The Top of the World

By Kierin

"I’m so tuckered out I think I’ll sleep till Thursday," declared Hoss through a yawn as he and his family rode up to the barn. Little Joe was slumped against Hoss’s chest, sound asleep despite the uneven bouncing of the horse, securely wedged between the saddlehorn and his next eldest brother. Paint was tied to Beauty, and Adam took both horses into the barn. Hoss carefully handed his sleeping brother down to Ben, who carried him toward the house. Yawning repeatedly, Hoss bedded down his and his father’s horses in their stalls, and then he and Adam stumbled toward the house and their beds. They were asleep before they could get their boots off. The next day all four Cartwrights slept well into the morning.

It had been a particularly hard couple of weeks on the Ponderosa ranch. Besides having to saddle-break five new horses to meet a buyer deadline, after the scare with the Greene ranch calves, the Cartwrights had to move their herd and build new fencing. A particularly intense evening storm felled three trees that smashed the fencing in places that had to be immediately repaired lest the bulls discover the vulnerable areas. On top of that, Margaret and Tess had taken sick, so the Cartwrights had stepped in to assist wherever they could, meaning double the usual chores. Finally things were settled down and the Greenes were feeling much better, but endless days of backbreaking labor had left the four Cartwrights worn-out, sick of ranch work, and well beyond grouchy.

Despite Hoss’s prediction, it didn’t take long for them to catch up on sleep. Their withered spirits were harder to renew. It was three days later that a fuming Adam stormed into the bedroom to find Little Joe lounging on his bunk working on the slingshot he’d been crafting. Grabbing Joe’s vest, Adam yanked him to his feet and dragged him into the main room. "Paint’s stall is filthy and none of your other chores have been done. Would you care to tell me what you think you’re doing?"

Little Joe struggled to free himself of his big brother’s angry grip. "Leave me alone, Adam."

"Go do your chores!"

Little Joe glared back at him. He was used to facing off with his eldest brother. "I’ll do ‘em when I’m good and ready!"

"I’m about at the end of my rope with you, boy! You haven’t been pulling your weight around here lately."

"He ain’t done a lick of work for three days," input Hoss as he came in with a load of freshly chopped kindling.

"Yeah, I noticed," replied Adam.

Hoss dropped the wood into the box by the fireplace. "It ain’t right for Paint to spend all day in that dirty stall, and the chickens are so hungry they darn near attack me anytime I go near the coop. What’s gotten into you, little brother?"

Little Joe glanced from one brother to the other, his eyes narrow, his body tense, ready to go up against them both. "Nuthin! I said I’d do ‘em when I’m good and ready!" He sure wasn’t going to tell them that his arms and legs still ached from all the extra work of late, or that he really didn’t care to look at another cow or horse or chicken for a long time.

"You’ll do them now," commanded Adam in his best Pa voice.

Little Joe countered with an I-dare-you look in his eyes, "You gonna make me?"

Adam crossed him arms over his chest and glowered at his youngest brother. "Pa oughta take you out to the barn and …"

Joe interrupted with a full-fledged yell. "Why don’t you just stop being so bossy, Adam!"

Hoss clamped his left hand over Little Joe’s mouth and rested his right hand on Adam’s shoulder. "Both of you better stop your hollerin’ less you want Pa to come in here. You two have been grumpier than a couple a grizzles waked up in January these last …"

"Enough!" Three stunned boys whirled around to see their father standing in the doorway. Ben took a couple deep breaths as the boys waited, frozen. "Now, what’s all this bickering about?"

All at once the boys sputtered out their best defenses. Ben closed his eyes and shook his head to stop them. He hated it when the boys fought amongst themselves. With a brush of his hand, he indicated that they should all sit down at the table.

"I’m fed up with your baby son, Pa," Adam explained as he dropped into a chair.

"Reckon I am too, Pa," muttered Hoss.

"Why?"

"He ain’t done a lick of work for days, and I’m tired of covering for him."

Ben looked to his youngest son. "Joseph, why haven’t you done your chores?"

"I was just taking a break, Pa. I was getting ready to do ‘em before Adam came in and shoved me."

"I did not shove you! It’s practically noon and he was lying in bed, Pa. I was just trying to get him up."

"Adam, when I’m here, I’m in charge. If Little Joe hasn’t done his chores, I’ll deal with it. Do you understand?"

