Ben walked back into the house and joined the rest of the family. They talked for a little while longer and because everyone was leaving the next day, they all decided to go to bed. Adam walked upstairs with his father and as they passed Cat's bedroom, he said, "I'm going to take that money away from her tonight while she's sleeping. A nine year old is much too young to have any money. I'm sure that she'll just spend it on candy the first chance she gets. There's no reason for her to have it anyway. She's going to be staying here and won't need to send any telegrams to anybody."
"No son. Do not take that money away from Cat. If you do, she may never trust you again and it is very important that she trust you. I don't think that Matt and Rip would have given her that money if they thought she would just spend it on candy."
"Alright Pa. I won't touch the money, but I still think a nine year old is too irresponsible to have any money."
"Adam, I know you take your role of older brother very seriously and I'm glad you do, but don't forget, Catherine has been raised much differently than you and your brothers were. She became independent out of necessity and is going to need time to adjust to being here. Matt's job takes him away from Dodge for days and sometimes weeks on end. Cat was left alone a lot and had to learn to do things for herself. As Roy pointed out, we have had her here only about nine months out of the last eight years and that was just for a few weeks at a time.
Until Cat is firmly settled in here and used to the way we do things, let me make the parenting decisions. If you're in charge and think she needs to be spanked, let me know when I return and I will deal with it. She's a very intelligent girl and I don't think it will take much more than a month for her to settle in.
Also, I hadn't thought about it until now, but Matt is right when he says keeping her from doing something she wants to do is very effective punishment. Do you remember the look on her face when she was five and you boys told her she couldn't come here for school holidays if she skipped school? Matt spanked her every time she skipped school but that didn't stop her. However, being told she couldn't come here for holidays did. She got the same look on her face when Matt told her that if she skipped school, she wouldn't be allowed to spend her summers in Dodge. So I think at first, until Cat gets used to her new rules, we'll follow Matt's advice on how to discipline her. Besides that, you boys weren't spanked the first time you broke a rule, so there's no reason Cat should be. I think that being friends with the Ingalls girls is going to be good for her. Laura is a little wild but Mary is calmer and will be a good influence on our little Wild Cat. Unless she is being punished, if she wants to go over there, let her. Just tell her what time to be home. I think she'll do her best to come home on time."
"You may be right Pa. I do remember the look on her face when we told her she couldn't come here if she skipped school. She was devastated when we told her that but we never got another letter from Matt saying that she had been skipping school."
Cat wasn't asleep and heard Adam tell Ben that he was going to take her money away from her just because she was only nine. She wasn't about to let that happen, so she got out of bed, took the money out of the dresser drawer she had put it in, and put it underneath her mattress. She decided that she wouldn't say anything at breakfast, but if Adam was going to treat her like a baby, she was going to embarrass him in front of everybody when they were in town the next day.
Cat and Mark woke up early and went out to do Joe's chores. While they were picking up wood, Cat said, "You aren't going to believe what I heard Adam say last night."
"What did he say?"
"Do you remember that money Uncle Matt and Uncle Rip gave me in case I need to send them a telegram?"
"Yes."
"Adam told Uncle Ben that he was going to take it away from me because he thinks I'm still a baby and shouldn't have any money."
"That's awful. What are you going to do?"
"I took the money out of the dresser drawer and put it under my mattress so Adam couldn't get it last night. I've got it in my pocket right now. When we all go to town after dinner, I'm going to show Adam that I'm not a baby and I'm going to embarrass him in front of everyone."
"How are you going to do that?"
"When Sheriff Roy comes to say goodbye to everybody, I'm going to give him the money and ask him to keep it for me because Adam said I'm a baby and shouldn't have it."
"You're right. That will embarrass him because I'm sure that Uncle Matt and Uncle Rip told him not to take the money away from you."
"Good! I hope it does. I'm not a baby and don't want to be treated like one. If Adam is going to treat me like a baby, I'm going to embarrass him as often as I can and maybe I'll just go back and live with Uncle Matt. He hasn't treated me like a baby since I was five."
"I hope it works. I agree, you're not a baby. You're only a few months younger than me and Pa hasn't treated me like a baby since I was five also."
"You're not going to tell your Pa what I'm planning to do, are you? Because he might spoil everything and tell Adam and Uncle Ben what I'm planning to do."
