NOTHING IS WHAT IT SEEMS
by Julie-Ann S.
**********************************************
"It's those low-down,
gutter-sniping killers." Jubal Hadfield said as he looked outside. "It's time they got what's coming to
them."
"Yeah, you're right." Alonzo McFadden nodded. "Keowa Flats
don't need scum like that around here."
The two men grabbed their rifles and
started to make their way outside to face the Big Jake and Shorty
Jim, the notorious Slade brothers. They
nodded as they...
"Hey Joe! You in here!"
Joe frowned. How on earth was he supposed to finish this
book if he kept on getting interrupted all the time. Earlier he had tried to read in front of the
fireplace but Adam's constant teasing about what he was reading had finally
gotten to him and he had high-tailed it out to the barn. Up here in the loft he had been quite content
and had become absorbed in the story being told but now it looked like that was
all over. Hoss had come looking for him.
"Joe? Joe?"
Hoss paused for a moment.
"Maybe he isn't here, Adam."
"Oh he's here alright. We've looked everywhere else. Only place he could be."
Gazing upwards and shaking his head,
Joe sighed heavily. He should have known
that his two brothers would come for him eventually. He had no doubt that they only wanted him for
one reason. There was no choice in the
matter. It was better to get it over and
done with as soon as possible.
"I'm up here." Joe shouted.
He then made his way down from the loft to the barn floor.
Adam smiled as he watched his
youngest brother come down. He was in
the mood for some light-hearted fun and he had recruited Hoss soon after Joe
had left the house. Hoss had eagerly
agreed and the two of them had just spent the last thirty minutes trying to
find Joe.
Hoss grinned as Joe approached. He could see that Adam was right and that Joe
indeed had another one of those books he loved to read. Every time he thought of the things that had
happened to him, whenever Joe had got a hold of some silly notion from one of
those books, he shuddered. When Adam had
told him what he had planned for Joe, Hoss had no hesitation in agreeing. Joe had to be stopped before he started coming
up some new scheme.
The three brothers stood in the
middle of the barn. One of them warily
eyeing the other two and slightly dreading what was to come. Joe casually looked over at Adam. "Well?"
"I was just telling Hoss about
the book you brought home from town this morning." Adam put his arm around Hoss' shoulders. "Poor ol' Hoss
here thinks that no good will come from you reading that book."
"Really
Hoss?"
Joe stared pointedly at Hoss.
"Whatever gave you that idea?"
"Well Joe, I'll tell you what
gave me that idea." Hoss
grimaced. "I just have to think of
all them times that I got into trouble after you read
one of those silly detective novels."
"Hah!" Joe smiled triumphantly. "It seems our older brother has
misinformed you. It isn't one of those
detective novels. In fact it's a
historical novel."
Adam looked sceptically at Joe. "A historical novel? I'll believe that when I see it. Why don't you just show us?"
"Yeah Joe. Just show
us."
"Ok Hoss. I'll show you." Joe handed the book over to Hoss.
Hoss slowly read the title and
frowned. He looked quite perplexed as he
opened the book up to the first page.
After reading the first couple sentences, Hoss slowly shook his
head. "Dadburnit,
Joe why do you want to read about this?
Heck we were there and I can tell you, this book ain't goin' to tell it like it was."
Adam took the book off Hoss and
casually flipped through it. He raised
an eyebrow and smirked. "Ahh a classic, I see."
Joe grabbed the book back from Adam
and returned his gaze to Hoss.
"Yeah Hoss, I know we were there but this fills in all the gaps. I always wanted to know for sure what
happened after we left."
Placing his hand on Joe's shoulder,
Hoss nodded. "I can understand that
Joe, but this book ain't the way to find out.
All them dime store novels are pure
hogwash."
"Hoss is right about that. Why don't you try reading something more
worthwhile?"
"By worthwhile, I suppose you
mean one of those books you're always so fond of reading. Thanks but no thanks Adam. The few I've read already were okay but I
like something that has a little more meat to it. More feeling. More action. More excitement." Joe smiled dreamily.
Adam smirked. He knew he wasn't going to get to Joe
today. "Ok Joe, I get your
point. You win. Do me one favour though."
"What?" Joe's face showed that he was pleased with
the fact that Adam had decided to give up.
"Try to read something a bit
more substanial in the future. I hate to see you get fiction confused with
reality." Adam patted Joe on the
back. "Now, gentlemen if you will excuse
me, I'm heading into town."
"Want some company?"
Stopping briefly, as he walked
towards his horse, Adam turned around and looked at Joe. "Sorry Joe, not this time around. Got things to do that...well you know."
