A Summer Affair

By Diana

The three Cartwright boys, usually referred to as brothers, were actually half-brothers, and it was the combination of their different mothers and the different circumstances of their upbringing that had given them their differing characters and appearance.

Just turned twenty, Little Joe was the youngest, smallest and lightest of the three.  He was the son of his father’s third wife, a fiery blonde of French extraction from New Orleans who had died tragically early, in a riding accident.  Joe had been raised in the security of an established home with a loving family to support him, which had given him a carefree, but not careless, attitude to life.  From his mother he had inherited a quick, mercurial temper, which could change him in an instant from a laughing prankster to a caring friend, or drive him to draw his lethally fast gun, though he had never been known to pull the trigger in anger.  Little Joe was handsome, with brown wavy hair over a face that was often lit by a flashing smile, and green eyes that could melt the heart of any girl he chose to focus them on.

The middle brother, Hoss, twenty-six, had the legacy of his Nordic mother in his fair hair and ice blue eyes.  She had been killed by an Indian’s arrow when he was a baby, but he had had the love of an elder brother and a father to protect him.  He was six inches taller than Joe and outweighed him by a hundred pounds, all of it muscle.  Hoss was as gentle as he was large, with a caring nature and an innocent love of his fellow man which often led people to label him as ‘slow’, but Hoss’ bright mind was too full of the need to help those less fortunate than himself.  There was no room in his thoughts for the scheming and trickery that he hated in others, and he saw what others missed; the essential goodness in the world.

Adam, the oldest at thirty-two, showed the reserve of his New England mother, who had died when he was born.  He had spent the early, formative years of his life traveling west from his Boston birthplace, at first alone with his father, then with the motherless Hoss, and responsibility had fallen prematurely onto his young shoulders, turning his emotions inwards.  Adam was an enigma to his brothers; a man of great intelligence with a love of the finer things in life, who had chosen to return to his home and family, and the rougher ways of the west, after leaving to spend three years at college in the east.  His size put him between his brothers; slimmer than Hoss and taller than Joe, and he had dark, somber good looks which were emphasized by the black clothing he habitually wore.  Where Joe would use his speed to fend off trouble, and Hoss would employ his strength, Adam would try to reason his way out of difficult situations, only using force as a last resort.

Three very different men, who had also inherited traits from Ben, their father and mentor; among which was a sense of justice and duty that was famed throughout their community, and a courage that would make them fight to protect those who were threatened, whether it was one of their family or those who were defenseless in the face of danger. Ben had also instilled in them a love of the country around their home by Lake Tahoe, and a feeling of closeness to each other that any family would envy.

Now these diverse brothers shared something else in common; they were standing immobile and speechless in the face of the shotgun that was pointing at them menacingly.

“Don’t come any closer.  I know how to use this,” the young woman threatened, moving the gun to cover each of the brothers in turn as they stood before her.

Adam took a pace forward.  As the self-appointed protector of his younger brothers, he felt that it was his responsibility to get them out of the situation in which they found themselves.  He looked down at the figure before him, who stood no higher than his shoulder, trying to guess her age; he thought her to be no older than Joe, surely too young to be traveling alone.  Her appearance gave no hint; a simple loose cream linen blouse over a plain black skirt, her long dark hair tied high behind her head and then falling thickly round her shoulders in the way of a girl.  But Adam saw the determination on the fine, beautiful features, which spoke of a grown woman who had seen and dealt with more than her years should have allowed.

There was absolute silence while the world dozed in the afternoon sun, and the heat beat back from the surrounding rocks at the tableau formed by the four people, until Adam slowly raised his hands and the twin black tunnels moved to point straight at his face.

“Ma’am, please, there’s no need for that.”  He bent one wrist and used a finger to point at the weapon.

“Maybe not, but I’ll keep it handy, just in case.”  The weapon didn’t shift position.  Adam looked round at Hoss and Joe, who seemed content to let older brother tackle the woman.

Adam turned back.  “We saw your wagon and came down to see if you needed any help.”

“Just trying to help, huh?”  There was no hint of belief in the tone.

Adam nodded and smiled reassuringly.  “Yeah.”

The gun wavered and the heavy barrels dropped, taking with them the threat of violence.  As the weapon sagged so did the shoulders of the woman, and her fingers slowly released the gun, her knees starting to give way.  Adam moved swiftly and caught her before she hit the stony ground, then he lowered her gently and ordered his brothers to get some water.  Hoss ran to his horse and returned, dampening his kerchief before handing it to Adam.

As Adam wiped the woman’s forehead she glanced up at him, and when he looked into her eyes he felt a frisson of emotion.  They were a deep misty blue and held him fascinated, so that Adam found he couldn’t look away, but the spell was broken when she closed her eyes, the color drained from her face, and she fainted.  He put his hands under her knees and shoulders and carried her easily into the back of the covered wagon that she had been protecting, where he knelt down and laid her on the make-shift bed, gently pulling a blanket over her.  He rested his hand lightly on her forehead but felt no sign of fever, then he ran his finger down the side of her face, seeing the small straight nose above the well formed mouth and strong chin.  Not a girl, as Adam had at first supposed, but a woman, and a beautiful one he thought as he sat back on his heels, and sighed.  After a minute he climbed down from the wagon and looked at Hoss and Joe.

“We may as well make camp here for the night; we can’t leave her like this.”  He glanced around at the barren countryside; there was no fresh water nearby, but they found that the wagon’s water barrel was half full, and the surrounding cliffs would give them shelter from the constant wind.

“What d’ya reckon’s wrong with her?” Hoss asked, concern written on his face.

Adam shrugged.  “No idea; could be just exhaustion.  On her own out here with the wagon, who knows what she’s had to cope with.”

“Wonder who she is?” said Joe.  He thought that whoever she was he’d like to get to know the beautiful, brunette stranger.

Adam was thinking about practicalities, and would not waste time speculating.  “Well, let’s get something to eat, we’ll know the answers when she wakes up.”

The three brothers worked smoothly together, making camp; they had done this many times and each knew what was needed to make themselves comfortable.  Hoss was the cook among them, he liked his food and his interest extended to knowing how to prepare it.  While Joe was quite capable in the kitchen, he was too impatient to cook, he wanted to be able to come to the table, eat, and be gone.  Adam would never starve if he had to fend for himself, but for a man who could design a mill to grind grain, or calculate the profit from a stand of timber, he was surprisingly useless at constructing an edible meal.

Occasionally one of them would check on the woman; she did not stir but appeared to be breathing evenly and to be sleeping.  As darkness descended it became cold in this semi-desert, and the brothers sat huddled close to the fire eating their meal.  They became aware of sounds from inside the wagon and, before anyone else could move, Joe was on his feet and went to the back of the Conestoga.  As the woman appeared from between the folds of the canvas, which formed the top of the wagon, he reached up and she tentatively put out her hand.  Joe helped her down and smiled at her, thinking how beautiful she looked, her dark hair tied back with a simple red ribbon that matched the plain dress she now wore, which in turn contrasted with her eyes.  Joe stared into those eyes, captured as Adam had been.

“Ma’am, are you all right?” Joe asked.  She had more color in her cheeks and seemed steady on her feet as she stood before him.

The woman lowered her head, releasing Joe from his optical imprisonment, and then raised her eyes to look at him.  “Yes, thank you.”

She walked with Joe to join Adam and Hoss by the fire and looked round at the three men, not able to meet their eyes.  Since she had woken she had heard them talking and their words told her that they posed no threat, as the eldest of the strangers had declared, and she knew that she had misjudged them.  When Adam stood and offered her his seat on a barrel, she sat, smiling gratefully at him, as he upturned a pail and sat down beside her.  Hoss held out a plate of stew and a cup of coffee, which she took from him, and as she sipped the hot, dark liquid, and slowly spooned up the food, her eyes strayed to her three visitors in turn.

“I’m…I’m sorry for my reception.  But as a woman alone…”

Adam stopped her.  “It’s quite all right, we understand.  You didn’t know who we were; we could have had nefarious intent.”

“Nefarious intent!  My, those are grand words,” she giggled, then stopped, suddenly realizing that this was the first time in weeks that she had felt like laughing.  She looked at the dark eyes of the man, finding herself fascinated by the serious expression on his face, and had to drag her gaze away when she heard one of the others speak.

