Chapter 9 "Anticipation"

"Dang-it! I didn't see that comin'!" Frank yelled, disappointed as Adam jumped his last surviving red checker.

Adam looked, "You never do...," his voice laced with boredom.

Frank shook his head, "Ready for another game?"

Adam sighed; this was the fifth game he had played in less than an hour. It had taken no more than ten minutes to beat the town's drunk. Normally, he found the game to be stimulating when faced with more worthy opponents, but now the game was beyond tedious.

Frank had already collected the pieces and had began setting them up. "I think I know what to do this time..."

"Look, I think I've had about enough of this." Adam groaned as he stood up and began to work out the kink that had formed in his lower back.

Frank looked up, hurt by the refusal to play. "You don't want to play anymore? But, but I'm sure I can beat you now... I figured out what I done wrong..."

Adam rolled his eyes, "You said that three games ago."

"Awe, come on, Adam, he's gotta have it for sure this time." Joe commented smartly from the adjoining cell.

Adam rolled his eyes; but reluctantly sat back down on the cot, "All right... one more game..."

Before the game could once again resume Sheriff Dawson entered the cell area from his office. "Afternoon, everyone. Just thought I'd let you Cartwrights know that I got that telegram sent off to Virginia City and already got a reply..."

Five pairs of eyes immediately focused on the piece of paper the Sheriff held in his hands. Impatient Joe prompted the Sheriff to hurry along, "SO... what does it say?"

Dawson smiled at the young man's eagerness, "Your Pa says he's on his way, and he should be here sometime Tuesday..."

Hoss slapped Joe on the back, nearly knocking him from his perch on the cot, "Yehaw! That shore is good news Sheriff!"

Adam on the other hand remained composed and emotionless, at least on the exterior. Although he was thrilled at the prospect of leaving the 'good' town of Springfield behind he was not so sure he wanted to face the temper of his father.

"Well, I just thought I'd let you all know. If you'll excuse me I got some administratin' to do."

Before the sheriff had made it out of the cell area, Adam stood up, "Uh, Sheriff... one more thing before you go..." Dawson turned around expectantly. Adam continued, "Well... we left our bags at the hotel... and I was wondering if maybe you could send someone to get them..."

The Sheriff nodded, "Yeah, I'll send someone to get your stuff for ya. Anything else?"

"Uh, no thanks."

"Good." Dawson winked in response.

Returning to his seat, Adam surveyed the checkerboard and his eager opponent with a skeptical eye. Yes, indeed, this was going to be yet another long day.

Hoss and Joe had also returned to their own chess game. As Hoss contemplated his next move, Joe thought about the last week and what was about to come. "I wonder what Pa's gonna say when he gets here?"

Adam and Hoss both looked up from their boards. Adam grinned, "I'm not sure I want to necessarily hear what he has to say."

Hoss agreed, "Yeah me neither... knowin' Pa though, you'll be able to hear him all the way in Virginia City."

"Yeah... I'm not so sure we shouldn't just stay in here... It might be better than seein' Pa... I can just see his face; bright red as he pays the saloon and the Sheriff." Joe chuckled.

"It's sure to be safer!" Hoss added.

"I can just hear him now... 'I send you boys on one trip, one simple task and you end up in jail!'" Joe imitated.

"Well, if I were you, I would be as humble as possible when Pa gets here. It's going to take days to get him to calm down after this fiasco." Adam added in a more serious tone.

Hoss and Joe sobered at the comment. The day of reckoning was fast approaching, and the reply the sheriff had read to them made them all realize there was going to be a lot of explaining to do. When that time came, it was going to be a long and difficult task.

Chapter 10 "The Arrival"

Tired and anxious after a long three day ride, Ben reached Springfield. Throughout the journey he had tried to think of the many ways his sons could have gotten into so much trouble. He had yet to come up with a reasonable explanation. Dismounting at the livery stable he proceeded to board the horse; he had little doubt that he was going to be here for quite sometime.

Next he made his way to the hotel. Ben was in no hurry to get over to the jail; his sons had been there for about three days now and a few hours more certainly weren't going to hurt. After securing a couple rooms, he decided it was time to head over to the jail and retrieve his wayward sons.

When he entered the sheriff's office, he found the sheriff sitting lazily at his desk with his feet propped up. Sheriff Dawson lifted his hat and peered at Ben from underneath the brim. "Howdy, somethin' I can do for you, sir?" Dawson asked as he sat up and moved into a more respectable position.