Joe nodded. "Yeah I know." He thought about it for a minute or so and
then handed his book to Hoss. "Here
Hoss have a good look through and let me know what you think."
Hoss stared blankly at the book he
was now holding. "Ok Joe, but I
already done told you what I think..."
Frowning, Hoss was not all surprised to see that Joe had gone over to
Adam.
Adam, by now had started to saddle
his horse and only looked up briefly to see that Joe had now joined him. In a way Adam felt sorry for Joe. He knew his brother wanted to come with him
on an assignment but Adam wasn't about to let him. Ever since that tricky situation when Hoss
came to his rescue shortly after his return, he had become determined to make
sure that his family didn't get involved in his Secret Service work. The unfortunate affair with Mallard and the
trip he took with Hoss to find the counterfeit notes had been the only
exceptions to his rule.
Joe stared solemnly at Adam. He wanted to know more about Adam's
life. No, that wasn't quite true. The fact was that he wanted to be a part of
his oldest brother's other life. Every
time he had made an attempt to get himself involved with Adam's Secret Service
life, he had been thwarted. This time
around he wasn't going to be that easily deterred. Adam was on a case. He was sure of it.
"Why won't you let me help,
Adam? I'm just as good as any man."
"Joe, I know you
are." Adam paused for a moment to
think about what he was going to say. He
had an inkling that Joe was of the view that his life
was all action and excitment. Adam couldn't blame his brother for thinking
that based on what Joe had seen so far.
It was time to set his brother straight on a few things about his work.
Rubbing the back of his neck, Adam
smiled at his brother. "Look
Joe. I know you think that being a Secret
Service agent is an exciting profession.
I suppose those books you read might give you that impression but the
truth is that for the most part all you do is sit around and wait while you
pick up the odd bit of information. In
fact at times it is rather sedate. You'd
get bored rather quickly."
"So you say Adam but I'm not
sure that you're telling me the truth.
Maybe you're just saying this to get me to lose interest in what you
do."
"You're right Joe. I am hoping that you will lose
interest." Adam sighed. "I've told you as much as I am going to
tell you about what I do. If you don't
believe me then I don't know what I can say that will make you."
Hoss came over to them and put his
hand on Joe's shoulder. "Listen to
Adam, Joe. I've been noticin'
lately that this interest you've developed in Adam's work is gettin' mighty unhealthy."
Abruptly, Joe flung Hoss' hand off
his shoulder. "I haven't finished
with you yet, Adam. If you won't tell me
what you're up to, I guess I'll just have to find out for myself." Joe then stormed out of the barn without as
much as a backward glance at his brothers.
After Joe had departed, Hoss lowered
his head. "I guess Joe, didn't like
me mentionin' his interest in your work as bein' unhealthy."
"No Hoss he didn't but it was
about time that someone did." Adam
glanced briefly at Hoss. "I wasn't
too worried about his interest in what I do at the start but in the last month or
so...I'm afraid that it has developed into an obsession."
"I wonder how it happened?" Hoss
raised his head and looked questionably at Adam.
"I have no idea. It could have been a number of things. Joe's always been the one wanting to be part
of the action and there hasn't been much of that around here lately. Maybe that's why he fixated on what I
do. I'm the only one who seems to be
doing something remotely exciting, even though that is far from the
truth."
"Yeah. I can
understand that. You come and go more
than anyone else around here." Hoss
grinned slightly. "Too bad Joe gets
too many hair-brained notions from those books of his."
Adam smiled. "Yeah those stories aren't helping
much. They make the life a lawman even
more alluring then it really is. I just
hope Joe realises that before he goes and does something stupid."
Hoss nodded. "Same here, Adam. Same here."
**********************************************
For the next couple of days, Joe
watched Adam as his brother went about his usual business at the ranch. Things around the Ponderosa had been rather
slow for weeks now and Joe was getting bored with the same old routine. Even
The mystery of what Adam did had all
of a sudden become very enticing to Joe.
He wanted to experience the adventure and the excitement of what his
oldest brother did. Joe could only see
that Adam was living the life he had dreamed about and he was determined to be
a part of it.
On this particular day, Joe had
volunteered to go into town to get some supplies and to collect the mail. As he was walking out of the post office, he
was surprised to see Adam coming out of The Red Dog Saloon. Knowing that The Red Dog was not a place that
the Cartwrights or their ranch hands frequented, Joe naturally came to the
conclusion that Adam was in town on Secret Service business.
