The morning after Christmas, Cat went to help Joe with his chores only to find her uncle waiting for her. "Where's Little Joe?" she asked. "Why are you doing his chores?"
"We played a game on Christmas Eve night and the loser had to do the winner's chores today. Little Joe won and I lost, so I'm doing his chores today. Are you going to help me the way you've been helping Joe?"
"Yes. Little Joe says I'm a big help, so I can help you too. Do you want to know what he does?"
Ben found it hard to keep from laughing at his niece. "Of course I do Kitten. That's why I asked if you were going to help me."
"Ok. First he fills the wood box in the kitchen so Hop Sing can cook. Then he fills the wood box by the fireplace so the house doesn't get cold. I help him carry the wood."
"That's fine. We'll start by filling the wood box in the kitchen. Joe is right. Hop Sing has to have wood if he's going to cook and we need wood for the fireplace to keep the house from getting cold. Let's go and get those done." After making sure Cat would be warm, the two of them headed out the door to the wood pile. "Now let's get those wood boxes full so Hop Sing can make breakfast." Once the wood boxes were full, Ben asked, "What does Joe do next?"
"He gets the eggs from the chickens. I hold the basket and he puts them in."
"Ok. Where is the basket so I can put the eggs in it?"
"It's in the kitchen hanging on a wall but it's so high, I can't reach it."
"Don't worry about that. I can get it down. You just need to show me where it is."
They walked into the kitchen and Cat pointed to a basket hanging from a hook on one of the walls. Ben took it down, handed it to Cat and then they went out to the chicken coop to get eggs. Once the eggs were in the house, Ben asked, "What does Joe do after he brings the eggs into the house?"
"He milks the cow. The pail is in the barn near the cow. I help him carry the milk into the kitchen."
"Ok. Let's go to the barn and you can show me where the milk pail is." Adam, Hoss and Joe all had a good laugh at their five year old cousin telling their father how to do Joe's chores. Once the cow was milked and the pail of milk brought into the kitchen, Ben asked, "What does Joe do now?"
"He waits for Hop Sing to say that it's time to eat," replied Cat.
"That sounds like a very good idea. Let's go into the great room with the boys and wait for Hop Sing to say it's time to eat."
After breakfast, Ben saddled Dusty for Cat and allowed her to ride him around the yard for a while. Then he said, "It's almost time for you to go to Laura and Mary's house. Let's put Dusty back in the barn."
"Can't I ride him over there?"
"Not today. You're going to be there for several hours and he'll have to wait outside in the cold for you. That's not good for him. I'll take you there and then I'll pick you up and bring you home again."
Ben took her to the Ingalls' farm and stayed long enough to drink a cup of coffee. "Thank you for letting Cat come over and play with your girls," he told Charles and Caroline. "I want her to spend some time playing with children her own age and I think that your girls will help to keep her from being so wild."
"You're welcome Mr. Cartwright," said Caroline. "Catherine will be fine. Why don't you come back and pick her up around two?"
"Alright, I'll pick her up around two." He hugged Cat, told her to have fun and headed for home.
The girls played with dolls and other toys. Just before noon, Caroline called the girls and told them it was time to get ready for dinner. Laura and Mary began to set the table and Cat surprised everyone by putting the plates out as she had been taught by the Tanners. When everyone was finished eating, Cat said, "That was good. Thank you," and helped to clear the table. After the table had been cleared, the girls played for a little while longer. Then Charles took out his fiddle and began to play it. The girls laughed and danced for close to an hour. Before long, it was time for Ben to pick Cat up. She didn't want to leave but she didn't argue. She said thank you to Charles and Caroline and said that she had fun. "Ben, if you don't already have plans, why don't you bring Cat back the day after tomorrow? We enjoyed having her visit today." Ben said that Cat could come back and visit, which she did.
