{"id":7310,"date":"2014-05-07T23:02:25","date_gmt":"2014-05-08T03:02:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=7310"},"modified":"2026-02-16T14:16:05","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T19:16:05","slug":"little-girl-in-pink","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=7310","title":{"rendered":"Little Girl in Pink (by Sibylle)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summary: \u00a0<\/span>Adam meets a little girl on the road to Virginia city that he better never found.<\/p>\n

Rated:<\/span>\u00a0T \u00a0WC 600<\/span><\/p>\n

Story Notes:<\/b><\/p>\n

Thank you, Sklamb, for beta reading and correcting my English.<\/em><\/p>\n

Author’s Notes:<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

This short story originally was written for the Pinecone Challenge Number 10.<\/em><\/p>\n

The prompt (“Mama died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know.”) comes from “The Stranger” by Camus.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Little Girl in Pink<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

“Mama died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know, mister.”
\n<\/strong>
\nAdam sat upright in his bed, heart pounding, a thin film of sweat covering his body, with that little voice whispering to him. Was he running a fever? he thought as he lay back. What had happened?<\/p>\n

He’d been running a wagonful of errands for his father and Hop Sing, and as the buckboard had rumbled towards Virginia City he had spotted a small figure sitting on a big stone beside the road. A little girl clad in pink: pink dress, a little pink cape and a matching bonnet. She surely wasn’t more than five or six.<\/p>\n

Adam steadied the horses. “Hey, little lady, what are you doing here? Where\u2019s your Ma?”<\/p>\n

“Mama died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know, mister.” Adam could barely hear her whisper. He climbed down and approached the child cautiously, not wanting to startle her.<\/p>\n

“And your Pa, where is he?”<\/p>\n

“I haven\u2019t never known him, mister.” Her eyes were fixed on the ground.<\/p>\n

That caught Adam’s sympathy. He himself knew enough of losing a parent and this poor girl had evidently lost both. “Is there nobody with you?” he smiled reassuringly. “I don\u2019t know what to call you. What\u2019s your name?”<\/p>\n

“Jennifer, but Mama called me Jenny.”<\/p>\n

“May I call you Jenny, too?”<\/p>\n

“If you want.”<\/p>\n

“I would like that, Jenny. My name\u2019s Adam.”<\/p>\n

“O.K., Adam.” She raised her eyes and looked at him.<\/p>\n

“Jenny, are you all alone?”<\/p>\n

The girl shook her head. “My two brothers are on our wagon.”<\/p>\n

“Where is it, Jenny?” Adam asked gently.<\/p>\n

“Over there,” the girl whispered, pointing behind her.<\/p>\n

“You came in a wagon across that rough ground? How?”<\/p>\n

“It was night, and I was asleep, but Mama got in a hurry and drove off the road, and there was lots of noise, and then the wagon broke…” she said tearfully.<\/p>\n

“How old are your brothers?” Perhaps one of them could be more helpful, Adam thought.<\/p>\n

“One’s older than me, the other’s just a baby.”<\/p>\n

“Can you show me your wagon?” Adam said soothingly and held out a hand. She nodded and put her own small cold hand in his as she hopped down from the stone.<\/p>\n

Only a few hundred yards away was a small valley, with the shattered pieces of a wagon in plain view. And then the smell came. An awful smell. Instinctively Adam gathered up the feather-light child and folded her close to his chest as he picked his way down to the valley floor. Closer up, the scene was worse; there were five or six corpses around the wagon.<\/p>\n

He tried to shield the little girl from the sight. “Shsh, you’re all right, Jenny, you’re all right, don\u2019t worry.”<\/p>\n

The girl lifted her small head from against his shoulder. Adam caught a brief glimpse, as her mouth split into a wide smile, of serried rows of needle-sharp teeth before she sank them forcefully into the side of his neck.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer:\u00a0All publicly recognizable characters and settings are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

