I'm sorry that I kept you waiting that long for the next chapter, but real life and present age kept me rather busy during the last weeks. I do hope to come forward better from now on! Thank you very much for your interest!
In this chapter there will be some scenes with sexual content, decribed not in the very detail, but please be warned if you dislike that.
When Adam had digested his surprise about the shots he still heard some clicking. Charlie knelt beside him, shaking all over but still pointing the gun at Edwin and pulling the trigger again and again and again... Adam rose and laid slowly his hands on the gun, wrenching it from her cramped fingers. He said softly:
"Relax darling, it's over, you've got him!"
"Over?"
"Yes, he's dead."
"He's dead."
she repeated absent mindedly, then she looked with purpose at Adam and whispered:
"Can you hold me please, I'm afraid I cannot keep up myself any longer."
When he had embraced her she let everything go and started to cry completely distraught. If Adam would ever have considered to leave Charlie alone in the barn and to take part in the shooting that had broken loose in the little yard of the old way station, he would have abandoned that thought at once, it was ways to good to have her back. At the moment he could - and wanted - not do more than keeping her with one arm and whispering silly, calming words into her ears, not without keeping the barn door in sight, with his reloaded gun in the other hand.
After what seemed an eternity, the shooting ended and the booming voice of his father sounded through the yard into the barn:
"Adam, where are you?"
"In the barn, you can come in!"
Not only Ben, but also the rest of the posse stormed in and nearly stumbled about the dead body lying behind the door.
"We've got two of them."
"Who's that?"
"Are you hurt?"
"What about Charlie?"
The hubbub of a lot of different but familiar voices seemed to bring Charlie back to reality. She raised her tear-stained face, looked at the body at the floor and then at the others and said with a still shaking voice:
"This was my husband, Edwin Mathews, I hope he is finished off now!"
Adam took Charlie on his arms and moved into the direction of the barn door.
"Let us take you away from here! Roy, I think a report about the details can wait until tomorrow?"
"Sure thing, son! Tonight we will just bring the bodies and the third guy back to town, everything else can wait until the morning."
In the yard they passed the body of Jeff and a completely tied up Herb, but there were also the others, the men who had tried to find, to rescue her. She smiled at a scared looking Hoss and answered the cheering blink of Little Joe. A couple of other faces were to be seen, some of them she had never seen before or wasn't able to remember. They all had been standing up for her, risked her lives to free her.
"Wait a moment!" she whispered to Adam and looked at the men again, considering how to thank her saviors. Her thoughts were interrupted by Joe:
"Please Charlie, don't look at us that closely, we probably look the worse for wear. I suppose not even I am my usual good-looking self tonight!"
The men chuckled a bit and Charlie replied:
"You all look like angels to me, my guardian angels. Thank you so much!"
"Don't mention it Sweetie! This is how we spend our evenings here out West, errrr ... I mean Doc!"
Abe Durham's playful remark finally eased the tension on the yard, everybody started laughing. Adam let Charlie down and Joe came over to hug her heartily:
"Don't flatter yourself too much, we looked for you out of pure self-interest, I would not have wanted to spend a single day with elder brother in case you ... well I mean ... you know, if you would not be there to smooth his tempers."
Startled Joe realized how much of a painful truth was contained in his comment, but before he could really be embarrassed, Hoss shoved him away to hug Charlie himself.
"'Tis so good to have you back! Now we'll never leave you out of sight, never, you'll see!"
"Easy Hoss, will I have a saying in that as well?"
"No, sorry Miss Charlie, you're ways to important for all of us, you must endure now to be treated as a family member!"
"Oh Hoss, it is so sweet of you to say that, thank you!"
"My turn now, son!" Ben claimed and again Charlie was hugged.
"Do I need to tell you how happy I am?"
"No, Ben, thank you so much!"
The last words were just whispered, Charlie felt her eyes watering again. Someone cleared his throat:
"Can we go on now?" Adam made himself heart. "I don't know what your actual plans are, but I could use a bath, a drink and a bed."
"I agree elder brother, a drink would do us all mighty good now, I assume you'll buy us whatever we'll ask for!"
"You bet I will Joe, I'd just like to take care before that for the minor matter of Charlotte's well-being tonight. Everything else must wait until I have taken her home."
