A/N: This was where the last chapter was supposed to end, but as you can see I got carried away and this was the end result! That said, I had an awful time with this chapter. I rewrote it about three times, then edited forever, and finally decided that if I am ever to move forward in this story, then this was it and I just needed to post!
Hopefully it isn't too awful and doesn't totally contradict my previous chapters! Some more angst (I felt I needed Joe's perspective on the previous events) and another mystery to solve!
I am incredibly grateful to all who are reading, following, favoriting (is that a word?), and especially reviewing :) I love hearing your thoughts, so please continue!
Anyway, on with the story-I hope you enjoy!
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Joe sat dejectedly on the edge of his bed, waiting with a slightly anxious resentment for the nightly bedtime ritual to begin. His breath escaped in an exasperated sigh as he repeatedly and halfheartedly kicked at the foot of the bed, just wanting to get the whole thing over with. It wasn't as if he had a choice in the matter, anyway.
It would only be a matter of minutes, Joe knew, before one of his well-meaning family members would bring the dreaded glass of cloudy liquid for him to drink, the 'medicine' that was supposed to make all his problems go away and give him the rest he needed. The reluctant volunteer of the night would smile at him just a little too brightly; a vain attempt at trying to reassure not only the little boy in question but also their own consciences that everything was going to be alright. Joe knew better than to be fooled at their actions as all the effort put into the charade was never successful. It was true that the bitter drink would make his eyes heavy and his breathing slow, and even as he resisted its effects, it would drag him down into a dark place that was supposed to be restful. Supposed to be, but in actuality it was nothing further from the truth.
The truth made the little boy sigh again, even as he stifled the yawn forming in his throat and tried to fight the urge to rub his eyes with his hand. Joe was more tired now with the medicine than he had been before, and he felt it keenly. At least before being medicated, when he'd been in the throes of a nightmare, he had been able to pull himself awake to escape the torment. But now, when he was in the drug-induced unconsciousness, even that small control had been lost. Unable to wake up, he now found himself stuck in the dreams, and the dread he felt at just that thought terrified him even more, resulting in an exhaustion he couldn't shake.
The fear made him keenly aware of his own weakness, and Joe was disgusted with himself for it. He had been working through the problem completely on his own, had thought he'd had it under control, until the colossal moment of weakness that had brought the whole situation to the forefront of his father's attention. That day in town, the day he had reacted to a simple encounter in such a way he still couldn't understand. The thought of that strange man, the one he had run into at the general store, still sent a shudder of fear down his spine. Ever since that moment, the nightmares had changed. No longer completely unmemorable, they had started to stick in his mind in frustratingly awkward bits and pieces. At first he had thought that this might be better, that bits of memories would actually help, but as the days wore on, he found quite the opposite to be true. He found that he just wanted to escape.
Having puzzled it out in his mind thoroughly, Joe was convinced that he had never met that man before. Still, something about seeing the stranger had caused the young boy's stomach to twist and his head to spin, making him dizzy and leading to him passing out unconscious in the dirt. The meeting had opened a floodgate of memories, feelings that had left him feeling empty and drained. One sensation in particular seemed to be stronger than all the rest, the overwhelming knowledge that he had been alone. While troubling in itself, the part that hurt the most was that he was alone now, too. There was nothing anyone could do about it, and the frustration and loneliness Joe felt at that just pushed him further and further into himself. He couldn't bear to talk about it. No one would understand, really.
This whole situation had caused them all to worry, even more than they usually did. The fear Joe could see in their eyes whenever they looked at him was most assuredly real. All of them were constantly watching him, always scrutinizing and staring at him as if he was a puzzle that they were trying to solve. He still wasn't entirely sure how he felt about the extra attention, and even that thought confused him.
In one respect, he felt a little guilty in the fact that he found his family's constant worrying comforting albeit in a rather bizarre way. Joe hated that he made them worry; he had always just wanted his father and brother s to be proud of him. But on the other hand, with that constant worry came the suddenly restricted independence, the illusion that he couldn't even care for himself, and that left him seething in frustration. He resented them, the treatment as if he was still just a baby, even as he secretly wanted, almost desperately, to crawl into his father's arms and cry all the fears away.