Adam uttered an irritated sigh, but nodded. Ben leaned back in his chair and looked at the wall as he contemplated something. Hoss shifted uncomfortably in his seat, and Little Joe rested his elbows on the table with his chin in his hands, offering up his well-practiced innocent look.

Finally, Ben said, "I think all of us could use a few days away from ranching. Adam, what was that you were saying about Mount Tallac a couple weeks ago?"

Adam rolled his eyes toward the ceiling as he tried to remember. "Uh, I was just saying that I read it’s one of the highest peaks around here. Over nine thousand feet. Big Dan said there’s an old trail that goes all the way to the top. Carlos talked about it a couple of times, too. Sometime when you can spare me for a few days, I’d like to see if I can make it all the way up. The view from the top must be amazing."

Ben looked thoughtfully at each of his sons. Hoss and Little Joe glanced at each other, both wondering if Adam was going to get to go have fun while they were stuck with his chores.

"All right, Adam, you can have a few days off to climb Mount Tallac." Clearly surprised, Adam opened his mouth to thank his father while Little Joe opened his to complain about unfairness. But Ben put up a hand to signal that he wasn’t finished yet. "And you’ll take your brothers with you."

"What! Pa you can’t be serious ..."

With a quick raise of his eyebrows, Ben stopped Adam in mid-sentence. "I’m perfectly serious. They’ve earned the break as much as you. Little Joe, do you think you can make it to the top of Mount Tallac?"

Suddenly Joe’s arms and legs didn’t ache so much. "I sure can! I bet you can see clear to the ocean from up there!"

"Hoss?"

Returning to his usual good-natured self, Hoss replied, "I’ll probably have to carry Adam and Little Joe up!" His tone was jovial, but the truth was, if it came to that, Hoss would surely do it.

"Un uh, I’ll make it without help, Hoss," was Joe’s predictable comeback.

"Then you boys have the next few days off. Go climb Mount Tallac. You can tell me all about it when you return."

Little Joe and Hoss both beamed, but Adam’s scowl broadcast his displeasure. "Adam, you will be in charge," Ben continued. It was little consolation. Adam wanted to go alone.

"What about you, Pa?" asked Little Joe.

"I’ll stay and look after the ranch. A few days of peace and quiet will be a blessing for me."

Hoss teased, "Are we really that noisy, Pa?"

Ben crossed his arms over his chest and tilted his head to the side as he considered this. Then, with a twinkle in his eyes, he declared with assurance, "Yes!"

Adam confronted Ben soon after. "I wanted to climb Mount Tallac alone, Pa."

"Does it surprise you to hear that I knew that?" replied Ben. "And I understand your need for time to yourself. However, I also think my three sons need to spend some time together."

"But I see them all the time, Pa."

"Working together and having fun together is not necessarily the same thing. Adam, I don’t think you realize how much your brothers enjoy spending time with you. You may be going off to college soon. Think about what that means. How much you’ll miss."

Adam set his hands on his hips and frowned, unconvinced.

"Trust me for now, son. I think you may find that the trip will be more fun with your brothers along."

"It will certainly be more problem-prone."

A knowing smile skipped across Ben’s lips. "That it will."

Little Joe was up and out of bed by dawn the next morning. By standing with one foot on a hay bale and the other on the bottom stall slats, he was able to saddle not only Paint but Adam’s and Hoss’s horses, as well. Hoss soon joined him in the barn, loaded down with packages of food that Hop Sing had prepared for the boys’ trip. He carefully attached them to his saddlebags before showing Little Joe how to tie his gear securely.

Eager to get the adventure started, Little Joe looked out the barn door to see what was keeping his eldest brother. Adam stood stoically in front of the house, staring up into the overcast morning sky. Crossing over to him, Joe called, "Don’tcha think we better get going, Adam? It’ll take all day to get to the west side of the lake."

Still looking upward, Adam shook his head slowly. "I don’t like the look of the sky. Too gray and dismal. And it’s been really foggy lately."

Little Joe repeated a saying he’d heard his father use. "Evening red, morning gray, sends the sailor on his way. Evening gray, morning red, brings rain down upon his head."

"Even Pa knows that’s not always right, Little Joe."

"Well, they wouldn’ta made it up if it wasn’t right mostly. A gray sky is good." He saw his father and Hop Sing walking across the porch, ready to see the boys off. "Right, Pa?"

