I've noticed on the FFNet stats page that whenever I post chapters close together, a chunk of readers seem to miss the first chapter. So if you feel like there are missing parts in the story, you have probably missed a chapter. For those of you who felt I let Joe off too lightly before, I'm sending him to talk with you after this chapter :-)

Chapter Fifteen

Joe was quiet as he walked down the stairs with Adam by his side. For several days he hadn't even thought twice about his horse or where it could be, but with so many of his other worries finally laid to rest, he was beginning to think of the future without trepidation. His pa had said they would take the boys home and it had suddenly occurred to him that he had no idea where his horse was. The last he'd seen of him was outside the doctor's office. It felt like another lifetime ago since that morning he had carried Matthew into town, fearing the boy would die before he even made it there.

He'd left Derek behind, hidden away safely outside of town, or so he thought. When he'd woken up and found the boy in the hotel room with them, a part of him had been angry. He soon realised it was born out of fear that they could be caught and not real anger, but it had taken a while to shake it. Seeing Derek sitting so close with his brother had been the thing that had done it as Joe knew just how he felt. If one of his brothers looked like he could die, he would have fought tooth and nail to be by his side.

As the two brothers trekked down the boardwalk towards the livery, Joe looked up into the early morning sunshine. He smiled at the warmth on his face. Adam watched without comment as his little brother seemed to be slowly coming back to them. He had lain awake for hours the night before, half afraid that Joe's nightmare would return. He felt sick to his stomach that Joe could have ever thought him capable of doing him such harm and even though it was a dream, it felt like a kick in the guts. He'd spent the dark hours thinking through every time he and Joe had butted heads in recent months and he didn't like what he saw. His pa was right. His brother had grown while he was away and he'd been too pre-occupied with finding his own place again that he'd missed a lot since he got back. He vowed he would start to change things, beginning first thing in the morning. Hoss had started to head out with them, but Adam had grabbed his arm and asked for a few minutes alone with Joe before he joined them. As Hoss always did, he could read the situation between them and smiled in response. It grated on him when his brothers were at odds and he was happy to see them finally reconnecting.

Across the street, Kent slunk back into the shadows as he saw the brat he was sure he'd dealt with in Virginia City. He was so close to his goal and had no intentions of having anybody identify him now. He waited until the boy and whoever he was with had moved further down the street and he cautiously trailed along behind.

The livery door was closed with no sign of the owner, but Adam figured it didn't matter as they weren't removing the horses. He smiled as he pulled the wooden door open and Joe made a beeline for his pony. The two of them were inseparable and Joe was often caught talking to the horse, carrying on a one-sided conversation. It was something that both of his brothers often teased him about which Joe vehemently denied doing. As Joe patted the pony's neck and rubbed at his nose, Adam went to check on the other horses and ensure they were all being well cared for. Nick had sent them there so he trusted the livery owner was an honest sort, but he still usually checked on his horse more regularly than they had done this time.

"Hey, Adam." Joe's voice floated across the stalls in the still morning air.

"Yeah."

"What happened to my saddlebag?"

Adam heard the tension in the question and figured he knew why. He waited as Joe slowly made his way out of the stall.

"It's in the hotel room. Under the bed. There isn't a whole lot of room up there you know, what with our gear and bedrolls and six of us in the room."

Joe looked almost white as he took in the answer.

"Something in it that might have you concerned, little brother?"

Joe gulped as he looked at his brother's face. It was clear that Adam already knew what he was looking for and there was no point trying to lie about it. Adam crossed his arms as he leaned against the railing and stared his brother down.

"Joe … where on earth did you get a gun from?" They had gone looking for clothes for the boys and found a Colt wrapped in a shirt and buried under everything else. It wasn't one that any of them used and if Joe hadn't taken it from the Ponderosa, they were at a loss as to where he could have gotten it. None of the options they could think of were good.

"Joe?"

"I thought I might need it. To … if I … if I needed to protect us!"

Adam chewed at his lip as he watched Joe's face. "That's why you had it. Not where you got it from."

"It was on the floor … in the jail."

""You mean it belongs to Sheriff Coffee?"

"That old windbag never could do nothin' right! Seems he couldn't even hold onto his own gun."

