunch of cattle. The moon shone full and round, and the stars sparkled like the lake water on a sunny day\u2014all of which would have been just fine if he\u2019d been in a buggy with Hattie Miller.\u00a0 Even the crisp cold of the breeze that kicked up would have been fine then, because it would have given him an excuse to put his arm around her.<\/p>\n Instead, here he was, all by himself with a bunch of dumb cattle, and Hattie Miller was undoubtedly sound asleep, just like anyone else with a lick of sense.\u00a0 But at least he had Hank Murray to keep him company for middle watch. Hank was new to the Ponderosa, and not much older than Joe, but he\u2019d worked at pretty near every ranch between Kansas and California.\u00a0 At least, that was what he said, and even if he was stretching the truth, there was no question that he was good at what he did.\u00a0 Not that Joe had any plans for nodding off, but it was nice to know that if he did, Hank would be fine.<\/p>\n He yawned as he scanned the moonlit pasture for Hank, who had been assigned to keep watch with him.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t over by the rocks where he\u2019d been a few minutes ago.\u00a0 He must\u2019ve gone to tend to his personal business, Joe decided.\u00a0 Nothing wrong with that.<\/em>\u00a0 His thoughts were just drifting back to Hattie Miller when he heard something that made him sit up straight.\u00a0 A couple of the cattle raised their heads.\u00a0 \u201cEasy, now,\u201d Joe whispered.\u00a0 All it would take was for one or two to spook, and things could get bad fast.\u00a0 He held his breath as he nudged his mount\u2019s sides, trying to move as quietly as possible. He wanted to call out for Hank, but he\u2019d be more likely to waken the herd and the sleeping cowboys than to get Hank\u2019s attention from wherever he was.<\/p>\n \u201cJoe!\u201d<\/p>\n Joe\u2019s head snapped around. He didn\u2019t recognize the voice, but it sounded harsh, hoarse, and full of pain.\u00a0 Without thinking, he drew his gun.\u00a0 All traces of sleepiness vanished.<\/p>\n \u201cWho\u2019s there?\u201d he hissed.<\/p>\n \u201cJoe!\u201d The voice was closer.<\/p>\n \u201cWho\u2019s there?\u201d He still didn\u2019t see anybody.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s me.\u201d A dark figure\u2014on foot\u2014stumbled toward him.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat the\u2014Hank?\u201d\u00a0 Frantically, Joe looked around. The herd wasn\u2019t moving, but that didn\u2019t mean everything couldn\u2019t change in a second.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t just leave them, but something was wrong here.\u00a0 He was about to call out when Hank fell, landing solidly against one of the cattle, and that was all it took. The beast heaved itself up with a deep, startled moan.\u00a0 In the next instant, it was as though the earth itself was rising up with a roar.\u00a0 Joe shouted in an effort to divert the herd, and the peace of the night gave way to the thundering of hooves, the clashing of horns, and the yelling of cowboys.<\/p>\n It seemed forever before the herd was settled.\u00a0 Nobody was sleeping now; they were staked around the herd, watching. They\u2019d be slower tomorrow as a result, but it couldn\u2019t be helped.<\/p>\n \u201cDid you see what spooked them?\u201d Ben Cartwright asked.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was\u2014Pa, have you seen Hank?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHank?\u00a0 Hank Murray?\u201d<\/p>\n Joe nodded.\u00a0 \u201cSomething was wrong.\u00a0 He was supposed to be over on the other side, but he was coming over here, and he was on foot.\u00a0 He fell on one of the cattle and startled it.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben shook his head.\u00a0 Even in the moonlight, Joe could see his father frown. \u201cIf he was down when it started. . . .\u201d\u00a0 He didn\u2019t need to finish.<\/p>\n \u201cWe should go back anyway, Pa.\u00a0 Even if we\u2019ve just gotta bury him.\u201d<\/p>\n His father nodded, barked orders to the nearest men and turned to Joe.\u00a0 \u201cShow me where he was.\u201d<\/p>\n They rode in silence to where Joe had been keeping watch.\u00a0 \u201cHe was right here,\u201d he said, considering the place where he\u2019d last seen Hank.\u00a0 “He was walking real unsteady, and he was calling me, and then he fell.\u201d\u00a0 He considered the place where he\u2019d last seen Hank.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe he got himself out of the way.\u201d\u00a0 Ben allowed himself a small smile that Joe knew was a credit to his hopefulness.\u00a0 Adam always said that Joe would believe for something long after any sensible fellow would have given up and gone home.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cJoe!\u201d The voice was hoarser, weaker, but unquestionably the same.<\/p>\n \u201cHank!\u201d\u00a0 Joe was off his horse in a flash, with Pa right behind him. \u201cHank, where are you?\u201d His eyes strained in the darkness.<\/p>\n \u201cHere.\u201d\u00a0 There, in the shadow of a rock, lay Hank.<\/p>\n Ben knelt beside him. \u201cJust take it easy,\u201d he said in that soothing voice Joe knew so well. \u201cJoe, get me your canteen.\u201d\u00a0 Joe obeyed, and Pa held it to the injured man\u2019s lips.\u00a0 \u201cTake it easy, now, Hank.\u00a0 We\u2019ll get you back to camp.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d\u00a0 Hank reached up as if to grab Pa\u2019s vest.\u00a0 \u201cJoe. . . .\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m right here, Hank.\u201d\u00a0 Joe bent over him.\u00a0 Then, he whispered, \u201cPa?\u201d\u00a0 Ben nodded acknowledging he\u2019d seen it, too; Hank\u2019s face was bruised and bloody. Joe had seen men trampled by cattle, and they didn\u2019t look anything like that.\u00a0 Hank looked like he\u2019d been beaten by somebody\u2019s fists.<\/p>\n \u201cHank, what happened?\u201d asked the elder Cartright.<\/p>\n \u201cJoe.\u201d The word was more breath than sound.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m here, Hank.\u00a0 What happened?\u201d\u00a0 Joe tried to get a better look at the man\u2019s injuries.<\/p>\n \u201cBe . . . careful.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCareful of what?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLooking . . . for . . . you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWho\u2019s looking for Joe?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Ben asked. \u201cWhat do they want?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCareful.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJust save your strength now, Hank.\u00a0 We\u2019ll talk when we get you back to camp.\u201d<\/p>\n Hank reached up and caught hold of Ben\u2019s vest, pulling him closer.\u00a0 The injured man whispered something Joe couldn\u2019t hear. Then, his hand dropped, and his head fell back.<\/p>\n \u201cIs he\u2014\u201d Joe broke off as Ben nodded.\u00a0 They sat silently beside the dead man for a respectful minute before Joe asked, \u201cWhat did he say, Pa?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLet\u2019s just get him back to camp.\u00a0 Bring my horse over here.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe did as he was told.\u00a0 Once they\u2019d loaded the body onto Buck he asked again, \u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n His father turned to him, eyes somber.\u00a0 \u201cHe said\u2014they wanted you.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Back at camp, Adam quickly reorganized the watch sending his youngest brother to get some rest despite the fact he had only come on duty a few hours before the stampede.\u00a0 For once Joe didn\u2019t argue but instead crawled into his bedroll and pulled a woolen blanket over his head.\u00a0 The silent shaking of the cloth quickly betrayed earlier protestations that he was \u201cfine.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam handed a tin cup of hot coffee to his father and whispered, \u201cDid you see what happened?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u00a0 Joe said Hank called to him then fell.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFell?\u00a0 Off his horse?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u00a0 He was on foot.\u201d\u00a0 Ben shrugged in response to Adam\u2019s obvious disbelief that any cowboy would walk among cattle.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s possible Hank may have been attacked beforehand.\u201d\u00a0 When Adam didn\u2019t react, he added, \u201cYou don\u2019t seem surprised.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe his past caught up with him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJoe trusted him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJoe trusts a lot of people he shouldn\u2019t like Dave Donovan.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s also been right about others like Danny Kidd.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFair enough; and Hank has been a hard worker in the few months he\u2019s been with us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll take the body into the Sheriff in the morning.\u00a0\u00a0 Can you get along without the two of us?\u00a0 Roy will surely want to talk to Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam nodded.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re close enough to the grazing pastures.\u00a0 Another day should do it.\u00a0 We\u2019ll be fine.\u201d<\/p>\n On the road to Virginia City the next morning, Ben allowed his uncharacteristically quiet son the room to grieve the loss of his friend in his own way.\u00a0 Without Joe\u2019s incessant chatter, however, Ben found his thoughts wandering through his own youth recalling friends met and lost at sea.\u00a0 Images of places and events lapped at his memory as waves upon those foreign shores.\u00a0 After his wife died and he journeyed west with his infant son, the prairie had become yet another ocean, another sea of waving grass to conquer, filled with people\u2014and loves\u2014long lost but not forgotten.<\/p>\n \u201cPa . . .\u00a0 Pa!\u00a0 We\u2019re here, slow up.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben shook himself out of his reverie and acknowledged Joe\u2019s admonition with a sheepish grin.\u00a0 \u201cYou caught me day dreaming, son.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMust be nice.\u00a0 Guess a drink will have to do.\u201d Joe was half way down the boardwalk towards the Bucket of Blood before Ben could respond.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat have we got here?\u201d Roy Coffee asked as he approached the pack horse next to Buck.<\/p>\n Ben forced his eyes to leave the back of his retreating son and look at the law man.\u00a0 \u201cHank Murray.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cStampede . . . or murder.\u00a0 It\u2019s not clear which.\u201d<\/p>\n With the help of the deputy and a passerby, the body was carried into Paul Martin\u2019s office for an examination.\u00a0 The results were inconclusive and with no evidence to the contrary, Hank Murray\u2019s death was ruled accidental and he was buried without further delay.<\/p>\n Life on the ranch went on as usual until six weeks later when Slim Russell was found slumped over the seat of a Ponderosa freight wagon behind the mercantile where he\u2019d been loading supplies\u2014multiple gunshots to the chest, his gun still in its holster, an ace of spades clutched in his hand.\u00a0 And no one saw a thing.<\/p>\n Joe had been breaking horses in full sight of a dozen or more ranch hands that day.\u00a0 Nevertheless, at the funeral Slim\u2019s friends closed ranks and shut Joe out leaving him to stand with his family a distance away.\u00a0 Sensing his distress, his brothers suggested a cold beer before heading home and Ben told them to go ahead without him.<\/p>\n When the three walked into the Silver Dollar, you could hear a pin drop.<\/p>\n \u201cThree beers, Cosmo,\u201d said Adam.\u00a0 \u201cAnd make \u2018em cold.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSure \u2018nough.\u00a0 Three beers comin\u2019 up.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t bother, barkeep,\u201d a gruff voice said. \u201cThe Cartwrights aren\u2019t welcome here, especially this one,\u201d he added, shoving Joe hard.<\/p>\n \u201cNow just a minute fella,\u201d Hoss positioned himself between Joe and the aggressor.\u00a0 \u201cThis here\u2019s a public saloon\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c\u2014and this here\u2019s a private wake for Slim\u2019s friends; he ain\u2019t one of \u2018em!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLook here\u2014\u201d Adam started, but when the man who rivaled Hoss in size spun around with fire in his eyes and his hand on his gun, Adam put his hands up, open palms face out, away from his holster.\u00a0 \u201c\u2014Mister?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMcGready.\u00a0 Mike McGready, foreman of the Box T over in Fallon.\u00a0 Slim worked for me until this runt,\u201d he gestured at Joe, \u201chired him away.\u00a0 Slim would be alive today if it weren\u2019t for him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt seems to me where Slim worked was his decision, not yours . . . or Joe\u2019s; he only did the offering.\u00a0 Since Slim stayed on for more than one season, he must have been happy working for us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s your opinion.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, it is.\u00a0 You\u2019re entitled to yours.\u00a0 And we\u2019re entitled to have a drink in this fine establishment.\u00a0 Cosmo, the beers.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe had been watching the faces of the men at the tables while his brothers and McGready were talking.\u00a0 Some of the patrons must have been from the Box T because he didn\u2019t know them, but the others were either acquaintances or friends Joe had made through Slim.\u00a0 They had played poker and caroused together in saloons across the Comstock for nearly two years, but when he looked in their eyes, he saw nothing but recrimination.<\/p>\n \u201cForget it,\u201d he mumbled and turned to leave but Hoss grabbed his arm.<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t see as we\u2019ll be botherin\u2019 ya none, Mr. McGready.\u00a0 We\u2019re just fixin\u2019 to wet our whistles before headin\u2019 home.\u201d\u00a0 Hoss picked up the stein and drained it, all the while maintaining his grip on Joe\u2019s elbow.<\/p>\n Adam emptied his glass a second later and threw some coins on the bar.\u00a0 \u201cSee ya, Cosmo.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 On the way out he grabbed Joe\u2019s other elbow and together the three Cartwrights exited through the batwing doors.\u00a0 Half way across the street, Joe dug his heels in and broke free, sprinting back to the Silver Dollar where he intended to finish his beer . . . slowly.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Adam and Hoss rode home behind Joe who was slumped over his saddle horn, nursing a bruised stomach.\u00a0 The older brothers were both in a foul mood and the long ride at a snail\u2019s pace wasn\u2019t improving their disposition.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t until they dismounted in the yard that Adam saw the blood on the front of Joe\u2019s shirt where he\u2019d been pressing his hand.\u00a0 Leaving the horses to a wrangler, he whisked Joe inside.<\/p>\n \u201cJust what did you think you were going to accomplish with that little stunt?\u201d Adam hissed, barely restraining his temper as he cleaned and bandaged a deep gash on Joe\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was your idea to go for a beer, remember?\u00a0 Ow!\u201d\u00a0 Joe tried to jerk his hand away and get up from the settee but Adam\u2019s grip was firm and Hoss pushed him back down.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, and vacating the premises when it was clear we weren\u2019t welcome was also our idea.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf you\u2019ll recall, I wanted to leave as soon as we got there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen why did you go back?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss wondered.<\/p>\n Joe countered, \u201cSince when do the Cartwright brothers let outsiders run them out of their own saloon?\u201d<\/p>\n Adam shook his head in disbelief.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cJoe, you are not a kid any longer, you\u2019re 23.\u00a0 There are over a hundred saloons in Virginia City and none of them belong to us.\u00a0 Getting in a bar fight over who has the right to drink in one of them is . . . is\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIs what?\u00a0 Stupid?\u00a0 Is that it?\u00a0 You think I\u2019m stupid to stand my ground?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u00a0 Childish is more like it.\u00a0 I asserted our right to be there and Hoss found a way for us to exit gracefully so everyone could win.\u00a0 Only you had to go back and rub our presence in McGready\u2019s face.\u00a0 It\u2019s a wonder you were able to walk away.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOne punch.\u00a0 One lucky punch, that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat about your hand?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat was an accident.\u00a0 I fell on some broken glass.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGlass?\u201d\u00a0 Hoss asked, exchanging glances with Adam.<\/p>\n \u201cAargh!\u201d\u00a0 Adam started unwrapping the bandage he had just tied while Hoss fetched an oil lamp and a magnifying glass.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d Joe again tried to pull his hand away, but Adam maintained his tight grip.<\/p>\n \u201cLooking for glass.\u00a0 Why didn\u2019t you tell me this cut wasn\u2019t caused by a knife?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOw!\u00a0 Stop poking!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI have to make sure there are no fragments in there or you\u2019ll get an infection.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere was just one shard; I pulled it out.\u201d\u00a0 The doubt fairly radiated from his elder brother.\u00a0 \u201cReally, Adam, it\u2019s okay.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s your left hand, Joseph.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe looked up at Hoss and saw a flicker of fear in his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cAll right, go ahead and poke,\u201d he said, giving up the struggle.<\/p>\n When Adam was satisfied the wound was clean, he re-wrapped the bandage while Hoss gathered the first-aid supplies and tidied up.