His frustration bubbling over, Joe kicked his foot almost savagely against the bed. As much as he had tried, Joe found himself unable to remember the day in town after the incident at the general store, the exception being his trip to Doctor Martin's office. Joe's nose wrinkled in disdain at the memory; he never appreciated going to the doctor's office and he had not only had to endure the questions that he didn't want to answer but had been forced to drink two glasses of vile tasting liquid. Joe had almost wondered at the time if the good doctor had been trying to get some kind of revenge on him for some past crimes by making him drink the two doses. After that, though, everything had been hazy and there really wasn't anything he could remember. At least he couldn't remember anything until what had happened later that night.
That nightmare had been the worst one he'd ever had, and had been the catalyst of his current situation. It was best described as terrible, the feeling of aloneness it had conveyed overwhelming, and it had led him to say something that he had immediately regretted. Even now, Joe couldn't believe he had actually said it, even though it had been the truth. The truth had hurt, and it filled him with such a sadness that he hadn't been able to even think before he'd blurted it out. They had left him, he had been alone, and he still didn't understand why.
They had always been over-protective, so he really couldn't understand why they had done it. But they had done it, and it hurt more than anything. For regardless of the fact that Joe Cartwright didn't want anyone babying him, telling him he wasn't big enough or had to wait until he was older, he really didn't like being alone.
And so here he was. They had taken his nightmare literally, mixing emotion and imagination into a warped reality. Their solution had been simple: make up for their supposed prior mistake by seeing to it that he was never alone for more than a few minutes. And it really only made him feel worse. Even the afternoon he had just spent with Adam, something that was somewhat rare and usually immensely enjoyed, had only seemed like a forced attempt by his older brother to try to figure out what was going on in his head. Joe found himself sadly not even wanting to go, he had just wanted to be alone; he needed space to think about everything. But knowing that if he hadn't agreed to go, that it would only make the situation worse, make them worry even more, Joe had reluctantly went.
Most of the day spent with Adam had been uneventful, at least until it had been time to go home. Joe hadn't been able to resist the smirk he felt at knowing his brother would probably get in some trouble for the lateness of the hour, and it had continued to get darker as they rode home, the shadows growing longer by the minute.
It had been the shadows that had finally gotten to him. Joe had never actually thought about it before, how the green leaves mixed with the darkness of night to make a rather gloomy and foreboding vision. Something about the vision had prompted again the feeling of overwhelming sadness, the total aloneness. He had tried to ignore the rising panic in his chest, and he hadn't even noticed the tears that had been streaming down his cheeks. It was just like Adam to notice, much to Joe's embarrassment, and since the young boy hadn't wanted to talk about it, he had just kicked his horse to go faster.
And then they had ridden past the mountain, past the place known as Eagle's Nest. He remembered the place-he'd been there before, an imposing and rather barren feature in the normally lush landscape. Joe had never really thought much about the place before, but in that particular moment of seeing the jagged, bare rocks something stirred in him that he couldn't explain. A mixture of fear and peacefulness had virtually overwhelmed him, and he hadn't even realized he'd said anything until his brother had demanded an answer. He'd tried to avoid it, but when Adam had not relented, he could only share the random thought he didn't even understand himself.
'It's safe up there…'
Where had that thought come from?
Joe didn't remember the actual event from when he'd been little, but he remembered the story Hoss had told him, of how he had disappeared one day and his father had found him at the top of Eagle's Nest. If it hadn't been for Hoss swearing to him that it was the absolute truth, he never would have believed it had happened. Even still it had always remained to him something of a tall tale. A wash of coldness flooded over Joe as he made the realization that what he had always been told was indeed true. He had been up at the top of that mountain, something had happened that he couldn't remember. And that realization made him uneasy.
A sudden noise at the door brought his focus back to his current situation, and Joe lifted his eyes to the source. His green eyes darkened and the frown returned at the sight of Hoss, a too-bright smile plastered on the teenager's face, his outstretched hand holding out the loathed glass of milky liquid.
'Hey, Shortshanks,' Hoss smiled widely, doing his best to try and deflect the obvious resentment clouding his younger brother's face. He held the glass out to his brother somewhat apologetically. 'I know ya hate this, but Pa said…'
'Yeah, I know,' Joe snapped testily, grabbing the glass from his brother's hand. He drank it down quickly, grimacing at the bitter taste as his brother watched him intently. He thrust the empty glass back into his brother's waiting hand, giving him a scowl. 'Happy?'
'Aw, Joe,' Hoss sighed heavily, his smile fading and his eyes growing sad as he looked at his angry little brother. It hurt him to see the fire showing in his little brother's eyes, the resentment that he evidently felt for them all. If there was anything at all that the teenager wanted, it was to just see his little brother happy again. 'Ya know I ain't. We all jist want what's best for ya, that's all.'