The week flew by and soon it was New Year's Eve. Ben was in his favorite chair near the fireplace, picked Cat up and put her in his lap. "How would you like to surprise Mary, Laura, and their parents tomorrow? We'll take the sleigh over there and take the whole family for a sleigh ride."
Cat thought that was a great idea. "I wish it was tomorrow already," she said and Ben laughed.
After breakfast the next day, Hoss got the sleigh hitched up while Adam and Joe tried to keep Cat from wiggling long enough to get her hat, coat and mittens on. Ben got several blankets and put them in the sleigh. He let Cat sit in his lap and help him drive the team to the Ingalls' farm. Once there, he helped Cat out of the sleigh and knocked on the door. Charles answered the knock. "Ben, Cat, what a nice surprise. Please come in."
"We're here to take your entire family for a sleigh ride and my little boss says that I'm not allowed to take no for an answer."
Charles laughed. "Do come in while I tell Caroline and the girls. I know that they'll be pleased with the invitation."
Soon everyone was in the sleigh and enjoyed a very long ride. When it was over, Caroline invited Ben and Cat into the house for hot cocoa. Then it was time go head back to the Ponderosa.
The rest of the week flew by and soon it was time for Cat to go back to Dodge. The day before Ben was supposed to take her back; he gathered his sons and said, "Boys, I have a very big favor to ask of you." All three were surprised as their father rarely asked favors of them. "I have to take Cat back to Dodge tomorrow. I would like you to tell her that if she skips school even once, between now and Easter, she won't be allowed to come here for her Easter Vacation. I think it will mean more coming from the three of you."
"Alright Pa, we'll tell her," said Adam.
The three of them talked and eventually decided that Joe should be the one to tell Cat, so they looked for her and found her in the kitchen, watching Hop Sing make cookies. Hoss picked her up and sat her on the table. "We have something we need to talk to you about," he said.
"We have been told that you skipped school three times since you started and are very disappointed that you did," said Adam. "School isn't fun, but you have to attend. You need to learn how to read, write and do arithmetic."
Then Joe spoke up. "The three of us talked about it and we decided that if you even skip school once, between now and Easter, you will not be allowed to come here for Easter. If you even skip school once between Easter and summer vacation, you will not be allowed to come here for summer vacation and we will give Dusty to a family whose children go to school. So, since we want you to come and visit us and to be able to ride Dusty, we would like you to promise us that you will go to school every day unless you are sick."
Even Hop Sing added his voice to Joe's. "Missy Cat go to school. If no go to school, Missy Cat no come to Ponderosa and Hop Sing not make any cookies and cake for her."
Cat was shocked and her eyes grew as big as saucers at Joe's words. She hated school but loved the Ponderosa. She had already decided that she wasn't going to go to school, even if she got a hundred spankings, but this was different. Skipping school meant not being able to visit the Ponderosa. That was worse than a million spankings, so she reluctantly promised her cousins and Hop Sing that she would not skip school. They all hugged her and said that they were glad because they loved her and wanted her to be able to visit the Ponderosa when she had a school vacation.
It snowed during the night, so after breakfast, the family had one last snowball fight. When it was time to leave, Ben decided to give Cat one last sleigh ride, so they drove the sleigh to town. She said goodbye to Roy who also made her promise to go to school. When the stage arrived, he carried her one more time and put her in. Once it left, Adam and Joe told Hoss to drive. The ride home was silent because they were all missing their little cousin.
Once they reached Dodge, before it was time for him to return home, Ben reminded Cat of her promise to stay in school. Matt knew that she was missing her cousins, so he got his horse, then helped her saddle Spot and the two of them rode out to the Tanner's house. She told Peter and Michael that she couldn't skip school any more or she would not be allowed to visit the Ponderosa on school vacations.