"No, I promise, I won't tell Pa. Adam needs to learn that you're not a baby and I don't want anyone to stop you from showing him you're not."
"Thanks Mark. I wish we lived closer so we could see each other more than just one or two weeks a year."
"Yeah, me too. It would be fun if we both went to the same school. It wouldn't be so boring then."
"I'm going to be spending a week with you and your Pa after I spend two weeks with my Apache family. Will you please teach me how to work with cows? I know that since Adam thinks I'm a baby, he won't show me. Hoss and Little Joe will probably do what Adam tells them to and Uncle Ben will say that I'm too young and that girls shouldn't be working with cows."
"That's silly. You're not too young and I don't think there's anything wrong with a girl working cows. Of course I'll show you. I'll try and talk Pa into showing you too. Maybe I can show you a little bit this morning if we're allowed to go riding."
"That's great. Thanks Mark. Let's finish filling the wood boxes and gather the eggs. Since you helped me pack last night, maybe we'll be able to go riding after breakfast. I'd like to say goodbye to Laura and Mary before we leave."
During breakfast, Cat asked if she and Mark could go riding one more time. "You're leaving this afternoon and need to pack," said Ben.
"I did that last night before bed. Mark helped me."
"Alright, since you are already packed, I don't see any reason why you and Mark can't go riding this morning. Just be sure and be back before dinner. Everyone is leaving after dinner and since Uncle Lucas, Mark and the Barkleys have to catch stage coaches we can't be late getting to town."
"Don't worry, we won't be late," said Mark. "I love Hop Sing's cooking as much as Cat does and don't want to miss even a bite since I won't have it again for a long time. Pa's a pretty good cook, but Hop Sing is a terrific cook. I wish I could take him home with us."
Everyone had a good laugh at Mark's comments. "I wish Mark could live here with me," said Cat. "It would be lots of fun. Uncle Luke, can Mark live here with me?"
"No Cat. I'm sorry but I would miss him way too much."
"You could live here too."
"What would I do with my ranch?"
"Oh, I didn't think about that. I guess you could always move it here."
Lucas laughed. "How would I do that Sweetheart?"
"I don't know, but I'm sure you can. Mark says you're one of the smartest people he knows, so you could do it if you wanted to."
"It would take a lot of work to move an entire ranch from one state to another and I don't know if I could do it. Anyway, you are going to be spending a week with Mark and I every summer, so you and he will get to spend some time together."
"Cat, why don't you and Mark take some extra horses with you and see if Laura and Mary would like to go for one more ride with Mark?" asked Ben.
"That's a great idea," said Cat and Mark together.
"We won't have time to go swimming, but maybe they would like to go wading again," said Mark.
"That would be fun," said Cat. "We don't have a lot of time, so we should leave."
"Yes, but almost everybody is still eating and we have to clear the table," said Mark.
"Don't worry about clearing the table," said Julia Grant. "You children go and have fun with your friends. We'll clear the table for you."
Cat and Mark both gave her a hug and ran out the door to the barn and quickly saddled four horses. Once they were away from the house, Mark asked, "Are you going to tell Laura and Mary about your plan?"
"No. I'm afraid that they'll tell their parents and that Mr. Ingalls will ride over to the house and tell Uncle Ben what I'm going to do. Adam needs to learn that I'm not a baby any more. I even have some jobs that I do in Dodge."
"What do you do?"
"I run telegrams for Mr. Brown. When he has a telegram that has to go to one of the farms or ranches outside of town, Mr. Brown pays me ten cents to ride out to the farm or ranch with it. Sometimes Mr. Quint gets a horse in that doesn't want to have new shoes put on. Since horses like me and usually settle down when I talk to them, he pays me twenty five cents for every horse I help him with. And Mr. Michaels likes to have fresh fish for the hotel restaurant so he pays ten cents each for big fish and five cents each for smaller ones. Of course I'm not the only one who catches fish and runs telegrams but at least I am earning some money."
"Wow, that's great. What are you doing with all of your money?"
"Miss Kitty is holding it for me. I want to buy Uncle Matt a nice birthday gift, so I'm saving it."
"What are you going to buy him?"