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s going to be no way to hide this from Pa, is there?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cUnlikely.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe’s shoulders slumped as he let out a long breath.\u00a0 “I’m going to bed.”\u00a0 He rose slowly, cradling his hand to his chest.\u00a0 When he reached the stairs, he took hold of the banister and without turning said, “Thanks.”<\/p>\n Adam watched Joe haul himself up the stairs one step at a time.\u00a0 He didn’t hear the door close and surmised it was left open so his brother would know when their father arrived.\u00a0 Oh, Joe.\u00a0 So old and yet so young.<\/em><\/p>\n After a minute, Adam heaved a deep sigh as well and went to the kitchen.\u00a0 Hoss had finished washing and drying the basin and was pouring coffee.\u00a0 Without being asked, he handed the first mug to Adam and poured himself another.\u00a0 The two brothers sat in companionable silence at the table and listened to voices from the bunkhouse which could be heard over the muted strains of a guitar and concertina.\u00a0 Soon a reedy tenor began signing.<\/p>\n “Milo sure has a purty voice, doncha think?”\u00a0 Hoss asked.<\/p>\n “Hmm,\u201d Adam responded noncommittally and retrieved the coffee pot.\u00a0 \u201cOn key at least, which is an improvement over the usual songs we hear from those cowboys.”<\/p>\n Hoss held his hand over his mug to signal he had had enough.\u00a0 “Might as well talk about tomorrow. Joe won’t be much help for a couple days.\u00a0 Dependin’ on what you got lined up, we’ll need to shift the men around a bit.”<\/p>\n “Right.”\u00a0 Adam ran through a mental list of work to be done and the men available.\u00a0 “Actually, I think we’re in good shape.\u00a0 The Army contracts were fulfilled ahead of schedule thanks to Joe.\u00a0\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t going to scout for mustangs until next month and he’ll be able to rope and lasso by then.\u00a0 For now, he can ride fence.\u00a0 Make sure he wears gloves.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAw, he\u2019s gonna hate that.\u00a0 Never did like wearing anything on his hands or feet.\u00a0 Remember, this is the kid that went barefoot for years; never could get him to wear shoes until Mama brought back those boots from San Francisco.\u00a0 Whoo-ee!\u00a0 Tiny little things they was.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam choked on his coffee as a vision came to mind.\u00a0 \u201cHe was still in dresses and clomping around in those boots.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe couldn\u2019t get \u2018em off him.\u00a0 Slept in \u2018em.\u00a0 Probably woulda taken a bath in \u2018em if we\u2019d let him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWho knows, maybe someday we\u2019ll have as much trouble getting gloves off him as on.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019ll be the day!\u201d Hoss snorted, and the two brothers broke out in fresh peals of laughter, feeling better for the respite after they day they\u2019d had.\u00a0 When they settled down, both refocused on business.\u00a0 \u201cWho ya thinkin\u2019 of to take Slim\u2019s place?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWes Turner.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat about the haying?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDakota can fill in.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDakota has sneezin\u2019 fits around hay, Adam; he can\u2019t get anywhere near that stuff.\u00a0 Let him fill the empty slot on B crew and move Wes to A crew until the haying is done.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam thought through the suggestion, considering the mix of personalities and work ethics and nodded his head.\u00a0 Unlike other spreads where men were classed by task\u2014drover, wrangler, etc.\u2014and work was predominantly the same day in and day out with only slight variations, the Ponderosa ran multiple crews.\u00a0 Sure, they hired seasonally for major events like round up and branding, but otherwise they rotated crew assignments.\u00a0 Not only did that keep the men from getting bored, but it assured that no one person was repeatedly stuck with the unpleasant jobs like gelding.\u00a0 It also made for ranch hands who were cross-trained and able to fill in gaps when they were down a man.<\/p>\n \u201cGood thinking, Hoss.\u00a0 We can reassess in a month.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam rocked back in the kitchen chair, hooking a boot under the table rung to keep his balance.\u00a0 From a management perspective, multiple crews also allowed for the shifting of good men to alternate assignments when temperament or personality conflicts warranted a change without drawing attention to that fact.\u00a0 I wonder.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cHank and Slim were on different crews,\u201d he mused out loud.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, do you recall if they ever worked together?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAside from that drive to California last year, they not only worked on separate crews but in opposite corners of the ranch.\u00a0 What are you thinkin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJust wondering if there was a connection between them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t see how.\u00a0 Different interests; different friends.\u00a0 Their only connection would have been . . .\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJoe.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou reckon that\u2019s what Joe\u2019s thinkin\u2019 too?\u201d<\/p>\n Adam nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd you think he went back in that saloon deliberate like?\u00a0 I mean not just to prove a point?\u201d<\/p>\n Again a nod.\u00a0 \u201cI think he baited McGready, hoping for exactly what he got.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s plum loco, Adam!\u00a0 Why would he do that?\u201d<\/p>\n Adam raised his eyebrow.\u00a0 It took a moment for those crystal blue eyes to close in comprehension.<\/p>\n \u201cHe feels responsible,\u201d groaned Hoss, \u201cand thought he deserved it.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Joe heard his father ride in; heard the door open and muffled voices downstairs punctuated by \u201cHe what?\u201d <\/em>and \u201cWhat were you thinking?\u201d <\/em>\u00a0Then silence.\u00a0 He could picture his father pacing and waited for the sound of his boots on the stairs, which didn\u2019t immediately come.\u00a0 He dozed off, but soon became aware of his father\u2019s presence in the doorway.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m awake, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI understand you fell on some glass?\u201d<\/p>\n Joe raised his left hand so his father could see the bandage.<\/p>\n \u201cDoes it hurt much?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m fine.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat wasn\u2019t my question.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot much.\u00a0 Adam cleaned it out and said it didn\u2019t need stitches.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMmm.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m fine, Pa.\u00a0 I can still work.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not whether, it\u2019s where.\u00a0 I want you to stay on the ranch; no going into Virginia City or anywhere else, do you understand?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYessir.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd, Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not your fault . . . Hank, Slim.\u00a0 You\u2019re not to blame for their deaths.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhatever you say, Pa.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cI DON\u201dT KNOW!\u201d<\/p>\n “Joseph, there is no need to shout,” Ben said firmly.\u00a0 He, Adam, and Hoss were standing at the foot of the dining room table perusing the wanted posters Sheriff Roy Coffee had brought for everyone to look at.<\/p>\n “I’m sorry, Pa, but how many times do I have to say it?\u00a0 I don\u2019t know what Hank meant when he said it was me that was wanted.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know who would want to kill Slim or Wes.\u00a0 I don\u2019t remember having trouble with anyone.\u00a0 And I don\u2019t know any of these men!” Joe shouted as he swept the sheaf of papers from the table and bolted towards the front room.<\/p>\n Quick as lightning, his father grabbed him by the arm.\u00a0 “Just where do you think you’re going?”<\/p>\n “To the outhouse,” Joe fairly screamed, breaking\u00a0free of Ben’s grip.\u00a0 “Tell the\u00a0whole world, why don’t you!!”<\/p>\n Ben started to retort, but thought better of it.\u00a0 Instead, he\u00a0turned to Hoss and jerked his head in the direction of the door that just slammed into the credenza.<\/p>\n Hoss nodded and hurried out after Little Joe,\u00a0looking pointedly at\u00a0Adam as he passed.<\/p>\n “Don’t you think you’re being a little unreasonable?” Adam said, quietly.\u00a0 “He needs some<\/strong> privacy.”<\/p>\n “Until this situation is resolved, that boy is to go nowhere unaccompanied.\u00a0 NOWHERE\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0do you understand me?”\u00a0 Ben\u00a0poked his finger in Adam’s chest as he\u00a0accentuated each word.<\/p>\n “Now, Ben,” began Roy.\u00a0 “Adam’s got a point.\u00a0 Little Joe is home.\u00a0 He should be fine on the Ponderosa.”<\/p>\n “And you!” Ben swung his finger towards the Sheriff, “You have been badgering my son with questions for days now and you’re no closer to finding\u00a0who’s behind these murders than you were when you started.\u00a0 And I’ll remind you that he was home ON THE PONDEROSA when Hank was beaten to death three months ago; he was home ON THE PONDEROSA when Slim was\u00a0shot a month and a half later;\u00a0and he was home ON THE PONDEROSA when Wes was\u00a0hung in our hayloft ON THE PONDEROSA three weeks ago!”<\/p>\n “Now, Ben,” the Sheriff replied.\u00a0 “I recall ya told me it mighta been\u00a0that stampede that did Hank in.”<\/p>\n Ben grabbed the back of the heavy, carved\u00a0dining chair he was standing\u00a0behind and lifted, then dropped it as he let out a primal, “Arrgh!” and threw his arms up in the air.<\/p>\n Not liking his father’s color, Adam\u00a0interceded, “Roy, I know you came into this investigation late but, official report or not, the Doc felt that Hank died of injuries consistent with a beating, not in the stampede.\u00a0 Before he died, Slim said the same thing Hank did .\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0that someone was\u00a0looking for Joe.\u00a0\u00a0And Wes\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0well, Wes was long dead when we found him hung in the hayloft, but the card pinned to his chest said it all.”<\/p>\n Roy fished the playing card out of his pocket and turned it over.\u00a0 They all paused to stare at the Ace of Spades, universally known as the death card.\u00a0 Across the face of it was written, \u2018Three\u2014Death by Hanging.\u2019\u201d\u00a0 Slim\u2019s body had been found with an Ace that said \u2018Two\u2014Death by Gunshot.\u201d\u00a0 They had not found a card on Hank, but attributed that fact to the stampede or their own ignorance in not recognizing the card\u2014if there was one\u2014for what it was.<\/p>\n \u201cThe problem is,\u201d Roy continued, \u201cthere is no name or demand; no hint of who is behind this.\u00a0 I know I’m pesterin’ the boy, Ben, but he must know something that he’s not telling us.”<\/p>\n Adam retrieved the fallen posters from the floor and tossed them on the table. “You\u00a0don\u2019t really\u00a0believe Joe knows someone here,\u00a0do you? He’s just as perplexed as we are, Roy, and he’s beside himself with worry about the safety of people around him.\u00a0 He hasn\u2019t been into Virginia City in two months; he\u2019s cut himself off from Hattie Miller, and he\u2019s going stir crazy with us watching every move he makes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI can see that, Adam,\u201d replied Roy, patiently.\u00a0 \u201cBut time\u2019s running out.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben and Adam exchanged a look, knowing full well what the Sheriff was getting at.<\/p>\n The interval between murders was growing shorter.<\/p>\n Joe could count as well as anyone\u2014even if Adam always maintained arithmetic was not his strong suit.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t need his brother to smack him upside the head like he used to when he got his division tables wrong.\u00a0 Not this time.\u00a0 Joe Cartwright knew the days between each murder were halved and so he had returned to the house after doing his business, made his apologies to the Sheriff and his father, and asked if he could go to bed.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course, son.\u00a0 Get a good night\u2019s sleep; you\u2019ll feel better in the morning.\u201c <\/em><\/p>\n \u201cNite, Shortshanks.\u00a0 Sleep tight.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll figure this out together, kid.\u00a0 Don\u2019t worry.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Instead, Joe went up the stairs and out the window taking nothing with him but the clothes on his back, an apple he pilfered from the table, and what money he could quickly find.\u00a0 He\u2019d had a few dollars squirreled away in a jar in the bottom drawer of his dresser and he knew where Adam and Hoss kept their stash.\u00a0 To ease his conscience, he left them each an IOU and made a quick exit, dropping quietly to the ground from the hallway window and made his way down to the lower corral.\u00a0 Using only sweet whispers and the apple, he caught and mounted one of the newly-broke mares and rode bareback away from the ranch as fast as he could.\u00a0 He figured he had about six hours before they came after him\u2014less if his father checked on him before going to bed which he was bound to do.\u00a0 It was a long shot, but Joe figured with the new moon Hoss would advise waiting until first light to better read his spore.\u00a0 With luck, he had bought enough time to raid one of the line shacks for supplies and be well on his way before they found his trail.<\/p>\n There was no time to retrieve saddlebags, so at the first shack Joe came to he fashioned a pack of sorts, filling it with jerky and some canned goods.\u00a0 At the second shack he added matches, rope, a knife and\u2014as a last thought\u2014a jacket against the colder nights about to come.\u00a0 He hated to leave the mare behind, but without a saddle and bridle, there was no way she could take him where he was going, and with the Ponderosa brand newly burnt into her hide, she would mark him for sure.\u00a0 So, with a heavy heart he turned the horse loose where there was sweet grass and plenty of water and headed out on foot over the mountains.<\/p>\n At first things went well.\u00a0 The nights were warm and Joe loved being alone, under the stars, not having to worry someone else was going to pay the price for knowing him.\u00a0 The thing he regretted most was not being able to go to the lake to visit his mother\u2019s grave before he left because he knew that was the first place his family would look for him.\u00a0 Before going to sleep, Joe made a wish on his Mama\u2019s star and blew her a kiss, hoping she would understand and continue to watch over him like his Pa said she always would.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cConfound that boy!\u201d\u00a0 Hoss was angry, but his fury masked an underlying fear that permeated every fiber of his being.\u00a0 Joe was in way over his head on this one.\u00a0 There was a maniac out there with Joe in his sights and Hoss felt totally powerless.\u00a0 It was not a feeling he was accustomed to.<\/p>\n \u201cDid he leave you a note, too?\u201d Adam asked.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, asked me to take care of Cochise and that he owed me twice what he took.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI get to look after Pa and get a triple return.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDadburnit!\u00a0 I\u2019m gonna tan his hide!\u201d<\/p>\n Hoss carefully surveyed the terrain, placing his size 15 feet carefully so as not to disturb tracks if there were any.\u00a0 Only there weren’t.<\/p>\n “Dagnnabit!” he exclaimed, beating his sugarloaf hat against his leg.<\/p>\n “What?\u00a0 What did you find?” Ben shouted.\u00a0 He and Adam and two other ranch hands were waiting on the main trail while Hoss looked for leads.<\/p>\n \u201cNothing!\u00a0 That’s what I found . . . nothing!”<\/p>\n As soon as he was sure he wouldn’t be spoiling any evidence, Hoss stomped down to where the men were waiting with Chubb.<\/p>\n “I’m sorry, Pa.\u00a0 I done failed ya.\u00a0 I’m just so sorry.”<\/p>\n “Hoss, it’s not your fault.\u00a0 You did your best.”<\/p>\n “You didn’t fail, Hoss,” Adam added.\u00a0 “If anything, you were a success.”<\/p>\n “Huh?\u00a0 How do you figure that?”<\/p>\n “You finally taught Joe how to cover his tracks!”\u00a0 Adam observed lightly, trying to ease Hoss’s mood.\u00a0 “Remember all those failed lessons with Joe when he was just a kid?\u00a0\u00a0 We would give him an hour’s head start and then come looking for him.\u00a0 The longest he stayed “hidden” was ten minutes.\u00a0 Joe was pretty good at following tracks, he just never could seem to get the hang of covering them.”<\/p>\n “Yeah!” Hoss brightened for a minute, then cursed again.\u00a0 “Dadburn, ornery, son of\u2014”<\/p>\n “Hoss!”<\/p>\n “\u2014sorry, Pa.\u00a0 I’m just so darn mad at him.”<\/p>\n “I know Hoss, we all are. \u00a0He knows the family sticks together.\u00a0 Taking this on alone is no solution.”<\/p>\n “No, it isn\u2019t,” agreed Adam, “but it’s not surprising he ran.\u00a0 We were smothering him; Joe doesn’t take well to having his freedom limited.”<\/p>\n “Reckon he’ll head out of the territory?”<\/p>\n “I don’t know, Hoss.\u00a0\u00a0 It’s possible.\u00a0 Pa?”<\/p>\n “Maybe.\u00a0 How much money did you say he had with him, Adam?”<\/p>\n “Two hundred from me.\u00a0 Forty from Hoss and whatever he had of his own.”<\/p>\n “That’s enough for a bench seat to New York or anywhere in between if he had a mind to,” Ben groaned.<\/p>\n “Joe might still be in the territory,” Adam said.\u00a0 “I propose we hire some extra men to keep looking north, east, south of here; into California or down to Arizona if we have to.”<\/p>\n “Offer a reward, Adam, but you make sure they understand this is no bounty hunt.\u00a0 He needs to be found and kept safe until we can get there . . . wherever \u2018there\u2019 is.”<\/p>\n “Yes, sir.”<\/p>\n \u201cAnd did you talk to Mitch?”