Victoria Barkley was in town and got the mail the day Ben's letter arrived. She read it, became very angry, went to Jarrod's office, handed him the letter and said, "We need to have a family meeting after supper."

He read the letter and said, "Yes, we certainly do. Before then, you and I need to decide on punishment for Audra. I knew she was jealous of Cat but I never thought she'd stoop so low, especially on the day we buried her mother."

"Ben was right when he told your father and I not to spoil Audra but we didn't listen. What do you want to do with her?"

"Well for starters, no riding for the foreseeable future after today, which she is going to hate. Her horse can be turned out with the herd and her tack can be put into my room. I'll lock the door so she can't get it and tell Silas and Ciago that Audra is not allowed to ride."

"I'll have her put her riding clothes in my room and lock the door also. She won't be allowed to use the buggy and go to town either. We can have Ciago keep the tack room locked after the hands and Nick get what they need out of it. Nick can take her to town for church on Sundays and Christmas in the buggy. Audra has also been neglecting her studies and I fully intend to remedy that. I'll assign her a certain amount of work to be done each day. She can give it to me until we leave and then she can give it to Nick every day."

"After her lessons are complete, she can also spend the rest of each day helping Silas, the cook, and the other staff. She'll need to learn how to keep house and cook if she's ever to marry. You and I can sit down with Silas and make out a list of whom she needs to help each day and for how long. I want her kept busy all day, every day we're gone except Sundays and Christmas Day. Her attitude at the family meeting will determine if any further punishment is needed. I won't hesitate to put her over my knee and use my belt on her bare bottom if it's necessary. Little sister has gotten too used to having her own way and that is about to stop."

At the family meeting, Audra acted like a spoiled brat and said that she wished Cat had never been born and it wasn't fair that she was getting all of that money that should have been hers because she was the only girl until Cat was born.

"All what money?" asked Victoria.

"All the money from Grandma and Grandpa Cartwright's will. I was supposed to get all of it because I was the only girl."

Victoria, Jarrod, and Nick couldn't believe their ears. "First of all young lady," scolded Jarrod, "All of that money was never supposed to be yours. The wills specify that it is to be split equally between all of the Cartwright grandchildren. So even if Catherine had not been born, you would only be getting one eighth of their money."

"What do you mean only one eighth? I was the only girl so I was supposed to get all of it."

"Did you even bother listening to what I just said? Not including Cat, there are eight Cartwright grandchildren, you, Nick, Eugene, me, Adam, Hoss, Joe, and Will. The most you were ever entitled to is one eighth of the money our Cartwright grandparents left."

"I haven't seen any money so the brat must be getting it."

"Your cousin's name is Catherine or Cat, use it!" scolded Victoria. "You haven't seen any money from your inheritance because your father and I decided it belonged in the bank. It is in a trust fund in your name and the only ones authorized to withdraw money from it are Jarrod and myself."

"What is the brat doing with her money, spending it all on candy?"

"What my brother is doing with his daughter's money is nobody's business but his. I can't believe your attitude Audra," said Victoria. "How long have you lived in this house?"

"I was born here."

"That's right. How old were you when your father was killed?"

"Thirteen."

"That's right. You have only been without your father for four years. And how old was Cat when her father was killed?"

"I don't know. Probably six or seven."

"You know as well as I do that is wrong. You were at Michael's funeral along with the rest of the family. Catherine was only a year old."

"How many years have you had at least one parent here with you?"

"All of my life."

"That's right and how many years did Cat have at least one parent with her?"

"Until this past June."

"Audra, what am I going to do with you? You refuse to state the truth. Catherine was about eighteen months old when Kate took her to live with Matt. You have always lived in this house and had a family. She grew up sleeping in the same little room in the jail in Dodge City that Matt sleeps in. Because of your attitude toward my niece, the cruel things you said, deliberately trying to hurt her, and your threat to send her to an orphanage in New York, you will not be accompanying Jarrod, Heath, and myself to Nevada for Christmas. You will stay here with Nick."

"That's fine. I'll have plenty of time for riding and shopping."