"I heard him tell Miss Kitty that he needs a new winter coat. She helped me pick out a nice one but it costs twenty five dollars and I've only got fifteen dollars saved. I'm not going to be in Dodge this summer, so I don't know how I'm going to earn the other ten dollars I need."
"Oh wow. What are you going to do?"
"I don't know. I guess I could ask Miss Kitty to loan me the money and I'll pay her back next summer when I'm in Dodge. The Ponderosa is pretty far from town and right now, Uncle Ben, Adam, Hoss, and Little Joe all think I'm still a baby, so I probably won't be allowed to get a job."
"How are you going to show them that you're not a baby?"
"I don't know. I hope that giving the money my uncles gave me, to Sheriff Roy will help. I don't know what else to do, but I've got to show them I'm not a baby. Maybe training Fury by myself will help."
"I'll ask Pa when we're on the stage going home. He's really smart and might know what else you can do."
"Thank you Mark. Even though we live far apart, you have always been my brother and I knew I could count on you for help."
"I just thought of something. Now that you're going to be living on the Ponderosa, we'll be closer together. Virginia City is closer to North Fork than Dodge is, so our letters won't take so long to get to each other."
"That's great. I just hope that Adam isn't going to want to read my letters. I'm pretty sure that Uncle Ben, Hoss, and Joe won't, but I'm not sure about Adam. I think he's nosy and will want to know everything I do even if it's none of his business. Since he thinks I'm still a baby, he may try and take my bow and arrows away from me. I'll have to try and figure out where to hide them when I'm in school."
"I don't think it will be that bad. Remember, if he does try and read your letters to me or take your bow and arrows away, you can always tell Uncle Ben, Hoss, and Little Joe. I think they'll stop him. Remember, Hoss is big and I don't think that Adam will argue with him."
"I hope you're right."
"I'm sure I am. It may be a little rough at first but it will get better. Don't forget, they're not used to having you around all the time and don't know everything you can do. Also, you are going to have to get used to the way they do things. I talked to Pa when he came to bed last night and he said that he'd help me show you how to work with cattle. That way, when you come back, you can show them everything you know how to do and maybe they won't treat you like a baby so much."
"We're here. I hope that Laura and Mary can come riding for a little while." Cat and Mark got off their horses and knocked on the Ingalls' door. Mrs. Ingalls opened the door and invited the two children into the house.
"Can Laura and Mary please come riding for a little while?" Cat asked. "Mark is leaving today and I am going to be gone for about four weeks. We would like to spend a little bit of time with them before we have to leave."
"Of course they can go riding with you and Mark," said Caroline. "I know that you won't have time to go swimming but the girls can go wading in the lake with you. They're up in the loft playing. Let me get them for you." She walked to the bottom of the ladder leading up to the loft that served as the girls' bedroom and called them. They came down the ladder and greeted their friends.
They were sad when they were told that Mark was leaving to go home that day and that Cat would also be gone for several weeks but said that they'd love to go riding and spend some time wading in the lake.
"I'll have dinner ready by the time you come back. Catherine, why don't you and Mark stay for dinner?" asked Caroline.
"We'd love to Mrs. Ingalls," replied Cat. "But I don't know what time we're leaving this afternoon and we were told to be home before dinner."
"Well, you children go and have fun. I'll try and see if I can get permission for you to have dinner here."
"That's very nice of you Mrs. Ingalls," said Mark. "Thank you very much." The four children rode off to spend the morning playing and wading in Lake Tahoe.
While Cat and Mark were playing with Laura and Mary, Matt was talking to Ben and Adam. "Ben, please don't think that I was telling you how to raise Cat the other night. You have done a great job with the boys and I know that you'll do fine with Cat. I thought it was important for you to know how I raised her. I couldn't expect her to just sit in my office while I was gone, so I allowed her to go fishing or ride out to the Tanners as long as an adult knew where she was. I'll talk to her and explain that she's going to have new rules to follow. As I said, she is very independent. She is also hard headed and determined to do things her own way. Expect her to test her boundaries every chance she gets. If you tell her she can't go in the lake any deeper than her knees, expect her to go in water as deep as her waist to see what will happen. However, if you spank her everytime she does something wrong, that particular punishment will lose its effectiveness. She hates being confined so making her stay home is very effective. When she was misbehaving and I told her that she would not be allowed to ride her pony or go fishing, she stopped misbehaving.