<\/p>\n “He’s still in St. Louis, but his Pa’ll bring him in to see Roy soon as he gets back.”<\/p>\n Although Mitch and Joe had come to a tentative truce following a serious falling out several years before, they didn\u2019t spend a lot of time together.\u00a0 Joe helped out at the Devlin Ranch on occasion and Mitch did likewise at the Ponderosa, but the days of them being inseparable had passed.<\/p>\n “Ain’t there nothing else we can do, Pa?”\u00a0 Hoss said.<\/p>\n “Pray, son.\u00a0 We can pray the good Lord sees fit to watch over your impetuous younger brother.”\u00a0\u00a0 More than usual.<\/em><\/p>\n “Joseph, Joseph, Joseph.\u00a0 What are you thinking?”\u00a0 Ben looked heavenward for an answer, but there was none forthcoming.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n “That was a delicious meal, Hop Sing,” Sheriff Coffee remarked, pushing back from the table and rubbing his stomach.\u00a0 “I always appreciate being invited to supper at the Ponderosa.”<\/p>\n The cook was pleased.\u00a0 “You tell Hop Sing favorite dish.\u00a0 I make for you next time.”<\/p>\n After Hop Sing cleared the last of the dishes and set a fresh pot of coffee on the table, Roy got down to the business he came for.<\/p>\n “I did what you asked and sent telegrams to all the rail stations between here and San Francisco, east to New York and south to New Orleans.”<\/p>\n “New Orleans?”\u00a0 Ben startled at the prospect.<\/p>\n “You know Joe’s always talked about going there someday, Pa,\u201d Adam said gently. Noting the way Ben\u2019s shoulders sagged in defeat at the prospect, he added, “We really should consider all possibilities and we\u2019ve exhausted every lead we\u2019ve had so far.”<\/p>\n Acknowledging the truth of that statement, Ben nodded.\u00a0 \u201cThank you, Roy.\u00a0 I know those telegrams are a long shot, but as Adam pointed out, we are grasping at straws.”<\/p>\n “I understand, Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoss pulled a face which did not go unnoticed.<\/p>\n “What is it, son?”<\/p>\n “Pa, I know ya\u2019s not wanting to leave any stone unturned, but I don’t reckon Joe would do any of those things you’re talking about.\u00a0\u00a0 This is his home.\u00a0 I just don’t believe he would leave the Ponderosa.”<\/p>\n “Boy’s got a point, Ben.\u00a0 Joe knows every nook and cranny of this ranch, you told me so yourself.\u00a0 We need to think like him.”<\/p>\n “Ha,” Adam snorted. “Joe’s thought process at the best of times is often irrational.\u00a0 I can’t begin to imagine what he’s thinking now.”<\/p>\n “Well, he ain’t thinking about running away!\u00a0 He ain’t no coward.”\u00a0 Hoss said indignantly.<\/p>\n “I never thought he was.”<\/p>\n “That’s enough, both of you!” Ben thundered.\u00a0 “Hoss, no one is implying that Joe ran away because he was a coward.\u00a0 Do I think he’s afraid?\u00a0 Of course I do, but he’s not afraid for himself . . . he’s afraid of what is happening to people he knows.\u00a0 In his mind, if he stays away from people\u2014like us, his friends, his girl\u2014they will be safe.”<\/p>\n “So what are ya thinkin\u2019, Hoss?” asked Roy.<\/p>\n “He walked out of here with nothing.\u00a0 His jacket and hat are still on the hook over there.\u00a0 He didn’t take food or water.”<\/p>\n “Or Cochise.\u00a0 Or any other horse in the barn.”\u00a0 Adam added.<\/p>\n “What about the lower stables, Adam?\u00a0 The working stock?”\u00a0 Ben asked.<\/p>\n “All accounted for.”<\/p>\n “Say, what about those new mustangs you were telling me about?” Roy asked.<\/p>\n “I’ll get Charlie.”\u00a0 Adam exited through the kitchen to the bunkhouse.\u00a0 A few minutes later, he returned with a younger man in tow.<\/p>\n Carlos Little Feather, a Mexican-Paiute half-breed (Charlie to his friends), was Joe’s right hand when it came to managing the horses.\u00a0 The family had had their doubts when Joe picked him over a more experienced wrangler to oversee the remuda, but as usual, Joe’s sixth sense about people and horses and putting them together was correct.\u00a0 Charlie also had an uncanny knack for reading a horse’s temperament and finding it a suitable rider . . . for that is how Charlie approached the task, not the other way around.\u00a0 His style suited Joe who was often amused at the reaction of the cowboys when told they weren’t “right” for a particular horse rather than the reverse.<\/p>\n “You wanted to see me, Mr. Cartwright?”<\/p>\n “Yes, Charlie, thank you for coming in.\u00a0 We’re trying to figure out if Joe was on foot or on horseback when he left the ranch.\u00a0 We’ve accounted for all working stock.\u00a0 How many mustangs did you and Joe round up?\u00a0 I counted twenty-five in the corral this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n Charlie thought a moment, then responded, “Twenty-eight.\u00a0 We let two go immediately.\u00a0 Too old.\u00a0 Then we branded a few straight off that Joe wanted for breeding.\u201d<\/p>\n “We need to track one of those horses, Charlie,” Hoss said quietly.\u00a0 “Joe’s gone.\u00a0 We think he mighta taken one of \u2018em when he left here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNone of the horses have been shod, much less broke.”<\/p>\n \u201cDid he seem partial to any when you were rounding them up?” Ben asked.<\/p>\n Charlie stared at the floor thinking.\u00a0 When he raised his head, he looked straight at Hoss.\u00a0 “Si.\u00a0 There was a skewbald mare that took a shine to Joe; started following him, watching him.\u00a0 Ella es dulce en \u00e9l,\u201d he smiled.\u00a0 \u201cShe is sweet on him, I think.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Ben unrolled a large map of the Ponderosa and placed it on the dining table.\u00a0 Unlike the one on the wall behind his desk, this map was topographic, showing the contours of the terrain with detailed markings related to ranch operations\u2014pastures, the mill, corrals, stables, hay barns, equipment sheds, etc.<\/p>\n “All right.\u00a0 “There are line shacks starting here.”\u00a0 Ben pointed to an area on the map and tapped his finger at each landmark he identified.\u00a0 \u201cAnd here.\u00a0 Then more up over the ridge, here, here, and here, and across the divide and back down over here.”<\/p>\n “I think we should send three or four men and have them fan out to cover each section.\u00a0 Tell them to look for any sign that Joe was there or stocked up and report back as soon as possible\u2014shouldn\u2019t take more than a week.\u00a0 Joe set out with nothing; odds are he is either holed up in one of them or took what he needed to move deeper into the mountains.”<\/p>\n “How many line shacks do you have, Ben?” Roy asked.<\/p>\n “One every 10 miles, more in the higher elevations.”<\/p>\n “Why?”<\/p>\n \u201cThe further from civilization, the more supplies needed, scarcer the game, colder the climate . . . you name it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPa,\u201d Hoss said. \u201cMy guess is Joe would limit taking too much from any one cabin so as not to alert us that he\u2019d been there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAgreed.\u00a0 Adam, give each man a copy of the inventory checklist of what should be in the shack.\u00a0 Have them check the contents against it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u00a0 One day at a time.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Joe was a mess; anyone could see it.\u00a0 Anyone that could find him, that is.<\/p>\n He\u2019d been on the run for over a week now, doubling back, staying in the rocks as much as he could, switching back and forth, up and down; employing every trick Hoss ever taught him.\u00a0 But it had cost him, too.\u00a0 He was worn down, hungry and tired.\u00a0 He had to come out of the rocks to find food, but every time he did he ran the risk of being spotted, so he had taken to foraging at night and sleeping in the day in whatever shelter he could find.<\/p>\n Joe had convinced himself that if he could just stay hidden, then bad things would stop happening to people around him.\u00a0 It appeared to be working; no one had died since he\u2019d been gone.\u00a0 He\u2019d overheard that much from two men who were obviously looking for him when they stopped to water their horses near a small cave he was using as a base camp.\u00a0 Joe hadn\u2019t dared peer out in order to see who was talking.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t recognize the voices, but he caught enough of their conversation to learn they were part of a posse.<\/p>\n A posse?<\/em>\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t counted on that.\u00a0 Sure, he knew his family would be searching, and maybe a few ranch hands\u2014those that would still speak to him.\u00a0 But he hadn\u2019t figured the Sheriff would organize a formal posse to scour the countryside for one man who hadn\u2019t done anything wrong.<\/p>\n Joe crawled on his belly to the edge of opening in an effort to hear more clearly.\u00a0 It was something about old man Cartwright having the money and power to hire half the men in the state to find his boy.\u00a0 What did they care?\u00a0 If they were getting good food and better wages to gallop around the Territory looking for some snot-nosed kid, then they\u2019d make the most it.<\/p>\n \u201cThink there\u2019s any truth to the rumor the kid\u2019s a Jonah?\u00a0 Three men dyin\u2019 in as many months and all?\u201d <\/em>one man asked as they were checking the cinches before mounting.<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe.\u00a0 For sure no one\u2019s bit the dust since the kid disappeared.\u00a0 Those stupid cowhands should hope he stays gone.\u201d <\/em>\u00a0Then they both laughed and rode away.<\/p>\n Joe sat up as soon as soon as it was safe and pondered his next move.\u00a0 If the search perimeter had widened to all of Nevada, then his only recourse was to leave the state.\u00a0 They\u2019d expect him to go south or east so Oregon, maybe.\u00a0 Or Canada.\u00a0 One thing, for certain, he would need more gear than what he had scavenged.\u00a0 Like it or not, Joe knew he\u2019d have to return to civilization long enough to get provisioned for a journey like that.\u00a0 He gathered his few belongings; counted the money he had borrowed from his brothers and set out on foot once again, calculating he\u2019d be in Placerville in two-to-three days.\u00a0 With any luck maybe he\u2019d have enough money left for a bath and a haircut.\u00a0 Boy, wouldn\u2019t Pa get a kick out of that!\u00a0 <\/em>Better yet, a hat and a new pair of boots.\u00a0 He wished now he\u2019d never turned the mare loose.<\/p>\n Even though they changed the name of Hangtown back in 1854 to something more civilized for the benefit of the newly-arrived, the businesses, and the general populace, the town continued to be a haven for outlaws, immigrants, the indigent and the marginal fringes of society.\u00a0\u00a0 The streets were still unpaved and rutted; the boardwalks the only respite from mud, gunk and horse manure.\u00a0 Cast iron boot scrapers placed in front of each establishment were put there so cowboys could remove the dung from their heels before entering.\u00a0 It helped but was not a panacea.\u00a0\u00a0 Shopkeepers were constantly sweeping, pushing the dried mud out the door, onto the boardwalk and into the street where it mixed with other trash and waste similarly dumped, only to be attached to other boots, repeating the endless cycle.<\/p>\n At least, there were no longer miners digging in the middle of the road, Joe thought.\u00a0 His Pa had said that in the early days of the gold rush miners dug everywhere for gold . . . sometimes right in the middle of the street and traffic had to go around them.\u00a0\u00a0 It was rumored a building even collapsed because men had dug gold out of the mortar with their pen knives.\u00a0 More than once a burial was interrupted when the mourners spotted gold sparkling in the newly-turned earth and flung the body out of the open grave, laying claim to the land beneath.<\/p>\n With no horse to stable, Joe wandered the streets looking in shop windows and observing the goings on.\u00a0 Arriving at the center of town, he saw the oak tree that gave the town its name and thought back to the last time he was here with some of the drovers.\u00a0 Pa had given his blessing on a couple extra nights before heading home after the drive.\u00a0 Well, not exactly.<\/em>\u00a0 What Pa had said was that he was to be home by the end of the month so he could get started on the fulfilling the Army contract.\u00a0 In his mind, that meant that if they could finish the drive early, then they had those extra days coming to them and were free to spend them as they wished as long as they were back at the ranch and ready to work on the first.\u00a0\u00a0 As usual, he was very good at holding to the intent of the Law According to Ben Cartwright, but not necessarily the letter.<\/p>\n They had ridden into town high on the success of the drive and in good spirits and nearly got caught up in a vigilante-style hanging.\u00a0 Deciding discretion was the better part of valor, they made their way over to the Jackass Tavern, out of harm\u2019s way.<\/p>\n Except for the bartender, one saloon girl and the piano player, the place appeared empty.\u00a0 He had ordered beers all around and the group settled at a table near the back of the establishment.\u00a0 They shot the bull for a while.\u00a0 Hank talked about his family in Kansas and how one more drive like this and he’d have enough money to go back home.\u00a0 Slim had just booked passage to the Sandwich Islands and was looking forward to spending the winter in paradise.\u00a0 Wes was saving up for marriage.\u00a0 So\u2014not to be out done\u2014he stated that he was saving up for a new saddle for Cochise.\u00a0 The resulting silence lasted only for a moment before the men dissolved into laughter and let loose a few ribald comments.<\/p>\n In due course, someone produced a deck of cards and they decided to play poker.\u00a0 The first card he dealt was the death card which had a sobering effect on the group after witnessing the events at the courthouse.\u00a0 Although they played a few hands, no one was much in the mood to gamble so they made an early night of it.<\/p>\n Joe shook his head to clear the memory.\u00a0 So much for saving<\/em>.\u00a0 Not only had he taken every cent of what he had put away, but he had “borrowed” money from his brothers to finance his escape.\u00a0\u00a0 Well, he would get a job up in Oregon and repay first his brothers, then the homesteads where he had \u201cborrowed\u201d food while on the run, and then save again so he could afford to visit his family when it was safe. But Hank would never be able to go home; he was dead and buried far away from Kansas.<\/em><\/p>\n Sullen and morose, he did not notice the figure lurking in the shadows behind him.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The first sensation Joe experienced as he regained consciousness was one of waking after a deep sleep. \u00a0He started to arch his back and stretch, but something soft was holding his chest and arms in place. \u00a0 Joe frowned slightly and willed the arms of Morpheus to claim him once again.\u00a0 Instead, he curled his toes and was vaguely aware that his boots had been removed, and he was barefoot.\u00a0 When he tried to move his legs, however, the same soft restraints pinned his thighs and shins, and the reality of being bound was exacerbated by the sudden realization that he was naked. \u00a0The truth brought him to full consciousness and he blinked several times to drive the sandman from his eyes.<\/p>\n The room was a murky, smudged charcoal grey\u2014not totally dark, but neither was it light. \u00a0It existed as he did in a shadow world of nothingness.<\/p>\n Bound and naked\u2014his worst nightmare had come true. \u00a0 Joe was a man of action; to be immobilized\u2014no matter how comfortable the restraints, was unthinkable. \u00a0 He began to panic, his breath coming in short pants, sweat coating every inch of his body as he struggled against the ties that bound him.<\/p>\n \u201cHelp!\u201d he screamed. \u201cHelp me!\u00a0 Please, help me!\u00a0 Someone.\u00a0 Please!\u201d<\/p>\n But there was no sound other than his own heart-wrenching shrieks piercing the grey abyss.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n It was late afternoon when Hoss finished straightening the felloes on a wheel from Hattie Miller\u2019s buckboard.\u00a0 He had found the young lady stranded on the road near the house and offered to fix her bent wheel in return for first dibs on the basket of goodies she was bringing to the family.\u00a0 Hattie was his brother\u2019s latest conquest and he knew full well she was hoping to see Joe or hear if there had been any word from him.<\/p>\n Just then, Adam rode up, curious as to who Pa was talking to on the front porch.\u00a0 No sooner had introductions been made when Charlie came riding in.<\/p>\n “Mr. Cartwright!”<\/p>\n “What is it Charlie?”<\/p>\n “The skewbald. She is back.”<\/p>\n “Joseph?”<\/p>\n “No, just the horse.\u00a0 I saw her running with the mustangs in the pasture.”<\/p>\n “You’re certain it was the same horse?”<\/p>\n “Si, Senor.\u00a0 She has the pine brand.”<\/p>\n “Hoss?\u00a0 What do you think?”<\/p>\n Hoss frowned deeply at this news.\u00a0 He didn’t want to upset his father any more than he had to, but there didn’t appear to be any getting around it.\u00a0 “He’s gone to ground.”<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u00a0 What does that mean,\u201d Hattie asked.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s gone into hiding\u2014like a fox would go underground to avoid a dog,\u201d Adam explained.<\/p>\n \u201cBut you\u2019re here to help him, not hunt him.\u201d Hattie said, clearly confused and upset.<\/p>\n \u201cJoe\u2019s trying to get away from us, Hattie.\u00a0 He thinks . . . we believe he thinks that his friends won\u2019t be hurt if he isn\u2019t anywhere around.\u00a0\u00a0 Until we can find who is committing these murders, I\u2019m afraid Joe will remain in hiding.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPoor Joe, he must be suffering so, not knowing who to trust, who to believe in.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam regarded the young woman with interest.\u00a0 She was unlike the usual type of girl Joe romanced.\u00a0 For one thing, she had dark hair; Joe seemed to favor blondes of late.\u00a0 She was also taller than he was, or close to it.<\/p>\n \u201cMay I take you home, Hattie?\u00a0\u00a0 Joe would not want you out this late without an escort.\u201d<\/p>\n She blushed.\u00a0 \u201cOf course, Adam.\u00a0 That is very gallant of you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPa, I\u2019ll be ready to ride come first light.<\/p>\n \u201cSee that you are son.\u00a0 Be careful.\u201d\u00a0 Ben thought better of having one son return home alone.\u00a0 \u201cHoss, go with them.