Wild Cat

by flabirder

Introducing a little sister for the Cartwrights. She will be related to characters from other Westerns and have some famous Godfathers, but they will rarely be in the story. It will be necessary to show her life before she moves to the Ponderosa. Warning, spanking of minor children in some chapters. Trolls will be dealt with by the Three Billy Goats Gruff.

100. Chapter 100

Ben exploded when Adam told him that Gerald Miller wanted Cat at the school board meeting. "WHAT IS HE THINKING?! HAS HE LOST HIS MIND?!? YOUR SISTER IS ONLY NINE YEARS OLD AND HE KNOWS I DON'T WANT HER OUT THAT LATE ON A SCHOOL NIGHT! HE HAS CHILDREN AND I KNOW HE WOULDN'T WANT THEM OUT THAT LATE!! THE MEETING DOESN'T EVEN START UNTIL SEVEN THIRTY!! EVEN IF HE TALKS TO HER FIRST, IT WILL STILL BE TEN THIRTY OR LATER BEFORE YOU GET HOME WHICH MEANS IT WILL BE ELEVEN BEFORE CATHERINE IS IN BED!! SHE'LL HAVE A HARD TIME STAYING AWAKE IN SCHOOL ON FRIDAY!! SHE IS NOT GOING TO THAT MEETING!IF HE WANTS HER TO TALK TO THE SCHOOL BOARD, HE CAN SCHEDULE THE MEETING FOR A FRIDAY AND I WILL TELL HIM SO TOMORROW!"

"Calm down Pa. You're going to wake Cat. Gerald knows children need to be in bed early on school nights, so he changed the meeting to start at six. She is just going to tell the school board exactly what Annabel has been doing to her at school and I only have to tell them what I witnessed today and about her eavesdropping the day after I took Cat to the lumber camp. We should be out of there by seven at the latest and she should be in bed by nine thirty. That's only thirty minutes later than whoever is reading with her usually finishes and turns out her lamp. I'll take the buggy on Thursday. I can tie Beauty to the back and if she's tired, Cat can sleep on the way home. I'll take a pillow and some blankets along so she can be comfortable and won't get cold. The three of us can eat supper at the International before the meeting. I'm sure she will enjoy the treat. I'll let you break the news to Hop Sing. Also, I know that the Ingalls are coming to supper on Saturday night so Hop Sing can watch Carrie while we're at the dance, but I want to invite them to dinner on Sunday also. That way Carrie can come with us to pick out a horse for Caroline's cart and they can take her home when we return. I won't know until Saturday if we're going to have to do more painting or not."

"Taking the buggy is an excellent idea. So is inviting the Ingalls to Sunday dinner. When you pick the girls up on Saturday, have them bring the dresses they're going to wear to the dance and church as well as their night clothes. All three girls can bathe before supper and we'll leave for the dance right after. Has Cat forgiven you yet?"

"I think so but she doesn't want to tell me yet. I asked her today and she said, 'I don't know, maybe.'"

Ben laughed. "That child is a little scamp. You're right, I think she has forgiven you. I wonder when she's planning to tell you."

Ben's yelling woke Cat up and she came downstairs followed by her puppies. Her eyes were barely open as she yawned, stretched and complained, "Why are you yelling? You woke me up. Uncle Matt and Uncle Rip probably heard you yelling. Uncle Sam and Aunt Julia probably did too. They maybe even heard you in Australia. Stop yelling 'cause I can't sleep if you're yelling. Uncle Matt doesn't yell. Uncle Rip doesn't yell. Why do you yell? If I fall asleep in school tomorrow, it will be all your fault and I'm going to tell Miss Winter it's because you were yelling and woke me up. I shouldn't have to go to school since you woke me up."

Before Ben could say anything, Cat headed for the door and Joe asked, "Where are you going?"

"I have to use the outhouse."