"To the Ponderosa?"
"No, not that home, not yet. The Ponderosa is too far away for tonight, but to Virginia City."
The other Cartwrights agreed to go just to Virginia City as well, as they had to be there anyway tomorrow for the Sheriffs official questioning.
"How will you two get there?" Ben inquired. "I'm asking b ecause Roy and Abe wanted to take the coach back to town. I'll see, whether Charlie can have one of their horses!"
And so it was done.
A short while later silence had set in the old way station again, as the search party was returning to Virginia City, carrying with them in the coach the bodies of Edwin Mathews and Jeff as well as Herb, who was lively enough to expect his trial.
After a seemingly endless ride the members of the posse had finally arrived in Virginia City. The Cartwright party stopped in front of the house of the Martins.
"Go ahead to the hotel" Adam asked his family "I'll see that Charlotte will be fine and come after you shortly."
"Good night everybody, see you in the morning!"
"Good night Charlie!"
"Sleep tight!"
Inside the house, Adam guarded Charlie up to her room.
"Good night my darling, you surely need some rest now, try to sleep a bit! I'll pick you up here to see Roy at ten tomorrow morning."
And with these words he tended to leave her room.
"No, please stay, do not go away!"
She took his hands and looked pleadingly at him.
"Please Charlotte, it is hard enough for me to behave decent in public, being alone here with you during the whole night might be most probably the end of all my good resolutions!"
"Now, you see, that's precisely what I want - to put an end to good resolutions and decency and all that stuff! Stay here with me tonight, please, or don't you want me?"
"You really have no idea what you are talking about, there isn't anything in the world I wanted more, but..."
"But what? What exactly are you afraid of? Look, when I was in that coach with ... him, I was convinced that I would die without seeing you again and the thing I regretted most was that we had never spent at least one night together and I would never knew how ... it would be with you, I only knew him! What harm would we do to whom? I am a widow now, no longer bound to anybody. Don't let me beg like this, please!"
She kissed him softly and when he answered the kiss, it became more and more passionate.
"Letting a lady beg would be rather cruel, wouldn't it?"
"Disgustingly cruel! Haven't you been taught better by your father?"
"We'd better leave him out of this!"
He felt that she was shaking.
"Are you really sure or are you afraid?"
"Actually both, I am absolutely sure that I want you to stay with me and afraid to disappoint you."
"Nonsense!"
They kissed again.
"Shouldn't we do something to come forward? I could unbutton your shirt, I am already quite experienced in that, do you remember?"
He chuckled a bit:
"Like it had been yesterday! Your hands were trembling so much, just like today by the way. The other day I thought it was because of anger, what is it now?"
"I am awfully nervous and besides this I feel cold a bit."
"Then let us heat you up!"
He took her on his arms and placed her on the bed.
"You are still sure?"
"I am!"
Piece after piece they took off the others clothes. When there was no garment left, Adam took a moment to look admiringly at his companion.
"Don't look at me like that!" he heard her say anxiously.
"What?"
"The scars, the bruises from today, I mean it must look rather ugly, are you disappointed?"
He looked unbelievingly at her:
"Are you out of your mind woman?"
His hands swept softly about her body while he went on:
"'Full nakedness! All joys are due to thee, as souls unbodied, bodies uncloth'd must be, to taste whole joys...*And to use my own words instead of Mr. Donne's: I've never seen anything that would be only to some extent as beautiful as you are or as I expected you to be and believe me, I've spent some time musing about that. Now will you please shut up my dear, except you want me to stop, but in this case you really need to hurry!"
His 'roving hands' were followed by lips and soon no further words were to be heard but just little moans and cries, sufficiently 'licensing' the discoveries which were made. To Charlie it felt as if everything inside her was dissolving in a kind of firestorm making her coincidently cry and laugh. The sensation made her beginning to leave behind bit by bit the inhibitions she had dragged along with herself from the past. So bit by bit she began to return the touches, kisses and caresses she was receiving and to experience a mutual rapture.
When Adam came around back, he found himself lying on his back and Charlie resting her head on his shoulder. He raised his head a bit to look into her face and saw to his consternation, that it was wet all over.
"Did you cry? Darling, I am so sorry..."
She shook her head and softly put a hand on his mouth.