When they returned to the Ingalls' house, the children were told that Cat and Mark had permission to eat dinner with the Ingalls but had to return to the Ponderosa as soon as the meal was finished. They were overjoyed and worked together to set the table. Even though Mark and Cat were leaving, the meal was a festive occasion as everyone talked and laughed about the fun they had getting to know Mark and spending time with him and Cat. The meal was over far too soon and once the table was cleared, Cat and Mark said goodbye to their friends and their parents and rode back to the Ponderosa.
When they reached the Ponderosa, Hop Sing fussed that they hadn't been there for dinner but Cat said, "Hop Sing, Mrs. Ingalls invited us and it would have been rude to say no, especially after she walked all the way over here just to get permission for us to eat with her family." Hop Sing wasn't happy but he couldn't argue. He knew that one thing Ben Cartwright did not tolerate from his children was rudeness. When they were children, all three boys had been punished on more than one occasion for being rude.
"Mark, Cat, we're going to be leaving soon," said Ben. "The two of you need to go upstairs and get your things. I want to make sure we get to town in plenty of time for the Barkleys to get their stage."
The two children ran upstairs and returned with their luggage. Mark's luggage was put onto the back of the buggy while Cat's was put onto the President's carriage. They were almost ready to leave when Cat said, "I have to say goodbye to Fury and tell him I'll be home in a few weeks. I don't want him to forget me while I'm gone."
Before Cat and Mark could mount their horses, Hop Sing came out of the kitchen. "Missy Cat, Mr. Mark, please help Hop Sing for minute." They followed him back into the kitchen and emerged a few minutes later, their arms full of bundles containing food for everyone's journey. Hop Sing gave a bundle to each group. "Hop Sing give you lots of food. Now you not go hungry on trip home. Missy Cat and Mr. Mark too skinny. I put extra food for them. They need to stay here. I cook extra food and they grow big like Mr. Hoss."
"I'm sorry Hop Sing," said Lucas. "But I would miss Mark too much if he stayed here. Believe me, he gets plenty to eat although I must admit that my cooking is nowhere as good as yours is. Let me see how things are going and maybe we can visit at Christmas."
"That good. You come at Christmas. I cook lots of food. Mr. Mark like Missy Cat, too skinny. Hop Sing need to fatten them up."
Lucas laughed. "Alright Hop Sing. I can't promise that we'll be here for sure, but we will do our best."
Just as everyone was getting ready to leave, Cat said, "I need to take Fury with me. I'm going to be gone for a long time. Who's going to take care of Fury? What if he forgets me?"
"Don't you worry about that colt Miss Cat," said Thaddeus walking up to the group. "If your Pa gives me permission, I'll take care of him. I'll make him my special project and talk to him every chance I get. I promise that I'll tell him about the special little girl who loves him and he won't forget you. In fact, if you put those pretty blankets in the barn, I'll show them to him to remind him of how much you love him."
Cat ran up to Thaddeus with tears in her eyes and hugged him. "Thank you Thaddeus. I won't worry about him so much now that you're going to take care of him for me."
Julia Grant looked at her Goddaughter and the cowboy she was hugging and said to her husband, "Those two are going to get married when Cat is old enough. Don't ask me how I know, I just do."
Grant turned and looked at his wife. "I'm not going to argue with you. When it comes to stuff like that, you've been right more than once. You were even right when you told me that we were going to get married. Now, how are we going to keep our Goddaughter occupied for the next three days until we get to Arizona? She doesn't sit still for very long."
"We could ask Ben to let her bring her horse. She could spend some time riding with the soldiers, Rip, Bill, and Phil. That would help to keep her from becoming bored. From what I've seen, she tries her best to keep her promises, so we could tell her that she has to ride in the carriage part way and we'll let her ride her horse part way if she promises to come inside the carriage when we tell her to."
The President leaned over and kissed his wife. "You, my dear, are a genius."
"Isn't that why you married me?" she laughed.
"Come on Catherine, we need to leave," said Ben. "Thaddeus can take care of Fury while you're gone, but we need to get to town before the stage arrives to take Aunt Victoria and her family back to California."
