Joe couldn't find Hop Sing's burn cream and had to wake him up. "Why you need burn cream? Who burned?"
"Nobody. Those boys Cat fought with on Monday bullied her into riding to town tonight and looking under the saloon door. Adam caught her and whipped her real bad. Joe told Hop Sing everything Adam had done to Cat and why. She's very sore and Pa wants to see if your burn cream will help her."
Hop Sing became very angry. "Adam wrong to treat Missy Cat like that. I use spoon on him before breakfast and make him feel how he make Missy Cat feel. Maybe I no give him breakfast. Take burn cream. Tell Missy Cat I make flapjacks, eggs and bacon for breakfast."
"Thank you. I'll tell Cat that you're going to make her favorite breakfast. That will make her feel better. Keep that spoon handy after you use it on Adam. I think those boys and their fathers are going to come out here tomorrow and say that Cat forced them to go to the saloon tonight."
"If boys tell lies about Missy Cat, I use spoon on them too. They no tell lies about her ever again."
"Thanks Hop Sing. I'll tell Cat what you said." Joe took the burn cream up to his father and said, "I told Hop Sing what Adam did to Cat and why."
"I thought you would. What did he say?"
"He's going to use his spoon on Adam and make him feel like Cat does now. He also said he might not give Adam any breakfast."
"Adam hurt your sister badly tonight both mentally and physically and he will deserve everything Hop Sing gives him. Go to bed son and let me take care of your sister."
"I need to give her a message from Hop Sing first." Joe walked into Cat's room sat down on her bed and hugged her. "I have three messages for you from Hop Sing. He is going to make your favorite breakfast for you tomorrow morning. He's also very angry at Adam and is going to use his spoon on him and may not let him have any breakfast. The last message is that if those boys show up here with their fathers tomorrow and start telling lies about what happened, he's going to use his spoon on them too. Pa has Hop Sing's burn cream to use on your bottom to help make it feel better so you can sleep. Would you like some help getting into your night clothes?"
"Yes please."
"Ok. Where is your nightgown?"
"In the wardrobe."
After helping Cat get ready for bed, he said, "Pull your underwear down and lay on your bed with your bottom up so Pa can use that burn cream on it. It will help. Hoss used it on me a few times when I was a boy and got a bad whipping." Once Cat was lying on her bed, Joe was shocked to see how red her bottom was. He walked out of the room and said, "Her bottom looks like it's on fire. I can't believe Adam did that to her. She's only nine."
"I know son and I will deal with your brother in the morning. Get some sleep and I'm going to take care of your sister." He walked into Cat's room, sat down on her bed and rubbed her back. "I've brought some of Hop Sing's burn cream. It will help make your bottom feel better. I am so very sorry this happened to you. I feel responsible because I made you ride double to school with me on Monday. The boys bullied you into going to town because of the fight, didn't they?"
"Yes."
"I thought so. I wish you had told one of us what they were trying to make you do."
"I couldn't. They said if I didn't go with them, or told anybody, or if we got caught by you, Adam, Hoss, or Joe, they were going to do something real bad and it would be all my fault."
"Will you tell me what they said they were going to do?"
"I can't. If I do, they'll do it and it will be really, really bad. People will get killed and it will be all my fault just like it's my fault that my mama was killed."
"No Kitten, it is not your fault that your mother was killed. I have a feeling that her death had something to do with her husband's business dealings. What people are going to be killed if you tell me what those boys said they would do?"
"I can't tell you any more. I shouldn't have even said that. They'll know I said something and then they'll do it. Don't make me tell you Pa. Please don't." Cat started crying hard.
Ben rubbed her back some more. "It's ok Sweetheart. I won't make you tell me, but you have to start trusting us to take care of you and keep you safe. Please tell me exactly what Adam did to you and why."
"When he caught us, he said he was going to make sure I couldn't sit down for a month. He gave me a bare bottom whipping in the middle of Uncle Roy's office for looking under the saloon door. He hit me real hard fifteen times. Then he gave me another fifteen bare with his hand on the way home because I wouldn't say 'sir' to him, I said I wasn't your real daughter, and I wanted to ride my own horse home. He made me ride behind him on his horse and he trotted Sport all the way home. When we got here, he threatened to take me to the barn and whip me again. He said he did it because you were too easy on Joe when he was a boy and he was going to make sure it didn't happen with me."
"I want you to know that I am very angry with Adam for the way he treated you. He should not have done that to you and I will make sure he never does it again. I wish you had come to me and told me how they threatened you to make you do something you knew was wrong. I could have protected you from whatever it was they said they would do."