Joe huffed in disdain and turned away, curling himself into a tight ball on his bed. He clutched his pillow to his chest as he stared blankly out the window, waiting for the inevitable waves of darkness to rush over him, his concentrated effort being on trying to tune out his brother's pleading voice.
'Please, Joe, won't ya just talk ta me?' Hoss sat down in the chair next to Joe's bed and pleaded forlornly at his brother's stiff back. 'Mebbe I can help, ya know. Please, Shortshanks. Please, talk to me.'
The sorrowful voice cut through Joe's efforts, and he sighed at the sad tone, his annoyance relenting a little. He wanted to be mad at his brother, but he couldn't stop the spark of warmth that came into his heart at the concern he could hear in Hoss's voice. He and Hoss had always been able to talk, and had spent so much time together, especially after Adam had left. Joe knew, deep inside, that his older brother would never hurt him and really meant the words he said.
'Hoss, I…' Joe turned around to face his brother, propping himself up on one elbow to look into the concerned eyes staring down at him. He looked longingly for a moment before he dropped his own gaze back down to the blankets, a faint blush of shame coloring his cheeks. He took a deep breath and when he tried to continue his voice was shaky. 'I just, it's just I…'
It was the first time since the whole ordeal had started that Hoss had seen any crack in his younger brother's resolve to stay silent, and he jumped at the chance his little brother was giving him. A faint smile of concern broke out on his face as he pushed himself closer to look his brother straight in the eye. His words were soft. 'It's okay, little buddy. Just tell me.'
'I…I d-don't…' Joe kept fumbling his words and his breath began to catch in ragged gasps. He could feel panic and frustration rising in his chest, and he finally gave in to the emotions. Snapping his head up suddenly, his eyes were shooting fire at his brother as he finally found his voice. 'I don't remember, alright?! I can't tell ya somethin' I don't remember!'
Hoss reached out a hand to sympathetically pat his brother's shoulder, but Joe smacked the hand away angrily. A huge yawn suddenly broke through the anger as the medicine began to take effect. Turning away from his older brother again, the little boy curled up and closed his eyes, preparing himself for the inevitable darkness that was already pulling at him. Hoss, knowing that the moment for talking had been lost, just sat watching sadly.
It only took a few minutes for Joe's breathing to even out, signaling that the medicine had done what it was intended to do. Hoss waited a few minutes more, watching his little brother shifting in his sleep until he was sure that he was completely out for the night.
Hoss stood from the chair and moved to the door, shaking his head sadly as he looked one last time at his little brother lying on the bed. His father and Adam were waiting for him downstairs, and he knew he had to go, but something didn't feel right. There was something pulling at him, nagging him to stay. Reluctantly turning to head down the stairs, he didn't see the change in expression on his younger brother's face. As he pulled the bedroom door shut behind him, he didn't notice how Joe had suddenly started to tremble violently, unable to escape from the darkness that firmly gripped him.
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Ben sat at his desk, the drink in front of him untouched as he tapped his fingers impatiently on the smooth wood. The general anxiety he had been feeling all day had only grown into a churning mixture of annoyance and fear until his two sons had finally made their way home, long after daylight had faded into darkness. The look on his oldest's face when the two had ridden into the yard had told him that something had happened and that much needed to be told, but the look on his youngest's face had told him that it would be a discussion that would have to wait for later hours. Silently communicating this to his oldest son, Adam had known immediately what his father was thinking and his agreement was only visible in the slight nod he made in his father's direction.
Dinner had been tense; Joe's now-normal brooding sapping what little enjoyment could be had from the meal. Ben's heart had pained him as he watched his little boy push away from the table, muttering an excuse of being tired and turning from them to head upstairs to his room. It had been the routine since the day in town, and it was wearing on them all. Deciding his youngest needed a bit of space, Ben had waited before sending Hoss upstairs to check on his brother and to make sure that he was settled for the night. For as much as Joe wasn't really talking to anyone, it seemed that Hoss still had a way with the little boy, the bond the two brothers shared not having been damaged completely.