"I am not sorry at all, I couldn't be less sorry, believe me!" "Than why do you cry?"
"Don't know, I'm just overwhelmed somehow. Probably I need to work on a more appropriate reaction, only of course if this should become some kind of habit between us."
"A kind of habit, well I thought about that myself, you know?"
"Oh! Foresighted as usual, I'm very pleased to hear that! And what is the result of your considerations?"
"I am not sure yet, I think I need some more information to come to an opinion. One would not want to base a verdict just on some erratic data, don't you agree?"
"Absolutely, that would be grossly negligent. Is there anything I can do to assist you?"
"Hhhmmmm ... let me think!"
And again words became expendable.
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In the bar of the International House Ben, Hoss and Little Joe Cartwright had already had a beer and some whiskey.
"Pa, I'm that tired that I start squinting, let us go to bed!"
"Go if you want Joe, I need to wait until Adam comes over!"
Joe and Hoss changed glances.
"Really Pa? Why? I mean he knows the way. And even if he would not, I think he will get along tonight very well!"
"What is that suppose to mean?" Bens voice had reached a volume that made contradicting rather unwise.
"Pa, the bad guys are dead or locked up, there cannot happen much tonight except..." and against their better judgement Hoss and Joe started to chuckle.
"This is not a laughing matter at all, I expect your brother to behave like a gentleman!"
Now Hoss wanted to contribute something as well, whereby the tiredness made him forget all attention:
"Oh Pa, there is no need to worry about this, elder brother has gained quite some reputation when it comes to that!"
Ben froze upon that remark and Joe shook his head in desperation:
"This was not really helpful Hoss, but it was ... " his chuckling became stronger until he was unable to control himself " ... funny!"
Now he busted out laughing and Hoss, realizing only now the ambiguity of his statement, joined in. Ben tried to remain serious:
"This is not funny! You know what I mean, it would not be right!"
Joe had got his breathe back:
"Pa please, be generous tonight! Think of what horrors they faced today. What harm is done? Those two are grown up and if you ask me they will marry as sure as the sun will rise in the morning, which will happen much too soon for my liking by the way. And what actually are you going to do? Give him a spanking? Come on, let's all have some sleep!"
Joe rose and Hoss followed him extremely thankful. So did Ben - a bit hesitantly. But in the end he told himself that he would hardly be able to prohibit anything by waiting and not sleeping.
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In the Martins house Adam woke with a start. At first he was startled by the unknown surrounding but the mass of strawberry-blonde curls covering his chest and one of his arms drawn around Charlotte told him rather shortly where he was and why. In this moment he realized that the peril was over, that they had overcome the shadow from Charlies past and could build a future now. This thought downright flodded him with pure happiness and to his own astonishment he felt no need at all to question that feeling.
However, the much he had preferred to loose himself in playing with the reddish hair and probably some more parts of his companion, he needed to get up. Although he had no intention to apologize to his father for not spending this night at the hotel it was surely wiser to show up over there before he was up. Carefully he tried to pull his arm from Charlies embrace, but with his very first movement she raised her head and muttered sleepy
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing dear, I just need to get up."
"Well that IS wrong, stay here with me. 'It was the nightingale, and not the lark. **"
Having stated this she cuddled her head to his chest again and wrapped one leg over his body. That movement made him moan and quite watered down the intention to get up. He buried his face in the strawberry-blonde hair and inhaled its scent as if he had to remember it for good.
"This was one of my first fantasies about you." he whispered.
"Fantasies? What do you mean?"
"After the coach accident, when you ripped my clothes off, I already wondered how you would look with loose hair, like a mermaid I assumed."
"I did what?"
"Well you ripped my clothes off, don't you remember?"
"I was a pitiful physician, giving an otherwise helpless patient assistance in a perfectly decent way."
"Hmmm, well maybe you are right, but my memory seems to be much more fun!"
"I'll give you some fun"
she replied and started to tickle him at his stomach. He made a shriek in surprise, caught her hands beneath the bedsheet and whispered in her ear:
"If you make me coming late for breakfast with my respectable father woman, let's make it worth the lecture I have to expect!"
"My pleasure! Why a mermaid by the way?"
"I like the way they dress!"
