I posted this story several years ago on the big valley board and i've decided to post here too. English is not my mother language an i wish to thank my beta Kellie
This is an alternate story of how Heath arrived at the ranch. Leah is deceased, Tom Barkley is still alive, Jarrod is 18, Nick is 14, Heath is 8, Audra is 3 and Gene is an infant.
It was a wonderful Sunday. The sun was bright and it was too perfect of a day to work in his uncle's hotel. For the first time in his brief life Heath decided to skip work and spend the entire day at the county fair in a nearby town not too far from Strawberry. It would only take two hours to travel by horse so he asked Mr. Johnson, the stable owner, if he could borrow a horse for the day. Johnson gladly lent one of them to Heath.
Six months ago Heath's mother had died in an accident and he was forced to live with his uncle. Leah's only two friends were too old to care for the boy, so he was placed in the custody of Matt Simmons. Everyone knew that Simmons beat Heath but no one cared, after all he was a bastard and had no other family.
The reason Heath wanted to visit the county fair were the horses, it was a well-known horse market in California and since Heath had started to work in the stable he had felt a special bond with these gentle creatures.
As soon as he arrived he went to the corrals to observe the magnificent animals; he stood motionless for several minutes daydreaming about the day when he would own one for himself. For some time he wandered around looking at the different attractions, he was tempted to visit some of them but he had barely enough money to buy some food.
Something attracted his attention in the dust. There was a wallet lying on the ground, someone had probably lost it! He looked around but he could only see one man nearby, maybe he was the owner. He rummaged in the wallet to see if he could find something to identify the owner. He found a large amount of money, more than he had ever seen in his life. For a brief moment he was tempted to keep it but suddenly he remembered his mother's teaching about honesty so he decided to run after the man.
"Hey! What are you doing? Give my brother's wallet back." He heard from behind as a hand grabbed his shoulder.
"Jarrod, this kid stole your wallet, come here!" Heath slowly turned and faced a teenage boy, the owner of the booming voice.
"I didn't steal it, I just found it!"
"Yeah, and pigs fly! I should spank you."
"No. . . please! Don't hurt me!" Heath pleaded while he backed away and put up an arm to ward off any blows. Nick was puzzled; he didn't want to terrorize the kid, just scare him a little bit.
"Nick, what did you do to him?"
"Me? Nothing! I found him with your wallet."
"Please sir, don't beat me. I didn't steal it, I swear. I just found it, I was going to give it back to you." He pleadingly sobbed.
"Calm down, we won't hurt you. I'm sorry my little brother scared you.
My name is Jarrod Barkley and yours?" He asked hoping to ease the situation.
"Heath. . . Heath Thomson, sir."
"Call me Jarrod. Nick, I think you should buy Heath some ice cream."
"But Jarrod!"
"Nick! You scared the living daylights out of Heath. The least you can do is make amends in some way."
On the way to the ice cream shop Jarrod observed the boy closely. He looked to be around eight years old and had blue eyes and blond hair. Funny,
it's the same shade as my little sister's, he thought. He was poorly dressed and shoeless. Once they arrived Heath was stunned to learn that there was a place where only ice cream was sold.
At first he just stared at his ice cream cup then, after few seconds, he started to eat. Slowly at first but before long he wolfed down its entire contents in record time.
"You sure were hungry, weren't you?" asked Nick.
"A little bit, I didn't have any breakfast."
"So, where are you from?"
"From Strawberry, why?"
"Just curious, do you want another one?"
Heath was torn, he really wanted another ice cream but he wouldn't accept charity. As Jarrod watched, Heath's eyes answered for him.
"This time I'll buy the ice cream!"
"Thank you sir...I mean Jarrod."
"You're welcome, are you here with your parents?"
"No, my mama died six months ago." He replied sadly.
"I'm sorry, so you are here with your father?"
"I don't have one. I'm here all alone!"
After a few minutes Heath finished his second cup. Doesn't look like he gets much to eat at home, thought Jarrod. For some reason he couldn't explain he felt a bond with this boy and wanted to get to know him better.
