A Duty to Live

BY

KRYSTYNA

This is the eighth of the Captain Cartwright series

And follows ‘A New Command’

………………………………............................................

Chapter 1

The first flakes of snow fell on the wedding day of Luke Dent to Marcia Jackson. The small number of family and well wishers who were present to witness the couple make their vows, looked up into the sky to see the drifting snowflakes and feel the cold touch upon their skin as they hurried away to reach their buggies and make haste to their own homes.

Mr and Mrs Luke Dent stood at their doorway and waved them all away. Handkerchiefs fluttered like larger snowflakes themselves as one by one the horses bore their passengers away, each and every one of them happy and laughing, chattering and smiling at having shared that precious time with the newly wedded couple.

It was January 17^th 1876, a Monday, not that anyone was bothered by that fact, they pulled their covers higher to protect them from the cold wind and those with children made sure that as much of them as possible was covered in warm comforters and muffs.

At the junction to where the track to the Double D branched to the left and the right the vehicles separated to go their own ways, some to town and the remainder to their homes either at the Ponderosa or en route along the way.

“Good bye, good bye.” voices called out and waved to those who had taken the turning towards Virginia City.

“See you soon. Good bye.” came the drifting replies from the horsemen and the people in the buggies who now had an eye to the weather and a desire for their homes and warm fires.

The buggy bearing Candy and Ann Canady and their two children, Rosie and David was the first to turn off the road to the Ponderosa as they took the track to their own property which was some miles distant still. Their home nestled on the borders of the Ponderosa and between those of the Double D with the Jessops land. Farewells and goodbyes and laughter filtered through the breezes too and fro from one to the other, and then Ann snuggled closer to Candy and looked up at him and smiled. He kissed her nose and then concentrated on the remainder of their journey.

Now only three vehicles made their way along the road to the Ponderosa. In the lead was Ben Cartwright with Hoss, his son, by his side. Behind them sat Hester and little Hannah who sucked her thumb and watched the swirling white flakes with large bemused eyes. Hester would have preferred to be sitting with her husband, but Hannah was grizzling and wanted to be with her Ma, snuggling close and feeling the comfort of mothers arm around her. So Hester contented herself with either kissing her daughters bonny head or staring at the back of Hoss’, and watching the strain of the material of his jacket across the broad back. The horses tossed their heads and pranced onwards as his skilful hands controlled them through the reins.

Behind them in the two seater were Joe and Mary Ann, arms entwined, with smiles drifting constantly across their faces as they both whispered silly nothings to one another. The black horse pulling their buggy was young and mettlesome, tossing his head and straining to take the lead from the vehicle ahead of it, must to its masters amusement.

Next came Adam and Olivia with Sofia and Reuben wrapped up warm in the back. Sofia cuddled her old ‘Clarabelle’ and Reuben watched the snow come down and wondered if there would be enough snow and enough time to build a snow man in the garden. He heard the drift of words coming from the couple in front and pulled the blanket higher so that only his nose protruded and caught the cold air. The newly wedded Cartwrights smiled and whispered, occasionally leaning forward just a little closer to kiss before laughingly reminding one another of the day they had made their own vows.

They were the first to turn off to the track leading to their home. Smoke drifted from the chimneys assuring them of a warm welcome inside for Adam had made sure the stoves were well filled with fuel before they had left. Shouts of goodbye came from the other wagons and Adam waved a hand in their direction as he urged the horses towards the front door.

Not long afterwards Joe turned his horse’s head in the direction of his home, and beside him Mary Ann leaned out and waved her handkerchief and called farewell … before laughing at Joe for she was happy, happier than she sometimes felt she deserved.

And now the solitary buggy rounded the corner into the track that led to the original ranch house, now the home of Ben, and of Hoss, Hester and Hannah.

How different it all was, the older man thought as the house drew closer and closer, how different. He sighed, the merriment and joy of the occasion now left behind, and the reality of the changes in his life seemed to be spread out before his feet. The ranch house loomed ever nearer, the windows glowed from the lamps that Hop Sing would have had lit for their home coming, and smoke rose from the chimneys. This was home but for Ben it was different now, just as life was different.

He clambered down first, and then turned towards Hester in order to help her while Hoss swung his little girl up into his arms and carried from the buggy to the house. Snow drifted lazily down as Hop Sing opened the door and nodded, smiled, “All very good?” he asked with his eyes twinkling and Ben nodded and said “Yes, Hop Sing, all very good.”

At the Double D ranch house Luke held his little bride close in his arms, and she, modest and sweet, raised her face towards him in order to welcome his kisses. Marcy, little Marcy, how good life had been for her, how good.

………………..

Once Adam had seen his wife and daughter into the house he quickly put a light to the big fire in the main room, and then went into the kitchen to add fuel to the stove. He tweaked Reuben playfully by the nose and jerked his head towards the door indicating that there were chores to be attended to before pleasures.

Reuben rewound his scarf around his neck and pulled down the peak of his cap as he ran behind this tall man who never seemed to be tired. He walked beside him as the horses were led into the stable and the harnesses removed, the buggy pushed into its designated place and then the horses led to their stalls. As Adam removed their tack and then checked them, cleaned their hoofs, and carefully brushed them over so the boy waited with the blankets ready to be put over their broad backs.

“Have you seen to Buster today, young man?”

“No, sir.”

“Well, better do so now.” Adam said as he tweaked a blanket more neatly into place. “Did you bring him anything?”

Reuben grinned and produced an apple which brought a smile and a wink from Adam, who was now strolling over to give Sport a few moments of his time.

As he stood stroking Sports smooth neck Adam watched as the boy entered Buster’s stall and after stroking him offered him the apple, which Buster accepted with a promptness that nearly had Reuben’s fingers nibbled. Adam smiled and thought back to when another little boy would offer his own pony an apple, a sugar lump and then grin over at his big brother as though for his approval. It all seemed a long time ago.

Making sure that the stalls were clean enough and the hay bags full, Adam walked over to where Reuben was now brushing his hands down his jacket. They walked out together and closed the big double doors of the stable, Reuben being rewarded for his efforts by a gentle hand patting his back in approval.

Logs were gathered up into their arms and then dutifully well laden they entered the house by the back door and placed their loads down by the stove. Back again for more which were to be taken through the main room for the big fire there, as close a replica of the one at the Ponderosa ranch house home as Adam could get it.

Olivia was singing, softly, almost beneath her breath and as he passed her Adam paused to listen, then moved to put his arms around her, enjoying the moment as she leaned back against him with a smile. “Happy?” he asked.

“Do you really need to ask?” she replied and turned towards him, leaning her body against his and wrapping her arms around his neck, “It was a lovely day, wasn’t it?”

“Hmmm,” he nuzzled into her neck and then kissed her mouth, smiled as they parted, “I think Luke has himself a very fine wife.”

“I think Marcy has herself a very fine husband.” her eyes twinkled.

With a sigh they both leaned forwards to kiss again only to be distracted by a hand tugging urgently at Olivia’s skirts, “The snow’s stopped.”

Sofia looked up at them with her eyes wide and round, she looked from her mother to her father, and then turned towards the door where Reuben stood, scowling. Adam scratched the back of his neck and grimaced, took hold of Olivia’s hand in his and nodded “It happens. It’ll start to snow again soon.”

“How soon?” Sofia’s face screwed up into an imitation of her brothers, “In a minute?”

“Maybe longer than a minute.” Adam said with a nod, even though she didn’t know her hours from her minutes, it was safer than promising it would happen in so short a time.

Reuben groaned and shrugged with a humph, “I wanted to build a snow man.”

Adam raised his eyebrows “I wanted to throw snowballs - but -” he shrugged himself and groaned, as though commiserating with them on the greatest

Of disasters to befall them since Hoss had tripped over Hannah and landed in the fireplace some weeks earlier.

Olivia released his hand and resumed her work, there was supper to prepare and she told Reuben to help his sister with her coat and scarf and to hang everything up properly. They ran away to do as they were told leaving Adam to take hold of her hand “Now, then, where were we before we were so cruelly disturbed?”

She laughed and flourished her paring knife “I’ve work to do, Mr. Cartwright, and if you want to eat -?”

“Just one kiss - a little one?” he pouted and she laughed and leaned forward to award him his kiss.

“Better now?” she whispered looking up into the dark eyes.

“Just a bit.” he whispered back but released her, “I suppose I should get on with some work.”

She laughed and watched him as he strode from the room, whistling the tune she had been humming earlier. Just for a moment she stood there, savouring it, all of it, and then she turned to do battle with some carrots.

…………..

Joe took Mary Ann’s hand and led her to the rocking chair and placed a soft cushion behind her back, “Alright, sweetheart?”

“Yes, I’m alright, it’s been such a lovely day. I’m so glad Luke and Marcy got married.”

He leaned down and took the poker to the fire, freeing some logs that had slumbered in their absence so that the draught of air caught at them and soon sparked life back into a flare of a blaze again. “I’ll just go and put the horse away, and get things sorted there. Be back in a minute.”

She grasped his hand and looked at him, “Oh Joe, sometimes I’m so happy I’m afraid?”

“Why?” he squatted down onto his haunches and looked into her face, gently he traced the outline of her mouth with his thumb “I want you to be happy, always.”

“I know, just sometimes I feel as though I don’t deserve to have so much - so much joy in my life.”

“Then, sweetheart, you must treasure it. It won’t last forever .” he kissed her fingers and smiled into her face seeing that his words had caused her to lose the twinkle in her eyes “Life is like that, darling, that’s why we have to enjoy the moment for as long as we can.”

A sound came from behind them and they turned as Mrs. O’Flannery came towards them, “Did you enjoy yourselves now?”

“It was lovely, Mrs. O’Flannery.” Mary Ann replied, “It was a shame that you and Hop Sing couldn’t stay for longer.”

“Oh, for goodness sake, there was barely enough room in that tiny place for everybody as it was … so long as the food went down well, and you all had a good time.”

She smiled warmly, and nodded as Joe hurried to do his chores before stepping closer to Mary Ann, “Now, you didn’t overdo things, did you?”

Mary Ann laughed “I didn’t have a chance to do much at all, Mrs O’Flannery, Dr Martin kept an eagle eye on me.”

“And the cake?”

“Oh it was beautiful.” Mary Ann sighed and nodded, “You did a wonderful job of icing it, Mrs. O’Flannery. Marcy was in tears when she saw it, she said it was the most lovely cake she had ever seen.”

O’Flannery smiled and nodded, “Well, I’ll go on and get the supper ready.” and content with the news that her cake had been such a success, she bustled back to the kitchen.

It had been a strange transition time for Mrs. O’Flannery arriving as she did from San Francisco just as her mistress was married to Adam Cartwright. As that left Luke Dent alone with Marcy at the Double D it had been decided that Marcy would stay with Joe and Mary Ann, helping out where needed, while Mrs. O’Flannery saw to Luke’s needs. Now here she was, having stepped, so to speak, into Marcy’s shoes to care for Mrs. Joe, whom she already loved and who needed her far more than Olivia who was so capable, or Hester who had Hop Sing to rely upon.

As she made her way to the kitchen Mrs. O’Flannery glanced over at Mary Ann and nodded, it seemed to her experienced eye that the latest addition to the Cartwright family was going to make an appearance far sooner than any of them seemed to realise.

Hoss came into the big room and placed the logs carefully down on the hearth. “The snow’s stopped.”

“Oh, there was not much then?” Hester replied removing Hannah’s little shoes and tweaking the infants toes to make her smile. “I thought it would be a good snow storm and then we could go and build snow men.”

Hoss chuckled and came up behind her to wrap her and Hannah in his arms in a ‘bear hug’. “Ah, you’re just a little girl at heart, ain’t’cha?”

“Yes.” she said as she flounced up Hannah’s curls and then turned to him and kissed his nose, “Hoss Cartwright, you know you like the snow.”

“For the first week -” he admitted and then looked over at his father who was standing by the hearth staring down at the flames, “Ain’t that so, Pa?”

“What? What was that, Hoss?”

Hoss laughed, a good shout of a laugh and shook his head “You been wool gathering, Pa?”

“I guess I have, Hoss.” Ben smiled and looked at the three of them, and his feelings for them seemed to suddenly be more than he could bear for he turned away and stared down at the fire again, “The snow always causes problems if its too deep, or lasts for too long.”

Hannah turned towards him and stretched out her arms, wiggled her fingers and called to him so that he walked over to her and swung her up and smiled at her, “Hey, now, you got another tooth, huh?”

Was it only a few years ago when he was saying the self same thing to Joe, and looking over at Marie to see the pride on her face. Now he looked at the little girl in his arms and wanted to hold her closer than ever, as though somehow if he did so, he could just slow down time, just a little.

The clock betrayed him by striking yet another hour and Hester exclaimed that she had to go and help Hop Sing prepare the supper. Hoss nodded and said he’d go and stable the horses so that within minutes the room had only Ben and his little grand daughter standing together by the big fire that roared up the chimney the same way it had done for as many years as Ben could remember.

Chapter 2.

The snow held back as though embarrassed at releasing a downfall so much sooner than intended, pink clouds scudded away across blue skies. Reuben pouted and shook his head “It’s all gone now, all of it.”

“It’s still cold though,” Olivia replied placing another log onto the fire, “Perhaps there will be more snow when you wake up.”

“And then can we build a snowman?” His voice was shrill with expectation and he gave a whoop of delight, “And play snowballs?”

“If there’s enough snow I’m sure you can.” she dusted her hands free from wood dust and looked up at the stairs as Adam came down “Is she asleep?”

And when he nodded and smiled as he made his way to his chair Olivia glanced up towards the bedroom where Sofia slept, “She must have been tired.”

“Well, she danced a lot, ate a lot - I’m not surprised she fell asleep so fast.” he grinned and looked over at Reuben “Well, now, Reuben, tell me what you liked about the wedding?”

“I liked the food. That cake was the best ever.”

“Spoken like a true Cartwright, Hoss would be delighted to hear it.” he grinned and winked over at Olivia who was sitting opposite him with her workbasket open, “What else did you like?”

“I liked when Gran’pa made the speech.” Reuben frowned, “I didn’t understand all of it though.”

“No one ever does except him.” Adam leaned against the back of the chair and folded his hands behind his head, “Well, it was a good day. If it snows tomorrow -”

“Do you think it will, Pa?”

Adam pulled a face and shrugged slightly, “May be.” He smiled over at Olivia, a private smile, one that told her how proud he was to hear her son refer to him as Pa. Who would have thought it? He sighed and looked at the fire and then back at the boy who was looking through a book, “What are you reading?”

Reuben promptly jumped to his feet and brought the book over to him, leaning upon his legs as he did so. Adam nodded and turned a few pages, looked at it and nodded again, “Do you want to read some of it to your Ma and me?”

Reuben paused a moment and then looked over at his mother, “No, it’s alright, I’ll take it with me to bed. I’m tired now.”

Adam nodded and watched as Reuben kissed his mother goodnight, heard her murmured promise to come up soon to ‘tuck him in’ and when the boy came and bade him good night, even though said so sweetly ‘Goodnight, Pa.’

Adam found himself regretting that the boy still hesitated to display any affection towards him. He said goodnight and half turned to watch him as he went up the stairs and then looked over at Olivia, “Do you think he’s settling in better now?”

“Yes.” she wasn’t looking at him, her attention was on threading the needle so that she could repair the tear in one of the garments spilling over the edge of her basket, “He’s far more respectful of you, and even beginning to realise that he likes you.”

Adam pulled a wry grin and shrugged “Likes me?”

She looked at him then and laughed softly before shaking her head and returning to her sewing, “Just because I fell in love with you so quickly doesn’t mean everyone you meet has to do the same.”

He didn’t reply to that only smiled a little at the memory of that first meeting in a San Francisco park. She sighed and put down the shirt into her lap to regard him “He’s never really had a male figure in his life before, and he’s growing more confident in his relationship with you. It’s hard to get into a child’s mind, isn’t it?”

“I guess so.”

“Sofia loves you anyway.”

“Almost on a par with Clarabelle.” Adam said with a laugh in his voice as he stood up and walked towards the fire to firm the log in more firmly with his booted foot. “I guess it’s time we should think of sending Reuben to school.”

Olivia felt her heart sink, she’d taught Reuben the rudiments of reading, writing and some arithmetic, but the thought of him going to real school, and in town, filled her with dread. “Already?”

“He’s seven, eight this year.” Adam looked at her and gave her a gentle smile, then squatted down beside her and took hold of her hands in his, “It’ll do him good, Livvy. He’ll make friends, he’ll need friends as he grows, he’ll be alright.”

“It seems such a long way for him to go every day though.” she bit her bottom lip and looked down at him, “Adam? Does it have to be now?”

He laughed and kissed her nose, “Not immediately now, but by spring time he should be ready to go. He’ll be alright, Livvy. Joe survived his school days, and his teachers survived Joe … and Reuben is no where as precocious a child as Joe.”

She laughed “You paint a most terrible picture of your little brother.”

“Ask Hoss, he has even worse memories than I do.” Adam leaned forward and kissed her “Happy, Mrs Cartwright?”

“More than happy.” She was about to wrap her arms around his neck when a voice from upstairs floated down towards them “Maaaa?”

“Sounds like you’ve been summoned.” Adam whispered.

“I won’t be long.”

He released her fingers as she stood up so that her hand trailed empty from him, and then he turned back to the fire and watched the flames create red glowing ants that crawled up the chimney. Just a few months already, and this was his new life, a wife, children, responsibilities. He smiled and sat down, picked up a book and began to read.

It wasn’t long before the words were dancing before his eyes as he drifted back to the day he married Olivia Phillips and brought her to this house, their home. That night had been one of the most fulfilling of his life, and of hers, it had been the confirmation of a love that seemed to burn them. Even now the sight of her thrilled him, the fact that she loved him created within him a feeling of such deep appreciation that he felt overwhelmed by his feelings for her.

He rested the book upon his knee and stared into the fire. How things had changed over the years, there was Joe with his wife in his house, and Hoss and Hester with Pa in the Ponderosa ranch house. He often wondered how his father felt seeing his family now, not just his sons but a whole extended family. So much change…

…………

Ben sat in his room and looked at the pictures in their golden frames. Three pictures of three women, his wives. He looked at each one with a deep fondness and nostalgic longing. Once upon a time he was so young and had a young wife, only in dreams could he hear her voice now, so much had faded over the years, the memory retained only so much of his beloved Elizabeth. The hardships of the journey with Inger and her gentle love, her lilt of a voice which he could remember, more clearly than he could remember her smile, oh the vagaries of the aging mind. Marie and her flashing eyes, generous smile, and flirtatious manner. Joe was so like her, so very like her.

He folded his hands beneath his chin and leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, in order to look more closely at the pictures. “So much time, and so much has changed, my dears. I’m grown old and I never really noticed but now … perhaps I should, after all, it’s so easy to forget. I wish the boys all lived here at the Ponderosa instead of us being scattered about. I guess it just isn’t possible to move forward and yet hold onto what was once life here on the Ponderosa.”

He sighed and walked over to the window and looked out beyond the reflection of himself staring into the room. Stars, a bright moon, and someone riding into the yard. He raised his eyebrows and wondered who it could be at this time of night, especially such a cold night.

The knock on the door sounded urgent, and even as he reached the landing he heard Hoss greeting the visitor “Hi, Mac, come on in.”

“You must be frozen, Mr. MacManus, come in by the fire and have some coffee.” Hester said kindly.

Ben scowled, MacManus, what was he doing here at this time of night. He came down stairs and nodded over at the other man, “Mac, what brings you here?”

MacManus took the cup from Hester and nodded over to Ben, his hands were shaking, and he took a gulp of the hot liquid, “Sorry to intrude on you like this, Mr. Cartwright, got some news.”

Bad news no doubt, and here he was drinking our best coffee, Ben grumbled to himself, and strode further into the room “What is it?”

“I just came straight from town to deliver this here for you.” McManus pulled an envelope from his pocket and passed it over to his employer, a man he had known and respected for many years now, ever since he rode in as a drifter looking for a job that would put a few dollars in his pocket before he could drift on, instead of which he had stayed put with enough dollars in the bank to buy a small place of his own had he a wish to do so.

Ben took the letter and recognised Roy’s writing, “Did Roy give this to you, Mac?”

“Yes, just as I was leaving the saloon he called me over and said to give it to you personal like.” McManus put the cup down and looked over at Hoss and Hester, thanked them both and then bade them good night.

As soon as the door had closed Hester was the first to ask him if it were bad news for she was quick to notice how Ben’s eyes had widened and the colour had drained momentarily from his face as he had began to read the letter. He looked at them both, Hoss looking vaguely interested and no doubt thinking about his stomach and Hester hovering nearby intuitively knowing that he may need her support. He drew in his breath and shook his head “No, nothing … not yet anyway.”

“Are you sure?” Hoss asked as Hester passed him to sit down again.

“Yes, it’s alright,” Ben cleared his throat, “I’ll turn in now, I’ve things to think about and - er - do.”

They watched him mount the stairs, slower than usual with his head bowed as though he had the worries of the world upon his shoulders. Hoss looked at Hester but said nothing, he could see from her face that she was thinking the same as him, that his father was aging, and something was, definitely, worrying him.

……………………

As Olivia came down the stairs to join Adam once again at the fireside she was surprised to find the room empty, or, at least, there was no sign of her husband in the chair where he had last been seen. She paused on the half landing and looked around for a sight of him and then relaxed when he came with a half smile on his face from his study so that she involuntarily exclaimed “I wondered where you had gone.”

He smiled up at her and waited for her to come down the rest of the stairs and approach him, his hands behind his back and his head slightly tilted to one side as he observed her. “Is Reuben asleep?”

“Almost.”

“I - er - I have a little present for you, Livvy.”

“A present?”

“It’s only a very little thing but I liked it very much when I saw it, and thought you would like it too.”

She bounced on the balls of her feet and clapped her hands to gether like a child at the thought of a present and he laughed at her and leaned towards her to gain his kiss from her smiling mouth. “What is it? Do you have it behind your back?”

Now there was a little game of trying to grab it from him as he held it high and then low and away from her until laughing she grabbed at his arm and he placed the paper wrapped package into her hands “I thought with having received so many gifts recently you wouldn’t want another, but then - perhaps this would be an exception.”

“I can’t imagine what it is -” she said still holding the package with both hands in front of her and looking at it “A picture?”

“You’ll see it more clearly if you remove the wrapping.” he laughed and stepped back so that he could more clearly observe her face, her reaction upon the paper’s removal.

She gasped when she saw it, and shook her head slightly as though in disbelief, and then looked at him “Where did you get this?”

“Marcy found it among Abigails belongings when she was doing some clearing out and gave it to me. I took it into town for it to be framed and properly mounted. Do you like it?”

He came then closer to her and put his arm around her waist to share with her in looking down at the picture within the gilt edged delicate frame. A colour wash drawing of Olivia sitting down with some sewing, the sun shining through the window upon her and the vase of flowers that stood on the table. Slowly she lowered it and bowed her head, “I remember the day so well, Abbie was sensible that day, she sketched this picture of me and told me to believe in God, and that my prayers would be answered. I loved it, but thought she had taken it away and lost it as she did so many of her drawings.” she turned it towards the light from the lamp and sighed “She told me once that she wanted desperately to go to art school but her father forbade her. It would have made her too independent from him so she resigned herself to living at home, until she met Rupert which was, thankfully, a love match.”

“I thought it lovely -” Adam said softly as he drew her towards him, “It was so - well - it was just you, so composed, so serene.”

“But I wasn’t, I was feeling lost, frightened.” she put the picture down and turned to him, “Oh Adam, this is just such a perfect present.” she kissed him lightly “Thank you, thank you.” then she kissed him again, but this time not so lightly.

…………………

Hoss looked over at Hester who smiled at him and put down her darning. She walked over him and kissed his cheek and bade him goodnight as she passed the back of his chair, “See you in a minute?”

“Sure, honey, won’t be long.”

Hoss heard the bedroom door close and then turned his attention to banking up the fire, making it safe until morning. He turned out some of the lamps and then made his way up the stairs.

Hester was braiding her hair as he stepped into the room, and for a moment he just watched her before he closed the door. The anxious thoughts about his father disappeared as he watched her nimble fingers and then he walked across the room and placed his hands on her shoulders and looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her reflection smiled back. “Hester, can I ask you something?”

“Of course?” She tied a bow in her hair with a pink ribbon and turned to face him, “What’s the matter?”

“Wal, how come someone as lovely as you married someone like me?”

“Because you asked me.” her blue eyes twinkled and she stood up and began to remove her dressing gown.

“No, shucks, I didn’t mean that, I mean - you could have had your pick of handsome men, so why’d you pick me.”

She turned to look at him again as she folded the dressing gown neatly over the back of her chair, “Well, I didn’t want anyone else but you, Hoss. I love you, I loved you then, and I love you even more now.”

Hoss’ brow furrowed in thought and he shook his head, “I was listening to them words that were said today, at Luke and Marcy’s wedding, and it made me think of our day, when we got married. I couldn’t believe you were there standing by my side, so lovely, and me, so - so as I am - and now - I still can’t believe it.”

“Hoss, I can’t explain how it is that certain people fall in love with certain others. That’s one of the mysteries of life, but I love you.” she moved into his arms and placed her head upon his shoulder, “I love you more now as I’ve got to know you, and I wouldn’t want any one else’s arms around me now, I wouldn’t want anyone to take me from you, handsome or not.”

“Shucks, Hester, I jest -”

She put a finger to his lips, “Shush, now, shush.” and then she stood on tiptoe to kiss him. “I wouldn’t change you for anyone else in the world, Hoss.”

……….

Reuben lay in his bed and looked out of the window where he had asked his Ma to draw back the curtain. He wanted to make sure that he would be able to see if it snowed or not. He yawned and blinked his eyes and rubbed them a bit. In the morning he would build a big snowman, the biggest ever seen on the Ponderosa. In the morning it would snow because Pa said so …

Chapter 3

The aroma of hot food cooking greeted Ben before he had reached the landing and started to descend down the stairs. He smiled gravely at his son who was sitting at the table filling his plate from the serving platters, an action that he stopped to greet his father.

“Where’s Hester?” Ben glanced around noting the empty chair and Hannah’s absence, “Is she alright?”

“Sure, she’s fine but Hannah wasn’t well during the night so she’s getting her settled before coming down.” Hoss frowned and looked again at his father, “You sleep alright last night, Pa?”

“I did.” Ben sat down and picked up his napkin, “Thank you.”

“Er I jest wondered in case you’d been worried about anything.”

“Oh?” Ben’s dark eyebrows rose slowly and his dark eyes fixed upon Hoss, “Is there something I should worry about?”

“I don’t know, Pa, that’s what I was - er - worrying about.”

Ben shook his head as though to dismiss what was being said and looked at the food, with a sigh he placed some eggs on his plate and some bread. With a thoughtful expression on his face he looked at the coffee pot and with another sigh picked it up and poured some coffee into his cup. Hoss frowned more deeply and cleared his throat, “C’mon, Pa, there is something worrying you, ain’t there?”

“No, not at all.” Ben picked his cup up and looked as innocently as he could over its rim, “Nothing at all.”

Hoss shook his head as though he didn’t believe a word of it, and was more than grateful when Hester made an appearance. Perhaps, he thought, she would have more success than he had had and he smiled hopefully at his wife in the presumption that she would be able to read his thoughts. Hester smiled at him and then at Ben, “I hope Hannah didn’t wake you up during the night, Pa. She was very restless.”

“I didn’t hear a thing,” Ben said and patted her hand reassuringly, “I slept all through.”

“I am glad.” Hester frowned, “I thought she was making enough noise to waken the dead.”

No one said anything to that until Ben thought to ask her what exactly was wrong with the child, to which Hester explained that it was just one of those things with teething and she’ll eventually grow out of it. Both Ben and Hoss mentally said to themselves thank goodness for that but said nothing.

“I have to go into town this morning.” Ben said as the meal progressed towards its end, “Some business I have to see Roy about that needs some attention.”

“Do you want me to come with you, Pa?”

“No, son, that’ll be alright.” he rose to his feet and kissed Hester on the brow and then walked over to get his hat and gun belt, “I don’t know when I’ll be back, shouldn’t be too late, but one never knows with this sort of thing.”

“What sort of thing are we talking about, Pa?”

“The business I have to discuss with Roy.” Ben replied as he placed his hat firmly on his head.

“Yeah, but what business exactly is that - ?” Hoss asked while Hester cut in to remind Ben to wear a muffler as it was really cold outside.

“I’ll see you both later.” Ben glanced around the room and then nodded, “Hoss, were you going to check out the cattle in the low lands today?”

“Yeah, I was.”

“Good. I want to make sure they’ll be alright should the weather turn worse, perhaps get them moved up to higher ground.”

Hoss nodded and watched his father leave the room, the door close sharply behind him. He looked at his wife and asked her if she had noticed anything different about his father and Hester only shook her head rather distractedly and poured herself some coffee.

…………………..

Reuben sprang out of bed and looked out of the window. As far as his eyes could see there was no sign of snow. He looked up at the sky and frowned, if there was anything up there it didn’t seem likely to be coming down at any time soon. He slumped back onto his bed and threw the pillow at the wall. Almost immediately his mother’s voice wafted up the stairs to summon him to breakfast.

He shivered and pulled on his dressing gown and slippers and ran downstairs. “Ma, there ain’t no snow.”

“No, not yet.” she smiled at him and put down his plate “Now, then, eat up.”

Sofia looked at him and frowned “You ain’t even dressed yet.”

“What do you know about anything?” he snapped at her and scowled at his food.

“Reuben, that’s no way to speak to your sister. Apologise at once.”

He mumbled an apology and then looked around the room, “Where’s Adam?”

“Where’s who?” she frowned at him and shook her head so that he asked her begrudgingly “Where’s Pa?”

“Pa’s already eaten and getting on with some chores. Now, hurry up and stop talking with your mouth full.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s a bad habit to get into.”

“Uncle Hoss -”

“I don’t care what Uncle Hoss does, it’s no excuse for you to follow his example.”

“Why didn’t it snow?” he now demanded as he plunged his spoon into his food.

“Because it didn’t, now eat your food and be quiet.”

He sighed and swung his feet, kicking against the table legs until she told him to stop, so that he swung his feet and kicked against Sofia’s feet instead. She promptly began to whinge and Olivia told him to stop that as well. He pushed his plate away, unfinished, and declared he didn’t like grits anymore. Olivia said nothing to that but removed the plate and sat down to finish her meal. Sofia did likewise, glaring over the rim of her bowl at her brother.

“I’m still hungry.”

“Then you should have eaten all your food.”

“But I don’t like grits.”

“You liked it yesterday.”

He slumped back in his chair, “I wanted to build a snowman.”

“You still can, when it snows.”

Sofia put her spoon down in the empty bowl, “Will it snow today, mommy?”

“I hope not. There’s a lot of work to do around here and it seems to me that not much of it will get done if it snows and everyone’s out building snowmen.”

That made Reuben madder than ever, it seemed to him that when adults wanted something not to happen, it didn’t, which meant no snow, no snowmen. He looked resentfully at his mother and then at his sister and then at the empty chair where Adam would have been seated had he been in the house. “I don’t like it here.”

“Don’t be silly, Reuben, you know you love it.” Olivia replied in a gentle tone of voice.

“I don’t.”

Olivia said nothing, she wasn’t going to argue or try to placate the child. If Adam were here she would have abdicated the discipline to him, but now it was left to her and the fear of her son turning out to be like Booth Phillips churned over in her mind. “Go upstairs and get dressed and washed, Reuben.”

“It’s cold upstairs.”

“Just do as you’re told.” she moved the plates away and walked to the sink. Reuben didn’t budge from his chair, so that when she turned he was still sitting there, slumped and scowling. “Reuben, go upstairs and get dressed this minute and get on with your chores.”

Reuben tussled mentally for a moment or two. He knew that he should have done the chores before breakfast, so Olivia had allowed him some extra time in a warm bed. He frowned and obediently left the table and ran up stairs.

After he had dressed himself he decided he would play with his train set. His favourite of all toys even if it was Adam who bought it for him. He was happily chug chugging along the edge of the rug when Olivia came into the room “I told you to come down and do your chores, Reuben.”

“Aw, Ma!”

“NOW!”

He thumped his feet all the way down the stairs, pulled on his coat and scarf and went outside. Chores. Hateful, hateful word, and hateful, hateful work.

Why couldn’t Sofia do chores too? It wasn’t fair just because she was a girl. Why didn’t she come and clean out the stalls, and bring in the wood.

But Sofia had already done her little chores and one of them was to help milk the cow. Olivia was teaching her how to get the milk from the cow into the bucket, and the cow never kicked, never fussed at all when her little hands pulled at the udders. The milk frothed and foamed into the bucket and then Ma wiped the udders clean, and they carried the bucket into the house together. After that she was shown how to make butter milk and soon Olivia was going to teach her how to churn the milk into butter. But that was for later, when she was a little older.

Her other job for the morning was to collect the eggs while Olivia fed the hens and chickens. She was quick and alert to do her chores and was always sitting playing with Clarabelle by the time Reuben would slouch into the house after doing his own.

He heard the sound of wood being sawn and knew that Adam was in the barn working. With his hands slouched into the pockets of his coat Reuben hurried to the stable so that Adam wouldn’t notice him passing the barn. Once inside his mood mellowed as it always did once he was there, the smells may not have been the most aromatic but the horses and Buster were there and turned their heads towards him as though in welcome.

He was more than pleased to see that much of his assigned work had been done for him. Obviously Adam had been earlier in rising than usual and completed the work, which would have explained why Olivia had allowed her son extra time in bed. His mood thawing out even more so now he hurried to Buster’s stall and tended to him, telling his ‘friend’ about the fact that there was no snow, and that he had been disappointed and Buster had nodded his head and his big brown liquid eyes had looked at the boy as though quite understanding although in truth there was nothing the little horse hated more than snow.

He knew that his next chore was to collect the kindling and that meant going into the barn where the sounds of an axe being welded to good effect could be heard. He gave Buster another hug and then hurried out, closed the door and dropped the latch before hurrying to the barn.

Adam glanced up and smiled “Had your breakfast?”

“Sort of - I wasn’t hungry.”

“Well, you will be later when it will be too late to eat, you had best get back indoors and see if your Ma can rustle you up something.”

Reuben didn’t reply but leaned against the wall and watched as Adam swung the axe down upon a log, it was immediately split in two and fell apart. Adam picked up one section and swung the axe down again splitting that into two as well, he proceeded to do this for a few more minutes before turning to the boy and with a smile asked him if he would like to try. Reuben was pleased, he went a little red from the pleasure he felt and took the axe which he realised was surprisingly heavy. He lifted it so far and then it slumped down “I can’t do it, it’s too heavy.”

“Well, you’ll have to learn how to do it someday, Reuben. Go get that hatchet over there, perhaps you’ll find it easier to split some of the logs into kindling wood.”

He found the hatchet quickly enough and Adam showed him several times how to bring it down to split into slices that would fit neatly into the stove and act as kindling for the other fires. “Can I try now?”

“Sure, here you are -”

With a smile Adam passed the hatchet to the boy and stood back. Reuben licked his lips and cleared his throat, nothing was more important than doing the job right, especially with his Pa watching him. He brought the hatchet down as Adam had shown him and then again and found himself with several slices of wood. “Well done, son.” Adam said as he gathered them up, “Now go take these into your Ma.”

“P’raps I should chop up some more, this ain’t nearly enough.” the boy exclaimed grabbing hold of the hatchet in both hands.

“It isn’t nearly enough.” Adam corrected him and smiled again, “Alright, try this one.”

This particular log had a stubborn knot in it so that the wood splintered awkwardly and caused the hatchet to bounce in the boys hands so that he dropped it. Undeterred he tried again, until another little pile of wood awaited being gathered up. “Shall I try another one, I didn’t do that one very well.”

Adam shrugged “It’s good enough, no knowing what piece of wood will have a knot in it and not much one can do when there is one. Take these into your Ma now.”

“But I can do another one.”

“I think we’ve enough.” Adam replied and turned his attention back to the axe and the wood he was chopping, “Tell Ma I’ll be in soon.”

He swung the axe down and nearly dropped it on his foot when there came a yell from behind him. His heart was in his mouth as he turned to see if the boy was alright, fully expecting to find him injured in some way but Reuben had not sustained any severe injury from the axe, only a cut on the thumb from attempting to slice through a thinner than usual slice of wood, the hatchet had cut through and then continued on to bite into his thumb as he had held the wood steady on the ground.

“I thought I told you to take the kindling inside, Reuben?”

“I just wanted to see -” Reuben gulped back a tear, the blood was welling up and dripping onto the floor “How thin I could cut it.”

“Never take risks with sharp instruments, Reuben, that’s something you have to learn, and quickly. Mm, perhaps you already have.” he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and tied it around the boys hand “Go and get it seen to right now.”

Reuben’s mouth drooped, he bowed his head and slumped back to the house and entered the kitchen. Olivia was preparing coffee for Adam, and turned to see Reuben stomping dejectedly into the room “What’s happened?”

Her voice wasn’t shrill, but it certainly held some emotion in it and she hurried to him and knelt down to take the handkerchief from the injury “How did this happen?”

“I cut it with a hatchet.”

“What were you doing with a hatchet for heavens sake, Reuben?”

“I went to get the kindling for you, Ma.”

“And so - ?”

She looked up into his face, a worried frown between her eyebrows and upon a smooth brow, her eyes darker green as they always were when she was worried or frightened. Reuben sniffed and wiped his face with his other hand, “There wasn’t enough kindling so I cut up some more for you.”

“You did WHAT?”

“The axe was too heavy but the hatchet was alright, but Adam said -”

“But Reuben, how many times have you been told not to touch the tools in the barn? They’re sharp and - oh dear - come here let me clean this out and see how bad it is.”

They both heard the door close and the sound of footsteps as Adam entered the house and made his way to the kitchen. Olivia glanced up with her lips tight, no welcoming smile to greet him. His eyes flickered from her to Reuben and then back again, “Well?”

“Well indeed! He practically cut his thumb off and all you say is ‘Well’?”

Adams eyebrows rose and the heavy eyelids lowered half way so that he observed her through his lashes, he turned to Reuben “As bad as that, huh?”

“It’s no laughing matter, Adam. I thought we had agreed that Reuben was not to use those tools until he was older, and under supervision.”

“He’s old enough and he was under supervision.” Adam replied calmly and walked up to Reuben and took the injured hand, now clean and still bleeding, from Olivia to observe it for himself, “If he had done as he was told this would not have happened, but it’s hardly anything to fuss about.”

“Fuss?” she stood up and put her hands on her hips, “I’m not fussing. I’m just angry that you let him do it.”

“Why? He knows what he’s doing, he’s strong for his age, he can handle a little hatchet. With practise he won’t be taking chunks out of himself so often.”

“Adam, you’re not taking this seriously -”

“No, why should I?” Adam shrugged and looked at Reuben thoughtfully, “You’d better swab him up before he bleeds all over the floor. We’ll talk about this later.”

“No, we’ll talk about it now.”

“Later.”

He turned away from her and left the room, she watched him go, dithered for a moment about following after him and then heard Reuben sniffing so turned her attention back to him. “What did Adam mean when he said you had been disobedient?”

Reuben hadn’t actually heard the word ‘disobedient’ used, so he looked blank. Exasperated she continued to clean out the wound and then bound it carefully and told him to go into the next room and sit down with a book.

Adam was in his study when she stepped inside with his cup of coffee. He thanked her politely but continued to draw out what appeared to be some complicated plans for a house. Intrigued though she was Olivia decided to press forward her case - “Adam, about Reuben?”

“What about him?”

“He could have cut off his thumb.”

He looked up at her now and observed her flushed face, the green eyes and petulant lips, then he returned to his drawing “Yes, I suppose he could have done.”

“Is that all you have to say about it? Aren’t you going to - to - explain.”

Once again he turned his attention to her and after some moment of silence had passed he stood up and perched himself on the corner of the desk so that he was nearer to her, he took hold of her hand, “He’s old enough now to cut kindling, Livvy. He can use a hatchet pretty well, he just got a little over confident and thought he could do one without my watching him. He’d been told to come indoors with what he had already done, but chose to do some more when my back was turned. That’s all that happened.”

She released her breath and looked at him, felt a niggle of shame and lowered her head, “I still think he’s too young for that kind of thing.”

“Too young?” he shook his head and released her hand, “Too young to go to school, too young to cut kindling - Livvy, you can’t keep him a baby forever. He has to grow up and you have to cut the apron strings or have him a namby pamby brat like Booth.”

“How can you say that, Adam?” she looked at him with her face registering her distress and dismay, “How can you even hint at it. As though I would want him to grow anything like Booth.”

“Then help me to teach him to become a man to be proud of; and don’t argue with me again in front of the children, just don’t do that again.”

She could sense that he was keeping his temper in check and the wrong word from her now would see it unleashed. In a contrary way she was rather tempted to see just how far she could push him, and how she would react to his famed ill temper getting the better of him, but her own lack of discretion played on her mind and she nodded and stepped closer, “I’m sorry. You’re right, we had agreed not to argue about the children in front of them and here I am doing just that - I’m sorry, it’s just so hard to let go and - and - I’m sorry.”

For a moment Adam wasn’t sure whether to just walk away or take hold of her and kiss her. He hated upsetting her, but he knew too well how quickly children took advantage of adults who could be played off one against the other. It was miserable to realise, yet again, that his beautiful wife was not his sole possession; that along with her had come two others who had a claim upon her which, at times, would go ahead of her love for him. It was a hard lesson to accept, after all, most married couples had some years in which to learn about the other, to indulge in tantrums and making up, and in finding out the things they loved to hate about the other.

He nodded and turned back to the desk, rather absent mindedly he sat down and sighed, he picked up a pen “I was designing another room to the house.” he turned the paper towards her so that she could see it more clearly, “Harry said he would be able to start work as soon as the drawings and materials were available.”

“Do we need another room?” she said, surprised at how quickly he could change the subject and expect her to do the same.

“This is going to be a proper bath room. No more trudging out to the out house or anything like that.” he smiled as though in triumph, “We’ll be the first to have one, and if it works out alright then we’ll do one for Joe and Pa.” he tapped his chin thoughtfully with the pencil and frowned, “Would you like it? Your own bathroom?”

She slipped onto his lap, squeezing past the desk so that he had to push the chair back a little to accommodate her. “I love you, Adam Cartwright.” she whispered as she leaned down towards him and when he turned his face towards her there really was only one thing she could do, and that was to kiss him.

………………..

Ben rode along the track towards town with many thoughts trundling through his mind. The matter of the letter concerned him greatly and he was slightly annoyed that Roy had requested that no mention was to be made of its contents to anyone else. Occasionally he glanced up at the sky which was becoming increasingly dark with the promise of rain.

He was deep in thought and therefore caught by surprise when he suddenly found himself having to bring his horse to a halt due to the presence of two men, mounted and bearing weapons, poised motionless in the middle of the track.

Paiute. He glanced around him and then back to the two men who now slowly urged their horses forwards. The two men said nothing leaving Ben to wonder whether or not he was about to be taken a prisoner for some reason, or, worse, shot from his horse. He knew better than to allow his hands to wander anywhere near a weapon but evenso, being alone certainly placed him at a distinct disadvantage.

Ben raised a hand towards the Paiute, an acknowledgment that he was prepared to listen to any reasonable talk, which encouraged them to ride closer. One began to speak “Ben Cartwright?” he looked at the older man who nodded affirmation to the question, “I am Numaga. I have seen you often in the camp of Winnemucca, and with Sarah Winnemucca his daughter. We are come to see you as we wish for your help.”

“My help?” Ben raised his eyebrows, the thought that this was going to be a request for some head of cattle to help them through the winter flitted through his mind as he asked them what help they actually needed from him.

“There is a mountain cat in the area that has been attacking our horses, our dogs.”

Ben nodded “Has he a claw missing from his back leg?”

“From his tracks, yes, that is so.”

“Some of the homesteaders have reported seeing him sniffing around their homes. Are you hunting him?”

Numage turned to the other Paiute who nodded, “In the high places where we have our camp the snows have already arrived. They are deep and treacherous. The cat came at night into the camp.”

“Into your camp? That’s unusual -.”

“It is not an old cat so yes, you are right it is unusual. But it has become fat on account of hunting down cattle from your white neighbours, and killing our dogs. This time it went into a tepee and took from it a child.”

Ben felt something like a stab of pain shoot through him, he could only imagine the horror of such an event, the emotional impact on the parents. He shook his head “I am more than sorry to hear this, more than sorry.” he sighed deeply and then looked into the anxious face of this Paiute, there was no need for guessing games here, it was obviously the face of the father, his agony was all too clearly painted upon his features.

“I am Wanekia. The child was my son. The cat must be killed.”

“I agree.” Ben nodded, “But how can I help you?”

“It has come here, to your land. We want to be able to hunt it down and kill it.” Wanekia sighed, and shook his head “The lodges of my people are full of mourning ones, my wife grieves and sings the death song for our child. I have to take the animal before it comes again and steals away another.”

Ben bit down on his bottom lip and frowned, “It’s on our land did you say?”

Numaga nodded, “We tracked it so far, at one time we saw it and shot at it. It is wounded and angry but slunk away to its lair, here on your land.”

“If it’s wounded it’s going to be mighty angry, Numaga.”

Numaga nodded “Yes, and also very dangerous.”

Ben looked from one to the other before finally saying, “I’ll get some men together, we’ll help hunt this creature down for you.”

Chapter 4

The three brothers sat astride their horses and surveyed the cattle grazing some feet beyond their surveillance. After a while Hoss said, with a slight shrug, that he couldn’t really understand why they had been left to graze so far from the main herd, the low lands didn’t produce the richest grass or feed for the cattle, and they were too far away to be protected from the inclement weather.

“Probably a good idea to move them on from here then,” Adam said quietly, “There aren’t so many, I think the three of us would be adequate for the job.”

“Yeah, the sooner the better; my bunions are telling me we’ve some bad weather heading our way,” Hoss muttered as he turned his horse forwards in order to close in on the small herd.

“Your bunions!” Adam scoffed in a teasing manner and a smile on his face even as he pulled up the collar of his coat for the wind was blowing stronger now and there was a definite fall in the temperature.

“They ain’t never wrong.” Hoss shouted over his shoulder and with a hoot of laughter which widened the smile on Adam’s face as he looked over at Joe who was shaking his head in mock derision.

“Well, let’s go.” Adam said and set Sport into a canter expecting his brother to follow but when Joe didn’t he turned “What’s wrong?”

“Come see -” Joe said and beckoned towards a clump of reeds that grew near the stream behind him.

Adam immediately turned Sport back in order to join Joe’s side and after a quick glance at his brother’s face followed the direction of his finger and saw for himself the mangled remains of a steer. He gave a low whistle, “What do you think, Joe? Rustlers?”

There wasn’t much left of the carcase as the scavengers of the skies and land had taken what they felt was their just due. Joe had dismounted and was looking at the tracks around it while Adam leaned forward, turning once as Hoss rode up demanding what was holding them up. He also dismounted to look about him and then, after some moments, rejoined Adam and his horse.

“Mountain cat.” he stated in a sombre manner and as Joe reached his side and nodded agreement Hoss continued “Looks like the tracks of the cat Judd Nicholls was saying he’d seen around his herd recently.”

“How long ago do you reckon it killed this?” Adam asked and Hoss glanced at Joe who waited for him to speak first. Hoss pursed his lips and then volunteered the fact that it could have been no more than two days previous.

“Yeah, I’d agree with that,” Joe said quietly.

“Well, in that case all the more reason we get these others down to the main herd.” Adam replied and turned Sport around in order to take his position behind the small herd.

It was certainly growing colder. The intensity of the winds chill prompted all of them to hug their coats closer. Hoss remonstrated with himself for not putting on an extra pair of socks while Adam wound his muffler as high as he could over his mouth and nose. Joe pulled his hat lower and shivered within his thick winter coat.

Hoss took the lead in moving the cattle. He rode his horse, a black mount with very similar markings to Chubbs and with the same sturdy build, at a steady canter. For some time he had began to appreciate that Chubb was at retirement stage for a horse and had carefully selected another as close to his favoured animal as possible. The horse was so alike to Chubb that Hoss felt honour bound to give it the same name. Joe had teased him a little but it didn’t change his brother’s mind, so Chubb II was now regularly being used to replace Chubb No. 1.

Nothing lasts forever, Mary Ann had said with a sigh when Joe told her about Chubb II, even horses have to eventually end their working days, and with Chub No. 1 having carried a heavyweight like Hoss for so many years it was agreed that the poor beast had earned its rest.

Just as the sun passed the mid-day mark they paused to make a brief camp. Being cold and pressing on regardless can be as foolhardy and as exhausting as trying to do so in the heat of a summers day. The cold stiffens the muscles and limbs and wearies the body, and if a man became weary enough then he could become careless and accidents happened. They stretched their legs as the small fire burned to heat up the coffee which they drank standing up. “What’re you thinking, Adam?” Joe asked as he swallowed down the hot liquid.

“I’m thinking that the snows must have come earlier on higher ground for that cat to come down here for some easy picking.” Adam took a mouthful of the coffee, gripping the sides of the metal cup in order to bring some warmth to his fingers.

“Yeah, my thoughts too. That cat though -” Joe frowned, “Seems to have favoured stalking around about for some time, according to Judd Nicholls and Stuart Ottaway they’ve seen it’s tracks scuffing the dirt around about their place for some time.”

Hoss poured himself more coffee and nodded “They do have their homesteads higher upland than us.”

“You’ve not seen the tracks around the Ponderosa before now, have you, Hoss?” Adam looked over at Hoss who wrinkled his brow in thought and shrugged and said he wasn’t too sure, but he could recall seeing the tracks of a cat weeks earlier whether it was this particular one he couldn’t swear on it.

………………………..

Hop Sing looked thoughtfully at Missy Hester and frowned. He knew how much she worried about her little girl when Hannah was ill for any reason. Usually a bright and cheerful child this particular day she was clinging to her mother and grizzling. On top of that she had told Hop Sing about the letter Ben had received from Roy, trying to find out from him if he were aware of anything going on in town that would cause Ben any concern. He had to deny knowing anything, which was the truth, and after placing the food on the table for the mid day meal returned to the kitchen also worrying about the contents of the letter.

He hurried to the fire to put on more wood. The big room was warm and cosy, although the shutters on the windows rattled a little when the wind caught at them, “I hate to think of them out there in this weather.” Hester said suddenly, breaking the silence between them, “I don’t think people realise how much work is involved in running a cattle ranch.”

“Mr. Hoss used to it, they come home soon, you see.” he smiled over at her as he brushed the dust from the wood on to his apron.

She put the fork down and turned to the window, “Hop Sing, you don’t think it’ll snow, do you?”

“Maybe snow.” he said honestly and took a quick glance out of the window at the sky, “May be not for long time yet.”

“I hope Ben gets back soon. If it snows do you think he’ll stay in town overnight?”

“Maybe who knows.” came the cryptic response to that question and with a bob of the head he hurriedly made his exit back to the kitchen

He left Hester eating her food slowly, pushing most of it around her plate until she pushed it away. Upstairs in her little cot Hannah sucked her thumb contented at last and sleeping the sleep of the young and innocent.

…………………..

One of the wedding presents that Olivia and Adam had received came from Don Luis Mendoza and his wife, Margarita. Accompanying the package was a very short and sweet letter explaining that this was the best gift they could think of for the wife of a cattle rancher. It was skein upon skein of wool. All colours, all thicknesses. Adam had laughed and said with a shake of the head that it was typical of Margarita, which had led Ben to regale them with the tale of the taming of that particular shrew.

But Olivia had been thrilled with the gift. The colours were like those of the rainbow and so soft. There were needles and patterns all enclosed in a neat leather pouch that Margarita had made herself. Olivia wasn’t ignorant about knitting, anymore than she was about sewing. Like many women who spent long and lonely hours alone she had learnt to make good use of her hands and for some weeks she had been busying herself with knitting whenever she was on her own.

Now, as the afternoon hours stretched ahead of her towards the evening, she opened her pouch of needles and her work basket and resumed her knitting. Adam’s words from months ago haunted her, that a man could fall from his horse in his own back yard and break his neck had taken on an almost prophetic urgency in her mind. She looked at the wool and the needles and at the amount she had knitted already and commenced a new row .

Reuben had knuckled down to working at his lessons, not graciously, but he had done enough to satisfy her before she released him to play with his trains. Sofia had sat by his side at the table, copying the letters, and then the numbers, carefully and neatly, so that by the time Reuben had declared enough was enough the little girl knew how to add 2 + 2 to make 4 and more besides. She had then sat and read her book, upside down of course, and then read a long story to her two dolls, Clarabelle and Saggy Sue.

After supper Reuben and Olivia had gone to the wood pile and brought in logs, lots of logs, and piled them neatly in the porch. Olivia couldn’t explain why she had decided to do this, but it had kept them busy and warm and by the time the boy had to go to bed he was tired enough not to argue.

………………..

Mrs. O’Flannery had made Mrs. Joe a light meal for lunch and they had chatted beside the fire for a few hours. She had already told the young woman about her life in Ireland and how she had come to America with her husband and family. Now with the matter regarding her daughter settled she had been only too happy to have resumed contact with Mrs. Phillips about renewing employment with her. It went without saying that she assured Mary Ann how pleased she was to be now looking after her as her new mistress.

It didn’t distract Mary Ann from worrying about her husband however, and she was constantly starting up and saying ‘Did you hear a horse, Mrs. O’Flannery?’ or ‘Do you think that is Joe returned now, Mrs. O’Flannery.’ so that Mrs O’Flannery decided the best thing she could do was take the young woman to her room and encourage her to have a short sleep

“I guarantee your Joe will be home by the time you wake up, dearie.” she said as she drew the drapes across the window to shut out the darkening skies for the days were still short in January.

But how cold the bed and how big without dear Joe there beside her. She tossed and turned trying to get comfortable. The bulge of her stomach prevented her and the niggling pain in her back caused her further discomfort. Occasionally she had to get up and walk to the window and stare out into the darkness and pray with her brow against the cold glass for God to care for her husband and ‘please bring him home safely.’

…………….

The cat slept in its den although it would wake up throughout the night and pad silently to the opening of its covert and stare at the cold black night with the falling flakes of snow. It did not realise that the freezing conditions were the cause of the gnawing pain in its shoulder from a wound inflicted while hunting the previous summer. Hunting for food had been a problem until it realised that there was little reason to make a difficult job of a hunt when she could steal up upon prey that stood still and unsuspecting, like a calf that had strayed from its mother; or an infant mewling in its woven basket.

It yawned and amber green eyes stared out into the gloom and when it raised its head it could smell the freshening air of a cold night. Reassured of no threat to its peace the great head once again was lowered onto its forepaws and the beautiful eyes closed as it returned once again to sleep.

………………….

When each of the brothers returned to their homes, stiff of limb and cold to the core of their bones, they were greeted with smiles and love and hugs that warmed their hearts if not their flesh. As they removed their outer clothing and approached their homely fires each wife hurried to serve him a hot meal, the sweetest coffee and to sit by his side while they ate and told her of the days work.

Once Adam was warmed he asked Olivia what she had done throughout the day and listened with a smile on his face and his fingers playing with her hair, coiling it between his fingers before letting it fall only to catch it up again.

Nothing was said about the little spat that had flared up between them earlier that day instead he reached for his guitar and smiled to his wife, “What would my lady like this evening?” he asked as he strummed lightly on the strings and watched the shadows play across her face from the fading firelight.

“Aura Lee.” she replied with a slight wistfulness in her voice, “I’ve been thinking a lot about Abigail since you gave me the picture, my dear, and she used to sing this song to Reuben when he was a baby. Will you sing it for me now, I feel as though I would like to hear the words again.”

“Then Aura Lea it is …” he smiled again and after a moment or two to recollect the words to his mind began to sing :

. When the Blackbird in the Spring,
On the willowtree,
Sat and rock’d, I heard him sing,
Singing Aura Lea.
Aura Lea, Aura Lea,
Maid of golden hair;
Sunshine came along with thee,
And swallows in the air.

2. In thy blush the rose was born,
Music, when you spake,
Through thine azure eye the morn,
Sparkling, seemed to break.
Aura Lea, Aura Lea,
Birds of crimson wing
Never song have sung to me
As in that sweet spring.

Aura Lea, Aura Lea,
Maid of golden hair;
Sunshine came along with thee,
And swallows in the air.

3. Aura Lea! the bird may flee,
The willow’s golden hair
Swing through winter fitfully,
On the stormy air.
Yet if thy blue eyes I see,
Gloom will soon depart;
For to me, sweet Aura Lea
Is sunshine through the heart.

Aura Lea, Aura Lea,
Maid of golden hair;
Sunshine came along with thee,
And swallows in the air.

4. When the mistletoe was green,
Midst the winter’s snows,
Sunshine in thy face was seen,
Kissing lips of rose.
Aura Lea, Aura Lea,
Take my golden ring;
Love and light return with thee,
And swallows with the spring.

Chapter 5.

Ben was not too sure as the day stretched into nightfall whether or not his spontaneous agreement to ride along with the two Paiute had been such a wise idea. They had agreed between them that getting more men would be a waste of time and although Ben felt rather at a disadvantage being the only white man of the three he did realise that the two men would not have got very far hunting on the Ponderosa had any of his men come across them.

Numaga had told Ben how little there was to hunt now higher in the territory, and how an early snow fall had made it even more difficult, not only for them, but also for the predators of the wild, such as the bear and the mountain cats. The fact that this particular beast they were hunting had actually entered their camp and initially attacked their dogs was bad enough, but to have then ventured there again and taken a sleeping child had created so much fear and unrest in the tribe that Waneika, the father of the child, and Numaga, it’s Uncle, had had no choice but to promise they would hunt it down and cease its marauding.

That was when they realised that the mountain cat had its lair on Ponderosa land and had sought Ben out for his assistance. They hadn’t been too impressed when Ben assured them that they had had no trouble from any mountain cats on the Ponderosa, and, being ignorant of the dead calf that his sons’ had found that day, had indicated that he couldn’t see how they would not have known if a cat was actually prowling near their cattle.

He slowly stirred the fire into new life, adding sufficient fuel to create flames and heat that would heat the food and boil the coffee. The joints in his hands ached and there was pain in his knees, and he didn’t even like to think about his teeth, they ached as though begging release from their sockets. The thought of sleeping out in the open in such cold weather gave him as much pain as his teeth.

Numaga looked at him regretfully and approached with respect “Ben Cartwright, perhaps, as it is getting dark and we can hunt no more, you should return to the warmth of your home.”

Squatting by the fire Waneika glanced hastily over at Ben before turning his attention to the food. He wondered if the white man would appreciate that he was more or less being told he was old and like all old people needed to be nodding in front of their fires in weather such as this.

Ben glanced over his shoulder into the distance, the horizon was already purpling, nightfall would come suddenly and he realised that he would be in more danger riding in the freezing darkness than if he stayed where he was so he nodded “Thanks for the kind offer, Numaga, but I’ll stay here with you both.”

Numaga said nothing although he did think the old man was foolish in his decision to stay, he returned to squat beside his brother - in - law while Ben saw to his horse. The animal was a strong handsome beast, its colouring was the same as Sports although it possessed no white socks and had a white blaze down the front of its face. Like Chubb, Buck had reached an age for retirement and was seldom used by Ben for riding out unless for short journeys. It did cross his mind as he secured the horse whether it would still be there in the morning, along with the two Paiute; he had visions of waking up and finding himself stranded alone by a dying campfire and little else.

……………………….

Adam woke up to someone shaking his shoulder and with a sigh he forced his eyes open to stare at the oblong of white that stood beside the bed. Sofia looked at him solemnly “What’s the matter?” he whispered in order not to waken Olivia

“I’m cold.”

“Then go back to bed and -”

“But my beds cold. I’m thirsty.”

He rubbed his brow and raised himself onto his elbow, “It’s 2 o’Clock in the morning, Sofia, you can’t be thirsty.”

“Am.” Sofia nodded and sighed “Can I come in bed with you and Mommy?”

“No, certainly not. Get back to your own bed.”

“But it’s cold.”

Adam blinked and rubbed his eyes, then leaned forwards to pick Sofia up and swing her over the bed and settle her down between him and Olivia. He had been married long enough to appreciate the wisdom of wearing a nightshirt now. With a smug smile Sofia wiggled her way down under the covers and cuddled into Olivia. “Night, night, daddy.”

Adam sighed, closed his eyes and flopped back against the pillows. Outside he could hear the mourning of the wind as it sought to find ways into the house, to creep stealthy coldness up and down the stairs and in and out of the rooms. Within minutes he was asleep and drifting into dreams that didn’t contain little girls demanding to share his bed.

………………

Hester settled Hannah into her cot and smoothed down the child’s dark curls before dropping a kiss upon her brow. Then she turned down the flame in the lamp and quietly tip toed from the room, closing the door behind her without a sound. She paused on the landing to observe Ben’s room thoughtfully. Neither she nor Hoss had heard him arrive back home which worried her as Ben seldom stayed away overnight unless he had first told them. She put a hand to the door and was about to push it open when she stopped herself, after all, she thought, what would he think finding his daughter in law wandering into his bedroom in her night gown at this hour of the morning.

She hurried back to her own bed and slipped in beside Hoss who continued to snore without interruption. She huddled into him and began to worry about her father-in-law whom, she had not failed to notice, had recently become rather sombre of mood, and his not disclosing the content of Roy’s letter had caused them both concern. What if something had happened to him? What if … and as the what if’s piled up in her mind so she fell asleep.

………………..

Joe was dreaming of the black stallion he was taming. Saturn, as he was named, had proven to be every bit as fiesty as Adam’s old nemesis, Jupiter. Joe could see himself being tossed up and down in the saddle but each time he landed it seemed as though he were coming down on a cushion full of feathers.

“That’s odd.” he exclaimed aloud which woke him up and he found himself sitting bolt upright staring into the darkness of the room with Mary Ann sleeping soundly by his side.

Her breathing was steady and slow, and as he listened to her Joe began to think of their life together, of what was to come in the future and with a contented sigh he settled himself back into his bed and wrapped his arms around her. She murmured and turned towards him, before settling back into sleep with her husband softly snoring by her side.

………………..

Morning came early at the camp site, far earlier than perhaps had been intended but Ben had slept so little that he was quite glad to be up and able to build up the dwindling fire, get some coffee boiling and his horse saddled.

They didn’t spend much time there, the Paiute were not used to squandering time on meals mainly because they often had very little to cook so early in the day. Pemmican and water was their diet that morning, while Ben drank down several cups of hot coffee and the rations of dry biscuits he always took with him in case of emergency.

They rode in silence for which Ben was grateful as his head ached and sent pain eating across his shoulders and down his back. He pulled the collar of his coat higher as the wind blew freezing cold over them.

Waneika was a skilled tracker and huntsman, and it wasn’t long before he had located enough prints from the cat to confirm that they were now close to its den. Without words and in synchronised motion the three of them dismounted, withdrew their rifles and began to make their way through the rocks and boulders that were strewn in their way.

Nervous tension now replaced the headache with something else to think about; Ben tightened his grip on the stock of his rifle and hoped that Waneika was right, that this was the cat they sought and that the hunt would be over with very quickly. His face felt numb from the cold and he quite envied the Paiute for their fur lined winter garments.

Once or twice Waneika raised his hand to warn them to stop, and they did so, barely breathing as they waited for his signal to move on. He turned to them and nodded, pointed to the crack in the rock face and stepped forward.

He was almost at the mouth of the covert when the cat emerged.

Immediately Ben flung himself against the rock face hoping vainly to be concealed from the cat’s vision. Numaga and Waneika did likewise, cringing back in an attempt to become invisible. The cat moved slowly, paused, snuffed the air and then before any of the men had a chance to aim leapt forward with an almighty strong thrust of its back legs in order to propel him up and onto the rocks. It turned baleful glaring eyes right onto Ben’s face and roared, the foul stench of its breath was hot against his flesh, he closed his eyes and dared not move. At the same instant several shots were fired and with a snarl and a growl the cat spun around, its tail thrashed back and forth, and then he bounded upwards knocking Ben off his feet and flat onto his back as it leapt from one rock to another and disappeared from sight.

For a few seconds Ben’s world seemed to be floating back and forth with lots of shooting stars sparking off in all directions. He closed his eyes and shook his head, then pushed himself onto his feet “Did you get it?” his voice sounded thick in his throat but his vision was back to normal.

Numaga shook his head but Waneika confirmed that the cat had been injured, as the spots of blood splattered on the rocks nearby confirmed quite sufficiently well.

The cat had been wounded in two areas and was in considerable pain. Confused, angry and suffering it quickly sought a sheltered spot to lick at the wounds, to remove the blood and to try and lessen the pain. A bullet had streaked its side, taking some fur and flesh with it, but the wound that pained it the most was in its foot . It licked and licked at the wound but still the blood flowed and froze in the ice laden snow.

A growl rumbled in its throat and it rose to its feet. The pain was worse and it whimpered, snuffled down at its paw again to lick at it. It recalled a time once before when he had felt a similar pain and had never been free from it since, never able to hunt for prey again. He rose up and growled again and snuffed at the air. Above the smell of his own blood he caught the whiff of something else familiar to him and turned in its direction. His weight upon his injured paw forced him to limp, to move slowly through the snow.

Its wide malevolent but beautiful eyes looked around him as the smell became stronger and then he saw them, three men making a slow progress along the narrow track. He watched them one by one as his tail went from side to side in its threshing. It turned and limped painfully on its way, keeping a constant watch on the progress of the men on the track below.

Not too far from the cat the three men made their way across the blood splattered trail. Their breathing sifted into the hearing of the cat and several times it paused to look behind him. Seeing nothing it limped onwards, turning again to make sure its quarry remained behind him and within just a leap away.

Chapter 6

The intensity of the cold had frozen the track so that the way down the incline became ever more treacherous. Ben felt that his legs were shaking from his hips down and only grim determination not to give into his bodily weakness urged him onwards. Step by weary step he forced himself to match those of the young men, despite his feet sliding over the rocks and boulders that glistened with ice.

There was, thankfully, no wind. The silence was broken only by their own harsh breathing that came through lungs that were burning from the strain of their exertion and the cold. Waneika was in the lead with Numaga close enough to him for their arms to brush one against the other except when a boulder intruded upon their right of way. Ben followed just a few paces behind them, glancing anxiously over his shoulder and gripping his rifle tightly between both hands.

Above them the mountain cat limped, paused every so often to lick at its paw and then limped onwards. The frosty ice was an irritant but didn’t slow its progress as he followed along the way the men were walking. Intent upon his quarry and his pain the great cat lowered its body so that his belly brushed against the ground, his tail remained still, and his teeth were bared as he prepared himself for the leap down upon the lower track.

Ben paused, just momentarily to catch his breath, he put his hand out upon the rock face, and breathed in deeply, the cold air burned his lungs afresh and he shook his head in an attempt to clear his head ache. He couldn’t speak, it was all he could do to catch his breath, pride prevented him from asking the two Paiute to slow down so that when he had felt he could continue he went at a faster pace rather than have them think him an old woman only good for lighting fires and boiling water.

The cat paused also, as though working out in its pain filled brain which of the three he was to select for his victim. The younger two men were inching their way along the track now, taking care not to slip or stumble over any obstacle. No one spoke. The air around them got colder and their breath hung for seconds in the air as they exhaled. It was Numaga who noticed the cat, he stepped aside for Wanekia to aim and fire at the beast.

The bullet struck behind the left shoulder; it roared, snarled, whimpered and pivoted around to face the three men. Slowly Ben pulled off his gloves and took aim even as Waneika fired once again. The bullet missed mainly because Wanekia was impatient, and emotional. Grief over the loss of his child made his hands shake and determination to kill the beast caused him to be over eager for he fired several more times and each time the animal only growled and hissed and spat in their direction.

His ears were flat against his head and the eyes narrowed as he kept the three men in his vision. His body was low and his tail threshed back and forth as renewed pain and fury filled his very being with hate. Below him the three men heard the animals anger and pain being roared out like so many curses upon them. Ben slowly edged away from the rock above which the cat was poised, and waited for his chance to get the animal in his sights.

Wanekia and Numaga now began to edge in closer to the cat in an attempt to hem it in against the cliff face behind it. The cat crouched back, raised its paws with unsheathed claws, hissed and spat and growled and then lunged forwards. Soil and stones from the ground were kicked away from behind its back legs and then rifle shots sounded, one after the other striking the cat over and over again. It fell, rose up and struggled up, Ben fired once again as it fell although it was already dead by the time he had let off the shot.

Silence, so much silence and the stillness that came as a result made each man there shiver. Slowly they approached the dead animal and looked down upon the dead creature who, even in death, looked magnificent in his power and beauty.

…………………………….

Saturn enjoyed the times when the man came to the enclosure and spent time with him. He had grown to trust him to some degree, but still resisted any attempt on Joe’s part to ride him. He would stand in a good humoured dignified pose as Joe would put on the saddle, and then stroke him and fuss over him as he slipped on the bridle and bit. It was when Joe put his foot in the stirrup that Saturn would attempt to prove who was the master of them.

Adam and Reuben stood by the corral fence and watched the procedure with keen interest. Adam because he secretly envied Joe having the beast so alike to Jupiter, and Reuben because this was an adventure, something new and exciting in his life, something he loved to watch although he spent most of the time with his eyes closed. He hated seeing his Uncle Joe being tossed about like a sack of grain and he always knew when he had landed on the ground again because Adam would groan and then chuckle and make some teasing comment.

“Joe, I don’t think that horse has any intention of letting you get the better of him” Adam said as Joe limped over to the corral fence and glanced over his shoulder to watch the men lead the black stallion back into its enclosure.

Joe removed his hat and wiped his brow before replacing it glancing up at the sky as he did so, “Well, perhaps not to day, but I don’t have any intention of letting it get the better of me for much longer.” he smiled down at Reuben “You look cold, Reuben, how about getting indoors and having something to eat?”

The boy glanced up at Adam who nodded agreement so the three of them turned away from the corral and walked toward the house. Adam rubbed his hands together, it was cold and his fingers were numb, he gave Reuben an impromptu hug as though that would warm the boy a little, and Joe shivered as the sweat he had gained from his fight with the horse cooled on his flesh.

“It’s not a good idea to ride him in this weather, Joe.” Adam said after encouraging the boy to run ahead and lowering his voice so it wouldn’t travel the distance, “You’re stiff with the cold and more likely to do yourself some harm if you fall.”

“I know that,” Joe replied breathing a little heavier than usual, “And I did think twice about it, but I don’t want to lose what progress I’ve already made with him.”

“There’s no hurry surely? I’d rather you waited for the warmer weather than see you all broken up, especially with Mary Ann being so close to her time.”

“I know you’re right, Adam, but -” he glanced over his shoulder again and smiled dreamily, “it’s such a special horse, as soon as I come out here I just feel the challenge in him.”

“Try and resist it, brother.”

They shared a smile and entered the house. Reuben was already seated at the table eating some cake while ‘Flannel’, as he still called her, poured out warm milk for him. Mary Ann smiled at Adam and Joe as she poured out coffee, “How many times were you thrown this time?” she asked her husband and Reuben promptly replied “Three times.”

“Oh Joe, don’t you think you should just leave it until the weather improves.” she scolded and slipped her arm through his as she kissed him on the cheek and looked into his hazel eyes.

“Does it hurt?” Reuben asked looking wide eyed at his uncle, “You looked like it hurt?”

“That’s because it did.” Joe chuckled and tweaked the boy’s nose, “But a good horse breaker knows how to fall, it’s a case of just rolling into it and avoiding getting a bone broken.”

Reuben frowned, that didn’t exactly explain much and he looked at Adam “Did you use to fall off horses, Pa?”

“Quite often.” Adam replied reaching out for a cookie, “Thankfully I never broke any bones too badly.”

“Adams the best at horse breaking, young man.” Joe said as he straddled a chair and looked at the boys earnest face, “He knows more about horse flesh than any man I know, and when I was a kid all I wanted to do was be able to break horses like he did.”

Adam smiled whimsically and was about to say something when the door opened with unusual energy to admit Hoss who looked around him wild eyed “Any of you seen Pa?”

Adam and Joe said nothing for a moment and then rose to their feet “What do you mean?” Adam demanded, “Say what you mean, Hoss?”

“Pa ain’t been home and he didn’t go to town like he said he was gonna, and Roy’s jest been and wanted to know why he didn’t git to town yesterday. No one’s seen him.”

“You’ve asked the men?” Joe said his mind working fast and furiously as he thought of all the possible things that could have happened to his father.

“Most I could.” Hoss licked dry lips, “Roy was expecting him round about mid-day yesterday but he didn’t git to town. He left it until this morning and when Pa still hadn’t got into town he came out looking for him. There weren’t no sign of him no where.”

“You’ve looked?” Adam asked as he reached out for his coat and hat.

“’Course I done looked. Ain’t no sign of him.”

“I gather that,” Adam retorted tersely. “Reuben, you’d best come home with me now. Hoss, I’ll get my things and meet you back at the Ponderosa in half an hour.”

“I’ll be there too,” Joe said quietly, “I’ll just get my things ready and be with you.”

Mary Ann was helping Reuben into his coat and tying on his muffler. As the two men and the boy left her home she looked at Joe who was hurriedly packing away food into his saddlebags. “Will you be gone long?”

“I hope not, sweetheart, but -” Joe released a quavering breath, “I guess all I can say is that it’ll take as long as it takes.”

She nodded and helped him pack the saddlebags, her hands touched against his and for a moment both pairs of hands were stilled, “Joe, I don’t like this weather, what if it snows?”

“All the more reason that we find Pa before it does, dear.” he leaned forward and kissed her tenderly, stroked her face gently with the back of his hand and then resumed his task of buckling up the saddlebags.

Chapter 7

The three men rode slowly along the main track towards town, their heads lowered and their eyes constantly looking for some sign that would indicate something, anything, regarding Ben’s last journey towards Virginia City. Hoss had assured his brothers that Ben had left with every intention of meeting with Roy in town and so it had seemed sensible to try and re-trace the route in the hope that it would reveal something that would help them find their father.

It was Joe who was the first to notice something that Hoss had missed on that initial search he had made earlier before he had gone to enlist his brother’s help. The three of them dismounted to study the signs closer, Joe pointed to the familiar pattern of Ben’s horses prints “That’s Pa’s horse, ain’t it?”

“Looks like it stood here awhile -” Adam murmured as his eyes roamed over the pattern of prints.

“Two horsemen joined him here.” Hoss said with a heavy sigh, he paced the ground a little, “Ain’t no sign of a fight or struggle, seems Pa turned right around and rode off with them. Their horses ain‘t shod - ” he paused for the significance of that statement to sink into their minds “Paiute?”

Niether of his brothers answered straight away, until Joe nodded and Adam murmured “Possibly.”

“Looks like they headed away from town and the Ponderosa.” Joe said.

“Well, let’s see where the trail leads us before it gets too dark for us to see anything.” Adam remounted Sport and within minutes the three of them were riding away from the main track and following the faint trail towards the high lands.

They rode in comparative silence with their heads low, afraid of missing any sign that would mean taking a false route and losing time. Several times they had to stop, back track and then re-locate the tracks although it was becoming easier as the frozen over ground was broken through by the horses that had passed that way previously.

The day was drawing in sooner than normal and each of them inwardly cursed the weather as the dark clouds heralded snow.

…………

The snow had been falling for some time before Ben realised that if he continued he would lose his way or his horse would lose its footing. Darkness was crowding in on him and the wind was driving the snow like small flints that stung what exposed flesh it could reach. It seemed like an answer to prayer when he saw an opening in the rock face large enough to crawl into. He removed his saddle and blanket, and had just put his rifle down beside them on the ground when he heard the howling cry of the coyote. He paused a moment and gently ran his hand along his horse’s sleek neck, whispering to it to keep calm. He listened again, intently, in an effort to measure the distance between the wolf and this hiding place, then satisfied that it was safe enough he continued to see to his belongings.

His horse was skittish and nervous, the snow unnerved it and the coyote’s warbling howl scared it. As Ben reached out to remove its bridle he tossed his head back, knocking Ben against the rocks before it ran off into the darkness and the snow. Ben was totally unaware of his horse galloping, panic stricken, into the night as the breath had been knocked out of him and he was doubled over in an effort to get air into his lungs. He managed to crawl some feet into the small cavern before sprawling out upon the dirt floor.

…………….

The wind began to blow up again now, and little drifts of snow trickled across the white spangled ground forming minute snow balls as they trickled prettily along. Snow blew from the surfaces of the rocks and from the rim rock so that it blew into their faces and stung their eyes. They bowed their heads lower with their eyes straining to see through the oncoming darkness and the snow.

As the skies continued to darken and the wind was keening shrilling whipping the snow harder than ever against them Adam had no other recourse to bring his brothers to a halt and by shouting above the sound of the wind indicated they needed to find shelter right then and there as riding on in the fashion they were would only lead to further problems.

He had to strain his eyes to look from one face to the other and saw only misery and frustration confronting him. “Can’t stay here.” Hoss agreed, “If I recall rightly there’s a line shack not far off where we can take shelter until this storm is over.”

“Sit the storm out?” Joe blurted angrily, “I can’t stay there and wait for this to blow over, I need to find Pa.”

“Calm down, Joe.” Adam’s voice drifted over to him and he darted a quick glance at his brother who was leaning towards him “We feel the same way, but if we keep riding on in this weather we could end up miles from where Pa would be, we need to get someplace where we can sit the storm out before we start looking again.”

“It’s getting darker, there’s no saying when it’ll lighten up which means it won’t be until the morning that we can look for Pa.” Hoss pulled his hat lower, “We’ll endanger our own lives and lose Pa altogether at this rate, we need to do what Adam says …” his voice trailed away as the sound of wolves echoed eerily through the winds “Let’s get to that line shack.”

Joe opened his mouth but before he could say another word Adam had yelled “You don’t think Pa would be riding out in this, do you? He’ll have found someplace to shelter until it was safe to move on.” he looked at Hoss who nodded agreement, “Well then, let’s go.” he pulled his hat lower and his bandana higher to cover his nose and mouth, “Joe - come on.”

…………………

Hester watched the snow as it struck against the glass of the window and clasped her hands together against her throat before she walked away and knelt down to play with Hannah in front of the fire. How empty the house seemed now, no sound of her men in the house, no sign of Ben labouring over something in his study or puffing away at his pipe, or of Hoss, dear Hoss, whose presence was a constant reassurance and comfort to her.

Hannah was content to play with her toys, holding one up for mother to take only for her hand to reach up to have it returned. Her toothy grin and bright eyes consoled poor Hester only because to have given way to her fears in front of the child would have made her frightened as well.

After a few moments she got to her feet and walked to the window and stared out. It was darker now, the snow hid the stars from view, and she only knew it was still snowing by the sounds of it striking the windows. With a sigh she pulled the curtains across to keep the warmth in.

Hop Sing came and brought hot soup and bread rolls to the low table by the fire, knowing as he always did, that she would feel too alone and miserable to sit at the big table. “Do you think they’ll be alright, Hop Sing?”

Hop Sing didn’t know anymore than she did, although he smiled and said “They be home very soon now, Missy Hester.” but the pause before he spoke was too long, he knew it, and so did she as she turned away and stared into the fire.

“I hope so” she whispered and Hannah pulled herself up onto her feet and smiled and put her chubby arms around her neck, “Oh Hannah -” she could have wept as she drew the child closer into her body, “Oh Hannah.”

Hop Sings hand on her shoulder roused her to her senses “You eat, soup good.”

She nodded dumbly and picked up a spoon, Hannah had to be fed and kept warm. She heaved in a deep breath and nodded even though Hop Sing had already shuffled himself away.

…………….

Olivia lit the lamp and placed it carefully on the window cill. Its reflection glowed back in the darkness of the glass and she stood there for a moment and stared at it. The snow hit the glass with a constancy that was wearing at her nerves and the early darkness had made her uneasy for the safety of Adam and his family. She left the room, closing the door carefully. She had left a candle or a lamp burning on every cill in every room of the house. Just in case the weary travellers needed some guiding light to lead them home, just in case one of the small flickering beacons would serve its purpose and keep them on the right path to safety.

“Ma?”

“Yes, Reuben?” she turned to face her son and forced a smile as he stood there by the fire, “What is it, dear?”

“Is it time to go to bed? It’s dark outside?”

“It’s the storm. It happens like that sometimes.” she took hold of his hand and drew him close, “Is Sofia alright?”

“She thought it was bedtime, she’s got her nightclothes on and went to bed.”

Olivia frowned “Without coming to say goodnight?”

“She’s scared of the wind. I told her it was only the wind but she said it wasn’t, it was ghosts.”

Olivia nodded, that was what came of reading fairy tales late at night, goblins and ghosties were not the best food to feed a sensitive imagination. She walked up stairs and into Sofia’s room where the little girl was hunched up in a ball in the middle of the bed.

“Sofia? It isn’t bed time yet?”

“I’m tired though, mommy.”

“Don’t you want to come and have something to eat?”

“No.”

“Aren’t you hungry?”

“No.”

“Do you want to come down with me and have something to eat now, and then later come and sleep with mommy in the big bed?”

Sofia sat up with big round eyes “In the big bed? With you and daddy?”

“Daddy isn’t home yet. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if you and Reuben snuggled in with me tonight.”

Sofia thought about it and frowned “But why isn’t daddy home yet?”

“Because of the snow. It’s dark and the snows deep, and the horse can’t get home.” Olivia looked at Reuben who nodded, and then at Sofia who looked anxious, “It’s alright, he’ll be home soon.”

“Promise?”

She nodded and then Sofia put her arms around her neck and held her tight, “But the wind is so noisy, mommy, it sounds like ghosts.”

“Well, it isn’t, it is just wind. That’s all. It’s whistling through the eaves of the house and that’s all it is. There are no such things as ghosts.”

Sofia still clung on so that Olivia was obliged to carry her down the stairs and into the warm kitchen where she set down the plates of hot food for them on the big wooden table they loved so much. Reuben sat down and looked at the meal, he looked up and at the window where all he could see was blackness, just like the night.

………………..

Mary Ann paced the floor back and forth, back and forth, and she wrung her hands and looked at the clock and then at the window. Then she looked at the clock again and shook her head, how could it possibly be so dark so soon. But then she remembered it was winter, days were short, and with a blizzard the darkness could last and last.

Mrs O’Flannery came and put some soup on the table, “Eat up, my love, you’ll need your strength.”

Mary Ann thought that was an odd thing to say when all she had done all day was sit - either reading or sewing or dozing. She ate some of the soup which was delicious, and crumbled bread into it and enjoyed that because that was how she and Frank had eaten soup and bread when they were small children. After she had eaten enough she stood up and walked over to the window again.

“They’ll be alright, won’t they?” she asked the woman who was clearing the dishes from the table now, and Mrs. O’Flannery said, yes they would and what else would she like to eat? Mary Ann turned to face her and then for a second or two everything stopped as a gush of warm water flowed down between her legs, unstoppable and, even more alarmingly, so much of it.

“What is it, dearie?” Mrs. O’Flannery cried as she ran to her side and grabbed at her arm.

“I don’t know…” Mary Ann shivered and clutched at Bridie’s arm, “I’ve wet myself, but it won’t stop. I can’t stop it.”

Chapter 8

With some effort Ben dragged himself across the ground and deeper into the small cavern. He lay there for some moments with his eyes closed and his breathing shallow until the pain between his shoulder blades had ebbed away. Firstly he rolled onto his back and with the help of his elbows forced himself into a sitting position. Taking a deep breath he was relieved to feel no pain at all although he ached in various limbs. He fumbled for some matches and struck one, it did little to illumine the interior so he struck several more together and discovered that he had stumbled upon a natural fissure in the rock face caused many hundreds of years previously when the water table had been much higher and when it had frozen had caused the rock to crack. He would not be able to stand up, but he could sit or squat. He was grateful for that, more grateful that he could put into words.

It took little time or trouble to get the saddle and blanket away from the entrance where the wind blew enough snow for it to settle and begin to build a natural wall between him and the exterior. Ben was now past caring, he wrapped the blanket around him and settled himself to sleep. There was, he told himself, little point in worrying about anything just now, sleep was the best remedy for the present, once the snow had stopped falling he could consider what to do then.

In the line shack Adam was lighting a fire and Hoss was making coffee. Snow fell so thickly and heavily that the horses had had to struggle the last hundred or so yards to reach the shack which was in good enough condition to keep them safe and reasonably warm for some time. Joe struck a match and found the lamp which he lit, and after he had lowered the funnel its soft orange glow quite transformed their rough cabin into a perfect haven.

Adam pulled off his gloves and put his hands to the flames for warmth, quickly joined by Joe who apologised for making such a fuss earlier. “I was just worried about Pa, that’s all.”

“Quite understandable,” Adam nodded, smiled and then looked over at Hoss, “Was Pa alright when you saw him last?”

Hoss frowned and leaned over their backs to put the coffee pot on the flames, he didn’t answer straight away but had to think about when he had last seen his father and told them that in all honesty he had been concerned about him ever since he had received the letter.

“What letter?” Adam asked standing up now and confronting his brother, Joe close behind him glaring at Hoss as though the poor man had deliberately with held ‘evidence’.

“Some letter Mac had brought from town.”

“What did it say?” Joe immediately wanted to know and was further frustrated when Hoss shrugged and shook his head,

“That’s just it, I don’t know. He wouldn’t say. Thing is he went plumb awful quiet afterwards and went to his room, and then yesterday after breakfast he just left and said he had to go and see Roy.”

“And you don’t know of anything that Roy could have said in a letter that would have meant he couldn’t tell you, or us?” Adam’s voice held a note of disbelief when Hoss shook his head, and confirmed the fact that Roy had indicated that they were not to be told about its contents.

Joe and Adam exchanged looks, both shook their heads as though thoroughly dissatisfied about the matter which left Hoss feeling like the scapegoat for the whole problem. Realising how Hoss would be feeling Adam suggested they found something to eat and then bed down for some sleep. “It’s a full moon so there should be no difficulty in looking for Pa as soon as it stops snowing.”

Hoss nodded and glanced out of the window which was being severely buffeted by the wind. There was nothing so beautiful as a ride in the snow with a full moon, the light reflected so brilliantly upon the snow laden ground that it could at times be clearer than in daylight, it was the reason why they were taking the ride that distressed him and the thought of where his father could be caused shivers down his spine.

……………..

Years before in her native homeland Bridie O’Flannery had been the woman called upon to deliver the babies in her village. She wasn’t medically trained but had watched her mother deliver them since she had been a young girl and had learned from her. She was by nature loving, warm hearted, and also very confident in her abilities. She could rightly claim never to have lost a baby yet, nor a mother. She thought back to those times now and felt a longing to be there, in her home village with the familiar sights and sounds all around her. This territory, this Ponderosa, was so foreign to her, so lonely and forsaken.

Oh she had known snow before, and had known days of wading through it, but there was always a friendly looking door to shelter in, and sometimes the door would open and she would bide a while inside. Not like here where the snow had fallen so fast and so thickly within such a short time that she wasn’t even able to reach the Ponderosa for help from Hester or Olivia.

Her first action was to help Mary Ann to wash and change into a loose fitting nightgown, have a cup of raspberry leaf tea of her own making, and get her into a warm bed. She lit the fire in the room so that it wasn’t long before the young woman had, surprisingly, fallen asleep.

Once Mary Ann was sleeping ‘Flannel’ once again went to the front door in the vain hope that the snow would have cleared and a way provided for her to get to the Ponderosa. She was dismayed as snow toppled onto the porch floor and it was with some difficulty that she was able to get the door closed once again.

She drew in a deep breath and told herself that this was nothing new, she had delivered babies before when alone and could do it again. She deeply cared for Mary Ann and Joe, and the fear that anything could go wrong in this delivery seemed more real than she had ever felt it before. Hurrying to the kitchen she began to boil water and get towels, scissors and thread ready.

While the water was boiling she hurried upstairs to the bedroom where Mary Ann still slept, somewhat more restlessly now which indicated that the pain was increasing and disturbing her sleep. While she had the time available Bridie prepared the little cot and set aside tiny garments. She stood awhile looking down at them and gently stroked the beautifully knitted shawl that Mrs Adam had made for the baby. How some of the mothers back in her home village would have envied this baby having so much when they had had so little. She snapped herself out of her daydreams when Mary Ann called out to her and begged her for some help to get out of the bed.

“I want to walk about, Bridie - I can’t just sit - my back feels as though it’s breaking.” she placed both hands in the pit of her back and tried to stand upright, only to double over again as another spasm seized her “Is this it, Bridie? Is this the baby coming? Oh, what are we going to do? Ooooh, Bridie … it hurts so much.”

“Come along now,” Bridie O’Flannery said in a very no nonsense manner, “Lean on me and let’s walk about a little. You’ve a way to go yet, my dearie, and there’s no hope of getting a doctor here so we had better get that out of our minds right now. Don’t be frightened, here, lean on me, that’s right.”

“I wish Joe were here. He so wanted to be here when the baby came.”

“I’m sure he did, but it seems you got your dates wrong somehow, or this baby is in a hurry to get born. Are you warm enough?”

“Yes, yes, too warm, much too warm.” Mary Ann cried hurrying to unbutton her night dress but Bridie made no effort to dampen down the fire knowing that it wouldn’t be long before she would be saying she was cold.

“Just take a deep breath when the pain starts to come and then slowly release it … try and relax.”

“I can’t.” Mary Ann whispered as Bridie felt for her pulse and temperature. “Bridie, will you be alright? Can you manage this?”

“Oh you dear thing,” Bridie smiled, “I’ve delivered more babies than you’ll ever know. I was 16 when I delivered my first way back in my home village.”

As they walked up and down, with Mary Ann leaning heavily upon Bridie’s arm, she told the young woman about life in that village, what it had been like to live in poverty, and how many young women had nothing for their babies to sleep in but a wooden box and would be wrapped in their father’s spare shirt if he owned one. The contractions were a good distance apart and when Bridie suggested that the girl tried to sleep again Mary Ann said she would try, but not in the bed, so Bridie helped her to get comfortable in the chair by the fire and within minutes she had slipped back into a restless sleep again.

Bridie O’Flannery walked to the window and looked out. Snow struck the window like flickering lights against the darkness. With a sigh she went downstairs, had a cup of tea and then brought all that she needed up into the bedroom. It was going to be a long night.

……..

Olivia checked the lamps and candles in every room to make sure they were safe and still alight. She knew that some people had walked through a white out and passed the corner of the house they lived in by a mere few feet, walking out into the vast prairie only to die of cold a few yards from home. She knew that somewhere out there in the vast white expanse her husband and her loved ones were lost. Her composure wavered slightly but she forced herself to recall some of the things Adam had told her about the seas and frozen lands and how he had got through so much; she reminded herself that he wasn’t ignorant, not a fool, he would know what precautions to take, just as Ben and the others would know. It would be alright. Yes, she told herself, it would be alright.

In the bed Sofia stirred and opened her eyes, “Is Daddy here? I want him to come tell me a story.”

“Shush, it’s time to go to sleep. Close your eyes.”

“Tell me a story, mummy.”

Telling a story would eat into some time, better than going downstairs and sitting there waiting, hoping and praying. She sat down and held the child’s hand in hers, “Once upon a time there was a lovely princess …”

…………..

Hester lay awake in their big bed. Every so often she would stretch out a hand to touch the empty space that usually was taken up by her husband’s body. She closed her eyes and thought of him, wondered where he was, if he were safe.

She shivered and got up to walk to the window and peer outside. It was black and every so often the wind blew a mass of white snow so hard against the window that she would involuntarily step back. She dropped the curtain into place and returned to her bed.

……………….

The hours ticked by and as the sky lightened to a new morning so Mary Ann’s contractions grew stronger with less time apart. She drank enough raspberry tea to float a ship (so she reckoned) and Bridie had dosed her with something that helped to relax her a little and take the edge off the pain but now the time was coming when even that wasn’t enough.

Chapter 9

Adam consulted his compass and checked it carefully with landmarks and the sky. Then he turned Sport slightly westwards and urged the animal forward. The temperature was dropping rapidly, and the horses’ were labouring hard, their breathing difficult and strained. They travelled slowly because it was impossible to move faster as the snow and the weariness of the horses prevented any greater speed.

Their eyes ached with the effort of constantly looking out at the gleaming snow covered land for so long. As Adam had said earlier when leaving the cabin they had to admit to the truth, they had no idea now where their father could be, and trying to find him now would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

“There must be some way needles get found in haystacks.” Joe said with all the innocence of a child and Adam had frowned and nodded and said “Perseverance.”

“Perhaps Pa’s already heading towards home,” Hoss suggested, “May be we should be going in that direction too.”

Neither Joe nor Adam agreed, mainly because it sounded more defeatist than anything else. They pressed onwards until Joe said “Look, over there -.”

“Pa’s horse.” Hoss exclaimed and urged Chubb forward to reach the weary animal before it could run away from them. Recognising the familiar smell of some stable mates the horse waited patiently for them to reach it. Hoss dismounted and checked it over, running his hand down its withers and hocks, and then nodding, “It’s alright, looks in good shape.”

“No saddle or blanket - Pa must have camped out someplace near here and the horse wandered off.” Adam surmised as he turned in the saddle this way and that in order to catch a glimpse of where his father could have safely camped.

“At least we know Pa is in this area and wouldn’t have gone far without his horse.” Joe said feeling more relieved than he had done since leaving home.

Another hour and Adam halted his horse and dismounted. He checked his horse and then the compass and raised weary eyes to scan over the snow clad rocks and cliffs. Each man was so weary that they could willingly have dropped on the spot and fallen asleep. Their bones ached with the tension of cold, constantly dismounting to check the horses, stepping down into snow that soaked through their clothing, only to remount and feel the sodden material freezing against their flesh.

There was no thought of pausing for a moment, not now that they felt so sure that Ben was nearby and needed their help, the urgency of the moment bore them through as all they could do was force their weary mounts to continue onwards. Just a few more miles, a little more time.

……………

Gently and with the tenderness of a mother herself, Bridie wiped around the young woman’s face and neck, held her hands and told her when to push, and when not to even though she may have desperately felt the need to do so.

“How much longer, Bridie?” Mary Ann whispered and then later “Is Joe here? Is he home yet?”

Always the pain and sometimes she felt so hot and another time she was shivering with the cold and Bridie O’Flannery was there with a cool cloth, something to sip to refresh her mouth, and gentle kindly words.

“Oh Bridie, Bridie, how much longer?”

“Not long now, my dearie, put your legs up now and let me see ?”

Mary Ann did as she was told and when Bridie looked she could see the crown of the baby’s head. She closed her eyes and said a little prayer and then went to bathe Mary Ann’s face, and neck with cool water. Then took her hand, “I can see the baby’s head, Mary Ann. It won’t be long now.”

“Isn’t Joe here yet? Isn’t he here?”

“He’ll be here soon,” Bridie replied in a matter of fact tone of voice, “Now, I want you to - very gently now - push.”

“Oh Bridie, Bridie, it hurts, it hurts so much.”

She cried, and screamed and shrieked and her body arched and Bridie was saying not to push one moment, and then push gently and then push again and then there was such a terrible pain that she cried aloud in anguish and Bridie said “The head’s out, and here are the shoulders, gently now, my dear, gently, gently.”

She was crying with the pain, and feeling so weary, so tired. When Bridie said to give just another push she just flopped back and closed her eyes “I can’t, I can’t …”

“Just one more little one.” Bridie coaxed, “Come along, Mary Ann, one more and you’ll have your baby.”

And then there was a wailing cry, and Bridie was saying ‘It’s a boy, my dear, a lovely handsome boy.’

Mary Ann opened her eyes and looked at the funny looking little scrap that Bridie was holding, and she shook her head in surprise; surely a baby shouldn’t look like that, all bloody and mucky. Bridie was smiling and happy and whisked the baby away to wrap him up in a warm soft towel. She looked down at the little face that stared solemnly up at her and then carried him over to his mother. Mary Ann looked down at her son and then at Bridie, “Why, Bridie, what a mess he looks.”

Bridie only laughed at that and said she would clean him up in a minute, once everything else had been dealt with.

It was mid-morning already and resting in his mother’s arm a clean baby nestled contentedly making little mewing sounds while his mother, washed and with a sweet smelling night gown on, looked down with that besotted bemusement on her face at her son.

Bridie had cleaned the room of all sign of the birthing, the pretty things were back on the dressing table, and the crib was standing close to the bedside. Now she came and stood by Mary Ann’s side, “Is he asleep?”

“Yes, quite asleep. Oh look at his little finger nails, aren’t they so perfect? And his eyelashes?” she stroked the child’s cheek slowly, and devoured the little face with her eyes and smiled dreamily, “You know, Bridie, I so envied Su Ling when I saw her after their baby was born, I wondered if our little one could ever be so beautiful but he is, isn’t he?”

“He’s handsome, just like his father, and as lovely as his mother.” Bridie smiled contentedly and stroked the baby’s dark head, “Now, my dear, I think you should sleep now. I’ll put him here in the crib close by your side.”

“Oh Bridie, must you?”

“Yes. It’s important that you sleep now. Your body needs to rest.”

“I can hardly bear to let him go.” and the new mother held her son over to Bridie after kissing his downy brow, “I think he looks just like Joe, Bridie.”

“Yes, dear, now then, close your eyes and get some sleep.”

With a sigh Mary Ann closed her eyes and with a smile on her face she drifted into sleep. Bridie cradled the baby in her arms for a moment and then lowered him into his crib and covered him with the blanket.

She walked to the window and looked out at the whiteness beyond, it sparkled and dazzled the eyes so much that she was glad to pull the drapes across the window. Then she pulled up a chair near the bed and made herself comfortable as she also fell asleep.

……………….

Ben had left the safety of the cliff face and been disheartened at the loss of his horse. His heart had, in fact, plummeted and as he had looked out over the vast whiteness of the expanse laid out before him he felt total despair.

He looked at his watch and noted the time, twelve noon. The snow had stopped falling for some time and he had hesitated to leave what security he had knowing that he had enough water and dry food to last him for a while. A man on foot, and alone, in the snows such as this and with wolves dangerously close, was vulnerable. He knew he would not get far and looked towards the crack in the rock face wondering if he were indeed wise to stay.

It was then that he saw them far below but heading steadily in the direction that would put them in line with him. He counted them with a smile, three men on horseback, his three sons. He returned to where he had left his rifle and standing erect and tall on the track fired the 3 shots that would lead them to him.

If his heart had plummeted to his lowest depths moments earlier it certainly soared now. He felt quite giddy with relief at seeing them each turn towards him. He saw Hoss grab at Adam’s arm, then wave his hat in the air and Adam and Joe waved and were turning their horses, and on a leading rein behind Hoss, came Cinnamon, his own horse. It was with a prayer of thanks on his lips and an overwhelming buoyancy of heart that Ben gathered up his belongings and hurried down to meet up with them.

Chapter 10

The drifts were treacherous and had more than once caught them out as the lead horse would plunge into one and it was then the task of the others to get the frightened creature and its rider up onto surer ground. Then it would be a case of dismounting and walking with the horses on a lead rein rather than have them terrified to the extent that they would refuse to move on or, the worse of all, have them injured.

They reached an area that had earlier shown itself only as a dark speck against the whiteness of the glaring snow. It proved to be a large copse of trees weighed down heavily by the snow. It was Ben‘s suggestion that they made a quick stop over for a drink and for the horses to rest . The wind played tricks even there, for while it was nearly bare in some places and exposed the grass, elsewhere the snow was banked up four feet and more around the trees.

No one disagreed with the suggestion as it provided them all with the chance to catch their breath with some shelter around them to cut off the biting wind, as well as allowing the horses with grass to crop on. The stop over would also calm the horses a little, enough anyway for them to continue when their riders were ready to leave.

“We can’t stop long,” Hoss muttered as they chewed on dry biscuits and jerky, “I heard wolves and quite honestly I want to get home as soon as I can.”

“You and me both, brother.” Joe said and then smiled at Ben, “Here’s some coffee, Pa.”

Ben took it gratefully and as they drank and ate he told them about his meeting with the Paiute in more detail, explaining about the mountain cat and how it had killed Waneika’s son and he had ridden along with them in order to help although, he said ruefully, he did get the feeling they considered him more of a hindrance.

“It happens,” Joe said upon hearing about the child, “There was a baby taken from the Cheyenne camp by wolves during one winter. Thankfully it was found unharmed but I doubt if a mountain cat would have spared what it found.”

Hoss then told his father about the remains of the calf they had found and they all agreed that the cat had obviously marked out the Ponderosa as its territory. The harder the winter would have proven to be, the more at risk their cattle, and perhaps their men, would have been.

Ben nodded and sighed as the snow scrunched and squeaked beneath their boots and Joe said “I’ll sure be glad to get home and take these boots off.”

“Well, we should be home by nightfall if the snow holds off.” Hoss said pulling on his gloves. “I reckon it’s time we move on.”

Adam had half turned towards his horse when he paused, his head at an angle as he listened “Hear that?”

“Wolves.” Joe and Ben said together.

“Let’s get out of here.” Hoss said, “I don‘t want to tackle any wolves right on my front door step. Snow must have reached them sooner further up and forced ‘em to move on down to see if it were any easier pickings here.” Hoss sighed and shook his hat, “Dadburn it, this could delay things some.”

“We’d best keep bunched together, close.” Ben advised pulling his hat lower.

“Right.” Hoss looked into the trees. There was no sound but the howl of the wolf, and then another, “Sounds like he’s asking his pals along for the party.”

“Let’s get as much distance from them as we can.” Adam muttered and turned Sport away from the camp and back out through the trees.

Joe’s knee brushed against Adams as they rode along and he smiled over at his brother, “Sure hope we make it home before nightfall, Adam. I don’t much fancy being caught out in the open with a pack of wolves at my heels.”

“So long as the snow holds off and the drifts aren’t too deep we should make it.” Adam glanced over his shoulder anxiously and then scanned the sky, or what he could see through the trees boughs. “I’m not sure what’s worse, being caught out in the open or while we’re still here.” he said quietly, “At least with the trees we have something at the back of us.”

Joe shivered as a drift of snow trickled upon his face, he brushed it away and as he did so paused, and hoped that what he thought he saw was just his imagination.

“What did you see?” Adam said immediately and then turned in his saddle, from right to left and back again.

It was Hoss who fired the first gun shot as the lead wolf leapt forward. Ben followed behind Joe, firing his rifle whenever it seemed a wolf was getting too close to Navajo’s heels. One wolf fell beneath the volley of bullets and for a few moments the other wolves surrounded him as though they were going to tear him apart which gave Ben the opportunity to pick off another of them.

Ben had been surprised at just how many wolves had descended upon them in such a short amount of time. It hardly seemed possible that from one lonely howl of a wolf so many would have gathered in such a large pack. He followed his sons, each of them turning every so often to take a pot shot at the wolves who had once again congregated together to give chase.

A wolf took a bold leap at his leg, fastening his teeth into the heel of Ben’s boot which was the last thing he did as a bullet soon caused him to drop back into the snow. Hoss fired the last bullet from his rifle and pulled out his revolver. “Shucks, Adam, am I imagining it or are thar more of them dang things than ever?”

Adam said nothing but fired another shot into the pack and had the satisfaction of seeing it drop at the feet of several others who broke away from attacking the men to snuff around it.

Hoss turned in time to see a black visaged wolf leap at him and as its fangs bit into his arm so he grabbed it by the scruff of its neck and hurled it from them as far as he could throw it. The unfortunate creature hit a tree trunk which cracked its skull and sent it slithering into the snow.

“Are you alright, Hoss?” Adam asked without looking at his brother as he concentrated at firing at the wolves. Hearing the man’s affirmative he nodded to acknowledge that he had heard and fired off another shot, a wolf skipped back whining as two of its claws disappeared and its paw spurted blood.

After another frantic five minutes during which time Hoss was reduced to using his rifle like a club, the wolves fell back and whining, yipping and howling retreated into the woods.

“Do you think they’ll be back?” Hoss asked as he wiped his brow on his sleeve, surprised to find he was actually sweating.

“You’ve hunted enough wolves in your time, Hoss, what do you think?” Joe said, stroking Navajo’s neck in an attempt to calm the beast for the smell of blood and cordite was unsettling the animal.

“Well, let’s hope they take their time licking their wounds,” Adam said quietly, “I think we had better try and make it to home.”

“I’ve not much ammunition left.” Ben said, “If we head for home now we may make it before they regroup and attack again.”

“Let’s hope the snow holds off.” Ben said as he took the lead away from what looked like a battlefield with the bodies of several dead wolves sprawled out leaving scarlet ribbons of blood seeping into the whiteness of the snow.

Chapter 11

Olivia closed the door to the house and shivered as she pulled off her thick coat and kicked off her high boots. The previous day when the first snow storm had just dropped from the skies she had tied a rope from the door to the barn, something she had remembered her own mother doing years before. She had caught the chickens and gathered them up into the stables where they soon found it a far warmer and pleasant place to be. The milk cow she had brought from the other barn to put into an empty stall. Now, with the snow so deep as to be impassable for the children, she only had one journey to make to one location, and she had done this twice during the day.

The light had gone from the sky and her lantern had flickered and been extinguished before she had reached the stables, it was only by holding onto the rope that she had managed to reach it safely. She re-lit it and then put a match to several other lamps and checked the animals, did what chores she could, located several eggs that showed how much the chickens had appreciated their new warm location, and had milked the cow.

Now as she stood in the porch and felt her legs shaking from the cold and the exertion needed to walk through the snow against the wind, all the time hoping that she would still have milk in the pail and the eggs would not be broken, she wondered how long it would be before Adam returned home. Her lips muttered a silent request that he returned soon, and safely.

Reuben ran over to her and took the pail from her while Sofia took the eggs. “Ma, you got nearly a whole bucketful.” the boy said admiringly and hurried into the kitchen to put it on the table for her to deal with later.

“Your skirt is all wet, mommy.” Sofia said as she hugged the eggs against her chest and she looked at Olivia’s face with frightened big eyes, “Will the snow come again now?”

“It’s already snowing.” Olivia said and looked over at the fire and mentally noted that they had enough logs to last the evening. “Take the eggs into the kitchen and put them in the brown bowl. That’s the most eggs we have collected for a few days now, I think the ’girls’ are happy foraging around in the stables.”

“Will daddy be home soon?”

“Yes, he’ll be home soon, now, go along and do as I’ve asked you.”

She watched the little girl run into the kitchen, heard a splat and ’Oh!” and knew at least one egg had been dropped. She hurried up stairs and slipped on a warm dry skirt before hurrying down again.

Sofia had tried to clean the mess from the floor but only made a bigger one, with Reuben watching rather scathingly as he leaned against the kitchen table. “I didn’t mean to drop it, mommy.”

“I know, don’t worry.” she took the cloth from her daughter and quickly cleaned the mess away. “There now, all gone.”

“Ma, when’s Pa getting back?” Reuben asked fretfully and Olivia looked at him and noticed genuine concern in the boy’s eyes. “It’s dark already and it’s not even bed time.”

“I know. He’ll be back as soon as he can be. Now I’ll make us something to eat and then we can play a little game before you go to bed.”

Later as the meal was cooking she went up into all the rooms and lit the lamps, and some candles so that the weary traveller would see them, like beacons, to lead him home.

…………………

Hop Sing put another log into the stove and closed the door with a clang before turning his attentions to the stew. Mr. Cartwright would be back with a big appetite, and so would Hoss. He turned the new bread over and tapped it to make sure the loaf was ‘done’, then, satisfied, he put it on the side to cool. He could hear Hester singing to Hannah and the child making noises as though she too were singing.

Hop Sing sighed heavily and shook his head. It wasn’t good that the men had not returned yet. The weather was too wild, too cold, and they had been gone too long, much too long.

How things had changed. He could remember when the house was so noisy with the talk of the men, loud and argumentative, or loud and laughing and then in the evening quiet as they read their books or played their game of checkers. Oh, maybe soon it would be like that again, when the children grew. He thought of Missy Mary Ann and wondered if she were alright, what a good thing that the fat woman was there to care for her. Even if she did think she knew everything about everything it was good that the little Missy had her now. But what if the baby were to come sooner rather than later. He shook his head, and fretted a little over that, a problem, he felt, that was beyond his abilities.

Hester came into the room and smiled at him, a weary tight smile that didn’t lack her usual warmth but indicated her worries for her husband and father in law. “It’s very dark, Hop Sing. I’m going to light the lamps in the rooms upstairs, just in case they are on the way home.”

“Very good idea, Missy Hester.” he looked down at Hannah who was standing by the chair watching her mother and then looking at Hop Sing, her smile when she looked at him always warmed his heart for nothing was so endearing as the spontaneous love offered so freely by a child to an old man.

………………

Mary Ann felt warm and pampered with the care that Bridie was giving her. She had listened as the garrulous woman had told her what an easy birth she had gone through, which Mary Ann decided was a matter of opinion. She was told how some women had endured far worse, far longer, and had suffered this and endured that, so that in the end she was convinced that in Bridie’s opinion she really hadn’t suffered enough.

But the baby was lovely and when she looked into his face it made her feel so very special, she knew, as all mothers did, that to that little person their world consisted solely of their mother. She had been up and sat in the little nursing chair to feed him, and taken him to be changed and washed and put into his little crib, and then, of course, she had to take him out again to hold him and make sure he was quite safe and well and nurse him for a while longer.

Then she had walked to the window and looked out into the vast white sprawl of land beyond the house and prayed for the safety of her husband and those she loved. She asked Bridie countless times why it was that they weren’t home yet? She fretted so much that Bridie had to tell her that if she kept on so then there would be problems with the milk coming through and she could end up having milk fever. Oh nothing was straightforward, nothing at all.

When the next storm came and the darkness had descended around them she had sat closer to the fire with the baby in her arms and nursed him at her breast, humming a tune to him, and thinking of the time when Joe would come in and be amazed at finding himself a father …oh, if only that time would hurry up and come.

Chapter 12

The snow slowly came to an end and the miserly sun gradually ebbed away to be replaced by a brilliant full moon that lit the earth with silvery light. Every so often the four men would dismount to struggle through the snow in order to ease the burden upon their weary horses. Grateful indeed for the moonlight that made the way clear ahead of them. Gradually the familiar sight of the ranch house came into view and Ben and Hoss felt some relief at last knowing that it wouldn’t be long before they were inside a warm room with some decent food to eat.

They parted at what was the bottom of the track leading to the Ponderosa. A warm handshake and a wave as Ben and Hoss turned towards the main ranch house. Joe smiled slightly and looked at Adam “I can’t wait to get back inside.”

Adam nodded, his eyes remained fixed on the sight of the two men toiling through the snow towards what had been their family home. He sighed, then looked at Joe, “I hope everything’s alright for you, Joe.”

“Sure it will be.” Joe grinned, and then his grin faltered “Why shouldn’t it be?”

Adam merely shrugged and after a last look at his father and brother making their way homewards he turned Sports head round so that he and Joe were riding side by side to where the track forked and led to Joe’s home. “Well, I just thought, that’s all.” He smiled at his youngest brother, “Excited at being a father, huh?”

“Oh sure, excited, nervous. I guess, to be honest, I still can’t believe it.” he laughed lightly and his face softened, “Fancy that though, me? A father?” he cleared his throat in case his brother should think he was getting maudlin, “Well, if anyone knows about being a father you should by now. You sure dived in with both feet with that one, Adam.”

“I guess I did.”

“No regrets?” Joe quirked an eyebrow and Adam’s smile widened,

“No regrets.”

“How’s Reuben settling down? Had any problems with him lately?”

“Reuben ah well.” Adam shook his head, “He likes to push the boundaries a bit, see how far he can go before we come down on him. He’ll be alright.”

Joe nodded and stopped his horse as he looked down the track to where his house seemed to glow with the moonlight making the snow gleam “You know, Adam, it sure looks kinda beautiful, doesn’t it?”

“It sure does.” Adam replied as his thoughts drifted to a night when he and O’Brien stood on the deck of the Ainola, a night just like this with the moon beaming down and the ice on the masts and ratlines twinkling like so many diamonds tossed among sugar icing.

Joe spontaneously put out his hand which Adam grasped and shook warmly, “Thanks for everything, Adam.”

“And you.”

“I can’t wait to get in to see Mary Ann again.”

“Then what are you hanging about here for, apart from which it’s getting colder.” Adam laughed softly, “I hope everything’s alright, Joe.”

“Sure it will be. Hey, look, if anything’s happened I’ll fire three shots.”

“I’ll listen out for them.”

“I’ll tell you what, Adam, if it’s a boy I’ll fire two shots and if it’s a girl three shots. How about that?”

“Pa and Hoss will probably think the house has burned down, but that’ll be fine … two shots if it’s a boy, three if it’s a girl. But you did have a month yet, wasn’t that what you said?”

“Exactly!” Joe laughed and waved his hand to his brother who now urged Sport on towards his own house further along the track.

…………….

It was so still, so very still. He could hear his horse’s breathing and even his own, breaking into the silence that surrounded him. It was a night that made a man feel like a speck of dust amidst the enormity of creation. Yet at the same time as though he were entirely alone, the only person existing on earth at that time.

The stars were so bright he could have reached out and plucked them from the sky. He heaved in a deep breath and looked back to the way he had come. Only Sport’s prints deep in the snow indicated any sign of life. There was no longer any sight of the ranch house, or of Joe’s home, not even the wisp of smoke from any of their chimneys.

The stable doors had obviously been opened some time during the course of the day as the snow wasn’t piled as deeply in front of them as he had anticipated. After a while of clearing what snow was there he led Sport to his stall and then for a moment or two just stood there while the heat in the building knocked into him. It was such a contrast to the cold he had been experiencing for the past few days that it felt suffocating and he had to unwind his scarf and remove the gloves, even unbutton his coat before he could begin to unsaddle his horse.

Several hens made their way towards him, clucking as they stepped out in line expecting to be fed. The milk cow lowed softly and looked over the top of the stall at him with soft brown eyes. He smiled to himself and continued with his responsibilities to his horse.

…………….

Never were two men more grateful to step through the front door of their home and find an inviting fire in the hearth and a warm heartfelt smile on the face of the woman they loved. Hester ran towards them, hugged and kissed Hoss and then Ben, and then called to Hop Sing that they were home. As she helped pull off their outer clothes and shake the snow away, Hop Sing bustled in, looked at them, exclaimed delight and hurried back to heat up the supper.

Hester didn’t speak, she didn’t say a word about how frightened, how worried and anxious she had been for them both. She was just too happy to know they were safe and back home. “Come and sit down by the fire. Pa, you’re shivering, oh your hands are so cold. Hoss, sit down, no, it’s alright, dear, I’ll take your boots off.”

He sunk into the chair and leaned back, closed his eyes and sighed deeply. His wife went down on her knees and pulled off the boots, and then the soaking wet socks. Then she turned to Ben and did the same to him before carrying boots and socks away and ordering them to relax and thaw out.

In the kitchen she clung onto Hop Sing and wept into his shoulder while he patted her back and made sounds meant to soothe her. Then after a moment or two had passed she braced herself up and wiped her eyes. “Is the soup ready?”

“Yes, all ready. Bread warm like Mr. Hoss favourite.”

They bore the food into the living room on trays and set it down on the low table by the fire. Both men were nearly asleep from fatigue and the warmth of the room, but they were both more than hungry and the smell of the food revived them enough to set to with a will. Hoss looked at Hester and smiled “You weren’t too worried, were you, honey?”

“Oh no, I knew you’d be alright.” Hester turned her attention to buttering bread and making sure Ben had his plate well loaded, “Oh Pa, we were so worried about you.”

Ben had the grace to flush rather pink around the cheeks, and mumbled his apologies and explained to her the story of what had happened. It was then that Hoss told him that if it hadn’t been for Roy coming to see why he hadn’t arrived in town the previous day, they would not have realised anything was wrong until much later.

“Ah - yes,” Ben frowned and shook his head, “Er - did Roy say anything else?”

“No.” Hoss replied rather crossly and glanced at Hester before looking again at his father, “But it seemed to concern that thar letter you had.”

“The letter?” Ben sighed and dipped his bread into the soup, nodded over at Hester and apologised to her again for causing so much worry, “The letter was to tell me that Roy had arranged a meeting with Jessop, to get that small matter of the boundary cleared up once and for all. He said not to bring any of you because Jessop was in a fire spitting mood and would take your being with me as a red flag to a bull. Guess he’ll be madder than ever now.”

Hoss frowned, opened his mouth to say something then thought better of it. He sighed, and nodded, concentrating on his food. Jessop, he knew, was easily riled, and no matter what reason Ben gave for not attending the meeting, he would take it as a personal insult.

Hester sat as close to Hoss as she could and Ben was not ignorant of how much she must have been longing to have her husband to herself so he made his excuses and admitted to them both that he was too tired to stay any longer but had to get to his bed. Slowly and gratefully he mounted the stairs to his room and as he closed the door the clock chimed 2 o’clock in the morning. His room was swathed in the light from the moon and for a moment he stood in its centre and stared out through the window to where the snow glistened upon the mountains and weighed down the ponderosa pines.

With measured step he made his way to his bed and gratefully sat down and savoured the familiar comforting feel of the mattress giving way beneath his weight. He rubbed his chest slowly with his hand, and bowed his head, grimaced slightly in pain before getting back onto his feet. ‘It’ll be alright,’ he told himself, ‘Nothing to worry about after all I’m not getting any younger.’

He prepared himself for bed but walked to the window to look out into the darkness beyond … it would be some days before he would be able to get out and about again, to ride into town and attempt to soothe Jessops temper. Perhaps he’d call in and see Paul while he was there and just ask for a quick check on a few medical matters. He nodded to himself as though in agreement with his thoughts and then slowly returned to his bed.

………………..

Joe closed the door quietly behind him and slipped the catch across. As he walked into the main living room he stood for a moment to look around him and enjoyed the sight of the moon light coming in through the windows in so many different directions. How he loved this room even after it had been one that had caused such a tragedy during its building. He had removed his outer clothing and boots in the vestibule, and now stood in wet socks shivering and feeling numb, his brain felt has though it could no longer function. His stomach rumbled for his nose had picked up the smell of food cooking, but he couldn’t seem to get his legs to move. His eyes were closing involuntarily even as he stood there and he knew that he was swaying back and forth, back and forth, but couldn’t seem to be able to stop himself, in fact, the movement was really very soothing.

“Mr. Cartwright?”

Mrs O’Flannery’s voice seemed to boom through the silence and jerked Joe alert, so much so that his heart began to pound so loudly in his ears that he could barely hear himself think. He turned slowly towards her “Oh Hello, Mrs O’Flannery. Sorry it’s so late. Anything to eat? Is Mary Ann alright? Is she asleep?”

“Why not go and see for yourself, Mr. Cartwright. I’ll get you something to eat and bring it upstairs for you.”

“Thank you, Mrs. O’Flannery.” he forced his legs towards the stairs and paused “MaryAnn wasn’t too worried about me, was she?”

“Oh of course she was, she loves you, doesn’t she?” she laughed as though she thought he were rather a silly little boy and shoo’d him away as she went chuckling into the kitchen.

How hard it was to drag himself up those stairs and with a wide yawn he opened the door to their bedroom and then paused as his eyes looked upon his wife. She was sitting in a chair with her back to the window so that the moon shone behind her. Her dark hair was in a single braid over her shoulder, and as she looked at him she smiled such a sweet slightly secretive smile. “Hello, Joe.”

“I’m sorry I’ve been gone so long, darling.” Joe said with a mouth that felt as though it were padded with cotton wool.

She looked different, but he didn’t know why she did and so just smiled stupidly at her. She stood up and came towards him with her hand outstretched to take hold of his, “I’ve something - someone - I want you to meet.”

He looked around him and then he noticed the little crib beside the bed, items that they had bought together when they first knew about the baby coming and now … he could barely breathe and held her hand tightly, his throat went dry and he shook his head and then looked at her, “Oh MaryAnn. I’m so sorry. I promised to be here with you and you - you had to go through it all on your own.”

Still he hadn’t moved, he couldn’t bring his legs to take a step forward, but he held her hand and then he drew her to him and kissed her brow and looked into her eyes, “I’m sorry.” he whispered.

“Don’t be, darling, Mrs. O’Flannery was here and helped me so much. Come on, come and meet your son.”

“Son?” his lips trembled, he told himself it was because he was still cold, but everything inside his body was shaking, “A son?”

“Yes, yes, come and see him. He’s so handsome, Joe, he’s just like you.”

She left him then, hurrying to the crib and picking up the little bundle contained therein. She looked at him as he joined her, “Well? Isn’t he beautiful?”

Very carefully and very gently he took the baby from her. His eyes filled with tears, his throat tightened and he had to sit down because there was no strength left in them. He bowed his head “Oh Mary Ann, my dearest girl, he’s just like you.”

She laughed then and kissed his brow, then looked at the baby who had one eye open as though wondering whether or not it was worth opening both to see what was going on. He yawned delicately like a little kitten and then shivered, blinked his eyes and smacked his lips together, Joe shook his head, “I can’t believe it.” he whispered, “He’s so small. So perfect.”

“He has all his toes and fingers and everything else he needs besides,” she laughed softly and stroked the baby’s cheek with her finger, which the questing mouth instinctively turned towards, “Oh Joe, I’m so happy.”

He felt weak, if it were possible to be weak with joy, delirious with happiness, then that was how he felt, exactly how he felt. He kissed the downy brow and stroked back the dark hair, and then looked at her, “Mary Ann, I love you so much.”

Mrs. O’Flannery came in then with a tray laden with hot food and coffee, and a milky drink of chocolate for Mary Ann. It was she who took the baby from the ashen faced father and left the couple to return to the chairs by the small bedroom fire. As Joe looked at his wife he could only echo her earlier words, he was just so happy.

…………….

Adam removed his outer clothing and boots in the porch noting as he did so the neat pile of logs that had been arranged along the wall between both doors. He nodded approval, and smiled slowly to himself. It seemed to him that he had married no silly little woman but had a wife who thought ahead and wasn’t afraid to work hard. He stepped into the living room and closed the door gently behind him.

He knew it was late at night, early in the morning, whichever way one preferred to look at it. The fire was still burning in the hearth and beside it Olivia sat in one of the big chairs, curled up like a little cat with her hair tousled and mussed up, and over her night clothes there was just a shawl across her shoulders.

He stepped closer to her and then squatted down in front of the fire to look at her. It seemed to him that he could see the little girl she once was when she slept, the innocence and vulnerability of children stole upon her features and he smiled and removed a curl of hair that had fallen across her face.

She blinked and murmured something that held his name in among the words and sighed. He observed her again for a moment and then rose to his feet to turn towards the fire and warm his hands. He stood there some moments letting the flames work their magic as the heat slowly trickled into his body. His injured leg ached and he knew that later it would be painful, too much exertion was still a problem although it was no where near the agony he had endured the previous year. He bent it a little and flexed the muscle to ease away the gnawing discomfort.

“Adam?”

Her voice was drowsy and when he turned to look at her he had to smile for her eyes were still heavy with sleep. She shivered now, and pulled the shawl closer, as she stood up and on tip toe accepted his kiss. “I meant to wait up for you. The last thing I can remember is putting some more wood on the fire.”

“You were the perfect picture to come home to, Livvy.” he laughed gently and caught her in his arms and held her his prisoner, a very willing prisoner, as he kissed her again, “I’m sorry to have been gone for so long. Has everything been alright here?”

“Yes, everything’s been good, except that you weren’t here.” she took his hand, “Come along, I’ve made you some food, you must be hungry.”

“True enough,” he nodded and followed her obediently, “I can’t remember when we last ate. Things didn’t work out quite as we thought or expected either.”

“Why, what happened?”

She looked at him anxiously as he took his seat at the big old table, and he told her about

What had happened to Ben, and the mountain cat, and then how they had found him safe, and been attacked by wolves on the journey home.By the time he had finished his telling of the tale she had food hot and nourishing on the table with a pot of coffee in her hand

“No one was hurt, were they?” she pushed his cup over to him and then sat down as close to him as possible.

“No, my dear, no one was hurt.” he squeezed her fingers gently between his own and continued to eat, “This is good, Livvy.”

“Thank you, but not as good as it should be, I’ve reheated it several times over already.”

She sat and watched him eat for a few moments before asking him about the child that had been taken, and he had to tell her that there had been no hope for the poor thing. He sighed and pushed his plate away, a frown settling on his face, “I’m worried about Pa. Several times I noticed him … well, he looked as though he were in pain. Of course he was suffering from the cold, but ...” he paused and the frown deepened as he tried to find the right words to describe his thoughts “Of course, he always rallied, especially if he noticed any of use looking at him too intently.”

“Did Joe or Hoss notice it? Did they say anything?” she placed her hand over his, her fingers slipped comfortably around his own.

“I think so. Of course we never mentioned it, perhaps we were afraid to in case we had to admit it to ourselves that perhaps there was something wrong after all it wasn’t an easy trip. It was even harder for him, having been hunting down that mountain cat before we even realised he was missing.”

“But if that mountain cat had taken a child, then who was to say what else it would hunt down as this weather worsens. It could even have come down this far and - and taken one of the children, or attacked us.”

He nodded, looked thoughtful and then turned to her, took her hand and kissed her fingers “It’s odd, it made me realise that my Pa’s mortal, just like anyone else of us.”

She didn’t answer that comment except to squeeze his fingers gently so that he shook his head as though to banish the thought away and after a brief silence smiled down at her, “Did you miss me?”

“Do you really have to ask?”

“And the children, are they alright?”

“Yes, they were worried about you, and kept asking when you would be home.” she looked up into his face, into his brown eyes that looked heavy for lack of sleep, she traced his eyebrows with her finger and frowned, “Come - you look as though you could sleep for a week.”

Later as they lay in each other’s arms and were about to slip into sleep there came the sharp report from a rifle, followed immediately by another. Adam rose himself up on his elbow in a listening attitude and when silence fell he turned to his wife “It’s a boy.”

“What?” she looked confused, “What is?”

“Mary Ann and Joe - they’ve got a son.”

Chapter 13

Hester heard the door close and knew that her husband had gone to struggle through the snow and wind to do what chores he could while there was enough light to do so. She placed another log on to the fire and then glanced over at Ben who was crossing the room to his desk, a letter in his hand which he was scanning carefully.

“Pa?”

“Yes, Hester?”

He turned to her and smiled with that warmth that was so familiar to her now, and she involuntarily answered it with a smile of her own as she rose to her feet and approached him and slipped her arm through his, “Pa, are you alright?”

“Yes, of course I’m alright.” a slight scowl, and his voice held a defensive note, “Why do you ask?”

“You looked tired.” she admitted as they walked together to the desk where they parted, she to stand by the stove and he to take his seat.

“I am tired.” Ben pulled the chair closer to the desk and put the letter down before looking back up at her, “There’s no point in pretending I’m not to you, Hester. That little trip was pretty exhausting and I don’t mind telling you that I was more than grateful to see the boys when I did. But -” he raised his chin and his eyebrows and shrugged “I’m feeling much better than I did, and shall no doubt be as good as new by the time there’s a thaw and we can resume business as usual.”

She sighed then and left the warmth of the stove to draw closer to the desk, “Pa, don’t you think that you should consider -” the look on his face stopped her in her tracks and she cleared her throat, “I’m only saying this because I care about you, you know that, don’t you?”

He didn’t answer immediately but then sighed “Say what you have to say.”

“None of us are getting any younger, Pa, and -” she paused again, knowing from the amused twinkle in his eye that he was already thinking up a dozen ways of fending off that argument. She clear her throat, “I thought you were going to be really ill, you know. When you walked through that door you looked exhausted -”

“I was.”

“And - and it made me think that perhaps we’re being unfair in the way we expect you to carry on day after day as though you were some kind of machine that would never break down or - or stop working. You need looking after.”

“You do that very well, my dear.” his rough calloused hand folded over hers and he smiled up at her, “I couldn’t wish to be better cared for than I am now. Believe me.”

She frowned and shook her head, “Don’t you think that with Adam and Joe living so close by you should delegate more work on them?”

“They already do all that they can to keep the ranch up and running.” Ben leaned back and surveyed her thoughtfully, “I can recall once before when the boys gave me a similar talking to some years back. I think the phrase they used was supervisory.”

“I remember that being mentioned once or twice.” Hester nodded although she knew full well that it was about a hundred times more often than that number.

“Well, I soon proved to them then that they needed to think again about it.” he picked up a pen, and smiled slowly as he recalled the incident, “Don’t worry, Hester, I’m feeling very well.”

“But, Pa, that was some years ago now and -.”

“And we’re all that much older. I know.” he picked up the letter and looked at it, “I really need to get on with some work, Hester. We may be shut in for some days yet, but there’s still quite a bit of paper work that needs to be done.”

“Yes, of course.” her shoulders slumped, she smiled briefly and walked back to her chair to resume her sewing. She felt she had fallen at the first hurdle, so to speak, and that Hoss would be more worried than ever about his father.

……………

Adam stood up and after picking up the paper upon which he had been making some calculations walked into the main room where Olivia was helping Reuben with some Math. He paused for a moment to observe them, enjoying the moment, savouring the sight of a mother and her son, heads touching, as they worked on the problem together.

Sofia saw him and called to him to come and talk to Clarabelle but he smiled and said later as he saw Olivia lift her head and turn towards him with her eyes sparkling “I thought you were going to be in your office all day.” she scolded.

“No, I’ve finished for now. How are you getting on, Reuben.” he leaned over the boys shoulder to observe the work even as he took hold of Olivia’s hand.

“It’s alright, I can do it.” Reuben replied feeling rather hot under the collar as Math was not his best subject, and he was stuck on a problem that he knew Adam would solve right away.

“Do you need any help?” Adam asked as he pulled up a chair to the table to sit beside the boy and looked at the paper which Reuben wished he could hide from view. “Here? Let me see?”

“I can do it.” Reuben replied rather tensely and sensing the anxiety in his voice and recalling to mind another little boy who found Math difficult Adam smiled and nodded as he pushed himself away from him and rose to his feet, “Very well, son, but if you need help you only have to ask.”

Surprisingly Reuben actually muttered a thank you under his breath and Adam turned to Olivia and winked, before taking her hand and leading her some distance away. “I’ve worked out the calculations for the wash room.” he spread the paper out on the side table and with a pencil began to outline the layout of the items in the room. She watched the pencil as it travelled across the paper, and nodded at appropriate times, she even managed to ask appropriate and sensible questions that he answered with such enthusiasm that she was eventually rendered speechless.

She couldn’t imagine having a bathroom, not a room the way he described it. He told her how friends he had known in San Francisco had one, and how he had taken care to remember as many details as he possibly could and if he had had any sense would have already had the room built before they moved in to this house. Then he smiled and caught hold of her around the waist and pulled her to him, “You’re not really interested in plumbing, darling, are you?”

“I just don’t understand it.” she said and entwined her arms around his neck.

Outside a gust of wind send hail and snow thudding against the windows which seemed to shiver under their onslaught. Sofia came and tugged at her skirt “Mommy -?”

With a sigh she broke away from Adam and with a sigh Adam stepped back from her while she leaned down and picked the little girl up “What’s the matter?”

“It’s that wind again.”

“Yes, it’s just that wind again.”

“I don’t like it.”

“No one likes it, dear, now, go and play. Reuben, have you finished now?” she walked over to the table and looked down at the paper and then at Reuben’s flushed face and smiled, “Well done, you’ve worked hard this morning. I’ll get you some milk and you can go and play.” she stroked his head gently, her hand following the shape of his skull, “Good boy.”

Delighted at her praise Reuben jumped down and ran off to get his train set out. She turned to Adam who smiled and followed her into the kitchen, “Olivia, I wanted to speak to you about something.”

“Plumbing?” she asked anxiously as she found two cups and filled them with milk for the children. She turned and was prevented from carrying them out by his standing in her way, he took the cups from her and placed them on the table.

“No, not about plumbing. I wanted to speak to you about us … and the children.”

Olivia frowned, and bit her bottom lip “What about us, and the children?”

“Just that I think Sofia should not be allowed in our bed at night. She’s old enough now to stay put in her own bed and not want to come into ours all the time.”

“It’s not every night -”

“It’s getting more regular than it should be.” he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her towards him, noticing as he did so that there was just a little resistance. He smiled slowly, Mother Bear fighting for her cubs again, always on the defensive. “Don’t you think it’s about time she realised her bed was hers and our bed was for us?”

His voice was soft, gentle, slightly teasing and she knew that he was right, and relaxed a little so that she leaned into his body and wrapped her arms around his neck, “Of course, our bed should be for us.”

“Only us.”

“Only us.”

She could feel his smile on his lips as he kissed her, and she thought ’Oh you won again.’ but then she just surrendered to his kiss so that she was drifting, drifting into that state of thinking just how good it was, that bed, just for them.

“Mommy?”

The spell was broken and with a mutual sigh they parted and looked down as Sofia looked up at them both “I’m thirsty.”

………………..

The infant was a week old before the family could descend upon the house and admire him. The snow had slowly stopped falling and every day the temperature rose until it had melted away sufficiently for the horses to be harnessed to the buggies and driven from their homes. Hester and Hoss and Ben were the first to arrive with little Hannah in her father’s arms.

So much chattering in the porch as outer garments and such were discarded and explanations given and exchanged and laughter intermingled with the talking until they were inside. Ben looked at Joe and smiled, “Everything alright, son?”

“Yes, Pa, everything’s just fine.” Joe nodded and looked at their faces and when Hester asked where Mary Ann was he looked rather surprised and said she was upstairs, of course.

“What do you mean, ‘of course’?” Hester then asked and when Joe laughed and began to blush she cried “OH JOE!!”

“What is it?” Ben asked, “Have I a grandson or -”

“A grandson, Pa, I mean - I have a son.” Joe cried and his father came and hugged him close, knowing only too well what those four words meant, especially the first time they were uttered.

“Can we ..?” Hester asked rather coyly and Joe said “Yes, yes, come on up, Mary Ann can’t wait to show him off to everyone.”

“This dang snow,” Hoss moaned, “We weren’t able to get out for anything and ain’t seen hide nor hair of anyone either.”

“You haven’t seen Adam then?” Joe asked with his eyes twinkling as he led them up the stairs to the bedroom.

“Nope, guess he’s even more snow bound than we are seeing as his house is built in the dip of the hill.”

Mary Ann was sitting in the chair with the baby in her arms and stood up with a beaming smile on her face as Hester hurried towards her and then paused and looked into her face

“Was everything alright?” she asked very softly and Mary Ann nodded and said how thanks to Bridie O’Flannery everything was just wonderful.

She carefully passed the baby into Hester’s arms and then Ben and Hoss came and crowded around her to look at the little scrap of humanity who was sound asleep but making little jerking movements so that every so often his arm or foot would move as though totally detached from anything else and Hester laughed and said “Oh, bless him.”

“Why, Joe, I can see how he looks like you,” Ben said gently, “but more like his mother.”

“That ain’t a bad thing,” Hoss grinned tickling the baby under its chin and he smiled at Hester before picking Hannah up so that she could ‘meet her little cousin.”

Downstairs the door opened and closed as Adam, Olivia and the children arrived and Adam’s voice was heard halloo-ing from the porch. Joe ran downstairs and laughing grabbed Adam’s extended hand, “Congratulations, Joe, sorry we couldn’t get here sooner. How’s Mary Ann?”

“Go upstairs and see for yourself,” Joe said leaning forward to accept a kiss from Olivia and then leading the way for them to follow him to the big room where Mary Ann was smiling proudly as Ben cradled his grandson in his arms.

Now the baby was passed to Olivia who smiled down at it and then looked at Mary Ann and congratulated her on her beautiful son. She lowered her arms enough so that Reuben and Sofia could see him before standing up and looking at her husband who was watching her with a rather dreamy smile on his face, “Come and look at him, Adam.”

Now the baby was passed into Adams arms and he stroked the downy head with his long fingers before asking the proud parents if they had thought of any names for him yet. Joe and Mary Ann looked at one another and then laughed admitting that they had gone through a whole long list of names and still not found one yet they liked enough or could agree upon.

“Hey,” Joe clapped his hands together which made the baby jump, whimper and open its large eyes and look up at Adam with its bottom lip quivering rather alarmingly so that his Uncle promptly passed him over to his mother. “We have to wet the baby’s head, don’t we? “

“Yeah, we sure do,” Hoss agreed emphatically rubbing his hands together.

“You men go downstairs then,” Mary Ann said with a laugh, “We girls will stay here and talk over a few things.”

Ben came and kissed her cheek and smiled “Well done, Mary Ann, you have a handsome son there,” and then Adam kissed her cheek followed by Hoss before they followed after their brother to where they could sit and relax, drink some wine and talk mostly business, although Joe couldn’t help but slip in references to how his son keeps him awake at night, and how his son had grown in just these past few days and so forth.

Upstairs Mary Ann told Hester and Olivia about the birth, Olivia told her about Adam hearing two gunshots and declaring that Joe had a son before falling asleep and how impatient she had been to get here ever since to see him and Hester had got down to the business of discussing names.

…………

“Is this where I catch the train to Gold Hill?”

The porter turned to look at the woman who was addressing him and nodded, “Yes, Miss. It’ll be leaving here in about half an hours time. Do you have a ticket?”

She produced one and he checked it over and then picked up her baggage and carried it to a carriage the door of which he opened and stepped back to admit her, before stepping in himself to stow her case and valise away. She thanked him prettily and gave him a tip which brought her a gruff thank you so that she didn’t know if she had given him too much or not enough.

The doors closed with a slam and a bang. She leaned back against the rather prickly seat covers and adjusted the veil that was over her face. From her purse she produced a newspaper cutting and smoothed it out over her knee. It was a brief article written beneath the picture of a man and woman above which was written ‘Just married.’

She bowed her head to read it more carefully although she already knew it word for word. The marriage of Commodore Adam Cartwright, son of the wealthy rancher and owner of the Ponderosa, Ben Cartwright to Olivia Dent Phillips, the daughter of Ephraim and Martha Dent, deceased … she read how many had attended the wedding, where it had been held, what the bride wore and the fact that she had two children by a previous marriage.

After a while she carefully folded the newspaper cutting away and replaced it in her purse. Whistles were being blown and there was a great deal of doors slamming, then the sound of the trains engine starting. On the platform people were waving to loved ones, handkerchiefs fluttered here and there, and calls of ‘Goodbye’ drifted through the closed windows.

She looked at the faces of the people as the train slowly shunted its way from the platform along the rails. She saw sadness on some faces, merriment on others, and the shut off business like expression on a few and then they were a blur and gone as the train gathered momentum and took them out into open countryside.

She lowered her veil again as the carriage door opened and a gentleman and lady stepped inside to sit opposite her. A young couple who held hands and looked at one another as though no one else existed in their world. It didn’t matter to her, she drifted into thoughts and memories of her own, and didn’t really want anyone intruding upon them.

Chapter 14

Reuben came down the stairs and looked shyly over at the four men seated at the table. The ‘baby’ talk among the women had become too boring and Sofia’s determination to sit quietly beside Aunt Mary Ann and thus able to hold onto the tiny baby hand was irritating. Now that he had come to join the males of the family he found himself strangely shy of taking his place among them.

It was Adam who noticed him standing on one leg and hugging the bannister rail, he beckoned him over and Reuben stood close to him, listening as they talked about what work was to be done when the snow had cleared and how damage would have been done by the snow. It was just when he was thinking this talk to be as boring as the ‘baby’ talk upstairs when Hoss asked Joe how things were progressing with Saturn which prompted Reuben to jump up beside Joe and look pleadingly at him so that his uncle laughed, ruffled his hair and said he was sure Saturn would enjoy seeing them again.

As they scuffled into their outer coats and boots Adam caught Ben by the arm, “Pa?”

Ben half turned and smiled before continuing to pull on his jacket until Adam once again prevented him and said “Pa, I want to speak to you.”

Ben sighed warily, “What is it, son?”

“Come back to the table, I want to ask you something.”

“Very well.” Ben nodded and called out to the others that he would see them later, while Adam cautioned Reuben to behave and not get in the way.

“What is it?” Ben sat down and looked at his son with a slight smile of anticipation on his face. The recent comments from Hoss and Hester regarding age and health would obviously have their echo with his eldest son, who nodded and after a slight hesitation asked Ben how he was feeling. “I thought you would be asking me about that, I’ve already had lectures from Hoss and Hester …” he held up a hand as Adam opened his mouth to speak “It’s alright, I appreciate your concern, Adam, but honestly I am alright.”

“You didn’t look alright when we found you.” Adam lowered his voice, his anxiety for his father’s well being softening his words.

“I wasn’t then. It had been a pretty hair raising couple of nights and days after all, and I hadn’t left home prepared to go cat hunting.”

“No, you were on the way to town to see Roy. What was that all about?”

“Hoss didn’t tell you?” Ben frowned, and then shook his head with a wry smile, “Of course he wouldn’t have known as I hadn’t mentioned it to him until I got back.” he cleared his throat, “Remember the trouble we had with Jessop years back about the rights to the water on our land, which he claimed was his?”

“Sure I do. I thought we had sorted that all out last year? Didn’t we get a new contract drawn up for him to sign?”

“We did, and it’s taken all this time for him to get around to notifying his lawyer that he wasn’t prepared to accept our terms. Roy was mighty concerned because Jessop’s son, Brett, has returned home and is all fired up to cause trouble. Seems Brett Jessop has quite a reputation as a gun slinger and has threatened a range war if we don’t get things settled quickly. I was on my way to see Jessop in town when the Paiute came and -” he shrugged.

“Why didn’t you let me know about this sooner?”

“You aren’t sitting opposite me at the breakfast table of a morning anymore, son.” Ben said quietly, his eyes downcast and his fingers moving restlessly on the wooden table.

“But you didn’t tell Hoss either?”

“Roy suggested I kept things quiet, if I told any of you then you would all be coming with me into town and Jessop would think we were challenging him. As it is the chance to talk has passed now and -” he shrugged, “We’ll have to wait and see what happens in the meantime. Ain’t nothing we can do while this weather is as it is.”

Adam said nothing but leaned against the chair back with a slight frown and his lips narrowed, he looked at his father thoughtfully and shook his head, “Brett Jessop always was trouble.”

“Well, his mother died young and he bore the world a grudge ever since.” Ben rose to his feet and resumed pulling his coat on, “Coming to see the horse?”

“Sure, why not.” Adam smiled and as he shrugged himself into his coat asked Ben what he thought about his new grandson, which brought a pensive look into the older mans eyes.

“You know, Adam, it was like looking at Marie and Joe all mingled in together. Quite took my breath away when I saw him.”

“We came by the Ponderosa on the way here, just in case you didn’t know he’d been born.”

“You did?” Ben frowned, “No, we had no idea but Hester was worried about Mary Ann so we thought we’d visit them first before coming on to see you. So you knew already huh?”

Adam closed the door behind him as they stepped out into the yard, he pulled up the collar of his coat and nodded as he told Ben how Joe had agreed to fire off two shots if he had had a son. Ben looked up at the sky and drew in a deep breath, before thrusting his hands into his pockets “You know, son, we have a whole lot to be grateful for.”

Adam made no comment in response to that, but smiled in agreement, and hearing Reuben’s young voice, so shrill and excited, coming from the stable, nodded as he mused over the blessings he’d reaped during the past year.

……………..

On the Jessops homestead Brett Jessop was cleaning his gun in a methodical manner, although his mind was switched off from what he was doing as he thought over the discussion he had had with his father and the sheriff some days earlier.

Old Roy Coffee was getting too old for the job, he thought to himself as he spun the chamber of his pistol. Too old and too much like a mother hen poking his nose into everyone’s business., expecting them to do what he told them. He hadn’t liked the contract his father had yet to sign with the Cartwrights. It meant losing the water that ran close enough to their land to be rightly claimed as their own. Fancy that, just a few years too late in establishing a boundry because old Man Cartwright had been there all that time before them and already got the land.

He spat into the fire making the logs sizzle, and then poked the oil rag down the barrel with the rod and thought over life on the ranch with his father. He’d always hated it. Never took to life on the ranch not like his brother, Derwent, who had stayed to work it alongside their Pa. He paused as the door opened and his brother entered the room with more logs in his arms which he carefully built up close to the fire “Bin busy?”

“Some.”

“Got enough logs to keep the fire burning the rest of the day.”

“We’ll need it, more snow coming.” Derwent placed the last log on the pile and turned to face his brother, “Wouldn’t do no harm if you helped out a mite more. All you’ve done since getting back is sit on your rump and clean your guns.”

“Look, you get on with your business and I’ll handle my own.” he picked his gun up and aimed it at his brother, squinting down the barrel and then smiling as his brother turned his back on him. “You don’t like guns, do you, Derwent?”

“You knows I don’t. You know why too…” he sighed and brushed his hands against his pants before walking out of the room.

Brett knew why, of course he knew why, years may have passed since it all had happened but he hadn’t forgotten. Virginia City was raw back then, just a collection of buildings and a few stores and saloons. People drifted in and among them were the worse breed of men, those quick to pick fights and use their guns to win them. That’s how Ma had got killed, getting caught in some cross fire.

Brett lowered his gun and stared into the flames of the fire and remembered his mother dying in his father’s arms. Derwent had been crying, but he hadn’t, he had been too full of rage and hate and loathing. While Derwent swore he would never handle a gun except for hunting, he had sworn to do just the opposite, and perhaps, one day, find the man who had killed his Ma. He was still looking and the years had hardened his hate filled heart to stone.

Old Man Jessop shook his head “You should stop riling your brother, Brett.”

“I ain’t doing him no harm.”

“He’s helped keep this here ranch going all these years, been by my side all along.” Jessop scowled over at him and Brett looked away and spun the chamber in his gun, knowing the implied criticism, that he had been absent, no one ever knowing where he was or had been, only hearing over the time how he had built up his reputation and then, just a few months ago he had returned home.

Not that he viewed it as home. He stood up and slipped the gun into its holster, “I’m going out.”

“Where you going?”

“Out to get some fresh air, all this sanctimonious talk chokes me.”

His father narrowed his eyes and shook his head “You still got that mean streak in you, haven’t you, son? I thought perhaps you’d have mellowed over the years.”

“You can’t afford to mellow, as you put it, in my job.”

“You ain’t got a job. Killing folk ain’t a job.”

Brett said nothing to that as he buttoned up his coat and reached for his hat. It was a job if you got paid for it, he mused, and in the past he used to get paid plenty.

The snow crunched underfoot and the cold took his breath away but he was still going to do what he had in mind and made his way to the stable where Derwent was grooming his horse. The younger man paused in his work to watch Brett saddle up “You better be careful in this weather.”

“I know all about this weather, you don’t need to tell me.”

“Sure, I forgot, you’re Mr. Know-It-All, ain’t’cha?”

Brett cast his brother a narrow mean eyed glance, he’d shot people for less than that, and the anger boiled up inside of him as he led the horse away. Best to ride out for now, let the anger cool down. Derwent, to his mind, may have been a weakling, but he was still his brother.

……………….

Mrs O’Flannery had prepared a good meal for them and the smell greeted them as they piled in through the doorway. She had been thanked and praised by them all for her help in delivering the little one upstairs, and had blushed when Ben had shaken her hand in both of his and thanked her so warmly, telling her that if there was anything at all that she would need or want she was just to let him know.

Hester was helping to set out the table and with a smile watched them as they made their entrance into the kitchen, their eyes gleaming and their cheeks red from the cold. Joe had a constant smile on his face and Adam was blowing into his hands to warm them up while Hoss had Reuben on his shoulder making the little boy glow with something more than the cold.

Olivia came to the table carrying a platter of beef steaks which she placed on the table with a smile at them all, and when Adam slipped his arm around her waist she blushed as though they hadn’t been married for several months already. Hester looked over at her brother in law and laughed “What’s this I hear about you building an extension on the house, Adam?”

“Oh What’s this?” Hoss asked as he swung Reuben down and into a chair. “You kept mighty quiet about that ?”

Adam chuckled his deep laugh and told them how he had planned it all out while he had been unable to do much else but think during his illness the previous year. A bathroom, he said as he pulled a chair away from the table, was an essential for every home. “When I was in ‘Frisco some years back, I stayed with the Eugenes, old friends of Pa’s, and they had one installed in the house. Seemed to me a real good idea.”

“The Eugene’s?” Joe frowned, “Huh, can’t imagine them coming up with anything good.”

The subject was quickly changed as no one wanted to dwell on the Eugenes with memories of Andre and Cassandra suddenly looming large in their minds. Instead talk turned to the food, and to Saturn and to the little baby whose wails for attention floated downstairs and brought vague smiles to their faces.

“Baby.” Hannah pronounced with a nod of the head and her big eyes flickering to her father.

“Sure is, honey.” Hoss smiled and then looked tenderly over at Hester, didn’t seem so long ago that Hannah had been a little scrap herself and now here she was, getting so grown up.

Chapter 15

Brett Jessop didn’t ride too far as the snow prevented him from going to the area that was under dispute with the Cartwrights. He turned his horse round for the return journey to the ranch when he noticed the smoke rising not so far away and recalled to mind that their land also bordered that of the Double D ranch.

Pulling up the collar of his jacket he nudged his horse in the direction of the Dents place, while his mind wandered down to the years when he was home and would see his neighbours upon occasion. He had formed quite a passion for the girls, and he groped in his mind now for their names … Olivia and Katya. He nodded to himself and smiled, he hadn’t been sure which of the two he liked the best seeing how they were both so pretty. It was Derwent saying how he liked them as well that had soured that relationship, although it had only been from afar.

The snow had played tricks here with the wind, which had blown it reasonably close to the ground so that the horse rode along quite comfortably despite the air being so cold. He rode close now to the border and saw just a few miles away where the Double D lay, nestled in snow shrouded trees, the back of the building exposed to the open and the smoke from its chimneys coiling upwards into the still air. Judging that the snow wasn’t too difficult to negotiate he decided that a neighbourly visit would be quite a pleasant diversion.

A twist of the wrist and the horse turned its head and directed its feet towards the ranch house and was soon trotting into the yard of the home of Luke and Marcy Dent.

…………

Marcy was busy cooking the main meal of the day when the knock came to the door. She turned to Luke and smiled, inwardly thinking that just perhaps it was one of the Cartwrights, Olivia and Adam may be? Luke kissed her cheek as he passed and then as she continued her work she could hear him talking and turning to welcome their guest was disappointed to find herself confronted by a total stranger.

Behind the man Luke appeared slightly confused but unworried. He smiled over at his wife, “Honey, this is Brett Jessop, Mr. Jessop this is my wife, Marcy.”

Introductions made and the meal spoiling there was nothing else for it but to invite the man to stay and eat with them, and Marcy couldn’t help feel a twinge of unease as he accepted the invitation very willingly. She looked anxiously at Luke but her husband was listening to the man as he explained what had brought him to their home.

“I remember coming here several times,” Brett said as he took a seat, “I met your sisters, Olivia wasn’t it? And Katya?”

“That was some time back, Mr. Jessop.” Luke murmured sitting down opposite him which meant Marcy had to sit between them.

“Call me Brett.” the other man said and smiled at Marcy who managed to smile back and begin to serve the meal, ladling stew into the plates and urging their visitor to help himself to the corn bread.