Smiling, Joe knew he had been
presented with the opportunity he had been waiting for. Adam hadn't obviously seen him, for if he had,
his brother would've come straight over to him.
Keeping at discrete distance, Joe began to follow Adam through the
streets of
One hour later, Joe was still hot on
Adam's trail. Joe was very pleased with
the fact that Adam had no idea that he was being followed by his youngest
brother. Walking across the street from
Adam, Joe kept an eagle eye on his brother and what he was doing. It was due to this occupation of keeping
watch on Adam, that Joe failed to see where he was
going and walked straight into the former sheriff of
Startled, Joe looked to see who he
had bumped into. "Umm...Hi
Joe smiled innocently at
"No there isn't."
Joe began to feign innocence. "Adam?
Adam's here in town? Imagine
that. Where was he?"
"He was just over
there."
"Nope. I guess I was
just too busy thinking."
Eyeing Joe suspiciously,
Taking a defensive stance, Joe
nodded once. "Yeah
thinking. I think just like
everybody else."
Knowing he had hit a nerve,
"That's fine
"I still find it hard to
believe that you didn't see your brother."
"Oh well, it happens that way
sometimes. Now if you'll excuse I've got
to get back to the ranch."
"Take care
Joe."
As far as he was concerned there was
something mighty fishy going on with Adam Cartwright. He had been watching the oldest Cartwright
son for weeks now and the incident with Joe just now was adding to his
suspicions that somehow Adam had turned bad.
What sort of lawman and friend was he if he didn't go about finding out
what was really going on. With that thought in mind ,
**********************************************
That night just before dinner, Joe
came to the conclusion that he needed some assistance and since he had a feeling
that Hoss wasn't going to help him, there was only one other person that he
could go to. Surely his best friend
wouldn't mind coming along with him on his little adventure.
Going up to Candy's bedroom door,
Joe paused before he knocked. He had to
have the right words to say in order to convince Candy that he needed his help
in finding out what the case was that Adam was working on.
After knocking on the door, Joe
waited patiently for Candy to open it.
When Candy finally opened the door, Joe grinned. "Hi Candy. Mind if I come in?"
Candy eyed Joe suspiciously. He could immediately see that Joe was here
for more than just a friendly chat.
Against his better judgement, Candy let Joe into his room. Since Joe was his best friend the least he
could do was to hear him out before he told Joe that the answer was no.
Joe casually scanned the room and
his eyes fell onto a book that was lying on top of the dresser. Going over and picking it up, Joe began to
flip through it, paying little attention to what the book was about as he
continued to find the right words to say.
He turned his head slightly towards
Candy and smiled. "Interesting
reading?"
Shifting nervously, Candy answered
in the affirmative. He hoped that Joe
was paying too much attention to what he was looking at in the book. If Joe found out where he had gotten the book
from, he would have a lot of explaining to do.
A few awkward seconds past by as Joe
continued to turn the pages in the book.
He had just about come up with the best way to ask Candy for his help
and as he was about to put the book down, he opened the front cover. A look of surprise crossed his face as he
silently read the words "Property of the Virginia City Lending Library". Turning to face Candy, Joe held up the book
and looked questionably at him. "I
thought this was one of the books from Pa's library. It seems I was mistaken. The Lending Library isn't usually the sort of
place you go to when you're in town, now is it?"
"Yeah. Well you're
wrong." Candy went up and snatched
the book from Joe. "What's wrong
with expanding my horizons?"
Joe raised
up his hands in protest. "Nothing. It's
just that I'm surprised to see that you are." All of a sudden Joe paused and then a sly
grin crossed his face. "Oh now I get
it. Your sudden interest in expanding
your horizons wouldn't have anything to do with the owner of the library now
would it?"
"So what if it does." Candy sighed in resignation. "Ok, so it does. After you told me that story about what
happened to Adam there, I got curious. I
wanted to see for myself the girl who had the gumption to whack a Cartwright on
the head."
"I told you that story nearly a
month ago. Don't tell me that you've
been..."
"Yes I have and quite frankly
it's none of your business who I see and who I don't see."
Solemnly nodding, Joe conceded that
Candy had a point. His friend had the
right to see whomever he wished to.
"Since I only just found out now, I can safely guess that Adam
knows nothing about it."
"As far as I know he doesn't
but what your brother knows and doesn't know is anybody's guess." Candy smiled.
"Besides he doesn't like Jane Talbot all that much anyways. He'd probably say that I'm welcome to
her."
"Yep you're probably right
about that one." Joe grinned.