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 After all, he thought, there was safety in numbers, or so he hoped.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n It was hot, even for . . . what . . . August? \u00a0Was it still July?\u00a0 September?<\/em> \u00a0 Joe didn’t know.\u00a0 He didn’t know how long he had been here. \u00a0Hell, he didn’t even know where “<\/strong>here“<\/strong> was.<\/p>\n He was tied to a chair, but not uncomfortably so. \u00a0The chair was soft. \u00a0 He figured the ties were made of silk.\u00a0 In front of him was a table on which there was a partial deck of cards.\u00a0 Joe snorted.\u00a0 His captor was not playing with a full deck!\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n He didn\u2019t need the missing cards to tell him that.\u00a0 The Shadow\u2014for that\u2019s how Joe thought of him now\u2014The Shadow never spoke above a whisper, never raised his voice, never chastised him or berated him for some real or imagined sin; never beat him.\u00a0 He just kept asking Joe to choose.\u00a0 Choose what?\u00a0 <\/em>He didn\u2019t know.\u00a0 Joe pleaded; he cried; he begged.\u00a0 But all the Shadow said was \u201cchoose.\u201d\u00a0 Hour after hour; day after day; Joe thought he would go mad at the sheer insanity of the situation.<\/p>\n Exhausted and desperate, he finally asked, \u201cWhat are my choices?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPlease,\u201d he begged.\u00a0 \u201cPlease give me my choices.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou know what they are.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t,\u201d he cried.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u00a0 Tell me.\u00a0 Please.\u00a0 Tell me.\u201d\u00a0 Sobs once again wracked his thin frame as his chin dropped to his chest.<\/p>\n The Shadow gently lifted Joe\u2019s head and placed some ice chips in his mouth.<\/p>\n \u201cDo you want me to help you?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u00a0 Oh, God, yes,\u201d Joe murmured, sucking the ice as if it were the nectar of the gods.<\/p>\n The Shadow dealt five cards face down on the table.<\/p>\n \u201cPick two.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPick two.\u00a0 Any two.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe stared at the cards, barely able to focus on them.\u00a0 \u201cThe ends,\u201d he said, finally.<\/p>\n \u201cExcellent choice,\u201d the Shadow whispered and turned the end cards face up.\u00a0 \u201cDeath by Crossbow and Death by Drowning.\u00a0 Your friends will be surprised at your choices.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWha-What?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou are clearly not up to making any more decisions today and you did ask me to help you, did you not?\u00a0\u00a0 So I will select which of your friends meet their death by crossbow or drowning.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNOOOOOOOOOOO!\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The rooster was crowing when Roy Coffee knocked on the front door of the ranch house.<\/p>\n \u201cGood morning, Hop Sing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHello, Sheriff.\u00a0 Breakfast all ready.\u00a0 You come sit.\u00a0 I call Mistah Cartwright.\u201d<\/p>\n Roy smiled when he saw a place had already been set for him.\u00a0 He handed Hop Sing his hat and sat down to a steaming cup of coffee.\u00a0 A few minutes later, Ben descended the stairs while tying a green scarf around his neck.\u00a0 He had just reached the landing when there was a singular loud knock at the door.<\/p>\n \u201cGo ahead and serve, Hop Sing.\u00a0 I\u2019ll get it.\u201d\u00a0 Ben glanced at the grandfather clock and wondered who would be calling at this hour of the morning.<\/p>\n \u201cDear Lord!\u201d he exclaimed as he swung the door open and was nearly hit in the face by a body impaled on the door by an arrow.<\/p>\n Roy and Hop Sing joined Ben at the front door and stood still too stunned to do anything much more than stare at the hapless victim.\u00a0 Within seconds Adam and Hoss joined them.<\/p>\n \u201cWho?\u00a0 Who is it, Ben?\u201d asked Roy.<\/p>\n \u201cShamus, our chuck wagon cook.\u201d<\/p>\n It was Hoss who moved first, reaching out to remove an Ace of Spades from the cook\u2019s apron pocket.<\/p>\n \u201cThank goodness Little Joe ain\u2019t here to see this,\u201d Roy mumbled, taking the card from Hoss\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n \u201cPa, it\u2019s too soon,\u201d Adam said.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s too soon.\u00a0 This killing is off schedule.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRoy?\u00a0 What do you make of it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, Ben, it could mean the person responsible is getting more desperate.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDesperate?\u00a0 We\u2019re the ones who are desperate!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCalm down Ben.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDesperate for what, Roy?\u201d asked Adam.<\/p>\n \u201cTo find Joe.\u00a0 Maybe he thinks Joe will come out of hiding if the murders are closer to his home.\u00a0 I think you, Hoss and your Pa ought to come into town . . . into protective custody.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat is ridiculous, Roy!\u00a0 I am not leaving this ranch.\u00a0 If Joe comes home we will be here where he expects to find us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBen, this man\u2014whoever he is or they are\u2014is sick.\u00a0 There\u2019s no telling what he will do next.\u00a0 I can\u2019t protect you out here and do my job in Virginia City.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRoy, we\u2019ll hire more men.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNow, Adam, I can see that makes sense to you, but do you know who you are hiring at this point?\u00a0 Do you?\u00a0\u00a0 Could be one of them men you hired is the one we\u2019re looking for, just waiting for a chance to get you\u2014any one of you alone.\u00a0 How else could someone get this close to the family under any other circumstance?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know, Roy.\u00a0 But we can\u2019t just sit here and do nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAll right, but let\u2019s be methodical about this.\u00a0 Adam, go ahead and send the hands out to canvas the line shacks as we planned.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI copied the inventory sheet over last night.\u00a0 We\u2019re ready to ride.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, Adam.\u00a0 You three are to stick together, no one goes anywhere alone.\u00a0 We\u2019re going to take the body to town and see what the doc can tell us.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam was frustrated with the turn of events.\u00a0 He was normally a patient man, but it seemed he\u2019d done more than his fair share of waiting these last few weeks and he was growing more and more impatient to take action, to do something, anything that would bring closure to this nightmare. \u201cHe\u2019s dead, Roy, what more do you expect the doc to say?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut how did he die?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTHERE\u2019S AN ARROW THROUGH HIS HEART!\u201d Ben shouted.<\/p>\n \u201cPa, I think what Roy is getting at is that there\u2019s no blood,\u201d Hoss said.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s right, Hoss.\u00a0 A man shot in the chest would likely have hemorrhaged heavily.\u00a0 No blood\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c\u2014means he was dead already.\u201d Adam wiped his hand over his face. \u201cSo some person or persons propped Shamus up against the door and shot an arrow through him and then vanished before we opened the door?\u201d<\/p>\n Hoss frowned.\u00a0 \u201cA bow and arrow is a short-range weapon.\u00a0 That means whoever it was, was very, very close.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOr, is still here,\u201d Ben added.<\/p>\n \u201cEveryone inside . . . now!\u201d Roy commanded.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n It didn\u2019t take long for word to spread that another body had been found on the Ponderosa.\u00a0 Given the ranch\u2019s return to relative normalcy following the disappearance of Joe Cartwright, the news was hard to hear and rumors even harder to dispel.\u00a0 Shamus, the Ponderosa\u2019s trail cook, had been impaled on the Cartwright\u2019s front door by an arrow.\u00a0 The news item in the Territorial Enterprise told all of the gory details, save one\u2014in his apron pocket was an Ace of Spades with the words \u201cFour\u2014Death by Crossbow\u201d written across its face.<\/p>\n Ben was loath to ask any more men to assist with the search for Joe after Shamus was found.\u00a0 Several, in fact, had already given their notice and departed the ranch.\u00a0 One was heard claiming the family was cursed as he galloped away but not after Roy had taken names and obtained information where they could be contacted should the need arise.\u00a0 The rest were loyal employees who vowed to stand by the Cartwrights no matter the danger.\u00a0 It was a comfort to Ben, but a small one.<\/p>\n The men who were searching the line shacks eventually returned with the inventory lists tallied as Adam instructed.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t take long to confirm Joe had done exactly as Hoss predicted, removing only one or two items from each shack so as not to arouse suspicion if someone came to check.\u00a0 If they had just eyeballed the interior, each would appear fully stocked or if an item had been missing, it would have been attributed merely to oversight.\u00a0 Ben thanked the Lord again for his detail-oriented first born.\u00a0 It renewed his hope for a brief moment that an answer was near at hand if only they could determine the last shack visited and the direction Joe had set out from there.\u00a0 However, as Hoss had pointed out, Joe could have ridden to the furthest shack first and worked his way back.\u00a0 Or, given this newly-developed talent for covering his tracks, he could have zigzagged randomly.\u00a0 There was just no telling which trail or path Joe might have taken or how long ago.<\/p>\n \u00ad\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It had been nearly six months since Joe disappeared and every lead was a dead end.\u00a0 The results of Roy\u2019s numerous and repeated wires to towns and cities across the west were negative.\u00a0 The extra men hired to search had been paid and released.\u00a0 Ranch business continued unabated, attended to by the older Cartwright brothers while their father criss-crossed the Sierras looking for a sign, any sign that his youngest son was alive.<\/p>\n On November 1, a despondent and utterly inconsolable Ben Cartwright knelt before his third wife\u2019s grave begging forgiveness.\u00a0 For the first time in 24 years, he had not held their son in his arms on his birthday.\u00a0 Oh, Marie!\u00a0 I\u2019ve failed to protect our son; I\u2019ve failed you.\u00a0 Forgive me, my love.\u00a0 My dearest love.\u00a0 Forgive me, Joseph.<\/em><\/p>\n It was there on the promontory over the lake that Deputy Foster found the grieving father.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Ben rode into town at a gallop and dismounted in front of the Sheriff\u2019s office before Buck had even come to a halt\u2014something he admonished his sons never to do\u2014and rushed through the open door as if the devil himself were on his tails.<\/p>\n \u201cClem said you had news,\u201d Ben gasped, brushing aside a man who was trying to talk to him.<\/p>\n \u201cMr. Cartwright, I\u2019m sorry to\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot now,\u201d Ben said brusquely.\u00a0 \u201cRoy?\u00a0 What have you heard?\u201d he demanded.<\/p>\n Roy stood and gestured to a chair.\u00a0 \u201cBen, I think you\u2019re gonna want to hear Mitch out.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben turned to the young man, who stood with hat in hand looking as if he were about to throw up.<\/p>\n \u201cMitch?\u00a0 What do you know about this?\u00a0 Have you seen Joe?\u00a0 Do you know where he is?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cN-no, sir.\u00a0 I ju-just\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSpit it out, boy!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBen, let the boy talk.\u00a0 Mitch, you sit down before you fall down.\u00a0 Ben you sit over here and let\u2019s listen to what he has to say.\u00a0 All right?\u201d\u00a0 Just then, Adam nearly ripped the door off its hinges as he skidded over the threshold.<\/p>\n \u201cAny more Cartwrights out there?\u201d Roy asked, not too kindly.<\/p>\n \u201cHoss is at South Camp; I sent someone to fetch him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAll right.\u00a0 Now Adam, you take a seat right here.\u00a0 Mitch has something he wants to tell us he feels is important and I\u2019d like all of us to listen to him without interrupting.\u00a0 Is that agreed?\u00a0 Good.\u00a0 Now, Mitch, you just take your time and tell us from the beginning what you got to say.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThanks,\u201d Mitch said.\u00a0 He took the glass of water the Sheriff offered and then began.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve been in St. Louis with my Ma the last six months, helping close out the family farm and sell it otherwise I\u2019d a been here sooner.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSorry to hear about your Grandfolks, Mitch,\u201d Roy said.\u00a0 Mitch nodded his appreciation and continued.\u00a0 \u201cNow you just go on and tell us about that cattle drive last year.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAfter the drive, Joe and me and a bunch of the drovers took our time coming back home.\u00a0 You remember, Mr. Cartwright, you gave us some extra days off and a bonus for bringing in the herd in ahead of schedule.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, yes, get on with it,\u201d Ben said rather curtly, then apologized.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry, Mitch.\u00a0 Please just tell us as succinctly and quickly as you can.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut don\u2019t spare the details,\u201d Adam added.<\/p>\n \u201cO-Okay,\u201d Mitch took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cWell, we went home by way of Frenchtown \u2018cause Wes had a girl there he\u2019d met over the summer when she\u2019d come to Virginia City\u2014\u201c<\/p>\n Adam raised an eyebrow and asked, \u201cYou mean Wes Turner?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, that\u2019s him.\u00a0 Wes Turner.\u00a0 Anyway, we drank pretty heavy\u2014sorry Mr. Cartwright\u2014wound up staying the night, and were kinda late leaving the next morning, if you know what I mean.\u201d\u00a0 Mitch looked around and saw nothing but stony faces, so he swallowed hard and continued.\u00a0 \u201cSo we were late getting to Hangtown\u2014Placerville, I mean\u2014and there was some trouble over a trial.\u00a0 Folks took exception to the verdict and broke the defendants outta jail in order to deliver a little vigilante justice.\u00a0 When they started stringin\u2019 up ropes in that tree in Elstner\u2019s Hay Yard we decided to get off the street.\u00a0 We were sitting in the back room of the Jackass Tavern playing cards, but nobody was feeling very talkative.\u00a0 There were five of us.\u00a0 Me, Joe, Hank Murray, Wes, and Slim somebody.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSlim Russell,\u201d Ben said matter-of-factly.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t a question, but Mitch confirmed it nonetheless.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, that\u2019s right.\u201d\u00a0 Mitch couldn\u2019t read their faces, but he did see the look that passed among them.<\/p>\n \u201cBut not Shamus?\u201d Adam asked.<\/p>\n \u201cShamus?\u00a0 You mean Cookie?\u00a0\u00a0 No, he wasn\u2019t with us.\u00a0 Why?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNever mind; go on,\u201d said Roy.<\/p>\n \u201cLike I said, we were playing, but nobody was talking.\u00a0 Joe was dealing 5-card stud, calling out the cards.\u00a0 First up was Hank\u2019s and it was the Ace of Spades.\u00a0 Joe stopped and everybody just stared at it.\u201d\u00a0 Mitch looked around the room and added by way of explanation, \u201cit\u2019s the death card.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe know,\u201d said Ben.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, I don\u2019t remember who started it, but we began talking about the different ways there were to die and then someone mentioned cats and their nine lives and I made a joke that if Joe were a cat, he would have already used up at least half his lives considering how many times he\u2019d been beaten, gun shot, arrow shot, not to mention almost hung.\u201d<\/p>\n You could hear a pin drop in the Sheriff\u2019s office.<\/p>\n \u201cWas there anyone else?\u201d Adam asked quietly.<\/p>\n \u201cAnyone else?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn the room with you; overhearing the conversation?\u201d<\/p>\n Mitch searched a spot on the wall for his answer.\u00a0 After a moment he said, \u201cThere was an old guy at the table behind us with a bottle of whiskey.\u00a0 I don\u2019t remember that he was drunk exactly, but his voice was . . . rough, raspy like.\u00a0 And he\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0he must have been listening \u2018cause he said something about some people dying over and over and others just once.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c\u2019Cowards die many times before their deaths; The valiant never taste of death but once.\u2019\u201d Adam quoted and when everyone turned to look at him, added, \u201cJulius Caesar, Act I, Scene 2.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCan you describe this man, Mitch?\u201d Roy asked.<\/p>\n \u201cMmm.\u00a0 Like I said, old guy \u2013 maybe 40; grey hair\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0big bushy grey eyebrows.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t standing so I can\u2019t say how tall, but he looked to be about average.\u00a0 Wore a fancy grey coat and vest like he was goin\u2019 to a shindig.\u00a0 Come to think of it, everything about him was grey.\u201d\u00a0 Mitch shuddered at the memory.\u00a0 \u201cThere was definitely something odd about him, but I don\u2019t know what it was exactly.\u00a0 Sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNothin\u2019 to be sorry for, boy,\u201d Roy said, standing.\u00a0 \u201cYou can get along home now.\u00a0 I know your folks are waitin\u2019 on ya outside.