She listened as they talked, Luke told him about leaving home with his brother to join in the civil war and Brett said he had left home ‘to make his fortune’ and laughed when he admitted to them that he had come back without one. His stay at home brother had seemed the winner in that respect.

“I see Derwent sometimes,” Luke said, “ when I’m in town.”

Jessop nodded and concentrated on eating the stew which was eminently preferable to any meal he had eaten so far since returning. He didn’t want to talk about his brother, nor his father instead he steered the conversation to their younger days, and asked Luke, finally, what had happened to his family.

He listened patiently as Luke told about the death of his brother, and of Olivia’s marriages, the latter being to Adam Cartwright. “Cartwright? One of the Ponderosa Cartwrights?” he asked.

“Yes.” Luke smiled fondly at Marcy, and then looked at Jessup “You would have known him in the past surely?”

“Yes, I know the Cartwrights,” came the reply in a voice that held a trace of something that made Marcy feel her stomach turn over. She looked over at Luke who appeared not to have noticed, as it was Jessop began to speak again, “So what happened to your little sister, the one they called Katya?”

“She married and went to live back east. We’ve not heard from her for years.” Luke sighed and offered their guest more coffee which was declined.

“She was a pretty little girl,” Jessop said slowly as he attempted to separate his memories from Katya and Olivia, so much alike and yet so different, at times they seemed to merge in his mind “So they’ve both married?”

“Yes. Olivia has two children.”

“Cartwrights?” Jessop snapped out the word so that even Luke reacted for his head jerked up and his eyes widened, but even so he patiently replied that they were not Adam’s children, but those of her first marriage.

It gave Jessop something to think about as he rode back home just as the snow began to trickle gently down from the sky as though the clouds were weeping.

……………….

Reuben ran into the house and pulled off his hat and coat. He had seen to Buster and made sure he was warm and had some oats to eat while Adam had been tending to the horses and the buggy. Now the boy just wanted to get indoors and have some of Ma’s bread with some warm milk, he knew Olivia would have sprinkled cinnamon over it as a treat.

Adam closed the door and carried some logs to the fire which was dying down having been unattended since they had left the house earlier. He heard Reuben chattering to Olivia and smiled as one by one he pushed the logs into position.

Sofia was sitting on one of the wide chairs cradling her dolls in her arms. Since seeing Mary Ann with the baby all her infant maternal feelings had risen to the fore and she was prepared to give her ‘babies’ more than the usual loving care and attention.

Olivia poured coffee into Adam’s cup and passed it to him “Reuben just loves that horse, Saturn. He’s in raptures over him.”

“Is that right?” Adam glanced over at Reuben as the boy drank the milk, stopping to nibble at the bread every once in a while, “What do you like about him so much, Reuben?”

The boy looked up and frowned slightly before answering, “He’s beautiful, all black and glossy. I want to ride him one day.”

“Well, when Joe’s got him tamed enough I’m sure he’ll let you do just that.”

“Can I break the horses one day, like you and Uncle Joe do?”

Adam sat down opposite the boy and nodded, “Sure, once you’re old enough and strong enough.”

Olivia shot him a worried look before quickly telling her son that that won’t be for quite a while so not to get any ideas into his head right now. Reuben sighed and once again his brow puckered into a frown “Was that right what Uncle Joe said that time, about you being the best horse breaker he knew?”

“Once upon a time it may well have been, but your Uncle Joe’s been the best since - oh - since some time now.” he smiled slowly to himself remembering the many times his little brother had been tossed from a horse but dusted himself down and remounted.

“Did you ever get hurt? Uncle Joe said he’s been hurt and sometimes real bad.”

“It’s dangerous, you have to learn, with practice, how to avoid being hurt too much. Uncle Joe -” he paused and looked down at his half empty cup, “Well, he’s got himself into some scrapes at times. Several times he’s nearly killed himself, scared us to death in the process.” he looked quickly over at Reuben and smiled slowly, “You have to get to understand horses, that’s the first rule.”

“Did you ever nearly get yourself killed then, Pa?”

“I’ve had my - er - near misses.” Adam admitted, and drank the rest of his coffee.

“What do you do then, so’s not to get hurt?”

“Well, if you think you’re going to fall, you have to free your feet from the stirrups”

“Why?”

“If you don’t you could get tangled in ‘em, and then end up being dragged around . That applies at any time, Reuben, even when you’re riding Buster - accidents happen.” he smiled at Olivia who was quietly and busily preparing their supper.

“Then what?”

“Then what? Er - well - just plain common sense I guess. May be if you keep hold of the reins the horse may stop as you fall, although sometimes it’s best to let go other wise you could be dragged along with them. You only ever know which is best at the time, could save you from falling on your head.”

He got to his feet and walked over to pour some more coffee into his cup then he leaned against the dresser to watch Olivia as she continued her preparations. She smiled at him and he raised an eyebrow to her and winked. Reuben, after having thought over what Adam had said asked what else to do which led Adam to return to the table and sit down.

“You have to stay calm as possible which isn’t easy. But the calmer you stay, the more relaxed your body remains and you may fall quite naturally without coming to too much harm, you have to learn to roll, tucking your arms in like so -” and he demonstrated with a smile as Reuben copied him, “then when you hit the ground you have to roll away from the horse if possible. A wild horse gets nervous once he’s thrown the human off, he’ll rear up and trample him, so you need to roll away from him as quick as you can, if you can.”

Reuben nodded and subsided into silence, finished his milk and ran into the sitting room declaring to his sister than when he gets to be ten years old he was going to a bronco buster. This made no impression upon his sister at all who only held Clarabelle up to him and insisted he kissed her goodnight.

In the kitchen Adam put his arms around his wife and drew her close, he kissed her brow, her nose and her lips. As the snow began to fall once again around the house he remembered Ben saying how much they had to be grateful for, and as his mouth met hers once again, he knew she was the most precious blessing he had ever received and one for which he was truly grateful.

Chapter 16

The town had suffered quite a buffeting from the snow storm which descended just as the woman was shown to her suite of rooms in the Tahoe House Hotel, situated on Main Street in the heart of town. She stood awhile to make sure that all of her baggage was brought in and taken through to the bedroom, before thanking the porter and giving him a tip.

“Would you like me to light the fires here, Ma’am?” he asked politely as he pocketed what was a sizeable donation and she thanked him again and walked to the window while he performed the task, lighting the fire in both the sitting room and bedroom.

The door closed quietly without her having turned to see him go as her attention seemed riveted to the comings and goings of the townspeople hurrying through the falling snow. She had, over the course of the weeks since beginning of her journey, told herself that she had left England at the very worse time in the year. The journey from Southampton to New York had been fraught with anxiety as the sea was strewn with ice bergs so that the Captain was either slowing the boat in order to navigate the way through them, or speeding up in order to make up for time. Once at New York there had been so much to arrange and she had succumbed to a cold that had kept her to the hotel suite for extra days so that the worsening weather seemed to chase her through the states as she made her way by train, stagecoach and train again to Virginia City.

As the fire crackled and burned into the wood bringing some warmth to the room she turned languidly and began to slowly remove her gloves, peeling them off slender hands as though she were sleep walking. The fur coat came off next and was cast over the back of one of the arm chairs before she began to remove her hat. It was while she was lifting the heavy veil from her face that a light knock came to the door and after her quiet request to the person to enter one of the Hotel’s maids stepped inside to ask her if she would like assistance for her baggage to be unpacked.

“I don’t know how long I will be in town -” she hesitated and kept her face towards the window, “I suppose this storm will prevent many from getting away from it for long.”

“Usually storms like this one will last a few days. The passes will be the worse, they get blocked and the homesteaders and ranchers won’t be able to get into town for a while.”

She thought about that and then nodded, obviously she was again delayed from her objective, and gave her agreement for her baggage to be unpacked. Once the woman had left the room she continued to remove her veil and hat placing them carefully on a bureau by the window.

Perhaps it had all been a mistake from beginning to end, an impulse that should have been extinguished as soon as it had come to her mind, but the yearning to see her family again, even to become part of the family as it was now, had been so strong that no adverse weather conditions could prevent her from fulfilling that dream.

As the maid left the bedroom to tell her that she had put everything away the woman asked her if she knew the Cartwrights from the Ponderosa to which the other woman had nodded with a smile “Everyone knows the Cartwrights, they were one of the very first to settle here years before the Comstock Lode.”

“And do you know the Dent Family, the Double D?”

The maid shook her head doubtfully and then said hesitantly “I’m not sure, but I think it was one of that family that married Adam Cartwright last year, and a few weeks ago the owner of the Double D was married. I remember now because I overheard Widow Hawkins discussing it in the restaurant shortly afterwards.”

“Do you remember the name of the gentleman?”

“Er - um - Luke Dent. The same name as my brother - Luke. He married a friend of Mrs Cartwrights, from San Francisco.”

“Thank you.” she nodded and turned back to look out as the snow fell heavier. So Luke was home, and married, she could hardly believe it, her brother alive and well, and obviously happy, but then, there had been another and she stopped the maid just as she was about to leave the room “There was another brother - I mean - Luke Dent had a brother, Philip?”

“I never heard of him nor knew him, Miss. Sorry.” she frowned in concentration “Widow Hawkins told me that the family never had dealings with Virginia City, not for a very long time. The father shunned the town for some reason and only dealt with Carson City.” she looked at the ceiling for inspiration to recall further details to mind “Mr. Jones from the Hardware said the Double D was some distance further from here, it made sense for them to go to Carson City.” she smiled and bobbed a curtsey “Anything else, Miss?”

“No, thank you.”

She watched as the door closed and stared at it for a moment. No one had heard of Philip Dent, and it seemed no one had heard or knew about his little sister, Katya Dent, either. She put a hand to her left cheek and brushed her fingers along the scar that disfigured the smooth skin. It had been a long time since she had left home, perhaps no one would want to know little Katya Dent anymore.

………..

Old Man Jessop scowled as Brett came into the main room scattering snow everywhere as he discarded his coat and hat over a chair back and then sat down to pull off his boots.

“Where’ve you been? You missed your food, don’t expect me to be making more for you.”

“I’ve already eaten.” came the surly response as Brett cast his boots over towards the wall among some others. He wriggled his toes in their damp woollen socks and stood up to make his way to the fire “Where’s Derwent?”

His brother appeared from the kitchen and pulled out a chair so that he was facing his brother, but had the advantage of the fire’s heat. “So where’d you go?”

“I went calling on our neighbours, something you ain’t bothered to do for sometime.” Brett eased his legs out straight and began to pick at his teeth with a broken finger nail.

“What neighbours? We ain’t got none ’cept the Double D and the Ponderosa.”

“S’right. I bin and had eats with Mr and Mrs Dent at the Double D. You met Luke Dent’s wife yet, Derwent? Pretty little thing she is.”

His father gave both his sons a sharp glance “Don’t you be messing around there, either of you. I done met the girl and she’s a darn sight too good for the likes of you.”

“She’s married, Pa.” Derwent said softly and a slight twist of the lips, “I done met her in town a time or two, not to speak to mind, but I seen her.”

“What’s being married got to do with it anyhow?” Brett stretched out his arms and looked with hooded eyes over at Derwent who had shot a rather angry glance at him, “Alright, no need to look like that, I ain’t going to cause no trouble there.” he crossed his arms on the table and leaned on them “What you going to do about that land deal, Pa? You going to sign that Contract?”

“I told you, I ain’t thought about it, I don’t want to tangle with Cartwright just now but I ain’t wanting to step back and ignore the fact that we need that thar water on their land -”

“Their land? See, you can’t help yourself, can you? You just accepted that it was their land by saying that? Some high falutin’ lawyer jest got to hear you say thet and you’ll have lost your claim altogether.”

Derwent stood up and shrugged “Seems to me we’ve managed alright with the land or the water all these years. Ain’t no reason to start stirring things up about it again now. Pa was going to sign that Contract last year ’cepting you came back and started on about it again.”

“Why not? Why should the Cartwrights have it all their own way all the time? You forgetting what they done to Pete? And all because of their claiming the Truckee Strip belonged to them and not to the Bishops.”

“Pete got what was owing to him.” Derwent muttered, “It weren’t over the land either, it was over Joe Cartwrights girl, Amy. If’n he’d kept his hands to himself there’d have been no trouble and Amy would still be alive today, so would Pete.”

Brett formed a fist and swung it at his brother, catching the younger man in the stomach “Seems you showing more of that yella streak in ya, brother. Pa’s lawyer said we got a good case against the Cartwrights for that land -”

“That lawyer says what you pay him to say, Brett.” Derwent said after catching his breath, “And I ain’t yella jest because I’m talking the truth.”

“That’s enough, both of you.” Jessop thumped a fist on the table and both his sons turned to glare at him. He surveyed them both before rising to his feet “I got chores to deal with, you two quit this talk about that Contract and about Peter, d’you hear?”

Brett stood up and watched his father leave the house, pulling his coat close to himself in order to face the storm outside. Derwent walked to the huddle of boots and began pulling on his own pair, scowled over at Brett as he took down his coat and thrust his arms into the sleeves, “Did they say anything about their sister?”

“You ain’t still mooning over them are ya?” Brett mocked and raised his eyebrows, “As it happens Luke Dent didn’t say a word about either of them.” he raised his legs up in order to put his feet on the chair that Derwent had just vacated “You never did like Pete, did you?”

“He was a loud mouth and a bully. Thought to much of himself.”

Brett shrugged, “He was our cousin, don’t you forget it and it if hadn’t been for Joe Cartwright he’d still be alive.”

“I don’t reckon so. I reckon that sooner or later he’d have ended up the same way anyhow. He was trouble, always was.”

Brett watched his brother as Derwent left the house, a gust of cold air and a flurry of snow skeetered into the room, melting instantly from the heat. He stared at the black patches wet upon the floor before reaching out for some bread which he slowly chewed while his mind drifted back into the past.

………….

Joseph Cartwright cradled the little body carefully, the infants downy head settled in the crook of his arm. “Mary Ann, we got to be thinking up a name for this little boy soon.” he smiled over at her as she sat by the fire sewing carefully a little garment for her son.

“I know.” she laughed, a woman happy with life because it was snowing outside and provided a good reason for her man to be inside with her for far longer than usual, and she had her son who was so good in sleeping just as long as he should and not crying any more badly than any other new born. She sighed, “We could keep calling him ‘son’ until he’s old enough to choose for himself.”

“That would be a terrible thing to do, woman.” Joe said chiding her laughingly as he walked towards her and set himself down in the other chair. The baby sighed slightly as his father changed his position and moved him about as a result. “No, he needs a name.”

“We’ve been through lists of names, Joe, and either we don’t like them, or I do and you don’t. I thought it would be a compliment to your Pa to call him Benjamin.”

“Sure, it is too, but Pa’s still alive and that means two Ben Cartwrights, and I don’t like thinking of calling my son ‘Junior.’”

“And you didn’t like Franklin in honour of my brother and father…” she pouted and stabbed the needle into the hem.

“Franklin Cartwright …” Joe sighed and looked down at the little face with the firmly shut eyes and snub nose and soft cheeks just like the down of a peach. He shook his head, “He doesn’t look like a Frank or a Franklin.”

“It would have been easier if he had been a she. We agreed on lots of girls names.” she snapped the thread off and stuck the needle back in the pin cushion, shaking out the little night shirt neatly.

A knock on the door and Bridie peeked into the room and smiled as she announced that supper was ready. Joe stood up and carefully settled the baby into the crib, “There now, son, as you’ve already had yours I hope you’ll excuse us as we go to have ours….” and then he paused and looked down, heaved a sigh, “He’s a real handsome little chap, isn’t he?”

“Of course he is, he couldn’t be anything but with you as his father.” Mary Ann said, kissing him on the cheek and slipping her arm through his as she gazed fondly down at their son.

“I can’t imagine life without him now.” Joe said quietly and then turned to her, “Thank you, Mary Ann.”

Outside the snow continued to fall, covering the land with the sparkling shimmering treachery of beauty.

Chapter 17

Nothing lasts forever and gradually the frequency of the snow falls died away followed by the gentle breeze of the Chinook. On the Ponderosa chores were carried out as religiously as ever with Ben declaring himself fit and well enough to ride into town - alone. Hester decided she needed to buy various items and Hop Sing insisted that he needed ‘many things for kitchen.’ With a satisfied smile on his face Hoss watched as Ben rode beside the wagon with Hester and Hop Sing smugly congratulating themselves and Hannah seated warmly between them.

Joe spent a little time with Saturn before going in to collect his gun belt and hat. He kissed Mary Ann who was feeding the baby and of course he lingered a little while to stroke the downy head and enjoy that tug to the heart strings as his sons eyes turned to gaze up at him. “I’ll be back later,” he promised, and kissed his wife again before quickly walking away.

At Adam’s house Reuben was bearing the kindling into the main room and carefully arranging it for his mother to use later. Adam watched him as he buckled up his gun belt and smiled as the boy turned to him for approval. Adam picked up his hat and carefully smoothed it over his dark hair “All done?”

“Yes, Pa.”

“Did you latch the barn door and put the hatchet away safely?”

“Sure, Pa.”

“Have you fed Buster yet?”

“That’s my next job, Pa.”

“Come here -” and when the boy ran to him Adam opened his arms and hugged him, “Well done, son. Now, off you go.”

A tap of his hand in the small of Reuben’s back and the boy ran off happily to see to his horse while Adam walked to the kitchen and leaned against the door frame as he watched Olivia tying on her apron “I won’t be too late, Livvy.”

She looked over at him and smiled “I thought I would take the children to Mary Ann’s, is that alright with you?”

He looked surprised and then laughed “Of course it is, you don’t have to ask my permission.”

“No, I know, but I like to make sure it’s alright. You’ll know where I am should you come home earlier than planned.”

He nodded and pushed himself away from the door “I’ll see you later then -?”

She caught hold of his hand and then kissed him, “Be careful.”

She stood at the doorway of the house and waved him farewell as Sport trotted proudly out of the yard. She waited just a moment to listen to the quickening hoof beats as the horse was put to a gallop and then with a slow smile, she turned and recommenced her work.

……………

The three men rode abreast, the horses were well matched and galloped in a unified formation. It was Joe who suggested they checked out the land under dispute with Jessop and so it was that they turned their horses in that direction and by mid-day were following the stream.

“Who’s that?” Hoss pointed to a horseman some distance away “I don’t recognise it as any of the hands.”

“I don’t think any of the men would be here today,” Adam murmured and brought out his telescope. “It’s not anyone I know, although -” he adjusted the lens and after a pause admitted that the rider looked familiar but he couldn’t put a name to the face.

He passed the telescope to Joe who frowned as he lowered it “I’ve a feeling it’s one of the Jessops.”

Adam remembered Ben telling him that Brett Jessop was back home, the one causing trouble with regard to the contract that had been drawn up some months earlier and which Ben had been so sure old Man Jessop would sign. “Joe, take the left fork, make sure he doesn’t see you, Hoss and I will go and have a little talk with Mr. Jessop.”

Brett Jessop didn’t appear to have noticed them. He rode along picking his way carefully over Ponderosa land and obviously deep in thought as the sound of approaching horsemen startled him and the Cartwrights were confronting him before he had had a chance to put his hand to his gun. He rocked back in his saddle and raised his eyebrows questioningly “Well now, good morning to you both.”

The sarcasm in his voice wasn’t lost to either brother, Hoss sniffed loudly as though in contempt and Adam edged Sport a fraction closer, “You’re trespassing on Ponderosa land, Jessop.”

“Not the way I see it. To my way of thinking it belong to us, the Jessops.”

“You’ve got a twisted way of thinking then, Jessop, this land has never been yours, and nothing you say will change that.”

Brett leaned forward slowly and surveyed them both with cold eyes “Seems like a lot of things have changed while I was away. I hear tell you got yourselves a fine wife each, huh? Kids too …” he gave the slightest shrug of the shoulders, “Seems a shame should anything happen to them.”

Hoss looked incredulous, his blue eyes opened wide as he stared at the other man “You threatening us, Jessop?”

“Take it any way you like, Hoss, I’m just saying a shame if anything happened to them. Accidents - you know - they happen in a range war.”

“A range war?” Hoss exclaimed, “Are you crazy? What are you talking about?”

“Don’t take much to start a range war.” Jessop drawled placing both hands on top of the other upon the saddle horn, “You heard talk of the Hatfield and McCoy feud down West Virginia way? No one can remember how that started now, it’s already gone on for five years. I got to know quite a few men they hired, would be only too happy to ride on over to the Ponderosa and sort you boys out.”

“You are threatening us -” Hoss stated slowly, “Well, it takes more than threats to alter facts, Jessop. Our Pa had this land years before your family even settled here.”

“Save your breath to cool your porridge, Hoss. Ain’t nobody bothered about them facts.”

Adam raised his chin “You can’t dismiss facts that easily, Jessop. Your father and ours have an agreement they were both prepared to sign, I’d hate to think that your meddling had anything to do with it being cancelled.”

The other man laughed at that and shook his head “You think lawyers care about facts? All they care about is how much money they can make out of a deal. Pay ‘em enough and they’ll say exactly what you want them to say. My Pa may have some old fashioned notions, but I’ll soon get him to change his mind.”

Joe’s voice came from behind him, causing him to turn around to face him “How are you going to get him to do that, Brett?”

For a moment Brett said nothing, he just looked Joe up and down and then nodded “You done changed some, Joe. Doesn’t seem that long ago that you saw an end of my cousin, Peter. Folks around here seem to have forgotten you did that, but I ain’t.”

Joe winced, then shook his head “This matter has nothing to do with your cousin, Brett. This is about land to which your family has no right.”

“Oh sure, like the Bishops had no right to the Truckee, huh? How long did that little dispute last, you ever worked it out? You ever figured out how many died because of that?”

“Jessop?” Adam’s voice caught at his attention, and he turned with a glowering countenance to look at the other man, “It takes two sides to fight, and so far as I was aware neither my father nor yours had any intention of fighting over this land. Now, why don’t you think about it on your way home, and stop talking nonsense.”

“You should be careful what you say, Captain.” Jessop grinned as Adam’s eyebrows rose “Oh yeah, I get to hear all about your goings on.” he leaned forward “You never know when you may be going to sea again, Captain, and leaving your little wife all alone.” Jessop frowned slightly as he continued “You married Olivia Dent I hear? Well, ain’t that a surprise. But you just bear that in mind, Captain, next time you go sailing away in that boat of yours and leave your little wife at home.”

He turned his horse’s head only to be restrained by Adams grasp on the reins and he was forced to look at the other mans face, the dark eyes that glared at him “Listen to me, Jessop, and listen well … you come near my wife, any of our wives, and so help me, it’ll be the very last thing you get to do.”

“Now who’s doing the threatening?” Brett sneered and yanked the reins free from Adam’s hand. He glared at Joe long and hard before putting spurs to his horse and wheeling her away.

They watched him take the track that led to the main thoroughfare which would lead to his own ranch and once he had disappeared Joe replaced his gun in his holster and shook his head “Could have done without Brett turning up like a bad penny.”

“Yeah, he always carried the smell of something unpleasant around with him.” Hoss agreed and looked at Adam, “Wouldn’t let him get under your skin, Adam. He’s all noise.”

Adam gave Hoss an uneasy look but said nothing as in silence the three of them turned their horses back towards home.

…………

Roy Coffee stood up as Ben entered the office “Ben? How’re you getting on?”

The old friends shook hands and upon Roys invitation to some coffee, Ben removed his hat and sat down in order to drink it. He watched the other man carefully pour out the coffee and then bring it to the desk, it struck him that Roy was old, too old for the position of lawman now surely? He nodded his thanks and picked up the mug and sipped it. Roy cleared his throat “So? What happened to you?”

Ben shifted uncomfortably in his seat and took another gulp of the coffee before setting it down, “I heard you’d been to check up on me.” he smiled, “A good thing you did, if it hadn’t been for you warning Hoss that I hadn’t turned up where I should have been, I could be dead by now.”

“Really?” Roy removed his spectacles “How come?”

He listened attentively to the tale about the Paiute and the mountain cat and how the boys had found him, and he told Roy about the new little Cartwright which brought a smile and nod of the head from the sheriff. He then emptied the mug and asked Roy if anything interesting had happened since they had last met.

“Well, for starters -” Roy cleared his throat and dried his moustache on his handkerchief, “It wasn’t Jessop who had queried that Contract and demanded you come into town to talk about it. It was his son, Brett Jessop.”

“So you mentioned in your letter.”

“Hmmph, well, Brett Jessop isn’t the most pleasant man walking this earth, Ben. He’s talking big, talking so’s as to bring the Ponderosa down. He wants a range war. Seems like he’s been down West Virginia way.” Roy stood up, stretched to get some kinks out of his back, and walked to a map, “This here area - been a wrangling between Hatfields and McCoys for some time now, and Jessop got himself hired by the Hatfields and soon as things calmed down some he would be the one with the stick stirring up a bee’s nest again. Ain’t never known a man so intent on causing trouble.” he stared at the map and then returned to his desk, “It’s given him an appetite for war, Ben. Range war.”

“Well, he isn’t going to get it. His father and brother wouldn’t want it either.”

“Derwent’s a pacifist. Never worn a gun since his Ma got gunned down all them years back. As for Old Man Jessop, well, I reckon he sways with the wind. If you don’t think of some solution to satisfy him soon, I reckon he’ll pay more attention to his boy than either of us would like.”

Ben sighed and stood up, picked up his hat and nodded “Thanks Roy.”

They shook hands again and parted, Roy to return t his paperwork, and Ben to step outside and to pause a moment on the sidewalk to think over what had been said.

With a sigh he gave a slight shrug and started to walk to where he had agreed to meet Hester and Hop Sing. Ahead of him a woman stepped out of a jewellers shop and turned to take the same direction, so that her back was towards him. A familiar back, an equally familiar way of walking … he quickened his pace and just as he got abreast of her exclaimed “Livvy? I didn’t expect to see you here this morning?”

The woman turned and observed him through a dark veil, and even though it was quite thick he could see that the face behind it was not that of his daughter in law. He removed his hat, “I am sorry, I thought you were someone else.”

She nodded but said nothing as she continued on her way leaving Ben watching her and trying to reason on how there could be anyone in Virginia City resembling Olivia so much.

Chapter 18

Jake McCord rubbed his hands and blew on them to thaw them out a little, it seemed he had been waiting for the lady to appear far longer than necessary and he was about to turn his horses and rig around when she appeared. He couldn’t see her face because of the veil that covered it but the quality of the fur coat she wore was a clear indication that she wasn’t going to find it difficult to pay her fare and hopefully, as he took her elbow to assist her into the seat, there would also be a substantial tip.

“Where to, Miss?”

She hesitated a moment although she had given the matter enough thought before leaving her room to have known for sure, but certainty didn’t really come into the equation and she answered eventually “Double D.”

McCord scratched his head and grimaced “The Double D? Can’t recall ever going to a place called the Double D.”

Katya frowned, perhaps she should have stayed in Carson City and taken a carriage from there, or perhaps she should fall back on her previous plan and go direct to the Ponderosa. McCord spoke before she could open her mouth however “Is that the old Dent place? The one Luke Dent runs now?”

“Yes, that’s right, do you know it?”

“Never been there but I can find it alright. Luke Dent’s a fine fellow, met him several times now since he came back to run the ranch. His father died a few years back and his sister came with her kids to live there, ended up marrying Adam Cartwright of the Ponderosa.” he strolled leisurely to take his seat, “I’ll get you there, Miss, just you make sure you’re wrapped up real nice and warm like, it’s a fair ways out of town.”

She buried herself deeper into her coat and slipped the hood over her head so that she was almost completely covered in the long fur garment. As the rig passed the Cartwright’s wagon and Ben Cartwright mounting his horse, not one of them gave it a second glance.

Hester looked thoughtfully at Ben and wondered whether or not to muster up the courage to ask him if he had gone to see Paul Martin, or even James Chang, as he had promised he would do. She had spent a pleasant few hours getting several essentials which were now stored carefully in the back of the wagon along with Hop Sing’s necessaries. She had also spent some time with Su Ling and the baby, a boy, and his father’s pride and joy.

She glanced again at Ben and put a hand on his knee “Pa? Did your visit into town go alright? Did you see everyone you wanted to see?”

He nodded “Yes, I did, thank you, Hester. Did you?”

She smiled and nodded and then with a sigh clambered up onto the wagon seat. Ben at his most inscrutable was, she told herself, absolutely infuriating.

……………………….

Ben’s face broke into a wide smile when he stepped inside the house. Hoss was sitting in one of the old red leather chairs leaning forward to watch Joe who was making a calculated move on the checker board. Just like old times except that this wasn’t old times for Hoss looked up and gave his father a smile but then stood up to greet his wife with a kiss and take Hannah into his arms.

“Hi Pa,” Joe grinned, “Got everything you needed?”

“I did. What are you doing here, young man, I thought you had a wife and child waiting for you back home?”

“Sure I have, but I wanted to see you first. Adam and Hoss wanted to discuss something with you.”

“Er - more someone than something.” Hoss said and then glanced over at Bens study area where Adam was seated behind the desk scouring a map “Hey, Adam, you done finished yet? You’ll wear that map out the length of time you bin scowling at it?”

Adam shrugged and smiled over at his father, “Alright Pa?”

Such concern for my health, Ben mused, and sighed as he nodded “I saw Roy today. He told me that Brett Jessop was the one stopped his father signing that Contract. He’s been down Virginia way helping that range war between the Hatfields and McCoys to keep raging. Now seems intent on starting a range war himself,”

“Is that what he told Roy?” Joe asked as he put down one of the black checkers.

“More or less, enough for Roy to assume that was what he meant.” Ben placed his gunbelt with the others and hung his hat on the peg, he walked to the desk where Adam was still standing and looked at the map “Ah, the land in dispute? What are you hoping to find there?”

“A solution.” Adam said quietly, “We met Brett Jessop today, he was riding around here as though he owned the land, and to all intents and purposes that’s just what he aims to do as soon as possible.”

Hoss ambled up his hands pushed into his back pockets “He threatened us with a range way plain and simple, Pa. Mentioned that one you said about - the Hatfields and McCoys.” he sucked his teeth and shook his head “He’s one poisonous minded man alright, said he intended to get some of his friends from Virginia way over here to help the Jessops fight to get that land.”

Joe swept the board clean and began to put the checkers away “He threatened each one of us in turn, threatened our wives and the children - .”

Ben nodded thoughtfully, “Striking at the vulnerable areas, huh? Typical bully stunts.”

“Well, sometimes bullies do a lot of harm before they get stopped,” Adam said, “It would be better if we stopped him before he got started, wouldn’t it?”

“Have you any ideas how we can do that?” Hoss asked looking down thoughtfully at the map.

“Only one, and that’s to compromise.”

Ben opened his mouth to protest and then closed it again. Years ago when his sons were younger they had to fight to protect their land and everything on it from cattle thieves, mine corporations, squatters and homesteaders like Jessop and Bishop, who tried to claim what wasn’t theirs and were prepared to kill for it. It had meant employing a small army to help them fight their battles and quite a number of them died or were injured in the process. He didn’t want a return to those days even though his instinct was to hang on to every inch of the Ponderosa he owned.

“Say what’s on your mind.” he said finally and pulled up a chair towards the desk, Joe came and joined them, perching himself on the corner of the desk.

“I was thinking that we could put a proposition to Hugh Jessop, about sharing the land, or rather the stream.”

“Sharing? With Jessop? Are you taking leave of your senses, Adam?” Ben snapped and his mouth clammed tightly shut while his eyes burned angrily.

From the doorway of the kitchen Hester sighed and turned to Hop Sing and suggested some coffee right now would be a good idea.

“No, not exactly sharing but - look -” Adam pointed to the stream on the map and traced its meanderings down through the land until it eventually reached the lake. “Now we need the water all along here, because this is where we graze the main herd, that’s right, isn’t it?”

“It is.” Ben intoned while Joe and Hoss nodded glumly, lips tight and eyes narrowed.

“All through and down to this point we need that water, but hereabouts is where there’s a problem -.” he paused, stared at the map and tapped it thoughtfully with the pencil.

“What problem?” Hoss asked leaning closer to scrutinise the map.

“The grounds always a bog because the stream is always overfull, then it narrows out and flows steadily into the lake. What I was thinking was how about we divert the stream just here,” he marked the point carefully and then with the pencil drew a line that took the stream onto Jessops land, “It could flow quite steadily across their land and still empty out into the lake, so that way no one’s losing out, and everyone’s gaining.”

“I don’t know.” Ben said slowly and traced the line Adam had drawn with his finger, “There could be a time when we need that land, need that water.”

“We aren’t giving them any land, Pa, just diverting the water from it. That’ll give it a chance to dry out and maybe could become good grazing land for our stock.” he leaned his cheek onto his hand and looked thoughtfully at them, “Well? What do you think?”

“I don’t know.” Ben repeated slowly, “Water’s a precious commodity, Adam, too precious to be giving away.”

“Even if it prevents a range war?” Adam sighed and began to push himself away from the desk, “That land has never dried out all the time we’ve owned it, has it?”

Hoss shook his head and looked at Joe who agreed that it hadn’t, and added that the water had never dried up either.

“There’s always a first time.” Ben grumbled.

Adam shrugged and stood up, tossed the pencil down and scratched his head “Well, I can’t think of anything else that could spike Brett Jessops guns. He’s intent on trouble, and a range war is the kind of trouble we’ve had in the past and swore we’d never have again. Now, what’s it to be? A compromise with old man Jessop or let his son carry out his threats.”

Ben fidgeted restlessly in his chair and was about to speak when Hester came in bearing a tray and declaring it was time for coffee and some cookies. Behind her toddled little Hannah smiling with devotion in her eyes for her Pa as she carried some spoons which she held out to him. “Thanks, sweetheart.” Hoss said and picked her up and held her close.

Ben lingered for a while near the desk, his fingers tracing and retracing the direction of the stream by the time he joined them at the low table, Joe and Adam on the settee and Hoss with Hannah on his knee seated on the blue chair, he was contemplative and quiet. Finally he said that it was worth a try “It’s a compromise, as you said, Adam, but it may prevent worse than the loss of some water. So long as it doesn’t affect our water rights and the water we need.”

“It can’t possibly do that, Pa,” Hoss said a cookie half way to his mouth, “That water springs from the mountains and cuts right across our land, there ain’t no way diverting it lower down will prevent it benefiting us.”

“Very well, Joe, are you agreed on this?” Ben said, snapping his eyes in his youngest sons direction, and when Joe nodded agreement he sighed and turned to Adam “I’ll go and see Jessop tomorrow morning and discuss it with him.”

“I’ll come with you.” Adam said in a firm voice, “Pa, I don’t want you leaving here and going to Jessop’s on your own, I don’t trust that son of his, he’s liable to blow you out of the saddle with trespass as an excuse for doing so.”

“I agree with Adam, Pa.” Hoss looked at Joe who nodded and volunteered to go with them but Ben said that would look too aggressive a move, it would be just he and Adam.

The knocking on the door echoed through the house bringing Marcy from the back room where she had been sewing a new shirt for Luke. She didn’t think it could be ‘that man’ as the knocking indicated someone timid, too shy to give it a real thump like he had. She opened the door and then wondered if she had done the right thing as the man standing opposite her was a stranger and had that same look about him as Brett Jessop.

Derwent Jessop removed his hat and inclined his head politely “Mrs Dent?”

“Ye -es ?”

“I’m Derwent Jessop, I - er - I came to see you and your husband - is he home?”

“Over in the stables -” she pointed to where Luke was just that moment emerging from the building looking anxiously over to the visitor as he approached, wiping his hands on a cloth as he did so.

Derwent waited until Luke was near enough to shake hands, he extended his “I’m Derwent Jessop. I understand you had a visit from my brother some time back?”

Luke didn’t answer at first then he nodded slowly, “We did.”

“I just came to apologise for his behaviour. My brother isn’t the best of company at times and - and I was hoping, Ma’am, that you’d not think too badly of every Jessop because of him.”

Marcy shook her head and smiled “No, of course not.”

“I’m stopping for a drink right now, Derwent, d’you feel inclined to stop awhile?”

Derwent flushed with pleasure and nodded, then followed his host into the house. He looked around him, “I remember coming here at times, when we were boys. I guess you don’t remember back then?”

Luke tossed his hat onto a peg and nodded, pointed to the seat where Derwent could sit and then pulled out a chair into which he sat, “I do remember actually, Derwent. You were always the quiet one, I remember my sisters liked you, said they never felt frightened when you were with them, not like your cousin Peter, or Brett.”

“My cousin Peter was my brother’s hero, if you’d like to call it that, Peter was trouble so it was a foregone conclusion that Brett would be as well. Thank you, Ma’am.” he smiled at Marcy as she handed him coffee and set down a platter of cookies, still warm from the oven.

“Phil rather liked your cousin Peter as well, I remember a time when the three of them got into some trouble and my Pa gave Phil a tanning that stopped him sitting down for quite a while. I reckon that was about the time Pa decided not to associate with Jessops or Cartwrights or anyone else much for that matter.”

Derwent nodded and was about to speak when there came the sound of a carriage approaching the house. “I wonder who that could be.” Luke muttered as he rose to his feet and walked with long strides to the door.

A woman swathed in a fur coat that made her resemble a miniature bear stood on the threshold her hand poised to knock on the door as it opened. Luke smiled politely “Can I help you, Miss?”

For a moment she couldn’t speak, then she lowered her hood and looked at him through the dark veil that covered her face, “Luke?”

“Yes, that’s me - Luke Dent.” he looked over at McCord who was watching them and wondering if and when he would be getting paid, and if he were expected to wait to make the return journey.

“Yes, I’d have known you anywhere, you’ve hardly changed, Luke, hardly at all. I can hardly believe it - “ and to his considerable consternation she burst into tears, burying her veiled face in her hands.

He put out a hand to touch her shoulder, hesitated and said “It’s alright, Miss … er …is there anything I can do …anything wrong?”

She laughed, she cried and shook her head, “Luke - it’s me - it’s Katya.”

Chapter 19

For a moment Luke didn’t know what to say or what to do, it was only when she had flung her arms around him that the words made any sense at all and he hugged her and held her close and repeated her name over and over interspersed with ‘I can’t believe it’ .

Finally, he gently pushed her away from him and asked if she had brought her luggage with her so when she replied that everything was still at the hotel he told her to go inside while he spoke to McCord.

She walked slowly to the kitchen area and pushed open the door to the room to see a woman and man standing there with their faces turned to wards her. She recognised neither of them so waited until Luke came to make the introductions.

Marcy wasn’t sure what to make of this strange creature who had stepped into her kitchen with the long and very expensive fur coat and the dark veil covering her face. It was a picture that conjured up nightmares and all she could do was stand there with one hand to her mouth to suppress the desire to shriek and another on her chest to try to still the heart beat.

Derwent wasn’t sure what to do either, he could only stand and wait patiently for Luke to return and explain who the person was, and what she or he was doing there. He also felt embarrassed as this was his first visit to the Double D in years and he was present when this strange personage had arrived at their home as well.

Luke came and as he entered the room he put his arm around Katya’s waist in order to propel her into the room along with him. She didn’t resist him, her eyes wandered around the room, noting the changes to what had been her childhood home, before they rested upon Marcy. Luke smiled at his wife and his visitor, “Marcy, Derwent - it’s Katya, my sister, Katya.”

His tone of voice was one of disbelief and the two people turned to stare again at the woman who now removed her coat and extended her hand “Derwent Jessop? I remember you from when I was a child. Didn’t you use to come and play here with us?”

“I - I - well - yes, a long time ago.” Derwent stammered, trying to peer through the veil to see the features of his one time playmate.

“Katya, this is Marcy, my wife -” Luke proudly led his sister towards the other woman who extended her hand shyly, “Marcy - ?”

The appeal in his voice shook Marcy from her nervousness and she shook Katya’s hand warmly “Welcome back, Miss, I’m sure we’re all very pleased to see you.”

“Well, if we could see you that is -” Luke laughed and turned to lift the veil from Katya’s bonnet so that he could see his sisters face once again but her hand on his prevented him.

“No - I mean - not yet.” Katya said quietly and blushed beneath the flimsy covering that effectively concealed the scars on her face. “I’m sorry - perhaps I shouldn’t have come.”

“Of course you should have come, this is your home… Katya ?”

Derwent cleared his throat “Er - I think it would be best if I left you all to get to know one another again. Thank you for your hospitality, Miss Marcy, Luke - it’s been good to see you again, Katya.” he paused as she extended her hand and he shook it gently, “Welcome home.”

“Thank you, Derwent.”

Her voice was quiet, soft without any harshness to it to make any one of them feel uncomfortable. If it had not been for the veil the conversation would surely have flowed far more easily. Marcy walked with Derwent to the door and thanked him for coming and as soon as he had stepped outside she closed it quickly and hurried back to the kitchen where Luke was waiting for her. She slipped her hand into his as they both waited on their visitor to speak but as she remained silent it was Marcy who suggested they went to the living room and perhaps relax in there while she made them all something to drink.

“It’s changed,” Katya said finally, “It’s changed a lot and yet it’s still the same old house where we grew up.” she smiled and sat down on an unfamiliar settee, one rescued from Olivia’s town house in ‘Frisco. “I like it better though, it’s bright and light, I always remember it as gloomy and dark.”

“It was, when we first came here,” Marcy said as she set down a tray laden with things, “It was Miss Olivia who made all the changes.”

“Olivia? Oh well, then I’m not surprised, she was always very artistic and would know how to make best use of light.”

As Marcy poured out coffee into her best china cups an uncomfortable silence settled upon them. Luke rubbed the palms of his hands over his knees as he tried to think of what to say, while Katya just stared at him through that wretched veil.

After a while she began to speak “I suppose I should have written to tell you but I didn’t know you were alive, Luke. Father said you and Phil had died during the war, and I never queried it. I lost track of where Olivia was after my marriage to Drummond.”

“Drummond?” Luke frowned, “Who was he?”

“He was a businessman, very rich, and father met him on a trip to Carson City once. I was with him, and that’s how we met. Eventually we married … Drummond Purcell. He was head of a very big company in pharmaceuticals”

“Pharma - what?” Luke glanced at Marcy and smiled his thanks for the coffee she had passed to him.

“Drugs. His company was the leading company in the manufacture of medicines, pills and drugs for hospitals and doctors.”

Luke cleared his throat, “Well, I’m more than glad that you’re here, Katya but it’s hard to feel comfortable talking to you like this… with that veil covering your face.”

“I’m sorry, it was seeing Derwent here and not knowing Marcy, I felt - just as uncomfortable.”

“Can’t you remove it now? I’d wish that you would.”

She took a deep breath “Let me explain first why I wear it. You see Drummond -.” she paused and lowered her head before taking a deep breath “Our home was burned down. There was a storm and lightning struck the house. Drummond rescued me, saved my life but - but he died.“ Luke and Marcy sat closer together and reached for each others hand while with his free one he reached out for that of his sister and clenched hold of it tightly, “His body - remains - .”

“It’s alright, you don’t have to say anything more.” Luke whispered but she shook her head and withdrew her hand in order to pull a handkerchief from her sleeve and wipe her eyes.

“I was ill for sometime but recovered. I was injured in the fire, I don’t like to shock people, they stare and it makes me feel so ugly and - and you don’t know how often I have wished to have died with him.”

“He sounds as though he were a very good man.” Marcy said quietly.

“Oh he was, he was, a very dear, good man. We loved one another so much -.” again she stopped in order to dab at her eyes. “It’s only one side of my face and neck -.”

“If you would rather not -”Luke said hesitantly but she shook her head and then very slowly raised the veil.

At first they couldn’t see what the fuss was all about for her face was pretty, her eyes clear and bright even though full of tears. Then she turned slightly and the scars were more obvious. She watched them both carefully, noticed not the horror and revulsion that she had somehow expected, not even pity only compassion and love. Luke leaned towards her and held her close for he was at a loss to know what to say.

………………….

Olivia sighed and nestled her head upon her husband’s arm, while his other arm gently stroked her body. This was such a perfect ending to the day and again she sighed with contentment as she looked at him through half closed eyes. With the fingers of one hand she caressed around his neck the outline of where Jiang Peng’s silken noose had burned its scar now just a slightly visible mark here and there upon his dark skin.

“It’s almost all gone.” she said in a whisper.

“Hmmm.”

“And so has that one -” she traced the outline of the scar upon his face and then leaned down to kiss him. Then her fingers touched his lips and he kissed them one by one until he could kiss her again. “You aren’t too worried about what Jessop said, are you?”

“When it comes to you and the children, yes, of course I’m worried.” he turned onto his side now and looked into her face, “Your safety is important to me, Livvy. Bullies like Jessop just sometimes carry out their threats.”

“Do you think Mr. Jessop will consider your compromise tomorrow?”

“I’d like to think so.” he raised a hand to lift a strand of hair away from her face, “Why are we talking about this tonight? Aren’t there more pleasant things to discuss - or not even discuss at all?”

“I could feel the tension in your body, Adam, I knew you were thinking about Jessop and worrying about him.”

He didn’t answer, he just looked at her, his eyes roved around every angle of her face and then quietly he drew her closer to him “I promise not to be worried about him anymore tonight.” he whispered and kissed her very tenderly. “I promise …”

She just said “Hush.” and kissed him with a passion that drove any thought of Jessop clear out of his mind.

………………

Ben set down the bible upon the bedside cabinet and lowered the flame in the lamp. He thought over the events of the day and wondered if Hugh Jessop would accept the suggestion Adam had put forward earlier. It meant no loss of land for the Ponderosa and a gain of a good water supply for the Jessops, a sensible and quite admirable compromise.

It wasn’t something that Ben would have thought of because the Ponderosa, every inch of it, was loved by him, it was his, a tangible evidence of a lifework, of blood, sweat and tears. It was also the product of the blood of many men who had worked for the Ponderosa over the years and had fought to protect the Cartwright’s rights against those who had sought to steal it from them. It was hard, therefore, to be considering giving some part of it away.

He smiled to himself at the way Hester had attempted to find out where he had taken himself during the morning they were in town. He knew that she would have been pleased that he had gone to see Paul, but he was also well aware that that would have led to more questions. Sometimes the love of those one loved could be almost claustrophobic.

Paul Martin had indeed asked questions once he had told him why he had presented himself at his surgery. He had also examined him, taken his blood pressure and listened to his heart. He had looked in his ears, down his throat and into his eyes, and had also checked more intimate parts of his body to ensure everything there was in good working order for a ‘man of his age.’

A quite horrible expression, Ben shuddered and shook his head, and regretted the many times he had referred to others in the past when he had been younger and assumed ‘ a certain age’ would somehow miraculously pass him by.

Paul had talked to him then about being sensible, taking necessary cautions and care, “We’re not as young as we used to be.” he had said, and Ben had momentarily thought of Roy and how that very thought had crossed his mind when looking upon his old friend.

But as far as his health was concerned Paul had assured him that all was in good working order. His heart was sound, and probably the only thing wrong was a slightly higher blood pressure. Paul had given him a prescription for some medication which Ben had tucked into his pocket and now, just as he was about to fall asleep, he remembered that it was still there.

…………….

During the night Adam had awoken with a start and sat bolt upright with his heart pounding and a ringing in his ears. He sat very still for a moment while everything slowly settled into its normal pattern and then he put his hands to his head and closed his eyes. He felt Olivia stir beside him and then her hand gently resting upon his back.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes - I’m sorry - didn’t mean to waken you. It was just a dream.”

“You’re sure you’re alright?”

Her voice was heavy with sleep, and he knew that within seconds of her lying down she would be back asleep. He released his breath and kept his eyes closed. He wondered if he would ever succeed in erasing from his memory and dreams the time he had spent a prisoner of Jiang Pengs. His leg ached, a dull throbbing ache and once he knew that Olivia was asleep he slipped out of bed, pulled on his dressing gown and quietly made his way downstairs.

A full moon shed its light upon the earth and he passed like a shadow through the shard of brightness that was cast upon the living room. There was still enough warmth to the fire to be pleasant enough to sit beside and so after pouring some brandy into a glass he lowered himself gratefully down, stretched out his legs and tried to exorcise the past by forcing himself to think upon other more pleasant things.

Chapter 20

Ben pulled the collar of his coat higher to protect his neck from the blast of a cold wind that blew fresh from the mountains. He had insisted on riding the length of the stream from its source on the Ponderosa to where it drained out at the lake.

Adam rode in contemplative silence beside him. Apart from the reason why they were making the journey what little conversation they had was mainly about the past. Some small incidents that Ben had tucked away in his memory and now chose to share with his son, some of which brought a sigh to his sons lips and at others a smile.

At the lake they both pulled up and turned in their saddles to view the area around them. Ben smiled slowly, “It’s still heaven on earth, isn’t it?”

“It is.” Adam agreed although he knew that on the earth there were many other areas equally and if not more beautiful for he had seen them and marvelled.

“If Jessop agrees to the water being diverted and continuing to run into the lake it won’t do any damage there, it would still be getting the feed back from the stream, won’t it?”

“Well, we’ll make sure it does run back into the lake, Pa.”

Ben leaned forwards the pommel of his saddle and pursed his lips “Roy said that Jessop was prepared to sign our previous agreement until his son turned up.”

“So much for timing - we should have insisted on his signing there and then.”

Ben nodded and turned his horse aside “Let’s get this over with then.”

They put the horses into a canter so that before long they were entering Jessop’s land. Now they were extra vigilent just in case Brett’s manner with regard to the Cartwrights had influenced any of their hands into thinking that shooting a Cartwright would award them kudos with their employer. The ranch house came slowly into view and Ben slowed his horse to a trot and frowned “I’ve not been here since Mrs Jessop was killed. The place looks rather run down.”

“It’s sturdy enough,” Adam said quietly, “Just lacks a female touch.” and he smiled slightly for the Ponderosa had lacked a female touch until Hester came into their lives. It was Hop Sing and Ben’s own personal disciplines that had kept their ranch from any sign of deterioration over the years.

The door opened before they had dismounted and both feared that they were going to be facing several rifles but instead there was only Hugh Jessop and a dog standing in the doorway looking at them both with a thoughtful expression on his face.

“You’re a ways from home, Ben.”

“It’s been a while,” Ben said as he stepped up onto the porch, followed by Adam. “How are you, Hugh?”

The hand he extended wasn’t accepted but they were invited into the house which was far tidier than Ben had expected. Jessop led them to a living room and gestured to them to sit. “What have you come to say?” he looked at Ben, “You didn’t keep your appointment I made a while back.”

Ben nodded and quietly explained how events had changed his decision to meet up with him. Jessop nodded “All the same I ain’t going to sign that contract.”

“We thought it was fair and honest, Hugh. After all the land in question has been Ponderosa land ever since I purchased it. Now some years ago we had a dispute with some Mining corporation in town over land around the Lake Tahoe, and as a result I have checked and rechecked the papers about that land between the Real Estate Department here, and the Government confirming that the documents I held from Mexico officially established my ownership of that land after the Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo in 1848. Now you never arrived here until ’52 when you began to buy up land.”

“This has all been thrashed out by our lawyers, Ben.”

“That’s right, and the Contract we were going to sign in town confirmed the fact that at some time you bought the land that was not available, that the real estate Department had overlooked previous land sales and -”

“Wait there.” Hugh raised a hand, “My son said not to sign that contract because the fact was that we had purchased that land … weren’t our fault that it was already yours, and our money’s as good as yours anyday apart from which -”

“Mr. Jessop?” Adam gently interrupted and gave the man a placatory smile, “Because of that fact Pa and I are here today to discuss a compromise with you.”

“A Compromise?” Hugh scowled and as he came into the room Derwent asked “What kind of compromise?”

He pulled up a chair and sat down beside his father while Adam pulled a map from his jacket and smoothed it out on the table. “In previous discussions you’ve mentioned that it isn’t so much the land as the water that you need, isn’t that right?”

“We raise our cattle thereabouts, it’s the best grazing land on our land but we aint got the water to sustain ‘em so have to move them off to other parts where the grass ain’t so good.” Hugh agreed.

“The reason the grass is so good thereabouts is because the stream on our land overflows all the time, the land is pure bog and that stretched out into your land, so under the surface of the ground the grass is being watered from the stream. Do you get my meaning?”

“Go on?” Hugh muttered chewing now on a match stick while Derwent leaned forward to look more closely at the map.

“Pa and I thought if we diverted the stream so that it flowed through your land into Lake Tahoe, your cattle would have water all year round.”

Hugh’s eyes lit up and he looked at Derwent as though manna from heaven had just dropped into his lap. Then he settled back into his customary scowl “Where’s the catch?”

Ben cleared his throat “There isn’t one. We have the water coming through our land where we need it and then hereabouts -” he pointed to where Adam had marked it off “its diverted onto your land, flows through until it reaches the lake.”

Derwent nodded “It would certainly help. It was the water we needed more than the land.”

“That’s what we figured as the land is just bog there and no good as it is at the moment.” Adam said as he slowly began to roll up the map “What do you say, Mr. Jessop? Does that sound reasonable to you?”

Hugh scratched the back of his neck and looked at Derwent “Wal, I don’t now, Brett has hired a new lawyer in town. He said we have a right to the land, that we shouldn’t back down just because of some fancy talk by your lawyer.”

“Your previous lawyer did some pretty fancy talking on your behalf, Hugh.” Ben said as calmly as he possibly could, “What’s the point of wasting time and money arguing over words when we have a solution on hand now?”

Hugh nodded and stood up, he struck his thumbs behind the braces of his pants and nodded “I’ll discuss it with Brett and Derwent.”

“No need, Pa.” Derwent said quickly, casting a nervous look over at the Cartwrights, “I think it’s a good idea. It answers all that we need.”

“I don’t know, it looks good on paper but - I think we need to discuss it further as a family.”

Derwent hung his head and sighed while Ben and Adam got to their feet and said their goodbyes, Jessop did shake their hands this time as they left the house and Derwent walked with them to the horses. He shook Adam’s hand and then Bens “Thank you, Mr. Cartwright, Adam. I’ll try and get Pa and Brett to consider your offer.”

“Do you think you’ll get them to agree to it, Derwent?” Ben asked as he began to mount into the saddle.

“I don’t know, sir. Brett seems pretty determined to start a fight, practically about anything. I hope Pa will agree and then the two of us together may be able to make him see sense.”

“And if your Pa doesn’t agree?” Adam said quietly.

Derwent shook his head “I don’t know.” he shrugged and stepped back to allow them to ride out of the yard, and watched them as they slowly faded into the dust.

………………….

Olivia was pegging out the washing when she heard the sound of a buggy pulling up in the yard. She had been deep in thought and concern over Adam’s nightmare the previous night and had more or less drifted through her morning chores in a bit of a daze as she tried to think of ways to help him should such a thing happen again.

“Mommy, Mommy, it’s Uncle Luke and a lady.”

Olivia smiled down at Sofia “You mean Aunt Marcy, Sofia.”

The child tugged at her mother’s skirt “No, a lady with a hat and she looks like a bear.”

“Dear me, a bear?” Olivia looked at her little girl with wide eyes and shook her head, “Are you sure?”

Sofia nodded “Reuben told them to go in and sit down ‘cos you’re busy.”

“Well - alright now - run along.” Olivia looked at the washing on the line and that still in the basket and then hurried along behind her daughter, drying her hands on the apron and patting her hair into place as she entered the kitchen.

She could hear Reuben’s voice telling his Uncle how he was going to break in horses like Pa and Uncle Joe, and then Luke’s voice, but no sound from the mysterious lady. She glanced at herself in the mirror and sighed as she acknowledged the fact that she didn’t look at her best, thankfully, she knew that she didn’t look at her worse either.

Katya was standing at a bureau looking at the picture of Olivia that had been painted by Abigail, but she replaced it immediately as her sister entered the room, striving to tuck some loose strands of hair back into her braid that she wore like a coronet about her head. The look of affection that passed from her to Luke was not missed either, and Katya waited with a strange pounding in her ears as Luke explained who the lady in the fur coat was, and she saw how Olivia’s face drained of colour and then how it all rushed back while the sea green eyes filled with tears and she looked over at her.

“Katya? It’s really you?” and she rushed towards her sister with her hands extended towards her “Oh Katya, Katya.” and then her arms were around her sister and hugging her tight, before she released her and stepped back to survey her again, “Oh my dear, come, take your coat off you will get so hot in here. And that veil, why on earth are you covering up your pretty face - Reuben, Sofia, come and say hello to your Aunt Katya.”

The children came obediently up to say hello, Reuben holding out his hand as he had seen the men do, and Sofia just clinging to Olivia’s skirts and peeking. Katya, after removing her coat, shook Reuben’s hand and said how pleased she was to meet him at last, and she stretched out a hand and stroked the little girls hair and said that she was very pretty. Olivia beamed a smile over at Luke and then back at her sister, “I must make us something to drink. Sit down, Katya, Luke. Oh why don’t you take off your hat, dear?”

“I’ll make us a drink, Olivia, you have a lot of catching up to discuss. Have you any cake?”

“Yes, Reuben will show you where it is … thank you, Luke.” she sat down and took hold of Katya’s hands and peered into her face with some difficulty.

“I’m sorry,” Katya sighed, “I feel a little reluctant to remove my veil. Oh Olivia, Olivia, it’s so good to see you again. Why didn’t you reply to my letters?”

“I never received any letters from you. Where did you send them?” Olivia exclaimed in an incredulous tone of voice.

“To the ranch, care of Papa.”

Olivia nodded and sighed, “Well, that explains it then. I suppose you didn’t get any of mine?”

“Where did you send them?”

“To the address I was given by father, in Georgia.”

“We only stayed in Georgia a few months before we left for Europe. I wrote to Papa and told him, and - and asked him to let you know.” behind her veil she looked at her older sister and smiled “You’ve hardly changed at all, Olivia. As lovely as ever.”

“Older, my dear.” Olivia laughed and glanced anxiously at Katya as though her sister’s refusal to remove that veil was intriguing her more than anything else.

“Mommy? Can I have some cake and lemonade?” whispered Sofia, edging closer to her mother’s skirts “Why don’t the lady take her hat off?”

Olivia glanced sharply over at Katya who had lowered her head, and very tactfully she told her daughter to go into the kitchen and tell Reuben he can have some cake and they were to stay there and play until called in. Once she had scampered away she looked at the younger woman “What’s wrong? Why won’t you take your hat off?”

A sigh greeted her and then Katya cleared her throat, “I’m not the pretty sister you may be expecting, dear Olivia, I didn’t want to - to shock you.”

“How could you shock me, my dear sister?”

“Let me tell you first about what has happened since I married Drummond.” she waited until Olivia had accepted her condition, and then proceeded to tell her what a wonderful husband she had, so loving, kind and generous. Life in Europe was wonderful, because they were wealthy they were able to enjoy it to the full. “Drummond wasn’t just the head of a large pharmaceutical company, he also did a lot of research into natural cures, from herbs and plants. He invested a lot of money into research by others who thought it important. The best research centres, he thought, were in London, so we moved to England.”

“Were you happy there?”

“Oh yes, very happy. It’s a lovely city and we settled in very well, and very quickly. Drummond was away from home more and more often due to his work, but I had my friends and a poetry group that I attended every week. I couldn’t have been happier.”

“So what happened to change everything?”

“We were at home one evening when there was a terrible storm, lightning struck the house. I was upstairs preparing for an outing to the theatre when Drummond ran up to say we had to leave the house immediately as it was on fire. I hadn’t even my gown on, only a chemise. He grabbed at my coat -” she glanced at the fur coat draped over a chair back, “and I managed to put it on just as the window blew in. Glass cut my face, I screamed, blood poured down my cheek and neck but Drummond didn’t stop, he was only concerned with us getting out. I was fainting with pain and fear -” she broke off as her voice began to shake at the memory of that time.

Luke came very quietly into the room and poured out coffee into the cups, he looked at Olivia who had gone a little pale and then sat down opposite the sisters with a cup in his hand. Olivia handed one to Katya “Drink this and steady yourself, my dear.”

“In a moment.” Katya whispered although she took the cup and sat there with it balanced in her hands, she took a deep breath, “Drummond carried me downstairs, I can remember thinking how safe I felt in his arms, it would be alright now, everything would be alright.”

“But?”

“But it wasn’t. He left me in the care of our servants who were huddled together on the front lawn. He said there were important papers that had to be retrieved and ran back into the house. I never saw him again. I - I can just remember seeing his back and begging him not to go in, then I fainted and the next thing I knew I was in a hospital.”

There was silence now and the cup rattled a little on the saucer so that she picked it up and drank from it without disturbing her veil as it only reached to her chin. Olivia waited for her to drink it all before taking the cup from her. “Let me see?”

Very slowly Katya removed the veil. It seemed strange to Luke that she had been so quick to reveal her scars to himself and Marcy but had taken her time here with Olivia. He wondered if it was because she was in the presence of a very attractive woman, perhaps she felt shyer , or even, intimidated. However the time had come for the two sisters to confront one another without the veil in the way. At first glance Olivia only saw her sister’s pretty face but when Katya turned she could see only too clearly the scars that marred the fresh clear skin. From her ear to the top of her jaw line the scars were deep, even her neck which she successfully hid from view with her clothing, bore the marks.

“You are still my lovely little sister, Katya.” Olivia said taking hold of her hands, “Nothing changes that.”

“But -?” Katya’s lips trembled “I was afraid to come home looking like this, I hesitated for so long not knowing what to do. Having heard nothing from you for so long I had no confidence in being well received by you. I wasn’t even sure where you were, and thought Luke was dead. You can’t imagine how often on this journey I have thought to turn back and go -”

Olivia placed her finger gently on her lips “Hush,” she said softly, “You’re home now. Home and safe with us.”

Chapter 21

Brett Jessop dismounted from his horse and looked around as though to take notice of his bearings. He was about to walk and knock on the door when it was opened and a woman with a toddling child by her side stepped onto the porch. She was carrying a basket in her arms and had looked preoccupied when she had come out but upon seeing him she immediately froze and put her arm down in order to put a protective hand upon the child.

“Can I do anything for you?”

He looked her up and down, a good looking woman, not one of those thin scrawny creatures one seemed to see everywhere but with a good strong build, fine features and the most amazing golden red hair. She frowned and her well shaped lips tightened “I asked, if there was anything I could do for you? Are you lost?”

“No, Ma’am, not exactly.” Brett smiled, revealing some broken teeth in the process, and he removed his hat politely, “I was riding by and wondered if it was possible for my horse and myself to have some water? I emptied my canteen earlier and -”

“Please help yourself.” Hester said with some wariness in her voice, “Are you new to these parts?”

“Not really. I used to live here, in fact, I went to school with your husband. That’s right, isn’t it, you are the one married to Hoss Cartwright?”

“Yes, I am.” Hester stepped back a pace or two, having stooped to pick Hannah up in her arms, “If there’s nothing else, Mr -?”

“Jessop. Brett Jessop.” he nodded his head and then led the horse to the trough.

The animal was thirsty which lent credence to his story. He walked to the well and dunked his canteen into the pail of water, she could hear it glugging full, so was again reassured that he was telling the truth, about the lack of water anyway. She was now standing close enough to the door to whisk inside at the first sign of danger for the name was only too familiar and she was only too aware that this was no friendly meeting.

“I -er - thought I’d call by and introduce myself to Hoss, or rather, re-introduce myself.”

“Yes, Hoss mentioned that he had seen you yesterday.”

“Oh he did?” he arched an eyebrow, and then looked over the house again, “Funny, I thought for sure that Adam Cartwright would live here, him being the first born … seems old Hoss did alright for himself, getting a pretty wife, and the Ponderosa ranch house to live in.”

Hester felt the wood of the door beneath her fingers, Hannah was staring at Jessop with her large blue eyes while her arms clung tightly around Hester’s neck, “Well, Mr. Jessop, if that’s all -? I have things to do … if you don’t mind I’d like to get on with doing them.”

“Sure, Ma’am, don’t let me stop you.” he looked her up and down and his mouth twisted into a grin, not so pleasant as the smile, “I’ll stop by another time, when you’re less busy.”

Hester was about to say ‘I’d rather you didn’t-’ when Hop Sing appeared from the stable, he looked at Jessop and then at Hester, before turning to Jessup “You go now - you go quick quick.”

“Or what, old man?” Jessop jeered and then raised his eye brows as Hop Sing brought his hand from behind his back, it held a large meat cleaver. “Oh, not very friendly are you? And I heard that no one was ever turned away from the Ponderosa!”

“There’s always an exception.” Hester said quietly.

“Thanks, Ma’am, I’ll remember that.” Jessop said coldly and after another long lingering look at her he returned to his horse, “Thank you for the water, Mrs. Cartwright.”

He tipped his hat to her as he rode by and cantered out of the yard. Hop Sing joined her at the door “He bad, always been bad.”

She nodded and looked at him, “I’m so glad you were here, Hop Sing.”

“Yes, good thing I go kill chicken in stable this time.” he smiled and bobbed his head and returned to his task, leaving Hester with Hannah in her arms staring into the dust cloud that Jessops horse had created.

After leaving the track to the main house Jessop took the fork in the trail that would take him to the home of Joe and Mary Ann Cartwright. He slowed his horse to a jog, taking in the lay of the land until the house came into view. It appeared to him that it had been built barely a mile from the Ponderosa ranch house, and set in a dip in the land that would have meant it was concealed quite naturally from anyone there unless they were in the upper level of the building where, perhaps, they could see the chimneys. He turned in his saddle to look back and nodded to himself in assuming his calculations to be correct.

The appearance of the house was reminiscent of the original building but where that had an open porch this one had it enclosed which made the house itself look much larger. He could see that from the back of the house the views would have been beautiful and in a way he felt immediately envious of the owner of the property. He was not yet aware of which of the Cartwright sons lived here.

A woman in her fifties appeared from the yard carrying a large basket full of clothes that had obviously dried in the cold breezes that blew straight from the across the lake. She was generously proportioned with greying hair twisted into a top knot. Upon seeing Jessop she paused and looked him up and down in a no nonsense manner. “What can I do for you?”

Her tone of voice made him feel less than welcome, which made him bristle somewhat for he drew in his breath sharply in order to make some angry retort but managed to say in an equally cold manner “I understood this is where Mr. Cartwright lives?”

“He does.” Bridie nodded and narrowed her eyes, “Who wants to know?”

“Look, Ma’am, not meaning any offence but you don’t even know which Cartwright I’m meaning so’s why should I tell you who I am?”

“Which Cartwright are you looking for?” Bridie now asked putting the basket down and folding her arms over her ample bosom.

“Adam Cartwright.”

“Well, you got the wrong Cartwright, this is the home of Joseph and Mary Ann.”

Jessop nodded and looked at the house again “A very grand house it is too. Well, I guess I had better go back the way I came and see if I can find Adam’s place.”

At that moment the door opened and Mary Ann stepped outside, in her arms she held the baby swathed in a soft white shawl, she looked up at Jessop and smiled “Are you lost?”

“Not now, Ma’am, thank you.”

She nodded and looked over at Bridie to ask her if she wanted her to take the cake out of the oven, and the homely scene made Jessop feel an ache somewhere in his chest where most men harbour a heart. He inhaled deeply “Congratulations on the baby, Mrs Cartwright. Boy or girl?”

“A boy. Thank you.” she paused then as though about to say something else but changed her mind, it was only as he bade her goodbye and turned the horse that she said “Who shall I say called?” but he didn’t reply, he couldn’t find the words.

What was the matter with him? He shivered and bent his head down to concentrate on the track ahead. Going soft? The sight of a babe in arms making him weak? He’d seen plenty of babies , alive and dead, so what made this one have this effect on him? He drew in his breath and shook his head … it was her mentioning about the cake, it had brought a flashing memory to his mind of two little boys running towards a pleasantly homely woman who was calling to them “Who wants some cake?”

He reached the fork in the road and passed the turning to the Ponderosa and rode on until he came to where the track turned again and led him to another house but he could see as he rode by a group of people standing by a buggy, two women, children and a man. He glanced back to make sure of who he was looking at and confirmed the fact that the man wasn’t Adam Cartwright but was in fact Luke Dent.

He rode on until he came to the main track that led to the road to Virginia City. By cutting across country he was soon on Jessop land and making his way home.

Derwent was piling logs onto the fire when his brother entered the house and slammed the door closed behind him. Derwents shoulders tensed although he didn’t look over his shoulder to remonstrate or comment he merely continued with what he was doing and then stood up and brushed his hands down the back of his pants before turning to go to the other room. This didn’t suit Brett who was wanting to vent his temper out on someone, something so grabbed at his brother’s shoulder “What’s the matter with you? You blind or something.”

“No.” Derwent shrugged his brothers hand away only for it to return and grip tighter.

“Then what am I? Someone you can just stare through and ignore?”

“Hardly that either.” Derwent replied as he attempted to free himself but the grip tightened as Brett held on tighter. He knew his brother well enough to accept that Brett was spoiling for a fight, a wrong move and he could expect a fist next. He turned to look at him “You missed our visitors.”

It caught Brett’s attention, he loosened his grip and raised an eyebrow “Visitors? Who?”

“Pa will tell you.” Derwent looked over at Hugh who was coming into the room with some papers in his hand. “Pa, Brett wants to know who our visitors were?”

Hugh sighed, he had hoped for a few hours in which to work on his son, to subtly introduce the suggestion put to them by the Cartwrights but having it dumped in his lap so immediately forced him to divulge all the information rather clumsier than had been hoped. As he spoke they could see Brett’s face darkening, the eyes narrowed into slits and his breathing became heavier until in the end Hugh’s voice drifted away into silence.

“You fools.” Brett hissed and grabbed the papers that Adam had worked on and left for them to study. He crushed them into a ball and threw them into the fire “They’ve got you eating out of their hands already, haven’t they? High and Mighty Adam Cartwright and his fancy ideas - have you any idea how long this would take? How many men we would have to deploy to get the work done? Are you mad to even think of it?”

“No, not mad.” Hugh replied quietly, “We need that water in that locality, and this is a good way to have it. Ben promised -”

“Ben now is it? Since when was the last time you referred to Cartwright as Ben? You’re cowards, the pair of you, too scared to stand up for your rights and fight back.”

Derwent sighed “But there isn’t a fight, Brett. There’s nothing to fight back about, this is what we need, and what we want.”

“And the land?” Brett spat out the words and his lips twisted into a sneer, “Well, you sign any agreement about this and it’ll be over my dead body.”

Hugh grabbed him by the arm as he turned to leave the room “Wait. We’ll talk this over between us. There’s no need for you to go, Brett. We can settle this.”

“Well, you had better think of some way of doing so, Pa, because I ain’t gonna stomach having those Cartwrights act the high and mighty with me, I don’t want no hand outs from them.”

Derwent looked from his father to his brother and very quietly said “Then what is it that you want, Brett?”

Chapter 22

Adam pulled off his gloves as he stepped into the house and slowly removed his hat. He was thinking over various matters in his mind, foremost of which was the encounter with Jessop the previous day so when Sofia called to him and ran up to claim her hug and kiss he was caught by surprise before he picked her up “Hello, Princess, and what have you been doing today? Been good, huh?”

“There was a lady here, daddy. She was like a bear with all fur on and a funny face.”

He frowned and looked at her with narrowed eyes “Are you sure?”

“And she was with Uncle Luke.”

“Oh, I see.” he looked up over her head to Olivia who approached him with a beaming smile on her face, “Is she talking about Marcy?”

“No, no.” Olivia laughed and greeted her husband with a kiss as she slipped her arm through his free one, the other occupied with Sofia. “Adam - something wonderful happened. It’s my sister, Katya, she’s come back.”

“As a black faced bear?” he grinned and winked at Sofia who laughed and clapped her hands.

“No, silly.” Olivia laughed as well, too happy to take offence, “Oh come on now, your hands are so cold. Come and have some coffee and let me tell you all about it. Sofia, my dear, run away now and play with your dolls. Dinner will be ready soon. Tell Reuben to wash up and get ready.”

Adam set Sofia down and followed his wife into the kitchen in silence and while she talked as she worked he washed his hands, had a glass of water and listened. He nodded here and there but said nothing until she had finished her narrative and the table was set out. She stood there in silence until she finally had to say “You don’t appear very excited.”

“Darling Livvy, I couldn’t be happier for you.” he smiled and looked at her thoughtfully, “And I think you look even more beautiful with the colour in your face and the excitement that’s made your eyes shine - come here and let me kiss you?”

“No.”

“No?” he looked pained and grimaced, then sighed and rubbed his jaw, “Well, what do I have to do to earn a kiss?”

She turned her back on him and stirred the meat and took the lid off the saucepan with the vegetables before looking back at him, “I just wanted you to be excited about my news.”

“I said I was really happy for you, sweet heart. Where is she living at present?”

“She’s staying at the Double D for now. It’s familiar to her and she has her old room back.”

“How does Marcy feel about that?”

“Oh, she doesn’t mind one bit.” Olivia lowered her eyes and then turned her head away as though her cooking had suddenly become very important. “I’ll just call the children down.”

Adam watched her cross the room and sighed. It seemed to him that her sister’s arrival had brought a slight cloud floating upon the horizon and when she turned back to the kitchen he asked her how long Katya was staying to which she only shrugged slightly and said she didn’t know for sure. Katya didn’t even know - yet.

They ate the meal in a more subdued manner than any they had shared since they had been wed although, thankfully, the children seemed not to notice. Reuben was chattering on about seeing Saturn soon which prompted Adam to say that he would take him to see the horse in the morning once chores were done. Sofia was worried about the lady who had called and when asked why she just said in a rather wobbly voice that she scared her.

Olivia glanced at Adam when Sofia said this but he took care not to look up to catch her eyes as he would usually have done. She sighed and told herself that she was wrong to have expected him to feel the same bubble of excitement at seeing Katya again, after all she meant nothing to him, but at the same time he could have shown a little more pleasure for her sake.

Adam frowned and ate his food methodically as he thought over the ramifications of Katya’s arrival. Where would she stay? It was hardly fair that she should stay at the Double D when Luke and Marcy had been so recently married, but then if she were to live with Olivia and he, how much fairer was it, after all they had been wed only a few months longer. Having two children whom he loved intruding into his personal life with Olivia was one thing, but another adult ?

He sighed and chided himself for being petty. After all, he reasoned, Hester and Hoss had had Pa and Hop Sing from day one - and had survived after all there were positives to having another adult in the house aside from the negatives. He cleared his throat and looked at her “ Did your sister say why she had decided to come back to Nevada?”

“She wanted to be with family. She’d lost the man she loved and England isn’t home. She was homesick.”

“Why didn’t she write and let you all know she was coming?”

“She wasn’t sure where any of us were as we had never received any letters from her in the past, she just thought that father was still alive and once home he would contact the rest of us.” she put down her fork and looked at him “Is this an inquisition?”

“It wasn’t meant to be, it was - just that I was wanting to know, that’s all.” he smiled at her but she had lowered her head and began to clear away the plates.

As she took them over to the sink she told herself not to be so childish, he was showing an interest in the way that men usually do. She reminded herself of what her mother used to tell her - Men think, women feel. She knew in Adam’s case that was true, whereas Hoss would have wrapped his arms around Hester and said ‘Honey, that’s wonderful’, Adam would tread cautiously and think things through. She forced some gaiety into her voice as she turned and asked who wanted pie now and caught his dark eyes looking at her in a slightly confused way, like a little boy who had done all his homework right but still didn’t understand why teacher wasn’t happy with him.

Once the meal was over and she prepared coffee for them and warm milk for the children he took them into the living room by the fire and read to them. Sofia sitting in his lap with her head on his shoulder staring at the words one moment and then up at him with rapt attention while Reuben sat as close to him as possible, his legs curled up on the settee and his body leaning against Adam. She stood at the doorway watching them and felt her heart beat faster, and her stomach knot in that way when something special enters ones heart. She listened for a little while as his voice read them the story of the little mermaid who fell in love with a human prince and smiled as she turned back to her task. “No-one and nothing will spoil what I have here“, she thought, “nothing in all the world is as precious to me as this.”

Later as she was attending to her hair he came to her and his fingers closed around her hand, stopping her from continuing with the brushing “You’re beautiful, Livvy.”

She smiled at his reflection in the mirror, his dark head so close to her silver blond hair that in the lamp light it shimmered. He kissed the top of her head and his hand trailed gently down over her hair until it came to rest upon the small of her back and she felt that familiar tingling sensation that made her shiver and the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. “Oh Adam -” she could only whisper back and turned towards him so that he drew her up from the stool upon which she was sitting and swept her into his arms and carried her to the bed.

……………..

Katya Purcell slept in the room of the house in which she had been born. She turned in the narrow bed and looked out of the window at the reflection of the moon and the shadows of the trees. She would have done exactly the same when a child, watching as the wind blew the boughs too and fro and caused the shadows to flicker eerily across the ceiling of her room. When she had scared herself beyond being able to get back to sleep she had crept into her sister’s bed and huddled up to her. Olivia - she sighed and closed her eyes - Olivia had always been the one to care and protect her. She knew the way that Olivia had looked at her earlier that day that she would continue to do so.

She closed her eyes and contentedly drifted into sleep.

Chapter 23

Brett Jessop sat in the chair by the dying fire and stared at the paper upon which Derwent had re-drawn Adam’s plans. Reason and logic told him that it was a fair compromise and one that his father and brother appeared more than prepared to accept. Pride, envy, bitterness and probably a host of other things stood like a dam preventing reason and logic seeping too far.

They had discussed it until there was nothing more to discuss. Derwent had left his father and Brett talking it over while he did the evening chores and came back to the room to find a fresh pot of coffee had been brewed and the two men sitting opposite each other by the fire talking about the feud that had raged between the Bishops and Cartwrights all those years before.

“That’s history,” He had said, “Why discuss it now?”

“Because its something we need to remember, it’s the way the Cartwrights do things, they wear you down until in the end you’re forced to agree with them.” Brett said and spat into the fire.

“No it isn’t.” Derwent had replied, and that was when he had sat down to redraw the plans and had tried to discuss it yet again, rationally, calmly but Brett pushed it aside until he had stood up and demanded what it was that Brett really wanted, the same question that Hugh had asked him earlier. Brett had stared at them and stood up, his hands on his hips, “You’re so keen to do what the Cartwrights tell you, you ain’t got no sense of loyalty to your own kin. Peter died because of the Cartwrights feud with the Bishops.”

“He died because he coveted the young girl Joseph Cartwright loved. He died after killing young Amy Bishop.” Hugh had said and put a hand on Brett’s arm, “Why can’t you accept that, Brett? Pete wasn’t a man to make a hero of, he was a bully and a fool.”

Brett had heard it all before and now the argument switched from the proposals put forward by Ben and Adam to that time long ago, when Pete Jessup had first entered their lives and changed the course of it as a result.

Now here he was, Brett Jessop, the only one to remember and mourn the loss of his tall, gangling cousin. He stood up and went to the cabinet where Hugh kept his cache of whisky and when he slumped back down into the chair he had a full bottle in his hand. There was nothing better to keep reason and logic out of one’s head than whiskey, lots of it!

……

True to his word Adam hitched up the four seater and drove the family to Joe’s house where they found Hoss and Ben. It was a good four miles from Adam and Olivia’s home to Joe’s and with snow and ice still lying in pockets along the ground he was more than glad to have the buggy available for the trip.

Olivia had a basket in which were some more baby garments she had knitted from the soft wool sent from Margarita’s sheep which brought Adam into telling her, once again, the story of the young fiery woman who had smashed his best guitar over Hoss’ head. They were still chuckling over it when they pulled up outside the other house.

“Pa and Hoss are here already,” Adam observed as he lifted her down and then helped Sofia and Reuben, although the boy declined his hand and jumped down by himself.

“They weren’t expecting you for work today, were they?” Olivia asked her husband who smiled and shook his head as he led the way to the house.

Mary Ann greeted her friend warmly and exclaimed in delight over the baby clothes although they laughed a little at how big they still were for him. Hoss was drinking coffee and asked his brother if the poor mite had a name yet or was he forever to be known as ‘Sonny.’

“Sure we got a name for him,” Joe said looking aghast at his brother, “It’s Daniel Joseph.”

The Cartwrights looked at one another and Ben nodded “Mmm, haven’t had a Daniel in the family before, well, not for some time anyway.”

“It was my mother’s brother’s name.” Mary Ann explained as she poured out coffee for Adam and Olivia, “He was a very special Uncle to us and died during the war between the states. I wanted him to be called Joseph but Joe preferred Daniel.”

Daniel, they all agreed was an excellent choice and Olivia was handed the baby who declared he was putting on weight. Hoss was explaining that he and Ben had come to see if Joe was ready to ride fence with them, they were going to then get Adam as they passed his place. Sofia was entranced by this real life doll, and stood on tippy toes to look adoringly down at him, Reuben was, however, bored and tugged at his Pa’s sleeve.

“Can I go see Saturn now? I got him some sugar lumps.” he whispered over loudly and it was Joe who laughingly said that he could, but to be sure not to go into the stall with him.

The boy was delighted and hurried off with his sugar lumps in his hand and Adam and Olivia shared a smile as the boy closed the door on them with a smile wreathing his face. “He’s determined to be a horse breaker,” Adam said with a wink over at Joe.

“Well, so was I at that age.” Hoss said with a chuckle.

“Yeah, but you were never that size.” Joe laughed and poured himself another coffee while his son blinked bleary eyed up at Olivia and blew bubbles.

…………

Reuben was more than delighted to find Saturn in his stall and called over to him as he held the sugar lumps in the palm of his hand. He had to stand on the bottom rung of the gate that Joe had fixed to the stall for Saturn was still restless and wild enough to want to break at any possible chance. The boy felt a thrill trickle through him when the handsome head turned his way and the soft lips gathered up the sugar, he stroked the broad nose as Saturn chomped away and then looked expectantly at the boy for more. Obedient to the request Reuben produced two more sugar lumps and fed them to the horse telling him gently that that was all he had now but he would bring more another day.

“You’re so handsome,” he whispered, “One day I’m going to have a horse just like you, and I’m going to break him in just like Uncle Joe has broken you, see if I don’t?” he giggled when the horses hairy chin tickled against his hand “No, no more sugar for now. Another time.”

He spent a few more minutes with the horse before turning to leave, as he did so the sleeve of his jacket caught on the catch to the gate. It was no problem to pull himself free and he gave Saturn one last stroke of the gleaming black neck before he hurried out into the yard.

Adam and Joe were leaving the house as Reuben left the stables, Sofia was skipping ahead, jumping into little mounds of snow still piled here and there and laughing as she did so. Deep in thought Reuben had his hands in his pockets and kicked at the snow as he passed it.

Saturn was an intelligent animal and when the gate to his stall swung open it didn’t take him a moment to realise he had a chance to escape. With a shrill whinney he lunged out of the stall and cantered pass the other horses and out into the yard.

Both Adam and Joe saw the horse as it rounded the stable building, they also noticed that

Reuben was just ahead of the animal while skipping towards it was Sofia. Freedom was like an intoxicating drug to the animal as it now moved into a gallop and bore down upon the boy. Reuben heard the sound of hooves, turned and ran, slipped on some ice and fell but as he fell he rolled out of the way of the horse who continued to canter onwards.

Sofia looked up, saw the horse and froze to the spot. She was too terrified to do more than open her mouth as the colour drained from her face. Both Adam and Joe were running as fast as possible towards her and as Adam lunged towards her and gathered her into his arms so the horse reared up with forelegs flailing. Over and over Adam rolled with the child in his arms while Joe, now accompanied by Hoss, threw himself at the horse.

Saturn fought for a while when Joe slipped upon his broad back, but with Hoss advancing towards him and Joe pulling at his mane he suddenly lost his spirit and finally subdued, allowed himself to be ridden back to the stable.

Hoss now ran to where his brother and the little girl lay in a crumpled heap against the wheels of the buggy. Had the horses harnessed to the vehicle taken fright and moved then Adam would have stood no chance of preventing the wheels running over him.

Olivia had gathered up her skirts and was running towards them, too frightened to speak, and concerned only with reaching her husband and child. Further down the yard Reuben had picked himself up and white faced had watched the drama unfold before his eyes. Hoss was kneeling beside Adam now and carefully turning him onto his back and then Olivia was there and Sofia was sobbing as she clasped her arms around her mother’s neck and clung to her as though she would never let go.

“Hoss? Hoss - how is he? Adam - Adam - oh - Hoss, why doesn’t he move?” Olivia was crying herself now, silent tears that slipped down her cheeks to mingle with Sofia’s.

“It’s alright, Olivia, don’t worry, I reckon he just banged hisself agin them wheels and knocked hisself out.”

Joe ran up to join them, breathing heavy as it had been quite a battle to get the horse back into his stall. He leaned over Hoss’ back and looked down at Adam who looked as though he had fallen asleep. “Did the horse hit him?”

“Ain’t no blood that I can see,” Hoss murmured as he ran his hands over Adam’s body, “Ain’t no broken bones, I reckon his coat took the worse of any collision he had with the horse.”

Joe now turned to Olivia and Sofia and put his arm gently over Olivia’s shoulders “It’ll be best if you take Sofie inside, Olivia, she needs something warm to get the shock out of her system.”

“But Adam -?”

“We’ll look after him, don’t worry, he’ll be fine.”

Looking constantly over her shoulder Olivia did as Joe suggested and carried the weeping child to the house so that within minutes Ben was hurrying out to see to his son who had still not regained consciousness.

Left alone and seemingly forgotten Reuben watched, his heart ached with tears that were yet to be shed. Shocked and frightened he turned and ran.

……………..

Sofia bawled and sobbed until she had no more energy left at which time she just nestled into Olivia’s arms and clung tight. Even when Olivia attempted to pass her to Ben or Mary Ann in order to be with Adam the child remained determined to stay with her so that in the end she had to carry the girl to the room where Adam had been taken.

Hoss stood up as she entered the room and gave a half hearted smile “I reckon the horse caught him a glancing blow in the middle of his back and he may have a concussion. He came round just now and his eyes were kind of spinning which is usually a sign of concussion.”

Joe stepped back for her to take a seat by the settee, he licked his lips and sighed, “I think the catch on the gate to Saturn’s stall must have - er - been unlatched.” he looked at Hoss who nodded, “I doubt if Reuben even realised.”

Olivia’s eyes opened wide “Reuben? Oh but - but where is he?”

“I’ll go look for him, Livvy, don’t you fret none.” Hoss said quietly and patted her on the shoulder, “I reckon I can guess where he’s gone.”

Olivia slumped back into the chair, torn three ways she felt emotionally exhausted and between stroking Sofia’s head and holding Adam’s hand wasn’t sure what else to do. It was something of a relief when Mary Ann came in and took Sofia, who had fallen asleep, from her arms so that she could give her undivided attention to her husband.

Adam opened his eyes and saw a blurred shape peering down at him. He blinked to focus better but it remained blurred so he resigned himself to closing his eyes and although there was a voice whispering his name and certain endearments he drifted in and out of consciousness. He had struck his head just above the temple and Olivia constantly held a cool compress to the torn and bruised area. There was pain in his shoulder, terrible pain of which they were yet unaware and in the small of his back where the horse had hit him there was a large amount of bruising.

The waves of faintness was like being at sea, ebbing and flowing, one moment aware of pain and another only cocooned in a dark blanket that blotted everything else out. When he moved the pain trickled down his arm and caused him to groan but that was all, other than that he barely moved.

……………

Hoss found Reuben where he had expected, crouched tightly into the corner of the hayloft in an attempt to make himself as small as possible. His eyes were overlarge from fear and when he saw Hoss he shrunk back into an even tighter ball, a frightened little boy too scared even to think about what had just happened.

“Hey thar, Reuben, thought I’d find you here.” Hoss said as he sat down beside the boy, “Joe always took to the hayloft when he’d - er - when he thought he had done something wrong. I guess you think what happened was all your fault, huh?”

The boy sunk his head onto his knees, his arms were wrapped around his legs so that they were hugging against his chest, he began to cry, hot tears that burned his eyes. Hoss put his arm around him and pulled him close “Wal, now, you just cry it all out, son, that’s the best thing to do. It weren’t your fault, you ain’t to blame for what happened.”

“I am.” the boy whispered, “I didn’t know the gate had opened. I gave Saturn the sugar and left, that was all I did.”

“Sure you did, son, now don’t you take on so, that horse is as clever as a barrel load of monkeys, he probably wanted more sugar and just broke out of his stall.”

“I don’t know, Uncle Hoss,” Reuben glanced quickly over at Hoss and the anxious look on the mans face made him duck away again, “My sleeve caught on something, I thought it was just a nail and pulled it loose.”

“I guess so would I have done, only natural after all.”

“Is it? Would you?” he looked at Hoss again, white faced with tears streaking his cheeks.

“Sure, that kind of thing happens, it ain’t likely you’d have opened the gate yerself and invited Saturn to come out and take a walk now, is it?”

The boy thought about that, and sighed “Nooo.” his voice was a whimper, despair filled his mind and he shivered as Hoss pulled him closer “I don’t want to go down, Uncle Hoss, please don’t make me.”

“Your Ma’s awful worried about you, Reuben.”

“But Pa got hurt. And Sofie …”

“She’s fine, ain’t nothing wrong with your little sister.”

“But Pa?”

“He’s got a bump on his head -”

The boys shoulders slumped, even he noticed the lack of conviction in Hoss’ voice and he turned away and stared at the far wall, “I don’t want to go down, can I stay here?”

“Look, if you stay put here, jest for a minute or two, you promise me you’ll come down soon?”

He didn’t answer but sniffed and wiped his nose on his sleeve, Hoss shook his head “You gonna promise me, Reuben? Else I’ll have to carry you down right now whether you like it or not.”

“Sure, I promise.”

“Don’t you go any place else, you hear? You come into the house or you stay put so’s I know where you are and can tell your Ma that you’re alright - is that a promise?”

Reuben nodded but didn’t move when Hoss finally released him and after one last look at the boy, made his way down the ladder and back to the house.

Chapter 24

Adam attempted to sit up but had to fall back against the pillow that had been placed by his head. He heard Olivia call his name and turned to smile at her and take hold of her hand, “Is Sofia alright?”

“Some bumps and bruises, but she’s scared that she may have squashed you when you were rolling over.” Olivia forced a smile although she felt too frightened to make it truly genuine, “Are you in much pain, darling?”

He turned to look away from her and saw Ben and Joe hovering close by and acknowledged them both with a nod of the head, “Where’s Hoss?”

“He’s talking to Reuben.” Joe said one hand on his hip and the other rubbing his chin anxiously, “I think the catch on the gate got loose, that horse -.” he paused and looked down, “Reuben’s hidden in the hay loft.”

“Much like you used to.” Adam forced a smile, and tried to take a deeper breath but the pain cut it short. He squeezed Olivia’s hand “Will you bring Hoss here, I need to see him.”

Ben immediately volunteered but Adam shook his head “No, Olivia, you go. Don’t come back in here until I say, will you?”

“Why? Why not, Adam? What’s happened that you’re not telling me?” she leaned over, closer to him and touched his face gently with her fingers “Adam?”

“It’s alright, don’t worry - I just need to see Hoss.” he closed his eyes and slipped into some shallow breathing so that she got up and hurried out of the room in time to see Hoss who had just returned from the hay loft. “How’s Reuben?”

“Scared and a mite ashamed of hisself. He’ll calm down eventually, best to let him come back in his own time.”

She sighed and nodded before telling Hoss that Adam needed to see him. As he nodded and walked into the other room she closed the door behind him and forced a smile at Mary Ann who was sitting with Sofia with Daniel on her lap. She watched them, a happy young mother and the little girl who was leaning as close to the baby as possible in order to stroke his little hand.

Hoss looked at Joe and Ben before approaching the settee “Olivia said you wanted to see me?”

“I think I’ve dislocated my shoulder. Check it out, would you, Hoss?”

Ben and Joe cast an anxious look at one another and then crowded in closer to see for themselves as Hoss carefully helped Adam to sit up, gently peeled off his jacket which Joe took and slung into a chair. He then carefully ran a hand down Adam’s back and shoulder blade and then nodded “Yeah, you sure have.”

“I thought so. Here, take my hand, will you? Deal with it, huh?”

Hoss nodded, he knew exactly what to do as it was an occupational hazard on a ranch, especially during cattle runs. He took hold of Adam’s hand in one of his own and supported his brother’s upper arm in the other. “You sure about this?”

“Just do it, Hoss.”

“It’ll hurt.”

“Dang, Hoss, it hurts anyway.”

“Alright, best get yourself set and ready. I’ll count to three.”

Ben and Joe both found themselves clenching their teeth and tensing, waiting for what was going to happen next. Before Hoss had even reached three he had given Adam’s arm a hard yanking pull, there was a cracking sound and Adam’s exclamation before he fell back upon the cushions, perspiration beading his face but his breathing back to normal.

“Best wear a sling for a while, just to rest it.” Hoss said in a matter of fact voice.

Adam nodded and closed his eyes, “Thanks.”

“A pleasure.” Hoss replied with a grin which Adam could hear in the words so smiled and nodded back.

Ben cleared his throat “Adam, is there anything else that needs attention? Do you want us to send for Paul or Jimmy?”

Adam forced himself to sit up and carefully moved his arm and flexed his fingers before looking at his father and assuring him that, apart from his leg, everything was fine. Immediately Ben wanted to know what was wrong with his son’s leg, but upon Adam’s assurance that it was something that would settle down of its own accord in time he nodded and looked at him thoughtfully “You’re sure about that?”

“Of course, Pa.” Adam replied before looking at Hoss, “I think you’re right, I will need a sling for a while.”

“You could’ve broken your neck.” Joe said anxiously, “I’m sorry, Adam. It’s really my fault, I should have made that gate more secure.”

“Reuben should have been more careful.” Adam responded immediately as he got to his feet and straightened his back, “He was told not to go into the stall.”

Hoss frowned, “He didn’t go into the stall, Adam, it was just that the catch to the gate caught on his sleeve. He ain’t savvy to things on a ranch just yet, he’ll learn in time.”

Joe rubbed his chin and looked at Adam thoughtfully, “Saturn’s a really intelligent horse, Adam, he’s always testing out that gate to see if there’s any way he can get it open.”

Adam smiled slowly although his eyes didn’t warm from the smile “Are you two making excuses for the boy?”

“No, just stating the facts. The kids scared stiff that he caused the accident and that he’s caused you to be hurt.” Hoss frowned, “I sure wouldn’t want you to come down heavy on him about it. He’ll not be so careless in future.”

Adam glanced at Hoss thoughtfully, then nodded, “Alright, thank you, Hoss.” then he turned to Ben, “I’ll give the fencing a miss today if that’s alright, Pa.”

“Of course,” Ben smiled and gently rubbed his son’s back as though he still believed that a father’s touch had magic healing qualities to it, “There’s plenty of paper work back home if you could get stuck into that?”

“I’ll take Olivia and the children home, and then get back to it.”

Hoss paused “Why not take them to the Ponderosa, Hester sure would like to see Olivia and the children again.”

“I’ll do that then, thanks, Hoss.”

Ben smiled, nodded and looked generally relieved as he shepherded his sons’ out of the room “Well, now that all the excitement is over, perhaps we can get to work.”

Joe hesitated as though suddenly remembering something that needed to be said, carefully he pushed the door shut again “There’s something I forgot to mention, Mary Ann had a visitor here the other morning. I think it was Brett Jessop.”

“Are you sure?” Ben exclaimed and he glanced immediately as Adam shook his head and said that Olivia had not seen him, but Hoss ventured the information that Hester had … so that for a moment or two no one said a word “Well, seems he’s trying to play chess games with us.”

Adam smiled slowly “Hardly wise, if I remember rightly, Brett Jessop never was any good at Chess.”

Chapter 25

Derwent Jessop found himself constantly looking over at the house and wondering what his brother and father were discussing. He was a hard working man who had kept the Bar J ranch from being ruined by sheer stubbornness, downright honesty and wise investments. The contest with the Cartwrights had been a nuisance as far as he was concerned, something that had stuck in Hugh’s craw for so long that Derwent was heartily sick of it all.

He was further sickened at the thought of Brett getting their father to change his mind after Adam and Ben’s proposal. If he could have wished for anything better Derwent would have been hard pushed to have thought of anything other than the water coming onto that land. It had been a gift, no other words for it, a pure gift.

Hugh hadn’t ridden out on the range for over a year and usually it had been to that area of land in dispute so that he would come back home and rail against the Cartwrights for holding out on them what was their just dues. Derwent was more than aware that there was something twisted in the Jessop personality that threatened anything that would be deemed sensible. Peter their cousin had it, as did Brett and for unreasonableness, well Hugh had it in spades.

He stroked his horse gently as he wondered how he could keep Hugh’s mind from flying off in the direction Brett would prefer, fanciful talk and a harking back to the old days would be all it would take for Hugh to see himself head of a hundred men fighting the Ponderosa. It sickened Derwent to the stomach to think of it.

He was about to head for the ranch house when his father and Brett lurched out through the front door, both of them drunk. The whiskey bottle in Brett’s hand was nearly empty, and Hugh’s legs were going fore and aft, a clear indication that most of it had gone down his throat. Derwent shook his head and turned away but Brett had seen him and shouted out to him to come join them.

“Come on, brother, or are you too good for the likes of us.” Brett jeered as he raised the bottle in a derisory gesture at the younger man.

“Derwent, come and do what your brother says,” slurred the other Jessop, sitting down very quickly on the top step of the porch, “We got an idea.”

Derwent bowed his head and rubbed his jaw, well, he thought, this is it … and turning he walked towards them glancing from one to the other as he attempted to gauge their mood.

“We ain’t accepting the Cartwrights offer.” Hugh said although the words were practically lost in a loud foul smelling burp, he wafted the stink away with one hand flapping in front of his face “Their offer is tant - is tant - what’s that word you said, son?”

Brett nodded “Tantamount to an admission, that’s what it is.”

Derwent’s eyes narrowed. Hugh was drunk but Brett was no where near as drunk as he should have been, he looked back to his father, “An admission of what?”

“That they know the land is ours.” Hugh grinned and reached out for the bottle which Brett held away from him and held out to his brother, “We’ll go and tell ‘em.”

“You’re in no fit state to tell anyone anything.” Derwent murmured and leaned down to grab at his father’s arm, only to be pushed aside “Pa, you need to get back inside, if you try getting on a horse in this state you’re likely to fall off and break your neck. Brett, help me get him to his feet.”

“I’m going to sleep here.” Hugh said, “Feel sleepy now … I’ll see Ben tomorrow, tell him then what he can do with his offer.”

“Brett?” Derwent looked to his brother for help but Brett shrugged and stepped back, “Alright, do what you like. Pa, lean on me.”

“Brett’s a good lad, Derwent. He knows what he’s talking about,” Hugh drunkenly boasted, “You should listen to him, he makes good sense. We ain’t going to be treated bad by the likes of them.”

Brett watched as his brother struggled to help Hugh to his feet and haul him into the house. After a moment or two he swigged more whiskey from the bottle and then threw it away, empty, into the horse trough. He watched the bubbles as water replaced the air and the bottle finally sank before bobbing back up again. Then, bored, he turned to the stable and mounted the only horse that was saddled.

Derwent heard the horse as it left the yard and ran to the door, yanked it open just in time to see his brother disappear behind the outbuildings. He stood for a moment staring in that direction before stepping inside to attend to his father, to ply him with coffee in an attempt to sober him up and talk some sense into his thick head.

Brett wasn’t too sure in which direction to ride. For a while he let the horse take him where it willed, until he realised that he was once again close to the border of the Double D. He slowed the horse and looked at the building set out so neatly and recalled Derwent saying something about a visit he had made a few days earlier, turning the horse towards the ranch he trotted towards it, hoping his breath didn’t smell too much and running his hand down his vest to make sure that any whiskey spillage wasn’t evident.

Hens clucked in the yard and scattered upon his approach before regrouping again around the horses feet. He knocked on the door and waited for an answer but none came. He turned the latch and the door opened, from the back of the house he could hear someone singing, a woman’s voice, and singing a song he had never heard before in those parts. He walked very quietly through the hallway and living room and paused at the sight of the woman seated by the fire.

She was very blonde, not the surprisingly platinum blonde that Olivia had, but close enough, her soft pink dress was cut in a style far smarter than most women he had ever seen. Her head was bent forwards as she strummed a guitar to which she was singing in accompaniment to herself. Her voice was very clear and the words of the song were about love, and as she sang Brett recalled the days of his childhood when he and his brother would frequent the house and play with the children and hear the mother sing.

He was deep in thought when the music stopped and Katya turned and saw him. Her gasp immediately broke the spell the music, her singing and the memories had cast on him and he immediately stood upright and removed his hat “Katya? It is Katya, isn’t it?”

She said nothing but rose to her feet, her head turned away from him so that only one side of her face could be seen, a swathe of hair fell across the other side, hiding it from view. “Who are you? Who let you in?”

“There ain’t no one around that I could see. I did knock - Katya - it’s me, Brett Jessop.”

Brett Jessop, she looked at him and lowered her head, yes, she remembered Brett Jessop who liked to torment and tease her sister and herself. He had kissed her once, pulling her into the trees and pretending to play hide and seek, then upon catching her he had kissed her, roughly, and she had hit him as hard as she could; she remembered how he had grabbed at her hands and wrestled her to the ground and had been about to strike her down with a stone had Derwent and Luke not appeared and pulled him away. She had only been ten years old then, but she could remember, it was a memory she had never been able to forget.

But perhaps he had for he stood there smiling at her and looking kindly, for he wasn’t an ugly brutish looking man. “Brett Jessop? Yes, I remember you.”

“I heard from Derwent that you were back home. It’s good to see you again, little Katya.”

She sighed, he had always called her that, little Katya, with that same soft voice and strange look in his eyes. She wanted to call out for Luke or Marcy, but remembered that they were going to see a neighbour. She drew in a deep breath, “What did you want, Mr.Jessop? Luke shouldn’t be long now, in fact -” she glanced at the clock “I expect him back any moment.”

He laughed then and shook his head “Now then, little Katya, you never were very good at lying, were you. And is that any way to greet an old friend?”

She watched as he stepped further into the room, and shook her head, “Mr. Jessop, I think you should leave -.”

“I heard you singing. I swear, it was like hearing your mother sing, she had a voice like that, clear as a bell. You sing real pretty, did you know that?”

She swallowed and licked her lips and shook her head, and then his hand was taking hold of her wrist and he was pulling her towards him. He lowered his face and then he saw her, really saw her, he saw the scars upon her cheek and neck, and released her so suddenly that she nearly fell over.

“What happened to you? What in ------- happened?”

He stepped back, his eyes wide and his face a picture of disgust and horror, and although she was more than happy to have been spared his company the reason for his swift departure, the look on his face, seared through her as painfully as the stab of a knife. She watched him turn and leave the room with the same horror on her face as she raised her hand to her cheek and felt the rough edge of the scars beneath her fingers. Disfigured, ugly, disgusting … she shuddered, and slowly sunk back into the chair.

Chapter 26

Hester Cartwright was more than delighted to see them as they stepped into the big room one by one. Hannah clapped her hands and toddled over quickly to grab her friend Sofia by the hand and to take her to where her toy box awaited attention. Sofia didn’t follow immediately however as she had to show her Aunt the bumps and bruises she had collected due to the incident at Joe’s.

Hester exclaimed and made all the expected noises that delighted and comforted the child who then happily joined her little cousin in the far corner of the room, which then led Hester to ask what exactly had happened for the little girl to appear so battered and bruised.

Reuben lowered his head and looked around for some place he could hide. He had been sullen and silent during the short drive to the Ponderosa and now began to feel like some kind of scapegoat being blamed for everything that had happened; from his sister’s woebegone appearance to his Pa’s slightly heavier limp and injured shoulder. He escaped as quickly as he could into the kitchen to gain comfort from Hop Sing, whom, he just knew, would understand everything perfectly.

Adam watched the boy go and sighed in sympathy, he cleared his throat and when a break in the gabble of voices did come he asked Hester about her recent altercation with Brett Jessop. Hester sat down as though the mention of the man’s name had affected her knees “He didn’t really say anything to worry about, it was just that - well - it was him, and somehow, he just looked - he just looked as though what he was thinking was quite different to what he was saying, or implying.”

“Which was?” Adam probed gently but Hester just shook her head and said it was hard to put into words.

“I was frightened, more for Hannah than anything else, although I don’t think he would have hurt her. If it hadn’t been for Hop Sing dashing out with the meat cleaver …” she laughed then but the way she grabbed hold of Olivia’s hand was enough evidence of how anxious the incident had left her.

“Why do you think he came to Mary Ann’s and Hester’s, Adam, and not to us?” Olivia asked just as Adam had turned to go to the study area in order to start on the paper work Ben had left.

Her husband paused a moment “Perhaps he saw that you had visitors that day so rode on. It was the day your sister visited if you remember?”

“Yes, of course.” Olivia nodded and yet her frown deepened and once again she prevented him from getting to the study “Why do you think he did it, rode round the Ponderosa and visited the houses?”

Adam pursed his lips slightly and raised an eyebrow “Scouting around for his army, perhaps.”

“What army?” Hester smiled although her face looked anxious.

“His army. He’s probably working out where the houses are located, how far apart they are, who lives in them. He’ll start recruiting soon, no doubt, after all, his intention is to make trouble whether we have a valid compromise to offer them or not.”

“You mean, a range war, don’t you?” Hester sighed and looked at Olivia who squeezed her fingers gently. “Hoss and Ben have been talking about it as well, they said - they said that Brett was a trouble maker and had been involved in that feud in Virginia for some years.”

“ Well, in which case he’ll have learned some valuable lessons.” Adam replied, “Now, if you’ll excuse me .” as he turned away he smiled at Olivia “Why don’t you tell Hester your good news, Livvy?”

The blush to her cheeks and the colour of her eyes indicated the pleasure she felt at his suggestion and as he walked to the study he smiled at the sound of the women talking. He sat down in the big leather chair his father had possessed for years and began to concentrate on the work awaiting him.

Time ticked by and the hum of the voices had long become just a noise in the background as he worked at the figures for a new timber contract. He had just reached a total which he was carefully writing down at the bottom of his page of notes when he was aware of a shadow falling over the desk and upon looking up saw Reuben. He put the pen down and sat back to observe the boy before he asked him what it was he wanted.

“Aunt Hester has some coffee and cake for you at the table.”

He nodded his thanks and leaned forward and as the boy turned to leave he called him back, “Reuben, tell me what happened when you went to the stables?”

“I told Uncle Hoss.”

“I know, but now I would like you to tell me.”

“No.”

“What do you mean ‘No’ ?”

“I don’t want to.” Reuben had his head down and stared at the floor, he heaved a deep breath “It wasn’t my fault.”

“Did I say that it was?”

“Well, it wasn’t.”

“Then tell me what happened?”

Reuben just shook his head which brought a flush of impatience to Adam’s face and his eyes narrowed, “Do you want to pursue this conversation in the barn, young man?”

“No, sir.”

Adam waited a moment or two longer and was about to say something when Hester appeared with a bright smile “Come along, the coffee’s getting cold.”

Adam glanced at her sharply, it was obvious that she had come to rescue the boy, perhaps to rescue them both, but it rankled rather and as Reuben ran off with a grateful look at his Aunt, Adam followed with a far less happier feeling. He looked at his wife who was cutting cake and talking to the girls, little Hannah with her dark near black hair and Sofia with her blonde goldness. He sighed and sat down and took the plate that was offered him in silence.

…………….

“Mr Jessop?”

Derwent looked up as James Galbey approached him, hat in hand. “What is it, Jim?”

He had just dismounted at the camp where some of the Bar J men were working. Preliminary work before the spring round up and riding over from the ranch house had given him time to cool down and contemplate the progress that his hard work had brought to the ranch. It wasn’t the most prosperous in the territory, that privilege went to the Cartwrights, but it was doing well now after some hard years where neglect by Hugh had nearly brought it to total ruin.

“Me and the boys bin hearing talk about problems with the Ponderosa?” Jim replied, twiddling with his hat and looking awkward, “Is it true?”

“No, why would you think it was?”

“Your brother was talking his mouth off the other day, said he wasn’t going to be told what to do by old Ben Cartwright and if none of us liked the thought of fighting for the Bar J we could leave now.”

Derwent frowned and glared down at their feet where the ground was still wet from the rains and snows. Jim had worked for the Bar J for years, he knew how much work Derwent had put into the makings of it into what it was now, and how little Brett had contributed, now he waited for the man he considered as the Boss to answer.

“Brett’s talking for himself, Jim.”

“He reckoned that he could replace all of us at the drop of a hat, that’s what he said.”

“Well, he can’t.” Derwent looked up at the cattleman and shook his head, “That order didn’t come from me, Jim. No one has left, have they?”

“One or two, they had the feeling that your brother was itching to start a range war, in which case none of us want to be involved. As it is we’ll need more men anyway with spring on its way.”

“I know.”

Derwent released his breath. No ranch paid out wages to cowhands over the winter when there was little work, but come the spring then old familiar faces would appear to be hired again, and some new ones as well. The kind of hand he would be hiring was quite different to the kind of man Brett would be considering. He slapped Jim on the arm, “I’ll deal with it, Jim, don’t worry.”

“You won’t get far if you try fighting the Ponderosa, Derwent, you know that, don’t you?”

“Only too well. No, we’ve reached a good compromise with them about the water down on the south field. Probably need you and some of the boys to help on it as well. I know that Ben will be bringing some of the Ponderosa boys over …” he smiled, his eyes lit up as he thought about it, what an excellent example of cattlemen working together on a common purpose.

“That’s good, boss, I’m glad to hear it.”

Derwent watched Jim walk away and felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He didn’t know how he was going to do it, but he was more determined than ever to stop Brett from causing any trouble, and could only pray that it wasn’t already too late.

……………

The shadows shivered over the bed and flooring of Reuben’s room and he slipped into bed as quickly as he could in the hope that sleep would come sooner than his Pa’s evening visit to make sure everything was alright. It had become something of a habit of Adam’s to spend some time with Reuben to talk over things, or to spin him a story about the sea, and to listen to the boy’s last prayer before sleep.

Sometimes if Adam were busy or not home then Olivia would take on the task, and tonight Reuben hoped fervently that his mother would be the one opening the door and sharing the last moments of the day with him. As Adam’s footsteps approached the room Reuben pulled the covers over his head and squeezed his eyes shut.

The door opened and closed, the splash of light from the landing flashed across the room before it was cut off, and Adam sat down by the side of the bed and gently pulled the covers away. He looked down at the boy and raised his eyebrows “What are you so worried about, Reuben? Do you really think I’d give you a tanning over an accident?”

“It was an accident -” Reuben said shrilly the tears coming readily to his eyes. “It was, I told Uncle Hoss it was.”

“Yeah, and Uncle Hoss told me. I just wanted you to tell me what happened so that I can explain a few things to you.”

“Explain what?” Reuben squeezed his eyes and a tear betrayed him by slipping down his cheek.

“How things are done on a ranch. Accidents shouldn’t happen because - because they can have serious consequences. So I guess I’m to blame for not showing you how to avoid them.”

Reuben thought about those words and looked at Adam’s face which looked calm and composed, as well as concerned. He pulled himself up into a sitting position “How could you be to blame? It was my fault. I leaned over to stroke Saturn and when my sleeve caught on the nail I just pulled it loose so’s I could get back but that caused the gate to get loose.” he paused, and gasped a sharp breath before he looked into Adam’s face again.

“Well,” Adam smiled slowly although is eyes remained serious as he smoothed over the bed covers rather more fussily than necessary, “That’s what I mean about teaching you to avoid accidents. If I’d taken more time I’d have already explained to you that if you ever get anything snagged or caught on what you may think is just a nail, you stop and check it before leaving. A lot of times little things get neglected, folk forget to take notice of some small thing and before you know it there’s a disaster.” he saw the boys’ eyes widen in alarm and cleared his throat “Not that this was a disaster, no one was seriously injured.”

“You were hurt, so was Sofie.”

Adam nodded and indicated that the boy settle down into the bed, “It could have been worse, Reuben.”

“I’m sorry, Pa.”

“I know.” Adam cleared his throat again and pondered for a while about what to say next, “There’s something else I want to mention to you, Reuben. In future when I ask you a question I want a reply other than the kind you gave today. Good manners and respect for one’s elders will stand you in good stead as you grow up. If you address me again in the way you did earlier you’ll be taking a quick walk with me to the barn - do you understand?”

Reuben quailed a little, as a child it was still difficult for him to understand all the phraseology of an adult, but the meaning behind what Adam was saying was clear enough. He nodded, “Yes, sir. I’m sorry, I was frightened.”

“You don’t have to be frightened of me, son.” Adam said quietly, “I wouldn’t want to harm you in any way at all, and I’m speaking to you about this for your own good, do you understand?”

“Yes, sir.”

Adam looked at the boy anxiously, wondering now if he had said the right things in the wrong way, or the wrong things in the right way. He sighed and smiled, “You know, some time ago there was a man called Benjamin Franklin - have you ever heard of him?”

“No.” big eyes grew rounder as they peered over the covers as he waited for Adam to commence this new story.

“Well, Benjamin Franklin was one of America’s founding fathers, something you’ll learn more about some other time. He was a very intelligent man, clever about all manner of things, but what most school boys remember him for a little rhyme in which we learn how a kingdom could be lost, all for the sake of horse shoe nail. Do you know it?”

“Yes, sir, Gran’ma Abigail taught me it, if he’d had a nail for his horse it would have been alright?”

“Uh-huh”

“If I’d made sure the catch on the gate was on then the accident wouldn’t have happened, would it?”

“That’s right. But, Reuben, there’s a difference from something like this happening, to doing something deliberately, for instance, making sure the gate would open so the horse would come out because of wanting to see what would happen. That would have been very wrong, wouldn’t it?”

“Yes, Pa, but I didn’t do it on purpose.”

“I know, son.” Adam smiled and stood up, “Ma wants to come up and hear you say your prayers tonight. Sleep well.”

Reuben nodded, his eyelids were heavy, and by the time Olivia stepped lightly to his bedside he was already asleep.

Chapter 27

The knock on the door came as Adam and Olivia were having breakfast with the children. The day had started slightly overcast but more of the snow was disappearing and Adam had decided that a trip into town would be a good idea. He was watching Olivia as she poured out the coffee and thinking the natural thoughts of a man in love with his wife when the knocking came and before either of them could say a word Reuben had got to his feet, declared he’d answer the door and dashed off.

“It’s Uncle Luke.” drifted over to the table before Luke appeared with Reuben wearing his uncle’s hat and trailing in after him.

Olivia gave her brother a beaming smile “You must have got up early this morning, Luke. Have you had breakfast? Have some coffee with us?”

“I’d like that, thank you.” Luke turned to Adam and shook the other man’s hand before pulling a chair up to the table. “What happened to your arm?”

“Dislocated my shoulder.” Adam replied and passed the cup of coffee to him, “Good to see you, Luke, we don’t often have the pleasure of your company.”

“I know,” Luke smiled and restrained himself from saying that it was a two way street, they didn’t exactly make a habit of riding over to visit them either. “I - er - I needed to discuss something with you both.”

Olivia sat down quickly and looked at her children as she wondered if what was about to be discussed was safe for little ears and Adam, sensing her thoughts nodded and suggested that Luke take his time with his coffee and they could talk once the children had finished eating. Olivia smiled her thanks and wondered if all husbands were as intuitive as hers, forgetting that only the previous day she had been thinking quite the reverse.

“I’ve finished,” Reuben declared, “Please may I leave the table now, Pa?”

“Go ahead, young man, you have some chores to finish before you do anything else.”

“Sure, Pa.”

Sofia put her spoon down “Me an’ all finished. Look, Uncle Luke, I got bumped.” and she raised her face to show off her bruises and bumps to Luke who wasn’t particularly impressed but nodded and smiled. She turned to slide from her chair before Olivia said “Sofia?” so that she very nicely said “Please get down now?”

Once they were out of ear shot and another cup had been filled with good quality coffee, Luke leaned forward “It’s about Katya.”

“Oh.” Olivia glanced at Adam who had inwardly groaned but kept a blank look on his face.

“Fact is, Brett Jessop came to the ranch while we were out, that is, while Marcy and me were out. Katya was on her own and he just walked in as bold as you please and -.” he cleared his throat “He was making advances to her, grabbed hold of her and was going to kiss her when he saw the scars -.”

“Scars?” Adam looked confused, as well he might as this was the first he had heard of Katya’s disfigurement.

“Anyway,” Luke continued regardless of the interruption, “he was repulsed by them, cast her off as though she were repugnant and after swearing and cursing a bit he left the house. He left Katya more than upset.” he frowned and glanced at them both “That’s putting it mildly, she’s been crying and carrying on ever since. Talked about life not being worth living and wanting to die, all that kind of thing.”

“How can we help?” Adam asked while at the back of his mind he was already sensing a problem about to land in their laps, not, he tried to tell himself, that the woman was a problem, after which he told himself again that yes, if she wasn’t yet she was sure to become one very shortly.

“I wondered, if it was alright with you, Adam, Olivia, if you could come over and speak to her. She said she can only talk to you, Livvy.”

Olivia looked at her husband and the appeal in her eyes were clear enough, for he nodded and agreed that of course Olivia should go and talk to her sister. Luke looked relieved and expressed his thanks so effusively that it made Adam rather anxious as to how this tete a tete between the sisters was going to end up.

“What are you going to do about Brett Jessop, Luke?”

“I was thinking of riding over and seeing him, telling him to stay clear of the Double D and to leave Katya alone.”

“I’ll ride along with you.” Adam replied as he stood up and dropped his napkin on the plate, “Olivia, I’ll see you and the children later?”

“Yes, of course.” she put her hand on his arm, “Be careful, I don’t like the sound of this Jessop.”

He smiled only, a quick smile to reassure her and then he leaned over to kiss her brow. As he buckled on his gun belt and pulled on his coat he looked over at Reuben “Look after your Ma and sister, Reuben?”

“I will, Pa.”

He smiled and nodded, slipped his black hat over his head and followed Luke out of the house.

Luke waited in the stable as Adam saddled his horse, leaning against the stall he watched his brother in law and when he was asked a question about Katya he shrugged “I guess you wouldn’t really remember her, Adam. She was the baby of the family so you’d not have got to know her at all.”

“Hmm, she married before Olivia?”

“She did, very young, they eventually ended up in England. He was a wealthy man by all accounts but died in a fire.”

“A fire?” Adam glanced over at Luke and then concentrated on leading Sport out of the stall. “Is that where she got the scars ?”

“Kinda. They ain’t the kind you got, not from the fire. I mean she wasn’t burned or anything, it was the glass from the windows that blew in, they cut across her face and neck.”

Adam raised his eyebrows and mounted his horse more slowly than usual due to his leg, “Very bad are they?”

“Jessop seems to think so.”

“Hmm, guess Katya does as well.”

Luke said nothing to that but he thought about it a while before realising that Adam was right, and that her distress was more because Jessop had told her what she herself believed to be true.

Derwent was mucking out the stalls in the stable when the two men rode into the yard. He paused, wiped his brow on his arm and watched as Luke and Adam dismounted. He wasn’t sure whether to approach them or just wait and listen to what was said, so decided to lean upon his rake and stay in the shadows.

The door was opened by Hugh who looked sourly from one to the other of them. Not recognising Luke he immediately rounded on Adam “You can tell your Pa we ain’t wanting no compromises with you, you can stick your fancy words and wait for our lawyer to contact you.”

“We haven’t come to discuss that this morning, Mr.. Jessop” Adam replied as calmly as he could for he was already out of temper, “Mr Dent has something he wants to discuss with your son, Brett.”

Hugh’s eyes narrowed so much it was a wonder he could see through them as he peered now at Luke “What about?”

Luke stepped forward “I want to see your son, Mr. Jessop.”

Hugh opened his mouth but before he could say a word a hand grabbed him from behind and hauled him back into the house, to be replaced by Brett Jessop who glared at them from the doorway. Like his cousin, Peter Jessup, the man was long and gangly, with strong features but with his father’s close set eyes; his red long johns, over which he wore some black pants, were stained with sweat and spillage from who knew how many slugs of whiskey. He wiped his mouth on the back of his hand and his eyes swivelled from Adam to Luke constantly.

“Jessop?” Luke mounted the steps so that he was level with the man, “I just came to give you fair warning, you stay clear of the Double D, and from my sister, do you hear? You touch her again -”

“Touch her?” Brett gave a shout of a laugh and spat onto the boarding, just inches from Luke’s boot, “I’d not touch her with a four foot pole, not if she were the last woman on this earth.” he leaned forward “Coming on to me, she was … flouncing herself as though she thought I’d be interested in the likes of her. Didn’t show me her face until later -”

“You’re lying.”

“I’m saying it as it was.”

“And I’m saying you’re a liar.”

Jessop’s fist lashed out so fast that Luke barely had time to duck, as it was the skin of Jessops knuckles grazed along his cheek. Instantly Luke threw himself at Brett’s waist and pulled him down on the boards, he was several punches in before Adam reached him and Derwent came running up to help part them. Breathing heavily Luke turned away, picked up his hat and then looked down at the man who was nursing his jaw while flat on his back “Jessop, don’t you forget, you don’t come on Double D land unless you want to die a quick death.”

Derwent stood back as Adam and Luke remounted their horses, then he looked at his brother and as the horsemen galloped out of the yard he helped Brett up onto his feet “What exactly did you do to her, Brett?”

His brother merely grinned, a smirk that made Derwent long to bring his hand across his face to wipe it off but instead he watched as his brother stormed into the house and slammed the door behind him.

After a moment’s consideration Derwent returned to the stable, saddled his horse and quickly followed in the tracks of the two men, urging his horse on as fast as possible in order to catch up with them before they had reached the public highway.

It was Adam who heard the horse and brought his own to a halt. He slowly dropped his hand to his holster and eased the gun ready for a quick draw. Luke turned his horse to face the rider, prepared to shoot it out with Brett Jessop if necessary so was quite surprised when Derwent came into sight.

The three men squared each other up before Derwent began to speak “I heard what was said, Luke. I’m sorry, I can’t take back the hurt my brother did to your sister, but please tell her I am sorry.”

“Do you always go around apologising for your brother?” Adam asked letting the gun return snugly back in place.

“Seems to be getting a kinda habit, doesn’t it?” Derwent sighed and removed his hat, “I guess it’s because I don’t want people to get the idea that I’m anything like him. Not all Jessops are tarred with the same brush.”

Luke nodded and glanced back to the track leading to the Jessops “What your brother said about Katya, it isn’t true. He molested her and then discarded her like she was dirt. She - she’s kinda sensitive about those scars and what he said wasn’t kind, nor necessary.”

“I can imagine.” Derwent nodded, then turned to Adam “Don’t take any notice of what he said about the new contract, Adam, I’m seeing the lawyer today and telling him to go ahead, soon as possible I’ll get some men ready to get to work on diverting the water.”

“Your father and brother don’t seem to be in agreement with you, Derwent. Look, while I’m here let me ask you to tell your brother to steer clear of the Ponderosa as well. He’s not welcome there and if I get to hear he’s been anywhere near any of our women, I won’t treat him as kindly as Luke has.”

“I’m sorry -”

“Don’t apologise for him either.” Adam snapped angrily, “He stands or falls by his own actions, I doubt if he’d care much about any apology from you on his behalf.”

“He wouldn’t but -” Derwent shook his head and extended his hand “Thanks, Adam. Luke. I hope I’ll still be welcome on your land?”

“Sure, Derwent.” Luke said shaking the other mans hand with a sincerity that he didn’t entirely feel. Adam shook Derwent’s hand and nodded, then turned Sports head in the direction of home.

Chapter 28

Derwent sat in the saddle looking at the house that he had helped his father and brother build quite some years earlier. It wasn’t as big as the Ponderosa, but it was a good size for all that. His mother had loved it, especially the views from the back windows. He sighed and slowly dismounted. Just recently it had stopped being home to him, he felt that after so many hard years of work and love he had put into the Bar J was being thrown back into his face.

Hugh was face down on the table, cradling his head in his arms and snoring loudly. The empty whiskey bottle rolling across the table was enough of a clue as to why. Brett Jessop sat up straight and stared at Derwent for a moment before asking him where he had been. “You’re not my keeper, Brett, I don’t have to tell you where I’ve been.”

“No, you don’t.” Brett replied, and rose unsteadily to his feet “You went after Cartwright and that other fellow didn’t you? What did you say to them? Sorry for my brother being a naughty boy again? When are you going to realise, brother, they couldn’t give a cuss for you.”

“So?” Derwent shrugged and looked around the room, fleetingly thought of the comfort it had provided over the years after a hard days work, the pleasure of returning after the weeks away on the cattle trail. “As neither of you give a cuss about me it hardly matters, does it?”

He walked out of the room and into his own private place and closed the door behind him. Brett was like a cancer that grew and grew until it had done its mischief in killing off its host, Derwent was determined it wouldn’t be him.

Hugh was awake when he returned with his saddle bags packed, in silence he went to the rifle rack and took one down and rummaged in a drawer for the ammunition. Hugh’s mouth dropped open “Whar you going with that?”

“It ain’t no business of yours no more, I’m leaving here. You can do what you want with the Bar J. I’m not going to slave every day of my life to keep Brett and you in whiskey.”

“If you were half the man Brett was the Bar J would be a bigger and better place than anything in the territory.” Hugh lurched forward and grabbed Derwents arm, “You know that, don’t you? You’re jealous of your own brother.”

“Nothing,” Derwent said soberly, “Nothing on this earth could be further from the truth.” he glared over at his brother who was leaning about the hearth staring at him with a glassy eyed expression on his face, “You’re welcome to each other.”

…………….

For Adam it was a relief to get home and after seeing to his horse he strode back into the house and slowly removed his outer clothing. The room was not as warm as it should have been so after stacking the fire with logs he paused a moment to let the silence enshroud him. It was strange, he was so seldom alone in the house and now it seemed wrong without the sound of Olivia about the place, the shouts and laughter of the children. He looked up the stairs and after a moment’s pause carefully stretched himself, his back hurt and he wished that he had Hop Sing bustling up with his ointments and brews to massage into the aches and pains. He flexed his fingers and then his injured shoulder and groaned slightly at the aching pain .

With a grunting sigh he relaxed his body and made his way to the kitchen in order to prepare himself some coffee but paused at the sound of a horse entering the yard so that after a quick glance at where his gun belt had been placed he turned and made his way to the door.

“Derwent?”

The other man nodded and cleared his throat, “Is it alright to come inside and talk awhile, Adam?”

Adam nodded and stood at the doorway while Derwent dismounted and tethered the horse to the rail before joining him at the threshold, upon which he closed the door, “I was about to make some coffee. Care to join me?”

“Thank you.” Derwent followed him to the other room, his eyes scanning the rooms as he passed through them, “I’ve left the Bar J.”

Adam cast him a sharp look and raised his eyebrows “Any reason why, apart from that brother of yours?”

Derwent nodded “There’s no point in staying any longer. I’ve spent years working to get that place where it is today. To some extent I’ve had a pretty loose rein since Brett left with Pa being as he is, so I worked because I wanted to have something that would be worth having, something to be proud of, like you are of the Ponderosa.”

“Well, your work never went unnoticed, Derwent. Here -” he passed the coffee filled cup to his visitor, “Not much point in pursuing the project with regard to the water then?”

“No. Brett and Pa are two of a kind, like my cousin, Peter. If it doesn’t drop into your lap then it isn’t worth having, working hard isn’t their creed in life.”

“But it was at one time, I can recall going with my Pa to help with your well, wasn’t it?”

“True enough. Pa worked hard for some years, got little reward for it and then Ma -.” he paused and stared down into the coffee swirling in the cup, “You know she left us? She went to town and worked in the saloon there? She said she was used to the smell of whiskey and rot gut, but the men treated her better there …” he heaved a sigh, “I can remember her saying that one day when we went to ask her to come home. She was lovely, you know? Different from the other women ‘cause she was wearing such a pretty colourful dress with beads and sparkles on it … I remember thinking how pretty she was, not like the tired faded out woman who slaved away for us back home.”

“I didn’t know -.” Adam pulled out a chair and sat down, indicating to Derwent that he should do likewise.

“You were at college then. It wasn’t long afterwards that there was the fight in the saloon and she was shot, got caught in the cross fire. Pa was there, drunk, although he wasn’t involved in the fight at all, had even tried to save her -. That’s when he gave up really, something inside of him got blown out kinda.”

“It happens.” Adam murmured with sigh.

“My cousin Peter arrived about then, he stayed with us until he went to work for the Bishops. He only went there because of Amy. Well, you know all about that anyway.”

“Yes, I believe so.” Adam gulped down some of the coffee and flexed his shoulders a little to ease the niggling pain down his back.

“Brett blamed Joe for Pete’s death. He envied you for going to college.” Derwent rubbed his face “I don’t know why I’m talking so much. I’m sorry. Look, I came to ask you if you would give me work. I can’t be idle and -”

“Your father and brother would hardly appreciate it if they knew you were coming to work here with us, Derwent.”

He nodded “I know, I thought about that but you’ll need to sign men on soon, and the Bar J men have agreed to come with me.” he gulped more coffee, “I saw Jim before coming here and told him about what was happening. He said the men would not want to stay with Pa and Brett.”

“All your work there, it’ll be ruined with no men staying to work with the cattle and everything. Do you really want to see it fall apart?”

“I can’t stay. It’s their responsibility now.” he drained the cup dry and placed it back on the table. “Thanks for listening anyway.”

“You know that with you gone, and if the men leave, then Brett will hire his gunslinger friends to come and take their place. He’ll do all he can to create that range war he’s always talking about, and without you there -?” his voice trailed away, hanging on air as Derwent just shook his head.

“Adam, if I were there I wouldn’t be able to stop him. He has my father’s backing 100%.” he looked at the empty cup but declined any more when Adam reached for the pot, “I’ve got to go into town and draw out the money to pay off Jim and the men. After that, if you’re prepared to hire us, we’ll be available.”

“Well, technically speaking Pa does the hiring, Derwent. Is the Bar J solvent? I meant, if you’re able to draw out funds to pay off your hands, would you have enough to do that?”

“Yes, I’ve an agreement with the bank that they pay out monies only if my name is on the cheque.” He glanced thoughtfully at Adam and raised his eyebrows, “Oh, now - that gives me an idea.”

“I thought perhaps it would.” Adam smiled.

“I’ll go to town and see what Mr. Weems, advises or what help he can give me. I’ll stay there for a day or two, and if your father is willing to hire us, then perhaps you would let me know. I’ll be at the International.”

“Every success, Derwent, you deserve it.” Adam paused, “Don’t give up on the Bar J. Your father may need you back there sooner than you think.”

Derwent shrugged and for a moment Adam thought he was going to speak but after thanking Adam again, he turned and left the building.

Closing the door on his visitor Adam returned to stand before the fire which was now burning lustily with renewed vigour. He ran a hand over his hair and winced as his fingers touched the injury he had sustained when he had struck his head against the wheel the previous day. He sat down and stared into the flames as he thought over the conundrum that was Brett Jessop, and the possible dangers that could befall his family should the man be able to vent his hatred upon them.

He was still deep in thought when the sounds of the horses came into the yard and he slowly unravelled himself from the chair and approached the door. Sofia reached him first, running to him and clinging to his leg and looking up into his face so that he stooped down to pick her up and kiss her as she hugged her arms around him. His smile turned to his wife who was walking towards him without her usual look of pleasure that seeing him again usually appeared. Instead there was an anxious frown, nervous flicks of the eyes and a tight smile. He followed the direction of her eyes and noticed then the other woman stepping down from the buggy. He held Sofia tightly as though he also needed some kind of bulwark between himself and this new arrival into their lives.

“Adam,” Olivia was forcing a note of gaiety to her voice, “Adam, this is Katya, my sister.” she turned to take Katya’s hand in hers, “Katya, this is my husband, Adam Cartwright.”

Katya turned to look at this man of whom she had heard so much and appreciated that what she had heard was all true. He was no longer in the flush of youth, but had the solid bulk of a maturer man; and his hair was no longer jet black curls but appeared lighter due to the strands of silver and grey that were present; she saw also the scrutiny of his dark eyes that looked past her scars and her looks into what seemed to be her very innermost being and it made her shiver.

“Olivia has told me so much about you, Adam.”

She extended her hand which he took in his own and her fingers folded around his own and she felt his strength in the way he tightened his hold on her. There was no doubt about it, Adam Cartwright was a handsome man, and a discerning one. She smiled and received a smile in return.

“Welcome to the Ponderosa.” he said in that deep voice Olivia had told her about, and he stood aside to let her enter the house, Sofia still in his arms and Reuben now standing by his side.

Chapter 29

Roy Coffee felt tired. The past few months had seemed to drag along and winter still held its grip, although it was loosening. The days started with him looking at his badge of office and wondering if the time really had come when he should put to aside and retire. He looked around the office and nodded over at Clem who was checking the rifle rack, and there was Dodds making the early morning coffee. The other two deputies had worked their shift and were now home with their wives and families. Roy puffed out his moustache, perhaps if he had wife and family to go home to he would have retired a long time back.

He pulled his coat tighter around his more ample proportions and walked out to stand on the sidewalk and observe what was happening in town. Children hurrying to school with shrieks and laughter, some less happy and some little girls hurrying together as they whispered their secrets. He sighed and glanced over to watch as Derwent Jessop entered the bank. He frowned, that was the second time he’d seen the young man go into the building and he wondered what exactly was going on especially as Jessop had been staying in town for the past two days now.

He rubbed his chin and was about to turn back into the warmth of his office when he saw Jim Galbey and several of the Bar J dismounting outside the Mercantile, they were talking among themselves amicably enough as they walked down the street to where the Bluebird Café provided hearty breakfasts at a reasonable price.

A few moments later Jessop left the bank with a smug smile on his face and made his way to the Café, causing Roy to shake his head and scratch the back of his neck before going back inside.

“Clem, know anything about what’s going on at the Bar J?”

Clem shook his head “Seen some of the men in town, odd when you think of the amount of work that should be keeping ’em at the ranch.”

Dodds placed steaming mugs of coffee on the desk “I heard tell that Derwent’s taken to staying at the Internationale. He had a falling out with his father and brother.”

“Is that all?” Roy sighed as he swallowed hot coffee and consequently scalded his mouth.

“Most of the Bar J men have left the ranch. Jim Galbey and some have got work at other places. Some have just drifted off - that’s what I heard anyhow.”

Roy nodded, Dodds usually got his information from his wife who was as reliable about things as the Territorial Enterprise. After a moment or two he observed to no one in particular that the Jessops - Hugh and Brett - weren’t going to be happy when discovering they had no men to work the ranch, especially with a round up to get under way for the cattle drive to Tucson.

……………….

Adam rose to his feet and indicated with a lift of the eyebrows that Reuben did likewise as Katya came into the room to take her seat for breakfast. After apologising for being late she thanked them for waiting and sat down.

Olivia hurried to bring a platter of eggs and ham to the table and then sat down, poured out coffee for everyone and then turned her attention to Sofia. Katya’s eyes roamed around the table and she smiled “Everyone’s very quiet this morning?”

“There’s a lot to do on a ranch the size of the Ponderosa,” Adam said quietly as he spooned sugar into his coffee, “Reuben and I have been up early doing our chores, haven’t we, son?”

Reuben nodded and looked round eyed at his father before continuing to stuff food into his mouth. Olivia passed the bread to her sister “Adam has to meet up with his father and brothers so it’s always rather hectic first thing.”

Katya blinked long lashed eyes as she glanced at Adam and then Olivia, “Am I being in the way? Perhaps I should move back into town, it’s just that -”

“No, no,” Olivia smiled and placed her hand upon Katya’s arm, “Don’t be silly. You mustn’t even think that, we’re just glad we had the extra room here for you.”

Adam said nothing but pushed aside his empty plate and gulped down his drink before rising to his feet “ I must go, Pa will be waiting.” he turned to Katya “Excuse me, Katya.” then he turned to his wife, “I’m not sure when I’ll be back, don’t wait up …”

She smiled and raised her face for his kiss, and grabbed his hand for a gentle squeeze of his fingers before he left her to drop a kiss on Sofia’s upturned face and ruffle Reuben’s hair as he passed them. They listened to the sounds of his preparing to leave the house and then the door closed. For a moment no one spoke until Katya broke the silence “Adam’s a very busy man, isn’t he?”

“Yes. But it’s as he said, a ranch the size of the Ponderosa demands a lot of time and attention. Sofia, eat your food nicely, dear. Reuben, if you’ve finished you can leave the table.” after speaking thus she returned to her sister “You’ll get used to it after a while.”

“I doubt it.” Katya toyed with her bread and looked thoughtfully around the room, “Why don’t you live in the big house? Adam’s the eldest brother after all and should be the one living there, surely?”

Olivia laughed lightly “Adam was at sea when Hoss married Hester, so it was perfectly logical for them to stay on the Ponderosa with Ben and Joe. Adam could hardly come back and expect them to move out, especially as he could be back at sea at any time.”

Katya raised her eyebrows and looked intently at her sister before shrugging slightly and cutting into her food. After a few moments she said in a deliberate tone of voice “I thought he had resigned from the sea?”

“What gave you that idea?”

“Just that I thought seamen only ever had several months leave before going back on board ship and from what I heard he’s been home nearly a year.”

Olivia cleared her throat and glanced over at her son who was very carefully braiding a lariat, copying one that Adam had shown him earlier. She lowered her voice “He was ill for some months after his last trip away. He’s been on sick leave and has asked for his resignation to be accepted but -” she frowned and hurriedly concluded “for some reason they won’t accept it.”

Katya shrugged again, “Well, it really isn’t any of my business anyway. It’s just that I’d have thought, after dragging you all the way out here to this desolate neck of the woods, he would at least give you the reassurance of knowing he’d be home for good.”

“Adam didn’t drag me here. I came because father died and we needed to get out of San Francisco. In fact I approached him when I saw him in San Francisco to ask him for his help.” she smiled slightly at the memory and her voice softened “He was very kind, considering he didn’t really know me and I was taking advantage of our brief acquaintance when children.” she paused and then looked at her sister thoughtfully as she wondered just how well she knew her little sister after all, “I thought I’d explained that?”

“I’m sorry. I forgot.”

Sofia wriggled in her chair and asked to leave the table whereupon she ran to where Reuben was busy. Olivia watched him as he proudly showed her the work he had completed already before the little girl sat down to draw pictures on some paper. She sighed and looked at Katya, “What would you like to do today, Katya?”

“Could I take one of the horses and go riding? It seems a long time since I rode a horse.”

“Yes, of course you can, but you will be careful, won’t you? Just keep to the tracks so you don’t get lost. I’m still never sure where to go myself, the Ponderosa’s so big.”

“I remember Pa always saying so. I always got the impression he was relieved that the Double D was so much smaller.” Katya replied and picked up her cup “My foremost memory as a child was hating living on the Double D. I hated everything about ranching and I woke up every morning dreading facing father. I lived for the day when I could find some reason to escape it.”

“Well, you did, didn’t you?” Olivia began to collect up the dishes and stood up to take them to the sink, while Katya drank her coffee and watched her over the cup’s rim

“Yes, I married Drummond. After that life changed a lot for me, it was wonderful, Livvy, going to Europe and travelling. I don’t suppose you’ve gone anywhere further than San Francisco have you?”

Olivia stared intently at the coffee pot and decided not to feel as though her sister were being deliberately argumentative so just shook her head “No, I never went anywhere other than where those I loved were.”

“And you loved Robert?”

“Very much. Reuben’s a lot like him, he was a very fine man.” she carried the dishes to the sink and set them down, then returned to the table to collect the remaining ones.

“But you love Adam more?”

Olivia’s eyes flashed emerald, and she looked up and stared into the cool blue of Katya’s eyes; she paused a moment before answering as the calm look on the other woman’s face quelled her anger, but she nodded “I love Adam - differently.” she reached for the Katya’s plate “Have you finished, Katya, only I have work to do?”

“Of course.” Katya stood up and brushed down her skirt, “Do you have any hands on this part of the ranch? I need someone to saddle the horse for me.”

“I’m sorry, Katya, that’s something you’ll have to do for yourself.” Olivia snapped through compressed lips as she worked the sluice handle for water.

Katya shook her head “You see what I mean? He’s a high ranking officer and on his pay he should have some servants employed at least-.”

As the door closed Olivia realised she had broken the handle from one of the cups. It seemed the day was not starting out well at all. She began to scrub at the pots and stopped only when she realised Reuben was standing beside her “What’s the matter, Reuben, do you need help with the lariat?”

“No, Ma, I - I just wanted to know if Aunt Katya was right, Pa ain’t going back to sea, is he?”

She heaved in a deep breath and shook her head, “Don’t worry about it, dear. Aunt Katya doesn’t know what she’s talking about.”

Reuben nodded as though in full agreement with the sentiment, he’d been of that opinion ever since they first met her.

…………….

Mary Ann was more than pleased to welcome Katya into her home. They had met the previous evening when the family had gathered at the Ponderosa ranch house for one of Hop Sings special sweet potato and pork meals. Although the sight of Katya’s scars made Mary Ann feel a little uneasy she had no reason to feel negatively about her and even let her hold baby Daniel while she made the coffee.

“Don’t you have any servants?” Katya asked as she sat by the fire with the baby in her lap.

“Servants? Why no, of course not.” Mary Ann laughed as though such an idea was out of the question,

“Then who was that woman who was here earlier? She was just leaving in the buggy?”

“That’s Bridie - she helps me here, but she isn’t a servant, well, I don’t view her as a servant, nor does Joe. She’s a friend companion.” Mary Ann stated the words with aplomb, she’d read it recently in her latest Jane Austen and it seemed so suitable for Bridie than the term - servant.

“When I was married to Drummond we had a houseful of servants. It was wonderful. Someone to draw my bath, help me dress and saddle my horse. I had to saddle my own horse this morning …wouldn’t you rather live some where else than here? Have servants and a big house in San Francisco, or Sacramento? Surely your husband could afford it?”

“Joe wouldn’t dream of leaving here, the Ponderosa is his life.” Mary Ann paused shyly and gave a little laugh “I love it here too, I think it would break my heart to leave. Adam designed this house for us, and God provided the view … I couldn’t wish for more.”

“The Double D was my father’s life as well.” Katya sighed and looked around for somewhere to put the baby, she really wasn’t a ‘baby’ kind of person and the novelty of fussing over this one was wearing thin, “You could have a nanny for the children. I mean - the baby.”

Mary Ann put the tray down on the low table and took her son from her visitor’s arms, and held him close, enjoying the smell of him and the warmth of his sweet breath against her neck. “We’re quite happy as we are, thank you, Katya.”

“My mother must have thought that too, once. Father worked so hard that it wasn’t long before she was worn down, tired and - well - you know what happened, I daresay Olivia has told you all about the family’s skeletons?”

Mary Ann said nothing but skilfully changed the subject by asking Katya to tell her about where she had lived and then a little about her husband. By the time Katya took her leave the young woman felt discontented and disgruntled and more than a little depressed.

Katya returned to Olivia and Adam’s home in high spirits, she successfully unsaddled the horse and tended to it before making her way to her room to ‘freshen up’ as she said to Olivia who was carefully sewing one of Adam’s shirts. As Katya’s door closed Olivia found herself thinking how glad she was that Hop Sings cousin did the laundry, and having thought that felt thoroughly miserable at the realisation that something as pathetic as laundry had come to mind instead of a far more exotic subject …for the first time since her marriage she suddenly had a longing for her house in San Francisco with Marcy there to help with the chores.

…………..

Hugh Jessop looked blearily up at his son who had slammed the door so loudly that everything on the shelves had jumped and rattled and threatened to crash down. He shook his head in an attempt to clear it from an ever present fog “What’s wrong with you coming in like that?”

“I can’t find the men.”

“What men?”

“Your ranch hands. They ain’t to be seen hide nor hair of ‘em.”

“Did you look for ‘em?” Hugh belched and reached for a bottle which Brett pulled away from him

“Of course I’ve looked for them. The bunk house is empty and so’s every other place I’ve been to. The stocks running loose everywhere - and where’s Derwent?”

“He left, don’t you remember? Even I remember that!” Hugh said triumphantly.

Brett paused and narrowed his eyes, then nodded “So he did. When was that?”

Hugh shrugged “Dunno - some time back - a couple of days I think.”

“A couple of days?” Brett exploded and slammed his fist onto the table as he repeated the statement, “How come we never stopped him?”

“Dunno, he just went. Thought he’d come back ‘cepting that he didn’t.”

Brett sat down slowly and stared at the far wall with his mouth pinched and tight, his eyes narrowed slits and his breathing fast and shallow, then he nodded “Doesn’t matter. I’ll hire some men of my own. Men I know how to handle rather than that mealy mouthed lot Derwent had working for him.”

He looked around the room as though seeing it for the first time and then rose to his feet, “I’m going into town, and while I’m away make sure you get this place cleared up, it looks like a pig sty.”

…………….

That night both Olivia and Mary Ann sought solace in the comfort of their husband’s arms. When Mary Ann sighed and turned away from Joe he dismissed it as natural, she was a new mother and obviously tired. He stroked her hair and kissed her shoulder and when that brought no response he whispered that he loved her and then turned over to try and get some sleep. While he worried about how he could help his little wife from being so weary Mary Ann closed her eyes and dreamed of living in a large house in town with maids and a nanny running around doing this and doing that, but it didn’t make sleep come any easier or faster.

Adam looked thoughtfully at Olivia before whispering “What’s wrong? You don’t seem - well - you don’t seem quite yourself tonight?”

“I’m sorry, I guess I’m just tired.” she put a hand to his face and looked into his eyes and saw there confusion and disappointment, “I’m sorry.”

“Is having Katya here proving too much work for you? She is helping isn’t she?”

“I can hardly expect her to work in the house, Adam. She’s our guest.” she cleared her throat, “Adam, I was thinking - ?”

“What?” he said softly and kissed her lips gently.

“It doesn’t matter.” she sighed and turned away.

Adam waited a moment, as though expecting her to turn back into his arms and kiss him with the ardour to which he had been accustomed. When she didn’t he merely stroked her arm, dropped a kiss upon her bare shoulder and with a sigh turned onto his back to survey the ceiling and wonder what he had done wrong.

Olivia felt guilty and resentful, and somehow inside her head she felt all tangled up with questions and doubts and uncertainties. She closed her eyes to try and sleep but was too aware of her husband lying beside her as still as a dead thing, as though he were frightened to move in case she got the wrong impression as to why he did so. She found her thoughts going round and round in her head of all that had been said and done since the morning and it wasn’t until Adam’s deeper breathing assured her that he was actually asleep was she finally able to drift into a troubled sleep herself.

Chapter 30

Reuben was proud of his lariat and was showing it to Adam when Katya appeared for breakfast the following morning. She smiled and greeted them brightly before taking her seat and asking Reuben what it was that he was making and as he showed it to her Adam took a moment to survey her thoughtfully.

She was an attractive woman, before the scars she would have been described as very vivacious indeed with her fair colouring and vivid blue eyes. As a contrast to her sister Adam could see their fathers stamp more upon her features than on Olivia’s who bore the resemblance to her mother beautifully.

As though aware of his scrutiny she glanced up and met his eyes, then smiled as she gently pushed the boy away to talk to her brother-in-law. “I don’t intend to stay here for long, Adam, so please don’t be thinking that I’ll outstay my welcome.”

“Why should you do that?” he smiled slowly, “Coffee?” he picked up the pot and when she nodded poured some into her cup. “As Olivia told you yesterday, we’re more than pleased to have you here.”

Her lips twisted into a parody of a smile, “I got the impression yesterday that you were less than pleased.” she picked the cup up and sipped it slowly, “Will you be leaving here soon?”

“How do you mean?” he crooked an eyebrow, “I have to go into town this morning but apart from that it’s just work as usual.”

“Oh, I just wondered. Olivia said your resignation hadn’t been accepted?”

He looked at her thoughtfully, then shrugged “True enough.”

“Then you could be summoned back to sea at any time?”

“It’s possible. My sick leave was extended indefinitely but I have found in the past that the Admiralty has a long arm and an even longer memory.” he smiled and shrugged and refilled his cup.

“Haven’t you thought of how Olivia would handle being here alone? The children aren’t exactly of companionable age yet, and the other women are quite a distance away from here?”

He narrowed his eyes and lowered the cup carefully upon the saucer “And so - what are you implying?”

“Nothing. Just suggesting that’s all -.” she smiled and he noticed for the first time how one of the scars ended at the corner of her lip, giving her an almost permanent smirk.

“What exactly are you suggesting, Katya?”

“She needs help here. It isn’t a small house, surely you could afford to provide her with servants and -.” she paused at the sound of Olivia coming with platters filled with food which she set down on the table, “Hester has Hop Sing after all.”

“Hester inherited Hop Sing.” Adam said quietly “He came to the Ponderosa when Hoss and I were young.”

Katya looked at her sister who had placed bowls of oatmeal on the table for the children who were hurrying to take their seats at the table. “Olivia, surely you would like help around the house here? Someone like Mary Ann’s lady companion?”

Olivia just laughed and looked at her husband who was observing her closely, “I’m happy as I am, Katya. Now, enough talk, let’s eat before it all gets cold.”

……………

Derwent sat down at the far table in the Bucket of Blood saloon and glanced over at the clock which had had reached the hour when the doors opened and Adam, Ben and Joe Cartwright entered. It was Ben who joined Derwent at the table while Joe and Adam placed orders before making their way over, taking their seats and removing their hats.

“How are you getting on, Derwent?” Ben asked, “Adam told me about your leaving the Bar J? I have to admit I was quite surprised, well, more than surprised when he did, I thought after all the time you had dedicated to the place it would have been the last thing you would have wanted.”

“The last thing I want, Mr. Cartwright, is to watch it fall apart under my father and brother’s mismanagement. I also do not want to be part of what my brother is planning … a range war isn’t pretty.”

Joe nodded and leaned forward “You really think that’s what Brett wants?”

“He’s got it all planned out. He has a map with your homes marked on it, he knows where most of your men are working at any given time, when the houses are most vulnerable -”

“What do you mean by that?” Joe snapped immediately.

“He knows when there are no men near any of the houses, your women are alone.” Derwent frowned, “I don’t have to spell it out, do I?”

“No.” Ben said in a deep growl of a voice, “So what else has he planned?”

“He’ll know by now that the men have, mostly, left the ranch and he’ll start thinking of hiring new men. He’ll not be planning to get horse breakers or cowboys, he’ll be hiring gun men, men he’s got acquainted with in Virginia.”

Adam looked at his father and then at Joe before turning his eyes to Jessop, “So what do we do about it?”

Derwent leaned forward, “He isn’t interested in that land, or the water, the situation has moved on from that dispute. He’ll just leave it as it is - a cause or excuse over which he can fight. I’ve been to the lawyers and squared things with them. I’ve been to the bank and discussed the matter with Mr. Weems who was very helpful. You see, some years back my Pa had an accident, couldn’t get into town for months so he signed a Power of Attorney over to me to have control over the finances to do with the ranch. I’ve paid off all the hands to date.”

“And?” Joe cleared his throat, “Where does that leave Brett and your Pa?”

“I was getting the herd ready for the round up, but -” he shook his head, “that’s all over with now of course, Brett isn’t interesting in ranching, but whatever goes wrong on the BarJ will be blamed on you. Fact is, when the men he ‘hires’ ride in and he needs to pay them, he won’t be able to, nor will Pa. There’s just enough money in the account to pay for their necessaries. Each month that’s all that they’ll get. The rest of the money is in an account gathering interest to put the place to rights when they’ve finished with it. If there’s a place left -.”