It was with a sad shake of the head that Ben thought about their current situation, as he and his eldest sat waiting for the teenager to come back downstairs. After that night when they'd made the promise to Joe, the three oldest Cartwrights had decided that they would take on the problem together. And even as he was impatient to hear what Adam needed to say, that promise wasn't something that he was about to change now. He felt a small wash of fatherly pride as he thought about his boys, and when he heard the tell-tale noise on the stairs he looked up to give Hoss a weary smile. The teenager made his way downstairs and plopped down in the stuffed chair that sat next to his father's large desk.
'Your brother asleep, son?' he asked flatly, his brown eyes crinkling up sadly at the slight nod he received in response. The pain he felt at the fact that his youngest had pulled himself away from the whole family kept twisting in his stomach, and the lump he had in his throat never seemed to go away. Giving a soft sigh, he turned his attention to his oldest and the matter that needed their immediate attention.
'Adam, what happened today?'
Adam took a deep breath, hoping the words he had been considering the whole evening would be the right ones. He knew his father too well and he had a fear that the conversation might just turn into another round of useless guilt.
'Pa,' he started, his eyes intently watching his father's face, 'Joe said something really strange today when we were riding back home. It was when we rode past Eagle's Nest…'
Ben's eyes widened at the mention of the familiar landmark, but he didn't say anything. Adam could see his father's mind racing to put the pieces together, and he continued almost reluctantly, his words spoken in a soft tone. 'He was really scared, but he wouldn't talk about it. I think it has something to do with…'
'The night he disappeared.'
Ben couldn't suppress the shudder at the memory as he finished Adam's sentence. He turned quickly to face the wall, giving himself a moment to regain his composure before he spoke again. When he turned back, Adam could see the tears that were already forming in his father's eyes. 'You know, we never talked to him about it…' Ben's voice faltered again and he took a deep breath. 'So many things happened, and it just seemed…'
Adam cringed as he clearly saw the guilt washing over his father's features. This was exactly what he had hoped could be avoided, but had known would inevitably happen. He knew without a doubt that none of this was his father's fault; so many things had happened at that time, and Adam knew his father had done the best he could considering the circumstances. The young man jumped back in again quickly, hoping to reassure his father against the guilt.
'Pa, you did the best you could at the time,' his calm voice tried to soothe the anguished man. Adam glanced over at his brother, Hoss watching their father with wide eyes. Hoss caught his brother's gaze and nodded his agreement. 'Nobody's blaming you for any of it.'
'Boys, I….thank you,' Ben blinked back his tears and he smiled at both of his boys. Looking back at Adam and seeing by the expression on his son's face that there was more, his eyes grew serious again. 'What else happened?'
'Well, we had been fishing, and Joe fell asleep,' Adam recounted the day's events. Ben smiled slightly at the information, finding slight comfort in the fact that his youngest had gotten even a little rest. Adam continued slowly, feeling slightly guilty at the next part. 'That's why we were so late in getting back, Pa. I'm sorry, but he was sleeping and I hated to wake him.'
Ben nodded his head in absent agreement, and Adam breathed a sigh of relief at the implied forgiveness. His next words seemed to come out all in a rush. 'When I woke up Joe, he was angry, pretty much the way he's been for the last few days. I should have paid better attention; it was starting to get really dark, almost all the light was gone. We were riding back, and the strangest feeling came over me. It was the way those shadows made me feel.'
'Whaddya mean, Adam?' Hoss spoke up for the first time, his pale eyes wide with confusion. Ben also gave his son a strange look. Adam cleared his throat nervously before continuing.
'I can't explain it,' Adam said decidedly. 'The shadows made me uneasy, cold. I've never felt that way before. Then I looked at Joe, and…he,' his voice caught suddenly in his throat as he remembered the haunted look on his little brother's face, '…he was crying.'
'And he wouldn't tell you why, would he?' The words were soft, and Adam shook his head remorsefully as he looked at his father's sad face.
Ben suddenly felt old and drained. It hurt that he didn't know what to do to help his youngest, that none of them could get through to him. He just looked at Adam dismally and nodded for him to continue.
'I told Joe we needed to get home, and he pushed his horse to move a little faster. I was watching him and all of a sudden we were at Eagle's Nest. Joe stopped right in the middle of the road and was just sitting there, staring up at the mountain.' Adam stopped for a moment as he thought about what had happened. 'It was like he forgot that I was even there. That's when he said it. It's safe up there. It took me a few minutes to put it all together, and by then he had ridden so far ahead of me that I didn't get a chance to ask him about it. I'm sorry, Pa.'