"I'm Ben Cartwright. I got this telegram from you two days ago." He pulled out the telegram and presented it to the Sheriff.

"Yes sir, Mr. Cartwright. I got your boys in there," he said, pointing to the cell area. "But, before I release em to ya, there's this matter of a few bills that need to be reconciled. Your boys said you might be willin' to pay for em...?"

Ben frowned at the mention "of a few bills." "Yes, that's right; I will reconcile what is necessary."

"Good, I was gettin' kinda tired of having such a crowded jail."

"I can imagine. Now, may I see them?" His patience was quickly wearing thin.

"Sure, sure you can see them." He reached for his keys and proceeded to open the closed doors to the cell area, "Hey you Cartwright fellas got a visitor."

All three men stood up eagerly as their father entered the room.

"Boy, Pa, you sure are a sight for sore eyes!" Joe said cheerfully.

"We'll see if you still think that after tonight," he said dryly.

Ben looked his sons over to assure himself they were okay. He inwardly smiled at the nervous glances that passed between Hoss and Joe. When his eyes fell upon Adam, however, he had to do a double take. He almost didn't recognize his son. He looked awful. His hair was matted to his head; he looked filthy: as if he hadn't bathed in ages.

"Adam? Are you all right, son?"

"Yeah, Pa, I'm fine, but I've certainly seen better days." Fatigue evident in his voice.

"Sheriff Dawson, how about letting my boys out of here?"

The sheriff nodded, "Sure, I'll let them out, after you pay their bail." He added to avoid any protests, "Sorry, but that's the rules."

Ben frowned, "All right. How much?"

"Well, let's see, just for the bail..." The sheriff walked back to his desk and picked up a piece of paper. "Well that'll be five dollars apiece."

"FIVE Dollars apiece?" Ben balked.

"That covers their meals too, Mr. Cartwright," the sheriff replied calmly.

Ben's frown deepened as he pulled out the bail money. "All right, there's your fifteen dollars."

Dawson took the money, "On behalf of the citizens of Springfield, I thank you."

"All right, you three, your Pa's paid your bail, so you can go." He announced to three of his guests as he unlocked the cell doors. "Sit back down Frank, you ain't goin' nowhere."

The brothers walked out of the cells, shoulders noticeably slumped; they had yet to face their father's wrath. They also knew there was the small matter of the wrecked saloon, which had yet to be mentioned.

Ben turned to the Sheriff expectantly, "Well, is that all?"

"Fraid not, Mr. Cartwright. You see, the reason your sons are in jail is because they wrecked one of our fine saloons, and well, as you might expect, the owner ain't too happy about it. As one might expect he's pressing charges against your three boys. Now, the Judge ain't gonna be round here for another month or two, so your boys are gonna have to come back and face a trial."

Ben scowled, "Just how much damage did they do?"

Dawson scratched his chin absently, "Well, Pete reckoned the damage to be around $700. That's includin' the chairs, tables and the booze they destroyed while fightin', plus the money he figures he lost due to closin' the saloon for a day and a half."

Ben fumed; he knew they had caused considerable damage to the saloon or they wouldn't have been held for so long, but to hear that it was going to cost him at least $700 was quite a shock.

"Sheriff, if we settle this with…Pete, might the charges be dropped?"

"Well I reckon I can drop the public brawling charges, and I reckon Pete is a generous enough man that he would drop his complaint if you paid for the damages."

"And where might I find this saloon, Sheriff?" Ben asked.

"It's across from the Victorian Palace, Mr. Cartwright. And, by the way, I wouldn't take those boys in there if I were you. Pete's likely to throw you out before you can so much as say 'What do I owe you?'"

Ben's eyes narrowed at smart comment, he did not appreciate the humor. "Thanks for the advice, Sheriff…and everything else."

"All right, let's go." He commanded to his sons. They had all wisely remained silent during the exchange.

As soon as the door to the Sheriff's office was closed firmly behind them, Ben turned to his sons his face red with anger. "I don't know what this is all about, but you can bet we're going to take care of this as soon as I get things settled with Pete over at the saloon. I want you three to go over to the hotel and wait for me there. I already got us rooms." He started to walk away when he suddenly stopped and turned back to his sons. He pulled out a dollar bill and handed it to Adam, "You need a bath!"

Adam raised his eyebrows, at his father's temper. "Now that's the best thing I've heard all week." With a shrug he started for the hotel, his brothers close behind. Their laughs were barely stifled as they followed.