Candy thought for a few
moments. He was only just starting to
get to know Jane and wanted to take his time in learning all about her. His wariness came due to the fact that he had
been burnt too many times in the past.
Taking a deep breath, he looked at Joe.
It was time to change the subject.
"So Joe what can I do for you?"
Knowing that Candy had said all he
was going to say on the subject of Jane Talbot, Joe nodded once. "I need your help."
"My
help?"
Candy wondered for a moment why Joe would need his help. The answer then came to him. "This wouldn't have anything to do with
the fact that you've been itching for weeks to find out what Adam's been up to
lately, now would it?"
"Alright it is." Joe mumbled.
"How did you know?"
Grinning, Candy went up to Joe and
placed his hand on his friend's shoulder.
"We've known each other for a long time Joe. I can tell when you get that look in your
eye. You're scheming about
something."
"I guess there's no foolin' you, Candy. So how about it?"
Shaking his head slowly, Candy
smiled apologetically. "Sorry
Joe. Got too much to
do around here."
Joe nodded begrudgingly. "Well there's no harm in trying. I suppose this is something that I've got to
do on my own."
"Well good luck and happy
hunting." Candy smiled as he
escorted Joe to the door.
After opening the door, Candy turned
to look at Joe. "By the way you
won't mention anything to anybody about me seeing Jane Talbot?"
Placing his hand on Candy' shoulder,
Joe smiled. "Your secret's safe
with me but I wouldn't want to be in your shoes if Adam ever finds out."
"No, I wouldn't want to be
either." Candy said grimly.
**********************************************
"So Hoss, what do you think
he's been up to lately then?"
Hoss frowned. "I don't know Adam. Your guess is as good as mine."
Adam nodded and took a deep
breath. The night air was clear and
crisp tonight. Sitting outside on the
porch after enjoying another delicious meal prepared by Hop Sing, he had begun
speculating on what Joe had been doing the last couple of days. His youngest brother had been rather quiet
and quite frankly it worried him.
"You're right Adam, Joe has been too darn quiet lately." Hoss glanced at Adam. "When Joe's quiet you know he's up to somethin'."
The front door opened just as Adam
was about to answer. Candy and Joe
walked out and joined the other two.
"Hey don't stop talking on my
account." Joe smiled. "Nice night isn't it?"
"Yup sure is." Hoss nodded and looked cautiously at Adam.
Joe frowned. Moments before he came out he could hear
voices and he knew Hoss and Adam were discussing something. "So what were you two talking
about?"
"Well Joe, we were actually
talking about you?" Adam said
calmly. "You've been rather quiet lately."
Shrugging his shoulders, Joe smiled
innocently. "Well you know how it
is. You get busy and you keep your nose
to the ol' grindstone. Ain't that right Candy?"
Candy raised his eyebrows. "Keep me out this, Joe." He gazed over towards the bunk house. "If you want me I'll be with the
boys." He then walked off.
Adam smirked. "Well Joe, looks like you've lost your
only ally."
"Yeah it sure does, doesn't
it?" Joe shrugged his shoulders
casually.
"So what have you been doing
lately, Joe?" Adam asked,
emphasising the word have.
"Oh a bit this and a bit a that. Nothing that would interest you two."
Hoss grimaced. "That's what we're afraid of Joe."
Grinning widely, Joe looked at his
two brothers. "Don't you think I'm too
old to be getting into the sort of trouble I use to get into?"
"Yes you are too old to get
into the sort of trouble that use to get into but that hasn't stopped you
yet." Adam said casually.
"Look...you fellas have got
nothing to worry about." Joe smiled
warmly. "I'm not planning to get
into any trouble."
Adam and Hoss gazed knowingly at
each other. They both knew they wouldn't
find out what Joe was really up to until he was well and truly ready to tell
them. The only other way they would find
was if and when Joe got into trouble.
The three of them sat quietly for a
few minutes. Adam was the first to break
the amicable silence. "Speaking
of trouble. I have to warn you
two about something."
Joe looked questionably at
Adam. "Warn us about what?"
"Stay away from The Red Dog
Saloon."
"Huh? Why The Red Dog,
Adam?" Hoss asked curiously.
"Let's just say if any of us go
in there, there could be trouble."
Accepting what Adam said at face
value, Hoss nodded. "Yeah
sure Adam."
Pondering what Adam had just said,
Joe nodded his head. He was
contemplating the idea that Adam may be warning them to stay away from The Red
Dog due to the nature of his work. The
longer he thought about the more he was sure that Adam was working on a case at
that particular saloon. Didn't he see
his brother walk out of there a few days ago?