They were quiet for a moment as Ben looked at his two sons and then looked back at Derwent, “What are you going to do?”

“As I said, I don’t want to be no part of this range war. I don’t want to see all I’ve worked on fall apart either. Mr. Weems and I have come to an agreement and I know I can trust him to see to it all. I’m catching the next train from Gold Hill to Carson City and then on to Indian Territory.”

Joe gave a low whistle and shook his head “Never thought I’d see the day you’d up and go.”

“Nor did I.” Derwent said with a sigh, “But I don’t want to be associated with Brett, it’s time to move on.” he stood up and reached for his hat, “Thanks for everything, Mr. Cartwright, Adam, Joe -.”

They shook his hand warmly, wished him well and then resumed their seats as they watched him walk out of the saloon. Adam looked at his father and brother, “Well, what do you think?”

Joe nodded “I reckon he’s doing the right thing, why hang around and watch the Bar J being wrecked. I couldn’t handle that happening to the Ponderosa.”

“I meant, what do you think about what he said with regard to our wives? I don’t like the idea of Olivia and the children being set up as some kind of hostage by the likes of Brett Jessop.” Adam murmured and looked thoughtfully at the beer in his glass, “What do you think, Joe?”

“It may never come to anything, after all he’s got to have enough money to pay off those men, if he ever gets round to hiring them.” Joe muttered although his frown had deepened.

Adam looked now at Ben who nodded thoughtfully “I think I’ll go and pay a neighbourly visit on Hugh. Time for us to talk business.”

Adam looked rather doubtful about the outcome of that suggestion but nodded. When Ben got to his feet his sons were right behind him, settling their hats back on their heads as they stepped out onto the sidewalk.

Brett Jessop was cleaning his revolver when the three Cartwrights rode into the Bar J yard. He saw them from the window and called to his father to go and see to them while he took his position just shy of the glass so that he could watch without being seen. He’d returned to the ranch the previous day having sent a flurry of telegrams to various men he knew and was feeling almost cheerful. He spun the chamber of his gun and lovingly continued to clean it.

Of course the house hadn’t been any cleaner upon his return than it had upon his departure and it hadn’t been pleasant trying to create something to eat from the meagre rations left in the cupboards. That morning he had killed some rabbits and their bloodied carcases were still strewn across the table.

He watched as Hugh made his way to the door and pulled it open before the three men had even dismounted. “What do you want?”

“I want to talk to you, Hugh.” Ben said in a genial tone of voice, “As friends and neighbours.”

“You and me ain’t friends, and as for being neighbours, that’s more by accident than design. Say what’s on your mind and then get out of here.”

Ben nodded and eased himself in his saddle, placing his hands on the saddle horn he leaned forward slightly “Talk in town is that your men have downed tools.”

“That’s just talk.”

“Didn’t see no sign of any men as we rode through. Fact is, I saw Jim Gilbey in town and he said he had no intention of working for the Bar J again. Derwent -”

“What about him?”

“He was getting the cattle ready for the round up. You’re going to need help if you intend getting them to Tucson later in the year.”

Hugh thought about that for a moment and then shook his head “Derwent will see to it when he gets back.”

Ben looked at the house, a dark shadow had appeared at the window and now disappeared, he looked back at Hugh “Derwents left town. He has no intention of staying here, Hugh, he’s gone.”

Hugh took that news without a flicker of an eye, apart from the fact that he had drunk so much licquor that his brain failed to function too quickly anyway, he also didn’t believe what he had been told so he just shrugged and shook his head. The sound of the horses moving, the creak of leather from the saddles were all that could be heard for some minutes before he said “Why are you here?”

“To offer you any help you need, as I said before, that’s what neighbours do, they look out for each other.” Ben replied with a smile on his face.

Even before Hugh could register what had been said the door to the house burst open and Brett stood there, the gun in his hand levelled at the horsemen, “We don’t want your help. If you don’t turn your horses round and ride on out of here right now, Cartwright, I swear you’ll be one son less.”

Immediately Adam and Joe slowly, cautiously, reached for the feel of their pistols, resting the palms of their hands on the handles and their eyes fixed on Bretts face.

“I’m warning you, Cartwright -.”

Hugh stepped forward and raised a hand “You heard what my boy said, it’s best you do just what he says. Stay away from here, Cartwright. Any one of you step foot on Bar J land and you’ll be blasted out of the saddle.”

……………….

Katya hadn’t really enjoyed her little chat with Hester Cartwright. In her opinion Hester was just too sure of herself, and not only that, she didn’t seem bothered about Katya’s feelings at all. Whenever Katya had put forward a suggestion or a hint of how Hester could better herself by having servants, having a bigger house or even touring Europe, she had been greeted with a mocking laugh, and the comment that as far as she, Hester Cartwright was concerned, life on the Ponderosa was just perfect, who in their right mind would want to clutter their home with servants or leave to go and look around places that had no appeal to her at all.

“It’ll help broaden your mind,” Katya had said sharply to which Hester had laughed again and said rather bluntly “Are you implying that my mind needs broadening, Katya?”

As she walked slowly to the buggy that she had had to ask Adam to fix up for her earlier Katya was mulling over in her mind what a bad tempered spiteful woman Hester was, and obviously a woman who thought much too much of herself. No doubt her husband and Ben Cartwright made her think they couldn’t survive without her which gave her such an inflated opinion of herself.

Hoss Cartwright ambled out of the stables with a bridle in his hands which he was polishing carefully, he glanced up and smiled as Katya approached and then became concerned upon seeing the sadness on her face. “Hi, Miss Katya, how’re you doing?”

“I - I don’t really know,” she sighed, “I thought I was getting on alright with your wife, Hoss, but I think I must have said something wrong… or perhaps …” she raised a hand to her face and her fingers played along the ridges of her scars “Maybe my scars …”

Hoss shook his head and approached her slowly, “There ain’t nothing wrong with your scars, Miss. I mean - I mean -”

“There you are, you see? Oh Hoss, you can’t imagine how my life has been blighted by these scars, as though it isn’t bad enough to have the memories of that night forever in my mind but to have these -”

“Now, now,” Hoss said as gently as he would speak to a skittish little foal, “We can’t always change what’s happened, but we can learn how to handle life after it’s happened. Ifn’ you know what I mean?”

“No, I - I don’t -” she whispered looking up at him with vivid tear filled eyes, “Tell me what you mean, Hoss?”

Hoss blushed a little, they were standing side by side now, and she was a little shorter than Hester, and he could smell her perfume, it was very rich and musky. He cleared his throat and was about to step back when she reached out and took hold of his hand “You’re so kind, Hoss, but look - look at them - how ugly they are, how ugly I’ve become?”

He looked and was thinking that perhaps they weren’t as bad as she seemed to think, when whether it was by purpose or accident he didn’t know, but his hand gently touched her cheek and he was saying something about how things were never as bad as they seem and he was aware of her being very close to him, closer than any woman had stood since before he married Hester.

From the door Hester saw her husband caress Katya’s face, his concerned face, gentle and tender, the woman’s body inclined towards his … she saw what Katya wanted her to see so that it was with a slight smile of malicious contentment Katya made her way to the buggy with Hoss innocently following, his hand to her elbow to assist her into her seat. She leaned down, a tumble of golden curls obscuring their faces as she whispered “Thank you, Hoss. How sweet you are.”

Hester stepped back into the shadows of the room and placed her hand on her heart as she asked herself if she had seen what she thought she had … or had she imagined it? When Katya had leaned down did that fall of hair conceal a kiss? Had Hoss kissed her? Had Katya kissed him? She listened to the sound of the buggy rolling out of the yard and waited for Hoss to come into the house and reassure her that all was well. But, he didn’t come …

Chapter 31

Hester still had not fully regained her composure when Mary Ann arrived with little Daniel in his basket. It was so unusual to see her sister in law so ruffled that Mary Ann tentatively asked her if anything had happened to upset her and if, perhaps, she would prefer to have some time to herself, but Hester just hugged her close and said that seeing her and the baby were the best things she could wish for at that moment.

Hannah was playing happily in the corner and after accepting her Aunt’s hug resumed her little game contentedly enough. A baby had very little appeal to Hannah and it wasn’t long before the two women were settled down to talk over their tea and cake. No sooner had they started than the sound of a buggy intruded upon the conversation and Hester got up to open the door to Olivia and the children. This weekly sisterly get together was an enjoyable past time and enabled them all to catch up with their various problems or to pass on any gossip they had heard.

Now Hannah gave a squeal of delight at the sight of Sofia and grabbed her hand to include her in the game while Reuben showed Hester the lariat he had made and asked if he could go and show Uncle Hoss. Hester would dearly have loved to have told Olivia what she thought about her sister, but decided to say nothing, she felt within herself that what she had seen was so unbelievable that she really had to torment herself a while longer to make sure it actually had happened. It was Mary Ann who said very quietly that she had a visit from Katya and that it had upset her quite a bit.

“I know I shouldn’t have allowed it to prey on my mind, after all I am so very happy, but it’s the way Katya implied things and - and by the time she left I felt so very miserable. I even dreamt about it and was really mean to Joe.”

The other two ladies stared at her and then at the walls of the room as they tried to think of what to say, but they didn’t have to think too hard as Mary Ann continued “I think she must be homesick for England, the way she talks about her home there and the servants.”

“That’s all she spoke about when she came here.” Hester said slowly, “I thought it strange that she never spoke about her husband. Drummond wasn’t it? She kept insisting that I got myself more servants. Olivia, I really think your sister is a very sad and unhappy woman.”

Olivia was dismayed at learning just how ill received her sisters visits had been to her two sisters in law. She apologised on her behalf and admitted that even now she knew very little about Drummond Purcell, and had assumed that his death must have been too distressing for Katya to openly discuss him just yet. “She probably needs a little more time to confide in us. I mean, even though I’m her sister she is still, quite honestly, a stranger to me.”

“She didn’t like Daniel. She isn’t the motherly type.” Mary Ann added for good measure and looked at her baby with that doting Madonna look that rather irritated the other two women.

“Perhaps you’re right, Mary Ann, perhaps she is homesick for England.” Olivia said eventually, “I shall have to talk to her about it and see if we can help her get back home.”

Talk now turned to other subjects that were more relaxing and pleasant, Olivia showed them the knitting she was doing and Hester brought out the little dress she was making Hannah while Mary Ann fed her son.

In the stable Hoss was showing Reuben how to clean the tack, telling him that it wouldn’t be long before Adam would be expecting him to know how to do it. Sitting on the top rung of the stall Reuben cleaned and polished and listened to Hoss talk about some of the adventures the three brothers had shared together.

It was agreed with Hester and Hoss that Sofia and Reuben would stay the night at the Ponderosa. It was going to be a pleasant surprise - they hoped - for Ben and provide Olivia an opportunity to execute some plans of her own. As she turned her rig towards home Olivia felt a little tremble of excitement at how well everything was working out, having already seen Katya off to visit Luke and Marcy who had agreed to keeping her there overnight.

…………………….

Finding his wife at home, alone, was more than a pleasant surprise for Adam. After a long days work he had felt the need for a quiet evening and had momentarily wondered what was wrong when he stepped into a candle lit room with the fire burning brightly in the hearth. He slowly removed his hat and called her name “Livvy?”

He wandered from the main room to the kitchen and found her there carefully lighting the candles on the table and he smiled as he leaned against the door frame to watch her. “What’s going on? Everything alright?”

She laughed as she looked over at him with an impish smile “More than alright. The children are staying over at your fathers and Katya has gone to stay over at the Double D.”

“You mean -” he glanced suspiciously over his shoulder “You’re trusting yourself alone with me tonight?” and he chuckled a little as he said it while she came and put her arms around his neck and kissed him.

“I’ve made something special for supper and then after wards -”

“Yes, afterwards?” he teased as he kissed the pulse beat at her throat.

“Afterwards there’s dessert.”

She was laughing now, as happy as a child that her plan had worked so well. She smiled up at him “Hurry and wash up while I serve the meal.”

He released her slowly, as though he begrudged even the moments away from her to clean up and eat the meal. She was singing softly to herself as she put the finishing touches to the table and waited for his return.

They ate and talked and laughed as lovers do who suddenly feel they have all the time in the world to languidly allow it to drift away, so long as they were together, hands touching, fingertips caressing, eyes promising … and when the meal was finished and cleared away they returned to the main room where he put more logs onto the fire and then turned to her, his hand outstretched to receive hers “Mrs Cartwright, what a clever little girl you are.” he whispered as she seemed to drift into his arms

“Do you think so, Mr. Cartwright?” she said very softly as his hands moved slowly down the curve of her body and rested gently upon the small of her back.

“Clever and very beautiful.” his deep voice was merely a breath upon her cheek, his lips found hers and the kiss was long and passionate as his fingers now began to slowly undo the buttons of her bodice.

She whispered how much she loved him as her hands slipped beneath his shirt and touched his body, their kisses became increasingly urgent as their passion grew and as he was about to lift her in his arms a petulant voice from the stairs demanded to know what was going on.

Cold water couldn’t have dampened their ardour as quickly when they both turned to see Katya coming down the stairs with a lamp in her hand and a scowl on her face. Olivia looked from her husband to her sister “Katya, what are you doing here? I thought -”

“I know, I know.” Katya waved a hand in the general direction of the door, “But I’m sorry, Olivia, I couldn’t face staying at Luke’s again. No disrespect to Marcy and all that, but I preferred to stay here. I found a book and was reading that when I fell asleep.” she yawned now and looked at them, “I’m really hungry, Olivia, and something smells good. Can I have something to eat?”

“In the kitchen -” Olivia said vaguely almost afraid to look at Adam who still had hold of her hand.

“Oh thank you.” Katya sighed and sunk down onto the big chair by the fire, “Adam that book of poetry I found wasn’t exactly the most absorbing thing to read. Haven’t you any romances? Austen for example.”

Adam cleared his throat, looked thoughtfully at Katya and with an effort controlled himself remarkably well as he informed her that if she wanted to eat then the food was waiting for her in the kitchen. She looked at him in surprise “I know that, Adam. But if you expect me to -.” she yawned again, delicately like a little cat, and then she stretched showing her body off to perfection. “It’s so warm and comfortable here.” she purred.

Olivia felt such a turmoil of feelings that she turned immediately and headed for the kitchen, not trusting her voice to say a single word as she stalked off leaving Adam alone in the room with her sister. Katya smiled and leaned forward “I’m sorry, I didn’t realise you two wanted to be alone.” she whispered.

Adam clamped his lips tightly together and then turned to follow his wife but Katya caught at his hand “Don’t go, she’ll be back in a moment, stay here with me.”

“If you’ll excuse me -” Adam growled in a strangled voice that he could barely get out of his mouth, and pulling his hand free he made his way to the other room where he found Olivia dabbing her eyes on a towel while her shoulders shook in silent tears.

He put his arms around her and turned her to face him, tilted her head up and looked down at her, then kissed her gently, “I love you, Mrs. Cartwright.”

“I’m sorry, Adam. It’s all spoiled and - and I so wanted this evening to be special for us.”

“I know. But we’ve all night ahead …” he smiled slowly, “Haven’t we?”

She only sighed and rested her head upon his shoulder, “It’s not how I wanted it to be.”

“Hush now, it’s alright.” but his kiss lacked the ardour of a few moments earlier which confirmed her feelings that it wasn’t alright at all.

………….

Ben had been more than pleased to see the children at the Ponderosa, and over supper reminded Hoss about the time when they had some twins to care for and how they totally disrupted the whole household. It led to lots of laughter and teasing which made Hester feel slightly happier, except that an image of what she had seen kept drifting into her mind to remind her of something she truly would have preferred to have forgotten.

“They’re good children.” Ben observed as he sat down, reached for his pipe and stretched out his legs in front of the fire.

“Yeah, Olivia did a good job of raising ‘em on her own.” Hoss replied as he placed another log securely in the hearth. “I thought Reuben was going to be a handful at first, wondered how Adam would get on with him, but it seems to have settled into a comfortable routine, don’t you think?”

“Adam’s had a lot of practise in how to handle little boys,” Ben chuckled, “He had you and your brother tagging on his heels for as long as he could remember.”

“Aw, we weren’t so bad.” Hoss chuckled softly and looked over to the stairs as Hester came down them, “They settled down alright?”

“Yes, thank you.” she replied quietly and took her seat while taking up a book from the side table.

Hoss frowned and looked at his wife curiously, it was unlike Hester to be so subdued and even though he was not the most observant of men when it came to body language and women, he did know his wife enough to sense something was wrong. “You alright, honey?”

“Yes, thank you.” she sighed and looked hard at the book as though she were determined to finish that particular page before retiring.

Hoss scratched his head and sat down, and after looking at his father and then his wife decided his father was the best option for a game of checkers. He was setting the pieces down when Hester announced that Sofia had told her she didn’t like Katya.

Another silence settled upon them and Ben raised his eyebrows “She seems alright to me, rather aloof and perhaps a little too aware of her injuries to be relaxed among strangers.”

“Yeah, she do kinda think folk don’t like her on account of them scars.” Hoss muttered, “I feel kinda sorry for her.”

Hester couldn’t restrain herself from saying “Humph.” and flicking over a page in her book very deliberately.

Ben raised his eyebrows and looked at his son in the hope that Hoss wouldn’t pursue the matter further, not until he had retired at least, and thankfully Hoss didn’t because he was too much at a loss to think of what to say anyway.

Hester made her excuses and went to bed earlier than usual leaving her men to watch her mount the stairs with crinkled brows and a hundred questions going round and round in their heads. Once the door closed Ben said in a soft voice “What’s wrong?”

“Danged if I know, Pa. She’s been kinda quiet since Katya was here.”

“Mmm, you reckon Katya may have said something to upset her?”

Hoss shook his head “I jest can’t figger it, Pa. She’s a quiet girl, pretty shy to my way of thinking.”

“Women see things differently from us, Hoss.” Ben said with all the wisdom of years of experience and while his son was distracted took the opportunity to jump several of his checkers thus guaranteeing him the victor of the game.

Chapter 32

Mr Weems shrugged and said nothing as Hugh and Brett Jessop hurled insults and invective as him until they ran out of things to say. The discovery that Derwent had transferred the Bar J funds to a private account and left barely enough available for them to live on took the wind right out of Hugh’s sails, while Brett was so angry that his brain went blank when trying to think of what he would do to Derwent if he were to see him within the next hour or so. Hardly likely as his brother was already at Carson City.

“Who put the idea into his head to do this?” Hugh demanded bringing his clenched fist crashing down onto Weems’ desk and belching stale whiskey laden breath over the unfortunate Bank Manager.

“Mr. Jessop, you gave your son the authority to use the Bar J funds and consequently waived your rights in his favour, there really isn’t anything you can do about it. As my client -”

“YOUR CLIENT!” Hugh roared, “You mean that ungrateful ignorant pig headed son -.”

Brett stepped forward and leaned heavily on the desk while he fixed bloodshot eyes on Weems “Where’s he gone? You must know where he is now, so’s how about you tell us?”

Weems spread out his hands expansively and shook his head “I don’t know where he’s gone, gentlemen. The last I knew he was staying at the International Hotel.”

The two men immediately turned to make their way out of the office, only Hugh paused to look back at Weems and growl “I won’t forget this, Weems. You’ll regret what you’ve done today I swear it.”

At the International Charles Stringer shook his head and after a regretful sigh announced that he was not told of any forwarding address for Derwent Jessop. Even when Brett grabbed the lapels of his jacket and shook him until his spectacles fell off Stringer insisted that he was ignorant of Derwents future whereabouts.

Hoss Cartwright was in the Bucket of Blood saloon when the two Jessops entered and ordered their drinks. It was quite obvious to anyone there that they were out for trouble and the way they looked around at everyone was a fair indication that the possibility of it happening anytime soon was more than a probability. When Brett saw Hoss he stared hard and then yelled his name for all to hear in order to get his attention. “You heard what that brother of mine done, Hoss Cartwright.”

“No,” Hoss sighed and wished he had chosen to go to the Silver Dollar instead, “No, I don’t, and right now I ain’t interested either.”

Hugh stepped forward and looked at Hoss with narrowed eyes “Would be more than likely that you Cartwrights were behind this idea of his anyhow.”

“Mr. Jessop, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Hoss put down his empty glass and wiped his mouth dry “Now, if’n you’ll excuse me -.”

“Oh, our company not good enough for the likes of you, huh?” Brett growled as he hooked his elbows onto the counter and looked Hoss with a sneer on his face, “Or do you have to go running off to see to that good looking wife of yours? I saw her the other day, Cartwright, a fine woman you got there.”

“I know, I don’t need you to tell me that.” Hoss took several paces forward before Brett placed his hand squarely on his chest “If you don’t mind, Jessop, I’m leaving here and I don’t want no trouble from you or your father, so, just remove your hand right now.”

“I ain’t giving you no trouble jest talking about your wife now, am I?” Brett lowered his hand and turned to pick up his glass, “What’s her name?”

“It ain’t none of your business, and if I hear you’ve been hide nor hair near my place I’ll be causing you more trouble than you’re in right now.”

Brett was about to speak when Hugh put a cautionary hand on his arm and indicated with a nod of the head that Roy Coffee was standing at the door, rifle settled in the crook of his arm and watching them carefully. In silence Hoss left the saloon feeling the biggest fool in town as he passed Roy and made his way to his horse. Roy followed him “You alright, Hoss?”

“Yeah, sure, Roy, I really didn’t need your help.”

“May be you didn’t but Sam thought there’d be trouble and came for me. You sure everything’s alright?”

Hoss nodded, mumbled a sullen thanks and mounted his horse. Roy watched him ride out of town and returned to the saloon where the Jessops were still lounging against the bar drinking their whiskey.

It was several days later when Roy first noticed several men ride into town that looked familiar enough to have him scouring through the wanted posters he kept in his office. Clem told him later that they asked for directions to the Bar J ranch which made the hair on the back of Roys neck stand on end.

Ben and Adam Cartwright were in town at that time and Roy took no time to locate them and after ensuring that they were not likely to be overheard told them about the gunslingers that Brett had obviously hired.

“He can’t hire men without some money.” Adam replied with a slight shrug of the shoulders.

“I ain’t interested in whether he’s got money or not, Adam, I jest wanted to let you know that Jessop’s started recruiting his men. I recognised one of them as Samuel Downey, wanted for murder in two states. I can’t pin down the other two men with him, but wouldn’t be surprised if one of them was his brother Joshua.”

Ben looked thoughtfully at Roy before nodding, “Thanks, Roy, we’ll let you know if we see or hear of anything that could cause you any concerns.”

“Seeing them has already given me cause for concern, Ben.” Roy said through gritted teeth, “Brett’s threatened a range war and looks like to me he’s on his way to carry out that threat.”

………….

Samuel Downey accepted the glass of rotgut that Brett poured him and stared into the amber liquid some minutes before tossing it down his throat. Then he looked equally hard at Brett “So you’re telling me that your brother took all your money and left you high and dry, is that it?”

“I’m being straight with you, Sam, that’s all. You might as well know that just now I ain’t got the where with all to pay you, but come tomorrow afternoon we’ll have enough money to pay a whole army.”

“How?”

“There’s money coming in on the stage from Placerville. I’ve checked out the time tables and know exactly the best place to hit it … they won’t know what’s hit them until it’s too late.” Brett grinned and poured out more of the whiskey into the glasses on the table, “I’ll see you get paid, Sam, don’t you fret.”

“I ain’t risking my neck for a stagecoach robbery,” Josh Downey muttered, “I could’ve stayed in Virginia to do that if’n I’d a mind to.”

“If things had gone right you wouldn’t have had to risk it here, Josh, but fact is if you want money that’s the only way to get it. The beauty of it is that half of it is for the First National Bank, and I got a personal reason for getting hold of that, old Weems won’t feel so pleased with himself when he finds there ain’t no money coming to fill his vaults.”

Abe Jolley pushed aside the glass and stood up slowly. He was a big man who didn’t like drinking too freely, he pulled his gun from its holster and squinted down the barrel, and then nodded “I rather like the idea of a stagecoach hold up, ain’t done one for nigh on some months now.”

That seemed enough for Josh, he nodded and then looked over at his brother who gulped back his drink and remained silent. “Right,” Josh pulled out a chair and sat down, “Tell us what you plan to do?”

……………

Four men had been assigned to stay close to the houses on the Ponderosa. Each one had proven their loyalty to the Cartwrights over the years and accepted their assignment with out any complaint. At Joe and Adam’s house, where no bunk house had been provided, they had a place prepared for them in the hay lofts and were more than happy as each building was fresh and new, the hay kept them warm and the Mistress of the house provided them with good food.

Reuben liked the idea of more men on the grounds and got on well with each of them. Once his chores and his lessons with Olivia were completed he would pull on his coat and run out to see what the men were doing.

Although Olivia had initially protested that there was no threat to her and the children she accepted that her husband was anxious enough about the matter to provide this protection. Mary Ann had been more than compliant and grateful yet again for Bridie’s assistance in cooking for the extra household. Of course Katya found this a good excuse to protest at the amount of extra work that had been laid upon Olivia, from the comfort of her chair, a stool at her feet and a book in her hand she added to her sister’s work by insisting on being treated in the manner to which she had grown accustomed, while at the same time chiding Adam for not providing his wife with more ‘servants’.

Spring was slowly creeping into existence and with the promise of warmer days Adam brought another newcomer to join the household, a fat little Shetland pony complete with saddle and harness for Sofia. “It means that you will be able to go riding out with Reuben once you know how to handle him.” Adam told the little girl as he held her in his arms and watched her feed sugar lumps to the greedy little creature.

Olivia fussed over the pony and laughed at the way it would roll its eyes in anticipation of treats when he saw Sofia who was the only one allowed to give them to him. Adam soon had her sitting in the saddle, and with his hand on her back led the pony up and down the corral. Reuben sat on the top rung of the corral fence clapping his hands while Olivia watched with pride and love intermingling on her face.

Sofia was fearless and impatient to be riding on her own. The caution that Adam insisted upon was irritating and more than once she turned to push his hand away and tell him “On myself now.”

It was during one of these riding lessons that Roy and a posse of men rode into the yard, and after removing his hat and dismounting Roy approached Adam with a set look on his face that was only too familiar “What’s wrong, Roy?”

“The stage was held up early this morning, Adam. I’ve seen your Pa already, he and Hoss are saddling up now to join the posse. I’d have gone on to ask Joe’s help but he’s gone into town.”

“Was anyone hurt?” Adam asked as he lifted Sofia from the saddle and watching her as she ran to her mother.

“No passengers, but it was carrying quite a tidy sum of money which was taken.”

“Any idea who could have done it?”

Roy pursed his lips and glanced over his shoulder “I see you’ve got some men around the place - you taking Jessop’s threats seriously?”

“We are, where it comes to our wives we’re not taking any risks.” Adam replied narrowing his eyes, “You didn’t answer my question?”

“Nothing definite, just a gut feeling that Jessops involved. Too big a co-incidence that Sam Downey rode in a few days back with his brother and cousin. Talk in town is that Jessop is flat broke, he’ll need money to pay them and if he hasn’t got any then the next best thing is to steal it.”

Adam nodded “I’ll get my horse saddled.”

“Thanks, I’d appreciate your help.” Roy murmured and turned to Olivia, “Nice little pony you got there, Ma’am.”

“S’mine.” Sofia said immediately.

“It’s very nice, Miss Sofia.” he said and smiled at the little girl whom he thought was just about the cutest thing with her big eyes and golden curls, he turned to Reuben who was watching the posse with eager interest “Won’t be long before you’re be old enough to ride along with us, young man.”

“Do you think so?” Reuben said breathlessly and looked at his mother wide eyed with delight.

By the time Adam was ready Ben and Hoss were riding into the yard and joining with the posse. Adam walked up to Olivia “I’ve talked to the boys, they’ll keep things under surveillance, you’ll be quite safe.”

She smiled and kissed his cheek then stepped back to leave him room to mount up and ride out with the rest of the men.

Chapter 33

Hugh Jessop heard the sound of the posse arriving in his yard and wondered if Brett and the other men had returned from wherever it was they had gone. He tried to force himself onto his feet but they were like rubber in that they bent in different directions and the pain in his head caused him to screw up his eyes and groan. The thudding on the door demanding attention caused him to hold his head between his two hands and when the sound grew louder and louder he simply passed out.

Hoss had dismounted and checked out the stables, he returned to Roy who was standing at the door and shook his head “Only one horse there, otherwise there ain’t nothing.”

“Seems like no one at home.” Roy replied as he looked around him and listened to the silence. He was about to return to his horse when a sound from inside caught his attention, “Hear that?”

“Nope, what was it?”

The door opened after a slight push and the two men, followed closely by Ben, entered the room. It had always resembled a pig sty but the furniture had always been upright and left where it should be, now chairs had been over thrown and the table was decidedly wobbly. Hugh was making some effort to get to his feet but not making much of a success of it. Ben stepped forward to help him and soon ascertained that his condition was due more to a blow to the back of the head than from too much imbiding of alchohol.

With Hoss’ help they got him to the settee and cleaned up the wound during which time Hugh gradually regained his senses and after staring with startled eyes at them all asked if they had come to arrest Brett.

“Now why should we be coming to do that, Hugh?” Roy replied in his ‘you can confide in me’ tone of voice.

“Because of the money, of course.” Hugh winced as Ben carefully cleaned away blood from the wound in his scalp, “Brett and his friends – careful there, Ben - more fool me, trusted him I did.”

“He’s your son, obviously you would trust him” Ben replied glancing over at Roy who had been strolling around the room peeking here and there in a casual manner that belied just how shrewd he could actually be in such situations.

“Trust a rattler would be better.” Hugh put a hand to his head and winced, “Told them they were fools to have done what they did, got into an argument as a result and the next thing I know I was sent sprawling with a chair leg coming down on my head.”

“Who did it?” Ben asked and Hugh shook his head, “Wasn’t Brett, he was standing in front of me., so I knows it wasn’t him, but then he didn’t stop ‘em.”

“Do you have any idea where they would have gone?” Roy asked casually but Hugh shook his head, and denied knowing anything further than the fact that they had stolen the money, a lot of money, and were not going to hang around.

Outside Joe and Adam waited along with the other men in the posse, talking among themselves with their eyes flicking constantly over to the house. When Roy and the two Cartwrights came out to join them they waited for orders with a patience that came from experience of many a trip like this one.

“Sam – you’d best get back to town and ask Dr Martin or Dr Chang to get out here and see to Mr. Jessop. Jake, stay here with him, he’s had a bang on the head but it could be worse, no point in taking any chances. Rest of us, we have four men to find.”

Just like that, four men to find, and the whole of the Bar J open to them. They waited for the sheriff and the others to mount up and then turned their heads in the direction Hoss indicated the horsemen had taken.

…………………….

Reuben had concluded his lessons for the day and sat patiently at the table watching his sister very carefully drawing in her A’s and a’s, her B’s and b’s and so forth before leaning over and whispering to her while his eyes darted over to where his aunt sat reading a book with a cup of coffee on the side table near her elbow.

Sofia’s response to her brothers whispers were a wide opening of her mouth and eyes and then a quick glance over at Katya before she giggled and nodded. Quietly the children stepped down from the table and as Sofia pulled on her coat and boots Reuben approached his aunt. “We’re going to see our horses now, Aunt Kat.”

He received no answer so he peered closely at her face for her scars held no horrors for him now; as he suspected she was quite asleep, her eyes closed and her mouth slightly open and little snorts heard as a result. He grinned over at his sister and very quickly walked to his aunt’s feet, propped up as usual on a footstool. Oh how Sofia didn’t burst out laughing as she watched her brothers nimble fingers get to work she never knew but very quickly he was at the door and together they were running outside.

It was still cold. The wind blew mournfully and they were glad to get into the stable and to their horses. The little Shetland looked at Sofia hopefully and snickered in appreciation as the sugar lumps appeared in the palm of her plump little hand. Reuben tutted impatiently “Come along,Sofee, you know we have to get them saddled before Ma realises we’re missing.”

“Are we really going to find Daddy and Gran’pa?”

“Sure we are, didn’t you hear the sheriff say I could join the posse? “

The little girl looked thoughtfully at her brother and then at the Shetland pony “I don’t finks he meaned right now, Boo-Boo.”

“Doesn’t matter what he thinks, and don’t call me Boo-Boo anymore. You ain’t no baby, are ya?”

She blinked and swallowed disappointment, he would always be Boo-Boo to her, so she sniffed and watched as he saddled Buster and when he urged her to get on with it again she shook her head “No, don’t want to.”

“You said you would before?” he scowled.

“I’m not wanting to now. I’m going indoors to Mommy.”

He grabbed her arm and pinched it nervously “Don’t you go telling tales on me, mind?”

“I won’t.” she frowned and watched as he slipped the bridle on and then led the horse out of the stall “What if you get lost?”

“I won’t get lost, Uncle Hoss showed me how to follow tracks. I ain’t a scare baby like you.”

She didn’t like being called that and looked at her pony before looking at him again and deciding that being at home was the safer course of action. She ran to the doors and peeked outside before looking over her shoulder at him “No one’s there, not Jim, or Tom.”

“Huh, that’s ‘cos they’re playing cards over at Gran’pa’s.” he joined her at the doors and looked around and then smiled as he mounted into the saddle “Now, don’t you go telling tales, remember?”

“But what if Mommy gets angry or upset?” her own face registered how upset she was, and how foolish she was thinking the whole thing, she looked over her shoulder again, “Mommy will take on so and be scared.”

“Don’t be such a softy, Sofia.” He replied scornfully and without another word set Buster to trotting out of the yard, following the tracks of the posse that had been made only hours earlier.

Sofia watched him go and knew that she was really frightened now. She looked from the stables to the house and sat down on a bale of hay to have a little cry. She was still snivelling when Olivia came to the door of the house and called for them, she listened as her Mother shouted their names out into the empty yard and was too frightened to do anything except stay where she was and whimper.

Olivia closed the door of the house and hurried up the stairs to the childrens rooms but finding them empty moved even more swiftly back down to where Katya was stirring, and stretching her arms as she yawned. “Katya, have you seen the children?”

Katya stared at her and shrugged “They were at the table doing some writing or whatever it is you gave them to do.”

“They aren’t in the house, and they aren’t answering me when I call them.”

“Perhaps they can’t hear you.”

Olivia just gave her sister a quick anxious glance before hurrying back to the door and pulling it open and as she did so there came a crash, the sound of china breaking, and a squeal. She turned to see her sister sprawled on the floor with a glaring look of fury on her face “Those wretched children of yours – they tied my boot laces together -.”

Olivia’s mouth opened then closed, she stared but was too worried about the children to laugh, or cry. She turned away from Katya to run out into the yard “Reuben. Reuben? Sofia, Sofia?”

Across the yard and to the stable where the little girl sat all hunched up with tears silently coursing their way down her cheeks “Oh Mommy.”

“Where’s Reuben?” Olivia cried as the little girl ran into her arms and clung tight.

“He’s gone and he’s –“ Sofia shivered and clung tighter, “He went to find Daddy.”

“WHAT?” Olivia put her hands on the girls shoulders and pulled her away from her “What did you say?”

“He said we should go and find Daddy, and Gran’pa. The shelliff said so.”

“Said what? What do you mean?”

“He said Reuben could be in the posey too.”

Olivia just stared at the girl for a moment as though the words had to trickle deep into her head and get translated before making any sense. Then she grabbed her hand and hurried her to the house where Katya was shaking with temper as she tried to untie the knot that Reuben had so carefully tied in the laces. As Sofia stepped into the house Katya rounded on her “You stupid child, what do you think you and that brat of a boy were doing?”

Sofia quailed and made an attempt to hide behind Olivia’s skirts but Katya pounced on her like a cat on a mouse and pulled her away from their protection, and as her arm rose to give her niece a good slap she found her wrist seized by her sister “Don’t you even try, don’t even think of trying to touch my children, Katya.”

“Didn’t you see what they’ve done?” Katya shrieked, “The coffee has stained my skirts, there’s a hole in my stocking, and I’ve a bruise coming on my – my – oh doesn’t matter where – she deserves a good smacking.”

“Not by you she doesn’t.” Olivia said so coldly that Katya shut her mouth like a trap snapping over the leg of its victim, then stared at Sofia so hard as to make the little girl start crying all over again.

“Very well, if that’s the case –“ she replied with equal coldness and after picking up her boots she made her way up the stairs to her room where the door was slammed to emphasise her displeasure.

Olivia looked now at Sofia and put her finger under the girls chin to lift her face to her level, “Tell me what happened? What did Reuben really plan to do?”

…………………..

It was surprisingly easy to follow the trail the posse had left, hoof prints and horse dung marked out the way and the boy was thinking it an easy task to track them until he reached the Bar J ranch. One horse nodded sleepily over the hitching rail and everywhere he looked on the ground were hoof prints. He realised that this task was going to become much more difficult now and concentrated on finding some familiar print to identify and follow.

Hugh Jessop was asleep on the settee and the deputy left to guard him was nodding in the chair opposite. The sound of one small pony did nothing to rouse either man as the boy turned Buster round and trotted away.

…………………..

Adam was standing at the camp fire nursing a mug of coffee when Joe joined him, the brothers shared a raised eyebrow before Joe asked him what he was thinking. “I think this is a wild goose chase, Joe. We’d be better off getting back home.”

“But what if it’s not? They stole a lot of money, and we know Brett needs money.”

“And I know that Brett wants to cause us trouble, with the money he’s stolen he can afford to pay for it.” He glanced over at his father and Hoss who were talking in low tones to Roy and Clem, “I’d be happier being at home with my family than out here wondering where those men are … for all we know they could have ridden a complete circle back to the Ponderosa.”

“Fact is, Adam, we don’t know that for sure.” Joe replied quietly, “Isn’t it better to catch them before they can do any damage?”

“You’re probably right, Joe, but I prefer to act on the facts I know and what my instincts tell me. You have to do what you think is right.”

Joe bit his lips for a while and thought of his wife and the baby with only Bridie in the house to protect them. He knew there were the four ranch hands keeping watch as well but his confidence in them wasn’t exactly very high as he knew some of the work they would be doing could take them away from the actual location of the house. He rubbed his nose with his forefinger and frowned as he watched his father and Hoss walk over to join them.

“Roy reckons we’ve several hours left of daylight, time enough to catch up with them.” Ben said with his face looking stern and his eyes dark.

“What’s on your mind, Pa?” Adam asked, “Something worrying you?”

“Some.” Ben said quietly, and glanced up at the sky, “Seems to me we’re getting near our own borders here. What’s to stop them from hiding out on the Ponderosa, thinking we’d not realise it?”

Adam flicked a glance over at Joe who was listening with his head down, looking glum, while Hoss was fidgeting with the reins of his horse. Ben looked from one to the other of them “What’s the problem?”

It was, surprisingly enough, Hoss who answered, “I got a feeling I should get back home, Pa. I don’t like the idea of being out here with them inching onto our land. Not after Jessop showing so much interest in our womenfolk.”

Ben now looked at Joe and Adam who both nodded and murmured that they felt the same way. “In that case, “Ben muttered, “You had best get back before it gets dark. I’ll explain to Roy.”

Chapter 34

As Reuben turned Buster round in the courtyard the enormity of what he had undertaken dawned on him with such an impact that he felt his insides shake and then seem to shrivel up tight and bunch up under his ribs. His confidence in his abilities totally deserted him and when he looked down again at the prints on the ground all he saw was a medley of assorted marks that made no sense to him whatsoever. Some went east and some west, and some seemed to be milling around and going nowhere.

He knew that the best thing to do was to go home but even that thought was no consolation because he knew with a full certainty that his mother would be more than just worried and that when his father returned he would be angry. As he jogged along, feeling extremely breathless and a little frightened now, he tried to think of some excuse that would help him avoid the discipline that he felt was sure to fall upon him.

Buster was weary, even though he had got used to riding out longer than in his earlier days he was still by nature a very lazy self indulgent pony. He stopped once or twice and shook his head as though refusing to move another step, and then only did so very reluctantly. Overhead the sky was darkening and Reuben felt a strong desire to cry at the thought of being alone in the dark far from home.

Brett Jessop had ridden along with his companions from the Bar J with a feeling of strong resentment stirring in his breast. The sight of his father being struck from behind by Abe brought home to him the fact that the men he had invited along to join him in his trouble making schemes took the matter very seriously. At the dividing up of the money he remained aloof and sullen, stowing the bank notes into his saddle bags without a word. It was Samuel Downey who turned to him an demanded to know what was sticking in his craw so much as to stop him from talking.

“I didn’t like the way you treated my Pa.” Brett replied and instantly regretted it when they two brothers looked at one another and grinned while Abe just started to laugh.

“Are you kidding us? You feeling sorry for that idjit of a father who was prepared to turn us in? What’s the matter with you anyhow, you forgetting why you brought us here?” Abe jeered.

“I ain’t forgetting.” Brett replied as he mounted his horse and turned its head, “Not far from here is the Ponderosa border and some miles further on they got their main herd grazing. I reckon we should cut ourselves out some, I know where we can get a good price for them.”

Sam pushed back his hat “I dunno, I don’t want to get my neck stretched just for rustling some cows.”

“It’s just the start,” Brett replied with a sneer, “Now who’s going soft? We did worse than rustle steers down Virginia way, didn’t we?” he shrugged, “When they notice they’re missing some cows they’ll realise we mean business and take it more seriously. Threats are one thing, but action is probably what they need now to stir them up some.”

“I heard about them Cartwrights,” Joshua Downey said slowly, “They tend to get riled up real easy.”

“Good. That’s what I want them to be.”

It took less than a hour to reach the rim rock from where they could overlook the cattle grazing contentedly on the rich meadow grass. Several of the Ponderosa men were riding herd, now and again they rode close to have a cigarette and talk amongst themselves in low voice. Brett looked over at the Downeys and nodded “Let’s go.”

He didn’t have to spell anything out to them, they’d been engaged in this kind of feud for some years and did what came natural to them. As night began to fall the cattle men were either lying dead or wounded on the ground and Brett was leading a generous sized but manageable herd away from the Ponderosa.

………..

The sound of a horse entering the yard sent Olivia running to the door and when she saw her husband dismount she ran to him, calling his name so that he turned and was able to catch her in his arms when she reached him “Oh Adam - have you seen Reuben? Did you see him at all?”

“No.” his throat tightened and he glanced over her shoulder to the house where Sofia stood at the doorway, “Why do you ask? What’s happened?”

“He thought Roy was serious when he said he could join the posse, he went out after you.” her voice shook even though she was trying to remain as calm as possible, “Tom and Jim have gone out looking for him but they’ve not come back yet either.”

“Why didn’t they stop him from going in the first place?”

“They were repairing a fence at the back of the corral and didn’t see him. They would have stopped him had they seen him.”

“How long since they left?”

“Two hours ago.”

Adam rubbed his brow and then looked back again at the doorway where Sofia still stood, then he looked at Olivia, “Where’s Hank and Matt?”

“They stayed here in case -” she didn’t say anything other than that, there was no need for they both knew what she meant. Adam released his breath and looked up at the sky before shaking his head, and leading her to the house, Sofia ran out to reach for his hand and hold tight, looking up at him as though uncertain of his mood.

He smiled down at her although his eyes didn’t, but his smile was sufficient and she told him that Reuben was naughty and wanted her to go with him at which he knelt down on one knee and took hold of her by the arms “You don’t go anywhere with Reuben until I say you can, do you understand? Right now you stay here with your mother and do as she tells you, alright?”

“I know, daddy.”

He looked at her anxiously before standing up and turning to Olivia, “It’s getting dark, Sport’s ridden hard today so I’ll go and saddle up another horse.” he put his arm around her shoulders and drew her towards him “Stay close to the house. I’ll get Hank and Matt to stay here with you just in case.”

………..

The boy and the pony were genuinely tired now and as darkness engulfed them and the cold grew in intensity as a result Reuben began to snivel. He wasn’t even sure where he was going anymore but had left the direction entirely to Buster who trotted onwards with a cast down head looking for all the world as though he were sniffing his way home.

The moon was a blessing as it was particularly bright so the darkness wasn’t all encompassing but it brought with it shadows that seemed to stretch and bend towards Reuben like so many night time ghouls with long arms and fingers eager to snatch him away. Light and dark flickered interchangeably making him nervy and more than ever scared. A moaning wind sifted through the bough making the over imaginative little boy more convinced than ever that there was something out there to ‘get him’.

He couldn’t even remember riding in this direction at all and was more sure about being lost than anything else so his snivelling became more of a whimpering. Sounds came all around that by day would have meant nothing to him at all, but now added only to his fright.

Buster plodded on diligently. He was more hungry and tired than angry and irritated at the boy. His stomach was a reliable guide however and as Reuben was about to give way to full blown hysterics the little horse trotted into the yard of a familiar looking building the lights at the windows appearing welcoming and friendly. Reuben stared before him and rubbed his eyes just to make sure that he wasn’t dreaming it, and then made every effort to remove traces of tears as he slid from the saddle and made his way to the door.

Marcy opened it slowly and then nearly dropped the lamp in her hand at the sight of him, “Mercy me, Reuben, what are you doing here?”

“I’m lost.” he said calmly as though it were no big deal although she did detect a quiver in his voice.

“How can you be lost when you’re right here on our door step,” she laughed and grabbed at his hand to pull him indoors, “Now come on in. You look dead on your feet.”

Luke was standing at the door of the kitchen and nodded to Reuben “Where’s your Pa and Ma?”

“I - Ma’s at home but Pa went in a posse to get some men who attacked the stage.”

“So what are you doing here, on your own?” his uncle demanded coming to the door and peering out into the darkness.

“I wanted to find my Pa. Sheriff Roy said I could join the posse too but I lost track of them.”

“You’d better get in while I see to your horse.” Luke said and pushed him firmly indoors, “Marcy, give him some supper and then put him to bed. I’d better go and ride over to let Olivia know he’s here. If it had been earlier he could’ve ridden back with me but he’s just about wore out now.”

Marcy led her guest to the kitchen and with her usual bright warm smile led him to the chair by the fire. Reuben yawned, it was good to be in a familiar friendly place. The cold was slowly thawing out of him and his body tingled all over with weariness. He could hear Marcy talking but it was as though from far far away and by the time she brought the food to him he was quite fast asleep.

……………

The posse had heard the gunfire, it rolled towards them with the wind but Roy decided that it was too dark to continue despite Ben insisting they pressed on. “You got to remember, Ben, this posse is made up of volunteers, men who ain’t used to riding all hours to hunt down men like Brett Jessop. Shucks, we got a General Stores Clerk, a Saloon Bar Tender, a Bankers Clerk … they’re soft, Ben, they ain’t used to so many hours in the saddle as we are.”

Only Roy could make words sound as though they had capital letters, Ben sighed, and he shook his head in frustration. “Those gun shots came from Ponderosa land, from the direction of my main herd…” he growled, gesturing towards the north, “If anything’s happened to my men there, Roy, and -”

“And there ain’t no need in carrying on so, Ben. If anything’s happened it’s happened while we were here, too far away from them to be of any help anyhow. If we want these men to help us out tomorrow then we got to let them rest now.”

It went against Ben’s wishes but he knew that Roy was right and he wished more than ever that his sons had stayed with them, then they would have pressed on regardless and done what they could, but all he could do now was roll out his blanket and settle down for an attempt to sleep beside a feeble fire and with nothing substantial in his stomach. As he fell asleep it was with visions of what he would be doing to Brett Jessop!

……………

Hester listened patiently to her husband as she put the plate of food on the table for him and poured out coffee. “Do you really think that Jessop will try to harm any of us right here in our own homes?”

He looked up at her thoughtfully and noticed how tired she looked, and how worried. He put his hand gently over her own, “I don’t know what Jessop will do, honey. I only know that I want to keep you safe from anything that could hurt you, whether it does or it don’t ain’t really the point, not from where I’m sitting.”

She sat down and poured coffee into her own cup, then smiled at him, a slow weary smile, “Hoss, I’m sorry I’ve been a trifle preoccupied lately. I’ve been worrying about something that seems rather silly now, but at the time it seemed to matter a lot.”

Hoss nodded “I thought there was something on your mind.” he carved his meat into squared and then raised his blue eyes to look at her, “Want to talk about it?”

“It was that day Katya was here. She talked on and on about her home in England, her servants and what she owned, but she never talked about her husband at all. Then when she went outside she was talking to you. You were standing so close to her and -” she just looked at him and then looked down at her coffee “I thought she had kissed you.”

“Shucks, why’d she want to do a plumb fool thing like that fer?” Hoss exclaimed nearly choking on some potato, “I don’t even rightly know her, and anyhow, she knows I’m married. She was just thanking me for being kind, so’s she reckoned anyhow. Seems to me she’s kinda hung up on those scars of hers. They ain’t nearly as bad as she makes out.”

“You were holding her hand.” Hester said very quietly.

“Nah, I weren’t.” Hoss shook his head in denial, having forgotten quite entirely what did happen, he sighed, “I don’t go holding other women’s hands, Hester, you knows that.”

“It looked like it to me, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it, and wondering - after all she is - she does have something about her.”

“Does she?”

Hoss looked at his wife blankly, then shook his head in wonder. It seemed to him some of the mysteries of life were to remain forever a mystery to him, most of them being tied up with womenfolk. He pushed his plate away and took hold of both her hands in his, then looked deeply into her blue eyes “Hester, I don’t want ever to hear you talk or worry about this kind of thing agin? You hear me?”

She forced a smile, and then felt a warm glow of pleasure shiver down her back as he took her into his arms and kissed her, and even if he did taste of potato and stew and coffee it really didn’t matter at all.

…………….

Katya watched as her sister came down the stairs from putting Sofia to bed. It seemed to the younger woman that Olivia was worrying unnecessarily and having two cowboys in the house was another inconvenience that Adam had forced upon them. She lowered her eyes to concentrate on her tapestry work. “It’s all a lot of fuss for nothing,”

“What did you say?” Olivia turned to her, a log that she was about to put on the fire still in her hand.

“I said it’s a lot of fuss about nothing. Having those two men in the house like they are, how am I supposed to sleep knowing they’re down here.”

“The same way you managed to sleep in your big house in England with your servants in the house I’d imagine.”

“That’s not at all what I meant.” Katya stabbed at her work and pulled a thread through with her needle. Olivia watched the red silk drift over the picture Katya was building up with her threads. She was tired and frightened. Brett Jessop frightened her, even though she had never met him, and now Reuben out there somewhere on his own forced her mind into thinking terrible possibilities.

“Those men are there for our protection, Katya. You need to remember that this isn’t a cosy mansion somewhere in sophisticated London.”

“I do remember, it’s hard not to forget.”

“Then act sensibly, and appreciate the fact that it’s your safety as well as our own that we’re thinking about. Adam’s doing all he can to make sure that we come to no harm and even now he’s out there, hungry and tired, because he knows how worried I am about Reuben.”

“Reuben will be alright, he’s not stupid.”

“He’s only a little boy.” Olivia reminded her and after putting more logs on the fire she stood up, brushed down her skirts and stared at the little flames that were beginning to feed on the log. Her mind drifted back to Reuben, what he looked like when he was scared or worried, she imagined him on Buster so frightened, so cold. Perhaps he would be crying for her, wanting her to be with him and safe. She felt her face was wet and realised that she was crying herself as the thought of her child overwhelmed her.

Katya stood up and approached her, then gently put her hand on her shoulder, “He’ll be alright, Olivia, I know he will be. He’s a very resourceful child.”

“You don’t know him -” Olivia whispered as she dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief, “He tries to be brave but he’s really very timid.”

Katya said nothing although her eyes narrowed slightly, in her opinion Reuben was far from timid and if her sister wanted to call stupidity ’brave’ then who was she to argue. She stood beside Olivia in silence and stared into the fire with thoughts of her own trickling through her mind.

Chapter 35

Olivia couldn’t sleep and made no attempt even to try, instead she sat by the fire and waited for her husband to return home. Matt and Hank stayed awake by playing cards, occasionally going out to the porch to look around before coming back to tell her that there was no one in sight. It was reassuring on the one hand but on the other she would feel despair and anxiety well up to the extent of bringing tears to her eyes.

Sometimes she imagined Adam finding Reuben and making a small camp fire around which they would be sleeping, but then logic would intervene and she would tell herself that Adam wouldn’t stop to sleep, he would bring Reuben home to her to stop her from worrying. The longer he was absent from home, the more danger she imagined her son to be in.

She made coffee and food for the two men, occasionally engaged them in small talk before wandering back to the fire to sit and wait.

…………..

The sound of a horse cantering towards him caused Adam to turn his horse from the main track to the Ponderosa so that he could see who was approaching. He had his hand on the handle of his gun when Luke came into sight, drawing up sharply when Adam appeared from the thicket into which he had hidden. After cursing slightly from shock Luke reached out a hand and shook that of his brother in law “Are you out this late looking for Reuben?”

“I am.” Adam nodded and narrowed his eyes, “Do you know where he is?”

“He’s at our place, hopefully tucked up in bed. I don’t know what you were thinking of, Adam, but letting a boy of his age -”

“Whoa, hold on there, Luke, exactly what are you saying?”

“Reuben said he had been riding with the posse to track down Brett Jessop.” Luke leaned forward with a scowl on his face “Are you saying you didn’t know he was there?”

“I’m saying that I’ll come back with you and haul Master Reuben out of that bed and bring him home, Olivia is worried sick about him.”

“He’s pretty sick himself, I think he’s scared himself -.”

Adam made a sound in the back of his throat that summed up anything he could say to that but it was obvious to Luke that it would be better to say no more but accompany him home to deal with his son as he thought best.

After some moments had passed in relative silence Luke asked Adam for more details concerning Brett Jessop and the stage robbery, and listened attentively as Adam explained to him what had happened, how they had found Hugh Jessop now insisting that Derwent was the better son and that Brett was a murderous no-good, and how Roy had formed a posse to track down Brett and his new found friends before any more damage was done.

“You don’t think Brett would turn his attention to the Double D, do you? I’ve always been worried about the closeness of our ranches and with so much range work on at the moment I don’t want to leave Marcy alone if he’s going to be a danger.”

“We’ve got men posted around our homes to make sure our women are safe.” Adam replied slowly, “It’s hard to get into the mind of someone like Jessop, he was always a man who caused trouble.”

The ranch house came into sight now and the two men dismounted just as Marcy opened the door, a lamp in her hand. After greeting her husband with a kiss and Adam with a smile she went into the kitchen to prepare something hot to drink. “Do you want to go up and get Reuben?” Luke said to Adam, “You know which room he’ll be in.”

Adam inclined his head in acceptance and slowly mounted the stairs to the rooms above. When he saw Reuben sleeping so soundly he hesitated momentarily for there is always something innocent and endearing about the sight of a child asleep. Gathering up his determination to deal with the boy Adam stepped up to the bed and shook his shoulder and called his name. The boy murmured in his sleep and gave a slight snort, yawned and blinked his eyes open. The sight of his father looking down at him brought such relief to him that he jumped up and threw his arms around Adam’s neck “Oh Pa, I knew you’d come for me. I knew you would…”

“You know your Ma’s worried about you, Reuben, you do realise that you’ve caused her a deal of upset?”

“I didn’t mean to, I didn’t think I would, I just wanted to find you and Gran’pa.” Reuben blinked innocently and rubbed his eyes, “The sheriff said I could join the posse.”

“You’re old enough to know that he didn’t mean this particular one, Reuben. You tried to involve Sofia in this escapade too, didn’t you?”

“I knew she wouldn’t come, although she said she did at first, but, Pa, I did like Uncle Hoss said and followed the tracks, but when I got to Mr. Jessops house I - I couldn’t work things out in my head like before and got lost.”

Adam rubbed his brow with his fingers and shook his head, it seemed to him that Reuben had no idea that his little adventure had caused so much distress to his mother, or could have had more disastrous results. “Reuben, what you did today was downright stupid, you know that don’t you?”

Reuben hung his head “Yes, Pa. I guess so. I didn’t think at first, just thought it was the kind of adventure Uncle Hoss told me you used to get into. I thought -”

“No, Reuben, you didn’t think, that’s what’s wrong - you just didn’t think or care about other people’s feelings. Now, get up and get dressed.”

“But - but it’s late and I’m real tired and -”

“And your mother’s at home worried sick and she’s real tired too but she won’t be sleeping until she knows you’re safe at home and not being used for target practice by any of Jessops men. Come along, hurry up.”

Reuben rubbed his eyes and looked sorry for himself, he stayed where he was for a moment with his chin on his chest and sniffing and it wasn’t until Adam called him sharply by name that he hurried to dress himself.

Buster was not happy to be led from the stable and resaddled, but he recognised the horse Adam was riding and followed along without too much fuss. Reuben jogged along in silence, his eyes growing heavier and heavier as the minutes ticked by and that light headed feeling swimming about in his head. Every so often he would glance over at his father and try and speak, but as soon as his mouth opened the words disappeared from his mind and he would yawn instead.

Olivia was pacing the floor when the sound of horses sounded through the darkness. She jumped up and was about to rush to the door when Matt signalled to her to stay where she was while he and Hank checked out who was there. It was Adam’s familiar steps on the floor that sent her running past the two men, and then stopping instantly at the sight of Adam carrying the boy in his arms. One hand fluttered to her mouth “Is he - is he alright?”

“Sound asleep. I caught him just as he was about to fall out of the saddle.” Adam replied as he passed the sleeping child to his mother, “He’s alright, Livvy. He was at Luke’s.”

“I thought he was riding off to find you?” she said quietly casting a long look into Adams weary face “Was he at Luke’s all the time?”

“No, Luke was on his way to let you know he was safe when I met him on the road.” he turned to Matt and Hank, thanked them both for their care and closed the door after they had left to return to their own beds.

He was tired but poured himself a small glass of water which he gulped down. Something Reuben said trickled into his mind, something about Hoss telling the boy about the way they had, when young, had adventures of their own. He gave a slight down turn of the mouth as he wondered if Hoss had also told Reuben of the discipline that was carried out by their father when he found out, something that Reuben was going to discover himself when the sun rose in a few short hours time.

………………..

The posse got an early start in the morning and without any grumbling on their part followed Roy and Ben as they took the lead in tracking down the four men. Roy looked thoughtfully over at Ben “They sure seem determined to stick to your land, Ben.”

The rancher nodded and glanced anxiously up at the sky and then at the ground, “I don’t like it, Roy. Those gun shots last night came from this direction and I’ve part of our main herd grazing here.”

Roy nodded and his moustache bristled as he pursed his lips as he thought over the implications of Ben’s words, “Could be your men have done us a favour and we might find some of our men already rounded up for us.”

Ben said nothing to that, he hoped desperately that Roy was correct, it would certainly make every man there happy as it would mean recovery of the money as well as cutting short the time they were taking away from their proper work. At the back of his mind however, he had reservations.

They rode in silence until they came to the campsite where alone cowboy was pouring coffee into a tin mug. At the sound of the horses he drew out his gun and dived for some cover and would have taken a pot shot at them had he not recognised Ben. He stepped forward and removed his hat “Mr. Cartwright, glad you could get here so soon.”

“So soon? What do you mean exactly?” Ben asked looking around him even as he slowly dismounted. “Where’s everybody else?”

“I sent Logan back to let you know what happened, haven’t you seen him yet?”

Roy had dismounted now and approached the man, “We didn’t come from the direction of the house. He’d not have passed us. You’d best tell us now what happened?”

“Four men came riding down from the rim rock. They were shooting wildly, like crazy men, but they shot Phelps and Jackson right out of the saddle. Spooked the cattle some so we had our work cut out to stop them from stampeding as well as trying to stop them thieving -” he spat on the ground as though that summed up his feelings better than words, “I managed to get young Logan out of the way, he just got a bit of hide taken off his arm, so was alright to ride back to the Ponderosa. Phelps and Jackson, weren’t nothing I could do for them, Mr. Cartwright. I got their personal stuff, buried them yonder.”

“What about the others? Rawlings and Sutcliffe?”

“They’re over there.” he jerked his thumb to the shadows where they could now discern the bodies of two men, “Wounded, don’t know how bad, didn’t dare move them too much.”

Roy nodded “You did a good job, but I don’t suppose you managed to get a look at these men, did you?”

“Sure, they weren’t masked. It was bright last night, clear almost like day, I remember thinking they were cool customers not even bothering to cover themselves and then I realised they didn’t intend to have any of us alive when they left. That was just before a bullet grazed my scalp and I blacked out.”

Ben’s eyes flicked over to the man’s face and ascertained for himself that what he said was true, dried blood still darkened the other man’s brow. He walked with him to look at the other two men, Rawlings and Sutcliffe, both of whom were in a bad way and unable to speak. He turned away and looked at Roy, then without a word walked to his horse.

He didn’t mount up but just stood beside Cinnamon, toying with the reins between his fingers as he thought of the dead and injured men and their respective families. Roy was talking in low tones to Morgan but Ben only heard the murmur of voices, no actual words penetrated his brain.

“It was Brett Jessop.”

Ben glanced up, the words seemed to boom in his ears as Roy spoke them. He hadn’t realised the sheriff was standing so close and nodded “How many head of cattle did he take?”

“Quite a number.” Roy sighed and shook his head, “It’s a bad business.”

“Well, like you said last night, Roy, we were too far away to have made it any different to how it is now.”

“There ain’t no point in our following Jessop now, Ben. These men need attention and care, they have to be our first concern.”

Ben was not going to argue about that, his men were certainly a priority, and always would be, as for Brett Jessop, well, there would be another day, they were prepared now and knew the wretched man meant business. If it was a fight he was after, then that’s exactly what he would get.

Chapter 36

The Crooked Billet saloon was one of the most squalid in existence. The town of Billinghurst was just a thrown up affair of buildings that provided the worse elements of society a chance to drift together and for some time escape the so called ’long arm of the law.’

Brett Jessop and his three companions had reached the town with their rustled cattle and sold them off at a good price. ’Colonel’ Farbrother had had ‘run ins’ with Ben Cartwright some years previously and it amused him to think he was paying out for stolen Ponderosa beef, he was quite prepared to give a price over the odds as he called it just to feel a sense of satisfaction at getting one over the old rancher.

Now the four men ’enjoyed’ the niceties of the town that were on offer to them - at a price. They soon realised there was little point in going anywhere to gamble as all the professional rip off merchants and card sharps had seemed to drift in already and were just waiting to fleece them of their money. The women were hard faced with loose morals and years of experience and charged a high fee for their services. It didn’t take any of them long to realise that it wasn’t worth their while to hang about for too long.

Abe Jolley brought over their drinks and set them down on the table, then sat down and looked from one to the other of them. “What we going to do now? Farbrother said that he’d be willing to pay out for more of those cattle if you were wanting to go down that line.”

Samuel Downey said nothing but his mean little eyes flicked over into Jessop’s direction, before he picked up his drink and began to sip it. Joshua stretched out his legs and stared at the far wall, there was a picture there that annoyed him and he was very tempted to take his gun and shoot several holes in various parts of the woman’s anatomy that was on display. He was a prude in his own way and had once had a ’religious experience’ which made him think pictures of nude women were flagrantly disgusting and should be either hidden away or destroyed. His mind was more on his thoughts about that than anything his brother and cousin were discussing.

Jessop leaned forward “There’s plenty of cattle the Cartwrights have got on their Ponderosa. It ain’t hard to take some. There’s some line shacks they keep well stocked up on their borders as well, we could hole up in one of them for a while they’d never think of looking for us on their own land.”

“They never bothered tracking us here when they had the chance.” Abe said, “I was expecting them to be here within the first week, but seems like losing just a hundred head of cattle ain’t enough to entice them away from their comfortable beds.”

Samuel doodled in the puddles of spilt beer on the table and nodded “I was in Virginia City some years back, was when that Hoss Cartwright got married. A real pretty woman that Mrs. Cartwright. If there’s one thing I like about a woman its red hair, and she had a whole flaming mass of it. Yes, sir, that Hoss Cartwright sure is a fortunate man alright, his wife is a stunning piece of work.”

Joshua threw him a black look and shook his head “Women will be your downfall if you ain’t careful, Sam.”

“Shut your mouth, Joshua, I ain’t talking to you.” Downey hissed and then turned to Jessop, “What are the other women like? You seen ’em?”

“What?” Brett scowled and shook his head “What are you talking about?”

“The Cartwright women. What are they like?”

Jessop shrugged “How’d I know?” he stared into his glass and thought back to the time when he had taken himself out riding around the houses, he remembered the pretty girl with the baby in her arms and the sweet smile she had given him. She was a pretty girl and no mistake and he sighed at the memory of her. He remembered that Adam Cartwright was married to Olivia Dent, a pretty little girl some years ago, no doubt a beauty now with that long silver white hair and those green eyes. He looked up and saw Downey looking at him with a not so pleasant smile on his mouth “What’re you thinking?”

“Nothing much.” came the reply but the leer on the loose lips made it obvious what was on his mind and for a moment Brett felt that almost familiar sense of revulsion he got whenever he wondered why he was riding along with the Downeys and Abe Jolley.

………….

Sofia was becoming more confident in the saddle, she was, her grandfather declared, a natural born rider. She sat with a good straight back and her little fists held the reins just right. She understood the way of the horse almost by instinct and the little pony was as obedient to her as a well trained dog.

It was mid-March and although still a little chill catching in the wind, there was the pleasant feel of spring at last. Sofia was riding beside Reuben on Buster with Adam on Sport on her other side. They were on their way to visit Mary Ann, Joe and the baby Daniel. Behind them Olivia came in the two seater with Katya. Sofia was happy, she was chatting away excitedly in her shrill little voice, telling Adam how much she loved her horse and how one day she would be able to ride everywhere even without him and Reuben. Adam listened and smiled indulgently, sometimes his deep voice interrupted her to check her on something but always with a smile and twinkling eyes.

Olivia couldn’t help but feast her eyes on them, the pride she felt for her husband and two children sometimes made it difficult to breathe and she turned to her sister with a smile “Don’t they make a lovely picture, Kat? Sofia loves Adam so much.”

“He’s certainly smitten with her. Poor Reuben doesn’t seem able to get a word in edgewise.”

“He’s used to it. Sofia’s always been the chatter box in the family. A bit like you and I when we were little, do you remember?”

“I prefer to forget as much about those days as possible.” Katya busied herself with arranging her cape, and looked away from her sister as she spoke.

“Were you really so unhappy then, Kat? Why I can remember times when we did nothing but laugh and play all day long.”

“Your memory is certainly at odds with mine then.”

Olivia shook her head and said nothing more on the subject. Time and again she had tried to coax her sister into talking about their childhood, but it was no use. Katya seemed to either have forgotten what it was like or had decided to shut out the memories for reasons of her own. There was little point in trying any further with her on the matter. But then Olivia had concluded that same opinion every time the conversation had ended like this, and still she would eventually find some opportunity to mention it again.

“You should have had children, Katya.”

“Why?” Katya turned to her with big surprised eyes, “For heavens sake, Olivia, why do you have to act as though what makes you happy must be what will make everyone else happy? I never wanted children, nor did Drummond. We were perfectly happy as we were.”

“With your big houses and servants?”

“Yes, exactly. Why have children spoil everything we had, I could no more think of having children than - than - “ she paused and shook her head, “No, I couldn’t bear it.”

“Were you so unhappy with Drummond then, Katya?”

She turned again to stare at Olivia her eyes and mouth open in surprise “What on earth do you mean? Unhappy? Since when have I ever said anything about being unhappy with Drummond? Just because we didn’t want children doesn’t mean we were unhappy, it was because we were so happy with each other that we chose not to have any.”

Olivia said no more, she noticed how her sister was touching her face now, her fingers pressing against the scars as though either assuring herself that they were still there or longing to remove them, tearing them away in order for healthy new flesh to take their place. She had noticed Katya doing this whenever she appeared anxious about anything. It seemed to Olivia the longer Katya stayed with them the more of a stranger she became.

The journey to Joe’s didn’t take very long but it was long enough for Olivia to think over what had happened during the past few days. She thought back to the morning following Reuben’s return home and how Adam had marched him to the barn before chores began. How her heart had sunk at the thought of the punishment that her son was going to have to face for his little adventure. She and Adam had discussed it earlier and although she had felt miserable at the thought of physical chastisement she understood what Adam had been saying and had forced herself to remain stoic as he had led the boy out of the house.

She had been in turmoil until they had come back in for breakfast as she had wondered about what could have happened in that barn. She had anticipated Reuben running back in to her for comfort, roaring heart broken tears as he flung himself into her doting arms, while she tried to comfort him without risking Adams anger by doing so. But he had not reappeared until their usual time after chores had been accomplished.

He had returned with downcast eyes and a quieter demeanour and had sat down rather gingerly, and had apologised very maturely for his behaviour and making her worry. He had even apologised to Katya for tying her shoelaces together. That was it, the subject was closed and even when she had asked him about what had taken place he had remained silent, stubbornly so.

What had pleased her more than anything was that Reuben seemed more confident in his relationship with Adam. He did as he was told, asked questions about what ever Adam was going to do, even asking permission to do things of his own and not being sulky if Adam said he couldn’t do it at the time he had asked. The only fly in the ointment was Katya, and here Olivia felt she was hitting her head against a brick wall.

They stopped in the yard of Joe’s home, and noticed the other vehicle that was already there, which brought a smile to Olivia’s face for it belonged to Jimmy and Su Ling Chang. Bridie was at the door and smiling at them as they entered the house, their voices loud in the porch and her voice rich and warm welcoming them with promises of her new batch of cakes.

“Where’s Joe?” Adam asked as he stepped into the main room to be greeted with a kiss on the cheek from his sister in law, and then he smiled and shook Jimmy’s hand, greeted Su Ling and waited for his question to be answered when Mary Ann remembered it.

Finally she smiled widely and told him that Joe was with his horse, Saturn. Reuben’s ears perked up and he turned immediately to his father with bright eyes and an eager expression on his face.

“We’ll just go and see how things are going with him then,” Adam put his hand on Reuben’s shoulder, “Coming, son?”

Reuben ran to the door and was soon far ahead of his father who had been joined by Jimmy. Together the two men walked to the corral, Adam’s head bent to hear all the latest news of town from the doctor.

“You must tell me, Adam, about the lady with your wife? She is her sister?”

“Yes, the youngest in the family.”

“And the scars - how did she get them?”

“I believe there was a fire in the family home and when a window blew out the glass slashed her face.” Adam frowned and turned to look at Reuben who was racing ahead, “Slow down, Reuben.”

“Hurry up, Pa. Hurry up -.” the boy shouted back over his shoulder and Adam smiled indulgently and nodded although he had no intention of ’hurrying up.’

Jimmy Chang was quiet for a few paces before saying that before they left he would like to have the chance of looking more closely at the scars “Perhaps I can help her.” he said hopefully.

They were at the corral now and stood there watching as Joe rode past them on Saturn. How the horse’s eyes rolled in its sockets and it snorted so that Reuben wouldn’t have been surprised if fire had come flaring out like some of the dragons in his story books. Joe touched his hat with his finger, but continued to put Saturn through his paces… a trot, then into a canter, then into a walk. Even though Saturn tossed his head and continued to snort he obeyed the commands immediately and showed off the power in his muscles and limbs as he passed the lookers on.

Eventually Joe dismounted and left the horse to enjoy his freedom, he strolled through the gate and after securing it firmly joined them to lean against the bars and watch the animal. “What do you think?” he finally said.

“He’s shaping up well.” Adam nodded.

“A very beautiful animal but I think he is not happy.” Jimmy sighed with a frown.

“When can I ride him, Uncle Joe?” Reuben asked hopefully and Joe laughed and ruffled his nephews’ hair and said not for some time yet.

“He’s still fighting you, Joe. You’ve still a way to go with him yet.” Adam stepped away from the corral bars, “But he is a beautiful horse.”

Joe nodded and with his hands in the pockets of his jacket trailed along with them back towards the house. “Did Pa tell you about Jessop and his so called friends?”

“You mean that they’ve been traced to Billinghurst?”

Joe nodded, “Remember Farbrother? The so-called Colonel Farbrother? Pa found out he was the one bought the cattle. Got them re-branded within the hour of getting them too.”

“No doubt.” Adam grimaced and looked down at the ground as they continued to walk, Jimmy and Reuben already some paces ahead of them. “What does Pa intend to do now?”

“Well, Roy wouldn’t back him up about us going to Billinghurst if you remember?” Joe frowned, “Said there was no law there and it would be like stirring up a hornets nest.”

“Never stopped us before -!”

“Pa reckons that Jessop will show his hand again soon, we’ll be ready for him though this time and catch him in the act.”

Adam pursed his lips and shook his head “Somehow I don’t think Jessop will be announcing his plans beforehand, Joe.”

“You reckon we should have gone on to Billinghurst and got it settled there?”

“I do.” Adam nodded, “I think we’re more or less stuck with waiting for his next move which makes us uncertain as to what to do next because we don’t know what that move will be. It needed to be settled right there and then.”

Joe sighed and looked at his brother before looking over at his wife for they were now in the house, “You intend riding out there on your own?”

“I doubt very much if they’ll be there now.”

Joe decided to say nothing more on the subject, his brother was obviously not happy with the way things had gone and although he could appreciate his opinion he was personally glad to have had the time with his family without the risk of a shoot out in a lawless town like Billinghurst.

Jimmy and Su Ling managed to get Katya more or less alone, and while Su Ling got her into conversation Jimmy looked as carefully as he could at the scars. Whether she was aware of his scrutiny or not Katya was relaxed and pleasant, and appeared to be going out of her way to be as amiable as she could.

Little Daniel had grown and was now taking more of an interest in the things about him, staring at the new faces that peered down at him and smiling occasionally, and even getting quite animated when Sofia chattered to him. His little arms and legs gyrated and he stared at her with an intensity that made Olivia and Mary Ann laugh.

Hoss, Hester and Hannah arrived with Ben just as Bride came to announce that the meal was ready. As everyone took themselves into the dining room Adam stepped into line with his father, “Everything alright, Pa?”

“So far. Jessop and his men have left Billinghurst and were last seen riding towards Carson City.” Ben lowered his voice and turned to look at Adam, “I had Logan and Morgan go there and check the town out.”

“Where are they now - Logan and Morgan I mean?”

“Following Jessup - at a safe distance.”

Adam said nothing although the darkening of his eyes indicated that he wasn’t totally sure of how good an idea that was but before Ben could argue the matter over with him Hester was calling to them to hurry up before the food got cold.

Chapter 37

The row of posts stretched out before them and with a satisfied air the three brothers put down their working tools and reached for their canteens. Even though it was still March and the sun was not particularly warm the weather and work had built up a sweat and a thirst. Hoss grinned over at his brother, Adam and nodded “Long time since you dug in fence posts, huh, big brother?”

“It is, and it’s every bit as boring and as strenuous as I can remember it ever was.” Adam laughed and wiped sweat from his brow before taking a long gulp at the water which was cool and refreshing as it slid down his throat.

“Pa tell you about Logan and Morgan?” Joe said after a moment or two and as they were tossing their tools onto the boards of the wagon, “They got back to the Ponderosa yesterday after noon.”

“Yeah, I heard.” Adam nodded and narrowed his eyes as he stared into the horizon and thought back to the conversation with his father, “It made me more convinced than ever that we should have tracked them down to Billingshurst and faced them there.”

“Yeah well,” Hoss made a gesture with the canteen still in his hand, water glugged sluggishly as he did so, “You got to remember that if you ride in there to face a few of them you end up taking on the whole town.”

“They got all for one and one for all down to a fine art -” Joe sighed “And they don’t play fair either, Pa did the right thing holding us back, we need to fight them on our own territory.”

“Was a time we’d not have held back.” Hoss thumped the stopper into the canteen and slung it over the saddle horn of his horse, “But that was when we only had ourselves to worry about, we got more at stake now.”

“True enough.” Adam nodded and walked to where Sport patiently waited for them, “Fact is, we’ve got to wait for them to make a false move and that could take time.”

“And you think time’s running out on us?” Joe glanced anxiously at him with a niggling fear at the back of his mind.

“Of course it is, time’s always running out on us.” Adam grinned and mounted the saddle. “So, Morgan and Logan lost them en route to Carson City.”

“Yeah, they backtracked to try and pick up the trail but it was cold, weren’t nothing they could do but retrace their steps and try and pick up from where they lost it.” Hoss nodded, and waited for Joe to ease himself onto the wagon seat.

“’Except they couldn’t pick it up, the four men either split up or just disappeared from the face of the earth.” Joe rubbed his jaw and nodded, “Let’s go, my back feels like it’s broken in half and by the time I’ve ridden this wagon home I’ll be half dead.”

……………

“What are you doing?” Olivia asked her husband that same evening as he unwound a wire along the wall and attached it to a hook on the wall.

“Fixing an alarm.”

“A what?”

“An alarm.” he snipped off the end of the wire with a knife which he slipped back into its sheath before stepping back to look at her with a smile, “If anything happens I don’t want you or the children risking going outside to ring the bell to warn Pa and Joe that there’s trouble here. You just tug at this wire and the bell will toll perfectly well without any of your coming to harm.”

She nodded and touched it tentatively, then looked back at him “You really think that we’re still in danger?”

“I know all they’ve done is steal some head of cattle, Livvy, but I can’t forget that Jessop took time out to check over where the houses were, and he knows there are women here who could be unprotected. They killed our men ruthlessly, and needlessly, and somehow I just don’t want to take any risks of you being on your own and defenceless. Matt and Hank, Zeke and Jason are taking turn and turn about watching the place, but there’s never any guarantee that that will be enough.”

“It frightens me, Adam, to think that we could actually be in any danger from those men.

“Well, Hugh - now that he’s sober and wishing for things to be back to normal - told us a lot about Brett’s plans. A range war can be pretty merciless, and I’d rather it came to a quick end than not. Preferably before he decides to pick on the most vulnerable of us.”

She nodded and slipped her hand into his so that they walked together into the main room where Katya was slowly doing her tapestry, she looked over at them and raised a cynical eyebrow before continuing her work in silence.

She had said nothing about the scrutiny that Jimmy Chang had given her face when they had met a few days previously. She had noticed but chosen to be silent on the matter, not having any confidence in the little Chinese doctor anyway. The more she thought about it however the more it had rankled in her mind until she had twisted it into large proportions as usual. Unconsciously she touched the scars and ran her fingers along their length before touching the other side of her face, unblemished, smooth to the feel of her finger tips. She tried to remember back to the time when she had never had a mark on her skin, to when she was truly beautiful and people in London had watched her with admiration whenever she had entered a room.

Her sigh caught her sister’s attention and when Olivia asked her if she were alright she merely replied that she was tired, before asking why it was that a foreigner was acting as one of the doctors in town.

“Jimmy Chang isn’t a foreigner.” Adam replied, “By that I mean, people have known him since he was a child, he grew up and went to college from here. Virginia City hold him in high respect, as do I.”

“I know that you do, Adam, and have personal reasons for doing so, but all the same I think it quite wrong to have someone like him in such a position of prestige in town.”

“I think you’re quite wrong thinking such a thing.” Adam replied coldly and gently squeezing his wife’s fingers as though to assure her that he wasn’t going to get into an argument.

“I disliked he way he was looking at me the other day. I found it offensive.” came the disdainful response, “Personally offensive.”

Adam raised his eyebrows and shrugged “Jimmy wouldn’t have intended to offend you, Katya. He only wanted to see the scars to see if there was anything he could do to help you. He’s an expert in dealing with scars caused by fire and …”

“I wasn’t burned. I wasn’t hurt in the fire.” she snapped and put her hand to her face as though by covering them over they could divert attention from them, “It was the glass from the window.”

The conversation ended there. She resumed her needlework with renewed energy and from the stairs Sofia called for her daddy to come and tell a story and the sound of Reuben running into his sister’s room was sufficient evidence to assume that he was anticipating Adam’s appearance to oblige. He kissed his wife’s fingertips and excused himself.

Olivia looked into the fire and sighed as she thought back to the time when she and her sister were small. Of course Katya was a baby when the other children had been taken by the Indians, and when they had returned she was grown a little and with no memory of them at all, it had even taken mother time to get her to respond to her again. Little Katya and her sweet little laugh, and the way she would run up to them giggling and so happy…where had she gone that sweet little sister so full of innocent joy and laughter?

………

Dave Chance stood in front of Ben Cartwright’s desk with his hat in his hand and related his story in rasping tones. He was foreman of the timber camp and with soot blackened face and clothes, his twisted his battered hat round and round between his fingers, his eyes darting from one Cartwright to another as the four of them stood or sat listening to him.

“Anyway, boss, we were caught totally unawares. Big Mike ran out with his axe and they shot him down with no care at all, just shot him down. They set the barn on fire and that went up faster than you could say Jack Robinson, it being so dry these past weeks. We fired after them, afeared we were that they were going to start a forest fire but we needed to put out the flames from the barn or else that would have set things ablaze anyhow.”

“How many men were there?” Adam asked turning a pencil round and round between his fingers.

“Six, that I saw and counted. I know one of them was winged, he slumped down in the saddle and rode off.”

“Did they do anything other than fire on you and fire the barn?” Joe leaned forward from his chair, his lips taut over his teeth.

“They took some explosives and fuses.”

“Why’d they want those?” Hoss asked no one in particular and as no one answered sat back to listen to what else Chance had to say.

“We rode on after them but they disappeared into the woods, went in all directions. We followed them as best we could then lost them when they got to the rocks on the north side of the woods. Big Mike was alright, the bullet went through the fleshy part of his leg, but one of the men were killed, young Jeb Lewis.”

“He’s only been with us a few months, Pa.” Joe said quietly, “I signed him on myself. He’s got a widowed mother in town.”

Ben nodded, then turned to Chance “You’d best get back and make sure everyone’s alright. I doubt if they’ll attack again, they seem to have got what they wanted, but be prepared. Put extra guards on duty.”

“Yes sir.”

“Thanks for coming to report this so promptly, Dave. There’ll be a bonus in the men’s pay for what’s happened.”

“Thank you, sir, the men will be mighty obliged.”

Hoss got to his feet and put his arm around the other mans shoulders “You’d best come along with me, Dave and I’ll see about you getting some shut eye in the bunk house and something to eat before you git on back to camp.”

“No need, Hoss, thanks all the same. I’d rather be back with my men.”

By the time Hoss returned to his father and brothers they were scanning the map of their territory and plotting out the route taken by the attackers. “Six men, looks like Jessop has added to his little gang of four.” Adam muttered.

“Oh he probably touted his business about in Billingshurst and let them know where they are and what they plan to do.” Ben growled and he narrowed his eyes and mouth before speaking again “They can’t have gone far from where Chance lost sight of them. That means they must be camped somewhere in that area.” he tapped the map and then moved his finger along some distance before describing a circle “Must be hereabouts.”

“Why’d they take the explosives?” Joe asked now and after some minutes of silence Adam replied “Maybe they have a mind to make their next attack on the mines we have over here.” he pointed to the map “That’s some distance from the timber camp though and takes them out of that area you have in mind, Pa.”

Ben nodded and turned to Hoss “Hoss, you and Joe ride out to the mine, take some men with you and tell Phil Makepeace to put an extra guard on the mines. Leave the men there and join Adam and me hereabouts… I think it’s time we did a clean sweep of the area and see if we can’t track these men down before they do any more harm.”

Hoss nodded and within minutes he and Joe were heading out of the door. Adam watched them go and raised an eyebrow “Well, when do we start, Pa?”

“As of right now.” Ben replied and got to his feet. “I’ll get Hop Sing and Hester to make up some provisions, we could be away for a few days.”

Adam picked up his hat “I’ll meet you at the top of my track, Pa, I just want to tell Livvy I’ll be away for a while.”

Ben nodded, he knew already that Joe would be riding up to his house to tell Mary Ann while Hoss rounded up some of the men. He looked at Hester who was re-entering the house and gave him a small smile, she had obviously said her goodbyes but dutifully went to the kitchen to prepare their food. Ben couldn’t help but think back to the time when there were no women or children on the Ponderosa, somehow life had seemed so much less complicated back then.

Chapter 38

Adam stirred the embers of the fire a little before adding more fuel while Joe prepared food. Both brothers kept glancing over at their father as though wishing they could read his mind as Ben poured over a map.

“Well, ain’t no sign of ’em around hereabouts,” Hoss said returning from the picket line where he had left the horses, “Where do you reckon we should widen our search to now, Pa?”

“I think we should head for Papoose Peak.” Ben replied confirming his statement with a nod of the head.

“Why Papoose Peak?” Adam asked immediately, “That’s a long way from here and takes us bordering on Paiute land.”

“Where else would be better for them?” Ben folded the map up and stuffed it into his jacket, “Look, the Bar J land meets with our land and the Pauite boundry line at that juncture. It forms a kind of triangle. They can dart from one area to the next without anyone noticing, and make it nigh on impossible to locate them, The sooner we get to there the better before they realise just how good they've got it."

"That's if they're there." Joe muttered doubtfully.

“No, it makes sense,” Hoss nodded “But like Adam said it adds some to our journey.”

“I never said it wouldn’t take some time, Hoss. We’ll get as early a start as possible in the morning, the sooner we find Jessop and his men the sooner this charade is over and done with.”

“I’d say it was more than a charade,” Adam said quietly, “They’ve killed a number of good men.”

“I know that too.” Ben snapped instantly “And I don’t intend to let them kill any more.”

“What if they’re not there though, Pa?” Joe asked, “We could be riding some distance and actually giving them more time to do whatever damage they want to do while we’ve gone on a wild goose chase.”

Ben sighed and scowled “Can you think of any better idea? Of course it could be a wild goose chase but what else have to got to go on? They didn’t actually leave road signs indicating the way they were going, if they did, I didn’t notice any.”

Adam placed a hand on his brother’s wrist as though to stop Joe from jumping up like a firecracker, “What if we split up,” he suggested as Hoss put the coffee pot on the fire to boil, “Here, let me see that map?”

Once again the map was spread out and they all crowded round it while Adam pointed to where they were currently camped “Right, we tracked them from the timber camp to here,” he pointed to the area “and that’s where we lost them, they either split up or covered their tracks really well so we’ve been going mostly of instinct since. This is our camp. There’s a line shack here a few miles left of Papoose Peak. If you and Hoss move in on it from the north, we can circle round and move in on it from the south, it’s equal distance. If they are there we can catch them in a pincer movement.”

“A what?” Hoss frowned.

“We come in at both angles.”

“Oh, right, yeah, sounds good to me.” Hoss nodded, and looked at Ben who after a sigh agreed that it would be a good idea.

“I wonder just how many men Jessop actually has now and why he’s still pushing this range war idea.” Joe muttered returning now to the fire and squatting on his haunches to feed it with more fuel, “His Pa’s the one who owns the ranch and he’s wiped his hands clean of Brett now.”

“Brett doesn’t know that yet.” Ben replied, “He could well think that his father’s dead, that crack on the head Hugh got could have killed men less stubborn than him.”

“It’ll mean that Derwent can come back and take over the reins again.” Hoss said as he rubbed his hands. “I’ll go check my traps and see if I’ve caught anything for our supper.”

“Must be some reason why Brett’s so mean minded, otherwise there just ain’t no reason for him being so ornery.” Joe sighed, “He was a bully at school, and a problem throughout his youth, just mean minded and contrary.”

No one answered him, but the question stuck in their minds mainly because there just didn’t seem to be any sensible or logical answer to it.

…………….

Samuel Downey cut a chunk of meat from the bone and began to chew on it. He looked at each man in the cabin and then over at Brett Jessop. He wondered as he watched Jessop cleaning his gun whether the man realised that he no longer ran the group. Men with less sense than him could surely have noticed by now that the men had no respect for him, that they deferred to him, Sam Downey. He stood up and walked over to Brett,

“So, now we got the explosives what were you planning to do with it?”

Jessop rubbed his brow and stared at the other man before looking away “I’ll think of something. It wasn’t my idea to steal it anyway, it was yours, remember?”

“Yeah, that’s right, somehow I forgot.” Downey grinned “I’ve been thinking, perhaps some of us should take a ride on down to the Ponderosa and pay a visit on them fine ladies. I can’t see old Cartwright and his boys staying at home now after what we done, I bet they’re out there now wandering around looking for us, and that means they’ve left their ladies at home, alone. Would be just the right time to go a-visiting, them being so lonely and all.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Joshua Downey said quietly before Brett even had his mouth open, “Getting involved with women brings more trouble than its worth.”

The other men in the cabin grew quiet and looked from one to the other of them, then one said he agreed with Joshua, adding for good measure that it was some distance from the cabin to the ranch house, and if the Cartwrights were scouting around there was every chance of riding slap bang into them.

“What do you think, Brett? After all, you’re the boss of this here danged outfit?” Samuel said with a leer and his eyes narrowed as he looked the other man up and down with contempt so obvious in his face that the men felt uneasy and shifted their looks away.

“You do what you like, but I ain’t agreeing to messing around with the Cartwrights women.”

“You soft on one of ‘em, is that it?”

“No.” Brett said and shook his head, “Jest that I don’t believe in messing with women, yet. There’s still more to do. The explosives for instance … I thought of using them to blow up that spring running down alongside our boundary line. Blow it right wide open, that should put an end to any of their claims that it belongs to them.”

Downey laughed and shook his head “Is that what it all boils down to, that stupid argument over water rights and who owns what?”

Abe Jolley stood up and approached them “That sounds like a good idea. I like it. Should be real interesting to see what effect some sticks of explosive have on that thar stream. It should alter the landscape some, that’s for sure.”

One of the new men flexed his shoulders and stood up, “I reckon we should use it to go blow open the safe in the First National Bank in town. That’s the kind of work I prefer.. How about it, boss?”

It was significant that the man addressed as ‘Boss‘ was not Brett Jessop.

………………

Ben and Hoss Cartwright approached the cabin and warily edged their horses behind some rocks and shrubs. Hoss pointed to the chimney from which a thin thread of smoke rose tantalizingly skywards. They dismounted and edged closer to the building making sure that they remained under cover and well hidden.

A good fifteen minutes passed before Joe and Adam appeared at the rear of the cabin. As there were no windows opening up to the rocks behind it and no guard stationed thereabouts Adam felt safe enough to ride into view of where he had hoped his father and brother were now positioned. Hoss’ familiar whistle confirmed that they were, so Adam returned to his brother’s side, both dismounted and began to edge towards the building.

It was an old trick but was always successful. Being out of view of any occupant Adam and Joe scrambled from the rocks onto the roof of the cabin and as quietly as possible reached the chimney which they covered with blankets. After blocking the chimney effectively enough they returned to where they had left their horses and carefully made their way towards Ben and Hoss.

Joshua Downey raised his head and sniffed “One of you burning something?”

The men looked from one to the other, shook their heads and muttered beneath their breaths. The wounded man, Jake Connolly, groaned and rolled over onto his side.

“Can’t someone tell him to shut up?” Downey yelled and another voice yelled back “He’s been shot, what do you expect him to do? We can’t help him none in this dump.”

“Hey,” the man who liked the idea of blowing up the stream stood up, he was a big man, his head touched the roof beams, “Whar’s that smoke coming from? Someone cooking something?”

“Someone’s on the roof -” Josh yelled as he pulled out his gun and fired upwards into the roof shingles but Adam and Joe, already safely out of harms way, merely raised their eyebrows and waited patiently as they eased their own weapons from their holsters.

“It’s the fire - someone’s out there, trying to smoke us out.”

“Then put the fire out, you idiot!”

“Are you crazy? You thrown water on that fire and -”

Josh pushed the speaker to one side and began to kick away the burning logs, hacking harshly now from the effects of the smoke he raised a hand to his eyes to shield them, but now some of the burning logs nibbled fire into the rug on the floor, another smouldered at the blanket upon which Connolly lay.

“We gotta get outa here.” the big man yelled and ran to the window, smashing a pane of the glass and aiming at nothing as he fired off several shots out into the surrounding rocks and boulders.

Connolly began to yell for help “Don’t leave me here, I don’t want to die here, you got to get me to a doctor.”

Smoke continued to billow out into the room, Connolly was alternating between groaning and coughing until the latter caused him to spew blood so that he rolled from the makeshift tent onto the floor where he passed out. No one bothered to find out if he were still alive or had died.

“How many men do you think they got out there?” Abe Jolley yelled after he fired a few shots through a gap in the door, just wide enough to breathe in some fresh air through lungs that were now raw from coughing.

“How’d I know? I didn’t even know anyone was out there until the smoke was in the room.”

“What do we do?” the big man glared at Josh Downey who looked over at Abe, “Well?”

“We can’t stay here -” Downey said, raising his gun “We’ll have to rush ‘em.”

“Jest keep firing at random and make your way to the horses.” Abe hissed as he threw the door wide and put action to the words, running in a crouched position while he fired off shots from his gun.

Abe Jolley was the first to reach the horses only to find himself facing Ben and Hoss who stood with their rifles aimed steadily at him. He spun round, faltered and then realised he had no other recourse but to throw down his gun. Behind him four other men did the same.

“That was almost too easy.” Joe muttered as he walked past the cabin with his brother, “And I don’t see Jessop among ‘em.”

Adam nodded and took a side step into the cabin which was still thick with smoke. Even through that choking cloud Adam could see that the place was unoccupied by anyone living. The way the body on the floor by the bed didn‘t stir was indication enough that he was already dead. Joe hurried up to the roof to remove the blankets while Adam rejoined his father and brother.

“Where’s Brett?” he asked but both Ben and Hoss shook their heads, Hoss jerked his thumb at the five men “These here are the only ones that came out of the cabin.”

“And there’s six horses here.” Ben sighed, “There’s no other way out of that cabin, we would have seen them -.”

“Or heard them.” Hoss added.

“One man’s dead in the cabin,” Adam said quietly, “I’m assuming that’s the one Chance said had been shot.”

Ben nodded and looked at the men standing close to the horses, their hands raised, their weapons on the ground. “Alright, where’s Brett Jessop?”

No one spoke although there was a deal of fidgeting going on. The four Cartwrights looked at one another and then at the five men, it was Ben who spoke after a few moments of silence “Alright, you -” he pointed to the big man “Go in the cabin and bring out the dead man. Hoss, go with him.”

Adam looked thoughtfully at the remaining men and realised that two looked familiar, he nodded “You and you - you rode into Virginia City some weeks back with someone else?”

Joshua Downey nodded “Me and my brother, Sam. This here’s my cousin, Abe Jolley.”

“So where’s your brother right now?” Ben asked narrowing his dark eyes and moving slightly to make way for Hoss and the other man to bring the dead man, Connolly, to his horse. No one answered for a moment as Hoss and Peterson hauled the body over the saddle of one of the animals and began to tie him down securely.

“They said they were going to get a doc from town for Connolly.” Abe muttered, “After a detour or two.”

“Detour? What kind of detour?” Joe asked while he removed rope from one of the saddles.

Josh shook his head but Abe sneered that they were going to visit some ladies Brett knew. He didn’t sneer long as Joe grabbed hold of him and hauled him towards him “What ladies?”

It was Josh who said quietly “I always said women would be Sam’s downfall but he sure does like pretty gals with red hair.”

For a moment the Cartwrights didn’t register the significance of the remark. In their minds they imagined the two men riding fast to town to get a doctor and then dallying with some red headed saloon girl, but then instinct took over and Hoss’ hand fell like a clamp upon Josh’s shoulder and spun him round “You better make your meaning clearer than that if you want to reach Virginia City with all your teeth still in your mouth!”

“It was just something Brett said about the ladies on the Ponderosa … he said they were mighty pretty women but he didn’t mean them no harm, it’s just that my brother …”

“I ain’t interested in your brother!” Hoss growled and looked over at Joe, “Git them hog tied good and tight, Joe. I’ve got to git outta here.”

“Wait.” Adam said and put his hand on his brothers arm, “We don’t know how big a lead they’ve got on us yet. Did you hear anyone leaving the cabin or notice anyone pass you as you rode on here?”

Hoss shook his head and glared at Josh, “When did they leave? What direction did they ride?”

“About two hours ago is all. They went that away.” he jerked his head and Adam sighed and shook his head as he realised the two men had ridden directly between them taking the track to the Ponderosa.

Chapter 39

Sofia looked with unblinking blue eyes at her brother who was staring up at the ceiling of her bedroom. She was sitting cross legged at the end of her bed while Reuben was lain full length upon it. They were having a conference, a ‘counsel of war.’

“We could give her a poison apple like the wicked queen gave Snow White.” Sofia eventually said but her brother shook his head and declared that was fairy story stuff.

“But if she had a poison apple then she would eat it and -.”

“And then she’d die. Then we’d be in big trouble.” Reuben folded his arms behind his head and narrowed his eyes as he surveyed a small spider scurrying along the rafters above him. Would it fall or would it spin its web and save itself? He blinked and said very matter of factly “We can’t let her die.”

“What does it mean then if she did die?” Sofia frowned, “it’s only going to sleep. For a long time.”

“Oh sure, a bit too long for Pa to be happy about it.” Reuben snorted, “When people die, they go away forever and forever. They get dug in a hole and never come out again.”

“Why not?”

“Because they’re dead.”

“Why?”

“Because that’s what dead means of course.”

“Don’t they come out of the hole again?”

Reuben sighed deeply and shook his head “No. Don’t you remember when Gran’ma died and there was a funeral?”

“What’s a fu -neral?”

Reuben sat up and looked at his sister thoughtfully, Pa had said that women saw things differently from men and now he had a good idea of what he meant by that, he shrugged in the best imitation of Pa that he could think of, “Let’s forget about dying and that stuff, let’s get back to biz’niz.”

She nodded and hugged Clarabelle against her chest “Why don’t we just ask Mommy to tell her to go away?”

“That won’t work, Sofee. Ma wouldn’t do that, we got to do this ourselves.” he straightened his shoulders, “P’raps you should forget I mentioned it,” he swung his legs over the bed and stood up and folded his arms across his chest and raised his chin, he was Pa, he was Adam Cartwright, he knew what was what and the assignment was to get Katya out of the house and back to where she came from. Sofia bounced off her bed and tossed Clarabelle onto the pillows, “Where are you going?”

“I want some milk. I’m going to see Mommy.”

Reuben’s shoulders slumped and he tutted crossly, then realising that he was hungry himself he followed his sister out of the room. On the landing his aunt Katya stood as though waiting for something and when she saw him she stared at him so hard that for a moment Reuben felt very un-Cartwrightlike, he actually quailed beneath the blazing glare she gave him.

Katya watched the two children as they hurried down the stairs and thought over the conversation she had overhead. Somehow what she had heard actually had penetrated the barrier she had set up in and around her heart, and the thought of two little children plotting to get rid of her made her feel like weeping.

By the time she had adjusted her thoughts and gone downstairs Olivia was serving breakfast and looked up at her sister with a bright smile, “Good morning, Katya, did you sleep well?”

“Yes, thank you.” Katya looked down at the plate and then at the food her sister had prepared for them both, before she could speak there were the sounds of footsteps as two men entered the room and she was reminded once again that they were not alone.

“Sit down, Tom, Jake. Help yourselves.” Olivia picked up the coffee pot and poured out coffee for the all, at the end of the table Sofia had a milk moustache and stared at her aunt with big eyes over the rim of her glass, while Reuben watched the two men as they took their place at the table.

The watchdogs was the name Katya had given them, two on duty, and two off, just as Adam had ordered. They weren’t really comfortable eating the food at the table with the family but they were grateful for it nonetheless. Olivia smiled “I need to go to town today, would one of you be coming with me?”

Tom looked at Jake and then nodded, “If’n it’s jest you going, M’am.”

Olivia looked at Katya, “Do you want to come as well, Kat? The children will be coming as well. I have to see the teacher about Reuben starting school and buy some staples.”

“No, that’s alright, I’ll not bother. I’d prefer to stay home.”

Reuben felt a worm of excitement wriggle inside of him, but a little bit of nervousness as well. Going to school meant being with other children, away from mother and his sister, and lots of different things taking place in his life. He looked over at Sofia who was round eyed and looking worried, but his smile at her soon reassured her, for a while at least.

“I’ll come with you, Mrs. Cartwright,” Tom said while Jake nodded and recommenced eating, “Jake here will make sure that things are kept safe here.”

“I don’t need anyone watching over me,” Katya said haughtily, “I may even go riding and I certainly don’t want any of you coming along with me. I can take care of myself.”

“Katya, I don’t think that’s wise.” Olivia said with a crease of anxiety furrowing her brow, “Adam gave specific orders -.”

“To you, and to them - not to me.” she stood up and tossed her napkin down upon the plate, “I’m tired of being mollycoddled around here, I prefer to do things my way, when I want to and how I want to.”

Olivia said nothing to that but stared at her sister’s retreating back and then shook her head as she resumed her seat. Reuben kicked Sofia’s feet carefully under the table and gave her a meaningful look, he hadn’t quite mastered the lifting of one eyebrow technique as yet but if he had he would certainly have used it.

………………..

All four Cartwrights thought the same thing - they were spread too thin. The beauty of hindsight was seeing the errors one makes, and they realised now as they escorted their prisoners from the cabin that they should have brought some men along with them. Hoss was eating his heart out at the thought of Brett Jessop and his ‘friend’ getting to the Ponderosa before them and harming Hester, while Joe and Adam’s nerves were frayed to screaming pitch as they tried to think of some way in which they could get the men to Virginia City without losing time reaching the Ponderosa.

It was fruitless to keep thinking of ‘what if’s -’ as it only made matters worse, yet constantly their minds drifted back to just that; ‘what if Jessop reached the Ponderosa and harmed Hester/Olivia/Mary Ann’ ‘what if the children got in the way and were hurt?’ ‘what if countless other ways and means by which they could torture themselves thinking about things that were beyond their control and means to prevent.

It gave Abe Jolley some satisfaction in realising that even though he was bound, a more tightly than he would have liked, the four Cartwright men were suffering their own form of purgatory. He conjectured various scenario’s where during the coming hours he could contrive his escape. The more nervous and strung up the Cartwrights became the more likelihood there would be of some error on their part, the trick was to notice it and take advantage of it when that time came.

………………..

Virginia City sparkled under a benign sun. It was pleasant to stroll among the other pedestrians, stop and chat to various familiar townsfolk. Ann Canady had also decided to ride into town and when she saw Olivia and the children waved to her merrily and hurried over to join her “Is Hester with you?”

“Not this morning,” Olivia smiled, “I had to see the teacher about getting Reuben into school.”

“Already? Goodness, it hardly seems possible he’s old enough.” she beamed at Reuben and then looked down at Rosie and little David, “I suppose it won’t be long before Rosie will be going as well. Are you finished shopping now, Olivia? We could go to the International for coffee if you would like?”

Olivia agreed that would indeed be pleasant but hardly fair to Tom who was hanging around the town kicking his heels (actually in the Bucket of Blood having a beer and talking with old friends) waiting for them. They parted warmly, agreed that it would be at Ann’s home where they would be meeting up next and waving farewell. No sooner had Ann and the children disappeared into the dark interior of the Mercantile than Olivia found herself confronted by Deputy Dodds who, after tipping his hat to her, proceeded to tell her how anxious the sheriff had been after talking further with Ben‘s foreman at the lumber camp, Mr Chance.

“Where is Roy? What did Mr. Chance say, Mr. Dodds?”

“I don’t rightly know fer sure, M’am, ‘ceptin’ that the sheriff was plumb put out and he and Clem and some other men went riding out of town yest’day afternoon. I’m in charge since then.” he thrust out his chest importantly and strained his shirt buttons as a result.

Olivia nodded, smiled and taking hold of Sofia’s hand led her to wards the wagon, Reuben followed obediently behind them, looking to right and left and thinking that when he was a man he’d be able to go there and do that and perhaps even be a sheriff himself. He was wondering whether being a sheriff would interfere with his plans to be the best horse breaker in the territory when he realised they had stopped again. He only realised this when he bumped into Olivia.

Jimmy Chang was talking to Olivia in a quiet voice, he even took her by the elbow - quite unusual contact for him - so that the conversation couldn’t be overheard. Olivia nodded and then shook her head, looked puzzled, looked concerned and then with her usual gracious smile thanked him for his trouble and kindness. Reuben watched as the doctor hurried away and then glanced at his mother’s thoughtful expression as she continued on the way to the wagon.

Tom was there waiting for them with the reins of the horses in his hands and looking rather flushed of face and smelling a little differently than from how he smelled before, but Olivia said nothing although Reuben gave him a questionable look. Sofia sat between Tom and her mother while Reuben shared company in the wagon with several sacks and boxes and packages.

…………………

Brett Jessop drank from his canteen with his eyes fixed firmly on his associate. They had taken a short break to eat some food they had brought with them, taken a short walk behind some shrubs, and then remounted to wash down what they had eaten with the cool water. He licked his lips as he watched Downey roll a cigarette deftly between his fingers “What do you plan on doing then, Sam?”

He hoped that his voice sounded controlled and with no hint in his realising that things had changed between them. He was the boss, the one in charge, and yet here he was asking Downey what his plans were … still, Brett assured himself, he didn’t have to go along with it, he was his own boss and close enough to Bar J territory to just ride on over and wash his hands of the whole affair. He licked his lips again, realising that perhaps it wouldn’t really be as easy as that, Downey would make sure it wasn’t.

“Wal,” Sam Downey eased his back by stretching his lean body forward, “You tell me who you reckon you’d like to see of those ladies, huh?”

“What do you mean?”

“You seen ‘em already, I ain’t.” Downey smacked the stopper back into the canteen, “Where do we go first, huh?”

Brett felt distaste well up inside him like bile. It was odd how what Downey was thinking about had been his own intention not so long ago, but now, taken out of his hands and Downey considering his own lusts first, Brett realised that perhaps he didn’t have the same kind of appetites as him, that somewhere, hidden beneath all the layers of the rottenness that existed within him, he did still believe that women, decent women, should be treated with respect.

He shrugged and straightened his shoulders “There’s better looking and better in providing what you want in town, Downey. Perhaps it’s best we go there instead.”

Downey looked at Brett in surprise, stared at him a moment before giving a shout of laughter “You kidding me? You done nothing but talk about those women since we met up, and what you’d like to do and how you’d make them Cartwrights pay … now you telling me you’re backing out of it? You turning yella, Jessop?”

Brett swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple jerked almost audibly, “Nope. Jest don’t see any reason why we need go there … fact is, I think I talked myself out of it.”

“You think you talked yourself out of it?” Downey mocked and shook his head, “I reckon you’ve no guts, Jessop.”

Jessop’s hand flew to his gun but then slipped back to his thigh as he noticed Downey already there before him, he braced himself but the other man just laughed again and allowed his gun to slip back into the holster. “Fact is you got me curious about them women. I ain’t never seen a woman with long silver blond hair and eyes like what you described, I sure would like to see someone like that …” he allowed his voice to thicken and then trail off wonderingly. Then he laughed again, “Yeah, I reckon that’s who’ll we’ll visit first, and if I recall rightly, that would be Mrs. Adam Cartwright. Ain’t that right?”

Jessop said nothing but glanced helplessly in the direction of the Bar J and then moved his horse to follow that of the other man. He hadn’t seen Olivia for a long time, it was odd that his description of her had stuck so firmly in Downey’s mind, and as he glanced over at him Brett had to accept the fact that he was no longer in charge, Downey’s mean thin lips and narrowed eyes proved that beyond any doubt at all.

Chapter 40

Darkness fell far too soon for several sets of people that day. The Cartwrights were forced to make camp for the sake of their horses as well as their own health. As Ben had said earlier to them, the wearier they became the more chances they had of losing their prisoners. Hoss had replied that he had no interest in them anymore, he just wanted to get hold of Jessop and Downey before they reached the Ponderosa ranch which led to a sermon from Ben about patience being its own reward.

It didn’t help that Abe Jolley seemed only too aware of their predicament. He seemed to be constantly watching each of them with that edge to his eyes that cautioned them to be careful to reveal nothing - not their anxiety, nor their anger, nor their weariness. The prisoners seemed grateful for the chance to sleep while the Cartwrights worked out a rota to keep watch during the night.

“I want a real early start in the morning, Pa.” Adam said in a low voice to his father, “Hoss is worried sick about anything happening to Hester and -.”

“Don’t you think I’m not?” Ben interrupted and then glanced up to find Jolley’s eyes watching them, even in the gloom of night they seemed to pierce through to them.

“If anything happens to any of our women, Pa, I don’t think I will be able to prevent a murder taking place -” Adam stared back at Jolley until the other man averted his eyes, and then with thin lips he whispered “Perhaps more than one murder could be the order of the day.”

………………..

Brett Jessop threw wood onto the fire and shivered as the night air seeped into his bone. He threw down his saddle and blanket and looked over at Downey, “Best eat something now while we got a chance, it would be a good idea to get an early start in the morning.”

Downey nodded although he didn’t move from his position on the log, “Reckon those Cartwrights will have worked out us being at that cabin yet?”

“Didn’t see no sign of ‘em at all, did we?” Brett chewed on some jerky and thought of the food they had left in the cabin, “Connolly was dying, you know that, don’t’cha?”

“Of course he was dying, no one survives being shot in the gut like he was. Gave a good reason for us to leave them there though, didn’t it?” Sam grinned and stretched out long legs, he picked up his canteen and gulped down water, “I’d have thought the Cartwrights would have done something about that attack on their timber yard, especially when they knew the dynamite had been taken.”

“Maybe they did, maybe we’ll ride slap bang into them on the way to their place.”

“I reckon we could take them on, don’t you?” Downey’s grin widened and he caressed the revolver that was by his side.

Brett said nothing but shrugged and continued to chew his supper.

…………

Roy, Clem, Chance and several other men in the posse made their camp with a similar reluctance to the Cartwrights. It had been Roy’s hope that they would have met the Cartwrights by nightfall but it just hadn’t happened. He began to wonder if they had read the signs wrong, for he was sure they were headed in the right direction. According to Mr. Chance the Cartwrights were heading to Papoose Peak and there was only one way from town to that stretch of the Ponderosa.

So three camp fires burned low into the night as men settled down to sleep or to watch and to worry. All of them merely a few miles apart from the other, fate, kismet, call it whatever one wished, none of them realised that had they pushed just a few further miles one or two or perhaps even the three groups would have met up.

…………..

Olivia blew out the night light in Reuben’s bedroom and after leaning over him to kiss him goodnight quietly left the room. Sofia was sound asleep already but she peeped in from the doorway and smiled at the sight of her daughter with one arm clinging to Scraggy Sally’s neck.

In the kitchen Tom and Jake’s place had been taken over by the other two men who sat conversing in low tones as they played a game of poker on the big table with a pot of coffee close to their elbow.

Katya looked up at her sister as Olivia came and sat down in her usual seat and took from a basket her knitting. “You’ve been very quiet since you came back from town,” Katya finally said as she lowered the book onto her lap, “Has anything happened?”

“I’m worried about Adam,” Olivia said as she counted the stitches to make sure they were all still on the needle as she had left them, “and the others too. I didn’t see Hester today and wondered if she knew why Mr. Chance would have gone to see Roy.”

“Who is Mr. Chance?” Katya sighed in a slightly bored voice which prompted Olivia to put down her knitting and to look at her sister with a keenness that made Katya uncomfortable. “Well? I only asked?”

“Why bother, Katya? You’re not really interested in anyone here or even why we’re here. I’m still trying to think of some reason you could give me as to why you are here!”

“I told you when I came why, Livvy.” Katya looked away from her sister’s intimidating glare, and lowered her eyes to look at the book she was reading “There’s no reason to go into all that again.”

“I’d like you to explain it to me again. Let me see - you were alone, felt homesick for your family, grieved the loss of your husband and decided to find your family here. Is that right?”

“More or less.”

“Tell me where I went wrong? What bits have I missed out?”

Katya blinked her eyes and shook her head “So I was right then, something did happen in town today?”

“No, nothing happened in town today, something was said to me in town though, something that I find rather intriguing.”

“Then tell me what it was, seeing how it appears to have put you into a temper with me?”

Confronted now Olivia had no choice but to continue along the way she had started, she put the knitting back into her lap, “I met Dr. Chang.”

“Oh?” Katya shrugged, so much for Dr. Chang, she picked up her book.

“He told me that there was no way your scars could have been caused by the way you told him, and us. You told us it was from flying glass from a window, didn’t you?”

“Yes because that’s true, it was during the fire that killed Drummond.” her voice was unsteady, perhaps from emotion due to the mention of her dead husband, perhaps she was grieving for him, or perhaps it was due to some other reason, she raised her eyes, “Had you finished now?”

“Tell me the truth, Katya. Please.”

“I have. Why should I lie?”

“Because you’re hiding something from us. I can’t help you, Katya, if you don’t tell me the truth.”

The sisters stared hard at each other before Katya stood up, threw the book down and announced that she was going to bed but she hadn’t gone far when her sister grabbed her wrist and held her back, “Dr Chang told me that there was another way you could have got those scars.”

“Clever Dr. Chang. And is he going to wipe them away for me, get rid of them and make my skin as smooth as the other? No, of course not, no one can.” her voice was low, bitter and she pulled to get her hand free, but Olivia gripped tighter, “Let me go, Olivia.”

“I want you to tell me the truth, Katya. Tell me how you got those scars -?”

“I thought you knew, I thought Dr Chang had told you and you were going to tell me?” Katya hissed with a slightly mocking smile on her face that, due to the scars, caused her upper lip to twist so that she looked almost inhuman.

“You wouldn’t want me to tell you, would you? Wouldn’t you rather tell me yourself? Katya, I’m your sister and I love you, I want to help you. Please tell me the truth so I can do that.”

“The truth? You want me to tell you the truth?” Katya said coldly and then after staring into her sister’s eyes and noticing how green they were she nodded “Very well, Livvy, let me go, and I’ll tell you the truth.”

Cautiously and slowly Olivia released her sister’s wrist and waited for Katya to resume her chair, but she didn’t instead the other woman chose to sit in a chair closer to Olivia, so that they were within touching distance. After some silence Katya began to talk, quietly at first as though she were talking to herself as she made the journey backwards to the beginning of her story.

“You have to know that I married Drummond for several reasons, and none of them because I loved him. I married him to get away from father and from the ranch and life there. Since Mother died there was nothing but misery there, and father was hateful, always touching me, telling me he loved me, trying to get me alone. I wanted to get away, be free of him like Philip and Luke had done. It was worse when you married and left home, I was alone with him in that house and hated it.

“I met Drummond. He was older than me of course, but handsome and rich. It suited Pa for us to marry and it suited me because it meant I was free from the Double D at last. We were married and after some while we went to live in England.” she paused now and took a deep breath before looking up at her sister and asking quietly if she could possibly have something to drink.

Olivia returned from the kitchen with two cups of milky hot chocolate, as good as any that Hop Sing ever made. Having set them down on the low table she then put another log on the fire and after a few moments looked at her sister, “Are you going to tell me anything else or is that all ?”

Katya picked up one of the cups and sipped the pleasantly hot drink slowly, while her eyes stared into the fire and watched as the old logs fed the flames to ignite onto the new one. She sighed and turned to her sister and then with a slight shrug recommenced speaking. One of the men in the kitchen stood up to stretch his legs and peered through the door at them and thought what a picture they made as they sat close together, the hems of their skirts pooling in drapes on the floor and their heads bowed towards one another.

“I loved England. Drummond was very wealthy with several houses but I enjoyed London best. We went to the theatre, to social events, to balls. He always gave me money and jewels and everything I wanted. He loved me and I - I just took what he gave without giving him anything in return. I was admired and feted, people looked at me and stared and wanted to know all about me and be my friend. I had never been so well loved in my life. From such obscurity at that wretched ranch house I was suddenly well known and popular. I flirted with other men, I flouted them in Drummond’s face, I thought his love meant he would be ignorant of my indiscretions. I was wrong.”

“Did he hurt you?” Olivia asked quietly, wondering even as she said that if she could rightly have blamed him if he had done so.

“I told him one day that I was expecting a child. I didn’t want it. I remember the way he looked at me, such a confusion of emotions. Yearning, that was what I remember most, a hungry look as though -” she shook her head and sighed “I don’t know, I don’t know.”

“He wanted a child?” Olivia said softly.

“Yes, he did. Then I realised he was looking at me differently, his eyes were hard and he looked as though he were in pain and he asked me …” she swallowed some of the chocolate then, slowly, as though it would buy out time before she had to continue the story, after a while she blinked rapidly and took up from where she had left off: “He asked me if the child was his and - and do you know what I did?” she looked into Olivia’s face, saw the blank look of ignorance on her face, and then she shook her head “I just laughed and said I didn’t know, did it matter?”

Olivia shrunk back and looked at Katya anxiously as though she no longer wanted to hear anymore of this revelation of the kind of woman she had become, so cruel and so callous of the feelings of a man who loved her. How could she? Olivia thought over and over, how could she?

“I remember he just stared at me, and then he just walked away, out of the room. I remember hearing the sound of his footsteps going down the stairs and I opened the door and ran after him, calling his name. It was as though at that moment I realised that I needed him, I did love him, and - and it was at that moment that he stopped loving me.” her voice trailed away.

“And the baby?”

“There are people who know how to get rid of things like that, pay them enough and they do a good enough job.” Katya shrugged and put down the empty cup, dabbed at her mouth carefully and then stared with large eyes at her sister, “Are you ashamed of me?”

Olivia raised her chin and knew that if she lied her eyes never could, so she nodded “Yes.”

“You have every right to be, Olivia. I’ve had a long time to realise how much ashamed I am of myself. I saw Drummond some weeks later and he was very polite, very considerate. He asked me about the baby and I told him that I had had an accident, I had lost it. He was genuinely sorry and so kind to me then, and I told him that I loved him but he just smiled and said polite things, things that proved to me that although he cared, he no longer loved me at all. I had everything I needed, and wanted. But I had lost him. I had destroyed what we had together.”

“Go on, Katya, what else happened?”

“A man I think was the father of the child came to see me, we had, the three of us, a pleasant evening. I flirted with him because I wanted Drummond to feel jealous, I thought if he were jealous it would mean he still loved me and perhaps I could fan that feeling into what he felt for me before, but - but it didn’t happen like that - in fact he left us alone, thinking that was what I wanted, and saying something to the effect that it no longer mattered to him anyway.

“After Michael had gone he came and said he had something to say to me which was to the effect that as a Catholic he could not divorce me, he didn’t want to anyway, but he would not live with me as man and wife ever again. We would live our separate lives under the same roof, except that he would prefer it if I would not cuckold him in his own home. I begged him to forgive me and to let me love him only, but he very kindly said it was over, it was too late. Somehow a lamp fell or a candle I don’t know which … but the room was on fire, everything was burning. He saved my life and carried me out to the garden and then ran back inside …he told his butler that there were important papers that had to be retrieved.”

“And the glass from the window - did it break? Is that how you got the scars?”

“No, it wasn’t. It was later when they told me Drummond had never come out of the house and that they had found his body -. I looked at myself in the mirror at the hospital where I was being cared for and I took a knife- and I cut my face because what I saw in the mirror was someone I didn’t want to be anymore. I didn’t want men to look at me and lust after me anymore. I - I would have cut the other side of my face but the nurse found me and prevented me from doing so. They reported that the loss of my husband had caused me to have an emotional breakdown. I don’t know about that … it just seemed to be the right thing to do at the time.”

Olivia didn’t speak, she just held her sister’s hand loosely in her own in her lap. The clock ticked away the minutes and the midnight hour struck. The sound of rain began to tap upon the windows but beyond the glass everything was black.

Chapter 41

The morning dawned but already the Cartwrights were on the move. Abe Jolley was less certain now of any chance of slipping away as his captors emotions created within them an extra desire for vigilence. The dead man’s body had been securely covered with a tarp and tied down to protect it from the rain that had fallen during the night. Now the sun was yawning into a hazy sky and they were riding on the track that would take them into town.

The three brothers rode alongside their prisoners in silence, the turmoil within them too great to enable any one of them to speak especially as they moved further from the Ponderosa. It ate at their hearts with anger and frustration that in order to obey the law, and to deliver their prisoners to justice, they were distancing themselves, on purpose, from the men who could be a danger to those they loved.

Downey and Jessop slept on. Their intentions to rise early broken by the fact that as neither of them trust the other, they had stayed awake in order to make sure each of them stayed where they said they would be, and by the time they both dropped into sleep it was the sleep of the whiskey laden exhausted.

Riding along the track from their camp along the Ponderosa trail to Papoose Peak Roy and his posse jogged along at a good speed. A steady canter through the tree laden region with the damp duff beneath the horse’s hoofs to deaden the sound meant that when they rode upon the Cartwrights riding unknowingly towards them, each group surprised the other.

As Roy said later it was a good thing they had ridden upon friends otherwise the outcome would not have been as friendly. Abe Jolley knew for sure now that his chance to escape was nil as along with Joshua and the other men he was hustled into a group and continued their way to town where, Clem assured them, a comfortable cell awaited their pleasure.

Now the Cartwrights turned their horses back towards the Ponderosa, from a canter they slipped into a gallop, bodies bent low and taut, fingers tight upon the reins and every muscle aching to ride that much faster, that much swifter in order to reach home and to ensure the safety of their loved ones.

…………….

Tom removed his hat in exasperation “You have to let me or Jake ride along with you, Miss. That’s orders. I’ll lose my job.”

“No you want, don’t be so stupid, I’m telling you I don’t want you to ride with me. Just go away and look after my sister and those wretched children of hers.” Katya pushed him away, and when he still faltered she strode on to the stable and began to saddle her horse.

“Look, at least stay here until I let Mrs Cartwright know where you’re going?”

“How can you tell her something I don’t even know myself yet?” Katya put her foot into the stirrup and lifted herself into the saddle, “I’m just going for ride. Now, go away -.” and for good measure she gently kicked him away from her as she passed.

Her boot caught him firmly between the shoulder blades and he staggered forward, fell onto his knees even though he reached out for a railing to prevent himself from falling. By the time he reached the stable doors she was galloping freely down the track towards the meadow. “Blast you,” he hissed at her retreating back, “You downright deserve whatever you’ve got coming to you.”

Olivia wasn’t too pleased when Tom told her what had happened but she said nothing to reprimand him, for which he was grateful. She prepared breakfast for them both and then got the children ready for the day.

Her sister’s revelations had caused her a sleepless night, bringing her more anxiety than the threat of any one called Jessop crawling through the bedroom window to attack her. Her sister a murderer, for to Olivia’s mind her cold acknowledgment of the abortion of her child was nothing short of murder. Backwards and forwards went the arguments for and against Katya, until finally exhausted she had fallen asleep only to be woken in the early hours by a moist kiss on the nose from her little girl.

She now looked at Sofia as she brushed the child’s blonde hair and recalled the times when as a little girl she had watched her mother brush Katya’s. In some ways Sofia resembled Katya more than Olivia, and as she carefully braided the fine hair and tied ribbons at the end of each Olivia wondered how Katya could possibly have done the things she had told her. “Mommy, are you sad?”

Sofia’s voice snapped her back to the moment and she smiled into the mirror at the little girl’s reflection, “I was just thinking about something that was a little bit sad, but I’m alright now.”

“Daddy will be home soon.” Sofia announced with a confidence that her mother lacked, “And then we will go riding and see baby Daniel again.”

“We could do that, sweet heart, if that is what you want.” Olivia slipped a white pinafore over Sofia’s green dress and buttoned up the back.

How sweet and pretty her little girl was, there really was none prettier Olivia told herself, and then smiled knowing that Hester would be thinking exactly the same thing about little Hannah. She helped Sofia with her boots and looked up at her with a smile “Shall we go and see Hannah and Aunt Hester today? Uncle Hoss and Gran’pa have gone and she’ll be all alone.”

“Hoppysin will be there.” Sofia replied with a swirl in front of the mirror.

“No, he goes to town with the laundry today.”

Sofia’s smile confirmed the arrangement. Olivia called to Reuben to hurry up and made her way down the stairs where she pulled on her coat and called out to Tom and Jake where they were going. Tom came immediately to the door “I’ll come with you, M’am.”

“No, it’ll be alright, Tom. It’s only a mile up the road. But,” she paused, “I think my son is half asleep this morning, could you saddle the horses for me?”

Tom nodded and disappeared immediately, he would do anything for Mrs. Adam, not only was she the prettiest lady he knew but she was also patient and kind, and didn’t stint on the bacon like some would. Jake the older man finished his coffee and joined them at the door just as Reuben finished buttoning up his jacket. “If you don’t mind, M’am, I think I should come along with you. A mile may not seem much but all the same the boss gave me orders -.”

Olivia looked up at him and laughed, she was fastening the last button on Sofia’s coat, so was half bent over and her sea green eyes darkened and lightened just as though the tide was ebbing and flowing. Jake couldn’t help but smile back, “I’ll see to my horse, M’am”

In the stable it was Tom who lifted Sofia up into the saddle and placed the reins in her hands telling her to be careful and to do what her Ma told her, Reuben was now wide awake and eager to be off, already at the stable door and looking back at his mother. Olivia mounted and then looked at Tom “When Katya comes back, will you tell her where I am. She can join us if she wishes.”

He nodded and touched the brim of his hat politely, and then stepped back to let her horse trot on by. As she rode alongside the children Olivia thought of what she had said, and wondered if Hester would really want Katya in her house. With a sigh she realised that she would have to keep the things she had been told a secret from her dear sisters in law, but she shivered inwardly at the thought of telling her husband.

Just as they turned into the track leading to the main house the wind carried the sound of some popping noises and she turned to look back, craned her head forward and wondered what it was, Jake did likewise and after seeing the concern on her face told her to carry on to Mrs Hesters. “I’ll go back and see what’s happening.”

She nodded and followed the children up the track to the main house. There was silence now apart from the children’s chatter. Two men stepped out of the stable and one appeared from the hay loft, peering down into the yard. All three had rifles in their arms, and retreated from view when seeing that the visitors were Mrs. Adam and the children. For Olivia it was a relief to see them, to know that Hester was protected by some watchful men just as she and Mary Ann were; with a smile on her face she knocked on the door and stepped inside to be greeted with Hester’s warm smile and embrace.

…………………….

Katya paused and slowed her horse to a walk. She had heard sounds like that before many times, on the ranch when she was a child and on her husbands country estates when the gentry round about gathered for the shooting … grouse, pheasants were fair game to them and often there would be dozens of their corpses brought into the house along with their laughing chattering killers.

Now it was silent, quite silent and she walked the horse a short distance until she heard the singing of the birds again. No matter how beautiful the Ponderosa was, Katya felt that she had seen far more beauty elsewhere, and had been loathe to pour scorn on her sister’s laudatory opinions of her home. She set the horse into a gentle canter and headed for home, a sudden craving for something decent to eat and some coffee reminded her that she had left without eating.

………………………

Downey kicked a chair over and glared at Brett, then, his gun still in his hand, he ran up the stairs and kicked open all the doors to the rooms there only to find them all empty. He cursed loudly and then ran downstairs to find Brett standing at the doorway, staring out into the yard.

“What are you standing there for? They’ve gone, we’ll have to go to the next house.”

“That’ll be Hester Cartwright -”

“The red head?”

“Yes, that’s right, the red head.”

Downey frowned and slipped his gun into his holster “You know, all this trouble we’re going to for some women, I sure hope they’ll be worth it.”

“There’ll be children there, Downey.” Brett said in a thick voice, “Why not just leave it be?”

Downey looked at him and shook his head, his face ugly with the mood he was feeling, he nodded over to where the bodies of three men lay in the yard “I ain’t wasting good lead just to turn around and go back to town. C’mon, stop wasting time.”

Jake had dismounted behind the stables and made his way forwards, crouched over and keeping low to the ground he went to each man there, and checked them over for some signs of life. Tom was living, he groaned and grumbled but when Jake put his finger to his lips he nodded and did what was the best thing in the circumstances, he passed out.

Sam and Brett had reached their horses and were about to swing up into the saddle when Jake stepped forward with the rifle in his hands and ordered them to step down. “Move away from your horses.”

“Who are you?” Downey said half turning, “Where’d you spring from?”

“Never mind all that - just throw your guns down.”

In some ways Brett was relieved to do just that, he had his gun out of the holster when he saw Sam’s gun jerk as the bullets left it. He looked from Sam to where Jake had stood and then slipped his gun back into the holster.

Chapter 42

Tom heard the sound of the horses and he could hear Jake breathing rather oddly, not like the other two men who didn’t breathe at all. He wiped perspiration from his brow and tried to raise himself up only to find himself unable to move. Somehow he knew he had to help Mrs. Adam and the other ladies, but he sure didn’t know how to go about it feeling the way he did right now.

He raised his head again and looked over at the house and then at the stables. The house was closer, if he could only make it to the house … he screwed his face up in pain and began to inch himself across the yard, dragging himself along with the use of his arms, inch by painful inch leaving a trail of blood following behind him. He stumbled into the house, pulling himself up by the door frame and groping along the walls until he found what he was looking for, now all he had to do was reach out and pull the wire.

Reuben was standing by the open door when he heard the bell tolling, he looked over at his mother and aunt “Can you hear that? It sounds like the bell Pa got for us … he said not to touch it and now someone has.”

Hester’s eyes widened so much that Reuben thought his aunt was having a fit, he was even more surprised when his mother grabbed hold of him and swung him into the house and slammed the door shut. Now the bolts were pulled across while Hester was running closing the windows that happened to be open. Into the kitchen she ran and locked the door and bolted that securely, checked the windows and ran into the other room where Olivia was gathering the children together, little Hannah in her arms blinking like a bewildered owl.

“Upstairs -” Hester said breathlessly, “Hoss said to take Hannah upstairs and put her somewhere safe.”

“Where’s somewhere safe?” Olivia asked as she ran with Sofia in her arms and Reuben close behind her asking what was wrong, what they doing, where were they going?

Hester opened the door to what had been Adam’s room, and here she opened a large wardrobe which had already been made as comfortable as possible for a little girl who could be frightened by the dark. Here were some of her toys and a quilted blanket and pillow on the floor and here Hannah was set down, a raggedly rabbit placed in her hands. Sofia was settled in next to her but Reuben refused to go, “I’m not a girl.” he protested.

“Please, Reuben, Pa will be very angry with us both if you don’t do as I ask.” Olivia cried, even as the sound of gun fire now sounded loudly from the yard below them.

Hester took his hand “I need you here, Reuben, I need you to look after my little girl and Sofia. Stay here until its quite safe, do you understand?”

“How will I know when it’s safe?”

“Because one of us, or your Pa and Uncle Hoss will come for you, alright?”

“I should have brought my catapult with me.” the boy grumbled as he stepped inside what was a quite roomy area for the three of them.

When the door closed upon them they steeled themselves to ignore Hannah’s whimpering cry for her mummy, and Sofia calling out which was silenced by Reuben’s rather robust ‘Shush and be quiet.”

They hurried to the rifle rack and Hester unlocked it, removed two rifles and handed Olivia one, cartridges were found and calmly, amazingly calmly, they carefully loaded the weapons. “I doubt if we’ll need to use them,” Hester said in an undertone, “There are four good men out there armed to the teeth to protect us.”

Olivia nodded and walked away from the rack of rifles with her weapon in her hand, and her eyes roving round and round from the door to the windows, to the other window and to the entry to the kitchen. She wondered if four men would be enough and what had happened to the four men assigned to look after her home, who would have been looking to protect her and the children?

“Do you think they’re dead?” she whispered to Hester who came now to stand beside her.

“Who?”

“The men -?” she jumped back as glass shattered when a bullet smashed its way towards them. “Someone set off the alarm, someone must be there to have done that.”

They stayed close together, crouched behind the settee, Olivia watched the door while Hester stared at the window in the dining area. Gunfire was slamming back and forth, once they heard footsteps running along the porch, thudding heavily upon the boards.

Minutes ticked by. Silence fell momentarily but as soon as they had risen to their feet more gunfire broke out. “It doesn’t seem so much as before -.” Hester whispered.

“Perhaps there are fewer men now.” Olivia whispered in reply, not knowing just how many were the forces fighting against the four Ponderosa men, “Jake must be here again.”

Hester put a warning hand on her arm and put a finger to her lips “Did you hear that?”

They both turned at the same time to face the stairs, their rifles poised and ready to fire when Joe yelled “Don’t shoot - it’s me - Joe.”

……………

Adam couldn’t wait to feel Olivia in his arms again, he held her tight and buried his face into her neck and she laughed and said he was squeezing her to death, while Hester was kissing Hoss and holding his hands and listening to him telling her how they had found the men at Adam’s, how Tom had got to the alarm bell and they had raced here as fast as possible. “Two men can’t compete with the numbers that were against them.”

“Only two men?” Hester exclaimed “But it sounded like an army.”

“They knew what they were doing, weren’t afraid to expose themselves when it suited to their advantage. We were surprised to find it was only two ourselves, felt sure there were more than that.”

“Is Joe alright?” Olivia whispered and was assured that Joe was fine, he had gone to make sure that Mary Ann was safe.

“Bridie won’t let anyone harm her or the baby,” Olivia declared with a shaky laugh and then turned to wards the stairs again as Ben brought the children down from their hiding place. Hannah was rather red cheeked not from crying so much as sleepiness, the snugness of the cupboard had been perhaps a mite too snug. Sofia ran to Adam and Olivia for reassuring hugs and Reuben was telling Ben how he hadn’t been afraid at all, even though there were some terrific banging and such going on.

Outside in the yard two of the Ponderosa men were nursing injuries, thankfully not severe. The other two were scouting around the area looking for what they were sure was a small army. Sam Downey was leaning against a water butt holding a cloth to one wound while blood poured from another in his groin. The colour of his face indicated the close grip of death.

“Where’s Brett Jessop?” Adam asked Downey who only shrugged and shook his head.

“He’s either dead or dying.” Hoss muttered as he looked around as though Jessop would suddenly leap from cover and surrender himself.

“Or taken the road to the Bar J.” Ben said, “There’s no sign of him here, and there’s a horse gone.”

One of the men standing close to Hoss and Ben in the act of wiping his brow said that he had seen Jessop before it had all ended “He was wounded, several places I would have thought, I doubt if he‘d get far.”

It was Adam and Ben who mounted their horses to track him down. Adam told Olivia that he was going to check their men first, and make sure that they were alright. “Stay here with Hester for a while, dear.” he had said as he dropped a kiss upon her forehead.

She understood and stepped back to let them pass, and didn’t move from the spot until he had disappeared totally out of her sight taking her heart, as always, away with him.

……………

Tom was going to survive, Adam and Ben made him comfortable, along with Jake, but the other two men were quite dead, and had obviously been killed stealthily with knives. Sam and Brett had, from what the indications led them to believe, seen the two men, crept upon them and struck them down where they stood. It was Tom who had fought the hardest battle, and then Jake coming in upon them as he had … there was little time to grieve or lament, Ben assured both men he would get a doctor to them and then left them to join Adam.

“Pa, you go on into town and get Frank. I’ll find Brett.”

Ben would have argued but he knew better than to do so when he recognised the look on Adams face. He merely nodded and rode with his son out to the main road where he parted to go his way to town.

…………….

Katya had waited long enough for the sounds of gunfire and the tolling of the bell to come to an end. She waited until curiosity could no longer be contained, not only curiosity but anxiety for her sister as well. As soon as she had heard the bell she had stayed her horse and dismounted, leading the horse into the undergrowth to be well hidden from sight. She feared enough for her life not to casually throw it away by riding into a gun battle whether her family were involved or not.

Birds sang again and the sun was warm enough to remove the chill from the day. She led the horse forwards and was about to remount when she heard the sound of a horse close by her, and then, silence once again. For a moment she just stood there, a slim figure in a dark green riding habit and bonnet with a veil across her face. Her fingers held tightly to the reins of the horse and when she heard nothing more, only bird song and the buzz of some flying insect, she walked along further.

“Help me -”

She froze to the spot and looked around but saw no one. The fact that there was some one who could see her however brought a shiver throughout her body, and she hurried to mount up in order to get away from that area, away from the disembodied voice.

“Katya - is it you? Olivia? Help me, I - I need your help.”

“Who is it? Where are you?” her voice was light and slightly shrill, she hoped it didn’t echo the trembling in her legs.

“Over here, here -.”

She followed the direction of the voice and then found the man. Bloodied and bruised certainly, but still alive. Momentarily she stopped in her tracks and couldn’t move, then pity moved her forwards and she went towards him and looked down upon where he was sprawled. He must have fallen from his horse for he was crumpled in a heap, there was blood on the saddle and the reins were still in his hands. His face was ghastly white beneath the tan, making his pallor more livid, and the blood from a head wound seeped in an ugly fashion down the left side of his face.

“Are you badly hurt?”

“I don’t know. I need some water. I need your help.”

She approached him and then stopped “You know who I am?”

“I wasn’t sure, I thought perhaps Olivia or Katya … are you … Katya?”

“Yes, I am.”

He didn’t say anything to that, perhaps he had forgotten his expression of disgust at the sight of her, perhaps he realised that now was not the time to be so fastidious as he had acted then. He reached out a blood stained hand and took the canteen she offered him, the water slopped over his face as his hand shook so much so she knelt by his side and held it steady for him. He looked up at her with blood shot eyes and after a while pushed the canteen away with a gruff thanks . “Can you get me to my father?”

She sat back upon her heels and surveyed him. Here he was, a man who had obviously done some harm to her family or had tried to do so, and asking her to help him escape justice? She sighed and pulled a handkerchief from her sleeve, poured water on it and began to staunch the blood flowing from his head wound. She could see blood staining his jacket, and his thigh was ripped open by the bullet that had torn through it. She was gentle in wiping away the blood from his face and looked at him thoughtfully, her blue eyes darkened as she worked on him, pity was not enough, she thought, as she tried to see the wound in his chest.

“I think,” he said in a strangely harsh voice for he was struggling to breathe now, “I think I need to get home quickly, my Pa will see to what’s wrong.”

“I don’t know if I can get you to your horse. If you were to fall off it again I doubt if you’ll survive.”

“Help me then -.” he gripped hold of her arm, gripped it tightly so that she gasped and tried to free herself, “I can’t die, Katya, don’t let me die.”

“I’m not exactly in control of such matters,” she spoke coldly, sympathy was one thing, as was pity, but Brett Jessop wasn’t a man she had ever liked or admired and what kindness she felt now towards him was swiftly melting away.

“You were always cold, always hard. I remember when we were kids, when you used to play your games.” he released her arm and allowed his head to fall back so that he could look at her more fully, “Little Katya.”

“Not so little now.” she replied forcing herself not to have the memories surface in her mind. “Here, lean on me, I’ll try to get you to your horse.”

It was a struggle. He was dead weight and several times trod on her skirts so that they both stumbled. As she held the horse steady he tried to get into the saddle but couldn’t, she watched as he just slid back onto the ground. She tied the reins loosely and then put her shoulder under his arm and tried to lift him to his feet, weakly he attempted to rise up but was unable to do so. She pulled him with her free hand and as he fell upon his knees she heard a sound behind them and turned to see Adam Cartwright sitting astride his horse with his gun in his hand.

They stared at one another, and then Adam’s eyes flicked over to Brett Jessop. She shrugged, “He wanted to get back home, to his father.”

“Is that so?” Adam dismounted and walked towards Jessop who remained as he had fallen, but when he heard Adam near him he turned his head and peered at him through eyes that were misting over so that the figure was blurred and wavery.

“I’m dying.”

“I believe you are.” Adam replied and looked at him dispassionately. “You and your friend killed several good men, so you’re in better company than you deserve to be, Jessop.”

“Sam?”

“Dead.”

Jessop nodded, a vague smile played around his mouth, “Good. I’m glad about that, he - he was mean as a rattesnake. Things he wanted to do to your wife, to Hoss’ …” his voice trailed away “I’m glad you stopped him.”

“You mean you wouldn’t have done?”

Jessop sighed and his head lolled forward before he spoke “I wouldn’t have let him hurt Olivia. We were friends one …played as kids … Katya and me …Olivia…I guess this means Derwent gets the ranch?” he raised his head and stared at Adam, smiled, “Yeah, I guess he does.”

Adam looked at Katya and then at her horse, “You’d better get home and change your clothing.”

She looked down at her blood stained skirt and jacket, then at Brett “What about him?”

“He’s dead. He’s not going anywhere.”

She stared at him, shivered at the coldness of his voice, the brittle hardness and shook her head, “You could have some pity for him.”

“Go home, Katya.” he turned to face her as he spoke and his face had an expression on it that made her hurry to her horse and mount up.

He was still standing there watching her when she turned her head and looked back, and then the track opened up before her and he was swallowed up out of view.

…………….

Hugh Jessop heard the knocking on the door and walked to open it. He walked slowly, the events of the past few days had aged him considerably, and for some reason he couldn’t understand his hands shook and trembled and he couldn’t stop them.

“What do you want?” he asked the tall black clad man standing before him and when the man turned his head then he looked over his shoulder and saw the man sagging in the saddle of a horse. “Brett?”

“He wanted to come home.” Adam said, “He’s dying.”

Hugh looked at him, registered the meaning of the two words and nodded, “Will you help me get him inside?”

Adam merely nodded and walked with him to the injured man who practically fell from the saddle into their arms, then they half carried, half dragged him into the house where he was set down upon the old settee in front of the fire.

Brett Jessop looked into the face of his father, it was blurred all out of shape and he tried to say something but no words came out properly. His father turned to take a cloth or rag from the man standing behind him, a man dressed in black who had piercing black eyes that stared into his face. They were the last thing he saw as everything dwindled into one darkening light until it vanished altogether.

Chapter 43

A profound sense of relief settled upon the Ponderosa once Adam had returned and informed them of Brett’s death, which Katya had proclaimed prematurely anyway. Jake and Tom were gently cared for until Frank came to check over their wounds and minister to them whereupon they were taken to the main house and placed in Hop Sings care. The bodies of the men who had died so tragically were taken to town for burial and Ben saw to it that he spent time writing to their families enclosing personal effects and lauding their courage.

It was while Adam was grooming Sport that Olivia came to him with a shawl around her shoulders and her hair loose and free down her back. He smiled over at her and nodded as he continued to see to his horse “Are you alright, sweetheart?”

“Yes, I’m fine, now that it’s all over. I’m so glad I was at Hester’s, she’s so capable and brave.”

Adam narrowed his eyes a little at her and shook his head, and reached out for her hand “I’m glad you were there too, I don’t dare to think what would have happened to you had you been here alone with the children. I can’t guarantee that Brett would have done anything to have protected you.”

She nodded while a wistful look drifted over her face then with a sigh she sat down on a bale of straw and watched him finish currying Sport until the horse’s coat gleamed, “You do love that old horse, don’t you?”

“This old horse and I - we’ve gone through a lot together.” he stroked the soft velvety nose of the animal and smiled into its dark eyes before leading him into his stall, “But I reckon it’ll soon be time for him to retire and enjoy his freedom.” he smiled over at her and winked “A good paddock and several fillies to keep him company huh? That should be a fine retirement for him.”

She laughed softly and then tapped the place beside her so that he could join her, “I want to talk to you - about Katya.”

“Oh, Katya.” he released his breath in a long sigh as he took his place by her side, then held one of her hands in both of his which he raised to his lips and kissed “Do we have to talk - right now?”

She shook her head but smiled “Yes, while we have this moment alone.”

He nodded slowly, gave her his usual gentle smile of encouragement that brought the dimples to his cheeks that she loved so much “Go ahead …”

So she told him everything in a quiet steady voice, missing nothing out so that when she stopped the silence in the stable - apart from the sound of the horses - was quite profound. He cleared his throat after a moment “So - whose baby was it?”

“Not her husbands.”

“And she -?” he didn’t use the words that obviously repelled him, infant mortality was rife and to have a healthy baby was such a blessing it felt somehow repugnant to know that someone could callously deliberately seek someone out to take a little life before it had had a chance to be born. “And she deliberately cut her face?”

“She hates herself, she wanted to - I don’t know - I don’t really understand why she would do such a thing. But, Adam -?” she turned to him and looked anxiously into his eyes, “It was what she was saying about my father? I couldn’t get it out of my mind that - that it could be true. That he - that he was harming her when she was young, while I was there, and I didn’t know, I didn’t help her.”

“If you didn’t know, and she didn’t tell you, how could you help her?”

“But I was the elder sister - I should have known.”

“Perhaps you didn’t want to know, perhaps you were too young to understand what was happening?” he saw the twist of pain narrow her lips and cause her eyes to flinch away from him, “Olivia, I can’t understand why it would happen … I can’t explain why a man would do such things to his own daughter anymore than I can explain why a beautiful woman would take a knife to harm herself … some things are beyond our understanding.”

“But he never touched me, never hurt me in any way at all. He was hard on the boys, unreasonably so, but always so kind to me, and now this - what Katya says - I can’t find it in myself to believe her.”

He turned his head and stared down at the ground at their feet before raising her hand to his lips and kissing her fingers gently, “Be grateful then, sweetheart, that he never touched you. That he saw in you something he loved enough to respect, and care about so as to leave you alone.”

“But why -?”

“We’ll never know, Livvy. He isn’t here to tell us, is he?” he stood up and drew her up by his side, then looked intently into her face, his eyes roving from her eyes, nose to her lips, “You’re like your mother to look at, so Pa says, and Katya - although very lovely - has the looks of your Pa. Perhaps he saw something in her that he - he saw in himself at times, and wanted to punish - or may be - well - maybe we should just leave it as it is, if Katya believes it happened we should just leave it be, he’s dead and we’ll never know the truth of it, will we?”

Her throat tightened a little as though she were holding back tears, then she nodded and took hold of his hand as they turned to leave the stable. While he bolted the door behind him she asked tentatively what they should do now, with Katya? Did he feel that he could still allow her to remain in the house?

He put his arm across her shoulders and together they walked to the house, both deep in thought until they reached the door when he turned to her “I don’t like your sister, Livvy. I never have. But she is your sister and I’m minded that were the situation reversed, were it one of my brothers needing to stay here, I’d hope you wouldn’t mind giving him the hospitality we are giving her. If you wish her to stay a while longer, then so be it.”

Olivia said nothing, merely nodded to acknowledge that she had heard what he had said. She knew in her heart of hearts that she didn’t like her sister much either, it seemed to her that her little sister was long gone, dead and gone, and this stranger in their home who said she was Katya Dent was there under false pretences. As she stepped ahead into the house she said quietly “I think she’ll go when she’s ready. I doubt if she’ll be here much longer.”

………………

Hoss Cartwright held his wife closely against him, his arm around her shoulders so that her head could rest upon his shoulder. His other hand rested lightly upon the curve of her hip, while her hand fell casually upon his chest. The freedom from danger, the relief that all was safe once again, gave their intimacy a more gentle passion, a more tender frisson of excitement that any time previously. Now they slept, and if they were at all aware of anything at all it was only of their total togetherness.

In his room Ben lay awake thinking of the events of the past few days and thanking God for the outcome. He thought of each of his daughters in law, of the children and of what could have happened, and when he did he thanked God again. What would they have done had they returned home and found - he closed his eyes and shook his head - and his heart tightened and ached as he did so.

Little Hannah slept the sleep of the innocent, hugging onto her raggedly rabbit and totally untouched by the horrors of the day.

………………..

Joseph Cartwright slept soundly in the big bed which he shared with his wife. She had told him that when she had heard the bell tolling she had known that there was danger afoot and while she had loaded the rifles Bridie had gone out to check with the men whom Joe had set up as their guards. They put Daniel in a safe place out of danger from any gun fire and had waited.

He had told her of all that had happened since he had left her and that when he had seen her at last, safe and sound, he had felt physically sick with relief. Now she slept by his side, her hand entwined in his, while at the side of the bed little Daniel coo’d up at the shadows floating over head.

…………..

In her room Katya thought over the events of the past few days as she stared fixedly up into the dark void of the ceiling. Beyond her room the stairs sighed into relaxation like the tired bones of a mans rib cage and the wooden beams stretched and bent themselves into slumber every bit as deep as that of most inhabitants there.

Eventually she tossed away the blankets and after pulling on her dressing gown left the room, leaving the door swinging open to knock slightly onto the wall. Her feet moved down the stairs lightly and when she reached the main room she went immediately to the bureau where Adam kept the glasses and decanters and swiftly poured herself a good amount of whisky into a tumbler. The fire still smouldered and before taking her seat she knelt to put some of the kindling upon the embers in the hope that there would soon be flames and warmth.

As she settled into one of the big comfortable chairs and stared into the now gathering flames she sipped the whiskey slowly, and tried to set free her thoughts and fears. She had told her sister too much, she was sure of that, and shuddered as she sipped more whiskey. Now that Olivia had so much information what would she do with it? Would she tell her husband? Would Adam Cartwright, in the morning, come down those stairs and accuse her of murder, then order her from his home? Or would he go and discuss it with his father, that Paragon of Virtue and Fount of all wisdom? She rolled her eyes and sipped some more.

She didn’t even realise that he standing at the door to his office looking on at her until he suggested she took some water with her drink and then she nearly dropped her glass.

“I didn’t know you were here?” she drew her legs up onto the chair and folded them out of sight beneath her dressing gown.

He merely shrugged and looked at the fire the walked into the room, a glass of whiskey in his hand, his eyes half closed. ”Finding it hard to sleep then?”

“Yes. Too much to think about.” she looked at him as she spoke and wondered if he were watching her from beneath those heavy lidded eyes, “What about you?”

He only shrugged and remained standing, looking into the fire. “So? What were you thinking about that caused you to lose out on your sleep?”

She only shrugged and looked into the fire, the flames were high now, and its heat combined with that of the alcohol was making her feel hot, she fidgeted slightly and looked at him again. “So Brett Jessop really is dead then?” she asked just so that there was something sensible to say and he nodded, “Does that mean his brother will come back?”

“Derwent? Oh yes, I suppose he will.”

“Was his father, Mr. Jessop, was he alright when you left him?”

“Perfectly alright.”

She twisted the glass round and round between her fingers before swallowing some more, it seemed hotter than ever, she glanced at him as he sat there in his dressing gown and slippers, apparently comfortable and at ease. “Did - Did Olivia tell you what I had told her?”

“Yes.” his reply was sharp and alert, “Yes, she did.”

“I suppose you would like me to leave here now?”

He sighed and shrugged “Katya, you have to do what you want to do. I believe you’ve lived your life under that precept anyway, so -.” he only shrugged again, and raised the glass to his lips and emptied it.

“Don’t you - don’t you care whether I stay or go?”

He did pause then for a moment and stared at her as though surprised that she even bothered to ask the question, “Katya, what you did - well, there’s no going back to change it now. Life goes on, we either learn from our mistakes or continue to make them. I think you’ve scarred more than your face by what you have done in the past. It’s possible for you to heal those scars, don’t you think so?”

He put the empty glass down and bade her goodnight, turned to leave and in passing her she caught at his hand, “Adam, don’t go yet, stay here … just for a little while.”

He smiled and pulled his hand away, shook his head “No, sorry, I’ve already been here with you long enough.”

“No, no, you haven’t - barely a few minutes - Adam, please, do stay. It’s been such a long time since I’ve - I’ve had any male company, and - and I’m lonely, I’m so lonely, Adam … can’t you stay just a little while longer.”

Again she grabbed at his hand but he was already making his way to the stairs, he merely nodded “Good night, Katya.”

She stared at him with disbelieving eyes and then raised her hand to her scarred cheek. As she heard the sound of the bedroom door closing behind him she slumped back into the chair alone with her thoughts.