Ben got up and hugged her. "I'm sorry I yelled and woke you up Sweetheart. Adam told me something that someone in town told him today and it made me angry. You can't go outside dressed like that. You're only wearing your nightgown and your feet are bare. It's cold outside and there are several inches of snow on the ground. You'll get sick if you go outside dressed like that."

"I'll take her Pa," said Hoss. "Adam, since yore coat is on the back of your chair, let little sister use it. I'll carry her so she won't be walking barefoot in the snow but her nightgown isn't enough to keep her warm."

Adam stood up, got his coat off the back of his chair and called Cat over to him. He put the coat on her and everyone laughed at how big it was. He took his belt off, wrapped the coat around her, tied it with the belt, and rolled the sleeves up to the tips of Cat's fingers. "There now, that should keep you warm. Don't you look cute? Too bad Abel Goss isn't here with his camera to take your picture. I'm sure your uncles would love to see that picture. Alright Hoss, she's all yours." After Hoss carried Cat outside, Adam went upstairs and got his sketch pad while Ben asked Hop Sing to make some hot cocoa for Cat. When they came back inside, Hoss put Cat down in front of Adam who said, "Stand right there for a few minutes while I sketch your picture. It won't be the same as a photograph, but it will work and I can make copies of it to send to your uncles." He finished the sketch, helped Cat out of his coat and Ben carried her back up to bed after she finished her hot cocoa. Once Cat was asleep again, Adam said, "I don't think we should tell Cat about her needing to go to the school board meeting."

"Why not?" asked Hoss. "She's got to know. If she don't know, she has to go there, she'll just come right home after school."

"I agree with Adam," said Ben. "If we tell her now, she'll be worrying about it all week and won't pay attention to her studies. She has tests on Wednesday and Thursday and if she's worrying about the school board meeting, she won't do well on them. Her education is too important for her to be distracted like that, so Adam can tell her after school on Thursday." Since he caused Cat to wake up during the night, Ben allowed her to sleep until about thirty minutes before breakfast. "Hoss, will you please go and wake your sister up? Breakfast is almost ready and she needs to eat before she goes to school."

Hoss walked into Cat's bedroom, looked at her puppies sleeping next to her and said, "Ok you two. Ya gotta get off the bed now. Yore little girl has ta get up so's she can eat breakfast afore she goes to school." Once Lassie and Silver Chief were off the bed, Hoss pulled the covers off Cat and rubbed her back. "Come on Punkin. It's time to get up. Breakfast is almost ready and ya gotta eat afore ya go to school."

"Go 'way. I'm tired. Let me sleep."

"Sorry Punkin. I know yore tired. Pa didn't mean ta wake ya up last night. Since he did, he let ya sleep longer this mornin'. Come on now. Ya gotta eat breakfast afore ya go to school. Ya can't learn on an empty stomach. Ifn ya don't get out of this bed in one minute, I'm gonna tickle ya and then you'll have ta hurry and get dressed so's ya don't wet yore pants." Cat tried reaching for her covers and put her pillow over her head. "Ok. I warned ya what I was gonna do so now I'm gonna do it." He started tickling her and got the desired reaction.

"Ok. Stop. I'm awake. If you don't stop, I'm gonna wet the bed."

"Alright Punkin. Get yoreself out of bed and dressed. I'll get a towel and meet ya at the pump. I'll pump water on yore head so's ya can wake up more."

Adam kept working with Cat on her arithmetic and by Wednesday, she was more comfortable adding fractions with unlike denominators than she had been. Adam was confident that she would pass the test on Thursday and hoped she would get a very good grade on it. Despite Cat's objections, he also kept giving her a multiplication or long division problem to solve so she wouldn't forget what she had already learned. She figured that her schoolwork and homework were more than enough arithmetic for a single day, so she appealed to the rest of the family and to her frustration, even Hoss and Joe agreed with Adam so the extra problems continued.