Smiling innocently, Joe turned to
walk back inside. "Well thanks for
the warning, big brother." He
yawned. "Time I was getting to
bed. Night
fellas."
Adam watched with concern as Joe
went back inside. "You know
Hoss. I get the feeling that Joe didn't
take my warning too seriously."
"Yup. I think you're
right about that one Adam." Hoss
paused. "How come you didn't tell
us why we shouldn't go to The Red Dog?"
"I have my reasons and it has
nothing to do with my work. Suffice to
say that the Cartwrights have a few enemies who frequent that place."
"Ahh...I
thought so." Hoss had heard
something a couple of weeks ago and this confirmed his suspicions. Frowning, he continued. "I just hope Joe understood that
too."
Adam grimaced. He was now regretting holding off telling Joe
the reasons why he shouldn't go to The Red Dog.
The fact was that he didn't want his brothers to know that it had to do
with the incident at the Lending Library a month ago. Having already suffered a sufficient amount
of embarrassment he wasn't ready to face some more and he hoped that Joe was
wise enough to take his advice seriously.
**********************************************
Candy wiped his brow. It was an unusually warm day for this time of
year. Winter would be here in about two
months and there was still plenty of repairs to carry
out before the snows came. His attention
was diverted from the job at hand by the sound of a horse approaching.
Grinning, Candy watched as the
familiar rider and horse came nearer. It
looked like Joe was on his way to town.
Repairing fences could be a lonely job at times and Candy would be glad
of the company for a few minutes.
"Hey Candy!" Joe shouted as he pulled up next to where
Candy was standing. "I see that
you've started on this side. Normally
I'd help but you know...got business in town today."
"Yeah I know." Candy
laughed a little. "How many horses
do you reckon you can sell to that man from rodeo?"
"Plenty I hope. Got a few good ones I'm sure he'll
like." Joe nodded once. "You want me to do anything for you in
town today?"
Looking suspiciously at Joe, Candy
shook his head. "No. Nothing that I can think
of."
Joe smirked. "Are you sure? You don't have a message that you would like
me to deliver to a certain lady?"
"Definitely
not."
Candy snapped back at him.
"I'll handle that on my own, thank you very much."
Laughing, Joe looked at his
friend. "I understand
perfectly."
"What else do you have
planned?"
Shrugging his shoulders, Joe looked
thoughtful for a moment. "Oh I
might go and get a beer or two. Might
try some place new."
"So you're bored with The
Silver Dollar now?"
"Not really. Thought I check out The Red Dog. I've heard that it's an interesting
place."
Raising his eyebrows in surprise,
Candy nodded. "The
Red Dog. Haven't
heard much about it."
"Well I thought that it was
high time I visited the place." Joe
turned his horse around. "I'll be
heading off. It's time that you got back
to work. See you when I get back."
"Yeah see ya." Candy watched Joe ride off for a second and
then went back to repairing the fence.
**********************************************
Two hours later Candy had finished
repairing the fence. It was time to head
on back to the ranch house for some lunch.
However, just as he was about to get on his horse, he looked up to see
Hoss riding towards him.
"Hey Candy.",
Hoss said cheerfully as he pulled up alongside the man. "I'm lookin' for
Joe. You haven't seen him, have you?"
Candy nodded. "Yeah I've seen him."
"Well you gonna
tell me where and when?"
Grinning, Candy continued. "I saw him about two hours ago. He was headed into town to do some
business."
"Ahh...now
I remember. There's that buyer in town lookin' to get some broncs for
the upcomin' rodeo in
Getting onto his own horse, Candy
looked at Hoss. "Say why don't we head back to the house and get some lunch. I've built up big hunger fixing this
fence."
Smiling, Hoss agreed and the two of
them began the ride back to the ranch house.
They had only been riding for a few minutes when Hoss stopped his horse
abruptly.
Turning to look at Candy, Hoss
frowned. "Candy? Did Joe say anythin'
'bout what else he was plannin' to do while he was in
town?"
"Yep. He said that
he was going to get a beer from The Red Dog."
"Dadburnit!" Hoss shouted. "I just knew I shoulda
kept an eye on him. I thought he had
more sense than that."
Puzzled, Candy wondered what the matter
was. "Hey Hoss. There's nothing wrong with getting a beer now
is there?"
"No there ain't but The Red Dog
sure isn't the place to go and get it."
"What do you mean? I've heard nothing bad about the place."
"Adam done warned him 'bout not
goin' in there."
Hoss thought for a moment.
"We've gotta go and get 'im before it's
too late."
"Hang on a minute. I don't understand..."