"So, do you like school? My brother Nick here doesn't like it very much."
"I don't go to school, my Aunt Rachel gives me some lessons after work,
though."
"Why don't you go to school?" asked Nick. He would have preferred to work on the ranch with his father instead of going to school but this kid was too young for any kind of work. He should be at school where he can study and play with other kids, he thought.
"I used to go but all the kids teased me 'cause I was poor and my Mama wasn't married to my father. They told me I was a bastard and they beat me up all the time so my Mama decided that Rachel could learn me since she was a teacher. I like horses so I worked in the stable to help Mama with the money."
"Do you need some money?" Jarrod asked even though he already knew the answer.
"NO, I don't take charity. My Mama taught me so."
"Sorry, forget I asked. Nick and I are going to see some horses we want to buy, do you want to come with us?"
"Sure!"
They strolled down the street toward the corral. Nick was amazed by Heath's knowledge of horses; he was a nice little fella. Heath didn't say too much about himself, in fact he didn't talk much at all. He told only essential facts about his brief life. He lived with his uncle, a real s.o.b. in both brother's opinions, and worked all day. The only subject in which he opened up was horses; he had a special gift with them which Nick and Jarrod observed at the corral.
It was near sunset when Heath was forced to depart from his new friends. It was very late and he knew he would be punished but today was one of the happiest since his mother's death and he didn't care too much about how his uncle would react.
Five days after the fair Nick and Jarrod arrived home. As soon as they settled the horses they had purchased the entire family welcomed them.
"Mother, father did you see the horses we bought! They're the best I've ever seen." Exclaimed an excited Nick.
"We're fine and thank you for asking, Nick." Replied his father with a grin.
"Now go take a bath, both of you are dirty. We will have plenty of time to talk about your trip afterwards." Added Victoria.
At dinner they started to talk about the trip and Nick, as usual, talked all about the new horses.
"Jarrod, you have been awfully silent. Is there anything you would like to add to your brother's tale?" Victoria asked quietly.
"Yes, we met a little boy and I've been thinking about him ever since then.
He made me realize just how lucky I am. I have everything I desire, I don't have to worry about love, food or whatever but this little kid lost his mother and he now lives with a relative who forces him to work all day. I wish I could do something for him. I know it sounds stupid but when I first encountered him I felt some kind of bond between us, maybe because his hair and eyes are so like Audra's. It's funny but all of his features seemed so familiar."
"Maybe you can send him some money, did he tell you where he lives?"
"Yes, he lives in a small mining town called Strawberry but he won't accept any money. I tried already to give him some and he told me he didn't want any charity."
At his son's words Tom Barkley paled. No one but Victoria noticed, she already knew of his affair in Strawberry and she was sure that he was remembering that woman now.
"Nick, Jarrod I have a surprise for you. Three days ago I received a telegram from your Uncle Jim. He's planning to visit us and grandpa will be coming with him. They want to see Gene and will arrive in two weeks." Tom said to change the subject.
"That's great, Father. The last time we saw them was when Audra was born. Now they can both see Coco."
"And I can talk with Uncle Jim about law school!" Added Jarrod.
The two weeks passed quickly, each member of the family was busy with his or her chores and everyone was looking forward to their relatives'
arrival.
When the carriage pulled up in front of the house Nick welcomed his uncle and grandfather with his booming voice.
"Uncle Jim, Grandpa it's great to see you!"
"Nick, you've grown a great deal since our last visit."
"Yes, sir, Uncle Jim, I have!"
They were all chattering as they entered the house and soon they began to exchange gifts and news. It wasn't long before Tom's father eagerly made his request.
"Now, Tom, it's time to meet my new grandson!"
"Yes, Father."
They went to the nursery and Tom showed the newest Barkley family addition to his father. He knew that his father was a little disappointed, Gene had inherited all of his features from Victoria's side of the family. None of Tom's sons showed his father's Scottish ancestry.