"I'm afraid not," said Jarrod. "You will not be doing any riding until after we return from Nevada. Nor will you be allowed to take the buggy to town. Once Nick and the hands have gotten what they need, the tack room will be locked. Ciago and Silas will both be told that you are not allowed to ride or use the buggy. You will spend your days doing the lessons Mother sets for you and they are to be given to her every day until we leave for the Ponderosa. After we leave, they are to be given to Nick. You will also spend your days helping Silas, the cook, and the other staff. You need to learn to cook and keep house if you are ever to marry. Nick, Heath, will you please get Audra's tack, put it in my room and turn her horse out with the herd. Nick can drive you to church on Sundays and Christmas in the buggy but you are not allowed to use it at all."

"I want you to put your riding clothes in my room," said Victoria. "Just like with your tack and horse, you will get them back when we feel you deserve them."

"I still can't believe you wanted Ben to destroy a healthy colt just because you didn't want Cat to have him," said Nick. "When did you become that selfish? That colt is a very good animal with excellent blood lines and will go a long way toward improving Ben's herd. I can't begin to say how happy I am that I realized you were doing something wrong to Cat after her baptism and told Father about it. The thought that you wanted to kill a helpless baby makes me wish you weren't my sister! If I had known what you were up to the night of Kate's funeral, I would have taken you out to the barn and used my belt on you before taking you to Jarrod for more of the same!"

Upon learning of her punishment and that Nick was the one who had told their father she was doing something wrong after Cat's baptism, Audra became very angry and said some things she shouldn't have, so Jarrod took her upstairs and used his belt on her bare bottom. "Because you are acting like a little child, I am going to treat you like a little child. You have just lost your riding privileges indefinitely. Your tack will be locked in my room and your riding clothes in Mother's. Now get them, put them in Mother's room, and don't even think about trying to take them out of there. The same goes with your tack. I guarantee you will not like the consequences if you try and take anything out of my room or Mother's."

When Cat and Mike arrived at Mr. Miller's shop after school, they found he had already cut out some of the gloves from the rabbit skins and deer hides. "Hello kids. Come on in. Since neither of you are used to working with pelts, I thought I'd get you started. Cat, we're going to need twelve more rabbit skins." He handed each child a pair of scissors and a scrap piece of deer hide and said, "Try to cut those pieces of deer hide and tell me how easy it is."

"It's hard," said Cat.

"It sure is," added Mike.

"Now, here are some scrap pieces of rabbit skin. How easy are they to cut?"

"They're harder than the deer," said Mike.

"Thank you for cutting that stuff out," said Cat. "I think we'd still be trying to do it next Christmas if we had to do it ourselves."

"That's alright kids. I was glad to help. Now, here are the pieces of material for Joe's gloves. What do you notice about them?"

"The deer hide pieces are bigger than what I traced," replied Cat.

"Yes they are. Do you know why?"

"No sir," said both children together.

"Well, for one thing, we have to sew the rabbit to the inside of each half so there needs to be enough room to do that. Also, we have to sew both halves together and we need extra space for that. We'll sew them together inside out until each glove is almost finished. Then, because it's very difficult to do, I'll turn them right side out for you and show you how to finish sewing them. Now, here is a needle and thread for each of you. I want each of you to take a glove half and sew the rabbit skin on the inside of it. I've put two stitches on each side to hold the rabbit skin where it belongs." By the time their hour was up, Cat and Mike had one glove completely assembled and the rabbit skins sewn to the two halves of the second one. "You two did a great job for your first time doing this." He walked into the back of his shop and returned with a tray containing a plate of cookies and two glasses of milk. "My wife brought these over a little while ago. You've both got a long ride home, so this little snack should help keep you from being too hungry until you get there. Have your snack and then you need to be on your way. I know you both have homework and chores to do before supper."

Once Cat was asleep, Adam said, "I need an excuse to go to Denver so Cat won't ask why I'm going."

"Why do you want to go to Denver?"

"I want to go to that bookstore and get more books for her. I also want to get some for the Ingalls' girls. I was also thinking about buying some ice skates for all four girls and more toys for Cat as well as more dolls for the doll house Hoss, Joe, and I helped Michael make for her."

"Alright Adam. I'll think of something and tell you at breakfast. George McLeod has a notebook with the children's clothing and shoe sizes in it. Ask him for Cat's and the Ingalls' girls shoe sizes so you get the correct size ice skates."