Days turned turned into months. Cat stayed in school and visited the Ponderosa on her Easter vacation. By then, everyone had forgotten about Mark Nelson's threat to shoot Cat. One day when she was standing outside the Blacksmith's shop with Quint, a shot rang out that barely missed her. Fortunately, Mr. Burke was right near where the shot came from and grabbed Mark by the back of his shirt before he ran away. Mr. Burke took Mark to the judge to ask what he wanted to do. The judge gave Mark a good scolding and then told Mr. Burke, "Take him over to the jail and have Marshal Dillon put him in a cell for now. I'll ride out to his father's ranch and see if I can find him. He's got a lot of explaining to do and some consequences to face for his son's actions. Please ask Marshal Dillon to meet me here in ten minutes. Festus can keep an eye on the boy." Matt met the judge at his office and they rode out to look for Mr. Nelson, but he wasn't home. When they got back to town, the judge said, "I think it would be best if your niece stayed with the Tanners until we find Jonas. I don't think he'd hurt a child, but I don't want to take any chances. Also, I think it would be best if she didn't know that Mark was in jail." Matt agreed and a happy Cat set out with her uncle to stay with the Tanners for a while.
Matt and the judge kept searching for Mr. Nelson but were unable to find him. Two nights later, Mr. and Mrs. Samson were returning from supper at the Black's house when they saw a light in the school. "I know that Miss Jackson isn't in the school because she was also at supper and Mr. and Mrs. Peterson were going to escort her home," said Mr. Samson. "You had better go and get the Marshal while I wait here.
Matt wasn't in his office, but Festus was. "You stay here Mrs. Samson whilst I go over yonder to the school and have a look see at just who is in there. He walked over to the school drew his gun and walked in the door. There he found Mr. Nelson vandalizing the school and arrested him. When they got to the jail, Mr. Nelson was surprised to find his eight year old son sitting in a cell.
The next morning, the judge went over to talk to Mr. Nelson. "Jonas, you are in big trouble and you know it. Your son shot at the Marshal's niece, barely missing her and you vandalized the school twice. I need to know if you have any family members who can take care of your son." Your trial is going to be the day after tomorrow and if the jury finds you guilty, you are going to prison for a long time. An eight year old cannot stay by himself. If you don't have any family who can take care of him, I will have to send him to a home for wayward boys. The boys don't get any nurturing and are severely punished for even bending a rule. I know you don't want that for your son."
"I have a brother. His name is David and he lives in Wichita."
"Thank you Jonas. I'll have Marshal Dillon send him a telegram right away. I'll postpone your trial until he gets here. I don't want to leave Mark sitting in a jail cell but I'm afraid that he'll run away if I sent him to Ma Smalley's. Hopefully your brother will be able to rein him in and undo the damage you've done by letting him run wild."
Mr. Nelson's brother arrived two days later and the trial was held the following day. The jury found Mr. Nelson guilty of vandalizing the school twice and teaching his son to shoot at people he didn't like. Because Mark had shot at Cat and almost hit her, the judge sentenced Mr. Nelson to five years in prison. His brother took over the ranch and began to discipline Mark and teach him right from wrong.
Summer arrived. Cat celebrated her sixth birthday, stayed with the Apaches for two weeks and then spent the rest of the summer on the Ponderosa. She went for long rides with her uncle and cousins and played with Mary and Laura. Several times, she was allowed to ride Dusty over to the Ingalls where all three girls took turns riding him. Laura and Mary also spent time playing with Cat at the Ponderosa. One day when they were visiting Cat, Adam and Joe surprised them. Hop Sing packed a big picnic lunch, Adam hitched up the buggy, put fishing poles and the picnic basket in it. Then he and Joe took the girls to Lake Tahoe for a picnic. Mary didn't like fishing, so she just watched while her sister and Cat fished. They were catching a lot of fish, so Adam and Joe decided to do some fishing also. By the time they were finished, they had caught enough fish for supper. When they returned to the house, the girls took the fish to Hop Sing while Joe saddled Cochise and rode over to ask permission for Mary and Laura to stay for supper.
