A Simple Misunderstanding

By Katlynn

Disclaimer: The characters and situations of the TV program "Big Valley" are the creations of Four Star/Republic Pictures and have been used without permission. No copyright infringement is intended by the author. The ideas expressed in this story are copyrighted to the author.

This story was written in response to a challenge to write a 500-word story about a Barkley brother waking up in jail, no memory of how he ended up there, but five items in his pockets as clues to what might have happened. I wasn’t able to keep my story to 500 words, nor did I follow the rest of the directions very well. But here’s the result…

Jarrod Barkley looked down at the items in his hands then up at his mother through the bars that separated them. This just didn’t make sense, he shook his head as he examined the items again.

First was a telegram with his name on it. He turned it over in his hands but resisted the temptation to read it as he felt his mother’s icy gaze on him.

There was a key that he recognized as belonging to his office safe. A half-written bank draft. The business card of a jeweler claiming locations in Stockton and San Francisco.

And, finally, he held a ring. A wedding ring. His mother’s wedding ring.

“Don’t stand there shaking your head at me!” his mother ordered. “None of this would have happened if you’d done as I requested.”

“I’m not shaking my head at YOU, Mother,” Jarrod denied. “I’m shaking my head at the situation. It’s preposterous that a Barkley should end up in jail accused of robbing a jewelry store!”

Victoria reached through the bars, took the business card from her son’s hand and waved it angrily. “Perhaps if Mr. Harris had bothered to find out about Stockton society before opening a shop to sell fine jewelry here, he’d have been aware of how preposterous that is!”

“But I’m still not sure I understand how it all happened…” Jarrod’s voice trailed off.

“I’ll TELL you how it happened!” Victoria couldn’t hide the anger in her voice.

She’d been in town the day before running errands and stopped by Jarrod’s office just short of noon. With the rest of her children out of town … Audra visiting friends in Sacramento and Nick and Heath at a horse auction … she’d hoped to convince Jarrod to join her for lunch. When Jarrod’s assistant told her that her son had unexpectedly been called to San Francisco and wouldn’t be back until the next day, she’d asked about her wedding ring. Jarrod had agreed to take it with him on his next trip to the city to have it repaired.

The young man hadn’t known if he’d taken it or if it was still in the office safe and asked if she’d mind checking herself as he had to get some papers filed at the courthouse no later than noon. He’d given her the key and rushed out, asking her to be sure the office was locked when she left.

Victoria hadn’t been happy to find that her ring was still in Jarrod’s safe. She rarely removed it and when she did it was for the briefest of moments. That she’d been forced to remove it for an extended period of time so it could be repaired was especially wrenching as what would have been hers and Tom’s 35^th wedding anniversary approached. Jarrod had assured her that he’d find someone in San Francisco who could have it back to them before that date.

And now, here it was in his safe!

She closed and locked the safe and slipped the key and her ring into her coat pocket. She knew nothing personal about the man who’d just opened the new jewelry store down the street. But the sign in the window said ‘Harris Jewelers ~ Fine Jewelry and Repair’ and Minnie Perlman had told Victoria that he also had a shop in San Francisco. Maybe she could have the ring repaired by a San Francisco jeweler right there in Stockton!

“So I took the ring to his shop to see if he could fix it for me,” Victoria related. “I was scarcely in the door before I saw a bracelet that I thought would be the perfect birthday gift for Audra. I asked if I could try it on and was so excited by the find that I totally forgot about the ring. He stepped to the back of the shop to get a box and I started to write a bank draft. It was about that time that Jimmy from the telegraph office called me to the door and gave me that telegram for you. When I returned to the counter, Mr. Harris was there and had placed his hand on top of the bank draft. He said he couldn’t accept anything except cash. Despite his insulting nature, I knew that Audra would love the bracelet so I told him I’d go to the bank to get the cash and be right back.”

“But, Mother … I still don’t understand,” Jarrod couldn’t help shaking his head in spite of his mother’s order not to. “How did you walk in there to have your ring repaired and walk out of there accused of robbing his store?”

“That’s just it, Jarrod! I walked out!” Victoria said indignantly. “I walked out of his store to go to the bank and what with Jimmy’s distraction and Mr. Harris’ refusal to accept my bank draft, I completely forgot that I was still wearing the bracelet. When he realized what I’d done, he came running out of the store yelling that he’d been robbed. Not even Fred could convince him that it was a simple misunderstanding. He refused to agree to Fred’s suggestion that I be allowed to post bail unless it was set by the judge … and as I’m sure you know, the judge was out of town yesterday.”

Victoria ripped the business card in two and allowed it to flutter to the floor. “Now … get … me … out … of … here!”

THE END