While the family was eating breakfast, Ben said, "Adam, I'd like you to go to Denver today. There are some timber contracts coming up for bid. I would like you to look at them and see if they're worth bidding on. We're at the end of logging season, so unless it's a small contract, everything will have to be due after the cattle drive."

"That's fine. I'll leave after breakfast. Maybe I'll ride to town with little sister to make sure she goes to the correct building for school. She might decide to go to the church instead of the school."

"That's a great idea Adam. I can learn stuff in church without having to worry about arithmetic and I can sit outside on the church steps and read."

Ben laughed. "Well son, you put the idea in her head. It's up to you to ensure she goes to the correct building for school."

"I have to go to Mr. Miller's first. He needs more rabbit skins."

"What are you doing with all of those rabbit skins and deer hides?" asked Adam.

"We're doing something special."

"But what are you doing that's so special?"

"I already told you, we're doing something special."

Before Adam could press her more, Abel said, "Adam, if your sister wanted everyone to know what she is doing, she would tell us. As she is working with one of your local shop keepers, I know for a fact that she is not doing anything wrong, so I suggest you wait until Cat decides the time is right to tell us."

"Adam," said Ben. "Catherine has my permission to work with Gerald after school and that is all any of us need to know right now. Gerald won't let her get into any trouble."

Adam tried getting Mike to tell him what they were doing with Mr. Miller but got the same answer Cat gave at breakfast. When they reached Mr. Miller's shop, Adam came in and tried to get Mr. Miller to tell him. "Adam, it is none of your business what Cat is doing. I have already talked to your father and she has permission to come here after school. That is all you need to know."

Cat got angry and started to kick Adam but Jasper and Mike stopped her. "Don't Cat," said Jasper. "You'll just get in trouble and have to sit in school with a sore bottom. Since I was sick yesterday, I don't even know what you're doing, but I guess you'll tell me if you want me to know."

"Jas is right," added Mike. "I'm sure Mr. Miller will tell your Pa that Adam keeps trying to find out what you're doing. We'd better go before we're late for school."

After school, Cat told Jasper what she and Mike were doing with Mr. Miller and he volunteered to help. Since she had brought four extra rabbit skins, Mr. Miller guessed that she wanted to make gloves for the boys also. "How do you know how big to make the gloves?" asked Jasper.

"I'll show you," replied Mr. Miller. He took a long piece of paper and a pencil out and said, "Put your hands on this paper with your palms down." After tracing Jasper's hands, he did Mike's too and showed them the papers. "Cat traced her family's gloves and brought the papers to me. Because it takes so much time and is hard to do, I'm cutting out the patterns from the rabbit skins and deer hides for her. Today, we need to finish Joe's second glove and get at least one more glove completely finished. Remember, we have to make twelve gloves and there's only a few more weeks until Christmas. With three of you working, we might even get a whole pair done in one day." After the boys left the shop, Mr. Miller told Cat he would make their gloves so they would be surprised. "What about Laura, Mary, and Carrie?"

"My Apache mother helped me make mittens and hats for them when I was there in the summer."

"That's good. I think it's going to be a long, cold winter so they'll need warm mittens and hats. How did you know what sizes to make them?"

"Laura is the same size as me, Mary is bigger, and Carrie is smaller. We kind of guessed for Mary and Carrie. I hope we guessed right."

"I'm sure you did. Now those boys are waiting for you and you have a long ride home. I'll see you tomorrow."

When Cat got home, she stormed into the house and demanded to know, "Why does Adam have to stick his nose into everything I do? He tried to get Mike and Mr. Miller to tell him what I was doing. It's not fair. Just 'cause I'm only nine doesn't mean he has to know everything I do. He made me so mad, I was going to kick him but Mike and Jas stopped me."

"Adam tried getting Mike and Mr. Miller to tell him what you were doing even though he was told you weren't doing anything wrong?" asked Ben. "I'll have a talk with him when he comes back from Denver. I'm glad your friends stopped you from kicking him. We've talked about that before. Kicking someone when you are angry at them is not the right thing to do."

"Well, it would have felt right to me. It's just too bad I was wearing my moccasins & not my boots. Then he would have had sore shins."

"Yes, and you would have had a sore bottom. You are not to kick anyone even if you are angry at them. You need to learn to control your temper."