Olivia stirred slightly as he slipped back into bed and opened her eyes slightly “Your feet are cold.”

He kissed her and put his arms around her, one beneath her head and the other across her naked shoulders. She could smell the whiskey on his breath and whispered “Bad dream?”

“Mmm.” he nodded, best to forget the dreams that had stolen away his sleep, he nestled in closer to her, kissed her neck and sighed, “Your sister’s downstairs …”

“Oh.” she frowned and as his fingers gently traced the furrows in her brow and his lips smiled teasingly against hers she decided not to waste time thinking about her sister, no matter where she happened to be, after all, time waits for no man, or woman, so they say.

Chapter 44

Adam’s thoughts were a long way from the events of the previous evening as he buckled on the chaps over his pants. More mundane matters crowded out the highs and lows of what had taken place with the Jessops and Downey’s, such things as spring round ups and branding, chasing mavericks and getting down to the nitty gritty of ranch life. He notched the final buckle and then led Sport from the stall.

She was standing at the stable door, a shawl around her shoulders and her long hair streaming like a golden mantle down her back and across the injured half of her face. She must have spent time applying some cosmetics to her face for she looked particularly beautiful, so much so in fact that it would be more than easy for a man to forget the ugliness beneath the coiling locks of hair.

“I really need to talk to you, Adam.”

“It’ll have to wait for another time,” Adam replied more brusquely than he intended although he stopped moving forward.

“When? Just tell me when, and where?” she stepped closer, raised a hand that she placed gently upon his chest.

“I meant - later, when we can sit down together, Olivia, you and myself.”

She withdrew her hand and shook her head “You don’t understand, do you? You have no idea of the kind of woman you’ve married, have you?”

“I do and I have… if you don’t mind, I have work to get on with.”

“She only married you for what you could give her, Adam. She’s cold, hard, and cruel. Pa always said that she was like Ma, she was cold too. Adam -” she paused as he stepped forward from the darkness of the stable’s interior into the light of the early morning. She saw his face, the clenched jaw and the black eyes that burned at her with passion, but of anger rather than lust.

“I think you’ve said enough,” he growled, barely able to get the words from his throat, “You’d best get inside, Katya, and pack your belongings. I don’t want to see you in our home when I get back.”

“Wait, please -” she had to run slightly to catch him as he mounted his horse, and again her hand clasped his wrist, “Adam, don’t you know what you’re doing to me? Olivia has everything, she’s always had everything, always. Now look - she has you, a home, children. I - I have nothing, Adam.”

“That’s hardly any fault of your sisters, now, if you don’t mind.” he shook her hand free from her grasp and mounted the horse, “Remember what I said, I want you gone by the time I get home.”

“You can’t mean it, you can’t.”

He said no more but kicked Sport into a fast trot so that she was left standing alone in the yard.

Reuben looked down at her from his bedroom window, rubbed his eyes and blinked for the hour was still early. It seemed to him that she looked like some fairy tale witch with the breeze blowing her hair around her shoulders. She stood so still that he rather fancied she had turned to stone and decided that there was just one way to find out …

She was still standing when he returned to the window with his catapult in his hand and the pebble in place. He’d been practising hard for days now, hoping that when he went to school he could be the champion in using the catapult if nothing else, and now he aimed carefully and let the pebble fly.

It hit Katya on the shoulder and stung for she whirled round instantly looking confused and puzzled as to what had happened. Her eyes widened as she turned to gaze up at his window and the look on her face was such that the little boy ducked down instantly in the hope that she had not seen him grinning gleefully down at her.

Olivia was smiling slightly as she was preparing the breakfast. Her husband had kissed her before leaving her to get up from her bed when she chose, telling her softly to take her time, he could see to himself and would return home later that evening. Now she opened the door to the cold cupboard where she kept the milk to keep it cool.

“Olivia -.”

She turned, nearly spilling the contents of the jug, and faced her sister who whirled into the room with tears streaming down her face, and suddenly, it appeared unable to speak as she slumped into a chair and covered her face with her hands.

“Katya, Katya, what’s the matter?” Olivia hastened to her side, put her arms around her shoulders to comfort her, “What’s wrong?”

“I can’t - I can’t tell you - I’m sorry.” Katya sobbed as she turned her face into her sisters embrace and held onto her “I told him I couldn’t - not - oh Livvy - I’m so sorry.”

“What are you talking about? What are you doing up so early? Katya -” she stopped for a moment as though something had taken shape in her mind, a nebulous something that seemed, if she reached out to touch it would become real, something she wouldn’t like to be real but could not be avoided no matter how she tried to ignore it and brush it away.

“I shall have to leave here, Livvy, I can’t stay here with him - I can’t have him hurt you, you deserve so much better.” Katya whispered as her head nestled against her sister’s heart and she could hear the faster beating of its rhythm beneath her ear and sobbed a little more for good measure.

Olivia gave her sister an impatient shake of the shoulders and forced her to turn her face towards her “Tell me what happened? Who are you talking about?”

“Why - Adam, of course.” Katya’s eyes opened innocently, washed with tears and lashes spiked with dewiness from those already shed.

“I - I don’t understand - you’ll have to explain yourself.”

Katya lowered her head and slowly moved away so that Olivia could grope for a chair and sit down. Now she stretched out her arm and took her sister by the hand “Livvy, I tried to stop him, last night - he’d been drinking - whiskey - and I didn’t know he was there when I went downstairs. He just appeared from his study and - I thought perhaps he may have mistaken me for you but - but he didn’t, he knew it was me, he called me by name, and -.”

“I don’t believe you, Katya, I can’t believe you.”

“But it’s true - why would I lie to you? You’ve been nothing but kind to me, so kind - and you’re my sister, I love you, I wouldn’t hurt you. That’s why I pushed him away and told him - to leave me alone, to go back to his wife.”

Olivia felt her mouth go dry, she felt her inward parts turn over as she remembered how Adam had come back to their bed, whiskey on his breath, muttered something about her sister being downstairs and then had tenderly loved her. She stared at Katya so hard that her sister thought she could read her very heart and soul, but Olivia didn’t see her as she stared, she only saw Adam, his brown eyes gentle with love making, his lips tender from kisses.

“I don’t believe you -” she whispered again.

“He told me to meet him early in the stable this morning, before he left to join his brothers.”

“You didn’t have to go.” Olivia said defensively, her eyes narrowing as though now she saw an opportunity to prove her sister a liar.

“I was too frightened not to -” Katya whispered lowering her eyes and sensing that victory was within her reach any moment now.

There was silence, it hung in the air like a poisonous gas hovering above them and broken only when Reuben called out to her “Ma -.”

Startled both women turned to look at him and the sight of the tears on Katya’s face made him feel immediately guilty at the thought that he had brought her to that state. He gulped and blushed while his eyes went hurriedly to his mother’s face and the look he saw made his legs go weak. So Aunt Katya had seen him, had told Ma, and now he would be in trouble, big trouble by the look of it.

“What do you want, Reuben?” Olivia asked slowly, as though she were sleep walking, her thoughts far away and the words hard to find.

“I - I thought it was time for breakfast, Ma.”

“I’ll call you when it’s ready.”

He looked again from one face to the other and hurried out of the room, grabbing hold of Sofia as he passed her on the stairs. “We’d best stay clear for a bit,” he said quietly, “Ma found out what I did, I’m going to be in so much trouble … Aunt Kat told her everything.”

“Why? What did you do?” Sofia squeaked grabbing his hand and letting him pull her up the stairs to his room where he told her what had happened and even though she giggled a little she soon grew very serious at the thought of the scolding he was sure to get.

Down in the kitchen Olivia listened as Katya told her of the morning tryst with Adam, how he had forced himself upon her, assuring her that she was lovely, lovelier than any woman he knew and when she had tried to push him away - with fluttering eyelashes she showed her sister the torn sleeve of her gown. In a voice shaking with emotion she explained how Adam had grabbed at her, how she had twisted away and the sleeve torn, she even showed the bruise - caused, incidently by Reuben’s missile not that she mentioned anything about that to Olivia.

The clock ticked over loudly and abruptly Olivia rose to her feet and excused herself as she hurried out of the room. She felt sick, panic stricken. Her feet stumbled on the stairs and in the kitchen Katya sat back in her chair and smiled, satisfied at her achievement. A job, she considered, to have been well done.

In the bedroom that she shared with her husband Olivia made her way to the bed and stared down at the imprints of their bodies upon the still untidy sheets. She caressed the pillow where the indentation of his head remained. Then she picked it up and held it against her face, closed her eyes and allowed his smell to fill her nostrils and remind her of their hours together. Slowly she lowered it back onto the bed as she stared unseeingly at its whiteness… surely, she told herself, a man could not make love to his wife in such a tender way as he had, if only moments before he had flirted with his wife’s sister.

She sat very still as thoughts whirled through her mind, words at random echoed in her head, and as she rose to her feet she felt a calm conviction that a man might do those things, but not Adam, not her husband. Never in the time she had been with him had she known him to be deceitful, lie or cheat anyone, least of all her.

She stood up now and turned towards the door and as she did so realised that she was not alone. Reuben stood with his hands behind his back and his head bowed and when she asked him what was the matter he said contritely “I’m sorry, Ma.”

“What for?” she forced a smile “It’s alright, Reuben, you didn’t know we were having a private conversation, I’ll go and make breakfast now and call you down when it’s ready.”

He shook his head and with a deep sigh produced the catapult from behind his back “It was my fault, I didn’t mean to make Aunt Kat cry. I didn’t think it would hurt her so much.”

He stood there for a while holding out the catapult until eventually she took it from him and stood there still staring at him. ‘Oh’ the little boy sighed ‘she wants me to explain what happened. I guess this is it ….” he drew in his breath “I - I - I -”

Olivia looked once again at the catapult and then at him, instinct seemed to be telling her that the next few moments were important, she had to listen and be careful in how she spoke to him so with a smile she placed a hand on his shoulder and drew him towards her, patted the bed and said gently “Sit down and tell me all about it, Reuben, and don’t be scared. Just tell me the truth.” she looked at him very sternly as she repeated “The truth, Reuben.”

He looked at her a little suspiciously then, but then she gave him her gentle smile which gave him the courage to tell her how he had used his catapult and hit Katya with a stone. He said, very quietly, “It hit her on the arm, and it hurt her, she - she looked at me real angry.”

“Well, I suppose if you hurt her then she had a right to be angry, Reuben.”

“I guess so.” he sighed and hung his head, “But I didn’t think it hurt her too much, to make her cry an’all.”

She bit back the words she was about to say and checked herself, cleared her throat and held his hands in her own, “When did this happen, Reuben?”

“What do you mean, Ma? It happened just now - this morning.”

She nodded and picked up the catapult “It’s a good catapult, I didn’t know you had one.”

“It’s Uncle Joe’s,” Reuben admitted with some pride in his voice, “He said it was his very bestest, and I bin practising every morning.”

“Did you see Pa this morning before your - er - practise session?”

“Sure. I always wait till I see Pa, he waves at me before he leaves. He didn’t today though, but that was because Aunt Kat was there and made him cross.”

Olivia’s heart somersaulted and she turned away from him in order not to reveal her feelings to him and panic him into saying something other than the truth. She nodded, “I guess he didn’t mean to be cross.”

“Oh yes he did, Aunt Kat kept grabbing at him and he wanted to get to work and told her to go away.”

She felt the breath get caught in her throat and had to cough to be able to speak “Did you hear anything that was said?”

“Some.” he blushed a little and looked away, his fingers played with some threads on the blanket.

“What were they? You can tell me, dear, I won’t be angry.”

“You might be though … Pa was angry … I guess I was too because it was why I got that stone and wanted to hit her with it.”

“Can you tell me? If I get angry it won’t be with you, I promise.” she reached out with her hand and touched his face, gently turning him back to face her.

“Well, she said nasty things about you, that you - you didn’t really love Pa. She said you were not a nice person. Pa got really angry, and told her to go away. Then he rode off and I thought how I didn’t like Aunt Kat anyhow and I wanted to hurt her - so I - I - I did. But then she was crying in the kitchen and I felt bad for hurting her.” he drew a breath, “I’m sorry.”

“Reuben, don’t be upset, I’m not angry.” she stood up and drew him up alongside her, “I’m going to make breakfast now. I’ll call you when it’s ready and then I think you should apologise to your aunt.”

“Yes, Ma.” he glanced at her quickly, “Ma - you really ain’t angry with me, are you?”

“No, darling, not at all.” she held his face between her two hands and kissed his brow gently, “Now, off you go. Don’t come down until I call you.”

“I love you, Ma.”

She smiled and nodded, and tried to remember the last time she had heard him say those three words to her. She listened to his footsteps running to his room and then looked at the catapult that had been left on top of the quilt. Uncle Joe’s ‘bestest ever’ indeed …!

Chapter 45

As she crossed the main room to the kitchen Olivia tried to put into some semblance of order the thoughts that had been passing through her mind since watching her son leave the room. She could hear the sound of movement from the other room and when she entered she found Katya pouring coffee into two cups, and as she watched she noticed that her sisters hands were completely steady, and her face was set into a mask of serene composure. ’How could she,’ Olivia thought, ’How could she be so calm after telling me that my husband had been unfaithful to me …with her?’

It was some seconds before Katya realised she was there and when she did she flashed her a smile, hesitant and slightly wary. “I made coffee.” she said and pushed one cup towards her, “I thought we could both use some.”

Olivia nodded “Yes, I think you’re right.”

“You left in such a hurry just now, I wasn’t sure whether or not you believed me.”

Olivia said nothing to that but pulled a chair from the table and sat down, cradled a cup between her hands and looked thoughtfully at her sister, while her mind went round and round in circles wondering what to say, how to say it, what to ask and would the answer be what she would want to hear? How far could she trust Katya now? Obviously not at all, so she asked the first thing that came to her mind, which was really something quite irrelevant, and, unlike Katya, her hands were trembling a little. “Katya, tell me about Drummond?”

“Drummond? Why? What has he got to do with this? It’s your husband we should be speaking about, not mine.”

“It may seem strange but I was just curious - I would like to have known a little about the man who married my sister.”

Katya looked at Olivia and then shook her head “Are you playing games with me, Olivia? Is that what this is?” she straightened her shoulders “Do you want proof that your husband was unfaithful to you? Do you?”

Olivia didn’t answer immediately then she shook her head “You wouldn’t be able to prove it, Katya. He never touched you. I know that as well as you do.”

“What? You’re calling me - your own sister - a liar?”

“I suppose I am.” Olivia sighed and stared into her coffee and for a moment watched as the bubbles on its surface swirled round and round from when it had been stirred, “Adam wouldn’t be unfaithful to me, not with you, not with anyone. It’s totally against his nature.”

“Nonsense.” Katya laughed a slight note of hysteria rang loud to Olivia’s ears and she looked up at her sister as though wondering if she were mad, “Olivia, you are so innocent. So naïve. Your husband is a man, isn’t he? Men do what is natural to them, they pursue women. Loyalty is - is absurd to even think about in this kind of thing.”

“Katya,” Olivia pushed away the cup and with a sigh looked intently at her sister, “Katya, let me tell you this once and once only, Adam did not touch you.” she stood up and took a step closer to the other woman, just an arms length away from her, “I was thinking about you just now, remembering what you were like as a little girl. You used to laugh a lot, and you loved singing. You loved to tell stories and sometimes you told such good stories that you couldn’t tell where the lie started and when it came to an end.” she didn’t change the tone of her voice as Katya stepped back with a look of incredulity on her face “I remember Pa saying that apart from your beauty the only other thing people would remember about you was how good a liar you were.”

“Pa wouldn’t have said that about me, he loved me.” Katya’s voice trembled, and her eyes widened, the pupils dilated and purpled “He loved me more than he loved any of you. He told me so. Lots of times.”

“May be he did, I don’t think Pa stopped loving any of us even when we disappointed him.”

“I told you what he did to me -.”

“I don’t believe you.”

Katya shrunk back and clasped her hands together, drew them to her chest as though in supplication, “I told you the most private thing of my life and you don’t believe me?”

Her voice cracked on a sob, and she shook her head wildly so that strands of hair loosened and fell over her face “I wouldn’t lie about a thing like that?”

“You lied about Adam. You told me a lie about my husband.”

“I didn’t.” Katya cried, “I didn’t. I couldn’t lie about that, Olivia.”

Olivia said nothing to that but walked to the pan where she had the children’s oatmeal cooking, she turned her head and called for Reuben who appeared far more quickly than even she thought possible, “Reuben, you have something to say to your aunt I believe?”

Katya’s eyes swung from Olivia to the boy who stood with his head down and his eyes fixed to the floor, she heard the boy gulp and then say in a low voice “I’m real sorry, aunt Katya. I’m sorry I shot that stone at you with my catapult.”

“What are you talking about?” again she looked from one to the other, then shook her head, “Olivia, what is he talking about?”

“He’s apologising for using you as target practice this morning.” Olivia replied calmly as she began to spoon out the oatmeal, “He saw you talking to Adam, just before his Pa went to work. He saw everything -.”

“Everything? What do you mean, he saw everything?”

“He saw you and Adam talking, that’s all.” Olivia turned to Reuben, “Unless there is anything else you saw that you never told me, Reuben?”

The boy looked puzzled, he shook his head “Pa was angry with Aunt Katya and told her to go, he didn’t do anything else ‘cept ride on out and he forgot to wave goodbye to me.”

Katya’s eyes widened to their fullest extent and then she sprung forward and grabbed Reuben by the arm, but before she could deliver the slap that she intended to give him her wrist was caught by her sister who pulled her away from the boy and with a calmness that was almost frightening she gave Katya a stinging slap across her face “I told you once before never to touch my children.”

Both women stepped back from having physical contact with the other, almost as though the slap Olivia had delivered had sent an electric current through their bodies that caused them to recoil as a result.

Katya raised a hand to her face which stung from the blow she had just received while Reuben fled from the room in order to stop Sofia walking into a potential war zone; Olivia stood in silence, leaning with her back against the sink and looking at her sister with a mix of emotions on her face. Katya’s first impulse was to throw herself at Olivia and hit her until there was no face left to hit, but a strange quirk of common sense suddenly trickled through her head and instead she burst into tears “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”

There was nothing to be said after that, Olivia didn’t move to give her sister the comfort that Katya may have hoped to receive from the one person who had always stood by her in the past. The awkward silence, her stillness as she watched her made Katya more than aware that the time was gone where she could expect any such thing again. In one move she turned and then hurried from the room.

Sofia finished her breakfast and then ran out to the main room with Reuben close behind her. Both children stopped in their tracks at the sight of their aunt tying the ribbons of her bonnet under her chin while on the floor were the cases piled in a neat stack ready for loading onto the wagon.

Sofia looked up at Reuben and then at her mother who had appeared from behind them, “Mommy, is Aunt Kat going away?”

“Yes, Sofia, she is -.”

Katya’s blue eyes turned to look into Olivia’s face; she noticed how the sea green eyes were now an intense green and the gentle face was hard, cold but with a beauty that she knew she could never emulate. Katya shook her head “Aren’t you - you going to say goodbye?”

Olivia put her hands on her children’s shoulders “Say goodbye to your aunt, children.”

As their voices chorused a rather insincere farewell there was a knock on the door, which was pushed open by Candy “One wagon waiting for a passenger to town?”

Katya nodded and walked towards her sister, took her by the shoulder and leaned in to kiss her cheek but Olivia averted her face so that Katya’s pursed lips kissed only the air between them. “Goodbye, Olivia.”

Her sister nodded and without a smile followed her to the door where the wagon was waiting. Candy took the cases and carried them to the wagon, he smiled at Katya, “Old Silas here will take you into town, M’am.”

Katya said nothing, she looked at him and saw the blue eyes looking at something over her shoulder. ‘Did everyone know’ she thought to herself as she picked up her skirts in order to ascend the step, ‘Do they all hate me now?’

Candy’s hand on her elbow to assist her up made her shiver, she was surprised by his contact with her, and looked back at him with a murmur of thanks. He only nodded, smiled and stepped away as she settled herself down on the wagon seat.

Her last glimpse of her sister was of Olivia standing at the door with a child standing on either side of her and Candy walking to stand at her side.

……………….

Adam pushed open the door to his home and stopped for a moment to unbuckle his gunbelt which he placed on the bureau, he stretched in order to get the kinks out of his back and then removed his jacket and hat. He stepped into an empty room which was welcoming only by the fire that burned with vigour in the hearth, and after looking around he stepped to the kitchen where Olivia was pouring out coffee for them both. She looked up at him and smiled “You’re late?”

“I’m sorry, we had some problems. Pa wanted it cleared up before the day ended so we could start fresh tomorrow.” he yawned and looked around “Are the children in bed?”

“Nearly an hour ago.”

“I’ll go and see if they’re still awake then.”

She nodded and accepted his kiss with a smile then watched him as he walked away from her. He limped slightly, an indication that the day had been busy, and a hard one. She knew he would be tired as she busied herself serving up the meal that had been prepared for him.

Sofia had struggled so hard to stay awake to say goodnight to her daddy but it had proved pointless as sleep had slipped under her guard and before she had known it she was sound asleep. Adam drew the covers over his little girl and kissed her brow. He smiled slightly, thinking how strange it was that he could feel so much for this little bundle who had no blood claims to him whatsoever.

Reuben stirred and opened his eyes just as Adam pulled the covers over him “Hi Pa?”

“Hi son, sorry I’m late.”

Reuben’s eyes began to close but he forced them open again “I’m sorry, Pa, I hit Aunt Kat.”

“What? You did what?”

The boy yawned and sighed “I hit her, my catapult.”

“An accident?” Adam asked tentatively.

“No, sir. I did it on purpose, she made me angry.”

Adam pursed his lips and was about to say something on the subject of respecting one’s elders, especially when they were women, when he realised the boy was sound asleep. He shook his head and very quietly left the room.

He was smiling to himself when he opened the door to their room. The moonlight shone through the window and by its light he was able to locate the lamp and lit it. He turned to light the opposite lamp when he paused and dropped the match from his fingers onto the floor at the sight of the beautiful quilt that had been a wedding gift to them.

Olivia turned with a startled look on her face as Adam strode angrily into the room “Where’s Katya?”

“She’s gone.”

“Gone? Where?”

Olivia put a hand to Adam’s chest and shook her head “She’s gone, she left this morning.”

Adam released his breath and narrowed his eyes as he looked at her, “You’ve not been upstairs since she left?”

“No, I’ve had no reason to go up there, why?”

He could feel the anger leave him now, and just reached for her hand, “She’s not - er - going to turn up here tomorrow morning, is she?”

“I doubt it very much.” Olivia replied, “Sit down and eat your meal while I tell you all about it.”

“Reuben said something about his catapult … did that have something to do with it?”

“Maybe, I don’t know for sure.” she looked at him “What’s happened upstairs that I should know about …?”

Perhaps it was inevitable, Olivia thought as she surveyed their bed. Katya could never have just left without making some mark, some indication of her hatred and anger. It was just a shame that she had chosen to vent her rage on such a thing of beauty as the quilt that Hester, Mary Ann and Ann had so diligently worked on for so long. Their wedding gift had been something that Olivia had been particularly proud of and now, seeing it torn and ripped apart in an act of savage hatred and envy, filled her with sadness.

She picked up a small remnant and felt the silk beneath her fingers before looking at her husband “Why? Why would she have to do something like this?”

“Can it be mended?” Adam asked as he stroked her back gently and surveyed the ragged remains that were tossed all over the room.

“I doubt it.”

She sat down on the ottoman and her shoulders drooped, “She told me such lies, Adam, and I slapped her and told her to go. I suppose she knew she couldn’t possibly expect any more from me after that -.”

“What lies did she tell you? Those about your father?”

“No,” she raised her eyes to look at him, his face was obscured by shadows, she reached out her hand “I love you so much, Adam.”

“I know, sweetheart.” he came and knelt by her side, her hand in both of his, “What did she say this time?”

So she told him of Katya’s accusations and sometimes her eyes would wander from his face, from the dark eyes, and stray over his shoulder as though she could see her sister’s face taunting her from within the shadows.

“Did you believe her?” he asked with one eyebrow raised in that quizzical way he had and she shook her head, “No. I didn’t believe her.”

Adam looked at her thoughtfully, into the sea green eyes that he loved so much, “Not even the slightest of doubts?”

She hesitated, had she doubted him? She shook her head, no, never, never … not for an instant. She smiled at his upturned face and leaned forward, “Not for a second.” she whispered and kissed him, kissed him so that he knew that she couldn’t possibly believe the lie, never, never, never.

Chapter 46

Reuben sat on the stool and told Adam all that had taken place the previous morning, he even mentioned how his Ma had given his aunt Kat a slap around the face and if he detected a twinkle in Pa’s eyes he thought it best not to notice or remark on it.

“So, Uncle Joe gave you his favourite catapult, huh?” Adam sat astride a chair and folded his arms on it.

“Sure, he said that - ,” he paused and frowned, “He had it in his box and said I could have it, that you’d have fond memories - that’s what he said, Pa - fond memories.”

Adam sighed and rubbed his temple with an index finger before nodding “Sure, I remember it well, so does Hoss and Pa. We all suffered greatly when Joe had hold of that thing.”

“Are you angry with me, Pa?”

Adam sighed and looked at the boy thoughtfully. He saw a tousled headed little boy looking anxiously back at him, freckles splattered over his nose and cheeks, and blue eyes looked wide and innocently up at him. Reuben had grown over the past year, he had lost that dimpled look of the very young and was becoming leaner and taller. Adam could see glimpses of Olivia in the boys face, but generations of genes from those unknown to him provided the most part of his structure. Even so the boy had wormed his way into the Commodore’s heart as easily as his sister had, and Adam knew that as a father he had a responsibility to rear these children in a manner that would make their own natural father proud of them. He cleared his throat.

“No, I’m not angry with you, Reuben. I’m proud of the fact that you admitted what you had done to your Ma, and that you apologised to your aunt. I’m also glad that you happened to be there at the time to overhear what you did although it was what you did after that which is what we have to discuss.”

“I know -.” the boy’s voice sighed out the words and he looked down at his feet which had been swinging back and forth and which he now stilled. “You’re angry because I fired a shot at her with my catapult?”

“I’m disappointed in you, Reuben. Remember when we last talked about having respect for women? Even women who act in a way that is very displeasing and even wrong by our standards should still be treated with some respect.” he pursed his lips and cleared his throat again, “A catapult can be a dangerous weapon, you know that, don’t you?”

“Sure, Uncle Joe told me that.”

“What else did he tell you?”

“He said never to use it -”he heaved in a deep breath “Never to use it if I’m angry, and not to use it on any human or animal. But, Pa, I didn’t aim anyplace -”

“Reuben - think about what you’re saying now?” Adam looked intently into the boys face “What if you went to school with that catapult and used it against another pupil, and really harmed them? That would be wrong, wouldn’t it?”

“I guess.”

“No, you don’t guess. . You have to know for sure, son. I remember one time when I was a boy and Gran’pa and I were travelling through Illinois. We stopped at a settlement and I waited for my Pa to come back from a store. While I waited I watched two boys who were arguing, there was some pushing and shoving going on for a while, and then one of the boys ran off, he turned and called the other boy some foul word which roused the other lad to lose his temper, he picked up a stone and used his catapult and the next thing

I knew was the other boy had fallen down - I expected him to jump right on back but he didn’t.”

“Was he dead?” Reuben asked with wide eyes as his hands gripped the side of his stool.

“The stone had struck him at the temple and yes, he was dead. It was obvious the lad with the catapult didn’t think he was dead, not until a woman came out and the screaming and crying began.” he was silent for a moment as though reliving that time, then he looked at the boy again “You have to think of that catapult as we have to think of our guns, they’re weapons, used at the wrong time, in the wrong way, they can kill. You could have done your aunt some serious harm, you know?”

“But I didn’t, Pa. I didn’t even aim at her to hurt her much.”

“Hmm, but you did aim at her to hurt her, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t like what she was saying about Ma, I didn’t like her, I wanted to hurt her and I was angry.”

“And that was exactly the time when you should have put the catapult away and walked out of the room.” he lowered his face to the boys level “Do you really understand what I’m saying here?”

“Yes, sir.”

“It takes a strong man to be able to control his own temper, Reuben. Any fool can give in to anger, and then, like a fool, he has to pay the consequences. A strong man curbs his temper and when he can do that, he masters himself.” he looked at the boy and saw the confusion on his face, and smiled, “Well, I think for the time being I had better look after that catapult, don’t you?”

“Sure, Pa.” Reuben handed it over and sighed “Uncle Joe said I’d probably have to hand it over at some time or other, he said he was always having to give it up to you or Gran’pa.”

“Mmm, and somehow or other he always managed to get it back.” Adam said with brown eyes twinkling, “Try and remember what we’ve discussed today, Reuben, will you?”

“Yes, Pa.”

Adam nodded and stood up, pushed the chair away and lifted the boy from the stool, “Alright, that’s enough now. Go on in and get on with your chores.”

He watched as the boy ran to the house, then looked at the catapult, with a shake of his head and a grin he put it into a box on the shelf. How many times had he done just that in the past and a freckled faced little boy would scowl at him and promise never to do what he had done wrong again. He sighed and with the memory of Little Joe Cartwright fading from his mind he returned to the house.

……………

Katya left the hotel and walked to the stagecoach terminal. She knew she could have taken the train but somehow the idea of the stagecoach had more appeal. She would be in San Francisco within a few days and from there would return to England. There was a home waiting for her there, Drummond had left her well provided for and as a wealthy widow she knew that she would not be ignored for long.

As she was assisted into the vehicle and took her seat she thought back over the time she had spent with her family and carefully adjusted her veil as though that would conceal not only her scars but the indiscretions that had taken place during her stay. The vehicle jerked into movement and she looked out of the window to watch the buildings drift away. The other occupants in the coach took little notice of her so she was safe pursuing her own thoughts. It was true what Olivia had said, she told her self now, she had heard her father say those very words about her, that her beauty and her capacity to lie would be the two things people would remember her by. There was little point in denying it now, after all, almost every day of the week she proved him right over and over again.

She felt her throat tighten and realised that she was weeping so with a swift movement she tried to wipe away the tears. Why cry now, the damage was done, and by her own hands too? Wasn’t it always the same? Didn’t she always destroy the relationships that she was blessed with, as though it were impossible for her to be happy simply by being loved?

“Excuse me -?”

The man’s voice was kindly and when she looked at him she realised he was offering her a neatly pressed clean handkerchief.

“Grit in the eye - always causes problems - it is clean, by the way.”

He smiled as she accepted the square of linen and dabbed at her eyes, she smiled back as she returned it and thanked him. This part of the journey, she mused, was going to be quite interesting, after all.

……………….

In the evening the family met together at the Ponderosa ranch for one of Hop Sing’s favourite meals. Flowers decked the table and the lamps shone welcoming globes of golden light around the big room. Hester fixed the ribbon in her little girl’s hair and watched as she ran across the floor to where Hoss was standing. She wondered how he would react when she told him her news and smiled a secretive little smile that many women had done when thinking no one could guess about the miracle of new life growing within them.

Ben looked over at her and nodded thoughtfully before adding another log to the fire. It wouldn’t be long before their nights would be disturbed yet again by the demanding cries of a baby in the house. He wondered when Hester would get round to telling Hoss and watched as his son picked the little girl up in his arms. He was thinking how proud Hoss would be with a houseful of children when the door opened and Joe came into the room with Daniel in his arms and a smile on his face while behind him came Mary Ann.

“Hi Pa, we’re not late are we? Hey, Hester, you look lovely this evening,” Joe kissed his sister in law on the cheek and grinned over at Hoss then tweaked little Hannah’s nose, “How’s my favourite girl?”

Hannah laughed and clapped her hands and allowed her grandfather to take him out of Hoss’ arms so that her father could do the Host thing and pour out some wine for his guests. As he did so the door opened again and in came Reuben and Sofia followed by Adam and Olivia.

“Where’s Katya?” Hester asked immediately as she greeted her sister in law with a kiss.

“She’s gone back to England.” Olivia replied as she removed her coat, “She decided against staying any longer.”

“Oh, well, I can’t say that I’m sad about that,” Hester laughed, and looked over at Adam who was grinning rather smugly, “You didn’t have something to do with it her leaving, did you, Adam?”

He didn’t reply but turned away with a laugh and took the glass from Hoss with a wink of the eye. He watched as Olivia leaned over to take Hannah in her arms while Reuben and Sofia ran over to Ben to be given hugs from him. As he raised the glass to his lips he saw Joe and strolled over to him, “I thought you’d be interested to know that I’ve confiscated that catapult of yours - again.”

“My - oh - my catapult?” Joe’s eyebrows rose high on his forehead and he laughed his infectious gurgle of a laugh, “What on earth did he do with it?”

“I’ll leave you to find out.” Adam replied with a grin and a nod and then continued to drink the wine.

Hop Sing came from the kitchen area and looked around the room. Everyone present, everyone happy. He bowed to them and clapped his hands “Quickee quickee or supper get all cold”

Olivia’s hand brushed against her husbands and as he turned towards her she smiled and as he gave her an answering smile Ben nodded to himself and thanked God for the joy of his family … long may it last, he prayed, long may it last.

Chapter 47

The whistling was jarring and beginning to get on everyone’s nerves. Joe was particularly feeling tense due to not getting a decent nights sleep, an infant son who insisted on getting a meal at 2 a.m. in the morning was beginning to take its toll despite the fact that Mary Ann tried not to disturb him when getting out of bed to feed the baby.

“Will you quit that whistling.”

His snapped out request stopped Hoss and caused Adam to roll his eyes and concentrate harder on heating up the branding iron, making sure that his back was turned to both his brothers.

“What’s wrong with whistling? Why can’t I whistle?”

“Because it’s getting on my nerves, that’s why. If you feel you gotta whistle go and chase some mavericks some place else well out of hearing range.”

“I got my job here to do,” Hoss insisted, “I don’t intend going out riding half way round the Ponderosa looking for mavericks.”

“Oh sure, just leave that for anyone else who happens to be around huh?”

“You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to, Joe. There’s plenty of men we’ve hired to do the job.”

“Oh, so it’s alright for them to do but not you, huh?”

“What’s stuck in your craw today anyhow, Joe? I’m only whistling because I’m feeling happy.”

Ben dismounted from his horse and looked anxiously at the two brothers who were nearly standing nose to nose, Hoss had his hands on his hips and Joe was gesturing wildly, “What’s wrong with them?”

Adam glanced up and nodded a greeting to his father before looking over his shoulder at his brothers “Hoss is whistling too loudly and little brother can’t take the pain.”

“That bad, huh?”

“It is.” Adam stood up and moved with the branding iron in his hand towards the calf that had been brought in, wriggling and squealing protests and crying out for its mother. He plunged the red hot iron down on the calf’s hide and then stepped back while Hank flicked the rope to release the creature who ran off wailing its misfortune.

“Did he tell you why he’s so happy today?” Ben smiled as he pulled off his gloves and beckoned to Joe who, after a final glare at his brother, walked over to join them at the fire.

“No, why? Do you know?” Adam asked as he replaced the branding iron into the fire.

“I think so, but if he hasn’t mentioned anything to you himself then I’d best not say anything.”

Adam looked thoughtfully at his father and then at Joe who had raised his eyebrows and rolled his eyes “You thinking what I’m thinking?” he asked.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking,” Joe shrugged and picked up the iron, “I don’t have a devious conniving brain like you, brother.”

Adam grinned and watched Joe stroll over to another calf, then straightened his back and looked over at Hoss before giving his father a wink, “I was thinking the other evening that Hester was looking very happy.”

“Mmm, yes, she was.” Ben muttered and strolled over to the chuck wagon to discuss some matters with Sam, who was cook for the week.

“Hey, Hoss?” Adam rolled a lariat into a neat loop as he approached Hoss, “How come you’re so happy today then? You know something we don’t?”

“Could be.” the big man replied with a grin while he pushed off his hat and scratched his head.

“So what is it then? You going to tell me?”

“Nope.”

“You aren’t? That’s kind of unfair, isn’t it?” Adam pouted and finished coiling the rope which he held in his hand “Can I guess?”

“You can but you won’t guess what it is.”

“Why not?”

“Because, that’s why.”

“That’s not an answer, that’s just a way out of answering.”

“Yeah, I know, that’s why I said it.” Hoss went to the fire and carefully placed some fuel upon it, he brushed his hands on the seat of his pants and stepped back, knocking into Joe as he did so, “Watch it, you could’ve had an accident, why’d you not look where you’re going?”

“You big lummox, why don’t you.”

“I ain’t got eyes in the back of my head you know?”

Adam stepped forward and raised a hand “Look, that’s enough - what’s wrong with you two? Hoss, you were happy a few minutes ago now you’ve become a pain in the butt, and Joe, what side of the bed did you roll out of this morning?”

Both brothers rounded on their elder brother now, Hoss even went so far as to jab him in the chest with his index finger so that Adam had to step backwards and as he did so his heel caught on one of the branding irons so that he staggered and would have fallen flat on his back had Ben not been in a position to prevent him from doing so.

“Hoss, you idiot -” Adam hissed and then turned to his father “Thanks, Pa.”

Ben nodded and stepped in between the three of them “Alright, I don’t know what’s caused this ruckus but I would like to remind you that there’s a lot of work to get through if we’ve to finish this job by the end of the week. Hoss, you ride over to the south side and see what calves you can round up; no, don’t argue I don’t want to know. Joe, over there, go right to the rim rock and see what you can find.”

“But Pa -.”

“Just do it.”

Ben sighed and looked at Adam with a shake of the head “Sometimes it seems to me that they’ll never grow up.”

“Yeah, well -” Adam shrugged and returned to the fire and the branding irons. “How did you get on with your meeting this morning?”

“Very well.” Ben smiled as Adam stood up beside him, “Hugh Jessop signed the agreement and the men start working on diverting the stream next week. Derwent’s back home by the way, Mr. Weems contacted him and told him about Brett’s death so he got back in time for the funeral.”

“Well, that’s good, I’m glad to hear it.” Adam nodded as his mind went back to the plan they had drawn up with regard to the stream, “How is Mr. Jessop?”

“Apologetic and only too happy to make compromises.” he touched Adam’s elbow and indicated that they draw away from the men for some privacy “How’s Olivia?”

“She’s alright. Why do you ask?”

“She never said much about her sister leaving, and I just wondered if it had upset her at all.”

“No,” Adam smiled “Quite the contrary in fact. I‘m afraid Katya wasn‘t the most pleasant person to have around the house. She‘s going back to England, hopefully she‘ll be happy to stay there.”

“I always felt rather sorry for her, poor girl” Ben grimaced and then shrugged “Still, the mind is a strange thing and works in mysterious ways.”

“It sure does, Pa.” Adam agreed wholeheartedly, and with a grin began to walk back to his work.

“When does Reuben start school? I heard Olivia talking about it to Mary Ann when you were at the house. I meant to ask him about it but didn’t get the chance.”

Adam paused now and nodded thoughtfully, he sighed, “Well, it’s his first day today. He wasn’t very happy about going, it’s something else that’s new in his life. He’s had to handle quite a few changes in his life over the past year or so.”

Ben shrugged “He’ll be alright, children adapt.”

Adam said nothing to that but his eyes followed his father as Ben returned to his horse and left the camp with a wave of the hand. He briefly lingered over all the changes he had had to make in his life as a child, and if any child had to adapt he certainly had to do so, and often. With a slight shake of the head he squatted on his haunches and adjusted the position of the branding iron.

Hoss couldn’t believe that from being in such a good mood he could now be plunged into such a bad one. He rode out of the camp with a scowl on his face that sent the other men scattering in different directions rather than risk working along with him. It was not being able to tell them all, that’s what it was, he finally concluded as he snaked a lasso neatly around the neck of a cow and pulled her from the brush. Sure enough her calf came lolloping along behind her as well as several other moms and their little ‘uns.

It was because Hester wanted to tell ‘the girls’ herself when they met up in a few days time. She didn’t want any clumsy husband of theirs blurting it out over their supper this evening when she could deliver it all word perfect and such. He would have told them and asked them to keep it secret but he knew that wouldn’t be possible with Joe, he wouldn’t be able to keep it a secret to save his life!

As he thought about it on the way back to camp with the little herd of cows and calves following noisily behind him he felt that rosy glow at the pit of his stomach rekindle. Fancy that, he mused, him and Hester having another baby. Him and Hester having a little boy this time perhaps, a brother for Hannah. Shucks, just imagine it and wouldn’t Hannah be just tickled pink about that seeing how she so loved poking little Daniel whenever she saw him.

“Careful where you go, boy.” Adam’s voice cut through his musings as sharp as a knife through butter, “You nearly rode into the fire. You alright? You sickening for something?”

“No, I’m alright, doggone it.” he flicked the lasso free from the cow and gathered it in his hands “I’ll go look for some more.” he said abruptly and turned his horse back the way he had come leaving his brother looking at him with an odd expression on his face.

“Shucks,” Hoss groaned to himself, “I want to whoop and holler and yell and tell the world and I can’t, it’s just about gitting too much to bear.”

Joe Cartwright yawned hugely and glanced around him. There was no sign of any calf or cow anywhere but there was a cool stream and a small copse of trees and shrub. He rode into their shade and dismounted, looked around him and with a sigh of contentment tethered the horse to a twig and settled down on the mossy ground. He took his hat off and placed it carefully on his chest and closed his eyes. He’d only sleep for a little while, perhaps half an hour because no one would expect him back before then anyway. His breathing got heavier … and within minutes he was snoring loud enough to waken the dead.

……………….

The new boy at school sat at his desk where countless children had sat before him and gazed around him with anxious blue eyes. Some of the other children were looking sideways on at him, curious and interested while the others kept their heads down as they wrote the words they had to copy from the board onto their slates.

He looked at the teacher and saw her looking at him and blushed, even though she smiled friendly enough he wasn’t too sure whether she liked him or not, or even if he liked her. He looked at his slate and then at the words on the board and knew he had copied them right, words that his Ma had taught him to write and spell some while back.

He glanced over at the slate of the boy next to him and was surprised to see the words scrawled out all higgly piggly as Sofia would call it. The boy couldn’t even hold the chalk right. The girl in front was doing all right by herself, her letters were neat and well formed, just like his own.

The teacher clapped her hands and everyone stopped, the boy next to Reuben heaved a sigh and wiped his face with a sweating hand, leaving chalk marks on his cheeks. Now they had to wait for the teacher to come down and check each slate and make some comment about them. She was pleased with the girl in front and smiled “Well done, Annie” and Reuben could see that the girl must have blushed because even the back of her neck went red.

“Oh Billy,” the teacher sighed at the sight of the mess the boy next to him had made, she shook her head and put the slate down, “What are we going to do with you?”

No one answered, it was a rhetorical question and no one was expected to answer although it was obvious that Billy was making some attempt to do so. She went on to Reuben and looked at his slate, “Oh very well done, Reuben. Very well done indeed.”

He looked sideways on at Billy whose head couldn’t sink any lower than it did, he said thank you to the teacher and watched as she returned to her desk and told them it was time for recess.

He was the only new boy in the class and wandered out last of all as the others streamed out yelling and hollering, all that time spent keeping their energies and thoughts and feelings tucked inside of them so long now released. He took one step at a time and looked around him as the children paired off or went into groups to eat their food.

He sat on a log near the school house, too shy to run up and join any of them. Some darted curious looks over at him and some just ate, and then got up and began to play. They kicked a ball and when it came up to him he didn’t know whether to kick it back or not. He’d eaten as much as he wanted and stood up, he kicked it good and hard and the boys cheered as they went chasing after it.

“Are you really a Cartwright?”

He turned and looked at her, the girl Annie with yellow hair tied in big ribbons and curls trickling down her back. She had big eyes and wore spectacles. He blinked and nodded.

“I’m Annie Sales.”

“Hello, I’m Reuben Cartwright.”

“D’you want a candy bar?” she offered him her snack box in which several candy bars could be seen but he shook his head and said no thank you very politely.

“Why didn’t you come to school before now?” she sat down on the step close to him and began to munch on some candy so that Reuben began to wish now that he had said yes to her offer.

“My Ma and Pa taught me at home.”

“That must have been fun, I wish my folks taught me at home.”

“You’re very good though, I saw your slate. You write real neat.”

She nodded “I know.”

A shadow fell over them and they both looked up to see Billy glowering down at them. Ann offered him a candy bar which he took without even saying thank you, which Reuben thought quite rude of him. Billy looked at him “I s’pose you think you’re some clever brainy kid huh?”

“No, not really.” Reuben replied noticing how the other children had stopped playing and were slowly gathering around to watch and listen, even Annie had drawn away from him a little distance.

“Yeah, you do.” Billy poked him in the shoulder.

“It’s only copying words from the board.” Reuben replied scornfully as though it was the easiest thing in the world to do, which it was for him.

“Oh yeah?” Billy leaned forward and pushed him so that his back scraped against the hard rim of the step upon which he had been leaning.

“I could show you how to do it if you like?”

The naivete of the offer made the other children gasp, and when Billy clenched his fists some of the girls ran away to get the teacher. Reuben looked at the other boy and stood up, it was obvious the boy was older than himself, and bigger too. Perhaps he hadn’t been at school long, perhaps his parents didn’t bother to help him at home, he had no idea about Billy’s life and how different it was from his own. He smiled “Come on, I’ll show you.”

Billy was puzzled, this new kid seemed to be stupid, and he looked around him at the other children who were waiting for some action in the same way they would crowd around to watch him pull the legs off spiders. He thumped one fist into the palm of his hand “Are you being stupid on purpose?”

“No, I didn’t think I was being stupid, I just thought you wanted to learn how to write on the slate.”

Billy frowned, he took a deep breath and nodded “You are stupid.” he said with a sneer and one boy in the crowd yelled “Go on, Billy, hit him one.” he stepped back and looked at the little boy standing in front of him.

If there was one thing among the many things that Billy detested it was the sight of smart alecky boys who were obviously from well to do families, dressed smartly, new boots, and clean all over. It was even worse when they could write words on the slate perfectly. He felt hot and cold all over with the desire to smash his fist into the boys nose but … he frowned and narrowed his eyes, “Alright, show me how.”

“C’mon then -.” Reuben held out his hand which Billy disdained to accept, but they took the steps back into the school and into the cool of the class room. Reuben handed over the chalk, “First of all, you need to know how to hold your chalk right.”

………………

Adam rubbed his face and felt the dust under his fingers, branding calves all day, especially on dry warm days always made him itch from the ash and dust that mantled him by day’s end. He was more than pleased to see home again, and after seeing to his horse he crossed the yard and pushed open the door.

Sofia reached him first and was swung in the air as a reward, then Reuben came with a grin on his face as he was engulfed in a bear hug “How’d you get on at school?”

“Alright, Pa. I didn’t learn anything but it was fun.”

Adam glanced over at his wife and raised his eyebrows, surely the whole point of going to school was so that the child learned something. Olivia smiled and shrugged “They’re going over things we’ve already taught him.”

“It’s alright though, I got a friend, his name’s Billy.” Reuben waited for Adam to deposit the little girl on the floor and remove his gun belt, jacket and hat. “Billy wanted to thump me but he can’t write so I showed him how, he was much happier and teacher said he was much improved.”

“He was going to thump you?” Adam scratched his face thoughtfully, “Why?”

“Annie said that Billy thumps all the new boys, he said he might thump me tomorrow though.”

Adam pinched his nostrils and shook his head “You don’t seem too bothered about it?”

“I reckon he won’t be able to do math either, but he may want to so I’ll show him how.” Reuben grinned.

“What if he doesn’t want to.” Adam led them into the kitchen where Olivia was serving up the food, he darted a look at her and smiled, glad of her returning smile.

“Guess he’ll thump me then.” Reuben sighed and took his seat at the table, while Adam kissed his wife and then washed his hands under the faucet.

Adam grinned and sat down, there was always someone wanting to take on a Cartwright no matter what the size any particular Cartwright happened to be. He was glad that he had educated Reuben in more than math and writing.

Their bed looked naked without its splendid quilt and when Adam saw his nightshirt neatly folded on the pillow he accepted that it was ‘one of those times’again and slipped it over his head while he observed his wife brushing her hair.

They had never discussed having children of their own, oh perhaps a fleeting reference to ‘when they had more’ or when another would come along, but nothing definite. He was a man who loved his wife deeply, and felt that Olivia was indeed his soul mate and as such he understood her feelings well enough. He had seen and noted the yearning in her eyes as she had leaned over Daniel’s crib or held the little baby in her own arms and smiled over at him. He had seen and noted the way her shoulders drooped each month when it was obvious that ‘nothing had clicked’ yet.

He approached her now and kissed the back of her neck and then the top of her head, “Are you alright, sweet heart?”

“Yes, of course.” she smiled at him through the mirror and the pale sea green of her eyes belied her words.

He nodded and sat down on the ottoman that was at the foot of their bed. He told of their days branding, of Hoss and Joe being at odds with each other and how they had done a search for Joe when he had disappeared in case he had had an accident and found him sound asleep with his horse wandered off drinking out of the stream. He never told her that Hester was expecting another baby, not only because Hoss had begged him not to mention it because he had promised Hester, but because, intuitive as ever, he knew that the news would only upset her further.

She listened to him and smiled, even laughed a little when he told her how Joe had pleaded lack of sleep due to Daniel’s keeping them awake half the night. By the time they were in bed and he had her in his arms with her head upon his shoulder she felt content once again. Count your blessings she thought, but she had so many that she was asleep before she had got past five.

Chapter 48

Paul Martin saw Adam before the other man had had a glimpse of the old doctor, but upon hearing his name called he acknowledged him with a smile and then a strong shake of the hand “Hi, Paul, how’s everything?”

“Good enough.” Paul smiled, “You going for a drink ?” he jerked his head at the saloon and when Adam nodded turned along with him towards the building, “Everyone fit and healthy back home?”

“They are.” Adam replied and nodded over to Charlie the bar keep, “Two whiskies, Charlie.”

“Coming up, Adam. Good to see you in here again.”

Adam pulled out a chair and sat down, stretched out his legs and put his hat down on th table “How’s Jimmy getting on, Paul?”

“Busy. He’s more in demand with the Chinese section of town. Seems like they have decided to forget he went against the Tong last year and feel a good doctor should be respected with their custom. Result is -” he paused as Charlie set the two glasses down on the table, “I’ve had to get a new doctor in to help in my practice.”

“Oh?” Adam picked up his glass and looked through the golden liquid as he held it to the light, then he sipped it. “Any good?”

“Yes, he’s only been here a week but he’s a good reliable man, steady, and efficient.”

“But?”

Paul frowned “What made you think there was a but?”

“I just kind of heard it when you stopped talking.” Adam grinned and Paul laughed and picked up his glass before nodding.

“There is a but, and that is because he’s young and he’s bringing new idea’s into my surgery.”

“Nothing wrong in that surely?” Adam said quietly, “You thought the same thing about your nephew if you recall rightly.”

“I know, but John had the advantage of being my nephew which helped him and me so that we both got on well enough as a result.”

“Ah I see. You don’t particularly like your new doctor?”

Paul shrugged and sighed and his shoulders slumped “I guess not. Fact is, he makes me feel that I’m the newcomer in my own surgery.”

Adam nodded and drank more whiskey “Have you heard from John and Barbara, are they all getting along alright?”

“Doing very well. Lilith is a remarkable student at school, and little Peter is progressing well. They’re expecting a new baby by the end of the year.” Paul smiled, “Hoss and Hester -”

“Uh-huh, Hoss told us yesterday.”

Paul nodded and was about to speak when a thickset man stepped into the saloon, looked around and seeing Adam strode over to him, “Mr. Cartwright?”

Adam glanced up, recognised Harry and straightened himself in the chair, “Sit down, Harry,” he signalled to Charlie to bring over another drink, “Busy?”

“Waiting for orders from you, Mr. Cartwright.” Harry replied sliding into the chair and accepting the whiskey with a nod of thanks.

“That’s good. The weather looks set fine for now, I’d like the work done before the weather gets too hot”

Paul smiled and leaned forward “I heard tell that you were planning on building an extension to your property, Adam. What exactly do you plan to do?”

Adam was only too delighted to tell him, drawing the design on the table top from the spilled drinks and explaining how it would work and how he had the parts ordered from England. “It’s going to make life a lot easier, and healthier, believe me.”

Paul frowned and scratched his head, shook his head doubtfully and looked at Harry who was looking every bit as excited about the project as his soon to be employer. “You reckon?”

“Stands to reason, Paul. Apart from which we won’t have to trudge out to the outhouse in all kinds of weather in future.”

“But where’s ‘it’ all going to go? It has to go somewhere some distance from the house to be safe.” Paul shook his head and listened as Adam and Harry began talking both together to explain about drainage and pipes that would carry the excrement away from the building and be deposited safely.

Adam finished his drink and placed the empty glass on the table, “Well, I’ve things to do. Harry, I’ll see you beginning of next week. S’long, Paul.” he shook the doctors hand and picked up his hat, “Don’t look so worried, I’m an engineer, remember?”

“Among other things -.” Paul chuckled as he also left the table so that Harry sat alone sipping the last of the whiskey and watching the diagram on the table disappear into dribbles upon its surface.

……………….

Mary Ann passed pieces of the material from the quilt through her hands and onto a pile in a basket by her side. Every so often she would shake her head and sigh, and reminisce about one piece or another and who had sewn it on and when. Hester, when she had been shown the remnants of the quilt had nearly cried and quite honestly admitted that she had disliked Katya almost on sight and then she had told them about when ’that woman’ had deliberately made it look as though Hoss had been kissing her.

“Quite mad.” Ann declared as she picked up a silken butterfly which was still intact, then she looked over at Olivia “I am sorry, Olivia, I mean, she’s your sister after all but all the same there was something quite strange about her, didn’t you think so?”

Olivia gave a slight shrug of the shoulders and merely murmured that she felt sorry for her, yes, she was her sister and perhaps only thought of her as needing help and love.

“All of which she has thrown back in your face.” Hester declared with a vehement shake of the head as she threw a scrap of silk into the basket “Oh, when I think of all the love and hard work that went into making that quilt for you both.”

Mary Ann, always the peace maker, put a gentle hand on Hester’s arm, “It’s alright, we’ve plenty of material we can bring together, and with enough pieces left over we can make another one. That is, if you would like us to, Livvy?”

Olivia sighed and stroked a scrap of satin with her finger, it was pink with little white flowers sprinkled over it. “It meant so much to us. It would be lovely if you could make another.”

“That’s settled then.” Ann nodded and rubbed her hands together, “We’ll sew while you knit.”

Mary Ann leaned forward and kissed Olivia on the cheek, “It’ll be made with just as much love, believe me.”

Olivia smiled and was about to get up to make some tea when Hester gave a slight cough, “I just thought I’d like to say something.”

The three women turned to look at her and Hester smiled and blinked rather rapidly, “It’s just that Hoss and I - well - we’re going to have another baby.”

The response was all she had hoped for, and yet she wasn’t really sure why she had wanted it like this, perhaps reassurance that everything would be alright, after all,, she wasn’t young any more although she was strong and healthy. Mary Ann squeezed her hand “I suspected as much when I saw you the other evening.”

“I hadn’t suspected a thing,” Olivia laughed and hugged her friend warmly, “I’m so pleased for you, does Ben know?”

“He knew. He always seems to know although he says he never ever guessed with any of his wives.” Hester laughed.

Their chatter ended when Sofia ran into the room “Quick quick - Dan-Dan has made stinks.”

For some reason this struck them all as funny and amid great laughter Mary Ann hurried to retrieve her son and replace his diaper. While she did so Hester leaned forward and took hold of Olivia’s hand “Did you really not know?”

“No, I didn’t have any idea at all.” she looked at Hester thoughtfully and smiled “But now I can’t understand why I didn’t guess after all you look so well, your eyes are positively glowing.”

“I was worried in case Hoss couldn’t keep it from his brothers, I wanted to tell you all myself.”

Olivia laughed “Well, that’ll explain why he has been in such a strange mood, Adam said one minute he’d be whistling and driving them crazy and then the next minute looking ready to pick a fight with anyone.”

“I know, he told me he found it very hard to keep secrets from his brothers, especially this particular one. He’s so excited.”

Ann looked at her cousin anxiously and leaned forward, “You are as well, aren’t you?”

“More worried than excited, to be honest. I’m not young like Mary Ann, and - well - one worries.”

“You shouldn’t,” Ann chided her, “You’ll be alright.”

“And we’re all here, we’ll help all we can.” Olivia assured her with a squeeze of her friends fingers “Now, I think I’ll make us something to drink, we have something to celebrate after all.”

…………………

Reuben kept his head down when he walked into the house, he knew that Pa was home already and could hear him laughing alongside his Ma in the kitchen. He put down his bag and then walked into the other room where the laughter died away “Oh, Reuben!”

Olivia’s voice was a shrill cry with the wobble of tears in it as she surveyed her son’s face, and she rushed over to him and grabbed him, hugged him and then held him at arms distance to look once again at the bruises. Adam picked the boy up and placed him on the table and then looked at the battered face with a slight wince. “Who did it?”

“Billy.”

“Did he knock any teeth out?” Olivia asked bring a damp cloth over to wipe away the dried blood.

“Only the loose one.” Reuben put his hand in his pocket and groped around before producing the tooth.

“Oh, how could he do this to you? I thought you said he was older than you?” Olivia’s voice was shaking and Adam had to take the cloth from her and tell her to sit down while he cleaned the boy up.

“He is older than me, and bigger.” Reuben said, “I didn’t cry, Pa.”

Adam nodded, smiled and ruffled his hair and continued to dab away at the cuts. “Well, you’re going to have a really fine black eye in the morning. Your nose will be alright, he hasn’t broken it. Has he hit you anyplace else?”

“He kicked me in the ribs, Pa.”

“Tchah” Adam hissed between his teeth and after unbuttoning the boys shirt shook his head at the sight of the bruises, “You feeling alright?”

“I was sick afterwards, Miss Brandon let me lie down for a bit.”

Olivia wiped a tear away, and sniffed “I thought you were getting on alright with this boy. Why did he do this to you?”

“He said he had made up his mind he’d do it so he did.” Reuben shrugged his shoulders matter of factly.

“Wait till I see his mother about this …” Olivia muttered but Reuben shook his head, “He ain’t got a Ma.”

Adam put the cloth down and surveyed the boy thoughtfully “Billy McBride, isn’t it?” he lifted Reuben down from the table and told them how McBride was a drunken layabout who had a grudge against the world ever since his wife died when Billy was born. He was mean, foul mouthed and quick with his fists and it had been a miracle that Billy had survived the first year of his life, and only then due to the kindness of neighbours. “You can’t blame the boy for being as he is, his Pa ain’t exactly the best example for him.”

“You’re not making excuses for him, are you?” Olivia gasped.

“They’re not excuses, Livvy, the one good thing about McBride is that he wants his son to have an education. Perverse though that may seem…” he ruffled Reuben’s hair again “Go and wash up before we eat, son.”

“Sure, Pa.” Reuben walked slowly to the door and then turned “I hit him back, real hard. I think I hit him really hard, Pa.”

Adam nodded, winked and then turned to his wife who was sitting there shaking her head, he squatted down on his haunches and looked up into her face “It’s part of life, Livvy. He has to learn to fight his own battles.”

“I’m going to go in and tell that teacher -”

“You’ll only shame him if you do.” he smiled and stood up, “Billy’s a bully, like his Pa. Reuben will be quite a hero now see if he isn’t.”

Livvy shook her head and looked at him “Oh Adam - it’s just that he’s still so little!”

They turned at the sound of Sofia running into the room “Mommy, Daddy, look - look what Boo-boo give me.” and when she opened her hand there lying in its palm was The Tooth.

Adam laughed and swung her up into his arms “Spoils of war, my darling.”

That wasn’t what Olivia called it …

Chapter 49

The flame flickered as Olivia passed the lamp and once she had settled into bed it steadied and sent a warm light around the area of the bed where she would sleep. She watched with half closed eyes as Adam stretched and made his way to the bed, set the night shirt to one side with a mumbled ‘It itches’ as he slipped into bed beside her.

“You’re not too worried about Reuben, are you?”

He was leaning towards her and looking anxiously into her face and before she answered he traced her profile gently with his finger and then kissed her.

“He’s not had to handle situations like this before, Adam.” she whispered and turned on her side to face him, “I’ve not had to face them either. All I could think was - he’s still so little.”

He said nothing but looked into the shadows playing across her face, then sighed, “Life isn’t easy for some of those children, sweetheart. But no matter where he was schooled there would be bullies, boys wanting to prove something.”

“I know. Were you bullied at school?”

Again he sighed and again he reached out to touched her face gently with his fingers, before admitting that he was seldom at school due to being on the road travelling so much. He learned from his father, and from what he read, and from the occasional scholar that was his privilege to meet along the way. “Joe was the one in the family who was bullied most. Guess he was so small and full of sass that they thought they could bounce him about more than most. He learned …”

“And did they leave him alone?”

“Who? Joe? Not as much as we would have liked - he just seemed to find trouble, that boy.”

She looked at him in the hope of seeing his eyes but the light didn’t reach so far so she sighed and then turned onto her back and looked up at the ceiling. “Hester told us that she was expecting another baby.”

He didn’t answer right away so that she whispered “Adam? Did you hear me?”

“Sure - yes - that’s good, isn’t it?”

“Yes, of course it is.”

She was still staring up at the ceiling when she whispered “I think it’ll be born in October.”

He frowned slightly and reached towards her so that he could hold her close to him for there was a strange bleakness in the way she had spoken those words that made him aware of something he hadn’t really thought much about really, after all, they had been married a relatively short time. She sighed and snuggled in close him, and closed her eyes, she was aware of him, his smell, his arm around her. “I love you.”

Her whispered words drifted to his ears and he smiled, she could feel the movement of his lips against her hair, “I love you, Livvy.” and then he kissed her gently, and held her hand, before whispering good night and turning over to go to sleep.

The nights of enforced self restraint were not easy ones for either of them, but sleep came quickly enough for his work day had been hard and wearying. For Olivia it took longer as she thought over the fact that there would soon be another baby on the Ponderosa and neither one of them was hers.

…………

Ben was buckling on his gun belt when the door opened and Adam stepped into the house. He removed his hat and smiled over at Hester and winked before turning to his father, “Pa, I noticed the other day that the bridge over the river at Miller’s Creek has some planking loose -.”

“Uh-huh, not much I can do about it right now, there’s too much to do with branding this season.” Ben replied as he grabbed his hat and called out for Hoss who emerged from the kitchen licking his fingers having been picking at some left overs.

“What did you say? About the bridge?” Hoss mumbled as he wiped his mouth on a napkin as he passed the table in order to give his wife a non-sticky kiss.

“Some of the plankings loose.” Adam messed with his hat, twisting it round and round while he waited for Ben to find some non-essential in a drawer in the bureau and Hoss to finish hugging and kissing Hester.

“Yeah, I know, I noticed that myself the other day. It’s not had no work on it for some years so I guess it should be looked into…” Hoss squatted down to scoop Hannah up in his arms “Hey, how’s Pa’s little princess?”

“Pwitty.” Hannah dimpled a smile at him.

“You sure are, sweet heart,” Hoss replied and kissed her warmly before passing her over to Hester who walked with him to the door, “You found it yet, Pa?”

“Yeah, at last. Someone’s been tidying up my desk and took care of my favourite pen for me.” Ben growled and narrowed his eyes at his grand daughter who clapped her hands

“Pen - gibme -” she wiggled her dimpled fingers and smiled with hopeful eyes on his face but Ben shook his head and slipped it into his jacket pocket.

Adam leaned over now and kissed his sister in law on the cheek “Congratulations, Hester. Olivia told me the news.”

“Thank you, Adam.” she blushed just a little and looked rather shy, “It isn’t due until October.”

“Oh, a while yet then.”

She nodded and followed them onto the porch. It was a balmy day, a perfect near spring time day and Hoss stretched and the buttons on his shirt strained alarmingly, while Ben marched on to the stable with a determination to get on with the days work while he yelled. “Where’s Joe?”

“Probably catching up on sleep.” Adam replied with a smirk.

Ben darted a sharp look at him and shook his head “You have to remember you got your children after they had out grown the night time feeds and such.”

“True enough.” Adam laughed, and leaned against the bars of the stall that once housed Sport, he sighed, “Things change, don’t they, Pa?”

“Nothing stays the same.” Ben replied as he put the soft blanket over Cinnamon’s back, and then turned to collect his saddle “Hoss, why are you so slow this morning?”

“Am I?” Hoss’ eyes went round in surprise and he shook his head, “I dunno, Pa, I thought I wasn’t - slow that is.”

“I’ll wait for you outside.” Adam said with a grin and strolled out to where his horse was nodding over the water trough, he turned at the sound of a horse and raised a hand in greeting when Joe’s horse loped into the yard. He scratched his jaw and approached his brother, “Better warn you, Pa isn’t in the best of moods today.”

“Tchah,” Joe hissed “And I’m dog tired, Adam. You’re so clever so tell me, how come a little bundle that hardly weighs anything can yell so loudly and consistently for hours on end throughout the night, huh?”

Adam shrugged “I remember thinking the same thing when you were born, you squalled plenty I can tell you.”

“I had you two to contend with, I had something to squall about -.”

Adam shook his head and mounted his horse, and walked it over to where Joe was waiting, by the time he had reached him both Ben and Hoss came out of the stable. As they rode towards the camp Adam told them about Reuben’s adventures at school, which raised a chuckle among them all, even Ben laughed.

“He wasn’t badly hurt though, was he?” Hoss enquired anxiously when the hilarity had died down.

“Well, no, but I didn’t like the fact that Billy had booted him in the ribs when he was down.”

“Billy McBride huh?” Ben shook his head, “Obviously takes after his father, which is a pity.”

“How’d Olivia feel about it?” Joe asked recalling the many times he had taken a thrashing from some of the boys at school.

“She was - upset.” Adam replied and bit his bottom lip at the memory of his wife’s tears over seeing her little boy hurt.

“She’ll have to get used to it,” Ben sighed, “It happens wherever you go, as you all know only too well.”

Adam said nothing, he knew Ben was right, bullying was a social disease that manifested itself in the most prestigious schools and in the meanest shack of a school. But, it didn’t mean one had to sit back and accept it. Joe decided to lighten the mood by relating various escapades in which he was involved not noticing once the way Hoss and Adam exchanged glances and raised their eyebrows, after all, they were the ones who always ended up getting him out of the scrapes, something that he hadn’t seemed to have realised even now.

Olivia was determined to put her worried about Reuben and school to one side as she worked through her chores during the day. She sat with Sofia and helped her with her short lessons that would prepare her for school later, even at age 5 the little girl looked small and delicate for her age but she was bright and enjoyed laboriously copying the letters her mother wrote down for her. “Mommy, why did Reuben have a funny face?”

“A funny face, what do you mean?” Olivia gently put a hand over Sofia’s and guided her hand over the letter B.

“It was funny, his eye was all screwed up” Sofia closed one eye, with difficulty, and looked at her mother “Like that.”

“A bad boy hit him.” Olivia said with firm lips.

“Daddy said Boo-boo has to learn to duck.” Sofia swung her legs too and fro “Can I take a duck to school when I go there?”

“Let’s talk about something else, shall we?” Olivia suggested as she picked up a book, “I’ll read you a story.”

“Not that one, Mommy, daddy reads me that one.” Sofia slid from the chair and ran to the book shelf where she pulled a different book to bring to her mother “This one.”

…………..

Lydia Brandon was nearly 17 years of age and had been the school teacher at Reuben’s school for just six months. She was a serious minded young lady who loved her profession but was more than aware of her lack of experience. She was also aware of the fact that some of her pupils realised that and had learned to ‘play’ on it. As she rang the bell for the days schooling she hoped beyond hope that either Reuben Cartwright or Billy McBride would stay away so that she didn’t have to act on what had taken place previously.

Her heart sunk when she saw Reuben toiling up through the yard with his books, slate and lunch pail. It sunk even further when she noticed the bruising around his eye and chin as he passed her by the door. The other children noticed it too for there was a certain amount of feet shuffling under desks as he approached his seat.

“Reuben,” she beckoned to him and smiled, forcing some lightness into her speech in order to appear quite mature about the whole business, “I’ve set aside a desk for you closer to the front, just here.” she indicated the empty bench and desk, “I think you will be much more -” her voice trailed away when she saw Billy slide into his seat with his eyes fixed on her face, she cleared her throat “able to see the board from there than from the back.”

Reuben mumbled a thank you and sat down. He glanced over to where Annie Sales sat, now behind him, and when she smiled at him his heart lightened a little. It was good to know that he had, at least, one friend in the class room.

“Hey, Miss -” Billy’s voice stopped Lydia as she approached her desk, “I can’t see the board from back here either.”

She blushed and felt panic flutter in her stomach, then cleared her throat “You’ve not complained about it before, Billy, so just get on with your work.”

“I ain’t got no work to get on with -.” came the sour reply which brought a ripple of giggles from various parts of the class room.

“You will have in a moment.”

She stood by her desk and then turned to face the children, 16 upturned faces gazed back and she smiled at them, nodded and clasped her hands together in what she hoped was a gesture of confidence. “Children, I want to tell you how angry I was about the incident that took place here yesterday. Fighting is NOT tolerated at this school. That an older boy should hurt a younger is despicable. In future -” she stressed the word hoping that it would be a long time future and perhaps she wouldn’t even be there to witness it “any one found fighting, bullying or intimidating another child will be punished. Do I make myself clear?”

Billy stood up and squared his shoulders, it was obvious he was doing so to prove to her that he was taller and bigger than her and with a swagger he looked her up and down “What kind of punishment, Miss?”

“Caning in front of the class.”

He looked her up and down again and grinned “By you?”

“Certainly by me.” she knew that she was blushing, knew that her face was burning and due to that the children were restless, had lost confidence in her ability to carry out her threat, “And if that doesn’t stop bad behaviour then there will be expulsion.”

She turned and wrote the word on the board then turned to face them “Does anyone know the meaning of the word expulsion.”

Several did, Reuben among them although he kept his hand down rather than draw attention to himself. Billy had sat down and listened as Eddy Stevens gave a clear definition of the word. Miss Brandon nodded, commended Eddy for speaking so clearly and commenced class for the day.

Reuben wondered how long it would be before someone broke her rule and glanced over at Annie who was looking thoughtfully at the teacher.

During recess several girls, including Annie, sat close to Reuben and chattered with him, wanting to know about his family, his sister and parents. Miss Brandon sat outside on the porch keeping a careful eye on them which was the only effective deterrent she could think suitable for the moment. Billy McBride sat on the edge of the yard eating his meagre lunch and with his eyes roving from child to child, group to group, like a wolf waiting his chance to pounce. Once or twice a child tripped over and fell due to Billy’s deliberate way of sticking out his leg just as they passed, each time Miss Brandon would start up and ask what was going on to be told very quickly ’Nothing, nothing, Miss.’ Billy felt like a marked man!

Chapter 50

Plank upon plank was carefully loaded onto the wagon and then securely tied down. The horses waited patiently while Adam checked the number of planks and then brought tools and nails and screws out of the shed and placed alongside the planks. Hoss watched him from the porch as he chomped on an apple. Finally, as Adam walked to the front of the wagon he strolled over and laid a hand on the front wagon wheel. “What are you doing?”

“I’m going to check that bridge.” Adam replied coolly and pulled his hat lower, a clear indication that he didn’t appreciate the lack of assistance or attention to the matter, one which he felt was demanding an urgent remedy.

“Huh, on your own?”

Adam rather cynically and in slow motion glanced over his shoulder and around the yard until he came to face his brother, he raised an eyebrow “I don’t see anyone else here, do you?”

“No.” Hoss replied lowering his eyelids and raising his eyebrows “Not really.”

“Not really?” Adam drew the words out, shrugged and then elbowed Hoss out of the way.

“How are you going to do it on your own?”

Adam didn’t reply immediately, he got up onto the wagon seat and sat down, then leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and stared into the distance before he turned to Hoss with a cold smile “Remember that time you saw all those little green men?”

“Yeah but -”

“Well, I might just whistle and see if I can conjure up a dozen or so to lend me a hand.” he flicked the reins and without another word drove out of the yard.

Hoss stood in the midst of the cloud of dust left behind still chomping on the apple and watching as the wagon disappeared behind the stables. He turned when Ben came out of the house “Was that Adam?”

“Yeah.”

“What’s he doing?”

“He took some lumber down to Millers Creek to repair the bridge there.”

Ben frowned and looked in the direction that the wagon had taken before glancing back at Hoss, “On his own?”

“Yeah.” Hoss finished his apple and wiped his hands down the back of his pants.

For a moment both men just stood there and then Ben said “I don’t think he can do it on his own.”

“No?” Hoss widened his blue eyes and looked thoughtfully at his father, then sighed “No, I guess not. I’ll go and get Joe and we’ll give him a hand.”

Ben smiled and nodded, slapped his son on the back and after muttering something like good lad, or good idea, sauntered back to the house by the time he reached the door he was whistling.

………….

Adam drove the wagon at a good pace and when he reached the bridge at Miller’s Creek he directed the horses onwards and then slowed down sufficiently for them to manage a careful turn around onto it. The horses obediently drew the wagon along and then mid-way across they stopped. Adam flicked the reins but apart from twitching their ears and stamping their feet down the horses didn’t budge.

Adam looked behind him and around him, and then dismounted. He walked alongside the horses, patting them assuringly as he passed them and then stopped. “Hmmm.”

He looked back again and realised that the best thing to do, if possible, was to back the horses and the wagon along the bridge the way he had come for the horses would not move when there were no planks upon which to put their feet and only the running water of the river to be seen racing beneath them.

He tried to get them to walk backwards but horses didn’t like going in reverse at the best of times, let alone with a heavily loaded wagon which was needing to be pushed along behind them and where there was very little room to manouvre.

He pushed his hat back and thought for a moment and then carefully began to unload the wagon, walking back and forth depositing the planks and tools on the river bank until the wagon was empty. He then unfastened the wagon from the horses harness and was about to put his shoulder to the side and push when he heard the sound of a horse.

Hoss dismounted, looked at the pile of wood and tools and then at his brother who removed his hat in order to wipe his forehead on his sleeve before replacing it. “Hey, Adam, you having some trouble there?”

“Some.”

“What happened?”

“The bridge was worse than I thought, someone’s been across since I last came here and broke through some planks which have since disappeared. The horses won’t go forward, and they won’t go back.”

“Why’d you drive onto the bridge anyhow?”

“Because -” Adam huffed and paused, it was a good question, why indeed and he shrugged “I didn’t realise the bridge was quite as bad as it was and wanted to get to the other side.”

“Oh.” Hoss nodded and then approached the wagon, “Best get it moved then.” he spat on his hands, rubbed them together and then want to the opposite side of the wagon.

It took less time than expected with Hoss doing most of the pushing and shoving, and then he coaxed the horses back as only he could while Adam stood tossing and catching a hammer with one hand, “Why didn’t Joe come along with you?”

“Didn’t ask him.” Hoss led the horses to where the grass was long and lush, “He’s dog tired, so I thought I’d not bother him.” he rubbed his hands together again, “Well, let’s go and see how bad things are here, huh?”

They walked slowly along testing each plank as they went, marking the ones that needed replacing until they came to the section where some of the planks had gone missing. They set down several of the new planks longside along so that they could cross to check on the others. Eventually they reached the other side and Hoss nodded “You were right, this bridge needs a lot of attention. Let’s check on the joists underneath.”

They both waded into the water on opposite sides and by the time they reached the side where the wagon was were able to confirm that only the planks needed attention. That was good news and lessened the time and work involved on repairing the old bridge.

“You know, if there had been bad rains anytime soon and anyone tried to cross this here bridge, I wouldn’t like to rate their chances in getting across in one piece.” Hoss muttered as he sawed lengths of timber.

“Quite a number of people use this bridge, Hoss.”

“Yeah, don’t see ’em doing anything to put it right though.”

Adam said nothing although he gave a wry grin as he carried the first new plank into position, Hoss could hear the sound of the hammer and nodded to himself at the memories of times past when they would work together like this, even when young boys they could tackle a job harmoniously and when finished return home light of heart, hungry as a couple of bears and just as thirsty.

He carried the next plank over and set it down, “How’s Reuben getting on now?”

“Alright, he’s not said much about Billy McBride lately.”

“Here -” he passed some nails over and leaned against the rails as he watched the hammer rise and fall. “Can’t wait til October …”

“Well, guess you’re going to have to.” Adam grinned and stood up, stretched his shoulders, and together they walked to the bank.

“I keep thinking it might be a boy this time. D’you realise that’ll be three grandsons and two grand daughters for Pa. Bet he’s real happy about that.”

“Yeah, I should think so.”

“Course you did it the easy way …”

“So I keep being told.” Adam began to saw through a length of wood with long firm strokes of the saw.

“Didn’t get the sleepless nights, changing diapers, having ’em spew up on ya …”

“Hear you talk makes me wonder why anyone bothers having ’em, and let me remind you, brother, that your daughter did her fair share of soaking me through.”

Hoss guffawed heartily at the memories and then took the plank and set it down. This time he wielded the hammer while Adam sawed another plank.

By the time evening was beginning to fall the task was complete and the tools and remaining planks of wood were being replaced in the back of the wagon. The horses were re-harnessed and they made their way home to the Ponderosa. Hoss chose to ride alongside Adam on the wagon and for some time they rode in amicable silence. It was Hoss who spoke first and in a quiet voice said “You know, Adam, it’s been good, these past few months, today, working together, hasn’t it?”

Adam smiled and nodded “Like old times you mean?”

“Yeah, that’s what I mean, just like old times.”

Adam inhaled deeply and then slowly released his breath, the air smelled differently at this time of the day, as night was approaching, and he looked up at the stars and then ahead of him where the dark shape of the Ponderosa began to form, “I guess it has, Hoss.”

The wagon trundled down the track, past the turn off to Joe’s house which was obscured by the trees, and finally into the yard. Together they unharnessed the horses and led them into the stable, and each took a horse to attend to before they could close their stall doors upon them, while Hoss took care of his horse Adam unloaded the wagon and put away the wood and the tools before walking to the centre of the yard and looking around him.

It was easy to get nostalgic, standing there now with the darkness of night surrounding him and the lights of the old house invitingly warm in the windows. He could think back to when they found the land, and Ben selected the spot where they would build, and how hard the work was, how they laboured to see the walls rise up and windows and doors cut out and how often they would stand right where he stood now and look at what they had achieved at the end of each day and talk about the time when it was finished.

Did they ever imagine that so much would take place within those walls? That Ben would bring another bride through that door and that another son would be born? He turned as Hoss closed the doors to the stable and he heard the crunch of his boots upon the ground “So many changes, Hoss?”

Hoss stood still, scratched his chest through the material of his shirt and nodded, “Yeah, not all of them good, but most of them not bad.”

Adam nodded and turned to his horse to make the journey home, to his home although - he paused and cast another look back to the Ponderosa and nodded “Well, good night, Hoss, see you in the morning.”

His brother raised his hand and bade him goodnight, at the stable building Adam turned to look back just as Hoss stepped into the house and closed the door.

Chapter 51

It was Reuben who reached the door of the house first and with a grin over at his mother he gave the door a good thump. It was a Saturday morning and Olivia had decided it was time to visit her brother and Marcy having not seen them for some weeks. Adam had told her he was going into town to talk over the drawings for the extension and to check as to whether there had been any deliveries for them from England.

By the time the door opened Olivia was standing there beside her son with Sofia in her arms and was greeted very warmly by Marcy who hugged them all in turn before ushering them into the kitchen where Luke was standing by the fire with a mug of coffee in his hands. He laughed as Reuben ran up to him to show his black eye and tell him what had happened “Makes me glad I didn’t get much schooling.”

Marcy took their coats and said that she would make them something to drink as soon as she had put them away while Luke scooped Sofia into the crook of one arm “My goodness, you have grown so heavy! What have you been feeding this little girl, Olivia?”

His sister smiled fondly at them both and leaned forward to kiss his cheek, “Adam sends his regards, he’s gone to town to check things over with Harry.”

Luke nodded but didn’t ask anything about as to why or what for as he carried Sofia over to the window to show her the view of the garden. Olivia sat down “I suppose you know that Katya has gone back to England?”

“I didn’t until yesterday when Stewart McKay* gave me her bill for staying at the Whitney Hotel. I thought she would come by and see us before she left …” he frowned and let his voice trail away.

Reuben looked from him to his mother and bowed his head, he wasn’t sure whether to say something or not but he had been brought up not to interrupt adults unless spoken to first, so just sat down on the floor and played with the kitten that Marcy had obviously quite recently acquired.

“I didn’t expect her to come calling,” Marcy said as she put cups and saucers on the table. “She made it clear she had no time for me.”

Luke put out a hand to take hold of hers “I’m sure she wouldn’t have meant to upset you, dear.”

Olivia shook her head “I’m sorry, Luke, but that’s just what she would have done, she would have gone out of her way to make you as uncomfortable as possible. She did that wherever she went. She was a very unkind, spiteful person and I’m still not sure whether what she told us about her marriage was true or not.”

“She was just very unhappy.” Luke said gently, obviously preferring not to hear the worse about his baby sister and despite the brief glance that passed between Marcy and Olivia he told them how affectionate she had been to him and how she had promised to come back to see them. “I can’t believe that she would have broken that promise willingly.”

Olivia blinked rapidly, she was more than surprised at the tone of voice that Luke was using, and the fact that he would side with Katya against her baffled her entirely. She looked to the children and told them to go outside and play with the kitten out there. Luke stood up from the table now and walked back towards the fire, “There’s no point in trying to tell me anything different, Olivia. She told me that you would probably try and turn me against her.”

Olivia paled and looked first at Marcy, who looked as surprised as herself, and then at Luke, “When did she tell you that?”

“Before she left here.” Luke paused and then shrugged, “It doesn’t matter, she’s gone now anyway.”

“And left you the bill for where she was staying?”

“I told her to send the bills to me if she needed anything in town …” Luke muttered dourly and then looked startled when Marcy gave a gasp of surprise and rose from her chair very quickly.

“Excuse me,” she said very sharply and hurried from the room, they could hear her footsteps on the stairs to her room.

“What’s wrong with Marcy?” Olivia asked immediately, only for Luke to shake his head and look puzzled. “Do you think you should go up and see if she is alright?”

“No. She’ll be alright in a moment. She just had a queer notion that Katya didn’t like her.”

“Luke, despite what Katya told you … will you let me explain why Katya left?”

He didn’t answer right away only twiddled with the fringes of the mantle cover before finally nodding and saying that she could but not to expect him to change his mind about their sister.

He shook his head several times during her narration of events, and finally said “I don’t believe it. I don’t believe that Katya would do any of those things. She certainly would not have made a pass at your husband when she was still grieving over the loss of her own.”

“Well, she did, and when Reuben overheard what she was saying to Adam he was upset enough to - to tell me about it.”

“He’s a child, he must have misheard it.”

“No, he didn’t. Even if he hadn’t overheard what had been said I would not have believed Katya, to think that Adam …”

“Why not? He’s a handsome man, he’s been single for a long time, why not take advantage of a lone woman …”

“I can’t believe you said that, Luke. You really think that Adam would be unfaithful to me with my own sister?”

He shrugged “Some men would be.”

Olivia rose to her feet and approached him to look deep into his face, then she shook her head, “Not Adam.”

“Why not? Did the fact that she was so badly scarred put him off?”

She slapped him then, sharply across the face and then shocked that she had actually done such a thing to her own brother, whom she loved, she turned quickly, snatched at the coats and hurried out only to have Luke grab her by the arm and stop her moving.

“I’m sorry, Livvy, I’m really sorry. I don’t know why I said that, of course Adam would never dream of being unfaithful to you, I didn’t - shouldn’t have said that.”

“No, no you shouldn’t have ..” her voice quavered and she stopped to wipe away her tears. “Why do you prefer to believe her against me, against Marcy?”

“I don’t - I mean - she’s my sister and not here to defend herself I suppose.”

“This is just the kind of thing she would have liked to have seen, to have set us against one another, to cause misery and disharmony between us, between you and Marcy. She was a selfish and unkind woman, bitter and …” she paused, unable to think of the word she was seeking, then pulled her arm away, “I’m going home. Give my regards to your wife.”

“No, Livvy, don’t go. Marcy has missed seeing you, please stay.”

“You know where we live, Luke, you could have brought her to see us anytime. Even more so when Katya was living with us.” her voice was quite cold now, and she put her hand to the latch on the door only to hear Marcy call her name “Are you leaving us so soon?” she said.

Luke looked down at her and his face softened “Please stay, Livvy. I’m sorry. You go in and spend some time with Marcy, I have some things to see to out here, the children will be safe here with me.”

For a moment she hesitated, the hurt he had caused her still stung her and she wished that Katya had never been mentioned, but it was done now and there was little point in her riding off with disharmony between them. She turned to where Marcy waited, her face pale. “That would be fine. We have a lot of catching up to do.”

The relief and smile on Marcy’s face was worth the sacrifice, she returned to her seat at the table and waited for Marcy to join her. Once they were both seated Olivia reached out and took Marcy by the hand, looked into her face and asked her, gently, if everything was alright between her and Luke.

“Yes, mostly it is, Miss Livvy - I mean - Olivia.” Marcy heaved a deep breath, “It’s just where money is concerned.” she frowned “I shouldn’t be speaking about it to you, Luke would be ashamed of me …” her voice faltered, then she shrugged slightly before looking at her former mistress, , “We don’t have as much money as Luke expected us to have, and he works so hard, so very hard.”

“This bill from The Whitney Hotel - it’s new and modern and I know for a fact that Mr. McKay charges high rates for those who stop over there.”

“I didn’t want Luke to pay the bill but -” she withdrew her hand and clasped it together with her other then nestled them both in her lap, “He said it was a matter of pride, he wasn’t going to go cap in hand to you and your rich family to get it paid when it was for his sister.”

Olivia nodded and shook her head “That’s just typical of Katya. She knows so well how to manipulate people’s feelings. She knows how sensitive Luke is about the differences between our financial position, she knew we would be able to pay it without a worry, but - but doesn’t Luke see that is all part of the game she likes to play with people? She has no respect for anyone of us.”

“I know, I tried to tell Luke but he wouldn’t listen. She even caused us to argue while she was here, and things haven’t settled right since, not really.”

Olivia stood up and slowly walked over to her coat which she picked up and pulled on, then she looked at Marcy and smiled “I’ll see what I can do, Marcy.” she kissed the other girl on the cheek and then slipped her arm through hers to that when they left the house they looked happy being together, “Did you know that Hester is expecting another baby?”

“No, I didn’t know that, please tell her I wish her joy.”

“Brett Jessop is dead, did you know that?”

“I heard that Derwent had left home -” she paused as Luke approached them ,”Luke, Brett Jessop is dead.”

“Young Reuben has been telling me all about it.” Luke said and lowered his head, before glancing up at her, “You’ve had a rather rough time of it?”

“It wasn’t pleasant. Brett died as a result of a shoot out at the Ponderosa, but he managed to get nearly home, Adam took him home and he died there.”

“He was always a bad one.” Luke cleared his throat, “I’m sorry about what I said earlier. Reuben was telling me what happened with Katya - I mean - what he knew anyway.”

“Reuben shouldn’t talk so much -” Olivia flushed a little but Luke shook his head and assured her that he had asked questions the boy couldn’t refuse to answer, it wasn’t the boys fault.

“Luke,” Olivia put out her hand which her brother took kindly within his own, “Don’t let us part bad friends.”

“It isn’t what I want either - it’s just that I feel sorry for our sister, and obligated to help her when I can.”

“It’s always good to help those we love, dear, but sometimes some people have a way of abusing that …”

He didn’t say anything and Olivia decided it was best not to say anymore in case it broke the fragile peace between them. It was with a mixture of feelings that she returned to the buggy and after calling the children and helping them inside, stepped in as well.

She was pleased to see how Luke put his arm around Marcy’s waist and looked lovingly down at her and smiled. It gave her a feeling that all would be well between them and Katya’s presence could be quite happily expunged from their thoughts, if not so easily from their memories.

…………………..

Adam and Harry watched as the last piece of carefully packed crates was placed onto the wagon and between them they secured everything down with ropes. It was while they were discussing who would be on the team of men working under Harry’s supervision that Mr. McKay wandered across to speak to them. For a moment he stood there shuffling his feet about before going up and tapping Adam on the shoulder.

A prominent man in the town McKay had recently purchased the hotel for $2,364.71 and re-opened it as the Whitney House, which served as a stagecoach and overland train stop for passengers. He now waited for Adam to turn and pay him some attention before asking him in rather arrogant tones if he was related to one Katya Dent Purcell. Adam looked the man squarely in the face and as he slowly removed his gloves nodded.

“Then you wouldn’t mind paying this, will you?” and with a rather extravagant air he produced a slip of paper and passed it over to the other man who took it carefull between finger and thumb before perusing it and then looking back at him “She left without paying saying that her sister or brother would cover the expenses.”

Adam nodded and after telling Harry he would be back shortly walked along with McKay to the rather ostentatious building that was the newly established Whitney House Hotel.

It took no time at all to write out a cheque and cover the payment which McKay accepted with a rather wolverine grin.

As Adam slipped his wallet back into his pocket he asked McKay is that was all to which the entrepreneur said that he was wondering if it would be possible to beg a favour. He paused a while in order to slip the cheque into a box and then looked up at Adam “As you know the hotel caters for passengers who want a stop over from the Overland stage or train.”

“Y-e-s” Adam drawled, his eyes narrowed slightly

“Well I was thinking of the possibility of having a coach available to take guests of the hotel for an excursion to Lake Tahoe, for a fee of course.” he stopped and looked at Adam with a smile and his eyes twinkling at the thought of such a prospect.

Adam said nothing for a while and then gave a slight shrug of the shoulders “That’s something that would be best discussed with my father, Mr. McKay. As it is there is a public thoroughfare that takes you part way there.”

“Yes, but only part way there, that’s the rub as they say, it’s neither one thing or the other. Halfway there isn’t worth anything, is it?”

“As I said, Mr. McKay, you had best discuss it with Pa.”

Stewart McKay said no more but watched the other man stride out of the hotel , then he rubbed his hands together and smiled. The seed, he thought, was carefully planted, and he knew Adam Cartwright well enough to recognise a man with a good business head on him.

…………………

Reuben ran out of the house to greet him and was duly rewarded with a bear hug that thrilled the boy “Did you get everything, Pa?”

“I did, well, I hope I did anyway.” Adam laughed and looked over at the crates, “Harry’s coming to start work on it on Monday.”

“Wow, Pa, and will that really mean no more going to the out house?”

“Only if you’re really desperate.” he grinned and stooped down to take Sofia by the hand, “How’s my girl today, huh?” he picked her up and tweaked her nose and then looked at Reuben and draped an arm around the boys shoulders, “What’s Ma cooking up for dinner, son, I’m just about famished.”

“Roast chicken. I helped pull out the feathers.”

Sofia hugged her arms around Adam’s neck “Me too, and fedders went up in my nose.”

“Oh did they indeed.” Adam laughed and swung her down as he approached the door, “I think there may be something in my pocket for -” he plunged a hand in one pocket and produced a box which he handed over to Reuben.

“Me me an’ all.” Sofia cried bouncing up and down on her toes.

“And for you, Mademoiselle.” he produced from his other pocket another box which he gave to her, and smiled at the chorus of thank you’s from them both as they ran into the house.

Now he entered and removed his hat and jacket, unbuckled his gun belt and slowly coiled it as he watched the children and listened to their exclamations of pleasure, then winced at Reuben’s first attempt at playing a harmonica.

His wife was putting plates on the table as he entered the kitchen and he kissed her cheek and seeing that coffee was freshly made poured some into both cups. “How did your day go? Did you see Luke and Marcy?”

Olivia nodded and in quiet tones told him about her visit. When she mentioned about the bill from the Whitney House hotel he frowned slightly but listened as she continued “And Marcy told me that they really couldn’t afford to pay out for things like that, but he insisted that he would because he resented having to ask us to pay for it.”

“Well, that’s a strange thing.”

“Why?”

“Because McKay gave me a bill for Katya’s stay, and I’ve just paid it.”

“How strange -” she was about to say more when the children ran in flourishing their gifts, a harmonica (which made her heart drop) and a necklace of different coloured beads that matched the colour of Sofia’s eyes.

It was later that evening that Olivia received her gift, a necklace of sea pearls with a clasp made from small diamonds. She held them between her fingers and devoured them with her eyes for their lustre was so delicately pure in the glow of the lamps, she shook her head and then turned to him “But, Adam, why? I mean - they’re so beautiful, I’ve done nothing to deserve these?”

He laughed then and grabbed her by the arms and pulled her close to him “What on earth do you mean by saying you don’t deserve them? You’re my wife, I love you, do I have to have an excuse to buy you a gift?”

“No, of course not, no -” she laughed at herself then and nestled into his arms, “They’re beautiful. Thank you.”

“I’m glad you like them.” he waited a moment or two and then took her hand and drew her towards one of the large settee’s, “Now sit down for a while and let me get you a drink.”

“Help me put the necklace on first -.”

“Oh, of course.” he took it from her and draped it around her neck while she lifted up the heavy curtain of her hair. He kissed the nape of her neck first and then connected the catch of the necklace, “Job done. Some wine?”

“Yes please.” she stood up and walked over to the mirror to look at herself, touching the pearls gently with her finger, “They say pearls are for tears …”

“Nonsense.” he smiled as he handed her the wine and after pouring himself some whiskey he came and sat beside her, took hold of her hand in his and cleared his throat, “So, Mrs Cartwright, how are you this evening?”

“Very well, thank you, Mr. Cartwright.”

He turned to her and looked at her thoughtfully “I wondered, the other evening, if you were really happy. You seemed rather sad and it worried me in case something had happened to make you miserable, I mean, I know that you’re anxious about Reuben but it seemed to me something other than that. Can you tell me, honestly, what it is?”

She turned sea green eyes to meet his dark warm brown eyes that looked at her so warmly “It hardly seems anything to bother you about, my love, not now.” she slipped closer to him, her head resting upon his shoulder “I think it was the news about Hester, having the baby, and Mary Ann has little Daniel. It just seemed that, well, that that kind of joy was not going to be mine again. I’d so love to have your baby, Adam.” she sighed now, and felt his hand, warm against the material of her dress.

“You want a baby?” he said in a rather awed whisper.

“Of course, but it hasn’t happened and …”

“No, darling, it hasn’t happened YET! We’ve not been married so very long either, be patient, it’ll happen, God willing.”

She didn’t reply to that only felt as though a weight had been lifted from her heart, a longing that had been dragging her down into a pit of negativity and envy. She raised her face to him and accepted his kiss with a heart thrown open wide with longing and love.

Chapter 52

As Olivia stood at the door of the Double D she thought of her little boy going off for another day at school. She had hugged him close and told him that whatever happened he was to remember that he had a family that loved him very much and that they were very proud of him. Even now, waiting for the door to open, her eyes welled up with tears at the memory of the little boy getting up on the wagon seat to go into school, oh, he looked so small and vulnerable.

“Well, another visit so soon after your last?” Luke said as soon as he saw her on the doorstep, “Come on in, Livvy.”

He gave her an embarrassed peck on the cheek as she passed him in the hall to the kitchen and followed her wondering why she had come all the way to the Double D so soon. Marcy looked surprised and pleased at seeing her friend again “I’ve just made some coffee, sit down , Olivia.” as curious as her husband she managed to refrain from asking any questions as her sister in law took a seat.

“Something strange happened the other day.” Olivia said deciding to come to the point right away. She pulled her gloves off and placed them alongside her purse, “While I was here with you Adam was in town on business. While he was there Mr. McKay gave him a bill -.” she produced the receipt and placed it on the table, “It seems rather strange to me that you told me you had paid Katya’s bill, and yet Mr. McKay insisted that Adam pay it.”

Luke looked suspiciously at her and then at his wife who had turned her face away as she poured out the coffee’s. “I don’t understand it.” he examined the receipt and then put it down with his mouth clamped tight and so reminiscent of their father that Olivia didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at him.

“We were wondering what Mr. McKay was doing, getting payment from you and then a few days later insisting on Adam pay the self same bill.”

Luke sat down and pushed his fingers through his hair and stared down at the receipt, then he picked it up and looked at it again “I guess my check wasn’t good for the amount.” he muttered rather pale around the mouth as he said it, “That’s the only reason I can think of.”

“He must have given you a receipt though, when you paid him?”

“Yes, he did, for the exact same amount as that Adam has paid …but as I said I obviously didn’t have the funds available as I thought.” he licked his lips nervously, “I’m sorry, Olivia, I should have been more honest in the first place. My infernal pride, I guess…”

“Your pride caused you to lose all those years we could have shared together as a family instead of leaving us thinking you were dead. It’s that same pride that destroyed Pa’s happiness in his marriage with Ma …” she reached out and grasped his hand “Look, we’re family, if you need help, just let me know, there’s no shame in asking for a loan.”

“You don’t understand, Livvy, of course there’s shame in asking for handouts, even from you. A man shouldn’t have to do that.”

“No, they shouldn’t but there are times when it becomes necessary. Ben has had to in the past, rather than lose the Ponderosa. Even within the past few years when he nearly lost everything he had to swallow his pride and accept help from a perfect stranger.” she squeezed his hand gently, “We’re not strangers to you, dear. We care about you and Marcy, do let us help when we can.”

He looked up at Marcy and gave her a weak smile of thanks for the coffee, then looked at his sister, “Thanks for the offer. I’d rather you didn’t mention it to Adam, I mean, if I need to ask I’d prefer to ask direct, man to man so to speak.”

Olivia glanced at them both, saw her friend’s face more relaxed and the smile softer, she nodded “I don’t think I’ll ever understand men.”

…………..

Billy McBride stared at the building which he was beginning to hate more and more each school day. Beneath his shirt his thin body was bruised from the recent beating he had received from his father, dark bruises that covered the fading green and yellow of old ones now and all because he had slopped over some stew. He shook his head as though trying to throw the memory of the beating away, after all he should be used to it by now, surely?

At least Mrs Frobisher always saw that his clothes were clean. He looked reasonably presentable whenever he took his seat in the class room thanks to the old woman who had looked after him since infancy, not that his father seemed to know, or care. She lived some houses down the street and he saw her on the way to school and on the way back when she would push a billy can of food into his hands or some bread.

When his father was away for days at a time Billy felt on top of the world, free of the fear of beating, free from the actual beatings and free from the sound of a man who drank himself stupid and cursed and swore when he was fallen flat on his back in a drunken stupor. Billy was resolved that when the time was right he would run away from home, get work, honest work, and make sure that he lived a decent life. First of all he had to have some kind of education, if he could leave school able to read and write and know enough about math not to be cheated of money by anyone, then he’d be happy.

He saw Reuben Cartwright as the boy ran up the steps into the school house. His face dropped and he felt that odd hot feeling boiling up inside his gut. He could never understand why it was that he would get such feelings against certain children or adults. He didn’t get it with the school teacher, in fact, the feeling he had for her was akin to adoration even though he liked to make sure she knew he was the one in control really.

Billy McBride was ten years old and had never known a mother’s love, a hug and a kiss, was foreign to him. Mrs Frobisher had never touched him except to slap him around the head and tell him to get his hair washed, or when she had wielded the scissors herself to cut his overlong hair. He had asked her once about his own mother and whether she had known her but she hadn’t said anything to that, so he didn’t know if she did or not.

Lydia Brandon watched the boy walk slowly up the hill and wondered why it was that some children were bullies and could be so spiteful. It was a worry and a puzzle to her that Billy McBride could be as mean as he was and she watched him carefully as he passed her and went into the class room. He was the last student so she could stop ringing the bell and close the door for lessons to begin.

By the time Billy had reached his desk he had squeaked Betty’s pigtails and made her squeal, pinched Tom’s ear and caused him to break his pencil and brushed all of Jerry’s papers from the desk to the floor. With a smirk he sat down and Lydia noticed with some dismay the several other boys had looked on with admiration and obvious respect for the lad. It seemed as though he was already building up a little gang in order to bring chaos to her orderly schoolroom.

The mornings lessons proceeded well enough although she felt constantly guilty for not punishing Billy for his bad behaviour but his desire to learn was equal to his enjoyment of mischief and he quietly kept his head down and worked at his lessons with an aptitude that did him credit.

During lunch recess Reuben produced his harmonica for his new friends to see and marvel at. Jerry, aged 9, asked if he could play it and rather anxiously Reuben allowed him to have it, and was then delighted to hear the kind of music that a harmonica can produce when in the capable hands of someone who knew how to use it. Young Jerry was talented indeed, he was slight of build and often people thought him younger than his years, but he liked Reuben and was more than pleased to show off his skills.

Lydia listened and looked over at the small group of children crowded around Reuben and Jerry. This, she thought, was what teaching was all about, having contented happy children enjoying one another’s company. Even as she thought this Billy seemed to appear out from nowhere and snatched the harmonica out of Jerry’s hands. Immediately Jerry yelled “Give it back.”

Billy thought this a great game as he held it above his head and ran across the yard with it, followed by Reuben and Jerry and even little Annie Sales. He waved it too and fro and then threw it into the air. It carved an arc in the sky and was caught by Rick, a 14 year old who should have known better but had, until tamed by the previous teacher, been known as the school bully. He laughed at the look on their faces and was about to throw it back to Billy when Lydia suddenly appeared and demanded that they ‘stopped this nonsense at once.”

“He’s got my harmonica.” Reuben protested.

Lydia nodded and with a steely glare ordered Rick to return it but the boy shook his head and waggled his hands in front of him “I ain’t got it.”

“Billy?” Lydia turned to the other boy who shrugged and said “I ain’t got it, don’t want it either.”

“Get into the classroom this minute!”

She pointed to the school house and the two miscreants walked off grinning and smirking as they went, while Reuben and Jerry watched them go and wondered what had happened to the harmonica.

“Oh look -” Annie cried as she pointed to something on the ground and there it was, all bent and out of shape, the victim of someone’s brutal heel grinding it into the dust.

Miss Brandon forced herself to stay calm, in situations like this she knew it was imperative to act as though she were in control, even if Rick was taller than her. She pulled out her cane and demanded they held out their hands. Awed by her demeanour the two boy did as they were told and both received six strokes of the cane across the palm of their hands and were told to stand in the corner for the class to see their shame. They swaggered over to the same corner in a vain attempt to make a joke of it all, pushing and shoving one another but a sharp sting across their legs as she wielded the cane once more soon put a stop to that and Rick was forced to take the other corner in front of the class.

Lydia sat at her desk with her head held high, looking directly to the class, and her hands clasped resting on the smooth surface of the desk. She had managed it, her confidence took a leap forward and when the children took their seats they looked at her with renewed awe and respect.

…………..

Hester stood on the sidewalk outside the surgery hoping that the way she was feeling wasn’t showing on her face. After a while and several deep breaths later she turned away from the doctors and headed for the restaurant where she had arranged to meet Ann who had charge of the children. She was stopped by several townspeople along the way so that by the time she flopped down in her seat she felt quite exhausted.

“How did you get on?” Ann demanded, “Is the new doctor ’nice’?”

Hester picked Hannah up and sat her down on her knee and then ordered some tea, oh and some cookies and some of the biscuits … she looked at Ann “Dr Schofield is far from ’nice’, not that ’nice’ is a proper word to use as it describes nothing too well, except for being ’nice’ or not.”

Ann nodded and cleared her throat “It didn’t go too well, then?”

“I don’t like him, I don’t like his manner and I don’t like his voice and I don’t want him near me again. If he comes to deliver this baby I shall - shall scream.”

“You’ll probably be screaming anyway,” Ann laughed and thanked the waitress for delivering their order.

“He had the temerity to say that women of my age should not be having second babies, or any babies come to that - he said that there were ways to prevent having them, why had I not tried any.” she slumped back against the chair and closed her eyes and then released her breath, “How dare he!!”

Ann poured out the tea and pushed the plate of cookies towards her cousin while Rosie, David and Hannah each had a biscuit. She looked at her cousin anxiously and thought that Dr. Schofield had really not done himself any favours in getting on the wrong side of Hester Cartwright.

“I said to him -” Hester suddenly said making Ann jump as it interrupted her train of thought “at what age did he think women should stop having children considering that nature herself provided for such an event until a certain age which is quite far in the distance as far as I’m concerned. Do you know what he said? He said that at times ‘Mother Nature’ gets things wrong, and this was one of them.”

Ann Canady mentally decided that should she ever need a doctor she would make sure that Candy never brought Dr. Schofield to their house. She agreed wholeheartedly with her cousin that he was obviously one of the most arrogant men in his profession and too forward with his new fangled ideas about birth control.

………………….

Reuben wondered and worried all afternoon about what his parents would say about the harmonica. He felt terribly disappointed about the events of the day and returned home very quiet.

Rick’s father was none too pleased to see the welts on his sons palm, he knew that if a slight little lady like Miss Brandon had to use the cane on his boy then she had a good reason for doing so and added a few strokes from his belt before the evening was out. Rick was left to contemplate his future for the next few hours before bed.

Billy’s father laughed with great gusto when Billy showed him his palm. He ruffled the boys hair and told him he was a ‘real chip off the block’, but when he returned home later having indulged in drink and cards, he gave Billy another beating just for the sheer pleasure of doing so.

Billy was unable to get to school for two days afterwards. Miss Brandon and Reuben were more than pleased about that even though the reason for his absence went unknown.

Olivia listened to her son’s explanation of the events of the day with genuine sympathy for her son’s distress but inwardly she was overjoyed as her son’s attempts at sucking and blowing in order to wring something musical from the harmonica had caused her to think of several ways she could confiscate the thing. As she looked down at the mangled gift she nodded and shook her head as necessary and then told him to wash his hands and prepare for supper.

Adam listened to the story with a frown while beside him Sofia stared at her brother and listened with just as deep a frown on her little face. The saddest part of the story as far as Adam was concerned was that two boys could bully the younger ones, but he sympathised kindly and promised to get Reuben another gift soon. He suggested that next time they visited Gran’pa then Reuben should ask Uncle Hoss to teach him how to play his harmonica.

Olivia came and slipped her arm around her husband’s waist and commended him for his tactfulness. Adam chuckled and hugged her close, “Well, I thought it a good idea for him to learn how to play the wretched thing properly before he got another one.” he said, “That way we can listen to something melodic instead of that racket he was making…”

Sofia sighed “That noise made me a head ache in my tummy.”

Olivia picked her daughter up and kissed her “Poor tummy.” she said and bore the child away.

Chapter 53

Everyone was buzzing with excitement as they prepared for the Founders Day Fete which was always held in the big fields on the outskirts of town. Candy and Ann with their two children drove their four seater to the Ponderosa where Ben, Hoss and Hester were preparing for the day. Ben was riding Cinnamon and looking quite handsome in his new jacket, white shirt and black string tie, Hop Sing had pressed Ben’s pants so that the creases down the front were razor sharp. Hester had told him that if there was a competition for most eligible bachelor then he would have won it hands down.

Hoss gave a wave of the hand to Candy and then picked up a box that contained Hester’s contributions to the stalls. She had never won anything yet but was determined to keep trying. In the back of the Canady’s rig a similar size box held all Ann’s efforts and as she had won second prize for her fruit cake the previous year she was hopeful of the rosette for first place this year.

Joe and Mary Ann came to join them in their wagon with Bridie seated in the back holding a large box with contained her chocolate cake. She was very nervous never having entered a competition in her life. Mary Ann had not bothered with anything because she’d been too busy with Daniel. A merry grin and wave from them both to the others and then the little convoy made their way along the track to meet with Adam and his family.

It was a beautiful May day, not too hot with a slight warm breeze present to cool the hottest brow. Adam, Olivia and the children were already waiting for them at the top of the track and consequently too the lead, with Ben riding alongside on his horse.

“I see you’ve got the extension built on already?” Ben said and Adam grinned and nodded, he’d been more than pleased at the way Harry and his team had worked so hard to get the building work done. The fact that Harry was dying of curiosity to see how the bathroom would work was a moot point.

All the women were dressed in their pretty floral spring gowns, and the children were neat and clean. David and Reuben wore their check shirts and dungarees made from the very latest material, denim, that had become very popular since the Levi brothers had taken to manufacturing it. The three little girls wore dresses of similar style, Rosie’s was pink and she had pink ribbons in her black hair, while Hannah wore green with green ribbons and Sofia wore pale yellow with yellow ribbons in her hair… each of them looked as pretty as it was possible to look.

Olivia had decided not to cook anything at all feeling confident that there were dozens of women who could prepare jams,, chutneys, pickles, cookies, cakes and goodness knew what else far better than herself. She just sat happily beside her husband with her arm through his and prepared to enjoy the day.

The sound of the band could be heard even before there was any sign of any one and then slowly the bunting fluttering in between the stalls could be seen, and the people strolling around with the children running about, in and around and generally getting in the way.

“Behave yourselves.” “Don’t get lost.” “Have fun and don’t get too dirty.” were the orders that the older children heard as their feet took them running from the vehicles. Rosie Canady and Reuben were soon taking to flight, hand in hand, eager to see everything that there was to be seen and to buy candy and ice cream and sweet clouds of candy floss. Their money jingled in their pockets as they ran.

Hester and Ann handed over their jars of jam and chutney, the cake each had baked and iced so lovingly sat alongside Bridie’s chocolate cake and many others which they looked at with a scrutiny worthy of any judge.

“I don’t know, Ann, I don’t think I’ll be getting any awards today.” Hester sighed. “My cake sunk in the middle and the icing isn’t going to disguise that…”

“I think Bridie will win the prize this year, her cake looks beautiful. Perhaps we’ll win something with the jam.” Ann said hopefully.

Mary Ann settled baby Daniel in the little perambulator that had come all the way from New York. She fussed over the shade and then with a smile at Joe walked with him through the throng of people.

More and more people arrived all the time. Miss Brandon came looking very neat and tidy with her parasol shielding her head from the sun. She basked in the pleasure hearing her name called out by her students as she walked along “Hi, Miss Brandon.” “Miss Brandon you look nice” “Miss Brandon - hi there.”

Widow Hawkins bustled about with her friend Miss Simpkins and together they pounced on Joe and Mary Ann in order to look at the baby and exclaim with delight over his looks. “Oh he is just like his father, look at those eyes …” Miss Simpkins ‘simpered’.

“Lumme, looks more like his ma I would say, as pretty as a picture, ain’t he? I never had children myself, my ‘Arry didn’t want none but -.” she sighed and tweaked little Daniel’s cheek which promptly brought about a quivering chin and a sudden loud amount of squalling from him. “I see he has his father’s charm.” she said archly and stood back for the mother to fuss over her child. “Why don’t you enter him into the Bonniest Baby contest?” she suggested.

“Aw, wouldn’t be fair on the other contestants,” Joe grinned and with a tip of his hat took his wife by the elbow and propelled her and the pram forwards “Unless you’d like to enter him?” he whispered to Mary Ann.

Hoss and Adam with Olivia on his arm, and Sofia holding her mother’s hand strolled along with Ben who carried Hannah in his arms. They were stopped every so often to talk to various people and by the time Hester found them again Hoss had disappeared.

“He hasn’t entered the Flapjack contest this year, has he?” Adam asked Hester who looked dismayed at the thought.

“I do hope not.” she cried and looked around to see if she could find any sign of her husband.

“I bet he has -.” Adam said laconically and with a grin strolled onwards where the tables were set out for just that contest.

Billy McBride strolled nonchalantly along with his hands in his pockets and whistling tunelessly. With such a casual manner he would approach a stall and without anyone noticing some goody from the table would go missing and Billy would be munching away on something sweet and edible.

He saw Reuben, Sofia, Rosie and Jerry Jackson playing a game of chase together. The giggles and laugher from the girls were a great delight to the little boys who chased them for all they were worth. Not far distant from them Hannah was kicking her little legs in her eagerness to get down from Grandpa’s arms and join in, but as the older children were close by the river bank Ben wisely kept a strong hold on the little girl.

Billy sauntered up to them and announced that he wanted to join in, neither Jerry or Reuben were particularly pleased about that but as it was such a happy day decided that perhaps even Billy would enjoy the occasion and behave himself. Perhaps it was too much to ask as Billy had no intention of just behaving, oh yes, he’d enjoy himself alright and the chase took the children closer and closer to the water’s edge.

Adam and Joe were competing in the throwing the horseshoes and laughing at the mess they were making of it all while keener competitors played with deadly earnest. Their wives watched dutifully and chatted with others there, catching up with the latest gossip and noticing which young girl suddenly paired off with which young lad.

They were too far away to hear the shriek as Jerry Jackson fell into the river. Billy laughed so much he didn’t see Reuben until the boys fist connected with his stomach and his foot kicked him on the shin “You did that on purpose, you pushed him into the river.”

Billy stopped laughing and turned his attention to the younger boy, he pushed him hard on the left shoulder, and then on the right until Reuben was being forced back further and further, closer to the river where Jerry was floundering and screaming for help. Sofia was jumping up and down crying for help while Rosie ran to find her mother. People were suddenly appearing from everywhere, running to help the little boy and consequently preventing Billy from doing any further harm to Reuben “I’ll get you later, Cartwright.” he hissed.

Hester had found her husband who had entered a contest where the men had to cut through the trunk of a fallen tree with an axe. She arrived just in time to hear “Hoss Cartwright - this years winner” and clapped enthusiastically as he went to collect his prize much to the chagrin of the other men two of whom hadn’t realised the contest was over and were still chopping madly away at their stumps of tree.

Reuben and Sofia stood hand in hand and watched as Mr Jackson wrapped his son in his jacket and carried him away while yelling out dire threats of what he’d do to Billy McBride if he caught him. Anxiously the children ran to find Adam and Olivia, and told them what had happened. “Stay close,” Olivia said and looked at Adam who picked Sofia up.

“I lost my wibbon.” she wailed and wriggled to get down again so that she could find it.

Joe had entered the horse race and everyone now made their way to the starting point where the horses were lined up. Hoss nudged Adam “Not joining in this year?”

“No, I’ve not got a hay burner to run this time,” Adam grinned.

They laughed together and then the shout went up “They’re off” … little Daniel, in his mother’s arms, jumped and let out a yell and cried while his mother shouted for her husband “C’mon, Joe, c’mon” a cry that was echoed by all in the family along the line of spectators.

Joe loved the horse race and the horse he was racing was out of Mr. Hayward’s stable. A neat little bay that Joe was confident would win. It didn’t, he trailed in third.

Sofia found her ribbon and with an exclamation of delight pounced on it, but just as she reached out to pick it up a foot strode it down and she looked up to see Billy McBride staring down at her “My wibbon.” she said pointing to it.

“You can’t prove it.” Billy said and leaned down to pick it up.

“Gib it to me.” Sofia said holding out her hand, “Peese.”

Billy laughed and shook his head “Aww, you’re just a baby, you don’t even talk proper yet. If you want it, come and get it.”

He ran, long legs meant long strides and the little girl ran behind him earnestly trying to catch him. To adults passing by it looked just an innocent game. Onwards went the boy and then he stopped and held the trophy aloft. “Here, come and get it.”

Sofia was puffing by now, her little legs ached but she ran forwards and jumped up to snatch at her ribbon and as she did so Billy stepped to one side so that the little girl, propelled forward by her own momentum, stumbled forward and with a splash fell into the river.

There was so scream, no sound. Her pretty yellow dress ballooned up with air and sunk down again. On the river bank Billy stood and stared and with a terrified look on his face turned and ran.

Olivia turned and looked around her, plucked at Adam’s sleeve “Where’s Sofia?”

“With Reuben?” Adam replied and saw his son standing close by watching some frogs leaping “Reuben, where’s your sister?”

“She went to find her ribbon.” the boy shouted over his shoulder and then whooped with delight as his friend’s frog came in first.

It was Joe who reached the river first and dashed into it, dived down into the depths and grabbed for the little girl. Adam was running towards the river like a mad man when Joe waded out with Sofia in his arms and laid her gently down upon the ground, dashing water and tears from his face as he did so.

He looked up as Adam reached him and nodded as the water dripped from him “I think I got there in time, Adam.”

But Adam didn’t hear him he could only see the little girl in the soaking wet yellow dress and her long blond hair in sodden curls scattered upon the grass. He fell upon his knees beside his brother and after a mute look of thanks put his hand to the child’s throat, felt the pulse feebly fluttering there … voices seemed to echo around him, Roy’s voice telling people to move away, give them room, someone yelled ‘Get the doctor’ and he heard most of all Olivia’s voice calling her daughter’s name in a voice that broke his heart.

Chapter 54

Billy slowed down to a walk as he got into crowds of people who still didn’t know of the drama down at the riverside. He forced himself to breath more normally and to act as usual as he slipped in and out among the happy laughing chattering men and women and children. He saw Rick from a distance and raised a hand, even managed a grin but Rick turned his face away and sullenly put his hands in his pockets.

Billy was ten years old edging to eleven and the enormity of what had taken place was already slipping into a vague hazy image that could have happened to someone else. The only thing that was real about it all was the yellow ribbon that he was still holding clutched in his hand.

Candy and Ann Canady were laughing together as they watched Bridie O’Flannery get the award for the best cake, together with others they clapped their hands and congratulated her, Rosie and David were enjoying the fruits of Bridie’s labours as slices of it were passed around. Billy sidled up to the stall and was handed a slice which he took with a show of bravado. Rosie recognised him as the boy who pushed Jerry into the water and turned her back on him, but it was Ann who saw the yellow ribbon peeking through his pocket where he had pushed it earlier. She couldn’t remember where she had seen a ribbon that colour before but was distracted from thinking any further because the Mayor’s wife was congratulating her on coming second with her cake.

Hester and Ben with little Hannah in his arms were watching as Hoss aimed to win at the hand wrestling. It was best out of three and this was the second turn. Hannah was pointing to Hoss and saying loudly “Daddy, my daddy.” which was amusing those standing nearby, especially those related to Mr. Hardy, his opponent, who were hoping her excited little voice would distract the doting father.

Mary Ann pushed Daniel in his perambulator to where she could see Hester and Ben, she tugged at Hester’s sleeve and whispered “Have you seen Joe anywhere?”

“No, I’m sorry I haven’t. Pa, have you seen - oh Hoss, oh my - “ and with great laughter and amidst a deal of clapping they applauded Hoss second throw of the match. The Judge’s voice boomed “Hoss Cartwright is this years Champion … again. Will anyone beat him?”

Ben turned to Mary Ann and listened to her request and shook his head, “I think he went down to the river to find you.”

Mary Ann looked blank for a moment and then nodded “Oh yes, that’s right. I was supposed to meet him there.”

She turned at the sound of the sheriff’s voice calling to Ben - something in the way he said Ben’s name brought a chill running down her back and instinctively she drew closer to him. Hester was about to run and congratulate Hoss but also stopped and turned to give Roy her attention. Whatever was said in a low discreet voice in Ben’s ear was enough to turn and hand Hannah back to her mother “Tell Hoss I’m going with Roy.”

“Where to? What’s happened?” Hester cried and Mary Ann immediately thought of her husband “Is it Joe, has something happened to Joe?”

Billy finished his cake and passing the stall that sold lemonade he slid a glass of it into his hand while he was shielded by a fat man who was arguing about who really won the horse race three years ago. He strolled away sipping the cool drink and finally reached the outskirts of the town. Here he stopped and after glancing back to the crowds decided that the best thing to do now was to go home.

Once in the dank musty smelling hovel of the place which he shared with his father he sat down. It was odd but suddenly his legs felt wobbly, as though they couldn’t support him anymore. He pulled the ribbon out of his pocket and stared at it. Had he really done it? Had he? She could be dead for all he knew, he had done nothing to help her and she was only a little girl, only a very sweet pretty little thing who wanted her ribbon and then he began to cry as the enormity of what he had done sunk in and rubbing the heels of his hands into his eyes he threw himself upon the bed and sobbed.

………….

Paul Martin closed the door quietly behind him and cleared his throat as he looked at the assembled family crowded into his office, “It’s alright, she’s safe. It was a close run thing but I think we can all thank God that Joe happened to be there at the time otherwise it would be … well, she would never have survived.”

Joe shivered and pulled the blanket closer around his shoulders “She was down longer than - I mean - I mean -.”

“I know what you mean, Joe.” Paul said gently and he placed a reassuring hand on Joe’s shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze “It’s one of the strange but wonderful things about children as young as Sofia and younger, no one has come up with an explanation as yet but somehow, inexplicably, some mechanism within them shuts down and where as it doesn’t for us, and we would drown, it - well - protects them.”

“Thank God.” Ben whispered “How’s Olivia ?”

“She’s alright, shocked but she’s alright.”

Before he could be asked anymore questions the door behind him opened and Adam stepped into the room and very gently closed the door. He looked around him and wondered what to say, for once in his life he seemed at a loss for words but then he saw Joe and walked over to him and gave him a rather rough but emotional hug, “Thank you, Joe.”

“You’d have done the same for me -” Joe said with a catch in his voice as he struggled against tears for the sight of his brothers stricken face caught at his heart, even more so as the memory of Adams anguish as he picked up his little girl and held her in his arms was enough to reduce him to tears.

Adam released his brother and allowed his father to hug him now, reassuring embraces, hand shakes, words whispered and reassurances given. He assured them that all was well and as soon as Paul said it was possible he would be taking his family home.

He returned then to the other room where Olivia sat in a leather arm chair with Sofia in her arms. She turned her sea green eyes to her husband and then looked down again at her daughter who slept soundly, her thumb in her mouth and the damp hair sticking to the skin of her brow and cheeks. Adam ran his hand gently over the child’s head and then took hold of Olivia’s hand which he kissed before releasing it.

After that he walked to where Reuben stood by the window, white faced, large wide eyes, and sniffing involuntarily as a result of the tears he had shed, he turned towards Adam as he approached and when Adam raised an arm to embrace him he turned instinctively into them and clung to him.

“It was that Billy McBride that did it. I hate him, I hate him.” Reuben’s shrill voice was muffled against Adam’s chest, and as he felt his Pa’s arm tighten around him he began to sob again, “I’m going to kill him, I will, I’m going to kill him dead.”

“Hush now, hush.” Adam lowered his head and whispered the words to the boy as he stroked the trembling little body that clung so desperately to him, “Sofia’s going to be alright. You mustn’t hate the boy, Reuben, it was just a prank that went wrong.”

“No, no, it wasn’t, it wasn’t” Reuben raised a tear stained face to look up at Adam, “He pushed Jerry into the river and Jerry couldn’t swim and he was frightened and screamed. He said he was going to get me, he said - he said - oh Pa, oh Pa -” and his voice ebbed into the long heart rending sobs of the most distressed of souls.

Adam lowered his head and kissed the top of the boys head “It’s alright, son, it’s alright. Cry as much as you need to.”

Reubens body shook with the vigour of his sobbing but managed to stammer “I love you, Pa.”

Adam felt his throat tighten as he swept the boy closer “I love you too, Reuben, I love you too.”

Half an hour later Adam carried Sofia to the buggy and lifted her into Olivia’s waiting arms, then he took his seat beside Reuben and flicked the reins. Beside the buggy Ben rode his horse, sombre and unable to speak the rancher could only think over what could have been the consequences if the result of the misadventure had been as dire as they had initially believed.

Roy watched them as they rode past the sheriff’s office and raised his hand to bid them good bye and then he turned his feet in the direction of the part of town where the McBrides lived.

Billy had sobbed himself into exhaustion and fallen asleep. When the banging on the door came he woke up, tried to remember what had happened and then remembered only too well. While he had slept and unbeknown to himself his father had returned home, and now slouched over to the door.

“What do you want?” McBride’s thick voice slurred and there was a thud as the door swung against the wall.

“I need to speak to your lad, Mr.McBride.” Roy said resting his hand calmly on the handle of his gun.

“What for? What are you blaming him for this time?”

The words ‘this time’ recalled to Roy’s mind exactly how many times he had taken Billy to his office and talked to him about whatever misdeed the boy had been involved in. As he stood there waiting for the other man to step aside and let him enter Roy thought of the boy, barely 7 at the time and hauled into the office by an irate store keeper who accused him of stealing. Time and again over the years the boy had appeared accused of all manner of things and now, well now it had come to this, an almost fatal incident.

“BILLY!” McBride yelled loud enough for the whole street to hear, “BILLY you come on here, sheriff wants to talk to ya.”

McBride turned, scratching at his chest and yawning, Roy followed and looked around the room, at the squalor and filth, and with a shake of the head he wondered how people survived. The boy stood up and looked at the sheriff through red rimmed eyes and a face where the tear tracks had washed through layers of dirt. “It was an accident.” he said, “I didn’t mean to do it.”

“Do what?” his father looked from him to the sheriff, “What’s he talking about?”

“Billy was involved in something that took place at the fete, a little girl was nearly drowned, and earlier, a young boy could also have drowned. I need to talk to Billy about what happened. You going to come along with me, son?”

Billy nodded, he was too tired and too distressed to argue, to wisecrack his way out of the situation now. Something had happened inside him and left him confused, miserable and contrite.

…………………

“Daddy?”

Sofia looked up from the pillows beneath her head and looked for Adam, when her eyes saw him they lit up and a smile spread over her face as she raised her arms to him and he went to her immediately and held her close.

“Daddy, I fell in the water.”

“You did, princess. You scared us all, you know.”

She settled back onto the pillows and looked at him with a puzzled expression on her face, “Daddy, did I look like a mermaid when I fell in the water?”

“I don’t know, sweet heart, I didn’t see you fall in. I think you looked like a very pretty mermaid when you came out though.”

“I didn’t have a fishy tail though, did I?”

“No, darling, you didn’t.” he smiled and gently brushed a curl from her forehead.

“Then I wasn’t a mermaid was I? Mermaids have fishy tails.”

“So they do. You’re quite right.”

“I’m sorry, daddy, I didn’t mean to fall in the water. I lost my wibbon.”

“I know.” he whispered and leaned forward to kiss her brow, “Sleep well, princess.”

She only nodded, too tired to say anymore and he sat there until her eyes closed and he was sure that she was actually asleep.

Olivia was in Reuben’s bedroom as he partially closed the door of Sofia’s room, he paused a moment and then made his way downstairs where he waited for his wife to join him. As soon as she had descended the stairs she went straight to him and held him tight, “Oh Adam, that was the worse moment of my life.”

He said nothing, the words wouldn’t come as over and over again he saw the little body stretched out where Joe had left her on the ground, water pooling around her, the pretty dress soiled and sodden, and her face so still with a strand of wet hair trailing across it.

He took a deep breath and kissed her gently, then sat her down while he went to the cabinet to pour out something to drink. She was staring at the logs piled on the hearth, untouched for the house was too warm for a fire. He had to call her name to get her attention and then she smiled and took the glass from him, “Adam, what if Joe hadn’t been there?”

“I know, I keep thinking the same thing.”

“I thought she was dead.” Olivia’s voice shook, and when she raised the glass to her lips it rattled against her teeth so that Adam had to take it from her, “Oh Adam, what if she had died?” and turning to him she fell against his chest, “Just hold me tight, Adam, hold me and tell me she’s upstairs and she’s safe.”

And now she wept, heart broken sobs that she had held in for what seemed hours, safe in her husband’s arms she wept the fear and the horror away while he stroked her back to soothe her, and whispered words of comfort to console her until finally there were no tears left to cry and she just lay there, grateful for him and his love and his strength.

Chapter 55

The door of the sheriff’s office opened quickly enough, then there was a pause as though the person who had opened it hesitated maybe to change his mind but then stepped forward and closed it firmly behind him.

Roy stood up immediately and whisked off his spectacles “How is the little girl?”

“She’s alright, Roy. In fact she slept better than anyone else did.” Adam approached the desk and removed his hat which he held with both hands in front of him “Well? Is he here?”

“You mean the lad who -?”

“Yes. I mean the lad who caused it all!” Adam replied testily and his dark eyes seemed to bore into Roy’s so that the old man had to look away and fidget with his papers. “Well?”

“Sit down, Adam, let me explain some things first -”

“Let me see him first and then explain if you want to ?”

“No.” Roy raised a hand as Adam turned towards the cell block, “No. Now, I’m asking as a favour to me, for you to take a seat, drink some of this here coffee and let me tell you some things.” he raised his eyebrows as Adam opened his mouth “If YOU don’t mind!”

Sometimes it wasn’t what Roy said but the manner in which he said it that stopped Adam from persisting in doing what he wished, so it was that he slammed his hat upon the desk, slumped into the chair and glared at the coffee that Clem now set down in front of him.

“Well? Better say what you have to say -.”

Roy nodded and sat down “Now, you jest calm yourself down a mite and I jest might do that thing.” he glared at the other man and leaned against his chair back, “The boy, Billy McBride, what do you know about him?”

“What do I know about him?” Adam spat out the words and half rose in his chair, “What fool question is that?”

“For a man as intelligent as you are, Adam, I would have expected a more sensible answer. Fact is I know you’re upset - alright - more than upset.” he raised his hand to prevent another verbal explosion and shook his head “Alright, so I’ll answer the question. Billy McBride is ten years old, his mother died at birth and since then he has been beaten more times that he’s had a good solid meal inside of him. His father is a drunken layabout, a wastral, who beats the boy out of the sheer pleasure it gives him. How’s a child raised like that to turn out? You tell me?”

Adam said nothing but bit down on his lips and forced himself to meditate on what Roy was saying. Some of the facts he already knew, some he had guessed at but combined to make up a whole picture - no, that hadn’t occurred to him.

“You know what it’s like, Adam, when a house cat goes kinda wild, you don’t expect its kitties to be friendly balls of fluff, do ya? Now this boy wants an education, inside of himself he wants to learn, that’s why he goes to school an’ all that, jest that he don’t know rightly how to behave when he gets there.”

“Roy -?” Adam’s exasperation at the sheriff was beginning to boil again and tentatively Roy pushed the cup of coffee closer to him, nodded and indicated that he drink up.

“He makes mischief, but he isn’t a bully at heart. He openly ’fessed up to what he did, I could tell when I got to see him after the incident that he had cried himself to exhaustion with fear, shame and regret. A bully wouldn’t do that, not an out and out bad ’un. Billy ain’t an out and out bad ’un, Adam.”

Adam slipped lower in the chair and cradled the mug of coffee against his chest, he nodded “So what explanation did he give as to what happened?”

“First off he pushed Jerry into the river, it was a high spirited prank played on a boy he didn’t like much. Alright, he shouldn’t have done it and a boy better raised would know better, but sometimes none of us know better, do we? Adam - he found the ribbon and was going to give it to Sofia, she came along and he was intending jest to tease her a little. He didn’t realise the river was so deep, he didn’t even intend to step aside as he did - alright that was a tom fool thing to do, I know it, so do you and so does he now - but it’s something he’s mighty ashamed of, and even more ashamed of the fact that he left her there.”

“He left her to drown.” Adam heard his own words in his head spoken staccato fashion.

“He’s jest ten years old, Adam. He - he didn’t realise exactly how bad things were -.”

“You’re making excuses for him, Roy.”

Roy sighed and bowed his head, he sighed again, “Alright, may be I am” he glanced over at the other man and shook his head “I ain’t going to remind you of the number of times I’ve had Joe in here when he was a kid due to some prank or another that went wrong.”

“That’s not fair, Roy. Joe isn’t the person involved in this particular - prank.”

“No, no, you’re right, no he ain’t“. Roy stood up and scratched the back of his neck and then looked again at Adam, “You calmed down a touch?”

Adam shrugged but his lips were compressed tightly and he wasn’t prepared to give in too quickly no matter how fond he was of Roy.

“So what do we do with him, huh? Jerry’s father came in shouting the odds just like you, said his boy is ill now and scared stiff to attend school in the future. He wanted the boy to be horsewhipped. Fact is the boy’s been whipped and beaten so often in his life that he half expects that anyway.” he sat down again, and leaned upon the table, clasping his hands together as he did so, “Billy’s mother was the daughter of a very well to do man who cut her out of his life when she married McBride. It’s only recently he heard that she had a child, and that she had died. Now -” he shrugged “some folks may call it a co-incidence, but I say that God moves in mysterious ways because that Mr. Webb, Billy’s grandfather, is on his way here right now to claim the boy. So - I’m asking you agin, Adam - what do we do with him?”

It was now Adam’s turn to scratch the back of his neck and stare up at the ceiling. He put the mug down, and stood up “I’d like to see him now.”

“I can’t send him back to McBride, he’ll beat the life out of the boy eventually.”

“When is Mr Webb expected to be here?”

“All being well - the day after tomorrow.”

Adam said nothing but gave the sheriff a sharp look which left Roy no further option than to accept that talking was over. He led Adam to the cells and stepped aside for Adam to look through the bars at Billy McBride.

The boy looked up and his face wrinkled into an expression of despair and dismay as though he saw in the mans features judge, jury and executioner all rolled into one. He stood up though and after blinking back tears, swallowed hard and approached the bars.

“Mr. Cartwright?”

Adam nodded, the boy had obviously been scrubbed clean by Clem’s wife no doubt, and decent clothes and boots had been provided, he assumed they came from the Poor Fund.

“Mr. Cartwright, how is she? How is the little girl?”

“She’s alright, Billy.” he surprised himself, his voice came out almost gentle, but that was the way it was with him and children, he could only ever see their innocence, just like Hoss.

The boy nodded and then bowed his head “I’m sorry, Mr. Cartwright, real sorry. I didn’t - I really didn’t mean that to happen. I mean - I did - I ain’t gonner lie to ya, I did want to see what would happen if I jest stepped to one side and if she would stop or run on, and I thought - I jest thought it would be funny if she went into the river, there’d be such an almighty splash an’ all that kinda thing. Jest that when - when she did she just - she didn’t - she jest -” he stopped and turned his face as though he could see it all happening again “I don’t know why I get to do these things, Mr. Cartwright, it jest seems like fun to me when - when I do ’em but - but -.”

He couldn’t find the words he wanted to say that would make this big man understand instead of him standing there, stiff and tall and dark. Billy thought he’d rather have a beating from his pa than have Adam Cartwright standing there glaring at him as though he had horns and fangs. He walked to the pillow on the truckle bed and pushed his hand beneath it and pulled from there the yellow ribbon and then slowly he walked to the bars and held it out to the man whose eyes were fixed upon it.

“Will you give it back to her, sir. Tell her I’m mighty sorry, truly I am.”

Adam took the ribbon and felt the smooth silkiness of it beneath his fingers. He thought it must have felt something so different to anything Billy would have felt in his life before, and he slowly rolled it up and slipped it into his pocket. “You will tell her, won’t you? Tell her I’m sorry.”

Adam nodded and turned away, he hesitated slightly before leaving and at Roy’s desk he picked up his hat and as he slipped it on he noticed the way Roy was looking at him. He shook his head “Don’t ask, Roy.”

“I - “

“You were. It’s too much to ask of me.”

“Alright then, I’ll jest keep him here in the cell until his Grandfather comes for him.”

“Yeah, you do just that.” Adam replied and with his mouth a tight line of anger he strode from the building, slamming the door behind him.

Clem picked up the mug and grimaced, the coffee hadn’t been touched. He looked at Roy “What was he expecting you to ask?”

“I jest hoped that perhaps he would take the boy home with him, give him some kind of chance to be with loving folk before his grandfather came fer him.”

Clem shook his head “He’s right, Roy, that was asking a lot.”

…………

Adam was in a sombre mood and perhaps he was not surprised to find himself standing at the door of the McBride’s ramshackle place. He knocked on the door and after a deal of scuffling about from inside McBride opened it and peered out. Adam stepped back to allow some fresh air to waft between them before he said “I’m Adam Cartwright.” and without waiting to be asked he pushed open the door and entered the building.

McBride’s framed words of protest but uttered none, as he reached for his pants and pulled them on, and the half naked woman in the mess of a bed pulled a blanket up to her shoulders. Adam scowled at her and then turned to McBride

“Why’s your boy in a cell and not at his home?”

“Because he ain’t my boy no more. I washed my hands off’n him after what he done yesterday. He’s been nothing but trouble since the day he was born.” McBride’s voice quivered, and he looked over at the woman “Get outa here, you can see we done for the day, I got things to discuss here.”

Adam thinned his lips and turned his back on the woman who, from the sounds that were coming from behind him was hurriedly pulling on her clothes. When the door closed the stale stink in the room stung his nostrils and he shook his head “What kind of being are you, McBride. You’ve a son who depends on you, and you treat him worse than most men would treat a dog.”

“I told you, he’s been trouble since he was born, my wife died because of him, that’s what he did, killed her.”

Adam narrowed his eyes and thought of another man whose wife had died giving birth to his son, but that was where the similarity ended. His fist grabbed a handful of McBride’s shirt and he yanked him closer “You’re talking to the wrong man to be using that as any kind of reason or excuse. That boy needs you now, so why’s he in a cell?”

“Best ask the sheriff about that, and all those do-gooders in town, sides which I don’t want him around my neck anymore. He ain’t my son. I wash my hands off’n him like I said afore.”

“It’s that easy for you to do that?”

“Her father cut her off when she married me. I thought he cared enough for her to make sure we was alright but he didn’t, struggled ever after since.”

Adam tilted his head to one side to survey the wretched man, and then wrinkled his nose in disgust, released his hold on the man’s shirt and turned towards the door “You’re disgusting.”

He’d hissed the words out with all the contempt he could muster as he left McBride there reeling into the room before slamming the door shut. There were other words that went through his mind as he strode away from the hovel, all of which he felt appropriate for a man who had obviously married with an eye to his father-in-law’s bank balance than with a heart full of love. Poor woman, he thought, poor wretched woman.

Chapter 56

Olivia heard the sound of voices in the porch and smiled as she recognised her husbands deep tones. She wiped her hands on a towel and walked to the other room and then came to a halt at the sight that presented itself. Adam was ushering into the room a thin boy with a mop of brown hair wearing clothes that although clean were obviously too big for him. She looked from her husband to the boy and back again “Who’s our visitor?”

Adam worked his mouth a moment before saying quietly “Olivia, this is Billy, Billy McBride.”

The boy was pushed gently forwards towards her and stared at her with blue eyes that were red rimmed from so much crying. He blinked and tried to speak as the woman stood there staring at him. “I’m sorry, M’am, for what I did.”

“What did you say?” she asked sharply, more sharply than perhaps she had intended or that Adam would have wished, for he had spoken in a whisper and now hung his head and whispered the words again.

She looked at him for a while and then at Adam, noted the way her husband’s hand rested upon the boy’s shoulder and fought an inner battle of her own before she said “You had best come in and get something to eat. We - I - was just about to serve up lunch.”

As the boy passed into the kitchen she gave her husband a narrow eyed glare but she received a smile, a kiss and a wink of the eye as he followed the boy to take his seat at the table. So that was it then, she thought as she stood staring at the empty space in front of her, that was all settled and without a word to her about it. She bit down on her lips and drew in a deep breath before turning and after calling for her children to come down to eat she joined her husband and ‘that boy’ at the table.

Sofia came into the room with her face alight with pleasure at the sight of her father and she smiled at Billy as Adam lifted her up and into her seat but Reuben entered, stopped and stared, looked from Billy to his father and then to his mother and with a cry of protest ran out of the room.

Olivia turned to go after him but Adam caught her by the wrist “No, sweetheart, serve up the food. I’ll go and speak to him.”

“Adam, I -” but he put a finger to her lips and smiled, his brown eyes looked into hers and she knew that there was nothing she had to say, nothing that had any point in being said.

Reuben was crying when Adam found him in the stable. He went to the boy and put his hands on his shoulders but Reuben shrugged him off “Why’d you bring him here? Why’d he have to come here?” the boy wailed.

“Because he had no where else to go.”

“I don’t want him here, nor does Sofia.”

“Sofia didn’t seem to mind. It’s only you who does.”

“Because he nearly killed my sister, he’s a bully, he hurts people and he pushed Jerry into the river as well.”

“I know.” Adam sat down on a bale of straw and pulled the boy down beside him, “Now, Reuben, tell me this in all honesty, have you ever been hungry?”

The boy looked puzzled and stopped his wailing to think about it, “I missed lunch the other day, and I felt hungry all the time afterwards.”

“But that was only for a few hours now, wasn’t it?” Adam kept a firm grip on the lad to prevent him from running off, “Can you imagine - try and imagine what it is like to always feel hungry and the food you have to eat never fills you up and makes you feel satisfied. That isn’t a good feeling is it?”

Reuben didn’t trust himself to speak, he shook his head and glared down at his father’s boots.

“What if you had no Mama, ever, no one to hold you, feed you or just plain love you. But you have a mean old Pa who beat you all the time so that you were afraid to go home sometimes … how would you like to live like that, son?”

Rebellion flashed in the boys eyes as he stared up at his father “Sometimes you give me a tanning.”

Adam smiled and nodded “And why do I do that?”

Reuben sighed and rebellion faded as he mumbled “Because I deserve it, I’ve been bad.”

“That’s right, but that doesn’t mean I’ve stopped loving you, it so that you recognise that there are boundaries, that as a child still you have to respect the fact that some things are wrong and a tanning, hopefully, will help you appreciate that fact. But think about this, son, what if you dropped something and I just hit you, hard, enough to make you fall off your chair or even tumble down the stairs… would that be right?”

“No, sir.”

“Or if I came home one day and was angry with Gran’pa and decided that I would be angry with you instead, so I hit you, hard, lots of times, so hard that perhaps you couldn’t get up from the floor. Would that be right?”

Reuben swallowed hard “No, it would be bad.”

“It would be very bad.” Adam nodded, “Yes, there’s a difference between a tanning and a beating then, isn’t there?”

“Yes, sir.”

Adam nodded and pulled the boy round to face him so that Reuben was standing between his legs, “Reuben - you know that you are very much loved by your Ma, your sister and me, don’t you?”

He nodded, swallowed hard “But I don’t want Billy living here with us.”

“It’ll be only for a few days until his grandfather comes to take him away. I want you to be kind to him, son, remember, you’re a Cartwright, and we like to give people a chance.”

“But Billy -”

“Even Billy.”

Reuben nodded and stepped back as the hold on his arms slackened and Adam began to stand up “But I still don’t like him.”

“I’m not asking you to, I just want you to help him by being kind.”

Reuben shrugged, not wanting to ‘give in’ right away and he ran out of the stable rather than walk in beside his father. Adam rubbed his face with long fingers and shook his head, there were times when there never seemed to be a simple solution that would please everyone.

With that thought in mind he walked slowly to the house and returned to his seat at the table.

Billy wasn’t sure what to make of it all. He sat and ate his food with a spoon because he had never used a fork and a knife before, he tried not to gobble it down because he had never tasted food like it before, it was - well, it was wonderful. He knew he had done something wrong when Sofia giggled and her mother told her to be quiet and when the child said “He eats funny.” Billy put his spoon down and stared at the food on his plate too ashamed to try again.

“We don’t waste food here, Billy.” Adam said sternly, “Eat up.”

He looked around the table at Sofia’s smiling face, Olivia’s calm loveliness, and Reuben’s sullen glare, and it was the latter that made him pick the spoon up rather than give in to the younger boy.

After the main meal Olivia cleared the table and Billy wondered why they were still sitting there. Adam poured water into a glass and pushed it over to him before filling the glasses of the other two children. When Reuben and Sofia said “Thanks, Pa.” Billy flashed pink, glared at them and then muttered a thank you which was barely audible.

Apple pie and a rich cream was placed next upon the table. Billy’s nose twitched at the tantalizing smells and he ate, gobbled, his portion up so fast that when Olivia placed more on the plate no one else had even finished their first. It was that lovely, and when his plate was empty he had to put his hand on his stomach because it felt - different. It was full, he had never eaten so much in his life before.

“Billy,” Adam said when the plates were removed, “Haven’t you something to say?”

He nodded, wiped his mouth on the back of his sleeve and slid from the chair, groped in his pocket and drew out the yellow ribbon which he held out to Sofia “I’m sorry, Sofia, I’m really sorry for what happened yesterday and for taking your ribbon.”

Reuben didn’t dare raise his eyes to look at the boy, resentment and anger still churned inside him and he didn’t want any of his family to be pleasant towards him, so when Sofia said thank you so prettily and gave her sweet little laugh as she showed it to Olivia it was all that Reuben could do to stay in his seat.

Billy trailed around behind Adam like a shadow but stopped when confronted by the bookcases. He stared at all the books and couldn’t believe there could be so many in one house. “I ain’t never seen so many books before.”

“Do you like to read?” Adam asked

“Sure I do. You ask Reuben, he knows. He showed me how to write proper on the slate as well. Now I can write better and read as well.”

“You enjoy school then?”

“I sure do, it gets me away from Pa and I can read and learn things.” he stopped then and gulped before turning to Reuben, “I’m sorry about your harmonica, Reuben, but it wasn’t me who stood on it.”

“Yes, it was.” Reuben said angrily.

“No, I didn’t - see.” Billy felt stung at the response from Reuben, he had hoped that reconciliation would be forthcoming, but it appeared now that it would take some time for that to happen. “I threw it to Rick and when Miss came he threw it back but I missed it. It was one of the other boys who stood on it and bent it all up.”

Reuben pouted and stuck his nose in the air as though he didn’t care anyhow, but he did, and he knew immediately that Billy was right, he just knew it.

It was a difficult day although Sofia was happy to accept the boy, Reuben kept his defences up and as a result Billy became sullen. Adam had a feeling that the two boys would eventually end up coming to blows and kept a watchful eye on them which annoyed him because there was work to be done and overseeing two little boys kept him away from doing it. Only Olivia seemed to sail serenely through the oncoming storm.

Supper was a trial as Reuben did his best to kick Billy in the shins under the table every chance he got, and Billy did likewise back. Adam had to warn them both that any more of it and they would both be taking a walk to the barn with him.

When Billy saw the room in which he was going to sleep and then slipped into the bed he nearly cried, as it was it was a struggle to keep the tears away. Olivia, who had made him bath and consequently seen the bruises upon his thin little body, was nearly in tears herself as she had slipped a nightshirt over the boys head before helping him into bed. She pulled the covers up to his chin, “Good night, Billy, I hope you sleep well.”

He grabbed at her hand with both of his own and held them tightly “Thank you, Missus. Thank you. I ain’t never slept in a bed like this ’un before and all that food was so good, I guess I don’t need to eat for a week now.”

She laughed and smoothed away the hair from his brow, “Oh you’ll be hungry enough by morning.”

“I ain’t never had a Ma.” Billy said quietly, “Will you sit with me, just a little bit so’s I can pretend.”

“Pretend?” Olivia frowned as she pulled a chair over to sit beside his bed.

“Pretend I’ve got a real Ma, like you.”

…………..

Reuben watched as his mother approached the bed and when she leaned down to kiss his brow he grabbed at her hand and held it tightly “Ma, you do love me, don’t you?”

“Darling, you don’t have to ask me that, you should never doubt that I love you. Of course I do. Whatever gave you the idea I didn’t?”

“I heard you talking to him and thought -” but before he could say anymore she put a finger to his lips much as Adam had done to her earlier, “Reuben, he’s a little boy not much older than you, and despite what he’s done, we have to remember that he has no one to love him or help him. Just for the little time he is here, try and remember that, will you?”

“He will be gone soon, won’t he?”

She sighed and kissed his fingers, “Only a few days. You get to sleep now, come along, close your eyes and settle down.”

She stayed in the room a little longer than usual, until he was really sleeping and then she left him, closing the door behind her. Downstairs Adam was pacing the floor, on the table in front of the fire were two glasses, one filled with the wine she enjoyed and the other with the golden glow of whiskey. She came down the stairs and walked to her chair and in silence sat down. Adam turned to her immediately “Are you annoyed with me?”

She didn’t answer immediately then shook her head “No, of course not.”

He relaxed a little then and came to sit beside her, sliding his hand over hers so that their fingers interlocked, “He was locked up in a cell because his father didn’t want him home, and Roy didn’t want him wandering the streets. There wasn’t much I could do -.”

They both knew there was the Foundling Home and even the orphanage although he didn’t really qualify for either but the circumstances surely would have permitted it. He told her about McBride and the conversation he had with him, what Roy had said about a grand father and then waited for her to speak. She leaned forward and picked up her glass of wine, “Adam, I saw the bruises on his body, old ones, new ones … cuts and burns as well. You don’t have to plead his case to me, dear.”

“I didn’t think I would, I just needed to - well - say something.”

She nodded and reached out to take his hand, “We’re well blessed, Adam, aren’t we?”

He nodded, unable to speak, he knew without a doubt that he was certainly very well blessed and pitied any man who didn’t have such a wife as himself.

……………

It was a day for school and Reuben was more than delighted to be going alone. Upstairs in the guest room Billy McBride slept on. He hadn’t stirred when the rest of the household had woken but had slept on. His dreams had been pleasant all night long, undisturbed and peaceful.

Hoss Cartwright joined his brothers and father around noon time, the old wagon lumbered over the ruts in the grass until he came to a stop and jumped down, rubbing his hands and then striding to the back of the wagon to begin pulling out the fencing posts. Adam put down his spade to go and help him while Joe and Ben continued to dig holes.

“It’s all over town that you’ve got the McBride kid at your place, Adam.” Hoss said as he and his brother wrestled with one post.

“No doubt.” Adam grimaced and lowered the log gently to the ground.

“Why’d you take him then?”

“You mean the gossips didn’t fill you in on that bit of news? I’m more than surprised.” Adam replied cynically.

“Dan de Quille told me. You know how he hangs around waiting like some spider ?”

“And you were the fly he was waiting for?” Adam grinned and leaned forward to help with another post.

“Yeah, that was how he made me feel too. Told me to tell you he likes a heart warming story like this one, and it’ll boost his sales figures.”

Ben coughed before shouting over to them “Are you two old women quite finished gossiping over there?”

“So long as he stays away from me he can print what he likes…” Adam shouldered a post and hauled it towards the hole that Joe and Ben had dug out.

“How long you keeping him ?” Hoss asked by way of resuming the subject as soon as Adam returned for another post.

“Until his grandfather arrives to collect him.”

Hoss now grimaced before shaking his head “Didn’t know he had a grandfather.”

“Neither did he.”

“How’s Reuben taking it?” Hoss jumped down from the wagon and lifted one end of a post as Adam took the other.

“He’s alright. Do me a favour, would you?”

“Sure, what is it?”

“Spend some time with him, will you? I promised him that you’d show him how to play a harmonica.”

Joe caught the end of the conversation and began to chortle aloud “You asking our brother to teach Reuben to play the harmonica? Huh, it would be safer getting Reuben to ride Saturn …”

Adam rubbed his chin and grinned “How are you getting on with that horse, Joe?”

“I’ll be riding him at the next race and I’ll come in first, see if I don’t!”

Ben cleared his throat and spat dust into the ground, “I’d like this job finished before we get home, if you ladies don’t mind?”

Hoss and Adam turned to get another post and Hoss grinned “Some things never change do they?”

“Well one things for sure - Pa never does.” came the swift reply which was the kind of comment Hoss was waiting for, the kind that made him feel that yes, some things didn’t change and weren’t meant to either.

Chapter 57

Throughout the Indian Territories tribes were amassing around the sacred Black Hills, the Pa’ha Sa’pa. The Souix nations, along with Arapaho, Cheyenne, Kiowa and Comanche were uniting against their common enemy and the last bastion, the place holy to them and now under threat called upon them to fight to the death in order to keep it from the hands of the white men.

