AN: Hi, I'm new to this fandom :-) Just getting my feet wet with this missing moments/alternate scene to season 14's "The Witness". I have backtracked and incorporated some of the scene from the episode to make what I wanted to write smoother in my eyes. Thanks to those for reading. Feedback is welcomed and appreciated should you have the time to leave me a review.

Special thanks to my beta reader.

Disclaimer: I do not own "Bonanza" and its characters. All creative rights belong to their original creators. Only the plots and fanon which includes my own characters or places of interest that I created belong to me. No profit is gained in writing this story.

Jail House Fever

(*Edited by "meixel")

The tall lanky young man paced the small space between the cell he was visiting and the door leading out to the sheriff's office. His oak colored cotton shirt started to cling to his skin uncomfortably as perspiration broke out all over his body. The air became too stale to breathe. He wiped his face with his hands, distractedly, as he tried to pay attention to what his friend was saying to him and Joe Cartwright

As Candy wracked his brain and recalled as much detail as he could about his encounter with the mysterious Kate Fallon, he failed to notice his young protégé pacing outside his cell.

"Now, look, don't worry, we'll find her," Joe reassured Candy when he could see the frustrations playing out on his friend's features.

"She had no reason to lie me. I don't…I don't understand it," Candy sighed then hung his head, gripping the bars in front of him with both hands. He knew that if Joe couldn't find Kate Fallon, the judge would find him guilty of robbing and murdering Ella Peterson. Kate was his alibi and his only chance of clearing his name. She had told him she was seeing friends in town and would be staying at the hotel but according to Joe, she was nowhere to be found. He couldn't understand why she hadn't rode in to the sheriff's office and explained to the law that he couldn't possibly have committed the crimes of which he was accused.

"Maybe she just…she was out of money and…and just didn't know what to say," Griff chimed in, nervously. He stood, in front of the cell but avoided Candy's scrutinizing gaze and stared at the floor.

"That's possible," Candy began. He looked up at Griff, and for the first time since the two men arrived to pay him a visit, he noted his young friend's pale and sickly complexion as he danced around with his words. "Are you sick, Griff?"

Joe turned his head and looked at Griff,who stood beside him with his head bowed.

"No," Griff mumbled, suddenly feeling like the room was beginning to close in on him at a rapid pace.

"Maybe you should step outside and get some fresh air, huh?" Candy suggested, with a hint of genuine concern.

"Yeah, maybe that's a good idea. I'll come back and see you later," Griff replied as he finally looked up long enough to gaze into Candy's eyes.

The relief on Griff's face was evident as he shook hands with Candy then turned to leave the room. Wordlessly, Joe and Candy watched as the young man hurried to the door, knocked and called out in an impatient tone, "Open up." When he didn't hear footsteps approaching quickly enough, he knocked harder and all but shouted, "Open up!"

"What got into him?" Joe asked, puzzled by Griff's behaviour.

"Jail house fever. Bars and locks. Think about it - when the walls start to close in on you, and smash you flat," Candy answered, a faraway look crossed his grey eyes.

For Griff King, life had kicked him in the teeth from the day his mother died and his step father took to beating him, regardless of whether the older man was sober or drunk. Sometimes it was worse when he was sober. Then one day when he thought he was going to be beaten for the last time, Griff hit him with a pick axe handle. He knew he would've killed him if his biological father hadn't come around to stop him. His own father, his flesh and blood, put him behind bars. He was barely sixteen at the time and hardly old enough to even shave.

Prison life made him older, fast. He built a wall around his heart, as impenetrable as the stone fortress that imprisoned him. Four years into his sentence dragged into eternity as every hour of each day he fought to survive, both physically and mentally. Then one day by chance, Ben Cartwright entered his life and took him away from the harsh living conditions to which he was accustomed. Griff felt like a caged animal released for the first time into a society that treated him like an outcast.

"Hey, kid watch where you're walkin'!" an angry voice growled.