“Don’t mind older brother here,” laughed Joe, “he likes to try to impress us with words that no one understands.  Thinks it makes him seem more intelligent.”  The woman saw the sparkling green eyes looking at her and her heart missed a beat.

“Yeah,” Hoss smiled, “but I guess he means that you don’t have to be scared of us.”  This time the ice-blue eyes caught hers, and the warm depths which she saw there made her feel as though the man had reached out, using his arms to shelter her from the dangers of the world.

The woman looked at them again.  “Brothers?” she queried, seeing three very different faces.

Adam nodded.  “The name’s Cartwright,” he informed her.  “The big one there is Hoss, the runt is Little Joe, and I’m Adam,” he gave her a lop-sided smile, “the intelligent one.”

Joe looked at Adam and his eyes hardened into emerald points because he had tried, and failed, to get his brothers not to use the appellation ‘little’ around women, especially beautiful creatures like the one who faced him.

The woman smiled at the men.  “My name is Susanna Wood; I am very pleased to meet you.”

Adam thought that she spoke with more than just politeness in her voice.  “What are you doing out here, alone?”

“I didn’t start out alone,” she said quietly, “I was traveling with my father.  We left St. Joe nearly four months ago.”

Joe was puzzled.  “But why not join a wagon train, if you were coming west?” He knew of the many dangers involved in such a journey, which were tempered by the numbers in a wagon train.

“We were with a train, but Papa got sick and they were afraid that it might be contagious so they made us leave the train, went on without us.”  She looked down at the plate resting on her lap, lost in her thoughts.

Hoss asked softly, “What happened to him?”

Susanna replied without shifting her eyes.  “He died.”  She took a deep breath and looked up.  “They were right to leave us, he had typhoid.”  She seemed to shake herself to push away the memories.  “I decided that I would continue to California alone; father bought a piece of land there and I want to see it before I decide what to do with it.”  She sighed as she remembered the exhausting struggle to continue on her own.  “I probably should have gone back to Ohio, but I wanted to complete the journey that Papa and I had started.”

“California, huh?” Adam frowned as though deep in thought.  Susanna nodded and looked at him.  Adam glanced at his brothers and could see that the same idea had occurred to them as well.  “We live near Virginia City.  Why don’t you let us accompany you that far and perhaps we can find someone to take you the rest of the way?”

“Oh, but you will be delayed if you stay with me.  You must want to get on…”  Susanna knew she would feel safer if they stayed with her, but didn’t want to impose.

“Well,” said Adam, thinking of the reason that he and his brothers were all away from home at the same time, “I think our Pa can do without us for a while longer.  When we reach Fallon in a few days, I’ll see if I can send him a telegraph to let him know what’s delayed us.”

Susanna looked again at the men sitting with her; she had taken on the challenge of completing the trip by herself, but part of that challenge was, surely, to grasp good fortune when it appeared.  She nodded.  “Then, if you’re sure, I would be very grateful.”

Joe smiled broadly at the thought of spending more time in this woman’s company.  “Then that’s settled.”

Adam stood.  “I think it would be just as well if we all get a good night’s rest.”

Susanna also rose.  “Of course.  Goodnight.”  She looked at each of the brothers in turn, smiling her grateful thanks.

The following morning they packed up the camp and moved out, Joe driving the wagon with Susanna sitting beside him.  When Joe had offered his services as driver, Adam had agreed, sighing to himself as he did so.  Joe had monopolized Susanna at breakfast, while Hoss and Adam watched, amused by his predictable reaction to a pretty face, and now Adam saw a look in his young brother’s eyes that he recognized; a look of expectation and excitement.  Although Adam also found the girl attractive he decided, when he saw the look, that he would leave the field to his brother.  Unlike Joe, it wasn’t the chase that he enjoyed; he would not pursue a woman unless he intended a relationship to develop.  He tried to persuade himself that this girl was too young for him, and he wouldn’t fight Joe for her affections.  He shook his head in forbearance; Joe was always tipping his hat at one female or another.  Adam wondered whether his young brother really liked all the girls he chased after, or if he only saw them as a challenge to be met.  As so often before, only time would tell.

When Adam eased his horse alongside the wagon Joe and Susanna were laughing together, but they stopped when they saw his serious expression.  “Little Joe, I’m going to take a look up ahead, find the best trail for the wagon.”  He pointed towards an outcropping of rocks that could be seen in the distance.  “I’ll meet you at the bottom of that bluff in a few hours.”  He was conscious of Joe’s hard stare as he turned away.

“Okay.” Joe waved absently as Adam kicked his horse and galloped off.

Susanna watched Adam’s retreating back.  “Is your brother always so serious?”

Joe laughed.  “Yeah, but that’s just his way, you’ll get used to it.  You have to watch his eyes, they smile when his face doesn’t.”  Joe didn’t want to talk about Adam; he wanted to know more about the girl beside him.  “What plans did you and your father have for the land in California?”

“We were going to grow grapes. It’s in the hills near Santa Rosa, just north of San Francisco, and should be ideal wine making country.”

“Wine!  In California?”  Joe’s startled expression made Susanna laugh.

“Yes, why not?  Father was involved in wine making in Ohio, but there is not much opportunity there for a man to set up his own business; the old wine growing families have seen to that, they want to keep it all to themselves.  Then he heard about the country in northern California, which sounds perfect, warm and not too dry, and he wanted to go there and start his own winery.”  Susanna gazed into the distance, thinking of the valley her father would never see.

Joe noticed the silence that enveloped the girl beside him and he tentatively put his arm round her shoulder.  She did not pull away; she liked the comfort of having a strong man beside her.

“Don’t worry,” he said, “we’ll make sure that you get there safely.”

As they rode on, Joe chatted about the country, and horses, and people he knew, about anything that would help her to forget the memories and visions that had been brought to mind by their conversation, and Susanna was touched by his thoughtfulness.

Adam was riding along the trail, laughing to himself; he knew how Joe hated to be called ‘little’ in front of a girl, and now he had got his small reward for not challenging Joe’s claim, he would drop it.  He stopped laughing when he thought of the pair sitting together on the wagon.  It was obvious that his young brother had started to work his magic, and Adam wanted to get away from them.  The more he thought about Susanna, the more he felt unsettled by her presence, and had decided that it would be best to spend as little time as possible in her company, in case Joe noticed; it could only lead to the kind of trouble that Adam wanted to avoid.

He had covered several miles of good going when he came across a river; wide, shallow and fast flowing.  After letting Sport drop his head and drink his fill, he urged the horse forward, looking for a safe crossing.  The water bubbled busily against Sport’s legs, but the footing beneath the moving surface was solid.  As Adam reached the opposite bank he looked round for landmarks by which to remember the place, then re-crossed the river and rode back the way he had come.  He slowed as he approached the outcropping of rocks where he would meet the wagon, seeing that he had got there ahead of his brothers.  He let the horse walk, and was looking at the surrounding country, with which he was not familiar, when he suddenly turned Sport’s head into the bushes beside the trail, and dismounted.  He walked a few paces and stood, looking down at the remains of a fire; fresh, judging by the amount of ash still among the circle of small rocks that was protecting it from the light breeze.

Adam straightened and looked round.  He soon saw the marks of two horses, hoof prints in the dust, leading away in the direction from which he had just come.  He frowned; there was no reason to be suspicious, but he was not one to take chances, and there were too many places to hide in this landscape with its high cliffs, boulder strewn slopes and outcroppings of trees.  He remounted slowly and made his way to the meeting place.  As he looked along the trail he could see a small dust cloud, and at the base of it, the wagon.  He began to gather wood for a fire and by the time Joe pulled the Conestoga to a stop, he had a fair sized blaze going.

**********

After supper, while Joe was giving all his attention to Susanna, Adam drew Hoss aside and told him about the signs he had seen.

“It’s probably nothing, but keep your eyes open anyway,” Adam instructed.

Hoss nodded, he knew better than to dismiss his older brother’s worries. “Do ya think we should set a watch tonight?”

Adam looked up at the rocky hills, wondering what they might conceal.  “Yeah, no point in taking chances, this wagon might be just too inviting for some people.  I’ll tell Joe,” he glanced towards the camp fire, where his brother was busy impressing the young lady with tales of his life on the ranch, “but not until I can get him alone.  Don’t want to frighten the girl.”