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A few hours after these events Ben Cartwright came down from his room in the International Hotel into the hotels dining hall in a rather morose mood. Adam had not shown up during the night. Although he was of course aware that his son was hardly the type to practice celibacy, he had never had really been at ease with the - in his mind – far too casual way he had handled his carnal needs so far. Well at least there was the realistic prospect now to have this issue solved.
When he passed the reception to enter the dining hall he stopped surprised. On the violet group of armchairs standing near the reception area he found a sleeping Adam. He looked quizzically at the receptionist, who just shrugged and quietly answered:
"I found him like that when I started my shift. Nobody complained, so I let him sleep."
Ben did not feel that indulgent and shook Adams shoulder:
"Hey, wake up, time for breakfast!"
Adam winced but came back to his senses rather shortly.
"Good morning Pa!"
and without a comment he wanted to sit down at one of the breakfast tables, but that would have made him get off too easy Ben decided and asked:
"You came in late last night?"
"Yes, I did!"
"And you got up early this morning?"
"Yes, I did."
"At least you had the time to shave."
"Yes I had."
"Then why did you have to sleep in that chair?"
"Well, when I came down the coffee wasn't ready yet and I ….. my goodness Pa, is this really necessary? You know where I was and I know that you know and Hoss and Joe most probably know and everything is fine, believe me, once in my life it feels as everything is fine! Please, do not spoil it by letting me deny or defend something that makes me really happy!"
Ben had just gasped some air to start a lecture about proper behavior towards elders and in public and in general but in this moment Hoss and Joe came down the stairs and welcomed their brother rather noisy:
"Well elder brother, you really look fine today, seems you had a good nights sleep?"
"Yes sure!"
"Look Joe, he is even smiling, at home he does it only after the third cup of coffee, either the coffee or the beds are much better here in Virginia City than on the Ponderosa."
"Uuuuuhhhhh we'll probably never guess."
"You two are aware that this is none of your business at all?"
"Maybe, but after you let us down last night, not buying our promised drinks, you owe us twice as much, are you aware of that?"
"It will be my utmost pleasure to buy my freedom! I'd just like to have a saying when I have to pay my ransom to the greedy bunch of brothers I have taken care for selflessly all my hitherto miserable life!"
"Selfless, my foot! Hoss do you remember a single moment when elder brother did not literally relished bossing us around?"
"Nope! That has always been his very favorite amusement. I know that for sure, because I am already enduring it much longer than you do Joe!"
"Although I have to admit that it is without doubt extremely appealing to torture ones next of kin, you two are exaggerating as usual: It is for sure not my VERY favorite amusement!"
Ben choked into his coffee upon this comment and his sons all busted out laughing. He had listened surprised to the bantering chat so far. Usually he would have expected his eldest to explode upon such teasing about his very private matters, but this morning, although visibly tired out, he returned the remarks of his brothers relaxed, with a little smile and without any bellowing. Apparently Adam had been right - everything was fine.
Breakfast went on in that pleasant mood until Ben checked the big clock at the reception:
"Boys it is almost ten, Roy is waiting for us, let's finish and go over to his office."
Adam wanted to fetch Charlie at first, but when they left the hotel, she was already making her way over from the Doctors house. He ran towards her:
"Sorry that I am that late, I had hoped to see you alone before the appointment with Roy."
"Don't worry, I'm here"
She raised herself on tiptoes and kissed him.
"How are you this morning?" "Tired, hardly able to walk and unspeakable happy!"
"Sounds rather familiar!" she chuckled and drew him back a couple of steps:
"There is something I wanted to ask you about before I do anything",
and she took something from her reticule. When she opened her hand he saw lying on her palm the engagement ring he had given her in that dreadful night of the failed proposal and the confession.
"I did not want to put it on just like that, you shall have a saying in what happens with it now."
"I have already said everything what there was, is or will be on my mind about it. My desire to marry you has only become stronger during the last weeks, now it is your turn. Do you want to become my beloved wife and spend your future life with me?"
Her eyes had been fixed on the ring in her hand during these words and he softly lifted her chin with a finger.
"And? Do you need still time to think?"
Charlie shook her head.
"Maybe you should take some time to think it over. Let me make some things absolutely clear: I will not accept any constraints coming from you regarding my work, I will not trouble myself to improve my household skills and I will for sure not be obedient and neither promise to be so at the altar!"