"No you couldn't. Nobody could."
"I'm sorry you feel that way because almost everyone on this ranch will do everything in their power to protect you. I think the boys and their fathers will be here tomorrow. If you tell me, their fathers, and your brothers what they threatened to do, we can make sure they never get the chance to ever hurt anybody again. How does your bottom feel? Is the burn cream helping?"
"It doesn't hurt as much."
"That's good. It's not as red as it was either. Let's get your underwear pulled up and get you and your puppies under the covers. Joe said he is going to do your morning chores so you can sleep until it's almost time for breakfast. I'll leave the burn cream right here on your night table. If your bottom starts hurting badly again, wake someone and we'll put more on you. I hope you believe me when I tell you how very sorry I am this happened to you. If I had listened to your brothers and Hop Sing, this never would have happened. I promise you that I will never make you ride double to school with me again. I also want you to know that I will not believe any lies those boys tell if they come here tomorrow. I know that my little girl doesn't lie and I will make sure that their fathers know it too."
"Pa?"
"Yes Kitten?"
"Am I in real big trouble like Adam says I am? Are you going to give me another whipping?"
"Young lady, you are in such big trouble that you are going to have to clean the barn, chicken coop and hen house before and after school every day until your grandchildren have grandchildren. I am not going to let you graduate from school until your grandchildren's grandchildren do. In fact, I am not even going to let you get married until your grandchildren's grandchildren do. I have also decided not to let you turn ten next year. You are going to have to stay nine years old for the rest of your life."
Cat giggled. "Pa, if I stay nine and don't get married, I won't have any children and then I won't have any grandchildren. If I don't have grandchildren, they can't have grandchildren."
"Oh that's right. Well, I'll just have to talk to the doctor and see if we can arrange for you to have grandchildren before you get married and have children."
"You're silly Pa."
"I know but I wanted to make my little girl laugh a little bit tonight. No, you are not in trouble and I am not going to even give you a spanking much less a whipping. I would never punish my children for doing something they were coerced to do."
"What does cowcursed mean?"
"The word is co-er-sed and it means being forced to do something. In other words, you did something wrong because the boys threatened to do something bad if you didn't. Would you have gone to town tonight if those boys hadn't made those threats?"
"No. It was kinda scary riding to town all by myself so late at night."
"That's what I mean by you were coerced or forced to do something you wouldn't normally have done. If those boys and their fathers come here and we find out what the boys threatened to do, I am going to let Hop Sing use his spoon on them and they are going to learn exactly how angry I am. Now, it's very late and both of us need to get some sleep. This is a busy ranch and the work doesn't stop just because people are tired. Remember, if your bottom starts hurting again, wake someone and we'll use more of the burn cream on it. Goodnight Kitten. I love you very, very much and I am very sorry you got hurt because of something I did."
Cat had a very bad nightmare that night. She started screaming about her mother's death and people dying because of the boys. It took Ben, Joe, and Hop Sing almost an hour to get her calmed down. Adam tried to help but Cat wouldn't let him anywhere near her. Ben finally told him to go back to bed because he was just making things worse. Once they finally got her calmed down, Joe took her to the outhouse while Ben put her pillow and blanket on his bed.
Hoss arrived home shortly before breakfast and was met in the yard by Joe and Hop Sing who told him what Cat had done and what Adam had done to her. He became very angry at his older brother and said, "Well, now I know what she was up to on Tuesday night when I caught her ridin' inta town. I wish she woulda told me and I coulda taken care of them two boys the next day. Joe, I need you to keep little sister busy after breakfast while I deal with our brother. I'm gonna make shore he never hurts her like that again. I'll probably take him out behind the barn so's maybe the two of ya can clean the hen house and chicken coop fer a bit."
"I ask Missy Cat to help weed garden too," said Hop Sing. "You no hurt Adam too bad or father get angry at you too. He already very angry at number one son."
"Don't you worry Hop Sing. I ain't gonna hurt Adam too bad but I'm gonna make durn shore he never does anything like that to little sister again. Did anyone do her chores or did Pa make her do them?"
"I just finished hers and mine," replied Joe. "Poor kid. You should have seen how red her bottom was. It looked like it was on fire. Pa used Hop Sing's burn cream on it before putting her to bed. She also had one of the worst nightmares she's had since she came here to live. I think Pa was going to use the burn cream on her again this morning before she got dressed. She should be awake by now. Why don't you go and see her and I'll take care of Chub. A hug from you always helped me feel better after I'd been punished and after what Adam did, I know it will help her too."
