By: Nicki B.
Get back now...
get
back" Ben yelled at his sons.
"You men... get behind that wagon back there. spare
yourselves." Ben ordered as he held the gun steady drawing a bead.
The men scattered ducking behind wagons and hitching posts.
Ben's sons stood behind him not about to let their pa face this
alone.
Ben backed up another pace as he was advanced upon.
His boys backed up...
They stared in horror and facination...
Little Joe finally found his voice."Pa you can't shoot !
Little
Joe's eyes went round with shock.
"You stay out of thisLittle Joe... I'm just doing what I think is
right." Ben stared down the barrel of his pistol trying to take aim.
"Pa... there has to be another way." Adam cleared his throat as
they had to take another step backward as it advanced upon them.
"Yeah Pa... ya can't shoot a woman." Hoss cleared his
throat ducking involuntarily.
"I'm not going to shoot her... I'm going to try and stop what ever
in
thunder is under that dress.
That would be her legs pa..." adam looked skeptical not
taking
his eyes off the spectical in front of them.
"No no the other thing... the thing making her
bounce." Ben's gun went up and down as the gal came bouncing toward
them.
" I don't think it's a critter pa..." Hoss offered. "No
critter bounces like that.
"I do believe....." Adam drawled slowly."It is her wired
underpinings. Her....petticoat would have strong wires to hold
her dress
out, much cooler than all those petticoats."
Ben stopped trying to shoot the skirt, and turned to stare
at Adam.
"And pray tell, how would you know about such "underpinings' you talk
with such knowlege." Ben was not smiling, his brows were pulled
together
with a look of thunder on his handsome face.
Adam stepped back, "Uhh... advertising." He had to swallow
to get the rest out. When Pa looked like that, you had best have a good
answer.
"I seen it in a paper recently."
" I say we rope her." Little Joe was trying to bend and stoop to
see if he could see the infamous "underpinings"
"JOSEPSH!" Ben pulled his youngest up by the coat collar.
"Mind your manners. You don't try peering up a gal's dress even if it
is
just to see...." Ben realized how that sounded. "Just behave
yourself."
Hoss came running back with a rope. "I got the rope pa... " he
looked a bit too happy at the prospect of roping a bouncing woman.
"Get that silly grin off your face Hoss, you don't get to
keep
her." Adam reminded him.
"Why not? I found her."
"DID NOT I DID"Joe glared at his brother.
"Boys boys... no one found her, let me have that...." Ben
started to say as the rope went sailing over his head. and settled
neatly over
the gal's head.
Ben turned in shock to find Adam jerked off his feet...rope in
hand. As the
gal had changed direction and was bouncing away from them.
"I never knew a gal falling off a balcony the way she did, could
cause
so much trouble." Little Joe mused aloud as he watched the gal dragging
Adam with her.
"Reckon I should rope him now Pa?" Hoss tried to stifle a giggle.
"Yes... go get your brother and let's go home." Ben holstered
his gun.
"It had been an interesting day to say the least" Ben thought as
he mounted Buck to head home.