Cat, Jasper, and Mike continued working on the gloves in Mr. Miller's shop and on Wednesday he told them that they should finish the last pair on Friday. He said that he would help her wrap them on Friday and told Cat to bring her saddle bags to the Christmas Eve church service. "Just leave them under the front seat of the surrey and I'll put the gloves in there before the service starts. If your Pa or brothers ask why you're bringing them, just tell them that I asked you to."

Adam was waiting with the buggy when Cat got out of school on Thursday. She was surprised to see him and said, "Hi Adam. Why are you here and why do you have the buggy instead of Sport?"

"I'm here because Mr. Miller wants both of us to attend the school board meeting tonight and I brought the buggy so you could rest on the way home."

"Did Pa say I could? I don't want him to be mad at me because I won't be able to go to bed on time."

"Don't worry. Pa knows all about it and will be at the meeting also. Don't forget, Mr. Miller has children and knows that children need to be in bed at a decent time so they won't fall asleep in school. That's why the meeting is going to be at six instead of seven thirty. If things go the way I think they will, it will only be thirty minutes later than normal when you go to bed. You, Pa, and I are going to have supper at the International, so meet us there when you're finished at Mr. Miller's shop. How did you do on your arithmetic test?"

"I don't know. I hope I passed it."

"I'm sure you did. Fractions can be difficult, so I'll keep helping you with your homework."

"Thanks but I'd rather just quit school. I know everything I need to know so I don't need to go there anymore."

"Cat, you are only nine years old and do not know everything you need to, especially for ranch life. You need to be able to figure out how many bales of hay we need to fill the hayloft. You also need to be able to figure out how many bags of oats we need to order. Other things you need to learn are things like how much flour, sugar, salt, and other food items are needed to feed the family every week. Hop Sing can help you learn about the food items when you're older, but believe me, you have a lot more learning to do before you can quit school. Now go on over to Mr. Miller's shop and then come to the International."

When Jasper and Mike learned that Cat would be at the school board meeting, they wanted to attend also. They asked Mr. Miller and he said they would have to get permission from their parents before they could attend. Since Jasper lived closest to town, he volunteered to ride home and get permission from his father to attend and ask his father to give Mike permission also. Since both men were on the school board and the meeting was going to be held early, Jasper was certain he would be successful. He rode home and asked his father if he and Mike could attend the school board meeting as Mr. Miller wanted Cat to talk to the board members. Mr. King thought about it for a minute and asked, "If I give my permission, what are you and Michael going to do about supper? I'm sure that Catherine will be eating with her father and brother at the International."

"I don't know. Mike and I didn't think about supper. We just want to tell the school board what Annabel has been doing to Cat. We've seen some things that Miss Winter didn't, like when Jeff stopped Annabel from pushing Cat down the steps."

Mr. King reached into his pocket and handed Jasper some money. "You and Michael have my permission to attend the meeting. However, both of you are to leave when Adam and Catherine do. I'll get word to the Devlins so Michael doesn't get in trouble for staying in town for the meeting. Here is enough money so both of you can eat at the International. Ask Mr. Cartwright if you can eat with his family."

"Gee thanks Pa. Don't worry, I will. Are you going to the meeting?"

"Of course I am son. I'm a member of the school board so it's my responsibility to attend the meetings."

"Oh, ok. I've got to get back to Mr. Miller's shop. We're almost done helping Cat make the Christmas presents for her family."

"That was very nice of you and Michael to offer to help Catherine. Your mother and I are very proud of you. Now scoot so he doesn't start for home."

Jasper was excited when he returned to Mr. Miller's shop. "Mike, Pa said we could stay and guess what! He gave me money so we can eat at the International. The only time I get to eat there is on my birthday. I'm supposed to ask Mr. Cartwright if we can eat with his family."

"Say, that's swell. I don't get to eat at the International much either so tonight's going to be fun."

Mr. Miller smiled at how enthusiastic the boys were about eating at the restaurant instead of at home. "What are you tycoons planning to order for supper?"

The boys looked at Mr. Miller as though he had lost his mind. "Chocolate cake of course," answered Jas.

"And chocolate cake with ice cream for dessert," added Mike.