"The weather changes quickly here," was Ben’s diplomatic reply. "You should be prepared for anything."

"Old Chinese proverb say ‘Never judge a day by the weather,’" added Hop Sing.

Adam and Joe eyed each other, both sure they were correct.

Ben’s tone was very serious when he asked, "Adam, do you want to take a rifle?"

Adam contemplated this before shaking his head. "I don’t think so. I don’t want to haul it all the way to the top, and it would be too dangerous to leave it with the horses." Adam hoped that Ben might next offer his pistol, but no such question followed.

The sprinkles began just as they reached the lake. The drops soon increased in number and size, the wind picked up, and before long an all-out rainstorm was buffeting and soaking the Cartwright boys and turning the dirt trail they were following into nothing short of a quagmire. When they came to a small, shallow cave in the rocky outcropping of one of the hills at the base of Mount Tallac, they hobbled their horses in a tree-covered spot, quickly removed saddles and saddlebags, then dashed for the cave.

"Evening red, morning gray," Adam mimicked angrily as he chucked his blankets and saddlebags onto the partially dry cave floor with much more force than necessary.

Little Joe shot him a vengeful look. As he waved his hat in the air to dry it, he asked, "What are we gonna do now? It’s not nighttime yet."

"It will be dark soon enough. You’ll eat then go to bed," ordered Adam.

"But I’m not tired."

"I don’t care." Adam spread the blankets they’d brought across the ground, creating a makeshift bed for each of them.

"Guess I needed a bath," joked Hoss, trying to stay positive. "Least God saw fit to give me one." When neither brother responded, he offered, "I’ll sleep closest to the entrance. I like the sound of the rain."

"I’m gonna sleep …"

"You’ll sleep between us, Little Joe," Adam interrupted with a tone that made it clear the matter was not open for discussion.

"Aw, dang it!" complained Hoss as he tore open Hop Sing’s packages. "The food’s all mushy."

"What did you expect, brother? It got drenched along with everything else."

"The cheese looks fine," stated Little Joe.

Hoss groaned, "But I don’t like cheese."

The boys ate what they could salvage, mostly jerky, cheese, and a couple apples, in silence. Adam’s mood matched his black pants. How had the trip he’d envisioned as being so magnificent and inspiring turned so awful? Not only had he been forced to bring his freeloading kid brothers, but now even the weather seemed to be conspiring to foil his plans. He peeled off his wet jacket and boots then burrowed into the blankets. The ground was cold and the blankets soggy, thoroughly increasing his displeasure.

After finishing off another apple, which only managed to fill a small portion of his stomach, Hoss sighed and crawled into his blankets as well, using his saddle as a pillow. Little Joe sat between his brothers, glancing from one side to the other. He absolutely could not conceive how they could be in such bad moods during such an exciting adventure.

He listened to the storm for a few minutes, noting that the rain was already a little lighter. Soon he had to find new entertainment. "Hey Hoss," he called in a loud whisper. "Hoss?"

There was no answer.

"Hoss!"

Nothing but the sound of the rain.

"I know you ain’t asleep cuz you ain’t snoring."

With a long sigh, Hoss propped himself up on one arm. "What do you want, Little Joe?"

"I can’t sleep."

"Maybe you should try laying down."

"I’m not tired. Talk to me awhile."

Adam’s muffled voice came from the blankets on Joe’s left side. "Go to sleep, Little Joe."

"See? You’re not tired either, Adam."

"How do you know?"

"Because when you are, you always fall asleep right away, ‘less you got something on your mind."

Adam couldn’t argue there. With a sigh to match Hoss’s he sat up, and as his eyes readjusted to the low light, he could make out the forms of his younger brothers beside him. Little Joe slid closer to Adam. "Tell us a story, Adam," he requested.

"Yeah, it’s been a heap of time since I last heard one of your tales, brother," said Hoss.

Adam felt some of his prior annoyance drain away. It had been quite a spell since his brothers had asked for stories. He shifted into a more comfortable position and pulled a blanket up around his and Little Joe’s shoulders. "Well, let’s see …" he said, thinking hard. "Hey, Hoss, do you remember when a brother of ours decided to become an alligator wrestler?" Hoss nodded fervently, and Little Joe grinned. There was only one brother Adam could be talking about.