Hoss and Adam walked back to join the pair, apparently unconcerned, and after helping themselves to coffee, sat down.

Susanna turned to Adam.  “Joe has been telling me about your home.  I must say it does sound beautiful.”

“It is,” Adam said solemnly, but Susanna watched his eyes as Joe had suggested and she saw them light up, as they always did when he thought of the Ponderosa.  “If you’ll forgive me for saying so in present company, it’s like a beautiful woman.  She’s lovely in whatever she wears, whether it’s the fresh green of spring grass, the muted colors of a hot summer day, the warm red of a fall sunset or the harsh white of winter snow; they each bring out her beauty.  And like a woman she has to be treated with respect, looked after and fussed over, and don’t you dare take her for granted or she will creep up behind you when you’re not looking and challenge you to keep her.”

Susanna sighed.  “Adam, you make it sound so lovely, I can almost see it.”

“It’s all those books he reads,” Joe mumbled under his breath.

“I’m sorry, did you say something?” Adam asked mischievously.

“Who me?” Joe shook his head.  “I wouldn’t dare.”

Hoss laughed. “Now don’t you two start; Miss Susanna don’t want to hear you settin’ on each other.  Why don’t you for once jest try an’ be nice and not argue.”

“Do they argue a lot then?”  Susanna watched as the two brothers eyed each other challengingly.

Hoss shrugged and smiled.  “Some.”

“I used to argue a lot with my brother,” Susanna observed quietly.

Adam hesitated before he spoke, worried that he might be treading on some tender emotions.  “He didn’t come with you?”

But she smiled at his question.  “No, he was against this trip as soon as Pa suggested it.  He’s married and has a family in Ohio, and wouldn’t move them to California on the off-chance of finding something better, and he couldn’t understand why I would want to go with Pa.”  Susanna’s eyes became soft as she thought of her father, then they hardened as she spoke.  “But Alexander chose his way, and I chose mine.”

“Will you go back to Ohio?”  Joe wondered, needing to know the answer.

“I don’t know; my mother is still there.  She wasn’t strong enough to make the journey so she stayed in Ohio with my brother, and planned to join me and Pa when we were settled.  I know that I wouldn’t be able to start the business that my father had planned, and I will probably have to get our attorney to sell the land for me.  But I’ll wait until I’ve seen it and then decide.”

Adam hadn’t missed the note of concern in Joe’s question, and thought that his brother should back off.  The woman was obviously set on moving on, and it would only break his heart, yet again, if he got too attached to her.

“Well, time for bed, I think,” he said, giving Joe a warning look.  Joe immediately felt his temper flare as he saw Adam’s fixed gaze, knowing what it meant.

As they all rose and said goodnight Adam held Joe’s arm, letting Hoss escort Susanna to the wagon.  “Just a minute Joe, I want to talk to you.”

Joe pulled his arm from Adam’s grip and turned to him, ready to let his brother know that he didn’t appreciate his interference.  “Don’t start telling me…”

“Calm down, it’s not about Susanna.”  Adam held up a placating hand.  “When I was scouting up ahead, I saw the remains of a camp fire.  I think we should set a guard tonight.”

Joe stood and thought for a moment, his body relaxing.  “Okay, what d’ya want to do?”

Adam beckoned Hoss over to join them.  “Joe, you stand the first watch, then I’ll relieve you.  Hoss, since you’ll be cooking breakfast, you might as well take the last one.”

With that agreed they settled down for the night.

When Hoss woke them for breakfast, Adam stirred slowly.  Taking the middle watch meant that he had had two short periods of sleep and even when he did settle he had kept one ear open for trouble, which in the event had not materialized.  He wondered, as he stretched and yawned, if he had been worrying for nothing.  He stood as Joe came over to him and handed him a cup of coffee.

Adam looked round.  “Susanna not awake?”

Joe shook his head.  “Thought we’d let her sleep as long as we could, but I guess I’ll take this to her,” he said, motioning with the cup in his other hand.  He made his way to the back of the wagon and knocked on the tailboard. He heard a shuffling from inside and then Susanna’s head appeared through the folds of the heavy canvas which covered the top of the wagon.

Joe smiled.  “Good morning.  Brought you some coffee.”

She smiled in return as she took the offered cup.  “Why, Joe, thank you.”  In the short time that they had spent together, Susanna had found that she wanted Joe to turn that smile on her, noting how it made her heart skip.

“Breakfast’s ready when you are.”

“I’ll be there directly.”  Susanna disappeared inside the wagon as Joe returned to his brothers.  She looked in the small mirror that was propped against the side of the wagon and patted her hair, tucking a stray lock into place.  When she was satisfied with her appearance, she climbed down and made her way over to sit by the fire, where she accepted a plate of bacon and biscuits that Hoss handed her.  They sat for a while, enjoying the peace of the early morning, until Joe and Hoss said they were going to hitch up the team.  Adam offered his help, but Hoss said they could manage.

Susanna glanced at Adam, who was standing with his back to her, sipping the last of his coffee quietly.  “Adam, did you all keep watch last night?”  Adam looked over his shoulder and raised his eyebrows in question, wondering how she knew.  “I woke up in the night and heard you and Hoss talking, saying that nothing was stirring.”

“Oh, I see.  Yes we did.  It is as well to be careful out here; you never know who’s about.”

Susanna stood and moved towards him, seeing again the attractive seriousness in his face, but she thought that the attraction was in simply getting to know the person behind the guarded expression, so different from Joe’s cheerful openness.

Adam took a step away, conscious of the girl’s closeness.  “I’d better give Hoss and Joe a hand.”

“Don’t you think they can manage without you?”  Susanna sensed his nervousness, but didn’t suspect the reason for it.

”I think they can manage perfectly well, but it never hurts to check on those two.”  He took another step, but stopped when Susanna spoke.

“You take your responsibilities as the oldest very seriously, don’t you.”  She laughed, trying to make him feel at ease with her. 

Adam turned and smiled at her thinly; her bantering words told him she was well aware that he wanted to get away, and he didn’t wish to seem impolite.  “You’re right, they can manage.”

“How come you three were way out here?” Susanna asked curiously when they were both again seated, and was surprised to see Adam’s expression change to one she would have described as ‘sheepish’ in anyone but this apparently confident man.

“It was all because of an argument.”  Adam saw Susanna’s eyebrows rise in question, and he nodded, remembering.  “Not just any argument, it had been going on for days, too many to count in the end.”

“Who was arguing?”

“Me and Joe, as usual,” Adam had to admit, and Susanna recalled Hoss’ remark about their disagreements.  Adam looked towards his brothers, who were checking over the wagon.  “Joe and I are very different…”

“I can see that,” Susanna interposed.

“Yeah, and not just in looks but in character as well.  It has a lot to do with the difference in our ages, of course.  He’s only twenty and sometimes I think he’s reluctant to leave his boyhood behind, and he thinks that I’m too bossy and demanding.”

“Are you?”

Adam shrugged. “Maybe. Not only am I the oldest, but I also have the responsibility of standing in my father’s place, running the ranch when he’s away, and that means that sometimes my brothers and I will be at odds.  That’s what started it; I felt that Joe hadn’t done his job properly, and he didn’t disagree, but said that he would do it again.  I wanted him to understand that it would have been better if he’d done it right in the first place.  Anyway, things went from bad to worse, so that we couldn’t say a pleasant word to each other, and then we got Hoss involved as well.  Pa came back, and finally said that he’d had enough and sent all three of us to deliver some horses to a ranch east of here.”

“Kill or cure, I suppose,” Susanna observed.

“Exactly.  Either we’d come back having made peace between us, or one of us would come back in pieces.”

“Looks as though peace has broken out.”

“Yeah, thanks to Hoss.  That man could calm a maelstrom.  He made us see that the argument was a waste of time and effort, which we both knew perfectly well, but it takes someone like Hoss to make us see sense.  I know that if it wasn’t for him, Joe and I would have taken more than a few lumps out of each other before now.”  It was with some relief that Adam saw Hoss and Joe were ready to leave.  He enjoyed talking to Susanna, but his determination to avoid her company had not diminished.  “We’d better be getting on; we’re still at least four days from Fallon.”