Adam spun around towards the voice behind him and found himself facing a drawn gun. He instinctively went for his own gun and cursed under his breath as he realised he wasn't wearing it. An early morning walk to the livery hadn't seemed very dangerous at the time. His hand froze by his side as he glanced around for anything else he could use instead. The stranger had his hat drawn low across his face and Adam couldn't make out any features, but Joe's blood ran cold as he knew exactly who it was. The soft chuckle that carried across to them held no mirth.

Adam tried to keep his eyes fixed on the stranger while trying to ascertain how close his brother was. He began to edge closer to Joe when the stranger waved his gun at him.

"Don't you go movin' now, mister! That brat ain't worth protecting. After all, he's a young'un to be gettin' himself locked up! Must be all sortsa trouble if the law's after him already."

It only took a moment for it to sink in for Adam. The only way the stranger could have recognised Joe from the jail was if he had been in the jail. Roy wouldn't have let anyone else in there while Joe had been in the cell and that left only one obvious conclusion. The stranger pointing a gun his way was the escapee who had shot up the jail and almost killed Roy Coffee. Adam's usual rational demeanor went out the door as he saw red.

"You!"

Kent kept the gun trained on Adam as he beckoned towards Joe. "Get on over here, kid!"

"Joe, don't move!"

"You don't move kid and I'm gonna sink a slug into him. Right there in the middle of his chest would be a good spot, don'tcha think? You know I will, kid. I took that sheriff down the same way, remember?" The smirk on his face made Adam sick, but he still had to try and get his brother out of the man's reach.

"Joe, he's gonna shoot anyway. Don't you move!"

Joe found his feet seemed to have grown roots and he could hear the blood roaring in his ears. Before either of them could do anything else, Kent suddenly shifted his focus to Joe and took aim. His eyes sparked with laughter as he saw abject fear on both faces. It was a taste he had grown to like as he watched his victims squirm and plead for their lives.

"Which one of you is gonna go first? You?" He nodded towards Adam, "Or you?" He smirked as he waved the gun back towards Joe's chest. "I don't know. Maybe I should toss a coin and see who dies first."

"Neither of 'em!"

The roar from behind him caught him unawares and Kent fired off two shots as he spun around without knowing where they were going. Joe couldn't hold still any longer and he leapt sideways towards the horses as the gun went off.

As Hoss rushed at him from behind, Adam launched himself at the man before he could take another shot. His first punch glanced off the side of the Kent's jaw and Adam staggered forwards as he lost his balance.

Joe found himself in a heap on the ground with no real idea of why he was there. It wasn't until he tried to stand up again and his leg gave way beneath him that he felt it. Warm blood trickled down the back of his thigh and his hand came away sticky as he patted at it. Before his mind could catch up with his body, he saw the stranger pushing forwards from the wooden railing towards his brothers. Hoss had a wooden broom that he was brandishing like some kind of club and swinging his way closer while Adam threw another furious punch. The momentum carried both men sideways and they both slammed into the railing again.

The stranger fired off another shot into the middle of the livery and the horses were beginning to stamp and push against their stalls. Joe crawled across the floor in an attempt to get out of the line of fire and he saw Kent take aim at his brother's back.

"Adam! Look out!"

Adam ducked sideways as a bullet ploughed into the wooden railing. He spun and threw himself forward in one fluid motion and this time his fist connected. Kent staggered backwards, but managed to keep a grip on his gun. As he lifted his hand to take aim again, Joe threw a fistful of straw and horse manure into the air towards him. It was enough to distract him as he blinked furiously and rubbed at his face. Adam took another swing and the third punch sent the man reeling backwards into the railing. He suddenly roared and lunged forward and threw a mean hook into Adam's face with one hand as he lifted the pistol to fire with the other. Hoss saw his brother go down and he lifted the broom and brought it down with all his strength against the man's back. It snapped in two and he threw the piece aside in disgust. The gun finally clattered to the ground as the stranger toppled over.

Joe pulled himself across the ground, grasping for the gun as Adam tried to pull himself upright. Hoss had the man by the back of his shirt and was pulling him onto his feet as Adam reached up against the railing. Hoss may have had the advantage of youth, but the man had the advantage of prison and his next movement swept Hoss off his feet and onto his back. He was about to sink a boot into Hoss's face when Adam launched himself at him once more. He continued to swing furious punches at the man who had just threatened both of his brothers.