"He was about six years old, I think," continued Adam. "A sideshow came to New Orleans, and one of the acts was an alligator wrestler. Remember how Marie didn’t want Pa to take us, but we begged and promised to be good until she gave in?"

"I sure do," confirmed Hoss. "That show weren’t so great, though. I reckon that alligator weren’t trying his hardest."

"They must have trained it or something, but our little brother didn’t know that. He was awestruck to say the least, and he up and decided he wanted to wrestle alligators. When no one was watching him, he lit out for that swamp outside of town. Remember how frantic Marie was when she sent us to look for him? Pa was worried and angry because Joe’d been told to stay close to us for safety. You and I searched the entire carnival for him, but no one had seen him. Then we decided to check the swamp. He was always fascinated by it even though Pa told us to stay away from there because it was dangerous."

Hoss picked up the story. "The little rascal had waded in up to his waist before you grabbed him. I still remember how much you sounded like Pa when you said, ‘Joseph Francis Cartwright, you stay away from alligators.’ I’d like to have busted out laughing ‘cept for the fact that Joe had himself in so much trouble."

Adam continued, "His pants were covered with muck, and we knew Pa would be fit to be tied if he saw him like that, knowing he’d been to the swamp. You couldn’t bear to rat him out to Pa, so we hauled him home as fast as we could, cleaned him up, and got him into new pants…hey, what did you do with his pants from the swamp?"

Hoss chuckled. "I stuffed them down the hole in the Lewis’s outhouse! I was plumb stunned that Marie never thought to ask us about them."

"Yeah, well, Joe wore through lots of pairs of pants at that age. Plus, Marie was beside herself with relief when we returned with her baby son. She wasn’t thinking about anything except how happy she was to have him back safe. Pa was the same way. He didn’t even threaten to punish Joe for running off."

"Do you remember what you told him when he asked where we’d found Joe?"

"I told him he was waist-deep in an alligator pit."

"Pa gave you the darndest look! He was sure you were joshin’. I reckon he still don’t know it was the pure truth!"

"We would’ve been in big trouble had Pa heard the scary alligator stories we told Joe that night."
"It worked, though," said Hoss. "He never went near the swamp again."

"I still have nightmares about alligators!" Joe quipped, and Hoss and Adam both laughed, somewhat proud of this endorsement of their creative abilities.

"Luckily we don’t have to worry about encountering any alligators out here," observed Adam, "although a good rain like this can turn these hills into swampland mighty fast."

Little Joe’s grin lit up the cave as he looked from brother to brother. "Tell another story about me as a kid!"

Adam smiled but shook his head. "No way. It’s time for bed, Little Joe. Have you forgotten what we’re going to do tomorrow?"
"Oh yeah! I bet I’ll beat you to the top, Adam," Joe teased.

"We’ll just see about that!" Adam shot back, giving Joe a playful shove.

"And, uh, thanks for saving me from the alligators."

Adam’s voice was lighter than it had been in days. "It wasn’t the first time we saved your hide, Little Joe. And I’m plenty sure it was far from the last. It’s just part of being a big brother."

Little Joe snuggled down between his big brothers and fell asleep with a contended smile on his face.

"Adam! Joe! Get up! We got a problem." Hoss crouched in the cave entrance, his bulky form shadowed in the morning sunrise.

Adam sat up and blinked his eyes a few times as he tried to remember where he was. "What is it?"

"The horses."

"What about them?"

"They ain’t here."

Adam bounded out of his blankets with Little Joe at his side. They scrambled down the rocks to the spot where they’d secured the horses for the night. Sure enough, there was no sign of them.

"Told ya," said Hoss.

Joe looked up at him. "Someone stole our horses?"

Hoss shrugged. "Either that or they got scared in the storm, fetched themselves loose, and run off."

The younger boys looked to Adam. "What do we do now?" Little Joe asked.

Before anyone could answer, the deep, thunderous roar of a grizzly bear suddenly reverberated across the air, a primeval sound that seemed to make the ground quake. All other noise instantly ceased. The boys froze, their eyes growing wide. The animal was very close by.

Just a few seconds later, the grizzly lumbered out of the trees. The boys gasped. He was less than thirty feet away. His stench filled the air. His yellow eyes flashed angrily, and he tossed his head and pawed the ground like a bull. He knew there were humans near.