They broke camp and Adam rode on ahead, saying he would meet them by the river.  Joe again drove the wagon with Susanna sitting beside him, and he was telling her enthusiastically about Virginia City.

“It’s quite a size now, and we have our own theatre and there’s a school for the children, and…”

“It sounds very attractive,” Susanna said.

“It’s the sort of place a person might want to settle down.”  Joe was looking sideways at Susanna trying to gauge her reaction.

“But isn’t it still in what the periodicals would have us believe is the ‘wild west’?”  Susanna was teasing him.  She was planning to go even further west, and the lonely valley that awaited her was surely wilder than the town Joe was describing.

Joe laughed.  “Well, Saturday nights can be a bit wild, when there’s a church social.”  He was pleased to see Susanna smile.  “But we have a strong sheriff in Roy Coffee and he makes sure that it never gets out of hand.”

“But don’t you miss the little luxuries of life out here?”

“Like what?”

“Oh, I don’t know, things like modern fashions and, dare I say it, indoor plumbing.”

“Indoor…?  Oh, right…well er…yeah…um.”  Joe smiled with attractive shyness at discussing such a topic with a lady, then he recovered his composure.  “But then you’ve got this wonderful country all around you.”

Susanna looked at the rocky landscape with its arid scrub and occasional trees, and raised her eyebrows in disbelief. 

“No,” said Joe, “I don’t mean like this.  When we get to Virginia City I’d like to show you the Ponderosa; the mountains and lakes and the pine forest.  It’s just as Adam described it, only better.”

Susanna was thinking about the land they were traveling through and the scenery that was to come, and she suddenly realized that even this dry, rocky vista had an attraction she had not noticed before.  Since her father had died, leaving her to struggle on alone, the country had seemed threatening and dangerous.  When she had passed through wide, open land, it had given her a feeling of loneliness and exposure, then the enclosing cliffs and narrow trails had made her feel oppressed.  Now, with Joe beside her and Hoss and Adam to protect and help her, she could appreciate its simple beauty.

Joe saw her looking around and the smile that played on her lips.  “Will you stay for a while when we get there?  Let me show it to you?”

“Well, I don’t know; I should be getting on to California.”  She looked at Joe and saw the hopeful expression in the green eyes, and suddenly she wanted to be able to spend more time with this man.  “But I suppose I could take a little time to see it.”

Joe beamed.  “Great.”

They were approaching the river and Adam pulled up alongside the wagon.  “There’s a safe crossing, follow me.”  Without waiting for Joe’s reply, Adam headed for the river.  He looked around, spotted the landmarks he had noted earlier and in a few minutes they were safely on the other side.

The going on the trial was good, and they had covered another four miles when Hoss suggested that they could stop for a rest.  Adam had ridden ahead looking for the best trail out of this country, with its cliffs and hidden canyons; he still had a feeling that there was a possibility of trouble.  While Hoss busied himself setting a fire and making coffee, Joe checked over the wagon, then he drew Susanna aside and they wandered through the sparse trees.

“Has your family always lived in Nevada?” Susanna asked as they walked.

“No. I was born here, on the Ponderosa that is, but Adam was born in Boston.  His Ma died, and Pa started west with him when he was just a baby.”  Susanna smiled and Joe looked curiously at her.  “Why’s that funny?”

“I’m sorry, I can’t imagine your brother as a baby.”

Joe laughed at the thought.  “Yeah, he seems like he’s always been old.”

“What about Hoss?”

“He was born on the trail west.  His Ma was killed by Indians, so when Pa settled here it was just him and my brothers.  Then he met my mother.”

Susanna hesitated then asked, “Is she still alive?”  She was instantly sorry as she saw a shadow cross Joe’s face.  She stopped and put a hand on his arm.  “Joe?”

He smiled gently and took Susanna in his arms.  “It’s all right.  Mama died in a riding accident when I was five.  I guess you never really get over losing a parent.”

“No, you don’t.  It’s very lonely.”  Susanna buried her head in his chest and Joe could feel her tears soak into his shirt.  He caressed her hair softly and let her weep, until she lifted her head to look at him.

Joe raised his hand and brushed away the remains of the tears.  “You needn’t feel lonely, I’m here.”  He lowered his head slowly, not sure of her feelings, but she did not resist as he kissed her.

“Oh Joe,” she said as she rested her head once more on his broad chest, “I was so afraid, so alone, and then you and Hoss and Adam came and now I feel safe.”  She eased herself out of his arms and walked a step away, taking a deep breath.  “But I have to be strong if I’m going to get to California.  I have to put the past behind me, and look forward, not back.”

Joe nodded, understanding, and he didn’t want to push her.  “You don’t have to go to California,” he said gently.

“Yes, I do.  It’s what Papa would have wanted; I have to do it, for him.”

Joe heard Hoss calling them and took Susanna’s hand.  “We’d better be getting back or Hoss will come looking for us.”

They wandered slowly back to the wagon, where they could smell the freshly made coffee.  They both accepted the cups that Hoss held out to them, then sat talking.  Hoss could see that Susanna had been crying and looked enquiringly at Joe, who shook his head minutely and tried to cheer her by relating the story of the bull that had escaped in the middle of Virginia City, the brothers’ attempts to return it to its owner, and the chaos that had ensued, which would, as their father said in a withering lecture to his three battered and exhausted sons, ‘reduce twenty-five years of Indian raids to a footnote in history!’*.  Soon they were all laughing at Joe’s narrative, accompanied as it was by liberal gestures as he frequently leapt to his feet to demonstrate some part of the story.

Suddenly they heard the cracking of an explosion in the distance, followed by a deep rumble as the sound echoed from the surrounding rocks.  The laughter was forgotten as they all stood, frightened by what it might mean, and Joe put his arm protectively round Susanna.  It had come from the direction that Adam had taken and they watched anxiously for a minute.  When he did not appear Hoss made for his horse.

“Stay here with Susanna,” he ordered and pushed Chubb into a gallop.  He raced up the trail, his heart beating faster as he saw no sign of his elder brother.  Then above the hoof beats of his own horse, he heard the sound of other hooves, and Adam rode into view round a bend in the trail.  The two brothers met, halting as they came level.

“Why did you leave the wagon?” Adam demanded.

“Cause the explosion came from over here,” Hoss explained reasonably.

Adam looked round, then back to his brother.  “Yeah, but there’s nothing here to cause it, unless someone wanted to attract attention. I don’t like it, let’s get back to Joe.”  He kicked his horse and was off, leaving Hoss to follow him.

Adam approached the camp slowly, alert to any signs of danger.  Suddenly he stopped and held up his hand, tilting his head to one side listening, and then he motioned Hoss to be quiet; he could hear voices that he didn’t recognize.  Dismounting wordlessly, Adam beckoned Hoss off to one side and crept between the rocks that lined the trail.  They worked their way up until they were looking down on the camp, where they saw two men, one standing in front of Joe, who had Susanna pushed protectively behind him, one a little further back.  The men both had guns drawn and cocked, ready to shoot.  Adam knew that he could drop them from the safety of the rocks, but it would only need a twitch of one man’s finger to kill Joe.  He whispered in Hoss’ ear and motioned with his head.  Hoss simply nodded in reply, and they started to make their way down towards the camp.

Zeke, the older of the two men, was talking, his deep voice contrasting to his thin frame.  “Yeah, that was us, wanted to reduce the odds a little.  By the time they find out there’s nothing there we’ll be long gone.  Now, we want your money, give it to us with no trouble and we’ll be on our way.”

Joe stood up straighter in defiance.  “You’ll get nothing from me.  That explosion won’t fool my brothers for long, then they’ll be back.”  Joe had his left hand away from his body, and his holster, so as not to incite the man to action, but he was itching to go for his gun.  It was only Susanna’s presence that stopped him.

“Yeah?  But by then it’ll be too late.  Throw your gun over here.”

Joe hesitated as he saw Hoss and Adam approach from behind the men.

“Joe,” whispered Susanna, worried that he would be hurt, “just give them what they want.”  She wasn’t tall enough to see over his shoulder and did not know that rescue was imminent.

“No.”  Joe used his right hand to pull Susanna closer to his back as he kept his gaze fixed on the man who stood in front of him, so as not to give any indication of what was about to happen.