Joe hunched himself up against the post and tried to take aim. The two men seemed to be locked in some kind of sick dance and he couldn't get a clear shot without hitting his brother.

"Hold up there!" A shout carried across from the door and Joe looked up to see the sheriff standing in the doorway with a rifle pointed at them. Dust motes floated through the bright early morning sunlight and it took a moment to realise just who the silhouette was.

"Adam! Adam stop!" Joe screamed at him as he feared the sheriff might just shoot first and ask later.

Adam took one last slug at the man he was gripping onto before suddenly letting go of him. The man crashed to the floor and Adam staggered over to where Hoss was before dropping down in front of him. His chest was heaving as he grabbed at his brother's shirt and pulled him towards him.

You okay?'

"Yeah, but Little Joe ain't." Hoss nodded towards where his youngest brother sat, looking dazed.

Joe still had the gun firmly clamped in his hand and his breathing was wild. Adam carefully slithered over to crouch in front of him and he gently eased the gun out of Joe's hands.

"No need for that now. It's alright, Joe. Sheriff's here."

Joe nodded as he stared at his brother's bloodied face. "Are you alright?"

Adam smiled as blood dribbled down his face. "Take more than that to stop us Cartwrights!"

Joe began to laugh until he shifted his leg. His face suddenly went chalk white as pain shot up his leg and into his gut. The adrenaline was quickly subsiding and the pain was escalating quickly. Adam gripped at his shirt as Joe slipped sideways and he frantically patted him down, looking for any sign of injury. When he grabbed at Joe's hand and saw blood, he pulled it up towards his face.

"Where are you hit?"

Joe stared at him as if he was speaking another language.

"He shot Sheriff Coffee!"

"I know that, Joe. Where are you hit? Joe! You're bleeding!"

Hoss was suddenly right beside him and he pointed to the blood pooling in the straw under Joe's leg. "There!"

Between the two of them, they eased Joe onto his side and could see the blood spreading down the back of his leg.

"Damn it." Adam muttered under his breath as he reached for his neckerchief and twisted it around Joe's thigh while Hoss did his best to hold him still. Neither of them paid any attention to the sheriff behind them who was issuing orders to various men as they ran into the livery. The sound of gunshots had carried a long way in the quiet morning air and several men had come running to find the source of it.

Joe groaned as Adam tightened the tourniquet and he bit at his lip to stop himself from moaning any louder. Hoss barely waited for Adam to be done before he eased Joe into his arms and stood up. He winced in sympathy as his brother cried out at the movement, but moved towards the door.

Somebody had pulled a length of rope from the livery wall and was tying Kent's hands behind his back, but neither brother gave the scene more than a passing glance as they hurried out. Nick pushed through the men to grasp at Adam's arm as he passed.

"He's been hit?" The concern on his face was genuine and Adam simply nodded.

"Back of the leg. We're taking him to the doctor's."

"Let me get this mongrel sorted and I'll be right over."

Hoss had already made his way out into the street and Adam hurried to catch up with him. Joe's head was barely visible against Hoss's broad shoulder and Adam quickly realised he would be the one who needed to get their father.

"I'll get Pa and meet you there."

Hoss watched as Adam sprinted down the street, pushing past several gawkers who had stopped up the street. He made his way towards the doctor's and prayed the man was not out somewhere. He climbed the steps up onto the verandah and kicked at the door with his boot.

"Doc! You in there? Doc!"

Minutes later the door swung wide and a disheveled looking man appeared as he wrapped a robe around himself. He was used to being awoken at all hours and was long past complaining about it. The sight in front of him shocked him into wakefulness immediately and he stepped back and pointed towards the examination area.

"In there. Take him through there." As he tied the sash of his robe around his waist, and rubbed the hair back across his head, he reached out towards the boy on the table.

"What in Heaven's name happened to him?"

"He's been shot. Back of the leg."

Having practiced medicine in the territories for over twenty years, he had seen all manner of illness and injury, but a boy with a bullet hole was not commonplace. Instead of wasting time on pointless questions that could wait until later, he ripped at the blood-soaked pants leg and began to examine the wound. Joe screamed as the doctor's fingers prodded at the edge of the wound and Hoss gripped onto his hands.

In the outer foyer, the sound of a door slamming was quickly followed by a bellow.

"Where's my son?"