"Ok Uncle Ben." Cat ran over to where Mark was holding Ginger for her, mounted the horse and the family set off for Virginia City.
Matt took the opportunity of the ride to talk with Cat about her future. "Cat, we need to talk. Your life is about to change a lot. You already know that you are going to be living on the Ponderosa now. Uncle Ben is your father now and you need to listen to him and do what he says. Adam, Hoss and Little Joe are your brothers now and you also need to listen to them and do what they say. If they tell you to do something, do it. If they tell you not to do something, don't do it. You are going to have different rules than you did in Dodge. If you break those rules, you will be in a lot of trouble and will be punished and may receive a lot of spankings. If Adam, Hoss, or Little Joe have to spank you, Ben will probably spank you too. I do not want that to happen. I want you to listen to them and do what you are told to do. You will not be able to leave a note saying that you have gone fishing. Instead, you will have to ask permission. If you are told no, do not go fishing. You are nine years old now and know the difference between right and wrong. If you think something you're going to do is wrong, don't do it. Also, the rule about starting fights is the same here as it is in Dodge. I will be very unhappy if I get a letter from Ben saying that you have been starting fights. It is ok to defend yourself but it is not ok to start fights. I want you to promise me that you won't start any fights, no matter how angry someone makes you."
"I'll try Uncle Matt. But it makes me mad when someone teases me."
"I understand, but learning to ignore people who tease you is part of growing up. You're not a baby any more and need to learn to ignore someone who is teasing you. If I get a letter telling me that you are starting fights because someone teased you, I will write back and tell Ben that you are not allowed to come to Dodge for the summer and that will make me very sad because I want you to spend the summer with me."
"Ok Uncle Matt. I promise I'll try my best not to start any fights, even when someone teases me."
Matt knew that was the best he was going to get from her, so he said, "Thank you sweetheart. I knew I could count on you. I'll bet that if you talk to Ben, Adam, Hoss, and Joe, they can help teach you how to ignore someone who teases you. They won't want you to start any fights either, so I know that they'll help you."
"I'll ask Uncle Luke for help. Mark says he's the smartest person he knows, so he might know how to help me."
"That's a very good idea. I'm sure that he will be more than happy to help you. Why don't you want to ask Ben and your brothers?"
"Because they think that I'm a baby and I'm afraid that they'll punish me if they find out that sometimes I start fights."
"No Cat. They won't punish you unless you actually start a fight. They'll be very happy to help you learn to ignore someone who is teasing you and they'll be very proud of you for asking for help."
"Alright, if you're sure they won't punish me because I started fights when I was in Dodge, I'll ask them too."
"I'm sure Cat. I know that their rules will be different than mine, but they won't punish you for something you did in the past. I don't know of a single person who would ever punish a child for something they did in the past."
Just then, Jarrod joined them. "Matt, if you don't mind, I'd like to borrow my cousin for a few minutes. I have something important I need to talk to her about."
"Alright Jarrod. I know what's on your mind." Matt rode off to join the others.
"Cat, you've been so busy, I haven't had time to talk with you. When you turned nine the day before yesterday, you also inherited two hundred dollars from our grandparents. I need to know what you want to do with that money."
Cat's eyes grew as big as saucers. "Two hundred dollars. Wow, that's a lot of money! I've never seen that much all at once. Can I think about it for a minute?"
"Sure Cat. Take all the time you need."
The two of them rode side by side and finally, five minutes later, Cat said, "I don't need that much money, so I guess you'd better put most of it in the bank. I only need ten dollars."
"Why do you need ten dollars?"
"I'll tell you, but you have to promise not to tell anyone. I don't want anyone to spoil my surprise. Don't worry, it's nothing bad. Miss Kitty and Mark know what I need the money for."
"Alright Cat. I promise not to tell anyone."
"You already know that I've been working running telegrams, catching fish for the hotel restaurant and helping Mr. Quint with horses in his shop. Uncle Matt's birthday is coming up and last winter, I heard him tell Miss Kitty that he needed a new winter coat. She helped me pick out a nice one. It costs twenty five dollars and I only have fifteen saved up. Miss Kitty is saving it for me. I'm not going to be in Dodge this summer so I'm not going to be able to earn the money. That's why I need ten dollars."