The summer flew by and before long it was time for Cat to go back to Dodge. Hop Sing fixed a special supper and the Ingalls family was invited to join the Cartwrights for supper. When supper was over, Laura and Mary said a tearful goodbye to their friend and said they'd see her at Christmas. The next day, Ben and Cat left for Dodge. He didn't want to leave her there because he knew it would still be another four years before she could move to the Ponderosa permanently and he could adopt her. But, he and Matt had agreed that she would continue to live in Dodge until she was ten so he reluctantly left her there.
School started again and Cat was pleased to see that Miss Jackson was still the teacher. She grew to love reading and thoroughly enjoyed the music and art lessons as well as the special speakers but she did not like arithmetic. There were several times before Christmas when Cat was tempted to skip school but knowing it would cost her Christmas on the Ponderosa, she stayed in school. The days, weeks and months flew by with Cat spending her school vacations on the Ponderosa. Before Matt knew it, she celebrated her eighth birthday. He couldn't believe that it had been more than seven years since Kate had left her daughter with him.
About a month before Cat's ninth birthday, Matt received the telegram from Cat's mother saying that she and her husband were in the country and would be in Dodge in four days. He sent his telegrams off to the rest of the family as well as Cat's Godfathers and waited for a reply from Jarrod as to what his grandfather's will said about Cat.
He received his reply from Jarrod about two hours after sending the telegram. The will stated that Cat could not be taken out of the country against her will and if she was, any money she stood to inherit would be split between her cousins. He would get on the next stage and bring a copy of the will with him. Matt breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that Cat would never agree to go to Australia with people she didn't know, even if one of them was her mother. Stephen Jacobs' entire motive for coming to get Cat was to get his hands on the money she would inherit and the terms of her grandfather's will would keep him from doing that.
When Cat got back to his office after school, Matt told her to sit down in the chair near his desk. He sat in his chair, looked at his niece and said, "I received a telegram this morning. Your mother and her husband are in the country and will be here in four days. They are going to want you to go back to Australia with them, but you don't have to if you don't want to. Your grandfather's will says that you cannot be forced to leave the country."
"My mother hasn't written to me since she left me here. Why is she coming here now? Why hasn't she written to me? I barely remember her and I am not going to go to Australia with her and her husband. I don't know them and don't want to go anywhere with them. I want to stay here and on the Ponderosa with Uncle Ben, Adam, Hoss and Little Joe."
"I'm glad that you want to stay here. Now, just because you don't have to go with them, doesn't mean that you don't have to be polite. I want you to spend time with your mother when you're not in school. I know that you would rather be hunting, fishing or spending time with your friends, but she is your mother and it's important for you to spend some time with her."
"Ok Uncle Matt. I'll be polite and spend some time with my mother and her husband, but I am not going to go with them to Australia."
"That's fine Cat. Now, how much homework do you have?"
"Not too much, mostly arithmetic. I know what Doc said this morning, but I still don't like it."
Matt laughed at his niece. "I understand, but you still have to do the work."
The next day, Matt received a telegram from Jarrod. He had been unavoidably detained and had sent a copy of the will in the mail. Matt received it two days later.
Four days after Matt received the telegram from Kate, she and her husband, Stephen Jacobs were on the stage when it pulled into town. After getting a room at the Dodge House, they walked over to Matt's office. "Hello Matt," said Kate. "Where is Catherine?"
"Hello Kate. Cat is in school where she belongs."
"Go and get her so we can get on the next stage out of here," demanded Jacobs.
"No!" said Matt. "She isn't going anywhere with you."
"She's my wife's daughter. We can take her anytime we want to."
"No, you can't. Kate's father's will prevents her from being taken out of the country against her will."
"I want to see that will," said Jacobs.
"Judge Michaels has it. I'm sure he will be more than happy to let you look at it."
"We just got here and I'm sick of this town already. Kate, pack the child's things. I'm going to get her from the school," growled Jacobs.
