Alright kiddies. This is chapter 4 and I don't know if we'll hear much from Emily. I want to thank you all for your kind reviews and enthusiasim for this story.

Hittin' the Trail

The next morning at breakfast Elliot looked across the table at his oldest son and said, "Ethan, I would like you to go with the men I've hired to take the steers into Dodge City."

Olivia looked at Elliot, "Elliot! You want to send our son into Dodge City? Why that is the most notorious town on the plains!"

"Darlin' he'll be fine. The trail boss has assured me that he will keep our boy out of the saloons and that they will be home after the cattle are sold." Elliot said, laying his hand across his wifes. "Besides they are going to Dodge well before the big trail heards come in." Then he turned back to Ethan, "You'll be gone for a month son, two weeks over with the cattle and about two weeks back."

"When do I leave Pa?" Ethan asked.

"Day after tomorrow. Enough time for you to write to Emily and tell her she won't be gettin' a letter for a while." Elliot said. He thought that being gone for a month would help his son and keep him from getting any crazy ideas, such as leaving to go to Philadelphia to find Emily.

Ethan knew that the next two day would be long as they would be out on the range rounding up their cattle. They didn't have a spread the size of some of the other folks around them but it was good enough for them. Ethan knew that someday he would be able to buy his own land and build a house on it and live there with his own family, if she ever came back. That thought made him sad. He looked at his father and said, "Alright Pa. I'll go."

"No!" Olivia cried. "Elliot this is insane! You can't send a boy out with those men."

"Liv! It will be fine. Tom will take good care of Ethan. He promised me that." Elliot said.

Shortly after breakfast Elliot and Ethan saddled up and rode away from the house. Olivia was mad as a wet hen at Elliot but he knew that she would settle down after a while. "Ma was awfull mad at you Pa." Ethan observed.

"I know, but she'll get over it." Elliot said.

Olivia spent the day with her three younger children. "William Stabler you get down here right this instant!" she hollered to one of the twins. He had just thrown dirt all over Katie as she played outside.

"What Ma?" Will asked.

"Why did you throw dirt all over your sister?"

"I didn't mean to Ma." Will said, dragging his toe in the dirt.

"Well your Pa is going to tan your hide when he gets home." Olivia said. She blew out a breath. She couldn't understand why the twins had been so naughty today. Finally she gathered all three of them and made them come into the house. "Alright you three." she said "You will all go to your rooms for the rest of the afternoon."

The children went to their rooms and the while the twins were in theirs they talked. "This isn't fair!" Caleb said to his brother. "You should be nicer to Katie and then we wouldn't get it to trouble."

"I told Ma I didn't mean to hit her with that dirt." Will said. He sat down on the bed and let his lower lip jut out. " I wish we were older so that we can go with Pa and Ethan. Boy Ethan gets to have all the fun!"

"Shh. I hear Ma comin' now." Caleb said.

The two boys laid down on their beds and pretended to be asleep. The heard their mother come and open their door and look in. "I know you two aren't asleep." She said.

"Aww, Ma." Caleb said, sitting up on the bed. "We were doin' what you told us too."

"I know but I have a chore for you two." Olivia said to her twin boys. She loved them but they drove her nuts as well.

"What?" they said together.

"I want you to go to the barn and get the hoes and then come back and I'll tell you." Olivia replied. "Be quiet when you leave the house though. Katie is asleep."

The boys left the house as quietly as was possible for two six year old boys to do anything and went to the barn to get the hoes. They came back and Olivia was waiting by the garden patch for them. "Ok you two. I want you to hoe all the dead old weeds out of this garden and then I want you to go and hoe the weeds out of the trees." Olivia said.

"Yes Ma." They again said together. They set to work and Olivia didn't hear another thing from them again all afternoon.

Ethan and Elliot had been riding hard all day. It was hot and Ethan could feel the sweat running down his back and into the waist band of his pants. He took his canteen off his saddle horn and took a long drink. By five o'clock that evening they had most of the Stabler cattle rounded up and they were just sorting out the brands of other ranches.

When they finished they drove the Stabler cattle back to their home ranch where they would prepare them to go to town. Elliot just hoped that the snows would hold off until Ethan and Tom were able to get the cattle to Dodge and get home again.

When he and Ethan got home that night it was starting to get dark and Elliot smiled when he saw that Olivia had put the boys to work that day. "Let's put the horses up son and then go have some supper."

When they came in, Olivia was cooking supper and was working on the boys reading with them from an old school book of Ethan's. "Guess what Ethan?" Caleb asked.

"What Caleb?" Ethan said looking at his little brother.

"We get to start school after you leave."

"Oh." Ethan said. "Are you and Will going to be riding to school everyday?"

"Yes." Caleb said. He wanted to go to school, Will he wasn't so sure about.

"What about you Will?" Ethan asked.

"Nope. I don't need no schoolin'." Will said from his place at the table.

"That right there proves that you do young man." Olivia said. She set supper on the table and then went to her husband. She kissed him and asked, "How was your day dear?"

"Good. We got a lot done so I feel satisfied." Elliot said. "After tomorrow Ethan and Tom and the boys will all be set to go."