"Well then, tell Adam to leave me alone. I'm not a baby and he knows Mr. Miller wouldn't let me do anything wrong. It's not fair. Adam can be mean to me but I'll get in trouble if I'm mean to him."

"Adam was not being mean to you. He was being nosy, which is a lot different and I already said I would have a talk with him when he comes home from Denver and I'm sure his grandfather is going to also. Now, go, see Fury and get your homework done."

"What's nosy mean?"

"It means someone wants to know about something they've already been told doesn't concern them."

"Oh. So can I be nosy about Adam's stuff?"

"No you may not. Now go, see your colt and get your homework done. Remember, it has to be done before supper."

Cat, Jasper, and Mike went to Mr. Miller's shop after school and with three of them working, they finished two gloves and had a third one ready to turn right side out. Before they left, Mr. Miller said, "Cat, I'm going to wrap the finished gloves and keep them here for you until just before Christmas. That way your family won't find them until you give them their gifts on Christmas morning."

"Gee thank you Mr. Miller. That's really nice of you. I was trying to figure out how to hide them. It's not fair. I have to ask before I can go into anyone else's bedroom but they can go into mine whenever they want to. Hop Sing says that Adam is always going into my room and looking through my stuff while I'm at school."

"You're right Cat. That isn't fair and I'll have a talk with Ben about it the next time I see him. I'm also going to have a talk with him about Adam's actions yesterday. He had no right to try and find out what we are working on here, especially as you have Ben's permission to be here after school. Now you had better start for home so you're not too late getting there."

After Cat left for school Friday morning, Hop Sing gave Ben a list of supplies he needed so he hitched up the buckboard and drove into town. While he was there, he decided to go over to Mr. Miller's shop and see how Cat's project was progressing. "Hello Ben. What brings you to town today?"

"Hello Gerald. Hop Sing needed some supplies so I decided to come into town and get them for him. How is Cat's special project coming along?"

"It's coming along just fine and should be finished by next Friday. I'm glad you're here. I need to talk to you about Adam. I don't know if Cat told you or not, but he was in here on Wednesday, trying to find out exactly what Cat and I are working on. He questioned Mike and when Mike wouldn't tell him, he asked me and I told him it was none of his business."

"Yes, I do know about that. Cat was very upset when she came home from school. He was told at breakfast on Wednesday that Cat's project was none of his business but he decided to try and make it his anyway. He used to do that with Joe when he was a young boy. Adam didn't care if he spoiled a birthday or Christmas surprise as long as he knew exactly what Joe was doing. I stopped him then and I intend to stop him now. He is Cat's oldest brother, not her parent and needs to remember that."

"Are you also aware that Hop Sing has told Cat that Adam is always going into her bedroom and looking through her things while she's in school? She seems to think that anyone in the house can just go through her things without asking. If Cat has to get permission to go into anyone else's bedroom, why isn't she afforded the same privacy? Just because she is only nine doesn't mean she isn't entitled to have some privacy."

"No, I wasn't aware of that. Thank you for telling me. That's one more thing his grandfather and I need to talk with him about. With the exception of Hop Sing, nobody is to go into anybody else's bedroom without permission. When Joe was a boy, I would look in his room to make sure it was neat but I didn't go through his things."

Adam returned home shortly before dinner. When everyone had finished eating, Ben said, "Adam, your grandfather and I need to talk with you. I learned a few things about you while you were gone and I am very angry about your actions. You know better than to do what you have done. At breakfast on Wednesday, you were told that the project Cat is working on with Gerald Miller is none of your business but you tried to get Mike Devlin and Gerald to tell you what it is. Your sister was very upset when she came home from school that day and rightly so. Also, I learned today that you have been going into Catherine's bedroom and going through her things several times a week. Why did you try and find out what she was working on with Gerald and why have you been going through her things without her permission? You would get upset if somebody went into your bedroom and went through your things without permission so why are you doing it to your sister?"

"I need to know what she's doing to make sure she's not doing something wrong or getting into trouble. I go through her things to make sure she doesn't have anything she's not supposed to have."

Before Ben could blow up, Abel asked, "Exactly whose job is it to ensure that Catherine is not getting into trouble or doing anything wrong? Whose job is it to ensure she doesn't have anything she's not supposed to have in her bedroom? When did you become the parent in this household? Neither of those things are your responsibility. You are Catherine's oldest brother, not her parent and you need to start acting like a brother and stop acting like a parent. Benjamin, do you go through your children's things all the time to ensure they don't have anything they're not supposed to?"