"Haven't
got time to explain it to ya, Candy. It just that The Red Dog don't welcome the Cartwrights or our
friends."
Candy blinked twice. "Oh heck. How come I'm always the last to know these things."
"Like I said, I ain't got the
time to explain it to ya. We've gotta go now!" Hoss then spurred his horse into a fast
gallop and headed towards
Shaking his head in bewilderment,
Candy followed Hoss' lead and hoped that they weren't too late.
**********************************************
Joe walked inside the saloon and
scanned the room. It looked like a nice
enough place. All the trimmings were
done in red in keeping with the name of the saloon. The furnishings didn't seem too old or too
shabby. All in all The Red Dog seemed to
be a pleasant place to sit down and have a drink. He went up to the bar and ordered a beer.
When he received his beer, Joe began
to sip it as he carefully studied the other patrons, trying to work out who
would be the type to get Adam's interest.
He soon became absorbed in his task and thus he failed to notice the
group of men, who confidently entered the saloon a short time later.
Fred Jones and his cohorts had found
The Red Dog to their liking and had made it their regular meeting place. They came together at this time nearly every
day to have a drink, usually staying well into the evening.
As he looked around the room and
acknowledged the other regulars, Fred's eyes fell upon a new customer, wearing
a green jacket. He couldn't see who the
man was, as the fellow had his back turned to him. Deciding that it was his duty to welcome the
newcomer, Fred went up to him and smiled as he tapped the man on the shoulder.
Joe whirled around to see who had
tapped him on the shoulder. He looked at
the man and was mildly surprised to see the smile that the man was wearing
quickly disappear.
Thinking nothing of it, Joe
smiled. "Hi. I'm..."
"I know who you are." Fred spat out. "You're one of those high and mighty
Cartwrights. I thought I told your
brother that none of you were to show your faces in here."
Putting up his spare hand in a
stopping motion, Joe frowned. "Hang
on a minute. I don't even know who you
are."
"I'm Fred Jones." Seeing a look of confusion on young
Cartwright's face, Fred was momentarily taken aback. "Your brother Adam's told you about me
hasn't he?"
Shaking his head, Joe smiled
apologetically. "No,
'fraid not.
Am I suppose to know you?"
So Adam Cartwright hadn't told them
about that day in the Lending Library.
If it weren't for Cartwright knocking him out in front of her, he
would've seen what the delectable Miss Talbot had to offer a gentleman like himself. Fred grimaced. "Well it don't
matter. You Cartwrights aren't welcomed
here, so if I were you I'd get out of here right now."
Not liking being told what he should
do, Joe half-smiled. "I ain't going
anywhere. Not until I have at least
finished my beer. Besides,
I kind of like it here. I might
stick around for a while longer."
Joe turned and faced the back wall behind the bar.
"I'm telling you to get out
now!" Fred shouted as he knocked
the beer from Joe's hand. He was getting
sick and tired of how the Cartwrights were always turning up where they weren't
welcomed. It was time he sent a clear
message to the whole lot of them.
Silently fuming, Joe wiped the
excess beer off his jacket sleeve. He
glared at Fred. "So you want me to
leave do you?" Having already sized
up the man as no threat, Joe continued, "Well come and make me."
"Oh...I'll make you
alright." Fred said with venom, as
he motioned to two of his friends, who by now had moved to stand behind
Joe. "Alright
fellas. Show him how we deal with
unwanted guests."
Joe watched as Fred stepped out of
the way and a burly man came towards him.
The next thing he knew was that he was being grabbed by the two men
standing behind him. They each took hold
of his arms and it was then that Joe knew he was in trouble. Taking a deep breath, Joe prepared to defend
himself as best he could under the circumstances.
For the next few minutes, the burly
man pummeled Joe with his fists. At the beginning, Joe had managed to kicked the burly man a couple of times but that didn't seem
to stop him. Joe could feel the pain a
lot by now. He that had taken a terrible
beating to his face and stomach and it showed no signs of ending in the near
future.
All of a sudden the two men who had been holding him by the arms, let go. Joe fell to the floor in a crumpled
heap. He had the feeling that they
weren't finished with him yet and that they would soon probably start kicking
him where he laid. One of the men then
started to do so but after the first kick it had abruptly ceased.
In a dazed state, Joe gazed upwards
and was surprised to see Hoss dealing with the man who had been moments ago
pounding the life out of him. The sound
of chair crashing caught Joe's attention and he was grateful to see that Hoss hadn't
come alone. He could see that Candy was
there and he felt comforted with the knowledge that for the time being it was
over. Feeling slightly out of sorts, he
slowly closed his eyes.