Without taking his eyes off the creature, Adam hissed, "Get behind me, Little Joe." It was an unnecessary command; Joe was already moving behind Adam, and Hoss was inching closer to his older brother’s side.

Adam silently cursed himself for not bringing the rifle. How stupid he was to have forgotten the very real natural dangers. There were only a few grizzly bears in the area, but their small number did not matter in the least when one was staring back at you. There were also mountain lions and rattlesnakes in these parts, and a traveler needed to be prepared, especially when he had to watch out for his younger brothers. Why hadn’t his father insisted that he bring a weapon? No, that wasn’t fair. Pa had trusted him with the choice. And he’d obviously made the wrong one.

"What do we do, Adam? What do we do?" breathed Little Joe, fear causing his voice to tremble.

Adam’s voice came out surprisingly even. "Just stay still and quiet." He felt the boy’s hands grip his waist tightly, and Adam slowly placed his hands over his brother’s smaller ones. Hoss’s left arm brushed against Adam’s right. "If we stand together like this we look bigger, like something that bear don’t wanna tangle with," explained Hoss, his voice only a speck above a whisper.

But this bear didn’t seem to be tricked. He growled, low and rattling, and sniffed the air. As he tossed his head and rolled his eyes, he appeared to be sizing up the trespassers, deciding what action needed to be taken. The hair on his back stood on end as he glared at the invaders of his territory. The hair on the backs of the boys’ necks stood on end too. They knew better than to run. They knew better than to shout. But other than that, they were absolutely defenseless. The bear could charge at any moment.

"Don’t look him in the eyes," warned Hoss quietly.

Just then the sound of more movement behind them gave the boys another scare. Only Little Joe risked peeling his eyes off the bear to search out the cause of the rustling. He looked over his shoulder and to his great surprise, saw an Indian hunched near a tree, staring back at him. The young man’s long, raven-black hair hung loose except where it was secured by a beaded headband. His deerskin clothing gave evidence of much time spent in the wilderness. The Indian glanced toward the bear, unsheathed the large knife he wore at his waist, and looked back at Joe. He crept toward the boys.

"It’s an Indian," Little Joe whispered. "He’s got a knife."

Hoss swallowed hard. His voice wavered. "W-What’s he p-plan to d-do w-with it?"

"How should I know?" Joe retorted in a panicked whisper. "He’s coming closer."

Staying near to the ground, the Indian slunk toward the boys. His eyes were on the bear, the knife grasped firmly in one hand, its blade flashing in the morning sun. As he neared Hoss and Adam, they got their first look at him.

"He’s not a Washo," whispered Adam. "Not a Comanche. Not a Paiute."

Hoss whispered back, "What do you think he’s plannin’ to do?"

The Indian answered the question when he stepped boldly in front of Hoss and Adam and began to speak firmly to the bear in his native tongue, all the while brandishing the knife, the blade poised.

The bear did not come closer. It ceased pawing the ground and grew still as the Indian spoke. With a final sniff of the air and toss of his head, the grizzly moved into a dense stand of pine several yards away, finally disappearing from view in the timber. Still it was several minutes before the boys dared move even the slightest bit. Eventually, they breathed a collective sigh, and Adam removed his hands from Little Joe’s and turned to put his arms around the trembling boy.

"Are you okay, Little Joe?"

Joe could only nod. He threw his arms around Adam’s waist and held tight. Adam hugged him right back, and Hoss rested a comforting hand on Joe’s right shoulder. "It’s okay, little brother. That shore had me scared, too. We coulda been that big feller’s breakfast. Good thing that Indian …"

Suddenly remembering the Indian, all three Cartwrights looked over at their savior. The Indian had placed his knife back in its protective covering and was reattaching it to his hip belt. Never one to distrust a man simply because he was a stranger, especially one who had possibly just saved his life, Hoss took a step toward the Indian. "That was shore sumpthin’, mister! I really wish I knew what you said to that big critter."

The Indian blinked a couple times and stared at Hoss. He obviously did not understand English. After a quick look to ensure that the bear was really gone, he pointed at the boys and indicated that they should follow him. Without many other options, the boys retrieved their stuff from the cave and fell into line behind their guide.

"Where do you figure he’s taking us, Adam?" asked Little Joe.

"I think to his camp. Many Indians believe that if they rescue a person, they are then responsible for him."

Hoss’s eyes took on an eager look. "Reckon they got any grub?"