"That sounds yummy," said Cat. "I wonder if Pa will let me have that too."

"You three are being silly, but enjoy your dream while it lasts. There is no way that any adult is going to allow you to have chocolate cake for supper. The three of you have done an excellent job with these gloves. There are only three left to finish and you'll get them done tomorrow. Finish the gloves you're working on now and then go and meet Mr. Cartwright and Adam at the International. Oh and by the way, I know you had an arithmetic test today so I want to see those papers tomorrow. I want to make sure you haven't been neglecting your studies to work on the gloves."

"I haven't been," said Cat. Adam has been helping me with my arithmetic all week, ever since he talked to Miss Winter."

"Yes, but you have been working on these gloves for almost three weeks now. Has Adam been helping you the whole time?"

"Only when I ask for help."

"Do you ask for help?"

"Not unless I absalootely have to."

"Why not?"

"Because I hate arithmetic and don't care if I do good in it or not. I'd like to take every arithmetic book in the world and throw it in the ocean."

The boys agreed with Cat. "Well then, depending on what I see on those test papers tomorrow, I may have to talk to some fathers about their children's school work. Now finish up the gloves you're working on so you have time to eat before the school board meeting. You won't have time to eat before you go to bed when you get home."

The children finished the gloves they were working on, said goodbye to Mr. Miller and rode over to the International where Ben and Adam were sitting at a table, drinking coffee. "Mr. Cartwright," said Jas. "Can Mike and I eat with you? My pa said we could go to the school board meeting and gave me money for supper."

"Absolutely not," teased Adam. "This table is for adults only."

"Great!" said Mike. "The three of us will eat at that table over there. Then we won't have grownups telling us what to eat. What are you going to have Jas?"

"I think I'll have cherry pie for supper and chocolate cake with ice cream for dessert."

"That sounds good but one piece of pie isn't enough."

"You're right. I'll have two pieces of pie. What are you going to have Cat?"

"I'm going to have chocolate cake for supper and chocolate cake with ice cream for dessert."

"I'm going to have to have the same thing you're having," said Mike. "Chocolate cake for supper and chocolate cake and ice cream for desert sounds wonderful."

"Adam," said Ben. "I think you had better reconsider your adults only at our table. We can't have these children eating pie and chocolate cake for supper."

Adam let out an exaggerated sigh. "I suppose you're right, but I was looking forward to a meal without having to listen to young children."

Ben laughed. "It's going to be a long time before that happens in our house again." He looked at the three children and said, "I will allow the three of you to pretend you're all grown up and eat at a table by yourselves this time. However, you will not be having pie or chocolate cake for supper. You will have meat, potatoes, and vegetables. If you finish everything on your plates, I will allow you to have chocolate cake and ice cream for dessert."

Cat, Mike, and Jas all ordered fried chicken, mashed potatoes and corn on the cob for supper. Knowing that her father or brother were going to ask the waitress what they ordered, Cat whispered to her and asked her to tell them that they had ordered pie and chocolate cake. The waitress smiled and said, "Sure kids. I'll gladly do that for you."

When she went to take Ben and Adam's order, Ben asked her what the children had ordered and she responded with what she had been asked to say. Adam got upset. "I can't believe they deliberately defied you. What are you planning to do about it?"

Ben laughed. "I saw your sister whispering to Jenny. I have a feeling that she was asked to say that just to get you upset. I don't plan on doing anything until after I see what Sally brings them to eat." When Jenny brought the children's food to them, Ben said, "Your sister set a trap for you and you walked right into it. Stop and think about it. Knowing what the consequences would be, do you really think they would defy me? Cat knew I would ask what they ordered so she asked Jenny to say that they ordered what they were told not to. She wanted to get you upset and you did exactly what she wanted you to. Now she's going to go home and tell your brothers what she did and what your reaction was. How do you think Joe is going to react when she tells him?"

"I'm going to kill both of them."

