I do NOT own Bonanza or any of the original Cartwright characters.
According to the public domain site I looked on, The song "DANNY BOY" WAS ACTUALLY WRITTEN IN 1913 only, for the sake of this story, I'm acting as if it was written in the Era the Cartwrights would have lived in.
His Wild Irish Rose
Chapter One
Opening Scene
Adam stood outside of the Carson City Bank. He'd ridden into Carson City to do some business for his father. Simple enough only, he couldn't believe the bank was closed. Adam didn't like the idea of carrying a five thousand dollar bank draft on him back home, but he couldn't stay in town either. He sighed and headed for his horse as he saw no other choice but to head back home with the draft still on him. What Adam didn't see was a tall lanky fellow watching him from across the street, nor did he see the man get his horse and start to follow him from a distance.
Scene One
The sun was unbearably hot as Clara Burr, better known as Pepper to her friends and family, and her uncle, Dr. Malachi Ashby a skilled surgeon, traveled down what seemed to her to be one extremely long and dusty road. If only it would rain, that would cool things off. The two were heading for Carson City; her uncle had accepted a job as temporary doctor until Carson's doctor, his best friend, recovered from an accident.
When the two bedroom home came into view his friend had wired him about, Malachi turned to his niece, "Well, 'tis the place. It will make for a nice place to live. You will see…" he stopped speaking as they heard a shot ring out, seconds later a tall skinny fellow ran out of the barn that stood nearby, around the corner of it then came barreling back around on a horse. He was riding faster than a body should be.
"Something's wrong." without warning, Pepper jumped off the wagon, which the good doctor had stopped, and ran towards the barn just knowing what she'd find. Once inside she was not to be proven wrong. A man lay on his stomach unconscious, with a bullet in his back. She quickly ran outside, "Grab your medical bag quick!"
"What is it?" Malachi asked as he did as she asked.
"That fellow left a man in here to die." She answered as she ran into the barn and started worked on getting the bleeding to stop. Once she had it stopped she looked up at her uncle, "We'll have to get him into the house, somehow and into one of the rooms."
After the two of them managed to get the stranger inside, and upon a bed, Malachi went to work getting the bullet out, not an easy task considering where the bullet had lodged itself. Hours later Dr. Ashby was sewing the stranger up. "This fellow's lucky I'm a surgeon," Malachi shook his head as he stepped away from the bed, "he'll be luckier still if he ever walks again."
Pepper's eyes widened in shock, "It did damage to the spine?"
"Not much, but," the good man shook his head, "Sometimes, it doesn't take much." He went to wash up and unload their things.
While her uncle unloaded the wagon, Pepper looked upon the unconsciousness man that lay before her. What had the other man shot him for? Who was he, and had he once had identification on him? Would he walk again? These and a thousand other questions ran through her mind.
Scene Two
Rain was starting to fall as Ben and Hoss stood on the porch, Little Joe and his wife, Rosa, had taken their two children and headed for home. "I don't like this," Ben watched the rain as he began speaking; "Your brother should have been home by now."
Hoss stuck his hands in his pockets; he was also worried. "If'n he's not back by the time the rain's over Little Joe and I will go lookin' for him, pa."
Ben turned his head and said, "WE will go looking for him. If he's not back by the time this storm is over, we will go looking." He then turned around and headed back inside.
Hoss stayed standing on the porch. Where was his big brother? Adam had always been so reliable. It wasn't like him to be late. Hoss' mind went back in time. 'Hey, Adam! Let's go fishin', chores are done!' five year old Hoss begged his older brother, who always seemed to have a book in his hand, to take him fishing. Adam sighed, he'd just gotten to the best part of his book and didn't really want to go, but he had to keep the child happy. After all, with Ben in New Orleans someone had to keep the child busy. "Alright," Adam stood up, "Let's go."
Adam had kept him busy and even helped him adjust to the shock of his father bringing home a new mother for them, one Marie, a widow of one the men that used to work for them. It wasn't until much later that Hoss found out just how upset Adam really was. His older brother never did show his true emotions very well. "Where are you, Adam?"
While Hoss and other others were praying for Adam's return, Pepper was watching over their injured guest. Placing a cold damp rag upon his forehead, Pepper found herself singing a song she'd learned from her mother.
Oh Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling
From glen to glen, and down the mountain side
The summer's gone, and all the flowers are dying
'Tis you, 'tis you must go and I must bide.
But come ye back when summer's in the meadow
Or when the valley's hushed and white with snow
'Tis I'll be here in sunshine or in shadow
Oh Danny boy, oh Danny boy, I love you so.
And if you come, when all the flowers are dying
And I am dead, as dead I well may be
You'll come and find the place where I am lying
And kneel and say an "Ave" there for me.
And I shall hear, tho' soft you tread above me
And all my dreams will warm and sweeter be
If you'll not fail to tell me that you love me
I'll simply sleep in peace until you come to me.
I'll simply sleep in peace until you come to me.
As Pepper finished singing, Adam stirred but did not awaken. "Yuv've started a wee bit of fever, sir, but please, don't ya go dyin' on me," she wiped the perspiration that lay on his forehead away once more, "I'm sure ya's got some family somewhere out there lookin' for ya."
A/N My apologies to anyone who knows how to put the Irish accent into the written word. I am doing my best to write according to the way it sounds to me, and I've been known to be wrong before.