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThank you, Mitch,\u201d said Ben.<\/p>\n \u201cMr. Cartwright, I\u2019m sorry I wasn\u2019t here when Joe went missin\u2019.\u00a0 I know he and I have had our differences, but if there\u2019s anything I can do\u2014\u201c<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll let you know,\u201d Adam escorted Mitch to the door and had a few words with the elder Devlin about keeping Mitch close to home before he shut the door and returned to the others.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll wire the Sheriff in Placerville; see what I can find out about this \u2018old\u2019 man,\u201d Roy said, shaking his head at the arrogance of youth.<\/p>\n \u201cAdam and I will leave immediately.\u00a0 We\u2019ll check in with the Sheriff when we arrive.\u00a0 Will you tell Hoss when he gets here what\u2019s happened?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOf course, Ben.\u00a0 Be careful, both of you.\u201d<\/p>\n When Ben and Adam stepped outside the office, they looked at each other.<\/p>\n \u201cGo ahead and say it, Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAll right; there\u2019s no guarantee Joe is in Placerville.\u00a0 I know we want to find justice for Shamus and the others, but our first priority should be to find Joe.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe could be right under our noses\u2014\u201d Ben began.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2014or he could have high-tailed it to any number of places,\u201d Adam finished.<\/p>\n \u201cI have a very bad feeling about this.\u00a0 Joe is in trouble\u2014serious trouble\u2014I know it deep in my bones.\u00a0 Wherever he is, the answers begin in Hangtown.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen let\u2019s ride.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Time had lost all meaning.\u00a0 Joe had no way to track the passage of the days and nights except by the change in temperature.\u00a0 Although the light level remained virtually the same from hour to hour, the air was cold at night and unbearably hot during the day, reminding Joe of the desert he had often been left to die in.\u00a0 Death by Desert.\u00a0 That\u2019s one you forgot, Shadow.<\/em>\u00a0 He tried to laugh, but his lips were cracked and bleeding and the effort just wasn\u2019t worth it.<\/p>\n He was hungry, always hungry. \u00a0He kept thinking about how famished Hoss could get and he swore he\u2019d never tease him again if this is how it felt.\u00a0 It got so bad he’d rather not be fed at all.\u00a0 But if Joe refused to open his mouth, the Shadow would hold his nose until he gasped for air and then just force the thick soup down his throat.\u00a0 It wasn’t that it was bad; in fact it was quite good, rich and well-seasoned. \u00a0There just was never enough of it so that his stomach was constantly growling for more. \u00a0He was fed just enough to keep him alive and to know hunger. \u00a0Always the hunger. \u00a0And the growling. \u00a0Until Joe believed the Hunger was a beast gnawing on him from the inside out, and he had to kill it.\u00a0 Death by Crossbow.\u00a0\u00a0 I will find the beast, kill it, and end the Hunger.<\/em><\/p>\n And thirsty. \u00a0God, I am so thirsty.<\/em> \u00a0A container of ice, tantalizingly full, was always within view, always just out of reach. \u00a0Joe watched the ice melt; saw the condensation form on the outside of the glass and followed the beads of sweat as they meandered slowly down the smooth surface in tiny rivulets, joining together at last to pool on the polished table. \u00a0Death by Drowning<\/em>.\u00a0 Oh, how he longed to dive into that puddle and drown in the delicious coolness of water.<\/p>\n “Water,” he croaked, his throat parched.\u00a0 “Please.\u00a0 Water.”<\/p>\n But there was no answer except the caving of the ice which brought fresh torment.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Aengus Mason, the Sheriff of Placerville, was tall and muscular, with flaming red hair that reached his shoulders and a handle bar moustache he claimed could predict everything from earthquakes to riots; from gully washers to drought.\u00a0 He had been hired to deal with the vigilantes and clean up the town.\u00a0 Gus, as he was known to his friends, was a fast draw with a quick wit which he drew upon frequently in order to diffuse precarious situations.\u00a0\u00a0 When he received Coffee\u2019s telegram, his upper lip twitched\u2014a sure sign that trouble was brewing.<\/p>\n He knew exactly to whom the good Sheriff was referring in his urgent telegram . . .\u00a0 Silas Wellencamp.\u00a0 The man had been a prominent citizen at one time, before his wife and daughter died under mysterious circumstances and his son committed suicide.\u00a0 While folks were marginally sympathetic to the man because of the loss of his entire family, Wellencamp had never been completely exonerated in the eyes of the law even though there was no physical proof of any wrong doing.\u00a0 The gossips said that he drove his family mad with his aberrant sense of free will.\u00a0\u00a0 He was viewed as somewhat eccentric, a little twisted, and very creepy.\u00a0\u00a0 If the facts alluded to in the telegram proved out, this young man\u2014Joe Cartwright\u2014was in definite danger.<\/p>\n Gus folded the telegram carefully and placed it in his vest pocket before tipping his hat to the telegrapher.\u00a0 \u201cMuch obliged, Mort.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAny time, Sheriff.\u00a0 Why doncha come by after supper for some fresh peach pie?\u00a0 My Gracie makes a good one.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, now, that sounds verra temptin\u2019, Mort.\u00a0 My best to your lady.\u00a0 Good day!\u201d\u00a0 As the Sheriff strode purposefully to his office, the smile and easy manner dissipated with each step.\u00a0 By the time he reached his office, he was all business.<\/p>\n \u201cTravis, you and Pete stay here and keep the peace. Mac, you\u2019re wi\u2019 me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAye,\u201d said deputy Kam MacPherson, better known as Mac.\u00a0 He tossed Gus a rifle and grabbed two for himself along with four boxes of shells. When Gus had that glint in his eye, Mac knew more than the usual trouble was a foot.\u00a0 The clansmen had come over to North America as lads, trapping their way across Canada and down through the Cascades until they reached California where the warm weather and plentiful sunshine entranced them. They settled on the Truckee, took wives, raised families and made a decent living until the Bannocks burned out their village, left them childless and widowers.\u00a0 Now all they had was each other . . . and a fierce determination to see justice done no matter the cost.<\/p>\n This time when the Shadow fed him, Joe was allowed to eat until the hunger was all gone.\u00a0 The Shadow said it was because Joe had made a good choice; the beast was dead and he was satisfied.\u00a0\u00a0 Joe smiled, happy to have pleased his caretaker.<\/p>\n The Shadow lit a candle and held the newspaper in front of Joe, wiping the sweat away so he could read it.\u00a0 Shamus was dead; killed by a crossbow.\u00a0 Joe frowned slightly, but his attention was diverted by the adjacent article on the death of the progeny of one of Virginia City\u2019s first families; Hattie Miller had drowned.<\/p>\n The smile vanished.<\/p>\n The omnipresent, oppressive greyness of his world turned black and swallowed him whole.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Sheriff Mason and Deputy MacPherson met the Cartwrights at the Pony Express junction.\u00a0 When Gus heard the details of the last several months, his mustache was practically twirling.\u00a0 He sent Mac back to town for more men and led the Cartwrights to what was left of the Wellencamp home about 5 miles out of town on the road to Coloma.<\/p>\n It was nearing sundown when they arrived. \u00a0The home was large, what some would call it a mansion.\u00a0 Adam immediately identified the style as Gothic Revival.\u00a0\u00a0 It must have been a handsome house at one time, stately and substantial.\u00a0 The signs of neglect and abuse were evident in the chipped paint, weathered beams, lopsided shutters and a broken window or two.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t appear occupied as there was no light coming from the windows.\u00a0 On second glance, however, Adam realized the windows were either boarded up or painted over preventing anyone from looking in or light from leaking out.<\/p>\n The men dismounted in the grove of trees to the south of the house and approached on foot, silently.\u00a0 Gus used hand signals to motion for Adam to go to the right, Ben to stay put and watch the front door, while he circled to the left.\u00a0 In his path lay out buildings and a barn, which he quickly checked for signs of habitation.\u00a0 The barn sheltered a wagon and there were two horses in the stalls.\u00a0\u00a0 Gus saw the feed and water were both fresh.\u00a0 Someone is either here or there\u2019s a caretaker. <\/em>\u00a0\u00a0With this new information he drew his weapon and stood silently just inside the barn door listening for any movement or noise.\u00a0\u00a0 Before moving outside, he noticed the wagon bed contained blankets and rope.\u00a0 Used to transport your victim?\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n It was all Ben could do to refrain from calling his son\u2019s name.\u00a0 He was sure Joe was in there; he could feel it with every fiber of his being from his scalp down to his toes.\u00a0 Why didn\u2019t the Sheriff and Adam return?\u00a0 What did the reconnoiter reveal?<\/p>\n Adam located a storm cellar on the right side of the home near the back of the house.\u00a0 He tried the lock on the door, but it was brand new and shiny bright in stark contrast to the dilapidated condition of the rest of the premise and it held tight when he pulled on it.\u00a0 He thought about shooting it off, but he knew that would alert whoever was inside.\u00a0 There was something sinister about the house.\u00a0 He could almost feel it breathing.\u00a0 This is ridiculous.\u00a0 It\u2019s just a house.\u00a0 <\/em>As he came around the back of the structure, he could see Gus emerging from the barn with his weapon drawn.\u00a0 Adam drew his as well.<\/p>\n Again without speaking a word, Gus used hand signals to direct Adam back to where Ben was waiting.\u00a0 A few minutes later he joined them.<\/p>\n \u201cHorses in the barn were recently fed and watered,\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\n \u201cNew lock on the storm cellar,\u201d Adam added.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWindows are covered over.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t hear anything, but\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut what?\u201d asked Ben in hushed tones.<\/p>\n \u201cBut there\u2019s a . . . presence.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know how else to explain it. \u00a0I\u2019d almost say something otherworldly if it didn\u2019t sound so trite.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNae, no to a Scotsman,\u201d Gus said, his Gaelic accent becoming more pronounced.\u00a0 \u201cMy homeland has a long history of hauntings.\u00a0 And, aye, I feel the tannasg<\/em>, too, Adam.\u00a0 This house is evil.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re being ridiculous, both of you.\u00a0 My son is in there; I can feel it.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go!\u201d\u00a0 Ben started to move when both Gus and Adam held him back.<\/p>\n \u201cTis\u2019 no a verra good idea. We dinna ken what\u2019s inside.\u00a0 Weel wait for my men to get here.\u201d<\/p>\n No sooner had Gus said that than Mac and two other deputies arrived.\u00a0 They were barely visible through the trees, keeping low to the ground, but Gus knew they were there.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t long before the six of them formulated a plan.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Joe never minded the dark when he was little.\u00a0 Hoss did though.\u00a0 Big ol\u2019 Hoss would get scared and Joe would crawl in bed with him and pat his back and tell him stories until he fell asleep.\u00a0 How silly was that?\u00a0 A Big galoot like Hoss being comforted by a skinny little kid like him.\u00a0 Pa always lit a candle for Hoss so he wouldn\u2019t be scared.<\/p>\n Joe opened his eyes and saw the candle burning on the table.\u00a0 Hoss?\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n I\u2019m comin\u2019 little buddy, hang on!<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cChoose.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHow many in your family, Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFour.\u00a0 Four Cartwrights.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere are only three cards left.\u00a0 Choose.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhaa\u2014?\u201d<\/p>\n The Shadow enumerated the choices, tapping each card in turn, \u201cDeath by Poison.\u00a0 Death by Dagger.\u00a0 Death by Fire.\u201d\u00a0 Then he said again, \u201cChoose.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhere\u2019s the fourth?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFourth?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe fourth card.\u00a0\u00a0 The fourth way to die.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAh, but there are only three choices.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut there are four Cartwrights,\u201d Joe argued.<\/p>\n \u201cI have decided you will live.\u00a0 These three cards are for your father and brothers.\u00a0 Who will die by which card?\u00a0 That is for you to choose.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNO!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo?\u00a0 Very well; I will help you as I did before.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNO!\u00a0 NO!\u00a0 NO!\u00a0 NO!\u00a0 NO! \u201d Joe raged over and over again, thinking of Shamus and Hattie; Hank, Wes, and Slim.\u00a0 Five friends; five deaths on his head.\u00a0 He struggled violently against the bindings but succeeded only in moving the heavy chair a few inches before he collapsed in utter exhaustion.<\/p>\n \u201cA coward dies a thousand deaths, a hero but one.\u00a0 Are you a hero, Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo,\u201d Joe wept uncontrollably but his strength was ebbing rapidly.\u00a0 When his sobs turned to soft hiccups, the Shadow said,<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve decided you can save one person.\u00a0 Who will it be?\u201d<\/p>\n When Joe didn\u2019t answer he took the boy\u2019s face in his hands and whispered, \u201cPick a card and take your own life by that means\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0spare the one for whom it was meant.\u00a0 Save yourself or save one of them.\u00a0 Your choice.\u201d<\/p>\n For the first time, Joe looked directly into the hoary face of his captor and saw what insanity looked like.<\/p>\n When he woke again he was on the floor, untied, and fully clothed.\u00a0 The chair was gone and so was the Shadow.<\/p>\n In front of him was a jug of kerosene and some matches, a dagger, and small bottle sporting a skull and crossbones on the label.\u00a0 Who would he save?<\/em><\/p>\n Save yourself, son.\u00a0 I\u2019ve lived my life.\u00a0 This is your time.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cPa,\u201d he mouthed silently.<\/p>\n You\u2019ve got your whole life a head of you, kid.\u00a0 Make the most of it.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cAd-am.\u201d<\/p>\n When you get hitched and have a parcel of kids, name one after me, okay Shortshanks?<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cH-Hoss.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYour choice,\u201d the Shadow had said.<\/p>\n My choice.\u00a0 Mine.\u00a0 Not yours.\u00a0 Not this time.\u00a0 Mine<\/em>.\u00a0 Joe picked up the jug of kerosene and poured it over himself, gaging at the fumes.<\/p>\n I choose.<\/em>\u00a0\u00a0 Then he plunged the dagger into his abdomen and quickly swallowed the poison.<\/p>\n \u201cMy family.\u00a0 I choose my family.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAll of them,\u201d he raged to no one there.\u00a0 \u201cMy family lives.\u201d<\/p>\n And he struck the match.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n With two deputies standing guard, Ben, Adam, Gus and Mac used a fallen pine log as a battering ram and ripped the ancient front door off its hinges in one swift move.<\/p>\n Although the setting sun streamed light into the entry way, the boarded-up windows in the rooms off the main hallway were heavily draped, shrouding the downstairs in deep shadows which grew darker as Ben groped his way further into the crypt-like interior.\u00a0 He could hear retching, but he couldn\u2019t tell where it was coming from.\u00a0 Restrained no further, he yelled.<\/p>\n \u201cJoseph!\u00a0\u00a0 Joseph!\u00a0\u00a0 I\u2019m here, son.\u00a0 Where are you?\u201d<\/p>\n There was no response, but the further he moved into the house his senses were assaulted by an overpowering smell.<\/p>\n \u201cDear God!!\u201d\u00a0 Ben yelled as soon as he realized it was kerosene.\u00a0 \u201cPut those torches out!\u201d he yelled unnecessarily for the odor was reaching the other men as well and they quickly extinguished the flames.<\/p>\n Gus ordered the men to break out the windows to allow fresh air inside.<\/p>\n Adam\u2019s eyes grew accustomed to the dark more rapidly than his father\u2019s and he saw a faint light at the top of the stairs.\u00a0 \u201cUpstairs,\u201d he shouted, taking the steps three at a time, gagging as he came closer to the source of the fumes which he realized in horror was his brother.\u00a0 Not only was Joe drenched in kerosene, he was striking a match.<\/p>\n \u201cNO!\u201d Adam launched himself across the open space, plowing into his brother, slapping at his hand.\u00a0 He needn\u2019t have bothered.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s hands, wet with blood from his stomach wound had already rendered the match ineffective.<\/p>\n The cry of anguish that emanated from Joe and echoed throughout the house was blood curdling.\u00a0\u00a0 They wouldn\u2019t learn until much later that it was because Joe thought the Shadow was thwarting his attempt to save his family.<\/p>\n When Ben reached his son seconds later, he struggled to hold him close but Joe was fighting him with everything he had which, despite his weakened condition, was considerable.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re safe, Joseph.\u00a0 You\u2019re safe now.\u00a0 Your family is here.