"No you're not," laughed Ben. "Hopefully one day you will have children of your own and you will know what to expect from them. Learn to pay attention to what Cat is doing. If you had been watching, you would have seen her whisper to Jenny and wouldn't have gotten upset. Now you're going to be teased by your brothers, grandfather, and Hop Sing. Since she'll probably tell Paul what she did, you can expect to be teased by him also."

Adam glared at his sister for a moment. Cat wanted to stick her tongue out at him but knew she'd be in trouble if she did. So she settled for giving him her sweetest smile, causing Ben, Jas, and Mike to laugh. Adam just sighed and shook his head, not quite believing he had been outsmarted by his nine year old sister. "How did you know to watch her?" he asked his father.

"Which one of your brothers is she most like?"

"Would Joe have done something like that?"

"If it meant a chance to annoy you without getting in trouble, of course he would have. I'm quite sure that you would have done the same thing if the roles were reversed."

"I would not and I'm sure you never did."

Ben laughed. "Oh yes I did. Remember, Victoria is older than me. I annoyed her as much as I could without getting into trouble, John annoyed both of us and Kate annoyed all three of us. That's what younger siblings do and I know you would have done the same thing if Joe was older than you."

After supper, everyone walked over to the meeting hall for the school board meeting. Ben wanted to know if Cat had forgiven Adam for trying to find out what she was doing at Mr. Miller's shop but rightly concluded that Cat would think Adam put him up to it and get angry at her brother. So he decided to ask Reverend Long if he would ask Cat. He quietly explained the situation and asked, "Would you please ask Cat if she has forgiven Adam? I'm concerned that if I ask her, she'll think he put me up to it and become angry at him again."

Reverend Long laughed. "She is a little scamp, isn't she? Of course I'll ask her but I can't guarantee that she'll tell me." He walked up to where Cat was standing with her friends and said, "Excuse me boys. I need to borrow Cat for a minute." He put his arm around her shoulders and walked outside with her. "I know that Adam did some things a few weeks ago that made you angry. I was wondering if you have forgiven him yet."

"I can't tell you here. If you come over to Mr. Miller's store after school tomorrow, I'll tell you then."

He picked Cat up, hugged her and said, "You are a little stinker, aren't you? Your name should be Skunk not Cat."

Cat giggled and hugged him back. "I promise I'll tell you tomorrow at Mr. Miller's store."

"Why don't you want to tell me now?"

"'Cause Adam and Pa might be hiding somewhere and hear and I don't want Adam to know yet. Besides that, I'm still a little mad at him. I asked him to take my arithmetic test for me and he said no."

"You are a silly little girl. Nobody can take a test for you. That is something you have to do yourself. I'm sure Adam told you that the purpose of a test is to see how much you have learned. Your teacher won't know how much you have learned if someone else takes the test for you. I think Mr. Miller is ready to start the meeting so we had better go inside. I'll talk to you at his shop tomorrow afternoon."

After Reverend Long opened the meeting with a prayer, Mr. Miller stood up and said, "The first order of business is to discuss Annabel White's behavior at school and what to do about it. I have asked Catherine Cartwright to tell you exactly what Annabel has been doing to her and why. Michael Devlin and Jasper King told me they know of several incidents that Catherine is not aware of. As two of these three children have a long ride home, and school in the morning, I don't want to waste any time while they're here. Please do not interrupt them while they are speaking but rather ask any questions you may have when they have finished. Catherine, will you please tell us exactly what Annabel has done to you and when it started?"

Cat had never spoken in front of a bunch of important people before and was very nervous. Reverend Long saw her nervousness and said, "Cat, why don't you come up here and sit in my lap? Then you can tell everyone what Annabel has been doing to you." Cat sat in his lap, he hugged her and said, "There's no need to be nervous. Nobody here is going to yell at you or scold you. They just need to know what has happened."