For such a big man, Hoss was surprisingly quiet in his movements and he crept up behind the man nearest them and wrapped his arms round him in an embrace that was impossible to break.  The other man heard the strangled cry from his companion and turned, still with his gun drawn.  Adam advanced towards him, ignoring the threat from the weapon, but instead looking at Joe, whose face said that he was mad; he could have handled these men.  Adam suddenly realized that Joe wanted to make an impression on the girl and his brother had stolen his thunder.  He would have to be very careful, or the argument that had led their father to send them away would be reawakened, but with a different cause.  Adam turned his gaze to the man, and saw wariness in the pale eyes staring out from beneath the dark hat, but the gun didn’t move, it was still leveled at him.

He spoke lightly, not wanting to antagonize the man into making a move.  “My little brother doesn’t take kindly to being threatened.”

“So you think you’re going to rescue him, huh?”

Adam took a step towards Joe, then turned back, and as he stood in front of Zeke the gun pressed into his belly, just to the north of his belt buckle.  Although it made his heart beat faster, he ignored the weapon; if the man was going to shoot him he would have done so when he and Hoss first appeared.  Adam raised his hands to brush a little dust off the shoulders of the grey shirt in front of him, as though to make the interloper look tidier.  “Oh no, he doesn’t need my help, or perhaps you don’t know who you’re dealing with.  No one quicker with a gun in these parts than my brother, but if you think you can take him….”  He took a step back, still observing the man closely.

“What are ya looking at?” the man demanded nervously.

“Oh, I was just wondering how long it would take to dig your grave,” Adam said casually.  “You’re quite a big fella, and I don’t want to be delayed too long.”  He pursed his lips and shook his head.  “Perhaps it would be better not to bother; just let the coyotes eat your bones.”

Zeke stood transfixed at the thought of a gun fight; he was a man who liked the odds stacked in his favor, and this wasn’t turning out as he had expected.  But then he realized that he had his gun already drawn.

Adam saw Zeke’s face relax and his hand tighten on the gun.  “You’ll have to put your gun in its holster,” Adam informed him, and Zeke looked sideways, wondering how Adam had guessed his thoughts.  “If you don’t it’ll be murder, and I can’t let you get away with that.”  Adam walked over to Joe and took Susanna’s arm, pulling her to one side, and to her amazement, he winked at her.  “This will only take a moment, then we can be on our way.”  Susanna looked at him open mouthed; surely he wasn’t going to encourage Joe to shoot the man?  “Okay, little brother, any time you’re ready.  But be quick, I want to be off.”

Joe eased his shoulders and relaxed, ready if necessary to prove his brother’s assessment of his abilities.  Joe knew what Adam was up to and he stared hard at Zeke, trying, with only partial success, to look the part of a hardened gun fighter.

“Zeke, for God’s sake don’t do it!” cried the man still wrapped in Hoss’ infrangible embrace.  He was looking at Joe, seeing the young man standing like a coiled spring ready to be released.

Zeke looked round, saw the frightened face of his accomplice, and addressed Adam, who seemed to be the leader of the party.  “I suppose that if I shoot your brother you’ll just kill me and Jack.” Zeke realized that Adam was still armed.

Adam frowned as though considering the words and crossed his arms over his chest, casually leaning on one hip.  “Well now, I must admit that possibility hadn’t occurred to me.”  He glanced at Hoss.  “What do you think, should we kill them?”

Hoss laughed, playing his part in turning the tables on the bewildered men.  “No, if he can beat Joe he deserves to live.”

“Okay, we won’t kill you.  So if you want to try it…”  Adam left the sentence hanging.

Zeke was careful not to look at Joe in case he took it as a sign to draw his gun.  “What if I don’t want to fight your brother, you gonna take us to the sheriff?”

Again Adam considered his answer.  “No, but you’ll have to leave your weapons here.  Don’t want you to get any ideas about jumping us later.”

Zeke pondered for a minute then gently lowered the hammer, turned his gun and, holding it by the barrel, handed it to Adam.  “No need for anyone to get killed over this.  If you meant it, we’ll be on our way and not bother you any more.”

“Adam, you can’t let them go!” Joe protested.

Adam was looking at Zeke and Jack as he answered.  “Oh, I think they’ve learned their lesson.”

“But…”

“You have learned not to bother us, haven’t you?” Adam said as he stepped towards Zeke, who nodded silently, his only thought to get away.

Adam motioned to Hoss, who released his hold and relieved Jack of his gun before the little man hurried to Zeke’s side, and they stood as Hoss took their rifles from their saddles.  When Adam indicated they could leave, they both backed away slowly and then, turning, made a dash for the safety of their horses and were gone in a cloud of dust.

“Well, how about some coffee?”  Adam moved casually towards the fire as three pairs of eyes followed him.

“Doggone it, Adam, they sure didn’t know what to make of that,” said Hoss laughing, as he accepted a cup of coffee from his brother.

“Yeah, but I still don’t think you should’a let them go.” Joe was concerned that they might try some other way to rob Susanna.

Adam straightened, the coffee pot still in his hand.  “Joe, we couldn’t take them in,” he said patiently, “we’re still at least three days from Fallon.  We’d have to keep a guard on them all the time. It would only need a slip, then they’d get the drop on us, and we could all end up dead.  Just because they didn’t shoot this time, doesn’t mean they wouldn’t, if it meant they could get away.  Better to let them go now, while we’re all still alive.  I’ll report it to the sheriff when we get to town and leave it up to him.”

“I still don’t like the thought of them being out there,” Joe insisted, knowing that he stood little chance of changing Adam’s mind, but wanting to make his own position clear.

“Think about it; it’s a day’s riding to Fallon on a horse, which is the only place they’re going to get guns to replace those we kept.  They probably don’t have enough money to buy any weapons, or they wouldn’t have risked attacking us, so even when they get to town they won’t be able to arm themselves.  I suppose they could try to steal them, but you’ve seen how inept they are.”

“What if…”

Adam had had enough of Joe’s questioning.  “Look, if they come back, we’ll be ready for them.  We’ll stand watches as before.  Will that keep you happy?” he asked with an edge to his voice that told Joe he wasn’t pleased to be challenged by his younger brother.

Joe looked as though he would like to argue further, but saw that he would not be able to persuade his brother, and, anyway, it was too late, the pair was gone.  He nodded abruptly and, taking his coffee, he went to stand on the other side of the wagon, away from Adam.  He was breathing hard, trying to bring his anger under control, when suddenly he felt a gentle hand on his arm.

“You don’t agree with what your brother has done, do you,” Susanna stated; she could see the red spots of anger on Joe’s cheeks.

“No.”  Joe walked away a few paces, then turned.  “He always thinks he knows best, it never occurs to him that sometimes I might be right.”

“He seems certain that the men won’t come back.”  There was a touch of doubt in Susanna’s voice.

Joe put his arm round her shoulders.  “I expect he’s right, he usually is, don’t worry.  And if they do come back we’ll be ready.”

Susanna looked up at him.  “Joe?”

“Yeah.”

“Would you have shot him?”

Joe hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said softly, “If it meant keeping you safe, yes.”

Susanna settled her head into Joe’s shoulder and smiled to herself as she felt his grip tighten.  Joe put down his coffee cup and eased her round to face him, then put his fingers gently under her chin and lifted her head until he was looking into those slate blue eyes, which held the light of a summer’s morning when the mist covered the lake and the world was mysterious.  Joe lowered his head towards Susanna, gazing into her face, and kissed her.  Susanna let herself fall into his warm, tender embrace.

Adam was looking for Joe to tell him it was time to move, but he stopped as he came round the back of the wagon and saw the couple in an embrace that made his breath catch in his throat.  He retreated silently and went to his horse.

“Tell Joe it’s time to go,” he instructed Hoss, and then rode off as far as the next bend and waited for them.

Hoss frowned, wondering why Adam hadn’t told him himself.

“Joe, we should be makin’ a move,” Hoss called.

Joe released Susanna slowly, smiling down at her.  “That’s it, gotta go.”  He helped Susanna up onto the seat of the wagon, and followed her, untying the reins of the team from the brake handle.  As he glanced at Susanna, the argument with his brother was forgotten; he had something more important to occupy his mind.