\u201d<\/p>\n Horrified at finding a bloody knife on the floor and a bottle with a skull and crossbones on it, Adam shouted, \u201cHe\u2019s been poisoned and he\u2019s bleeding.\u00a0 He needs medical care NOW!\u201d<\/p>\n Before either of them could get Joe under control, however, Gus cold-cocked Joe with an uppercut to the jaw and threw him over his shoulder.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve got him.\u00a0 You two get out of here,\u201d the Sheriff yelled, pushing Ben and Adam out the door in front of him as he ran down the stars shouting \u201cOut!\u00a0 Everybody out!\u00a0\u00a0 Now!\u201d<\/p>\n No sooner had Gus made it down the porch steps than an explosion ripped the entire top of the house off.\u00a0 The force of the blast threw him forward and he passed his burden off to Ben who collapsed under the sudden weight.\u00a0 Lying on his back, Ben could see thousands of sparks and cinders were showering down upon them.\u00a0 When flecks of fire pricked him he realized the danger.<\/p>\n \u201cJoe\u2019s soaked with kerosene!\u201d Ben shouted frantically.\u00a0 \u201cStrip him!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Pocket knives immediately drawn, he and Adam began cutting away Joe\u2019s pants and shirt tossing them as far away as they could.<\/p>\n Ben gasped as he pulled the clothes away and saw the emaciated frame of his son.\u00a0 \u201cMy, God!\u00a0 What has been going on here?!\u201d<\/p>\n Gus began shouting orders.\u00a0 \u201cMac!\u00a0 Grab the canteens and bedrolls.\u00a0\u00a0 Travis, hitch that wagon out in the barn and bring it over here.\u00a0 Sam, you go fetch the doctor and hurry!\u201d<\/p>\n Adam, focused solely on the wound to Joe\u2019s stomach, was concerned about staunching the flow of blood.\u00a0 He immediately ripped the sleeves off his own shirt to use as a dressing. \u00a0As he worked, the smell of kerosene was still noticeable.\u00a0 \u201cPa, your shirt and vest.\u00a0 They\u2019re soaked, too,\u201d Adam noted. \u00a0Ben quickly stripped to his waist, tossing both garments far from his sons.<\/p>\n While Mac poured water over both father and son to rid them of any remaining kerosene, Adam continued to apply pressure to the cloth covering Joe\u2019s wound and prayed the intestines had not been punctured.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n It was pure luck that Hoss had been at South Camp when the deputy found him as that placed him closer to Placerville than he would have been if he were elsewhere on the ranch.\u00a0 Chubb was a big, strong horse bred to carry a giant of a man but he was built for endurance, not speed.\u00a0 With the head start his location afforded, however, Hoss was not far behind his father and brother and was nearly to the Pony Express junction when he first saw the orange fireball over the trees, then heard the explosion.\u00a0 Chubb seemed to know what was required and, without prompting, changed his gait covering the road to Coloma quickly.<\/p>\n The horror Hoss felt when he rode into the yard surrounding the inferno was unspeakable and abated only when he saw Adam and his Pa illuminated by the fire . . . and they were holding Joe.<\/p>\n After assuring that his brother was alive, Hoss checked the out buildings to make sure there were no stock trapped and then he, too, sat down and watched the house burn.\u00a0 No doubt Joe would have a tale to tell when he was ready, but there was no purpose served by leaving behind a monument to insanity.\u00a0 No one made any effort to save it or anything\u2014or anyone\u2014inside.<\/p>\n At one point, Joe began to regain consciousness and started to panic at being hot and naked and bound once again.\u00a0\u00a0 When Ben felt Joe struggle, he wrapped his arms around him all the tighter and reiterated the soothing words while rocking him, \u201cYou\u2019re safe, Joseph.\u00a0 You\u2019re safe now.\u00a0 Your family\u2019s here.\u00a0 Everything is all right.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe smelled the bay rum that neither water nor sweat could wash away and nestled into the crook of his father\u2019s neck.\u00a0 The scratchy wool blanket against his flesh felt good.\u00a0 Better, when he asked for \u201cwater,\u201d the cool liquid was held to his lips immediately and he was allowed to drink his fill.\u00a0 Best, he was with his family.\u00a0 His first choice.\u00a0 Always.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The fire continued to burn brightly.\u00a0\u00a0 Mac and another deputy patrolled the area confirming there was no one lurking in the trees or within rifle range while Gus stood guard over the Cartwrights who were attending to Joe.<\/p>\n The wind was still a factor, but once the embers from the initial explosion settled down, there were only occasional pops and cracks that caused the parties to duck.\u00a0 The dry and rotted wood of the structure burned quickly producing a great deal of heat and light which afforded Adam and Hoss an opportunity to observe Joe.\u00a0 What they saw shocked them.<\/p>\n The man before them bore little resemblance to the brother they knew.\u00a0 Always slender, Joe had nevertheless developed into a well built, muscular young man once he left school and began working full time on the ranch.\u00a0 Now, he appeared shrunken, his sunken eyes unfocused.\u00a0 Thankfully, he responded when offered water and seemed to realize he was with family and safe at last.\u00a0 Once the kerosene soaked clothes had been removed, they could see how thin his arms and legs were, his hips protruding.\u00a0 Hoss, concerned about how uncomfortable the ground would be with no padding on those bones, grabbed the bedrolls and made a softer pallet for Joe to lie on.<\/p>\n Adam continued to apply pressure to Joe\u2019s abdomen although the bleeding was now minimal.\u00a0 If he was causing any pain in his administrations, Joe seemed oblivious to it.\u00a0 It was only when Hoss inadvertently poked Joe’s leg when he was tugging off his boots that Joe reacted and began struggling anew.<\/p>\n Ben held on tight continuing the now familiar litany and Joe settled again.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It seemed an eternity, but at last the doctor arrived and took charge.\u00a0 The light provided by the burning building was almost as good as daylight, but he asked for a lantern anyway.<\/p>\n “I’m Dr. Newell.”<\/p>\n “Ben Cartwright.\u00a0 This is my son, Joseph.”<\/p>\n “What have we here?” he asked as he felt for a pulse, then listened to Joe’s chest with his stethoscope.<\/p>\n “He was stabbed with this,” Adam held out the knife.\u00a0 The doctor gave it a cursory glance and grunted.\u00a0 “We also think he drank whatever was in this bottle; it’s marked poison. He threw up whatever he swallowed.”<\/p>\n “Keep the bottle and the knife.\u00a0 I’ll want to look at them later.”<\/p>\n The doctor continued to examine Joe, checking his heart, eyes, and running his hands over his chest, arms and legs.\u00a0 As he did so, he asked more questions.<\/p>\n “Cartwright.\u00a0 Ponderosa Cartwrights?”<\/p>\n “Yes.\u00a0 These are my other sons, Adam and Hoss.”<\/p>\n “We need to move Joseph to my office.\u00a0 Is there a wagon?”<\/p>\n “Aye,” Gus replied, motioning to his men to bring up the wagon that was hitched earlier.\u00a0 Mac and the other deputy had taken off their jackets and placed them over the horses\u2019 eyes so they wouldn’t be afraid of the fire that was still raging.\u00a0 When the wagon was in position, Gus saw Mac had layered hay from the barn inside the bed and he nodded his approval.<\/p>\n With the wagon in place, the doctor stood up.\u00a0 “Good job on cleaning that wound, Adam.\u00a0 Let’s hope it’s enough.”\u00a0 Then he backed away allowing Hoss access to his brother.\u00a0\u00a0 Tears pooled in Hoss’s eyes as he lifted Joe and felt how little he weighed.\u00a0 Adam helped their father to his feet then grabbed a blanket off the ground, shook it out and laid it on top of the hay while Ben scrambled into the wagon.<\/p>\n Gently, Hoss deposited Joe so that his head rested against Ben\u2019s chest.\u00a0 Gus and Adam took the remaining blankets and covered Joe.\u00a0 The journey to Placerville, though not far, would be chilly now that it was dark and they were moving away from the fire.\u00a0\u00a0 Still shirtless, Ben began to shiver slightly and Adam handed his father his shirt which was now mostly dry due to the heat from the fire.\u00a0\u00a0 The doctor climbed into the wagon on the other side of Ben.\u00a0 Adam tied Chubb and the doctor’s horse to the back and mounted up, but not before shaking the hands of Gus, Mac, and the rest of the men and giving them his sincerest thanks.<\/p>\n “Ach!\u00a0 Dinna fash yourself.\u00a0 Weel be staying behind a bit to make sure the fire is out,” Mac said.<\/p>\n “The doc’s a good man . . . for an Englishman,” Gus added.\u00a0 “I wish your brother well.”<\/p>\n Adam nodded and turned to take one last look at what had once been a beautiful specimen of Gothic architecture.\u00a0 What sort of insanity had occurred in this grand lady could only be imagined.\u00a0 This would not be a night he would soon forget, but he hoped against hope, that his brother could.<\/p>\n Once they made their way down the hill to the main road, Hoss drove as fast as he thought his little brother could tolerate.\u00a0 The doctor was monitoring Joe, keeping his fingers on the carotid artery.\u00a0 All was well for the first few miles; then the doctor called out.<\/p>\n “What’s wrong?” Hoss said, twisting in the seat.<\/p>\n “We’re losing him.\u00a0 Hurry!”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n “Any word?” Adam said as he entered the doctor’s office.\u00a0 He had been to the cafe and returned with two stacked trays of food . . . one for Hoss and the other to share with his father.<\/p>\n Hoss was leaning heavily against the far wall, shoulders stooped.\u00a0 He looked over at Adam and shook his head then jutted his chin toward their pa.\u00a0 Ben was sitting on a window bench his head in his hands.<\/p>\n Adam set the trays on the nearby table, lifted the lid on a bowl and carried it over to Ben.<\/p>\n “Pa, here, eat,” he said, nudging Ben’s shoulder.\u00a0 “Joe will need you when he wakes up.\u00a0 You’ve got to keep up your strength.”<\/p>\n It took a moment for Adam’s words to register with him, but Ben slowly sat up straight and took the bowl in hand.<\/p>\n “Hoss, you, too.\u00a0 Eat.”<\/p>\n “Don’t seem right somehow.\u00a0 Skinny as Joe is that we’re out here eatin’ and he’s in there barely holding on.”<\/p>\n “I know, Hoss.\u00a0 But like I said to Pa, you\u2019ve got to eat so you’re strong enough for Joe when we take him home.”<\/p>\n The door of the surgery opened and Dr. Newell stepped into the room.\u00a0 Ben rose quickly shoving the bowl into Adam\u2019s chest.<\/p>\n “Doctor?”<\/p>\n “He’s stable for the moment.\u00a0 I got some fluids into him . . . a combination of diluted salt water and sugar.\u00a0 His heartbeat is still erratic, however.\u00a0 That\u2019s common with severe dehydration.\u00a0 We’re not out of the woods yet, I’m afraid.”<\/p>\n “May I see him?”<\/p>\n “Yes, for a few minutes.\u00a0 He’s moving in and out of consciousness.\u00a0 Don’t expect too much.”<\/p>\n Ben nodded soberly and moved quickly to Joe’s side.<\/p>\n “Doctor, I gave the knife and bottle to your nurse.”<\/p>\n “Yes, she told me.\u00a0 Thank you, Adam.”\u00a0 He paused in the doorway.\u00a0 “You all should get some sleep.\u00a0 I imagine your father will not want to leave your brother.\u00a0 There are several beds in the infirmary\u2014though, Hoss, you may find them a little short and narrow\u2014but there are no other patients this evening so you should be fairly comfortable.\u00a0 You\u2019ll find clean linens at the end of each cot; I’m afraid you’ll have to make up the beds yourselves.”<\/p>\n “Sure thing,” Hoss said to the doc, then to Adam, “I’ll fetch our gear.”<\/p>\n “Sit down and eat before you pass out.\u00a0 I’ll get it.”<\/p>\n “Adam?” Hoss asked quietly so as not to be overheard.\u00a0 “Did you see how thin he was?”<\/p>\n “Yeah. I saw.\u201d\u00a0 Adam debated with himself whether to tell Hoss the rest.\u00a0 He\u2019d give anything not to share this burden, but he didn\u2019t think he could deal with their father alone if it came out anyway.\u00a0\u00a0 He looked into those crystal blue eyes and swallowed hard.\u00a0 \u201cBut I saw something more disturbing.\u00a0 I saw\u2014”<\/p>\n \u201cSaw what brother?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJoe striking a match.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoss staggered backwards and if the wall hadn\u2019t been right behind him, he might have toppled over.\u00a0 “That a fact?”<\/p>\n Adam closed his eyes and nodded.<\/p>\n “Does Pa know?”<\/p>\n “No.\u00a0 Stay with him.\u00a0 I’ll get our saddle bags.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Throughout the night and the following day, Joe remained semi-conscious.\u00a0 It pleased the doctor that the elder Cartwright was adept at forcing fluids and he suspected the man probably had had plenty of opportunity over the years to perfect his technique.\u00a0 As Joe responded to the increased hydration, the color and elasticity of his skin improved, as well as his heart rate.\u00a0 However, his patient had not yet spoken even when conscious and became agitated when his father was not present, leaving the elder Cartwright exhausted.\u00a0 Of increasing concern to the doctor was a growing suspicion that in addition to the severe malnutrition, emotional trauma was involved.<\/p>\n The next evening the doctor called a meeting in his office.\u00a0\u00a0 Ben was seated in front of the desk; Adam and Hoss stood nearby.<\/p>\n \u201cMr. Cartwright, I\u2019m afraid I\u2019ve done everything I can for your son.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI thought he was improving?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe has, but not enough.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAre you saying there\u2019s nothing more we can do?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u00a0 I\u2019m saying that I\u2019ve done all I can.\u00a0 I\u2019ve been in contact with your Dr. Martin.\u00a0 We\u2019ve been trading wires the last two days.\u00a0 I\u2019ve brought him up to date on vitals, given him my medical opinion.\u00a0 He is of the mind that Joe\u2019s best chance for survival is at home.\u00a0 While I wouldn\u2019t normally condone travel for a patient in this condition, I can\u2019t ignore the recommendation of his personal physician or the power that familiar surroundings might have in decreasing Joe\u2019s agitation and restoring his speech.\u201d<\/p>\n Silence followed the doctor\u2019s pronouncement.\u00a0 Hoss moved quickly behind his pa placing a massive hand on Ben\u2019s shoulder while Adam knelt before him with a hand on his knee.<\/p>\n \u201cPa, I think Paul is right. \u00a0Home is where Joe needs to be.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI agree, Pa.\u00a0 You know how Joe feels about the Ponderosa.\u00a0 If he could tell ya, he\u2019d say he wants to go home.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMake the arrangements,\u201d Ben said, his voice trembling.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n With Sheriff Mason\u2019s help, the Cartwrights were able to obtain the loan of a carriage for the long ride home thus ensuring a more comfortable ride for father and son.\u00a0 Adam would ride along side; Hoss would drive.<\/p>\n “Adam, might I be havin’ a word with ye before ye leave.”<\/p>\n Adam noted the stern expression on the Sheriff’s face.\u00a0 Despite the light tone, his red eyebrows were drawn together so they almost formed one continuous line across his tanned face.\u00a0 “What’s wrong?” he said quietly after crossing behind the carriage ostensibly to check the wheels and brakes, but in reality to move out of his father’s earshot.<\/p>\n “Aye. There’s somethin’ amiss.”\u00a0 The Sheriff was leaning nonchalantly against the building, one foot tucked up against the siding.\u00a0 He struck a match against the rough wood and lit a cheroot.\u00a0 For all intents and purposes he was a man enjoying the sun and having a smoke.\u00a0 “Funny thing about flames.\u00a0 They burn hot like the fires of hell,” he said, blowing a smoke ring.\u00a0 “But no for eternity and no near long enough to burn bone.”<\/p>\n “There was no body,” Adam stated matter-of-factly as the bile rose in his throat.<\/p>\n “Aye.\u00a0 Weel keep a look out.”\u00a0 The Sheriff dropped his cigar to the boardwalk and ground it out with his heel.\u00a0 As he crossed the street, he turned and said loudly,<\/p>\n “I’ll be sendin’ Travis along so ye needna worry about returnin’ the carriage ye selves.”<\/p>\n “Thank you, Sheriff.\u00a0 That’s very considerate.\u00a0 And thank the owner again for the loan.”<\/p>\n “Aye.\u00a0 Haste ye back.”<\/p>\n With Travis already sitting in the driver\u2019s seat, Hoss moved to the rear of the carriage to untie Chubb and saw Adam\u2019s face was a mask.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat is it?\u201d he asked while checking the cinch on his horse.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll tell you when we\u2019re on the road.\u201d\u00a0 Adam whispered.\u00a0 When he was sure all was ready, he told Travis to move out.<\/p>\n Both Adam and Hoss were watchful, but nothing untoward happened on the way to the Ponderosa.<\/p>\n Aside from asking for water when they first escaped the mansion, Joe had not uttered a sound, but that did not stop Ben from speaking to him.\u00a0 He talked almost incessantly the entire ride home, telling Joe what had happened while he was gone, how they had searched and searched, stories about sailing ships, about Joe\u2019s mother, the horses Joe loved, everything he could think of.\u00a0 He even sang some of Joe\u2019s favorite songs\u2014with Adam and Hoss joining in heartily\u2014anything to connect with his son, to keep him focused on the here and now, and to know he was surrounded by those who loved him.<\/p>\n Paul Martin had been alerted by telegram and was waiting at the ranch house when the carriage pulled into the yard.\u00a0 Before he allowed Joe to be moved, however, he climbed in to check his patient.\u00a0 Although Dr. Newell had relayed detailed information regarding Joe\u2019s condition, Paul was unprepared for the young man\u2019s appearance.\u00a0 Nevertheless, he donned his professional face and assumed his best bedside manner as he leaned in to listen to Joe\u2019s heart.\u00a0 As he did so, Joe opened his eyes.\u00a0 Doc?<\/em>\u00a0 Joe reached up, touched the doctor\u2019s face, and smiled.<\/p>\n \u201cHoss, go ahead and take your brother upstairs; Hop Sing has everything ready.\u00a0 Adam, please get your father inside and to bed.\u00a0 No excuses, Ben,\u201d the doctor said, wagging his finger.\u00a0 \u201cI will be in to see you as soon as Hop Sing and I get Joe settled and I will give you a full report.