<\/g><\/svg><\/i> \"Loading\"<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summary: \u00a0Adam meets a little girl on the road to Virginia city that he better never found. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Rated:\u00a0T \u00a0WC 600<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":114,"featured_media":3216,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"template-full-width-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1005,23,8,29,40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7310","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-adam-cartwright","category-drama","category-short-stories","category-halloween","category-challenges","wpcat-1005-id","wpcat-23-id","wpcat-8-id","wpcat-29-id","wpcat-40-id"],"a3_pvc":{"activated":true,"total_views":1253,"today_views":1},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/WoF-37Edengirl.jpg?fit=768%2C576&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":48748,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=48748","url_meta":{"origin":7310,"position":0},"title":"Mother’s Day 2024 (VCLS)","author":"VCLS","date":"May 11, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary:\u00a0 In honor of all mothers who are still with us in person or in spirit, Bonanza Brand presents this Mother Day's compilation containing the work Inca, MonicaSJ, faust, Southplains, Krystyna, Patina, DJK, and Sibylle--authors who responded to the 2012 Pinecone Challenge prompt:\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMama died today...\u201d\u00a0 from The Stranger by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Drama"","block_context":{"text":"Drama","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Pinecone-Challenges.png?fit=505%2C459&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7433,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=7433","url_meta":{"origin":7310,"position":1},"title":"Mama Died Today (by southplains)","author":"southplains","date":"October 31, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary: \u00a0A Cartwright son's short life story. \u00a0 Rated:\u00a0K \u00a0WC 774","rel":"","context":"In "Drama"","block_context":{"text":"Drama","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Moon-Blind.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Moon-Blind.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Moon-Blind.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5756,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=5756","url_meta":{"origin":7310,"position":2},"title":"A New Pattern (by Patina)","author":"patina","date":"June 2, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary:\u00a08th story in The Battle of Wills series.\u00a0 The Cartwrights go into town so Marie can order baby furniture and Adam can get a haircut. Hoss goes shopping with Marie and, while in the store, he overhears her conversation with two elderly ladies about food cravings and whether the baby\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Drama"","block_context":{"text":"Drama","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/blue-plate.jpg?fit=598%2C598&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/blue-plate.jpg?fit=598%2C598&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/blue-plate.jpg?fit=598%2C598&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":35385,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=35385","url_meta":{"origin":7310,"position":3},"title":"The Paper Toy-Theater (by Sibylle)","author":"Sibylle","date":"December 25, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary:\u00a0 Adam wishes to share a Christmas memory with Hoss, a memory begun by Inger. Rating:\u00a0 K+\u00a0 \u00a01175 words\u00a0 Note:\u00a0 This story was written for the Bonanza Brand 2020 Advent Calendar, originated in the Forums.","rel":"","context":"In "Adam \/ Hoss"","block_context":{"text":"Adam \/ Hoss","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=1090"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Christmas-Traditions.jpg?fit=639%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Christmas-Traditions.jpg?fit=639%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Christmas-Traditions.jpg?fit=639%2C480&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5967,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=5967","url_meta":{"origin":7310,"position":4},"title":"Naming the Newest Cartwright (by Patina)","author":"patina","date":"July 3, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary:\u00a09th story in The Battle of Wills series.\u00a0 The Cartwrights try to decide on a name for the coming baby Rating: K+ Word Count=2542 The Battle of Wills series, links to all the stories within the series included.","rel":"","context":"In "Drama"","block_context":{"text":"Drama","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5813,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=5813","url_meta":{"origin":7310,"position":5},"title":"Back to the Beginning (by Patina)","author":"patina","date":"September 3, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Rating: K Word Count=2472 Summary:\u00a0An important letter arrives for Adam. The letter contains news that will change his life.","rel":"","context":"In "Prequel"","block_context":{"text":"Prequel","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=30"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Marie.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Marie.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Marie.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7310","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\/114"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7310"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7310\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3216"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7310"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7310"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7310"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}