They went silently; Adam riding ahead, Hoss behind, keeping their eyes open for any sign of trouble, but all was quiet.  After putting more miles behind them, Adam called a halt and again they made camp for the night. 

It was near the end of Joe’s watch and he was walking the perimeter of the camp, when he saw movement.  He put his hand on his gun, waiting for the shadow to move again, and when it did he saw that it was Adam, coming to relieve him.

“Hi, brother,” Joe said quietly.

Adam looked round, wrapping his arms across his chest and burying his hands as he hunched his shoulders.  He didn’t like the cold.  “Anything moving?”

Joe looked round as though to assure himself that all was quiet.  “Apart from you, nothing,” he reported.

“Okay, ‘night.”  Adam was going to continue the rounds that Joe had started, but his brother caught his arm.

“Can I talk to you?” Joe asked.

Adam peered at Joe in the darkness, the risen waxing moon the only light.  “Yeah, of course.  What’s on your mind?” he asked guardedly, hoping that Joe wasn’t going to bring up the subject of Zeke and Jack.

“Susanna.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, oh.  Adam, do you think that she might want to stay in Virginia City rather than go on to California?”

Adam leaned against the tree beside him and watched as Joe paced to and fro.  “Well, I don’t know, why would she want to?”

Joe paused in his pacing.  He wanted to tell his older, worldly-wise, brother what was on his mind, but Adam might not treat it seriously, and Joe was serious about Susanna. 

“She might want to if I told her that I love her.”  Now it was out and there was no going back.

Adam nodded to himself, knowing that he had been correct in his reading of the signs, and that he had been right to keep his distance, but he wanted Joe to think about what he was saying.  “Whoa, hold on there Joe, isn’t this a bit sudden?  You’ve only known the girl a couple of days.”

“I know, but I think she’s special.  She’s intelligent, and strong and independent.”  Joe laughed, “Sounds a better match for you, big brother.”

Adam was glad that Joe couldn’t see his face clearly, couldn’t see the flicker of pain that crossed it.  He didn’t reply.

“What do you think she’d do if I told her?” Joe stood in front of Adam, his fingers toying nervously with the ties of his green jacket.  Too many girls had slipped through his fingers and he wondered if, despite his reputation, he just didn’t know how to handle a woman.

“That depends; do you know how she feels?”

Joe shook his head.  “No.  I know that she seems to enjoy being with me, she doesn’t mind if I put my arm round her and she even let me kiss her.  But otherwise…,” he shrugged, “I don’t know.”

“Don’t you think that you should wait and try to gauge her feelings?  If you tell her too soon, you might frighten her away, you could lose her.”  Adam saw Joe’s downcast expression.  “Joe, give her time, she’s young and she’s only just lost her father, and it might be too soon for her to want to commit herself to any sort of relationship, or she might clutch at your love out of grief or loneliness.  Why don’t you ask her if she wants to stay at the Ponderosa for a while before moving on?  The passes to California won’t close up for a few weeks yet.”

Joe’s face brightened.  “I already have and she said that she would like to.”

“Well, that’ll give you a bit more time.  Then, maybe, you can talk to her about love.”

Joe put out his hand to Adam.  “Thanks, brother; I knew that I could rely on you to help me.”

Adam pushed him gently.  “Go to bed.”

**********

They stopped on a rise from where, in the distance, they could see Fallon shimmering in the heat of the late afternoon sun, so one could imagine that it might be a mirage.  As they approached the settlement it became clear that it consisted mainly of wooden buildings, but with the occasional brick-built structure and one or two more in the process of construction; not a mirage at all, but a town that was growing.  Adam was pleased to see telegraph wires leading away in the direction of Virginia City; he would be able to send his father a message about their late return and stop him worrying.

The wagon rolled down the town’s wide main street towards the livery, where they stopped and Adam went inside.  A minute later he reappeared.

“Joe, you can pull the wagon into the side of the building.  It can stay there tonight and one of us can sleep in it to keep an eye on things.”  Adam watched the people passing by, going about their business.  “Apparently there’s no sheriff here; the last one got himself shot and they haven’t replaced him yet.  So we can’t report the robbery, or attempt at it.”

“Who’s staying?” Joe wanted to know.  He refused to contemplate that, as the youngest, it should be his duty to stay with the wagon and miss out on a night in a proper bed.

“We’ll decide like we usually do; draw straws,” Adam informed him, and Joe’s face fell, knowing what would be the outcome.  Adam went back into the stable, and returned holding three lengths of straw between his thumb and the base of his index finger, their ends concealed in his hand.

“Short straw stays,” he said, holding out his hand to Joe.

“Oh, no,” Joe protested, “Hoss first.”  Adam turned to Hoss who drew out a straw and held it close to his chest, peering into his hand and trying to gauge whether he had the short one.  Adam turned to Joe, whose fingers hovered over the remaining straws until, at last, he chose one.  Adam held up the final straw, which was long, and Hoss matched his to it.

Joe sighed and threw away his chosen straw in disgust.  “I don’t know how you two do that.”

“Just lucky I guess,” Adam said, putting his straw between his teeth and smiling.  Joe had never cottoned on to the fact that Adam always held the short straw furthest away from the end of his thumb, a fact that Hoss knew perfectly well, and that he could always silently persuade Joe to take the shortest by simply making it look as though he wanted Joe to take the straw nearest to him.  Joe would react in his usual way, by doing exactly the opposite of what he thought his brother wanted.

Hoss glanced up and down the street.  “Well, I guess we’d better go find the hotel, and something to eat, I’m starving.”

“So what else is new?” Adam remarked as he picked up his saddle bags and followed his brother.

Susanna held back, concerned that Joe was going to be left alone for the night.  “Will you be all right?”

Joe smiled at her worried expression.  “Oh yeah, sure.  I’ll come and have some supper and then settle down here.  Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”  He called after his brothers, “I’ll meet you fellas in that eating place in half-an-hour.”  He indicated a restaurant opposite the livery.

Hoss and Adam waited for Susanna to join them, and then waved over their shoulders as they headed down the street to find themselves rooms for the night. The hotel was a two-storied building, and the first floor bedrooms were small and dark but contained the main requirement; a comfortable, clean bed.  Once settled in their rooms, Susanna changed her blouse, Hoss dunked his head in a basin of refreshingly cold water, and Adam took the time to shave.  Then they went to join Joe at the restaurant.  After they had eaten their fill of some tender steak, with apple pie to follow, they stood on the sidewalk together.

“Joe, if there’s any sign of trouble, you come and get me, you understand?” Adam instructed.  Joe resented the implication that he couldn’t handle anything that might occur, but he nodded his agreement.  “Okay, we’ll see you in the morning, back here for breakfast.”  Adam turned away, towards the hotel.

Hoss slapped his little brother on the shoulder, a silent signal that he wished Joe a safe night and that he trusted him to be careful.  Susanna stood on tip-toe and quickly brushed Joe’s cheek with a kiss, then they parted and Joe went back to the wagon.  The livery was dark as Joe looked round to check that everything was in order before climbing into the back of the wagon and settling himself under the warm blankets.  The bed was no more than a palliasse laid on the floor of the wagon, but Joe, who had been sleeping on hard ground for the past month, found it soft enough.   He lay for a minute thinking of Susanna, imagining her lying in this same bed on her lonely travels. Then he thought of her beside him and a warmth spread through him.  He sighed with the love in his heart, turned over and was soon asleep.

In his hotel room Adam, too, lay in the darkness thinking about Susanna.  He liked her spirit and her courage in undertaking this journey alone, and she was beautiful.  Adam had noticed her unusual blue eyes, which were the color of mountains seen from a distance in the haze of the summer sun, and as he lay half-asleep those mysterious eyes drifted in front of his, and he smiled.  He had not made any approach to her, knowing how his brother felt, but he too experienced a pleasing warmth at the thought of her.  Maybe if she rejected Joe, he would say something to her, but in the meantime he would keep himself at a distance.  He sighed with resignation, turned over and was soon asleep.