"No Abel. When Joe was a boy, I would look in his room to make sure it was neat but I never went through his things. I do the same thing with Cat. I look in it once in a while to ensure it's neat but I rarely go in there without asking her first. Sometimes I'll go in there to look at her parents' pictures but I don't go through her things. When Adam came home from college, he used to use the same excuse to follow Joe around and check on everything he was doing. It didn't matter if he tried to ruin a birthday or Christmas surprise, as long as he knew exactly what his youngest brother was doing. Adam, these behaviors of yours are going to stop. I don't know what Catherine is doing with Gerald but she has my permission to go there for an hour after school to work on the project and you are well aware of that fact. What are you expecting to find in her room? Dime novels like Joe used to read? I seriously doubt that your sister is spending money on those things. I knew that Joseph had them and allowed him to keep them because he was reading and I wanted him to keep reading. I hope you're not looking for the money I pay Cat for doing extra things like helping clean tack. She earned it and can do anything she likes with it. Right now, I'm keeping it in the safe for her so she can send Kitty the rest of the money for the saddle she's getting Matt for his birthday. You owe Catherine an apology for trying to find out what she's working on and for going into her room and through her things without permission."

"Grandson," said Abel, "I hope you realize that your actions have most likely undone all the progress you have made in restoring your sister's trust in you. You need to find a way to make it up to her because as I've told you before, once broken, trust is hard to regain and you have broken her trust too often in recent months. Other than telling you to do some soul searching and a lot of praying, I cannot tell you how to restore Catherine's trust in you, but you need to find a way to do it very soon. There may come a time in the not too distant future when she is going to have to depend on you for something important and she needs to be able to trust you to be there for her."

When Cat got home from school, she gave the mail and newspaper to Ben, hugged him and Abel and totally ignored Adam. At supper, she asked, "Joe, can I please sit in your chair tonight? I'm mad at Adam and don't want to be by him."

"How come yore mad at Adam Punkin?" asked Hoss. "What's he done to ya this time?"

"He tried to get Mike and Mr. Miller to tell him what I'm working on with them. He's also been going into my bedroom and looking through my things. I think he's looking for the money Pa pays me for getting the mail, helping Hop Sing, and helping clean tack."

Hoss became angry and hit Adam hard. "I done thought I taught ya a lesson about doin' that stuff when Joe was little. I recon I need to teach it to ya again! I ain't gonna let ya do that to little sister too!"

He started to hit his brother again when Ben stopped him. "Hoss! That's enough! You know I don't want the three of you fighting. Adam was wrong and he knows it. It's up to him to make things right with Catherine. Now, supper is ready. Sit down and let's eat before Hop Sing gets upset."

When Cat went to bed, she refused to let Adam read with her. "I'm mad at you and don't want you to read with me for a long time. Pa, Grandpa, Joe, Hoss, or Hop Sing can read with me but not you."

"Cat, I'm sorry for what I did."

"No you're not. 'Cause if you were, you wouldn't of done it. You got to prove to me that you're sorry."

Adam sighed and went downstairs. "Someone else is going to have to read with her tonight. She's angry at me and says I can't read with her until I prove that I'm sorry for my actions."

Hoss and Joe laughed at their brother. "You've only got yourself to blame older brother," teased Joe. "Little sister doesn't want anything to do with a Yankee Granite Head who thinks he's better than everyone else in the family."

"Joseph, that's enough," said Ben getting up to go read with Cat. "Adam, you have got to figure out how to convince your sister that you truly are sorry for being so nosy and violating her privacy. One thing that may help is to remind her that she needs to learn those two hymns you're going to sing at the Christmas Eve service and you have to teach them to her. Since she already told Reverend Long that she'd sing, she can't say no to practicing with you."

After breakfast, Adam said, "Cat, I need to go and get Mary and Laura so they can work on their mother's cart. Would you like to come along? I'm going to take the buggy and you can drive."

Cat really didn't want to go with Adam but she did want to drive the buggy and spend as much time time with her friends as possible. It wasn't easy being the only girl on the Ponderosa. "Ok, but I'm still mad at you."

