Chapter 10: Reunion

On Sunday evening, in Laura's and my bedroom, Pa tells us, "Here's what happened. The Indian chief led us away, blindfolded."

"But they don't usually do that."

"These Indians were renegades, Adam. They left the tribe after the death of Fast Moose, refusing to submit to the authority of his son. They swore to kill the greatest number of white men they could. We would have been their first casualties, except for Bert's actions. These Indians knew a lot about him and his attitudes about their people. Last week he hunted in their territory, and almost hurt one of their warriors, and that's why the renegades kidnapped his son. That's what Bert and Roy had just told us as we were coming to get you and Joe."

"They kidnapped Kevin? Poor boy." Now I understand why he looked like death warmed over, and the reason for his collapse. I have so much affection for the kid, although I still have some aversion for his father.

"Eventually we arrived in a place called the Valley of the Shadows."

"Sounds like a charming place to spend a holiday."

"You said it, Adam. Dry trees as far as the eye can see, big peaks rising under a blazing son, ravens cawing overhead, waiting for only one thing: to eat you."

"Personally," Hoss adds, "I'd rather be held captive at the edge of a lake."

"Yeah," Joe agrees, "and sitting at a table in front of a dozen grilled chickens."

"Absolutely, Joe," Hoss grins.

"I know you would, big brother," Joe keeps on. "But that's why they had to let you go; they were scared you'd eat up all their rations. The last meal of a doomed man is something else when the doomed man is Hoss Cartwright."

"Very funny. Ha ha."

Pa continues his story. "We were at the mercy of these renegades. We wondered who they were going to kill next."

"Wait a minute, Pa. You knew that Roy had fired blanks at us, didn't you?"

"I didn't know yet. Roy and Bert wouldn't be able to tell us until later. We couldn't speak to each other; your brother and I were lashed to a dried-out trunk, and Bert and Roy were tied up on the ground. Roy figured out how to give me a message, though."

"You would have enjoyed this part, Adam," Hoss put it. "Dadburnit, Roy was incredible. Listen to this, brother: the Indian chief asked Roy what the bandits had done, and Roy said, 'They robbed BANKS.' And hey, this is the downright ingenious part. With his boot, he drew an L. He pantomimed a robbery by pointing his finger and saying, 'Bang, bang!' And then he made a sign to Pa."

"Yes," Pa says, "and I understood that he'd fired blanks. That was one of the greatest moments of joy in my life. I'd just lost two sons, shot down before my eyes. And I thought of you, my dear Laura, and of this child growing in you. It was horrible."

Laura touches his hand. "Thank God, Mr. Cartwright, that this is no more than a bad memory now. Adam is saved, and so are all of you. Everything has ended well."

"If you say so," I huff. "I'm still suffering, though. Please don't forget that." Laura leans toward me and kisses me on the forehead. "Oh, yes, dear Laura," I moan. "Right there. That's the only place that isn't hurting. Everything else is smashed to bits, including the parts the crazy old man broke with his switch."

"Poor baby."

"Ha ha ha," Hoss laughs. "I would have liked to have seen that."

"He was a sick man, Hoss. He nearly made me crazy. He was stone deaf, and he spent all his time talking to his mule. And when I tried to speak to him, he didn't understand half my words, so I shouted myself hoarse. And on top of that, he gave me a beating. He thought I was being disrespectful."

"What?" Pa exclaims. "He hit you?"

"Yes, Pa." They all gather around my bed, looking at me as if I were dying. Laura is very close to me, and she puts her hand on my shoulder. With the special injection Paul gave me, my backache is eased, so I'm not feeling pain at the moment.

"Sweetheart, you're in poor condition. You'll need a few days to recover, that's for certain."

"We'll have to find another teacher for this final week. Miss Jenkins isn't back yet."

Joe laughs. "I get it—we've got to find a substitute for the substitute!"

Very funny, Little Joe. Maybe you should be the one. It wouldn't hurt you to read a few books and teach a little arithmetic."

"Stupid idea," Pa says. "Can you imagine your brother being a teacher? I can tell you the extent of his education: how to play hooky and how to get his brother to do his work for him. And that's only a start."

"You're right, Pa. My little brother is very gifted, but his areas of expertise wouldn't meet with the town council's approval."

"Not yet," Joe grins. "But sooner or later, my skills always prove to be the ones that are essential in life. You've got to admit, bit brother, I saved you from being hurt worse than you were by that old man."

"Yes, I have to thank you for stepping in. Thanks to you, he gave me a dozen blows instead of…good grief, I have no idea how many he would have given me. Nobody would have believed how fast and thick they were coming. He didn't look like much, but he was hiding some muscles under there, you know. You should have seen how he dragged me out from under the wagon…well, of course, Anatolia helped him then."

"Excuse me, dear husband, who is this Anatolia?" Laura sounds a little testy.

"The mule, of course."

"He called his mule Anatolia? But Adam, that's my aunt's name! The elder sister of Aunt Lil."

"Well, this Anatolia was his mule. Joe, you tell her. I don't want Mrs. Cartwright to start imagining things."

"Of course, big brother. It would be bad if your only undamaged place got smacked with a rolling pin."

"Never would I harm Adam, Joe! How dare you say that?"

"All women, everyone knows, are perfectly capable of breaking things over our heads, right? Hey! Ow! Adam, Hoss, help me!"

"Oh, no, little brother. You're on your own."

There's a general roar of laughter around the bed, a roar that neither Joe nor I share. Not for the same reasons, you understand.

"Okay, boys, get serious for thirty seconds so I can finish my story!" says Pa.

"Yes, Pa," I say gratefully. "You'd gotten to the part where Roy signaled to you that we were alive. What then?"

"Then we were still tied up, all four of us, without weapons and under the constant watch of the renegades. We couldn't move. They'd left three warriors with us, and we had only one chance: to wait for nightfall, to try to escape. Maybe at least one of us could get away. But we had to wait, just wait…"