Hoss walked into the house and started up the stairs just as Cat was coming down. She spotted him, jumped into his arms, and squealed with delight. "Hoss you're home. I missed you lots and lots. Adam was real mean to me last night. I wish you woulda been there. He wouldn't have been mean to me then."
"Hi Punkin. I missed you too. Joe and Hop Sing told me all about what Adam did and I'm real sorry he was so mean to you. I promise he ain't gonna do that to you again as long as I'm around. Why didn't you tell me about those boys on Tuesday? I woulda gone to their fathers on Wednesday mornin' and I wouldn't have spanked you."
"I couldn't tell you or anybody else. They said if I told or didn't show up or we got caught, they were going to do something real real bad. I'm scared they're gonna do it 'cause Adam caught us."
"I see that you just woke up. Let's get ya to the outhouse and we can talk while we're walking. Ifn ya woulda told me what those boys said on Tuesday, we coulda protected you from them."
"You don't understand. I told Pa last night, people will get killed and it will be all my fault just like it's my fault that my mama was killed."
"No Punkin. It ain't yore fault yore mama was killed. Everybody done told ya lots of times she was just pretending to try and get ya to go to Australia with her. I don't know what them boys threatened to do to you but I promise that nobody in this family, includin' Adam, will stand by and watch you get hurt. We'll do everything we can to keep ya safe. Now, I'm just willin' to bet that Hop Sing's just about got breakfast ready so let's wash up and go inside 'cause I'm starving." After they washed up, he picked Cat up and put her on his shoulders.
Cat giggled. "You're always hungry. You could eat a whole steer and still be hungry."
"Well now, I don't know that I could eat a whole steer but I am hungry enough ta eat a little sister." He pretended to chew on one of her legs. "Kinda stringy. We're gonna have to fatten ya up ifn I'm gonna have ya for breakfast."
They walked into the house and Joe helped Cat down off Hoss' shoulders. Since she was still angry at Adam and didn't want to sit near him, she asked, "Joe, can I sit in your chair today?"
"Sure Squirt. You can sit in my chair anytime you want to." He switched the cushion from her chair to his.
"Thanks Joe."
"Anytime little sister."
Ben saw Hoss and said, "Welcome home son. I didn't expect you until this afternoon."
"I know but I had a feelin' that little sister was gonna need me and it turns out I was right." He glared at his older brother who stared right back at him.
"Were you able to get the contracts signed?"
"Yes." Hoss handed the contracts to his father.
Hop Sing came out of the kitchen carrying his spoon. He walked up to Adam and hit him hard with it five times, causing him to yelp in surprise and pain. "You stop being mean to Missy Cat! Missy Cat just little girl. Why you be so mean to her? Father never treat you like that even when you get arrested so why you treat Missy Cat like that? No say because Little Joe allowed to run wild because that lie. He get in trouble plenty times. You just not always here to see. You still expect Little Joe to be six when you come home from school and not accept that he ten. That why you think he allowed to run wild. You lucky you get breakfast today. Next time you be mean to Missy Cat, Hop Sing use spoon more and you lucky if you even get supper! Breakfast ready. Everybody sit down."
Just as everybody was sitting down to breakfast, there was a knock at the door. Ben opened the door and found Jerry from the telegraph office standing there. "Mr. Parker said this was important and to bring it out here right away."
Ben opened the envelope, read the telegram and said, "You're right. This is important. It's news I've been expecting for several weeks now. Have you eaten this morning? We're just sitting down to breakfast, there's plenty to eat and you're welcome to join us."
"No thank you. I ate before work this morning, but I would appreciate a cup of Hop Sing's coffee." Ben invited Jerry in, gave him a cup of coffee, wrote his reply to the telegram, handed it to Jerry along with a dollar, and told him to keep the change. "Thank you Mr. Cartwright. That coffee was more than worth the long ride out here. I'll give your reply to Mr. Parker as soon as I get back to town."
During breakfast, Hoss nodded at Joe who asked, "Cat, how about helping me clean the chicken coop and hen house? With both of us doing it, we'll be finished in no time at all and then maybe Hoss, you, and I can go fishing for a while. It's too cold for swimming but we can still fish."
Before Cat could answer, Hop Sing asked, "Missy Cat weed garden for Hop Sing?"