Joe stirred and woke, slowly remembering where he was.  The bed he lay in was better suited to the slender frame of Susanna, and Joe shifted, trying to make himself comfortable.  He closed his eyes again but sleep would not come as he tossed from side to side.  Finally he gave up and lay with his hands behind his head, telling himself that he didn’t mind a sleepless night if it was to protect the wagon and its contents.  His mind was wandering, but always coming back to Susanna and his feelings for her, when suddenly he became aware of the sound of movement outside and he sat up slowly, reaching for his gun.  As he took it in his hand he threw back the covers and crawled to the back of the wagon, pushing aside the heavy canvas and peering out into the darkness.  He saw no one, and climbed quietly over the tail board.  As his feet touched the ground he came upright slowly; he could feel the hard pressure of a gun in his back.

“Drop the gun,” Zeke’s deep voice ordered and Joe complied, turning as he did so.  He saw three men, Zeke, Jack, and a stranger. 

“What do you want?” asked Joe, knowing the answer.

“We want whatever it is that you got in that wagon.  Jack, take a look.”  Jack, following Zeke’s command, climbed into the back of the Conestoga, lit a match, and his shadow flickered on the canvas until he lit a lamp and could be seen moving about inside the wagon.  After a few minutes, he reappeared with the lamp in one hand and a bundle of notes in the other.

“’Bout a thousand dollars, I reckon.”  Jack showed them the money he had found.

“Bring it over,” Zeke ordered.

The stranger came to stand in front of Joe.  “Is this the kid who’s supposed to be so fast?”

Joe looked into the close-set eyes of the man, and was afraid.  Even in the darkness they shone with an ill concealed malice, a disdain for other men that Joe had seldom seen before but which he knew meant trouble.

Zeke smiled nastily.  “According to his brother, yeah.”

“He don’t look so fast to me.”  Clem, the third man, was no stranger to gun fights.  He reckoned he was as fast as any man around, and anxious to prove it at any given opportunity.

Joe didn’t reply, he was looking at Zeke holding the money, thinking what it would mean to Susanna to lose it, and his temper flared.  He leaped at the man, who was knocked off his feet by the sudden impact.  Joe stood and faced Jack and Clem, and for a moment no one moved.  Then the two men both went for Joe at the same time and, despite exchanging blows with them, Joe found himself on the ground.  He grunted as a boot hit him in the ribs, robbing him of breath, then he was lifted to his feet and Zeke hit him in the face.  As the world receded, Joe cried out silently for his brother, for the help that he knew would never come.

**********

“Adam, help me!”  The words screamed in his head, demanding attention.  Shocked into wakefulness, Adam sat bolt upright, waiting for the voice to come again, knowing it was Joe’s, then he looked round and found that he was in bed in the hotel and it was still dark; he must have been dreaming.  He shook his head and lay back against the pillows but couldn’t settle.  The desperation in the voice was ringing in his head, and he lit the lamp by the bed, trying to clear it from his mind, but it persisted.  Finally he got out of bed and, after hurriedly pulling on his clothes, went out of the hotel in the direction of the livery.

All was quiet as Adam approached the wagon, and he smiled to himself.  He hoped that Hoss hadn’t heard him leave; he would tease his elder brother unmercifully for the illogic of acting on his dream.  Adam was about to turn and head back to the hotel, when he saw a glimmer of light through the dirty window set high in the side wall of the livery.  Curiosity, and the memory of the desperate cry he had imagined, led him round the front of the building, to the doorway.  He heard voices coming from inside and immediately recognized Zeke’s deep tones.  As Adam drew his gun and eased himself silently round the partly open door, he saw Joe, his arms held behind him by Jack, his chin on his chest.

“Now let’s see who’s the fastest,” Zeke said, standing in front of Joe and grinning.  Three to one were the sort of odds that he could handle.

”I guess I am,” said Adam, moving out of the deep shadows by the door and coming up behind Zeke, pushing his gun into the man’s back as he did so.

When he heard his brother’s voice, Joe’s head came up slowly and his eyes opened wide.  “Adam, no!”  Joe’s eyes slid sideways to look behind his brother.

Adam saw the move and had started to turn to see who Joe was looking at, so that the gun butt that was aimed at his head did not hit him with the force that was intended, but still the blow momentarily robbed his mind of thought and his legs of strength and he sank to his knees, dropping the gun as he put his hands out to stop himself from hitting the ground.  As Adam slowly collapsed, Clem, who had been standing to one side hidden in the shadows, stepped past him and kicked the gun away, out of reach.  Adam stayed on all fours, shaking his head to clear it, then he stood slowly, and as he rose he found himself looking down the barrel of a gun that was aimed at his head.

“Well look who’s here, the mouthy one.”  Zeke stepped up to Adam and backhanded him across the face.  Adam managed to stay on his feet, and as he recovered made to retaliate, but the man holding the gun stopped him.

“You stand right there and don’t move,” Clem instructed.

Adam looked at the weapon, held purposefully in the steady hand, and stood still.  He glanced across at Joe, who was struggling against the restraining hands of Jack.  “You okay?”

“Yeah, he’s all right,” Zeke answered him, “he tried to stop us taking the money.  Now he’s just getting ready to face my friend here.”  He indicated the man who stood in front of Adam.  “Clem reckons that he’s fast enough to take your brother, so now we’re going to find out.”

“But Joe’s in no fit state for a fight; look what you’ve done to him!”  Adam protested, seeing that Joe’s eyes were unfocused; there was blood seeping from a cut over his right eye and swelling on his jaw.  Adam took a step forward, intending to check whether his brother had sustained any more serious injuries, but stopped when Clem cocked the gun.

Zeke sneered, “One more move from you and you won’t be around to care what happens to your brother.”  Then he spoke to Clem, without taking his eyes from Adam.  “Tie him up.”

Clem moved behind Adam and pushed him towards a post at the far end of the stable.  “Sit down,” he ordered.  Adam lowered himself slowly onto the straw covered dirt floor; Jack had released his hold on Joe and now had a gun in his hand, pointing it at the young man who stood swaying slightly, and Adam didn’t want to give Jack any excuse to use it.  Clem told Adam to put his hands behind the post, and then tied them securely.  Zeke came over, pulled a kerchief from his pocket, and, forcing Adam’s mouth open, gagged him, tying the dirty material tightly round his head.

“That should shut your smart mouth for you.”  Zeke was enjoying turning the tables on the man who had made a fool of him, and Adam could do nothing except watch as Zeke turned to Joe. “Okay boy, now let’s see you take on Clem.  He’s fast, but if you’re as good as your brother says, you should have no trouble.”  Zeke smiled nastily, thinking that Joe stood little chance against the man that he had seen take down all who had challenged him.

Joe stood unmoving, drawing in deep breaths and forcing himself to concentrate on what Zeke was saying.  “I won’t fight him,” Joe declared, “I got no reason to kill him, and I won’t do it just to prove I can.”  He caught Adam’s eye and saw the look of relief that flickered across his face.

Zeke studied Joe, seeing the determination in the young features.  Then he moved to stand beside Adam and drew his gun, pressing it into Adam’s temple.  “Then do it for your brother’s life.  You draw or he dies.”

Joe stared at Adam for a moment, shrugged as though in apology, and then went slowly and unsteadily to stand in front of Clem.  When Adam saw Joe flex his fingers in preparation, he tried to make himself understood as he shouted at his brother to back off, but his words were lost amongst the folds of the gag in his mouth, and Joe continued to stare at Clem, forcing his eyes to focus.

Zeke turned to the man who would get his revenge for him.  “Any time you’re ready.”

“I’m ready.”  Clem walked away from Joe and turned.  “Okay kid, take your best shot.”

Adam struggled against the rope holding him and shouted unintelligible, muffled words at their captors, who simply ignored him.

Joe could see that he would have to draw against the man if they were to have any hope of getting out of this.  From somewhere deep inside he found the strength he needed, born of a love of his brother and a hatred for the men who threatened him.  He straightened and tried to steady himself, running through in his mind what he was going to do.  He rehearsed silently to himself the sequence of events.  He would look into the man’s eyes, waiting for that tell tale sign that he was going to go for his gun, then his own hand would move, grasp the handle of his weapon and, while drawing it from its holster, cock the hammer and then aim and shoot in the same moment.  He relaxed; his body knew what to do, and he tried to blank the movements from his conscious mind.