Another person fighting for his reputation was the President of the United States, U.S.Grant. In his election year he was having to make decisions that he hoped would wrest the presidency from his opponents hands and allow him another four years as Head of the Nation.

One afternoon in early May 1876 he closed the doors on his advisers, his Generals and Admirals, his men of finance and national security and sat at his desk to study the map that had been there since the day he held a conference with Generals Sherman, Sheridan and with Custer and Commodore Adam Cartwright.

In retrospect now he rose to his feet and studied the map and looked at the way it had changed, at the townships that had sprung up in lands still legally and politically recognised as belonging to the Indian. He traced with his finger where the border line actually still existed and the line that had been decided upon that very afternoon in his office. He bowed his head and wondered what one person who was not present at that meeting would have said about it all. A lone voice for morality and decency against the voices that demanded more land, more gold, more success in order to the best gift of all … the Presidency.

Grant heard again what had seemed to be the majority voice ‘Make this your final onslaught against them, beat them back, get the gold and the land and you will get a majority vote.” And what had been another tack “The people like a winner, currently they know how you have lost money now they want to see how you can make it.”

Yes, lost money, scandals, fraud and embezzlement in high places, cover ups in order to protect oh so many and on top of the pile, well, no one else but himself. He went to the desk and opened a box of cigars to select the fattest. Slowly he ran it under his nose, cut of the tip and then returned to look again at the map. He wished he had Adam Cartwright there even if his voice had been the only one to speak up for the victims of what was going to be an out and out massacre. He struck a match and lit the cigar, puffed upon it until plumes of smoke drifted in blue and white clouds above his head.

No one wanted George Custer to take charge, to ride against Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse and the rest of those Indians, they wanted Reno and Benteen, and others whom Grant acknowledged were better at forming strategies, cooler headed in carrying them out, not rash and impetuous and likely to go off on a personal vendetta of his own . No, it wouldn’t do to have Custer involved. Even Adam Cartwright would have agreed with that decision.

The knock on the door preceded the entry of his secretary, “You wanted some information about Commodore Adam Cartwright, Mr. President? This is what we have up to the present moment.”

Grant nodded and flipped over the pages … sometimes he smiled briefly as though remembering some moment in time concerning this strangely enigmatic man, sometimes he scowled and shook his head and sighed. “He’s still on sick leave ?”

“Yes, Mr. President, so I’ve been led to believe.”

Grant closed the file and strolled back to look at the map “You know, he used to drive Custer wild at times, used to say that if he was fool enough to ride onto those hills, he’d never come out of there alive.”

“Indeed, sir?”

“Indeed, yes.” Grant frowned and puffed at his cigar “He got married last year?”

“That’s right, Mr. President. You and Mrs. Grant sent a gift and personal letter to the couple.” the secretary cleared his throat “It was shortly before the fire that nearly burned Virginia City down.”

“Well, well, I doubt very much if we have the Commodore to blame for that, James.”

“I - er - of course, sir.”

“Wait outside until I call for you, I need to write a letter.”

Grant waited until the door had closed but even then he didn’t move back to the desk, just stood and stared at the map and recalled the time when Adam Cartwright had stepped into that office, glanced momentarily at the map and known exactly what was going to happen right down to the decisions that had been made today.

Grant now returned to his desk and sat down, placed his cigar into the ash tray and pulled out his personal papers. In July it was very possible he would not be able to sit behind that desk again, or use that letter headed paper or seal his correspondence with the Presidential seal. In July he could very well be just another private citizen wondering what on earth went on in that White House which would no longer be his home. In July the whole matter of the Indian question would at last be resolved, but he doubted if the Commodore would be pleased about it.

……………….

Reuben Phillips Cartwright returned to his home full of excitement about his day. Without Billy there everyone seemed more relaxed, friendlier and as a result he had read his essay out to the class and been praised. Annie Sales had shared her candy with him and listened in wide eyed amazement about the story of Billy McBride being at his house. She had said he was wonderful because she didn’t think her Ma and Pa would countenance the horrible boy in their home after he had tried to drown their daughter. Reuben didn’t bother to tell her how his Pa had explained it as an accident about which the boys was sorry, it seemed, well, much better to let her think he was some kind of hero for tolerating the situation.

Olivia listened to him chattering away about the essay and how Miss Brandon said it was so good and how he had got his math right. He made no mention of the conversation he had had with Annie, even a little boy of 7 and a half had learnt something about keeping certain things quiet from the adults and knowing that the boy was somewhere in the house brought along with it a necessity to be discreet.

“Where’s - Billy?” he asked as he washed his hands at the sink and watched his Ma preparing their food. Annie Sales had said that her mother thought Olivia was lovely and he was trying to see her through someone else’s eyes. To him she was Ma and yes, she wasn’t a fat dumpy Ma like Mrs Sales and she was pretty.

“He’s been helping Harry and the men digging in the extension.” Olivia replied with a smile, “Sofia has been at Aunt Mary Ann’s with me, Uncle Joe said to tell you that Saturn is getting really tame now.”

“Wow, can we go see him soon?”

“Who? Uncle Joe or the horse?” Olivia laughed and dropped a kiss on the boy’s brow which made him turn his head shyly and say ‘Aw, Ma!’

Olivia turned to her chores and sighed, well, he had never done that before going to school, he’d always been happy for hugs and kisses, certainly was last night. She had to accept that when things went well for him at school then kisses from his Ma just weren’t very special after all.

Sofia ran into the room and waved some paper in her hand which she gave to her brother “I drew-ded Saturn for you.”

“Thanks, Sofia.” he shrugged, the big brother, and glanced down at it, nodded and said in his best Miss Brandon voice “Very good work, sis.”

“Reuben, don’t call her ‘sis’, she has a name, use it please.”

“Jerry calls his sister ‘Sis’ all the time, it’s alright, Ma, it’s what they do at school.”

“I don’t care what they do at school. Just don’t do it here.”

He gave Sophia a cold glare as he passed her and ran up to his room, then within minutes was down in the kitchen again “Ma, who’s been playing with my wagon and trains?”

Sofia immediately looked up from the table, being that much younger she had not yet learned when there were times to keep quiet but said with a smile “Me.”

Reuben went red in the face and shouted “I don’t want you playing with my wagon and trains. They’re mine.”

“I know but Billy nebber seed ‘em before.”

“You showed BILLY!”

Olivia put her hand on his shoulder and turned him around, then looked sternly into his eyes, “Reuben, do you realise that Billy has never had a toy of his own, ever?”

He blinked, suddenly HE had to feel sorry for Billy? The boy who beat him up and wrecked his harmonica and nearly drowned his sister? First Pa and now Ma and Sofia; life was just too unfair. “Apologise to your sister.”

“Why should I? She’s the one went into my room and touched my things.”

“And I’ve already dealt with her about it, she knows now that she isn’t to go into your room again without your permission. I want you to apologise for speaking to her so unkindly. That isn’t the way you’ve been raised to address a little girl.”

He scowled at Sofia before he mumbled sorry and returned to his room. Somehow the wagon and train had lost their appeal.

Adam was tired at the end of the day and after seeing to his horse and checking things in the stable he closed the doors upon them, grateful to be home. He eased his shoulders slightly and removed his hat as he approached the house while he wiped over his brow upon his sleeve. The day had been busy and hard, Joe had gone into town for some equipment and several men had been sent onto another section of fencing leaving Hoss and himself short handed on the section they had to finish. Even Hoss had parted with a weary ‘Let’s hope it gets easier tomorrow.”

It was good to get the customary warm greeting from the children, Reuben demanded his attention by telling him about his essay and school, while Sofia hung upon his arm and kept insisting on kissing his cheek which meant he had to bend double for her to reach him. Eventually he got into the kitchen, hugged his wife and then washed his hands. It almost seemed he had forgotten Billy as he sat down at the table.

“Sofia, go and tell Billy it’s time to eat.” Olivia said and smiled at Adam “He’s been helping Harry and the men digging out the trenches for the pipes in the extension.”

“He didn’t get in the way did he?” Adam asked with a slight frown which quite delighted Reuben, a little negative comment from Pa was more than welcome.

“Harry said in a few years time he’d like to recruit him. He’s been reading since he came in.”

Reuben hadn’t noticed, he’d been upstairs in his room and hadn’t actually sought out the boys company so when Billy came into the room he didn’t acknowledge him but sat stiff and still. Adam looked at the boy with a half smile and beckoned to the empty chair

“Sit down then, and we’ll eat.”

“Yes, sir.”

Prayer said and the food set down on the table. Billy sat between Olivia and Sofia, while Reuben sat between Sofia and Adam. Conversation was mainly between the adults and the children got on with their eating. Reuben reached out for more meat and as he did so his hand brushed against his glass of milk. The glass tottered and fell, milk spread far across the table and it was Billy who jumped from his seat and cringed back, his eyes wide and mouth open in horror as he awaited the beating that was sure to follow.

“Sorry Pa, sorry Ma.” Reuben said immediately.

“Clear it up.” Adam said with a nod to a cloth which sent Reuben scurrying over to clean up the mess, “Be more careful, Reuben, you look as though you’re day dreaming through the meal.”

“Sorry, Pa.”

“That’s alright, just don’t do it again.” Adam said sternly and looked over at Billy who was standing stiff and wide eyed behind Olivia. “What’s the matter, Billy? Come and sit down and eat your food. There’s nothing to be concerned about, it was an accident, and it’s being dealt with.“

Olivia turned to Billy and touched his shoulder gently so that he was guided back to his chair and then she continued mopping up the bits that Reuben had missed.

Billy looked from one to another and then slowly resumed his seat. He looked at the food on his plate, watched as Olivia refilled Reubens glass and then glanced hurriedly over at Adam. Had such a thing happened at his home, not that he ever had glasses of milk, but had he spilt anything over he would have been given a hearty cuff across the head, perhaps even worse depending on the mood his father would be in at the time.

It all seemed so different. In his world of beatings and fear, of being bullied and abused, he assumed that every child was treated the same. Oh yes, they dressed better, were fed better, perhaps, but adults beat children, that’s what adults - parents - had to do because children were bad.

Because he thought every child lived in the same environment that he did he never spoke about it, no child spoke about their home life really, not to him anyway. He picked up his fork and tried to use it like Reuben did, and he made extra special care not to spill his drink. He felt that he could almost bear being beaten rather than this kind of gentle disciplining.

Talk drifted to Uncle Joe and Saturn and Adam confirmed that Joe was more than pleased with the horse, it was well tamed now and would soon be Joe’s main horse, trained to ride range and everything else one would expect from a rancher’s animal.

So much chatter whirled around Billy’s head, round and round went the words until they spun out into a void for the boy fell asleep there and then at the table and Olivia just caught him before he feel off his chair. Adam smiled and stood up to take him in his arms and lift him up, “Ah-oh, I guess the work was too much for him. I’ll take him up to his bed.”

Reuben bristled inside, the sight of his Pa carrying that boy up stairs made his chest go tight inside and he pushed his food aside so that Olivia asked him if he were alright, it was, after all, his favourite. “I ain’t hungry no more, Ma. Thank you.” he wiped his mouth on the napkin “Can I be excused?”

“Yes alright.”

Reuben hurried down, he ran up the stairs and hung around the spare bedroom, until curiosity got the better of him and he had to peek through the gap in the door. He saw his Pa remove the other boys shoes and clothing, and the sight of the bruises on Billy’s thin little body made him jump backwards in horror. By the time he peeked again Adam was drawing the blankets over the boy and tucking him in. He stepped back a little confused, and didn’t notice Adam leave the room.

“Don’t do that again. Don‘t spy on me, Reuben, if you want to see something, say something, do it right out.”

Adam’s voice made him jump, and he looked up feeling guilty and slightly ashamed but he rallied “Why’s he got all those bruises on him?”

Adam took him by the shoulder and turned him around, “Remember what I told you yesterday about the different between a beating and a tanning? What Billy had was a beating for anything, and everything, every day of his life. He never had the kind of discipline you have, which is done because we love you enough to do so, he just got a cuff around the head or a drumming in the ribs for nothing.”

Reuben frowned “For nothing, Pa? Not because he was naughty?”

Adam thought of McBride, how naughty was a baby who had been born at the expense of its mothers death? Did it necessitate being punished evermore?

“Pa?” Reuben tugged at his hand as well as call for his attention and he looked at Reuben and shook his head, “No, not because he was naughty, at home he didn’t dare be naughty, I guess that was why he was always causing trouble at school. He was - well, I guess he felt so free he didn‘t quite know how to handle it all.”

Reuben asked no further questions, he walked down the stairs beside his father, holding Adams hand and thinking over the things that he had seen and heard. It all seemed strange, very strange to him.

………..

In the morning Reuben breakfasted with his family, and Billy. Adam had already left for work having been up much earlier, kissed his wife, peeked in at the children and ridden out. Billy drank his milk carefully and licked the rich creaminess from his upper lip with relish.

“Am I going to school today, Missus?” he asked Olivia who smiled and shook her head, and told him that he wouldn’t but could help Harry again if he wished.

“I do like going to school.”

“You can carry on reading that book you had yesterday if you like.” Olivia smiled at him and Sofia said “You can play with Scraggy Sally and Clarabelle and me too.”

Billy watched Reuben get ready with a little envy in his heart, which made Reuben feel quite important although he said nothing.

Out in the yard he followed Reuben and stood on the porch “Wish I were coming to school with ya, Reuben.”

“Huh, you ain’t going to school no more.” Reuben said rather heartlessly.

“Yes I am.”

“No, you ain’t.”

“I am.”

“You ain’t. Pa said you ain’t going to school no more because your Gran’pa would be coming soon to take you away.”

This was news to Billy, and he stood there shocked for a moment before saying very sharply “I ain’t got no Gran’pa.”

“Yes you have and he’s coming and he’s going to take you away from here.”

“You’re a liar.”

“No I ain’t.”

“Liar !”

Billy jumped and landed heavily on Reuben who fell over backwards under the boys weight. Fists flew, some kicks were lashed out, fingers grabbed at handfuls of hair and they rolled around in the dust and dirt until two hands grabbed hold of them and pulled them apart. Both boys, panting, dirty and dishevelled, looked up into the angry face of Hoss Cartwright.

“What’s this all about? No - don’t tell me I don’t wanna know.” he put them both down and looked at them with hard blue eyes “You’d both better get inside before you do any more damage to yourselves.”

Together they were pushed through the front door and to the kitchen where Olivia nearly dropped half a dozen eggs and the bowl they were in at the sight of them. Hoss shrugged, “Adam asked me to ride back and collect some tools from the shed, saw ‘em licking the tar outa each other.”

Both boys stood rigidly straight, eyes defiant and lips firmly clasped together, small hands tightened into fists. “Very well, Hoss, best leave them to me.” Olivia said quietly and Hoss, rather doubtfully, released his charges into her care.

…………..

“He said I had a gran’pa coming to take me away.” Billy said later as he sat on the settee beside Olivia Cartwright. “But I ain’t got no Gran’pa.”

“Yes, you have, Billy. He wasn’t telling you a lie, and perhaps we were wrong in not telling you when you got here, but -” she sighed and took hold of his hand, “Adam felt there was so much going on in your life just now, that he didn’t want to give you something else to worry about, after all what if something happened and your Gran’pa didn’t come?. He has a long way to travel, and things can happen to stop a man getting to a place no matter how much he wants to be there.”

She smiled at him hoping that he would understand their concerns for him. She didn’t add that it was quite possible that Grandfather would see the boy. take an instant dislike to him and walk away, in which case the harm to the boy would be worse than ever. Better to keep him in ignorance for as long as possible and just pray for a happier outcome.

“But Pa never said I had a Gran’pa. He said my ma had a wicked old man for a father that’s all.”

Olivia smiled and brushed hair out of the boys eyes, the bruise on his forehead evidence that her sons’ fist or boot had landed successfully.

“I daresay it will all be explained better when he gets here.”

“Pa said I was wicked like my Ma’s father. He said I killed my Ma and had to be beaten to get the wickedness outa me or I’d end up like Ma’s father … that’s my Gran’pa, right?”

“Yes, but I don’t think he’s a wicked man, no more than you’re wicked, Billy.”

“But I did kill my Ma?”

Olivia sighed and sat there for a moment with the boy’s hand in hers, settled within the folds of her skirt. She shook her head “A while ago, far away in Boston, a lady, a very pretty lady, had a baby boy. Just like you, Billy. An innocent sweet baby boy. He didn’t know it, anymore than you did, that his Ma wasn’t strong enough to have a baby, and she died.”

“Did he get beaten? Did his Pa hate him too?”

“No. he loved his wife very much indeed, and he missed her and was sad. But he loved his baby boy. He often says that if it hadn’t been for Adam he would never have known how to get through the days that followed. His son gave him a purpose in life for which he has always been very grateful.”

“Then why did Pa say I was wicked?”

“Because - “ she shook her head, “I don’t know, you just have to take my word for it, you are no more wicked than Adam is or was …”

“You mean Mr. Cartwright?”

“Yes.” she gave a funny little laugh “Believe it or not, he was a baby once.”

He didn’t smile, he had to think this over, he had to try and understand why it was his father beat him, and hated him. But he didn’t understand, and he never could because despite his bullying behaviour at school, it really wasn’t in his nature to be unkind to anyone.

Chapter 58

Joseph Cartwright stretched his arms above his head and yawned. He scratched his head through his thatch of thick hair and turned up the lamp light just a little. The rumpled bedding beside him meant that Mary Ann was already up and he looked over at where he expected to see her, and smiled as he relaxed at the sight of her. Blessings he thought to himself rarely came so bountifully as they had when Mary Ann re-entered his life.

He swung himself out from his side of the bed and walked quietly over to where his wife sat with Daniel in her arms. She was half asleep as was the baby but he was still sucking hard, determined to get his fill before sleep stole the opportunity away. Joe kissed her cheek, “Would you like something to drink?” he whispered and smiled as Daniel’s eyes immediately opened wide, he stopped sucking to look up at his father, paused a while as though waiting for some reaction on Joe’s part before he recontinued. Joe stroked the downy dark head and as Mary Ann had whispered a no thanks, sat down on the floor beside her his head resting against her thigh, while his fingers stroked the baby’s little feet.

On the whole Daniel was a happy contented infant and was now sleeping most of the night through, waking just a little earlier than his parents would have liked, for now that they could skip through the late evening and very early morning feeds they seemed ever greedier for even more.

“Remember when we first met?” he said softly.

“Adam didn’t want you to take Frank and me, did he? What was it he said? No stopping for anything, no pretty ladies, nothing.”

Joe laughed quietly and she felt the movement of his head against her leg as he nodded, “Well, it didn’t work did it?”

“You were so unhappy, Joe. I remember -” she sighed and looked down at him “Do you still think of her at all?”

“Little Moon? No, not really.” he felt ashamed to admit it, he hadn’t thought of Little Moon in months, his life had been too full, too happy and he felt disloyal to the girl he had loved so much all those years ago. “It was a terrible journey, wasn’t it?”

“I learned a lot.” she said simply and looked at Daniel who was now asleep, his cheeks red and lips dribbling milk. She wiped around his mouth and passed him to Joe who smiled as he accepted the precious bundle and with practised ease stroked his back while she adjusted her night gown and leaned back against the chair, “I learned to be a lot less judgemental, and I learned to trust more, without being naïve about it.”

Her dark chestnut hair was loose upon her shoulders and her grey eyes were heavy with lack of sleep, she yawned and looked down at him tenderly, “I hated that Frank died so horribly, Joe. The people at Calico risked a lot to go back and bring his body there to be buried.”

Joe didn’t mention anything about the books among which the young man had been hidden. He heard Daniel break his wind and start hic-coughing and passed him back to her for the infant to be settled in his cot. “I’m glad you didn’t go off with that doctor.”

“So’m I.” she glanced sideways at him and smiled, Daniel was placed into the little crib and she looked at Joe who was walking towards her. “I’m glad I applied for the position of school teacher here in town or I may never have seen you again.”

“I think you would have done.” he said quietly as he took her into his arms and held her warm pliant body against his.

“Yes,” she laughed softly as their lips met, “I think so too.”

………….

Hester returned to her bed and closed her eyes even before her head hit the pillow. She had been sick again, she had lost count of how many times she had been sick over the past week. This baby was quite different to how she remembered her pregnancy with Hannah, she was so tired and always feeling sick. She was losing weight because she couldn’t keep her food down. Mrs O’Flannery told her it was quite common and not to worry but she could see a gauntness in her face that had never been there before.

Hoss groped for her hand “You alright, sweetheart?”

“Yes.” her voice was tight, she wanted to get to sleep not talk, nor anything else either. She scrunched up her eyelids and yawned, then she sat bolt upright again and rolled from the bed to rush to the bowl.

Hoss was there by her side with a glass of water, and gently stroking her back “You alright? It wasn’t like this with Hannah, was it?”

“No.” she mumbled between gulping for air and putting her head down to vomit.

“You are alright though, aren’t you?”

The concern in his voice trembled in every word he spoke and she nodded, drank some water and wiped her mouth with a damp cloth. “Oh Hoss, I don’t like being like this …I’m sorry to have woken you up again.”

“Don’t be sorry, honey, I don’t mind. Here, drink this water now…” he held the glass for her as though she were a little girl, and then he held her in his arms, before sweeping her up and carrying her over to the bed, where he gently set her down “You think you should go and see a doctor?”

“No.” she said immediately as the image of Timothy Schofield floated past her eyes, “No, I’m alright, Hoss. I just need to get some sleep.”

She closed her eyes again and then opened them …”Hoss?”

“Yeah?”

“It moved. The baby moved.” she whispered and rolled onto her back and placed his hand upon her stomach. It was too soon for him to be able to feel those movements yet, this was that moment when the foetus made its presence really felt, that fluttering movement deep in the safety of her womb, that time often referred to as ’the quickening’. Hester felt contentment steal over her and she sighed, moved closer to Hoss and leaned her head upon his shoulder. “I think it’s going to be a boy.” she whispered

Hoss fumbled for her hand and held it gently within his own before kissing her, and whispering that he loved her. He held her hand long after he had fallen asleep while she lay there contentedly imagining a son of their very own.

……………..

Billy McBride got out of bed and tip toed to the window and looked out into the darkness. It was strange being in a place that was so quiet. Apart from the sound of the horses moving in the corral, the creaking of floor boards as the house settled and the clock chiming the hour everything was so quiet.

He’d been used to town life, the bustle and noise that was constant in Virginia City. Even after the big fire when so much of the town was burned down there was constant noise. The sound of the mining machines thumping and clunking away, the music from the saloons, shouts and yelling, horses passing by and, of course, his father.

At the memory of his father he glanced over his shoulder as though the man would appear behind him with his belt ready or his fist …and then he remembered that he was safe here. It was different.

Out side it was dark but he could see the stars. He could see the outline of the outbuildings just slightly darker than anything else and he remembered the visit he and Reuben had made there when Mr.Cartwright had returned home and been told of the fight.

Billy hung his head now and thought it through again, the way Mr. Cartwright had looked disappointed at them both, placed a hand on his shoulder and also on Reubens, and said “To the barn.”

Neither boy responded at once but then Adam had raised his eyebrows and Billy had felt a shiver run down his back. He remembered feeling a tremor of fear and wondering if this so called security he had felt so happy about was now going to be proven a mere dream, and like a dream would disappear into thin air. He thought back to how he wondered why they were being taken to the barn, after all his Pa just hit him wherever and whenever he felt like it. If it was to give them time to think over what they had done wrong then it served a good purpose although he hadn’t realised that then.

Reuben had looked defiant and had blamed Billy immediately, and Billy responded by blaming Reuben. Mr. Cartwright had just said “Quiet!” and very sternly told them of his disappointment in them both, in that they had been fighting, not only was he disappointed but so also was Hoss. Billy had forgotten that mountain of a man and had shivered anew. This, he had thought, was it, they were going to get a real beating, and he prepared himself for it although in his mind he wished he could have told Mr. Cartwright just how disappointed he was in this so-called promise of things being ’different’.

After having told them both how disappointed he was with their behaviour he ’administered discipline’ as he called it. Billy remembered how Reuben had started breathing heavily in order not to cry, and then it had been his turn. Mr Cartwright said that he was sorry to have to do it, but as Billy was equally to blame for the fight, then he had to equally share the discipline, not that Billy minded now, it was pretty straightforward and didn‘t hurt too much, well, not until he sat down at the table for supper later on.

Afterwards Mr. Cartwright had sat down on an upturned barrel and taken hold of them so that they stood real close to him, he had looked at them very severely, then said to Reuben, “Billy won’t be here much longer, Reuben, I would prefer it if you put aside your differences and made friends,” and then he had looked at Billy and after looking at him in a way no one had looked at him before he had said “Billy, we want you to feel free now to enjoy your life, we don’t want you to be living in fear of a beating but to remember you’re a child, and to put the past years out of your mind. Do you think you can do that?”

Billy was confused, even now here in the comfort of this room he was confused. He thought over all that had been said, he winced a little at the memory of Mr. Cartwright saying he was sorry that he had to chastise Billy along with Reuben, thunderation, Pa had never apologised for anything, not even when he had cuffed him so hard that it had made his ears bleed and he wasn’t able to stand up without falling over for two whole days!

After talking Mr. Cartwright had stood up and once again put a hand on their shoulders

“Alright, boys, before you leave this barn I want you to shake hands and promise to be friends.”

Billy moved away from the window and crept back into bed, as he pulled the covers up to his chin and closed his eyes he winced, having forgotten that the sting of ‘the discipline’ was still present. He rolled over onto his stomach and remembered how he and Reuben had shaken hands; even if they didn’t believe that they would be friends, they had made a start to some form of reconciliation.

………….

In his bed Reuben was also recalling the events of the evening and the punishment in the barn. He was confused as well, more confused now than angry. He shifted himself so that his body settled more comfortably in the bed, and remembered the way his Pa had looked at them both, he’d been disappointed in them, not just him, in Billy too. He closed his eyes and started drifting into sleep. Somehow things were beginning to make some sense, he didn’t really understand how that was, but they were … he yawned and thought how the other boy slept just beyond the wall of his bedroom. He sighed and closed his eyes again, he didn’t want to see that look of disappointment on his Pa’s face ever again.

Chapter 59

The footsteps going down the stairs were those of a man trying hard to step lightly, but even so they woke Billy up and after rubbing his eyes he rolled out of the bed and pulled on his clothes and boots. By the time Adam had checked the stove and replenished it with more fuel the boy was standing in the kitchen with a vague smile on his face. “Hm-mm, Billy? Good morning, you’re up early.”

“I know you got chores to do, Mr. Cartwright, so I thought I’d come and give you a hand.”

Adam nodded, tongue in cheek, and carefully placed the coffee pot on the stove, “Well, in that case, you’ll need something to eat and drink before we get started.”

Billy nodded and came closer to watch as Adam cut a thick slice of bread from the loaf, and poured milk into a glass which he handed, not to him, but to Reuben who had appeared quietly behind him. But another glass was soon filled and passed over, along with some bread with a slab of butter on it and cheese. “Billy’s offered to help us with our chores this morning,” Adam said with his back to both boys as he poured out hot coffee into his cup, “It’ll cut down on time.”

Reuben swallowed his pride along with some bread and cheese and looked at Billy “You know how to muck out the stalls?”

“Stalls?”

“In the stables?”

“Ain’t never had a horse, never needed one in town.” Billy replied without any sign of aggression.

“Oh well, I’ll show you how it’s done then.” Reuben replied and Adam smiled to himself as he noted the pride in the boys voice, it rather reminded him of the story of the toad who was so full of pride that he puffed himself up until he burst.

“Well, let’s start,” Adam said after a while, he downed his cup and led the way out.

Billy was a hard worker, but time was not saved as Reuben proved to be a rather exacting ‘boss’ , pointing out this and that which needed to be done again to meet his approval. As Adam rather dryly remarked they may have worked just as long at the job but it was the best the stables had looked in quite a while.

Billy proved more adept at chopping the kindling so there was quite a large amount bundled up for several days usage. Adam piled his arms with logs and led the way back to the house, telling Reuben to leave his kindling by the sitting room fire while Billy could put his by the kitchen door. By this time Olivia was up and preparing breakfast, she thanked all three of them very nicely and while Adam could do nothing more than kiss her and bid them all goodbye as he had to get to work, the other two workers sat down to eat with hearty appetites.

Hoss came to mount up just as Adam’s horse loped into the yard, “Where’s Pa?”

“He ain’t coming this morning.”

“He isn’t?” Adam frowned, “Anything wrong?”

“Nah, he got a letter from an old friend so’s going into town to meet him.”

“Anyone we know?”

Hoss grimaced and shrugged, “Didn’t say, some army officer he knew when he was scouting all that time back.”

“How’s Hester?” Adam thought to ask as he remembered his brother mentioning how sick she had been and Hoss grinned “She’s feeling mighty good just now, seems to have settled down some.”

Joe met them at the junction where the track to his house met with that leading to the Ponderosa, and with a jaunty wave and nod of the head he greeted his brothers and then asked “Where’s Pa?”

Hoss told them what he knew and Joe nodded, “Hope he isn’t anything like that Old Fuss and Fuddle, remember him?”

Adam grinned and glanced slyly at Hoss “Oh yes, I sure do, and those spinster ladies that came a-calling on Hoss, sure took a shine to you, brother, didn’t they?”

Hoss blushed “Shucks, weren’t my fault, jest that my good looks was shining through to ‘em and they couldn’t do anything else but come a-calling.”

“That ain’t what they told me.” Joe laughed.

They rode three abreast as they had often done in the past, their horses loping at a gentle speed and the breeze blowing against their faces. Their routine of work was as it always was, hard work and what called for discipline and strength, but it was work to which they had become accustomed to over the years, and as they believe in leading by example their men were already prepared to work along with them as the spring cattle drive was beginning to be set up.

Billy helped Olivia and Sofia with their chores and when Harry and his men came along to work on the extension, he went off to work along with them. Reuben had left for school thinking over the morning and realising that he was leaving home with a much better feeling than he had the previous day, for some reason, it seemed to be important.

…………

Colonel James Webb stepped down from the stage coach and looked around him at the bustling thoroughfare, at the pedestrians that strolled or not along the sidewalks. He accepted the valise that was lowered down to him and was about to enquire as to where he could hire a buggy when he heard his name being hailed close by him. Upon turning he recognised his friend, Ben Cartwright, striding quickly towards him. “First time I’ve known the stage to be on time.” Ben laughed as he extended his hand “Good to see you again after all this time, James.”

“And you, Ben.” the creases around the other man’s eyes deepened with the smile that crinkled his face up, “This is quite some town you have here. Although I was expecting it to be much bigger.”

“There was a fire here last year.” Ben replied with a frown for it had been a devastation on a scale that had sent the stock market crazy for some days. “But it’s being built up quite quickly, as Mr. DeQuille said in his account of the situation, “What was burned above ground will soon be rebuilt, thankfully everything under ground remained untouched.””

“Ah, yes, all that gold and silver -.”

“Exactly.” Ben took the valise from the Colonel’s hand and smiled “Now, what would you like to do first ? A drink at the saloon to cut the dust or ride onto the Ponderosa?”

“A drink is tempting.” James replied with that selfsame smile on his face, “And there are times when I am prone to giving into temptation.”

“Come along then -.” Ben replied and led the way towards the Bucket of Blood saloon where at that time of the day clientele was down to a minimum, and everything was reasonably spick and span.

Taking their drinks to the table Ben placed them down and pulled out his chair to sit opposite James Webb. They raised their glasses and nodded, took a gulp and set the glasses back down, then Ben leaned back against the chair “So, what brings you here, James? I’m not going to fool myself into thinking it’s just on my account that you’ve come.”

James cleared his throat and leaned on the table in order to get closer to his friend, not that there was anyone there to over hear, the only other occupants drinking at the saloon were scattered at other tables far removed from them.

“I’m on a quest.”

“Interesting.” Ben smiled slowly and raised a dark eyebrow.

“To be honest, Ben, I’ve been searching now for must be years and then, suddenly, like a miracle I just happened to be in the right place at the right time to, hopefully, have an answer to our prayers.”

“Now that sounds even more than interesting.” Ben drank a little more of his beer, “What’s the story?”

“Well, yes, there is a story behind it all …” James’ voice faded away into a sigh and he toyed with his glass for a while before looking up at Ben, “Remember my wife and daughter? I believe you met them both when you were at the fort?”

“Yes, I did. A charming lady, your wife - Frances? And your daughter was quite a beauty. I recall most of the men were in love with her.”

“Yes, they were.” James smiled slowly, his eyes lost the smile and sadness, dull and sorrowful, crept over them like a shadow. “She was very young and Frances tried to prevent her getting involved with the enlisted men. My son was killed, you know -.”

“I didn’t, I’m more than sorry, James.”

“He was killed in an ambush along with a young officer called Sykes. Do you remember him?”

Ben shook his head, in some ways he preferred not to remember those days, the days he had left the Ponderosa after Marie had died. “When did it happen?”

“I recall now, it was some years after you’d left. Cathleen - she was engaged to young Sykes by then. Frances was all of a dither preparing for the wedding and getting all excited, and then suddenly it was black crepe and mourning for everyone concerned. We’d lost our son, and Cathleen lost not only a brother but her future husband.”

They drifted into silence again, the murmur of the other men’s voices, a fly buzzing close by and the clink of glasses as Charley dried them and set them down on the counter were the only sounds until James spoke again. “Cathleen became very depressed, we sent her back to her grandparents, thinking that city life would cheer her up. She kept in contact with us, her letters came regularly and then suddenly - they stopped.” he gulped down some beer and shrugged “Sorry to be making a long thing of it all …”

“No, no, don’t feel that way, James, this matters to you and I’m more than interested in hearing it.”

“We returned home and began looking for her, took a while but finally we found out that she began to see a lot of a man called McBride - you know him?” his eyes widened when Ben’s head had jerked with surprise at the mention of the name “He’s here? Thank God, then the journey isn’t in vain.”

“Go on…there may be more than .. I mean it could all be co-incidence, the McBride we know is a widower, with a young son.”

James Webb lowered his head and heaved a deep gulp of a sigh “Let me tell you what happened to Cathleen. She married this McBride, a clerk in a lawyer’s office. She never mentioned him in her letters at all, not at all. From an account I was given by a close friend of hers to whom she confided, it seemed that McBride got into trouble with the company, and - and the long and short of it is that they eloped. This friend found out later that the trouble he’d got into was a small matter of embezzlement, quite a large sum of money. He was never found and the search eventually came to an end.”

Ben nodded, he said nothing but inwardly he admitted that he wasn’t surprised, it fitted in so well to the character he knew. He waited for James to continue “Frances grew ill with worry for her daughter, as you can imagine. I was retired now from active duty, but I used what contacts I had to find some trace of them. Eventually some years ago I learned that she had had a son and died in child birth. I travelled to where that had happened, located her grave, a shabby affair with no headstone … well, she has one now, God bless her.”

Charley came over to the table “Another drink, sir, Ben?”

“Yes, one more thanks.”

“It took me a long time to learn that they had travelled to Nevada territory. Then I happened to meet an old friend of mine while I was in San Francisco, he asked me if I was still looking for Cathleen and told me about a McBride that he knew lived here with a boy who would be about ten years old. I contacted the sheriff here, a Roy Coffee?” he accepted Ben’s nod “So I wrote to you immediately, knowing that you would be kind to an old friend and put me up, perhaps give me some information as to where I could find my grandson.”

Ben pushed the glass of beer Charley placed on the table towards Webb, “I can do better than that, James. I can take you right to him, so drink up … this is the end of your journey, hopefully a new one about to begin.”

As he smiled over at Colonel Webb the door to the saloon opened and Derwent Jessop stood framed in the sunlight for a moment before entering and seeing Ben his face relaxed into a smile and he hurried over to the table, asking Charley for a beer as he passed the counter.

“I hope I’m not intruding -.” he removed his hat as he spoke and smiled with that ease common between friends no matter what age, and Ben replied that he certainly was not while at the same time he introduced the Colonel to him.

“Sit down, Derwent, we were about to leave when we’ve finished but have time to share with you. How is everything at the BarJ?”

“Very well. The work on diverting the stream is finished now and it works, Mr. Cartwright, it works wonderfully well. Of course, Pa’s even more embarrassed than ever about getting carried away with Brett’s schemes, but he’s as pleased as a dog with two tails about it all.” he groped in his pocket and pulled out some money to pay for the drink which Charley had put on the table.

“Adam will be pleased to hear that, Derwent. Is everything going well for the cattle drive this year?”

“Pretty well,” Derwent said less enthusiastically, “I’m afraid out stock isn’t up to Ponderosa standard but I think we can hold our own when we get to market. Luke Dent and his men are working along with us with cattle of his own… seeing how we’re close neighbours and our combined numbers amount to the minimum we can send to be acceptable in Tucson.”

Ben nodded “How is Luke getting along?”

“Oh well enough, Mr. Cartwright, better I think that he expected, he tends to be more a pessimist than me.”

Ben chuckled and then rose to his feet, “Well, if you’ll excuse us, young man, we have to be going, give my regards to your father, and young Luke as well when you see him next.”

They shook hands and left the saloon and Derwent Jessop as they stepped out into the sunlit street, “I’ve the buggy over there,” Ben indicated with a sweep of the hand, and carrying his old friends valise he led the way across to where the buggy awaited them.

Chapter 60

Olivia finished putting flowers in the vase and arranging them in the way that she wanted and then carried them into the sitting room. She paused at the sound of a voice and turned to see Billy sitting on a chair with a book in his lap with Sofia sitting beside him. He was reading aloud to the little girl, a rather halting reading to be sure, and when a word was too difficult he just made another word up to ‘fit’. None of this worried Sofia who listened attentively.

Olivia smiled and placed the vase down before turning to them “I thought we would go and visit Uncle Luke and Aunt Marcy today, Sofia, so hurry up and change your shoes. Billy, do you want to stay here and help Harry or come along with us?”

Billy was more than pleased to be asked along and was grateful indeed, putting away the book back onto the shelf and promising to finish the story another day. “Can I really come with you, Missus?”

“Of course, Billy, I wouldn’t have asked if I hadn’t meant it. Hurry now Sofia, I want to be there and back before Reuben gets home from school.”

The sun was shining as brightly here as in town, making the yard shimmer white and Olivia fastened her sun bonnet by its ribbon while she looked up at the sky with a slight frown, “It’s very hot today.” she said to no one in particular and hurried to where the buggy awaited them.

Sounds of industry seemed to fill the air as Harry and his crew worked hard on the bathroom, and she glanced over at it as she passed. The new extension blended in well with the house, for the wooden walls of the building hadn’t weathered enough for there to be a noticeable difference. A window was cut out of the wall and would overlook the garden area. It all looked rather splendid she thought as she set the horses onto a good trot out of the yard.

Marcy was home and pleased to see them, although surprised at seeing Billy whom she didn’t know, but she welcome him to her home and he was soon nibbling cookies and drinking milk alongside Sofia seated by the window.

“How’s Luke?” Olivia asked as she put down the sun hat and settled herself at the table.

“He’s well, and much happier. The money he had paid for Katya’s hotel bill -” she pulled a little grimace and then laughed “Well, I thought he was going to be so angry about that after you left here. But he just laughed and said it was wonderful how the Lord provides because now he had the money he needed to pay off the men for the cattle drive. He’s going with Derwent Jessop, who’s our neighbour.”

“Yes, of course they are, and so everything is alright?”

“If we sell our beef at the market then everything will be wonderfully alright.” she poured out tea and smiled at her friend, “Luke is a lot happier now, Olivia. We go to Carson City which is closer for us, and he seems more familiar with things there as well.”

“Yes, he would feel that way, father would only go to Carson City when we were here.”

“It means there is less chance of meeting up with you though.” she reached out and squeezed Olivia’s fingers within her hand, “I miss you.”

“I’ll make sure I come over to see you more often, Marcy, really I will.”

“But now you must tell me about this little boy. Who is he? Why have you brought him here?”

Marcy laughed when she heard about the fight between Billy and Reuben and how things had turned out, and she thought it romantic that Billy had a grandfather on his way to find him and take him home. As the two women got up, for time passed away far more quickly than either had imagined, she put a hand on her friends arm “Be careful, Olivia, the boy still has a father, and although the man treated him cruelly, he may still love him very much, and the boy may well care enough to want to stay with him.”

Olivia nodded, “I had thought of that, Marcy, but it will be up to his grandfather to sort it out with Billy’s father.”

They bade farewell and waved to one another as Olivia sent the horses trotting slowly from the Double D’s yard. As the distance between them grew she thought more about what Marcy had said and looked thoughtfully at the boy seated next to Sofia, “Billy, do you miss your father?”

“My Pa?” Billy looked surprised, and then shook his head “No. Should I?”

“Well, he is your father -.” Olivia said rather lamely.

“I dunno, Missus. When I see how you and Mr Cartwright are with Reuben and Sofia, I don’t know.” he shook his head and his childish face screwed up in concentration, “He said I was wicked that’s why he beat me so often but Mr. Cartwright and you don’t treat me like that, and I - I thought perhaps - well- perhaps my Pa just plain hates me.”

“But -” she stopped then and remembered the conversation with him previously, about how his father kept telling the boy that he had killed his mother, she sighed and shook her head, “I don’t think he meant that you were wicked, Billy. I think he just misses your mother very much and blames himself for her death, but punishes you for it because it is easier to do that -.” she looked at his anxious puzzled face and knew that what she said had made no sense to him, and when she thought about it, it didn’t really make that much sense to her either.

…………………..

Hester was more than pleased to welcome Colonel Webb to the house and liked him immediately. She was feeling much better now and had that glow about her that Ben could remember when she was carrying Hannah, it made him feel very tender towards her, his first daughter in law. He was also proud to show off his first grandchild, Hannah, who had come running up to him with a wide smile and bright eyes and as he swooped her up he wondered how Webb would feel seeing his own grandson for the first time.

James Webb, although not wearing a uniform as he was retired, had such a military bearing about him that there was no doubting the profession he had followed in life. He accepted Hester’s invitation to sit and have coffee and looked around him at the house with interest before asking Ben if Billy were living here with them.

“No, he’s at Adam’s house. I should have made that clearer before coming here, but they will all be here for the weekly round-up,” he grinned, “And Hop Sing thrives on making the best of it.”

“The weekly round-up?” James frowned and looked at Hester who explained that was what Ben called the weekly family gathering, and as it was at the Ponderosa’s main house this week it was a fine time for him to meet his grandson.

James sighed and nodded. Wistfully he accepted the coffee and wondered if it would have been better if a more private meeting could have been arranged, after all, his grandson may well take an immediate dislike to him, or - sadly - he may find the boy not at all to his liking.

Ben stopped fussing over Hannah and put her down so that she could go and play; he sat down and looked over at James, noticed the stern features and smiled “Would you rather have your coffee and then ride over and see the boy before supper?”

A smile answered him, more eloquent than words.

………….

Adam returned home earlier than usual. He had things to arrange and matters to deal with that weighed heavily on his mind. With a rather distracted air he dismounted and then strolled over to where Harry was standing by the wall of the extension with a thoughtful expression on his face “Anything wrong, Harry?”

His employer’s voice startled the other man, he had been so engrossed in studying the plans in his hands that he hadn’t even noticed Adam arrive “No, nothing wrong, Adam. I was just wondering though -.”

“What about?” Adam leaned forward to look again at the plans he had drawn up all that time ago, and he smiled at the memory of Olivia’s amusement at the thought of having a private bathroom of their own.

“Well, you got a window hereabouts - which we’ve cut out - but we were thinking that perhaps another window here -” he pointed with the tip of his pencil “would give you and Mrs Cartwright a grand view to look out on.”

Adam laughed and shook his head “Oh yes, sure, and a grand view we would make for anyone riding into the yard if we happened to be in the bath .. Er … I mean should one or other of us be in the bath.”

Harry thought for a moment and then laughed as well, nudged Adam with his elbow and went off chuckling back to work.

Adam was still smiling as he entered the house and removed his hat, pulled his gloves from out of his pockets and then unbuckled his gun belt. He looked up and saw Billy standing there watching him, “Had a good day, Billy?”

“Yes sir.”

“Did you help Harry out again?” he put a hand on the boys shoulder, an easy casual gesture that meant the world for the boy who had never known his father to touch him except with a blow of the fist.

“No, sir, we went for a ride to see a friend of the Missus.”

Adam nodded and walked with him into the main room “Where’s Sofia?”

“She’s out in the garden.”

It went without saying that Olivia was there as well, and he smiled and walked into the kitchen where he checked the stove and prepared a pot of coffee “Hungry?”

“No, sir.”

Adam looked at him thoughtfully, and then nodded before getting some cups out, all too conscious that the boy was watching him so that in the end he asked Billy if everything was alright. Billy chewed his lips for a moment and came further into the room from where he had been hovering at the doorway, “I was wondering if I was going to stay here.”

“Stay here?” Adam looked at him thoughtfully and leaned against the sink, folded his arms across his chest and cleared his throat “Would you like to?”

“Yes.” Billy looked down at the floor for a moment “Well, I guess I would. I ain’t never known anything like it before, the only place I never got hit or thumped was at school.”

“Where you did the thumping and hitting instead?”

“I don’t know why I did that,” Billy said with a strange wondering in his words, “I just felt so tight inside that I needed to - just hit out I guess.” he looked tearfully up at the man who was looking at him with dark brown eyes and a sad expression on his face “I guess that was bad wasn’t it?”

“Yes, it was bad.” Adam replied with a nod of the head, “It didn’t make you feel any better, did it?”

Billy said nothing, in some ways it had, it had made him feel good to have the power to hurt but at the same time it repulsed him, and in his own child like way he had felt that it was wrong, just as wrong as the times his father hurt him.

“Mr. Cartwright, why was it alright for my Pa to hit me all the time? He didn’t never love me, did he?”

Adam pursed his lips and gave the slightest of shrugs “He’s the only one can answer that, Billy.”

“Will I have to go back and live there with him?”

“Not if I can help it -” Adam put his hand on the boys shoulder again “You know your grandfather is on his way here, don’t you? That’s your own mother’s father, right?”

“My Pa says he’s a wicked old man.”

“Well, when he comes you’ll have to judge for yourself, won’t you?”

“What do you mean?” Billy’s voice faltered as Adam removed his hand and turned to check on the coffee.

“When you meet him, you’ll know for yourself, something inside you will know.”

“Like a voice?”

Adam glanced at him and smiled “Perhaps.”

“Daddy..” Sofia’s voice reached them before she entered the room and hurried towards him for a hug, “Can I have a kitten, can I?”

“A kitten?” he accepted her kiss and then looked at Olivia, took her hand in his and smiled “Did you have a good day?”

“Yes, we saw Marcy.” she moved towards him and the pressure of his hand upon hers told her more than words, so that she turned to the children “Hurry now and get cleaned up, Reuben will be home soon and then we’ll be going to Gran’pa’s.”

Sofia didn’t need further telling but scampered happily away while Billy lingered then casting a last look at Adam he walked slowly into the other room. Once alone Olivia put her arms around him and after kissing him tenderly, she asked him why he was home so early.

“Well, the work was finished and I have other things to do now.” he turned from her, poured out coffee and set the two cups down on the table.

This room was like the heart of the house, the big kitchen, the long table, the smells of food and flowers and Olivia … he reached out and took her hand “The cattle trail starts next Monday.”

“Yes.” she smiled and interlaced her fingers with his own, “I know.”

“Pa wants me to be trail boss.”

“Trail boss?” her smile slipped a little and then she gave a wistful sigh “I see. That means you’ll be away from here for a while?”

“At least six weeks - maybe two months.”

“Who will be your ramrod?”

“Hoss.”

“Not Joe?”

He smiled slowly “No, Pa thought that with a new baby Joe would prefer to be home with Mary Ann. That’s understandable, isn’t it?”

“Yes, of course.” she picked up her cup while still holding his hand in hers, “Monday? That’s only five days away.”

“Yes. I know.”

He picked up his cup, holding her hand tightly, her fingers still intertwined with his own, just like their lives, he thought, just like their lives.

Chapter 61

Reuben ran indoors and into the kitchen “Pa. Ma. Pa. Ma.”

Olivia and Adam jerked apart as though they had been caught by some Mother Superior from a Convent in some serious immoral action instead of their excited son who came helter skelter into the kitchen “Miss Brandon said I was good and I had a big gold star on my writing …look.” he opened his books and pulled out a rather shabby finger marked piece of paper which was the essay he had written and that had been read out to the class that morning “Look, Pa? Ain’t that good? Am I good, Pa?”

Adam grinned and wrapped his arm around the boys waist and hugged him “Very good, well done, son.”

“Ma?” he now looked appealingly at her and she leaned forward to kiss his brow and told him it was wonderful, she was so proud of him. His world was now perfectly in order, he looked at the gold star Lydia Brandon had drawn on the bottom of the page “I was the only one got a gold star.”

“She must have liked your essay.” Adam picked it up and began to read it, and smiled as he did so, a little boys perspective of a wild horse called Saturn and how one day he would ride it and win the Founders Day Race. He finished reading it the same time he finished drinking his coffee and once again he nodded “Well done, Reuben, if your Uncle Joe had paid as much attention to his school work as you are, he would have gone to college as well.”

“As well as you did, Pa?”

“Yep.”

“Will I go to college some day?”

“If you work hard enough.” Adam stood up and as he did so wrapped an arm around Reubens waist and lifted him bodily off the floor “Now you have to go and clean up before we go to Gran’pa’s.”

Reuben laughed as Adam twirled him up and around and then set him down on the floor with the admonition to ‘Hurry up now.”

Olivia sighed as she collected the two empty cups “They’re going to miss you when you go away.”

“It’s not for so long …except that …” he pulled her towards him and looked into her eyes “Every day will seem like a week away from you, sweetheart.”

“Don’t talk about it anymore,” she whispered, “Or I’ll start crying.” and she turned away and began to fuss around the sink.

He looked at her for a moment, long and hard and hungry, the look of a man who loves perhaps, if possible, too much. He released a long sigh and was about to speak when his father’s voice haled him from the doorway “I did knock …”

“Come on in, Pa.” Adam smiled and then paused at the sight of the tall lean figure standing behind his father, his dark eyes momentarily flicked back to his father who nodded and introduced James Webb to them both.

“I’m Billy’s grandfather,” James said quietly as he shook Adam’s hand and inclined his head gallantly to Olivia. “Is he here?”

“Yes, of course. He’s expecting you but -”

“But?”

“Well, not quite so soon.” Adam admitted honestly as he led them into the main room.

Billy was sitting in the big chair with the story book on his lap and reading in an undertone, as they looked Sofia came running down the stairs, she was wearing her yellow dress, the one she had worn the fateful day of the fete and in her light sing song of a voice she said “Billy, Billy, look at me … do I look pwitty?”

He raised his head and stared at her, nodded and solemnly said “You look like the princess in this book.”

“Do I?” she ran to him and leaned forward “What pwincess?”

Billy pointed to a picture and was about to say something when Adam stepped further into the room, “Billy, are you ready, cleaned up and everything?”

“Yes, sir.” the boy jumped down from the chair and closed the book, he stood beside Sofia and turned to wards the adults. He knew Ben, he had seen him once or twice and recognised him as Reuben and Sofia’s grandfather, and he liked the dark eyes that were now looking at him from a face that was gentled with a kindly expression and smile on the wide mouth.

The other man he didn’t know, nor did Sofia as she stared up at him and Ben said in his deep voice “Billy, Sofia, this is a friend of mine, Mr James Webb.” he paused and turned as Reuben called to him, “Well, Reuben, how are you, my boy?”

It seemed an instinctive thing not to mention the relationship of James with the boy. As though each one there knew a little time would be needed, like a drawing in of breath before a speech, or just something before the shock or surprise announcement would be made and perhaps shatter illusions before any illusion had really been formed.

James looked at the boy keenly, perhaps too much so for Billy felt intimidated by the way he was stared at and turned away to pick up the book “Can I take the book with me?”

“No. Put it in the bookcase, please.” Olivia replied and smiled before looking around her and wondering what to say next as it seemed everyone was shy about speaking.

“Are you a soldier?” Reuben asked James “You look like a soldier.”

“Do I?” James replied with a hint of a chuckle, “Well, I was a soldier once. That’s how I met your grandfather, when he came to scout for the Army.”

“Was that a long time ago?” the little interrogator demanded coming to look more intently at James, “Did you have a sword? Were you in the cavalry and ride a horse?”

“Well, I left the army a few years ago now. Yes, I was in the cavalry.”

“That means you did ride a horse. What was it’s name?”

“Let me see - I actually had several horses while I was in the army, my favourite horse was called Captain.”

Reuben opened his mouth but was prevented from speaking by Adam who clamped his hand over his mouth and laughingly said “Enough now.”

He indicated that they be seated and Olivia asked if they would like coffee or tea but it was refused as they had just had some, James stretched out long legs and looked at Reuben “How did you know I had been in the army?”

“I thought you stood like a soldier, all stiff and not bendy like cowboys.”

This elicited a chuckle from Ben and even Adam smiled before turning to Billy, “Billy, come here a moment and tell Mr. Webb about yourself.”

But Billy didn’t want to tell anyone about anything, he bowed his head and shook it, and looked over at Olivia who smiled reassuringly at him before saying in her quiet voice “Billy is staying with us just a while.”

“Oh, I see.” James nodded and leaned forward with his steel grey blue eyes looking at the boy with that strangely intense gaze that Billy had found so intimidating, this time however he decided to stare back which James rather liked for he smiled and the eyes gentled as they became warmer. “Would you like to be in the army, Billy?”

Billy immediately shook his head “No, I’m going to college like Reuben, and I’m going to write stories.”

Reuben nodded “And I’m going to college and I’m going to be -” he paused and looked at Adam “What can I be, Pa?”

“You can be whatever you choose to be, son, same as Billy …”

Billy smiled and relaxed more, he stepped forward, closer to James “I’m going to be a writer, I like words, I like writing and I like reading.”

“Do you have many books at home?” James asked and the boy opened his mouth and closed it again then nodded saying that he had lots of books at home, lots and lots.

“No you don’t,” Reuben said immediately, “You don’t have no books in your house, your Pa’s too mean to let you have books, you said so to Miss Brandon.”

Billy blushed and felt humiliated, Olivia told Reuben to apologise immediately and when the boy pouted in protest, after all, as he said later, it was the truth and Billy had lied, she said “Reuben…”

“Well, I ain’t never been in your house, so I guess I may not have been hearing right.” he said with a shrug of the shoulders.

Billy said nothing but he felt awkward and looked at Adam “But there’s lots of books in this house, isn’t there?”

Ben stood up and put his hands on Billy’s shoulders “Well, young man, enough said - I think we had best get back to the Ponderosa or we’ll have Hop Sing doing a war dance on the back porch if that sweet pork roast is ruined because we’re late.”

……………

James watched Billy throughout the evening, trying not to be too obvious so that the boy wouldn’t become too aware of his scrutiny. He noticed how clumsy the boy was with the cutlery, his table manners were lacking being on a par with Hannahs who was still an infant. He saw the wary way Billy moved in order not to spill anything, or knock anything over, that extra care that others would not bother about as they stretched out to pick up or put down whatever they wished. There was a timidity in the child that was a strange contrast to the bragging brawling bully of a boy a few weeks earlier had James but known him then.

After the meal Billy was more relaxed as he joined in the games and played with the other children, Mary Ann went up stairs to feed Daniel while Hester and Olivia strolled out, arm in arm, to the garden and enjoyed the delights of new rose buds forming in Marie’s rose bower.

Ben tactfully mentioned to his sons that there were things to discuss about the coming cattle drive and excused them from James company for a few moments thus leaving the other man alone with the children. It gave James the opportunity to observe the boy alone and as Billy joined in the with laughter and pleasure of innocent play he watched to see glimpses of that someone special to his heart, to try and notice some little movement or feature that revealed Catherine to him.

Gradually the group began to disperse as Mary Ann and Joe bade their farewells and took the infant away, Hester took her daughter to bed after she had given everyone a kiss, even James and with a baby sweet laugh had bestowed a wet kiss on Billy’s cheek which made him blush and wipe it away very quickly on his shirt sleeve.

Adam indicated it was now time for them to leave and ushered them all together, but James Webb asked him if he could speak to him in private before they left with such earnestness that Adam had no choice but to acquiesce.

They strolled outside where the Colonel suddenly seemed unable or unwilling to talk for the silence between them was becoming rather embarrassing by the time they reached the stone bench near the rose garden. Adam indicated that they could sit down and talk here “You want to talk about Billy?”

“Yes. I noticed - well - at the table he was unsure of himself, and there were other things that made me think that the boy has not had the kind of upbringing that I would have liked my grandson to have had.”

“My Pa didn’t tell you much about him then?”

“No, not really. He listened to what I had to say though, very patiently, and that was really all.”

Adam smiled “I guess he wanted you to judge the boy for yourself rather than prejudice you against him.”

“Is there a reason why I would be prejudiced against him?”

Adam drew in his breath and then shook his head, “My mistake, I used the wrong word. Billy has been with us a few days and I can assure you that he’s intelligent, hard working, willing to learn. He’s had a hard life, Colonel, more knocks and beatings than a child his age should have to tell about, although I doubt if he will mention it to you, his body certainly will as he’s a mass of bruises.”

“McBride? Is he alive?”

“Yes.”

“Then why is the boy with you?”

Briefly Adam explained about the ’accident’ at the fete and how McBride chose to wipe his hands off of the boy, refuting any further responsibility for him. “You have to understand that Billy has lived in an atmosphere of fear all his life, to such an extent that if he were not beaten during the day he would wonder what was wrong. His father has inculcated in him the fact that he killed his mother at his birth and was wicked and the beatings were supposed to make him less wicked. Of course, it has just left the boy totally confused and - well - hungry for love.” he looked at James thoughtfully before turning to look back at the Ponderosa where the lights shone from the windows, “Billy knows his grandfather is coming for him, he’s not sure what to expect because he’s been told by McBride that he’s wicked as well.”

“So he’s expecting me?”

“Yes.”

James said nothing again but stared down at the ground before standing up “I’d like to get to know Billy a little more before I tell him who I am … that wouldn’t be too inconvenient for you, would it?”

Adam assured him that it would not, and together they strolled back to the house where Adam collected his family and Billy and returned home. Hoss took the opportunity to take his wife by the hand and go for an evening stroll for the night air was balmy and soothing, the stars bright and luminous and the smell of the evening flowers enticingly lovely.

Whether or not it was also an attempt at being tactful in order to allow the older men to talk was beside the point for Hester was only too happy to spend the time with her husband, to sit on the bench by the rose arbour and put her head on his shoulder and listen as he whispered to her about the things she loved to hear.

Together and alone the two men sat in the chairs opposite to each other, and while James appeared deep in thought it was Ben who started the conversation “Well, what did you think of the boy?” he asked warily.

James gave a wistful smile and stared into the fire “He’s a shy lad.” he said quietly, “Just like Catherine. She was always very shy.”

“Was there - anything else?” Ben raised his eyebrows and looked as earnestly at his friend as James had been looking at Billy throughout the evening and his old friend smiled again and said, “Yes, probably too much.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means that I could see Catherine so clearly in him… her eyes, the shape of her head, even the shape of his mouth. Of course there are some things that are different ,some things that are solely his, but - but there’s no doubt about it being her son. William Webb has a good ring to it, doesn’t it?”

Ben smiled slowly and nodded, he groped for his pipe and tobacco and leaned against the back of his chair. He could only hope that young Billy would feel as happy about the coming changes in his life as James appeared to be. James stood up now and with his hands clasped behind his back he looked at the books on the shelves and then sighed “Adam told me about McBride, and the life the boy has had.”

“Not much of a one unfortunately. But,” Ben tossed the match into the log box “the boy does possess a thirst for knowledge and has attended school whether McBride wished it or not.”

James smiled slowly and nodded “He has spirit. I like that…”

Chapter 62

The morning sun bore down upon the city and Dr. Timothy Schofield mopped his brow and glared up at the sky with loathing. He was built for less heat and realised that such high temperatures this early in May indicated worse to come. He placed his medical bag down upon his desk and looked thoughtfully at Dr. Chang

“Doesn’t this heat bother you, Doctor?”

Chang shook his head and smiled as he continued to read through some notes, he hadn’t turned to look at Schofield upon the other man’s entry, he didn’t find the prospect of a sweating red faced plump and pink Dr. Schofield very appealing so early in the morning.

“Well, I don’t like it.” Schofield walked to the window and stared out at the sight of the people walking by, and frowned when he recognised Mrs Hester Cartwright getting down from a buggy and turning to help her little girl down “That Hester Cartwright - do you know her?”

“As a patient or a friend, Doctor?”

“Either - and do you have to answer a question with a question, Dr Chang?”

Now James did turn and with his customary sense of honour gave the older man a slight bow “I apologise. I know Mrs Cartwright as both patient and friend.”

Schofield scowled and shook his head “She’s very strong willed.”

“She’s married into a very strong willed family, Honourable Doctor.”

He turned then with a slightly enigmatic smile and resumed his perusal of his notes while listening to the sound of his associate preparing for his days work. He bowed his head, and sighed, Dr Schofield was noisy to an extreme. Everything he did was noisy, even his breathing, and Jimmy Chang correctly diagnosed that the man had adenoid and sinus problems.

“This heat - so early in the year - do you realise the health risks we could be facing this summer?”

Jimmy frowned and turned to him, “I have.”

“And Dr. Martin, does he realise that we could have serious problems if this town council doesn’t organise itself and get the rest of the burned out properties removed and new housing built.”

Paul Martin closed the door behind him “It all takes time, Dr. Schofield, and money.” he nodded to Jimmy Chang “Good morning, Dr. Chang. How is Su Ling and Lee?”

“Both well. Thank you, honourable Dr. Martin.”

An audible sigh from Schofields desk and both men turned to observe the fat little man as he buried his head between his hands and stared at the papers on his desk, then, without a word they looked at one another and with one accord rolled their eyes to heaven. What had they done to deserve a man such as he to enter into their haven of medical expertise.

…………

Roy Coffee watched as Hester Cartwright with her little daughter strolled to the Emporium. He was curious as to who the tall elderly gentleman was who had come into town with her. Narrowing his eyes he took note of him .. Straight back, lean figure, iron grey hair neatly barbered, sharp features and tall, possibly 6 ft give or take an inch. He looked over at Clem who was sitting in the old wicker chair by the door “Seen him before, Clem?”

“Nah, never.”

The stranger had parted from Hester at the store and walked to the Telegraph Depot where he paused a moment before entering. Clem wasn’t surprised when he saw Roy strolling casually in that direction himself and with a smile recommenced whittling.

Tom looked up and smiled “Can I help you, sir?”

“I want to send a cable…thank you.” James Webb took the slip of paper and the pencil and stepped to one side in order to write down the message while Tom served another customer, by the time she had left the building and Roy had entered the message had been jotted down. “Will you send it right away? My wife will be impatient to be hearing from me.”

“Certainly, sir.” Tom smiled and took the message, tried not to look curious at its content and began to tap it out, then he looked up “Anything else I can do for you?”

“Send this letter, and also Ben Cartwright asked me to collect any mail for the Ponderosa.”

“Ah yes, right.” Tom looked at him thoughtfully and was about to speak when Roy stepped forward “Ah, Sheriff Coffee, anything I can do for you?”

“I’ll take the mail for the Ponderosa, Tom.” Roy held out his hand and took the letters handed to him, “Not that we don’t trust you, Mister, just that it ain’t always wise to hand over mail to folk we don’t know.”

James smiled and after putting some money on the counter to pay for the cable, he put out a hand “I’m James Webb, I’m pleased to meet you, sheriff.”

“Name sounds familiar.”

James inclined his head, glanced at Tom who was standing as close to the pair of them as he could, and then raised his eyebrows, Roy nodded, “Let’s go talk in my office.”

Whether or not James was offended at Roy’s action in taking the mail was immaterial to Roy, he was doing what his duty demanded give or take offence. He led the way to his office and stood aside for James to step into the musty interior while ordering Clem to make coffee. “Now, I recollect - you sent me some cables recently, ain’t that right?”

“I did, sheriff.”

“Sit down, take the weight off -” Roy placed his hat on the relevant hook and sat down himself, he looked at the other man “You signed yourself Colonel Webb?”

“I did, I know it’s an affectation after all I’ve been retired from military service for some years now, but old habits die hard.”

“I see.” Roy nodded and screwed up his eyes before scratching his head, he couldn’t see that he would ever be introducing himself as Sheriff Roy Coffee in future years after his retirement. So far as he was concerned it was mere showing off, “You cabled about a boy living here.”

“That’s right.” James scratched his nose thoughtfully, “I’ve known Ben Cartwright for some years now and my search for my grandson had brought me to this territory so I wrote and asked him if I could pay a visit. That was before I knew - well - was told about McBride being here. Ben was a scout for my outfit years back and I’ve not seen him in a long time.”

“I don’t rightly believe in co-incidences, Mr. Webb, but seems to me you done had a whole string of ‘em jest lately.”

“Yes.” Webb nodded and then thanked Clem for the coffee which was placed on the desk near his hand, “Yes, perhaps to make up for all the miserable dead ends I’ve chased over the years. I was talking to an old friend in Placerville about Ben, which led to him asking me why I was there, so I told him that I was looking for my grandson, and McBride. He was the one told me it was possible that he could be here … that was when I cabled you, sheriff.”

“But you weren’t sure then that you was his grandfather.”

“No. Hope springs eternal though, and I was grateful to you in the help you gave. I thanked God, I can tell you, that I already had arranged to come here, and to find that my search was over, or could be over …”

“And have you seen the boy?”

“Yes, another co-incidence, after all Ben didn’t know I was Billy’s grandfather, and when I wrote to him I had no idea that I would be finding my - the boy - at the Ponderosa.”

“I did tell ‘em that the boys grandfather was on his way, guess I should have kept my mouth shut but -” Roy sighed and picked up a pencil “The boys had a hard life, his father isn’t much of a man, and personally I’d like to be able to lock him up in a cell and throw away the key. But it ain’t illegal to give your kid a good hiding if he needs it.”

James’ lips firmed into a tight line that indicated to Roy that perhaps it was time for the law to change, he cleared his throat, “What do you know about this McBride apart from the obvious.”

James nodded, looked at Roy “I can tell you something about him that will enable you to lock him in a cell, sheriff, for as long as you like.”

Roy put the pencil down and leaned back into his chair “Really? Perhaps you could tell me a bit more about them facts then, Mr. Webb.”

……………….

The sheriff and his companion stood by the door of the McBride property and looked around them and then at one another with expressions of disgust and revulsion. The smell of rotting food and damp rotting wood was strong enough to make Webb pull out a handkerchief and hold it to his nose. “I’ve been in a lot of places that were worse than this, but even so -”

“McBride - you in there - open up, this is sheriff Coffee?”

Some flies buzzed as they cavorted in the corners of the broken windows, and after looking briefly at Webb he put his hand to the door and pushed it open. The debris inside the house was equal to that outside and both men shook their heads as the same thought entered their minds, that not even animals would wish to live in such squalor.

There was no sign of McBride and they stepped back into the sunlight with some relief as the warm sunshine briefly touched their faces. “You looking for McBride?”

“Ain’t that obvious?” Roy replied as the woman stood watching them, her hand on her hip and her yellow hair in greasy tangled curls around her heavily made up face, she nodded “Yeah, it’s obvious. You won’t find him here, he’s gone looking for his kid.”

“Is that so? And does he know where to look?” Roy straightened his back and the sun shone on his badge as he turned towards it and the woman, she nodded “Sure, everyone does.” she laughed “He’s living cosy at the Cartwrights.”

Roy nodded and looked at Webb “That’s not the best of news, is it?” he signed and turned to walk quickly back to his office “We’ll need to get there fast.” he picked up the mail and then looked at Webb, “You came in with Mrs. Cartwright? When is she expected to go back?”

“She wasn’t going to be long. She’s probably -” he glanced at the clock “probably waiting for me at the buggy.”

“Then you’d best get there, I’ll catch you up.”

……………

Mary Ann and Olivia stood side by side watching as Billy fed grass to the big horse which nibbled and slobbered over his fingers, Sofia stood by the boys side, not getting too close as she had memories of being chased by the animal and always anticipated a repeat every time she came near the corral.

“You have to admit, he’s a lovely horse.” Olivia said and then looked down at Daniel who was nestled in her arms “Oh Mary Ann, isn’t he so adorable?”

“Are you talking about the horse now?” Mary Ann laughed and peered down into the face of her son, “He’s just like Joe, look at that smile, isn’t that just so much like his Pa?”

“And he has hazel eyes like Joe,” Olivia stroked back the dark hair from the infants brow “I thought for sure they would be blue.”

“No, they are that lovely green hazel like Joe’s. I suppose his mother had hazel eyes …”

Olivia said nothing but sighed and raised her eyes to watch the two children “Billy’s grandfather seems a pleasant enough man, didn’t you think so?”

“Yes, quite a gentleman. He made me laugh talking about Ben, sometimes it’s hard to think of Ben as a young man.”

“Do you think so?” Olivia looked at her in surprise, “Why, I find it hard to believe that he’s an old one, there’s that spark of ‘forever young’ in Pa that I find quite romantic.”

They laughed together and strolled towards the corral whereupon Billy turned and after wiping his hands down the seat of his pants ran towards them “Can I ride him?”

“No, Billy, he isn’t safe for children to ride yet.” Mary Ann replied, and held out her hand “Let’s go in out of the heat and have some lemonade.”

“He sure is a swell horse. Reuben wrote a story about him, didn’t he, Missus?”

Olivia nodded and with a smile followed Mary Ann indoors, in her arms the baby stirred restlessly and a little fist wavered in the air “I think you son is ready for something to eat as well, Mary Ann.”

The little mouth was a down turned quiver and then opened wide into an ear splitting yell, so that Olivia hastily handed him over to a laughing young mother who held him close and whispered in his ear while Bride O’Flanagan produced lemonade and cake upon the table for the children.

McBride sat on his horse and looked around him. He had stolen - or as he would put it - borrowed the horse from the livery, knowing that its owner wouldn’t be claiming it for a few more days as he had taken the train to Carson City on business. It was always useful to know things like that, he had found, it got him places no one realised he could reach.

But he was confused as he sat in the saddle and looked up and down the track, to his left was the turning to Adam Cartwright’s place and the most likely location for Billy to be but at the same time there was every possibility that he was in the big house, the Ponderosa itself. He turned the horse towards the newer property and was halfway down when one of Harry’s team saw him, nudged Harry and told him it looked like trouble as McBride had just appeared.

“Just ignore him, hopefully he’ll go away.” Harry muttered as he continued sawing some wood.

“I reckon he’s come for the kid.”

“Ain’t none of our business.” Harry replied and spat into the ground as he put the saw down and carried the plank of wood to its designated position in the wall.

“Ain’t right for a man to take another man’s kid from him.”

Harry turned and looked the other man up and down “You don’t know nothing about it, just keep your mouth shut.”

McBride stopped outside the house and looked around. He saw the men working around what looked like a new part of the building and then looked thoughtfully at the front door, then he dismounted and thumped loudly, loudly enough to hear its echo, but no one came. He walked over to where Harry was now standing, his hands on his hips watching him “Ain’t no one here, McBride. You’d best get yourself back to town, you’re on a wasted journey here.”

“Who says?” McBride scowled, “Where’s Adam Cartwright?”

“On the range - where did you expect him to be?”

McBride frowned and then shook his head “He’s got my kid.”

“None of my business, that’s for you to sort out with him, so why not clear off now and come back later.”

McBride looked around him and saw the curious faces of the workmen staring back at him, defiantly he swore at them before remounting his horse. He rode slowly back to the junction and decided to go to the Ponderosa itself.

Ben heard the sound of a horse and thinking of nothing much in particular left his ledgers to go and see who it could be, Hop Sing was clattering about in the kitchen preparing lunch and Ben didn’t want to risk incurring his anger by calling him to answer the door.

McBride had just dismounted when the door opened and Ben stood on the threshold with a puzzled look on his face “What do you want here, McBride?”

“What do you mean, what do I want? Ain’t it obvious? I came for my son.”

“He isn’t here. Even if he was I wouldn’t hand him over to you, now - get back to town.”

“You ain’t got no right to keep me from my boy. Hand him over.”

“I’ve already told you, he isn’t here.” Ben scowled, narrowed his lips and eyes and looked like the fierce ruthless man that many thought him to be, McBride stepped back and groped for the gun he had brought with him. “McBride, your boy isn’t here - how many more times do I have to tell you.”

“I don’t believe you. You got him here, I know it.”

“Look, you washed your hands of him a few days ago, told my son to take him out of your sight, so what’s changed now?”

McBride’s hands were sweating, it made holding the gun difficult as the handle slipped in the palm of his hand “I want him back home… that’s all I got to say about it.”

Ben shook his head “Go home, McBride”

The gun roared as Ben turned his back and stepped into his house, he paused a moment and turned his head as though puzzled that such a ridiculous man could attempt to shoot him, the second blast stopped him thinking anything at all.

Chapter 63

McBride had a choice of two things that he could now do - either check on Ben as to his condition or mount his horse and attempt a getaway. He chose the latter and was galloping out of the yard as Hop Sing reached the front door and waved a meat cleaver around while he hurled curses at the cowardly attacker.

At Mary Ann’s home nothing had been heard, the wind was in the wrong direction to waft the sound of gunfire there and the laughter and chatter of the women and children at play prevented any sound from outside anyway.

Harry and some of the men working on the bathroom heard the gun shots and downed tools, but it was Harry who told them to get back to work while he and two other men went with him to investigate.

Roy urged his horse to stretch its legs further while the buggy went as fast as Hester would dare to drive it considering she had a child on board and curiosity as well as anxiety were not enough to prompt her to risk either Hannah’s life or that of her unborn child. She was quite happy to see Roy gallop ahead.

McBride rode straight into Harry and the two men coming from Adam’s track and in an attempt to turn the horse round and being a very inexperienced rider, he found himself unhorsed and sprawled out on the dusty road. Harry pulled his rifle from its scabbard and with is two men covering him approached McBride warily “What’ve you done? Don’t tell me you were shooting rabbits either…”

“I - no - I - it was his fault, he came at me and I had no choice, no choice at all.” McBride yelled attempting now to get to his feet with his hands in the air.

Roy slowed his horse and upon reaching them dismounted and walked up to McBride, “Alright, McBride, what have you to say for yourself?”

“I told ‘em already, I - I had no choice. He came at me, threatening he was -.”

“Who came at you?” Roy scowled and nodded over to Harry to back off while he got out his handcuffs to slip them over McBride’s wrists.

“Ben Cartwright of course.” McBride backed away, glanced around him as though seeking some way to escape, “He wouldn’t let me have my son.”

“Why should he, you disowned the boy some days ago why would you want him back now?” Roy reached out to grab one of the man’s wrists but McBride managed to avoid him.

“I’ve changed my mind. I want him back.” McBride wailed and looked wildly about him and then struggled as the handcuffs clicked over one wrist. “Look, they said his grandfather’s going to come and get him, I thought I could make some kind of deal with him - that’s all.” he pulled away as the other handcuff went over the other wrist and he shook his head “I didn’t mean no harm. I mean, if they want Billy so much they can have him, but it was only right and proper that I made a deal with the old man after all I’ve had the expense of bringing the boy up all these years haven’t I?”

Roy shook his head and thanked one of the men for retrieving the horse before he turned to Harry and told him that Hester was on her way and would he go with her to make sure Ben was alright while he dealt with the prisoner.

Harry had only just remounted his horse when Hester and James appeared in the buggy, Roy was hauling McBride towards the horse in order to get him back into the saddle and turned to tell Hester that Ben may be injured, that momentary pause in dealing with the wretched killer was enough for McBride to push him in the way of the horses and then gallop away.

The two horses panicked as Roy fell against one of them, the buggy backed up before rolling forward, and if James Webb hadn’t jumped down and hauled the sheriff away from the flailing hooves there was no doubt that Roy would have been severely injured, if not killed. It all happened so quickly that Hester had no time to be afraid or even think of any risks being taken, one moment James was sitting beside her and the next he was down and Roy was safe.

“Come with me ..” Roy yelled to the two men still mounted and wondering what was going to happen next, and while he got back into the saddle and rode off in pursuit of McBride, Hester with James back in the buggy were on their way to the Ponderosa.

Hop Sing had succeeded in lifting Ben up and dragging him over to the settee, by which time the rancher was conscious enough to grope his way along and slump down, his eyes closing involuntarily while his old friend checked to find the wound that was causing so much blood. He didn’t look up at the sound of the buggy or the horses riding into the yard, but when he heard Hester’s cry of horror at the sight of the blood on the floor he stood up, much like a jack in the box from behind the settee which caused Hannah to cry.

“Mr Ben hurt, shot in back, much blood, I go get water and towel to clean up.”

James very gently put his hands on Hesters shoulders and led her to a chair “Now sit down here, dear, put your head down between your knees if you feel faint while I go and see how badly hurt Ben has been.”

“No, it’s alright - I’m alright.” Hester cried trying to push him away from her and feeling claustrophobic from the closeness of his body to her and the way Hannah was clinging to her and crying.

It took a few moments but eventually Hester found herself in the kitchen making coffee while Hannah sat in her chair drinking some lemonade and trying to eat a biscuit while at the same time still grizzling for her ‘gran’da‘. James and Hop Sing were dealing with the wound while Ben lay stretched out on the settee to all appearances quite dead.

It didn’t take too long for Roy and the two men to get McBride in their sights, and when he began to take wild pot shots at them while struggling to maintain his seat in the saddle Roy decided to put an end to the farce and stop him altogether, whether he intended it to be permanent or not he fired and had the satisfaction of seeing McBride slump down and then fall from his mount. “Get the horse.” Roy yelled to one of the men who continued the chase in order to comply with the order.

McBride was struggling into a sitting position, his head lolling on his shoulders as he tried to keep conscious. The handcuffs, one of which was fastened to one wrist and the other just dangling free - for Roy had inadvertently failed to fasten it prior to McBride pushing him against the horses. He made sure to rectify his error now as he slipped the handcuff onto the other wrist and locked it “Come on, get to your feet.”

“I can’t, you shot me, you dang fool.”

“Watch your mouth, McBride, I’ve enough information on you to see you hanged.”

McBride’s mouth gaped open as he looked from one man to the next, he shook his head in denial “I ain’t done nothing wrong, all I wanted was my boy back.”

“In order to extort money from his grandfather - as you said earlier.” Roy grunted as he hauled the wretch to his feet by yanking him up by his shirt.

“Why not? I’ve bin struggling to make a living all my life long, struggled to keep him alive as well. Why not let the old man have what he wants, if he wants the boy - he can have him, for a price. That’s fair, ain’t it?”

The two men listening looked at one another and it was obvious that they felt nothing but disgust for Roys prisoner. The horse was once again brought forward, no doubt wondering when it was going to get back to the comforts of its stable and the pleasure of its real masters company. “Can you two take him into town while I check on Ben?”

“Sure, Roy.” a man called Garvey replied, “We’ll take it slow for you to catch up with us.”

Roy nodded and left the three of them while he headed for the Ponderosa. By the time he reached the ranch Ben was conscious with his arm in a sling drinking a cup of coffee laced with brandy. Hannah was asleep with her cheek resting on a pillow by his side for she wouldn’t settle contentedly until she had seen him for herself.

Harry put down his coffee - not laced with brandy or anything else for that matter - and approached the sheriff “Mr. Cartwright’s alright, sheriff, the bullet went through clean as a whistle, made a lot of blood but so far as I can see no real damage done.”

“So you’re the doctor now, are you? Mr. Webb, what do you make of it all?”

Ben cleared his throat “I can speak for myself you know.” he put the cup down and felt the bruise on the back of his head, caused by falling heavily on the floor, “I’ll be alright, Roy, stop being an old woman and quit fussing. Did you catch him?”

“He’s on his way to town.” Roy turned to Harry “Those two men of yours are taking him in for me, hope you don’t mind.”

Such courtesy he hoped would make up for his previous abrupt comment but it was said out of concern for his old friend whom he approached now and stared at solemnly before nodding “Seems to me you’ll be alright. I’ll get back into town and get the doc back here to see to you.” he straightened his back and looked at James Webb “Seems McBride had the idea of getting the boy back so that he could sell him to his grandfather.”

James sighed and gave the whimsy of a smile “I’d have paid whatever price he’d have asked to have the boy, sheriff, in all honesty if that were the only way I could get him home with me, then so be it.”

Roy gave a shrug “Well, it’d be illegal.” he turned to Ben “You sure …?”

“Quite sure.” Ben nodded but didn’t attempt to get to his feet, whether it was the effect of the brandy or the loss of blood he didn’t know, but his legs felt very weak.

Hester came and led the way out to the sheriff and Harry, and then returned to Ben, looked at him thoughtfully and said quite simply that he should get himself into bed. With the help of James and Hop Sing that was exactly where Ben found himself within the next five minutes.

“As a matter of interest,” James said as he went down the stairs beside Hester, “Where is Billy?”

“Olivia told me she was going to take him to Mary Ann’s, there’s a horse that my brother in law has tamed and she thought the boy would like to see it.”

“And is that very far from here?”

“No, not very far at all. I’ll take you…” she picked up her bonnet and after checking her sleeping daughter asked Hop Sing to keep an eye on her while she went to Mary Anns.

On the way James told her a little more about himself, about his wife, Frances, who had been his childhood sweetheart and whom he had married when only 18 years of age. He told her about Catherine, Billy’s mother, and about Sam, his own son who had been killed along with Catherine’s fiance. “But Sam’s wife and son live with us, so Billy will have many to love him when he comes home.”

Hester smiled and wondered if that would be what Billy would want, or whether he would prefer to return to that filthy ill tempered man who dared call himself ’father’ to the boy.

Chapter 64

Olivia and Mary Ann both went into a slight panic at the news of what had taken place at the Ponderosa but Hester was able to reassure them both that all was well and out of Billy’s hearing was able to tell them about McBride and how it had been his intention to sell the boy off to the grandfather he had heard was arriving, obviously not having yet heard that the man had actually arrived already and was in the buggy listening to every word. There was no greater condemnation in the eyes of James Webb and as he let the sound of the women’s chatter ebb and flow around him he looked for the boy for whom he had searched so long.

Billy was eating a cookie in the kitchen with Sofia seated by his side. Bridie was telling them a story about a drunken cat on board the ship she had been on during her trip from her homeland to America and they were laughing with that free unhibited laughter that children seem to possess so wonderfully.. James stood at the doorway for a moment and then stepped into the room, which brought the story to an immediate halt. “Please don’t stop on my account, Mrs - “

“O’Flannery.”

“Mrs O’Flannery, it seems to be a good story if all this laughing has anything to do with it.” he smiled and waited for her to continue which she did, but she was interrupted once again when Olivia rushed in and told the children to hurry and get ready as they had to go and see Gran’pa. James turned to her “I could bring Billy along later, after all, there may be some private matters you may want to discuss with Ben.”

She realised immediately that there would be obvious reference to Billy’s father and nodded, smiled at Billy and assured him that he would be alright, Mr. Webb would bring him along later for supper. Billy didn’t seem too fazed by this after all he was a boy who had been raised on the streets, with new people drifting in and out of his life all the time, and her assurance that he would be back with them later eased any niggling doubt that could have lingered.

He finished his cookie and wiped his hands down the front of his pants. “Can I show him the horse, Mrs. O’Flannery?”

“I daresay you could, but just don’t get too close mind.”

He looked at James and with a jerk of the head indicated that he followed him through the kitchen door which his grandfather did with a smile touched the corners of his mouth.

Saturn loped eagerly over to the bars of his corral in the greedy expectation of a sugar lump or some other treat which indeed he received as Billy held out his hand “You have to hold your hand like this, flat like, or they’ll nibble your fingers.”

“I see.” James nodded.

“Yeah, Reuben told me. I’m going to ride him one day, if I stay with Reuben’s family that is.”

“Don’t you think you will?”

“Wal, my Pa may want me back home soon, or my Grandpa may come for me.” he frowned, “My Pa told me that my Grandpa was a wicked old man, but - I don’t know if that’s right or not.”

“Why would he say that he’s wicked, has he ever met him?”

Billy shrugged “I dunno.”

“Do you want to go and live with your father again?”

Billy looked at him with round eyes and shook his head “No. No, I don’t. He said I was wicked because I killed my Ma when I was borned.”

“That wouldn’t be your fault, Billy, it’s something that happens sometimes.”

“Yeah, the Missus told me that Mr. Cartwright, Adam that is, his ma died when he was borned too. He ain’t wicked though.”

“Nor are you.”

Billy frowned and turned his attention back to the horse, for a few minutes there was silence before he said “My Pa beat me a lot, said he had to beat the wickedness outa me, he beat me over every little thing, sometimes ‘cos he felt like it. I thought all Pa’s treated their kids like that until I came and stayed with Mr Adam and his family. Oh, he gave me a tanning the other evening for fighting with Reuben, but then Reuben got a tanning for fighting with me….“he paused for a moment in order to catch his breath, “It was different, see? There weren’t no meanness in his eyes, only disappointment. I guess that hurt more than my backside did when he was done.“

James felt a lump in his throat and he had to turn away to look very hard at the stable block as the tears blurred his vision. After a while he put his hand to his breast pocket and produced a note book from which he took a picture and after getting the boys attention he said “Can you guess who this is a picture of, Billy?”

“No, it’s a nice lady though. She’s pretty.” he looked at James and then back to the picture “Who’s the man with her?”

“That’s my - that’s her brother, Sam.”

“What’s her name then?”

“Catherine.” he said it quick because emotion was getting the better of him, and when the little boy took the picture and looked more carefully at it he said quietly “What was your mother’s name?”

Billy frowned and looked at the horse again, “That horse is called Saturn. Mrs Mary Ann in there said Mr Joe tamed him. He’s going to ride him at the big race next year. I reckon he’ll win, don’t you?”

Disappointed at the way the boy had switched conversations James nodded and stroked the horse’s soft nose “Yes, I should imagine he will.”

They stood side by side for a few minutes before James said it was time to go, there was some distance to walk so best get started right away.

…….

As it happened it was not so far to walk as James had thought as Mary Ann had decided she needed to make sure Ben was safe and well for herself and had hitched up the buggy, so in passing them they were able to ‘hitch a ride’. Olivia and Sofia were still there at the main house preparing to leave so Billy left James dismounting from one buggy in order to clamber up onto the seat of the other.

It is hard to imagine the feelings of the older man as he made his way into the house of his friend. Bowed down with thoughts and emotions he excused himself and went to his room where he lay down on the bed to collect his thoughts for so much had happened, so much had been revealed and yet concealed during the day that he felt quite at a loss.

………….

Adam had been told the news about McBride and his father’s encounter while in town with Hoss. Roy had found them upon his return to town and lost no time in recounting the misadventure, mentioning in passing that James Webb had actually heard McBride admit that he wanted Billy back in order to sell him to his grandfather, little realising that the grandfather was right there listening to him.

Leaving town and some unfinished business there the two brothers rode immediately to the Ponderosa to check on their father. Joe was there already and Ben had to face them and relate everything that had happened in detail and then listen as each one of them expressed their opinion McBride. Eventually it was time to leave in order to get back to their respective homes for supper. It was while he was striding over to his horse that James called over to Adam in order to get his attention, and while the man waited for him he joined him at the hitching rail.

“I had a little chat while alone with Billy this afternoon.”

“Really? What happened?” Adam flicked the reins between his fingers while his dark eyes watched the other mans face contort a little before he could speak again.

“He isn’t sure about things, is he? He’s pretty convinced he’s wicked because that’s the only reason he could give himself for being beaten by his father, but he doesn’t want to go and live with him again although at the same time he doesn’t think he’ll be staying with you. He’s been told that - that his grandfather is a wicked old man.”

“You must have found that all rather distressing.”

“Yes. Hearing it from you and Ben was one thing, but actually hearing it from the boy was quite terrible really.” he cleared his throat “I showed him a picture of his mother, and her brother, I was going to tell him - but I couldn’t - I thought he would remember or perhaps even want to know more about her but he couldn’t or didn’t want to know.”

He paused then, embarrassed at the feeling that his emotions were getting the better of him, he bowed his head “Anyway, I thought I had better tell you.”

Briefly Adam touched the mans arm with his hand, a reassuring touch that did more to put the mans mind at rest than anything else he could have done.

………….

There were letters to open and read but supper was ready and they had to wait until later. Sofia told Reuben about poor Gran’pa and Reuben wanted to know who had shot him and why, to which Olivia said it was none of his business, eating his meal was so get on with it. Billy was quiet but more relaxed at the table now, occasionally when something was said or done that was amusing he would smile, a flash of warm humour spreading like a glow over his face.

Adam felt it better not to mention James or the conversation that Billy had had with him. The children sat with him while he read a story and then were taken to bed, Sofia on his shoulders and Reuben holding his hand with Billy in the lead up the stairs to their respective rooms. When Adam went to say goodnight to his son Reuben whispered that Billy had been to see Saturn and without him there. He pouted and said ‘It ain’t fair, Pa. I want Saturn to like me and be my horse.”

“Well, that can’t be, Reuben, the horse belongs to Uncle Joe, and I think Saturn likes the sugar and treats you boys give him more than either of you just yet. Look, Billy will be leaving soon and you’ll be seeing a whole lot more of Saturn, don’t get riled up over his seeing the horse for this short time, huh?”

“I like him better now,” Reuben whispered, “but I will be glad when he goes away. I ain’t meaning to be unkind, Pa, truly I ain’t but -.” he said no more but entwined his arms around Adams neck and hugged him tight “I love you, Pa.”

Adam stroked his back a little and whispered “I love you too, son.”

“I wish Billy had a Pa who loved him too.”

“Well, maybe something good will happen for Billy soon.” Adam replied and ruffled the boys unruly mop of hair which really was in serious need of cutting. ”Goodnight, son.”

He poured himself a small glass of whiskey and sat down, slowly opening the letters one by one, a bill that needed paying, an invitation to him and his wife to a first night performance at the theatre, an invoice for goods received and then a letter the seal of which he recognised. He paused a moment before opening it and after taking some of the whiskey read it through.

“Commodore

This is to confirm that I shall shortly be on manoeuvres in the so called Pa’ha Sa’pa. The President has finally agreed that there has to be a final definitive action against the Indians that have taken refuge there and I shall be in command of the forces that shall see to this taking place.

I think often of what you have said to me about my taking part in any fighting in those mountains. It has practically haunted me from the first time I saw you and you told me that I would not survive if I were to ever go there, well, I thought I would inform you that I am and I shall. It took a while to convince the Generals that they could entrust me, with Reno, and Benteen, to take charge, but I needed to have that position, I needed it desperately as it was the one engagement that I had to take part in if only to lay to rest what you have said to me over the years.

Soon the Indian matter will be a thing of the past and I shall have played my part in subduing them finally to their end. My name shall go down in history as the conqueror of Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull and the other so-called Chiefs of the tribes mustering there.

When you see my name in print again, Commodore, I hope that you shall regret saying that going there would be to my death.

I salute you, sir, as one officer to another

George A. Custer.”

Olivia looked at him, saw the set expression on his face and sat down beside him “You’ve read it twice already.” she said softly as she slid her hand into his and felt his fingers cover her own.

“It’s from Custer.” he passed it to her to read and then released her hand in order to refill his glass, then he came and sat down beside her again, “I have a terrible feeling that I played a part in him going there, and whatever happens I’ll always regret it.”

“He’s the master of his own fate, Adam, you can’t really believe he’s taken this on just to prove you wrong?”

He looked at her and then relaxed, yes, it was stupid to think that, and he kissed her fingers “But I did tell him that if he went there he would probably never live to tell the tale.”

“I doubt if you need worry about that either, dear. Custer is like a cat, he has nine lives.” she put the paper down on the table and leaned against him, “I’m tired, I think I’ll go to bed …” but having said that she didn’t move until he did, taking her hand in his and helping her to her feet and then kissing her gently.

He couldn’t help but glance back to the letter as he mounted the stairs, and wish that all those years ago he had never seen George Custer.

Chapter 65

Billy was overjoyed to know that he was going to go to school with Reuben. Knowing that McBride was safely behind bars and that everyone involved with the fracas were only too happy to make their statements in order to keep him there for as long as possible meant that there was no risk of the boy being snatched away for any nefarious reason on his father’s part.

Olivia stood on the doorstep and waved the two boys away as they sat together on the wagon seat. To all appearances they looked like good friends although within both confusion simmered. Billy could no more understand what was going on in his life than he had when he was at home with his Pa when his sole purpose, or one of them, was to avoid being beaten black and blue, and Reuben felt insecure, liking the boy was one thing but fear of his parents liking him as well, and perhaps enough to keep him with them, troubled his conscience.

Miss Brandon was more than pleased to welcome her student to class. A clean tidy and quiet boy who chose to sit beside Reuben and to the wonder of his classmates hadn’t touched one of them before the school bell had rung.

Adam was also in turmoil. He showed the letter to his brothers that morning as they met up for work and in silence waited for their comments. Hoss looked up from the paper and into his brothers face “What do you want me to say, Adam? Far as I can see he’s jest doing what he was set on doing anyway, ain’t nothing you could say or do would change that.”

Joe nodded and handed the letter back to his brother “Hoss is right, Adam. You knew right from the first time you saw him what he was like and what his intentions were, he’s just letting you know you didn’t get him to change his mind, and he has the Presidents approval to break any existing Treaties to go into the sacred hills.”

Adam frowned and swayed a little back and forth as he stood with his arms folded across his chest and his mouth in a familiar shape of disapproval, now he pouted slightly, pursing his lips and then shrugging as he took the letter back and slipped it into his pocket. Hoss slapped him on the shoulder “Guess we didn’t help none, huh?”

“Well, maybe more than you realised, once I’ve thought it over a little.”

Joe looked at him with hazel eyes flickering green while his generously mobile mouth turned downwards “You weren’t expecting me and you to go riding over there now, were you?”

Adam sighed and shook his head “No.” he jutted out his chin as though expecting Joe’s fist to connect with it, challenging and defiant “No, the time for that has long passed now. We did what we could when we had the time and opportunity, sadly that moment has been and gone.”

“Yeah, it has, and if Grant has given them permission to intrude into those hills I can guarantee there’ll be a bloodbath, on both sides. They won’t waste breath on any more dialogue, you know that, don’t you?”

“Sure, I know that -.” Adam tipped his hat lower and walked towards Sport whom he had selected to ride that morning, “Best get on, there’s work to do.”

For a while they rode on in silence until Joe rode closer to his brother, so close that their knees brushed against each other “You don’t want to waste your time worrying over that letter, Adam. It won’t change anything.”

“I know that.”

“Then stop it.”

“Stop what?”

“Stop looking like you got the world on your shoulders and making me feel guilty.”

Adam released his breath and shook his head “I didn’t realise I was.”

“Well, you are… whatever reason Custer had in writing to you, and whatever happens to him, it has nothing to do with you, he’s a man who believes in his own decisions, and that is what he’s done, made his decision and he’ll die first rather than admit he’s wrong.” he frowned “You know that, as well as I do.”

Adam nodded and stared right ahead so that Joe had to scratch around for something else to say, “Look, he’s always been ruthless, and whatever else he is, he ain’t a good strategist, he just charges in and relies on man power to win the day. You know that too, don’t you?”

“Sure, probably more than you do.”

Joe looked at him long and hard, then shook his head “I doubt that.” he said coldly and then softened the words by a sudden warm smile “Look, leave it now. Alright?”

Adam nodded and urged Sport to stride out faster, there were suddenly too many memories crowding about in his head and added to them was the memory of his brothers torment and misery when he learned of Little Moon’s death all that time ago.

…………

James Webb closed the door of the sheriff’s office behind him and walked to where Roy sat at his desk, he nodded and removed his hat, “I know this may be against procedure, Sheriff Coffee, but I was wondering if I could see your prisoner.”

Roys eyes narrowed immediately not only because he wasn’t wearing his glasses and needed to keep the man in focus but because he was suddenly concerned that this man wouldn’t be wanting to say anything that the prisoner would want to hear. He reached for his spectacles and as casually as possible slipped them on, “I don’t think McBride would want a visit from you, Mr. Webb.”

James nodded “Does he know who I am?”

“Nope, jest that you were the man in the buggy with Mrs Cartwright and helped in his arrest. He won’t forgive you for that so you going on in thar to tell him you’re his father in law ain’t rightly going to endear you to him.”

“I wouldn’t want that, sheriff, there’s nothing would make me want to have anything to do with him. I just want to look at the kind of scum that he is…” he cleared his throat,

“I understand your feelings, Mr. Webb, Adam told me all about the way he‘s treated his boy, and I had the chance to see for myself anyhow. I don’t, personally, understand how a man don’t have natural feelings for their own son, but he don’t, none at all. It says a lot for the boys mental strength as well as his physical stamina that he’s survived for so long.”

James nodded “I want to ask him about my daughter, that’s all. That’s natural isn’t it? I want to know that for a while she was happy.”

“You’re expecting him to tell you the truth? McBride doesn’t know what the truth is, unless there’s money attached to it and it’s coming his way.”

James smiled now, a slow smile that made his eyes twinkle, “Ben said that you would put up a fight, Sheriff, but I sure would be obliged if you’d give me permission to speak to him.”

“It’s against my better judgement, but I’ll give you five minutes.”

“I don’t even think I’ll need that long, sheriff.”

Roy accompanied James to the cells and stood at the end of the corridor knowing from experience with McBride that he would use his fists despite the bars in his way. James Webb stood a safe distance from the cell however before asking McBride if he could talk to him. “Who’s asking?” came the immediate answer from the man who was sprawled out casually upon the truckle bed.

“Catherine’s father.”

McBride stopped moving, almost to the extent of not breathing then he turned onto his side and rolled from the bed to walk to the bars and with his head at an angle peered through the bars at James. “You’re Webb?”

“Yes.”

“What did you want to know?”

James swallowed bile, the man before him was everything that he hated in humanity, slovenly, unshaven, lank greasy hair from a balding head, sallow complexion and eyes that stared out of dark sockets, his clothes were greasy and soiled, James could see the track marks of flea bites across the man’s chest. The thought that his daughter had married a man like him turned his stomach. McBride must have sensed the revulsion because he laughed, a low chuckle deep from his belly “I wasn’t like this when we met, Mr. Webb or whatever you call yourself. I was considered quite good looking at one time, and could afford decent clothes in my position. It’s just that things got a little ‘hot’ in the place where I worked and I had to leave, in a hurry. Catherine was happy enough to come along.”

“Did she know what you did?”

“Of course not, I wouldn’t tell her, she was an innocent, naïve as you come … she’d not have understood.”

“Did you - “ James inhaled a deep breath “Did you care for her at all?”

“Of course I did, otherwise I wouldn’t have lumbered myself with her when I really needed to make a quick escape. Mind you it helped me some, they were looking for a single man, not someone with a wife. We moved all over …. You never answered her letters.”

“We never received any.”

Their eyes met, locked and then McBride shrugged “well perhaps not, we moved around so much until she got herself with child.”

It was strange to hear him say those particular words, ‘with child’ sounded alien to his lips and he moved restlessly back to the window before turning to James “Is that what this is all about - the kid?”

“I just wanted to make sure you treated Catherine right.”

He walked back and looked at James, “I loved her. I’ll always love her. And, yes, I treated her right, sure I couldn’t give her the kind of life she was used to, and she had to work hard but we pulled well enough together. She wanted the kid, but -”

“You didn’t?”

“No, it would only get in the way, and it did. Right from the start, after she died.” he sat down on the edge of his bed then and stared at the wall “I don’t care what you do with the kid, I prayed that if there was a God he would let Catherine live and take the brat away. Then afterwards … a woman came and looked after him, and for a while things went on, but it wasn’t the same, never could be the same. I don’t care what you do with him, take him away, take him far away, do me a favour and take him so I don’t ever have to see him again.”

“Do you really mean that?”

McBride nodded “Yeah, I mean that, I only wish you had ridden into my life ten years ago.”

“It took me years to track you down, to find her grave, to be told she had a child.”

“Well, now you’ve found him. Good riddance.” he walked back to the window and stared out at the patch of blue sky, “I ain’t got nothing more to say, Webb.”

James nodded and left the cell block, he waited in the office for Roy to close the communicating door “You heard what he said?”

“Yes, I heard.” Roy said sadly, “It’s a sorry shame, that’s what it is.”

James nodded, it was, he agreed, it was indeed. “How do I stand with regards to the boy, is it legal for me to take him?”

“Best go see a lawyer, Mr. Webb, but as you are his grandfather, I can’t see that there’s a problem in that… if that’s what the boy wants.”

James nodded again, more than anything else now, he had to pray that that was what the boy wanted, a proper home with Frances and himself, with the family back home.

…………

Ben listened to James as he unburdened himself later that evening. Hoss and Hester were sitting outside together, enjoying the calm of the late evening warmth and the smell of the flowers drifting on the breeze. Upstairs Hannah slept soundly having enjoyed running off her energies during the day. Ben puffed his pipe and nodded here and there as James asked his opinion as to what to do next. After some consideration Ben put down his pipe and looked at the other man contemplatively, “James, it seems to me that you need to consider Billy in this situation more so than your own feelings. It’s obvious his father don’t want no part of him and is quite happy to release him into your care. But at the same time the man is the only family Billy has known all his life time and he may even love him.”

“Huh, I can’t believe that he could possibly do so.” James shook his head in disgust, and stood up, his hands clasped behind his back. “That man is the most foul person on this earth, I can’t bear to think that someone as lovely as my Catherine would have anything to do with him.”

“Well, she did, and she bore him a son. I think you need to get to know Billy more, especially now that he’s settling in so well with Adam and his family. It may be harder to get him away from them, than it would be to remove him from his natural father.”

James stopped in his tracks at that and then he nodded, “Yes, you’re right. I showed him Catherine’s photograph earlier, but he showed no interest in it whatsoever.”

“Why should he? He wouldn’t know that she was his mother now, would he?” Ben tapped the bowl of his pipe against the hearth so that the smouldering white ash of tobacco could drop into the ash box. He looked up at James and frowned slightly, “You know I’ll do whatever I can to help, as would any of my boys.”

James nodded and after a pause of a moment or two, excused himself in order to get to his bed. Once upstairs he took out his notebook and looked at the pictures within it. It was strange, the more he looked at the features of his much loved dead son, Samuel, the more he could see the likeness to the boy, Billy. It broke his heart to think that he would not be able to bring him home to them.

Chapter 66

Olivia could feel her husband’s eyes watching her as she continued to brush her hair and she turned to the bed and smiled “Are you alright? You were very quiet this evening?”

“I was thinking about nothing very important.” he folded his hands behind his head and with his head at a slight tilt and a dreamy expression on his face continued to watch her as she recommenced brushing her hair. “You’re beautiful, you know.”

“You keep telling me so, I might just get round to believing you.” she put the brush down and very nimbly began to braid her hair before standing up and moving towards the bed.

“No, I mean it. You’re beautiful to look at and you’re beautiful deep down, inside yourself, your soul -.” he sighed and took her hand as she slipped into the bed beside him. “I think Sofia will be like you.”

She didn’t reply at first but tossed her chemise aside so that it draped upon the arm of the chair, then she drew the sheet over her slim body “Billy was happy being at school today.”

“Yes, I noticed that, Reuben said the teacher - what’s her name again? - oh that’s right, Miss Brandon was pleased to see him there.”

“I think they’re getting on with each other better now.”

“Yes, I think so.” his brow crinkled “Why are we talking about the children? Can’t we talk about something more important?”

“You’re not still worrying about that letter, are you?”

“No.” his hand stroked her face, traced the outline of her profile “I should have said …isn’t there something more important we could be doing?”

“I know. I was thinking the same thing.” she teased and with the smile still on her lips she kissed him, his nose, his eyes, his chin, his lips and then laughed as he turned her into his body and just for a moment he wondered how on earth he would be able to live on that cattle drive without the joy of these intoxicating times with her.

When morning came Adam was the first to leave the bed and as always he leaned forward to kiss her brow and savour the time he could just gaze upon her as she slept with tousled hair and that slight smile upon the corners of her mouth.

Reuben and Billy joined him for the chores, both sleepy eyes and yawning but awakening as the moments ticked by, it was as Reuben was collecting the kindling to take into the house that Billy tugged Adams sleeve “Mr. Cartwright …can I ask you something?”

“Go ahead, what is it?”

“You know my Pa’s in prison and … and the kids at school were saying he’d likely hang.”

“Well, I don’t think he will, Billy. He didn’t actually kill anyone, did he?”

Billy looked at Adam with his eyes filled with some unfathomable emotion before he turned and paused at the doorway “I don’t like my Pa. I won’t have to go back and live with him, ever, will I?”

“Not if you don’t want to, Billy.”

The boys eyes blinked rapidly for a moment, he turned to look at this man who had opened his home to him, “Mr Cartwright, they said my Gran’pa was coming here to get me, you remember, you said so too? When is he coming?”

Adam felt momentarily lost for words, he could never lie to a child, but at the same time was he really ready to consider James Webb as his grandfather, the thought even crossed his mind if the boy would ever be ready to consider him as such. He put his hand on the lads shoulder and drew him slightly closer to him and looked him in the eyes “May be he’s already here, Billy. May be you have to just be patient a little longer for him to tell you who he is.”

“Why doesn’t he say so already if he’s here?”

“Perhaps he wants you to get to know him first. Remember, if you want it you can be leaving here with him, never seeing your Pa or your friends again. He may think you won’t want to leave with him just yet.”

Billy shook his head “I ain’t got no friends ’cept you all, and I don’t want to stay anywhere near Pa. All I want is to go away and maybe get to college.”

Adam nodded and straightened himself up, “Well, maybe you’ll get your wish sooner than you think. Now, let’s get in for breakfast or we’ll get into trouble with Mrs Cartwright.”

Billy flashed him a smile but as Adam stooped to pick up an errant log or two he dwelt on those two words ’Mrs Cartwright’, not any abstract Mrs Cartwright either, those two words meant Olivia, his wife, and the thought sent something like electricity running up and down his body .

………….

The one horse buggy stopped in the yard and Dr. Timothy Schofield stepped down, brushed his jacket from the dust he had collected on the journey and settled his hat more firmly upon his head. He picked up his medical bag and after looking around the building with an interest not normally associated with him he walked up to the door and knocked. The Chinese who came and opened to him was elderly and a little overweight, but at first glance appeared in good health. He nodded “Ben Cartwright - I’m Dr Schofield. Dr Martin sent me to see to him.”

Hearing the voice of a stranger Ben appeared from the study area and looked thoughtfully at Schofield “Yes?”

“Paul Martin sent me here. He told me to check on your wound and also to give you a thorough examination, apparently he gave you a prescription some time ago which hasn’t been used, there’s no record of the medication prescribed being given you.”

“I don’t recall any such thing being given to me. Come on in, Doctor. Hop Sing, get the doctor some coffee.”

“No, that’s alright, thank you. I really don’t need to have any… I won’t take long over this examination. Do you want me to carry it out here or do you have somewhere more private?”

Hester came into the room at that moment, stood stock still in horror at seeing the doctor there and then looked at Ben “Are you alright, Pa?”

“Perfectly alright, did you hear that, Dr Schofield, I’m perfectly alright.”

“There really isn’t anything wrong with my hearing, Mr. Cartwright. Good morning to you, Mrs Cartwright. Are you keeping well? You didn’t come for your check up last week? I like to see my ‘mothers’ regularly, especially the more mature ones.”

Hester went red from the neck up and her lips tightened, recognising the signals, Ben grabbed at the doctor’s sleeve and jerked his head towards the stairs “If you’ll come with me, Doc.”

“Doctor.” Schofield said primly as he followed Ben up the stairs, “Familiarity breeds contempt, and using an abbreviated form of address is familiarity. I personally dislike it. A casual approach to the doctor by the patient can cause problems between them later on in life.”

Ben said nothing but he also began to go rather red around the collar, he opened the door to his bedroom and stepped aside for the doctor to enter it. Schofield looked around him and nodded, it struck him as rather ludicrous that a widower should have such an opulent room, bordering he thought on the ostentatious. He looked at Ben who was surveying him coldly “Well, if you would like to remove your shirt, I’d like to check on this wound and see how things are progressing with your other problem.”

“I don’t have another problem.”

Schofield gave him what to some what would considered a withering glance, Ben remained stoic and although he removed his shirt he said nothing more about his other problem that he didn’t actually have… in his opinion.

Hester picked up Hannah and carried her out to the kitchen where Hop Sing surveyed her thoughtfully, then shook his head “You not carry Hannah now, she has two legs, better she use them or she forget how.”

“Hop Sing, don’t start lecturing me now. I’m just going to visit Mary Ann .. Or Olivia.” she put Hannah down and shook her head anxiously “Please don’t tell that odious little man where I’ve gone will you, Hop Sing?”

“Maybe odious man not ask, so no need you go too far. Maybe you just go to garden and pick flowers for table. Much better you do that, flowers make you relax and think good thoughts.”

Hester shook her head and without a word hurriedly left through the kitchen door with Hannah trotting obediently alongside her.

Schofield was satisfied with the wound which he cleaned carefully, and redressed. He then looked at some paper work and then looked again at Ben “You had pains in the chest?”

“Of course I had pains in the chest, a mountain cat had leapt down from a ledge and crashed head first into me, what else was to be expected?”

“Let me check for myself please.” he turned to his bag and began to take out various instruments which he set out upon the bed, “Dr Martin was particularly insistent that I checked you out, Mr. Cartwright, he warned me that you were a slippery customer and likely to make up excuses. Humph, a mountain cat collided with you .. Really, some of my older patients, like yourself, are more prone to exaggeration than a child. Now, open wide please…”

……………….

Harry pushed back his hat and surveyed the horseman thoughtfully, then stepped out to the driveway to greet him, “Mr.Webb? “

“That’s right. Is anyone home?”

“Not just yet. Shouldn’t be long though.”

James dismounted and tethered the horse before walking towards Harry “What’s going on here?”

“You mean you haven’t heard about it already? Come on in and have a look around?”

James did as he was asked and looked around the room with interest. Bathrooms were not new to him, he lived in a sophisticated modern world but he appreciated that here things were rather different. Certainly the best hotels in town, what was left of it, boasted some very modern conveniences but finding a bathroom being installed so far out was a novelty in itself. He spent quite some time admiring the work before the sound of Olivia’s voice was heard in the other room and he excused himself to join her there.

She was more than pleased to see him, company was a rare as bathrooms and she insisted he sat down and had some tea with her. Sofia had been left with Mary Ann and Daniel, and Olivia had to admit that she had reasons of her own to have Mr or Colonel Webb to herself. They had been talking about nothing in particular when the subject of Billy was broached and he told her of his fears about disclosing his identity to the child. As Adam had related to her the conversation he had had with Billy that morning she felt free to tell him what the child had said which lifted the cloud from Webbs’ face so much that she felt quite awkward for a moment and suggested another cup of tea.

“The boys will be back from school soon.” she said as she poured the tea out into the pretty cups she liked to use when company came, “Why don’t you take Billy out and have a little talk with him?”

“I’m almost too nervous to know what to do, or say.” he admitted taking the cup and saucer and drinking the hot sweet liquid quickly, as though he wanted to dispense with the pleasantries and get down to business right away, except that the one he wanted to be with had yet to arrive.

“You’ll know exactly what to say and do, Colonel Webb.” she said sincerely, and with a gentle smile sipped her tea elegantly.

They talked about other things from thereon, she asked him if he knew Custer and he said only by hearsay, and then he asked her about Adam’s career in the navy at which point the sound of the wagon rolling into the yard could be heard, then the clatter of feet as the two boys ran into the house.

“Oh, Billy!” Olivia exclaimed at the sight of the boy, and she stood up and looked at him as he emerged before her, his shirt torn, a black eye and a bloody swollen nose. “What happened to you?”

He looked from her distressed face to that of the man who was also now standing up but who looked as though he found it all rather amusing, certainly it looked as though there was a smile lurking around his mouth and his eyes twinkled.

Reuben stepped in to explain how at lunch time one of the older boys was calling Billy names but that the fight didn’t start until after school ended and the boy came and started pushing Billy and then the boy lost his temper and fought him back. Miss Brandon had to call Hank to come off the wagon to separate them.

James stepped forward now and with a nod at Olivia suggested that he took the boy outside to clean him up, a suggestion that Olivia thought was very providential. Billy raised no objection and trailed out behind the man with a quite dejected air, his head down and his bottom lip stuck out in misery.

James sat the boy on a barrel and worked the sluice to dampen his handkerchief and then very gently he began to clean the boy up, removing the traces of dirt and blood slowly. After a few minutes he stepped back and smiled “Well, you clean up pretty well for a little ‘un, what was the fight about?”

“Nothing important.” Billy replied, mumbling the words and looking red in the face, then he looked up and saw the expression on the old mans face “Well, they said I’d turn out like my Pa, a good for nothing layabout, and that my grandfather wouldn’t want me not even if he was given a million dollars. I said that he would, but they laughed at me.”

“Laughter is cruel, it hurts.”

“I know.” Billy nodded, “I used to tease people, laugh at the kids and make ‘em feel stupid and upset and I didn’t care, but I shoulda…I shoulda cared. My Pa said you have to be the first one to put the boot in, before they get ya. I reckon he’s right.”

“No, Billy, no, he’s very wrong.”

“Well, soon as I get to school and start acting like Reuben or the other kids they set on me real good, didn’t they?”

James squatted a little, not easy as he suffered from arthritis, but now he was on a level with the boy and put a hand on his shoulder “Billy, remember the picture I showed you the other day, of a lady called Catherine?”

Billy rubbed his face where the bruising was beginning to hurt and sting “Yeah, your daughter.”

“Did your father never tell you what your mother’s name was?”

“I thought about it after wards you know. I thought about it in bed and wondered ..” his voice trailed away and he shook his head “I don’t remember, maybe he did when I was very small, but not so’s I remember.”

“Billy, that lady - called Catherine - was your mother.” James stopped and looked into the child’s face and inwardly prayed, and the boy stared back with a frown and a puzzled look in his eyes, he rubbed his nose where it hurt most and shook his head,

“I don’t know, Mr. Webb. I never saw a picture of her ever.”

“Look,” James pulled out his notebook and took out pictures “See this picture of Catherine with her brother, Sam? My daughter and my son. And see … here … this picture of Rebecca, Sams’ wife and their son, he was born after Sam died, he’s only a few years older than you, Billy. This picture is of me and my wife, Frances, your grandmother … Billy… she’s waiting for me to bring you home.”

Billy had never seen the people in those pictures before, he had never seen a man in tears looking at him with such yearning, and for a moment he wanted to run away and hide, think things over, perhaps even go a long way away, but he couldn’t, those moisture laden eyes and the gentleness in James’ face held him as though he were hypnotised.

“You’re my grand’pa?”

James nodded, released his breath a little and carefully rose to his feet, “I didn’t know about your birth until a few years ago. Then we began looking for you and Catherine. I found her grave and was told that you had moved on…it’s just the greatest co-incidence that led me here to find you.”

“But my Pa told me you were a wicked old man, that you didn’t help Ma when she needed it, he said I was wicked like you… but you ain’t wicked, are ya?”

“No more than you are, Billy.”

“But why didn’t you help my Ma? She wrote letters to you.”

“We never received any letters from Catherine, had we done so you would never have been left with McBride to be used to punch about whenever he liked. No, Billy, you would have been brought home and cared for, loved …”

Something clicked in Billy’s memory, someone had said he would recognise his grandfather, a voice inside him would tell him, and there was a voice inside yelling at him, to be loved, loved

He had never been held in an embrace before and it felt strange, suffocating but also oddly reassuring. He wanted it to last much longer than it did but when James finally let him go he looked up at him and smiled “Will I go to school?”

“Yes, you’ll go to the same school as your cousin, Jonathan. He’ll make sure you’re alright.”

“And will I go to college?”

“If that is what you want,” James’ smile couldn’t stretch any wider.

“I’ll write stories, I’ll write about you and what it’s like being in the cavalry, and I’ll write about Mr Cartwright too, and Reuben, and how you found me.”

“You can write any story you wish, my boy.”

“And my Pa won’t mind you taking me away?”

“No.” for a moment the smile wavered, James cleared his throat, “He sends you away with his blessing.”

Billy wasn’t sure he believed that bit of the conversation, but he slipped his hand into his grandfathers and held on tight, as though his life depended upon it.

Chapter 67

It had all ended with a wonderful evening, one that Billy had never known possible with good food, a special cake made just for him with icing on that had his name on it, and then afterwards singing and music and Hoss pushed aside the furniture so that the rugs could be rolled up and everyone danced. Joe even danced with baby Daniel in his arms which brought screams of delight from Hannah who ran into the middle of the room clapping her hands and twirling round and round until she fell over.

Such a happy evening and he wondered if he would wake up to find himself in that hovel that his Pa called home, and the fear that it could be a dream occasionally gripped his stomach and clenched hold of it tight. Reuben was happy, happier than he had any right to be really as he now had confirmed that his fears were all blown away with Billy’s good news. He danced with his sister and his little ‘cousin’ and stamped his feet so much that they were still tingling even when he went into the wagon to get back home.

Whispering and laughter, subdued chuckles and giggles followed them as they were led to their beds. Sofia in her fathers arms gently laid down still fully clothed, he just pulled off her little shoes and pulled the coverlet over her, kissed her brow and left her to sleep. Billy didn’t think he would ever be able to sleep but it wasn’t long before he was snoring as was Reuben.

Olivia closed the door and leaned against it before turning to look at her husband “Hard to believe that Billy will be gone tomorrow. I wish Colonel Webb would stay just a little longer.”

“He has an impatient wife waiting for him back home, sweetheart.” he slipped his arm around her waist “And you know what impatient wives are like?”

“No, not really.” she said with a toss of the head and sticking her nose in the air, “I’m never impatient.”

“No, of course not.” he laughed and kissed her throat, “Now, come along like a good girl, and get yourself ready for bed, or will I have to settle you down and remove just your shoes like I had to for Sofia.”

She hugged him close, suddenly mindful that in a few more days he would be riding away from her, keeping company with a great herd of cows and a good number of cowboys. “I think I could be impatient,” she whispered as she clung to him, “At times.”

………….

Reuben stood beside his grandfather with his mother and Sofia, Aunt Hester and Hannah next to him while Joe and Hoss helped put the luggage into the trunk of the coach before they stepped back to shake James by the hand. Miss Brandon had agreed that he could have the morning away from school to say goodbye to Billy, and here he was, doing just that as he shook Billy’s hand. “Are ya going to write to me then?” Billy said as he stared into the other boys face with a slightly aggressive glare.

“Yeah, course I will.”

“I want to know all about Saturn, and how you git on at school too.”

“Yeah, so do I want to know about how you get on too. Tell me about your school and such, won’t you?”

Billy nodded and looked around the town before he was picked up by Hoss and swung up and into the coach. There were two old ladies seated there already so he took his place and stared out at them all, only Mr. Adam and Mrs Mary Ann with the baby hadn’t come to say good bye and that was because Mr. Adam had to check on hundreds of cows and Mrs Mary Ann was worried about the baby having a rash.

He thought over the conversation he’d had with Adam earlier, before Grandfather James had come for him. The way the man had leaned against the table and held his coffee in his hands and explained that he’d not be able to come, “I need this time to make sure the cattle are sound, Billy, if I miss a sick cow now it could be I’ll end up with a herd not worth selling, you do understand, don’t you?”

He was talking to him as though he were a man, as though he was expected to understand, and he did after all life had handed out more knocks than favours to him in his short life. He was therefore surprised when Adam came and wrapped his arm around his shoulders and squatted down on his haunches and looked at him very sternly “Look, Billy, you make us proud of you, alright? Be honest, and work hard, won’t you?”

“I sure will, Mr. Adam.” he remembered how he had looked into those dark eyes and seen himself in the pupils, tiny dots of a boy earnestly promising so much. “Mr. Adam, thank you for looking after me like you have.”

“Just you mind now -” Adam had said and stood up, ruffled his hair and left him to his breakfast.

Ben was shaking hands with Webb and looking pleased at how things were going, his arm in a black sling but pumping away with his good hand while Webb looked happy enough to bust. Reuben stepped back and leaned against Olivia’s skirts, while Sofia was waving and waving, Billy could see her smiling, and he kept his eyes fixed on her face and didn’t stop looking until the stage coach rolled away from town. In his notebook the Colonel had a document legally signed by Billy’s father and witnessed by Sheriff Roy Coffee that the boy was released into the care of himself and his family in perpetuity.

Ben Cartwright lowered his arm as he ceased waving goodbye and smiled at Hoss and Joe, “Well, there goes a very happy little boy, and James seems just the right man for the job of his grandfather. They’re two of kind to be sure.”

“They sure are, Pa.” Hoss grinned and then looked over at Joe and winked “Er, as we’re in town, Pa, don’t you think you should go and call on the Doctor, you know, Dr Schofield?”

“Oh yeah, Pa, I heard he gave you a real thorough check over the other day, but you never told Hoss what he said was wrong with you.”

“Of course I didn’t, because he didn’t find anything wrong with me, that’s why. I have slightly less keen sight than I once did, and I get indigestion more often than I used to, but other than that I’m fitter than most.” Ben scowled “To be honest, if I never see that man again it’ll be too soon.”

Hester who was tightening the bow on Hannah’s bonnet glanced up and said “I whole heartedly agree.”

“Thank you, Hester.” Ben nodded his head in appreciation for his daughter- in- laws remark and watched as she joined Olivia and the children to do some shopping while Reuben ran away to school, waving to them as he did so.

Ben was about to say something else when Hoss placed a hand on his father’s chest “Who’s that going into Roy’s office?”

“Hoss, as if I know.” Ben grumbled and paused “Looks like a city man, certainly not from around here.”

Joe nudged his father “Dan DeQuille is looking mighty interested as well.”

The three of them glanced over to see De Quille strolling casually over to the sheriff’s office. He had already been seen lounging about near the stagecoach depot to get some of the story about Billy and James Webb, in fact he was flicking over the pages of his note pad as he was entering the building. Ben shook his head “Well, no doubt we’ll find out in due course when it’s printed in the Territorial.”

“Well, we could go and find out now.” Joe said innocently and rounding his eyes as he looked at his father who nodded, and agreed that yes, why miss the opportunity of being in on a scoop or whatever it was that De Quille called it.

Roy’s moustache was bristling as the three men strolled into his office “What in the tarnation is going on here? Can’t I have a meeting in this here office without the whole town wading in on it?”

The stranger in town was still standing up although it was obvious that Clem had pulled out a chair for him to sit down in, and Dan De Quille was standing there looking stubborn like a mule as he often did when he was going to go into a speech about freedom of the press. “Sorry Roy, we didn’t realise it was anything private. We just came to say that young Billy has got off safely with his grandfather.” Ben said pleasantly and nodded over at De Quille and then looked at the other man, stretched out his hand “Ben Cartwright of the Ponderosa, these are my sons Hoss and Joe.”

“I’m George Meredith from New York City. How’do you?” they shook hands and Roy rolled his eyes heavenwards and flopped back down into his chair.

“This is a private conversation, gentlemen, if you don’t mind leaving right here and now…” he said “Or else I’ll have to get Clem escort you out.”

Clem was busy picking his teeth but jumped up alert and at attention when he heard this, so with a grin all round the four men left the office together. De Quille looked at Ben and the two brothers “Any idea what that’s all about?”

“None whatsoever.” Ben said determined not to ask any favours from the man nor give any if he could help it.

“He came on the early morning stage with some other men and a woman.” De Quille pursed his lips and tapped his chin with his pencil, “Don’t suppose you know anything about them either?”

“No.” Ben snapped and strode away before De Quille could say another word.

“I think we should go and get ourselves something to eat,” Hoss said suddenly, “I’m mighty hungry for pancakes and molasses at Ma Hopkins Pantry.”

Ma Hopkins Pantry was a newly established cooking establishment that had arisen from the ashes of a café that had burned down in the fire and had at one time belonged to Sally Byrnes. Ben wasn’t sure and was about to say so when Joe nudged him and said obliquely to Hoss “Ain’t that where Clem likes to take his mid-morning break?”

“Er - well - I ain’t rightly sure, Joe, shall we jest go in and find out?”

Ben smiled and shook his head but followed their lead and soon found himself sitting down at a clean table in the corner of the room which still smelled of new wood and fresh paint, mingled with coffee and pleasant cooking smells. Ma Hopkins turned out to be a lady of about fifty who was very attractively dressed in a dark blue dress with white collar and cuffs. “Mr Cartwright? How pleasant to say hello to you at last, I’ve heard so much about you.”

Ben swallowed hard and stood up quickly, dropped his hat and cleared his throat “Good morning, M’am. Er - my sons Hoss and Joe.”

She nodded and was about to ask for their order when the bell tinkled over the door and Clem entered the room, hesitated when he saw them, and then with a resigned look on his face came and joined them at the table.

Somehow, by the time he had left to return to the sheriff’s office Ben and the boys knew that the man who had arrived on the early morning stage was a Pinkerton Agent who had come in response to information given them by Roy about McBride. “If you want to charge him and have him put on trial for attempted murder, Mr. Cartwright, you’ll have to act quick because I can tell you that Pink intends taking McBride for trial due to his embezzling a whole heap of money from a bank in Des Moines, and also -” he leaned forward quietly “on a charge of bigamy.”

Ben wasn’t sure how long it would have taken for them to shut their mouths had it not been for Ma Hopkins coming back to place the food on the table.

Chapter 68

The knock on the door was both firm and polite, Hester could tell from the way there was a slight pause between each attempt as though the person on the other side was trying not to appear too impatient. She smoothed back her hair and hurried to open the door to find two men standing on the porch. One smiled and the other didn’t but looked at her with curious eyes, the ‘smiler’ removed his hat “Mrs Cartwright?”

“Yes. What can I do for you?”

She glanced over her shoulder at the sounds of Hannah’s wailing, they had not long returned from town and the child was hungry as well as tired, she returned to look again at the two men and noticed that the other man had also removed his hat, “Do you mind hurrying up as I need to see to my daughter.”

“We actually wanted to see Mr. Cartwright.” the ‘smiler’ replied and glanced into the room, “I know there are several Cartwright’s, the one we want to see is the Commodore.”

Hester blinked from one to the other of them and then shook her head “He’s not here. He doesn’t actually live here either, but even if you were to go to his house you wouldn’t find him there because he’s checking out the herd for the cattle drive.”

“Checking out the herd?” the non smiler frowned and looked even more formidable, “When will he be back?”

“I don’t know. You would have to ask his wife, but she isn’t home yet either, she stayed in town with our father-in-law.”

Both men stood there in contemplative silence then looked at one another, from inside Hannah’s wailings had become urgent calls for her mother and Hester once again looked over and into the room, “Look, you had better come in and have some coffee while I see to Hannah. I presume you’re friends of Adams?”

They followed her into the house and looked around them as they did so, ‘smiler’ said that no, they were not friends of Adam Cartwrights, had never met him and wouldn’t know him if they fell over him. The other man stopped in front of Ben’s desk to admire the map “Good piece of cartography, if you don’t mind my saying so, M’am.”

“Thank you.” she had picked Hannah up now and sat her down, “Now, Hannah, behave and be quiet. I’ll go and get you something to eat but just be quiet like a good girl.” she started to make her way to the kitchen then stopped “Exactly who are you?”

“Oh, I’m Lieutenant Rexon, and this is Second Lieutenant Stern. May we sit, M’am?”

“Yes, please do.” she hovered a moment, looked from them to her daughter whose bottom lip was quivering “I’ll not be a moment.”

She came back in three minutes with a bowl of food and everything needed for their coffee. She set the tray down and looked at the empty chair then turned to see Rexon with Hannah on his knee playing ‘Hunt the rabbit’ with his handkerchief, Hannah was entranced.

“I’m sorry, was she being a nuisance?”

“Not at all, M’am, I have a daughter her age myself back home.”

She took Hannah and sat her down, pushed the plate in front of her and then poured coffee for her guests. “Our cook is away in town ..” she paused, perhaps she shouldn’t have told them she was here on her own, perhaps they were here to cause trouble, hold her to ransom. She looked at Hannah who was silently eating her food, dimpling a smile at Rexon every so often. “Why do you want to see Adam?”

“Classified information, M’am.” Stern replied and put his cup down on the saucer with a sharp click as china met china.

“Well, I’ll get one of the hands to take you to his home… or better still, to take you to the where he would be right now.”

Rexon and Stern immediately stood up, thanked her and followed her to the door. Once her errand was complete and they were back in their rented buggy following Jake to the area where Adam would be working she gently closed the door behind her and leaned against it. She closed her eyes and for a moment tried to shake off the dizzy feeling, the feeling that something was going to happen that they had all been dreading for a year now. It all seemed so unfair she told herself, a whole year and nothing, and now with so much going on in their lives what they feared most, but never commented on, was going to happen.

“Mommy, eated it up.”

She looked at her daughter with her bright blue eyes and dark hair, the wide smile and apple cheeks and said mechanically “Good girl, do you want more?”

“Peese tank you.” Hannah nodded and smiled again, a smile so like Hoss’ that she just had to smile back and quickly kiss her nose.

……………….

Adam expertly manoeuvred several cows from the herd, cutting them out from the main body of the cattle and edging them away with the use of his lariat and horse. Around him other cowboys were doing the same, any animal found that would be unsaleable by the time they reached market were being removed from the main herd and led into another area, forming a small herd of their own where they could beef up and join the cattle that the Cartwright held back for their own use.

It wasn’t that there were many sickly animals, just some that had been born late and were under sized. It was boring work but a lot of the work a cattleman took on was in that category and there was no point in fretting about it as it had to be done as crafty and skilled buyers would pick on these ones to knock down the prices of the better quality beef.

He looked up at the sky and then over at the herd raising a hand to acknowledge the men who rode by with one or maybe even four animals along with them. “Any more do you think?”

Hank shook his head “I don’t think so, we’ve done a good sweep through and this is the second time of doing it. I should say we’ve just about finished.”

Adam nodded “Right, we’ll take these along to the south pasture now, they can join the herd there.” he stood in his stirrups and signalled his decision to the other men who raised a hand in acknowledgment and began to get the cattle bunched together, he smiled at Hank “Well, I should think we can safely ask top dollar for these, Hank.”

“Easily, boss.”

“Let’s get moving on then, perhaps we’ll be able to get back home early today.”

He swung Sport around with an easy twist of the wrist, and loped comfortably towards the small herd using his rope to keep the cows he had just cut out close by so that they could mix in among the others when they reached them. Hank wiped his brow with his handkerchief and in doing so glanced towards the direction of the house when he saw Jake riding alongside a buggy. “Boss?”

Adam turned his head and paused his horse, then nodded over to Hank “Take over here, will you?”

He turned Sport round again and urged him into a gentle canter so that he met Jake and the buggy without them having to venture too close to the herd. He removed his hat and wiped around the hat band with his bandana, then nodded to the two men whom instinct told him were Navy Officers even though they were in civilian clothes. “Jake?”

Jake cleared his throat “These gents were asking after you, Adam.” Jake edged his horse closer to Adam and in a low voice said “They turned up at your Pa’s, Mrs Hester ain’t happy I kin tell ya, she was almost green when she called me over.”

The warning was clear enough, if Hester wasn’t happy, no one else would be, certainly not Olivia. He felt his throat tighten as he drew closer to the two men “You asked for me?”

“Commodore Adam Cartwright?” Rexon asked doubtful as to whether to salute or not.

“Plain Mr Cartwright to you.”

Stern raised his eyebrows and looked between the horses ears while Rexon went into his speech “Came direct, sir, from the Admiral at Hunters Point, sir.”

“Admiral?” Adams dark brows knitted together fiercely, Rexon had the wisdom to go slightly paler while Stern continued to look straight ahead.

“Admiral David Porter, sir.”

Adam looked at the inside of his hat as though it contained all the answers in the world, then slowly slipped it over his head. “Admiral Porter, huh?”

Stern now turned and looked at Adam, “Orders, sir.”

“I’m retired, it seems to have slipped the Admiral’s mind.” Adam replied coldly.

“No, sir, it seems to have slipped your mind that it was only provisional, sir.” Stern cleared his throat “With all due respect, sir.”

After another silence that made Jake wish the ground could swallow him up Adam asked in a more subdued voice “What orders?”

Stern pulled from his inner jacket pocket an envelope and passed it to Rexon who then handed it to Adam who took it as though he were about to handle a poisonous snake. He looked at the seal and then at the two officers “Where are you staying?”

“At the International House, sir.” Rexon replied feeling totally out of his depth whereas Stern wasn’t in the least ways bothered but watched Adam like a hawk watches its prey.

“If you gentlemen would excuse me for a few minutes?” Adam turned Sport round and rode a short distance then ripped open the envelope.

“Commodore

In pursuant of orders detailed in the enclosed letter you are to report to my office by Monday* 5^th June 10.30 a.m.

Admiral D. Porter”

The letter enclosed was written in a more familiar hand and Adam opened it slowly, wondering why it had gone through official channels instead of directly to him. He glanced down at the signature to confirm what he already knew, Grant’s bold signature glared back up at him. He sighed, smoothed out the paper and read the letter slowly:

“My friend, Adam,

It seems to me that there are very few men I can call friend nowadays as I feel my Presidency is fast drawing to a close. I can, with hindsight, see all too clearly some of my errors, probably a good thing that I can’t see them all. Most of them have been caused by too much trust given to too many whom I should have ignored.

However, be that as it may, I am turning to you for your assistance once again. I know that you resigned, or sought to resign, after that fracas in the China Seas. I know only too well what you were suffering during and after that situation, and the reasons you gave for not returning to China as our envoy were fully understood.

As you know your resignation was not accepted, it was merely pending, subsequently you have still a duty to serve your country, your President and I hope … your friend.

I am appealing to you, Adam, to do this last favour for me. Admiral Porter will tell you more when you see him.

I wish you well, my friend and thank you for all you have done in my service, and will, I am sure, do in the future.

Yours gratefully

U. S. Grant.”

He slipped the letters back into the envelope and into his pocket, sat still for a moment and then turned Sport round, as the horse walked towards the buggy Adam slowly rewound the lariat and fixed it to his saddle, Rexon and Stern watched him as though mesmerised. “If I’m to get to this appointment by the 5^th I shall have to leave here by tomorrow. That doesn’t give me much time .”

Rexon nodded “We appreciate that, sir.”

Stern added “We’ll meet you at the hotel tomorrow morning, sir.”

Adam nodded and looked at Jake “Escort these gentlemen back to the main road to town, Jake, will you?”

“Sure, boss.”

Adam watched them turn the buggy a full circle in order to face the way back and then put Sport into a cantering gallop back to the house.

His mind was in turmoil, his emotions in tatters, he thought of the number of times he had left his family behind in order to do his duty, to serve his country, but now, now it was a hundred, thousand times worse, he had to tell Olivia, tell the children and for once in his life he just couldn’t find the right words, didn’t know what to say or how to explain something so raw and so painful as this …duty over love, duty over all that he held dear and precious, duty over everything.

He dismounted at his home and led Sport into his stall and went through the motions of unsaddling him as though an automaton. Several times the horse nudged him with his big head as though to say ’Hey, snap out of it’ but everything was a blur and at the end he could only lean his brow against the horse’s bright chestnut neck and try and gather his thought.

Harry called over to him, wanting him to check out the bathroom, to see how well the bath fitted, the water closet functioned … wasn’t that a marvel? …and he followed the man, nodded and said all the appropriate things but left all the men there wondering what it was that they had done wrong as he stepped through the newly cut out door to the room and into the new hall between that and the kitchen.

The house was quiet. No sound of a happy little girl and a noisy little boy, no sense of his beloved Livvy anywhere. He made his way upstairs and took his uniform from the closet and looked at it thoughtfully. There was no doubt he felt a sense of pride at the sight of it, he knew he would feel exhilarated when he was eventually at sea, and even knowing that made him feel guilty, as though he had committed the ultimate betrayal.

He tried to remember things that O’Brien had said in the past about leaving a wife and child behind, but all he could remember was the probable truth that what he had really felt was locked away, best kept under wraps, kept just for him to know so that his vulnerability wouldn’t be exposed to the world.

He put the clothes down upon the bed and stepped back to look at his reflection in the mirror …he was middle aged, his hair was greying, his leg and back still hurt from his last adventure on behalf of his country … what on earth would the President want from him this time?

Chapter 69

Jake was just too late in catching Olivia’s eye and getting a moment to talk to her before she went into the house, Sofia skipping ahead of her and Reuben whom she had collected from school, carrying some boxes that she had hauled out of the back of the vehicle.

“Daddy…” Sofia’s voice was one of pleasure as she ran towards Adam who was seated in one of the chairs with some papers in his hand, these he put down immediately to turn and stand up and catch her in his arms

“You’re home early.” Olivia smiled and came to him to kiss him and receive his kiss, if she wondered why he lingered a little longer than usual she made no comment, nor did she say anything when he remained quiet as she led them into the kitchen.

Reuben was going full chatter about how Billy had got on the stage and how they were going to write letters to one another and how school had been for the rest of the day and Adam had smiled and nodded and kept Sofia close in his arms as he leaned against the kitchen cupboard and listened to the boy.

“You must be hungry.” Olivia said as she opened a door and put some of her purchases onto the shelves, “You haven’t made yourself any coffee? How long have you been home?”

He glanced at the clock and shrugged, made a downturn grimace with his mouth “I don’t know.”

His voice was flat there was a look in his eyes as he turned to watch her, and she stopped, closed the door and looked at Reuben “Thank you, Reuben, go and do your school work now. Sofia, let go of daddy while I get you something to drink. Do you want an apple? Here you are, now off you go, find Clarabelle …”

He hadn’t moved except that his arms were empty of the child and were now crossed over his chest. She went to him and leaned against him so that his arms now folded around her “What’s wrong? Has something happened?”

“I - yes - yes, something’s happened.” he looked stricken, bit his bottom lip and lowered his head so that for a moment she drew back from him, so that his arms immediately tightened to keep her close.

“What is it? Is Pa alright?”

He smiled then, a gentle smile and one that she loved for his eyes twinkled and his cheeks got dimples “You saw him last, you could tell me?”

“Oh yes, of course, I left him in town.” she laughed but there was a catch in her voice and she put her hands to his face and kissed him “What is it? Just tell me right out?”

“I have to go and see the Admiral.”

“The Admiral? When do you have to go?” her face had gone pale, her eyes went over bright with the sheen of tears and she looked away so that she could force them back.

“Tomorrow morning.”

“Oh!” it was a stricken little cry of pain and she sunk her head against his chest and held him against her, “But that’s too soon. I don’t want you to go…”

He bent his head and buried his face against her neck, he could feel the pulse beating there and held her closer.

After a moment or two she straightened up “Do you know what he wants to see you about?”

“Not exactly but I had a letter from Grant.”

“Grant who?”

“President Grant.” he pulled it from his pocket and passed it to her to read so that she left his side and sat down at the table to do so.

Reuben bounced into the room “Pa, I got another loose tooth.”

Adam turned and smiled, nodded “Very loose?”

“Ready to fall out I reckon.”

“Here, let me see.” he wanted to savour these moments now, soon he would be reliving them as part of the repository of memories he would be hanging onto “Yep, that’s very loose alright, not ready to be pulled just yet.”

“Billy said he was going to write to me.”

“So you said, that’s good, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, I guess so.” he turned and looked at Olivia and then at Adam and in a low voice whispered “What’s wrong with Ma, she’s upset?”

“I’ll explain later. Go and see to Sofia for a moment, will you?”

Reuben didn’t want to go but he knew better than to remain so after another look at his mother he scampered away. Adam pulled out a chair and drew it closer to his wife, then took hold of her hand “I’m sorry, sweet heart, I’d so hoped that my resignation would be respected and honoured.”

“It’s not your fault,” she said quietly, “I’m just scared, and I guess I just don’t want you to go.”

He smiled and took hold of her hands “I’d be leaving in two days time anyway. You knew that, didn’t you?”

“It’s not the same.”

“What isn’t? Being away at sea for some months is just the same as being on a cattle drive for two months … I’m away and then I’ll come back, whichever direction I go in.”

“It isn’t the same.” she shook her head and tightened her hold onto his hands, then lifted them to her face so that she could kiss him “I love you so much, Adam Cartwright.”

His throat tightened and he couldn’t get the words spoken, but kissed her lips tenderly. After a few more moments had elapsed he said “Remember what I’ve always told you, a man can fall from a horse, there could be a stampede, anything that will prevent him from coming home from a cattle drive. Being at sea on board a good sound ship is much safer.”

“Oh Adam, look at what happened to you last time?”

“I wasn’t on board ship when that happened,” he whispered with a smile, “Darling, unforeseen occurrence befalls us all…isn’t that what the good book says? Now, I’ve got an idea that means I can keep you with me a little longer …”

“Pa. Ma. Grand’pa and Uncle Hoss and Uncle Joe and Aunt Hester and Aunt Mary Ann and ..” Reuben paused as his mother and father parted to turn and look at him, “They just come to see you.”

Olivia nodded and ran her hands over her face as though to smooth out the lines of worry and anxiety, then stood up and held his hand tightly in his “You must dread this …”

“Every time.” he whispered and stood up, folded the letters and slipped them back into their envelopes.

……………….

At the Ponderosa ranch house Ben paced the floor of his bedroom. The light from the lamps gleamed by his bed and on the tallboy which stood between the two windows in his room. He hadn’t changed for bed even though he had said goodnight to Hoss and Hester over an hour ago. He couldn’t help thinking about his son going to sea again, and this time with a wife and children left behind.

He remembered saying louder than he probably should have done “For heavens sake, boy, you’ve resigned!”

And Hoss had said “Yeah, he did once before, remember? Didn’t work that time either.”

Adam had stood up and shrugged “There’s a clause in some rule book that says the Navy can revoke any resignation at any time. In other words you can be retired, resigned for years but when they want you back they’ll come and get you.”

“What if you don’t go?” Mary Ann had said with pleading in her eyes, “After all we have enough places where you can hide?”

Joe had laughed and kissed his wife on the nose “Sweetheart, that’s very romantic but it’s not practical.”

She had looked appealingly at Adam “You could though, couldn’t you?”

“No, it’s my duty to serve. Even if my resignation had been fully accepted which it wasn’t because they’ve been providing me with sick pay for the past year, they have a right to expect me to honour the rules. I’m a Cartwright, and we don’t back down on our duty.”

“They’d arrest you anyway,” Ben had sighed and Adam had looked at him, a long look of relief that someone understood and then he had nodded, “Yes, they’d arrest me anyway.”

In their room Hester held onto her husband, the baby within her was at peace, but her mind was in turmoil, “Hoss, I’m going to miss you so much when you go away on Monday. With Adam going away -.” she sniffed and clung closer.

“Honey, he was going to be trial boss of the outfit, remember? He’d have been gone anyway.”

She sighed “That helps a bit.”

“My worry is whether you’ll be able to handle having Reuben and Sofia here for the week while Olivia and Adam go to ’Frisco. Pa’s going to trail boss so he won’t be able to help.”

“Hop Sing will be here. I’m sure he can still remember what it was like with a houseful of children. Anyway, he’s going to have to get used to it, isn’t he?”

Hoss held her close as though she were something so fragile that she would break if he were not careful, he cupped one hand over the mound of her belly and felt the slight kick against his fingers “Guess he’s woken up.”

…………..

Mary Ann looked down at her sleeping baby and sighed, then looked over at her husband who was waiting for her in bed, the golden tan of his body made the sheets look whiter than ever. “Joe, Olivia’s going to need our help while Adam’s away.”

“Sure, I know that.” he took her hand as she slipped into the beside him, “We knew that anyway, remember he was going to be away for a few months on the cattle drive.”

“It helps to remember that, doesn’t it?”

“Sure it does.” Joe waited for her to settle herself against him, her body still had the power to enthrall him, and he ran his hand along the contours from her shoulder to her hip. “He’s going to be fine, Mary Ann, you’ll see.”

He kissed her then but his mind roved back to that evening at Adams, where they had talked about ships and the sea, about his previous adventures and how they wondered where he would be going this time. It was so different, he thought, to how they had felt before, as though previously there was a great foreboding whenever he left, a dread that he would never come back. This time it seemed that because of Olivia and the children there was no such concern, it was not something to worry at ones gut as in previous times, it was going to be alright because … because really it had to be.

……………

The moon shone upon the bed wherein they had made the most gentle sweetest love, the intimate moments of marriage enjoyed, lingered upon and pleasured. Now they slept together, her head upon his shoulder, one hand resting upon his chest, and he with one arm around her and one hand resting upon the curve of her hip.

The moon lingered over the trunks that had been packed already with their belongings. For Olivia a few days grace, spent with him in San Francisco, perhaps the chance to meet the officers and men with whom he would be serving, and to see the ship. It was all arranged, the children would go to Hester’s in the morning, it was all going to be perfectly fine.

He has kissed away her anxieties, and teased her lovingly from her fears. The passion and the hunger of their love had left her sated, content and oddly secure. Even knowing that he was leaving her she knew that really nothing would part them.

“Adam” she had whispered before they fell to sleep, “Do you remember this:

‘Where rose the mountains, there to him were friends;

Where rolled the ocean, theron was his home;

Where a blue sky and glowing clime, extends,

He had the passion and the power to roam.””

His lips parted in a smile “Lord Byron’s Childe Herold’s Pilgrimage.”

“You quoted the whole poem to me once … remember?”

He had turned towards her, kissed her “As if I could ever forget.”

“Those words made me think of you …” she had settled her head upon his shoulder then, and closed her eyes, “I love you so much.”

Chapter 70

San Francisco was busy and bustling as usual and it took some while for the couple to get their cab through the traffic and leave them at the Frobishers large and elegant property. Rexon and Stern had returned to Navy quarters as soon as they had alighted at the station.

Julian and Martha were home and ready to welcome Adam and Olivia with a warmth that took the edge off the reason for their being there and while they had their travelling clothes removed by the maid, Martha chattered with an animation borne of affection and an awareness of the situation.

“Come along in, sit down and warm your feet. I thought I’d have a fire lighted as the nights are still chill, don’t you think so?”

Neither Adam nor Olivia dared to admit that they were already over warm, but sat down and allowed themselves to be fussed over and answered all the questions about Ben and the family, and about the children.

They ate sparingly of the meal that had been prepared, claiming that the journey had tired them out leaving them without the desire to eat. But they sat at the table and ate what they could to spare dear Martha’s feelings and to enjoy the company of the older couple.

Julian was now retired from his legal practice, but occasionally would attend the offices just to keep an eye on things. With a mind still active and a body still strong enough to handle a weeks work he was feeling frustrated at being housebound, and becoming impatient with the loving administrations of his doting wife.

When the women had left them alone to drink their brandy and smoke had they had such a desire to do so, Julian took the opportunity to ask Adam more personal questions about his return to service. There was little more to be said except to give him the letters and wait. “I know David Porter’s family,” Julian said, “Not all of them, but I served under his father for some years, that was before I married Martha. David Porter* served as a midshipman as young as 12 years old you know, but that was a long time ago. He must be in his 60’s by now.”

“I’d like to know how he came to know about me.” Adam sighed and warmed the brandy in the glass with his hands.

“Oh I’m surprised you didn’t know,” Julian’s eyebrows rose high “He’s a close confidante of the President. They became close friends during the Civil War when they served together at Vicksburg. After the Civil War ended Secretary Welles appointed Porter as the superintendent of the Naval Acadamy in- mmm - ’65.”

“I recall him now, he instituted the so-called Honour Code ..’to send honourable men from this institution into the Navy.’” Adam slightly shrugged and sipped the brandy, “A pretty formidable gentleman. And a friend of Grants to boot”

“Well, perhaps friends is taking the term to an extreme, they respect each other’s better qualities, let’s put it that way. But when Grant appointed Borie* as secretary of the Navy it was Porter who was Borie’s - mmm - instructor on all things naval.” Julian puffed heavily on his cigar “Of course that meant he was able to get certain things done to change the Navy to suit himself, and made a lot of enemies in the process. Borie resigned and George Robeson took over and curtailed Porter’s interference.” he tapped the ash from his cigar into a heavy crystal ash tray “Are you sure you wouldn’t like one?”

“No, thank you.” Adam smiled and shook his head, and took another sip of the brandy, “Admiral Porter - he’s only the second man to be appointed an Admiral since the post was created in 1866, isn’t he?”

“That’s correct.”

They lapsed into silence which was broken by Julian clearing his throat as he ventured onto more personal ground “It must have come as a shock to be brought back to service so quickly.”

Adam frowned and bowed his head slightly while his brow creased into deep furrows “I always thought the day would come when it would happen. A years remuneration for no reason ..”

“You can’t say that, you could have died.”

“There were some that did, Julian.” he drank more of the brandy, it slid down his throat like silk, rich and full, warm and smooth, “Every so often, usually when I was most happiest, a dread would creep into my mind that they’d remember where I was and haul me back.”

“And Olivia, how does she feel about it?”

“Probably far more upset than she’s telling me. I think it helped that she had prepared herself for my being away for several months on a cattle drive; but it’s going to be hard for her , and it’s going to be even harder to leave her.”

“Well, you’ve not been married very long now, have you? Of course she’ll miss you, as you will miss her. She’s a lovely young woman.”

Adam smiled slowly and leaned back into the chair, he swirled the brandy around and around in the glass and remembered the first time he had seen her in her long black coat and red scarf and bonnet, and her nose red from the cold.

Martha sighed and leaned forward “Of course you’ve not been married very long have you, dear? What is it, six months?”

“Nearly nine, Martha, although it just seems only a few weeks.”

“It’s easy to tell that you are both very much in love. Oh my dear, you are going to miss him so much. Were the children alright when you left them?”

Olivia was silent for a little while and then nodded “Yes, they don’t really understand, even Reuben hasn’t realised -.” she looked away for a moment in order to steady her voice, then with a smile said “They think it is quite an adventure staying at Gran’pa’s house. Hester was telling them of all the things they would be doing, and of course, Reuben is so excited at being able to see more of Joe’s horse.”

Martha nodded not sure exactly what Joe’s horse had to do with it, “They do realise that Adam will be away for some time, don’t they?”

“Not really, children have no real perception of time after all. A long time could be an hour, a few minutes …” she looked at the clock and then at Martha “I’ve kept you up talking for so long. I think we should be getting to our beds, it really is late.”

Martha was more than agreeable about getting to her bed, she was elderly and not in the best of health. Olivia gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek and took a lamp from the hall to make her way to her room and smiled at the memory of Julian’s enthusiastic discourse about electricity soon being available for every householder in the city which Adam had said was more than likely*, sooner than they probably could realise. As she put the lamp down she wondered what it would be like to have light by the flick of a switch.

But such thoughts soon left her, she wasn’t so interested in modern science, no matter how wonderful, she was worried about Adam leaving and the effect it would have on the children. As she quickly removed her clothes and pulled on a nightdress she tried to remind herself that he would have been leaving for a two month absence anyway, that the children understood that but as her head settled upon the pillows she had to try and silence the thought that really, it wasn’t the same thing at all.

Somehow there was a familiarity with cattle drives that made it less worrisome, and there were towns where letters could be posted or cables could be sent along the way. The sea was the vast unknown, and a ship … she closed her eyes and struggled not to give in to tears, not here, in a friends home after all. But tears don’t come and go so easily and when Adam came into the room she was sobbing bitterly into her pillow.