Adam winked at Joe. "Leave it to Hoss to think with his stomach even at a time like this."

Little Joe allowed himself a quick grin.

A few minutes later, the boys found themselves in a grassy clearing then serving as the camp of about fifteen Indians. The mouthwatering aroma of simmering trout hit them as they strode into the camp, and Hoss took a long whiff of the delicious smell and looked longingly at the women tending the cooking fires. An older Indian came to speak with the one who had saved the boys, inspecting the newcomers with piercing black eyes. None of their words made any sense to the Cartwrights, but it was clear that the younger one was explaining what had happened with the bear. Adam, Hoss, and Little Joe awaited their fate.

Suddenly, Little Joe exclaimed, "Our horses!" A few feet away, on the other side of the camp, the three Cartwright horses were corralled with four Indian ponies. When Joe made a move toward the animals, Hoss grabbed the back of his jacket. "They might not take too kindly to you acting like your gonna steal their horses, little brother."

"But they’re our horses," returned Little Joe, not completely understanding the danger. The two Indians looked at him, and Adam stepped in front of his brothers. He pointed to the horses and then to himself, Hoss, and Little Joe, trying to show the Indians that their newly acquired livestock belonged to the three new camp arrivals. The older Indian nodded and said something to the younger one.

Taking the hint from Hoss’s baited looks, a woman brought three wooden bowls of food and handed one to each Cartwright. She said something in her language, and Hoss replied with an emphatic, "Thank you very much, ma’am!" He had no idea what she’d said, but she’d brought him food and that deserved generous gratitude.

The boys ate willingly, enjoying the chance to scoop up food with their fingers without incurring the wrath of Hop Sing or their father, while everyone in camp gawked.

"I wish we had something to give them in return for their kindness," stated Adam.

Little Joe stepped forward, pulling something out of the interior pocket of his vest. "Do you think they’d like my slingshot?" He handed it to the Indian who’d gotten rid of the bear, who turned it over and over in his hands and looked at Joe with a confused expression. Little Joe picked up a pebble and showed the Indian how to load and shoot the slingshot. The Indian smirked as the pebble soared over the camp and into the trees beyond. Two children younger than Joe came running over, their hands outstretched, wanting their turn with the slingshot. Little Joe grinned and winked at them. He showed one then the other how to use the contraption. They giggled with glee as their rocks shot into the air. The entire camp smiled.

With some pretty inspired sign language and enactments, Adam managed to convey to the Indians that he and his brothers were planning to climb Mount Tallac and would then return for their gear and horses. The Indian who had saved them from the bear again motioned for the boys to follow him. If they were going to hike up the mountain, they had to risk leaving most of their possession with the Indians, so they grabbed only a few provisions and went after their guide. He led them on a partially overgrown trail until the path began to veer steadily upward on its journey to the top of the mountain.

"This is it!" rejoiced Adam. "This is the path Big Dan and Carlos talked about. We really owe you …" The boys twirled around as their eyes searched the surrounding area. The Indian, their benefactor, had disappeared. They gazed at each other with questioning expressions. Hoss shrugged.

Finally, Adam managed, "I guess we better get going if we’re going to make it up and back before dusk." He craned his neck to look toward the peak. "Big Dan said the trail switchbacks a lot and gets pretty steep in some places. It’ll probably take most of the day to get up because we’ll have to rest sometimes to get adjusted to the altitude, but the trip down won’t take as long. You two still up for this?"

Little Joe let out a whoop. "Let’s go!" he shouted, once again energized by the thrilling adventure.

Adam and Hoss nodded to each other and smiled. "Let’s go!" they yelled in unison.

"Hey, Hoss," called Little Joe as they started up the trail, "if you could be any animal, what would you be?"

Hoss looked back over his shoulder at him. "Ah, I don’t know, Little Joe. Never given it much thought….Maybe a stallion, one of them wild ones."

"I’d be a grizzly bear," Joe stated emphatically. "They’re big and strong and fearless."

"You got some growin’ to do if you’re gonna be a grizzly, little brother," replied Hoss with a hint of teasing in his voice.

Little Joe shot him a frown. He snatched a small rock from the trail, examined it, then threw it as hard as he could into the trees. "How ‘bout you, Adam? What would you be?"

"An eagle," Adam stated without explanation.