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n In getting Joe to bed, Hop Sing and the doctor worked together with an efficiency borne out of many years of too many similar situations involving one Cartwright or another, sometimes more than one at the same time.\u00a0 What Paul needed now, he thought, was a natural substance to encourage deep sleep, but until he had examined Joe thoroughly, he would not\u2014could not in good conscience\u2014administer a drug.\u00a0\u00a0 Before he voiced this concern, however, Hop Sing had cradled Joe\u2019s head in one arm and held a cup to his lips, all the while whispering to him softly in the sing-song cadence of Cantonese.<\/p>\n Paul had often wished for a nurse who was as attuned to his needs as the Chinaman was.\u00a0 True, he had had many good assistants over the years, but none who knew so instinctively what had to be done, nor read his mind so well.\u00a0 That Hop Sing also had knowledge of ancient Chinese practices and remedies\u2014many of which were scorned by practitioners of Western medicine\u2014was an added bonus.\u00a0 The good doctor had learned to respect, even venerate, such wisdom and had often asked Hop Sing for recommendations on herbs and teas to ease the suffering or promote the healing of his other patients.<\/p>\n Without Ben in the room, the burden of masking his feelings was thrown aside.\u00a0 Paul moved his hands over Joe\u2019s body palpating here and there to feel the glands and organs beneath the paper thin translucent skin.\u00a0 He could almost see the heart beating within the rib cage and cursed out loud as he worked, not caring that he was heard. \u00a0When he had finished his exam, Hop Sing handed him a handkerchief.\u00a0 At first, Paul was at a loss as to why until he realized his face was wet with tears.<\/p>\n Paul turned away to blow his nose before washing up in the nearby ewer.\u00a0 When he finished drying his hands he returned to the bedside and observed the nearly imperceptible rise and fall of the quilt covering Joe, counting the respirations.<\/p>\n \u201cCrosses and losses,\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat you need?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNothing, Hop Sing.\u00a0 I was just talking to myself.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI no hear what you say.\u00a0 What you say?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis pattern,\u201d he said, tracing the indigo half-square triangles on the field of white.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s called Crosses and Losses.\u00a0 My wife has made many quilts like this.\u201d<\/p>\n Paul watched the Chinaman cock his head from side to side as he studied the covering.\u00a0 \u201cIt was Ben Franklin who said, \u2018After crosses and losses men grow humbler and wiser.\u2019\u00a0 It means that men learn from all they experience in life\u2014the good and the bad\u2014and that as they get older they become humbler and wiser . . . not so sure of themselves or their invincibility . . . and they become more careful in the chances they take and the choices they make.\u201d<\/p>\n Hop Sing nodded his understanding.\u00a0 \u201cConfucius say, \u2018By three methods we learn wisdom:\u00a0 first, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is bitterest.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFranklin and Confucius were both wise men, Hop Sing.\u00a0 God only knows what Little Joe has been through and what he will learn from it.\u201d<\/p>\n Wearily, Paul sat down at the desk and pulled a sheaf of papers and a leather-bound volume from his medical bag.\u00a0 After reviewing once more the wires from Dr. Newell, he entered his own observations into the casebook.<\/p>\n What Paul had deduced from the examination was that Joe was fed only enough to be kept alive and that his movements had been restricted.\u00a0 He surmised that the reduced muscle mass could not be attributed solely to weight loss but must have been the result of inactivity as well.\u00a0 Strangely, there were no marks on Joe; no bruises, no scars, no scratches.\u00a0 No sign that he had been beaten or physically abused.\u00a0 Further, he was kept clean; no bedsores, no dirt under the fingernails.\u00a0 To what purpose?<\/em><\/p>\n As he put the pen down, Hop Sing reappeared carrying a silver tray holding a bottle of brandy and four glasses.\u00a0\u00a0 It was time to share his findings with the family.<\/p>\n Ben was in bed as ordered but awake.\u00a0 Hoss took the tray and while Adam helped their father sit up, he filled each glass with a substantial portion of brandy.\u00a0 From the look on the doctor\u2019s face, they were all going to need it.<\/p>\n Glasses distributed, Paul began.<\/p>\n \u201cDr. Newell was very thorough in his assessment and in my opinion completely correct in his diagnosis and treatment.\u00a0\u00a0 Ben, I know you must have felt he wasn\u2019t doing as much as you thought he should, but getting fluids into Joe was critical and that action was most assuredly what saved his life.\u00a0 Adam, Dr. Newell said you cleaned the stomach wound immediately with alcohol and kept pressure on it.\u00a0 Is that correct?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u00a0 It was . . . all I could think to do at the time.\u201d\u00a0 Adam hung his head, certain it had not been enough and infection had set in further debilitating his brother\u2019s already precarious state.<\/p>\n \u201cYou did the right thing, Adam.\u00a0 The wound was not deep most likely because of Joe\u2019s weakened condition when stabbing himself, but also because the blade was deflected by a rib.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWait a minute,\u201d Ben protested.\u00a0 \u201cAre you saying the wound was self-inflicted?!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, Ben.\u201d\u00a0 The doctor looked at Adam and raised his glass slightly.<\/p>\n \u201cPa, the brandy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNevermind the . . .\u201d\u00a0 Ben started to say, but seeing the look on everyone\u2019s face threw back the amber liquid in one gulp.\u00a0 \u201cWhat about the wound?\u201d he coughed.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was a bit of infection, but Dr. Newell removed the diseased tissue before you left Placerville.\u00a0 The incision appears to be healing well.\u00a0 In another day, I\u2019ll remove the packing and take stitches to close the wound.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat about the poison?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n \u201cWe heard retching when we entered the house,\u201d Adam offered.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fact that he threw it up immediately certainly helped.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think enough poison remained in his system to do any lasting harm.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe hasn\u2019t spoken,\u201d Ben said, \u201cCould swallowing it\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cA valid question, Ben.\u00a0 Dr. Newell originally thought the poison might have been strychnine, but it wasn\u2019t, thank God.\u00a0 Give him time, Ben; time to heal; time to rest.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHow can we help, Doc?\u201d Hoss asked.<\/p>\n Paul was closer to the Cartwrights than any other family in Virginia City.\u00a0 He could see their exhaustion and frustration and despite his skill felt powerless to alleviate their concerns.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s speech was the least of his worries at the moment as the young man was a long way from being fit and recovery was a matter of time\u2014but not a matter of certainty.<\/p>\n \u201cThe morning will be soon enough to have that discussion.\u00a0 Right now rest is the most important thing.\u00a0 And speaking of rest, it\u2019s time for each of you to get some.\u00a0 Hop Sing and I will stay with Joe this evening.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n With diet and exercise, Joe\u2019s physical state improved.\u00a0 Ben had a tendency to assign simple chores to keep Joe occupied.\u00a0 Hoss thought of ways to increase the difficulty and scope of even simple tasks in order to build stamina.\u00a0\u00a0 The most difficult task, however, fell to Adam and that was in getting Joe to talk about what had happened to him.\u00a0\u00a0 Joe had thus far been unable or unwilling to discuss how he got to be in that old mansion or what had happened to him while he was held captive.<\/p>\n Joe went about whatever activity their pa assigned without argument or comment.\u00a0 That alone was enough to unnerve the family.\u00a0 The Joseph Francis Cartwright they knew was rarely without opinion and his indifference was becoming the most distressing aspect of his recovery.<\/p>\n After Joe had gone to bed, over brandy and coffee Adam and Ben talked about the next steps they would take.<\/p>\n “We’ve got to get him to open up, Pa.\u00a0 You know what he’s like when he keeps everything bottled up.”<\/p>\n “That’s the odd thing, Adam.\u00a0 It doesn’t seem like he’s ‘bottled up’ anything.\u00a0 He’s not a walking powder keg like he usually gets.\u00a0 He’s pliant and amenable, not argumentative at all.”<\/p>\n “In short, not like Joe.”<\/p>\n “Has he talked about Hank or Wes or Slim?” asked Ben.<\/p>\n “No.”<\/p>\n “What about Hattie?\u00a0 Has he tried to go see her?”<\/p>\n “No.”<\/p>\n “Why not?\u00a0 Do you think he knows what happened?”<\/p>\n “I don’t know how he could.\u00a0\u00a0 We haven’t mentioned it and he hasn\u2019t had contact with anyone who could give him that information.”<\/p>\n “He must wonder why she hasn’t been around to see him.\u00a0 I thought they were quite the item before . . . all this.”<\/p>\n “Mmmm.\u00a0 Perhaps that’s a place to start.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The next day Adam took a chance.\u00a0 “Tell me about Hattie.”<\/p>\n “What’s to tell.\u00a0 She’s dead.”<\/p>\n Adam let out a breath he didn\u2019t realize he was holding.\u00a0\u00a0 So he knows Hattie is dead.<\/em><\/p>\n “We’re you in love with her?”<\/p>\n “It doesn’t matter.\u201d<\/p>\n “I’d like to know.\u00a0 Was it just friendship or was there something more.”<\/p>\n “I’ll never know, will I,” Joe said bitterly.\u00a0 “Leave it alone, Adam.”<\/p>\n “Not talking about someone doesn’t make them go away.\u00a0 They linger there in the shadows of your mind.”<\/p>\n Joe flinched at the word \u201cshadow\u201d he noticed, but otherwise remained fixated on hammering a horseshoe back into shape so it could be reused.\u00a0 Although Hoss could have accomplished the task in a fraction of the time, he had thought this chore would be a good way for his brother to build up his arms and chest muscles and Joe didn’t seem to mind.\u00a0 Perhaps he was pounding out his suppressed anger on the hapless piece of iron.\u00a0 What face do you see when you strike the blow, kid?<\/em><\/p>\n “Death is a part of life, Joe.\u00a0 Some religions feel that it is the duty of the living to remember the dead.\u00a0 We honor their memory by talking about them and as long as they are remembered, they live on.”<\/p>\n Joe plunged the hot iron into the water barrel, paused a fraction before tossing the straightened metal into the box and then just stood there.<\/p>\n “How did you two meet?” Adam persisted as he absentmindedly grabbed a horse shoe with the tongs and put it in the forge until it was hot enough to form.<\/p>\n “We met at the Founder’s Day race.\u00a0 Her brother was riding a buckskin that pulled up lame on the outbound portion of the figure eight course near the crossing.\u00a0 Jimmy hit the ground pretty hard.\u00a0 I stopped to help.”<\/p>\n “You threw the race.”<\/p>\n The shrug of indifference told Adam Joe didn\u2019t care if he had.<\/p>\n “Was Jimmy okay?”<\/p>\n “Broke an arm.\u00a0 Pretty bad break.\u00a0 And concussed.\u00a0 Hattie and her father drove up in a buckboard and we got him back to the doc’s.\u00a0 I hung around to make sure he would be all right.\u00a0 We started talking.\u00a0 One thing led to another.”<\/p>\n Of course it did.<\/em>\u00a0 “What do you remember most about her?”<\/p>\n Joe turned away but Adam could see him swipe his eyes with this arm.\u00a0 Was it tears or sweat?<\/em>\u00a0 He hoped it was the former for if it were, it would be the first emotion Joe had showed other than fear.<\/p>\n “I met her, too.\u00a0 After you disappeared.\u00a0 She came to the house to see if she could help in some way.\u00a0 Brought a basket of cookies if I recall.\u00a0\u00a0 Pretty girl; not beautiful, but nicely put together.”\u00a0 Joe still wouldn’t turn around, but he could tell his brother was listening so he pushed a little further.<\/p>\n “She had a delightful laugh.\u00a0 Almost . . . musical.”<\/p>\n Joe nodded slightly in agreement.\u00a0 “I liked to make her laugh just so I could hear it.\u00a0 Her eyes would crinkle up and then. . .”\u00a0 Joe froze.<\/p>\n “And what, Joe?”<\/p>\n “I chose.”<\/p>\n Adam was totally confused now.\u00a0 “Chose?\u00a0 To be your wife?\u00a0 Did you ask Hattie to marry you?”<\/p>\n “My choice,\u201d he said, \u201cDeath by Drowning.”<\/p>\n So that was it; Wellencamp twisted the facts to make Joe believe he was responsible for yet another friend\u2019s death.\u00a0 Hank, Slim, Wes, Shamus, and then Hattie.\u00a0 My God!\u00a0 What the hell had Wellencamp done to him?<\/em><\/p>\n “Yes, she drowned, but it was an accident pure and simple.\u00a0 When I took her home, she mentioned that Jimmy was learning how to sail.\u00a0 During the inquest, he admitted he had convinced her to go out on the lake with him even though their parents had said no.\u00a0 The wind came up suddenly, the water turned rough; he couldn’t handle the sail in the sudden change and the boat capsized.\u00a0 Jimmy was able to swim clear of the mast and clung to the hull until help came.\u00a0 Hattie . . . well the water was too cold, her skirts too heavy; she may have been stunned by the boom.\u00a0 Whatever, happened, she wasn’t able to hang on and she slipped away.”<\/p>\n Adam waited for his brother to absorb this information, but there was no outward, visible sign that Joe heard much less internalized what Adam was telling him so he repeated the message again.\u00a0 “Joe, there was no one there except Hattie and Jimmy.\u00a0 No one knew they were going sailing that day.\u00a0 There was no premeditation on anyone’s part.\u00a0 Do you understand, Joe?\u00a0 You are not responsible for what happened to them.”<\/p>\n Joe pulled the iron from the fire and began hammering again; stroke after stroke after stroke.<\/p>\n \u201cJoe?\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The family expected nightmares would be an inevitable consequence of Joe’s ordeal.\u00a0 When their slumber was not disturbed as anticipated, they ran the gamut from relieved to puzzled to concerned.\u00a0 It seemed everyone was walking on eggshells without knowing why; only Joe seemed oblivious, doing what was asked of him without question or argument, voicing no objection to chores, not caring what was served at meals\u2014in short, not behaving as the Joe they knew and loved.<\/p>\n Hoss was the first to voice concern but his complaint was over something so trivial and inconsequential neither Ben nor Adam paid him much attention at the time.<\/p>\n “Joe don’t play fair,” Hoss complained one day.<\/p>\n Adam was reading in the blue chair by the fire and had so often heard this complaint that he gave it no weight whatsoever.\u00a0 He knew their youngest brother was not above cheating at checkers if he thought he could get away with it.\u00a0 It wasn’t that he was mean spirited or devious or even calculating.\u00a0 He just did it to get a rise out of Hoss.\u00a0 Anyone who knew him could honestly say that Joe never cared, one way or the other, whether he won or lost.\u00a0 It has always been for him the playing of the game alone that mattered because of the time spent with family, especially with Hoss, whom Joe had adored since he was a child.\u00a0 Hoss had always been his playmate, his guardian, his biggest fan and supporter.\u00a0 Adam, on the other hand, was the older brother, conscience, teacher, parental surrogate and disciplinarian when needed\u2014which was far more often than he would have liked.\u00a0 Six years older than Hoss and twice that to Joe, sometimes he longed to have been born last.<\/p>\n Ben mumbled one of the beatitudes which seemed to placate Hoss for the time being and Adam returned to his book.\u00a0 It never occurred to him to ask what Hoss meant by “not fair.”<\/p>\n Adam got a second chance a few days later.<\/p>\n “Joe won’t play checkers,” Hoss said, his hands in his pockets as he shuffled into the kitchen one night where Adam was eating the late dinner Hop Sing had kept warm on the stove.\u00a0 Ben was seated at the preparatory table having a cup of coffee while Adam devoured the savory hot beef swimming in well-seasoned gravy along with roasted carrots and potatoes.<\/p>\n “What do you mean he won’t play checkers?\u00a0\u00a0 Didn’t you two have a game tonight?\u00a0 I saw the board up,” Ben said.<\/p>\n “He don’t play fair.”<\/p>\n Again with the fair.\u00a0 Something is definitely not right<\/em>.\u00a0 “What do you mean by ‘fair’, Hoss?” Adam asked.<\/p>\n “Ah, shucks.\u00a0 He’s taking too long to make his move.\u00a0\u00a0 Ain’t no fun no more and I told him so.”<\/p>\n “What happened?”<\/p>\n “He got mad and went to bed.”<\/p>\n Ben\u2019s upturned eyebrow mirrored Adam\u2019s.\u00a0 They were both thinking the same thing . . . that Joe ALWAYS plays checkers with Hoss and has since he was old enough to be trusted not to put the pieces in his mouth.\u00a0 The second thing was that, though he and Adam had both tried, they could seldom interest Joe in a game of chess\u2014it is a game that takes far too long to his way of thinking.\u00a0 According to Joe, a man of action should not be inclined to sit around pondering his next move.<\/p>\n Adam felt Joe could be a grand master chess champion if he would only apply himself to the game.\u00a0 He instinctively saw the long-range possibilities of each piece on the board and made strategic choices which were often unconventional and overtly daring but nonetheless sound.\u00a0 It was a pity Joe had little patience waiting for others who took longer to make decisions than he did.<\/p>\n Ben and Adam again shared a look, but said nothing to Hoss.<\/p>\n “I noticed he didn’t eat much dinner.\u00a0 Perhaps he’s just tired,” Ben said. “Why don’t you set up the board again.\u00a0 I’ll give you a game . . . if you promise not to beat me too bad, that is.”\u00a0\u00a0 Hoss brightened considerably at that and Adam realized uncomfortably that his brother was hungry for companionship.\u00a0 He resolved to rectify that as soon as he was able.