Cat took a deep breath and said, "It started on the first day of school. Annabel didn't pay any attention to me until Miss Winter told everybody who I was. After school she invited me to be her friend and come over to her house because it was real big. I asked if Mary, Laura, and Sally could come too because they were my friends. She said no because they weren't rich and her mother said she should only play with kids who had rich parents. I told her that if she didn't want to be friends with my friends then I didn't want to be her friend or go over to her house. I guess it was about a week later when she stole my saddle bags. They were a birthday gift from two of the soldiers guarding my Godfather and they have my name and the Ponderosa brand burned into them. I chased her down and told her to give them back. She shoved me and I pushed her down in a mud puddle. I was going to beat the stuffing out of her but Miss Winter wouldn't let me. When Pa and Mr. White got to the school, Miss Winter asked Annabel and me to describe the saddle bags. After I did, Mr. White asked me who my Godfather was and when I told him, Annabel said I was lying and attacked me. She hit me once or twice but I got her even more. When her pa took her home, she yelled at me and said everything was all my fault and she was going to get even with me. The day after that nasty old Mrs. Warren came out to the Ponderosa, I was playing ball with my friends at recess. The ball got past me and I started chasing it but Annabel tripped me and I hit my head on the bench and had to get four stitches." Cat continued telling the board members everything Annabel had been doing to her and finished up by saying. "She's always trying to get me in trouble when we're taking tests. She keeps telling Miss Winter that I'm cheating."

"Are you cheating?" asked Mr. Miller.

"No sir. You can ask Miss Winter. Ifn I tried to cheat and got caught, I'd probably be eighteen before I could sit down again."

"Then why does Annabel keep accusing you of cheating?"

"Laura and I sit on the left side of the room and the board where Miss Winter writes our tests is on the right side. So both of us have to look across the room to see our tests. I write with my left hand and sit on Laura's left side, so I have to look past her to see the tests."

"I see. Does anybody else have any questions for Catherine?" The other school board members shook their heads no so Mr. Miller said, "Thank you Catherine. You can go and sit in your seat again."

As Cat was walking back to her chair, the door burst open and Annabel stormed in. "I was told that you were here telling lies about me. I told you it's all your fault I got punished for stealing and I was going to get even. Now you're telling lies about me and you're never going to do that again because I'm going to kill you." Before anyone could stop her, Annabel ran across the room and shoved Cat hard, causing her to fall over her chair and hit her head on the one behind it and on the floor. Annabel pounced on Cat and started punching her but Cat started hitting the older girl back, giving more than she got.

Ben and some of the others started to pull the girls apart when Mr. White's voice came from the doorway. "No, don't. Let them finish. It's high time Annabel got a taste of her own medicine and I believe that Catherine is just the person to do it."

The fight continued for a few more minutes when Cat was finally able to get out from under Annabel and onto her back. She grabbed as much of of Annabel's hair as she could with one hand, one of her feet with the other and started pulling them toward each other. "Holler 'nuff!" When Annabel didn't say anything, Cat pulled harder and said, "Holler 'nuff!" Annabel still didn't say anything so Cat pulled as hard as she could. "Holler 'nuff or I'll pull your hair out!"

This time Annabel yelled, "ENOUGH!"

Cat quit pulling and said, "The next time you steal from me or try to hurt me, I will pound the stuffing out of you and when I'm finished, your ma and pa won't recognize you. You are a mean, nasty person and I hope you fall in the ocean and go to Australia!"

As soon as Cat got off Annabel, Paul rushed over to check the girls' injuries. He took his time checking Cat's head and told Ben, "She's going to have some nasty bruises tomorrow and will probably have an equally bad headache from where she hit that chair and the floor. I don't think she lost consciousness, but watch her for signs of a concussion just to be on the safe side. Hop Sing's teas will probably work better, but I'll get you some headache powders for her after I check Annabel. I'll go and see Susan Winter after the meeting ends and tell her about Cat's injuries so she can send her to me if her head starts hurting in school tomorrow." He checked Annabel over and said, "You are a very lucky girl. Cat could have hurt you much worse than she did. Even though it's bleeding, your nose isn't broken. You're going to have some bad bruises, a very sore leg, and two black eyes. I hope you will give up your foolish notion of getting even with someone for something you did. Nobody forced you to steal, you did that all on your own. Catherine was just defending herself and her property which is something everybody has the right to do." Now I suggest you go home with your father and let him and your mother take care of your injuries."