Cat looked at Joe and asked, "Will we still have time to go fishing if I weed the garden too?"
"Sure we will. Since we'll be picking the rest of the vegetables at Thanksgiving, weeding will be easy and we'll still have plenty of time to fish."
"Ok Hop Sing. I'll weed the garden after I help Joe with the hen house and chicken coop."
"Thank you. Missy Cat good girl. I make chocolate cake today."
Ben suspected something was going on between his younger sons and cook as Joe never volunteered to clean the chicken coop and hen house and there weren't many weeds in the garden. He knew that Hoss was very angry with Adam and was quite certain that his middle son planned to have a 'discussion' with his older brother about how he had treated their younger sister. What he didn't know was that Hop Sing had already planned to distract him long enough for Hoss to deal with Adam. He decided to try and focus their attention on something else and said, "I know that you are extremely curious as to the contents of the telegram I just received. I am very happy to inform you that Adam's grandfather has finally agreed to spend the holidays with us and will be here on Monday. While he is visiting, I hope to convince him to move here permanently. I don't like the idea of him living alone in that drafty house, especially in the winter. I don't know how well he's able to get up and down stairs any more, so tomorrow we'll prepare the downstairs bedroom and one of the guest rooms upstairs and let him choose when he gets here."
"That's great news Pa," said Joe. "It will be nice to see Grandfather Stoddard again. I was only twelve or thirteen the last time he was here."
"He came to visit for your twelfth birthday and stayed until school started in September. Cat, I'll remind you again on Monday, but instead of riding home with Michael, you will need to meet us at the stage depot after school. We'll take the surrey and rent a buckboard and team if it is necessary."
"I never had a grandfather before," said Cat. "What's it like?"
"I seem to remember that his last visit was a lot of fun," said Joe. "He likes to fish and swim and he tells the greatest stories about when he was a sailor. I think you'll like him a lot."
"You had a grandfather Cat," said Ben. "You just don't remember him. After your father died, your mother took you and moved in with him for a little while until your mother took you to live with Matt." Seeing the frown on Cat's face, Ben continued, "Don't worry about Captain Stoddard. He's nothing like my father was. Joe is right. He has a good sense of humor and tells great sea stories. I think the two of you will get along just fine. Now, if you want to go fishing today, I suggest that you eat your breakfast and do the things you said you were going to."
Before Ben could talk to Adam after breakfast, Hop Sing said, "Mr. Cartwright, we talk about Thanksgiving. It only three weeks away. Lot to do between now and then. Hop Sing need to plan. Who you going to invite?"
Ben was suspicious of Hop Sing's motives as he had never started planning a holiday meal three weeks ahead of time. "I thought I'd invite Paul and Virginia Martin, Reverend and Mrs. Long, and Roy."
"You invite Deputy Clem too. It not right he always in town when Sheriff Roy here."
"Alright Hop Sing. I'll invite Clem too. I'm sure that Roy can find someone to act as deputy while he and Clem are here."
"Very good. We need two turkeys. Otherwise Hoss complain he not get enough to eat."
Ben laughed. "You could give Hoss his own turkey and he'd still complain that he wasn't getting enough to eat. Speaking of Hoss, where is he? I hope he and Adam aren't fighting."
While Ben and Hop Sing were talking, Hoss grabbed Adam by the arm and escorted him out behind the barn. "You and me got some talkin' to do brother and ya aint' gonna like what I'm gonna say." He hit Adam and said, "I can't believe you was that mean to our little sister and I aim to make shore ya never are again. Why did ya do it?" Adam started to say something about Little Joe getting away with everything when Hoss hit him again. "Don't give me that stuff. You hardly recognized him when you got home from college because he was almost ten instead of six. You wanted him to only be six but he wasn't. He was doin' stuff ten year olds do but you thought he was runnin' wild an' never missed a chance to say so to Pa or punish him. Now yore doin' it with little sister an' I ain't gonna stand still an' see ya hurt her again. Them two boys threatened her but ya had to punish her just 'cause ya thought Pa let Joe get away with too much. You may be my brother, but the next time ya do that to her, I'll tear ya apart."
Ben walked behind the barn just as Hoss hit Adam a third time. "Hoss, stop that this instant! You know how I feel about you boys fighting with each other!"
Hoss hit Adam one more time and said, "Sorry Pa, but somebody had ta teach older brother here a lesson an' you talkin' to him wasn't gonna do it. I done told him ifn he ever hurts little sister like that again, I won't stop with jus' a few punches."