Lost in his thoughts and savouring the fresh air outside the jailhouse, Griff didn't see where he was walking and almost collided into a heavy set man at the bottom of the steps. "Sorry," he mumbled, without looking into the stranger's face. All he wanted to do was get as far away from the offending building as he could while he waited for Joe. He quickly dashed past the man.

"Maybe someone needs to sharpen your manners, boy!" the stocky man called out.

Laughter broke out from two locals as a small crowd began to gather outside the jailhouse.

Griff could feel a burning sensation creeping up his neck and coloring his face. His heart beat faster and harder as he was brought back to the present. He wheeled around and faced the older and larger man. "Excuse me? You oughta talk to a man while he's lookin' your way."

"What's the matter, boy? A little jail house fever got you all riled up for trouble?" the man sneered, displaying an array of tobacco stained teeth. He took several steps toward the young man.

Not wanting any trouble, Griff gritted his teeth and turned away from who appeared to be, in his opinion, the town bully.

"You look at me when I'm talking to you! Nobody turns his back on Jeb Cutter and gets away with it. Nobody!" Outraged at being ignored, Cutter rushed forward and planted a hand firmly on the young man's shoulder.

"Get your hands off me!" Startled, Griff's reflexes took him back to prison where he was constantly on edge. He spun around and shoved his intimidator away from him. Breathing hard, Griff's eyes widened and his hands balled up into fists at his sides. Before he could even think about taking a swing at the lout, two pairs of hands took hold of his upper arms and restrained him.

"Now, you listen to me, pup. You had better learn to show some respect for your elders or the next time we meet, someone's going to be picking out one of them long wooden boxes for you," Cutter threatened as he grabbed Griff's jaw with one hand and forced his head to turn in the direction of an undertaker taking measurements on a selection of coffins across the street.

Griff's silence was rewarded with a hard punch in the gut. The two men on either side of him held him upright as his shoulders slumped and his initial reaction was to double over.

"I didn't hear you, there. Do we have an understanding, boy?" Jeb said, drawing his face up close to Griff's.

Swallowing the bile that rose up the back of his throat, Griff stood his ground and kept his lips firmly pressed together.

With a dry laugh, Jeb took a step back and drew back his fist, ready to deliver a powerful unmerciful blow.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Jeb lowered his arm and turned around to address the man who spoke to him. He recognized him but couldn't quite place where he saw him before.

"Let him go," Joe said firmly.

"Or what?" Jeb said angrily.

"I said let him go."

"Just who do you think you are? Why don't you mind your own business!" snapped Jeb.

"You heard him, Cutter, McCabe, Jensen," a voice of authority joined in. "Take a walk, fellas." The Sheriff's order was final, and all three men knew not to push him too far.

Cutter signalled his men to release the young ranch hand, and the three gave the Sheriff a mock salute before walking away.

"All right, move along. There's nothing more to see here," the lawman dispersed the lingering crowd of onlookers then nodded at Joe Cartwright and disappeared back to his office.

Griff leaned back against the railing and waited for the pain to subside and his breathing to return to normal. He kept his blue eyes downcast, not wanting to meet Joe Cartwright's gaze.

"Are you all right?" Joe asked, after a moment's silence passed between them. He walked up to his side and studied his friend.

Griff nodded and pushed himself away from the wooden rail. He drew a deep breath and turned away from Joe who followed him.

"What was that all about?" Joe called out.

"Nothing. I don't want to talk about it. Let's just find Kate Fallon, get Candy out of that jail and get away from here," Griff blurted out, resolutely. Why can't people just leave me alone?

Joe was tempted to press the issue but thought it best for now to let Griff be. The past few weeks since his probationary release, Joe could see Griff's attitude improving as he started to make genuine efforts to blend back in with the world outside of iron bars and cold grey walls. He didn't want his efforts to be ruined by people crowding in around him and forcing him back into his shell. The only person Griff could open up to was Candy. Joe knew that the best thing for Griff right now was to focus his energy on helping them free the one man who could break the fever that threatened to burn and consume him.

End