"If you do, I'll arrest you for kidnapping," said Matt. "I don't know what things are like in Australia, but around here, we take a very dim view of people forcing other people's children to go anywhere with them. Your reputation has preceded you. Kate's father wrote a lengthy letter to go with his will that describes how your previous wives disappeared after you got your hands on their money. Judge Michaels also has a copy of that letter. Why don't you go over to his office and ask him to see it and the will?" Jacobs stormed out of Matt's office and down to Judge Michaels' office where he demanded to see Kate's father's will and the letter that went with it. The judge regarded him with contempt, slowly walked over to a filing cabinet, opened a drawer and took two documents out of it. Before handing them to Jacobs, the judge told him that he had several other copies of them and the originals and more copies were in San Francisco. He also told him that destroying legal documents was against the law and he would go to prison if he attempted to or destroyed them.
After her husband left his office, Matt walked over to his safe, opened it and took out an envelope. "It's from your father," he said, handing her the letter. "He sent it to me just before he died; asking me to ensure you got it."
Kate read the letter and tears filled her eyes. "He apologized for making me marry Stephen and asked me to forgive him. He said that when he learned of his reputation and what happened to his other wives; he changed his will to protect me and Cat. Stephen's an evil man, Matt and when he reads father's will, he will be furious. I'm certain that if father weren't already dead, Stephen would force him to change his will and then kill him. He has a very bad temper and I'm afraid of him. I want to leave him but I don't know how. He'll beat me if he even thinks I'm trying to leave him. The only reason I'm still alive is because I'm his ticket to getting Cat's inheritance."
"Kate, if you're serious, I will help you. First, you have to pretend to try and get Cat to go with you, so you'll have an excuse to stay here longer. I'll talk with Mr. James about drawing up divorce papers under the pretense of challenging your father's will and I'll let Judge Taylor know what's going on also. I know that he'll want to help."
"I'll do it your way this time Matt. I should have listened to you when Cat was still a baby. I wouldn't be in this mess if I had. Here, put this back in your safe," Kate said, handing Matt her father's letter. "If Stephen sees it, he'll destroy it. Now, before he comes back, tell me about Michael's and my daughter. What is she like?"
"She's a lot like you were when you were younger Kate. She's also a lot like Michael." Matt told Kate all about her daughter, including how she lived with the Apaches, ran away when she wasn't getting enough attention, skipped school and spent her school vacations on the Ponderosa.
"I can't wait to meet her Matt. I wish school was out already."
Jacobs came storming back into Matt's office. "I looked at the will. He's right," he said pointing at Matt. "Your father's will says she can't be taken out of the country against her will or she won't inherit a dime. You are going to have to either convince her to come with us or find a way to break your father's will. I don't care how you do it, but I am not leaving here without that child."
"Alright Stephen. I'll talk to Catherine and go see the lawyer later. Right now, I'm tired from our long trip and want to take a nap."
"You'll go talk to the lawyer now, if you know what's good for you!" he threatened.
Matt took a step toward him. "If you lay one hand on her, I'll throw you in jail for assault. We don't favor men beating up on women any more than we favor people forcing other people's children to go with them. Kate, the lawyer is out of town and won't be back for several days. You can talk to him when he returns. In the mean time, why don't you spend these several days getting to know your daughter? I guarantee you won't regret it. School doesn't get out for several hours yet. Why don't you take your nap? That way you'll be well rested when you see Cat."
Jacobs wasn't happy that the lawyer was out of town but there was nothing he could do. So Kate went over to the hotel to take a nap while Jacobs went over to the Long Branch. Matt went over to Mr. James' office and talked to him about helping Kate divorce her husband while pretending to help her fight her father's will. He agreed to help. Then he went over and talked with Judge Michaels about Kate. The judge said based on what he read in Kate's father's will and letter, he would gladly grant the divorce.