"No son. That is not the right attitude. Adam is your brother and no matter how angry you are at him, killing him will not solve anything. I plan on having another talk with him about his attitude toward Catherine while you and Joe are fishing with her. Also, he is going to have to tell his grandfather what he did and why and I can assure you that Abel Stoddard will not be pleased at all. I also need to have another talk with your sister about kicking people when she's angry at them. She needs to learn how to control her temper and I am hoping that you will help her do so."
Tommy, Billy, and their fathers showed up while Cat was weeding the garden. Ben greeted the men. "Hello Ted, Bill, what can I do for you today?"
"We think our sons are lying to us," said Mr. Davis. "We need to speak with you and your daughter to see if our suspicions are true or not." The two boys gave each other worried looks as they tied their horses to the hitching rail. They knew that they were going to be in big trouble when their fathers learned how they had threatened Cat.
"I'll be happy to help and I'm sure that Catherine will be too. What do you need to know? Hoss, please go and get your sister."
"Does Catherine have a gun?" asked Mr. Roberts. "The boys said she brought a gun to school and threatened them if they didn't go to the saloon with her."
"No, she does not have a gun. I'm teaching her to shoot Joe's old twenty two but she really doesn't want anything to do with it. She blames guns for the deaths of her parents. She was standing next to her mother when she was murdered. Here she is now. You can ask her for yourselves."
"Cat," asked Mr. Roberts, "Did you take a gun to school and threaten to shoot the boys if they didn't go to the saloon with you?"
Cat became angry. "No sir. I hate guns. If it wasn't for guns, my Mama and Daddy would still be alive. I wish I could take every gun in the world and throw it in the ocean."
"Then why did you go to the saloon with them?"
"Remember what we said we'd do," yelled Billy. "We'll do it if you tell."
"Just what did you say you would do to Catherine?" asked Mr. Davis, staring at his son.
"Uh…uh...Nothing Pa."
"We'll see. Ben, may we borrow your daughter and a few of your porch chairs. I have a feeling she'll be much more willing to talk with us if she's nowhere near the boys."
"Of course you may."
Mr. Roberts picked Cat up and said, "Ben, don't you feed this child? She's lighter than a feather. You need to make sure she gets food before Hoss eats it all." Even though she was nervous, Cat giggled. Mr. Roberts sat down in the rocking chair and said, "Don't worry Cat. We're not here to scold or punish you. We came here today because we thought the boys were lying to us and now we know they were. Now that they can't hear you, won't you please tell us what they said to make you meet them in town last night? We can't protect you unless we know what they threatened to do."
Cat took a deep breath, let it out slowly and said, "They double dog dared me and they called me a chicken and a coward. They also said they would rip up my schoolwork and books and get me into as much trouble in school as they could and they said they'd do the same things to my friends. They're always causing trouble at school and getting other kids punished for what they do. Miss Winter always sends notes home but they still cause trouble. They said if I didn't show up, or told anyone, or we got caught, they would burn down our house, barn, and bunkhouse while we were sleeping and they said they'd do the same things to my friends."
The men became very angry at their sons. "Why didn't you tell anyone? Your family would have told us and we would have made sure they didn't do any of those things."
"I didn't think anyone would believe me because they said I was adopted and a charity case and nobody ever believes anything charity cases that are adopted says. I'm still afraid they're going to burn down the Ponderosa because we got caught and I just told you what they said."
"We're sorry you feel that way," said Mr. Davis. "I know that your family would have believed you. So would Sheriff Coffee, Reverend Long, and Dr. Martin. Don't worry about their threats. They aren't going to burn down anybody's house, barn, or anything else. I don't know about William, but Thomas is going to be locked in his room at night and I will put nails in the window so it can only be opened a few inches."
"William is going to receive the exact same treatment," said Mr. Davis. The boys will never be alone together again, even at school. I'll pay someone to sit there with them if I have to. Now, we need to tell your Pa what you said so you don't punished any more. We heard the boys talking and know that Adam was very hard on you last night, wasn't he?"
"Yes sir. My bottom still hurts."
"Well, he's going to feel very bad about the way he treated you when he learns what the boys threatened to do."
They carried Cat back over to Ben, set her down, and took him aside to tell him what the boys had threatened to do. While the men were talking, the boys saw one last chance to get Cat into trouble. Unaware that Hoss and Thaddeus were standing behind them, Tommy sneered, "Your Pa was a coward. He was shot in the back because he was running away from the battle."