The room fell into an uncomfortable silence as Adam finished. Hoss shot his older brother a puzzled look, but Adam just shook his head silently at his brother, wanting to give their father a moment to compose himself before asking his own question. After a few minutes, Adam spoke softly.
'Pa, what happened that night?'
Ben released the deep breath he'd been holding and ran a shaky hand through his hair. When he finally spoke, his voice sounded tired, and both of his sons looked at him intently.
'I don't really know,' Ben started, his own guilt churning in his stomach as he remembered that night. 'Your brother disappeared that afternoon, it was before you boys returned home from school.' He swallowed hard and continued. 'Your mother, she'd had one of her migraines that morning, and she'd sent your brother outside to play. I was so busy, I didn't even notice, not until…' his words faded off as he thought back.
Adam had been thinking about that day as well, and it had surprised him what he could actually remember once he thought about it. That afternoon, he and Hoss had returned from school and had begun their afternoon chores, and it wasn't until Hop Sing had called them for dinner that they had noticed their lively five-year-old brother was nowhere to be found. What had first started as mild irritation on their part, an assumption that their little brother had decided to play a prank and hide, had quickly escalated into alarm as darkness had fallen and there still was no trace of the little boy. It was no secret in those days that Joe had been terrified of the dark. They had searched for him all night long, their father finally finding Joe at the very top of Eagle's Nest just before daybreak. Ben's strained voice brought Adam back from his thoughts.
'When I finally found him, he was so tired,' Ben smiled warily at his two sons. 'He could barely keep his eyes open. I didn't want to press him on it, so I just let him sleep. It was only three days later…' Ben's voice died in a choked sob as he turned around quickly.
Hoss gasped as he made the connection, his pale eyes filling with tears. Adam only nodded in miserable assent at what he already knew, sympathetically reaching out to touch his younger brother's shoulder. It only took a moment for them to bring their emotions back into check, and Adam finally voiced the thought that was running through all of their minds.
'Something happened to him that day, Pa,' Adam's voice was surprisingly calm and almost indifferent, in direct contrast to the emotions he felt churning just below the surface. 'I don't know why, but he doesn't seem to remember. Maybe the nightmares he's having…'
Ben understood what his son was saying and finished the thought. 'His mind is trying to make him remember.'
They sat in silence yet again, each trying to make some sense of all that had been said. All Ben could feel was the crushing guilt of not having pushed harder back then, sick at the thought of the still-unknown torment his youngest son had gone through. Adam's mind was spinning with thoughts of how to proceed, ranging from how he was going to get his brother to remember what had happened to making sure that nothing bothered the little boy ever again. Hoss, however, was feeling a different emotion entirely.
'I'm gonna go sit with Joe,' the teenager said quietly as he headed for the stairs. Ben nodded at his second son with a ghost of a smile on his face, knowing how his son needed the close contact with his younger brother at the moment. Their already strong protective nature in regards to the youngest in the family had increased exponentially with the current situation.
Hoss had only made it to the foot of the stairs when a sharp knock on the front door caused him to pause, and Adam shot a puzzled glance at his father at the unexpected interruption. Certainly too late for guests, all Ben could do was shake his head in bewilderment as he moved to open the door.
'Charlie!' Ben's voice registered his obvious surprise at seeing his foreman and he quickly ushered the man and his companion into the house. He closed the door behind the graying ranch hand and the young man with him, looking at both of them tiredly. 'It's pretty late, Charlie. Are you sure this can't wait until morning?'
'Sorry for the interruption, Mr. Cartwright,' the weathered foreman replied soberly, his brown eyes darkening with the seriousness of the matter. He nudged the man next to him. 'But no, I'm afraid this can't wait. Brent here has something he needs to tell you. Go on, Brent, tell him.'
Brent Johnson coughed nervously as he stared down at his feet, shuffling back and forth as he tried to work up enough courage to speak to the intimidating man in front of him. He was really just a kid; green and he knew it, only having been working at the Ponderosa for a few months. He'd heard the stories from the other hands about Ben Cartwright, how he was tough yet fair, but his own interactions with the main boss had been practically non-existent and the stress from the situation he now found himself in was leaving him rather speechless.
'What is it you need to tell me, young man?' Ben barked the words out rather sharply, his eyes narrowing in sudden suspicion. While normally somewhat tolerant and even appreciative of a certain degree of shyness, the situation with his family had left Ben in no mood to coddle the pale young man now standing in front of him.