Kate was in Matt's office when Cat returned from school. As soon as she walked in the door, it was obvious that she had been in another fight. Matt sighed. "Who did you fight with this time and why?"
"Mark Nelson. He knocked my books out of my hands and tried to rip up my Arithmetic test. I got a good grade on it for once and I wasn't about to let him destroy it. His uncle made him tell the truth about why we were fighting, so I think he's going to be in big trouble." She handed her math test to her uncle.
"You're right; this is a very good grade. You've been working hard and I'm very proud of you. We'll talk about your getting into fights later. Right now, there's someone here you need to get to know." Matt introduced Cat to her mother and Cat eyed her suspiciously.
"Hello Cat. I can't believe how much you've grown up since I left you with your uncle. He doesn't know it, but you're a lot like me. I used to get into fights when I was in school also. I can't wait to get to know you."
"Hello Mother," said Cat. "It's been eight years since you left me here and you haven't even written to me. Why are you here now?"
"Cat," warned Matt.
"It's ok Matt," said Kate. "She has every right to ask that question. I'm sorry that I never wrote to you. The reason why is a long story that I hope you'll understand when you're older. Right now, I'd like to spend some time getting to know you. I know that you probably have school work to do, but maybe Matt will let you wait until later to do it."
Matt agreed to let Cat do her school work after supper. Just as Cat and her mother were about to go for a walk, the door opened and Stephen Jacobs walked in. Kate introduced him to Cat and told her that they wanted her to come to Australia with them."
"No!" Cat said. "I am not going with you and you can't make me."
"You had better convince her to come with us," Jacobs said to Kate.
"Stephen, I just met the daughter I left behind eight years ago. She doesn't know us. I can't expect her to just agree to leave everything she knows and go with total strangers. I'm going to need to spend time with her so that she'll get to know me and want to go with us. Now, I am going to go for a walk with my daughter." They went for a walk and Kate spent the time trying to get to know her daughter.
Several days later, Kate went to see Mr. James about divorcing her husband. That night, Cat ate supper at Delmonico's with her mother and Jacobs. As they were walking toward Matt's office after supper, two shots rang out and Kate and Stephen Jacobs fell to the ground. For a few moments, Cat stood there in shock and then got down on her knees and begged her mother to get up and started crying. Matt and Doc heard the shots and came running. Matt picked the crying girl up off the ground and held her close. Doc said there was nothing he could do for Kate or Jacobs. Cat was hysterical and kept saying it was all her fault. "Take her to Ma Smalley's Matt. I'll give her something to help her sleep and Ma can watch her while you try to find whoever did this." Then he told some men standing nearby to carry the bodies to the undertaker. Matt took Cat over to Ma Smalley who said she'd be more than happy to look after her. Matt searched most of the night but was unable to find the shooter.
The next morning, Ma Smalley went to check on Cat and found her gone with a note on the bed saying it was all her fault he mother had been killed and to give Spot to the Tanners. She hurried over to Matt's office, told him Cat was gone and handed him the note. He started searching the town. A few minutes later, Quint found him and said that Spot was gone. Matt and Quint got their horses and rode out to the pond to see if Cat was there.
While Matt and Quint rode out to the pond, two young cowboys were riding into town from a different direction. They came across Spot, standing quietly near the edge of a very steep embankment. "What's a child's pony doing out here all alone at this time of day?" asked the older of the two.
"I don't know Joshua, but I'm going to look around and see what I can find," said the younger.
"Just be careful Thaddeus. I don't need you getting hurt."