“Come, sweetheart, hush now.” his hands gripped her shoulders and lifted her, turned her so that she faced him and he could see the tears on her face and feel the sobs that shook her body, and she could see the agony of misery etched upon his own lineaments as though what he saw was near to breaking his heart “It’s alright, darling.”

His whispered words helped her to control the tears, but did nothing to soothe her distress but she held onto him as though she would never, ever, let him go.

……………

Admiral David Dixon Porter was, as Adam had said, a formidable man. Only the second man to carry the title of Admiral, he had shaped the American Navy into an organisation more to his liking and standards than to anyone else’s. It had needed doing, as after the Civil War most of the ships had been laid up in reserve and by 1876 less than 6000 men actually served in the Navy.

He accepted Adam’s salute with one of his own and then indicated that the Commodore could take a seat. “You must have realised that the day would come, Commodore, when we would need your services once again.”

“I did.” Adam intoned, his dark eyes fixed on the mans face which was adorned with the biggest beard he had ever seen on any Naval officer.

“President Grant assured me you were the man for the job. Do you think you are?”

Adam raised his eye brows “If President Grant said I was then no doubt I am.”

“Not quite the answer I was looking for…”

Adam said nothing more but fixed his mouth into an obstinate line and waited for more information to come his way. Porter looked at him thoughtfully and for some minutes all that could be heard was the ticking of the clock. “I heard good things about you, Cartwright.”

“Thank you, Admiral.”

“You don’t mind taking some risks, do you? I heard you took quite a hammering on your last assignment?” then before Adam could answer he continued “I doubt if you will find this task so onerous.”

Adam raised his eyebrows, most tasks he had gone on had been started with those same words, so he dismissed them lightly, and held onto his hat and sat very still. Porter pulled some papers from a drawer and slipped them into a large envelope which he passed over the desk towards him, “There’s a list of your officers, crew members. Your orders are inside …classified stuff .. You’re familiar with the Shenandoah? That’s your ship, be on it by dawn tomorrow.”

Adam wanted to say ‘Is that it then? Nothing more?’ when Porter asked him if his wife was with him, and when Adam replied that she was the Admiral passed a gold edged card over to him, “Hope to see you there.”

Adam glanced down, an invitation to a soiree and supper at the Admirals’ house - rented for the occasion of course - that very evening. He nodded, forced a smile and saluted.

“Commodore?”

He paused just as he was about to walk out of the room, “Admiral?”

“I like you. See you later.”

Grinding his teeth Adam left the room. He put his hat on as soon as he had left the building and hailed a cab to take him back to the Frobishers house and to see his wife again before he looked through the papers he had just been given.

…………………

Despite their misgivings based mainly on preferring to have spent their last evening together, the soiree was a pleasant occasion. There were not a vast number of Officers and wives present, and there were those known to Adam who were more than pleased to see him again. News of the situation in the China Seas had spread through their ranks and many had assumed he had died as a result of his wound. Olivia charmed them all, even Admiral Porter talked at some length to her and actually patted her hand at one time during the conversation.

He heard about O’Brien who was serving in the Pacific on the Baltimore. Father now to another child, a daughter, and likely to be recommended for his courage and bravado.

“A good strategist.” Captain Frobisher said with a smile to Adam, “He had a good teacher, Mrs Cartwright.” an even warmer smile to Olivia.

The men whom he would have serving with him had not been invited, no doubt busy getting work done in preparing the ship for their Commanding Officer, or even permitted to spend the very last hours with their loved ones.

The meal was enjoyable, Olivia said later to Martha that if it had been for any other occasion she would have thought it the most wonderful food she had ever eaten. She worried about her children, fretted for her home, longed to have the whole matter done and dealt with for good.

Later as she nestled in his arms and he asked her what would she do in the morning, she said in surprise “Why, come to see you off …I’ll wave my handkerchief along with the other wives.”

“Not many come to wave their husbands away.” he said softly, his warm breath making the hair around her ears quiver, “And after that, my dear, what will you do then?”

“I promised to come back here and spend a little time with Martha. I’ll catch the coach for Virginia City at a quarter past two, and I should be there for Joe to pick me up in the wagon Thursday morning.”

He nodded “Reuben will want to know where I am. I tried to explain where I was going but he didn’t seem to understand.”

“It’s hard to get into the mind of a seven year old.”

“I’ve written him a letter …give it to him, will you?”

She turned to him then with a passion, a fervour, that was almost desperation and clung tightly while willing herself not to cry, not tonight, not now.

Chapter 71

Sofia held the slip of material for her aunt Hester and watched as Ben sat as patiently as he possibly could while his arm was redressed. Very gently Hester took the sling from Sofia and refastened it, knotting it securely and then standing back to make sure it sat snug, then she nodded “Ben, you can’t go on that cattle drive.”

“I said I would and I intend to do just that, young lady.” Ben got to his feet and looked at Sofia, “Your Aunt is being very stubborn.”

“No she isn’t,” Sofia protested with a pout ,”Aunt Hester is worried ‘bout you. You got to stay home like she said.”

“That’s right, Ben. If you don’t do as I say then I’ll get Dr Schofield to come and see to you.” she began to bundle the bandages and iodine and various other items back into the medicine chest while Sofia looked on, “Hoss said he’s going to go and get Candy to ride ram rod with him as trial boss.”

“I see, so this was a set up huh? You both had it all worked out between you already.”

“Look, Pa,” Hester leaned forward and placed a hand on his arm, “I know it’s frustrating, but that wound isn’t healing as quickly as it should. You lost a lot of blood and at your age -.”

“Ah, you’re saying I’m too old now, is it?”

“No, not that, no not at all, just that we have to be pratical and realistic. We all get to an age when things change, even you.”

“And me.” Sofia said with a big smile on her face, “I’m changing all the time. Daddy said I grew an inch since last week.”

“There, you see?” Hester smiled and her eyes twinkled, “Anyway, we need you here. I need you here.”

“Oh, and how does that work?” Ben steadied himself and then walked over to the other chair before sitting down and reaching for his pipe.

“Well, with two extra children to look after and without Hoss here and not feeling really so very well myself -.”

“Oh aunty Hester, why aren’t you feeling well. Do you want a bandage, I can be doctor, I can bandage it for you.” Sofia cried, gripping hold of Hesters hand tightly and her face showing her concern.

“I’m alright, Sofia, I mean, I don’t need a bandage, dear.”

Ben struck a match and waited for the little girl to run over and blow out the flame, then with a smile he tossed the match away. “Perhaps you’re right. There’s a lot to do here, and Harry will need supervising while Olivia and Adam are away.”

Sofia leaned her elbows on her grandfathers knees and cupped her chin in the palms of her hands, her big eyes looked up into Ben’s face “When’s they coming back? I miss them, daddy always tells me a story before I go to bed and Uncle Hoss didn’t do that last night ‘cos he fell asleep before me.”

“Uncle Hoss was very tired. He isn’t used to having a little boy and a little girl to play with, you just plain tired him out.” Hester said with a laugh.

“I peeked in his eyes and they was all staring at me. He just snored so loud it made my ears ache.” Sofia pouted and still stared up at Ben who smiled “I suppose you want me to tell you a story, is that it?”

A big smile of delight brightened her face “Yes, please, and Hannah can sit with us and listen, can’t she, Aunt Hester?”

“If she can stay awake that long.” Hester replied as she left the room to go into the kitchen.

Sofia was content to stay where she was, which Ben found rather disconcerting, even more so when Hannah ran in, paused to watch what her cousin was doing and came and joined her so that Ben found himself the object to two pairs of adoring eyes as the little girls leaned upon his knees to gaze up at him.

They were disturbed by Hoss and Reuben arriving home, both looking rather hot. Hoss tossed his hat upon the bureau and unbuckled his gun belt, while Reuben just tossed his hat beside his Uncle’s and waited for Hoss to stroll into the room.

“Shucks, it’s hot out there.” Hoss wiped sweat from his brow and was followed by the boy who wiped his brow and nodded “It sure is hot, isn’t it, Uncle Hoss?”

“Yeah, it sure is.” Hoss said and then gave Reuben a sideways glance as though a trifle puzzled at this ‘echo’.

He rubbed his hands and stuck his hands in his pockets, his legs slightly astride, by his side Reuben did the same, jutting out his jaw just like his uncle did and staring at Ben. The two little girls grabbed at each others hand and ran off to their play. “Well, that’s settle, Pa, Candy’s coming along and you’re staying put, right thar.”

Ben rubbed his knees where the imprint of elbows could still be felt, “Are you sure you won’t need me to come along?”

“Pa, with that shoulder you need to rest and recuperate.” Hoss gave an emphatic nod, his shadow beside him did likewise, which Hoss was finding rather disconcerting.

With a sigh Ben got to his feet and walked over to the desk. He looked at the ledgers and a small stack of letters that needed his attention and nodded, he could see what he would be doing for the next few days and once again wished that his eldest son was home to share the task with him. He smiled briefly, they had been companionable times, sharing the desk while working together at the ledgers and discussing business while Hop Sing plied them with coffee.

Hester announced the meal was ready, the day was drawing to a close.

During the night Hester woke to hear the sound of crying, a childs voice crying in some distress. For a moment she wondered if her little daughter was having a bad dream and swung her legs over the side of the bed, by the time she had pushed her feet into her slippers she knew it wasn’t Hannah, but Sofia weeping outside her door. Hurrying out she discovered the little girl on the landing, crunched up against the wall with her head in her hands and crying pitifully.

“Sofia, it’s alright, why are you crying?”

The light from the candle gleamed a shallow light, but enough for the little girl to look up into her aunt’s face, she blinked “I want my mommy.”

“She’ll be home soon, sweetheart, come along, let’s get you into your bed.” she held out her hand and was grateful for the child not to put up any resistance as she trailed along beside her.

“When will mommy be home?”

“In a very few days.”

Sofia nodded as though she found that acceptable and crept back into the bed where she lay while Hester pulled the covers around her. She was surprised when the little girls arms cradled around her neck “Aunt Hester, is daddy coming home soon?”

“Very soon, darling.”

“With mommy?”

“No, not with mommy. But soon…”

The prettily shaped mouth trembled and tears welled up in the sleepy eyes “I want my daddy now.”

“He’ll be home soon, dear, I promise.” Hester knelt by the bed and held the childs hands in her own, “He’ll have bought you some lovely present as a surprise, you’ll see.”

“Don’t want no present. I want my … my daddy.” a sob punctuated her words and a tear dribbled down her face which Hester wiped away with her finger.

“I know, darling, but - well, Hannah needs you here now, her daddy will be going away soon, so she will be missing him like you miss your daddy.”

“Is Uncle Hoss going on a big ship too?” two brilliant green eyes opened wide, “Will he see daddy?”

“No, dear, Uncle Hoss is going with the cattle to sell them at market. Now, why not close your eyes and try to get back to sleep. You’re alright now, aren’t you?”

Sofia decided it was best to say nothing more. She closed her eyes as Hester suggested and with her aunt sitting by her side and holding her hand, she gradually fell back to sleep.

…………

In the ruins of one of the houses that had been partially destroyed in the fire Paul Martin covered the faces of two people, a young couple. He had been called in to see to them as they were in a high fever and their neighbours were concerned for their safety. The woman was due to have her first child and they had chosen to remain in the rather ricketty remains of their home than go elsewhere. He had covered the roof with a tarpaulin and had been slowly rebuilding since the fire.

“What do you think was wrong with them, doc?” Mrs Sylvester asked anxiously, drawing her shawl around her shoulders, and looking around her at the organised state of the place, “They were trying to get their home back in order for the baby. Hendrik was a clerk at the lumber yard, got the timber cheap in lieu of wages.” she picked up a china statuette, a survivor of the fire and carefully slipped it into her apron pocket, “It isn’t rabies, is it?”

“No, there have been no reports of mad dogs any where in the neighbourhood, I doubt it is rabies.”

“I wondered, when they started foaming at the mouth … I told my kids to stay clear, in case it was catching.”

“A wise precaution, Mrs. Sylvester, thank you.”

He closed the bag and walked slowly to the doorway which stood open to the street. Standing at the threshold he looked up and down where the previous year there had been a busy bustling thoroughfare, with houses and prim little picket fences here and there. He shook his head and walked to his buggy “I’ll get the undertaker to come immediately.”

She nodded, fingering the little statue in her pocket and then hurried back into the house to wait. By the time the two bodies had been taken to the city morgue Mrs Sylvester had collected quite a tidy horde of pretties from the house to transport over to her own.

In the surgery Jimmy Chang looked at Pauls crestfallen face and asked what had happened, to which Paul gave a short explanation before saying “The Town Council is dragging its heels on rebuilding the town. With so many ruins and places in disrepair and this heat, I wouldn’t be surprised if we’ll have more deaths than usual this year.”

Jimmy nodded and stood up to pick up his medical bag “I shall see you later, Dr. Martin. I have calls to make in China town.”

He passed Schofield on the way out and acknowledged him with a nod of the head. Schofield tossed his bad onto his desk and his hat followed, “Strange case …”

“What?” Paul turned from writing down notes about the last couple he had visited.

“A family I just visited, not one of them well. All showing different symptoms at the moment but probably due to order of contagion. I doubt if the father will live out the night but I’m hoping the mother will hold on, as well as the two children.”

“Whereabouts do they live?”

“In C Street.”

Paul sighed and returned to his notes, C Street was some distance from where he had just been, and in part of the town untouched by the fire.

The evening was closing in and he longed to get back to his little house. He had been on his own for so long now that it had become a haven, a retreat to turn to at the end of a long day, or when days trickled into nights and he staggered inside too weary to even take off his clothes. The demands upon a country doctor were great, especially one who was as dedicated to his work, and his township, as Paul Martin.

He looked over at Schofield who was peering through a microscope at something on a slide, a lamp burning close by his side. “Ever been married, Dr. Schofield?”

“No, never.” Schofield replied without looking up, “I didn’t have the time to run around after any woman. What about yourself?”

He asked without interest, he was too preoccupied with studying what was on the slide, the life that existed unseen by the human eye bt every bit as fascinating. Paul nodded and didn’t bother to answer, he picked up his hat “Good night, doctor.”

It had been a hot day. Tuesday 6^th June. He looked up and down the street and walked slowly, wearily to his buggy, his medical bag slapping against his leg. He had one foot on the step of the buggy when someone called his name and he turned to see Tom Bixter running towards him, “Dr. Martin, can you come? My wife … she’s awful sick.”

Paul nodded, and tried to forget his aching feet, the back that just wanted to cave in because it was too weary to be held erect anymore. “Get into the buggy, Tom, it will be quicker.”

“Thank you, Dr Martin, God bless you, thank you.”

Sweat glistened like a sheen upon the man’s face and he waved his face too and fro to create some air. “Real hot for this time of year, Dr Martin.”

Paul nodded and chewed his bottom lip, it was hot, unseasonably hot for so early in June.

The horse plodded on towards Bixter’s house where the two men clambered down but the wailing of someone inside the house was enough to tell them that they were already too late.

Chapter 72

The cab rocked to a standstill on the wharf side, an area so familiar to Adam now, and he waited for a moment before turning to the woman at his side whose hand he had held from the moment they had stepped into the vehicle. She had taken extra care to look her best for this occasion, her little straw bonnet with the flowers and ribbons sewn upon it, her very newest muslin dress, white with little flowers scattered here and there to match those on her bonnet and the pale green Spencer jacket that accentuated her figure so well, all combined made her look as beautiful as a spring day.

“You look beautiful.” he whispered and kissed the palm of her hand, very tenderly.

“Do you want me to stay here? Or shall I come out ..?”

“No, stay here. If I have to see you standing alone on the wharf I - I’ll be completely undone.” he took hold of her other hand now and again kissed that, his thumb rubbed against her wedding ring and he smiled shyly, “I love you so much, I can hardly bear the thought of you driving away from here, but - will you do so, quickly?”

“Of course.” she whispered and leaned towards him, kissing his cheek and then his lips, “Adam, I wish I could hold onto you forever.”

He said nothing to that, he knew the time was close to his having to leave her as already his trunk was being taken out of the boot of the cab. He looked down at her hands that he was holding so tightly in his own and pulled a wry grimace “You know, I never realised how hard it was …I used to stand on the deck and wait for my officers to leave their wives and sweethearts and think what on earth was keeping them from getting on that gangplank. I - I didn’t realise that they wanted to stretch the minutes and make them last for all the time in the world. They would join me on deck with blank faces, expressionless eyes and all I’d think was ‘About time, now let’s get on …’ I just didn’t stop to think how they’re hearts could have been breaking.”

Now she put her fingers to his lips “Don’t say anymore, my darling, I can’t bear it.”

He swallowed all the words he wanted to say now, and looked into those misty sea green eyes that had so captivated him all those months before, “I love you, Mrs Cartwright.”

She kissed him them and it tasted of tears but when they parted she was smiling and said “I’ll see you soon.”

“Don’t forget those letters…”

“No, I won’t.”

“And tell them - well, you know what to tell them.” he smiled, the dimples in his cheeks endearingly kissable, then he opened the door and stepped down onto the solid ground.

“Commodore.” the seamen handling his luggage stood erect and snapped a salute, which he acknowledged and told them to take his traps to the cabin, then he looked back into the cab where she sat looking at him.

“I’ll see you soon.”

She sent him a kiss and then he closed the door and turned to follow the seamen, his face expressionless and his eyes blank.

She huddled into the corner of the dark interior and felt the shudder of the vehicle as it moved forward. Through the window she saw the men in their respective uniforms going about their work, she heard their shouts and curses, the clatter of the chains that was being attached to boxes of all shapes and sizes and as the cab swung around the corner she looked out of the window and saw the graceful lines of the Shenandoah with her tall masts and the rigging and her husband walking slowly up the gangway to the deck.

………………

It was strange how calmly she could enter the Frobisher’s home and answer their questions as she removed her bonnet and jacket. It was hot, all the windows were open but there was no hint of a breeze to make the light curtains drift back and forth and she listened to Martha’s chatter with an ease that she would never have thought possible. It was as though she had wept herself empty and now she had to get on with life, get home to her children and keep busy.

……………….

The steward who was assigned as Adam’s personal valet and attendant was a man called George McGill. As quietly as possible he set about unpacking Adam’s personals, his clothing, his books, everything he had packed away so carefully. A package lay at the bottom which he set down for his Master to open as it was marked ‘Private and Personal.’ Once that was dealt with he prepared coffee knowing from experience that most Officers enjoyed some after the initial inspection and introduction to the crew.

This was taking place now and Adam inspected them with a fixed smile, looking for a familiar face or a recognisable name. There were several and with these he was able to share a small anecdote. It was all relaxed and yet formal. The men were weighing him up just as he was them. His opening address to them was sparse, they were to pull together, work well together, he had always had a crew of which he was proud, and hoped the men would make him just as proud. They were to cast off within the hour. Then he turned to the officers and was introduced to them, recalling the details he had read about them the previous evening. Afterwards he suggested they met less formally later in the day.

The gunner and his mate were introduced, saluted and nodded, the Sergeant at Arms stood aside for an inspection of the body of Marines of which there were 55. He met the cook, a Frenchman who had owned a fine restaurant in Paris before emigrating to America when in his teenage years and now promised to cook him the finest meals he had ever tasted. At last a familiar figure as Dr. McPherson came forward to shake his hands

“I never thought to see the day, sir. I’m so happy that all went well.”

“It’s good to see you again too, Doctor.”

“I met Dr. Daly shortly after he retired, he told me how well you had been when you left his ship, he was quite devastated when he learned how badly things had gone.”

“He did well, Doctor, but we’ll talk more later.” and with a nod and a smile Adam left the sick bay and proceeded, at last to his quarters.

McGill put the coffee on the table by the chair and Adam thanked him, removed his jacket and handed it over to the man and then noticed the package “Where did this come from?”

“Your belongings, sir. It was at the bottom of your trunk.”

Olivia. He smiled … and looked at the package as he recalled her insistance on putting away some of his personal items for him, and he very carefully began to unwrap it until found himself looking down at the seamans sweater. When, he pondered had she knitted this, and he ran his hands gently over the soft wool. He recognised it as part of the spun wool that Margarita had sent as a gift and about which Olivia had taken such delight. An envelope lay upon it and this he slowly picked up.

“Sir? Your coffee is getting cold, sir.”

“Yes, thank you, Mr McGill.”

He heard the door close and then took out the slip of paper. It smelled of her perfume and for a moment he was transported back to the time he had first noticed it, when they had danced together or was it that time when he had slept in her bed, injured, at the Double D.

“My darling

I don’t know where you will be going, perhaps it will be somewhere cold, perhaps not so you won’t need to wear this at all, but I wanted to send you something that will have been worked on by me so you will know that a lot of love has gone into every stitch.

I knit your initials above the hem of the body, and on the left sleeve are my own, so that they are close to your heart when you wear it. The Ponderosa pine is at the centre of the chest embellishment, flanked by ropes of cables, then ratlines. I wanted home and sea to be connected, sweetheart, because both are part of your life.

I shall be thinking of you, so often, every day. My prayers will be of you, and for you. When I look at the moon I shall wonder where you are, and if you will be looking at the moon with me from the deck of your ship.

I love you. Come home soon, keep safe… Olivia.”

There was another tap on the door and the first officer looked into the room, “Helmsman needs orders, sir?”

He followed the younger man and stepped up to the bridge where the Helmsman stood at his post by the wheel. He gave the man a nod and a smile, “Mr. Lancing - set your course for 21* 30’North and 80 degrees 00’ west.

He looked up into the bluest of skies and watched as the sails unfurled and began to fill, looking at the wharf side he noticed that the buggy had gone and followed the course it would have taken with his eyes with the full knowledge that she had gone. His throat tightened imperceptibly so he looked around the bridge at the officers there, “To your duties, men.”

Once again he looked up at the sails as they filled and then watched as Lancing turned the wheel and the great hawsers were removed from the bollards to free her movement so that her head gradually turned and she made her graceful way from the harbour. Involuntarily he glanced to where the Ainola had gone into her death throes and of which there was no longer any sign of her except in his memory.

The sound of the anchors being cranked on board and into position rattled in his ears, a different language which he was going have to relearn all over again.

Chapter 73

The brown paper bag was carried with considerable care into the class room and amid the curious gaze of his fellow class mates Reuben set his precious burden onto his desk. He was positively wriggling with excitement and waiting for the moment when Miss Brandon said he could go and present his story to the class.

Every child upon occasion had the opportunity to share some event in their life by means of a small essay which would be read out to the class. Miss Brandon had agreed the previous evening that Reuben could relate his today, and unbeknown to anyone in the family he had stopped Hank on the way to school to let him run into his house and find his surprise.

“What is it?” Ralph whispered but Reuben just wriggled with delight a little more and put a finger to his lips “You’ll see.” he said.

A few of the bigger boys were back at school now. Their fathers had no need for them now until later in the growing season. They sat at the back and jostled one another, occasionally they would become more boisterous and be told by Miss Brandon to settle down or go and stand in the corner.

The lessons for the day went on and on, and Reuben was wondering if he would ever get to tell his story when Miss Brandon stood up from the desk and clapped her hands for silence. She got it immediately

“As you know Billy McBride will no longer be attending class here as his grandfather, Colonel Webb, has taken him back east to live with his family there. I’m sure you’ll all agree that it is a wonderful conclusion to his adventures here.”

There was a ripple of murmurs, not everyone really thought the word adventures a good choice but no one really could think of anything better. Now she smiled and beckoned to Reuben, “For our story today, Reuben Cartwright is going to tell us something special that has happened to his family.”

Someone at the back whispered to his neighbour and there was a sniggering laugh which Miss Brandon soon silenced by sending the culprit into the corner to stand with his face to the wall. A rather humiliating lesson for such a lad who was suffering all the negatives of his transition into adolescence.

Reuben carried his package to Miss Brandon’s desk and placed it there, then removed the paper. There were gasps and ‘ooh’s’ throughout the class as the model ship was displayed in all its glory. It had been carefully made for Adam and Olivia as a wedding gift by the carpenters of the Shenandoah, a perfect replica of the ship, compete with billowing sails.

“Oh Reuben, it’s beautiful.” Miss Brandon said with her hands clasped to her chest in amazement that the boy would have been allowed to bring such a thing to school, “It’s so - delicate.” she sighed and then smiled at the boy who was obviously bursting to relate his story. “Go ahead, Reuben, tell us your news.”

“This ship is a model of the ship my Pa is on now. It is called The Shenandoah. My Pa is a Commodore, that means, he is an officer and more important than a Captain. He has got some medals. My Pa is sailing on this ship now and going away a long way and my Ma is coming back without him because she can’t go with him on the ship. There are a lot of men on the ship, hundreds of them, and there are big guns too, all along here.” and he pointed to where the gun ports showed on the miniature vessel.

Everyone craned their necks to look at the ship, some pushing and shoving took place but eventually they all settled down to wait for Reubens next bit of the story. He drew in his breath “My Grandad Ben Cartwright was a Masters Mate on a ship and he sailed to a lot of countries but my Pa has been to Egypt and rided on a camel. He said a camel is known as the ship of the desert because people get sick on them.”

“Go on, Reuben.” Miss Brandon said with a smile as the boy faltered and frowned, and then shook his head “I ain’t got no more to tell, Miss.”

“Well, that was a beautiful story, and you must be very proud of your Pa.” she touched his shoulder and told him to sit down. “I’ll put the ship here on the shelf so we can all admire it until you get to take it home, Reuben. Children, you are not to touch it, it’s very delicate.” she smiled as Reuben sat down “Well done, Reuben.” and she clapped her hands and everyone, except the boy in the corner, clapped as well. Reuben nearly burst with pride.

……………….

In his cabin Adam read through the information regarding his assignment. The island of Cuba was 90miles from the United States and was one of the first of the islands in the Pacific to have been settled by the Spanish. It was still under Spanish domination.

In 1868 a Carlos Manuel de Cespedes, a sugar planter freed his slaves to fight with him for a free Cuba. The conflict was still ongoing. The United States did not recognise the new Cuban Government although many European and Latin American nations had done so. In November 1875 U.S. Secretary of State Fish announced that he was seeking to restore peace in Cuba. Such peace would include neither the abolition of slavery nor the independence of the island.

On January 18. Joaquín Jovellar was appointed Captain-General of Cuba and In March Tomas Estrada Palma was elected President of the Republic. In Baragua, Brigadier General Antonio Maceo led his army of activists against the Spanish army that was supporting the new President.

Adam was to bring the Shenandoah to Santiago de Cuba, the second most important city on the island after Havana. It’s sea port was vital for the islands, with a bay connection to the Caribbean Sea. His assignment was to deliver letters from Fish to the President in order to open up the way for negotiations that would end the war.

He gave a rather wry grunt as he read through one paragraph of Porter’s letter to him

“It is possible that Antonio Maceo may already know that Secretary of State Hamilton Fish wishes to bring this war to a close and will attempt to get the letters from you. It would be wise not to let him get them, in fact, it would be better if he were dead than get hold of the letters.”

As he folded the papers away and locked them into the drawer of his desk, he remembered the way Porter had looked and said to him that the task would not be at all onerous, yet these papers had already been written and signed. Adam jingled the keys in his hand for a moment before slipping them into his pocket. Nothing, he thought to himself as he rose to his feet, nothing came without some risk. He pulled on his jacket and made his way to the upper deck.

……………………..

“Can we see it?” “Can’t we get a bit closer?” “Is your pa really on a ship like that?”

How Reuben basked in the glow of such popularity. In some small measure it took away some of the pain he was feeling at the loss of his father. It had been so sudden, so swift, that his leaving had made Reuben cry, and he still felt a little sick at the memory of how he had ran into the stable and was just about to climb up to the hay loft when Adam had caught up with him, turned him around and held him close. “Reuben, son, listen to me now.” he had turned the boys face towards him and looked into the tear filled hazel eyes, “Listen to me,” he repeated, “It doesn’t matter where I am or how long I am away from home, I won’t ever stop loving you, you know that, don’t you?”

“But I don’t want you to go … I don’t want you to leave me.”

“Oh Reuben,“ he had held the boy close and stroked the unruly mop of hair, “Going away now is something that has to be done, it isn’t something I want to do, but it’s what I have to do. You’ll understand better when you get older.”

Now as the children clamoured around him Reuben felt pride well up inside him, and he answered the children as best he could, pointing to various parts of the ship, and explaining to them what each of them was, just as Adam had explained it to him all those months ago.

The boy who had been forced to stand in the corner was called David Watson, the son of a farming couple who lived from one year to the next dependent on each years crop to ensure a decent living for the next. He was an only child, made to work hard at his chores and often helping doing a mans job when he got home in the evenings. The humiliation he had suffered earlier weighed heavy in his heart and now he elbowed his way through the group of smaller children to look at the boat. Then he looked at Reuben,

“He ain’t your Pa.” he said with a sneer and his pale eyes looking like two marbles.

“What do you mean?” Reuben stammered, and he looked from the boy to his model, then back again, “Yes, he is.”

“No, he ain’t. You’re only living with him because he married your Ma. You don’t count none, you ain’t nothing, he just wanted to have your Ma, that’s all.”

Annie plucked at Reuben’s sleeve and whispered “Ignore him.” Ralph said the same, but Reuben felt hurt, so hurt, that it was impossible to ignore. He knew some of what David said was right, but not all of it. He did count, he did mean something, he was a Cartwright.

“You’re lying.” He could hardly believe he’d said it, his thin little boys voice rose above the other voices and suddenly there was total silence.

“I ain’t no liar. Everyone knows it’s true.”

“It isn’t -”

“And he ain’t on no boat like that, he’s just gone away, probably never going to come back either now he’s lumbered with two kids like you and that sister of yours.”

That was too much for the little boy who stared at David’s retreating back until it blurred, Annie was tugging at his jacket but all he wanted to do was hit him, hit that David so hard that he wouldn’t be able to get up and say that lies ever again. So he began to run, his legs carried him forward until he could jump and had leapt upon the taller and bigger boys back. Then the punching started, with fists flying and punches landing.

Hank moved from the wagon so fast he nearly tripped over his own feet as he ran towards the boys. The small crowd of children, some in tears and regrettably some cheering the fight on, separated to let him through so that he could grab David and pull him to one side, and when the boy lunged forward for another attempt to thrash Reuben Hank stood stolidly in front of him with a clenched fist of his own to wave about that soon sent him slinking off. His small gang of supporters followed him from the school yard and the children gradually dispersed.

Lydia Brandon was already on her knees beside Reuben who was sprawled out on the ground. Rubbing his hands she felt panic, her head was spinning and she her insides felt like they were jangling around and when Hank came to kneel beside her she said “I think we need to get him to the doctor.”

Hank agreed with a swiftness that frightened her even more, she hurried to lock up the school room and then followed Hank as he carried the boy to the wagon, then lay him down on the boards. “I’ll get in beside him.”

“Yes, Miss, if you wouldn’t mind.”

Reuben forced open one eye and saw Lydia looking down at him, he wondered if he were still in bed and dreaming. There was no pain just a strange sleepiness, then he remembered that he had brought the ship to school and told the class about his Pa, but after that he couldn’t remember anything at all.

Jimmy Chang was the only doctor available and when Hank carried Reuben into the surgery he promptly shut the door and put a closed notice up so that the examination couldn’t be interrupted “Put him here, please. Thank you.”

How small Reuben looked as he lay upon the couch. While Jimmy washed his hands Hank removed the boys shoes and unbuttoned his shirt, he winced at the sight of the bruising and looked over at Lydia who turned her head away and began to cry.

Jimmy’s examination took quite a while after which he sat down at his desk and wrote a prescription which he asked Hank to go and collect from the pharmacy right away.

“Is it very - I mean - how bad is it?” Lydia whispered.

“I am sorry. He is badly beaten. Thankfully there is no fracturing of the skull, and his spleen is unharmed, that is what I feared the most. Broken ribs which I have bound up. I think there is some concussion.”

“Shall we take him to the hospital?”

Jimmy looked at her and seemed suddenly swept into some very deep thinking before he said very slowly “No. He needs to get home to his own bed.” he looked over to the door as Hank reappeared “Ah, Mr Myers, thank you so much. I have given him sedative already. Now you must take him home and give Mr. Ben this letter which I write for you to take.”

“Doc, excuse me for saying so but its quite a trip to the Ponderosa and the boards of the wagon won’t be comfortable.”

Jimmy nodded and sat down at his desk where he wrote his letter to Ben, sealed it and handed it to Hank. Then he turned to Lydia and bowed in his customary oriental manner “Honourable Miss, I must ask you to take the boy home to the Ponderosa, carry him gently like precious vase. I give you blanket for him to be wrapped carefully.”

Lydia’s mouth went dry and she looked at Hank and then at the boy who was so pale, so bruised. Jimmy had bandaged him so much that he looked like a miniscule Mummy of the Egyptian kind. She nodded “Of course, I’ll do anything to help, anything at all.”

Jimmy thanked her gently, and then told her to tell Ben that he would notify Dr Martin who would no doubt which to see the boy himself.

…………………

Hester carried Hannah into the house and held her close. Close behind her trailed Sofia who had been quite bemused by the things she had seen during that day. Standing in the buggy she had waited for Aunt Hester to say good bye to Uncle Hoss, who had held her and kissed her lots of times and then had hugged and kissed Hannah. Then Uncle Hoss had shaken Uncle Joe’s hand up and down, up and down, and then Gran’pa’s. Sofia was nearly asleep by the time Uncle Hoss and Candy rode down towards the men and the cattle - lots and lots of cattle, she couldn’t see where they began or where they ended there were so many - and there was the chuck wagon and then Uncle Hoss had shouted something and they moved away.

Aunty Hester had then cried a little bit, dabbing at her eyes and telling her and Hannah not to be upset as Hoss would be back very soon, then she had cried some more. Uncle Joe and Gran’pa rode up and said they were going to check over at the south pasture and had ridden away. Hester dabbed her eyes again and looked at the little girls “We’ll go and see Aunty Ann, you’ll be able to play with Rosie and David.”

Ann Canady and her children had been with them all morning watching as the cattle and the men had gathered together, but she had turned her buggy around to get back to her house as soon as Candy had ridden away. As it was she was only just getting down from the buggy with Rosie and David when Hester had arrived with Hannah and Sofia, and while the two women chattered and had cups of tea, the children had lemonade and cookies.

………………….

There were no sign of tears when Hester drove back to the Ponderosa and got down from the buggy. She had just swung Hannah down to the ground and was turning to help Sofia when Hop Sing came running towards her, “Missy you come quick big trouble with Master Reuben.”

Chapter 74

As soon as Hester heard the horses entering the yard she picked up her skirts and ran outside so that before the men had a chance to dismount she had hold of the reins to Cinnamon, “Pa - Pa, somethings wrong with Reuben.”

Joe and Ben were out of the saddles immediately and hurrying into the house where they found the two little girls sitting hand in hand on the settee. Both of them were very quiet, with big eyes which they turned to Ben and Joe, Sofia began to cry immediately.

“Where’s Reuben?” Ben asked and was told he was upstairs in his bed, upon which he and Joe took the stairs two at a time with Hester hurrying behind them.

Hop Sing moved away from the bed as Ben and Joe entered. He looked at his masters face and then turned away, while Ben and Joe approached the little boy who was groaning in pain. Sofia had followed Hester and was crying, little sobs that made her shoulders shake staring at the little boy as though too scared to move from the spot. Ben heard her and took hold of Hester’s hand “Take Sofia out of here, Hester.”

Sofia protested when Hester went to take her hand, she put her hands behind her back and wept “I want to stay with Boo-Boo.”

“Come along, Sofia, please.” Hester cried and when the little girl just tightened her lips together and shook her head Joe went from behind and picked her up, and talking to her very gently carried her out and down to the sitting room where she began to cry and turned to Hester for comfort

“Do you know what happened?” Joe asked Hester while trying to soothe the little girl by stroking her hair and patting her back.

“No, not really. Hop Sing was here when Hank and Miss Brandon arrived with him. Miss Brandon had him in a blanket and said that Dr. Chang said he had to got to bed right away, he’d been given a sedative. She said something about a big boy had hit him.”

“Why? What big boy?”

“I don’t know, Joe. Jimmy’s written a letter to Pa explaining things. He said that Paul would come out later to check on him.”

Joe’s lips clamped tight, he nodded and then hurried to the bed room where Ben was bathing Reuben’s face with a wet cloth, something that Hester must have been doing prior to their arrival. “How is he?”

“In a bad way. He’s been badly beaten, I think there’s some bones broken, but with children it’s more difficult to deal with. I’ll feel better about it when Paul Martin’s been here to see to him”

“Hester said that Hank and Miss Brandon took him to see the doctor, Jimmy checked him over and gave him a sedative.” Joe paused and looked down at the boy before remembering to mention that Jimmy had written a letter.

“So Hop Sing says, it’s on my desk.”

At the sound of Ben’s voice Reuben stirred slightly, turned his head and opened his eyes. Immediately Ben was by his side “It’s alright, Reuben, it’s Gran’pa.”

The boy’s hand reached out towards Ben and he took hold of it immediately, “What happened, can you remember?”

“The boy in the corner… he said Pa wasn’t … wasn’t …” the lips trembled and the eyes fluttered shut.

Ben said nothing but wrung out the cloth and wiped his face again, which caused the boy to re-open his eyes “He said Pa isn’t my Pa, and he doesn’t care about me.”

“You know that isn’t true, Reuben.”

“He’s gone. He left us.”

“That doesn’t mean he isn’t your Pa, or that he’s stopped loving you. He’s had to go away, just like Hoss has had to leave little Hannah here.”

Reuben stared at Ben as though desperate to believe what he was saying then the eyelids fluttered and closed again. Ben touched the boy’s brow with the back of his hand, then looked over at Hop Sing who nodded and returned to sit by the boy’s bedside while Ben very quietly went downstairs.

As soon as Ben appeared little Sofia came running back into the room and flung herself at her grandfather, holding him closely “I want mommy, I want my mommy.” the child sobbed. He whispered “I know, I know..hush now, hush.” until his shoulder became too painful and he had to hand the child back to Hester who tried to soothe her; from the kitchen came the wails of another child, Hannah left alone and frightened by the things she was seeing around her and unable to comprehend any bit of it.

He had just opened the letter that Jimmy had written when the door opened and Miss Brandon and Paul Martin came into the room, “Where is he?” Paul asked and immediately followed Ben up to where Reuben was situated.

Miss Brandon stood just inside the room holding onto a package wrapped in brown paper, she turned to Hester “I wanted to come and see if he was alright. Dr Martin said I could come, so I wrapped this up and brought it with me.”

Hester nodded, took the package without any comprehension as to what it was and looked up at the stairs as though willing the men to come back down to give them some good news. Lydia stood by the settee clasping and unclasping her hands together . Sofia was calmer now, it seemed as though the appearance of the doctor and teacher had put a different dimension on things, even to her point of view. She allowed herself to be put down and then joined Hannah.

As soon as Ben appeared Lydia hurried over to speak to him “I’m so sorry, Mr. Cartwright.”

Ben nodded and said nothing, but Joe wasn’t prepared to keep quiet as he turned to her “What happened? He’s been beaten - beaten badly -” and she interrupted “I know, I know, I’m so sorry, I wasn’t there when it started, Annie Sales came screaming that David Watson was hurting Reuben, I got there almost at the same time as Hank arrived to pull David away from him. Several of the children said that Reuben started it.”

“Aw, come on, you must think we’re stupid to believe that?” Joe snapped with his hazel eyes sparking green. “A boy of seven?”

“David wasn’t very happy at being punished during the day, and he said some unkind and unpleasant things to Reuben, about Adam, and the child attacked him. I think at first David was just trying to get Reuben off of him, but it proved harder than he thought and he lost his temper and - and momentarily forgot the difference in their size and age.”

The conversation lulled when Paul joined them, he was putting his jacket back on and although he looked serious he appeared far more in control of the situation having seen the boy himself, “I’ve given him another sedative. He has some injuries that for a child of his age aren’t as easy to bear as a more adult child. Several broken ribs, and I suspect a concussion, but he hasn’t got a fractured skull and nor has he ruptured his spleen which is what I feared most. I think you’ll find that Dr Chang has written that all down in his letter to you. I’ve re-bandaged him up and I’ll come by to check him over again in a few days time.”

“But he will recover …” Hester cried.

“In time. Children bounce back quite quickly, he’ll need to stay in bed and have a few days pampering. No school for a while I’m afraid.” he smiled and then picked up his bag .

Lydia Brandon felt as though her legs were about to give way and with Ben’s help managed to reach the blue chair before sitting down very heavily upon it. “It was such a shame, he’d been so proud of giving his talk and showing everyone the ship that Adam was commanding.”

“What ship?” Ben asked in a slightly deeper tone of voice which made Lydia look surprised, she turned and pointed to the package she had arrived with, “He said it was a model of the ship called the Shenandoah.”

Ben shook his head and looked at Hester who also shook her head, then he looked at Lydia, “He’s been strictly forbidden to touch that ship, and if he were not so unwell now he’d be taking a walk to the barn right now.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t realise …he gave no indication that he had taken it without permission.”

Hester shook her head again and then quietly said she would make everyone some tea and returned to the kitchen. Sofia and Hannah clung close to Ben who had taken his chair and now found the little girls hanging onto him and as soon as he was settled they were on his knees hugging into him. “They must have been upset at seeing Reuben so battered and bruised.”

“Yes, they were.” he stroked Hannah’s dark head of hair and smiled at her, “I suppose you’ll be teaching the pair of them in a few years time.”

“If the school board renew my contract.” she replied and glanced over at the stairs, “I can’t tell you how sorry I am.”

In the kitchen Hester was blowing her nose and wiping her eyes free from the tears she had wept. Since Hoss had left she just felt miserable and alone. Sitting in the buggy with Hannah and Sofia beside her she had bravely waved him off, telling the little girls to wave and blow kisses, which they did with an enthusiasm that must have made Hoss’ heart swell with pride.

It occurred to her that she was being selfish, that if this was how she felt then how much worse must it be for Olivia, only nine months married and being parted from her husband for who knew how long. She felt the baby moving again and placed a hand over where the movement had been, how she wished, longed, for Hoss to have been there to place his large gentle hand over hers and enjoy that sensation.

She gave herself a little mental shake, told herself she was over emotional because she was expecting a baby, she was tired, she was distressed and she missed her husband. She blew her nose again and picked up the tray and carried it into the other room.

Paul was sitting on the settee beside Joe and as she poured out the tea she listened to Ben telling the good doctor what he thought about Dr. Schofield. “Call himself a doctor, for heavens sake, one of Winnemucca’s medicine men could teach him better doctoring skills that the ones he’s got, or rather, doesn’t possess.”

“What he lacks in bedside manner, Ben, he more than makes up for in - er - other ways.” Paul said lamely and he smiled at Hester as he took the cup and saucer from her, “His references were wonderful.”

“I daresay they were, they had to write something and exaggerate it as much as possible in order for you to accept him.”

Paul sighed and sipped his tea, then looked at Hester “Reuben will be much better soon. He needs to sleep. The sedative I’ve given him will knock him out for twenty four hours at least by which time the worse of the pain will have subsided. Keep him warm and comfortable.”

“What about the concussion?” she asked as she took the cup and saucer he handed back to her.

“I don’t think that will cause any undue problems but should you feel worried about it at all, send someone in to get me. Don’t risk bringing him into town.”

He looked at Lydia and smiled “Well, Miss Brandon, I have other patients to attend to and I should be getting you back into town,, so if you’re ready?” he paused then as he walked towards the bureau to pick up his hat and jacket “He may have bad dreams for a little while, don’t be too worried about them, it often happens with the medication I’ve given him. There’s a bottle on the desk for you to give him every four hours.”

The door closed behind them leaving each of the adults there feeling exhausted from the turmoil. Joe sighed, smiled and ruffled his hair as he scratched his head “Well, seems like Reuben’s more a Cartwright than he realises, taking on more than he can chew…” he chuckled and after dropping a kiss on Hannah and Sofia’s heads, kissed Hester on the cheek, and then retrieved his hat, “I’ll see you both tomorrow.”

“Give our love to Mary Ann.” Hester cried.

Sofia quickly slid from Ben’s knee “I cumin with you, I want to see Dan-Dan.”

Hester seized her by the hand “Don’t you want to go and see your brother? He’s upstairs all alone and fast asleep.”

Sofia paused, then nodded “Bye-bye Uncle Joe.”

He chuckled and watched her fondly as she ran up the stairs to the upper landing, “Well, goodnight Pa, Hester.”

Once again the door closed and Hester leaned back in her chair and released her breath “Oh dear, Pa, what on earth shall we tell Olivia?”

………………..

Martha had a way about her that could be very persuasive but Olivia didn’t really find it too difficult to succumb to her wheedling, especially was most of what Martha was saying was quite true, she was very tired, she was very emotional and she really did need to be with people who cared about her and not bumping along in a stagecoach either alone or with strangers.

So a telegram was sent to Virginia City requesting Joe to meet her at the depot a day later than planned. Whatever misgivings she had about sending it were made up by the fussing she was given by the Frobishers who treated her like the daughter they never had, and when she went to bed that night she was able to hug into the pillow that her husband had rested his head upon previously and feel some small measure of contentment as a result.

In the morning she breakfasted at her leisure with Martha, and then a cab came to collect her and her belongings from their home to take her to the stagecoach depot. Waving her hand to the dear woman she contemplated that the trip back would seem less daunting having cut out one of the over night stops.

“Mind your step now, M’am.” Pete took her elbow and assisted her into the stagecoach, and she found her seat and sat down, then looked around her at the other passengers. There was another woman of her own age who looked friendly and smiled over at her with a nod of her head. There was a young couple obviously newly weds, who seemed to have eyes only for one another, although they did glance at her and nod an acknowledgement. She leaned back, folded her hands in her lap and waited for the coach to leap forward as it usually did as the horses lunged into the start of the journey.

She watched the houses passing her by, people hurrying to their various destinations, and smiled. Soon she would be home with her children. Harry would show off the new bathroom which would be in immaculate working condition and she would cook the men a grand meal to celebrate. That, she decided, was the very least she could do for them.

……………

Harry stood by the door and watched as Joe and Ben walked around the room. “So it’s really finished then?” Ben said, rubbing his finger along the length of the bath tub.

“Yes, Mr. Cartwright, finished and in good working order.”

“Can I?” Joe asked as his hand hovered over one of the taps of the sink and his eyes widened in delight as water gushed out immediately.

“Amazing.” Ben shook his head and then pulled the chain on the cistern “Amazing.” he repeated.

“Er - Mr. Adam left me some plans you might look at -.”

“Plans? Why?” Joe asked naively and Ben smiled and shook his head, “Plans?”

“Yes, if you would like to come this way, gents, I’ll show you.”

He spread them out carefully on Olivia’s kitchen table and the two Cartwrights leaned forward and scrutinised them carefully, following the guidance of his finger as he showed them whereabouts a similar room could be built onto their own homes. It was obvious that Adam had left home well prepared for every eventuality… both men nodded, Ben murmured that if work could be done on the Ponderosa while Hoss was away it would give Hester something to occupy her mind, while Joe said he’d discuss it with Mary Ann but thought they could cope with what they had for the time being, although it would be more than pleasant not to have to go to the outhouse during the winter.

Harry rolled each set of plans up very carefully and with an air of smugness about his person, handed them to their respective owners. “We’ll confirm the arrangements, Harry.” Ben was heard to say as he left Adam’s house followed by his youngest son who was already anticipating Mary Ann’s delight at the changes to come.

Chapter 75

Ben spent that night beside Reuben’s bed in a chair in which he had sat for many similar occasions in the past. Sometimes when the boy opened his eyes and turned to look around him he would see the dark shape of the man seated there and feel a measure of comfort before drifting back to sleep again. When the fevers attacked him it was Ben’s cool hand that held his, wiped his face with a cool cloth and spoon fed him his medication that would send him back into a tranquil sleep.

Sometimes he dreamt that he was looking down at the model ship he had taken to school, and somehow, either he got smaller and smaller or the ship became bigger and bigger but he would suddenly be on board and walking the deck and looking up at the masts until he could see the blue sky above, and then he would call out ‘Pa - Pa?’

At times like that Ben would lean forward and talk softly to him, reassuring him that he was safe, that it was all going to be alright. In his dream Reuben would continue to walk the deck and follow the corridors, on and on they would wind opening a door here, and a door elsewhere until he would open his eyes and his anxious grandfather would be looking down at him and assuring him that he was safe.

The knock on the door was light, and when it opened no one was surprised to see Mary Ann with Daniel in her arms, followed by Joe. Hester rose from the table, for it was breakfast time, and hurried to greet her with a kiss on the cheek, “How is he?”

Joe’s eyes spoke for him, asking the same question and Hester nodded “It’s alright, he got through the night and slept reasonably soundly.” she took Daniel into her arms while Mary Ann removed her light overcoat, for the heat was already becoming intolerable outside. “Come and have some coffee. Have you had breakfast?”

“Yes, thank you.” Mary Ann sat down and smiled at Hannah and Sofia.

“A cup of coffee would be fine, thank you, Hester. Is Pa upstairs?” Joe asked glancing towards the stairs as he spoke

“Yes, he stayed with Reuben all night.” Hester replied and Joe nodded “Just as I thought he would, he never left us for a moment when we were ill or injured.”

“When do you go into town to collect Olivia, Joe?” Hester passed a cup and saucer to him, and then poured one out for Mary Ann. “Girls, sit still now, and finish your breakfast.”

“I had a telegram to say it would be the day after tomorrow. She decided to take yesterday mornings stage rather than the afternoon stage the previous day.” he glanced up as Ben’s footsteps could be heard on the stairs, “Morning, Pa.”

“Morning, son. Mary Ann.” he smiled at them and at Hester, “Well, Reuben told me the full story during the night. Seems this David Watson told him that Adam wasn’t his real father and that he’s only putting up with him and his sister because he wanted to marry his mother. Reuben didn’t like what he heard and took a run at him.”

“So he did start the fight?” Joe grinned.

“Under provocation.” Ben replied as he sat down for his breakfast.

Sofia wriggled down from her chair “Can I go and see Reuben now?”

“Me too.” Hannah asked.

Ben nodded so Hester told them they could, but to be quiet and if he were still asleep to come right down. Joe looked at his father “You looked tired, Pa.”

“I am, son. Look, I’m going to have a rest for a while after I’ve eaten. If you could catch up on some accounts while I’m doing that I’d be mighty obliged.”

“With this heat I’d be more than glad to do so,” Joe replied and looked at Mary Ann, “what are you going to do, sweet heart?”

“Well, we were going to Ann today to carry on repairing the quilt that Katya ruined, but now I’m not so sure.” she looked at Hester who looked at Ben.

“Seems to me a good idea.” Ben said immediately, “Hop Sing and I can keep an eye on the boy, while you and the girls -”

“I know, leave you with some peace and quiet.” Hester laughed and looked over to Sofia and Hannah who came and looked rather downcast having found Reuben sound asleep.

…………….

At the Nesbitts way station Olivia and her fellow passengers were eating their first meal of the day. It was a quiet meal as each of them had been used to better sleeping arrangements than the one they’d had provided for them so were still half asleep, aching and wishing the journey long over.

“Is it always this hot?” complained the lady traveller to Olivia who assured her that it was not but was unusually so for that time of the year. “This is my first trip to Virginia City.” was the reply, “I’m on my way to get married.”

The young newly weds flashed a smile over to her and then looked into each others eyes before starting on their meal. Olivia thought of her own husband and the longing for him was so overwhelming that she had to excuse herself from the table and go for a walk outside. As she sat down on the old wickerwork chair that seemed a permanent feature of the Nesbitts porch, she closed her eyes and waited for the sickness to drift off, just the wishing and hoping and yearning for him had been so powerful that it had physically turned her stomach over.

It was so unfair, she told herself, she hadn’t been married very long, not really, it was so unfair that he had been summoned away so soon.

……………..

Candy Canady cast the dregs of his coffee into the fire and then dropped the tin cup into the water that Sam set aside for the washing up. He then strolled over to Hoss and watched as the big man carefully shaved off the stubble on his face “Why not just leave it to grow.” he suggested, rubbing a hand over the dark stubble on his own chin.

“Nah, I prefer to be clean shaven.” Hoss replied as he brought the cut throat razor down across the soap on his face, “Looks better.”

Candy just shrugged and turned to look over at the herd of cattle grazing nearby. It had been good these years with the Ponderosa, he mused, and with Ann and the children. Wonderful years. Sure, there were times when he thought of travelling on, taking the children and Ann to explore new territories, but what was the point, he would ask himself, when all that they have was right there.

He returned to Hoss and sat down on a log that many years ago had been chopped down by some ambitious traveller and was now slowly rotting away and making its own contribution to the earth. “So, Hoss, what’s it to be? A boy or a girl?”

“Huh?” Hoss glanced down at him and then grinned “Oh that, sure I don’t know, it’s kinda cute having a little girl around the place, so I wouldn’t mind another but then again I kinda like how Reuben is with Adam, so wouldn’t mind having a son.” he paused in the midst of scraping off the soap and stubble “Another Cartwright.” he sighed, releasing his breath slowly, then he smiled again “Would be good company for little Daniel, and your David.”

“I can see the three of them already, The Three Musketeers of the Ponderosa.” Candy chuckled and then rose to his feet “Well, I guess I’d best be getting the men mustered.”

………………

Dr Martin wrote down some notes in his writing tablet and then stood in the middle of the road looking up and down the ruined blackened buildings. He shook his head and walked slowly along the road until he found some of the sidewalk that was safe to walk along. He finally reached his buggy and clambered aboard, then urged the beast forwards to his next appointment.

Dr. Chang pulled a sheet over the face of the old man and looked anxiously at the weeping woman who sat by the side of the body. He put a comforting hand on her shoulder and in Cantonese told her that her husband was now with his ancestors. It did little to comfort her. The daughter came and held out his hat “Thank you, honourable doctor. I know you did all you could for him.”

“I am sorry, it was not enough.” Jimmy replied and with a low bow he left the house, put his hat on and hurried to his surgery.

Schofield was already there mumbling under his breath and he didn’t look up from totting up some figures when the door closed and Jimmy resumed his seat. Five minutes later Paul also entered the building and removed his coat and hat. He looked at the two men and cleared his throat “Well, any more casualties?”

“Several.” Schofield replied turning around to face him, “One family of four, leaving an infant of six months surviving. Also a young man in B street and an old man in D street. All died from the same symptoms.”

“Jimmy?”

“An elderly gentleman in the Chinese quarter and Mrs Sylvester in C Street.”

“I have just left another building in C Street where two people were dead by the time I got there, and one - I hope - will survive.” he sighed “As I am not sure what we are dealing with I can only pray I gave him the right medication.”

“We must get the Town Council to act and do something before there is an epidemic.”

Schofield said bluntly, “If this death toll increases like this we could be guilty of some terrible disease running amok everywhere through the territory.”

“They’ll want definite proof before they’ll do anything, spending money is something they find profoundly difficult to do when in the interests of other people than themselves.” Paul sighed.

“Hmmm, disease is no respector of persons, Dr. Martin.” Schofield scoffed, “Certainly the poorer elements suffer the most mainly due to poorer diet, poorer sanitation and accommodation. Otherwise it can kill a rich man as swiftly as any other.”

“I’ll visit the Mayor now, and discuss it with him. He’s a sensible man, at times.” Paul said and poured himself some water which he drank slowly, “It’s so hot, that’s certainly one of the things that is contributing to this illness.”

“Having those ruins is another, people living among them with no proper sanitation.” Scofield snarled, “I passed a place today that had excrement, human excrement, drying in the pathway I had to walk. Heavens, it’s like living in the medieval times.”

Jimmy cast a look of despair at the man and then looked at Paul “When I was a boy living here, before the town was built and it was just tarpaulin shanties and filth ran down the gutters there was an epidemic then, wasn’t there?”

“Yes, typhoid.” Paul nodded, “I hope to goodness this isn’t another case like it…”

Chapter 76

A light breeze rustled the papers on the desk while a pen rolled too and fro with the motion of the ship. George McGill knocked and entered the Commodore’s cabin with a tray laden with a hot drink which he placed carefully on the table. He looked around him and nodded, he liked the fact that ‘his gentleman’ was orderly and clean, and also well read. He was in the act of turning down the bed when the door opened and Adam entered followed by his first officer, Lieutenant Hardy. McGill quietly removed himself and later returned with another hot drink which was placed on a table close to Hardy’s elbow.

A nod from Adam without breaking his conversation with Hardy was sufficient for McGill to feel he had done well, some of the Captains he had served in the past had not been so willing to show gratitude. Hardy waited for the door to close and continued to make his observations about his time spent at the Naval Acadamy, and enlightened Adam further to the Admiral’s personality.

He was in his forties, tall and lanky with a lean face and very blue eyes that went well with his fair hair which was receding. He struck Adam as a capable officer, perhaps a man who took himself a little too seriously but sincere and willing to accept direction. This second evening at sea and they were now beginning to relax in each other’s company, sometimes such a thing could take weeks but the fact that it had happened so early was good for the ships company as a whole.

Hardy picked up his drink and after taking some told Adam that he had heard about the Commodore’s adventures in the China Sea with Jiang Peng, “There were rumours that you had died, I’m more than glad to find that they were wrong.”

Adam smiled slightly but made no comment instead he swung the conversation to Hardy’s own experiences, all of which had been carried out well. “I noticed that you had been to Cuba before?”

“Yes, sir, five years ago. This rebellion was more or less getting underway then, Captain Macauley was a good man and carried his commission out well, but De Céspedes, who started all the trouble wanted American favour at the time and tried to get Macauley to give assurances on behalf of our Government to give their backing which of course was impossible without prior authorisation from our Government . We only just managed to get out alive.”

“Do you speak Spanish?”

“Yes, fluently. I was Captain Macauley’s translator.”

Adam smiled “I’m afraid I shall have to call on you for the same purpose, Hardy. My Spanish is very limited.”

They lapsed into silence as four bells sounded, Hardy stood up “It’s my trick this evening, I shall have to ask you to excuse me, sir. Thank you.”

Adam rose to his feet and waited for Hardy to leave before resuming his seat and his drink. After a moment he walked to the desk and took out the letters that contained his orders, somehow he felt sure that something in them was missing!

The ship was making good progress and he relaxed into his chair and listened to the sounds of the water washing against the hull, the snap of the sails in the breeze, the smells of the sea and the air and the ship itself were so different to that of the Baltimore that he was more than grateful to have been assigned the Shenandoah, there was a connection between the sea and the wooden ships that the ‘iron sides’ could never possess.

Eventually he rose to his feet and walked to the port hole and looked out to the sea which was oily black, above him the stars shone brilliantly and with a sigh he returned to the bed and pulled off his boots. What would they be doing now, he pondered, would Olivia be home yet? Would the children miss him?

He thought of them as he removed his pants and shirt, he thought of Sofia with her engaging ways and her smiles, the way she had clung to him “Don’t go away, don’t go away” she had sobbed and Reuben had tried to be so manly even though he was so confused and unsure of what to do, what to say. Olivia, oh Olivia… he sunk down on the bed and bowed his head so that it rested upon his hand “Olivia …”

…………..

Reuben opened his eyes and looked around the dark room. He lay very still in the bed and wondered if he were quite alone. He waited for the horrible sick feeling to come again, the taste that left him feeling sour and dry afterwards but nothing happened, although his head did still ache and when he touched his mouth with his tongue it still hurt.

A movement on the bed and he jumped “Who’s that?” he whispered.

“Reu - ben?”

Sofia’s voice, a little break in the word and then she was moving closer to him, “It’s me.”

“Where are we?”

“Gran’pa’s house. Gran’pa’s here, he’s gone to sleep.”

“Is Ma home? Pa?”

“No. Uncle Joe’s going to get Ma in the morning. Pa is on his ship, did you forget?”

Reuben closed his eyes, his heart felt heavy, more than anything he wanted to see his Pa, hear that deep voice tell him that he had done well, have that rough hug that meant he was pleased with him. He choked down tears “How long you bin here?”

“Lots of time. It’s cold. Can I get in bed with you?”

“Sure, but keep still, I sure feel odd.” he frowned “Did I break some bones?”

“Yes.”

“What ones?”

“I don’t know, they put you all bandaged up. Aunty Hester cried and so did Aunty Mary Ann.”

Reuben waited for her to settle in beside him, her feet were cold but somehow that was quite refreshing against his burning skin. He closed his eyes and remembered the fight, he remembered how it felt, and how surprised he was that it had hurt so much. He shivered and tried not to cry, not now that his sister was cuddled up so close to him.

Ben woke up with a start and turned up the flame in the lamp, and when he saw the two heads resting so close together on the pillow he smiled and wondered when it was that the little girl had managed to creep him without his knowing. He got to his feet and covered them with the quilt and then walked over to the window to look at the sky … so many stars, so many. If anything had happened to Reuben how would they ever have explained it to Olivia, or to Adam?

Adam … he shook his head and asked himself yet again why his son had chosen a naval career when he had left the Ponderosa all those years ago. Why couldn’t he have become an architect somewhere or an engineer, something that would have kept him close to home. He wondered how Olivia would manage without her husband and chided himself for being so doubtful of her abilities when she had raised her children alone for some years before she had ever met Adam.

He stretched and returned to his chair and sat down, it creaked beneath his weight. He thought of Hester in the room across the hall who would be missing her husband so much, and he tried to remember how many times little Hannah had gone to the door to look for her daddy, puzzled and perplexed when he had never been there to greet her.

Life was so full of changes, he thought, and bowed his head in order to pray for the safe protection of the men whom he loved so much.

……………..

The morning dawned and Olivia was awakened by the crowing of a cockerel. She felt excited, there was a bubble of exhileration inside herself as she quickly pulled on her shoes, today she would be home again, she would see her children. Oh how she had missed them, missed them so much. She refused to let her mind dwell on Adam’s absence, it was something that had to be faced and there was little point in wallowing in self pity now. To do so would be only creating further pain and misery for herself and those she loved.

On the Ponderosa the house was coming to life as Hop Sing collected the eggs, and rushed around to get breakfast ready. Upstairs Hester was washing and looking at her expanding waistline in the mirror. She counted the months on her fingers, the baby would be an October baby, she had roughly five months to go. She resigned herself to the fact that she would never be slim and trim again.

After brushing her hair vigorously she went to see to her daughter and got her washed and dressed, marvelling as she so often did at the little girls prettiness and her colouring. Once dressed she went in to see to Sofia. Her stomach turned over at the sight of the empty rumpled bed, but upon rushing in to see Ben whom she knew would be with Reuben, and seeing Sofia sleepily rubbing her eyes beside a still sleeping little boy she didn’t know whether to scold her or hug her.

At Joe’s house Mrs O’Flannery was removing the used plates and leaving the young couple to spend a bit of time together before Joe got to work. He played a little with Daniel while Mary Ann checked over the list of shopping she needed that Joe was to collect from town. She smiled over at him “You won’t forget to pick up Olivia will you?”

“If she’s on the stage today then Ill be bringing her back home with me.”. Joe grinned at her and stood up with Daniel in his arms, “He’s getting heavier.”

“Of course, and taller… well, longer.”

Daniel winked, which quite surprised him so he did it again. Then he blew a few bubbles and yawned, his fists waved about more controllably now but still not really able to hit what he was aiming for, so he often hit himself in the face by mistake, this time however he hit Joe on the chin which made his father laugh with the result that the infant gurgled a laugh back.

“Well, I had better get going.” Joe reluctantly handed his son back to Mary Ann, and kissed his brow and then kissed her, he stroked her cheek gently, “Take care now.”

“I will,” she followed him to the door, “Hester thought it a good idea to go and visit Marcy, she’ll be on her own as well with Luke gone, so O’Flannery is coming along as well. They were good friends when they lived together in Olivia’s house in San Francisco.”

“That’s a good idea“ Joe said with his mind more on trying to locate his hat and then finding it he slipped it on, then reached for his gun belt which he buckled on around his slim hips. “I‘ll see you soon, Mary.”

She lingered over the kiss he gave her and smiling at him she stood at the doorway and waved.

As Joe’s wagon rolled into town the Town Council closed their meeting with the towns doctors. They had made their decision, the town was to be in quarantine from that moment on. Roy and his deputies were given their duties along with the law enforcement officers from the other districts of the town. Storekeepers were warned to keep their stock available but to be careful about giving out too much, to be prepared to ration it out, while pharmacists were asked to check their stock of medications and to make out a list of anything they needed so that their requirements could be telegraphed to outlying towns in the hope that they would deliver them to the collecting points outside of town.

Joe Cartwright checked his list of goods and obtained them with no trouble. The stores he went to had still to be notified of what was happening to the town and although he sensed that there was a strange atmosphere there he put it down to the fact that the heat was wearing everyone down.

Lydia Brandon and other schoolteachers throughout town had been told to send the children from outside straight back and to tell any child they met along the way to head right back home. After that they were to close the schools until further notice.

Joe went into the Bucket of Blood and ordered a pint of beer and kept his eye on the clock. He looked around the saloon and then at Charley, “Very quiet in here today, Charley, what’s going on ?”

“I ain’t sure myself, Joe.” Charley polished a glass and set it back down on the counter, “There’s been a lot of sickness about and I know the doctors are meeting with the Town Council to see what they can do about it.”

“What kind of sickness?” Joe asked his glass hovering and glancing again at the clock.

“Not sure.” Charley shrugged and called over to a newcomer “Everything alright, Mr Jackson?”

“Yes, thanks. Some beer, Charley. Hi,Joe, how are things on the Ponderosa?”

“Alright thanks, Mr. Jackson. What’s this about sickness in town?”

Jackson rubbed his chin with his thumb “Yeah, I heard there was some kind of fever, quite a few coming down with it.”

Joe drank his beer more quickly than usual and walked quickly to the newspaper office, he rapped on Dan DeQuille’s door and pushed it open only to find it empty “Where is he?”

“At the Town Hall, Mr. Cartwright.” the other man said and continued with his task of setting out the letters on the press.

The stage coach arrived ahead of time and Olivia stepped down and looked around her. There was no sign of Joe. She smiled gratefully at Pete as he brought her luggage down and wished her well. Then she stood and waited, paced the sidewalk a little, ten steps one way, ten steps the other, and then she saw him hurrying towards her.

“Joe -” she cried, a smile on her face but there was no welcome smile on his as he grabbed at her luggage and seized her elbow “Come on, Olivia, hurry up, we’ve got to get out of here… now.”

Chapter 77

Roy Coffee was standing at the wagon with a rifle resting in the crook of his arm, and his face looking grim. People were hurrying from the stores, talking in whispers, casting fearful looks around them as they made their way to their homes. Dan DeQuille was striding into his offices looking deathly pale and his notepad loose in his grip.

“Joe. Mrs Cartwright - Olivia.” Roy stepped forward as Joe slowed to a saunter and nodded a greeting, behind him, confused and anxious Olivia did the same.

“Er - what’s going on, Roy?” Joe asked as he put a hand on the bridle of one of the horses.

“I’m sorry, but you can’t leave town.”

“I don’t understand.” Olivia said calmly, “I’ve only just arrived here.”

Roy dithered, it was obvious that he was in two minds about letting them leave but finally he shook his head “I’m sorry. I can’t let you go. Strict quarantine orders as from half an hour ago.”

“Then the stage should have been prevented from coming into town.” Olivia said and wondered if it were obvious that her heart was beating so furiously that she could see the frills on her blouse fluttering.

“I’m sorry, Olivia, and you’re right but we’re still getting things established here. The children were sent home soon as they arrived this morning, and we can only hope that they won’t be taking any illness back with them to their homes.”

“Reuben?” Olivia cried, and grabbed at Joe’s arms but he just gave a weak smile and patted her hand “He’s alright, he didn’t go to school today.”

Her eyes widened “He didn’t go into school … but why not, Joe? Why not? Is he ill? Please say he isn’t ill?”

Joe placed a placating hand on her arm and assured her that her son was not ill, “Thank goodness.” she sighed and looked at Roy, “But why can’t we go home as well?”

“Fact is, Joe, you were talking to Charley and Mr. Jackson earlier, weren’t you?”

“Ye -e- es.”

“Well, Charley was took ill within the hour, he’s in the doctors right now. We’re having to treat you as a likely future patient. Mrs Cartwright, you’ve been in contact with Joe -.”

They looked at one another, Joe then looked at Roy “But I feel fine, perfectly alright.”

“So did Charley an hour ago.” Roy frowned, “We’re getting blankets and bedding from the stores and turning the school, church, and some of the hotels into temporary hospitals. The doctors are going to need all the help they can get …” the look he gave Olivia was so obvious that she could only nod dumbly and look at Joe who dropped her luggage into the back of the wagon, “I’ll take this round to the livery. What can I do, Roy?”

Roy relaxed and put out a hand which Joe shook warmly although his face was set grim “Until this is over, Joe, you won’t be able to leave town, you know that, don’t you?”

He nodded, and forced himself not to think of his wife and child, his family on the Ponderosa. . “Are you sure she can’t go home? She hasn’t seen her children for a few days and …”

“I’m sorry, Joe, no one leaves town.” Roy glanced across the road to the Sazarac “There’s going to be a meeting over there in half an hours time…the Mayor and Dr Martin are going to explain what’s going on.”

Roy left them then and for a moment they just stood and looked blankly at one another, the Olivia shook her head “I can’t believe this is happening, Joe.”

“It’ll be alright, Livvy.” he replied with his usual optimism, it’ll blow over soon, you’ll see.”

She looked over in the direction of the surgery and sighed, “I - I had best go and see if I can be of any help but, Joe, why wasn’t Reuben at school?”

Joe cleared his throat “Strictly speaking he isn’t ill, Olivia. Don’t worry, he’s alright, but he got into a fight with one of the boys and Pa thought it best to keep him home.”

“He’s been hurt, hasn’t he?” her voice quivered and she blinked rapidly to stop tears falling, “Hasn’t he?”

“We got Dr. Paul round to see him and he’ll be alright, honestly, Olivia, he’ll be alright. In fact, he’s probably a lot safer where he is than some of the children here in town right now.”

He stared at her, hard, meaningful, and slowly she realised what he was saying, that a little boy in bed at the Ponderosa, cared for and pampered by a doting family would soon recover whereas some of the children here in town could well die in far less pleasant conditions. “Thank you, Joe. I’ll go and see what I can do now.”

He nodded, and squeezed her hand gently between his own before releasing her and watching as she walked across the street to the surgery.

Dr Schofield looked at the woman who was framed in the doorway and frowned, “Yes?”

“The sheriff told me to report here for - work.”

He nodded “Come in. Sit down with the other ladies.”

Jimmy smiled at her and stood up, bowed “How did Honourable Commodore get on, Missy Cartwright?”

“Very well, thank you.” she said and felt pain shiver in her heart, “I’ll sit over there with Mrs. Hammond.”

He bowed politely again and returned to his task. Paul Martin appeared and looked at the six women and then stood in front of them “We’ve an epidemic on our hands. Not sure yet or where it comes from, that’s what we’re working on. There will be an increasing number of sick people and we’re making up beds hoping that we’ll be able to contain them all. We need you ladies - and others who I am sure will come along to help - to do simple nursing of those who come in. Mrs Dixon if you take charge of the sick in the International House. Mrs Cartwright, if you would take charge of those sick in the church. Mrs Peterson - those in the school house.”

Jimmy now stood up and bowed to the remaining two ladies “It is necessary all bedding brought from the sick areas are boiled. Please, honourable ladies, please take charge of that ..”

“Won’t the laundries be doing that?” Mrs Smithson said only for Paul to step in and say that they were keeping everything confined to the areas close to the temporary hospitals.

“Other women will come and volunteer their services I’m sure,” Schofield said in his brusque manner “You will have to organise shifts among yourselves to make sure you get adequate sleep.” he turned as Ma Hopkins and some others came into the building making the room feel cramped and hot “Mrs Hopkins, if you would kindly take over cooking for everyone.”

“Who - exactly - is everyone?” Mrs Hopkins replied and looked at the all with a steely eye.

Olivia thought she was going to faint, she stood up and walked to the window where some air was drifting in, and she wondered if even that was going to be safe, and then she thought of her children “Dr. Martin, how safe are the ranches?”

“Perfectly safe if they remain where they are.” Schofield snapped before Paul could open his mouth, “There are going to be areas where they can come and leave provisions, and messages, but it will be some miles out of town. The last thing we need is having to travel beyond town to treat anyone.”

Olivia nodded and decided that she now needed to sit down, unfortunately her seat had been taken by Mrs Hopkins. Again Olivia stared out of the window and thought of her children, and then of Adam, and she had to turn her head away to stop tears welling up. When she turned back several of the women were weeping, unashamedly so, and Schofield was saying that they had no idea how long the illness would last for, whether they would find a cure for it, which would depend on their finding out what it was, or whether it would run its course.

The Sazarac was crowded by people and the Mayor had to address them from the top step of the stairs. He had a loud booming voice so what he said was not lost to them, nor was Paul’s . It all amounted to a lot of time ahead of them waiting and hoping …and dying.

Men were allocated work, those that could or would, some pleaded reasons for doing other things, others felt they should just get on as best as normal, keeping the stores open, the saloons running but Paul said that they wanted to segregate people more, not have them meeting and mingling together so that the illness could spread.

Every one there was given a list of things to do that DeQuille had printed out… check for vermin, rats etc to be shot on the spot and burned. People were to adapt healthier methods of toilet disposal. The first sign of illness whether a rash, headache, fever and they were to get to the hospitals for attention.

The pharmacies were to write out lists of medication that was to be needed and the telegraph clerk was to send out requests to the pharmacies in other town for deliveries of what was needed.

Men were given areas to work in keeping people out of town, or in! Anyone enquiring about those in town were to be given up to date information about what was happening. Fresh water supplies would be required. Fresh meat a necessity.

Everyone was urged to work together and do the very best they could in the face of this silent enemy.

…………….

David Riley hurried over to Olivia as she was walking to the church and greeted her warmly, “I’ve some letters for you, Mrs Cartwright. They came while you were away.”

He passed them into her hands and smiled, then with a wave of the hand he hurried away to deliver letters to some others he had seen. She continued walking to her assigned post and once there helped with moving the pews and setting up beds, makeshift though they were but as the bedding arrived so new beds were made up. A young woman she had never met before approached her and gave a timid smile “I’m Clara Simmonds.”

“I’m Olivia Cartwright.” they shook hands rather formally and then smiled, “I was just looking at these beds and hoping that they will never be used.”

“Do you think it will be as bad as they say?” Clara whispered as though afraid to say anything out loud, she was just sixteen years old and had left school only a few months earlier.

“I’m praying it won’t be.” Olivia said and turned to take another armful of sheets.

Clara’s mother joined them not long after, and another lady, Jean Manson. They set to with a will, cleaning out dusty corners, scrubbing the pews that were to be utilised as shelves for whatever else they needed. Joe arrived with another man bearing buckets, basins, vases, brooms and clothes. He looked fleetingly at Olivia, they exchanged smiles and then he was gone.

……………..

Ben opened the door to George Watson, a big man, a hard working honest man. He stood on the threshold twisting his hat nervously between his fingers and looked at Ben with a straight stare, beside him stood his son, David, looking equally ill at ease and bearing the bruises of a fight on his chin and knuckles “I brought David here to apologise on account of what he did to the young un.”

“Come on in, George. David.”

Both of them fidgeted and looked uncomfortable then George shook his head “No. We won’t come in …David … speak up for yerself, boy.”

David swallowed and cleared his throat “I’m real sorry, Mr. Cartwright. I just lost my temper. I never expected him to come at me like he did, he jest came out of the blue, fists flying and kicking he was. But I shouldn’t have hurt him like I did.”

“No, you shouldn’t have done, boy.” Ben said, his lips straggled into a line which was an echo of the coldness in his eyes.

“Fact is, sir, I - I felt - feel - real ashamed of myself. I’m really sorry.”

“Do you want to go and tell him yourself?” Ben gestured towards the inside of the house but David shook his head,

“No, sir. Fact is we was all sent back from school. I weren’t even too sure I should come but - but I didn’t want to not have said sorry if anything happens.”

Ben’s face went slightly paler, and he caught his breath “What do you mean? What could ‘happen’?”

“You didn’t know?” George looked surprised and then shrugged “All the kids living out of town were sent home even before they had got off the wagons, some kids never even got to school ‘cause the others on the way home told ‘em not to bother. Fact is there’s some illness hit the town, bad. They’ve put it in quarantine. I rode out to find out what was going on for myself and they’ve got it sealed off. I was given this though…” he handed Ben the lists being handed to out of towners and watched the other ranchers face. Ben nodded and thanked them for coming and letting him know even while his mind was torn up with a thousand anxieties.

“I owed it to you, after what David did to the boy. He got a thrashing from me, I can assure you. I’m mighty sorry. How is the lad?”

“He’s recovering. Thanks.”

They shook hands and the two of them shuffled off, feeling more awkward than ever as they mounted their horses and rode back to their own place.

It was some time later that Hester and Mary Ann with the children arrived home. Ann continued on with Rosie and little David to their own home. They were laughing as they entered the house but their smiles faded away when they saw Ben’s face “What’s wrong?” Hester whispered, “Has something happened to Reuben.”

“No. Come along inside. Hester my dear, sit down, and you, Mary Ann…”

……………….

Olivia found a quiet corner and looked at her letters, one looked slightly a familiar hand and she opened it slowly trying to think of who it could be from:

“Dearest Olivia

I read about your marriage in the papers a while ago but was so busy that I didn’t get the chance to write to you sooner.

I am happily married now, Olivia, I never thought it possible to find a man who was so totally the opposite of Booth, but Jarvis is, he’s so kind and thoughtful. I live in France, a small town called Lille. Jarvis has lived here since a youth and is teaching me to speak French.

I can’t tell you how happy I am, Olivia. I want you to be as happy with your dear husband.

I heard what happened to Booth, it’s strange how news travels, also about dear Abigail‘s passing. She was such a good dear woman and I didn’t appreciate it, or you, as much as I should have done. Thank you, dear Olivia, thank you so much for tolerating such a selfish bitter soul as I was then.

I wish you joy and happiness

Morgan .”

Olivia slipped the envelope into her purse and then opened the other letter :

“Dear Adam and Olivia

I want you to now how happy we all are here in our new surroundings. Lilith is doing so well at school. It seems that all that happened back in Virginia City was just a dream to her.

David is doing well, his hearing is not nearly as bad as it was and he can lip read so well that it is hardly possible that he is nearly deaf.

I have another son, John and I are calling him Paul for obvious reasons. We are so happy, and wish you all the joy in the world.

Barbara and John Martin”

She put that also in her purse and stood up. Two letters from two happy women wishing her joy and happiness. She looked around her and shook her head, she had a feeling that joy and happiness were going to be in short supply for the time being.

Chapter 78

Everyone jumped, startled at the sound of a horse coming quickly into the yard. Ben was on his feet and hurrying to the door to open it even before Jake was halfway across the porch and stepped aside for the man to enter the house. Jake pulled off his hat as he stepped inside, the perspiration beading his face was evidence at how hard he had been riding. He swallowed hard and looked at them all, even Hop Sing standing waiting to hear. He cleared his throat “Seems they’ve a quarantine around the whole town. If you want to get messages in or food delivered you have to go to one of the places -”

“We know that,” Ben said sharply, “Just tell us what I asked you to find out.”

Jake scratched his head and nodded “Well, the stagecoach got in almost the same time they sealed the town off. Seems Mrs Olivia and Joe, they’re not able to get out.”

“But they’re not sick,” Mary Ann cried out and she grabbed hold of Hester’s hand “Joe wasn’t sick, he’s not ill. He only went in for some stores and to meet Livvy. Tell them, Ben … can’t you?”

“Hush dear,” Ben answered and then after stroking her head and patting her shoulder for a while he turned back to Jake “Anything else?”

“There’s not much to tell you, Mr. Cartwright. You can write messages, but not receive any in case the paper -” his voice trailed off, then he nodded as though just remembering something “They’ve got volunteers organised in makeshift hospitals around the town. Clem told me that Mrs Cartwright was working in one of them and Joe was going to be given duties too. If you want to talk to anyone you can make arrangements the day before with whoever’s on duty to meet up the following day. That’s all I can recall, sir.”

“You did well, thank you, Jake.”

Mary Ann was crying now on Hester’s shoulder and for a moment Ben was at a loss as to what to say, or what to do until suddenly she stopped, sat up and with great determination of will forced herself to calm down, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have been so stupid. I just - just couldn’t stop myself.”

“It’s alright, it’s perfectly understandable.” Hester said, “Look, why not stay here tonight with us. Isnt that right, Pa?”

“Would that be better for you, child?” Ben said gently but she shook her head, her stubborn little chin wobbled a little but she mustered a smile as she placed a hand on his,

“No, Pa. I’ll go home with Daniel and let Flannel know what’s going on. Tomorrow I’ll go to town and ask to see Joe. I’ll go every day if I have to.” she squeezed her eyes tight as thought forcing the tears to retreat and then stood up, brushed her skirt straight and kissed Hester “Thank you, Hester. Good night, Pa.” she picked her baby up and turned to go and smiled at Hop Sing, “Good night, Hop Sing.”

Hester and Ben watched her get into her rig and drive slowly out of the yard. It was early evening now and the sun was as hot as it had been at mid-day.

“Tomorrow I’ll go to town with Mary Ann, Pa.” Hester said, “If that’s alright with you?”

Ben frowned and shook his head “No, I’d rather you didn’t go, Hester. You have the baby to think of, and Hannah.”

“Ben, some of the men have been to town over the past few days, Harry was here yesterday with the men from town, if they have the illness -” but she stopped when Ben put his hand to her mouth, “Please, Ben?”

“I’ll be going into Carson City to send a cable to Hoss. I won’t tell him what’s happening here as I don’t want to alarm him, but if we want to receive news from him we’ll need to let him know to send information there. I think it may be better if you went to see Ann tomorrow and see if she and the children are alright. Would you do that, for me?”

She looked at him, at the anxious eyes and nodded, “Yes, very well, if you’d prefer that… what about Adam? Are you going to send a cable to him as well?”

“Not yet.” Ben said, “He has more than enough concerns on his shoulders as it is, I don’t want him to be burdened with any more just now.”

It was at that point that they turned at the sound of a sob and realised that little Sofia had been crouched by the settee, how long for, no one knew, but the tears were trickling down her cheeks and when Ben picked her up she put her face into his shoulder and wept “Isn’t mommy coming home, isn’t she?”

“Not just yet, sweetheart.” Ben said quietly, as he gently carried her upstairs, “Shall we go and see how Reuben is, he may want something to eat now. Aren’t you hungry?”

“Nooo, I want my mommy and daddy.” Sofia replied with a quavering voice and stuck her thumb in her mouth.

Reuben was in that transition state between sleep and wakefulness, he rubbed his eyes and finally managed to focus on Ben, “Gran’pa, I heard a horse?”

“Aunt Mary Ann was going home, nothing for you to worry about.” Ben replied as he lowered Sofia onto the bed.

“I thought it was Ma. Or Pa.”

Sofia began to wail then and Ben shook his head, “Sofia, stop crying now, there’s a good girl.”

“I want mommy and daddy.” the little girl said once again, “I want them home, I don’t want them away from here.”

………….

Men were carrying the sick into the church now, some came on their own two feet but only too grateful to collapse down onto one of the beds. Men, women and children were brought in on stretchers, carried in wrapped in blankets, by evenings fall there were nine adults and five children in a high fever for Olivia and the other women to tend to, in the other designated areas for nursing there were others being taken.

Food was brought in for them to eat, and for the patients something that the doctors felt would line their stomachs and perhaps strengthen them for the ordeal ahead. Most couldn’t eat it, didn’t even realise it was being put to their mouths they were in such high delirium. Others who ate a few mouthfuls swiftly vomited it back. Water that had been boiled with some salt and glucose in it was spooned into their mouths instead.

Mrs Sherman came and tapped Olivia on the shoulder “My dear, it’s time for you to get some rest.”

Olivia looked at the clock, it was eight o’clock in the evening and outside it was like a summers day. She walked slowly to where she had been told she could sleep for the night until her shift started at eight o’clock the next morning. She was already exhausted. The heat, the smells, the constant demand on her for some attention to the sick for so many hours wearied her beyond anything she had known before, and when she looked across at the other women being relieved of their shift she wondered if she resembled them, and the older women looked even wearier.

“Olivia?” Joe’s voice broke through the numbness that seemed to fill her head and she turned to him with relief as he came and grabbed at her hand “Are you alright?”

“Just tired.”

“How has it been? Any deaths yet?” he paused and then showed her a note pad “I’ve to make a note of the deaths …” his voice trailed off, “for the undertaker.”

“Two deaths … Abel and Jenny Griffiths, father and daughter.” she whispered, “But I think there will be more tonight.” she looked up at him, “Do they know yet what it is?”

“Only what it isn’t.” Joe said quietly as he walked alongside her, “someone said it was plague because of the number of rats they’ve already killed, but the doctors said it wasn’t, the symptoms don’t tally.”

“Where are you sleeping tonight, Joe?”

“At the Whitney House. What about you?”

“Same place.”

He smiled and nodded “I’ll see you there later.”

“I’ll probably be asleep.” she mustered a smile and raised a hand in farewell as he ran to the undertakers. She had only gone another few paces when Dave Riley called her and waved a slip of paper as he approached,

“A cable came for you, Mrs.Cartwright.” he smiled and winked as he passed it over, and she nodded knowing that he would already know its contents having had to write it down as it came over the wire.

“Thank you.” she whispered and she looked at it as she walked along with the dust clouding around her feet and the hem of her skirt.

“DEAREST - DESTINATION CUBA - SHALL SEE YOU SOON - I LOVE YOU ALWAYS - ADAM”

At the Whitney House the staff there led the women to a large room where beds had been arranged for them, four women to a room. On the floor above rooms had been set aside for the men. The proper moral standards still had to be maintained. As one of the staff members said as she led them to the over warm room they still had a large number of visitors staying at the hotel who were trapped there due to the sickness. The number of rooms available were limited.

Olivia fell onto her bed which was close to a window that was slightly open. A very light breeze drifted over her but she didn’t appreciate it for long as she was almost immediately asleep the cable from Adam still clasped tightly in her hand.

…………………..

The Shenandoah sped her way on course to Santiago Bay, her sails billowed out with the breeze behind her and Adam left the bridge in the capable hands of the helmsman, Lancing, and the second Lieutenant Jethro Dekker. McGill had a light supper already prepared for him in his cabin and a glass of wine to accompany it. He removed his jacket and loosened his cravat and collar before sitting down.

The book he was reading was a Spanish phrase book and he was studying it carefully while eating when there was a light knock on the door “Enter”

Eaun McPherson stepped inside and waited for Adam to indicate a chair for him to sit down, “Would you like some wine, doctor?”

“No, no thank you.”

“Is everything alright?” Adam pushed the table to one side, picked up his glass and leaned into the chair, “Nothing to report?”

“Nothing…I’m pleased to say. It’s been a pleasant trip so far, and a quiet one. I’ve known some a lot busier than this.”

“Well, I can’t promise, Doctor, but it could be like this for the complete voyage.” Adam smiled and drank more of the wine. “So what have to come here to say?”

“Really nothing, I just wondered if you still enjoyed a game of chess of an evening.”

Adam smiled, obviously lack of patients made the evenings long and boring for the ships’ doctor, he nodded and indicated where the chess board was and waited for Eaun to set it all out, “Very well, Doctor, let battle commence…”

McPherson smiled “I must warn you, I have had lessons since our last game.”

“Really, who from?”

“O’Brien.”

Adam laughed at that and as the game commenced their conversation turned to their old friends and associates, of past adventures and present friends. Outside the dark sea shone as a million stars spanned the heavens and the moon sailed generously bright in the sky.

Chapter 79

Another night without Olivia by his side, and the longing for her was so strong that Adam had no hope of getting any sleep. He rolled out of the bed and dressed himself slowly, pulling on the sweater that she had knitted him, smelling her perfume and feeling the love and desire for her knot in his stomach as a result.

He went onto the upper deck and leaned against the bulwarks to watch the water as it rushed against the side of the ship. Several deep gulps of air, even though warm, was refreshing and folding his arms he leaned on them to gaze up at the sky and observe the moon. Years ago he and Ben had agreed they would share time together in their different locations to look upon that amazing beacon of light and remember one another, now just recently he had made the same agreement with another and as he gazed into the silvery orb he wondered what she was doing and imagined her now looking fondly down at the children as they slept in their beds.

Hoss, he knew, would be snoring loudly in his blanket roll, his saddle would be his pillow and his feet would be as close to the fire as he could get them. He smiled as he thought of what the coming days would bring for his brother, and father - for he was unaware of the change of plans -, he thought of the heat, the flies, the smell of hundreds of cattle and their excrement. He remembered the long days he had endured it all, and shook his head at the memories.

He could hear voices from the deck below and without intending to pry wondered what his men would be talking about, perhaps how they missed their own wives, their children. He would have walked away but knew the sound of his foot steps would indicate a listener of what, perhaps, was a private conversation. He bowed his head now and allowed the words to drift upwards.

“I tell you, Forbes, I’d not be on this voyage if’n I’d known we were coming this away. I ain’t a superstitious man but there are things happen in these waters.”

“What kind of things?” the voice of a youngster, thin and immature.

“Ships disappear. They talk of waves so high that it seems the whole world would be swallowed up in ‘em. Not many live to tell the tale but those who do …” the silence spoke plainly for itself.

There were sounds of men shuffling their feet, the youth asked another there if it were true “I heard the same stories.” came the answer, “But I don’t pay no heed to ‘em. You can get rough seas anywhere.”

“Not like these though. Listen,” the speaker lowered his voice “They reckon that fathoms down below there’s the lost city of Atlantis.* You heard about that now, ain’tcha?”

“Yeah, well, kind of….” a murmur of other voices agreed and someone ventured to say it was just a myth, a legend of something that had never existed.

“Oh it existed alright,” another man said, “They found things that come up in the fishing nets. Things that could only come from an ancient city.”

“But what does that matter,” the youth asked, “How come it’s something to be afraid of..”

“No ones afraid.” the first speaker said rather more loudly and the boy reminded him of how he had said he wouldn’t have signed on had he known where they were headed, “Ah well, that wasn’t because I was afraid, no, it as because I was being cautious.”

There was some chuckling then, and on the upper deck Adam smiled and stroked his chin as he recalled the legends of the lost city, and the artefacts that had been found over many years.

“Look,” one of the men said matter of factly, “hundreds of boats and ships sail these ships and no harm comes to them, so stop being such a Jonah, and putting the fear of whatever up the lad. There’s no harm coming to this ship, the Shenandoah is one of the finest in the fleet.”

“And the Commodore is too, I sailed with him before when we went to Alaska, never a finer gentleman or officer than him.”

“Aye,” several murmurs of agreement followed and there were the sounds of footsteps retreating, the group were breaking up. The sound of the bell rang, two bells, men would be changing their ‘tricks’ (shifts), some to fall happily to bed, some to have nightmares, and others to take up their duties.

Adam remained where he was for a moment or so longer. He thought of the rumours and myths of those seas upon which they were sailing and remembered how not so long ago it was a hot bed of pirates and buccaneers, of picaroons and cold hearted killers. Times change but rumours persist, and with that thought in mind he returned to his cabin.

………

Olivia looked up at the moon and wrapped her arms protectively around her, pulling her shawl closer. Where was he, she wondered, what would he be thinking now, would there be thoughts of her, of course there would be, and she smiled briefly, of course there would be she repeated to herself.

She turned at the sound of footsteps and relaxed when Joe walked towards her, he took off his hat and wiped his brow on the back of his hand “It’s still hot.”

“Yes, even hotter in there.” she looked towards the building and sighed before looking back at the moon, “Adam and I agreed that each night we would take the time to look up at the moon and think of the other. I wonder where he is now.”

“Mmm, probably doing exactly the same as you.” Joe took her elbow and led her to a bench upon which they sat, “Mary Ann and I, we have the same agreement when we’re apart, it’s a link, isn’t it?”

“They must all be so worried about what’s happening here. Joe, it seems so unfair that we got here just as they closed the town down.”

“There were others caught out just the same.” Joe flicked his hat from one hand to the other and looked down between his legs at the ground “How are things in there?”

“Not good. Whatever this illness is, it has a strong hold already. Most are people from the shanty town, and the part of town where the fire had been at its worse.”

“I had to bury some children today.” Joe whispered and the catch in his throat preluded a battle with himself not to cry, as it was he released shuddering sigh which prompted her to put her hand on his arm. “Their mother died a little later … not knowing … hoping that they were still alive.”

“Oh Joe.” she bowed her head and the tears came and flowed freely, “I’m so glad Reuben and Sofia are safe at home.”

“I was going to bring Sofia in with me, she’s missed you so much, I thought it would be a good idea for her to be the first person you saw, but she didn’t want to leave Reuben.”

She shivered and pulled her shawl closer “What do you mean? What’s the matter with Reuben?” she tried to keep her voice steady, but emotion made the words slightly shriller and he turned and took hold of her hands,

“He’s alright, Livvy, he got into a fight with a bigger boy at school, and - and Pa decided it was better for him to stay home. He’s fine, there’s nothing to worry about.”

“You are telling me the truth, aren’t you?” she begged “You wouldn’t be lying just to spare me?”

“Whether it were the truth or not, you’ll still worry, won’t you?” he smiled, just slightly and then turned away and looked up at the moon so that she also turned her face to look up “I wish this weren’t happening. The doctors don’t seem to know what it is, one minute its typhoid and another its plague…” he sighed, and stood up “I had best get along. I’m on guard duty tomorrow.” he turned and then stopped to look back at her, “You are alright, aren’t you?”

“Yes. I’m alright.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow. Same time …?”

She nodded and watched him go, his shoulders hunched and his hat slapped just anyhow on his head. When he was out of sight she put her hands to her face and wept, then felt ashamed for her weakness remembering that everywhere in town there would be women, and men, weeping.

……………

“Do you think he’s alright, Bridie?” Mary Ann asked the other woman who was sitting up with her, “He will come home safe, won’t he?”

“My dear girl, how am I to know?”

“I just need to hear someone tell me that’s all…” Mary Ann nearly wept, she pushed her fingers through her hair and shook her head “If only Olivia had come home yesterday like she originally planned.”

“Don’t go blaming her now, dear. If one were playing the game of if only it can go in many directions now, can’t it?”

Mary Ann looked at her and then nodded “I wasn’t blaming her, just wishing. Just being selfish …”

She stood up and walked to where Daniel slept, his thumb in his mouth, downy hair curling over his brow “He’s hot …poor little love …” she leaned down and loosened the little gown he wore “Oh if anything should happen to him, Bridie, or to Joe, whatever shall I do?”

“The same as many of us, dearie, you’d have to pick yourself up and keep going, this life isn’t easy, and if you give in to the tough times you’ll never appreciate so much the good times.”

Mary Ann looked at the other woman and then walked to the window, not so long ago she had stood here watching the snow falling and wondering if Joe would come home safely, and he did. So why worry now that he would not? She stared out at the moon and watched as it slid behind a cloud.

Chapter 80

Sofia looked at the food on her plate and then at her aunt who was busy buttering bread for her own daughter. Hannah was sitting in her special chair so that she was at the same level as everyone else who would be sharing breakfast with her. From out of the silence Ben's voice seemed to boom “Well, everybody, look who I’ve got here?”

Ben sounded hearty and jolly and when they turned to watch him coming down the stairs Hester clapped her hands as did Hannah, then Sofia as she watched as he carried Reuben in the crook of his arm. Reuben grinned and raised a hand then looked at his sister “Gran’pa said I should stay in bed but I wanted to come down and be with everyone. It’s real lonesome up there by myself.”

Ben lowered him onto a chair and pushed it closer to the table then sat down as Hop Sing bustled in and provided Reuben with a glass of milk and a smiling nod of the head. Sofia looked at Ben with her big eyes and in a quiet voice asked if her mommy and daddy would be home later. Ben forced a smile and glanced over at Hester before saying very gently that they would be home later, but not today.

Sofia bowed her head and then pushed her plate away “I’m not hungry.”

“Try and eat, Sofia, Hop Sing made it especially for you.” Hester pushed the plate back and held out the spoon to her, “Please, Sofia.”

“Don’t want it.” the child now shook her head and looked at Ben “I want to go home.”

“This is your home for now, dear, until mommy and daddy get back.” Ben explained, “Don’t you remember how we told you that daddy was on a big ship now and mommy had gone to see him on it?”

Sofia nodded solemnly “But that was a long time ago.”

“Not really, it just seems like it is, now why not eat up your food so that when they get back they can see what a strong little girl you’ve become.” his coaxing voice and dark eyes were begging her to trust him, but still she looked over at her brother, who was staring down at his food with rather moist eyes, “Reuben?”

“Eat it up like Gran’pa said,” her brother said and picked up his spoon “It’s very good for you, So-fee.”

“So-fee,” Hannah cried and held out a crust of bread for her cousin to take, but Sofia shook her head and tried to eat what was on her plate.

Hop Sing appeared with some milk for her and smiled “Missy get big and strong for when family come together. Very important. Very good.”

“Thank you, Hot ping.” she whispered and again looked over at her brother who refused to look up at her.

She didn’t eat all her food and as soon as she could she scrambled down from her chair and ran to the door which Ben opened for her, “Where are you going, sweet heart?”

“I’m going to wait for mommy and daddy.” she cried, and then paused, ran back inside, grabbed Clarabelle and then ran out into the yard.

Ben felt an ache inside as he watched her sitting alone, a little patch of pink gingham and silver blonde hair. Then he turned to Hester and smiled slowly “I’m going to Carson City now, take care won’t you?”

“Will you send him this message for me, please, Pa?”

He nodded and slipped the folded piece of paper into his pocket, “I’ll be back by supper time.”

She nodded and kissed his cheek, then stepped back into the house and watched him as he strode across the yard. Sofia didn’t move except to wave her hand as Ben rode out of the stable on Sport. Glancing up at the sun she knew it was going to be another extremely hot day so hurried to get Sofia her sun bonnet and for a moment paused again to watch the child as she sat like a sentinel at her post.

……………..

Mary Ann drew up the buggy at the section of road that had been cordoned off to prevent anyone entering town. There didn’t seem to be anyone there as she clambered down and looked around her before lifting out a hamper of food which she proceeded to carry towards the fallen log that had been used as the barrier.

“No closer, m’am.”

She stopped immediately and looked around her before relaxing a little when Clem and another man stepped out from behind some shrubs. Clem removed his hat “Oh didn’t realise it was you, Mrs Cartwright. How you doing?”

“I - I’m alright, thank you. Is Joe there?”

“Not yet but he’s due to take over any time now. If you just wait a while in the buggy, Mrs Cartwright, until he comes.”

She nodded and wondered what she was supposed to do with the hamper of food she had brought then decided to take it back with her until she could give it to Joe. She clambered back to take her seat with the hamper on her lap.

She and Bridie had worked hard to make up the goodies in the hamper … there were cakes, big and small, a chicken pie, a side of bacon, thick slices of delicious ham, several of Bridie’s special bread rolls, plus a bottle of cordial. She remembered how they had chatted as they baked and cooked, how the flour was sprinkled over the table, and the heat from the stove was so much that they opened all the windows and doors to try and get some cool air into the room.

She tried to forget the empty bed, the fears as she tried to sleep, the dread as she imagined the horrors of what epidemics could do to a town. She wondered what Olivia was doing and why they had kept her in town when she had merely driven in and stepped out of the stage coach. Her hands were sweating as she gripped hold of the hamper’s handle.

“Mary Ann?”

Joe’s voice, and immediately the joy of hearing it made her feel weak at the knees, but the longing to see him, to feel his arms around her was enough to propel her out of the buggy and running towards him “No, Mary Ann - stop - stop there.”

“But, Joe -”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry but that’s as far as you can come.” his face looked haggard and pale, the hazel eyes heavy with the misery he had seen over the past day or so, but his smile at her was tender and loving “Sweet heart, it’s so good to see you. How’s Daniel?”

“He’s well, he slept all through last night and I’m sure he was looking for you when I picked him up out of his cot. Joe - Joe, is it very bad?”

He nodded “It’s not for you to worry about, dearest. Just tell me how Pa and everyone is at home?”

His voice was cracking, she knew he was getting emotional, he always wore his heart on his sleeve and she felt herself feeling sick “Oh Joe, if only Olivia had come when she was supposed to you would be safe home with us.”

“It’s just one of those things, Mary Ann. They could have put the quarantine in place any time over the past week. Is Reuben alright?”

“Yes, he’s getting stronger, tell Olivia he’s alright. Is she well?”

“She was when I saw her last night.” he didn’t like to say that during the hours that had passed since then anything could have happened, that silent bullet could have sped its way and taken her from them as well.

“Pa’s going to Carson City today to tell Hoss to send his messages there in future. Hester and the children are well. Bridie and I spent lots of time cooking some of your favourites, Joe.”

“Just leave the hamper down there, Mary Ann. By your feet. Thank you, thank Bridie too.”

“Is there anything you need?”

“Not yet, but we’ll get word to you when we do…I have to get on, Mary Ann, there’s others to see now.”

“I’ll come again tomorrow.” she put her fingers to her lips and sent him a kiss, “You will be here, won’t you?”

“Yes, drive carefully.” his voice cracked, he turned his head away and lowered the brim of his hat to shade his eyes, “Mary Ann -”

She paused and turned back to accept the kiss he sent to her, but she couldn’t smile. Her face felt stiff as though it couldn’t move and when she got into her buggy and sat down she realised that her cheeks were wet with tears.

There were three other wagons in a queue behind her, all bearing hampers and anxious looking people. As she drove along the main road to town she passed other vehicles, some laden with barrels which contained fresh water, some with tarpaulins tied over what were obviously the corpses of cattle, fresh meat for those imprisoned in the buildings below.

……………..

Olivia splashed cold water over her face and waited a while for the feeling to pass. Sickness had plagued her all morning and Schofield had ordered her back to the hotel to rest, telling her to be ready to take an evening shift instead, when, possibly it would be cooler.

He had asked her questions when he had noticed her rushing from the room after bathing old Mr Dawson. “How many times in the day are you sick? Have you fever? Have you diarrhoea? Any painful lumps or sores on your body?”

Then he had looked into her eyes, down her throat, checked her pulse and told her very brusquely to get back and rest. Now in the hotel room she wished she could be busy, anything rather than stay in that cramped room with the windows closed because several of the ladies were convinced the ‘germs’ would creep in through any gap, even though they would be walking about outside later on where exposure to the ‘germs’ was magnified a hundredfold.

She lay back on her bed, having removed her shoes, and her stockings. Her body was clammy to the touch but not feverishly hot. She closed her eyes and folded her hands, she wanted to think of Reuben and Sofia, she remembered she had letters from Adam for them both and now tried to imagine the expressions on their faces when she handed them over, and told them about the ship he was on. Thoughts of that reminded her so much of him that she felt the hot tears scold her eyes and she put a hand over them to keep them shut, to stop the tears falling.

She thought of their last night together, those final hours, the way he had loved her so tenderly. She sighed softly as she remembered other nights, other times and then her stomach churned and she felt nausea once again. The last time she had felt like this, her brain reminded her, was when she had conceived with Sofia. She frowned, shut her eyes tightly and began to count on her fingers how many weeks, days, put this together with that and what did one have ? Her throat tightened, was it possible? But how long? Another counting on her fingers, double check the dates - she felt light headed now and the sickness had gone to be replaced with something else that caused her to hurry into the bathroom where she slipped off her clothes to look at herself.

She had been pregnant three times with Roberts children, a child that was miscarried before having Reuben and Sofia. She looked now at her body for the tell tale signs that would tell a woman that she was either blessed or cursed with pregnancy and what she saw caused her to feel faint. So much so that she had to lean forward for her brow to feel the coolness of the glass in the mirror.

……………..

Ben paid the money for the cables and listened as the machine tapped out the message across the wires. He wondered how long before Hoss would receive them, how long before he would get a reply. He had decided to be quite honest with his son about the quarantine conditions in town, to assure him that they were all well and there was no need for him to return home … he had frowned when writing that knowing that no matter how Hoss would have felt about his family he would never come back and leave his men to carry on with the cattle when they also had family to worry about, especially those men who lived in the vicinity of the town. He thought of Candy and asked Hoss to assure him that Ann and the children were safe and well.

Hesters message was a simple one of love for her husband. “Do you want to wait for an answer, Mr. Cartwright?” the clerk asked and Ben had said he would wait two hours and then he would have to return home.

He walked to a café and ate a simple meal and when the two hours were up he returned and was given Hoss’ replies, an acknowledgement of the information and confirmation that all was progressing well. His message to Hester was an affectionate plea to her to be careful. Ben left the building and walked slowly to his horse, as he rode out of town he wondered how things would be in town by his next visit to Carson City.

Chapter 81

With most of the island south of the tropic of Cancer the climate around Cuba is tropical, although the trade winds blew throughout the year bringing a little relief to the temperatures which were currently 27*c (80.6*f).

Adam reached the main deck and overlooked the men as they worked to navigate the ship towards the Santiago port. There were a number of ships in the bay, a Britisher, several Spanish ships, another American vessel and some private boats and schooners. He narrowed his eyes and glanced up at the sun and the ran his eyes over the other ships again.

He missed having O’Brien on board, although he had every confidence in his officers, Hardy, Dekker and North, he didn’t know them well enough to confide in them and pick the bones of the matter over with them.. As usual there was too much left unsaid about his assignment. That Fish was negotiating with the new Cuban Government smacked rather contrary to the mood of the Grant’s Administration towards it. Since the ’Virginius’ incident U.S. feeling and sympathies had lain strictly behind the revolutionaries, and Porters comment that it would be better for Maceo to be dead rather than get hold of the letter confused him.

If O’Brien were on board they would have discussed it, dissected it and even it they had come up with all the wrong answers it would have made him feel better about the whole thing knowing someone on board knew and sympathised with his feelings. He cleared his throat and with a sigh picked up his hat and descended the ladder from the bridge to the upper deck. He soon picked out Mr Forbes, the young midshipman who was checking on the hawsers to starboard with an earnestness that showed a willingness to work if not a total confidence in his abilities to achieve the standard required. Adam made his way towards him and beckoned him to his side “Well, Mr Forbes, here we are about to berth. Have you enjoyed the voyage so far?”

Forbes saluted and blushed at the attention he was receiving from the Commanding Officer. He was young, no doubt not yet fifteen years of age, and very impressionable as Adam had realised from the conversation he had overheard. The lad nodded “Yes, sir, and much calmer than I had been led to believe.”

Adam nodded and glanced up at the sails before looking back at the youth “What were you expecting then, Mr. Forbes?”

“Er - I‘m not sure. Some say that there are very strange things happen in these waters.” he frowned, “Some ships have disappeared due to the storms never to be seen again.”

“Well, that’s not unique to here, you know.” Adam smiled and clasped his hands behind his back, leaning a little towards Forbes as though to give him a little more confidence, “Ships have disappeared in storms all over the globe.”

Forbes nodded and glanced around him uneasily “But - strange storms, sir.”

Adam nodded “You have to remember that Cuba sits across the entrance to the Gulf of Mexico, it’s a tropical climate due to the Caribbean Sea, so the two combined do make it more susceptible to hurricanes. Another thing to remember is that the islands around these parts were home to pirates and buccaneers for many years, it served their purpose to add an extra pinch of terror to the tales.” he smiled and nodded, “Well done, Mr. Forbes, you’re doing a good job.”

He then strolled on and paused a little later to talk to another midshipman before turning to make his way to the bridge. In a few hours time they would be sailing into the bay and berthing so the necessary and correct flags had to be put out and papers and other documents ready for the country’s authorities to stamp and approve their being there, and allowing them access to the islands facilities.

His officers were efficient and good humoured men, they worked well together and Adam was more than impressed by the swiftness of their carrying out instructions. The necessary flags were in position as they entered the beautiful crystal clear waters of the bay on a perfect June day.

The vista before them was enticingly exotic, palm trees and other elegant trees crested the hills, the colours of the flowers were abundant as was the plumage of the little parakeets and other birds that seemed to enjoy flittering through the trees, or getting underfoot of passers by. The men on deck began to gather towards the bulwarks to see even more closely the sights that entranced the eye to those first seeing Santiago

Within moments of the gangplank being lowered officialdom arrived in the form of six men, three of them of military bearing who carried weapons and stony faces. Lieutenant North greeted them with the papers in his hand but they insisted that they had to check them through with the Commanding Officer. North led them to Adam’s cabin and stood by the door as they filed through.

The gentleman in charge looked through each paper with a thoroughness that proved him to be either extremely efficient or determined to insult the Americans. After he had checked them and signed and authorised them he looked at Adam “What is the purpose of your visit to Cuba, Comorado?”

“You have seen our papers, senor.” Adam replied a little sharper than was probably wise for he had expected a far better reception than the one he had received.

A slight sneer touched the other mans thin lips but he said nothing as he folded the papers and handed them back to Adam, he bowed rigidly from the waist and turned to leave the ship. Adam watched him go with slightly narrowed eyes and with a nod of the head indicated to North that the men were watched as they left the ship. North immediately left to carry out these orders.

………………….

Schofield moved away from the microscope and rubbed his eyes, he turned to the other doctors and in a quiet voice asked them to see for themselves, the evidence of their own eyes, what was the cause of the illness that had now closed the town for the past four days.

Paul Martin looked through the glass and stared at the shapes wriggling on the slide and looked up at Schofield “They look like little sausages.” he said thoughtfully and removed his spectacles to give them a polish and stepped aside for the next doctor to see them for himself.

“Do you have any idea what it is now, Dr. Martin?” Schofield said with a sigh in his voice.

“Cholera.” Paul replied quietly. Schofield nodded and looked at the other doctors who had now all checked the slides for themselves. All of them were very quiet and looked anxious, thoughtful, and extremely worried. Paul cleared his throat “If this is the problem then at least we do know what we are up against. We can do something to stop it.”

“But what?” Dr. Pillington asked, a man of Paul’s age who practised on the other side of town. Between his surgery and that of Paul’s was the wasteland of the burned down township, the ruins that the town council were still removing and getting rebuilt.

“We must get the Mayor and the Town Council together to discuss this.” Schofield said briskly, “Things have to be done.”

“Such as?” Dr. Smithson looked from one to the other of them, he had practised medicine with Pillington and was a pessimist by nature.

“The source of the disease must be located and dealt with, of course.” Schofield retorted, “Once we know where that is we can act accordingly.”

“In what manner do you suggest?” Paul Martin asked, getting to his feet now and reaching for his hat.

Schofield was silent for a moment then he drew himself up as straight and tall as a short plump person could “We must employ the Voronoi* method.” he frowned at the blank faces that greeted him, Jimmy Chang was the only man there who nodded as though he understood what was meant so to him Schofield appealed “Perhaps you would explain, Dr. Chang?”

Jimmy stood up and bowed politely “It is a simple method of bringing together the information we already have, Honourable Doctors. We collect the details of where the patients lived and from whereabouts they would have drank the water. . We mark these out on the map of the city and by seeing where the marks are mostly clustered we shall find it easier to locate the source of the disease.”

Each doctor, whether they understood or not, whether they agreed with the little doctor or not, immediately began to gather up papers and folders and with these they followed Dr. Martin to the Town Hall.

…………….

Hester kissed her sister in law tenderly on the cheek and welcomed her into the house, baby Daniel slept soundly in her mother’s arms and was passed to his Aunt while Mary Ann removed her bonnet. “I saw Sofia …”

“She wanders off and sits there for as soon as she can before getting too tired or too hot. Then she wanders off again ..she’s waiting for Adam and Olivia to come home.”

Mary Ann’s mouth opened into a sad ‘0h’ and she shook her head “And Reuben?”

“He’s listless. The heat doesn’t help of course. Have you seen Joe again?”

“I saw him earlier, he’s alright. Is Ben here?”

Ben emerged from the study area and nodded over to her, before coming and kissing her on the cheek, “How’s Joe? Have you seen Olivia?”

“Yes. I saw them both. They send their love to you. Livvy - she doesn’t look well. No, don’t worry, it isn’t the illness, she’s just so tired and anxious for her children, missing Adam and - and everything else.”

“Come and sit down, dear.” Ben took her elbow and led her to the settee where wearily she sat down, “I took Daniel with me, although Flannel said not to, but Joe so wanted to know he was alright.”

“Any news?” Hester asked, gently rocking the baby in her arms.

Mary Ann nodded “The doctors have said it’s cholera.”

The word seemed to hang in the air while Ben stared at her, and then turned to Hester, who could only bow her head and drop a kiss upon baby Daniel’s downy head.

Chapter 82.

Since Schofield’s confirmation of the illness everyone was stopped from drinking their ration of water, instead they were encouraged to drink beer, Paul Martin and the other doctors explained it was because during a cholera outbreak in London during the 1850’s while people were dying in the streets the Monks of a monastery in the middle of the worse hit area were found perfectly safe and healthy. The reason being that not one of them had touched water, but had been drinking the beer they made themselves*. A request to the ranchers for barrels of clean water from their wells was sent out immediately.

The saloon owners were happier than most, suddenly business was booming. The Town Council although contemptuous at first about Schofields advice saw fit to apply the method he had suggested. A large map of the town had been put on the wall and the Voronoi diagram method employed. The doctors and nurses and carers had all come forward with information regarding how many sick they had been caring for, had died subsequently, how many more patients came each day and from what areas of town they had lived. Sadly where they died was often miles from their homes or where their homes had once been since the fire.

Joe and various other men were sent to the areas where the marks clustered on the map and samples of the water were collected and taken to Schofield’s laboratory, where they were left for him to examine.

The little doctor was looking drawn and haggard and the sacs beneath his eyes were dark like a man who had been a stranger to sleep for a very long time. Paul, Jimmy and the other doctors continued working in their allotted zones and the carers and nurses worked around the clock to comfort the sick, the dying and the exhausted. Linen from beds were boiled in large containers over the open fires in the main street adding to the heat. Each man and woman returned to their rooms to fall beyond exhaustion upon their beds. Some who had started working when quarantine was first declared were already sleeping their eternal sleep.

Olivia slept fitfully, for some hours she had experienced pains that stemmed from her back and contracted around her abdomen. She told herself it was too much lifting, too many hours on her feet, too little water to drink … for the Ponderosa and other ranches had been bringing in barrels of clear fresh water since the call went out for it. She told herself everything except the one thing she didn’t want anyone to tell her because it was the one thing she didn’t want to hear.

………….

Sofia cuddled Clarabelle and crept closer to her brother who was sleeping a healing rest.

She snuggled in close and whimpered so that he forced his eyes open, blinked and looked at her “So-fee, why are you here?”

“I want to be with you, Boo.”

“But you fidget too much in bed, So-fee, you hurt my bruises.”

“Won’t fidget no more.” big eyes stared up into his face where the bruises were healing and Reuben’s face was looking more like the brother she knew. He sighed and nodded so that before he could change his mind she was under the covers and curled up by his side.

“When’s daddy coming home?” she whispered.

“I don’t know. I suppose when the ship is ready to bring him.”

“And mommy, when’s mommy coming back?”

“Soon, real soon. I heard Gran’pa saying she’ll be back soon and Uncle Joe too.”

“Why not now?”

“Because she can’t, because the doctor wants her to help him in town.”

“I want her home here, Boo.”

Reuben sighed and held her close, his chin wobbled but he clamped his teeth tight, after all, he was the man of the family right now. “So do I, she’ll be here soon, you’ll see.”

“When we wakes up?”

“I don’t know, maybe -.”

She hugged Clarabelle tighter so that Reuben found himself cramped in the bed with the wretched raggedy doll and his sister squeezed in with him. When he opened his eyes in the morning she was gone and in her own bed, sleeping soundly with her arms wrapped round the neck of her old doll, and seated in his chair between the two beds was Gran’pa.

…………..

In the morning Olivia opened her eyes and knew that she couldn’t deny the obvious any longer. It had happened before and even before the warm gush of blood confirmed the knowledge she recognised it for what it was … she turned her face to the pillow and wept.

Clara Simmonds shook her gently by the shoulder “Olivia, what’s wrong? Are you sick?”

Her mother Sarah looked over and screamed “Clara, get away from her, get away. Go and get Dr. Martin.”

Clara stood up and turned very slowly to face her mother, she shook her head “Ma, I think Olivia is ill.”

“Then do as I say, go and get Dr. Martin.” her mother cried and as Clara ran out of the room Sarah approached the bed and knelt down beside the woman who had worked tirelessly alongside her for over a week. She took hold of Olivia’s hand and held it tightly, “It’s alright, dear, it’s alright, we’ve sent for the doctor.”

Olivia opened her eyes and looked into the other woman’s face, she tried to speak but couldn’t find the words so that Sarah just smiled and nodded and stroked back the loose hair that was scattered over her face. “It’s alright,” she said again, “Don’t worry.”

Later Joe came to see her, like most of the men and women who had been working during the long hours he looked bone weary, his clothing was sweat stained and dusty and he approached her bed side timidly. “Livvy?”

His hand on her shoulder jerked her awake and upon seeing him she burst into renewed tears so that he took her into his arms and held her tight, “What is it? They told me you weren’t well but didn’t say what was wrong. Tell me, what is it? Livvy? Don’t keep crying like this, you’ll make yourself sick. Livvy, stop it, please……..stop it.”

He stroked her back and her head as she clung to him, alone in the hotel room with the empty beds where the other women would soon return from their shifts and fall asleep. He looked up through the windows and saw the blue sky and wished it would rain, he wanted to go home and see his wife, his baby son. “Livvy?”

“Oh Joe. Joe.”

“Can’t you tell me?”

“I - I wish I were dead. I wish I were anywhere but here. Oh Joe, I’ve lost the baby.”

“The baby?” he frowned then the significance of what she said made sense, he remembered when Mary Ann had lost their first baby, how she had dealt with it, alone, frightened and alone, he gulped, cleared his throat “Did Adam know about the baby?”

“No - o.”

He didn’t know what to say but held her hands and helped her to sit up, “Olivia, it’s because of being here, isn’t it?”

“I should have come home when I planned to, Joe. I did it all wrong, it’s my fault, my fault that I lost the baby. Oh Joe, I wish - I wish I were dead.”

“No,no, you mustn’t say that, you can’t - look at me, Olivia,” he shook her a little to force her to turn to him and look at him, “Olivia, you have a duty to live, don’t you see? You can’t give up now, not now. Think of your children back home.”

“I’m too tired to think …oh Joe.” she sighed and closed her eyes and looked as though she was going to faint so that he dipped a cloth in the glass of water on the table and bathed her face, around her neck and her hands “No, Livvy, that’s the cowards way out, not for you. Think of your children, of Reuben and Sofia. Think of Adam, think of your husband. He needs you to be there when he comes home.”

“Leave me alone, Joe.” she murmured, “I know you’re right, but just now I - I don’t want to think of anything, of anyone. I’m so tired …”

“Remember what I said, Olivia. You have a husband and children who love you, a family who love you, you have a duty to live, Olivia.”

She shook her head and pulled her hands away from his, then turned her head away from him. “Go away, Joe. Leave me alone.”

He had never felt so rejected in his life as he rose to his feet and turned away, Mrs Simmonds watched him from the doorway and shook her head. As Joe dejectedly left the room she walked to the bedside and sat down beside Olivia and gently stroked her hands.

……………

Mary Ann came and looked at the two children. Reuben’s bruises fading so fast now and Sofia looking pale and dark eyed as though she hadn’t slept. She picked the little girl up and put her on her lap and then looked at Reuben, “Do you remember me telling you that before I married Uncle Joe I was the school teacher in town?”

“Yeah, I remember.” Reuben looked at her thoughtfully, Mary Ann was pretty, prettier than Miss Brandon. Sofia leaned her head against her Aunt’s shoulder “Is Daniel here?” she wanted to know.

“He’s downstairs with Gran’pa and Hannah. Aunty Hester is making breakfast. But as there’s no school at the moment I thought we could have a school right here, after we have had breakfast. What do you think of that idea, Reuben? That way you won’t get behind with your school work, will you?”

Sofia didn’t care either way, she yawned and wriggled away from her aunt’s lap and retrieved Clarabelle, who to be honest looked decidedly in need of a good wash now and even uglier than when she was first purchased. She hugged the doll and whispered to it that soon it would be alright, mommy would be home soon, and so would daddy. She wrapped the doll in her very own dressing gown and tucked her into bed. Then she took hold of Mary Ann by the hand and allowed her to lead her down to breakfast.

Reuben was eager for his lessons and dressed himself carefully after he’d washed so that he looked clean and smart as he took his seat at the table. It was another day at home on the Ponderosa, another day of scorching sun. He looked at Ben and smiled “When I’ve had my lessons can I go ride Buster?”

Ben smiled and nodded, and even though the smile hadn’t reached Ben’s eyes and twinkled there as they would have done usually, Reuben didn’t notice, it was the first day he had felt well enough and enthusiastic enough to do anything at all, poor Buster, he’d been neglected.

During the meal Sofia wriggled down from her seat and said ’Excuse.’ very prettily and then ran out to the yard. Ben, Hester and Mary Ann watched as she ran to where she sat every day and waited.

In the town the Town Council met to discuss the building of the new town, the improvements to be made to the sewage system. The work that had been halted on demolition and rebuilding recommenced as assurances were made that the disease was losing it‘s hold.

Ben rode to Carson City to send a communication to Hoss and Candy to inform them that matters in town were improving, that their wives and families were well and healthy. He stayed overnight to receive a reply which didn’t arrive until late that afternoon to confirm that all was proceeding well, they expected good prices for the beef when they got to market and the men were all in good spirits.

With relief that at least one son was safe and well Ben saddled Cinnamon and headed for home. Throughout the return journey his mind dwelt on the fact that there was no news from Adam for obvious reasons which meant that ignorance bred anxiety. Another matter that cast fear over him was the fact that niether Joe or Olivia had been seen for several days before he had left the Ponderosa. The picture of the little girl hugging her doll while sitting in the yard waiting was forever burned into his mind.

Chapter 83

Dr Timothy Schofield took the platform and looked down upon his audience with all the pride of a biblical evangeliser. The Mayor of Virginia City and the Town Council, the Doctors and the nurses, Dan DeQuille and several others stood staring at him impatiently as he placed a hand on the desk by his side.

“Gentlemen, I think we can safely say that we have beaten the enemy and -” a deep breath for effect “learned more about it. We have learned that contrary to many medical men’s professional opinions Cholera is not a gas that can be inhaled and transferred from one person to another, it is not contagious*.”

“I disagree about that,” Smithson said which was supported by several nods from various others there “How else would you explain so many deaths, so many ill in such a short period of time?”

“That’s easily explained if we look at the map here.” he pointed to the map now with a long stick, and tapped it rather impatiently as though adverse comments to his findings had actually been unexpected, “See the clusters? Notice that in the Chinese quarters there was no sign of the illness -”

“Some Chinese died.” Billington said loudly.

“Yes, I agree, but only those who had, during the period before we located the source of contamination, been to those areas and drank the water there. I know - I know -” he waved plump hands for silence “I know this may appear new to many of you, but it was not contagious, it was because of the consumption of contaminated waters where the sewage and other foul matter had leaked into the water supply in these two areas.”

There were now murmurs from members of the Town Council “Now you’re blaming us.”

“If the hat fits -” Schofield snorted and tossed his head, “If the buildings affected by the fire had been dealt with far more quickly this could have been prevented. Better out house facilities for start for the people in the shanty town would have eliminated the problem to a great degree.”

Dan DeQuille stepped forward his pencil poised “On what basis do you found your premise, Dr. Schofield?”

“The evidence in front of your eyes, of course. The deaths, the illness, of people over here -” he tapped at the church and school house that had been converted to hospital use, “is over. Those that took place were people who either lived in areas where contamination existed here and here, or who had drank the water there at some time and then gone to this other area and, of course, cholera acts swiftly, with no chance of them reaching home before they fell - stricken.”

He looked at the faces staring at him, and sighed “This is not really new, in an epidemic in London in 1854* a Dr. John Snow* identified a neighbourhood water pump as the main source of contamination. I met Dr Snow some years back and he told me how he had employed this system to track down the water there as the main cause of spreading cholera. I truly believe that this episode in our community’s history has proven his methods and opinion quite correct.”

The Mayor rose to his feet and nodded “We started work on the rebuilding program months ago, it’s just taken longer to carry out than anticipated.”

“I appreciate that, but more thought into providing sewage facilities should have been employed. People need to be educated about such things.”

“Educated?” Smithson laughed and shook his head “About natural bodily functions?”

“Yes, sir, in that there is a time and place, and we have to make sure they know that, and use the correct facilities.”

Paul Martin raised a hand which brought immediate silence to the muttering that was rippling through the crowd, “I agree with Dr. Schofields findings. There have been no new patients to the area I have been doctoring for two days now. The patients we are tending at present will soon be well enough to return home.”

Jimmy Chang stood up and bowed to the assembly “All Chinese are healthy and well. No sickness. No deaths.” he frowned slightly “I also agree with Dr. Schofield, it is an interesting premise. We can learn much from it.”

“I think we could lift the quarantine and allow those from outside areas to return home.” Schofield announced and waited for the muttering and mumbles to die away, “They are at no risk to their families.”

The Mayor turned back to him having been talking to some Councillors seated behind him, “May we just have another twelve hours quarantine, doctor?”

Schofield bristled, then realised that twelve hours was really not so long and indicated a softening of their attitude towards him. He nodded “Yes, in another twelve hours they should be allowed home.”

Dan De Quille nodded and tapped his pencil against his notebook. He watched the portly little doctor get down and join his medical team and wondered if Dr Timothy Schofields name would one day shine among the luminaries of medicine. Somehow he doubted it, but then stranger things had happened.

Paul left the meeting quickly and made his way to the Whitney Hotel to locate Olivia whose condition had caused him a degree of anxiety since he had last seen her and confirmed her miscarriage. He found her as he had left her with Joe seated beside her, he rose immediately from his chair as Paul came towards them. “Is she sleeping?” Paul asked and Joe shook his head so that Paul came to her side and gently touched her arm, and called her name upon which she opened her eyes. “How are you feeling, my dear?”

“Numb.” she replied immediately with her strange eyes so washed away of colour that they looked unearthly.

“You will do, that’s perfectly natural.” he opened his medical bag and handed Joe a small bottle “I want you to give her the dose stated every four hours. Olivia -” he sat down and looked at her, and then took hold of her hand, “You’ll be able to go home tomorrow. When you get there I want you to rest for a few days and get your strength up. You’re exhausted from the work here, and from the shock of your loss -.”

“I didn’t know -” she whispered, “I didn’t know at all, how couldn’t I have known?”

“Quite a few women experience their monthly cycle during the early stages of pregnancy, Olivia, I’ve even known some who never knew until they were about to give birth.” he glanced over at Joe who was looking exhausted and haggard, without another word he put his hand on the younger mans arm “Look, you need to rest. Take the opportunity of one of those beds and sleep.”

Joe nodded and ran his hands through his shock of hair before asking Paul how the meeting had gone to which Paul had smiled slowly “Schofield may lack in bedside manner but he is a very intelligent and innovative man. Cholera has always been a bit of a mystery illness with so many different opinions being advanced as to what causes it, but his hypothesis is totally logical and, I believe, correct. The contaminated water in the old ruins and shanty town areas was the main spreading agent. You can go home tomorrow safe in the knowledge that you won’t be taking the illness with you. Now -” he placed a gentle cool hand on Olivia’s brow and smiled fondly down at her “Sleep well, and think of the little ones at home eager to see you there.”

Her throat tightened at the thought and she managed a smile although her eyes remained shut off. It was Paul who gave her the first dose of the sedative and held her hand until she had fallen asleep. By the time he left her Joe had already fallen into a deep sleep himself his snores emphasising his urgent need for just such a chance to gain some.

…………………..

First Officer Hardy knocked lightly on Adam’s door and at the command to enter he did so, “Commodore, a launch is approaching on the port side. Civilians.”

“Oh, not our friends the Harbour Authorities back again?” Adam raised an eyebrow and grimaced while he reached for his hat.

“No, sir.” Hardy gave a half smile and stood back against the door to allow his first officer to pass him and stride along the corridor towards the upper deck where he could better receive his visitors.

Several men were already mounting the gangplank and the gangway was opened for them to step on board the ship. A tall man in his fifties seemed to be taking the lead in asking for Adam and turned towards him with a smile upon his appearance “Commodore Cartwright? We’ve been waiting for your arrival, sir. I’m Howard Steiner from the American Consulate here in Santiago. I’ve come to - er - expand on your instructions.”

Adam shook the extended hand and nodded “Good. Perhaps you would like to come with me to my cabin.”

Steiner cleared his throat and followed with his retinue behind him like a huddle of lost sheep as they made their way across the deck in their lightweight linen suits and panama hats which they removed on entering the confines of Adams cabin. “Please, sit down. Refreshments anyone?”

There was a murmur of dissent, no takers, so Adam nodded and waited for them to be seated before he took his chair by the desk. “I was wondering about my instructions. They were brief to the point of being almost negligible.”

“Yes, I can imagine so. Admiral Porter isn’t one for long speeches unless it’s about Naval conduct.” Steiner smiled and looked around the cabin and then at Adam, “Let me introduce my staff, Commodore. Mr. Brennan, Mr. McCallum and Mr. Flanders.”

Adam nodded and ran his eye over each of them, noticing how each of them appeared tense and uneasy. He looked at Steiner “Well, sir, if you would like to explain more about the situation.”

“It is, of course, all classified.”

“Of course.”

“What have been your instructions exactly, Commodore?”

Adam frowned and looked at Steiner thoughtfully, “Before I make any further comment, Mr. Steiner, perhaps if you could show me some form of identification?”

Steiner looked surprised and then nodded “Of course, I understand your caution. Cuba isn’t a place where you can trust at face value, unfortunately.”

He nodded to the men there and each of them produced wallets with the necessary documents on them verifying who they were, where from, how long, and other details that made Adam feel easier about them. He returned them and was about to speak when there was a knock on the door and McGill peered inside “Any refreshments, sir?”

“Some coffee, McGill, thank you.” Adam replied and glanced at the other men who now all nodded and agreed that some coffee would be pleasant.

Adam nodded and leaned forward, his clasped hands resting on his knees “Now Mr Steiner, you were telling me why you were here?”

Steiner frowned and looked at Adam cautiously then nodded “Very well, sir, you have a letter to deliver to the Governor of Cuba from the President of the United States.” he looked at Adam who was appearing very attentive but did not venture any comment, he continued “At the same time that you give this letter to him our Consul in Spain, Mr. Caleb Cushing will present the same to King Alfonso of Spain. It is important that the times co-relate you understand.”

Adam grimaced slightly and shrugged “There was no indication of any time or date on the letters I received.”

“Which is why we are here.” Steiner smiled “In case the letters were - er - mislaid had there been any such notation on them it would have upset the arrangements. We have been waiting for the past 24 hours for your arrival.”

“Something I am sure the insurgents will have noted and taken into consideration …” Adam said slowly. He turned his head as the door was opened and McGill entered with the tray “And, let me assure you, I am not in the habit of mislaying any letters.”

Mr Brennan craned his upper body forward for attention “Commodore, you know about the situation with regard to the Virginius?”

Adam took his coffee from McGill, before nodding “I do.”

“You know that earlier in this decade War Bonds were sold in the U.S to support the Cuban resistance, and the former Confederate steamer was purchased by a John Patterson. He was, of course, acting on behalf of the Cuban insurgent Manuel Quesada. The purpose of the ship was to supply men, munitions and supplies to the rebels, and succeeded in achieving this purpose for three years before the Spanish captured the ship.”

Adam nodded again and swallowed some of his coffee. McCallum now cleared his throat and began to speak, picking up from where Brennan had left off “53 men were executed by Gen. Juan Nepomuceno Burriel of Santiago. Twelve, including Captain Fry, were shot by a firing squad, were then decapitated and their bodies trampled by horses. The others were executed and had it not been by British demands to the King of Spain himself every man who had been on board would have suffered the same fate.”

“I know all about that, and also that Mr Cushing negotiated for $80,000 in reparation to be paid to American families as were the British. I believe, if I am wrong, do please correct me, that Secretary of State Mr Fish was credited with the negotiations which prevented war between Spain and the United States.”

“You are correct. There is one thing that is still - er - in need of rectification.” Steiner said slowly, “and that is the matter of the man who ordered the executions, Gen. Juan Nepomuceno Burriel.”

Chapter 84

There was silence for a while broken by the rattle of cups upon saucers as they were placed down upon the table. Adam stroked his chin “I was under the impression that General Burriel’s conduct had been condemned by the King of Spain and the President of Spain Sarrano.”

“Yes, and that has been all.” Steiner sighed and leaned against the back of his chair. He frowned and rubbed his chin with a fine hand, one obviously never used to manual labour, “The letters are to urge the King of Spain and President Estrada Palma to bring Burriel to trial, and to provide justice for those dead men.”

Adam now leaned against the back of his chair and nodded, he wondered why all this couldn’t have been explained to him in the letters he had been sent, and somewhere in the back of his mind a little Russians voice whispered with a hiss “Politics, my friend, always the politics.” He brought a hand across his face and nodded “I see. So the letter I am to present to the President is a petition to bring Burriel to justice?”

“Yes.” Steiner nodded and the other three men murmured assent.

“So why was I told not to allow the letter to fall into the hands of Maceo? I would have thought he would have been only too pleased to have seen that America had not forgotten those who had come to his aid. Justice for the dead would also be a legitimate cause for justice for him also.”

“It isn’t so easy as that,” Steiner said, “Politics as we know it doesn’t seem to make much sense to Maceo and the other insurgents. Oh yes, I know there are some who plead a good cause when they are begging for funds in America from our Government, but the men on the ground, the fighting men, no they don’t see it that way. The letter could be construed as an American attempt to recognise the Cuban Government by negotiation.”

Adam shrugged “Well, I also am not a political person, merely a seaman commissioned to act as the Governments go between.” he stood up now and walked over to the port hole to look out towards the bay “When does the letter have to be delivered?”

“Tomorrow at noon. U.S/ Consul General Henry C. Hall will have travelled from Havana to meet you at the Presidents residence.” Steiner rose to his feet, “If it is all the same with you, Commodore, I shall be travelling with you in the morning.”

Adam nodded, assured him that his company would be very acceptable, upon which hands were shaken and the four men took their leave. Adam listened until the sounds of their expensive leather shoes had faded from his hearing and sat down to make a note of all that had been discussed. In the log he merely entered the time of arrival of his guests, who they were and their departure. His own notes he placed into an envelope and labelled it as ‘Classified’.

……………….

Olivia joined Paul in his buggy, with cushions at her back to soften the suspension for which Paul apologised. The vehicle, he explained, was elderly, like himself. Joe had taken the wagon from the livery and they rode from the formerly besieged town with a sense of over whelming relief.

Work was going on with renewed vigour, as though the events of the past weeks had etched themselves into the minds of all the townsfolk so that they determined together to bring about a restoration of a town that would be a fitting memorial to those who had died in the cholera outbreak.

They drove through the main street with a heavy heart, slowly out of respect even though their instincts was to gallop out as furiously as they possibly could from the misery that still seemed to hover like a cloud about them.

Out into the open country and their feelings changed, riding towards home lifted Olivia’s spirits and the touch of the wind upon her face was so welcome that it didn’t really matter that some of the tears she wept were not just due to the wind stream in her eyes.

Hester brushed Sofia’s hair and carefully tied in the pink ribbon to match the little pink dress the child was wearing. Solemnly Sofia resigned herself to her aunt’s attentions while her eyes were fixed to the door where she could escape and wait quite sure that this time her hopes would come true. Hester smiled as she curled the last little ringlet in fine blonde hair that was as soft as the most expensive Chinese silk, she let it slip through her fingers so that it fell down upon Sofia’s shoulders and back, and then she gently tapped her on the shoulders “Well now, you look as pretty as a picture.”

“Can I go and wait now?”

“Off you go.”

The child didn’t hesitate but ran happily to the door, stood on tiptoe to raise the latch and then was hurrying out to the porch where she stood, then, childlike she turned and ran back in again, gave Hester a kiss on the cheek and hurried on past, grabbed Clarabelle by the hand and dragged out outside.

“Me too, me too -” Hannah cried, wriggling her fingers in the hope of being released from Hester’s grip.

“Not yet, young lady.” her mother laughed and began to wield the hair brush to good effect through Hannah’s thick dark hair that sprang to life under its vigorous brushing into curls and coils that reminded Hester of her own wild mane of hair.

Ben smiled and watched for a moment, balancing a cup of tea on its saucer as he did so, before he turned to look at the boy who was sitting at the table “Well, Reuben, let’s hope the reports are true and your Ma and Uncle do get to come home today.”

Reuben smiled, excitement was bubbling in his stomach and when the sound of buggy wheels were heard he jumped up immediately only to sit again as he heard Sofia’s voice welcoming Mary Ann and Marcy who was holding little Daniel.

The two women came into the big house and after Mary Ann had kissed Ben hello, and greeted Hester, smiled at Reuben she took her son from Marcy’s arms and sat down “We thought for sure that they would come here first, so decided we’d join you all. Now I’m here I’m worried in case Joe does go home first and finds only Flannel there.” a criss cross of faint lines formed across her brow but Ben laughed and assured her that Joe would know where to find her, should he go there first

Marcy sat by Reuben “Are you feeling better now, Reuben? You look much better than when I last saw you.”

Reuben couldn’t remember seeing her during the time he was ill but smiled and assured her that he was feeling quite a lot better. Then there came the sound of further wheels entering the yard and again disappointment as there came a knock on the door and a voice saying “Is it alright for me to come in, sir?”

David Watson stepped into the room with a package in his hands, and if he noticed that the atmosphere had changed from convivial to chilly he gave no indication of it but smiled at Reuben and walked to him. He held out the package “Reuben, I’m sure sorry about what happened, I lost my temper and should have known better than to have done so. I hope you won’t hold it against me?”

Reuben sighed and shrugged “You broke my ribs you know?”

“I didn’t know,” David replied going a little pale and lowering his hands, “I’m that sorry.” he sighed and raised his hands again “Here, I made this for you myself. I hope you like it.”

Reuben took it and looked at the other boy, then nodded “Thank you.”

“Ain’t’cha going to open it and see what I done for ya?”

Reuben smiled and slowly unwrapped the brown paper and blinked with surprise at the sight of the lovely horse that David had whittled over the days for him. It had been sanded down smooth like silk to the touch and then polished so that it shone. “My, that’s real handsome.” Reuben said in admiration, and everyone agreed that it was indeed a work of art.

David got embarrassed and rubbed the palms of his hands down the seat of his pants, “Well, I wanted you to know that I really am sorry.” after fidgeting a little he declined the offer of lemonade and insisted he had to get home before his father missed him from his chores.

They heard his feet clattering on the porch and then the sound of the wagon being turned as he made his way out of the yard.

Hannah escaped her mother’s industrious fingers and ran out to join Sofia so that two little girls sat their in their best dresses and clean pinafores waiting for Olivia and Joe to appear. It seemed as though the wheezing old clock in the house ticked away hours before finally the sound of a horse galloping into the yard was heard and Mary Ann jumped up so quickly that baby Daniel nearly rolled off her lap onto the floor. “It’s Joe.” she cried and ran to the door with Hester close behind her followed by Ben and Reuben, and Marcy shyly bringing up the rear.

“Its mommy, mommy …” Sofia’s squeal of excitement could be heard above the sound of Mary Ann exclaiming over Joe and Joe assuring her all was well, and they all turned to look at the little girl as she began to run out to greet the buggy.

Olivia’s heart beat so fast at the sight of her little girl that she had to grab hold of Paul’s arm to keep from fainting. Sofia’s cries of ‘Mommy, mommy.’ healed all the pains she had endured now, and she stepped down to run towards the child, sweeping her into her arms and holding her close.

Then she was holding onto Reuben, kissing him and caressing him, while he hugged her and Sofia grabbed hold of her skirts as though nothing would part them ever again. Hester and Marcy came to welcome her and embrace her, as did Mary Ann once she was sure Joe wasn’t a mirage and about to vanish before her eyes. While he held his son in his arms she gave her sister in law a hug “Oh Olivia, I thought neither of you were ever going to come home.” she wailed.

In the privacy of the study Ben listened with bowed head as Paul explained all that had happened. He heard with pride how hard Olivia and Joe had worked to help the sick and dying, with sorrow he was told the names of some mutual friends who had died, and with great sadness he learned of the loss of a baby no one even imagined had started life’s journey.

“How is Olivia now?” he asked very quietly knowing from the sounds from outside that the entourage were making their way indoors.

“Much better than she was, and being with her children and family - well, that’s the best medicine anyone could prescribe. She may need looking after but in most cases, being that she is young enough and healthy enough, she will come through this quite well.”

“Did Adam know?” Ben asked hoping that his voice didn’t travel beyond where they stood.

“No, she didn’t know herself until the day before it happened .. .the loss … I mean.”

Ben nodded and squared his shoulders, then putting a smile on his face he strode forward to take his daughter in law in his arms and welcome her home.

Chapter 85

Hop Sing had prepared a meal that looked every bit as good as it tasted even though both Joe and Olivia just picked at the food on their plates. Although Hop Sing hovered around them to encourage them to eat more Joe finally had to admit he was so tired that the effort of chewing the food was almost more than he could bear and Olivia very quietly agreed with him.

“It must have been terrible for you, all of you.” Hester said as she placed a gentle hand on Olivia’s arm, “Joe, I’m sorry, we should have realised - but we were just so glad to know that you would be home, safe and sound. Dear Olivia, why not stay here the night and rest, I’m sure that Mary Ann only wants her husband home with her.”

Mary Ann smiled at her sister in law and then looked at Joe with such tender love that Ben felt quite emotional and had to look away, as he did so his eyes fell upon Reuben who was sitting beside Sofia and he recalled what Paul had said about the miscarriage, he shook his head which Joe noticed “Anything wrong, Pa?”

“No, no, son, I was just looking around at you all and - and feeling so grateful, and proud, of all of you. My grandchildren, my daughters - and you, Joe. I know how hard you both have had to work, and what you have had to endure, I still remember the time when we had an epidemic in town and what that involved. I’m just - very grateful - for what we have here, today, together.”

They looked at him, realised he was getting sentimental and for a moment a rather uncomfortable silence fell upon them all, then Mary Ann leaned forward and kissed him, “Oh Pa, we owe you so much.”

Marcy smiled as she watched them, listened to the voices that now rose in chatter again, knowing that it would eventually lull and more serious talks would take place away from the table. At one time she would have been self conscious, uncomfortable and too aware of not being part of the family, and not now, such a feeling never entered her mind, she was only conscious of a deep appreciation for all that Olivia and the Cartwrights had done for her.

Joe was first to get to his feet and asked them to excuse him and his wife, “I’m just so blasted tired.”

Once the door had closed upon them Olivia looked at her children and then thanked Hester for taking such care of them. She put out a hand to stroke Sofia’s cheek and then Reubens “I hear you were hurt, son? What happened?”

Reuben swung his feet under the table and hung his head, “David Watson hit me.”

“Why?”

“Aw, Ma, do I have to talk about it now?” he wriggled in his chair, embarrassed and casting an anxious glance at Marcy and Hester.

“David made a horse for Boo. It’s over there -” Sofia pointed to the carving, “He said sorry, didn’t he?”

Reuben nodded and Olivia frowned very slightly before turning to Marcy and talking to her about Luke and the cattle drive. Talk drifted along those channels now, how Hester and Marcy were missing their husbands, how long it would be before they were going to come back home. Ben said that he would cable Hoss from town in the morning to let him know everything was now alright, and then asked Olivia what had been the cause of the cholera starting in the first place.

As talk returned to the subject of the sickness Hannah’s eyes grew heavy, she dropped her spoon onto the floor, and then her head began to wobble and before anyone could realise it she had fallen right asleep with her cheek resting on the table. “Oh look at the little sweetheart,” Marcy cried.

Hester rose from her chair and went to rescue her daughter, smiling at Olivia she told her how Hannah and Sofia had waited patiently out in the yard most of each day, waiting for her to return home. Sofia looked at her mother and blinked “And I was waiting for daddy too.”

Olivia felt a lump rise in her throat but all she could do was nod, reach out to touch her daughter’s face before looking away.

Hester now excused herself and carried her daughter away, returning as everyone else was taking their seats around the hearth while Ben poured out the coffee. Sofia was snuggled up close to her mother, her head on Olivia’s shoulder while Reuben was playing with the wooden horse, galloping it over the arm of the chair and back again.

“You must be very tired, Olivia. Why not take up our offer and stay here for the night, Marcy also, after all, it’s a long trip back to the Double D.” Ben looked at Marcy with his eyebrows raised and she smiled back at him, a warm generous parting of the lips.

Olivia looked at Reuben, and hugged Sofia close to her and thanked Ben for his kindness but felt that really she should take the children home. Marcy could come with them after all there was room to spare. Ben shook his head “No, my dear, I insist that you stay here. Your house has not been aired since you left and I think you need pampering a little. I’m sure that Marcy will agree with me?”

Marcy did agree, and looked over at Hester who shook her head “Really, Olivia, it is just so bad of you to think of returning home and not allowing us to spoil you a little after all you have been doing these past days. Come, don’t begrudge us this indulgence.” and she hugged her sister in law affectionately.

So it was agreed, and it wasn’t long afterwards that she was getting up to carry Sofia to her bed with Reuben scampering off ahead of her, Ben stepped forward “No, my dear, let me take her. She’s getting too heavy for you.”

Olivia frowned and for a moment wondered if Paul had said anything to Ben about the miscarriage, but Ben, realising that he may have committed a faux pas, smiled “I’m surprised you have the strength in your legs to even carry you, you and Joe both worked yourself to exhaustion.”

Sofia was half asleep and didn’t fuss about being handed over to Ben, whom she loved anyway, and Olivia was able to kiss Marcy good night and then Hester before following the little convoy up to the bedrooms.

Leaving Olivia to take care of the children Ben made his way downstairs just as Marcy rose to her feet in order to go to the bed allocated her, but Ben prevented her from doing so, asking her to be patient as he had something to say to them both. Noting the serious tone of his voice Marcy promptly sat down again to hear what Ben had to say, and when he had finished speaking she wept a little along with Hester “She doesn’t know that Paul told you?”

“No, Marcy. I think it would be better for Olivia to tell us herself, should she so wish to do so. It may be that she’d prefer not to mention it, in which case, we must respect her feelings in this regard.”

Marcy and Hester looked at one another, then nodded and it was at this point that Marcy did ask to be excused and slowly made her way to her room.

Reuben held his mother’s hand in his and told her about the fight, and what had caused it. Olivia listened patiently, longing to fall asleep in the bed that was in Adams previous room. She waited until Reuben had finished speaking “Did you ask Gran’pa’s permission to take the ship to school, Reuben?”

“No, Ma. I didn’t think to ask him, and I didn’t think you’d mind nor Pa.”

“But what if it had been broken?”

“Miss Brandon made sure that it wouldn’t be.” Reuben protested, his hazel eyes looking appealingly up at her.

“Reuben, apart from that, do you remember when we got the ship and Pa was telling you all about its different parts, do you remember him telling you, forbidding you, to touch it.”

“Yes, Ma. I remember, but - but Pa wasn’t here to ask if I could take it and it was for only a little while.”

“Oh Reuben, can’t you see what I am trying to tell you? Pa trusted you to be obedient, not just for when we are around to ask, or watch you, but at times when we aren’t there, that’s when it is even more important to just do as you are told.” she brushed back his dark hair, and her anxious face must have touched his little heart for tears trembled on his lower eyelashes, “Now, when Grand’pa found out what you had done, what discipline did he give you?”

“I - I was hurt, so he didn’t - didn’t say anything.” the boy stammered truthfully.

“I don’t want you to cry, my dear.“ she said as she gently wipe away the tear trickling down his cheek, “But I would like you to and apologise to your Grand’father in the morning for going behind his back in taking that ship without asking him. I won’t punish you any further, after all you have suffered enough. Now, go to sleep …”

“Ma, I’m glad you’re back with us.” he whispered and squeezed her hand, “I wish dad were here too.”

“So do I, dear.”

“Was it very bad in town? Was a lot of folk sick?”

“Yes, son, yes, a lot were very sick.”

“Any one I know? Any of my friends from school?”

She sighed and closed her eyes as she tried to remember the names and the faces that had been brought in, mentioned in passing, or whose face she may have covered with a white sheet. “We’ll talk about it in the morning. It isn’t the kind of thing to discuss now, just before you go to sleep.”

She leaned down now and kissed him. Then involuntarily hugged him close and with difficulty restrained the tears, “Oh Reuben, thank goodness you were safe here.” she whispered, “Thank goodness.”

………………

No one disturbed her in the morning although cups of tea were carried up to her room, and then carried back down again. Sofia and Reuben didn’t even waken her as they were told to tip toe past her door. She slept until the clatter of plates and cutlery drifted into her hearing and for a few minutes she lay there to listen while she tried to comprehend where she was … and then when she did realise she closed her eyes and dosed on a little more.

When she opened her eyes again Marcy was sitting beside her bed and smilingly said that she had just come up with some tea for her. Olivia yawned and stretched “Oh Marcy you can’t imagine how good it feels to wake up here, and not feel the heat of that hotel room, and the smells of the town.”

“ I can well imagine it.” the younger woman said and plumped up the pillows to slip behind her back “There now, lean back, and then have your tea. Lunch is being cooked, would you like me to bring it up on a tray?”

“Oh no, I’ll be down soon. Thank you, Marcy.” she reached for the cup and then stopped and took hold of Marcy’s hand instead “Marcy, I want to ask a favour of you, if I may?”

“Certainly, what is it?” she held Olivia’s hand in both hers and smiled down at her friend “What do you want to ask?”

“I just wondered if, for a few days, the children and I could go back with you to the Double D. You see, I feel that I couldn’t go back, just yet, to our house, not without Adam being there. I’m tired, and feeling emotional and rather silly I suppose, but the thought of going home without him …”

Marcy shook her head “Now then, say no more, Miss Livvy, you know perfectly well I’ll do anything for you. I’m glad you want to come back with me, it’ll be perfect, just perfect.”

Olivia squeezed her fingers gently and then picked up her cup of tea, “I’ll be down in a moment, I won’t be long.”

Marcy nodded, smiled “Sofia has peeked into this room four times already, just to make sure you really are home, and Reuben has made you a present.” she paused at the door and turned “Come down when you’re ready, Miss Livvy.”

Chapter 86

Although Hester and Mary Ann both tried to persuade Olivia to stay with either of them they could understand Olivia’s preference to return to the Double D. For Olivia it meant a going back to somewhere she had known as a safe haven during her childhood, the familiarity of the house and the orchard tied in with the memories of the happy times she shared with her family. She closed her mind to the darker times after the Bannock had allowed their return, and the difference that had brought to them all, but now … she smiled at her sisters-in-law and kissed their cheeks “You must remember that Marcy is all alone there, she can’t come and stay with me as she has work to do around the ranch for when Luke comes home.”

They smiled and nodded, aware that they were blessed with company, Mary Ann with a dear husband as well, and Hester with Ben and Hop Sing. “But you will take care, and rest.” Mary Ann insisted as she stroked out the creases in the shawl that Olivia draped over her shoulders.