"You're a bastard and your mother was a whore lady. She was shot by the jealous wife of a man she had been with," finished Billy. Their words had the desired effect. Cat attacked Billy with every intention of killing him. Tommy joined his friend and Cat found herself fighting both boys when they found themselves being pulled apart by Hoss and Thaddeus.
"What is going on here!?" demanded Ben.
"She attacked us for no reason at all," said Tommy. "We were just standing her and she attacked us."
"That ain't the truth and ya know it!" exclaimed Hoss as he gave the boy a shake. "Ya had no call to say those things to my little sister."
"Exactly what did they say?" asked Ben.
"I'll tell you what they said," said Thaddeus, "But I'm not going to repeat the words they used. Those words should never be used by anybody, especially by or around children." He pointed to Tommy and said, "That one said that Cat's father was a coward and was shot in the back running away from a battle. The other one called Cat the name that means her parents weren't married when she was born, and called her mother the name that means she wasn't a lady and said she was shot by a jealous wife."
"I see," said Ben. "Catherine, did you know what those words meant?"
"Yes sir. I heard them one day when Uncle Matt and I were walking past one of the saloons and asked him what they meant. He said what Thaddeus said and that they were real bad words and I should never use them."
"He's lying!" yelled Tommy.
"He's just saying that because he works for Mr. Cartwright!" added Billy.
The men gave their sons looks that would melt an iceberg. "Ben," said Mr. Davis, "Feel free to deal with our sons anyway you see fit for their threats and the way they talked about your family."
"I am too angry to deal with them," said Ben. "I might hurt them badly. Hop Sing would you care to deal with these boys for me?"
Hop Sing hit each boy ten times with his spoon. "You no be mean to Missy Cat! You no tell lies about Missy Cat! You no talk bad about Missy Cat and parents! Next time you get more!"
Each boy yelped in pain the first time Hop Sing hit them with his spoon and both of them were crying by the time he was finished. Mr. Roberts looked at the boys and said, "That was just the beginning. Both of you are in a lot of trouble for what you said and did to Mr. Cartwright's daughter and we still have to stop at the school and talk with your teacher. We will discuss the rest of your punishment when we return home, however, Thomas will be attending Virginia Military Institute starting next autumn."
"You can't do that to me! This is all your fault Cartwright and you're going to pay for it. Just you wait and see! Nobody gets me in trouble and gets away with it!" He tried getting away from Hoss who held onto him while Hop Sing used his spoon another ten times.
"You very bad boy to threaten Missy Cat. You do and say bad things, not her."
"Thomas," said Mr. Roberts, "I was shocked and saddened to learn that you and William are bullies. You will never hurt anybody ever again. I hope you and William enjoy your time together today because this is the last time the two of you will be allowed to be together or speak with each other except to say 'good morning' at church. Now get your horses. We've taken up enough of Mr. Cartwright's time with your lies and threats. Ben, Bill and I are very sorry for the trouble our sons have caused your daughter. You don't need to worry about them carrying through with their threat to burn down the Ponderosa or any farms and ranches. They will be locked in their bedrooms at night and the windows will be nailed so they can only be opened a few inches. We'll see you in church tomorrow." They mounted their horses and rode toward town.
Ben hugged Cat and said, "I wish you would have told us about the threats when they were made. One of your brothers or I would have told the boys' fathers about them and they would have made sure the threats were never carried out. Have you finished weeding the garden for Hop Sing?"
"Yes. I finished just before Hoss came and got me."
"Good. Now, you will need to wear your jacket when you go fishing. It will be colder by the lake."
"I don't need my jacket Pa. It's not that cold."
"I just said it will be colder by the lake. You can either wear the jacket or you can stay home. It's your choice. Which will it be?"
Cat sighed. "I'll wear the jacket."
"Good choice. Go and get it. I want to see it on you before you saddle your horse." Ben laughed and gave one of Cats braids a playful tug as she walked past him, grumbling about having too many adults in her life.
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a/n: Although Virginia Military Institute is a college now, that was not always the case. It was founded in 1839 and boys as young as 14 years of age attended the school. During the Civil War, the VMI Corps of Cadets fought as a unit at the Battle of New Market, Virginia, on May 15, 1864. Two hundred fifty seven cadets were on the field, organized into a battalion of four companies of Infantry and one section of Artillery. Ten cadets were killed in battle or died later from the effects of their wounds; 45 were wounded. The youngest participating cadet was 15; the oldest 25. The Confederates won the battle, with the VMI Corps of Cadets performing well.