Thaddeus started looking around. When he looked down the embankment toward the river, he saw Cat laying unconscious at the bottom with only her head and shoulders out of the water. "Joshua, quick, give me your rope and tie it off to your saddle. There's a child down there and if someone doesn't pull him out, he'll drown." Joshua tied one end of his rope to his saddle and handed the other end to his brother who tied it around his waist and made his way down the embankment. He reached Cat, turned her over and was surprised to discover that the boy was actually a girl. "It's a girl and she's hurt bad Joshua. Pull me up quick. We've got to get her to a doctor." He picked Cat up and his brother pulled him up. He handed Spot's reins to Joshua, put Cat in his saddle and rode for Dodge as fast as his horse would go. Once he reached town, Thaddeus rushed up the stairs to Doc's office with Cat in his arms.
Doc took one look at the girl and said, "Oh my God, Cat. What happened to you?" Then he yelled out his door at some men in the street and told them to get Matt. He told Thaddeus to set Cat down on his exam bed where he gave her a thorough going over. Then he told Joshua and Thaddeus that everyone had been searching for her all morning and asked where they found her. They told him. "Thank God you did. If she had stayed out there much longer, I don't know if she would still be alive."
Just then Matt came rushing into Doc's office. "How is she Doc? Is she still alive? What happened to her?"
"Yes Matt, she's still alive but she's badly injured. She has no broken bones. She spent a lot of time in the river and nearly drowned. If it hadn't been for these two young men, she would not be here with us now. Fortunately, she's young and strong. It will take time, but she should make a complete recovery. However, it will be a lot longer before she recovers from what happened last night."
Matt turned to Joshua and Thaddeus and said, "I can't thank you enough for saving my niece. She experienced a great loss last night and has been missing since early this morning. Please tell me your names. If there's anything I can do to help you, please tell me and I will do my utmost to get it done."
"I'm Joshua Daniels and this is my brother, Thaddeus. He's the one who pulled your niece out of the river. We're just glad we came along when we did and saw her pony. Please tell us her name and why she was in the river."
"Her name is Catherine. We call her Cat. What happened to her is a long story, but last night, she was with her mother and her mother's husband when they were murdered. I'll tell you more later, but right now I've got to let the rest of the family know that her mother is dead and she's seriously injured."
Before Matt left to send his telegrams, Thaddeus spoke up. "Marshal, would you mind if I sat with her for a while? I can't explain it but I felt some kind of connection to her when I saw her lying in that river." Matt gave his permission and Doc told Thaddeus to carry Cat into the other room. Thaddeus sat with Cat for a while. Then he and Joshua went to talk to Matt. "We're looking for work Marshal. Joshua and I aren't afraid of hard work and are willing to do almost anything."
"Cat's mother's brother has a large ranch near Virginia City, Nevada. Cat will be going to live there now. We're taking her mother there to bury her next to Cat's father. I'm sure that Ben will be able to give you jobs. Why don't you come with us? Cat will want to get to know you." Two days later, with Kate's coffin on top of the stage, Matt, Kitty, Cat, Joshua and Thaddeus set out for Virginia City. Doc gave Kitty a bottle of medicine to give Cat if she was in a lot of pain and told her not to give more than two drops in a cup of water every six hours. Before they left, Matt told Quint to take Spot out to the Tanners and leave him there.
When they arrived in Virginia City, Ben, Adam, Hoss and Joe were waiting for them with the buckboard and buggy. Joe had ridden Cochise and brought Dusty with him saying that it might help Cat feel better if she got to ride her pony. Once they reached the Ponderosa, Ben carried Cat up to her bedroom and Kitty got her into bed. Matt introduced Joshua and Thaddeus to Ben who gladly gave them jobs. He said that the rest of the family including Lucas and Mark McCain and Cat's Godfathers would be there the next day and the funeral would be the day after.
A little while later while everyone was sitting around the table talking, Cat walked into the dining room. "Uncle Ben, what's going to happen to me now that I don't have a mamma or a papa? Am I going to have to live in an orphanage?"
"No Kitten. You're going to live right here with me, Adam, Hoss and Little Joe. You were born here and this is where you belong. Instead of coming to visit us in the summer, you'll go and visit Uncle Matt."
"Really Uncle Ben?"