"That's a very wise decision Cat. I'll put almost all of your money in the bank. Here's the ten dollars you need." He reached into his pocket and handed her a ten dollar bill.
"Thank you Jarrod. I've never seen two hundred dollars before. When I visit you, will you please take me to the bank so I can see what that much money looks like?"
"I'll be more than happy to. Now, we had better catch up with everyone else. Nick will never let me hear the end of it if I cause us to miss our stage."
"What were you and Cat talking about?" asked Adam when Jarrod caught up with him.
"I'll tell everyone when we get to town. I don't want to have to repeat myself more than a dozen times.
The group reached town fifteen minutes later. "Cat, why don't you and Mark take the horses over to the livery stable and get them taken care of?" asked Ben. "We're going to be here for several hours, so there's no sense leaving them standing around with saddles on for that long."
Cat and Mark gave each other a knowing look. Ben's words meant that they wanted to talk without children around for a while. While they were taking the horses over to the stable, Mark asked, "What were you and Jarrod talking about?"
"He told me that I inherited two hundred dollars from my grandparents and needed to know what I wanted to do with it. I told him that I needed ten dollars and to put the rest in the bank. I had to tell him what I needed the money for and he promised not to tell anybody."
"I'll bet that Adam's going to be mad because Jarrod asked you and not him what to do with your money."
Cat laughed. "Yes, I'll bet that he is going to be real mad. But it's my money, not his, so why should he get to say what to do with it?"
While Cat and Mark were taking care of the horses, everyone else went into the hotel dining room where several tables had been pushed together for them. "I know that most of you are wondering what I was talking to Cat about," said Jarrod. "I was talking to her about her inheritance. As some of you know, she inherited two hundred dollars from our grandparents on her birthday and I needed to know what she wanted to do with it."
Adam exploded. "Why are you asking a nine year old what she wants to do with that much money!? She's not much more than a baby and will want to spend it on candy and other foolishness! You should have asked one of us what to do with it!"
"Adam, I am several years older than you and I also happen to be the family lawyer, so give me some credit for knowing what I am doing. Grandfather's will stipulated that I was to ask Catherine what she wanted to do with the money, which I did. The will also gives me the authority to do what I think best if I did not agree with Cat's decision. Before I tell you what she decided, I have something to say and you need to lose your Catherine is a baby attitude. Catherine is nine years old, which is hardly a baby and she will resent it greatly if you persist in calling her a baby and treating her like one. Excluding the time she has spent here on school vacations and the trip from Arizona to Dodge when she was four, how much time have you spent with her? How much do you know about her? Do you even know what her favorite food is?"
"That's easy," said Joe. "It's chocolate cake."
Everybody laughed. "Yes, you are correct. Catherine's favorite food is chocolate cake. But how much time has any of you spent in Dodge getting to know her? I have been there at least two times a year for a week at a time ever since Kate left her with Matt. Grandfather suspected that Kate had taken her to Matt or Rip because they are the two people who wouldn't have let him take his granddaughter back. So, he sent me a letter and asked me to keep an eye on her and ensure that she was being well cared for, which I did. Do any of you know that she has several jobs and is very responsible with money?"
"What do you mean by she has jobs?" asked Ben. "What kind of jobs would a young child have and why did you allow it Matt?"
"When they're not in school, Mr. Brown in the telegraph office pays Cat and the other children to run telegrams to the farms and ranches outside Dodge. Quint pays her to help with unruly horses. I've watched her in action. She stands there and talks to the horse and pets it and it usually quiets down. That girl is amazing when it comes to horses. Also, Mr. Michaels, the Dodge House restaurant cook, pays the children for all of the fish they can catch. I do know that except for ten cents a week, she's not spending any of the money she's earning. Once a week Cat buys licorice sticks for herself, me, Kitty, Doc, Festus, Quint, and Sam. She's saving the rest of her money somewhere for something special and I haven't asked where it is or what she's saving it for."
"I have her money Matt," said Kitty. "She's saving it to buy a very special surprise for someone she really cares about. I know what it is and I approve of her decision. I am not going to spoil her surprise by saying anything else about it."
"She told me about the surprise when I asked her why she needed the ten dollars and I also approve of her decision. Kitty, how much are the freight charges on that surprise?"