Adam laughed. "That's ok Squirt. You can be angry at me if you want to. I was wrong, I know it and I'm very sorry for it. Come on, you can help me hitch the horse to the buggy." On the way to the Ingalls, Adam said, "I know you're angry at me and really don't want to talk to me, but I need to teach you those songs Reverend Long wants us to sing on Christmas Eve. We'll work on them later after we take your friends home." Realizing that Cat was about to say she changed her mind about singing because she didn't want to do anything with him, Adam said, "It's too late to change your mind about singing. You made a promise and you have to keep that promise."

"Ok, I'll do it because I promised Reverend Long but I'm still mad at you."

"Christmas is still several weeks away. Maybe you won't be angry at me any more by then." When they reached the Ingalls', the girls played in the yard while Adam went in to talk to Charles and Caroline. "I've come to borrow Laura and Mary for a while. We have a special project to work on. Also, I need your help. I did something wrong and now Cat's angry at me. I've broken her trust again."

"What did you do?" asked Caroline.

Adam told them about trying to find out what Cat was working on with Mr. Miller and how he had been going into her bedroom and going through her things several times a week. "Cat says she won't forgive me until I prove that I'm sorry and I don't know what to do. She's not talking to me and wouldn't let me read with her last night. The only reason she came with me today is because I said she could drive the buggy."

"That's a start," said Charles. "Now you need to think of more things to do in order to earn her forgiveness."

"It's too cold for fishing, but maybe you could go hunting with her," said Caroline. "Maybe you could have her horse saddled and ready for her on school mornings so she won't have to do it herself. Who changes the bedding in everyone's bedroom? Hop Sing or the occupant?"

"Hop Sing has so much to do, Pa insists that each of us change their own bedding."

"That's one more thing you could do for her. I'm sure Cat would appreciate not having to change her own bedding. I know that Mary and Laura do on the occasions I do it for them."

"You could bathe and brush her puppies shortly before Christmas. I'm sure they need it and I know if they were my puppies, I'd be very happy that someone was thoughtful enough to do that for me," added Charles. "When Ben isn't at home, who is usually in charge of Cat?"

"The oldest brother at home."

"There's a school board meeting on Thursday night. If you're home, suggest to Ben that he put Cat in charge for the night with the understanding that she still has to go to bed at her usual time and to school on Friday. Hop Sing or your grandfather can remind her when it's close to bedtime. I know if I were nine years old, I would love being in charge of my older siblings even if was only for a few hours."

"Laura says that Cat is still struggling with arithmetic," said Caroline. "Do you offer to help her or wait for her to ask for help? If it's the later, offer to help her. They're still working with fractions and Laura is also struggling. Those are just a few ideas, but you really need to give serious thought to your actions. You said that you were told whatever it is Cat is working on with Mr. Miller didn't concern you but you decided you needed to know what it was anyway. How would you feel if the roles were reversed? Going into someone's bedroom and going through their things without permission is never acceptable. I only go into the loft to put the girls' clean clothes on their bed, to say goodnight to them, or take care of them if one of them is sick. I never go through their things. How would you feel if one of your family members was always going through your things without your permission?"

"I would be very upset. In fact, before I left for college, I used to get angry at Little Joe for going into my room without permission. I started to yell at him when Marie reminded me that he was only four and didn't know any better."

"You didn't like it when Joe invaded your privacy so why did you invade your sister's? Why did you try to learn what she was doing with Gerald Miller?" asked Charles. You already knew what toys and books she has and that she had permission to work with Gerald after school."

"I wanted to make sure she didn't have anything she wasn't supposed to and to ensure she wasn't doing anything that would get her in trouble."

"Is that your job? When you and your brothers were boys, did your father go through your things and insist on knowing everything you were doing, even if it might be working on a birthday or Christmas gift?"

"No it's not and the rest of the family is angry at me. No, Pa never went through my things, even when I was very young and we were traveling west in the wagon."

"You seem to have forgotten the Golden Rule," said Caroline. "You also need to think about the example you're setting for your sister. You are her eldest brother and need to be mindful of your actions so as not to set a bad example for your younger sister."

"You're both right of course. I was wrong on both counts and need to regain Cat's trust and keep it. Thank you both for the suggestions. If I don't get these girls back to the Ponderosa, we're never going to get our project finished. I'll bring them home after supper."