BIG MONEY
by
Lynne C.
"I was this close, Pa!" said Joe.
"Son, I don't really care how close you were," said Ben, relieved
to
at least find his son in one piece, albeit looking rather battered.
"When I got the message from Roy about what had been going on in town,
I got here as soon as I could. And it looks like I managed to arrive
just in time to march you back home. So let's get going, NOW!"
Little Joe winced at the anger in his father's voice, as he knew that
it probably meant that he was in for a pretty uncomfortable session,
in the barn, once they got home, but, ever the optimist, he tried to
lighten the situation.
"Pa, everything is gonna be fine, no need to get angry, honest,"
said
Joe, trying out a rather sickly grin, on his father. "All I did was
have a little bet on the outcome of the fight I was taking part in,
and I reckon I would've won, if Roy hadn't interfered."
"Roy wasn't interfering; he was trying to save your miserable hide,
young man," went on Ben. "I expressly forbade you from taking
part in
those prize fights, as despite your talent for getting into fights,
you usually end up losing, especially when you try and take on an
opponent who is more the size of your brother, Hoss. And, funnily
enough, I didn't want to see my youngest boy beaten to a pulp. Plus
the fact you are not allowed to bet, as you very rarely have enough
money to cover your losses."
"But that's just the point, Pa," went on Joe, still trying to
dig
himself out of the hole that he found himself in. "If Roy hadn't
stopped the fight, I would've won and then I wouldn't owe anyone
money; they would owe me."
Ben stood up to his full height, hauling Joe up to his feet, at the
same time.
"But you were losing, son," said Ben, this time in a softer tone,
as
he could now take in the full damage to his young son's face. "Roy
said that out of the five rounds you had already fought, you had lost
four of them, so you were not going to win. And, because of your
stubborn nature, you would not quit, voluntarily, so Roy, as our
friend, and as sheriff of Virginia City, stepped in and stopped it. He
said he told you to go and get dressed and then hightail it for home,
but, once again, you didn't do as you were told, and now half the town
is after you, for their winnings."
"It ain't fair, though, Pa," said Joe, realising he was sounding
like
a whiny child, but not being able to help himself. "I didn't lose;
the
fight was stopped."
"Yes, it was stopped, but that was because you were in danger of
getting seriously hurt, son, and the other guy was way ahead, on points."
"But I don't have enough money to pay off all those folks, Pa."
"I know you don't, son, and that is where we find the serious flaw
in
your plan to take part in the fight, in the first place. As I have
already said, if you make bets, you have to have enough funds to cover
them. So, once again, it behoves me to pay off what you owe, and then
you will owe it to me."
"Couldn't ya just gimme an advance on my wages, rather than loaning
me
the money?" asked Joe, hopefully.
"No, son, I can't, as it would mean you not having wages for about
a
year, and you would be impossible to live with, being without money,
for that long," said Ben. "So it will be a loan, and you will
pay me
back at ten dollars a month, until it is cleared off. And, in
addition, until you learn to do as you are told, you are restricted to
the confines of the ranch. There will be no trips into town, on your
own, as it is obvious you can't be trusted just to come and do
whatever errands you have been assigned, and then return home, again,
without getting into trouble."
Joe groaned at this news. At sixteen, and now working, full time, on
the ranch, he felt he was too old to be put under such restrictions.
Unfortunately, his father was very good at reading his boy's mind.
"And if you think you are getting too old for such treatment, I can
reinforce it, with a trip to the barn, as well, when we get home,"
said Ben. "While you are still a minor, you will obey my rules and,
if
not, suffer the consequences, understood?"
Joe just nodded.
"Sorry, Joseph, I didn't hear you. I said, do you understand?"
"Yes, sir, I understand," replied Joe.
"Right then, let's go and face all these people whom you owe money
to,
then."
There were quite a few of them, and it took a while for Ben to pay
them all off, but, eventually it was done, and Ben and Joe were free
to go home. But before they did, Ben insisted that Joe went to see Roy
to thank him for stopping the fight, and to Paul, to have the cuts and
bruises on his face treated.
"If it hadn't been for Roy, you could've sustained a lot more damage,"
said Ben.
"He's just an ole busybody, sticking his nose in where it ain't
wanted," muttered Joe, as they crossed the road.
Unfortunately for Joe, his father heard him utter these words, and the
boy received a sharp slap on his backside.
"Ow!," he yelped, moving ahead of his father, to get out of the
range
of Ben's large hand.
"Enough of your cheek, then," said Ben, but he was smiling to
himself,
as he said these words.
Ben knew, deep down, that he would never be able to alter his son's
irrepressible nature, completely, and, in truth, he didn't want to.
But, what he did hope for was that he would be able to steer the boy
clear of too much serious trouble, while Joe was still a bit young to
handle it, all by himself.
But then the Cartwright's were that kind of family, always there for
each other, and even though Joe wouldn't admit it, right now, he was
very glad that his father and brothers, and yes, even the sheriff,
kept a close eye on him.
THE END
Little Joe forever
Lynne
March 16th 2008