"They're a dollar. I am going to pay it for her. I told her the freight charges were part of the cost of the surprise."
"I gave her the ten dollars and I'm sure that she'll give it to you when she comes in here. Now, Adam, I do hope that you are going to stop calling Cat a baby. Yes, she is only nine, but she is a very responsible nine year old. How many nine year olds would tell you to put their money in the bank? I can guarantee you that if you persist in thinking of and referring to her as a baby; she will grow tired of it and try to get back to Dodge on her own."
Just then Cat and Mark walked in. Cat walked up to Kitty and handed her the ten dollars Jarrod had given her. "Here's the other ten dollars I need for my surprise. Will you please order it for me when you get back to Dodge?"
"Of course I will. When it's the right time, I'll even give it to the person it's for and write and tell you if they like it."
Roy joined the family before Cat could answer. After everyone greeted him, Cat walked up to him and asked, "Sheriff Roy, would you please do something important for me?"
"Of course I will Sweetheart. What do you need me to do?"
Cat took the money from Matt and Rip out of her pocket and handed it to Roy. "This is the money Uncle Matt and Uncle Rip gave me in case I need to send them a telegram. Last night, I heard Adam tell Uncle Ben that he was going to take it away from me because he thinks I'm only a baby and shouldn't have any money. Will you please hold it for me so that Adam can't take it?"
Adam's face turned bright red and his brothers couldn't help laughing at him. "Will you look at that Hoss?" asked Joe. It seems that our older brother isn't as perfect as he's been telling us all these years."
"You're right about that little brother. And it took a little bitty slip of a girl to bring him back down to Earth."
"Yeah Hoss. I think we're going to need to remind him of this whenever he starts telling us how wonderful he is.
"I think we should buy some pie and ice cream for our little sister as a reward for showing Adam that he's not perfect."
Rip exploded. "Confound you Adam! You are so darn pig headed! We told you not to take that money away from her! We wouldn't have given it to her if we thought she would spend it on something other than telegrams! I've got half a mind to go and cancel the adoption. Once she's too old to sleep at the jail, I'll take her to the fort and move into married officer's quarters."
Before anyone else could say anything, Phil Sheridan spoke up. "If everyone would simmer down for a minute, I think I've got a solution to the problem. The problem is that Ben and the boys haven't spent enough time with Cat to get to know her. My suggestion is this. After spending a week with Lucas, Cat should go to Dodge for two weeks. Ben, you and one of the boys should meet her at Lucas' place and accompany her to Dodge. Then you can spend the trip there and back here as well as the two weeks in Dodge getting to know her and what she's capable of. You'll find that she's quite a remarkable girl. And, before you ask, yes, she would be just as independent, if not more so had she been living with Rip. The life of an Army officer is even more unpredictable than the life of a United States Marshal and Cat would have been on her own a lot more than she has been. When you are with her, observe her and ask why she does things the way she does. When you're in Dodge, talk to the people who know her and see what they think."
Before Ben answered Sheridan, he said, "Catherine, you were supposed to be in bed last night. Why were you listening to Adam's conversation with me?"
"I was in bed Uncle Ben. I just wasn't asleep yet. You and Adam were right outside my door when he said that he was going to take the money away from me. I'm nine years old now and I'm tired of being called a baby and treated like one. Uncle Matt hasn't treated me like a baby since I turned five, so nobody else should."
Ben sighed. He knew that Cat was headstrong but he never thought she'd do something like this. It appeared that she was going to be a lot harder to handle than he thought she'd be. "You're right Phil. I haven't spent nearly enough time with Catherine since Kate left her with Matt and that's my fault. I don't know her and I need to learn to know her. One of the boys and I will meet her at Lucas's place and then spend time getting to know her. She can spend time getting to know us as well. We'll learn what she's capable of and she'll learn what we expect of her."
"That's good Ben. I know that you're getting tired of hearing this, but you and the boys have got to remember that Cat was raised a lot differently than you raised your sons. Now, let's order some of that pie and ice cream Joe was talking about."
While they were ordering their pie and ice cream, Joe whispered something to the owner's wife who was taking their order. When the pie was brought out, much to her delight, there were two scoops of ice cream on Cat's piece of pie.