**********************************************
"C'mon
Joe.
It's time you woke up."
Joe groaned. He wanted to stay where he was for just a
little while longer. "Go
away." he
mumbled.
"Joe you know we can't do
that. We've got to get you home and it
would be good if you were awake."
"Ok Hoss." Joe opened his eyes and as they came into
focus he could see that he wasn't in The Red Dog anymore. "Where am I?"
"You're in Doc Martin's
office."
"Oh...I thought the place
looked kinda familiar." Joe grinned
slightly and after a few minutes, slowly attempted to get up. He clutched his sides as the pain shot
through.
Hoss and Candy moved to help Joe as
he moved into a sitting position on the edge of the bed that he had just been
lying on. "Well Doc, what's the
verdict?" Joe asked.
Paul Martin smiled. "You'll be fine. You've been badly bruised and thankfully
that's it. It could of
been a lot worse."
"Yeah I know." Joe half-smiled. He turned to looked
at Hoss and Candy. "Thanks for
coming to my rescue."
Candy shrugged his shoulders. "It was nothing. I'm just glad we got there before they did
any real damage to you."
After a few moments, Hoss spoke
up. "Dagummit
Joe. Why the heck did you go there when
Adam warned us not to?"
Joe snorted. "I had my reasons. I know I didn't take Adam's warning all that
seriously. I thought the reason he
wanted to stay away was because of..."
He paused, looking quickly at Candy and then back at Hoss. "Because of you know what."
"Hmm...I pretty sure it wasn't
that. I gotta a feelin'
it has to do with another more recent incident."
"You know I think you could be
right, Hoss. Now that you mention it, it
could have been that other incident."
Joe shook his head slowly.
"I guess we'll find out when we get home."
"Speaking
of home." Candy faced Doc Martin. "Is it ok that we went now?"
"Yes it is fine. Just take it easy on the way back to the
Ponderosa." Paul paused for a
moment. "Don't forget Joe, for the
next few days or so just stick to light work while you recover."
Joe smiled. "Sounds good to
me." He slowly stood up and
gingerly walked a few steps. When he
found a walking position that he was comfortable with, he turned around. "Ok fellas. Let's go home."
Hoss and Candy grinned as they
followed Joe outside the doctor's office.
**********************************************
Ben frowned. "I still don't understand why those men
at The Red Dog would do this to you."
Lying down on the settee, Joe
sighed. "I didn't know either until
Hoss reminded me about something. It
kinda makes sense now that I think about it."
"Well Hoss?" Ben turned to face his middle child. "Care to enlighten me?"
"Umm...Pa...well
it's only a guess but I think it has somethin' to do
with that incident at the Lending Library." Hoss half-smiled. "I kinda heard some stuff in town about
it a couple of weeks ago."
A look of mild surprise crossed
Ben's face. "You heard some stuff
in town? Why didn't you tell us this
earlier?"
Hoss shifted nervously. "Well I kinda knew Adam was embarassed by what happened that day, I didn't want to make
it worse for him. Then when Adam said
that he had reasons other than his work for us not goin'
in there...well I just put two and two together."
Joe lifted his head slightly. "He told you that his reasons
for us not going in there was not related to his work. When did he tell you this?"
Once again Hoss shifted
nervously. "Just
after you went to bed last night.
I guess he never got around to tellin' ya."
"I guess he never got around to
telling me." Joe said in a slightly
distressed voice. "Boy if I ever
get my hands on him."
Just then the door to house opened
and Adam came in. It had been a long day
at the timber camp and he was looking forward to dinner. He took off his hat and placed it on the peg
near the door. After he took off his gun
and placed it on the sideboard, he faced the other occupants of the room. He was surprised and slightly shocked to see
his father staring intently at him and Hoss nervously standing next to the
settee.
Noting that there was an awkward silence,
Joe slowly lifted himself off the settee and stood up. As soon as he saw Adam, he let loose. "So when were you going to tell me about
The Red Dog? I coulda
been killed in there today. If I weren't
so banged up I would..."
Adam put up his hands in
protest. "Hang on a minute,
Joe. I thought I told you not to go to
The Red Dog."
"Yeah you did Adam."
"Well why did you go in
there?"
Hoss looked intently at Joe. "Tell 'em what you told me."
"It's doesn't matter
now." Joe said quickly. He wasn't about to let the rest of his family
know that he had thought that Adam was on a case and that he had been there to
find out what it was. "What matters
now is that you neglected to tell us the full story as to why we shouldn't go
there."