Little Joe picked up and threw another rock. There was nothing to do but keep putting one foot in front of the other as they proceeded up the trail. They scrambled up rocky inclines, ducked under low-hanging branches, stepped over the occasional fallen log, and avoided muddy spots as best they could. They stopped only occasionally to rest and sip from their canteens. Adam slipped in one soggy area and would have fallen had not Hoss and Little Joe quickly reached out to steady him. Hoss pointed out every trailside plant that could potentially be poison ivy, so they could avoid it. Leg muscles screaming and their breath coming in heaves, the boys reached a section where the trail went almost straight up.

Hoss took a deep breath and jokingly inquired, "Whose loco idea was this anyway?"

"Hey, I didn’t make you come, remember? Besides, I thought you were the one who was going to carry Little Joe and me up," Adam replied sarcastically. "How you doing, Joe?"

"I’ll…make…it…Adam." Little Joe managed between gasps. He really wanted to ask Hoss for a piggyback ride, but he didn’t dare after he’d bragged about being able to make it on his own.

Finally the trail leveled out, the trees thinned out, and a sweeping, marvelous world of blue, brown, white, and green stretched out before their eyes. They were at the very top of Mount Tallac, more than nine thousand feet above sea level, so high that small patches of snow still lingered in the shadowed areas.

"This is the top of the world!" cheered Joe, quickly forgetting the strenuous climb.

Adam chuckled. "Well, not quite, but we sure are higher than everything else around here."

"Hey, I thought you was scared of heights, little brother," said Hoss.

"I ain’t scared!" Joe quickly replied, although Hoss and Adam couldn’t help but notice that he was staying away from a particularly steep slope on the western side of the saddle-shaped peak. Hoss clapped him on the back, showing that he understood. "The lake looks so blue from up here," he commented, and Adam and Little Joe nodded in agreement.

"Is that the ocean?" asked Little Joe, pointing.

Adam managed to stifle the laugh that threatened to bust out. "No, that’s another lake, Little Joe. There are a bunch around here. All the snow these mountains get in the winter has to go somewhere when it melts."

"Is that why the water is so cold?" Joe asked. "It’s melted snow?"

"Yeah, I guess so." Adam didn’t really know, but it sounded good.

Little Joe pointed in another direction. "Is that the ocean?"

"Little Joe, you cain’t see the ocean from here, even I know that," answered Hoss.

"Why not?"

"It’s just too far away," replied Adam.

Little Joe changed the subject. "What do you think Pa’s doing about now?"

"Probably feeding your chickens," Adam said, grinning at the image of his father amidst the clucking hens.
"Hope he watches out for that mean ole rooster."

Hoss declared, "I sure wish Pa could see this view."

Adam took a seat on the ground and stared out at the awesome scenery. Even though the trip hadn’t gone exactly as planned, this view was everything he’d hoped for--and it wasn’t so bad sharing it with his brothers. When Little Joe came to sit beside him, Adam watched him out of the corners of his eyes, wondering what he was thinking. "You impressed me today, Little Joe," Adam said finally, and Joe scoffed as if he believed he was being teased. "I’m not kidding," continued Adam. "The way you gave up your slingshot showed a lot of maturity. And you hiked all the way up this mountain without help. You’re really growing up."

Little Joe promptly sported a devilish grin. "So you ain’t gonna boss me around no more and you’ll take me fishing or to town whenever I ask?"

Adam playfully reached out, grabbed him, and began to tickle him. "Don’t push your luck, boy," he joked. Little Joe’s high-pitched giggle echoed all the way to the mountains on the other side of the lake.

Hoss called, "Hey, Adam, after you finish torturing our little brother can I use your jack knife?"

Adam had forgotten all about it, but when he pressed a hand against his back pocket, he knew the knife was there as usual. He handed it to Hoss. With a determined look, Hoss began to carve his initials into the trunk of one of the nearby pines. Following his lead, Adam and Little Joe carved their initials next to his.

"Now we have proof that we did it," announced Hoss happily. "That we stood on top of the world." After a moment, Hoss continued, "Hey, Adam, you reckon our names are still in that pointy red rock we came by on the way west?"

Adam got that faraway look in his eyes that appeared every time he thought about past days. "I bet so, except you took so long carving your name that I only had time to finish two A’s and the D. I never got to the M. Luckily we don’t have to worry about being left behind on this trip."

Little Joe frowned as he searched his memory. "What are you talking about?"