As they were leaving, Mr. White apologized for Annabel's behavior and said she would be severely dealt with and he would respect whatever decision the board made about her schooling. Once Mr. Miller got the meeting restarted, he asked Adam to tell the school board what he had witnessed of Annabel's behavior toward Cat. When Adam finished, Jasper and Mike told the board of things they had seen, including the day Annabel put a rock at the bottom of the school steps and tried to push Cat down them, only to be stopped by Jeff. Mr. Miller thanked the children and Adam for attending the meeting and said they could leave. After Cat got her hat, coat, and gloves, Ben said, "Cat, I want you to ride home in the buggy with Adam."

"Paaaaaaa!" came the expected protest.

"I want you to ride in the buggy because you hit your head. I don't want to take a chance on you getting dizzy and falling out of the saddle."

"I totally agree," added Paul. "If I had known Adam brought the buggy, I would have insisted that you ride in it. So, consider it doctor's orders and ride home in the buggy." Cat sighed and grumbled something about too many grownups, causing everyone else to laugh.

Once Adam and the children were gone, John Winter asked, "I don't understand why Annabel hates Cat so much. As Paul told her, all she did was defend herself and her property, which is something everyone has a right to do. We all know that Annabel has been stealing for years and Cat had nothing to do with it."

"I think I can try to answer your question," said Paul. "Annabel hates Cat because Cat stood up to her bullying and she was punished for her actions. Except for the things she stole from shops, everything Annabel stole was from someone younger or smaller than her. They were afraid to say no and she probably threatened them if they told anyone. Her actions have been brought out into the light, she's facing consequences for them and, because she is so used to getting her own way, she doesn't like it one little bit. Ben, until now, I wasn't sure why the family calls your precious little girl 'Wild Cat', but after what I just witnessed, I can say that the name fits. I've never seen her act so ferociously and she could have hurt Annabel very badly or possibly killed her. I know she'll be asleep when you get home, but I think I can speak for everyone here when I ask you to tell her in the morning, how proud we are that she showed such restraint, however, I wouldn't want to be in Annabel's shoes if she ever tries to hurt Cat again. I for one took Cat's threat very seriously."

"So did I Paul, so did I," said Ben. "Now the question is what is this board going to do about Annabel? Every student has the right to feel safe when they're in school and I know Catherine does not when Annabel is present. I'm quite certain that the younger students don't either. Therefore, Catherine will not attend school in Virginia City as long as Annabel White is attending. Adam or Caroline Ingalls can teach her."

"Miss Winter has excluded Annabel from school until after Christmas," said Reverend Long. "I have been trying to work with Annabel but her recent actions have shown me that she is not sorry for what she did, she is only sorry that she got caught. I agree with Ben. The younger children are not safe as long as Annabel is actively attending school and this board needs to do something about that."

"Christmas Day is two weeks from Saturday," said Mr. Winter. "Because the children have to practice for the Christmas play on the twenty third, Susan is planning to make the twenty second the last day of school before Christmas. Being excluded from school for a week and a half is hardly enough punishment for what Annabel has done."

"I totally agree," said Mr. King. "Annabel's actions are making it hard for the children to learn so I move that we vote to exclude Annabel from school until after Easter. That means it will be four full months before she is allowed to return to school. She'll have to repeat the ninth grade as I'm sure Miss Winter will not give her full credit for any work she does while being excluded from school." The board members discussed Mr. King's idea and, after adding a clause stating if Annabel acted up even once after being allowed to return, she would be excluded for the remainder of the term, approved it with a unanimous vote. Mr. Winter said he would tell his sister what the school board decided and about the fight.