Adam looked at her with an indefinable gaze:
"Well, this comes of course as a shock! I had very much counted to find in you the submissive little housewife I was looking for all my life."
Having said this gravely, his gaze changed and he grinned at her more mischievously than ever before. Charlie could not help but grinning back.
"At least you must not complain that I wouldn't have warned you! However I am glad to hear that because there isn't anything in the world, which could make me happier than becoming your wife!"
Quickly Adam took the ring from Charlies hand and said, while putting the ring on her finger:
"Now I am entitled to get my engagement kiss, don't you agree?"
"I do!"
And they melded right on Virginia Cities Main Street into a long, long kiss, which was only broken when Ben made himself hearable by clearing his throat behind them:
"Good morning Charlie, I hate to disturb the two of you, but Roy is surely waiting for us, will you come along please?"
Adam looked quizzically at Charlie, who just nodded.
"One moment Pa, we want you to be the first to know: Please meet my official fiancée Doctor Mathews."
Ben hugged both of them without a word and when he broke the embrace to hurry everybody into the Sheriff's office again, his eyes were glistering suspiciously. Joe, who had watched the scene and suspected what it was about, awaited them with open arms:
"Charlie, sister dear, have you finally been talked into releasing us from the troubles to take care for elder brother? If you should ever need an advice how to handle him when he will be petulant and cantankerous from time to time, ask me, I am quite used to cheer him up!"
"You would have ever cheered me up? I can only remember you making me cantankerous!"
"This is just a question of the perspective!"
Hoss was lost for words. He lifted Charlie while hugging her and stammered:
"I couldn't be happier if I was marrying myself!"
But before the party on the main street could go on any further, Roy called them over from his office, matters were becoming serious again.
At first Roy questioned Charlie about the hours of her abduction and the killing of Patricia Calston. Adam gaze was that painful during Charlie's description, especially when it came to the murder, as if he had to face the whole scenery. After Charlie each of the Cartwrights made a testimony about the events, which overlapped each other of course a lot. After an hours' time they were through with the interrogation.
"The judge will probably be here in one week, you will have to repeat all your statements then at the trial I suppose."
Charlie asked: "What will happen with the body of …... Mathews, I mean he needs to be buried, does he not?"
"Sure, but at first we will have to make the usual inquest. After the death certificate will be issued and the judge will have finished his proceedings he can be buried in the sinner's corner of our cemetery."
"I would like to pay for that, but please, don't make me investigate him and testify his death, he still gives me the creeps."
Adam just wanted to interject but Roy Coffee indicated to stay calm.
"No Doc Mathews, there is no way you would testify his death. You are not only involved because you have shot him, you had been …. well somehow related to him. No this will be done by Paul Martin for sure!"
"But the Martins do not intend to return before next week!"
"I wired them that they would be needed here and they wired back they would return as soon as possible. Actually they will be here with the next coach I suppose!"
And in fact, when the Cartwright party left the Sheriff's office Paul and Jillian Martin descended a coach that had just arrived. Jillian flew over to Charlie:
"Charlie dear, what gruesome things have happened when we had been away?"
"Everything is fine Jillian, look, I am engaged now!" and she presented her ring.
"Oh Charlie, darling, you must tell me everything about that, but I do not dare of thinking about the fear you had to endure! Oh I wish we had not left you alone!"
"Do not worry, all's well that ends well! Come on, let us go home, the practice needs to be opened again!"
Paul Martin had come nearer during the women's talk.
"Now this is out of the question! I do not want to see you for at least one week in the practice. What you need now is rest, fresh air and someone pampering you with good food. These are doctors' orders and you will obey them! Hey Adam, don't you know a place where my colleague here will find these things for at least a week?"
"As long as you prescribe it Paul! One week at least you said? So we can keep her longer if we don't grow tired of her?"
Charlie wanted to reply something, but Adam closed her mouth with a kiss and said:
"Don't! Just come along and let Hop Sing and us spoil you. Let my family have the pleasure to have you under their roof before we move to our own place."
"Actually this sounds really tempting, but don't believe I would always give in that easy."
"No, I am fully aware of what a fury you are my dear."
* John Donne "To his Mistress going to bed"
** Romeo und Julia, 3. Act 7. Scene / Julia, William Shakespeare