"Really Kitten. You're going to live here from now on. Now, let's see if Hop Sing has any food for you. I know that you haven't eaten in a long time and you're not going to get well if you're hungry." He carried her into the kitchen where Hop Sing fussed over her and made some chicken soup for her.
"Missy Cat live here now Mr. Cartright?" Hop Sing asked.
"Yes Hop Sing. Cat is going to live here now. I am going to adopt her and she will be my daughter. Jarrod is bringing some papers with him and we'll see the judge the day after the funeral to start the adoption process."
"Very good. Hop Sing sad that Missy Kate dead but very happy that Missy Cat going to live here now. I no like it when she have to go back to Mr. Matt."
"She'll be spending her summers with Matt. He's raised her from when she was only a year old until now and deserves to have her with him part of the year."
"That ok. She go visit Mr. Matt, but she live her now. I go see if she need more soup. She need lots of soup to get well again. I tell you when she done eating so she can get more sleep. She need lots of sleep too."
"Thank you Hop Sing. I appreciate you helping to look after Cat right now. These next few days are going to be very hard on her and she's going to need a lot of looking after."
"You no worry. Hop Sing take very good care of Missy Cat. She get well, stay strong and be happy. I no like it when she sad."
A little while later, he brought Cat out into the dining room and put a cup of hot cocoa and a plate with some cookies on the table for her. While Cat was eating her cookies, she asked, "Uncle Matt, what's going to happen to Spot now that I'm going to live here?"
Before Matt could answer, Kitty spoke up. "Why don't you let him go and live at the Tanners? He'll get lots of love and attention and you can visit him when you come to Dodge in the summer. I'll take him out there myself, the day after I get back home."
"Ok Miss Kitty. Spot will be happy at the Tanners. Thank you for saying you'd take him there for me."
When Cat finished her cookies and hot cocoa, Ben told her that she needed to go back to bed so she could get well. Adam, Hoss and Joe made her laugh by pretending to fight over who was going to take her upstairs and put her back to bed. Matt settled the matter by picking his niece up and carrying her upstairs. "I've been doing this for a lot of years now so I may as well do it while I can." He sat with her and read a story to her before kissing and hugging her goodnight and tucking her into bed. When he came back downstairs he thanked his nephews for making Cat laugh. "That's the first time I've seen her smile since her mother and Jacobs came to Dodge. These next few days are going to be very hard on her and I appreciate you making her laugh."
Ben remarked that it was getting late and everyone should think about getting some sleep. Adam, Hoss and Joe walked Thaddeus and Joshua to the bunk house. Adam knocked on the door and their foreman, Pete, opened the door. Before Adam could introduce Joshua and Thaddeus, the men all gathered around wanting to know how Cat was. "She's banged up and bruised but nothing's broken. She's going to be fine. These next few days are going to be very hard on her and she's going to need all of the help and support she can get."
"I think I can safely speak for all of the men when I tell you that all of us will do everything we can to help Miss Cat until she recovers from everything that's happened to her," said Pete. All of the men agreed with him.
"Thank you kindly boys," said Hoss. "We'll let her know in the morning. I'm sure she'll be grateful for your help."
"In the mean time," said Joe, "We'd like to introduce you to two new hands. This is Joshua Daniels and his brother, Thaddeus."
"Are they the men who found Miss Cat?" asked Pete.
"Yes, they are," said Adam.
"Well then, they're more than welcome here," said Mike. "We're all real fond of Miss Cat and anyone who helps her is a good person to have around." The rest of the men agreed with him and showed Joshua and Thaddeus where to put their things. After introductions were made, Pete told everyone they had a long day's work ahead and everyone needed to get some sleep.
When Adam, Hoss and Joe walked back into the house their father wanted to know if there were any problems with the men. When Adam said no, Ben suggested that everyone get some sleep. They still had a ranch to run and the rest of the family was due in the next day.