"Well that's good to hear." Olivia said. She had since gotten over being mad at Elliot for sending Ethan on the trail ride with the other men. "Katie, sit up straight honey." She said.

"Yes Ma." Katie said. "Etan are wu leeving?"

"Yes Miss Katie." Ethan answered his little sister.

"Awre wu going to be gone a long time?" Katie asked.

"No sweetie. About a month. I promise to bring you a present though ok." Ethan said.

"Otay!" Katie's face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"Are you going to bring us something too?" Will asked.

"Yeah!" Caleb cried after his brother.

"Yes, I promise." Ethan said.

That night after he had spent the evening with his brothers and sister. They liked to play with little blocks of wood and the little train that Elliot had made for them on the sitting room floor, Ethan went up to his room. He decided that he needed to write Emily a letter and let her know that he was doing alright and that he was going to be gone for about a month helping Tom drive cattle to Dodge City. He could travel too, he thought to himself.

He sat down at his desk and took out a sheet of paper. How would he begin this letter? Ok Ethan pretty obvious, Dear Emily would be a good start.

Dear Emily,

I just wanted to write and see that you were well. I guess you are because you haven't written to me yet. I have been being kept very busy here at the ranch. Pa and I just finished rounding up our cattle and tomorrow we are going to get them ready to be trailed to Dodge City. I am going this year so I will be gone for about a month. I know it will probably take that long for you to get this but I still wanted you to know.

I hope you are enjoying your time at your aunts and learning how to be a lady of the city. I wish I could say a lot of things but I can't because your not here for me to say them too. So I guess I will keep them to myself until you return.

I do miss you though. Caleb and Will will be starting school soon so they won't be at home driving Ma crazy, they'll just been driving some poor teacher crazy. I think that she is new this year and young. I saw her at church a while ago but didn't talk to her. Maybe I'll have to. To keep her from kicking the boys out of school, you see. Well write to me soon, I'll be waiting.

All my best,

Ethan

After he signed the letter he put it in an envelope and addressed it to Miss Emily Munch and the address that Emily had given him the day that she left. He hadn't even been in to see Oliver at the bank yet, he supposed that he could go when he returned from the trail drive. He was actually excited about the trail drive. He laid the letter on his desk so that he could give it to his Ma and have her put it in the mail for him or give it to the mail carrier when he came by. He knew that it would take a while for it get to Emily but he was glad that he had written her.

He crawled into bed and hoped that it wasn't to cold tomorrow while they worked cattle tomorrow. It had been chilly today while they worked and he didn't want to see snow while he was gone.

The next day they worked cattle all day and by the time they came in he was tired. He looked on his desk and saw that his Ma had taken it when she came up that day. He smiled and let his tired body fall into bed. Tomorrow at daylight he left, so he had hugged his brothers and sister tonight before they went to bed as they wouldn't see him.

Daylight came way too soon for Ethan. His father came and roused him out of sleep and he was sure that he wasn't going to make it through the day. He dressed and went down stairs to a hearty breakfast that his mother had made for him. He ate the mash, eggs, bacon and biscuits that she had made and put he biscuit sandwhiches into his saddle bags because she was sure that he would starve on the trail if he didn't. He wrapped a clean pair of pants and shirt into his saddle bags as well.

After he kissed and hugged his mother and told her that he loved her he went outside to his waiting horse. His Pa must have felt bad for him and saddled up "Blue" for him. He talked to his Pa for a few minutes and then they shook hands and Ethan mounted up and he was off with Tom, George, Slim, Dusty and Cook. Cook was their cook and kid of a grimy looking fellow but Tom assured him that Cook was a good cook and to not let his appearance fool anyone. Slim and Dusty were about Ethan's age and the three were soon friends.

They trailed the cattle for about twenty miles that day just to get them out of their home territory. Once they were all bedded down the men all came in for chuck . Slim, Dusty and Ethan all sat down together and right away the two older boys started in on him. "So" Slim said, "You boys have a gal."

"Yup." Dusty said.

"No." Ethan replied.

Both Slim and Dusty looked at him, "What a good lookin' young buck like you and no gal?"

"Nope. She took off." Ethan said. Then he related the whole tale about Emily leaving to his new friends.

"That's pitiful." Slim said. "You know the only reason I'm on this trip is so I can get enough money to ask my gal to marry me."

"Me too." Dusty said.

"That's great guys." Ethan said.

"Yeah well it don't sound like things are so great for you."

That night Ethan had the first guard of the cattle and he rode slowly around them singing. Cowboys sang to their cattle to settle them. He sang all the cowboy songs that he could think off and he and Slim would pass each other. "Well she didn't leave ya cause ya can't sing." Slim said during one of their passings.

"No. No she didn't."

Soon it was Slim and Ethan's turn to turn in and as Ethan lay on the cold, hard ground he looked up at the stars. They seemed to be so close to him that he could touch them. When they twinkled they made him think of Emily and how her eyes always sparkled and looked so pretty. He wondered what she was doing tonight. She should be in Philadelphia by now. Was she enjoying herself? Did she like all the hustle and bustle of the big city? Had she made new friends?

He went to sleep with thoughts of Emily in his head running round and round.