'I'm r-real s-sorry, Mr. Cartwright,' the kid stuttered, his face growing red as his anxiety continued to rise. 'I d-didn't know…'
'Know what?' The small shred of patience he had had already gone, Ben stared at the young man as he demanded an answer. Brent coughed again nervously as Charlie shoved an elbow in his ribs, urging him to spit it out.
'There…there was a m-man at the saloon.' Brent squirmed under the harsh stare of the ranch owner. If he ever got through this, he would be able to tell the others in the bunkhouse that the tales of intimidation by the just the harsh stare of the main boss were indeed true. 'He was just askin' some questions, they sure seemed harmless enough, but…'
'What kind of questions?' Ben's voice suddenly hitched, and Brent looked up, startled, just in time to see that the anger that had just been present on Ben Cartwright's face was clearly gone, replaced by a wild look of fear.
'Just questions about the ranch, about you…about your sons.' Brent gulped nervously at the audible sharp intake of breath that came from the man next to him. 'He specifically was askin' about Little Joe…'
Adam, who had been listening silently through the entire exchange, felt his body explode in a sudden rage. There was someone out there, a stranger asking questions about his brother, his family! He leapt to his feet and moved forward towards the group of men by the door but was stopped cold when he heard his father's strangled question.
'What did he want to know?'
Brent looked in Charlie's direction for support, and the foreman obliged with a nod of his head, encouraging him to continue. Seeing what he now recognized as a desperate fear in the ranch owner's eyes, Brent felt his mouth grow dry as the full force of what he had done hit him. Guilt rose in his throat to choke him, and he had to swallow sharply before he could continue.
'He asked everyone there if we knew the Cartwrights.' Brent watched Ben's face as he continued slowly. 'Mostly about the youngest one, Joseph Cartwright. He asked how old he was, if he went to school, the names of his friends, where he lived…'
Ben breathed out again harshly, and Brent gulped again quickly. 'He said he had a son who was about Joe's age, and he was hoping they could be friends. It all seemed a bit off, most everyone just ignored him.'
'I thought you should know right away,' Charlie spoke up then, giving the anxious young bronc-buster standing next to him a much needed breather.
'Y-yes,' Ben tried to regain his composure as he drew a shaky breath. He turned his attention back to the young man in front of him, and he gave him a small smile. 'Was there anything else he said that you remember?'
Brent took a minute to think back, his brow creasing in a scowl of concentration. Suddenly his eyes widened as he remembered something else. 'Yeah, actually there was. He was askin' everyone if they remembered a story about a kid disappearin' a while back…I'm sorry, I can't remember the name…Tommy, or Timmy, something like that…'
'Timmy Rawlins…' Adam gasped from where he stood behind his father. Brent nodded his head vigorously in agreement as he recognized the name. 'Oh, Pa…'
Ben's eyes were bright as he nodded to his oldest son, and he cleared his throat gruffly. 'I'm obliged to you for the information, Charlie, young man,' he whispered as he gestured the two men towards the door. 'I'll handle this. Thank you, and goodnight.'
Ben closed the door abruptly, leaving two shocked men standing on the front porch, their mouths gaping wide. Turning back to look at Hoss who had remained frozen on the bottom step, Ben desperately tried to pull his reeling emotions into check and gave his son a small smile.
'It will be okay, son,' he hurried, seeing the fear in the pale eyes. 'Why don't you go upstairs and check on your brother, alright?' He smiled again as Hoss nodded, the teenager slipping silently up the stairs.
'Pa, what…' Adam finally found his voice and began to ask, but Ben stopped him quickly with a reassurance of his own.
'I'll be going to town tomorrow morning to talk to Sheriff Coffee,' Ben said firmly. His eyes grew dark and his expression hardened, the intensity reflected on his father's face sending a slight shiver down Adam's spine. The expression of rage mirrored what the young man could feel running through his own body. 'Whatever this is all about, we're going to figure it out and stop it. We won't let him be hurt anymore, do you understand, son?'
Adam had so many questions, but unable to form the words, he could only nod his head at the grim determination he saw in his father's face. His mind was swirling, so many memories suddenly came flooding back, causing his stomach to constrict. He was trying to slow the jumbled thoughts when a shriek from the stairs made his blood run cold.
'Pa, Adam!'
Hoss's panicked voice echoed from the top of the stairs, his pale eyes wide with fear. Ben and Adam both turned frantic eyes to the teenager, and Adam felt his heart stop at the words his younger brother uttered next.
'Pa…it's Joe…he's, h-he's gone…'