"Maybe next time, or when Jim decides to settle down and raise a family."
"Very funny Father. You're still trying to marry me off." Jim replied with an amused voice.
"Follow me, I'll show you to your rooms. Dinner will be in two hours"
After dinner the whole family exchanged some happy memories in the parlor.
"Tom, I've got a surprise for your family, a photo of you and Jim at your wedding. I thought I had lost it but I ran across it some time ago and thought you would like to have it."
"Thank you, Father."
"Jarrod, Nick come here and look at your Uncle Jim. I was a very nice kid and I haven't changed any now that I'm grown up, have I?" Jim teased with his nephews.
As soon as the two boys looked at the photo they both froze.
"What's happened, did you see a ghost?"
"No but about two weeks ago we met a boy who was your spitting image when you where a child, Uncle Jim." Jarrod replied.
"Spitting image? He could be your twin!" Added Nick.
"Strange, isn't it?"
"Jarrod, Nick if I remember correctly you said that this boy was from Strawberry. What else do you know about him?" Tom asked with a trembling voice.
"Not much. His name is Heath, he's eight years old and he lives with his uncle."
"Do you know his surname?"
"I think he said Thompson...no, Thomson. His mother died six months before we met him and he told us that he doesn't know his father. He said his mother wasn't married."
"Oh my God!" Tom's glass shattered to the floor. Victoria came to the same conclusion and, after excusing herself, she ran to the master bedroom.
Everyone in the room was shocked by Tom and Victoria's behavior. After several long seconds Tom was able to regain his composure and, ignoring the worried glances of his father and brother, spoke to Nick.
"Nick, please go upstairs and call your mother, we need to discuss something very important. Ask her to meet us in the study, then go to your room and stay there until I call for you. Jarrod, I want you to stay."
"But father..."
"No, Nick, I will tell you what you need to know later. Now, please do as I have asked."
After several minutes Victoria joined the men in the study. Her swollen, red eyes made it plain to see that she had been crying.
"Now that Victoria is with us, can you tell us what's going on?"
"Father, there's no gentle way to say this. Do you remember when Victoria and I lost a child nine years ago? Afterwards there was a misunderstanding between us, so I took some time to check the mines in Strawberry. When I arrived I had some troubles and someone shot me. A woman helped me recover from my wound. Her name was Leah...Leah Thomson. She fell in love with me and I stared to feel something for her. At the time I was weak in body and spirit and I broke my marriage vows. After three weeks in Strawberry I realized that I loved Victoria with all my heart. When I left Leah she knew that I had a family and she understood."
Theodore Barkley broke the deafening silence.
"You mean that little boy from Strawberry is your son?"
"Yes, Father, I think so. His age is right and Jarrod and Nick just told us that he looks exactly like Jim."
"But was the mother..."
"No, she didn't work in the saloon."
"Why wouldn't she write and tell you about the boy?"
"I don't know, maybe because of my letter. As soon as I arrived home I wrote her and told her how much I loved my family and that she should have her own family one day."
"Tom, we must go to Strawberry to see if we can find proof that he is a Barkley, if so his place is here with his family!"
"Father, what do you mean by we?"
"Tomorrow morning we will all leave for Strawberry, you, Jim, Jarrod and I."
Victoria had remained silent during the entire conversation. Afterwards she simply stared at Tom before nodding her head.
"Yes, Tom, if he's your son he must stay here with us. His mother is dead and he needs all the love we can give him."
"Thank you, Victoria, I love you so much."
"Now I must tell Nick."
"That could be a problem." Nick had listened to their conversation, without their knowledge, through the door and suddenly he entered in the room yelling.
"FATHER, HOW COULD YOU BETRAY MOTHER!"
"Nick, please calm down."
"NO! I HATE YOU!" He hurried out of the study and after few seconds they all heard his bedroom door slam shut. Tom was going to run after him when Victoria stopped him.
"No, Tom, let him calm down. I will speak to him. You just go to Strawberry and bring that child home."