Adam could see that Joe had been in
a fight of some sort. "Tell me what
happened."
Hoss could see that Joe wasn't going
to say a word and so he elected himself to tell Adam the story as he knew
it. When he had finished, Adam frowned
and went over to Joe. "I'm sorry
Joe, but I should of told you that I had just cause
for us not going in there. Hoss
understood that perfectly. Why didn't
you?"
Knowing there was no way out and
wanting Adam to understand, Joe half-smiled.
"I saw you coming out of The Red Dog a couple of days ago. When you told us not to go there, I naturally
assumed that you didn't want us there because of your Secret Service work. I was curious and I wanted to help so..."
Adam smiled knowingly, "So you went
in there to see what you could dig up on your own. I should have realised that you would go and
do something like this."
Ben went over to Joe and placed his
hand delicately on his son's shoulder.
"This obsession you've had with Adam's work has gone on long
enough."
Raising an eyebrow, Adam looked
quizzically at his father. "You
noticed that too, Pa?"
"Yes I did. I hoped that it would die a natural death but
it didn't happen that way." Ben
shook his head slowly. "It's times like these that I still find it hard to believe
that you are all grown men."
Embarrassed, Joe nodded his head in
defeat. "Yeah, the beating I took
today kinda helped me come to my senses.
I guess I did get a little carried away with my interest in your work,
Adam. It's just that the stories I've
read made it seem so exciting."
"I told you before Joe. Those books make our jobs out to be more than
they really are. Basically all we do at
the Treasury Department is just investigate any
illegal dealings against the government.
I do admit that sometimes it can be dangerous but nine times out of ten
it's pretty tame. At times it can be
rather boring." Adam smirked. "Sorry Joe."
Joe grinned. "I'm sorry too Adam. I can see that I was making it out to be
something more than it really was. I
kinda fell in love with the idea of what I thought you did. Give me some time and I'll get over it."
"That's good to hear
Joe." Adam grinned as he suddenly
came up with an idea. "However, I
do think that it's high time that you started reading something else. I assume that Doc Martin gave you orders to
take it easy for the next couple of days."
"Yeah he sure did." Joe looked worriedly at Adam. When his brother grinned like that he knew
that Adam was hatching a plan of some sort.
"Good. Now if you'll excuse me for a moment. I'll be back with a book I know you'll find
interesting." Adam left them and
went upstairs to his room.
Ben, Hoss and Joe looked at each
other in bewilderment. They all took
their seats as they waited for Adam.
Hoss looked thoughtful. "I wonder what book Adam thinks you'll
like. I know some of his books are interestin', I've read a few myself." The look of disbelief on Joe's face, made
Hoss smile. "Yeah I've read some of
his books and I know that you have too, little brother."
Laughing, Ben gazed proudly at his
two sons. "Well I'm glad that at
least you two have read some of Adam's books.
I have to admit that he does have a good choice of books."
They were then distracted by the
sound of Adam coming back down the stairs.
He was holding a non-descript brown-covered book. Joe sighed with relief, as he noted that the
book wasn't that thick.
Walking over to Joe, Adam
smiled. "Here you go Joe. I know that you like some of Shakespeare's
plays, so I think this one will do."
Joe looked questionably at Adam as
he received the book. There was no title
on the cover, so Joe opened the book to the front page. He groaned as he read it. "Very funny, Adam. Very funny." he said with a
mixture of sarcasm and warmth.
"Well what is it
Joe?" Hoss was itching to know what
the name of the book was.
Holding the book in the air, Joe
grinned. "It's called Much Ado About Nothing."
Ben burst out laughing and Hoss
quickly followed suit. Adam stood there
smugly and smiled at Joe. "Well I
don't know about the rest of you but I'm going to get ready for dinner. It smells like Hop Sing is cooking up a storm
tonight."
At that moment, Candy walked in and
was slightly confused by the light-hearted atmosphere in the room. It wasn't what he had expected to be
happening right now. He had no idea what
was going on and just added it to the growing list of things he didn't
understand about this family.
"Everything ok?" he asked hesistantly.
"Yeah, everything's ok, Candy" Joe said
happily. Then Joe looked over at Adam
and nodded. When Adam nodded back, Joe
grinned. He felt much better about what
had happened and realised that it was his own fault for believing all the stuff
that he read.
The desire he had for wanting to be part
of Adam's Secret Service work was now starting to wear off and he was
glad. Content with the knowledge that it
would be out of his system soon, Joe went about enjoying the life he had.
THE END
MARCH 2004