“Marcy will make sure I catch up on my beauty sleep.” Olivia laughed suddenly feeling like a little girl again as she looked into Mary Anns anxious face.”I’ll be alright, Mary Ann. Give Flannel my thanks for the cake.” and she glanced over her shoulder at Reuben who was balancing it on his lap very carefully while he played with his little wooden horse.

“I will.” Mary Ann stepped back for Hester to come through now and hand Sofia her doll that she had neglected due to the excitement of going to the Double D,

“Eat well, build up your strength.” she urged as Olivia took her seat beside Marcy to which Olivia laughingly replied “Make sure you do too, you seem to be forgetting you have to eat for two.”

“Oh I haven’t forgotten,” Hester laughed as well, “I think it’s deliberately turning somersaults to keep me awake at night.”

Ben stepped forward with concern in his eyes, afraid to say too much he took her hands in his and smiled “Let Marcy pamper you a little, my dear, you worked hard, been through an ordeal…” he could have bitten his tongue so cleared his throat, “you and Joe both.”

“Some suffered far worse, Pa.” she leaned down and kissed him, wondered fleetingly if he knew about the baby, but was too afraid to mention it, she, in turn, wanted to close the book on it and settled back to wave to them as the vehicle moved away.

Marcy smiled widely and her eyes were bright as she laughed “Oh Miss Livvy, I shall pamper you and make no mistake about it.”

They drove pass the turning in the track that would lead to their own home, and Olivia smiled and relaxed, and thought of the changes she would make before her husband returned. There was such a lot she wanted to do and she squeezed Marcy’s arm in hers as a bubble of excitement trickled through her almost like some kind of reaction to the misery that had consumed her previously.

………………..

Adam straightened his jacket and took his hat from McGill’s hand. He had dreamt about Olivia that night, and in the dream she had smuggled herself on board the ship as one of the men so that he had to find her, and no matter how he tried she remained elusive and never to be found. The whole dream was one of frustration and irritation where as soon as he had a glimpse of someone who could have been, may have been, turned out not to be, up ladders, down corridors, in the brig, and the galley, and the ‘head‘, and the cabins always so fleeting the hope of finding her and then he had woken and the dream trickled away leaving annoying strands that pricked at his memory and made him feel bad tempered as a result.

Hardy knocked on the door and announced that the carriage had arrived with Steiner in it. With a curt nod Adam tucked his hat under his arm and left his cabin to step out onto the deck and into the warmth of a bright sunlit day.

Steiner saw the broad shouldered tall officer striding down the gangplank and waited with some trepidation as seamen saluted and stood to attention while Adam made his way to the carriage. The vehicle leaned a little to the left as Adam mounted the step and took his seat, “Good day, Steiner.”

“Commodore.”

Adam placed his hat upon his knee and turned to watch as the horses pulled the carriage from the harbour and into the main thoroughfare. The heat of the day was uncomfortable but lacked the humidity that he had experienced in the South China seas, and the colours of the plants that were growing and spilling over everything was enhanced by the brilliance of the sun.

He stared around him and remembered how he had taken the letter which he had been ordered to deliver to the President and how he had set it down upon his desk, taken a finely pointed knife and very carefully broken the seal. The letter, signed by Grant and counter signed by Secretary of State Fish, was a demand, in quite strong language, for Spain to stop messing about and get Burriel tried for murder in order for justice to be met. There were several conditions attached as well which King Alfonso and the President of Cuba were warned not to ignore otherwise there would be dire consequences, war between the nations just one of them.

Having read the letter and thought it over in the small hours of the night, Adam then took great care in resealing the envelope and putting it back in the drawer in his desk. Steepling his fingers and supporting his chin upon them he mused over what he had read and decided that Grant and Fish between them were pushing America into another war. The language of the letter, though politically correct in every detail and tactful to the extreme, was left without ambiguity and with the Cubans and Spanish being overly sensitive as they were Adam was left to wonder if getting Burriel to trial really was the issue behind this missive.

The carriage jostled along pushing aside ricketty wagons and overloaded burro’s, graceful barouches, a cabriolet or two, the one horse chaise’s all seemed to throng together en masse as though deliberately conspiring to prevent them reaching their destination at the right time.

U.S. Consul General Henry C. Hall* was already in attendance at the palace of Spain’s representative, Arsenio Martínez de Campos*, and was in heated discussion with some gentlemen when Adam and Steiner were announced. Moving swiftly towards them Hall shook both their hands, looked Adam over sternly “Have you the letter?”

“I have.” Adam replied with a slight nod of the head and while it seemed obvious that Hall expected him to hand it over to him, Adam firmed his lips and turned to look straight ahead. If President Grant wanted him to play mail man then he would, right to the end.

It took a while but the time finally arrived for them to be admitted to Arsenio Martínez de Campos’ state room where guards flanked them as they entered and made their way to where the Captain General or Governor of Cuba, was standing. A handsome man of the same age as Adam he stood proudly in his uniform with his medals and gold braiding making him, so the Commodore thought, a perfect target for any assassin hidden in the many alcoves of the room.

“Your Excellency -” Hall gave a slight bow from the waist “May I present Commodore Adam Cartwright of the frigate Shenandoah who represents President Grant and has a communication to give you from him.” Hall glanced to Adam who stepped forward ahead of Steiner and gave the Governor of Cuba an even slighter bow.

“Comodoro.” de Campos said in a crisp clear voice and then a long speech in Spanish unrolled which Adam listened to and hoped he looked as though he understood what had been said. The man was smiling which was one good thing, the fact that the dark eyes were not was rather disquieting however and Adam wondered if Hall or Steiner would translate or say enough to make the words comprehensible.

With an appalling accent Adam informed the Governor that he was privileged to be of service to both his President and himself, the Governor of Cuba. It was a speech he had practised carefully under Hardy’s instruction.

Hall now spoke in Spanish having winced slightly during Adam’s ’speech’ which brought a slight smile to de Campos’ lips, then Hall turned to Adam “I’ve explained to the Governor that the letter you bring him is also being handed to the King in Spain today.”

Adam nodded and looked at the handsome figure who, he noticed, was stroking the gold filigree handle of his sword, a superb ceremonial article. The man was obviously impatient to have the interview over and accordingly Adam took the letter from the inner pocket of his jacket and stepped forward to hand it to Arsenio.

For a moment it looked as if it would be refused but finally Arsenio accepted the letter and ripped the envelope open turning his back upon his visitors and mounting some steps to a dias upon which his desk was situated. An enormous stained glass window let in streams of multi coloured light across the scene and Adam thought it all rather like a painting that would be hung in the Louvre in France for it struck him as so surreal.

He kept his eyes on what he could see of the Governor’s face, however, and was quick to notice the reddening around the man’s neck, the flush to the face and contortion of the facial muscles. He cleared his throat, obviously the Governor didn’t like the conditions referred to in the letter.

Hall was looking impassive, whether he knew the contents of the letter by some means or other Adam didn’t know, Steiner was looking uncomfortable and openly perspiring while his eyes swivelled from de Campos to Hall.

Eventually the Governor very carefully placed the letter down on the desk, then turned to look at the three men and in a cold, precise voice thanked them. The audience was over.

As the doors to the big room slammed shut Adam looked at Hall “Is that all?”

“As far as you are concerned, Commodore, yes. You were to deliver a letter and you have done so. Now it is up to the diplomats and politicians to deal with the aftermath.”

Adam glanced back to the doors and nodded “Well, I reckon there will certainly be some ‘aftermath’ as you call it, from the look on his face I don’t think he was very happy with the contents of that letter.”

“I agree.” Steiner groaned, “I thought he was going to call the guards and have us arrested.”

Hall shrugged “If that were the case there would be very little we could have done about it, I doubt if we would be seen again if the stories of this building are correct.”

Adam decided not to ask for any further illumination but proceeded to walk briskly out of the ante-chamber with Steiner and Hall right behind him. Once by the carriage he shook Hall’s hand, “Well, if that was all I had to do, I shall return to my ship. My crew would enjoy a few days leave here before we return home. Good day, Mr. Hall.”

Steiner watched Hall stride over to his own vehicle and then nodded to their carriage “I’ll see you back to your ship, sir.”

Adam nodded and resumed his seat, his brow furrowed as he considered exactly why he had to come all this way to deliver a letter that could have been put into the diplomatic bag and handed over by Steiner or Hall. Politics, he decided, did not sit well with him.

Chapter 87

Olivia sat on the bench where only the previous year she would sit with Adam and their romance began to blossom. As she sat now with the sun upon her face she tried to concentrate on her task of shelling the peas that had been grown in the garden and were now filling the bowl in her lap. The sounds of the children playing in the woodland seemed far off and a pleasant accompaniment to the natural languor of the place. She found her eyes growing heavier and heavier and it was only when she was in danger of dropping the bowl that prevented her falling asleep.

Marcy observed her from the door and with a sigh shook her head, drying her hands on a towel she walked to wards the bench and sat down, removed the bowl and took hold of Olivia by the hand, “You’re exhausted, why don’t you go upstairs into your room and sleep a little. I’ll call you down when the meal’s ready.”

Olivia nodded but leaned back her head and just closed her eyes as though she had no intention of moving from that spot, “I am tired, Marcy.” and she squeezed the other womans fingers within her own, “It was such a horrible, terrible time.”

“Were - did - many die?”

“I don’t know the exact numbers. It was so frustrating not being able to stop them dying, Marcy. Some died within hours of arriving. I felt such a failure not being able to prevent it. It was the children -” her eyes welled with tears and overflowed, “Oh Marcy, the children - it was horrible.” and she bowed her head and wept so that Marcy put her arms around her in order to try and comfort her.

“Cholera’s no respecter of persons, Miss Livvy.” she whispered as she tried to find some words that would stop the weeping and help Olivia move on from those fateful days.

Olivia nodded and drew away from her, slightly pushing her back as though ashamed of being so weak, she wiped her eyes and nodded again “Everyone worked so hard to bring it to a stop. Endless sheets and blankets to be boiled and dried, the fires seemed to be burning all day. The women who were working on the laundry were worn out, poor things.”

She looked away now and scanned the woodlands, a slight smile touched her lips and she stood up “Let’s go for a walk. It’s a while since I’ve been to Abigail’s grave and those of my parents.”

Marcy noted that no mention was made of the infants grave that had been so long neglected and unknown. They walked together at a slow pace with their arms linked, giving Olivia the chance to see what changes, if any, Luke had make to the place. Every so often Marcy would point to something new and wait for Olivia’s reaction like a child seeking praise from the teacher. She was never disappointed, especially when it was Olivia who would point out something and commend her for it.

The woodland and orchard was a delightful place to be on a hot day, the dappled shadows were a joy to wander amongst, here and there they would see a flash of Sofia’s skirts or Reuben’s shirt, their young voices lusty with health and vigour which reminded Olivia of those who would no longer be able to do so. She sighed and shook her head “Two of Reuben’s school friends died, I haven’t told him yet.”

“Children accept death far more easily than we do, probably because we question it so much.”

“Marcy -” she paused then and stopped, just as they had reached the little grave and headstone where Abigail Phillips lay.

In silence they stood together looking down at the mound that was now grown over with grass and daisies. “Poor Abigail.” Olivia whispered, “I wish she had been in her right mind when we brought her here, she would have been so happy.”

“Yes, Miss, she would have been.”

“Marcy -” Olivia turned and smiled “Don’t call me Miss Livvy, I thought we had got over that before, we’re friends, aren’t we? And sisters?”

“Yes, of course. I suppose it’s force of habit.” Marcy sighed and looked over to the other graves before they recommenced their stroll stopping only when they reached the little slab of stone indicating the infant‘s resting place. Now they stayed a while again in silence and Marcy wondered if now would be the time when Olivia would mention about the baby she had miscarried, but her friend said not a word.

A rustling in the shrubs and Sofia appeared with a bunch of flowers in her hand which she held out to her mother before, with a fleeting smile, she turned and ran back to join her brother.

“Let’s go inside now,” Olivia suggested after holding them to her face to enjoy the perfume from the little bouquet, “ I’m really so tired.”

“Will you sleep a little if I were to leave you alone in the sitting room?”

“Yes.” she turned her head to look back at the little grave and with a sigh followed her friend back to the house.

…………..

Adam unbuttoned his jacket and stared blankly out of the port hole. There was no doubting the fact that Cuba was a beautiful island and he was thinking of getting Hardy and North to organise shore leave for the men when there was an abrupt knock on the door and his first Officer peered inside “Sir, there’s a gentleman to see you.”

Before Hardy could speak any more a tall thin man stepped into the cabin, obviously Spanish and of high rank. He looked at Adam and bowed respectfully “Comorado, you will please to come with me?”

“And who exactly are you?” Adam asked his hand still hovering over the buttons on his jacket.

“I am Don Fernandez Xavier de Velasco.“ dark eyes flashed and a proud face hardened as he raised his chin to ‘herald’ his name in the confines of that cabin, as though usually it would be ringing out in far loftier places.

“And whereabouts do you intend to take me?” Adam asked lowering his voice and concentrating on re-buttoning his jacket.

“The Governor wishes to speak with you, senor Comodoro.”

“Senor Steiner is not here to accompany me -”

“It is not Senor Steiner the Governor asks to see.”

Adam looked at Hardy, “My first Officer, Mr. Hardy will accompany me.” he murmured as though it was not worth Don Fernandez wasting his breath in saying he couldn’t. “Mr. Hardy, tell Mr. Dekker he has the ship.”

……………

The carriage was a grand vehicle and drawn by four white horses so alike that Adam drew the conclusion they were sired by the same stud. No one spoke as they took their seats and the driver pulled away from the harbour to take the road that Adam had only an hour earlier travelled upon. The horses broke into a fine canter as they left the town and Adam was about to comment that they had taken a different direction to the Governors palace when he realised that Don Fernandez had a pistol pointing at him.

“I presume we aren’t going to see the Governor?”

“I regret, Comodoro -” the other man inclined his head politely “If you have weapons on you please put them on the floor at your feet.”

He waited while they did as he requested and nodded with satisfaction. He then leaned against the seats and waved a hand in the direction of the view “Senors, enjoy your ride, please. It will be a little while yet.”

The driver obviously had no problems about where he was heading and the carriage travelled a well worn path away from the town, through several villages and stretches of beautiful countryside. They were travelling inland, away from the sea and Adam was beginning to wonder just how much further they were to go when the carriage pulled up.

“Please - to come down.” Fernandez requested indicating the steps that the driver had lowered for them upon opening the carriage door.

From the carriage they were led to another vehicle, far less grand and closed off so that they could not see out. Don Fernandez was obviously not coming along for the journey but was leaving them in the care of another who was obviously not of any noble rank.

He did however bow politely to Adam and Hardy and indicated that they took their seats. Within no time at all the vehicle was taking them off the main road and onto a rough track through an over grown jungle of trees, shrubs and flowers, none of which they were able to see. The silence was almost as suffocating as the heat within the cabs interior.

Occasionally Hardy stole a glance at his Commanding Officer to see what, if any, clue there was to what he was thinking but he only saw Adam staring straight ahead of him, stern of face and his lips clamped together. When Hardy ventured to speak in Spanish to their captor there was only one word said and that was Silencio.

The horses were slowing and there was a sound of a shouted command, a short response from the driver and then gates being opened. After a short distance the vehicle stopped altogether and the door was opened “Descend.” and a pointed finger to which both men complied.

The compound was securely fenced off with a number of white outbuildings within its perimeters but the main house was set back among trees and was elegant with a flight of steps to the door which was now slowly opening. A man stepped through and gestured to them to come up and without hesitation they made their way up the stairs and followed him through the door into the surprisingly cool interior.

……………………

“I speak English.” a man’s voice announced in the gloom of a large room, then came a stream of Spanish as orders were given to another person to draw back the blinds so that some light shone in upon them.

An older man, dignified, white haired and wearing a neatly trimmed beard sat behind a large desk. He wore an European cut suit, and apart from a single signet ring wore no jewellery, no medals, nothing that indicated him to be of noble rank. He stood up, “Comodoro Cartwright. Good day to you.” he turned to Hardy and waited for Adam to introduce him after which he stood up, “I apologise if my introduction to you may be somewhat rude, is that how you say it? I have no other choice sadly.”

“I can understand that, Senor.” Adam replied with a slight inclination of the head.

“You do?” he smiled and raised a dark eyebrow, “Si, I can believe you do. I was told you were very - like the snake - how you say -” he shrugged but the meaning was clear enough, “Please, to come with me.”

Adam glanced at Hardy and gave a brief nod of the head before following their host, who led the way. A tall man, straight backed and elegant, the style of his suit and his whole bearing indicated him to be well bred, servants stopped as he approached and bowed their heads when he passed them. Adam took one look behind him to see that two guards followed them, rifles in their hands and sabres at their hips.

The room they were led to was smaller and less decorative with shelves full of books and maps ranging the walls and a large desk near one of the windows. Standing close to the desk the older man turned to them, smiled thinly, although his eyes remained cold, aloof. “I am Francisco Vicente Aguilera*” and seeing how Adam reacted to the name his eyes warmed a little “You have heard of me?”

“I have, sir, and all of it good. I much appreciate the opportunity you have given us to meet you.”

“Come, I have much to tell you, we have to talk.” Aguilera said with an almost shy wave of the hand.

Chapter 88

Adam was more than sincere in what he had said, for Aguilera was a man of outstanding renown for honesty and humility. One of the wealthiest landowners in Cuba he had never purchased a slave, only using those he inherited from his father. He had little political interest, solely supporting this war, now in its 8th year, because of his desire to improve the conditions for his countrymen. One of his most famous statements was that he would sell everything he owned in order to support the war for independence from Spain he backed it up by putting an ad in the newspaper the very next day for the sale of all his possessed.

A married man with ten children he wished only for a country free from the domination of a foreign country, free from slavery, and more impossibly, free from corruption. His 500 slaves were freed and joined the Cuban Resistance, he was an idealist forced to fight for those ideals.

“So, you have delivered your letter to the Governor?” Aguilera murmured as sat down at the desk and indicated for them to be seated. The corner of Adam’s mouth twitched slightly “You knew about that?”

“Oh, yes,” Aguilera shrugged “This war -” he shrugged “we have our spies everywhere in the Governors quarters, where he goes, several of our men go with him, and they have their spies here, no doubt they will know that you have been taken and brought here, no doubt there are already soldiers scouring the area looking for you.”

“And will they find us?” Adam almost laughed, the man was good humoured as well as generous.

“Maybe.” Aguilera shrugged again before looking at Adam “I met a friend of yours recently, Lord Laurence Willoughby. For some reason we were talking about the American Navy and this situation with the Virginius. When I heard that you were coming here I sought to meet you.”

Adam said nothing to that but glanced over at Hardy who was listening, as they say ‘with all ears’. But curiosity got the better of him and he asked how Willoughby was involved to which Aguilera said that he had come with the party to negotiate terms for the release of the prisoners, the men from the Virginius who had survived the butchery.

“I read the account, and also saw the pictures of the deaths of Captain Fry and the 53 men,” Adam said quietly, “in Harpers Weekly*. They were -“ he paused in order to find the right word “-poignant.”

Aguilera nodded “And you want justice for your people and think that it is slow in coming.”

Adam and Hardy looked at one another and remained silent, preferring to listen, to learn. “Britain has also despatched letters for the Butcher of Santiago to be brought to trial. It was their Prime Minister who requested that the American President also wrote requesting the same.”

“You are very well informed, Senor Aguilera.” Adam said quietly and a slight frown creased his brow.

“One has to be, Adam - you do not mind my calling you by your given name?” Aguilera smiled and this time his eyes smiled also, as though he found it amusing. “It was important that the letters were sent, a record of their dissatisfaction at the delay. Spain has condemned the murders, they had no choice but to do so as public opinion world wide was against them. Captain Fry was a brave man, as were they all. The whole transaction was a bold one, bringing men and arms for us, which Spain had already announced would be treated as an act of piracy*. They would claim, accordingly, that the men received a pirate’s end.”

There was silence for a moment before Aguilera invited them to have something to drink with him, and with a snap of the fingers a servant appeared with cool refreshing drinks that made Adam wonder just how many ‘ears’ were listening in on their conversation. Aguilera fingered some papers on his desk before continuing ;


“The Spanish do not like to be insulted. This whole situation has become a major embarrassment, an insult to them and to their navy. Your country‘s “Manifest Destiny”* means that your expansionists will always look to these islands, to take them from Spain.”

“You’re referring to the 1854 affair when the Ostend Manifesto* was drafted?“ Adam said quietly

Hardy leaned forward “The United States put forward an offer to purchase the island for no more than $120 million, and would be justified in seizing it if Spain refused to sell it.”

Aguilera nodded with a smile “You know your history well, gentlemen. Spain has wriggled unconsciously ever since, waiting for the United States to come and take it. The Virginius situation brought unnecessary attention upon their country and also more support for us as a result.”

“I can understand that,” Adam murmured and placed his glass upon the desk, “Tell me, Senor Aguilera, does Antonio Maceo know about this letter?”

“There is very little he does not know about, at present he is recovering from injuries he received from the latest altercation with the Spanish soldiers. But yes, I should think he would know.”

“And there is no reason to think that he would feel - mmm - in any way indignant about it?”

“No. He wants Burriell brought to justice as much as your Government and the British do, the Spanish drag their heels because they feel they have paid out enough money in compensation to the families of the bereaved. They do not want to accept this final accountability by holding a trial.”

Adam nodded and glanced at Hardy who was still drinking, slowly. “Senor, tell me, why did you have us brought here? I’m sure your well informed spies would be able to tell you everything you needed to know about the Governors reception of the letter and whatever happened thereafter.”

“Yes, very true.” the Cuban stood up now and pushed himself away from the desk in order to approach the windows and gaze out upon the grounds beyond, “This war has dragged on too long, it will end soon, but I think it will not be long before America and Spain will be at war.”

“How sure are you of that fact?”

“As sure as I can be at present, Spain is already preparing herself for American intervention and expansion into her territories.” he shrugged and then gave a bitter sweet smile “Of course, it may not be for some while yet but there will be a war eventually.”

“So what do you want us to do? I presume your favour has something to do with this speculative war?”

The older man nodded and returned to the desk, unlocked a drawer and brought out a plain sandalwood box which he tapped it with his forefinger “I would ask you to take this to your President. It may delay war long enough or even altogether prevent it taking place. It is information that I think Mr Grant would appreciate in his possession, and I am sure that Secretary of State Mr Fish will find it very interesting.”

“And is that all?” Adam asked as he accepted the box from the other man who looked at him long and hard before shaking his head,

“There is nothing more.” he now stood erect and raised his chin, his long white beard giving him the appearance of a biblical patriarch. “Thank you for your patience, Comodoro. Lord Willoughby was right when he spoke so highly of you.”

He bowed his head and beckoned to the two men standing guard to take them away, Adam paused for a moment and then asked if the Spanish knew about the contents of the box, to which Aguilera shrugged “I think not but can be sure of nothing about that …”


The horse drawn cab was awaiting them at a different entrance to the compound and they were ushered into it without much ceremony. Neither of them spoke about the interview with the Cuban, but stared out of their windows in contemplative silence.

Lieutenants North and Dekker greeted them on board as they stepped from the gangway, and it was Dekker who informed the Commodore that the authorities had requested that they did not stay in the harbour over long, a very strong hint was given that they left before sunset.

“The other American ship has already left, sir.” Dekker said with his hands clasped behind his back, “They left two hours ago.”

“We saw the authorities boarding the British ship as well, sir. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were also given orders to leave.” North ventured to add.

Adam placed the box on his desk and then looked at his officers, “Very well, you will have to inform the ships company that there will be no shore leave this visit. I’d rather forego the pleasure of a trip around this island than risk offending the Spanish right now.” he nodded and instructed Dekker to inform the men only for North to say that some men were already on shore, having left prior to the Spanish orders to leave. “Get the Marines to go on shore and locate them immediately. I think the Spanish have eaten enough humble pie for today, without our adding more to their problems.” he paused and looked at Lieutenant North “Mr North, tell the men that they will be able to have shore leave elsewhere, perhaps Haiti?” he smiled at the way North’s face brightened, and hoped the compromise would suffice. “At once, sir.”

Salutes and then the door closing leaving Adam alone with his thoughts.

Chapter 89

The Marines returned several hours later having successfully located all the men who had been provided shore leave during Adam’s absence. From the black eyes and bloody noses it was quite obvious that some had been unwilling to forego their pleasures and were consequently put into the brig to cool off.

The sun had not yet set when the sails were unfurled and the Shenandoah turned to make her departure from Santiago, cutting a majestic swathe across the waters towards open sea. Adam made his way to the bridge and nodded over to the helmsman “Bearing 294° WNW, Mr. Lancing, we have a good stiff breeze behind us so it shouldn’t take too long to go the 216 nautical miles to Port Au Prince, sir.”

“Aye, sir.” Lancing grinned “No time at all, sir.”

“We’ll stay out to sea until dawn and enter the harbour at day break. The men should be able to get a full days shore leave, don’t you agree?”

“Indeed so, sir.”

The wheel spun and the great ship slowly turned her direction towards Haiti. For a while Adam remained on the bridge looking over at the Cuban lights that glimmered now on the darkening horizon as the distance between them grew wider. Inevitiably his thoughts turned towards home, to Olivia and to his family. He imagined them safe and secure, happy in their beds sleeping the sleep of the innocent. He knew that they were three hours ahead in time to where they would be at home, and smiled at the pictures he was conjuring up in his mind.

He became so deep in thought and unconscious of his whereabouts that Hardy had to raise his voice to tell him that supper was prepared in his cabin and McGill had sent him up to fetch him.

………….

Marcy brought a cup of hot chocolate to Olivia and then took her seat opposite her. Above them the children slept soundly in rooms that had once been their own the previous year, and when Marcy looked over to Olivia it was easy to think that time had travelled backwards and they were transported back to that time before Adam had come courting and Luke had swept her off her feet. “This is like old times, isn’t it?”

Olivia smiled as she closed her fingers around the cup and looked over at her young friend from across the rim “I was just thinking exactly the same thing, Marcy.”

“The children would be asleep …” Marcy sighed “And Mrs Abigail snoring in her room.”

“Oh yes, she did snore didn’t she?” Olivia laughed a little and then sighed, “A lot has happened since then, hasn’t it?”

“Yes. It has. You must be missing the Commodore very much.”

“Oh don’t call him that, Marcy. Let him be Adam to you, not some officious Naval officer.”

Marcy gave a slight shrug to her shoulders “It’s hard to think of him as ‘Just Adam’. He’s so - well - I don’t know.”

“Then don’t think about it,” Olivia laughed again, “Are you missing Luke?”

“Oh yes, so much so. He wants to make a success of this place so much, Olivia.” she leaned forward a little and hid her face by pretending to straighten an ornament on the table “He was so grateful to you and - Adam - for helping him out with the Whitney Hotel business. It left just enough to cover some expenses for this cattle drive. We’ve had to take out a loan but just a small one which will be paid back as soon as he comes home.”

“Marcy - if you need any help, any help at all, you must let us know. We’ll do anything we possibly can, you know that?”

Marcy nodded and then looked at her, caught her eyes and said bluntly “And what about you, Miss Livvy, what help can we give you?”

………………..

When the morning dawned the Shenandoah raised her anchors and sailed slowly into harbour at Port au Prince. Having breakfasted Adam made his way to the bridge and watched as the ship made her way to a berth beside another American ship, a familiar one that made his nerves tingle. If the ship were familiar then perhaps, just perhaps, its Captain would be also. He reached for his telescope and directed his attention to the bridge where some officers could be seen grouped together in discussion.

The Helmsman was now a man called Essex, Lancing having done his ‘trick’ and gone below to snatch some sleep before hopefully being granted leave to go on shore. Adam looked over at Essex and nodded “Run alongside the Baltimore, Mr Essex. It would be good to see if we have some old friends on board her.”

“Yes, sir.” Essex nodded and turned the wheel slowly making sure that the ship was heading in a neat line towards the berth indicated by the officer.

“Mr Hardy - deploy the anchor detail now, sir.”

“Yes, sir.” Hardy saluted and hurried to get the men organised to handle the ground tackle as the anchor was about to be lowered.

“Bo’sun, see to your sails, sir.” Adam cried to the non-commissioned officer who was actually about to give the order to the men under his command to haul in the sheets.

“Bringing to, sir.” the Boatswain replied with a snappy salute before turning to continue his orders.

By reefing the sails the ship would ‘bring to’, that is, become stationary. The skivvy weaver began to arrange the necessary flags required by law upon entering a harbour while on the bridge Adam began to arrange the papers necessary for the harbour authorities to check through and pass.

As the Shenandoah closed into her berth Adam once again brought his telescope to his eye and smiled as a familiar face turned towards him. That O’Brien could see him was in no doubt, but even so he picked up his own telescope to turn in Adam’s direction before turning to the other officers to continue his conversation. Adam’s face relaxed into a smile, it seemed all to wonderful that O’Brien happened to be in Port au Prince already and as far from the South China Seas as it was possible to be.

……………

Sofia crept quietly across the floor on her tip toes in order to reach her mother’s bedside and peek at her. The little girl felt almost tearful at the memory of how much she had missed her, longed to see her again and her bottom lip trembled somewhat as she placed a small bunch of wild flowers on the bedside table so that it would be the first thing Olivia would see when opening her eyes.

It was the creak of the door closing that woke Olivia up but for a moment she remained as she was in order to enjoy that slightly pleasant period when sleep was still enjoyable and teasing one to slip back to its cosy security while wakefulness tugged at one to come and enjoy the day.

She sighed and thought of the conversation she had had with Marcy before they had parted for their beds. Marcy’s question had left her in no doubt that at least she knew about the baby. There was little point in pretending it hadn’t happened, which Olivia now realised was what she had been doing. Hoping against hope that all remained well, that its loss had been, if not a figment of her imagination, then a physical something that meant nothing.

Talking to Marcy had helped, in some ways. She had poured out to her how much she had longed to have a baby, to give to Adam what she felt he wanted more than anything in the world, not realising that had she been honest he would have told her he already had that now. “I barely had time to feel excited about it all, Marcy. It seemed all my hopes and prayers had been fulfilled. I was so happy I was floating on air as I went to help with the sick. But then - then it all went wrong.”

“And you couldn’t be mistaken? One way or the other?” Marcy had asked and when Olivia cast a confused look at her she ventured to say “Perhaps you hadn’t actually been pregnant, you just saw what you wanted to see, and the loss was merely your monthly cycle.”

“No, I wasn’t wrong, Marcy. It happened once before, with the first baby I conceived with Robert.” her voice drifted into silence then and she leaned back against the cushions on her chair and closed her eyes, “I won’t ever forget that either, our first baby - and gone, just like that, just as though - it didn’t really matter.”

“But it did, didn’t it?” Marcy said gently and reached out to take Olivia by the hand so that the other woman began to weep a little and hold on tightly as though she didn’t dare to let go.

Olivia released her breath as she turned over onto her back and opened her eyes. She stared up at the ceiling and realised that Luke had repaired the crack that had been there when she had occupied the bed last. It seemed to be emphasising the fact that life goes on, no matter what happened during its course of time, it just rolled on.

She wondered if she would tell Adam about the baby, or whether she would just tuck it away as a memory that was best forgotten. What was the point of making him feel guilty for not being here when she needed him, not sharing in the pain and the disappointment. She sighed and moved to get out of bed, hearing the sounds of Sofia’s excited chatter from downstairs and Reuben shouting outside and laughing. It occurred to her that one of the most charming things in life was the laughter of children.

Chapter 90

O’Brien was pacing the deck by the time the Port Authorities had finished checking the papers and confirming that all was well. Unlike the Cuban officials these gentlemen actually shook Adams hand and wished his crew a happy visit to their island. As soon as they were seen leaving the companion way to the Commodore’s quarters O’Brien hurried to meet up with his friend. “Well, Adam, this is a wonderful surprise.”

Adam laughed, a warm hearted generous laugh as he crossed the room to shake O’Brien’s hand heartily between his own, “What are you doing here, O’Brien? I thought you’d still be in the South China Sea?”

“Heavens no.” Daniel exclaimed, “When I came back to the States for your wedding I was determined never to go back there again if I could help it. Thankfully my orders came through for me to patrol the seas here instead.”

“Sit down, O’Brien, pour out some coffee, it’s fresh. I’ll be back as soon as I’ve seen my officers about a rota for the men to enjoy some shore leave.”

O’Brien nodded and grinned as he did as he was commanded. He could hear Adam’s deep voice addressing some one who must have been making their way to the cabin, the voices retreated out of hearing range and so he sat down with his cup of coffee and waited for Adam’s return.

Adam examined the rota and agreed with the various divisions of men, told Hardy to ensure that the men understood that they were trusted to return at the time they were told or suffer the consequences. After running an eye over the ships company that was assembling on deck waiting to hear the names of those allowed first chance to taste the freedom of Port Au Prince he left it to his officers to deal with and returned to his visitor.

“Now, Daniel, tell me how you have been since I last saw you? How is Marie and the children?”

He sat down and crossed his legs, his cup and saucer balanced in one hand and his dark eyes taking in the changes he could see in his friend during the past year. It was good to notice that he had put on weight, and looked well and robustly fit, certainly there was a touch of grey at his temples and the faint tracery of lines indicating that time was catching up with him too. Daniel drank some of the coffee before he answered: “Marie’s well, and the children are growing, Patricks a handsome lad and I couldn’t be blamed for saying that ‘Netta is just about the prettiest little girl. I’m very proud of them.” There was a pause then, and he stared down at the floor and sighed. “It always seems that I am playing catchup with them and as soon as everything is good between us all I have to report back to my ship. You can’t imagine how often I have cursed being away from them so much. Netta didn’t even know me when I got home on leave last time, she wouldn’t come to me happily at all, even though Marie assured me that she misses her father very much, she just couldn’t believe that I was he.”

Adam leaned back and cleared his throat so that O’Brien looked at him and wistfully added “Of course, you would understand what it is like yourself now, having a lovely wife and children of your own.”

“Yes, very true. But this is the first time I have been absent from them since I married Olivia and hopefully I shall be back home soon.”

“Is there any doubt that you won’t be?” O’Brien asked to which Adam only shook his head and shrugged. “ I have only two more months of duty here before I can go back home. After which I have been promised an extended leave to enjoy my home life again.” he smiled and leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, hands clasped together, “Adam, did you ever find out anything more about the incident in Tripoli with The Virginian ?”

“No, nothing.” Adam’s eyebrows lowered as he scowled, “At the time I wrote some letters to various people but received nothing back, not even an acknowledgement. Have you learned any more about it?”

Daniel stood up now and walked over to the port hole, he tapped his fingers on the glass of the window and then turned to face his friend “I was told repeatedly that it was a matter of several combining factors …the Italian Captain of the tug, Capelli, was drunk. The seas were wild, which was true, and Hathaway would have been wiser staying close to harbour. The Virginian was taking on water, listing, the seas carried her into the path of the tug which was going too fast to avoid the collision. That would appear to be the official line on the matter.”

“Do you have any real serious doubts about it? I think you must have to have brought it up now.”

He shrugged now, “I mention it because I have not really had the chance to discuss it with you before now and wanted to know what you thought of the matter. It‘s like - unfinished business.”

“I can’t say much, Daniel, I wasn’t a witness to what happened, like yourself. If there had been any doubt about it I am sure there would have been an official enquiry and we would have been told more. Aaron’s family accepted the findings, didn’t they?”

Daniel nodded, smiled briefly “And I suppose I should as well.” he rose and walked to the table and poured himself more coffee, “So, tell me about yourself, Adam. What are you doing here?”

Adam gave a slight shrug of the shoulders and a self depreciating grin “Oh playing mailman to the Spanish. Delivering a letter to the Governor of Cuba.”

“Better than skulking around the South China Seas.” Daniel grinned

“I suppose -” Adam shrugged again and began to speak about all that had taken place, the meeting with the Governor, then with Aguilera. “It’s a strange place, Daniel, I got the same feeling about being there as I would have if down a mine shaft with a keg of dynamite about to blow but you don’t know exactly whereabouts its been hidden to prevent the explosion.”

“I guess the only thing you can do is complete your assignment and then get back home.”

Adam nodded and then leaned forward towards his friend “So, tell me, Daniel, why were you assigned here?”

For a moment Daniel just stared at him and then gave a short laugh, a shake of the head “I told you already, I’m patrolling these waters. Since the Virginius affair things have been sticky here and my assignment is to keep track of what’s happening. I’ll have to put in my report, for instance, the haste with which you and the other ships were told to leave Santiago. Somewhere someone will try to make sense of that and tie it up with some other odd things that are happening.”

Adam nodded, stood up and leaned against his desk “Anything else?”

O’Brien shook his head and merely replied that he was doing his duty, boring though it was, but he and the other American ships in the locality were monitoring the situation as best they could and then he leaned back into his chair, crossed one leg over the other and looked thoughtfully at Adam “You know, it wasn’t just a case of delivering a letter, Adam. It was more than that; if I knew what it was I would tell you, all I do know is that I was told to be hereabouts to make sure you got away safely.”

“Here in Haiti? Over 200 miles from Santiago?”

“Both I and the other Captain were told to prepare for your arrival and to ensure your safety out of Spanish waters. Whatever the letter you delivered contained, some kind of repercussions were expected as a result of it.”

“It seems that the whole place is a hot bed of intrigue.” Adam said with a slight shrug, “The war against Spain by the Cubans has gone on long enough -”

“Yes, eight years.” Daniel nodded, “And if we’re not careful we could well be dragged into it.”

“That’s what Aguilera hinted, a war between America and Spain with Cuba as the prize.”

Again Daniel nodded “That wouldn’t surprise me.” he stood up and squared his shoulders, and looked at Adam with a more relaxed grin on his face “Well, why not come to supper this evening and enjoy my chef’s cooking. You and your officers?”

Adam’s hand slapped him gently on the back as he laughingly accepted on the promise that he would be able to return the compliment as he had promised his ship’s company two days on shore leave. As Daniel left the Shenandoah Adam watched him go, and still smiling returned to his cabin.

……………………….

Olivia sat on the bench with the warm sun and the smell of the flowers drifting towards her mingled with that of Marcy’s cooking. Beside her Reuben sat carefully reading some sheets of paper while on her other side was Sofia who was trailing a finger over some drawings that had been sketched onto some paper, drawings of a ship and the sea, birds in the sky, dolphins and whales, a bright sunshine and a small boat in which a man stood with a smile on his face and a hand raised as though waving. “That’s my daddy?” she said pointing to the man

“That’s right, Sofia, and he’s going to the big ship like he told you. Now turn the page over and see what he has written for you…”

Sofia did as she was told and her finger trailed around the shape of the words “Daddy.”

“That’s right, and what word is this one?”

“Sofia - that’s me?”

“Good girl and this one …”

“I don’t know that one.”

“It says - To Sofia, I love you, Daddy.”

The little girl nodded and repeated the words under her breath, her finger pointing to each of them in turn. Reuben said nothing but listened intently before turning his attention back to the letter Adam had written him weeks earlier. He read it carefully and when his mother asked him if he needed any help with the words he shook his head and held the letter away from her. She only smiled, after all whatever his father had put in the letter was meant solely for him anyway. She dropped a kiss on the top of his head and was about to speak when Marcy came to the door “Dinner’s ready.”

Reuben quickly put the letter back into the envelope and slipped it into his pocket. Both children ran indoors and as they passed Marcy she looked over at Olivia and smiled, “are you alright?”

“Yes, thank you. I finally gave them the letters Adam wrote for them - I wanted to give them at a time we were quiet together, this seemed perfect.”

Marcy nodded and slipped her arm through that of her friends so that together they entered the house and made their way to the kitchen.

Later when he was alone in the hayloft Reuben re-read the letter, it was brief, but said all that it needed to, assuring the boy of his love, the desire that when he returned home he would have reason to be proud of him, that they would be able to enjoy some fishing in the river together, and some things besides, but most important of all was that it started with “My dear son -.”

Chapter 91

Ben flicked through the small pile of letters he had been handed and with a drawn out sigh stuffed them into the pocket of his vest. Nothing from Adam, and although he had not expected one, in fact, had told himself repeatedly as he rode into town not to expect anything, he was still disappointed. He looked to right and left of him and crossed the road when he saw Paul closing the door to the surgery, managing to catch up with him just before he had reached his buggy.

“Paul? How are things in town now?”

“Settling down, Ben.” Paul smiled and removed his glasses which he polished slowly, “How’s Olivia?”

“She’s alright, Paul, thank you.”

“She wasn’t too far gone in her pregnancy, just that time when something can happen and it can slip away. I was surprised at how very distressed she was about it though.”

“It’s an unpleasant thing for a woman to experience, Paul.” Ben retorted, rather surprised at his friend’s attitude and wondering if Scofield’s personality was rubbing off on him.

“I know and I appreciate that, but - well, I suppose she was physically very tired, exhausted from nursing so many in town, and of course, emotionally upset with having Adam leave her. It hasn’t been a very pleasant few weeks homecoming for her.”

“No, it hasn’t.” Ben scowled, dark brows furrowed over black eyes. “And how has the town been getting on? I can hear a lot of activity going on?”

“Oh yes and not before time either,“ Paul smiled slowly, and slipped the glasses back on, “Not long before Virginia City will be sparkling new again.” he sighed and shook his head, fingered in his top pocket for his watch which he glanced at as he was speaking “I can remember the first time I rode into the place, seeing all those buildings going up and wondering what kind of people I would get to meet here.”

“And we were your first patients.” Ben’s generous mouth widened into a grin.

“That’s right, young Joseph had trapped his fingers in a door at the Mercantile and Hoss had a black eye from colliding with some mops.”

“You’ve a good memory,” Ben slapped him on the back and raised his hand in farewell as Paul clambered into his vehicle “Take care, Paul.”

“I make it a habit of taking care of myself, Ben, I just wish my patients would do the same.”

Ben nodded and watched the old buggy make its way into the middle of the thoroughfare and mingle with the rest of the traffic before making its way out of town. After a moment of contemplation while he recalled the incident to mind that Paul had referred to, Ben glanced around him and then made his way to the Bucket of Blood saloon where a cool drink of beer was ordered. He had just taken his first taste of it when he heard Joes’ “Hey, Pa?”

He turned and nodded “What are you doing in town?”

“I came for the mail.”

“I’ve already got it.” he tapped the bulging pocket and turned to the bar keep “Another beer.”

“Thanks, Pa.”

Picking up the glass Joe led the way to an empty table and sat down, stretched out long legs and nursed his drink while Ben settled into his chair “Hester and Mary Ann are going over to Olivia’s place today, going to give it a good going over to get it ready for when she goes home.”

“That’s good of them.”

“Mary Ann’s kinda worried about Olivia wanting to go off with Marcy stead of staying home.”

Ben frowned and leaned on the table, “Well, no point for her to feel that way, Joe. The Double D is more home to Olivia than the Ponderosa is, it’s where she grew up, and Marcy is on her own as well, whereas -”

“Yeah, yeah, I guess you’re right, Pa.” Joe nodded and drank some of his beer “I sure wish Adam were here. This ain’t the time for him to be away.”

“It’s never the right time for him to be away.” Ben said and was about to say more when Dave Riley appeared at his elbow “Mr.Cartwright, telegram for you.”

“It’s probably from Hoss.” Joe muttered watching as his father ripped the envelope open.

“You’re right, it is.” Ben smiled briefly and read the message, thanked Dave and told him there was no reply, then handed it to Joe.

“Good old Hoss. Hester will be glad to have him back home.”

“Yep, always a relief to know they’re on their way back. Thank goodness.” Ben muttered and drank the glass dry. “Well, I’ve things to do in town. What about you?”

Joe grinned “I saw something I wanted to get Mary Ann - I’ll ride back home with you later, Pa.”

Ben nodded and left his son to finish his drink while he sauntered from the saloon. He could see Roy walking slowly along the sidewalk opposite and raised his hand but his old friend failed to see him and continued on.

…………

Hester and Mary Ann pushed open the door of the house and stood in the porch looking about them. “There’s something unpleasant about houses that haven’t been occupied for a while. “ Mary Ann said as she untied her bonnet, “They always seem to be waiting for something, have you ever noticed that?”

“They always seem to accumulate more dust than one would imagine.” Hester replied as she ran her finger along the top of a shelf.

Mary Ann smiled and carried Daniel into the house and set him down on the settee. She looked around the empty room and sighed “No, I know what I mean. This room is missing its owners, you can feel it.”

“You can feel it, I can’t.” Hester looked around the room and shook her head “Look at those cobwebs. Olivia would have a fit if she saw the state of this place.”

There was a tap on the door and a ‘Hellooo’ as Ann entered the house and looked around at them, “I’m sorry I’m late. I wanted to just finish this before I left home.”

“You’ve finished it?” Mary Ann exclaimed “Oh let us see…”

“Only when we’ve finished the bed room, then you can see it.” Ann laughed and hurried up the stairs, “Oh Olivia will be so happy when she sees her quilt back.”

Hester called up after her “Was Hop Sing alright having the children there?”

Ann stopped and looked down at her “Oh yes, he said he would take them to Mrs O’Flannery if they misbehaved.”

Windows were opened, furniture shifted and floors cleaned, fires tidied and prepared just so all that it needed was a match to light them. Beds were aired as mattresses were rolled over and flowers were put into vases, even though the possibility of their dying before Olivia got home was more than probable. The three of them stood at the doorway of the bathroom and admired it, Mary Ann said to Hester “Are you going to try it out?”

“Certainly not.” Hester replied but later on resorted to doing so as her own plumbing wasn’t working as efficiently due to the baby.

“What was it like?” Ann asked to which she replied “Wonderful. You just pull the chain and it flushes everything away.”

Later they stood together in the doorway of the bedroom and admired the quilt, restored to its full beauty, Mary Ann sighed “It’s lovely.”

“Ann, ,you are so clever. It’s beautiful.”

“Well, you both did your bit as well,” Ann laughed and tweaked a corner of the quilt to make sure it was perfectly neat and tidy.

Daniel was fed, they ate their sandwiches and drank their lemonade and did a last minute tidy up before bundling dusters and polishes and everything else away. It was a satisfying few hours work, Hester said to their agreement as they made their way to their various homes.

Marcy sat by the window and sewed the seam of one of Luke’s shirts, she was engrossed in her task, but also in her thoughts as she darted a quick look over to Olivia every so often. The children were in bed sleeping, and Olivia was reading, her head bowed and every so often turning a page.

“Olivia, I am glad you decided to stay here for a few days. Do you feel better now?”

“I do, dear.” Olivia looked up and smiled over at her friend, “I feel a lot stronger.”

“And will you tell Adam about the baby when he comes home?”

“Yes, I will.” Olivia nodded and returned to reading her book.

Marcy said nothing more but continued with her sewing. Olivia smiled to herself and turned another page. It had been the right thing to do after all, coming back here had helped her more than she had thought possible. She had felt peace and contentment slip over her as comfortably as a garment, leaving her happy at the thought of going home the next day. She wanted to work in the garden at her own house, and she wanted to be busy making meals for her children and working while she waited for her husband to come home. She looked up and out of the window where she could see trees swaying in the light breezes, shadows slipped back and forth across the walls of the house and with a slight nod of the head she knew that all was well. She had so much now, and there was so much more waiting ahead of her. The future beckoned, and it was good.

Chapter 92

Being with O’Brien had been an enjoyable experience, and the Captain of the other American ship and his officers shared in the first evenings association which was spent having an interchange of news and views, catching up on the whereabouts of those they had known previously and realising yet again what a small world they lived in.

By the morning of the next day the other ship had returned to its duties, leaving the harbour with flags flying and its fog horn rippling through the air as it slowly made its way out to sea.

By the second evening the Officers and crew of the two ships were on good terms with one another. Above Haiti the sky was purple and deep blue with a thousand stars blazing down from a sky enlightened by a silvery moon. Adam and O’Brien were silent for a few moments before O’Brien brought up the subject of their first meeting which led to sharing old memories as they leaned against the bulwark of the Shenandoah and looked across to the darker shadows of the islands coastline. “When do you think this war will happen, if it ever does?” Adam asked quietly,

“Could be anytime, I’d like to think it wouldn’t though, that America’s new administration will ensure that they leave Cuba and Spain alone.”

“You think Grant will lose his Presidency?” Adam gave a half smile that went unseen in the darkness

“Most definitely. He has lost the confidence of the people, stands no chance of being re-elected for a third term.”

“I wonder if it will prevent his expansion into Indian Territory.” Adam sighed and leaned against the bulwark of his ship, “It needs to happen quickly though, before there’s a blood bath”

“It seems that is all that Politicians want is blood spilled.”

“Well, perhaps, although I think Hamilton Fish has done well with keeping things calm over this business with Spain and Captain Fry. If they can get Burriell charged with murder without any subsequent problems that will be a feather in his cap as well.”

O’Brien nodded and like his friend leaned down against the ship’s side and clasped his hands together, “Well, it would be good if some politicians did the work we have to do, Adam, instead of sitting in their offices on their fat backsides moving us around like so many chess pieces.”

“Is that how you feel?”

“I resent having to be sent places I dislike and doing things I equally dislike - to be honest, Adam, I‘m thinking of resigning as soon as I get back .”

Adam said nothing to that having felt the same way for so long, he only shrugged after a while “I have tried but they won’t accept it.”

“No, because you’re too useful to them.”

“Every man is, Daniel. They won’t let you go without a struggle, believe me.” he sighed and then asked him what he’d do as an alternative, should he be able to leave the navy.

“Become a lawyer.” Daniel replied quickly and then he stood up with his hands clasped behind his back, “I’ll take Marie and the children and we’ll go and live near her parents, and then I’ll take up law.”

Adam nodded “Perhaps if there is a new administration they’ll actually allow us to retire.”

“They may even pay us to leave.” O’Brien laughed as they turned away and returned to the cabin where the officers were smoking their cigars and drinking their final glasses for the night.

“We’ll be casting off early, Daniel.” Adam said as he poured out the last of the brandy into Daniel’s glass.

“So shall the Baltimore. We’ll escort you out, Adam. It will be like the old days, when we sailed together from the Kuril Islands.”

“Ah, yes -” Adam grimaced “The days of Mrs Pelman and Russian politics. I wonder what ever happened to Dimitri Doestov.”

………….

The night passed uneventfully as the ship’s crew went about their work, McPherson in his sick bay tended to several men who had returned from shore leave the worse for wear, Officers, midshipmen and seamen worked their ‘tricks’ according to the shifts dictated to them by the bells. Adam slept until early morning when he rose from his bed and dressed and hurried up to the bridge and checked his maps. By the time Essex was at the helm he had the co-ordinates ready to give him latitude: 38° 53' North longitude 77° 02' West.

Essex echoed his Officers direction and took the wheel while crew members were taking to the ratlines and unreeling the sails for the wind to take the ship to sea, the sound of the anchor chains could be heard and on the wharf men were releasing the heavy hawsers from the bollards that had kept the ship steady while in harbour.

“It’ll be a good run, Helmsman, just 1244 nautical miles.” Adam said as he picked up his telescope to look over to the Baltimore who was showing similar signs of readiness in departing from the Haitian harbour.

“Yes, sir.” Essex nodded and glanced up towards the sky which was as blue as cornflowers and no cloud in the sky.

McPherson came on deck and checked the binnacle, saw that no one was on the sick list so returned to his sick bay to tend to those who were already there. Hardy and Dekker joined Adam on the bridge and stood some paces behind him with their hands clasped behind their backs as they watched the men going about their work.

Slowly the Shenandoah slipped her way out of the harbour followed at a discreet distance by the Baltimore. A calm sea lay ahead of them with enough breeze to fill the sails and move her elegantly homewards. As the minutes passed by the wind picked up and Adam cried out “Hard a-lee”

Essex spun the wheel away from the wind to leeward and swung around into the wind. The lines of her stay sails, jibs and fore and aft sails that caught the winds were cast loose, the fore top sail was also cast loose as they sailed head on to the wind. Gradually the ship swung around as the fore and aft jibs and staysails were sheeted in, sending her bow about to begin her new tack, ready to catch the winds from a new direction .

“Mainsail haul!” came Adam’s next command and all would haul up the lee braces to the big mainsail catching the wind as the ship tacked into it. They were now out into open sea with no other vessel in sight other than the Baltimore. When Adam raised his head all he could see was the white blur of the sails filling with the wind.

Baltimore was now running alongside the Shenandoah and Adam turned to see O’Brien looking over at him. A salute and a smile before the wind carried O’Brien’s orders to his crew and the Baltimore turned to pick up her direction taking her away from the clipper ship. The crew on deck hurried to the ships starboard side to cheer the Baltimore as the distance between them grew ever wider.

Adam could only think of some words that Longfellow had once written as he watched the Baltimore move away from them.

The moon and the evening star

Were hanging in the shrouds;

Every mast, as it passed

Seemed to rake the passing clouds.

Chapter 93

The Shenandoah sliced through the waves with the grace of an skater skimming across ice on the sharpest blades, beautifully poetic as she leaned away from the wind but caught it within her sails. She skimmed over the troughs of the waves and slipped down into the crest of white tipped water that sloshed against her sides with a rhythm of its own.

In his cabin Adam entered the days report in the log book, and then closed it. The sun was sending shafts of light across the cabin from the port hole and for a moment he sat motionless as though transfixed by the brightness of colour it had brought to the drab surroundings. Then, mindful of the time, he pushed himself away from the desk and made his way from the cabin to the bridge.

Lancing was helmsman now, 4 bells had sounded and Dekker was conversing in low tones to Hardy. Several midshipmen were standing together by the starboard bulwark talking but distracted by something further out at sea. “What’s happening?” Adam demanded at once from Hardy who saluted and after clearing his throat inclined his head to starboard “Spanish man of war, sir.”

Adam frowned and turned to observe just how correct the statement had been indeed. A Spanish war ship was sailing parallel to them. “No signals showing, sir.” Dekker said quietly.

“Where did she come from? When did you first notice her?”

“About an hour ago, sir.” Hardy replied going slightly red around the collar, “We thought we wouldn’t disturb you until she indicated that there was some reason for her being there.”

“We - I - thought that she was just passing through, sir.” Dekker said anxiously “But for the past hour she has just matched our speed and our moves with her own.”

“And you thought not to tell me?” Adam growled and picked up his telescope to scan the other ship. “In future don’t think, just come and tell me anything, do you hear?”

“Yes sir.” Dekker shivered and looked over at Hardy who simply had nodded and hoped that the matter would pass. He was quite wrong of course.

“They’re certainly showing a lot of interest in us.” Adam murmured, “The Captain is watching us very carefully. Weapons are concealed for the moment anyway.”

“Captain -” Lancings voice snapped out above them, “To port, sir.”

Turning now they were to see another ship bearing towards them, flying Spanish colours. Adam looked at his officers “Where did she come from?”

“First I saw of her, sir.” Hardy gasped leaning on the taffrail and staring hard at the ship, “She must have been waiting in the bay yonder, and slipped out as we passed.”

“She moving fast, sir, no doubt trying to catch us up.” Dekker walked to the portside of the bridge and leaned forwards as though it would give him a better view of the other ship. “No signals on her either, Commodore.”

“Hmm,” Adam sniffed and gave a slight roll of the shoulders before raising his eyebrows, “Well, we’ll continue on course and see what happens. Tell those middies to get on with their business, I don’t want the Spanish to think that our curiosity is greater than our caution. Get the Master at Arms to my cabin.”

He walked angrily to his room and then paced the floor in order to calm himself before he approached his desk and sat down, opened the log book and made a new entry, specifying time that the first war ship was seen and how she was acting, and then when the second ship appeared to port of the Shenandoah. He was just finishing when there was a knock on the door and to his brisk ’Enter’ the Master of Arms appeared.

“You noticed the Spanish ships?”

“Indeed sir, keeping pace with us but staying a good distance from us.”

“In the event of anything untoward happening, prepare the men - get the weapons and guns primed and ready. I don’t think that the intend to force us into a fight, there’s far too much involved for them to do that but it doesn’t do any harm to be prepared. I don’t want to be caught unawares.”

“Exactly right, sir.”

“Tell the gunner to see to the guns.”

“Certainly, sir.”

“Have the Marines prepared for battle formation … but do nothing unless I give the order.”

“Aye aye, sir.”

He heard the door close and stood there for a moment rubbing fingers against thumbs as he tried to think of a reason for their being shadowed by the two ships. He was about to leave the cabin when the door was opened and Dekker came in, saluted “One of the ships has run up a signal, they want to board and talk.”

Adam rubbed the side of his nose and looked at his younger officer who was sweating, he narrowed his eyes “You’re not scared are you, Dekker?”

“No, sir.”

“Then stop looking as though you are … prepare for visitors.”

“Sir?”

“Well, it’s one way of finding out what’s going on, isn’t it, Mr. Dekker?”

“Of course, yes, sir.”

Adam shook his head and followed the other man along the companion way to the ladder which took them to the upper deck.

“Reduce speed, Mr.Lancing.”

“Aye,aye, sir, reducing speed.”

“Mr Hardy, run up the signal and invite the Captain to step on over.” Adam looked thoughtfully over at the other ship and then turned to watch as the ship on the port side narrowed the distance between them. “Mmm, wonder if he’ll want to join us as well.” he muttered and shrugged his shoulders as though he didn’t really care one way or the other.

It took less than an hour for the Spanish Captain to board the Shenandoah. An attractive man with the dark olive features of his native land, and wearing his uniform with some pride as though aware that it added to his distinctive looks. He removed his hat once he had boarded as did the three officers flanking him, then after glancing over the men he recognised Adam as the Commanding Officer, and advanced to him, “Comorado?”

“Capitan?” Adam nodded and accepted the courtesy of the slight bow from the other man, “Welcome on board, Captain -?”

“Delgado - Jean Luis Alonso Delgado at your service, Comorado.” another bow.

“Adam Cartwright.” Adam replied and introduced his officers “May I offer you and your company to some refreshments, senor?”

Delgado frowned, he twisted he ends of his moustache and pouted slightly, “Comorado, I much regret this formality, but I have to ask that you permit us to search your ship.”

He cleared his throat when he saw the scowl on Adam’s face and made a gesture that would have appeared conciliatory at some other time, “My apologies, I must insist you understand.”

“No, Captain Delgado, I don’t understand. Please explain why you feel you need to search my ship and the reason why you and -” he turned his head to check on the other ship “and the other ship should pursue us in this fashion. It could be considered an aggressive action, Captain.”

“Ah, aggressive, mmm.” Delgado frowned, “I regret this very much, but it appears that you have on board something that you have no right to possess, you understand?”

Adam sighed and shook his head “No, as I said earlier, I don’t understand. Tell me what it is I am supposed to have in my possession, senor and I shall try and oblige you with any explanation as to why I have it, IF I have it.”

Another expansive gesture and Delgado placed his hand upon his hip,looked thoughtfully at Adam before telling him that it had come to the attention of the Governor that he, Adam, had consorted with the rebel insurgent Aguilera, and it was just possible that this rebel had given him papers that belonged to the Governor and had recently been stolen from him. It was regretted but the papers had to be returned, immediately.

Adam shrugged “It’s true I have seen Senor Aguilera, but not of my choosing. We were led to believe we were being taken to see the Governor for a further audience, but we taken to Aguilera’s - er - compound instead. I’m afraid you were misinformed about papers, I was given no papers.”

“I am sorry, Comorado, but -”

“I would like to think that you were not calling me a liar, senor Captain Delgado.”

The Spanish officers flanking Delgado stepped closer, and as they were wearing weapons they made a show of displaying them now, whereupon Hardy, Dekker and North stepped forward closer to Adam and behind them the Marines stepped into formation with their hands on their rifles. Adam sighed “Before this becomes rather ridiculous, Captain, why not come down to my cabin and have a pleasant drink with us before you leave.”

“No, that is not possible. My orders are to take your ship back to Santiago if you refuse to comply with my request.”

Adam raised his hand, noticed how the three officers stiffened immediately as they reached for their weapons, and ran his hand down the back of his head, “I have complied with your request, Captain, and very politely too if I may say so. There is nothing more to be gained by your standing there on my deck, insisting that I haven’t. Now, I do not possess any papers -”

“You will explain why you saw Aguilera?”

“Senor Aguilera knew a friend of mine, Lord Laurence Willoughby, and wanted to meet me. It was - hmmn - a social visit, nothing more.”

“Comorado ?” Delgado shook his head “That is not so, you know that is not so.”

“Mmm, you are calling me a liar then?”

“AH - just that there is more to this story, si?”

“Captain, without being rude I have said all that I intend to say on the matter. Yes, I was taken to the compound and saw Aguilera, yes, we talked for a while, a short while, and no, he did not give me any papers. That is all, the matter is now closed. Please remove yourself and your companions from the deck of my ship.”

Delgado stared at Adam and faltered at the sight of the hard dark eyes staring back at him, he looked at the three officers and the marines flanking them and his lips thinned beneath the dark moustache, he shook his head “I am sorry, you must come with me to Santiago.”

“And if I refuse?”

“I shall have to use force, senor.”

“Address me correctly, Captain, and exactly what force do you mean?”

Delgado almost laughed and gestured towards his ship and that of the ship now parallel on the port side of the Shenandoah “We are fully armed, Comorado Cartwright, you could not possibly out gun us?”

“Are you threatening us, Captain?” Adam’s scowl deepened and he stepped forward.

“I am making an obvious - er - statement of fact.”

Adam shook his head “Captain, so far as I understand it, Pierre Théoma Boisrond-Canal is President of Haiti* and has been since April,* I do not believe he would appreciate two Spanish ships opening fire on an American ship in his territorial waters. Now -” he smiled and made a conciliatory gesture of his own, “I suggest you remove yourself and your ships and allow us to continue on our way home.”

Delgado’s lips if possible went even thinner, his high bridged nose showed white against the bone as he flared his nostrils, “Comorado, you place yourself in very serious trouble by this action. You must come with us …”

“No, you’re wrong Capitan, it is you who place yourself in very serious trouble. I could take this matter further and accuse you of an act of aggression against an American ship that was on a peaceful mission to see your Governor and being prevented now from returning home. This could easily be interpreted, by some, as a declaration of war between our two countries. I am sure you would not want that to happen, would you?”

“I am only doing as I was commanded, sir.”

“By whom?”

“By the Governor himself.”

Adam nodded, his eyes narrowed and then he shook his head “You must give my apologies to your Governor, my business with him ended when I left his residence. Now please leave …”

Delgado frowned and hesitated a little more, “You make it awkward, Comorado Cartwright. I do not wish to act in any way that would create further tensions between our two countries.”

“Good.” Adam nodded curtly and stepped back several paces.

Seeing that there was now nothing more that he could do Delgado did the only thing possible to save face, he saluted, thanked Adam for the courtesy extended to him, and did a sharp about turn, taking the Jacob’s ladder to descend to his own skiff that took him and his officers to his ship.

Hardy shrugged “That was a strange thing to do. Surely he knew he couldn’t force us into going with him when we weren’t in Spanish territory?”

“I don’t know,” Adam shrugged, “It makes little sense to me either, unless he expected a more naïve Captain on board who would have gone with them. Maybe he hoped to nudge us closer to Spanish waters and then -” he shook his head, “At least he can go back to the Governor and assure him that we have no papers on board. Too bad if we are not believed, that will have to be a matter for future politicians to discuss.”

They stood for a while on the bridge and watched as the two Spanish ships moved some distance away from them, but did not leave their positions parallel to the Shenandah. “Mr Lancing,” Adam said sharply “Increase speed. Try and make up for time lost.”

He glanced up towards the masts and the sails that were full and snapping taut, he smiled, if he knew Lancing as well as he thought, then they would be going at a fair speed now, perhaps not fast enough to shake off their guard dogs but enough to move them further and further away from Spanish territories, disputed or not.

Chapter 94

Adam chose to ignore the two Spanish ships giving his officers instructions to inform him should they act any differently. He returned to his cabin and after removing his jacket he went to the desk and made an entry into the log book about their visitors. As he wrote down the details he became more puzzled than ever as to how or why Delgado had hoped to get him to turn his ship and return to Cuba on the conditions that he’d given.

He checked the maps and rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he checked the geological map that showed what lay beneath the surface of the seas in which they were now sailing. It was not a fortunate area in which to be as it straddled one of the world’s most active zones, where the North American, South American and Caribbean tectonic plates intersected.

He leaned closed and with a pencil tapped the area on the map which showed how the tectonic plates floated above an adjacent mantle. He was musing over its complexities when there was a tap on the door and upon his calling out ‘Enter’ it opened and Hardy entered, “Just to tell you that the ships are still keeping tabs on us, sir.”

“Mmm, maybe they think we are going to sneak back to Cuba while they‘re not looking,” Adam muttered and straightened up, “What do you know about this area, Mr Hardy?”

The younger man approached the desk and looked at the map, he nodded and pointed to the area that Adam’s pencil had marked “I know that these plates, called tectonic plates are in constant motion, always rubbing against each other. I remember at Naval College one of our professors claimed that this movement caused an enormous amount of gas to be released, like huge gas bubbles.”

“Really?” Adam frowned, “Does he know this for a fact or is it a blind guess?”

“Well, he was quite elderly and extremely experienced. He’d lived here for some years, and studied it personally because of the high incidence of earthquakes in the region. I don’t know if his gas bubbles are real though,” Hardy grinned indicating that to his mind such a theory was rather fantastical, “But his theory was that these gas bubbles were the main reason for quite unusual storms at sea here. There have been reports of waves being higher than some of the highest buildings in the world.”

“I’d heard there were a lot more earthquakes around here than most places, and that some bizarre things happen in these waters, although I don’t think we need worry about that too much.”

“Bizarre things indeed, sir,” Hardy frowned and then nodded, “Professor Lindstrom mentioned that although more likely towards Cuba and the Caribbean sea he said.”

“Oh?” Adam smiled and walked over to the tantalis, “A drink, Mr. Hardy?”

“Thank you, sir. A whiskey would be very acceptable.”

Adam poured the drinks and after handing a glass to Hardy he sat down, indicating that the officer take a seat, “So? What other kind of bizarre events did your Professor discuss with you students?”

Hardy laughed rather self consciously and scratched his chin, “Well, ships disappearing and even islands being swallowed up. He has a theory that the ancient island of Atlantis is hidden in the seas of the Caribbean.”

“Hmm, well, if there was such an island I daresay that would be one of the best places for it.” Adam mused and looked again at his first officer who was a good looking young man. He cleared his throat “Have you enjoyed this trip, Mr. Hardy?”

“Yes, indeed. It’s been interesting, sir. I can’t understand why those two Spanish ships have decided to escort us back home though.”

“I can only imagine that the new King of Spain is wanting to flex his muscles and let us know that he isn’t going to be bullied by the likes of us. The letter I delivered to his Governor, and which he would have received from Mr Canning, may very much appear as though we were pushing too hard for something he would prefer to just fade away.”

“You mean the Virginius situation?”

“Yes, exactly.”

Hardy nodded, “I had a cousin involved in it, sir. Thankfully he survived but he never was quite the same man after what he witnessed.”

“I can well imagine.” Adam said quietly and wondered how these young men would handle seeing a town wiped out by Indians or a whole village destroyed by US Cavalry, he drank his whiskey quickly rather than allow his mind to wander down such paths, and asked how Hardy’s cousin was faring now?”

“Well enough, thank you, sir.” came a rather subdued reply.

After that Hardy drank his wine and placed the empty glass upon the table and then made his excuses to go, “Mr. Hardy, tell North and Dekker to join me for supper tonight. And ask Dr McPherson as well, would you?”

Hardy saluted and quickly left the room the taste of whiskey still lingering very pleasantly in his mouth. Adam stood up and returned to study the maps, he thought of those plates rubbing against each other and shook his head, sometimes, he mused, it was better to live in ignorance!

Having completed the log he returned to the bridge and watched the men going about their work with a vigour that indicated some nervous zeal on their part, the fact that the two Spanish warships were still dogging them made each man feel the need to keep busy and able to keep their eye on ‘the enemy’.

Euan McPherson joined him eventually and after thanking him for the invitation to supper asked him if he had noticed how the men were acting to which Adam replied he had, Euan nodded “They’re expecting trouble, not sure what it will be though and are obviously on tenterhooks.”

Adam laughed, “Well they aren’t the only ones. I still can’t fathom out what they really wanted.”

“Some papers?”

“Papers!” Adam shook his head, “No, there was something more behind all this I’m sure. Well, it shows that even a mailman’s task isn’t always an easy one.”

“A mailman’s task?” Euan looked at him and shook his head in bemusement and would have said more when he noticed that the ship to port side was veering away, “Adam, look-.”

The men on the decks and ratlines were watching as well, here and there a cheer went up as though they had routed the foe, but Hardy and Dekker soon made them quieten and get back to their work. Delgado’s ship kept at the same distance and matched their speed, “I wonder how long he intends keeping that up,” Adam murmured.

“He’ll be moving out into dangerous waters soon,” North said as he came up the steps to join them on the bridge, “A few more miles and he’ll have to turn.”

“He’s coming in closer -.” Euan said nervously and the three of them turned to watch as the warship edged closer.

The ship came within hailing distance and from there Delgado sent the Commodore a request to join him on his ship for a pleasant meal together, some officers were also welcome. Adam quirked an eyebrow and looked, with a crooked smile, at North and Euan, “Well, what do you think? A chance to try some Spanish cuisine?”

“I don’t see why not,” Euan nodded in agreement, “It’ll make a change from our usual fare.”

Adam pulled a face for in his opinion the cook on board was better than many he had experienced, but he sent North to send an acceptance and turned to go back to his cabin. Once there he sat at the desk and began to write an long overdue letter to his father.

As he sat with pen in hand and a blank sheet of paper in front of him it recalled to his mind the number of letters he would have written to his father and brothers over the years since he had gone to sea. Now he had letters to write to Olivia which always enclosed a little drawing and a letter for Reuben a swell.

He dipped his pen into the ink well and slowly began to write, thinking of the man whom he considered his mentor and guide through life as he did so. He heard the bells toll and paused, recalled that the Spanish Captain requested their company and put down his pen. He wasn’t particularly happy with the amount he had written, a mere few paragraphs only but it reminded him of the fact that he had received nothing in the way of news from them since his departure which caused a slight niggle of anxiety but little else as he shrugged himself back into his jacket.

The Spanish warship was a splendid vessel. As he looked around it Adam could well see how the U.S. Secretary of War at the time of the Virginius affair, George M. Robeson* realised that there was an urgent need for the construction of more ironclads, and an updating of some of the older warships available at that time.

Delgado allowed himself a flush of pride at the genuinely sincere comments that Adam made regarding the ship so that by the time he led the Commodore, his officers and Eaun to his stateroom for dinner he resembled a proud little turkey cock fluffing out his plumage.

The stateroom was set out lavishly with crystal glassware and fine bone china accompanied by silver cutlery. The meal that was served was excellent if one enjoyed Spanish cuisine of tapas, paella with fresh fruits. The wine flowed freely, although perhaps not so freely as Delgado may have hoped as Adam had no intention of allowing himself or his men to become inebriated.

Each of them made valiant attempts to avoid mentioning the reason why they were there, the purpose of the invitation was, according to Delgado, an apology for allowing the Americans to think the worse of his masters, the King of Spain and the Governor of Cuba. If Adam was hoping for a reason to be given for their continued presence he was left with disappointment for Delgado was like the proverbial clam.

Dark Cuban coffee was served as a finale to the meal, the stateroom was becoming humid and stuffy with cigar fumes and the hot foods that had been served, Adam loosened his cravat slightly. He was about to broach the subject as to when would Deldago make his return to Cuba when there was a disturbance outside and the doors were pushed open to admit the helmsman Lancing, one of the midshipmen Forbes, who were hauling along a dark featured man. Adam stood up so quickly that the table rocked but before anything could be said Lancing spoke first

“Begging your pardon, sir - sirs - “ he looked directly at Adam while keeping a tight hold of the Spanish seaman “Commodore, Mr. McGill found this person in your cabin, ferreting among your private papers he was -”

Delgado was immediately on his feet blustering excuses and claiming he had never seen the man before in his life and then fell back to an arrogant “Are you attempting to insult me, Comodoro?”

Spanish seamen were crowding in upon Forbes and Lancing in an attempt to free their associate and grab hold of the American seamen so that the whole mass of bodies attempting to push their way into the stateroom was becoming close to a brawl. It was Delgado who brought silence by firing a pistol in the air. “Enough, enough.” he yelled and in rapid Spanish ordered the men to go, except for the two Americans and his own seaman who looked shamefaced and, unfortunately for him, looking as positively too guilty for his own good.

Once inside the room he began to bluster, rapid Spanish and gestures equally as fast, he was clearly refuting any such accusation being made against him. Lancing meanwhile was appealing to Adam that the proof was evident, there were enough witnesses who had seen him, he couldn’t deny being anything other than a spy.

Delgado looked uncomfortable and was sweating profusely, he apologised to Adam “Why this has happened I do not know, I cannot comprehend, my dear Commodore, I shall see the man interrogated most severely, he will be flogged for such an insult to my hospitality.”

Adam said nothing but looked at his officers and indicated that it was time to go, “Captain, it seems to me quite obvious what has happened here, and I leave your man for you to deal with according to your own way, but I feel it more than a co-incidence that while you were offering hospitality to us you have your men sneaking on board our ship and spying in my cabin. What was he told to look for --- some papers? The papers you insist I have but which I have already told you I do not possess?”

“Comodoro - that this should ‘appen, please?” Delgado made a lavish gesture for Adam to calm down, to be patient, to understand “It is not as you think.”

“Then tell me what I am supposed to think?”

A torrent of Spanish from Delgado to his hapless seaman brought another torrent from the poor man who could see himself hanging from the yardarm, had there been one, by dawn. Hardy, who understood Spanish so well was whispering a translation to Adam as fast as the words came from the seamans lips. Eventually Delgado ordered two of his officers, who had been dining with them, to take the wretch from the room.

Adam quietly told Lancing and Forbes to return to the Shenandoah and then turned to the Captain “I expect you to be gone from here within the hour, Captain. To have you trailing along, dogging my ship mile by mile, I find to be insulting. Your hospitality was generous, but sadly its purpose was not -”

“You insult me -” Delgado drew himself to his full height, a mistake as it emphasised the fact that he was the shorter man by some inches.

“No, Captain, YOU insult ME!”

Dark eyes flashed as the two men glared at one another and then Delgado bowed his head curtly, and stepped back for the Commodore and his officers to file past him and out of the stateroom.

Chapter 95

The study had been disturbed by someone expert at searching for hidden things, Adam stood at the doorway of his violated room and glanced around slowly, his eyes roving from one spot to another. Hardy and Dekker followed him as he stepped into the cabin and waited for him to speak, finally he turned to them and told them to sit down, perhaps they would enjoy a nightcap?

“Tell me what they were saying, Mr. Hardy, did you understand much of it?”

“Oh yes, everything. The spy, for want of a better word, may have been stupid enough to have got himself caught but he was obviously sensible enough to keep his mouth shut, protesting that he was innocent and it was all a mistake, that he had gone to look for something that he had lost the previous day which led Delgado to order him to stop talking before he said too much.“

“I don’t recall any of those men being in my cabin, they refused my offer to do so.”

“I think Delgado realised that possibly you would remember that and told him to be quiet before he made a bigger mess of things than he had done already.”

Adam nodded and quietly asked Dekker to call Mr. McGill in to see them which he was prevented from doing by the very man appearing at that moment looking decidedly the worse for wear as he sported a cut across his brow and what looked like the beginning of a glorious black eye. “I see he put up a struggle then, McGill?” Adam smiled

“He did, sir. Must have heard me coming in and swung at me, but I grabbed hold of him and held on until Mr. Forbes and Mr. Lancing came to the rescue.”

“Have you been to sick bay?” and when McGill nodded and confirmed that one of the orderlies had seen to him Adam nodded and told him to get to his bed and rest up. “We‘ll talk more about this in the morning.”

“Yes, sir, thank you, sir.”

North pulled a wry face “Poor man, he looks pretty green.” he observed.

“Well, we shall be as well if Captain Delgado is still hanging around with the intention of sticking beside us. Gentlemen, I think we should get some sleep. Mr.North, are you on duty tonight?”

“No, sir, Mr. Dekker is.”

Adam watched them leave and closed the door behind them as he pulled off his cravat and then his jacket. He shook his head and returned to his desk where Aguilera’s box remained on his desk where he had left it several days before. He ran a hand over its smooth surface and then sat down, turned up the flame in the lamp and wrote down the latest events in the log. Then he sat back in his chair and carefully looked at every item on the desk, he could tell what had been touched, moved, replaced but the common looking wooden box remained exactly as it had been when he last looked at it.

He picked it up now and with the help of the point of a very sharp knife inserted in the lock opened it. He had opened it like this before, almost as soon as they had returned from Aguilera with the box, so he knew what it contained. A quick perusal and he was quite satisfied, everything was just as it had been, and very slowly he closed and relocked the lid down. For a moment he sat with his finger tips forming a steeple with which he tapped his mouth while he stared thoughtfully at the box, he smiled once or twice as he wondered if the spy had even bothered to consider it, such a plain simple little box after all.

Well, he mused, had the man realised its importance then it wouldn’t still be there sitting on the desk with the contents intact. He did, however, pick it up and as an extra precaution locked it in one of the desk drawers.

Once he had done that he made his way to his bed.

……………….

The storm broke over them while he slept. It had started over 90 miles away in the greater Caribbean region and gathered momentum over the time it took to sweep over the seas, the winds building up into itself and whipping up the waves to heights that were of an enormity none had seen before in their lives.

The official hurricane season in the Greater Caribbean region begins the first of June, with the greatest risk at the beginning of the season. The storm that descended upon the Shenandoah followed the pattern according to the timing as they were still in the month of June, the ferocity of it, however, didn’t seem to fit any known pattern at all.

There was no gentle rainfall or gradual increase to the strength of the seas to indicate its coming, there was just an enormous clap of thunder, followed by streaks of lightning and rainfall of such intensity that it would have seemed as though a cloud had just split in half and poured out its whole content upon them.

Adam fell out of the bed, grabbed for his pants, his boots and his sweater and was still struggling to push his arms through the sleeves as he hurried from his cabin to the decks above to find them already awash with sea water. Wave upon wave swept over the bulwarks, the masts were so full that they were in danger of ripping asunder, lightning constantly flashed and danced around them, stabbing down at them as though in an attempt to pierce the ship through and send it sinking into the foaming ferment.

Essex was staggering over to the bridge to go to the assistance of Lancing whom he knew would be struggling, one man only, to hold the wheel steady. Hardy was screaming orders at the top of his voice only to have the wind and rain whip the words from his mouth and scatter them to the air, it was impossible for any man to be heard, and it was by instinct and a result of disciplined training that the men acted in the only ways that they could to save themselves and the ship.

In the galley the cook threw water onto the coals so that the risk of fire was one less thing to worry about, the hiss and steam that splurged out as a result struck him full in the face, chest and arms so that he collapsed screaming in agony, his assistant stumbled over his body and being unable to carry him out of the way opened the door to the elements so that sea water combined with the rain would do the work for him. It not only cooled down the coals but aided in cooling down also the severe burns the cook had sustained.

Getting clean linen he set to work to bind up the cooks wounds as best in could in such conditions, closing the door, with difficulty, and using his body and that of the cooks, whom he held in his arms, to act as a buffer against it so that it would not reopen.

By gestures Adam got the men to realise the need to haul in the main sail and to reef it, these called for great courage as the men had to scale the ratlines to the top of the mainmast and then reduce the amount of sail exposed to the wind by threading the reef-points through the eyelets and securing them. Even as the order was given the aft section of sail was blown loose, flapping with a loud cracking noise in the wind and threatening to tear loose the remainder of the sail. While the torn sail was blasted by the wind it hit against the rat lines sending two men falling back upon themselves.

It was not the time to stand and stare and hope that nothing untoward would happen to them when there were other men to see to, and other tasks to perform. Adam grabbed hold of Dekker’s arm and yelled in his ear “Check the ballast”

Hawsers snapped out loose across the deck and hammocks spilled out from their storage, below decks water flooded down like powerful cateracts through the companion ways and smashed through doors into cabins wherever it could find a way.

There was no darkness of night now, the constant flashes of lightning made that impossible. Thunder was confused with the sound of the wind that howled and wailed and growled around them, tossing some men off their feet as the sea crashed over the bulwarks onto the decks and toppled them down like so many skittles.

Adam made his way to the bridge, twice on the way up being forced back some paces. Essex and Lancing were struggling to keep the wheel steady, had they been able to see the rudder when the ship was lifted from the sea, they would have feared even more for their lives than they were already.

The Shenandoah bucked and reared like an unbroken wild horse, the waves spurred her high, and tossed her low. Glass shattered as the windows of the wheel house could no longer hold against the wind, Adam raised his arm to shield his face and the onslaught of the wind, no longer held back by the glass, caught him and hurled him against the wall of the bridge.

Day break came but there was no relief as the men continued fighting for their survival now, the main mast had come down complete with the remnants of the sail and as it had fallen it had brought down the ratlines that ran from the hull to the sail, the men clinging thereon were tossed aside like mere blades of grass and fell screaming into the sea, their screams unheard above the competing screams of the gale.

Chapter 96

At last a halt to the fury and the hell of two days in a ship that the waves seemed determined to smash to oblivion but which refused to slip into the sea and die. As the waves stilled and the wind at last abated the ship’s company were able to stand on the deck without the risk of being washed away by the constant onslaught of water.

Two days fighting a storm the likes of which many of the most experienced men on board had never seen before. Adam wiped water from his face and gripped hold of the taffrail to prevent himself from falling down. Looking down at the men from the bridge he could see them picking themselves up and dazedly getting on with checking on the damage.

He rubbed his jaw through two days growth of stubble and straightened his shoulders, saw Dekker appearing rather lost as to what to do “Mr Dekker - get hold of the carpenter and see to the masts repair, the sheets need to be checked for wear and tear. Mr. Hardy, I want a full report of the damage. Mr. North -” he paused and looked around him, then called down to Dekker “Where’s Mr. North?”

“I don’t know, sir.”

“Then find him - after you’ve dealt with the carpenters.” he turned to find Eaun at his side, a damp piece of paper in his hands which he held out to him “What’s this?”

“A list of the dead, dying and wounded, sir.” Eaun replied hoarsely, and it occurred to Adam that the poor man had no doubt been on his feet ever since the storm struck. He put a hand on his shoulder, “Are you alright, Eaun?”

“I’ve felt better, sir. The sick bay is up to my knees in water. I’ve done the best I can even though I saw some of my medical kit get swept away with the waters, I’ve -”

“You’ve worked miracles.” Adam said, stopping him in mid-flow and gently pressing the mans shoulder before looking down at the paper in his hand “Lancing - injured. How badly injured?”

“Not as badly as some.”

“Can he return to duty?”

“Not just yet, tomorrow may be.”

“Essex - dead. Dead?” he looked into the doctor’s eyes and saw confirmation written there, he nodded, “I see.” he read on, the list totalled twenty five men, of which eleven were dead. He wondered as he looked down at the names how many more had been swept overboard, unseen, unknown yet to be missing. He nodded again , “Very well, thank you.”

“Do you want to be checked over, sir?”

“No, I’m alright, thank you.” he looked down at the men working now as a disciplined body, clearing away the debris, toiling at a seemingly thankless task, but one that would bring its own rewards in time, “Bo’sun?”

“Aye, aye, sir?”

“Whistle the ship’s company to attention.”

“Aye, aye, sir.”

The whistle sounded and the men paused and looked around them, then up at the bridge. Men came from the other decks and waited for the Commodore to address them. Adam cleared his throat and licked his lips realising only now how dry they were, “Men, I just want to say well done all of you. You’ve come through an ordeal the likes of which we only read about, and you came through it well. There’s extra rum for you now, you need it to warm your bones. Work hard to clear away this mess and get Shenandoah looking like the lady she is …”

A subdued cheer, shouts of thank you from men almost ready to topple over their own feet, each one with a head full of nightmares which the past 48 hours had forced him to endure. Adam nodded and signalled to the bo’sun to see to the drink ration being provided and then he turned “Dr. McPherson, how is the cook?”

“Amazingly well. I think the salt sea water actually helped him, his burns are not as bad as I would have expected right now, and he’s recovered from the shock. He wants to get back to his kitchen”

“Good, let him get there as soon as possible to cook up a good hot meal for the men.” he rubbed his face again and quickly made his way to his own cabin, where he found McGill with his head bound in bandages, “Who’s been practising their first aid skills on you, Mr. McGill?”

The steward smiled and nodded “I’d not like to say, sir. Would you like something hot to drink?”

“I would indeed, thanks.” Adam pushed open the door to his room and paused at the mess that greeted him, books floating on water, everything turned upside down and all over the place. McGill sighed “I’ll get that mess cleared up as soon as possible, sir.”

Everything was wet or damp, he had hoped, selfishly, that his cabin would have held back the water, but now seeing the chaos realised that he was no more able to hold back the sea than that ancient Viking King Canute. He sloshed through the waters and opened the port hole for the sun to stream through and then began to clear away whatever his hand set upon.

McGill brought hot coffee and the two men drank and worked shoulder to shoulder, although McGill insisted that he could get some of the middies in but Adam said they had enough of their own to clear up. It did a man no harm to clear up the mess in his own pig sty. Eventually all was in order to the extent it was possible and Adam found the log book and entered the details into it.

Eventually he went to find Olivia’s sweater so that he could change his clothing, and found that was damp through, he raised it to his nose and tried to find some remnant of her perfume but there was only the smell of damp wool which reminded him of sheep left out in the fields at night.

Dekker knocked and entered, saluted and informed Adam that Mr North was no where to be seen, the last sighting of him was reported by Mr Forbes and another middie during the storm. Nothing more detailed than that he was struggling to clear some hawsers from the deck while the waves were crashing down over him.

The mans voice was low, husky from shouting commands so much during the past few days, subdued from realising that no one was exempt from death when it came riding like a Valkyrie upon the waves.

Adam returned to the bridge, was silently impressed by the amount of work done already, and searched for the maps. “Any idea where we could be now, Dekker?”

“No, sir.”

“Niether have I.” Adam clamped his lips together grimly and scowled down at the maps, “We’d best try and calculate our bearings then, and see if we can make our way home.”

It seemed to Dekker that there had never been so much sea as there was at that moment in time.

……………..

Ben rapped upon the door of the Double D ranch and was almost knocked off his feet when as soon as Marcy had opened it two children ran into him yelling ‘Grandad . Grandad.’

“Whoa there,” he laughed and swept Sofia into his arms “Well now, I can see you are both in good spirits.”

“Grandad, come and see what I’ve done -”

“See my horse I drewed, grandad.”

“So-FEEE!! I wanted to show Grandad what I’ve done first, your horse can wait.”

“No it can’t.” and Sofia’s lip wobbled and her face crumpled as she began to bawl,

“Hey now,” Ben tweaked her chin, “None of that, come on, both of you can show me what you’ve done. Where’s your Ma? Hello, Marcy, sorry to invade you like this?”

Marcy laughed “Oh I wasn’t aware of a great army following on behind you, Ben.”

“There isn’t one,” Ben chuckled, and walked down the hall with Sofia in his arms and Reuben wearing his hat. “Just me.”

“I’m glad, it’s always good to see you here, Mr. Cartwright. I mean - Ben.”

“Grandad, is Buster alright?” Reuben surveyed him solemnly beneath the brim of the overlarge hat

“He’s well, getting fat and needing you to ride him more regularly.”

“I would if I could.” Reuben sighed.

“My pony alright, Grandad?” Sofia asked, her blue eyes looking into his with tear spiked lashes.

“Fat as they come and wanting to know when you’re coming home.”

He turned at the sound of someone coming downstairs and smiled at the sight of Olivia who was now walking towards him, “We’ll be coming home tomorrow. We’ve been here long enough, thanks to Marcy’s kindness.”

“Are you sure?” Marcy asked anxiously and seeing Ben’s dark eyes clouding over felt more concerned than ever.

“Quite sure.” Olivia replied and stood on tiptoe to kiss Ben’s cheek.

“I’ve just come back from town.” Ben said putting Sofia down on the floor and pulling from his pocket two paper bags full of candy which he gave to each of them, and then he produced an envelope “For you, Marcy.”

Marcy blushed as she took it from him and smiled shyly, “Thank you, Mr. Ben.”

Olivia felt a pang to the heart when nothing was handed to her but she smiled up at Ben and slipped her arm through his “Have you heard from Hoss? Is Hester alright, is she keeping well. I feel as though I’ve been away from them for so long …”

He leaned forward and kissed her cheek leading her towards the table so that they could sit down but she shook her head “No, let’s take a walk outside, it’s such a lovely day.”

He nodded and glanced at Marcy “Will you join us, Marcy?”

“Later, I’ll make us a drink.” she smiled and her eyes dwelt a little upon Olivia, shyly and in her own modest manner.

“Everything is alright with Luke, isn’t it?” Olivia immediately asked to which Marcy nodded and her smile, if possible, widened.

“Yes, he said they got a really good price for the stock, Hoss and Candy showed them where to go to get a good honest deal. He was so grateful to them for their help.”

“I’m pleased they were of help,” Ben said proudly, and then smiled down at Olivia, “Well now, shall we go?”

Immediately the children jumped up and ran ahead of them, dodging between them to get out first and to run laughing and shouting into the trees. Olivia smiled indulgently and was grateful when Ben slowed his steps to match hers, “Thank you for coming today, Ben. It’s good to see you.”

“Well, in answer to your earlier questions … Hester is blooming, much healthier and happier than she was a few weeks ago. Hoss is on his way home, as, I expect, is Luke. They should all have had a good price for their stock this year.”

“I’m glad.”

He stroked her hand gently, in an absent minded manner and led her to the bench where they sat down together, he smiled at her, “You know, if I’d been a younger man …” and she laughed and held his hands between her own, “I’m very proud of my three girls, you know. My sons have married women who are the perfect complement to them.”

She smiled up at him now and released his hands in order to lean back against the sun kissed wall, “Ben, did Dr. Martin tell you what happened while I was in town?”

Ben frowned and then nodded, rather than say anything he left her to speak but he did reach out and take hold of her hand again. For a while she didn’t speak but then, turning her head to see where the children were, she murmured “It’s strange, I’d so wanted a baby, and when I actually started to have one I didn’t even know. Isn’t that odd?”

“Yes, I guess there was a reason though, my dear, there usually is. Did Adam have any idea, well, don’t suppose he could have done …”

“No, he didn’t know. I don’t even know whether it’s worth mentioning to him,” she sighed.

“What you do is up to you, dear, but honesty between a couple is the best defence against anything that could arise to give even the smallest doubt to creep in among them.” Ben replied, and squeezed her hand, “Just my opinion, of course.”

He looked over to the door now and saw Marcy coming out with a tray laden with cups and coffee pot so rose gallantly to his feet to help her, insisting that she took the seat he had vacated. “So, is Luke looking forward to coming home?” he said as he sat on a chair that had been brought out earlier.

“Very much so, he said how much he missed me - and everything, of course. He said he’s going to buy me the best bonnet in town.” Marcy laughed “As if I want a new bonnet.”

Olivia took her cup and sipped her tea while she listened to Marcy chattering to Luke and her father in law’s deep voice making kindly responses. When there was a lull she asked him if he knew when school would be starting up again and he nodded “I saw Miss Brandon while in town, she said another week and the school would be ready once again. She would have been ready earlier but her brother was one of the cholera victims, it’s hit her hard.”

“Oh I didn’t know, poor Lydia.” Olivia sighed and put down her cup.

“She’s looking forward to getting back to some sense of normalcy.”

Olivia nodded, “Yes, I think we all are.” and she smiled over at Marcy and then picked up her cup again.

………………..

Adam had calculated how far the ship had been blown off course during the storm and had drawn up a fresh route to return them to where they had been while the ships’ crew worked hard and industriously on repairing the ship.

Everything was drying out well, the heat from the sun was almost too hot. The cook had fresh fish to prepare for their meals, and was getting back his verve for serving culinary delights, his Gascon origins rising to the fore in his effort to put behind him his injuries. Lancing was healing rapidly and funeral services had been conducted for the men who had died, their bodies going into the depths with more dignity that those who had been snatched to their deaths like Mr. North.

Adam leaned over the map and drew in a pencilled line indicating the new route, he stood up and stared at the far off horizon. Then he straightened his back and frowned, walked closer to the taffrail and leaned forward. Far away a small black finger rose from the horizon into the blue sky. He tapped his chin thoughtfully and picked up his telescope, after a few moments he lowered it slowly and turned to check the barometer.

What he saw there made the hairs on the back of his neck rise, and once again he put the telescope to his eye to watch as that small black finger spread out slowly as though nibbling at the blueness surrounding it. He turned to Hardy, “Sound the alarm, Mr. Hardy. Get the men on deck.”

Within minutes the men were assembled looking enquiringly up at their Commanding Officer who leaned upon the taffrail and observed them thoughtfully “Men, I need you to work as hard as you can to get as much distance between us and whatever it is that is coming towards us. It can’t be allowed to catch up with us … better that it chase us all the way home. Get to your stations and God speed.”

He turned to Mr Hardy “Get Lancing and - and Dekker, they’ll have to take the wheel.”

“Aye, sir.”

Hardy looked at him and then turned towards the horizon as the blackness was spreading, and the sea began to ripple and surge “God help us.” he said in an undertone which Adam heard and murmured “Let’s pray so, Mr. Hardy.”

Chapter 97

They were a crippled ship, of that there was no doubt, the repairs already carried out were adequate but there were still vital ones essential to their safety should the oncoming weather system hit them within the next few hours.

Each man swallowed down their own fear and doubled their efforts to work. No man loitered, no man sought their bed on the pretext of injury or sickness. Carpenters scurried around like rats on a tread wheel, their tools sounding loud over the decks above the subdued voices of the men. Anything that could be a hindrance or a danger was stowed securely away in the hope that they wouldn’t be hurled free to become yet another hazard to avoid when - if - the very worse happened.

Adam kept an eye on everything, the helmsman encouraged the ship to a goodly speed, the sails filled and the Shenandoah skimmed over the waves with a beauty that any onlooker would have found breath taking. Time and again Hardy and Adam raised their telescopes to scan the blackening sky that always seemed to be hovering on the horizon, spreading out, widening but always keeping at a distance. Neither of them dared to assume that they were safe, that they would eventually out run what was slowly advancing.

Adam was checking the map and talking to the helmsman when Hardy called to him, an urgency in his voice that made goosebumps trickle over his flesh. He was by the officers side within a moment and reaching for his telescope as Hardy pointed to port side “A ship, sir … I think it’s the Spanish ship and she doesn’t look as though she’s weathered the storm as well as we have, sir.”

He was right, Adam knew that as soon as his ‘glass’ picked out the vessel floundering in the seas to port side. He swung round to check out the clouds on the horizon and then returned to survey the Spanish ship from which the signal flags were now being hoisted, an entreaty for assistance. Men were lowering the boats, cramming into them, toppling over the sides and the ship itself was listing over to starboard.

“Mr. Lancing, sir, change direction … port side … prepare to take on survivors.”

Hardy flashed him a bold glare of defiance but said nothing although he licked his lips and hurriedly glanced over to the horizon. The men hadn’t paused in their industry but were looking at one another as though questioning the reason for the change and some, seeing the Spanish ship for themselves shook their heads, pursed their lips and decided that they wouldn’t stand a chance now, the delay was going to seal their fate as sure as anything could.

The first of the survivors hauled aboard was an officer, a man Adam recognised and who, after saluting and bowing thanked him profusely before telling him that Delgado was dead. The men scrambled aboard, or were hauled up by the ships crew when they were too enfeebled to do so for themselves. It was more than obvious that the Spanish ship had suffered more and her losses were greater.

Most of them knew only a smattering of English but they all mumbled or murmured their thanks, clutched at blankets - still damp - that were put around their shoulders and stumbled or were half carried to below decks where Eaun was waiting to care for the injured.

Adam was constantly watching the weather system boiling up beyond them, stretching itself out and widening itself across the sky line. He turned to the first Officer and asked if they had now received all the men from his ship, and having received the affirmative he gave orders for the Shenandoah to move away as quickly as possible.

He didn’t want to leave the bridge for his cabin, he couldn’t dare to go where he couldn’t check on the approaching storm. He took the First Officer, Felipe Mendosa Tuppa, to the bridge “Tell me what happened, sir? Your Captain?”

“I regret my English is little - the storm she come and we fight hard to survive - the ballast shift - the ’ow you say - boilers ? The boilers explode, too much pressure, there is fire - Captain Delgado is a good man, a good officer, but he can not be everywhere at one time - you unnerstan’?”

Adam glanced over at the floundering ship, she was rolling over to starboard much swifter now and he estimated that it would be beneath the waves within the hour. They were making a good distance between them and even as he thought that he looked back to the dark clouds billowing all those miles distance.

“Go on… what happened to your Captain?”

“Back broken -” Tuppa replied with a slight shrug of the shoulders, not in dismissal of a man he considered brave, but as a statement of the fact, he looked at Adam with black eyes, his sallow skin almost yellow from the pain he was suffering from his own injuries “A difficult time - you unnerstan’ -”

Adam nodded, swallowed and cleared his throat “If we don’t move soon, sir, we’ll be in for an even more difficult time. If you have any good healthy men available to help -?”

“Si, Comodoro, I attend to that -” he turned, winced and went to move away but Adam grabbed his arm and told him to get his injuries seen to first but Tuppa shook his head and nodded towards the shadows stretching towards them. “No time for that, Comodoro.”

He was right, of course. Adam nodded and let him go to find his men and instruct them as he could, then he looked over at Hardy “It’s moving fast, Mr Hardy.”

“Yes, sir, let’s hope we can move faster.”

It was a vain hope, both men knew that as they looked across the waters to the burgeoning clouds, but it was a hope and to it they clung with slightly manic desperation.

Lieutenant (Teniente) Tuppa rallied his men and gave them orders with a quiet authority that Delgado would have lacked but which the men obviously respected more. They went quietly to their stations, working alongside the American seamen with an industry that was an indication of their own awareness of the danger they were in. A thick set man followed Tuppa to the bridge and was introduced as a helmsman (el Timonel). Lancing and he exchanged looks that took in the measure of each before Lancing nodded and allowed the man to stand beside him. His worth was soon to be challenged and found sound.

Adam stood at the bridge in his sweater and dark pants, boots and sou’wester, he watched as his men worked and he stepped to the bulwark of the ship to look down at the waves. He was staring down at them and wondering why they were flattening out, becoming lazy as they slapped against the sides of the ship. He glanced up and saw, with a tingling apprehension, the sails losing the wind, they were luffing against the masts, slowly being drained of any power to fill them.

The men had paused, glanced up at the bridge as Adam and Hardy checked on the weather advancing towards them. The atmosphere was electric, the tension made the hair on their arms stand on end, sweat dampened their skin and cooled immediately making them shiver. Adam went down the ladder to the lower deck and faced them, he brushed hair back away from his brow and looked at their anxious faces, then nodded slowly

“Alright, men, there’s no way we’re going to avoid this devil now, we’re not going to out run it - as you can see - so we have to face it out, and fight it. Each man take your station, do your best, help one another. Be brave, as you always are, take your stand …”

His voice faded and he looked over at McPherson who was standing at the door of the sick bay, for a moment their eyes met and Euan nodded and returned to his duties. He knew fell well that he and his orderlies were going to be put to the test very shortly, were they to survive what was to come…

………..

Hoss Cartwright had waved his farewells to Candy at the junction where the track led away from the Ponderosa to where the Canadys lived. He galloped towards home with a smile on his face, content at heart and feeling that tingle of excitement that always came when he knew that soon he would see Hester again, hold her close and feel her warm loving body against his own. He wondered if it were at all possible for Joe or Adam to feel the same way about their wives as he felt about her, and although he decided that they probably did, he couldn’t possibly understand how they could, after all, they weren’t married to her.

He dismounted in the yard and glanced around him and was about to announce his arrival by yelling aloud when the door opened and Hester gave a shriek and began to run towards him, her arms outstretched in welcome and her face aglow with excitement.

“I thought you would never get here…” she almost wept in pleasure as his arms hugged around her.

“Shucks, sweetheart, I jest about got here fast as I could,” but he laughed and buried his face into her neck and smelt the smell of her and enjoyed the tickle of her hair against his nose

“Daddy” and now he turned to wards his little girl as she ran towards him with her legs going in all directions and her arms waving about but it was the light of her eyes that shone out with love for him that captured his heart as he squatted down and swung her up as she fell into his embrace “Home now?”

“Yes, daddys home now.” he laughed and hugged her and then looked at Hester who had her arm around his waist “Shucks, Hester, if this ain’t bin jest about the longest ever time away from you. I swear I ain’t never gonna go agin.”

She only laughed at him and looked into his eyes as she told him he had lost weight and needed fattening up something which, she said with a giggle, couldn’t be said the same about her at which point Hoss stopped and looked at her, nodded and understood her meaning as his eyes fell upon the mound beginning to show from her skirt so he leaned in and kissed her cheek very tenderly, took her hand and walked slowly into the house.

……………..

It was so good to be home. Olivia stood at the door of the sitting room and looked around her and noticed the flowers in the vases, the sweet smells of wax polish and lavender, and the way various things had been placed that indicated the industry of others there on her behalf. She looked at the children who ran to their rooms their feet clomping up the stairs and Sofia’s voice saying repeatedly “Is daddy there?”

Marcy stepped in beside her and her hand brushed against hers “Are you alright?”

“Yes, dear, I am.” she untied her bonnet and removed it as she walked through the sitting room and into the kitchen with Marcy following close behind her, “You know, I am so well blessed, Marcy. Everyone’s so kind and thoughtful -” she turned away to look out of the window and out across the hills down to the river and remembered the day she watched her husband and son walk down together to do some fishing, and she heaved in a deep breath “Oh I wish he were home now…”

She said it as a whisper but Marcy heard and squeezed her fingers so that she turned to her and smiled “Look, you should get home now, Luke may be home soon.”

“I’ll just make sure I’ve got everything out of the buggy and then get back.” Marcy replied and hurried from the room to do just that, although she knew for sure that everything had already been brought into the house.

For a while Olivia stood gazing out at the view with her mind fastened onto the scene of that memory and then eventually with a long sigh she shook her head as though to banish such things away in order to get on with the task of moving back into her own home.

Later, after waving good bye to Marcy and watching the buggy bounce its way out of the yard, she walked with the children to the stables to feed the horses and to chat to Jake. Buster was more than pleased to see Reuben, pushing his face into the boy’s shoulder and nibbling his hair while Sofia fed her little pony with dainty nibbles on the palm of her hand.

Story book time and a little play and laughter before bed, the calming down as they said their prayers, kissed her goodnight and slipped into their beds. She went from one room to the next to ensure that they were cosy and comfortable before returning downstairs.

She couldn’t believe that she hadn’t already seen it, the envelope that stood proudly on the shelf where she had her books and pictures of her husband and children. Scolding herself with a smile and a shake of the head she picked it up, looking hungrily at her name written in his writing and then tore the envelope open.

My sweetest dearest wife

When you get this letter I shall be a long distance from you … where? I don’t know …but I want you to be sure to remember that distance doesn’t mean anything really, not now. You’ll always be with me, Livvy, in my thoughts, my heart. It won’t make up for you not being close to me, close enough for me to hold you in my arms, to smell the fragrance of your perfume, to touch your hair and you… my love …

I am hoping that this assignment will not be a long one. That I shall be home sooner than you think and we can pick up our lives from where we left off.

Remember, my love, that without you I am without a reason for living.

Your everloving husband

Adam.”

She read it through several times over until the phrases stuck in her mind and she knew she would be able to go to sleep with them running like a refrain through her mind, then she slipped it back into the envelope and placed it in the little box of treasures on the shelf.

It was the time of shadows drawing into every room of the house when she went to the bedroom and saw the quilt. For a moment she could only stare at it as though wondering how it had got there, and then remembering, she approached it and brushed her fingers across it, feeling the pattern of butterfly wings beneath her touch, for the feel of a rose bud or heart shaped blossom. After a while she gathered it together very carefully and placed it to one side … knowing for a certainty that she couldn’t sleep with it on the bed until she was at last sharing it once again with him, with Adam.

Chapter 98

The tendrils of the dream were drifting away like a whisper along the corridors of memory as Olivia sighed and opened her eyes. For a moment she struggled to retain some remnant of what she had been dreaming… laughing with her husband, the feel of his arms around her waist and her head upon his shoulder, looking down at his bare feet before being transported to that intimacy for which she so longed and which now was blowing, drifting, away.

She closed her eyes and lay still, very still. The sound of the pulses beating in her ears was now retreating and sleep still niggled at the fringes of wakefulness. She raised her arm to reach out for him but that part of the bed was empty and cool to her touch but she stayed still, pretending to herself that he was there, his head upon the pillow, his hand reaching out towards her.

………….

Hoss Cartwright thought that there was no finer place to be on earth than in his own bed with his dear wife by his side, no, closer than that even, much closer. He kissed her until she laughed and told him to stop so that she could catch her breath and then she rolled onto her back and with a sigh raised her hand to touch his face. She didn’t have to be looking at him, with her eyes closed and on her back, she could reach up and with the back of her hand touch him, stroke his cheek, feel the stubble rough upon her skin.

“I’ve longed for this time with you,” Hoss whispered, “Shucks, Hester, thinking about you each night nearly drove me crazy.”

“You’re home now, that’s all that matters.”

Her hand drifted close to his mouth so he turned to kiss it before she lowered it and then rolled onto her side to snuggle in closer to him, “Hoss, I’m so glad you were safe from being in town those weeks when there was so much sickness. It was a horrible time, we were all so frightened for Joe and Olivia.”

“I can imagine.” he sighed, and stroked her cheek, caught a tendril of her hair between his fingers, “But they were alright, weren’t they?”

She remembered with a jolt that he wouldn’t have known about the miscarriage, about the quarantine and everything that went along with those weeks of misery so in a whisper she told him briefly, listening to his reaction of sighs, gasps and muttered commiserations. Eventually when she had paused for breath he asked her if Olivia were home now and had she seen her to which she replied in the negative. “We’ll go see her tomorrow.” he said and then pulled her closer to him, “Adam will be real broken up when he hears about the baby.”

“He’ll worry more about her,” his wife said softly.

Almost immediately Hoss’ hand reached down to touch her body wherein their own baby was growing, safe and healthy he prayed, and there was nothing more he wanted to do now than to keep her close to him, just to make sure that all would be well, for her, and for him.

…………..

In their bedroom Joe Cartwright paced the floor with the baby in his arms. He seldom was roused from sleep by the infants crying but this particular night Mary Ann had remained sound asleep while Daniel bellowed for attention in his crib. After a few moments of pacing Joe sat down on the old rocking chair and held his son in such a way as to be looking down into the little face.

Daniel’s bottom lip quivered and his eyelids fluttered, little fists clenched and unclenched while he stared up at this face that was looking down at him. Hazel eyes and and a firm but laughing mouth, a familiar face that he knew and recognised. He blinked and decided now was not the time to continue bawling but to look, watch and learn.

Joe smiled, it was strange to think that this little scrap of humanity was actually made up from himself and Mary Ann. He wasn’t a great student of biology but that much he did understand, and appreciate. He stroked the soft downy cheek with his index finger, and whispered nonsense words that calmed the child even more, he stroked back the soft hair that was growing, at last, replacing the hair that had been lost since his birth.

Joe felt little fingers grip his own tightly, and he laughed softly, beneath his breath so as not to wake his wife, nor frighten the baby. Amazing, and wonderful, he mused, his own son, his very own son.

He rocked back and forth with Daniel in his arms until the infant fell into sleep. Then very gently he picked him up and put him back into his crib, waited just in case he woke again, and then carefully returned to his bed. Mary Ann stirred, opened her eyes and looked at him “You alright?”

“Daniel woke up.” he whispered, “He’s gone back to sleep now. Don’t worry. Get some sleep.”

He watched as her eyes closed and with a sigh she was back into a dream, and he wondered about the days when they were on that journey with her brother, with Adam and with Hoss. Who would have thought it, he smiled, who would have thought it …all that time ago and the woman who was to be his wife was riding by his side while he mourned only for the loss of another.

……………….

Ben Cartwright lowered the flame in the lamp and stared up at the ceiling to watch the familiar shadows playing across the darker shadows above. It was good to hear the familiar sound of Hoss’ snoring again, it made him feel less alone, less a stranger in his own house.

The past was retreating too quickly, the time when he and the boys arrived to this spot and began to build this house was something of history now, not only his family history but that of Nevada, of the territory. All those battles with cattle barons, silver mine consortiums, Paiute … gone into the mists of time.

He couldn’t sleep, his thoughts were disturbing him by being too melancholy. He rose up from his bed and pulled on his dressing gown and slippers, then made his way downstairs. There was no fire burning, after all it was a hot night in June, they were edging into July, far away in Indian Territory armies were marching towards a vast encampment of Cheyenne, Souix, the outcome of which would soon be blazoned in the newspaper nationwide, but no one knew of that yet, certainly not Ben Cartwright as he settled into his red leather chair and reached for his tobacco pouch and pipe. His thoughts drifted to his son Adam, and he wondered where he would be now, and how much longer before he would return home. He thought of Olivia, and the sadness in her eyes when she spoke about the loss of the baby and as he drew upon his pipe he knew that his eldest son would feel that as a bitter blow of sorrow and guilt. Yes, as Ben blew out a perfect smoke ring, he knew more than anything that Adam would blame himself for not having been there with his wife, to protect her for the loss, to keep her safe, after all that was what all husbands ever wanted, was to keep their wives safe.

He shook his head, if that was all a husband wished to do then how bitterly he had failed each one of his wives and with a melancholy cloud enfolding upon him Ben drew on his pipe and stared into the dark shadows in the corner of the rooms in order to conjure up the ghosts of his past.

……………….

Eaun McPherson was crying, the tears were streaming down his cheeks but were intermingled with the constant outpourings of water from the sea and from the heavens that constantly dashed against the bulwarks of the ship. He couldn’t even explain why he was crying and he was the only person aware that he actually was, the sobs started in his gut and gasped out of his mouth and the tears just streamed down.

Hours upon hours of constant battering from the sea where the ship lurched down into vast troughs that threatened to engulf them entirely only to rise again and be confronted with waves of such enormity that it was impossible to imagine coming through it alive. But they did, time and time again they did.

Men fell down the hatchway along with cascades of water as they sought some kind of medical attention from him and the orderlies. They worked with water up to their thighs and then suddenly the ship rolled, turned, seemed to go upside down and the water emptied out again. It was all madness and he felt as though if the roller coaster torture didn’t stop soon he would go screaming mad up to the upper decks and throw himself overboard.

Food that didn’t require cooking was brought to them as the gallant chef made the safest possible things to staunch the pangs of hunger in the mens bellies. Eaun made the injured as comfortable as he possibly could without daring to touch any instrument that was too sharp in case he would damage them more as a result of the ships relentless motion.

Night had come but there were no stars only lightning through the clouds, and the constant bombardment of the waves. He dared not go up on deck, and now, cringing and clinging to the side wall of the sick bay he felt guilty for giving way to his fears when others fought and died to keep the ship together and the ships company safe.

Adam Cartwright wondered if the day would ever dawn, or if in fact it had and he hadn’t noticed. His hours were a nightmare of faces passing him, the same faces then different faces, the constant blank features of men too terrified to even think of being scared. They acted like robots, they performed miracles without even realising it. The sails were in tatters, the mast had splintered and fallen again, the decks were awash with water, constantly coming and going, standing upright only to be dashed down to one’s knees, crawling across deck to grab at a line and being flung against the bulwark, going with the waves, crashing into another body going in the opposite direction. It was horror, stark horror.

The helmsmen tied the wheel and then tied themselves to the wheel in order to maintain some control. There was disorder among order, discipline within chaos … and all Adam could do was whatever was possible at the moment, at the instant, and like everyone else there not think too much about what would happen later, because the immediate was the only time about which they could think.

He couldn’t indulge in thinking about home, about Olivia or his father and family; he could only think of what to do at the moment as something needed to be done, what order to yell at the instant an order was required. Inwardly he prayed, but that was fragmented, becoming a mantra rolling inside his head.

He wondered by what miracle they were actually still alive, perhaps prayers were being answered after all, in which case he prayed for it to stop, stop soon, very soon.

Chapter 99

Virginia City basked in the golden glow of a beautiful sunlit day, where the skies were so blue that the waters of Lake Tahoe seemed to glow with the most vibrant blend of the colour. Olivia stepped down from the rig and looked at Hester thoughtfully before walking round to help her down although she found there was no need for her services as Roy had stepped up to perform the ‘honour’.

Dismissing Hester’s thanks he looked from one to the other of them and smiled, “It’s good to see you both in town today.” he touched the brim of his hat and left them together as they brushed dust from their clothes and straightened their bonnets.

“I suppose I had better go and get it over with,” Hester sighed, “If it wasn’t for the fact that you said he was really very kind beneath that brusque exterior I wouldn’t come in, Olivia, I really wouldn’t.”

Olivia nodded and placed a kindly hand on her friend’s arm, “Look, Hester, he’s not only much kinder than he appears but he’s also very modern and knows the latest advances in medicine. I don’t mean to be disparaging to Paul, bless him, but it isn’t always easy for a doctor in his position to keep up to date with things when he’s at the beck and call of so many.”

“I trust Paul though …” Hester groaned with a sigh and turned towards the surgery, “I wish John were still here.”

“Well, he isn’t and if you want that back ache seen to and put right then you have to see the doctor that is. Come along, I won’t leave you alone.”

The two women walked slowly along the sidewalk, with Hester stopping every so often to look into a shop window as though if she could delay getting to see Dr Schofield long enough perhaps he wouldn’t be there and she could go back home, even if she would still have her back ache.

“Hester, it’s not like you to be frightened by a mere man, is it?” Olivia whispered, grabbing her arm as she dallied yet again in front of the store window displaying a quantity of fine materials for curtains and bedspreads.

“I don’t consider Dr Schofield a mere man, Olivia, and to be honest, I don’t think he does, either.” Hester groaned and rolled her eyes, but she did as she was told and recommenced her stroll towards the surgery.

The little bell tinkled as they pushed open the door and Schofield looked up from his microscope and slides with a distracted air, as though patients were there simply to annoy and distract him from a more important work. He looked from one to the other of the two women before remembering his manners and standing up “Mrs Cartwright - and - Mrs Cartwright.” he nodded a greeting and then cleared his throat “What can I do for you - er - which one am I seeing?”

“Mrs Hester Cartwright is your patient, Dr Schofield.” Olivia said with a slight twinkle in her eyes for she was quite amused by her sister in law’s obvious discomfiture at seeing the formidable doctor.

“Really?” Schofield sighed and turned his attention to Hester who was looking at him as though she was wondering what part of his anatomy she could stab with her hat pin.

“Yes,” she nodded, “I came because -” she glanced at Olivia who was looking for somewhere to sit but Schofield stopped her by a loud ‘herumph’ and reminding her that consultations between doctors and their patients were confidential, “Perhaps you would like to wait in the back room, Mrs. Cartwright?”

Hester’s shoulders sagged and she looked pitifully at Olivia who stood there open mouthed for a moment before realising that Schofield would usher them both out of the surgery if she protested. She inclined her head and made her way to the back room where she found Su Ling busy rolling pills. Her little boy was sleeping soundly in a crib tucked in the corner of the room.

The delight on her face was warm and genuine as she rose to her feet and took hold of Olivia’s hands “Oh, how good it is to see you once more, Honourable Miss. My husban’ tell me what great help you were when illness come to this town.”

“It’s lovely to see you again Su Ling, it seems such a long time since I saw you both. How is the baby?”

Both women approached the crib and gazed down at the child, nearly five months old now. Su Ling smiled and stroked the childs dark hair from his brow, back in her home land of China she knew that if a mother allowed a white woman to look upon her baby it would be considered cursed, to have the eyes of a ‘white devil’ gaze upon an infant or show any interest was tantamount to dealing it a death blow from which it would never recover. Such traditions she had long ago dismissed as idle superstition, thankfully. She basked in Olivia’s praise and then sat down to continue with her work.

Talk meandered to various subjects, and it wasn’t until Olivia thought Hester was sure to have seen the doctor and got her problem sorted out, that she asked Su Ling if she could talk to her about something very personal and, she said with great stress, confidential. Su Ling nodded and slipped her hands into the wide sleeves of her silk garment “Of course, is it about the loss of your baby you wish to speak? It is so terrible to lose a child …I know … I understand.”

Olivia wasn’t sure exactly what it was Su Ling understood, nor why, but she nodded “Yes, it is about that I want to talk to you about, Su Ling. It is something that puzzles me, and I want your advice.”

The pretty Oriental nodded and bowed her sleek dark head, looked intently into the sea green eyes of the other woman and beckoned to a stool “Sit down, tell me what you wish to speak about and if I can help you, then I will do so.”

The two women walked slowly side by side deep in thought as though their ‘consultations’ had provided them with more to worry about than prior to their visit. Finally Hester said “He thought the back ache was because the baby was lying in the wrong position and I’m not resting enough. I honestly think he lives in a different world to normal people, Olivia, when does he think I have the time to rest?”

“I don’t know, dear, but perhaps you will have to find the time, if it is for your child’s safety and your health that is to be spared.”

“I put enough upon Hop Sing already, he isn’t getting any younger and his memory isn’t as good as it used to be either.” Hester fretted and bit her bottom lip anxiously, “Shall we go into Del Monico’s for some coffee?”

“A good idea. I know Mary Ann won’t mind having the children a little longer.” she smiled and steered her troubled friend across the road and towards the best restaurant in town. Lydia Brandon was approaching them and stopped to speak for a while, telling Olivia about school and when it would re-open which gave them both the opportunity to convey their sympathies about her brothers death. Smiling prettily the young school teacher thanked them and went on her way. Eventually they made their way to the restaurant and was led to a pleasant table where they could watch the comings and goings of the townspeople at their leisure.

Hester rubbed her face as though to remove every last vestige of weariness and try and get some colour into her cheeks, she smiled wearily at Olivia “I don’t know, Olivia, I didn’t think I could ever feel so tired.”

“Has Dr Schofield not suggested you get any medicine at all? I’m sure that when I was expecting Sofia the doctor gave me instructions to have some tonic to help boost my blood. He was a good doctor, always very conscientious.”

“Not what we could say of Dr Schofield, he is so rude and unpleasant and insulting, he said - again - that I was too old for another baby. I ask you, Olivia, one would think I was a grand mother already.”

“You are not much older than me, if perhaps not the same age.” Olivia said with a frown, but she restrained saying further in order not to alarm Hester.

“He’s just very unpleasant.” Hester snapped and stared stonily out of the window leaving Olivia to place their order and hope she had got it right.

Mrs Garston and her daughter, Lucy, passed with a nod of the head and a smile cold enough to create icicles in the air. They sat at the table behind Hester and Olivia where they were later joined by several other ladies. Hester had the best view of them and every now and again would have to look away and out of the window in order to suppress her giggles as she watched the four bonnets nod and waggle as they met in the middle of the table to discuss town matters.

It was as their conversation lulled somewhat that a whisper of what was being discussed by the four ladies drifted into their hearing, comments such as ‘He’s much too old for the job’ ‘Must be 70 if not older’ ‘It’s his deputies that are doing the work for him, carrying him they are …’

Hester leaned forwards “They’re talking about Roy.” she whispered and Olivia turned her head slightly to pick up Mrs Garston’s comment that she’d be surprised if Roy could hold a gun steady now without dropping it if he were ever needed upon to defend the town. Olivia leaned towards her sister in law and whispered “Shall we go home, I don’t want to overhear anything else in case I lose my temper.”

Hester gave a little laugh, she couldn’t for the life of her imagine Olivia losing her temper but together they left the restaurant after paying their bill, and made their way to their rig. Both remained deep in thought but when they were eventually seated and Hester had the reins in her hands she said with a sigh “Of course they’re right, you know. Roy is too old to be holding the office of sheriff now.”

Olivia said nothing but wondered how Ben would react to the news when Hester told him about this latest wave of gossip to move Roy out of office.

………….

The sky seemed to be rippling in shades of black, grey and purple with lightning flashing at random here and there. It seemed to each man on board ship that the fight to survive the storm was never ending and that when it ended, whatever way it ended, would be a relief. The ferocity of the weather was sapping their strength as hour upon hour it beat down upon them.

Adam’s legs felt so heavy, so weary, that he could no longer feel any power in them, and when the next wave crashed over him he buckled beneath it and allowed the slipstream to sweep him across the deck. He felt his head crack against some hard object but had lost the motivation within him to fight against the weakness that trickled over him. If he were going to be swept overboard then so be it, he could no longer think to function clearly.

Eaun turned slightly as four men lumbered into the sick room bearing a body in their arms. Another body, he sighed, another hopeless case presented to him in order for him to weave some miracle. He stepped aside for the body to be placed before him and then recoiled back a few more steps when he recognised Adam. Hardy was gasping for breath, doubled over and his face the colour of cream cheese “Caught him just before he was going over…”

“Thank you, Mr Hardy.” Eaun shouted back, hoping that his voice carried above the sounds of the noise that seemed so much part of life now.

The ship lurched and two orderlies stepped forward quickly to stop the body rolling from the operating table. Eaun turned towards it, and after closing his eyes in order to summon some more strength into his body and more clarity in his brain he placed hand on Adam’s shoulder to begin his preliminary examination.

By the time he turned round to speak to Hardy again the four men had returned to the upper decks to continue their battle against the elements.

An hour drifted by, so horribly so that it seemed never ending. Eaun had found only the one injury on Adam, the blood flowing from the cut on his brow clear enough evidence of where it was, and it was simple enough to sew the flaps of skin together, although it took time between surges of the boat heaving itself up and then plunging itself down again. Dressing it carefully he then checked Adam over carefully and was satisfied in his diagnosis, that the man was exhausted and had reached the limitations of endurance.

It was a shock to Eaun, like many he thought Adam was invincible and this was clear proof that the man wasn’t, but just as prone to exhaustion as any other. He returned to his duties in caring for others with more serious injuries and realised that if the storm didn’t stop soon every man jack of them would be too exhausted to fight any longer, the ship would just slip under the waves with every man on board only too happy for that release.

When Adam opened his eyes the senses were immediately assailed by the sounds of the continuing storm, the groans of the men in sick bay, and the clanging of a lantern as it swung back and forth against one of the timbers close to his head.

“Eaun?”

The doctor appeared immediately “Are you alright? Hardy caught you just as you were about to go overboard.”

Adam nodded and told himself to remember that and mention it in despatches, but most of all he wanted to stand up and get back up on deck. “How are the men?”

“Exhausted, sir.”

“Of course they are,” Adam nodded and managed to get upright, grabbed at the edge of the bed as whole ship lurched yet again ,”Well done, Eaun, you’re doing an excellent job. Are you alright yourself?”

“Terrified, sir.”

Adam allowed the briefest of smiles to touch his lips “I ain’t surprised.” he murmured and made his way to the upper deck.

Chapter 100

The storm abated in the early hours of the following day, the clouds seemed to gather up into themselves and fold up, like so many Bedouin tents being dismantled and folded up to travel onwards elsewhere. Blue skies slowly appeared followed by an apologetic watery sun, and as the men on the battered ship gathered their senses and hoped that this was at last the end of their ordeal, so the rain ended, and the waves began to slowly flatten out.

The men staggered about as though punch drunk for a while, lurching from hatch to bulwark, tripping over hawsers, sliding on fish that had landed on deck with the waves and were still flapping about as they gasped for life. Euan came out of sick bay to look around him as though to make sure he wasn’t dreaming or having some kind of false hope. The Spanish seamen hugged one another and attempted to hug the Americans, some of whom actually allowed such an emotional response. As the sun grew stronger and warmer, as the day lengthened out and normality resumed they looked to the bridge for words from their Commanding Officer which they received with a warmth that was borne of relief and joy and pride as Adam commended them all.

It was later as he studied the maps and made his calculations that he looked up to find Hardy and Dekker standing before him, looking pale and determined, as though they were the bringers of bad news. They reminded Adam so much of Hoss and Joe, ‘ganging up’ to tackle him on a thorny subject that he actually smiled before asking them if anything was wrong.

“We overheard the Spanish Officer telling his men that we were going back to Santiago so that they would be able to get home.” Hardy ended his comment with a long release of breath as though he had intended to say far more but had run out of words.

Adam frowned and tapped his chin thoughtfully with the pencil he held in his fingers, “It makes sense.”

“You can’t be serious,” Hardy cried, actually stepping forward in horror, “We lost time enough when you decided to go and help them before the storm struck. If you hadn’t done that, we could well be on the way home by now.”

Adam drew himself upright and looked at them both, then glowered at Dekker “Well, haven’t you anything to say, sir?”

“Erm, only that I agree with Mr. Hardy, sir. We lost time, precious time, to get to that ship and take them on board. We - we could be - well, it’s just a thought, sir - possibly we could be back home by now.”

Adam stared at them both and straightened his shoulders, his eyes hardened as he looked back at Hardy who took his silence as a reason to say more “I thought you were wrong, sir. I thought you were out of order to have put the Spanish ship before your own crew.”

“I see - and - Mr. Dekker - have you anything else to add?”

Dekker swallowed hard, then shook his head as though realising that they had already said too much. Adam flexed his shoulders and raised his chin defiantly then looked down his nose at them both as he turned his back on them and stared out of the port hole at the now pleasantly smooth sea through which the Shenandoah was making good progress. Then he turned back to look at them “I hadn’t made any decision with regard to returning to Santiago, as it happens.”

The two men relaxed, even if there was ice dripping from each word Adam uttered it didn’t seem as though their comments had been taken too seriously, which showed how little they knew their Commanding Officer. He cleared his throat, “It’s true that we could have ignored the Spanish ships distress, we could have continued homewards and left those men rowing their hearts out and knowing that the storm would hit them full on and they stood no chance whatsoever. If that would have made you both feel happier about things then niether of you deserve to be Officers serving on this ship with me.”

“I - I - but -” Hardy put out a hand as though to plead his case but Adam raised his own in order to gain silence.

“You are both out of order. Your comments are insulting as well as undisciplined and unworthy of you both. You truly expected me to turn away from fellow seamen when they were in distress and facing death? You really thought it better to just head for home and ignore them? Is that really what you expected me to do, sir? Sir?” he turned from one to the other and glared with black eyes at them both.

“It was a waste of precious time, that’s all we meant, sir.” Hardy said quietly in his own defence.

“Yes, perhaps it was, but I am ashamed of the fact that you put your own self interests before that of fellow human beings, fellow seamen.”

“We were thinking of the ships crew, sir, they were exhausted, they deserved better….” Hardy stammered seeing the pit he was digging himself but unable to find his way out of it.

“Yes, they were, all of us were. Do you think they would have felt better knowing they had sailed away from people in need? Do you really think that we would have avoided that storm ? You’re both damn fools if you thought that, and ignorant to boot. That storm was going to hit us no matter how fast we could move ahead of it.”

Hardy and Dekker said nothing, stony faced they stared at Adam and waited for him to say more but for some minutes there was silence while he struggled to find more to say. “Those Spanish seamen fought alongside you to keep this ship afloat, with their help they saved your lives. It’s the least we can do for them to take them back to Santiago…”

“But, Sir …” Hardy stammered but Adam shook his head and told him to say nothing more. “Take yourselves out of my sight,” he snapped, “and tell the helmsman to set sail for Santiago … no, belay that order, I’ll do it myself. Just go, you’ll both be on double watch until I can think of looking on you again.”

Hardy saluted and turned quickly out of the room but Dekker dithered and mumbled an apology before scampering off as Adam gave him a glare that would have sent his brothers running.

Once they had gone Adam resumed his observation of the maps and then slowly rolled them up and took them on deck to the bridge with them. He watched as the men he passed saluted and continued with their work. The sounds of the carpenters repairing what they could of the ship trickled towards him and he walked over to the master carpenter who stopped immediately to acknowledge his presence “How are things, Justin?”

“Better than I had thought but not as good as I had hoped, sir. We need to get substantial repairs done and they can’t be done out at sea.”

One of the ensigns approached now, saluted “Sir, we’ve got the ballast levelled, but there’s been a lot of damage done below decks. We lost a lot of our provisions and stock.”

“I don’t doubt it,” Adam said quietly.

“The bilge pumps are working flat out sir, but they won’t be able to get us back home.” Justin murmured.

Adam nodded and turned away, “As you were,” he murmured and returned to the bridge where he spread out the maps and looked at the helmsman “How are things, Lancing?”

“Alright if I handle her gentle, sir.”

“How are you yourself, man?”

Lancing sighed and shrugged “Like most of the men, sir, exhausted.”

“You were hurt earlier?”

“Nothing more than a scratch, sir. The Spanish lad has been a help, he’s strong as an ox.”

“Where is he now?”

“In sick bay, sir. A hawser swung down and struck him, nearly sent him overboard but he grabbed hold of the wheel and wouldn’t let go until I was able to relieve him with the help of Mr. Dekker.”

Adam nodded and looked up at the sky and then around the deck. Everywhere he saw exhausted men attempting to keep on with their duties. He had resumed his work and had left them to do likewise, he bit his bottom lip and then catching sight of the Bo’sun ordered him to whistle the men topside.

Once they were assembled he took a deep breath and leaned towards them “Men, it looks like a good day weather wise, time I think for us all to catch our breaths a little. I’m for lowering the anchor and spending a while so that we can relax a little. I think we deserve something special in the way of food and drink, until we get on our way again.”

“Is it homewards, sir?” Mr Forbes shouted, a little over excited at the thought of just flopping into his cabin and sleeping the rest of the day away, after the extra ration of rum was handed out of course.

“We’ve drifted too far off course, Mr. Forbes. Shendandoah needs some repair work and we need some stores. We’ll make our way to -” he paused and glanced over to where Hardy and Dekker stood looking pale and rather awkward “Port au Prince, which is the nearest land at present.”

There were a few cheers at this and there would have been more if the men hadn’t been so bone weary. The Spanish officer mounted the steps and began to talk to Adam, his arms gesturing like windmills while Adam folded his arms across his chest and listened politely before placing a conciliatory hand on the mans’ shoulder “Look, sir, there is nothing more I can do but take you and your men to Port au Prince with us. Your own Governor forbids us going to Santiago, even if it was to do him a favour of leaving you all safely there. I am sure you can find a ship that will take you safely home.”

Tupper looked at him thoughtfully before sighed and nodded “You are right, Comorado, as always. Gracias mi amigo.”

Adam nodded and looked quickly over at Lancing “Go and get yourself seen to, Mr Lancing. All’s well.”

“Yes, sir, thank you,” Lancing saluted more out of respect for the man than from any other reason.

Justin, the carpenter, continued with his work, as he told Adam later he felt better working while the others were relaxing, they kept out of his way, and he needed to work to feel alive. Adam returned to his cabin and sat down at his desk, drew the rather damp log book to his side and made his report. He hesitated as to whether or not make a comment about Dekker and Hardy’s outburst, but erred on the side of caution, telling himself that they were both exhausted and had faced dangers unheard of by them. Personally he had been appalled by their lack of human kindness towards the other ships crew but for the moment he left the matter as it was, between themselves only.

As evening fell the crew came on deck and music was played. Adam heard the sounds of the flute, a violin, and a motley assembly of instruments but remained in his cabin, writing a letter to his father. By his side was the letter already written to Olivia, a letter he knew would be delivered before he would arrive back home.

After an hour or so had passed he made his way up to the deck and watched the men as they made their music, danced together, shouted and laughed. The Spanish seamen clapped hands and then danced some fancy footwork that brought applause and cheers from their American companions. It was an evening of pleasure, and if it bordered a little on the hysterical, it was hardly a matter of surprise.

In the morning the Shenandoah made her way towards Port Au Prince. The crew were tired but worked willingly and cheerfully at their duties. In the galley the chef conjured up hot and appetising food with the stores available to him and McGill was more than happy to bring Adam a hot breakfast for the first time in days.

It was noon when they passed the wreckage of the Spanish ship, not that there was much of that and the survivors of her with their Officer in charge stood at the bulwark of the Shenandoah and with bowed heads listened as he said prayers for the dead. Afterwards Adam approached Tupper and asked him about the other ship, the one that had sailed alongside Delgado’s the day they had stopped them.

“I don’t know what ‘appen to ‘er.” Tupper shrugged.

“I thought they were sailing in convoy with you.”

“Non, they came at my Capitans request and then left us.”

“Do you think they were safe when the storm struck?”

Tupper could only shrug and shake his head “God only knows,” he replied with reverence as he raised his eyes aloft.

Adam nodded and with a sigh returned to his cabin. He had hoped not to have the other ship on his conscience, but Tupper’s comment didn’t carry much reassurance on that score.

The knock on the door brought him out of a few moments repose and he set the book to one side and bade the person enter. Hardy and Dekker came in, removed their hats and saluted. Adam frowned “I didn’t give you permission …”

“No, sir, but -” Hardy drew in his breath “I - we - that is - we came, sir, to ask you to overlook our previous comments. We were totally out of order.”

Dekker licked dry lips “I think it was the exhaustion, sir. I, for one, was so light headed I wasn’t sure what I was saying. I truly am more than sorry for what I said and implied.”

Adam seemed to unwrap himself from his chair and stood up in front of them, he looked at them both as though he saw only reptiles beneath his contempt, but he nodded “Very well. This one instance will be overlooked in view of the situation beforehand. Return to your duties.”

For a moment they both hesitated as though trying to find something else to say, something that would melt the cold exterior of their Commanding Officer, but in the end they could only salute and leave the cabin.

Within five minutes Hardy was back, knocking on the door and pushing it open “Sir, there’s a ship hailing us to port side. It’s the Baltimore, sir.”

Daniel O’Brien was in Adams cabin within less than an hour, shaking hands heartily and telling his friend that he was convinced that all he would of the Shenandoah was wreckage. “You can’t imagine how much relief I feel knowing that you are safe.”

“Sit down, O’Brien, and share a drink with me.” Adam said with a grin as he poured whiskey into two glasses. “How did you get on?”

“We were safe in harbour.” Daniel replied taking the proffered glass, “But a Spanish captain called Emmanuel de Costas told me of an encounter with you. He had been sailing with another ship, Captained by a man called Delgado…”

“I know him.” Adam nodded “I’m glad he’s safe, I was sure that he wouldn’t have survived the storm. Delgado’s ship didn’t.”

“He told us about the encounter, but he made his way back to Port au Prince afterwards whereas Delgado remained hoping to force you to give up some papers…” he raised an eyebrow “Is that right?”

“Well, he tried.” Adam smiled over the rim of his glass.

Daniel drank a little more of the whiskey “Here’s some good news for you then, they have arrested Burriel and he’s due for trial as soon as everything has been prepared.”

“Any idea as to when that will be …?”

Daniel shrugged “Who knows, Adam, probably some time next year. At least he’s under lock and key.”

Adam nodded “What will you be doing now, Daniel? Is your assignment still hereabouts?”

“Yes, for another three months before I’m relieved.”

“I have to dock in Port au Prince to get urgent repairs done and fresh provisions before I can get this ship back home. Are there any other ships due for America in harbour?”

“Yes, two that I know of … have you mail ?”

“Yes, the men want to write and I’ve letters that I would like delivered to - to my wife and family.”

Daniel smiled and nodded and very quietly sighed “Of course -.” he accepted the refill gladly and leaned back “The Argo is due to leave for Washington within the next few days, but Captain Willmott’s ship Endeavour will be leaving for San Francisco tomorrow morning. I’ll make sure that all your mail gets sent with her.”

Adam sat down with a smile, for a moment he thought of Olivia, the smile on her face when she saw the letter and then noticing Daniel’s grin he blushed a little and turned to refill his glass.

Chapter 101

Roy Coffee’s pale blue eyes moistened slightly as he listened to his friend and rather self consciously he ducked his head down and began to tug at the buttons on his vest and then finger the papers on the desk until in the end he said rather gruffly “For Pete’s sake, Ben, will you jest quit going on so?”

The rancher paused and looked at the other man with raised eyebrows, then shook his head “But, Roy, I was only saying …”

“I know, I know,” Roy pulled off his spectacles in the familiar endearing way he had been doing for years and put them down on the desk before he looked at Ben more kindly “Fact is, I was jest about curling up with embarrassment all them fine things you were saying about me, but …” he stood up, slowly, and pushed aside some papers on the desk in order to walk around it without knocking them over “what they’re saying in town is true, I am too old for the job.”

“Age doesn’t -”

“It does.” Roy’s voice cut through that of the other mans with a gentle force that caused Ben to clamp his mouth shut “In this job, age does matter.”

He walked to the far side of the room before turning and looking around, then gave a rather bleak smile “I remember time back when your boy Adam came along with the aim of being my assistant,” he shook his head “Didn’t tell me first off that the town council wanted me to retire because of my age. That was a while back now, Ben, and I retired twice since then, and both times been and come back.”

“Exactly and -”

“But I am old, older than you, and this job deserves a younger man. You know, Ben, I ain’t headed a posse since that debacle last year with Jack, poor wretch. I ain’t broken up a saloon brawl in over a year either, my deputies do that fer me. Oh I can still get my gun out of the holster and shoot pretty straight but I’m slower and afterwards my danged wrist and fingers ache like the blazes.”

“Roy, I understand what you’re saying but -”

“If you keep insisting on tagging a ‘but’ on what you gotta say, Ben, then you sure as heck don’t understand what I’m saying. I’m retiring for good as of this week. I want to spend the rest of my days at home, or going fishing, or jest moseying along minding my own business like most folks in this town should do.” he heaved in a big gulp of air and looked around the room and grinned “That time back when Adam came to assist me, daggum, he got this place so tidied up that when I got back from my rounds I thought I’d walked into the wrong place. But back then I had enough life and strength in my bones to keep going, so long as my family needed me.”

He tugged at his moustache and pushed out his lips slightly before returning to his desk and sitting back down, he picked up his spectacles and put them back on “Last week I had my eyes tested, these here ain’t strong enough no more, gotta get stronger ones. My family, this town, needs someone better then me now, I can’t keep pretending any longer, Ben, it ain’t fair on them.”

“You’ll be bored out of your skull within five days.” Ben said with a grin, rather sheepish though it was for his friends’ comments were having quite an impact on his own deep seated fears of age and worthiness.

“I’m looking forward to it, Ben, then I can hire me a buggy and come visit you and we can have a game of checkers together.” Roy chuckled, and then leaned back in his chair to observe the other man with an intensity that made Ben uncomfortable, “Ben, you got a lot of living in you yet, somehow you’re the kind of man that don’t age, don’t seem to bow down to the frailties others of us do. Then again running a ranch, responsible job as it is, ain’t the same as being a sheriff of a growing community, now, is it?”

Ben sighed and rose to his feet, picked up his hat and after a moment’s consideration carefully replaced it on his head, he nodded “I know what you’re saying, Roy. It’s just going to be a sad loss, for all of us.”

“Wal, I ain’t planning on going any further than my own home, Ben, and you know where that is, don’t’cha now?” Roy chuckled, “You come and visit - we can chew over the mistakes the new sheriff is making.”

Ben nodded and then left the older man in order to continue about his own tasks. He closed the door behind him, stood a moment or two in the sunlight as he thought over all that Roy had said, and then turned to meet Hoss at the Hardware Store. Roy heard the firm foot steps on the sidewalk and nodded slowly, he put his spectacles down on the desk and stared out at the far wall. His eyes went rather misty as he remembered what Ben had said, and then he thought back to years gone by when he had first arrived at Virginia City, just a small settlement then that people referred to as The Washoe, and he was only staying for the allocated six months before travelling on to the next settlement. That was how law keeping was done back then, working on a circuit … until he finally settled here permanently.

He leaned back into his chair and felt the ache tugging at his heart because more than anything he would have liked to have stayed in the job, but his body was too old and too slow now, and mentally he wasn’t as sharp as he had been even a year ago. No, it was time for a change, whether he wanted it or not.

………………

At Port au Prince Adam watched as the American ship Endeavour headed out to the open sea. His crew of seamen had crowded the bulwarks of the Shenandoah to cheer her on, knowing that it carried with it the news and emotions of all there in the letters that had been placed in the mail sack. Adam hid a slight half smile as he thought of his own letters, and tried to imagine how they would be received by those so loved back home.

He snapped himself out of his reverie and turned back to his duties. There was a deal of work still to be done on the Shenandoah, the carpenters on board and the men hired from land to work alongside them all agreed that it had been a miracle that they had survived both the storms with so much damage. Her hull had been badly damaged as well as her masts, and so many other matters that it was going to extend their stay in the island for some days more.

Not that the men had minded too much. Shore leave had been extended to them and they had enjoyed every moment. The chef had stocked up on fresh food, selected a handsome goat and cow, plus chickens - the previous having drowned before they had been consigned to the oven - and was in his element as he vowed to make the return journey wonderful due to the meals he would create for them.

Mr Hardy had kept a low profile realising that he had lost favour with his captain and not sure how to regain it. He worked hard and diligently in the hope that Adam would notice it and not hold his previous out burst against him. To be honest Adam certainly didn’t act towards him in any way differently to make him feel that he held the man in less esteem than previously but conscience did the work for him, and Hardy learned as a result to be a better man, and officer, as a result.

O’Brien approached Adam on the bridge of the Shenandoah and smiled as he put his hand upon his friend’s shoulder “You looked a few hundred miles away, Adam.”

“I was probably a few hundred more than that, O’Brien.” Adam laughed and looked at the Captain with a sudden awareness that the man was looking extremely smart in his uniform “Mmm, time to say goodbye is it?”

“I’m afraid so. I’m sorry we have to part company at this point, Adam, but duty calls.” Daniel sighed and leaned upon the taffrail, the sleeve of his jacket touching that of Adams “It’s been good to share this time with you though. I’m always more than glad when chance throws us together.”

“Chance huh?” Adam grinned but kept his eyes fixed on watching the carpenters at work rather than look at his friend.

“Chance by way of orders then..” Daniel laughed, “Hopefully it won’t be long before we can meet up again.”

“Give my regards to Marie …”

“And mine to Olivia.”

They turned then and smiled, shook hands and then saluted. Daniel didn’t look back as he made his way from the bridge and down to the decks to leave by way of the gangplank. But Adam watched him until he finally disappeared from view, swallowed up as he passed by the starboard of the Baltimore. He frowned slightly and then shook his head, it had been some while since that long ago ill fated trip on The Albatross, when he and Daniel had first met, a long time.

By late afternoon the Baltimore had departed leaving an empty berth where she had previously docked. In his cabin Adam was writing out the log for the day when there was a light tap on the door and upon calling out ‘Enter’ he found himself confronted by Lieutenant Tupper and a rather splendidly be medalled Spanish Officer, obviously Tupper’s superior in rank. He stepped forward and bowed as Adam stood up to welcome him, and then listen to a torrent of words in Spanish that was completely lost to him. A phrase book was one thing, but of little help in situations such as this. Tupper stepped forward to interpret “This is General Magnifico Pablo Marceline y Pelayo Delgado, he is father to Capitano Delgado and comes to thank you for the way you try to save him. He unnerstan’ you put your ship and men in great dangerous to save us. He bring you gift of thanks.”

With great pride Tupper stepped back with a flourish for Delgado to produce a small box which he placed gently on Adams desk, then carefully drew up the lid to show the jewel within. Delgado bowed again “I tank you, Comorado. Please - to accept - si?”

They stayed some while, long enough to understand that different languages and cultures didn’t mean barriers or borders. As the sun set and covered the Shenandoah with the different hues of a wonderful ending to the day, Adam picked up the little box and looked at the emerald nestled within it. For obvious reasons it brought to his mind the memory of his wife and her sea green eyes.

……………

Su Ling looked thoughtfully at the house before turning to smile at the man sitting by her side. They spoke hurriedly together in their native language and then clambered down from the buggy. By the time they had reached the door Olivia was already opening it and smiled a warm welcome “I thought I heard the sound of a horse.” she stepped aside so that they could enter the house, and then closed the door behind them

Su Ling and her companion bowed to the other woman and then took the seats she indicated. Su Ling cleared her throat, sat with her shoulders straight and very erect as she said “This is Cheng Ho Lee. He very fine cook. Very good worker in house. He make for you very good house servant.”

“But, Su Ling, I - er - I don’t really need a house servant.” Olivia blushed and looked at Cheng Ho Lee who only bowed his head slightly as though her comment was expected and therefore of no offence to him.

“Hah, you say so, I know you think so. I think you do not think so later. You need help in big house, in garden, in cooking and all things relating to house care. Cheng Ho Lee do all work to help you. Like Hop Sing, he will be good friend.”

Olivia looked at Cheng Ho Lee thoughtfully, and smiled slightly. He stood up and bowed deferentially, “Missy Cartwright, Cheng Ho Lee many time speak with good friend Hop Sing who say he much worried about little Missy.”

“Oh but there’s really no need …”

“He tell Cheng Ho Lee that Missy Joe have help in house, and he help Missy Hester. Not good that you have no help.”

Olivia bit her lip, frowned and looked at Su Ling who wore her most inscrutable face and stared ahead of her at the bunch of flowers on the shelf behind Olivia’s shoulder. Cheng Ho Lee was listing some of the tasks he was prepared to do, which seemed practically everything that could possibly be thought of … his sing song voice tripped out the details in a gentle almost soothing voice and then with a smile he bowed “I also very good with baby.”

Olivia blushed and looked at Su Ling who nodded “Much to think about, when you have baby, you need help.”

Olivia said nothing for a moment then looked at the man more carefully, he was certainly a pleasant looking person, comfortable to look at, with a pleasing smile in a round face. In some ways he did remind her of Hop Sing, with about fifteen years knocked off, for he was obviously that much younger than the Venerable Cook of the Ponderosa. “Cheng Ho Lee, this is quite a long way from town, won’t you miss your family?”

“No family, no wife, no children. Plenty uncle, plenty cousin …”

“Well, I don’t know…” Olivia hesitated and then smiled “Perhaps we should have some tea and talk a little more over some …”

No sooner said than Cheng Ho Lee was making his way to the kitchen insisting that he make good tea for ladies, Su Ling smiled beatifically “You like ? He very fine man. Good friend to Hop Sing. He help you very much.”

Olivia sighed and felt totally at a loss. Listening to the sound of preparation from the kitchen she thought back to days in San Francisco, to the help they had then, even when they first arrived back at the Double D and Marcy couldn’t settle to being a dear friend, and insisted on being the maid of all work, yes, it had all be helpful, very helpful. She looked at Su Ling who was looking so happy at the thought of having helped her friend that Olivia found herself unable to say a word against her friends scheme. As Cheng Ho Lee set down the tea things she looked down at the table and sighed, fleetingly she wondered what Adam would say about it, then remembered how often he had gently chided her for not getting help… she realised she was well and truly cornered and as she picked up her cup and drank her tea she knew that really, she didn’t actually mind .

Chapter 102

It was a hot day and as Rosie Canady swung back and forth on the old gate she could see the dust billowing up along the track that indicated that her Ma was going to have visitors. She knew that anyway because Ann had been cooking her best cookies since after breakfast and she had been sent as look out for the guests so that Ann could be warned to put the coffee pot on. Having jumped down from the gate and clapped her hands together to get rid of the chipped paint Rosie ran inside yelling “Ma, they’re a-coming, they’re a-coming.”

David began to yell as well, and Ann did a quick whirl around the room to gather up the things she needed and to check on the things she had already set down. The regular meeting of the ‘family’ was at the Canady household this week and she liked to keep things as neat and perfect as possible.

Mary Ann was first to come in, with her baby in a basket in her arms with her materials in another over her shoulder. She came in with a big smile at them all as she set baby Daniel down. “It’s so hot,” she exclaimed and nimbly removed her bonnet and tried to fluff up her curls which had drooped due to the heat.

“I was going to make some coffee but it would be better to have lemonade, don’t you think?” Ann asked standing in the middle of the kitchen looking rather doubtful which seemed strange to Rosie who had never known her mother to be doubtful about anything.

While her mother and Mary Ann chatted together Rosie peeked at the baby sleeping in the basket. David wasn’t interested in any old baby, he was still happy with his toys and was even happier when Mary Ann gave him a candy to chew on. Rosie remembered her manners and said thank you very nicely when handed some, then resumed her examination of this baby.

Daniel contentedly slept on. He had light coloured hair and plump cheeks and his hands were chubby with dimples. Rosie could just about remember when her brother David had looked just the same except that he had darker hair. She ran to the door when she heard voices from outside and stood expectantly waiting as Hester with Hannah, Olivia with Sofia came walking down the garden path to the house. Hannah and Sofia both grinned and laughed and waved at her, which was just what Rosie had been waiting for, she loved her ‘cousins’ especially now that Hannah could walk without falling down.

Hester kissed her cousin Ann on the cheeks and fell into conversation with her and Mary Ann immediately, lamenting her last visit to the doctor with them and making them laugh in sympathy. Although laughter of course is not sympathetic and Hester told them so rather crossly. Ann gave her a hug “You look nice and bonny, though, Hester.”

Poor Hester put her hands on her expanding girth and shook her head, “I’ve such a long time to go yet. I can’t believe I’m this big already.”

Olivia removed her bonnet and with a smile kissed the other women and looked around the room to observe them all. What a lovely friendly happy bunch they were, she mused, Ben was so right in saying he had been blessed with his daughters in law, they were so well matched, and Ann, an honourable daughter in law in consideration of the connection with Hester, was a dear. She smiled at Rosie who was watching her thoughtfully, “Are you alright, Rosie?”

“Yes, thank you, Aunt Livvy. Where’s Reuben?”

“He’s back at school now.” Olivia replied digging into a bag and producing a small bag of sweeties for them all which she handed out despite Ann and Hester protesting. She just laughed and followed them to where they were going to be seated.

It was too hot to sit outside in the sunshine and sew, the glare of the sun would be too much on the bright colours so Ann led them to the cooler side of the room where Hester sat down with a sigh, rubbing her back and loosening her skirt. “I hope you girls don’t mind, but everything seems so tight nowadays.”

Olivia loved Hester and smiled over at her, happy to receive a dimpled grin back. Hesters curling golden red hair was piled high to provide some air to the back of her neck, and Olivia thought she had never seen her sister in law look so pretty. No wonder Hoss loved her so very much and at the thought of Hoss her mind trickled to wondering where Adam was now and how much longer before he were to come home.

Hester could sense from the cloud that had settled over Olivia’s face that there needed to be a change of thought so she immediately asked Olivia to tell the ‘girls’ about Cheng Hu Lee who had now taken up residence for the past three days.

Rosie had been happy enough to play and chatter with Hannah and Sofia while David sat happily closer to his mothers skirts. She thought herself quite a grownup now in comparison with the other children and was already looked upon by them as the leader of their little group.

Rosie was so like her father that she would never be lost, with her bright blue eyes and black hair, the narrow face with perhaps a little longer chin than would be thought attractive to a little girl. She was tall for her age, and her hair was as straight as a poker, so that Ann always had to put it in rags overnight to get any curl in it. She hadn’t bothered lately so that it had been braided and she had blue ribbons to match her blue dress over which she wore her white pinafore.