For five interminable seconds there was absolute silence in the stable as the two faced each other, then a sudden flurry of movement and the stunning sound of gunfire.  Adam looked on wide eyed, and let out a shuddering breath as Joe stood uninjured while the other man slid to the floor. 

Joe cocked his gun again and turned towards Zeke and Jack.  “Let my brother go,” he ordered, taking a step towards Adam.  Jack was about to move when they were deafened by the sound of another shot.  Joe flew backwards into the empty stall behind him, and Adam heard the sickening thud of his little brother’s head striking the wall.  Joe rebounded and fell to the ground as Clem climbed unsteadily to his feet, the gun in his right hand still smoking and his left pressed against his side.

He went over to look down at Joe where he lay unmoving among the straw.  “It’s never over till it’s over, kid.”  Clem started to collapse as his knees threatened to give way, and Jack hurried to support him.

Adam struggled uselessly against the restraining rope; all he could see of Joe was his head showing beyond the wooden barrier of the stall, his face a deathly white, and Adam could only wonder whether his young brother still lived.

Zeke looked round the stable as he moved towards the door.  “We’d better get outta here before someone comes.” Jack supported Clem out of the door and Zeke was about to follow, but then he stopped and returned to crouch down in front of Adam, and brushed the shoulders of the black shirt, imitating Adam’s earlier gesture.  He showed him the money they had stolen.  “You should’a taken us in.  Guess you ain’t so smart after all.”  Then he was gone.

Adam sat staring at Joe, with Zeke’s last words filling his mind, hammering at him as he forced his eyes to look at his motionless brother.  He shouted Joe’s name repeatedly, but the words were deadened by the gag, and the green eyes were hidden behind lids that remained stubbornly closed and showed no reaction.  Adam fought against the rope that held him, his face tense and his eyes reflecting his shifting emotions; anger, regret and sorrow.  He thought that perhaps someone would come to investigate the gun fire, but then he remembered that there was no sheriff, and he knew that the good citizens of Fallon would stay safe in their homes.  Adam’s shouts slowly got softer until he fell silent, straining his ears for any sound that would tell him Joe was still alive, but there was nothing.  Adam pulled harder against the ropes and thought that there was some give in them.  He kept fighting to free his hands, desperation making him indifferent to the damage he was doing to his wrists; he had to free himself, to get to Joe, to find out what he dreaded to discover.

**********

In the hotel, Susanna was up and dressing.  The last time she had slept in a bed was months ago, and now she felt thoroughly rested for the first time since she and her father had started on their journey. As she put on her freshly laundered bright yellow blouse and tucked it into her grey skirt, she thought of Joe, and the less than comfortable night he would have spent in the wagon.  She would make sure that he knew how grateful she was that he had done so.  She gazed at herself in the full length mirror beside the open window that let in the cool, early morning breeze, and imagined Joe standing behind her, his strong arms wrapping themselves round her slim waist.  She hugged herself and smiled; when she had decided to continue her journey alone, she had not thought to find a man like Joe in the wilds of Nevada.  He was kind and courageous, humorous and full of life, in fact the sort of man that any woman would be proud to have standing beside her as a husband.

As her mind conjured up the fantasy of living with Joe, she thought of his brothers.  Would Hoss and Adam welcome her into their family?  She was sure that Hoss would accept her; he was too open and straightforward with his feelings to hide any dislike he might have.  But what about Adam?  He had seemed to avoid her on the trail, never riding beside the wagon, but going on ahead at every opportunity, and when they sat together for meals he was polite and joined in their conversations, but Susanna felt that he was holding back, that she was not seeing the real person behind the serious façade.

She shook herself out of her reverie and made for the door.

Hoss was dressed and looking for Adam, but when he knocked on his brother’s bedroom door he got no reply, so he opened it slowly.  He saw the empty bed and thought that Adam must already have gone down for breakfast.  As Hoss backed out of the room he nearly bumped into Susanna in the hallway.

“Good morning Hoss, is Adam ready?”

“Mornin’ Ma’am.  He’s already up and out by the look of it.  Let’s go get breakfast.”

Hoss escorted Susanna down the quiet street to the restaurant.  The lack of people made him realize that it was Sunday, and the town would not stir so early.  They went inside, but found no sign of Adam or Joe.

“I expect Adam’s tryin’ to wake Joe, that boy hates to get out of bed.  Let’s go help him.”  They walked over to the wagon but could not find either brother.

“Wonder where they’ve got to?”  Hoss looked round, puzzled.

Inside the stable, Adam had finally succeeded in his struggle to free himself from the bonds that kept him from going to Joe.  He had been oblivious to the time and, as his hands parted, he looked up and was horrified to see daylight coming through the window set high in the wall.  How long had he been fighting, how many minutes, or hours, had passed, and did one of those uncounted moments mark the passing of his brother?  He pulled the gag from his mouth, not bothering to try to undo it but letting it drop round his neck, and pushed himself to his feet.  He ran across the stable, his eyes wide as he slid to a halt on his knees in the stall where Joe lay.  Adam bent over the young body, seeing Joe’s left side covered with blood from his shoulder almost to his waist, and his hand hovered over Joe’s chest, afraid to touch it, afraid that all he would feel was the chill of death.  As he hesitated, Adam stared, hardly daring to believe what he saw.  He closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief as Joe’s chest rose and fell unevenly, testament to the life that was still present.

Adam knew he had to get Joe to a doctor, but first he crossed to the stable door, stopping to pick up his discarded gun, and he had to force his fingers to close on the weapon and grip it; his struggle with the rope had torn at his wrists and blood covered his unfeeling hands.  He peered outside, and when he had assured himself that all was quiet, he returned quickly to Joe’s side, grimacing as he saw the pale face and the sheen of sweat that covered it.  Adam placed his hands under Joe’s knees and shoulders but, as he tried to lift him, he realized that his arms were weak from his fight to free himself.  His breath caught in his throat as he struggled against his feebleness and forced himself to stand and carry the limp form from the stable, intent on finding help.

Hoss came to the front of the building as he heard the door creak open, then he was hurrying to relieve Adam of the burden he carried.

“What the devil happened?”  Hoss wanted to know as he saw the blood that stained Joe’s shirt, but Adam was not going to waste time with explanations that could wait.

“We’ve got to find a doctor, quick.  You carry him, I’ll find out where the doc is.”

Adam ran across the street into the restaurant.  He emerged a minute later and pointed.  “This way, come on.”  He ran towards the hotel, but turned into an alley before he reached it.  Hoss followed, Joe cradled in his powerful arms, Susanna holding Joe’s head against the bumping movement.

Adam came to a halt in front of a door which bore the sign ‘William Ferguson MD’.  He knocked, but when he did not immediately receive a reply he opened the door, his hand leaving a bloody smear on the handle.  Inside a single lamp illuminated the room, which contained a desk, what looked like a medicine cabinet, a couple of chairs and a narrow bed in one corner.  An elderly man was rising from behind the desk.  He was tall, heavy set, grey haired and had an unlit cigar in his mouth, which he chewed on as he peered at his sudden visitors.

He pulled the cigar from his mouth as he stood.  “What’s your hurry?”

“My brother’s been shot.”  Adam held the door as Hoss entered.

“Take him through there,” the doctor instructed, pushing open the door at the back of the room.  Hoss made his way through the office and into the surgery, where he laid Joe on a high leather couch that doubled as an operating table.  Beside the couch was a cabinet in which could be seen the tools of the doctor’s profession, shining dully in the lamplight, and a table to hold them during use.  On the other side of the room, against the wall, were two beds waiting to be occupied, and two wooden chairs, the only furniture in the otherwise bare room.

The doctor followed his early morning callers, then stood looking down.  He lifted one side of Joe’s shirt, peered beneath the material, and addressed Adam as he let it fall back into place.  “You’re right, he’s been shot.”

Adam drew a deep breath and spoke with deceptive calmness.  “Yes, I know that.  Help him.”

The doctor took a step back.  “Well now, I don’t know you.  You come bursting in here and demand that I tend to your brother.  But I don’t do this for free, you know.  How do I know you got any money?”

Adam’s patience snapped and he stepped quickly round the couch as he drew his gun.  Ignoring the pain from his cut and bruised wrists, he forced his fingers to work, pushing the gun under the doctor’s nose, at the same time grabbing hold of the front of his jacket.

Adam’s voic