<\/p>\n After Hoss left the kitchen, Adam asked, \u201cWhat do you mean Joe didn\u2019t eat?\u00a0 He filled his plate.\u201d<\/p>\n “Oh, he made a good show of taking a little of everything\u2014including food he wouldn\u2019t normally touch with a ten-foot pole.\u00a0 But aside from pushing it around his plate, little passed his lips.\u00a0 Do you have any ideas?\u201d<\/p>\n “Something’s wrong.\u00a0 Once, maybe.\u00a0 But not twice.”<\/p>\n “Twice?”<\/p>\n \u201cThe other night Hoss said something similar.\u00a0 I didn’t stop to ask him what he meant, but obviously it was that Joe wasn’t playing the way he usually does.”<\/p>\n Ben frowned trying to remember.\u00a0 “Not playing fair.\u00a0 So that’s what he meant.\u00a0 I thought he was complaining that Joe was cheating.”<\/p>\n “He expects Joe to cheat; that\u2019s part of the game for them.\u00a0 He must have meant that Joe wasn’t playing at all.”<\/p>\n “It doesn’t sound like Joe.\u00a0 What do you make of it?”<\/p>\n Adam shook his head while contemplating several options, none of which were good.<\/p>\n “I have a theory, but I’d like to check it out first.”<\/p>\n “What kind of theory?”<\/p>\n “I think something happened to Joe in that house beyond his just being held captive.”<\/p>\n “There were no marks on him; no signs of . . . abuse.”<\/p>\n The look on his father\u2019s face made it clear he couldn’t bring himself to think much less verbalize what might have happened, so Adam said it for him, “You and I both know there are other kinds of torture than physical abuse.”<\/p>\n “You’re thinking of Kane?”<\/p>\n “I try not to think of him at all,” was all Adam said.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t always work.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cWellencamp was not Kane.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI never said he was.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, you didn\u2019t have to.\u00a0 Your brother is home and he\u2019s recovering; that\u2019s all that matters.\u00a0 I don’t want you stirring the pot.\u00a0 It will do Joe no good.”<\/p>\n Adam wasn’t so sure about that, but his Pa wasn’t someone he could easily disobey no matter how old he was. \u00a0Nevertheless, he felt strongly that for Joe to heal properly they had to know why he was taken.\u00a0 The secret lay buried in El Dorado County and Adam meant to find it.\u00a0 At the suggestion of Samuel Clemens he had contacted the owner of the Placerville Daily News to obtain as much information as possible.\u00a0 Jesse Yarnell responded right away and promised not only to send him whatever he had in the morgue but to follow up with what leads he could extract from his newspaper colleagues both here and abroad.<\/p>\n The next time they had this conversation, he would be prepared.\u00a0 And there will be a next time.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Adam was humming a tune while he packed his carpet bag unaware he was being observed from the doorway.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere are you going?\u201d Joe asked.\u00a0 There was a note of hostility to his voice which Adam ignored.\u00a0 He had anticipated his younger brother\u2019s reaction to this business trip.\u00a0 Joe had been stuck like glue to him for the last few weeks.\u00a0 It reminded Adam of when Joe was six and wouldn\u2019t let him out of his sight after he learned that his older brother, on whom he had depended for everything after his mother\u2019s death, was going away to college.\u00a0 The concept was something that a six year old couldn\u2019t quite grasp but surely an adult could.<\/p>\n He was wrong.<\/p>\n \u201cSacramento.\u00a0 I\u2019ve got to sign that contract with the Southern Pacific Railroad.\u00a0 You remember, for the railroad ties?\u00a0 We outbid the Bar W Ranch to get the contract.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou’re not coming back, are you?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOf course I am.\u00a0 Why would you think otherwise?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDon’t make promises you can’t keep, Adam. You don’t know that do you? Not for certain. Look at Hank. He planned on going home. Told his brothers and sisters he’d be back for Christmas this year and what did they have but an empty stocking on the mantle.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJoe . . .\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDon’t ‘Joe’ me. You know what I’m saying is true.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI’m not saying . . . All right I’ll admit that we don’t know what will happen tomorrow. I could fall off a horse or get run over by a freight wagon. So could you. So could Pa or Hoss. That’s life, Joe; full of uncertainty, but also full of opportunity if we just grab on to it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd that’s what you want? To find an opportunity to do something else . . .?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI like to apply my education to something besides contract negotiation.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou don’t think it’s been useful here?\u201d Joe sounded surprised.\u00a0 Adam had brought back many innovations and ideas from Boston. He’d made a difference in all their lives.\u00a0 Couldn’t he see that? And not just their lives, but a difference to Virginia City miners and their families when he worked with Diedesheimer to implement a new method of shoring. \u00a0Or helping Roy Coffee by riding in posses to ensure that justice prevailed; or the time he insisted that Bill Enders was guilty of murder when everyone else thought he was innocent.\u00a0 Or the school board where he served as an adviser, sometimes even teaching.\u00a0 Why weren’t these things enough for him?<\/p>\n \u201cIt is about choices, Joe. Pa made a choice to come west and I had no say in the matter.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou were a baby!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, I was.\u00a0 And then I was a boy who still had to do whatever Pa wanted to do; follow Pa wherever he led.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd then you went to college.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes. And I made the choice to come back here to repay Pa\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIs that the only reason? To repay Pa for your education?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, of course not. I wanted, needed to be with my family.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd now you don’t.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJoe, stop twisting my words.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe started to protest that he wasn’t, then thought better of it because in truth that was exactly what he was doing . . . using Adam\u2019s words against him.\u00a0 Or trying to.\u00a0 It worked better with Pa.\u00a0 Maybe because Pa could be as hot tempered as he was and didn’t always choose his words carefully. Adam on the other hand always weighed every syllable as if each were gold.\u00a0 Maybe that\u2019s what was wrong here . . . because there was something wrong, Joe could feel it; he just couldn\u2019t identify it.<\/p>\n Adam had his arms folded across his chest and leaned. He usually did that when he was trying to get a different perspective on things, as if he were standing back, assessing his environment before making a pronouncement.<\/p>\n \u201cJoe, I have business to attend to.\u00a0 You\u2019ll be fine while I\u2019m gone.\u00a0 Hoss is here, Pa is here, and Hop Sing, too.\u00a0 You\u2019re physically fit.\u00a0 Whatever happened in Placerville is behind you.\u00a0 Move on.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSure.\u00a0 Easy for you to say.\u00a0 You weren\u2019t there.\u00a0 He\u2019s still out there looking for me.\u00a0 Or my family.\u00a0 Because I tricked him . . .\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat do you mean you tricked him?\u00a0 Tricked who?\u201d<\/p>\n The only response to Adam\u2019s question was the slamming of the door.<\/p>\n Wellencamp; that\u2019s who.\u00a0 A man that deranged should have a history; a history that can be revealed.\u00a0\u00a0 Pa might think it doesn\u2019t matter, but Joe needs to understand what happened if he is ever to stop blaming himself for what transpired in that house.<\/em><\/p>\n A side trip to Placerville and the Daily News was definitely in order.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n During winter, when the family was housebound for long stretches of time, they retreated to four corners, tended to their own projects, and stayed out of each other\u2019s way.\u00a0 At dinner they would come together to discuss what they were reading, play checkers or chess or have a sing-a-long.\u00a0 Sometimes they would take turns reciting passages from books or read a play, each of them taking one or more parts.\u00a0 The difference this year was that Joe, who normally was the first to go stir crazy, preferred to stay in his room reading or sleeping and, as Hoss had pointed out, was not inclined to play checkers with anyone.<\/p>\n Adam spent a great deal of time devouring the material he received from Yarnell, the newspaper editor in Placerville.\u00a0 What he learned about Silas Wellencamp was even more disturbing than what Sheriff Mason had shared.\u00a0 An Englishman by birth, Wellencamp had married a woman of German descent and they had settled in Bruge where he had built from scratch a successful business in lace.\u00a0 They had two daughters, one son.\u00a0 Wellencamp was a disciple of philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer and had followed the philosopher\u2019s writings since his days at university.<\/p>\n One daughter\u2014rumored to be his favorite\u2014died in Bruge, apparently a suicide.\u00a0 After that Wellencamp began writing letters to the editor which became increasingly irrational.\u00a0 He seems to have disappeared for a time.\u00a0 Perhaps he was hospitalized with a breakdown.\u00a0 At any rate, after he surfaced, the family emmigrated to the United States, New York specifically, where Wellencamp had business acquaintances in the garment and home furnishing industries.\u00a0 He apparently became an importer of lace from Europe and was again brilliantly successful in business. \u00a0Urged to bring his product to the burgeoning west where gold and silver were flowing like a river, he uprooted the family once again and moved first to San Francisco, then to Sacramento, and finally to Placerville.<\/p>\n In their first few years of residency, the Wellencamps were solid citizens, philanthropic, and socially active.\u00a0 Then he began to write letters to the editor regarding ascetic life styles and free will.<\/p>\n Soon another daughter died of unexplained causes.\u00a0 Shortly thereafter, his wife dropped out of social circles and there were vaguely disguised tidbits in the gossip columns common to small town life alluding to affairs, mysterious noises emanating from the mansion, apparitions at the windows, and all manner of phenomena more appropriate to a dime novel than a newspaper.\u00a0 Adam had to hand it to Yarnell, he left nothing unturned in the materials he sent, circling even the most esoteric pieces of news, including ads for \u2018going out of business\u2019 sales for Wellencamp\u2019s store, and notices of foreclosure on the store and mansion.<\/p>\n Adam continued to scan the clippings and articles noting repeated references to Wellencamp\u2019s obsession with Schopenhauer.\u00a0 He frowned at the reference; although he was acquainted with Kant and Kierkegaard, he did not have even a cursory familiarity with the German philosopher\u2019s work but he knew someone who did.\u00a0 During a break in the weather when he was able to get to town, Adam wired Karl Luzader, a college mate now living in Chicago.\u00a0 Karl had done post-graduate work abroad in Hamburg where he obtained dual doctorates in philosophy and medicine.\u00a0 When Adam had asked him why both disciplines, Karl replied, \u201cAnatomy treats the body; psychology treats the soul.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam believed that Joe\u2019s soul had been dealt a serious blow.\u00a0 He was moved to learn all he could about Schopenhauer in order to make sense, if possible, out of Wellencamp\u2019s obsession with this philosopher and how it had subsequently manifested itself in Joe\u2019s captivity.\u00a0 He received a wire from Karl almost immediately, ensuring that he would send information within the fortnight.<\/p>\n Joe\u2019s continued rapid progress\u2014a testament to the resilience of youth\u2014bolstered the family’s belief that they were doing everything needed to restore the youngest member of the family to full health.\u00a0 As spring neared, however, cracks began to appear in the facade of “wellness” that Joe had carefully built around himself.<\/p>\n Talk at the dinner table turned more and more often toward the business of the ranch.\u00a0 Plans for repairs were discussed and decisions made regarding moving the cattle from the lower pastures into high country.\u00a0 Joe\u2019s withdrawal from conversation increased as time passed though no one seemed to notice except Hoss who invariably sat across from Joe.\u00a0 Each Cartwright had their appointed spot at the table.\u00a0 Joe sometimes changed sides, usually when there was company at the table, but always on the open end to accommodate his left handedness.<\/p>\n Hoss brought the subject up with Adam while they were cleaning out the stalls in the barn down by the lower corrals.\u00a0 Ben hadn’t yet hired men for the drive and had given those hands who remained with them all year long a week off in anticipation of the long season ahead.<\/p>\n “Adam, did ya notice Joe at dinner tonight?”<\/p>\n “Notice?\u00a0 I thought he ate pretty good.”<\/p>\n “Oh, he ate all right.\u00a0 Second helpings on taters and greens, too”<\/p>\n “In what way then?”<\/p>\n “When ya brought up hiring men.”\u00a0 Hoss clipped the wire on a bale of fresh hay and they both took pitch forks and started spreading it in the stalls.\u00a0 “Reckon he’s thinkin’ on Hank?\u00a0\u00a0 This is about the time of year we hired him.”<\/p>\n “Possibly.\u00a0 Has he said anything to you?”<\/p>\n “Nope.\u00a0 Ya know he usually only talks to you about that sort of stuff.”<\/p>\n “Mmm.”<\/p>\n “I think he’s dreamin’ again.”<\/p>\n “Talking in his sleep?”<\/p>\n “No\u2014not that I’ve heard anyway. \u00a0I check in once or twice a night.”<\/p>\n “Me, too.\u00a0 Pa must also.\u00a0 It’s a wonder Joe gets any sleep at all with us traipsing in and out of his room all night.”<\/p>\n “Reckon we’re all feelin’ it then?\u00a0 What do you think he’s gonna do come the drive? \u00a0Think he’ll go?”<\/p>\n “I hadn\u2019t thought about it, actually.\u00a0 But, no, that doesn’t seem likely.”<\/p>\n “Think Pa will let him stay here by hisself?”<\/p>\n Adam humpfed, his doubts evident.<\/p>\n “So, what are we gonna do with him?”<\/p>\n “We’ve got a month yet.\u00a0 I have an idea I’d like to talk to Pa about.”<\/p>\n \u201cWhat do you have in mind?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf Joe is starting to have nightmares again, then it is time to do something more drastic than ply him with the basic necessities of life. Bachelard said, \u2018The repose of sleep refreshes only the body.\u00a0 It rarely sets the soul at rest.\u00a0 Sleep opens within us an inn for phantoms.\u00a0 In the morning we must sweep out the shadows.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFancy words, Adam.\u00a0 Not sure what this bachelor was getting at.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBachelard; he\u2019s a French philosopher.\u00a0 I am going to propose to Pa again that it is time we help Joe sweep away the shadows and the only way I see to do that is to shine a light brightly on Wellencamp.\u00a0 I think Pa will be more receptive this time.\u00a0 He must be aware we\u2019re approaching the anniversary of Hank\u2019s death.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam was wrong.<\/p>\n “So you expressly went against my wishes to conduct this investigation, is that what you’re telling me?” Pa roared.<\/p>\n Adam was surprised at the intensity of his father\u2019s reaction but had learned over the years to wait him out.\u00a0 His Pa, like a gorilla, needed to beat his breast and vocally assert his dominance from time to time.\u00a0 Unlike his brothers, Adam didn\u2019t take the bait.\u00a0 He knew Pa usually calmed down if met with a quiet, rational explanation of the facts and was banking that it would not take long for his common sense to reappear.<\/p>\n Ben was, in fact, well aware that Adam had returned from Sacramento with a rather large package wrapped in newsprint\u2014The Daily News newsprint.\u00a0 Since the Ponderosa currently had no business dealings with anyone in Placerville, Ben was quick to surmise that Adam had been digging up bones that should remain buried.\u00a0 His blustering may have been a bit overstated, but he didn\u2019t let on and neither did Adam.<\/p>\n It was a standoff that would soon be resolved in a way neither man had anticipated.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n End of Part One<\/p>\n Next in the Choices Series:<\/strong><\/p>\n Shadows<\/a> <\/p>\n Cheaux Summary: \u00a0Joe Cartwright\u2019s friends are dying and he doesn\u2019t know why. \u00a0Part one of a three part story.<\/p>\n Rated: \u00a0MA (subject matter) — \u00a0WC \u00a022,000<\/p>\n Choices Series, links to all the stories within the series included.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":8766,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"template-full-width-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[23,41,1007,690,40],"tags":[438],"class_list":["post-6390","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-drama","category-hurtcomfort","category-joe-cartwright","category-ma-rated","category-challenges","tag-devonshire","wpcat-23-id","wpcat-41-id","wpcat-1007-id","wpcat-690-id","wpcat-40-id"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/Julia-Bulette1.jpg?fit=432%2C441&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6390","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\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6390"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6390\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8766"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6390"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6390"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6390"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nShadows<\/a>
\nHunger<\/a><\/p>\n
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\nHunger<\/a><\/p>\n
\nMay 2011
\nUpdated February 2013<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"