Hannah was alike enough in colouring to have been mistaken for her sister, with her own near black hair which she had inherited from her grandfather, twinkling blue eyes that could be the gifts of either parent, and the cutest round face that certainly bore Hoss’ stamp. She was wearing her hair in braids like her cousin, although her ribbons were not silky and plump like Rosie’s, and were green. Her little dress was pink over a white blouson. Dainty and pretty as a picture was Hannah. It was no wonder she was the delight of her daddy's heart.

Sofia was as unlike the other two girls as could be with her blonde hair hanging in fine loose curls caught up at the sides in yellow ribbons. Her blue eyes were framed with long lashes, and her pert little nose covered with freckles. She was slim and slender with long legs, and resembled Olivia enough for strangers not to dwell too much on the fact that she didn’t resemble her ’father’, Adam, although Olivia would have told them that she did actually resemble her natural father, Robert, quite a bit, although no one ever thought to ask.

Rosie leaned forwards “Shall we go out and play?”

Hannah and Sofia looked at one another and then glanced over at their mothers who were now sorting out silks and materials to put together for the next quilt they were making.

Rosie sighed impatiently “I’ve a new ball. Daddy bought it for me.” it was actually bought for David, but why tell them?

The three of them slipped out of the house and into the garden where the ball was found and with much laughter and giggles they set about their play. David strolled out once or twice but he disliked the sun and exertion so went back inside to get another cookie and lemonade.

Like many games it wasn’t long before it lost its appeal, and they went indoors to have a drink, mothers exclaimed ‘Where have you been?’ ‘Why, look at you, you’re all dusty.’ but they laughed and mothers laughed too, it was a delightful, perfect day.
…………..

Hoss and Joe dismounted and stood for a moment at the sidewalk to discuss who was going to go where, it had already been discussed and decided upon on the way into town, but now, hot, dusty and a trifle discontented, they wanted to ‘rewrite the rules’.

Almost with common assent they made their way into the Bucket of Blood, on a day like this a cool drink of beer was required, urgently.

Daniel de Quille watched them go with a strange look on his face. Had anyone looked at him they would say he wore a ‘tragic countenance’ and when his clerk came out with some newspapers over his arm and murmured a few words de Quille could only nod and bow his head, take a long draw on his cigar and toss it miserably into the dirt.

Tom Sanderson licked his lips and cleared his throat and raised a newspaper aloft as he crossed the road yelling as loud as he could “George Custer killed at the Little Big Horn. Reports just in. Custer killed by Souix and Cheyenne at the Little Big Horn.”

Pedestrians stopped in mid stride, wagons slowed and were drawn up, horses were brought to a halt and their riders dismounted. People gathered around Sanderson to buy the papers, to demand answers to questions before some went to the offices of the Territorial Newspaper and ask more there.

Joe had just brought the glass to his lips when he heard the commotion. He looked at Hoss who raised his eyebrows, and together they returned to the door where other customers were already gathering.

Someone was running towards them, waving a news sheet, “It’s true, Custer’s dead. They killed him. Them murdering redskins killed him.”

“Let me see that -” Joe exclaimed reaching for the paper but the man pulled it away and told him to get his own.

DeQuille wasn’t surprised to find Joe and Hoss Cartwright in his office. He was standing by the window staring out without really seeing what was going on outside when the two brothers closed the door and asked him if the account was true.

“I wouldn’t have printed it if it wasn’t true.” he intoned slowly and turned to face them, “Yes, it came over the wires this morning. There’s more information on its way, more details, but .. We’ve printed it as we got it.”

“When?” Joe murmured, “When did it happen?”

“June 25th. Five days ago.” De Quille replied and with a sigh he turned and looked at the two brothers, “Of course, you knew him personally, didn’t you? I only ever got to write about him…”

Joe wasn’t sure why he was feeling the way he was, his pulses hammering in his ears as though he had been running too fast, his heart beating too fast he could feel it fluttering against his chest, the way he felt hot and then cold. He licked his lips, “I can hardly believe it.”

“I don’t suppose many can, or will.” De Quille said quietly, “But I’m sure there will be countless books written about it for years to come.” he pursed his lips and shrugged, “In some ways many will say it was bound to happen.”

Hoss opened his mouth and closed it again, he recalled the time he was standing in a big open tent in Indian Territory listening to Adam telling Custer he would never survive if he dared to enter the Black Hills. He could remember it so clearly, the heat, the way his brother could barely stand for weakness from the wound he had received some days earlier, the fact that he was sweating and there had been a persistent fly buzzing around his face. “The Little Big Horn? That’s in the Black Hills, ain’t it?”

De Quille looked at the big man and nodded “That’s right. Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse … the whole shebang … he rode his men right into them.”

Chapter 103

Hannah couldn’t quite reach the bottom rung of the garden gate, her legs were still too short for that so she just ran back and forth chasing butterflies while Sofia and Rosie did, occasionally stopping to watch them as they swung too and fro. “Me do it.” she cried several times her hands outstretched to Sofia whom she already knew to be the soft hearted of the two.

“You’re too small.” Rosie would said immediately Sofia stepped down to help the little girl “It’s dangerous.”

With a sigh Hannah turned away and looked around for something else to do. It was a hot day, too hot really, and the lemonade she had earlier had worked through her system for the inevitable to happen. She tugged at Sofia’s skirt “I need to go pee-pee.”

Immediately Rosie said “Well, go then -” and continued with her swinging with her eyes shut and the breeze fanning her face.

Sofia clambered down “Come on, I’ll take you.”

Hand in hand they walked towards the house until Hannah stopped and tugged at Sofia “No, not now, gone already.”

“What?” Sofia looked at the little girl and shook her head “You done pee-pee already?”

“Too late - done it.” Hannah declared nodding her head.

Sofia frowned and shook her head “C’mon then, better not go in just yet.”

They walked back the way they had come, “Don’t want gate. Rosie bossy.” Hannah declared.

“I know.” Sofia nodded “Let’s play somewhere else.”

“There -” Hannah pointed further away to where the ground dipped, away from the garden that had once been Barbara Pearson’s pride and joy, to where trees grew, their leaved boughs providing much pleasurable shade.

Remembering how pleasant it was to walk through the trees at the Double D Sofia laughed, grabbed her little friends hand and ran in the direction of the trees, she ran just fast enough for Hannah to keep up with her without falling down. Hannah was delighted, the fact that this older girl had taken notice of her suggestion was quite a novelty and she just couldn’t wait to see what was on the other side of the garden, that little bit where the trees grew so close together.

Rosie swung back and forth until she realised that the other little girls were a long time in re-joining her. She clambered down and ran to the house looking this way and that as she did so, just in case they were playing hide and seek and hoping to jump out and surprise her. By the time she had reached the door of the house she was convinced that she would find them indoors drinking lemonade and chomping on cookies.

Mary Ann saw her first and smiled “Why, Rosie you look quite out of breath, have you been running.”

“Yes,m. All the way from the gate.”

Ann put down the materials she was working on and looked at her daughter with a frown “You look very hot, Rosie. I think it would be better now if you came indoors for a while and have something to drink.”

“I’ll go and call the others in,” Hester said struggling to get to her feet, her hand in the small of her back as she managed it, “I need to walk a bit to get the kinks out of my back.”

She laughed back at their gentle laughter and walked to the door to step into the garden. It was such a colourful array of plants and being so close to the house always a pleasure to see. Sometimes she wished she could have utilised that idea at the Ponderosa, but there were some things that seemed set in stone, so she never thought to suggest it. She smiled at the memory of Henry being there with his men labouring on the new extension where they were going to put the bathroom and how much Ben had muttered and mumbled about change and just how necessary was it anyway, seeming to have forgotten just how impressed he had been with the one at Adam and Olivia’s home.

She called out their names “Hannah. Sofia.” but there was no response. She shook her head and stepped further out into the garden, quite sure now that at any moment they would jump up like a pair of jack rabbits “Hannnah! Soo-feee-a”

It was suddenly so quiet. If the children were hidiing they were doing a very good job of it. She walked to the corner of the house and followed the track a little way “Girls, come along, it’s time to come in and have something cool to drink.”

Two butterflies floated by too entranced by their elegant dance around each other to be alarmed or bothered by her, and a bee slid down the trumpet neck of a flower oblivious to anything beyond its work. Now Hester turned and retraced her steps, she walked quickly to the gate and looked around, the garden wasn’t too big, not that large that it would swallow up two little girls. She strained her ears in case she hadn’t heard them calling to her, but there was silence except for the droning of the bees.

She hurried back to the house “Have the girls come back in?”

Olivia looked around at the other two women, at the children, Rosie and David, then at Hester who was looking wild eyed and frightened “No,” she replied, dropping her sewing on the floor “No, they haven’t come in. Have you called them -?”

“Yes, several times, and I walked to the gate and back again. I’ve been all around the garden. I can’t find them…” Hester whispered feeling suddenly so cold that she shivered and rubbed her hands together “I don’t know where they are.”

Rosie stood up with the glass of lemonade still in her hand “Hannah wanted to do a pee and Sofia was going to bring her indoors.” she volunteered., “But I think they must’ve gone to play hide’n’seek.”

“But I’ve looked all over for them….” Hester cried grateful for Mary Ann’s supporting arm as she groped for a chair to sit upon “There’s no sound or sight of them.”

Olivia was running out of the house and into the garden, her skirts brushed against the petals of flowers and shrubs scattering them along the way as she ran, calling out the names of the girls as she went. She reached the gate and almost fell against it, the pulses ringing in her ears, her heart thumping so fast that she thought it would never settle down again, She clung to the topmost wooden bar as though if she didn’t she would collapse there and then. Gathering all her strength she cried out her daughters name again and again, always coupled with that of Hannah. She felt alarmingly dizzy and gripped the bar even tighter, so tightly in fact that her knuckles were white, she felt her legs shaking and her knees went like sponge “Sofia …. Hannah…..”

……………….

Joe rode alongside his brother with a fixed expression on his face as he tried to work out in his own mind the news they had received. Hoss had copies of the news sheet to show Ben, and give to Olivia, just in case she thought it a good idea to put it somewhere safe to give to Adam when he returned home. “I wonder…” Joe suddenly said “I wonder if Stalking Horse and Young Man afraid of his horses would have been there. Do you think they would have been, Hoss?”

“I dunno.” came his brothers non committal of a voice.

“Don’t you care?”

“Would it matter if it did?” Hoss replied glumly, “Aint’ going to change nothing is it?”

“But, just think of it, Hoss, this is a victory for the Indians that is going to cost them dearly, they’ll never recover from it.”

“In which case it ain’t much of a victory, is it?”

“They may think it is, they may go and fight some more and cause even more problems, more hatred. It’s a no win situation, Hoss.”

Hoss shot a glance at his brother and nodded “Yep, it sure is.”

“What ever possessed him to go ahead and rush in like that? All those men killed, his brothers, his brother in-law and nephew, all those men ….”

“You met his brother, didn’t you?”

“He was a good man, Hoss. You would have liked him, he was different from George.” Joe nodded to himself, yes, Thomas Custer has been so different form his flamboyant brother, yet their deaths had ended being the same.

“Well, one thing, being brothers, being together when they died..there’s some comfort in that, I reckon.”

Joe looked at his brother thoughtfully and with a sigh realised that there was little point in continuing with the conversation. His brother just didn’t want to discuss it.

They were almost at the Ponderosa when they heard and then saw a group of horsemen advancing to wards them, the leader of whom they could see was Ben. “Where’s he going to?” Joe muttered

“Soon find out.” Hoss replied in his slow laconic delivery

Ben slowed his horse and reached their side, he looked from one to the other and noticed their glum features “You’ve heard already?”

“Yeah.” Hoss nodded “Didn’t think you would have heard so quick though.”

“What are you talking about, son?” Ben asked and narrowed his eyes, he put his hand on Hoss’ arm, “Hoss, I don’t think we’re talking about the same thing …it’s just that Hannah and Sofia … they’re missing. We can’t find them.”

Chapter 104

Little legs may not stretch far but they have an amazing ability to go further than even they realise at times. Hannah and Sofia ran and played among the tall grasses that led the trail to the trees and once there among the tall leafy arbours they enjoyed the bounciness of running through many years of fallen leaves that were now dry and brittle with age.

They kicked the leaves high and laughed as they swirled in broken pieces down upon them, and then they gathered armfuls and threw them into the air running in circles through the mass as they drifted downwards. They ran from tree to tree, played hide and seek, calling to one another and laughing with shrieks at finding one another again.

It was Hannah who was tired first, she sat down with her thumb in her mouth “I is tired.” she announced and settled down upon the dry duff and fell immediately asleep.

Sofia wasn’t sure if she was tired or not, but seeing her little friend curled up so comfortable she decided it would be good to just lay down and close her eyes. She settled herself close to Hannah and after staring up through the treetops to the blue skies above her she slipped into a deep sleep.

In the house Rosie had been asked time and again when was the last time she had seen the other girls, what had they been doing, what direction did they take… even kindly Ben Cartwright had seemed angry with her, as though it were all her fault and when Candy came into the house she ran for safety into his arms.

David was more than glad that he had left the girls to themselves and listened to the grownups talking until he was too bored and tired to listen any more and found himself a corner of the settee to fall asleep in. Daniel had to be fed and Joe decided it was better to take his wife and son home, and then join them for the search.

Olivia quietly asked Ben if she could come along with him to look for Sofia and Hannah, but he suggested it would be wiser for her to return home as Reuben would soon be coming back from school and need her there. The look of appeal she gave him would have broken any man’s heart and he put his arms around her and drew her close to his chest “Don’t worry, my dear, we’ll find them. They can’t have gone far.”

She said nothing because she felt as though no one would have listened even if she had spoken. She merely turned and left the house, looking so dejected and weary that Ben felt ashamed to have caused her the extra distress and hurried to catch up with her.

“Olivia, my dear, wait a moment.”

She turned and sighed, her eyes had lost their colour, it was like looking in pale green ice. “What is it, Ben?”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to cause you any further distress than you’re going through already, but sitting here -”

“I didn’t intend to be just sitting there, Ben. It’s my daughter, I wanted to be part of the search, I want to find her.”

“I know, I understand, but Reuben needs you as well…”

She shook her head and turned away, she was a mere woman and being bustled away. She watched as Hoss led Hester to the buggy and helped her clamber up to take her seat, poor Hester with the tears dripping down her face. Well, so be it, she looked bleakly at Ben and followed her sister in law, taking her place by her side while Hoss drove the team out of the yard and away from the house.

“I should be looking for her, I should be looking for my baby” Hester wailed and Hoss just put his arm around her shoulders and held her, made comforting sounds that did little to comfort or console.

Olivia sat as still as she could and stared ahead of her, they were moving away from where the girls would be, how could they think it better to take the mothers away from them, who would the girls want first but the embrace of their mother’s arms around them.

She said nothing but several times felt dizzy and sick, swayed a little and had to clutch at the rail that prevented her from slipping from the seat. Hester insisted that she stayed with Olivia, so Hoss was forced to leave both women together, holding onto one another as though for support while they watched him leave the buggy and team in the yard and mount his own horse which had followed behind on a leading rein.

……………….

Hannah woke first and looked up and around her to try and remember where she was, then seeing Sofia beside her smiled happily at the memory of their fun and games. She sat up and pulled dead leaves from her hair and then paused, it seemed as though she had heard her name being called. There it was again, someone calling Hannah and another calling Sofia.

She rolled over onto her side and pushed herself to her feet. She was totally unafraid, fear didn’t touch her at all as she had no inkling of the fact that she was lost to them. She ran in the direction of the sound, stopped and listened again, but now there was silence except for the whooshing sound of birds wings as one flew from the trees across her path.

She tripped over a bough and when she got up there were stains on her skirt and pinafore which she tried to brush off. She ran further to where she thought she could hear someone calling her name but tripped over the gnarled and twisted roots of an old tree. When she stood up this time she felt the first fluttering of fear and turned around to go back to be near Sofia.

She had gone only a short distance before realising she couldn’t see Sofia at all now. She called her name “Sooo-feeee?”

Something rustled in the bushes close by and it made her jump, she turned and stepped back, her little boot caught on the root of the tree and she fell backwards, landing heavily upon her back and hitting her head upon the hard unyielding surface of a tree trunk. It hurt, she raised a hand to touch it, wanted to cry but sound stopped as her hand fell to her side and she remained silent and limp in a huddle among the roots of the tree.

……………

“Have you found anything yet?”

Ben shook his head and put a hand out to steady Hoss who looked like a wild man, “No, nothing. They can’t have got far, son, we’ll find them.”

Hoss said nothing, he’d heard that said so much over the past few hours that it made him more nervous than anything else, after all, just how far could two children go without being found already?

…………….

Sofia woke up to find the blue sky drifting into a deeper colour. She noticed long dark shadows where before there had been light and sunshine. She sat up and rubbed her eyes and looked for Hannah, only to find her little friend had gone, leaving behind one of her ribbons among the leaves.

“Han-nah?”

She stood up and turned round and round, as she tried to remember from which direction they had come but everything seemed cast in shadows and nothing looked the same anymore. “Mommy?”

A bird sang its evening song, a song at twilight to his lady love who trilled from elsewhere her reply. Sofia called again “Mommy?” and the bird, annoyed at the lack of appreciation, squawked angrily and flew away.

Sofia began to run, she ran in the direction she thought would lead her to Rosie’s house, and her feet kicked up dry leaves and moulding fungi. She stopped running only when she came upon what appeared to be an impenetrable hedge through which she could find no means of escape.

She cried a little then, sitting down upon the now grass strewn ground she put her arms around her knees and put her head into her lap and cried. When she could cry no more she curled up into a tight little ball and shrugged herself into a dip in the ground where the hedging fell above her, hiding her from the sight of any casual passer by. She thought of her Pa and talked to him, keeping her eyes shut tight so that she could imagine him standing there real close. She told Adam she was frightened, ‘Please come, please come, daddy.”

…………….

Cheng Hu Lee had made them both something hot to drink which did little to calm the nerves but gave them something to do, just holding the cups and feeling the warmth that sent little tendrils of warmth through the ice of their fingers. Hester cried herself to exhaustion so that eventually Olivia managed to get her to lay upon the settee, covered her with a blanket and willed her to go to sleep.

Once she felt Hester slept Olivia began to pace the floor, wringing her hands and pacing some more. Reuben came home and was told about his missing sister and insisted that he got onto his pony and rode out to join his family in looking for her. “Daddy said I was the man in the family while he was away …”

“He didn’t mean in cases like this one, Reuben.” Olivia cried and looked down at her man-child and shook her head “Stay here with me and Hester.”

“No, Pa wouldn’t stay here, he’d be out looking. I have to go and look as well.”

She looked wild eyed at him, wondered if possibly she could saddle up her own horse and go with him, but then that would leave Hester alone. She shook her head “No, stay here.”

“Ma? Please?”

Cheng Hu Lee came and stood by the settee with his dark eyes looking at her solemnly and then turning to the boy. He was so young, she moaned within herself, so young, and as he ran towards the door as though in defiance of her wishes, she followed in an atttempt to grasp at his arm and prevent his leaving, as she did so, she doubled over as though in physical pain and had to lower herself onto the floor to prevent herself falling. Both Cheng Hu Lee and Reuben ran towards her with the child crying ‘Oh Ma, please be alright, Ma, please be alright.” and promptly bursting into tears as he threw his arms around her and hugged her close.

Cheng Hu Lee gently removed him and told him to get his mother some water while he, Cheng Hu Lee, saw to Olivia’s comfort, helping her to her feet and supporting her to one of the large chairs. Reuben came running in, slopping water over his fingers in his haste, trying to rub away tears from his face and be the man he had been trying to convince his mother earlier. “Oh Ma, here, drink this …”

Cheng Hu Lee retreated to allow the boy to get closer with the glass of water and after seeing to Hester who was slowly rousing herself from the settee, brought a blanket to place carefully over Olivia who appeared to have fainted. Hester didn’t waste time on asking questions but hurried to her Olivia’s side and took hold of her hand “Her hands are so cold.” she exclaimed and began to chafe them gently between her own, “What happened?”

“I don’t know,” Reuben cried looking terrified out of his wits, “She just fell down.”

Hester looked at him, a little boy with a pale face, so pale in fact that the freckles stood out in dark splatters over the skin. She raised a hand and stroked his face “Thank goodness you’re here, Reuben, if you were missing as well I just don’t know what we’d do.” her voice caught on the last word and she turned her head away in order for him not to see her tears.

It settled Reuben’s mind however, and he knelt down beside Olivia and took hold of her other hand, rubbing it gently in the way that Hester was doing. At the door Cheng Hu Lee smiled slowly and nodded, then returned to the kitchen knowing from experience that men on a long search usually returned home cold and hungry.

……………

Roy Coffee nudged his horse closer to Hoss and held out his hand “Found this…” he said and opened his hand for the ribbon to drop into Hoss’ open palm.

“Whereabouts?” Hoss demanded, and with Ben and Joe right behind him he followed Roy to where the ribbon had been found, where the indentations of two little bodies could still be seen. Hoss dismounted and walked to piles of leaves, he looked around him and then back to the where not so long ago Hannah and Sofia had slept. He placed a hand upon the dry leaves and sighed “Can’t say how long ago it’s been since they left here.”

Ben nodded and looked at the area thoughtfully “Seems to me they must have had some games here, the way these leaves have been kicked about …”

“Unless someone came back and took them, and they were struggling to get away.” Joe murmured.

“No,” Roy shook his head, “It don’t read that way to me, seems right what your Pa said, they were playing games, then got tired, came and slept awhile here.”

“Then got up and walked away.” Hoss muttered as he stood up, straightened his back and stroked his chin.

“Together?” Joe asked leaning on the pommel of his saddle in order to see more closely for the shadows were darkening and it was less easy to see.

Hoss now squatted down and stared at the site, he willed his eyes to tell his mind what there was to be seen here, things that would lead them to the little girls. He knew that emotionally he was so wrung that he couldn’t see the obvious, everything was confused. He shook his head “Seems to me -” he frowned and leaned closer “they were separate”

Roy nodded “Right, best that we divide up and see what we can find. We’ll meet back here in an hours time, unless we find ‘em.”

It seemed natural for Joe to follow along with Hoss, he’d dismounted and with the reins in his hand he walked beside his big brother his eyes scanning the ground “It’ll be dark soon.”

“We gotta find ‘em before it is, Joe, my little gal’s skeered of the dark.”

Joe swallowed the lump in his throat “You sure there’s no sign of anyone having been here who could have taken ‘em?”

“No, no sign.” Hoss knelt down on one knee and his hand brushed against the leaves, sure enough a small heel print showed itself on the damp earth “We’re in the right direction, come on, this way.”

Candy and several other men spread themselves out so that they formed a semi circle advancing along the leaf strewn ground, their eyes scanning the earth, searching among the trees. If Hoss were to be asked later who had been with him in the search in all honesty he could only have said ‘My brother, Joe.’

Roy and Ben along with Luke, Jake and two deputies spread out in the other direction, close enough to Hoss’ party to appear as a continuous row of men but arcing towards where the trees thinned out into a thick hedge beyond which were rocks and boulders and nothingness.

“Can you hear anything?” Roy asked several times, stopping dead in his tracks as he did so, and causing every man there to freeze on the spot.

Nothing, nothing at all, not even a whisper nor a sigh.

Chapter 105

Joe Cartwright felt totally out of his depth; every time he looked at his brother he found words drying up in his mouth, and had to look away knowing how inadequate he felt, how totally inferior to the situation and wondering how on earth he could do more to help. He could see that Candy was floundering under the same misery, casting glances over at the big man and then catching Joe’s eyes as though to say ‘What else can we do?’

For Hoss every moment was a nightmare. His fingers gripped hold of the ribbon as though it were a life line between himself and his little daughter, his dearest sweetest little girl. He felt his heart lurch and hit him in the throat every time he thought of her, the fear she was feeling, the horror of not being able to find her. Every so often when he raised his arm for silence and everyone stood still, practically willing themselves not to breathe, he prayed for some sign or sound to lead him in the right direction.

The night was drawing in and he glanced anxiously up at the sky, willing it to remain light enough for the search to continue. He didn’t want to return to the meeting place they’d arranged without his daughter in his arms. Retracing their steps was like admitting failure, wasting time, everything that ate at the adrenalin that was currently surging through his body.

“Hoss?” Joe’s voice was soft, gentle, and he turned towards his brother not even wanting to spare the time to pursue the conversation, he continued onward “What?”

“We need to get back like we agreed …”

“You go back if you like. I’m carrying on right from here.”

“But we agreed …”

“No, you all agreed, I didn’t. You go back, Joe, you’ll know where to find me…”

“Hoss, don’t you think that we should widen out the search? If there are more men there, perhaps we could strike out towards the road to the Ponderosa. She may -”

“How’d she know it’s the road to the Ponderosa? She ain’t ever hardly ever bin on it, never walked it. She’s just a baby, she’d not realise she could walk along there and get back home.”

“I know that, brother.” Joe said soothingly and placed a hand on Hoss’ arm, feeling it trembling when he did so, “Look, you need a rest, some water …”

“I ain’t resting until I find my baby girl.” Hoss replied and pushed Joe aside in that manner of his that brooked no further argument.

Candy joined them now and looked from one to the other “Look, I think I found something …”

Hoss felt so many emotions that he could barely move, gulping back any comment he turned and followed Candy to where another man was standing guard over what turned out to be a small foot print, “It’s Hannah’s, isn’t it?” Candy breathed.

“Yeah, it has to be.” Hoss said quietly and went down on one knee to inspect it.

It was a clear print, the edges hadn’t fallen in so it was still only hours old. Not even a leaf had drifted down to obscure it, that was how fresh and new it was…

Hoss could say nothing, his emotions were too raw now, but he stepped in line with the others who were moving forward, straining their eyes to catch a glimpse of some other indication of the child’s presence.

Hannah sat up and rubbed her head, it was sore from the bump and she rubbed it again. She looked around her and up into the sky, past the dappling of the leaves that cast myriads of shadows over her. The sky was darkening and she knew that soon it would be night time and the moon would be out. It meant that where she was sitting was going to be a very dark place and she needed to leave it.

She clambered to her feet and wobbled just a little before she gained her balance. Then she walked a few paces to the left before turning to walk back to where she had been sitting. She was lost, she understood that and yet still didn’t quite know what to do about it. She looked around her again “Soo-feee …”

After a moment or two she called for Sofia again, her light baby voice trickled through the trees to reach the anxious ears of her father who grabbed Joe’s arm “Did you hear that? Don’t tell me I was imagining it …”

“Sooo-feeeee?” It was like the whispers of leaves rustling in a breeze, the merest sound, a light as petals falling upon dry leaves.

“This way…” Joe beckoned and headed towards the sound of Hannah’s voice.

Hoss soon took the lead with the other men close behind, their eyes constantly searching around them in case they missed the sight of the child who could be hidden among the foliage and the shadows that were so swiftly falling now. They paused every so often to listen out for her voice and when they heard it again they took heart and hurried on.

Hannah yawned and sat down. Sofia didn’t answer her, was she playing hide and seek again? She rubbed her eyes and when she looked through the fronds of some ferns there was her Pa looking right back at her. She smiled sweetly, blue eyes round and little rosebud mouth parted to expose her little white teeth “Pa?”

“Oh, Hannah -” Hoss’ voice thickened with tears, relief, hope fulfilled and he reached out and snatched her up and held her close, “Oh sweet heart, what are you doing here?”

“Sofia went to sleep and I went to play hide ’n seek, but she didn’t come for me.”

“It’s alright, darlin’ I came for you instead. Ma’s waiting for you - us - shall we go back and see her?”

Hannah nodded and clung tightly to him, realising now that she wouldn’t have liked to have stayed any longer among the trees. She put her head on his shoulder “I’m hungry.”

She whispered and squeezed her arms around his neck.

Joe and Candy exchanged a smile and turned to walk back, they had found Hannah, now they could only hope and pray that they would soon find Sofia, even better, that the other search party had already done so.

There were two of Roy’s deputies at the assigned meeting place, both of them busy preparing torches for the search party as night was speeding onwards. They looked anxiously in the direction of the sounds coming towards them and relaxed with a nod of their heads and smiles on their faces as the joy on Hoss’ face spoke for him even if the child cuddled up in his arms was not evidence enough of her having been found. Hannah was asleep, as snug as a child could possibly be wrapped in her father’s arms and when Hoss looked down on her he had to smile at the peaceful contentment on the child’s face. “She’s safe, thank God.” he whispered in the humble and reverential manner he could adopt when referring to his God. “Any word from my Pa? Sofia?”

The shake of the head was sufficient and Joe looked down on the ground and bit his lip as he thought of Olivia and having to tell her. He glanced at Hoss and could see he was wrestling with the problem of taking just the one child home without the other, the happiness of one mother eclipsed by the misery of the other. It was Candy who said that Hoss should take Hannah to her mother as the child needed to be home with Hester, not out in the increasing darkness.

“What about Olivia?”

“Tell her we’re still looking, finding Hannah is a clear indication that we’ll find Sofia soon.” Joe replied sternly.

“Is it?” Hoss said simply and then with a sigh he walked away and left the men grouped by the trees.

“Well, we’d best get on…”Joe said slowly, turning away from the sight of his big brother carrying his precious burden away. He picked up one of the torches “Hasn’t there been any sign of her yet?” he asked quietly as Candy reached out for a torch of his own.

“Roy found a scrap of white linen, looks like from a petticoat …” one of the men cleared his throat, “At least it confirmed we were going in the right direction.”

……………

Hester ate the soup slowly, marvelling at the fact that she was able to do so despite the heavy weight of misery that was upon her shoulders. They were seated at the big kitchen table in Olivia’s home, Mary Ann, who had arrived some time earlier, Reuben and Olivia on either side of her. Cheng Hu Lee was placing some bread in the centre of the table and Olivia smiled at him, a smile that drifted over her face like a dream although her eyes were still caught in the nightmare of loss. “Cheng Hu Lee, this is delicious soup. Sit down awhile and share it with us.”

Cheng Hu Lee felt the heat rising around his collar, and he cleared his throat, “Cheng has much work to do Missy. You eat and enjoy, make you much better.” he turned away, aware of the three pairs of eyes watching him, so he looked back and smiled “Thank you.”

They watched his as he left the room going elsewhere on chores about which they knew nothing and rather doubted existed anyway. Reuben ate more soup and broke bread, “I bet Sofia will be alright, Pa told her what to do if she were ever lost.”

“He did?” Olivia looked at him, the reference to her husband bringing some warmth to her cheeks, “What did he say?”

“Oh, just that if we were ever lost we were to stay put where we were… find shelter if possible but don’t stray away if possible. He was reading us a story, Hansel and Gretel, he said they’d have been alright if they had just stayed put.” he nodded as though to emphasise the words and then said “Can I have some more bread, ma?”

“They’ll find the children.” Olivia murmured as she dipped her spoon into the soup, “That wood isn’t so very big after all.”

“It’ll be big to them though…” Hester sighed and pushed her bowl away, feeling guilty at seeing she had almost emptied it.

Olivia nodded but said nothing, she also pushed her bowl away and stared down at its contents. What if … her mind began to trickle down that familiar route of what if’s and she shook her head as though trying to throw them off. She saw Reuben looking at her and forced a smile “It’ll be alright, son. They’ll be alright.”

The knock on the door caught them all by surprise and the women were out of their seats before a moment had passed, hurrying from the kitchen into the big room where Cheng Hu Lee was admitting Paul, who was dusting his jacket down with his hat, he looked at them both “Hop Sing said you were all here.”

“Thank you for coming, Paul.” Hester murmured wondering if they should have gone to the Ponderosa after all and stayed there instead of coming to Olivia’s, but then her house was the nearest to the Canady premises and it seemed more sensible to be here.

Paul looked over at Mary Ann and smiled a greeting “How‘s the baby?”

“He‘s well, thank you. I left him with Mrs O‘Flanagan. I couldn’t stay away … I’ve been pacing the floor so much that Mrs O’Flanagan said it would be better if I came and waited here with everyone.”

Paul nodded “That’s the Cartwright way, Mary Ann. They prefer to meet their problems together … always have.”

Olivia looked at Cheng Hu Lee who bustled off to the kitchen to prepare drinks and refreshments although he was aware that no doubt the cups would remain mostly empty and the food mainly uneaten.

……………..

Sofia stretched out her legs and observed her boots. For a moment it seemed very important to notice if her laces were still done up and tied down. She was satisfied that they were and then looked about her once again. She hadn’t moved from the hedge under which she had sought shelter some time earlier and from this vantage point she could see that the sky was dark now, but the moon was very bright.

“Hansel and Gretel got lost because they walked and walked and then they went to the witches house. Pa said if they just stayed where they were then their Pa would have found them.” she said this quietly to herself as though holding a conversation, and then she thought about it, “Pa said that if I was lost to stay put and he’d find me.”

She lay back down upon the dead leaves that provided a soft enough cushion for her and closed her eyes. “Pa will find me.”

A wolf howled some distance off and she stiffened, her heart beat faster. There were scurrying sounds as of little creatures running around close by and that made her think of spiders, then suddenly out of nowhere there came the flapping of wings and the sound of an owl on the prowl, it swooshed down low over the hedge where she lay, and she involuntarily gripped at her skirts and shivered. “Pa’s not here, he’s not here.”

Other sounds seemed to crowd in around her now, night noises that she had never heard before or could remember. She closed her eyes and tried to think of something that would make her feel happy for she was an optimistic child but all she could think was the fact that Pa was not here and that if he wasn’t here then who would find her?

………………

The jeweller in Port au Prince had worked his skill wonderfully well. As Adam held the jewel between his fingers he tried to imagine how Olivia would react to seeing such a thing of beauty. He would give it to her on their first anniversary, after all, such a day would deserve something wonderful to commemorate the occasion. He had slipped it into the velvet box and set it into the drawer of his desk when there was a knock on the door and Dekker appeared “Ship port side, sir, the Captain requests to speak with you.”

Turning the lock and pocketing the key Adam followed his second officer from his cabin and made his way to the deck. The Captain of the vessel, a clipper like his own, was already in his launch and on the way to boarding the Shenandoah, the ladder was already being put in place for them to ascend and Adam waited for their arrival on the deck.

The Ship was the Albion, a pretty little frigate as she danced upon the waves of a goodly sea. The Captain was soon on deck, received and accepted the salutes and handshakes and revealed himself to be James Fremont, a man in his fifties. His first officer, Conrad Copeland was holding a familiar looking bag - the mail bag which meant that the men would have some reading later. Everyone’s eyes were fixed upon it as though if they stared long enough they would see the envelope with their own names written there.

Fremont followed Adam to his cabin and the mail bag was set down on the desk and while he settled himself into a chair he took from his breast pocket an oil skin wallet. “This is for you, Commodore. I was asked to put it into your hands personally.”

“Thank you, Captain.” Adam received what felt like several letters and placed it beside him, “Where are you headed, sir?”

“Santiago. News has reached us that Burriell is arrested and I’m to go and relieve Captain O’Brien of his duties there. He’s been re-assigned to the South China Seas.”

Adam groaned inwardly on behalf of his friend, it was a journey of considerable distance and at the end of it the tedium of playing watchdog over the merchant ships that sailed there. Then he thought of the letters in the oilskin wallet and wondered if he, too, had been reassigned there. The two men relaxed into more casual conversation, Fremont was able to tell Adam about the Battle of the Big Horn and the deaths of George Custer and his men, and as both of them had met and known the Custer brothers discussed the merits of what the battle could have been like, and why Custer was doomed to failure.

Fremont eventually stood up to take his leave, he’d had pleasant refreshments, enjoyed the company of a man whose reputation many spoke about and admired, as he picked up his hat he asked Adam if it would be in order for his first Officer to bring over the mail from the men on board his own ship so that it could be posted on when Shenandoah reached San Francisco.

Having confirmed that all was in order for that request to be fulfilled, Fremont and his officer left to return to the Albion. Before nightfall the bag of letters from the Albions’ crew had been safely deposited in the Bo’suns safe.

The letters from home for the Shenandoah crew were already being read through for about the tenth time by then, and that pleasant quietude that fell upon a crew sated with the pleasures or sorrows of news from home fell upon them.

Adam had left the letters in the oilskin wallet alone, on his desk, while he saw to the distribution of the mail to his men, and then sat down to read those from home. A letter from his father telling him about the epidemic in the town, about Olivia’s courage and fortitude, and how she and Joe had helped the townsfolk, he told his son about the days of worry and anxiety for their health and well being, and the joy of welcoming them all home again. He told Adam about Hoss’ achievements on the cattle drive and how all had gone well, they had made a good profit. He made no mention of Olivia’s loss, that was also Adams, but had closed with the benediction of all fathers, with love and best wishes.

The information about the epidemic meant that he opened Olivia’s letter with trepidation as well as an added eagerness. Of course he lingered over every word, lingered over it, re-read it, ran his finger over her signature. A letter that made little of the experiences in town during the epidemic, merely blaming herself and her own self indulgence for staying a little longer with Martha and Julian so that she and Joe arrived in town just as the authorities had decided to close it down. She referred to Dr Schofield as a brilliant man with his tubes and Bunsen burners, who worked so hard on behalf of the town but somehow couldn’t find the same brilliance when it came to working with people. Then she wrote of the pleasant time with Marcy on the Double D, the memories of the time Adam had been there, the first time they had sat together on the bench and held hands.

She told him of Reuben and the beating up he had got from a boy in school who was now his best friend, and how well Sofia was, ’she has already grown an inch’ and she had closed with expressing her love and longing to see him again. Enclosed with her letter was a drawing by Sofia with ‘Cum hoame soon daddy’ written beneath a drawing of herself, (or at least Adam assumed so); Reuben had enclosed a boyishly scrawled letter detailing how boring it had been staying in bed because of the beating he got from George but how he was looking forward to going back to school again.

He put the letters down on the desk and looked at them thoughtfully, in a way, he mused, they reflected the way his life had changed and he recalled other times, other letters …and with slow smile carefully gathered them up and took time to re-read them all over again. It just brought them closer to him, for a fraction of time, for a little while.

Chapter 106

Although the moon light was bright enough to illuminate their way reasonably well, it was soon obvious that the auxiliary lighting would be required and when Roy suggested that they waited up for the other men to bring along the torches Ben was all for dismissing it out of hand, to him every moment counted, they could wait if they felt they had to, but he wanted to press on.

“You need to be patient, Ben” Roy said in that slow drawl of his that made Ben feel so frustrated, “That extra light could make all the difference between finding her sooner than later.”

He was right of course, that only added to Ben’s irritation and he clamped his mouth shut and stared up at the moon while he thrust his clenched fists into his jacket pockets. He wondered how the other party were getting on and if Hannah had been found yet. He thought of the little girl and how happy, ecstatic in fact, she would be to see her father. Then he thought of Sofia and how her daddy was all those miles away … he shook his head, and remonstrated with himself, he’d been thinking about Sofia and Hannah since they started the search, thinking, worrying, scaring himself to a frenzy wondering where they were and how they would be …

Now as he waited and struggled to retain some calm amongst his chaotic feelings, he thought how strange it was to be feeling so much for a little girl who a few years ago was just a stranger. He recalled how they had first met, in the house at San Francisco, and how during the ride from the big city to the Double D that little girl had decided without hesitation that Ben was her grand-daddy.

His heart had turned over that first time she called him that with her blue eyes fixed on his face and her looking so pretty and cute. Funny how he had never corrected her, Olivia did, several times, but then Sofia would pout and cling to him and protest that he was her grandpa. Now as time had passed Ben felt as much for the little girl as he would have done had she really been Adam’s daughter. He knew that, he knew that if there had to be a choice made between Hannah and Sofia he wouldn’t be able to make one. Both he loved, both were - to him - his grand-daughters.

He sighed impatiently again and looked at Roy “How much longer do we have to wait for those dunderheads? Time’s wasting…”

“Not much longer, I think I can see some lights approaching now …”

“It may be only minutes to us, Roy, but a little girl will be feeling quite different …”

“I know, I know…” Roy raised a hand in a placating manner and placed it gently upon his friends’ arm, “Look, Ben, this may be my last official duty, let me do it my way, alright?”

Ben growled beneath his breath and turned away, stared into the woods and waited, with fidgety feet scuffing up the dirt and leaves, his fists clenching and unclenching in his pockets.

“Hi Pa.”

Joe’s voice and he spun round to see Joe approaching them a fire brand in one hand, “Pa - we found Hannah. She’s fine, nothing to worry about at all, Hoss has taken her home.”

Relief trickled through him, the murmurs of pleasure from the other men warmed his heart, and he was about to speak when Roy gave orders for everyone to fan out and recommence the search. There was still one little girl waiting to be found.

……….

It was hard to put into words the feelings of relief and joy Hester felt when Hoss walked into the house carrying Hannah in his arms. If the pleasure on Olivia’s face wavered and fell when, upon looking in anticipation over Hoss’ shoulder for a sign of her own child being carried homeward, no one mentioned it. Hannah was hugged and kissed within an inch of her life and she twinkled her eyes at everyone, for she was wide awake now, and smiled and chattered as only a little girl of her age, finding herself the centre of attention, would do.

Reuben was the first to break into the bubble of optimism and delight by demanding to know where Sofia was, and why wasn’t she home as well to which Hoss broke away from Hester, to turn towards them. He approached Olivia and gently took hold of her hands, “Livvy, seems like they got separated - see? Hannah went towards home a mite more but Sofia went in the other direction, she went further afield is all….don’t mean we won’t find her, jest that it will take that little bit longer.”

Olivia nodded and when Reuben opened his mouth to speak she looked at him sternly and raised her hand as though requesting him to be silent, so instead he stood by her side a small trembling figure of a boy trying hard to be brave and not give way to his fears and confusion. “Whereabouts did she go? Where did it seem she was heading?” Olivia asked in a very quiet voice which caused Hoss to frown while he searched his brain for details.

“She was heading towards where the trees thin out and lead into the wilderness, mostly scrub and desert. She’d realise if she got that far that she was headed in the wrong direction and turn right back, which means she’d walk right into the search party looking for her.”

She nodded, glanced over at Hester who was holding her daughter in her arms, and then with a sigh whispered “Oh Hoss, what if they don’t find her?”

“They will, Olivia, I promise you, they will.” Hoss said staunchly and then turning he reached for his hat, and after kissing Hester and Hannah left the house to resume in his part of the search.

Paul Martin examined the little girl, the abrasions and bruising as a result of her fall caused him some concern, but after thoroughly checking for any further causes for alarm he declared her well and healthy, apart from a few bruises and scratches there was nothing about her to be concerned over. He did warn Hester to keep a close eye on the child for the next 24 hours, “If she has convulsions, you must come for me immediately”

“Why would she have convulsions?” Hester cried, grabbing at Hannah with an emotion bordering on hysteria which Paul noted and after patting her arm in an attempt to calm her down he told her that the fall Hannah had may have caused some hairline fractures at the base of the skull that he was unable to see.

“I’m giving you the worse case scenario, Hester, she may have convulsions, or she may just go limp, feel clammy to the touch. It is very unlikely, but if she does I want you to send for me right away.”

“What would it mean though, how would it all affect her?”

“well, it could show that if there are some fractures there could be something wrong that needs looking further into, and, as she looks quite fit and healthy right now, I rather doubt that there is anything for you to worry about at all. Just a precaution, that’s all.”

His attempt to mollify the anxious mother didn’t do much to reassure her, like most mothers fear caused Hester to look at the worse and anticipate the worse, she held Hannah close despite the little girls wriggles to get free.

He then approached Olivia who was standing a little apart from everyone, “Olivia, Hester tells me you passed out earlier?”

“Yes, briefly.” she replied, avoiding his eyes and looking instead at the pile of logs that had existed beside the fire for some weeks now, the weather being so pleasant that no fire had been necessary. “Reuben wanted to go and look for his sister and I forbade him to do so, I thought he was going to defy me, and I panicked. I was so afraid that if he went something would happen to him as well.”

“You haven’t looked really well since that week or so in town, are you sure that you have fully recovered from your loss?”

“How do you mean?” she looked at him, a faint line of disapproval on her brow and then her eyes flicked quickly to where Reuben was sitting, cross legged with his chin resting in his arms and his elbows upon his knees.

“Do you have a thorough examination to make sure that everything was - well - you know? If everything were healthy and clean …”

She blushed then and turned aside from him so that her back was to the others “I hardly think this is the time or place, Dr Martin, to talk about such things.”

“Maybe not, perhaps you would like to name a time and place when we can?”

She said nothing, only nodded and hurried to join the others in petting the child that had been lost and was now found. Paul observed her a moment or so longer before deciding that he would be better employed joining the men in the search. Too many women were putting him on edge…

Sofia stretched her arms and folded them beneath her head. She had fallen asleep even though she had been determined to stay awake for her daddy to come for her. She rubbed her eyes and sat up, the hedging rustled and moved with her and those watching for some sign of the little girl caught a glimpse of white as a result of the movement.

“Over here…” Roy Coffee’s voice called out above the sounds of feet trampling down the dead dry leaves, as he and Clem gently lifted the hedge away from where she had been sleeping. “Ben - she’s here -”

Roy’s exultant cry rang through the air, seemed to hover before crystallising and becoming real, and when it did Ben was rushing to where Sofia was sitting up looking dazedly around her at the men, the burning torches and then her grandpa who seemed to stoop and lift her into his arms all in one all embracing movement.

“Granpa?” she exclaimed, blinking her eyes and then she threw her arms around his neck and held him close “Oh Granpa …”

He held her close and could feel the beat of her heart against his chest, he dropped a kiss upon the top of her head and slowly rose to his feet “Come along, princess, time to take you home.”

“I thought daddy would come for me, but I forgot he’s on his ship, isn’t he?”

“He is, but he’ll be home soon, sweetheart. You’ll see him soon.” he stroked back the loose strands of hair that had fallen across her face and smiled as he tucked them away, “Now, Mummy will be waiting for you, she’s been very worried you know?”

“Were you worried, granpa?” she looked deep into his near black eyes and then impulsively hugged him.

…………..

Just over an hour later Olivia was tucking her little girl into bed, holding her hand and whispering to her how much she loved her. In the big house Hester had done the same to her little one, kissed her brow and sat by her bedside until she had fallen asleep. In his room Reuben had gone to bed protesting but was soon sleeping, his foot dangling out of the covers onto the floor as though even in sleep he was prepared to make a dash to escape.

Cheng Hu Lee prepared his mistress some hot milky chocolate to drink and carried it into her as she sat in the big chair, a shawl across her shoulders, she took the drink with a smile and bade him good night, thanking him for all he had done to help during the previous hours. Slipping his hands into his voluminous sleeves he bowed slightly “I serve you and Master Adam like Hop Sing serve at Ponderosa, you ask and I do all I can for little Missy.”

She looked at him thoughtfully “Have you no wife, or children at home, Cheng Hu Lee?”

He shook his head, bowed again and without a word seemed to glide away. She watched him go with a little curiosity which soon faded as she contemplated how the pleasant day had slipped so quickly into nightmare. Sipping her drink she leaned back against the settee and closed her eyes, it wouldn’t be long before Adam would be home. Very soon now she would no longer be alone, he would be there to lean upon and love once more; with that thought in mind she forced her self to her feet and made her way to the lonely bed awaiting her.

Chapter 107

Adam left the oilskin wallet on his desk in order to do his routine check of the men, to see to various duties and the oversight of others whose own duties were still his responsibility. The barometer promised good weather ahead, there were no outstanding lists on the binnacle head Men saluted, some told him of news in their letters, that they had become fathers, or had been bereaved or that their sweetheart had suddenly agreed to say yes. It was that kind of day when no one could be hurried and it was pleasant to spend time with the men, sharing chatter while at the same time commending their work, or encouraging more industry.

He returned to his quarters just as McGill placed lunch on the small table and this he ate slowly while he re-read through his own letters from home once again. Then appetite appeased he went to the desk and opened the wallet.

One hand written envelope in a hand writing he recognised and so he set it aside until last. Then there were two that were typewritten, a novelty to the eye for this time period as the typewriter had only recently become available for office use. The first was short and to the point informing him that upon his arrival in San Francisco he was to report to Secretary of State Mr.H.Fish in order to inform him of events that had taken place in Santiago.

The next, also typewritten letter, was from the Admiral’s office requesting the pleasure of his company upon his return from his assignment.

Adam place both letters into their envelopes and returned them to the wallet, the handwritten letter now awaited his attention, and as he tore it open he wondered who would be the signature, Mr. John Smith for President U. S. Grant. He smoothed the paper out and carried it to the far side of his cabin in order to be seated near the port hole so that natural light and sun would make the reading more pleasurable.

“My dear friend Adam

I am more than pleased to tell you that after your visit to the Govenor and Cannings to the King of Spain General Burriell has been arrested and incarcerated in prison, to await trial. It may have seemed a paltry assignment upon which to send you but I knew that you would smell out anything that will be needed for us to know.

On the other hand you will soon hear of the news about George Custer who was killed during a battle with Cheyenne and Arapaho and Sioux Indians at the Little Big Horn. It’s a tragedy and left a bitter taste in the mouths of many. I remember only too well the times you stood in my office and warned against going into that Black Hills, but the die was cast, Adam. With or without Custer the time of the Indians in that territory was numbered.

How it all came about has still not been fully revealed, of course a major investigation will be ongoing for some while. All I can tell you is that reports are of Native Indians fleeing the area and most going to Canada, at least they are not taking advantage of their victory. What do they call it in academic terms.. A pyrrhic victory?

Now to something more personal … I wanted you to know that I shall not be running for my third term as President. I wanted you to know this from my own hand, Adam, as a friend, rather than you returning to read all about it. I am in debt, personal losses in a big way, and I have lost the confidence of the Treasury and probably the people. Further more I have been told that I am in the beginning stages of cancer of the throat.

My intention is to retire quietly and take up journalism, and write my memoirs. My wife tells me that your wife’s family shares her family name of Dent and she is anxious to get to meet her in order to trace back a connection. Ah, these women, Adam, how thankful we can be that their simple follies can take us from the major problems of this world.

So there you have it, my friend, times will be changing and what you choose to do with your future I don’t know. I shall write to the Admiral today requesting that any thing you request on a personal nature with regard to your career be given attention and honoured. But, as you know, Adam, retirement or resignation is no guarantee that you will not be called upon for future duties. Such is the way of life in the services I am afraid, but I shall do all I can to aid in whatever you wish to do.

Therefore, my friend, I hope that we can meet as friends one day in the near future. A trip to Nevada and your Ponderosa would be a special delight for both myself and my dear Julie.

I wish you well, Adam, and I thank you for all services rendered to me, and to my office.

Sincerely

Ulysses S. Grant”

Adam re-read it slowly, for there were passages where the President’s writing had deteriorated to such an extent that the words were hard to decipher. Finally he folded the pages and slipped them back into the envelope. He was quiet for a while as he thought over the relevance of what he had read, and how it would impact upon himself and his family. Then giving himself a slight mental shake he rose to his feet and made his way to the upper deck.

Work was progressing well, in just another day or so they would be able to leave Port au Prince with the Shenandough looking immaculate. The carpenters nodded at him with smiles and more enthusiasm for their work than ever, knowing that when they set sail next it would be in order to return home.

He saw Hardy and Dekker standing together in conversation and approached them, accepted their salutes with one of his own and told them that there were no fresh orders. As far as the crew of the Shenandoah was concerned there was only one place they would be going … and that back to America. Hardy and Dekker exchanged uneasy glances, going back home could mean a change of ship, a change of command with references and recommendations required from the previous Commanding Officer. Both wondered what kind of report Adam would be sending in about them.

The days ticked past and the time came to depart from the warm and sunny climes of Port au Prince. The weather was as perfect as it could be when on board a ship like the Shenandoah. The carpenters and workmen employed at Port au Prince had repaired her to a wonderful degree so that she had taken to the waves with the confidence and grace of a queen. The wind was warm and blowsy, strong enough to fill her sails without too much speed behind her so that her pace was languid and pleasing. The day could not have been more perfect,

Chapter 108

The buzz of excitement at the Ponderosa as the ‘banquet’ was prepared for their guest brought everyone together, Bridie O’Flannery worked along with Hop Sing preparing the food while Cheng Hu Lee set out the table and made sure that everyone had food during the course of the day while the big event was being catered for… after all there was little point in working oneself past the point of hunger.

It was made all the more important to remember the occasion considering how Roy’s last official duty had been the search for the two missing Cartwright children. Apart from some doubts as to whether or not he would actually arrive, and being promised by Paul Martin that he would even if sedated and hauled along in the doctors buggy, all went well.

As it happened the old sheriff arrived promptly at the Ponderosa and stepped through the familiar front door wearing his usual gentle smile and looking around him in a short sighted blue gaze. Paul Martin stepped forward to shake his hand “Well, Roy, congratulations. How long do you think you’ll stay retired this time?”

“Permanently,” Roy replied with a firmness to his voice that caused Paul to look at him with a shrewder glance, as though until that moment he had actually not taken the matter seriously.

Ben came with a glass laden with punch, and led him into the body of the room where the Cartwright family were gathered, all except for Adam. Roy frowned and looked at them one by one, Paul was there as an honorary guest which was fitting as he had arrived in Virginia City not that much later than Roy. “My, well now, this is unexpected.. Who’s the guest of honour?”

“You are, Mr. Coffee.” Reuben piped up, “Because you ain’t sheriff no more.”

“That’s right, I ain’t,” Roy nodded and clapped his hand to his chest where the tin star would normally have been pinned. “Didn’t realise it would be marked as much of an occasion.”

“It is for us,” Hoss said as he pulled out a chair from the table, “Here you are, Roy. Please be seated.”

“Well now, I rightly don’t know what to say …” Roy mumbled as he took the seat and looked around him and nodded and smiled at them all one by one, Paul was seated opposite him “Wait til you retire, Dr Martin, goodness only knows what they’ll pull outa the bag for you.”

Everyone pulled out chairs and sat down amid a babble of chatter. Olivia sat at Roy’s right hand side and wondered what the old man was really thinking as he slowly picked up the napkin and looked around to check on everyone else before smoothing his out, “Doggone, this is a mighty fine how d’you do.” he muttered.

“We wanted to do something for you, Roy, just something to say thank you for everything.,” Olivia said quietly, “I know the town wants to put on a big town hall party but we thought this would be pleasant, just the family and Dr Martin.”

Roy nodded and jutted out his chin which always made his moustache bristle, he glanced at her quickly and then gruffly mumbled a thank you before talk ceased as the first course was served. Roy was a humble man who had never had pretensions to anything other than being a good law keeper. He felt rather awed at being surrounded by Cartwrights although in all honestly he preferred this meal to the ordeal of a Town Hall party in his honour.

Chatter circulated freely and happily around the table and it wasn’t long before he was relaxed and cracking a few old jokes along with Paul and Ben, who both seemed determined to pull out as many old memories and gags as they could. It was Reuben who asked how long had Roy been a sheriff. Roy frowned and tugged at his moustache, then stared at the ceiling as an aid to count the years that had flown by “A long time,” he said finally, “Longer than before you were born.”

“That’s not so long ago,” Reuben observed, “I’m not 9 yet.”

“Well, I came here even before Virginia City was established. It was a huddle of huts around an old cattle station on the Washoe when I first arrived here. In those days the settlements couldn’t afford a full time sheriff to stay put, so we used to travel from place to place, stay a few months, and so on.” he folded his napkin tidily beside his plate “I reckon I came here more’n five times in six years, stayed six months each time. The town grew and grew but by the time they needed a full time sheriff I was married to Mary and serving some place else.”

There was a lull now as everyone’s mind trickled back to the past, those who remembered The Washoe to reminisce about that time, and those who had not thought of Mary and what she had been like. Reuben wriggled in his chair “Did you know my Pa then?”

“When?” Roy frowned, lost in his own memories and then nodded “Oh yes, your Pa and Hoss here were among the first of my cases .. “ he tugged his moustache and glanced over at Hoss who was looking thoughtfully into the distance “Guess you won’t remember it, Hoss.”

“Reckon not, Roy.” the other man muttered, “Was it before Joe arrived here?”

“Guess it was before most folk arrived here,” Roy chuckled. “You were a whole lot smaller than you are now, that’s fer sure.”

There was a lull in the conversation now as they all concentrated on eating and it was Paul who broke the silence by saying the Cartwright boys were the first of his patients and have been the most consistent in the area to use his skills, although he didn’t put it as pleasantly as that, which brought a trickle of laughter from some. He dabbed at his mouth with the napkin and nodded “Now I’ll have a whole new generation to look after.”

“You will that, Paul, you certainly will that -” Ben laughed, and looked fondly over at his grand children, caught Hesters’ eye and smiled.

“What happened then, Roy?” Hoss asked as though he couldn’t contain his curiosity any longer, “I mean, how come Adam and I were your first case, guess I must have been no bigger than a grass hopper ‘cos I can’t recall nothing.”

Ben laughed again echoing chuckles around the table as he commented on the fact that his son had never been ‘No bigger than a grass hopper.’

Roy pushed aside his empty plate and rubbed at his jaw before seeing Reuben’s intense hazel gaze upon him, “Guess you want to know too, huh?”

Reuben nodded vigorously, so Roy tugged at his moustache and stared at the ceiling before he set off on his story “Wal, your Pa was always wandering around either in a day dream about something or outa curiosity wanting to learn more about things seeing how he had more cogs going round in his head than most. Happens one morning when his Pa had brought him into the Washoe he comes running up to me saying to me that if I were the sheriff should he tell me about something he jest see’d. So I said sure you do, if it’s something that means someone has done broke the law.”

He paused, appreciated that he had a captive audience even if Hannah did burp very loudly and forgot to say ‘Pardon me.’ He sipped some of the wine and Paul told him to get on with it, which he did.

“’I reckon if someone hit someone else hard and then left them on the ground that would be agin the law’ says your Pa, and I agreed and told him to show me where the body was, to which he tells me he can’t because the body weren’t there no more, it had been put down the well. Wal, I gets some men come help me get the body out of the well and sure enough the man was deader than a door knob.”

“Did my Pa see who did it then?” Reuben asked with big eyes and a blush to his cheeks with excitement.

“He did, son, he surely did.”

“Did he get into trouble?”

“That’s what usually happens when you Pa goes digging around or being someplace he shouldn’t be … weren’t long before Ben comes knocking on the door and demanding I form a posse because his boys were gone missing. Sure enough the killer had put the body in the well for a good reason, which was he didn’t want it found. It hadn’t taken him long to realise that Adam Cartwright was the one who saw it all and would be able to finger him for the murder. So - one morning he goes and takes both boys, your Pa and Hoss.”

Hester shook her head “That wasn’t fair, why take Hoss as well?”

Ben chuckled “Because Hoss was Adam’s shadow, they were always together.”

“But they got away, didn’t they?” Reuben asked forgetting that the evidence of their escape was sitting beside him in the shape of his Uncle Hoss.

“Sure they did… we tracked down the killer and found him halfway to San Francisco, and he said that the ‘little varmints’ had managed to get away and so he had decided to cut his losses and clear out while he could. Then it was a matter of looking for the boys. Fact is, that matter of looking for the little girls reminded me much like when we went looking for Adam and Hoss all them years back along.”

“And you found them?” Reuben sighed, the grip on his fork so tight his knuckles were white.

“Took a while. Adam remembered that his friend Young Wolf lived close by, you see the Paiute lived closer to us then, they owned more land and borders weren’t so defined. Took us a while to figure out where they were because we couldn’t pick up their tracks. When we did find them they were having a high old time with them Injun friends of theirs, without any thought to us being worried for ‘em.”

“I don’t remember that at all,” Hoss frowned in concentration.

“Well it figgurs you wouldn’t, Hoss, you weren’t much older than Hannah.” Roy smiled slowly, “Anyhows that was my first real case, and my last case seems like some kind of echo to it. Probably a good thing I’m retired now…” his voice trailed away and he lapsed into silence from which no one seemed to be inclined to distract him.

The evening passed as evenings do in good company, with good food and a mix of ages. There were further reminisces, and speculation about the future for the now retired sheriff who declared he was going to go fishing when he wanted to and live the life of a bachelor in the best manner possible. Paul chuckled and advised him to find a wife to which Roy told the doctor to have a taste of his own prescription and get a wife for himself before prescribing such medication to others.

Finally the time came for it to end, which it did with a merriment that Olivia said to Ben later was tinged with melancholy, a sentiment with which Ben totally agreed.

………….

It was several days later when the letters arrived causing a frisson of excitement and pleasure throughout the family. Letters from Adam to everyone, to Joe and Mary Ann, to his father and to Hoss and Hester. How happy Ben was to place in Olivia’s hands a letter to her from her husband and to see the blush that mantled her cheeks as she took it from him, raised her eyes to his and gave him one of her delightfully slow smiles of pure joy. Reuben was more than excited to find letters to him, one from Pa and one, very untidily scrawled in unfamiliar writing. A letter from Billy Webb after so long … and with a whoop of excitement he danced around the sitting room floor like a wild Indian waving the letters above his head.

Olivia watched him as she hugged her letter close and wished that she could join in with a dance of her own. A tug on her skirts brought her attention to her little girl who sadly looked up and asked why her daddy hadn’t written to her. It was her grandfather who came to the rescue producing from his pocket an envelope addressed to Miss Sofia Cartwright, of course he had gone through the pantomime of examining all his pockets first and muttering and mumbling ‘Now where is it? I’m sure I had a letter for a little girl somewhere…” which only added to the excitement and near hysteria in the household.

Chapter 109

Finally peace and quiet and the chance to end the day by re-reading the letter that had arrived and which Olivia smoothed out upon the pillow so that she could have it close to her when she went to bed. She knew it by heart already and had kissed the signature until it was blurred. She wanted to cry, and she wanted to laugh but most of all she wanted him there, by her side, to feel his arms around her and the promised kisses in the letter scorching her lips.

Yet it was such a short letter really, no details in it about the storms he and his men had fought for survival, nor of the mission he had been on. Only that he would soon be home, he was already on his way, as soon as he reached San Francisco he would cable her to let her know when to expect him.

‘My darling, the ship bearing this letter to you will probably arrive in S.F a few days before we do, so by the time it reaches you then you can be guarantee’d that I will not be so very far behind.

I will have to put in my report with my superiors, and as they wish to see me immediately I arrive back, then that will not take up much time, although believe me I shall begrudge them every moment for being back in S.F is like being on hallowed ground that can and must only lead me home to you.

You can’t imagine, or can you?, how difficult the nights have been without you by my side, and how I have longed to turn towards you and gather you in my arms, to kiss your lips, your eyes, to love you, my darling girl. I so long to be with you again , Livvy.

This letter is brief only because I have a short time in which to write it, believe me, my dearest, I have written countless lines of poetry to you over the days we have been parted, and each night I try to fall asleep thinking of the words I would write to you in a letter, not that I could possibly send such letters to you as they would burn from the heat of my love for you.

I shall see you soon, my dearest wife … very soon.”

As she drew the bed covers over her body she whispered the words to herself as though it were a prayer, until finally she fell asleep with the words ‘very soon’ echoing in her mind.

Reuben and Sofia had been happy with their letters from Adam , Sofia had sat on Olivia’s lap and followed her mother’s finger from word to word carefully pronouncing them aloud until the message made sense to her and she departed beaming with joy and delight. Her daddy would be home soon, and he had a present for her.

Reuben had sat on the edge of his bed reading his letter and then told his mother some of its contents, after all it was man to boy stuff and obviously meant only for his eyes. He was far more willing to share his letter from Billy Webb, who had sent several pages of untidily written work to tell his friend how very happy he was with his family, his school and his life.

The house settled for the night with some sighs and creaks, soft breezes drifted into the rooms and made the curtains shiver just a little. Shadows played tag with one another across the walls and ceilings, but they were familiar old friends now and their dances only aided sleep rather than prevented it.

In his room Cheng Hu Lee had said his prayers to his ancestors and climbed into his bed. He was content, he knew he had a good home and a fine family to care and work for now, he wished for nothing more .

At the Ponderosa Ben read his letter from his son and rubbed his jaw thoughtfully. The brief description of the storms that Adam had penned to him reminded him of times when he had been at sea and faced similar elements and dangers. The fear for his son leaving home to confront such monsters and never returning came back anew, even though the letter was one reassuring him that he was on his way home.

Ben lit his pipe and sat down in his old leather chair while he had the last smoke of the day. It drifted in a fragrant cloud above his head and to the rafters, and as he closed his eyes to reconsider the letter and information Adam had given him, he imagined the ship as it faced the horrors of wave so high that no man could imagine their survival.

……………….

The Shenadoah arrived at the harbour in a majestic splendour, her sails billowing gracefully with the crew on deck in their ‘smarts’, lined up along the bulwarks as well as the ratlines she was greeted with the usual cacophony of sounds from fog horns and cheers from the other sips in harbour as she awaited the tugs to come and lead her into her berth.

Now the sails were refurled and secured, the gangplank lowered, the hawsers secured around the bollards on the quayside. Adam oversaw the proceedings with a scrupulous eye and if he did occasionally glance in the direction of the harbour side where the cabs and carriages awaited he knew he was not the only one. Many of the men cast an eye in the hope of seeing a loved one patiently waiting there. It would, he surmised eventually, be expecting too much to have Olivia or Ben here in San Francisco when he wasn’t even sure if they had received his letters.

Hardy and Dekker followed him to his cabin where he took his seat at his desk before casting a dark eye over them both. “Well, gentlemen, here we are at the end of our assignment. I have to report to the Admiral and I would like you both to oversee the men being paid while I am gone.”

Hardy stepped closer to the desk “Will your report include any references to us, sir?”

Adam paused for a moment wondering whether or not such a question was in order, then he nodded “Yes, of course. It would have to include reports upon your abilities in order for consideration for promotion.” he watched as Hardy’s face flushed with optimism but Dekker remained subdued and downcast, he nodded slowly “Personally I will not be recommending you for promotion. Mr. Hardy, you went too far in questioning my orders to help the Spanish man of war during that storm. You are a man in middle age and for some years ranked as First Lieutenant under the command of several different Captains, you must see for yourself that there is a flaw in your character that needs some adjusting if you wish to achieve a Captaincy.”

Hardy bit down hard on his bottom lip to prevent a word coming from him, he drew himself straighter however and stared at the far wall. Adam cleared his throat and looked at Dekker who after a brief glance looked down at the floor.

“Mr. Dekker you have many very fine qualities, all of which I have commented upon in my report, as I have with you also, Mr Hardy. You both acted with courage and bravery during the storms which I have noted. However, Mr Dekker, there are some weaknesses in your character that need to be strengthened before I could make any further recommendation. You must not allow yourself to be led by others, if you wish to take command of a ship of your own one day, then you will have to be strong enough of character to make decisions of your own and to stand by them. Do you understand?”

“Only too well, sir.” Dekker sighed.

“It’s important then that you do something about it, no one wants to follow an officer who allows decisions to be made for him by others and who sways with the wind upon given many differing ones, you must toughen up, Mr. Dekker.”

Dekker nodded and mumbled a subdued thank you and then both men stepped aside as Adam left the cabin, a certain wooden box under his arm along with the necessary documents that the Admiral would wish to oversee.

Hardy ground his teeth and then glared at Dekker “He’s a hard nosed brute…”

“It was honest comment, though, Hardy, as far as I am concerned anyway.” and adjusting his hat he left the cabin for the upper deck where he could see to the setting up of the table and the money chest, the ledgers and the pay roll. Hardy in turn was left to see to the paperwork and documentation needed by the Harbour Authorities. While this activity was going on Adam made his way to the first cab, boarded it and gave directions to the Naval Quarters where he was expected.

Admiral Porter was expansive in his welcome of the younger man, indicating a chair which placed Adam opposite him and looking over a wide mahogany desk. Conversation was initially polite and formal but conducted in a jovial and warm manner, Porter asked about the conditions at sea to which Adam reported the matter of the two concurring storms they had faced which had sent him back to Port au Prince.

“Port au Prince?” Porter’s eyebrows rose “Why Port au Prince?”

“Logistically it was closer, Santiago was out of the question not only due to distance but because the Governor had requested foreign ships from the harbour. I’m afraid he was not happy with the contents of the letter I delivered to him.”

“I see, no, perhaps not, but it appears to have had some success in that Burriel is now under arrest and awaiting trial.”

“So I understand.” Adam replied with an inclination of his dark head.

The conversation turned to other matters pertaining to the assignment that was more in the Admirals province and he listened with attention while also perusing the log book and reports as Adam told him of the journey’s events.

“I see here that you broke your journey to go to the aid of a Spanish man of war…”

“Crippled during the first storm that had hit us… it wasn’t so much a break in the journey as we were still plotting our route, all we knew was that there was another weather front about to hit us and we needed to get out of there fast.”

“So, knowing you needed to get out of there fast, you turned aside to go to the aid of this other ship?”

“Correct, the ship was about to go under, survivors were piling into the boats in order to reach us, there was no other alternative but to give them help, in all conscience I could never have continued with the journey knowing they were in need, and in expectation, of our help.”

“Even though it put your ship and the lives of your men at risk?”

“There was no alternative …” Adam looked directly at the Admiral, his dark eyes hardening at the implication that he had made an error in judgement, he raised his eyebrows “So, sir, what would you have done in my place.”

Porter declined to be drawn into forming or making an opinion but he scowled darkly enough for Adam to fear the man would have ordered the ship to continue its course.

“The seamen we rescued proved invaluable during the storm, we would have been lost without their assistance, they’re good seamen…” he allowed his voice to fade on that last comment and stared at a picture of a ship at rough seas that was just behind Porter’s shoulder.

“That’s your opinion only, Commodore.”

“- and the opinion of my men also, sir. We had lost good men during the first storm, and our ship was badly damaged, the running repairs we had made were insufficient to face the next storm, had we continued on our course I can’t guarantee that we would have survived anyway.”

Porter leaned back in his chair and said nothing more but casually glanced through the log book “This Spanish Ship was the same one that had intercepted you earlier, the Captain wanting to inspect your ship and when you wouldn’t allow it, permitted a spy to board in order to find what they were searching for … ?”

It was more than obvious that this action condemned the whole ships crew on board the man of war, and Adams actions not so much humanitarian but unworthy, after all Delgado had practically made a declaration of war on the Shenandoah.

“If I had ignored their danger, sir, I would have been as guilty of the crimes General Burriel committed, and for the same reasons …ignorance and prejudice and misguided patriotism. If one man had survived those seas and returned to Santiago to tell his people how an American ship had left them to die would that not have been considered a base negligence of a seamans duty to another? Perhaps they could have taken it as ‘practically a declaration of war on them?’”

“You so called compassion is admirable, Commodore, but evenso …”

“I made the decision, Admiral, and I do not regret having made that decision. Had we sailed on by and ignored them, and the storm destroyed us , as it could well have done, most men there would have died knowing they had turned aside when others needed them. There was, so far as I was concerned, no other recourse to take.”

“Did you not consult with your other officers?”

“Did I have to?” Adam’s eyes burned now, and he felt the colour mounting into his face, he looked aside at the far door, and then stood up, “Is there anything else you wish to discuss today, Admiral?”

Porter pushed the log book back to Adam and shook his head, “No, sir. Not at present. If you would care to remain here, Secretary of State Mr Fish will be with you shortly.”

The Admiral rose to his feet, a little stiffly for he suffered due to age, he smiled then and nodded “I can see why you are so much respected in the service, sir. I hope we meet again soon.”

Both men saluted the other but not being on such friendly terms there was no hand shake, instead Porter gave Adam a nod of the head and made his way out of the room his head high and shoulders erect. Adam watched him go with a feeling that things were not going so well. He could only hope that his time spent with Fish would be an improvement.

Chapter 110

The hand of the clock had barely moved before another door opened and several men entered the room, forefront among them was Senator Hamilton Fish who paused mid-way to the desk to observe the Commodore who had risen to his feet and turned to face them.

The Secretary of State nodded and smiled, he even raised a hand as though in welcome and beckoned to Adam to resume his seat before he himself took the one that Porter had just vacated. “It’s good to see you again, young man.”

“You also, sir.”

Hands reached over the desk and were firmly shaken, then Fish sat down again and straightened his jacket “Well, a lot has happened since we last met, Adam. I can still remember watching you leave on the Ainola on that trip to Alaska, I was with George Custer at the time who, as you know, recently was killed in manoeuvres in the Black Hills.”

“I had heard, I’m sorry for his loss…” Adam said quietly

“Even though there was so little love lost between you?”

Adam gave the slightest of shrugs “We are - were - both stubborn men, Mr. Fish.”

Fish only smiled at that and smoothed down his beard “Tell me how you got on with your assignment. You may have been puzzled at the thought of just delivering a letter?”

“At times, but there’s more than one reason for anything where politics are concerned.”

“So true. How did you find the Governor?”

“Proud, arrogant and not too happy at being told what to do by us, nor at the prospect that King Alfonso would be telling him much the same …” he frowned and then produced the wooden box, which he placed on the desk before the other man “I was given this and asked to hand it over to you.”

“By the Governor?” Fish exclaimed with a look of amazement on his face as he reached out to take it.

“No, by Senor Aguilera.”

Fish paused in the act of touching the box and stared in amazement at Adam “Aguilera?”

“Yes, we were taken to see him shortly after seeing the Governor. Of course he knew already about the letter, as obviously The Governor soon found out about that box … “

Fish chuckled and picked the box up, looked at it and then at Adam “So what is in it. A bomb?”

“Aguilera see’s America as his people’s allies, he’s a good man. He hasn’t been afraid to put his money where his mouth is … so to speak …” Adam cleared his throat, “He fears there will eventually be a war between America and Spain, which he thinks you are trying to prevent. He said the papers in the box would help hold the matter back for some years, perhaps even prevent it completely.”

Fish nodded slowly as though thinking over the matter seriously, around the desk the other three men paused in their activities to look over at them, the elderly Statesman and the Commodore in his uniform and sun tanned features. Fish tried to open the lid and failed, he looked at Adam who shook his head “He didn’t give me the key.”

Casting around on the desk for a convenient letter opener Fish resorted to brute force and prised the lid open, he smiled at the contents and looked up at the man seated opposite, “Well, I congratulate you, Adam, if these had fallen into the Governor’s hands I don’t think we would see Burriel arrested or you alive here today.” he lowered the lid and smiled again as he looked again at the other man “You know, President Grant pinned a lot of faith on you, he said that you would come back with more than you left with, and by jingo, he was right. Why did Aguilera particularly want to see you?”

“He met someone I knew recently from England. He felt he could trust me with -” he inclined his head to the box.

“He was right. You said that the Governor knew about the box? Did he try to get it from you?”

“Well, yes .. But he didn’t know about the box, which is why I can bring it here to you today …” and briefly he told Fish of the encounter with Delgado, and how his spy had failed to steal the papers, because he didn’t realise the significance of the little box on the desk.

Fish laughed aloud, as did the other men, as though it were all a huge joke, which made Adam feel rather uncomfortable. Fish shook his head and quietened down, “Well, and this is the same ship that you went back to rescue after the storm? It’s alright, I heard all that was said between you and the Admiral … his voice carries and …” he shrugged, but Adam was more than aware that in such places there were areas where people with loud or even soft voices could be overheard quite easily.

Fish handed the box to one of the men close to him and muttered something to him, then watched as it was borne away, then he sighed “Thank you, Adam. I doubt if I will be in office for much longer, so it is gratifying to know that this matter has been tidied up, even if only temporarily. You know that Grant is not going to run for a third Presidency?”

“I had heard so, sir, yes.”

“New Presidents like to elect their ‘own’ people into office, so I shall be ushered out, quite willingly as a matter of fact,” he smiled, “Do you know The Governor of Ohio? Hayes?”

Adam shook his head “No, sir, I don’t.”

“A lawyer - elected to two consecutive terms from 1868 to 1872, when he retired and returned to the law. If he is elected he’ll be a steady pair of hands to work under, I’m sure.”

“And if he isn’t elected?” Adam gave a wry smile and his eyes twinkled, after all elections were tricky things, almost as tricky as running the Founders Day Horse Race on a real hay burner guarantee’d to win because it was a thoroughbred all the way for Kentucky! Except that it didn’t win, but was overtaken by a sturdy little horse ridden by his brother…. The memory still made him smile as a lesson in how much humble pie a man could eat in any given day.

“The Democrats are putting forward Samuel J. Tilden, no doubt you’ve heard about him?”

Adam pursed his lips, “Not so much, sir.”

Fish smiled again, his eyes now twinkled over at Adam, “Your political education is sorely lacking, young man. Yet with your education and experience you could be a representative for your State yourself. Haven’t you ever considered it?”

Adam sighed and pursed his lips, then shook his head, “No, sir. My father once ventured into considering being Governor of the Territory but stepped down… I was more than relieved, although immensely proud of him, of course.”

“Oh yes, your father, Ben Cartwright?”

“Yes -” Adam nodded as though to emphasise the name, then he gave his familiar roll of the shoulders “I’m not interested in politics, to be honest. I’ll do my duty for my country, whoever happens to be President, but once that duty goes against my conscience then I prefer to have room to step back and just get on about my own business.”

“It’s a shame, Adam, you’d make a fine politician, a good Senator for whoever you represented.”

“Thank you for your vote of confidence, Mr. Fish, but it isn’t for the likes of me.”

Fish frowned, shook his head and leaned towards Adam with an earnestness that quite surprised the Commodore “But why not, Adam? If there was ever a man wasted with talents such as yours that could be used … I and others would be more than willing to help you put your feet on the first rungs of the ladder, believe me, you could go far.”

Adam smiled more broadly as the figure of a dapper clad chain smoking Russian appeared before him, he could almost see Dimitri Doestov spit out some tobacco and in the same breath say “Politics, pah!”

He rose to his feet and picked up his hat, “Is there anything else you wanted to discuss with me, sir?”

“Indeed yes,” Fish said as he also stood up, and walked around the side of the desk to stand beside the other man, he put his hand on Adam’s arm “I want to hear more about you, what you do, this Ponderosa that Grant told me about, and why you won’t let me talk you into considering politics?”

Adam laughed “I could talk the hind leg off a donkey about the Ponderosa, Sir, but there would be little point in your trying to persuade me to take up politics.”

Fish nodded, “Grant speaks highly of you, it was his hope that I would be able to persuade you into thinking about it … I believe he intends to visit you sometime, perhaps he will have more success than me.”

“I doubt it, Mr. Fish.” Adam replied as they both turned towards the door, “Thank you anyway, it’s been a pleasure to meet you again.”

A firm warm handshake, an eye to eye glance and then he was out of the door, and striding down the corridor towards the outer door, the heels of his boots ringing upon the marbled flooring. Fish watched him thoughtfully then shook his head, “A shame,” he muttered, and still shaking his head he closed the door and returned to the desk where he picked up various papers and finally left the room to examine more closely the contents of the little box Aguilera had entrusted to Adam so many adventures ago.

Standing on the sidewalk Adam slowly slipped his hat over his head and made his way to the telegraph office where he quickly wrote two telegrams, one to his father, and another more especially to his wife. Both read the same …almost … telling them he was in San Francisco and would soon be home.

Just listening to the messages being tapped out gave him a feeling of exhileration, so much so that he felt like a young lad released from weeks of school and the desire to toss his hat in the air was so strong that he had to stride away from the building and admonish himself to calm down. A cab passed which he hailed, stepped into and within a very short time was making his way up the gangplank to the upper deck of the Shenandoah.

Chapter 111

Olivia stepped out onto the sidewalk and tied the ribbons of her bonnet neatly beneath her chin. She had fulfilled her promise to see Paul and both were now satisfied that all was well, certainly she was fatigued from anxiety from the events of the past weeks and the longing for her husband to come home. Paul had taken everything into account and smilingly told her she had nothing about which to worry.

Now she pulled on her gloves and looked from right to left as the traffic slipped along the main road. The sun was hot, it seemed to her it would blister the paintwork on the newly built buildings that had been erected since the fire and even those that were being built still. It was only a matter of a few more weeks and Virginia City would be as good as new, if not better, as there were certain modern conveniences being installed in many of the properties.

She had left Sofia in the ice cream parlour with Mary Ann and little Daniel who was charming everyone with his cooing and bubbling. Clemmie Hawkins, who lived opposite the ice cream parlour had hurried over to see the infant and discuss the latest happenings in the hope that she would learn more recent Cartwright events as a result. She was admiring Daniel’s dimples and Sofia’s blue eyes when Olivia entered the building, causing the Widow to exclaim that she had never seen her looking so pretty. “You must be so happy to know your husband is due home any day soon.”

Her shrill voice didn’t dampen Olivia’s spirits, and she glanced at Sofia who smiled back at her, obviously the culprit who had given the Widow the information, she nodded “I’ve missed him so much, Mrs Hawkins.”

“I can well imagine. I still miss my ’Arry, you know, and he’s been gorn these oh so many years now.” she sighed and her ample bosom quivered, “I hear you had a most pleasant evening with Roy and Dr. Martin the other evening?”

“Yes, it was a lovely evening.” Olivia said, and put out her hand for Sofia to take hold off, a sign to the garrulous widow that the conversation was to come to an end, Sofia slipped from her seat and grabbed at her mothers hand and smiled up at Clemmie, dimples forming in her cheeks which made the old lady exclaim that if you didn’t know any better you would swear she was Adam Cartwright’s child.

On that observation she sashayed out of the building while Olivia and Mary Ann rolled their eyes at one another and Sofia demanded to know what the old lady had meant. Mary Ann cleared her throat “Where shall we go now, Olivia? We have to meet Hester and Ann in an hours time.”

“I want to check the telegraph office in case there’s a cable for me. Adam said he would send a cable as soon as he got to ’Frisco.”

“I’ll take Sofia with me then, she’s such a help with Daniel.”

Olivia smiled and looked sternly at her daughter as a reminder to her to behave, “I’ll see you at the Internationale. Sofia, do you think you could manage a cake after all that ice cream?”

“I’ll try, mommy.” the pretty child smiled back and followed obediently behind her aunt and the baby in his pretty wickerwork stroller.

Olivia smiled and nodded, for a moment she watched them and then stepped into the road. Every woman in every western town learned to hold their skirts at a certain angle in order to avoid horse dung and various other objects that could be left in the road, so she nimbly made her way to the other side of the road without mishap. The new sheriff watched her, tipped his hat and smiled “G’day, Mrs Cartwright. A hot one, isn’t it?”

“It certainly is, Sheriff.” she smiled and continued onwards, thinking of Roy and wondering if he were really as content and happy as he had hoped he would be in his retirement.

Sheriff Armitage watched her as she continued on her way before he turned his eyes to watch the comings and goings of various other characters in this town he had accepted as his responsibility. He was a tall man, good looking in his own way with piercing blue eyes and a sharp keen way of looking at a person that was the result of many years out in Indian Territory fighting Comanche. He had been married once before but his wife and family had been killed by an illness that had wiped out more Comanche than he and the U.S Army could ever hope to have achieved.

It seemed to him, as he returned to observe Mrs Adam Cartwright, that with a wife as pretty as her at home only a fool would up and leave her alone for any length of time. Not that he assumed Adam Cartwright to be a fool, but even so… he sighed and shook his head just as a voice beside him said “Whatever you happen to be thinking, you’d best forget it.”

He smiled at Roy who was standing beside him “OId habits die hard, Roy? Or are you just making sure I’m doing the job right.”

“Everyone adapts to their own style, son. I jest happened to be passing and noticed the way you were looking, you need to keep a check on them thoughts of your’n, you’re too easy to read.”

Armitage nodded and slapped Roy on the back, “Coming in for a coffee?”

“Wouldn’t say no…”

“Good, then you can explain to me something about your filing system.”

“My what?”

“Your filing system.”

“For Pete’s sake, what’s that?”
………………….

Olivia stopped at the Telegraph Depot and smiled at Tom, “Has there -”

“Here you are, Ma’am,” Tom said immediately, “I saw you coming and got it ready for you.”

“Oh thank you, thank you so much, Tom.” she was blushing her thanks even as she took the little slip from him and opened it up to read his message. She read it twice before with a sigh folding it neatly in half and putting it into her purse.

“I hope it was good news,” Tom said cheekily, knowing full well that it was and he laughed with her as she nodded and waved as she turned quickly away.

Good news? Oh yes, it was wonderful news, the very best news. Just one more day, that was all, just one more day.

She stopped next at the stagecoach depot and asked when the stage would be due in from San Francisco the next day, Mr Fisher checked his lists and nodded before very gruffly telling her it would be between 2 to 3 .30 p.m. That was all she needed to know, although she did pause and ask him if he had a list of passengers bound for the city which he said he had not until the morning.

It didn’t matter, she smiled and nodded her thanks, and then hurried away to the Internationale where she met with Hester, Mary Ann and the children. “He’ll be home tomorrow afternoon,” she blurted out even before she had reached her seat for both women had looked enquiringly at her as soon as she had entered the room, “just another day.”

“Is daddy coming home tomorrow?” Sofia exclaimed, her face now alight with joy, “Really coming home?”

“Yes,” Olivia pulled away the chair and sat down, peeled off her gloves and smiled at everyone there “Yes, really coming home.”

…………

It was hard to sleep that night, not only because of the heat but because of the excitement that kept overwhelming her. She had lightly brushed her fingers along the quilt and smiled at the thought that in the morning she would be able to once again place it on their bed. Anticipation caused her to get up twice during the night to pace the floor and use the newly installed facilities. It was early morning before she fell into a deep sleep at last.

Clarabelle and Saggy Sue were given a thorough check over, new ribbons were put in their hair and their skirts were flounced up and made to look very smart. Sofia looked at Olivia when her mother came into the room “Can I take them with me to see daddy?”

“I think it would be better if you left them here, you know how dusty the journey gets in the buggy, and they look so smart just now.”

Olivia fussed a little over her own little girl much as the child had fussed over her dolls only moments earlier. They both smiled at one another in satisfaction “Did you tell Reuben?”

Sofia shook her head, “You said not to.”

“He’s going to have such a surprise.” Olivia said, as she tweaked her daughters pert little nose, “I can’t wait to see his face when Adam goes to collect him from school.”

“Is Granpa coming too?”

“Yes, he’ll be here shortly.”

She had no sooner said the words when Ben’s voice was hallooing from downstairs and they had to hurry to the landing and wave, telling him that they would be there immediately. It went without saying that Ben was fidgety with delight at the thought of seeing his first born son again. He wanted to make sure the man was in one piece and that there wasn’t anything of him left behind like there had been when he’d been to the South China Seas. He just wanted to see his son, and he smiled gently at Olivia as she came down the stairs, seeming to glide down them, with her hand holding onto that of the little girl.

“You didn’t tell Reuben then?” he asked as they reached the final step.

“No, it was so hard not to, but he went off to school quite happy.” Olivia smiled, “He has an important essay to write and I didn’t want to spoil that although it seems hard not to have told him about his father coming home today.”

“it’s a s’prise , granpa.” Sofia asserted looking up at Ben as though he would understand all that that would entail.

“Of course it is, my darling.” Ben agreed and gave her his gentlest smile, “Come along now, we don’t want to be late.”

She relinquished her mother’s hand for that of her grandfather’s so that Olivia was able to slip on her bonnet and tie the ribbons neatly before calling to Cheng hu Lee that they would be home soon. Sofia was already in the buggy by the time Olivia came to take her place beside Ben. She hugged into her father in law, slipping her arm through his “Oh Pa, I just can’t wait to see him. Do you think he’ll be altered very much?”

“Hopefully not.” Ben grinned, “We’ll soon find out.” he flicked the reins and the obedient horses immediately made for the track leading to the main road to town.

…………

The stage coach heading to Virginia City had served the population well for some years as a result of which the suspension was beyond hope of repair and it seemed to the occupants that every bump, boulder, dip in the road and roll of a curve was felt upon their bodies. They flinched, winced and sighed throughout the whole journey.

Adam Cartwright knew no one on the coach so resorted to what he most often did, shrunk into a corner, folded his arms across his chest and pulled his hat down over his face. The dust that came through the window covered them all liberally but at least he was spared too much going down his throat.

The stop over at the way station had provided some social intercourse in which he gleaned the other passengers were a couple preparing to settle down and make a new life for themselves in the town, an elderly man visiting his daughter whom Adam had never heard of, and a young man with a sharp glint in his eyes who seemed to want to challenge Adam on the personal privacy issue.

The older man ventured that he had heard that the biggest ranch around was the Ponderosa, and that the family there sat on a mountain of gold and silver, he wondered if it were true or not. Did Adam know? Adam shrugged, he admitted that so far as he knew the Ponderosa was the biggest spread in the territory but not so sure of the gold and silver mountain.

“Do you know them? My daughter says they’re mighty fine people.” Mr Dalziel said as he dabbed gravy from his chin with the napkin provided.

Adaam paused a moment before saying that he was Ben Cartwright's eldest son , Adam and yes, most folk in Virginia City knew the family very well.

His eyes flicked over to the younger man who was fidgeting with his food, but there seemed to be no reaction to what had been said and for a while the conversation bounced between the older man and Adam with regard to the size and prosperity of the Ponderosa. It didn't seem acceptable to them when Adam said that they were actually not as rich as some believed, they had to work hard to keep the ranch in profit.

After a lull in the conversation he left the table just as the young bride began to trill “I can’t wait to see our new home.”

She simpered and gazed around at them all as if they had every right to be as thrilled at the idea as she was, “It’s just been built for us, hasn’t it, Jerry?”

Her husband nodded and explained to anyone who was interested that the original building had been burned down in the fire but the town had assured them a new building now awaited them. They ate their meal holding onto each others free hand so that eating was rather clumsily achieved.

The final leg of the journey began early that morning. Just as Reuben would have been setting off for school so the stage coach rocked on its axles and then left the way station. Adam kept his hat on and folded his arms across his chest and appeared half asleep with his eyes hooded, but he was alert for trouble for it seemed to him that the younger man was bent on doing something stupid before the journey was over.

Not that he was dressed like a gunslinger at all, he actually wore a quite smartish store bought suit with a cleanish shirt and string tie, but it was a look in his eyes that unsettled Adam, and the way the chatter of the other three occupants was slowly eating into him, making him more and more irritable so that his fingers inched more and more often to his gun.

The land slipped away as the stagecoach rocketed forwards, familiar sights to Adams eyes were appearing everywhere now so that one moment he was feeling more relaxed and then the next the pleasure of seeing his wife and family again seized him and made him feel agitated and nervous for all the right reasons, but nevertheless it caused him to take his attention away from the younger man while he thought of Olivia and his Pa, of the children. He was quietly smiling to himself when he heard the shriek from the woman and the shouts of a man, which brought him immediately out of his reverie to look around him at the scene that had now developed.

Chapter 112

There were too many suppositions flicking through his mind as he looked at the youth who was leaning forward from his seat in the corner of the coach with his gun levelled at the woman. Was this planned in advance, a robbery to take place at a certain given time which meant that any moment now they could expect unwelcome horsemen to gallop up and assist the lad? Was it spontaneous, the lad having had a nervous breakdown of some kind due to a build up of hatred towards his fellow passengers? Had he known the girl previously and was now about to exact revenge on her for marrying a rival ?

Such thoughts crossed his mind even as his hand inched towards his own gun and his eyes watched the other intensely, noting the perspiration beading the boys brow, the pallor of the skin with the flushed high colour of the cheeks, the way the gun was swaying from one to the other of the young couple who were holding onto each other for support.

The coach bounced and the gunman lurched forward, his gun exploded and he looked as startled as anyone else there, but then steadied up and his lips firmed as he gripped the gun more tightly “Alright, just stop …just stop it. Can’t you see how you’re driving us crazy with all that nonsense.”

Adam grimaced, the boy’s gone crazy he thought and slowly eased his gun from its holster. The older man in the far corner of Adams seat had his hands raised and his face was the colour of cheese “Now, now, young man,” he wheezed, “No need to take on so, just you calm down. We’ll be in town shortly and - and then we can leave here and just forget all about it, like it never happened.”

“Shut up, shut up.” the gun wavered now towards the old man and the lads eyes flicked from the couple to the other two passengers, including Adam, “I don’t know why I don’t just shoot you right here and now -”

Adam pulled back the hammer of his gun, the faint click caught the boys attention and he spun round, stared at Adam “Going to shoot me huh? Is that what you intended? Going to shoot me in the back was it?”

“No, nothing of the sort.” Adam replied coldly “Now, just put your gun down on the floor, otherwise …”

“I ain’t going to do what you want Mr High and Mighty Cartwright. Think I’m scared of you, do you? I ain’t scared of anyone …”

“Then prove it, and put the gun down.”

It was at that point that the driver succeeded in bringing the horses to a halt, a shuddering juddering full stop that caused the vehicle to bounce before setting back down again, with the result that the old man fell onto the floor, and Adam was propelled forwards. His finger involuntarily jerked the trigger and his gun went off causing the girl to shriek yet again.

The stagecoach driver pulled the door open in order to see what was going on with the result that Adam and the youth tumbled out of the vehicle and hit the road. Adam was first on his feet and had fast hold of the other man by the jacket, and was attempting to haul him upright when the gun went off sending Adam falling backwards.

Before he could get upright the young man leapt down upon him and had his fist clenched and about to come down when Pete grabbed hold of him from the back. The ensuing struggle between the three men didn’t last long for the youth was outnumbered, and he was near weeping with rage when he was bundled back into the coach with the driver clicking handcuffs or as he called them, restraints, on his wrists. He sat huddled as far away from Jerry and his bride as possible, swearing and cursing so foully that Adam threatened to knock him out if he didn’t stop.

Pete shook his head and looked around for his hat, found Adams and handed it over to him, and then located his own, “Sorry about the delay, Mr. Cartwright. I couldn’t have stopped any sooner because we were coming to that double curve in the road and with the coach being in such poor condition I didn’t dare to pull up.”

Adam nodded and slipped his hat on, “It’s alright, Pete. You came when you could which was good enough.”

“You ain’t hurt, are ya?”

Adam put his hand to his side and then shook his head “No, just some of my hide took off, I’m alright.”

“What do you think got into the boy? Reckon he’s gone mad?”

“I don’t know, Pete.” Adam narrowed his eyes to observe the sobbing youth in the coach, “Not an ideal passenger that’s for sure.”

“No, sir.” Pete shook his head and looked into the coach “You folks alright in there? No one hurt?”

There were mumbles of assurance from all and he nodded, looked at Adam and shook his head again “Good thing we’re nearly in town.”

Adam merely smiled, but as he made his way into the coach and resumed his seat he couldn’t help but think that this was the very last thing he had wanted to happen on this very particular day.

The boy was now rubbing his face with both hands in an attempt to stop his tears and any evidence of having shed them. After some moments he seemed to realise that his hands were cuffed, and stared at the restraints in dismay before raising his eyes to look at Adam “Can’t you take them off? Take them off, I tell ya, I don’t want them on …”

“I don’t suppose you do, but until we get to town you’ll have to put up with it, Pete’s the only one with the key.”

Now there was a struggle to try and slip his wrists from the cuffs, tugging and pulling until he was breathless. He didn’t appear to be aware of the intense interest he had got from the other passengers who were watching him as though hypnotised and wondering what he would do next, while fearing all the while that h e would break free and try to kill them all again.

The old man leaned towards Adam “Are we very far from town now, Mr Cartwright?”

“Not far, barely fifteen minutes.” Adam assured him while looking over at the girl “Are you alright?”

“Yes. Thank you.” her voice was shrill and she kept glancing fixedly at the other man who was still trying to get free from the cuffs, muttering in an undertone all the time and the perspiration rolling down his face, “Why was he like that? Is he mad?”

“I don’t know,” Adam replied quietly, “That’s for the doctor to find out.”

Jerry leaned forward “Are you badly hurt, sir. There’s blood on your jacket.”

Adam touched his side, and looked at his clothing. The bullet had grazed along his side, taking some of his shirt with it, with the result that the bleeding went onto the jacket. He shook his head “It’s not much to worry about, thank you.”

The old man began to ask questions now, “Why did he try to kill us? What’s wrong with him? He’s not normal, is he?”

Adam looked again at the youth who was now silent and had given up on fighting the cuffs, sitting as he was slumped in the corner of the coach and his eyes glazed over and his mouth slack. In a short while they would be in town and this particular problem would be the province of the sheriff and obviously a doctor. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and held it against his side, annoyed beyond measure that this could have happened now.

……………..

Ben wiped his hands on a handkerchief that now resembled an oil rag and shook his head “I can’t believe that this could have happened now.” he groaned and looked at Olivia and Sofia who were standing on the side of the road watching him, “I’m so sorry, Livvy.”

“It can’t be helped, Pa.” she replied patiently, “It’s just one of those things…”

“No, it isn’t” Ben answered testily, “It shouldn’t have happened and that’s that… I asked Jake to make sure the buggy was in good order and safe, and this is what happens!” he gave a gesture eloquent enough for an Italian, “Well, it proves if you want a job done right you just have to get down to doing it yourself.”

Sofia looked anxiously up at her mother “Will daddy will waiting for us?”

“I don’t think so, dear, we won’t be that late.” Olivia smiled but she felt a knot of anxiety in her stomach, “Perhaps the stage will be delayed.”

“It’s not always on time,” Ben replied stuffing the handkerchief back in his pocket and lifting Sofia up onto her seat, he smiled at Olivia “Let’s see if we can make up for lost time.”

She said nothing to that except to hope that the other wheels were now as secure as the one that he had just refixed. She took her seat beside him and smiled, held onto her hat and waited for him to flick the reins and the horses to pull forward while inside she was thinking about her husband and imagining what he would be doing now if he had arrived at the depot and not found her there.

It was all such a disappointment that she had to look away so that Ben wouldn’t notice how miserable she was feeling.

…………..

The stagecoach rocked to a standstill and Pete clambered down to open the door. The elderly gentleman almost fell out first having misplaced his foot on the step, then the young couple who looked like they had been pulled through a hedge backwards. She stood on the sidewalk adjusting her hat and coat while Jerry her husband went to the trunk of the vehicle to check for their luggage.

Sheriff Armitage was lounging against the wall of the depot and had straightened himself up as the coach had come to a stop, he now walked towards Pete “Anymore passengers in there?”

“Two -” Pete replied, “One of ’em’s caused a piece of trouble on the way, had to put a restraint on him. Good thing you’re here, Sheriff, you can take over now.” he went to the door and with his hands on his hips told Adam to let the boy loose, “The sheriff’s here so he’ll be in good hands.”

The youth stepped down with Adam following close behind him. Neither of them moved at first, except to look around them, and then up and down the street. Adam felt a twinge of anxiety when seeing no one of his family there waiting for him, and he was further surprised when a man wearing the sheriff’s badge appeared whom he didn’t recognise. The familiar comfortable sight of Roy Coffee had been replaced by a complete stranger who caused the boy to groan as he approached and placed a firm hand on his shoulder “I might have guessed it would have been you, Edward.”

Adam frowned, his attention drawn immediately to the other man “You know him?”

“My nephew, Edward Armitage. His parents recently died and have sent him here under my care and protection.”

Adam frowned and shook his head, “Well, he certainly needs that, he’s -er - pretty volatile just now.”

“Caused trouble I see?” Amitage gestured to the cuffs and Adam nodded and explained what had happened which caused the sheriff to grind his teeth and give the lad a cuff around the head, “Just what I don’t need when I jest got myself this position. Come on, boy, let’s take you home.”

“Home?” Jerry, the young husband said out rightly, “What do you mean - home? The boy needs some discipline for what he did, he could have killed someone.” he turned to Adam “He shot you, didn’t he?”

Armitage looked at Adam who shrugged and explained exactly what had happened, the sheriff gave another sigh and shook his head, “If any of you got a complaint you had best come to the office and write out a statement.”

“Is that all you got to say?” Jerry protested, “Mr Cartwright, you tell him, you tell him how dangerous that boy is?”

Armitage looked again at Adam “You one of the Ponderosa Cartwrights?”

“Adam Cartwright, yes, from the Ponderosa.”

“Well, if you got a complaint against my nephew you know where to come…”

Jerry stood beside Adam and watched as the boy was forced to walk at the sheriff’s pace, he shook his head “It ain’t right -”

“Well, if you feel that way you know what to do?” Adam said quietly and with a nod of the head he turned to have a word with Pete about his luggage while he looked up and down the street constantly for a sign of his wife and family.

He waited for ten minutes kicking his heels as the saying goes when he decided that rather than wait any longer he would go to the school, after all, it was just possible that they hadn’t received his cable and didn’t realise he was due home that day. It would mean that Reuben would be in class, as usual, and not be expecting him. With that in mind he made his way through the town to the area where the school stood and before long was pushing the door open.

Miss Brandon looked up as the tall man in the uniform stepped inside the class room, removing his hat as he did so. She didn’t have to guess who he was and looked immediately at Reuben who was still unaware of the newcomer, “Reuben, I think you have -”

He turned, saw his father and with one bound was out of his seat and down the aisle and into his father’s arms. His class mates turned to watch, to see who was there and why the fuss, fidgeting and whispering they watched as Adam hugged the boy close and then looked at Miss Brandon “Will it be alright if I take him home now?”

“Of course, Mr. Cartwright, of course you can.” she beamed back at him, her face bright with pleasure for she had been expecting to see him as Olivia had told her the previous day.

They walked out of the school room, Adams arm across his shoulders and both grinning from ear to ear, Reuben slipped his arm around his father’s waist “I didn’t know you were coming home today, Pa.”

“It was a surprise, huh?”

“Sure was, Pa.” Reuben hugged into his Pa’s legs “The best ever surprise.”

Adam squeezed the boys shoulder, that, he thought, explained it, they hadn’t got the cable, they didn’t know … he’d take Reuben home and surprise them all.

They walked together to the depot and it was there that Olivia saw them and for a moment was able to enjoy the sight of them both walking together into town, but then her own excitement surmounted her pleasure at the sight of them, and she hurried forward, her hand raised “Adam - Adam -”

He stopped in his tracks and watched as she ran towards him, then he opened his arms and she was there within the circle that now lowered to embrace her close. He had to close his eyes as he held her, close them so that she wouldn’t see the emotion in them, and then he kissed her, there and then in the middle of the street with Sofia dancing around calling to him and Ben’s voice deep and close by explaining why they had been delayed.

He just wanted her to himself, just wanted to stand there and hold her, to look at her and to know she was real. She just wanted to be there with him, to feel the warmth of him against her and the strength of his arms enfolding her. Time stood still for seconds, a moment, a brief span of time and then it settled back to normalcy and everyone was laughing and talking at the same time as they walked to the buggy while Ben explained that his luggage was already stowed away, everything was fine, everything was good….welcome home, son.

Chapter 113

The number of buggies and rigs in the yard proved that Adams homecoming was going to be more than the happy reunion in town. “Looks like the whole family has turned up,” Ben chuckled with a wink at Olivia.

Even before Sofia could cross the yard yelling “My daddy’s home” the door was opened and it seemed as though a throng of people were tumbling from the house into the sunlight, hurrying over to welcome the traveller home at last.

Hoss and Hester with Hannah were the first to greet him, with Hannah hugging him so tightly round the neck that he was glad when Hester prised her away leaving him to comment to Hoss that his daughter had inherited her father’s strength, which caused Hoss to slap him on the back and rock him sideways.

Luke and Marcy came along with Joe and Mary Ann, all smiles and twinkling eyes grabbing at his hands and shaking them and then before he knew it Candy and Ann were there adding their welcomes to the hubbub. Ben was laughing and ordering Hoss and Candy to grab the luggage while they went indoors and had something to drink in order to ‘cut the dust’ from their throats.

Sofia turned and raised her arms hoping that even though she was now a big girl, certainly bigger than Hannah, her father would swing her up and carry her indoors so that she could have that extra little hug from him and happily he obliged immediately, sweeping her up and carrying her in the crook of one arm while he held Olivia’s hand with the other.

Olivia had told him on the way home about Cheng Hu Lee, so he wasn’t surprised when the man presented himself with a smile and a slight bow before disappearing into the kitchen to continue with the refreshments. Hop Sing was also there, smiling his wide grin and bobbing his head with delight “We cook mighty fine banquet now you home, now you eat get more fat.”

Adam smiled until his face ached, it seemed everyone started a conversation and it never ended before someone else would come along and chip in. The children were happy playing together and he found himself at one point wondering how it was that there suddenly seemed so many children on the Ponderosa, even baby Daniel was kicking his fat little legs in the air as though desiring to join in the fun.

All he wanted was to sit quietly beside Olivia and talk, oh, and kiss her of course, just once in a while. He groped for her hand every so often, and squeezed her fingers, and when he finally managed to remove his jacket there were the exclamations of ‘What happened to you?” as the blood stained shirt revealed his most recent injury.

By the time he was midway through explaining about the sheriff’s mad nephew Hop Sing was ushering everyone to the dining room for their meal. Cheng Hu Lee was hovering to see to their wants and helping to put the children in their seats. Everyone was subdued into silence as they surveyed the table and sighed in contentment at the feast that had been provided, Hoss sighed loudest of all and declared “Shucks, I didn’t realise how hungry I was…”

It was a noisy rowdy welcome home, maybe not quite what he wanted but certainly what he should have expected, after all, it was family.

After the meal Adam declared it was time for the presents which brought squeals of delight from the little girls as the big trunk was hauled into the centre of the room. What delights, what treasure trove ? It wasn’t often that Adam had taken time out to buy gifts from his foreign assignments, mainly due to the very fact that he had seldom had the time or opportunity to go on shopping expeditions but being forced to stay at Port au Prince for some days had enabled him to cater for everyone.

He assured Ben, as he handed his father a magnificent 18^th century cap and ball pistol, that it had originally belonged to Captain Kidd, a buccaneer of ill repute who had buried a mass of treasure that no one had yet discovered. Ben was thrilled with the pistol although he didn’t ‘swallow the tale’. There were toys for the children, silk embroidered shawls, beautifully delicately painted fans for the ladies, a gold watch for Hoss because Adam remembered how he had lost his own down a water hole years ago and never replaced it, and a rather beautifully balanced fencing foil in a scabbard lined with velvet and gold lace for Joe.

“I suppose this belonged to Captain Kidd as well?” Joe said with a laugh as he drew the sword from the scabbard and admired the hilt.

“Of course not,” Adam replied haughtily, “I had it made especially for you.”

Marcy and Luke were the first to leave as they had the furthest to go and then the Canady’s with their children, followed by Joe and Hoss with their families. Ben smiled and hugged Olivia close, gave Adam a firm handshake and slap on the shoulder before leaving with them.

Standing side by side on the porch step Adam and Olivia waved their guests good bye and then turned into the house, now silent except for the excited voices of their own children. Cheng Hu Lee stepped out of the kitchen and with a submissive bow asked if they would like coffee? Tea? Adam was able to at last heave a sigh of relief and sink down upon the settee and draw his wife down beside him.

For a moment they sat in silence, just holding hands. Adam’s silence, accompanied by the way he stared so intensely at the pile of logs on the hearth, was not really what Olivia had expected from him, so after they had drank their coffee she suggested they took a stroll in the garden.

“Garden?” he mused, looking whimsically at her and grinning.

“I’ve been busy, with Cheng Hu Lee here now I had time to work more in the garden, come -” she held out her hand and like an obedient child he took hold of it and allowed her to lead him out of the house.

She had done well in creating a garden with little paths running here and there with roses and other colourful plants enjoying their first season of flowering. She led him to a bench and told him how Hoss had made it for them and then there was the walnut tree that she hoped would grow although, of course, just now, it looked half dead. She was laughing then but her laugh trickled away when she saw the way he was just looking, not at the tree, but into the distance.

“What’s wrong? Why, you’ve not heard a word I’ve said, have you?”

He turned to her then and looked into her face, into the sea green eyes that seemed to be growing more intensely green as he looked at her. He gently caressed her face and kissed each corner of her lips, “Tell me what’s happened, Livvy?”

“Happened?”

“Yes, something has happened while I was away. I noticed the way Hester and Marcy looked at you before they left here, a kind of -” he frowned and shrugged “look that implied some secret. And there was a feeling that everyone knew about something that I didn’t. I noticed Hoss and Joe looking uncomfortable at one point and looking away when I caught their eyes, and …when Pa left … he seemed to want to say something but couldn’t.”

She bowed her head then and took hold of his hand “I see. How clumsy we all are in trying to keep things from you, Adam, you always see far too much.”

A flash of anger darkened his skin then, but he shook it off, although he grabbed at her arms and held her tightly “What was it? Did someone hurt you? Was it the cholera? Were you ill? If you were, why didn’t you tell me or let me know?”

She shook her head then, and once he had released her reached for his hand “I was wondering when to tell you, even if it was worth telling you, so I guess I should let you know now, only I don’t want you to be angry, Adam, not at anyone, after all, it was for me to tell you, no one else.”

“But they all know about it?” Adam muttered gruffly.

“Yes.”

He frowned, bit his lip and shook his head as though trying to work out for himself what could have happened, he followed her lead back to the bench that Hoss had carved out for them and sat down by her side. When her hand came to rest upon his thigh he gently covered it with one of his own and half turned his body towards her “Well? What happened?”

She paused a moment, then gave a slightly false laugh “It’s hard to say -.”

“Just say it.”

“I - I don’t know how, although heaven knows how often I’ve gone through it time and again in my head but -” she sighed deeply, “Adam, when we parted in San Francisco, I didn’t know it but -” she licked her lips, then stared into his dark eyes and saw there fear, apprehension, anxiety and shook her head “It’s alright, I mean, what I mean is that I didn’t know at the time but I was expecting a baby.”

Joy, delight, surprise brought the colour rushing to his face, he was about to jump up and grab hold of her then paused, swallowed hard and grimaced “You were expecting a baby?”

It pained her to hear the way he spoke those words, as though the realisation of what was inferred already dashed away the hope and the expectation, his fingers tightened around hers and he turned away “What happened?”

“I miscarried the baby, it - it was during the cholera epidemic.” she paused at the slight groan and the way he bowed his head and closed his eyes, again his fingers tightened around hers, “Had I known I was expecting the baby I know Paul would have allowed me home, but it was so early, just the beginning of life …”

“Oh don’t” he cried with all the pain of a child in his voice and he put a hand to his face and covered his eyes, “Don’t say that …”

“But it was true, it was so early that I hadn’t even realised the possibility …Adam, I’m so sorry.”

It was too much, his shock and sorrow were too much and she burst immediately into crying, until her weeping became sobs and he had to turn and take her into his arms and kiss her. “Oh my darling girl, my dear Livvy … why didn’t you let me know in your letter?”

“What reason was there to do that?” she raised her eyes to his and shook her head, “How could I tell you that when you were so far away facing who knows what? How could I burden you -.”

“Sweetheart, it would have been no burden for me to have been told? Isn’t that what loving one another is all about, that we share even if so far apart the worries and fears and pains we have to endure. I can’t bear to think of you having been so alone, at least by writing to me about it …” he paused and sighed, “Oh Livvy, you so wanted a child of our own.” he whispered as he drew her closer and held her tightly against him.

They clung to one another for a moment before she drew away from him, “I’m sorry, had I realised, had I known then I would have -” she shrugged slightly “But then when it slips away so early it often means it was just not meant to be … remember it happened to Mary Ann before Daniel came along?”

He had forgotten, in the passion of his own misery he had forgotten that Joe and Mary Ann had suffered this same loss, and he felt ashamed for forgetting after all they also had gone through this pain, this sadness. He caressed her face very gently, wiped the tears from her cheeks with his fingers and kissed her gently, “What can I do to help you now?”

“Just being here is all I want, darling. You and me, here together, that’s all.”

He released his breath and then sat a little away from her, as though now he needed to think over what she had told him. Just for that brief instant of time he had had that feeling that he was going to be a father, his own child, and his stomach had knotted with the emotional impact of it all, only for that feeling to be dashed by another, that of misery and futility. His own child. He shook his head slightly, fancy that … he was roused from further thoughts about it at the sound of footsteps running towards them over the shingled pathway and the cries of children, happy children, calling out to them.

He squeezed her hand and helped her to her feet, then kissed her again before slipping her arm through his and turning they walked together to meet the little girl and the little boy who were running towards them with joy on their faces and Sofia cried out “Daddy, daddy, will you be here tomorrow morning when I wake up?”

He swung her up into his arms and swirled her up into the air “I will be …”

“Promise?” her smile was wide and the blue eyes shone “Promise?”

“I promise.” he laughed along with her as she folded her arms around his neck and hugged him close

Reuben tugged at his shirt “Pa, did you shoot that boy who was in the stagecoach, did you?”

“No, I didn’t, the sheriff took him away.” he ruffled the lads hair and smiled down at him, “I just think he’s rather unhappy just now.”

“Why did he shoot you? Does it still hurt?” Reuben asked looking at the torn and bloodied shirt which somehow or other had been all forgotten with all the pleasure of the family reunion. “It looks like it might still hurt.”

Adam said nothing but smiled over at his wife, and taking hold of her hand in his he led the way back to the house with Sofia in his arms and Reuben prancing about around them like a frisky puppy. So much love, it touched his heart as well as hers … he paused to pick a rose, a yellow rose just opening from the bud, a yellow rose for new hope, new beginnings and when she took it from him she leaned forward to kiss him her thanks, for everything.

…………..

Adam folded his arms across his chest and watched as Sofia snuggled down under her comforter in the second attempt that evening to get to sleep. First she had insisted that her daddy tell her a story, and then listen to her prayers and then sit beside her until she went to sleep, then she cried when he got up and left the room so that he had to go in and sit with her some more.

“Don’t go away, daddy.”

“I’m only going downstairs with Ma, that’s all.”

“But I want you to stay with me.”

“You have to get to sleep, little lady, so close those eyes and start counting sheep.”

“I don’t like sheep …”

“Go to sleep, Sofia.”

Reuben came from his room “I can’t get to sleep with you talking all the time. Pa, will you come in and tell me a story?”

“I’ve already told you one.”

“But you told Sofia another one after you told me one, and that means you owe me one more.”

“Reuben, get back to bed…”

“But, Pa…”

“Back to bed. Now. You’ve school tomorrow.”

“It’s Saturday, Pa.”

Sofia giggled “It’s Saturday, Pa, Reuben don’t go to school tomorrow.”

“Alright, I was wrong … Reuben get to bed I’ll be in there in a moment, Sofia, close your eyes and think pleasant thoughts, and get to sleep.”

“I will, daddy. But just you don’t go away…”

He watched now mainly because he needed the time to think over the things Olivia had told him about the baby and the miscarriage. As he waited for Sofia’s breathing to indicate she had finally fallen to sleep he thought of his wife and what she had suffered, and being alone. But then Mary Ann had been alone too, even though Joe had only been working on the range … it seemed to him a cruel trick of nature the way women often had to endure such losses, alone.

With a sigh he pushed himself away from the door frame and strolled into Reuben’s room where the boy was snoring already, the bedclothes a mangled mess which Adam straightened out. He extinguished the flame in the lamp and quietly left the room, closing the door firmly behind him.

Olivia was sitting in one of the big chairs with her new silk shawl over her shoulders, it so perfectly matched the colour of her dress that she had been particularly delighted to pick it out for herself. Now as she heard his footsteps on the stairs she looked up and smiled, “Both asleep?”

“Yes, at last.”

“They’re too excited, it makes them a little giddy.”

He nodded and looked at her thoughtfully, the way she looked with the shawl around her, and her hair loose with a coil of it falling over her shoulder in a long curl. He sat down on the arm of the chair and put his arm around her shoulders “Olivia, I have something for you … a special gift. I was saving it for our anniversary but now I think is a better time. I hope you like you, my dear.”

She looked up at him, and put a hand on his arm “Adam, if it’s because of what happened, of what I told you-.”

“Partly that … partly because of that.” he admitted and brought the box from his pocket and handed it to her, “There’s a story, maybe even more than one story, attached to it, but I had it made up for you especially.”

The emerald was beautiful and in its setting of gold the colour was even more perfect. She looked at it for some moments before raising her eyes to his and murmuring “Thank you, it’s - it’s so beautiful I hardly dare to think of wearing it.”

He said nothing to that but watched as she took it out and slipped it onto her finger, turned it here and there to catch the gleaming sparkle of it when the light caught its cut facets, “And there’s a story to it, you said?”

“I’ll tell you about it one day.” he whispered and gently stroked her cheek before kissing her lips, glad to sense the warmth of passion in the way she returned it, humbled by her love just as she was inflamed by his.

It was later as they lay side by side in the big bed with their arms entwined that he told her the story of the emerald, of the big storm and the lost Spanish ship, of the grieving father who showed his gratitude for the attempts made to save his son. He told her how it had been a family heirloom, and he had taken it to be mounted by the jeweller in Port au Prince. She lay with her head upon the curve of his collar bone, listening to his voice and imagining the storm, the dangers and feeling her heart tighten with fear at the thought that there had been every possibility of him never having returned home at all.

When the early morning hours came and he woke up he found her sleeping by his side and felt content. He was home, all was well … he rolled onto his side and put his arm around her body, smelled her hair and kissed the nape of her neck. He fell asleep again knowing that she was real, and in his arms once more.

Chapter 114

The events of the Hayes v Tilden election made history, and even the headlines in the Territorial Enterprise in Virginia City but as far as the population were concerned it raised barely a ripple.

The fire that destroyed so much of the town was now a thing of the past and new buildings had arisen like a phoenix in full splendour. Harry and his men were employed constantly in providing various buildings with interior water closets and the rest, after all, if the Cartwrights on the Ponderosa had them in each of their houses then so should the rest of the township or at least, those who could afford it.

Days drifted into weeks and August arrived in all its balmy beauty, and work on the Ponderosa stepped up a pace as preparations were to be made for the oncoming winter. Stock had to be checked over, feed gathered in, fences repaired and water holes replenished. The stream that had been the cause of the dispute with the Jessops was inspected and found to be working to everyone’s satisfaction, the once boggy ground on the Ponderosa was now firm with good grass for the cattle to now graze upon. The too arid land on Jessops side was now richer and prettier, not that Derwent Jessop was bothered about that aspect of it, but his new wife certainly was as well as being a friendly neighbour for Marcy.

Hoss Cartwright wiped his brow with the back of his arm and shook his head, “Dadgum, Hester, I thought you were going to stay home today, now why’d you want to go into town fer?”

“There are things we need, Hoss.” Hester shook out some towels and neatly folded them before placing them into a basket, “Hannah has grown out of her shoes and she needs new winter boots. You need a new shirt -”

“Shucks, this old thing -”

“Exactly, this old thing is a relic, it’s threadbare and you need at least one if not two new shirts… Hoss, darling,” she turned to him and smiled, her extended stomach didn’t permit her to get as close to him as she once would have done but she did lean a little in order to put her arms around his neck, “I want a new bonnet too.”

“I thought so, ain’t you got plenty of them already? What about that pink and purple thing you bought last week, the one with the feathers?”

“I gave it to Mary Ann, she just loved it so much and you know what? That pink wasn’t the right shade for my dress after all, so I thought she could have it instead of wasting it.”

“Hester, you can’t keep buying things and just giving them away like that, it ain’t good on the housekeeping.” he scratched his head and turned as Ben entered the room looking preoccupied as he pulled on his vest “Pa, Hester wants to go into town.”

“Again?” Ben looked surprised, then smiled “You seem to be in town more often that you’re home lately.”

Hester looked dismayed, she always assumed that Ben would be her defender in everything and now felt that he was turning renegade. She pouted and shrugged “I don’t go in that often, not really.”

“Perhaps not,” his smile widened and he put a gentle hand on her arm, “You aren’t going on your own, are you?”

“No, I’m taking Hannah because she needs new shoes and winter boots, and Olivia and Sofia are coming along too.”

Hoss looked relieved, if anyone would stop Hester from making any more hasty bonnet purchases it would be Olivia, he nodded “That’s good, I’m glad she’s going with you.”

“There’s a new restaurant in town as well, we’ll probably go there after the shopping and then come straight back home.”

She felt triumphant, a small victory, but sometimes it was just so good to get out of the house, away from the routine of daily chores, although she relied so much on Hop Sing but just lately he had been obviously slowing down and leaving more work for her. Another fact was that she was feeling restless, sometimes it just seemed as though her mind was urging her body to find things to do, tired though she was with her home chores, she needed to get out, like some engine that was continuously revving up to surge forwards but never able to get truly free and away. She sighed and looked thoughtfully at Hannah who was running round and round in circles until she got dizzy and fell down, then getting up again with giggles to start the whole thing once more.

“You’ll hurt yourself, Hannah, now stop it and get your shoes.”

Hoss grinned and shook his head as he observed his little girl whom he now scooped up into his arms “Hey, who’s Pa’s favourite girl?”

“Me is.” Hannah proclaimed reaching for the sky and trying to wriggle free. “Grampa -?”

Ben came along and chucked her under the chin, tweaked her nose and walked to where his gunbelt and hat were, “I’m meeting Adam and Joe in half an hour, Hoss, will you be ready by then?”

“Sure thing, Pa.” Hoss looked sternly at his wife and frowned, “Now, you be careful, you hear?”

“I will, I always am.” she offered up her face for his kiss and smiled, “You take care too.”

Hannah ran to the door crying out ‘Bye, bye’ and then waved them away with a chubby hand “Hannah lubs you.”

Hester smiled and stood behind her daughter, she waved a hand to her husband and father in law before taking Hannah by the hand and leading her back indoors with the command to find her shoes and get ready to meet up with Sofia, nothing worked better than that, for since the day they had got lost together the two little girls had become closer than ever.

………..

Dr Schofield stroked his chin and read the brochure carefully. He subscribed to Lancet and several other medical journals and spent more time reading them than doing calls in town. Not that there were too many complaints about that as his patients were often far happier seeing Paul or James at the door then the grouch of a man Schofield happened to be. His popularity rose during the crisis of the Cholera epidemic but it slumped very quickly afterwards as his manner became increasingly brusque.

He strolled out into the town with his head full of the information he had just gleaned and struggled to see how he could ever put such knowledge to good practice in this town. He was becoming increasingly bored by the rusticity of this backwater, and the amiable although efficient method of doctoring by Paul was irritating him to the extent of his considering moving on.

Where to go that was the problem constantly nagging at his mind, where could he go where he would really be useful. He put his thumbs in the pockets of his vest and watched as Hester and Olivia Cartwright with their daughters strolled into the Emporium. He shook his head doubtfully, it seemed to him that Hester Cartwright should have been to see him long before now and by doing a quick mental sum he realised that he had not seen her for some months and that there were only a few weeks before the birth. How had that come about? He shook his head and decided to go in search of her and demand that she had a ‘check up’ right away.

Hannah was wriggling her toes and eagerly awaiting her mothers putting on the new shoes. They were red with ribbons, not at all practical but very pretty for a little girl like Hannah. Olivia and Sofia were strolling along the aisle checking the stock when they heard Hester give a little groan, a sigh and then a rather quavering “Olivia …”

“What is it? What’s happened?” Olivia cried as she rushed to be with her friend who seemed fixed in a half bent forward position, one hand extended towards Hannah and still holding onto a red shoe, while the other hugged her stomach. “Oh Hester …is it the baby?”

“I can’t move. There’s so much pain, oh Olivia, don’t leave me, go and get Hoss.”

“Lean on me, here now, lean on me.” Olivia held out her arms and then turned to Sofia “I saw Mrs Peterson just now, please go and get her, dear, tell her it’s urgent.”

Sofia was scared enough not to ask any questions but to do as her mother told her, hurrying down the aisles to where Mrs Peterson was dusting the shelves in order to put the new stock on them. Hearing Sofia’s request she downed tools very quickly and rushed to the aid of the two women. Hannah was dumb with fear, her eyes round and her thumb in her mouth while Olivia was half supporting Hester as she tried to get the other woman onto a chair. Mrs Peterson gave a strangled kind of scream and then declared she would go for the doctor, promptly disappearing.

Schofield was at that moment entering the Emporium and collided with Mrs Peterson as she rushed to leave the building, on being told what was happening he followed her to where Hester was now in a state of near collapse with Olivia loosening her jacket and collar.

Schofield clicked his fingers at Mrs Peterson “Take the children and look after them.”

“But I’ve a store to look after and -”

“The children Mrs Peterson…now!”

Olivia turned her eyes to him and then to Sofia “Go with Mrs Peterson, dear. Take Hannah, and behave, be good girls. We won’t be long.” then she turned to the woman “I’ll get back as soon as possible, Mrs Peterson, thank you so much.”

Hester was shivering now, her teeth were chattering and clattering and although she tried to speak no words came, she could only groan and ask for Hoss, when she saw Schofield leaning down towards her she gave a stricken cry and passed out.

………….

Paul came and after being told by Olivia that Hester was in the surgery with Schofield he gave an abrupt nod of the head and disappeared into the other room. Su Ling came out with a few more minutes and hurried to where Olivia was pacing the floor, and now turned anxiously to her “How is she?”

“She is not well, Olivia. Did she not tell you she was having pains at all?”

“No, she said nothing … nothing at all.” Olivia wrung her hands “I should go and get Hoss. He’ll want to be with her .. Oh Su Ling, I don’t know where he is, they could be anywhere on the range.”

Su Ling drew her friend away from the window and forced her to sit down, then gave her a glass of water to drink “It would be a good idea if you could find someone to get Mr Hoss here very quick.”

“She’s not going to die, is she?” Olivia reared up from the chair, “Oh Su Ling, please don’t let me have to tell him that …”

“No, no, she is strong, she is in good hands and she will be alright, I am sure she will be.” Su Ling declared and yet not sounding as convincing as Olivia would have wished, “I must go back now, you go find Mr Hoss.”

Find Mr Hoss? Well, that was easier said than done but Olivia grabbed at her bonnet and then rushed out of the surgery. With one hand on her heart and her lips frantically moving in prayer she hurried over to the Emporium to collect the girls and feeling totally useless.

“Olivia?” Candy Canady raised a hand and smiled, although that wavered when he saw her stricken face “What’s wrong? Has anything happened to Adam?”

“No, no, it’s Hester… do you know where Hoss would be right now?”

“Sure - but - “

“Please, please, Candy … Hester’s having the baby and - and Hoss must be there with her.”

Candy nodded, turned and without another word remounted his horse as he passed her he leaned down “I‘ll find him, Olivia, but it‘ll take a few hours …”

As though she needed reminding how long it would take to get to the Ponderosa, to find Hoss, to bring him back, hours were precious but right now every moment counted and all she could do was say “Please hurry, Candy.”

A flick of the wrist and the horse and rider were galloping down the Main Street causing pedestrians to jump back for fear of being run down and cowboys to swerve away to avoid colliding with him. Olivia didn’t turn back to see where he was but hurried into the Emporium to where Mrs Peterson was playing with the little girls.

Chapter 115

Schofield washed his hands in the hot water and listened to Paul as the older man tried to reassure Hester that she was alright, the baby was safe and that it had decided to arrive a little earlier than anticipated. For Hester it was a nightmare, a total bleak nightmare, and she stared mutely up at Paul and listened to him and didn’t believe a word he said.

She had felt pains since the previous evening but had put it down to indigestion, even during the night when her back ached so much she had told herself it couldn’t be the baby because she was a month early, a whole month ! She had decided to go into town because of that almost frantic urge to do something that she had attributed to sheer nervous restlessness, but now she wondered if it was because she needed to do something as a distraction from the pain, anything rather than accept that it could be the baby coming.

She closed her eyes and groaned, how could someone so sensible as herself be so stupid, so negligent. Su Ling was holding her hand and every so often giving her sips of water but it didn’t really help, the guilt she felt at her own irresponsibility wracked her as painfully as anything else could do.

“Dr Martin?”

“Yes, Hester?”

“Is Olivia here?”

“Yes.” Paul took hold of her hand and smiled at Su Ling who stepped back “Now, what is it you’re worrying about? Do you want to see her?”

“I need to see Hoss.”

“He’s been sent for, dear.”

“The baby - it’s early? If it’s born now will it be alright?”

His answer didn’t come immediately but when it did she could hear the doubt in his voice and it broke her heart “I’m sure it will be just fine, Hester, just fine.”

…….

Mrs Peterson was a good soul, and realising the problem Olivia was placed in arranged for her daughter, Matilda Rush, to collect the little girls and take them to her home. Matilda’s son was in school with Reuben and as a result she was going to have Reuben go back with him, this left Olivia to stay at the surgery and wait.

After an hour Paul came and asked her to spend some time with Hester, in a soft voice he whispered that she needed company to help her relax. “She’s too scared to rest and sleep, which she should do as the contractions are quite far apart just yet -”

“Then maybe they’ll stop and -”

“No, her waters have broken and the baby is - well - wanting to be born now. It’s just - a mite slow.”

The pause in his voice frightened Olivia more than anything else could and she slipped into the room to sit beside the bedside, and try to give Hester the needed comfort and reassurance that Paul seemed to believe she needed.

Another hour ticked away and Olivia found herself constantly looking at the clock, then at the window where she would be able to see anyone approaching the door. Her handkerchief was in tatters and she had wept a good deal in the privacy of the little waiting room. Once she had hurried over to make sure that the children were alright, and felt distressed even more when Hannah wanted to come back with her for her mummy.

Matilda had assured her that she would care for the children even if it meant them staying overnight and not to worry about them at all, something that was easier said than done, but even so, Olivia thanked her gratefully as it was impossible to say how much longer things would take before the baby was born.

The relief at seeing three familiar figures in the doorway was so great she nearly broke down at the sight of them. It was Hoss’ face, stern and frightened in that quiet way he had that helped her to control herself, and it was Adam’s arm that reached out to her that steadied her as she told them what was going on. Ben removed his hat and bowed his head, his heart seemed to race for a few moments as memories flooded in upon him of another situation, another time, similar to this and he turned aside to walk to the far corner of the room in order to pray for each and every one of them.

It was just as Olivia finished speaking that the door opened and Schofield stepped into the room, looked at them and then closed the door behind him.

“Where is she? Where’s Hester?” Hoss’ voice was steady, firmer than he felt that was for sure, but the sight of Schofield and not Paul was enough to put some strength into him.

“She’s alright, Mr. Cartwright, you can go in and see her in a moment.” Schofield replied and looked at the three men there, wondered where the other one was and fully expected him to arrive at any moment, then cleared his throat “Your wife has been in labour for some time, its what we call a silent labour, in that it isn’t particularly painful, can be ignored more or less, but the trouble is that during that time the baby is on the move and there really isn’t any going back.”

Adam shot a quick glance at his brother who had nodded as though he had understood every word. “So - what’s that to do with now?”

“I - er - I’ve discussed it with my colleague and he fully agrees with me …” another pause and Hoss prompted him by saying “Yeah? So?”

“Your wife isn’t going to be able to deliver this baby in the normal way, Mr. Cartwright.” Schofield stared at Hoss although uncomfortably aware of the others in the room staring at him, he shrugged slightly “You do understand what I’m saying, don’t you?”

“No, I don’t.” Hoss frowned and then stepped forward “You said I could see my wife, I want to see her now.”

Schofield raised a hand to prevent the big man from striding into the other room, he shook his head “In a moment, Mr. Cartwright. I have to explain what is happening and I need your consent for the operation.”

“What’re you talking about? What operation?” Hoss stepped back apace and looked over at Ben who only inclined his head as though trying to get his son to see sense and listen to what Schofield had to say.

The doctor shrugged his jacket straight and cleared his throat, “As I said earlier your wife will not deliver this baby normally. Now, the baby is struggling, its heart beat is weakening and it needs to be born as soon as possible…”

Ben stepped forward and stood beside Hoss “You’re talking about what they call a ceasarean, aren’t you?”

Schofield inclined his head just the once “The first procedure was performed in July 1869 by a Dr Bennett in Virginia,* he performed the operation on his wife and saved both her and the baby. I’m telling you this so that you know this operation has been done for some time now, it isn’t new …”

“You done it before?” Hoss blurted out and Schofield swallowed hard and admitted that he hadn’t, which caused Hoss to step forward and push the man to one side in an attempt to get in to see Hester.

“Hoss, wait -” Adam stepped over and grabbed at his arm, “Listen to what the man has to say, Hoss.”

“If it were your wife, would you stop and waste time -”

“It isn’t wasting time if you’re going to learn how to save your wife and child.” Adam hissed and gave his brothers arm a slight shake, which was followed by Ben placing his hand on his son’s shoulder,

“Adam’s right, Hoss, listen and don’t act hastily.”

Scofield once again readjusted his jacket “There are a number of operations I have not performed and hope never to have to do any of them, but I would if it meant saving the life of my patient. I have two patients to think of in there … I maybe able to save them both, or just the one. It depends on you, Mr. Cartwright.” he glared at Hoss and drew himself to his full height, “I need you to sign the agreement for the operation…”

At that moment the door opened and Paul stepped into the ante room, looked at them and raised his eyebrows “Schofield?”

The urgency in his voice was enough to make the hairs on the back of their necks stand on end. Olivia slipped her hand into Adam's and he squeezed her fingers gently. Hoss' face was going white and his blue eyes were getting that washed out look that happened whenever he was distressed. Schofield was getting angrier by the minute and hissed “I’m waiting for this - man - to agree to the operation.” between clenched teeth.

Paul looked at Hoss and it was more than obvious from the look on the Doctor's face that Hoss needed to make the decision quickly; Hoss nodded “Alright, alright, anything …just save Hester, don’t let anything happen to her.”

Scofield nodded “One thing more … if it comes down to whether or not one of them may be at risk, which would you prefer I save?”

“What?” Hoss stepped back in horror “You ain’t asking me to make a decision like that, are ya?”

“It may come to that,” Schofield replied and then in an even testier voice he snapped “I haven’t much time, Mr. Cartwright…”

Paul stepped forward and touched the other doctor on the arm, signalling with a backward glance that he was needed in the other room, “Hoss, don’t worry, you don’t have to make any such decision, we’ll leave that to the One who judges fairly over us all.”

“Can I see her now?” Hoss mumbled and when Paul shook his head and said ‘Sorry, there’s no time, things have moved on ...” Hoss nearly broke out into tears and turned away with his head down, fumbling with his hat and steered gently towards the window by his father.

Adam put his hand into his wife’s and looked at her, “Are you alright, sweetheart?”

“Yes, yes, I’m alright, it’s just been -” she shivered and then clung to him, hiding her face into his jacket and glad, so glad, to feel his arms around her now.

The outer door opened and Joe, followed by Mary Ann, came into the room, he stared around him and then removed his hat, “What’s happened?”

“The doctor’s operating on Hester now.” Ben said quietly, “It’s been - difficult.”

His voice seemed to choke on the word and Joe went to Hoss’ side and put his hand on the other man’s shoulder while Mary Ann hurried to Olivia where the two women whispered together and Adam walked to where Ben stood “Well, Pa?”

Ben shook his head and looked over at Hoss, “It’s difficult for him, for anyone, Adam, but I know that if I had been given the choice, the chance, when your mother …” he paused, bit down on the words that he wanted to say, and took a deep breath instead.

The clock ticked away minutes, minutes that seemed more like hours to those waiting in that ante room, and even when the cry of a new born was heard no one moved for some time and then every one was on their feet together and surging towards the door of the operating room which was flung open just as Hoss’ hand touched the handle.

Su Ling came into the room holding a bundle in her arms, she smiled sweetly at Hoss and passed it over to him “Congratulations, Mr. Hoss, you have another daughter. She is very beautiful.”

“A daughter? Shucks …”

“Here, lemme see, Hoss.” “Oh, adorable, she’s so cute, so small.”

“Hester?” Hoss stepped forward “Hester, how is she? Can I go see her?”

“Not just yet, she rests, she sleeps. She is well, now, please, the baby …” she put out her arms and took back the infant who was mewling and wriggling within the blanket.

“But she is alright, isn’t she?” Hoss cried and Su Ling nodded and smiled before closing the door.

“Congratulations, Hoss.” Adam shook his brother by the hand, “Another daughter? Well done.”

Olivia and Mary Ann hugged him and kissed his cheek, before whispering together about what the baby was like…how small, how dainty … Ben stood alone by the window, his head bowed, his thanks went first to his God before he could turn to look at his son who stood before him, his face ashen and his blue eyes awash with tears “Did you see her, Pa? Did you see her?”

“I did, boy, she was lovely.”

“Shucks, weren’t she though, Pa? Jest as cute as a button…” Hoss wiped his nose on the back of his hand, and then pulled out a handkerchief to give it a good blow before he wiped his eyes. “I sure wish I could see Hester…”

The door opened and Paul stepped out into the ante room and in the act of removing his apron smiled over at them, “I didn’t think this room could take so many people all at the one time,” he smiled, and even though he looked weary he approached them and shook Hoss by the hand, "Hoss, Hester has come through it well, she’s strong and healthy, and the baby isn’t so premature as we thought, Hester must have got her dates muddled, as the little girl is almost full term, and in good health.”

"But can I see her?" Hoss asked, pleaded but Paul shook his head, although he placed a kindly hand on the man's arm as he did so.

"She's sleeping, and there's things that we still need to do, to tidy up you understand?" he looked from one to the other, "Look, go and get some rest, Hoss, and come back ... you can sleep here and as soon as Hester wakes up I'll come and get you."

Each man there shook Paul by the hand until he thought his fingers were going to be crushed. He smiled and nodded, accepted a kiss on the cheek from Olivia and Mary Ann, and then retreated back into the other room.

“We should go and wet the baby’s head,” Joe suggested, “The Bucket of Blood’s still open.”

“That’s a good idea,” Adam nodded, and with a wink at Olivia, who laughed and said that all she wanted to do was fall into bed, he kissed her cheek “You do that, darling, and I’ll join you in about an hour.”

Olivia couldn’t believe that she could be feeling so exhilarated, so free from anxiety, as she walked across to the hotel with Mary Ann arm in arm with her. They glanced back at the sight of their men striding into the Bucket of Blood and fancied they could hear Hoss’ voice booming “I’ve a daughter…drinks on the house….”

Who would have thought it, another Cartwright delivered safe and sound amidst so much drama.

Chapter 116

A vast wall of water was approaching, moving faster than the speed of a horse, he was yelling to the helmsman “Starboard, man, starboard.” but the ship was tossing, being buffeted by the force of the waters, sucked down into a maelstrom of foaming white spray and cold, cold green waters “No, no, not now.. Not now…”

A hand to his shoulder shaking him and he pushed it away, only to pause as a voice whispered his name above the roaring of the seas and the crashing ice that calved away from the vast glaciers that hemmed the ship in. “Adam…Adam…”

He forced himself awake, shaking away the nightmares and the horrors of his dream, and with bleary eyes looked up into his wife’s anxious face and for a moment wondered what was real, was this the last glimpse of heaven he would see before the waters covered him for ever.

“You were having a nightmare.”

“I was? You’re sure?”

“Quite sure.” Olivia leaned down towards him, and her hand touched his face, stroked his brow and traced the outline of his lips “Do you want to wake up now and have something to drink or do you want to go back to sleep?”

He sighed heavily and closed his eyes, smiled slowly as his hand gently moved down from her shoulder to the base of her spine “You were asleep when I got here from the saloon.”

“You were gone longer than an hour.” she smiled and kissed his lips, “I waited until I couldn’t keep awake any longer.”

“Joe and Mary Ann went back home.” he mumbled and then looked into her face again, “You’re lovely you know, Livvy. For a moment I thought I was being granted a glimpse of an angel before I died.”

“Was it such an unpleasant dream then?”

“It’s fading now, a storm at sea…” he frowned and drew in a long breath, “Thank you for waking me up.” he reached out a hand and touched her face “I’m not thirsty though.” he smiled, sleepy still but more aware than ever of his need for her, this lovely woman who had been his wife for such a short time.

“It seems to me you have not told me enough about your trips away, Adam. You should tell me…”

“I don’t want to waste time talking about them,” he replied dropping his hand and pushing his fingers through his hair, then shaking his head and pushing himself into a sitting position “What time is it?”

“It’s nearly 3 in the morning.”

He nodded and looked around him at the things he could see in the gloom of early morning and pre dawn, he smiled “Just think, we could pretend we were on honeymoon again, a hotel room, no children around, peace and quiet… just the two of us … come here, Mrs Cartwright, let me kiss you.”

She laughed and bowed her head to his so that their lips met and then together they sighed as though mutually relishing the moment “I love you.” she whispered but his reply was lost in the moment …

…………..

She was standing by the window looking out over the town, in her white silk chemise he could see the vague outline of her body, her long hair fell in coils and curls down her back and when she heard him move in the bed she turned towards him and smiled. “What are you thinking?”

“How beautiful you are, and how fortunate I am.” he replied, “What are you thinking about?”

“I was thinking of Hoss and Hester. I’ve just seen him coming out of the doctors surgery with the biggest grin on his face … I wonder how long he has been in there.”

“He was going back to see her as soon as we had seen Joe and Mary Ann off…” he coughed, yawned and stretched, “He’ll be glad to have had another daughter.”

“Yes, he’s a man who deserves to be fussed over by girls.” she laughed and looked over her shoulder at him, “Can we go and see Hester and the baby before we have to go home?”

“Don’t we have some children to collect beforehand ?” he grinned as he swung his legs over the side of the bed and felt his feet touch the thick carpeting.

“Yes, but afterwards … I mean, I’d like to see the baby before we have to get the children and go home. Reuben will be alright, he’s going with the other boys to school.” she smiled as though her mind were already somewhere else and yet her eyes looked pale, like sea water when the ice floes dance upon its surface.

“Olivia, come here -” he stretched out his arm and as she approached he stood up and then held her close before he cupped her face between his hands and after looking into her eyes a moment whispered “After what happened to - well - you know what I mean ?”

“Yes, of course.” she lowered her head, not wanting to look up at him now.

“This baby of Hester’s … it’s made you sad for what you’ve lost, hasn’t it?”

“I’m happy for them both, Hester and Hoss I mean but .. Yes, I can’t help but think of what it would have been like and - and it’s selfish of me but I can’t help but wish things had been different.”

He dropped a kiss upon her brow and sighed, “I wish - all sort of things, Livvy. Most of all that it had never happened, but it has and we just have to look to the future now, haven’t we?”

She nodded, she wanted to say “But what if it never happens for us again…what if that was our one and only chance?” but she said nothing, she only held him close and let him kiss her before pulling away in order to dress and prepare for the day.

“Honeymoons over…” she whispered as she drifted towards the hotel bathroom.

……………..

Hoss was back in the waiting room when Adam and Olivia arrived at the surgery, he was tired, there were rings under his eyes, but he was happy, the smile he greeted them with was one of the happiest Adam could recall seeing. Olivia was swung off her feet and told more than once what a lovely child she was going to see while Adam was slapped on the back until it tingled.

“Can I go in and see her - them?” Olivia asked and then looked at Adam with a smile, “are you coming too?”

“In a moment, I’ll let you two ladies talk - you know -” Adam nodded and looked seriously awkward, perhaps realising that ladies together tended to enjoy talking about things that he would have preferred to know nothing about for the present.

Hester was delighted to see Olivia, and showed her sister in law the baby, sleeping soundly upon the shawl that Olivia had knitted for her. “Look at how small she is, Livvy?”

Olivia did see, she touched the tiny fingers that twitched and opened slowly as she did so, the little face turned towards her and the perfectly formed mouth opened and closed. Inside her very being Olivia felt an ache that she had never thought to feel, a longing, yearning, so strong that she had to step back and then with a shaky laugh, soft and gentle though it was, admitted to Hester that she envied her with all her heart.

“I’m sorry, Olivia. Really I am.” Hester squeezed her fingers and then settled back into the pillows, “It must seem almost cruel but -“ a small frown furrowed her brow and her mouth puckered into a slight grimace “just think when you do fall for a baby, I shall be so envious of you. Dr Schofield removed my ovaries, he said that I’d never survive having another pregnancy. Oh Olivia, I felt so guilty, just think I’ll not be able to give Hoss a son? A man always wants a son, doesn't he?“

“I don’t think Hoss is thinking that, Hester, he’s going to enjoy his girls too much, believe me.” she placed a hand on Hesters shoulder and then turned to look once again at the infant in the tiny cot “I can’t believe how small she is, I can’t remember Reuben or Sofia being so little.”

“She’s less than 5 llbs,” Hester said and groped for Olivia’s hand, “I have to rest for a whole month, maybe two if necessary. Poor Hop Sing, he’ll be run off his feet.”

“You can borrow Cheng Hu Lee…” Olivia smiled, “We’ll make sure you’ll be well looked after, Hester.” she leaned forward and kissed her sister in law on the cheek.

They whispered and talked a while longer, sharing those very details that would have had Adam’s toes curling up so that when he knocked and asked if it was ‘Alright for me to come in too?’they smiled at one another and called for him and Hoss to enter
…………..

Dr Schofield arrived some minutes later and opened the door to check on his patients only to find the room crowded with Cartwrights whom he proceeded to usher out of the room very abruptly, “My patient needs to rest, how can she rest with all of you in here gabbling away. Be off with you …off…”

Hoss kissed his wife and then his daughter and followed Adam and Olivia out of the room, turned to look besottedly at Hester and then closed the door, only for it to re-open and Schofield call out to Olivia “Before you go, Mrs Cartwright, I want a word with you.”

Adam paused and looked at the little doctor “What about?”

“I said I wanted a word with your wife, you can go, Mr. Cartwright - I won’t keep her for long.”

He looked at her and then back at Schofield but Hoss grabbed at his arm and reminded him that Pa was waiting, as was Sofia and Hannah, and they needed attention too.

Olivia stood still and looked at Schofield thoughtfully, she cleared her throat “Thank you for all you’ve done for Hester, Dr Schofield. We’ll never forget how you saved her and the baby.”

Schofield jutted out his jaw “Contrary to my previous opinion of Mrs Cartwright, she proved herself to be infinitely superior to a lot of much younger women, now then, sit down, Mrs Cartwright. Despite what your husband may think I am not going to eat you.”

She smiled slightly, and sat down opposite him. For a moment he regarded her thoughtfully then asked if he could look at her hands, he took hold of them and looked at her nails, turned them over to look at the palms, then looked at her inner eyelids. He nodded “Been feeling dizzy?”

“Yes, off and on.”

“Since your miscarriage?”

“Yes, I suppose so.”

“Have you menstruated since then?”

“Menstruated?” she blinked, swallowed and blushed but before he could add insult to injury by asking her if she understood the meaning of the word she said “Yes, I have …”

“And have they been heavy or light, regular or irregular?”

“Heavy. Fairly regular…”

He frowned and asked her if she had headaches, to which she said yes she did but it was probably due to eye strain to which he shrugged and dismissed the comment with narrowed eyes before standing up “You visited the surgery a short while ago and saw Su Ling, about a personal matter, didn’t you? Can you tell me what that was?”

She frowned and tightened her lips, repeating his words in a cold clipped voice. “A personal matter …”

“Mrs Cartwright, believe me I am asking because I have noticed something that concerns me. I am a doctor, a good one, and I am also an acute observer of people .. And I have observed something about you that worries me. I want to ascertain some details to clarify things in my own mind, and for your health’s sake also, you understand?”

She paused and thought for a moment, then nodded, “I saw Su Ling because I was worried, well, confused more than worried. It seemed to me that my body was displaying some signs of - well - as though I were still pregnant, but I was still having my - I was still bleeding -” she gave a slight sigh, “I wanted to ask Su Ling her opinion, that was all.”

“And she said?”

“The body needed time to adjust, sometimes such a loss causes a - a kind of shock which takes time to sort out.”

“Later you saw my colleague, Dr Martin - was that for a consultation?”

“He was concerned for me. When the girls went missing, I was distressed and he thought I should see him. He thought that - “ she paused then and frowned before continuing on “Sometimes not everything gets removed with a miscarriage, it can be -”

“Yes, yes, I know all about that … and it can cause complications and infections. But he didn’t think you were suffering from that?”

“No, he was quite satisfied and said that there was nothing to stop me from having a healthy baby in the future, which was all I needed to know really, for my own peace of mind you understand?” she smiled at him then, although her eyes looked bleak and miserable.

“Well, I am not satisfied. I need you to go over there so that I can carry out a proper examination. If you don’t mind just going over there and lying down.”

“What?” she looked startled, “But -”

“If you don’t mind, Mrs Cartwright, I have a busy schedule ahead of me today and I can’t afford to waste time.”

She did as she was told, closed her eyes and tried not to get tense as he performed a brief examination. He then cleared his throat and told her to join him at the desk.

“I thought so, you are anaemic. I shall write you a prescription and I want you to take the medication regularly. People don’t realise that there is heavier blood loss when you are anaemic. Also, you have lost weight over the past few weeks, you are - too thin -” he shook his head, “Now then, I want you to drink this water …”

She looked at him, took the glass of water and drank some of it, then put the glass down. He nodded, “That was because I have to tell you something that could, maybe, surprise you.”

Her throat tightened .. “He’s preparing me for the worse, I’m going to die …”

……………..

Sofia was more than delighted to see her mother again and hugged her close. She was none the worse for her adventure and waved goodbye to her cousin as Hoss bore Hannah away to meet her sister. Adam waited patiently for Olivia to speak, to tell him what Schofield had said to her. He almost hopped from one foot to another as she went in to collect her prescription, and looked almost angrily at her when all she said was that the medication was for anaemia.

He grumbled beneath is breath and fussed over Sofia, before telling her that he had to collect his horse and would follow along. “I’ll wait for you, you can tie Sport to the buggy.”

“Humph, mmm, well, alright.”

“Don’t scowl.”

“I’m not. Why won’t you…”

“Later.”

………

Sofia chattered about her stay with the ‘other children’, she told them what they had eaten for breakfast, and how Hannah had cried because she wanted her mommy. Eventually she quietened down and leaned against Olivia’s side with her hand in hers. Adam held the reins loosely, his body inclined towards the horses as though urging them to go faster even though the pace was moderate.

“Are you going to tell me?”

“Tell you what?” she replied stroking her daughter’s hair away from her face.

“What Schofield had to say? Are you ill? Is it serious?”

She sighed audibly as though she couldn’t see what all the fuss was about, which made him scowl deeper and draw the horses to a halt. He turned to her and looked into her eyes, “Tell me, Olivia. Is it serious?”

She shrugged “I don’t think so.”

“Then what is it? Are you ill?”

“No, I’m not ill.” she opened her mouth, smiled, put a hand to her mouth in an attempt to stop a giggle, which made him look even more annoyed and had Sofia exclaim ‘Mommy?”

“Oh Adam” Olivia cried as she threw her arms around him, “Oh Adam”

She was crying now, the tears streamed down her face and she mumbled something that was totally incoherent so that he had to untangle her arms and hold her away from him and look into her face “Calm down…you’re scaring me to death here, Olivia…”

“I’m having a baby.”

“Right.” he nodded, and frowned, “What?”

“Twins. I was having twins. I lost one and the other must have been behind the one I lost so - oh - I don’t know how to explain it, my love, but I didn’t know, I hadn’t any idea because I was still - you know and then when he said it was what happens with anaemia I thought he was telling me …”

He kissed her then, he kissed her because she was babbling nonsense, and he kissed her again because he didn’t know what else to do. A baby…another Cartwright … he paused and then held her at arms length “You’re sure?”

“If I’m not, Dr Schofield is, he said if everything goes to plan it’ll arrive at the end of January unless I‘ve muddled the dates like Hester did.”

He drew in his breath, felt slightly queasy, and decided that perhaps they should take a little walk, but she just laughed and said that she wanted to get home, she wanted to be home with him, and Sofia and Reuben, and just contemplate what the future would be like now… together.

The End

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