"You probably don’t remember, Little Joe," said Hoss. "I think you was helping Marie that day. She always kept you pretty close."

"Tell me!" Joe insisted.

They sat down on the ground, and Adam began the story. "We’d been on the trail for what seemed like years, and it was hot and dusty and several people had taken sick. Pa wasn’t in a very good mood, and raised his voice at Hoss for something, and Hoss, of course, came to me."

"Pa caught me sneaking a little molasses," put in Hoss. "Gol dang it, all that walking made me hungry! You always was the person to go to in a pinch, Adam. Especially when Pa wasn’t around or if he was sore at me about something."

Adam continued, "We stopped for the noon break right near this sandstone formation. It was shaped like a chimney without the house. Pa had given me this jack knife at the start of our trip, and Hoss was still moping around, so I suggested that we take it and carve our names in the sandstone. He got this big grin on his face, and we took off running for the rock."

"’Cept we forgot to tell Pa we was going," said Hoss, and Little Joe’s eyes widened.

"The rock was farther away than it looked, and it took a good while for us to reach it. Once we got there, we found out that we weren’t the first people to get the idea to carve our names on it. There were several others already there. Hoss and I wanted a clear spot to put our names."

"Adam got the bright idea that we climb up it a piece so we could put our names higher than the others."

"I decided to help Hoss climb up first. I told him where to put his hands and feet, and he climbed up about four or five feet…"

"It was higher than that, Adam!"

"It was not! You just think so because you’re taller now. He was no more than five feet off the ground, Little Joe, but when Hoss got to a good place to start carving, he was too scared to take one of his hands off the rock."

Little Joe could understand that. Even though he’d been quick to refute Hoss’s earlier comment, heights always seemed to make his knees shake.

"So he tried to maneuver the knife and hang on at the same time, and it took him about ten years to carve four letters."

"E-R-I-K. Those ain’t easy letters to carve!" demanded Hoss good-naturedly. "Your letter are easier, Adam."

"Well, I never finished my name, because as I was carving I looked up just in time to see the wagons going over a distant hill."

"What’dja do?" broke in Little Joe anxiously.

"Adam leapt off that rock like a wild cat, and we high-tailed it to toward the wagons. We was about to collapse once we reached them, and you can be sure we didn’t stray far from the group for a long time after that."

Little Joe had another concern. "What did Pa do?"

"He never knew!" answered Adam, the shock of it still evident in his voice. "He thought we were with one of the other wagons. Do you remember the Carlsons? Hoss and I would help them gather wood or tend their livestock sometimes. I’d been helping them that morning, and Pa thought we were with them. Hoss and I didn’t see any need to tell him differently."

"You two are so lucky!" decided Little Joe, and his brothers readily agreed. Joe added, "I’m glad I got to be with you this time."

For the next several moments there was silence as the boys sat side-by-side next to their tree on the top of Mount Tallac and took in the stunning landscape.

The trip down the mountain was far easier than the hike up had been. Hoss and Little Joe figured out that they could slide on their feet down the muddy areas. When they made Adam try it, his hat flew off and he ended up on his backside, and Hoss and Little Joe broke into wild laughter that must have frightened every creature for miles. Adam couldn’t hang onto the vexed expression he tried to put on his face, and soon he too was laughing. He mischievously scooped up a fistful of mud and slung it at his brothers. There was no way Hoss and Little Joe could endure that without retaliation. Though the three were filthy by the time they reached the base of the mountain, their faces showed pure delight through the mud splatters.

By following the deer path, the boys easily found their way back to the Indian encampment. But the camp no longer existed. There were their horses and gear, all unharmed, but the camp had been abandoned. Besides the boys’ stuff, only two dirt-covered fire pits and some flattened grass indicated that anyone had ever been in this clearing before. Little Joe started to question his brothers about the quick disappearance of the camp, but when he viewed their expressions, he could tell that they were as astonished as he was. However, he had another question ready. "Hey, Adam," he called as he tied his canteen to Paint’s saddle, "how come some Indians are nice and some kill people like…"

He suddenly looked at Hoss, whose expression turned uncharacteristically sullen. Hoss finished Little Joe’s question. "Like the ones that killed my ma."

Joe hung his head. He should have thought before he even opened his mouth, but like usual, he hadn’t. He quickly stammered, "Never mind. I didn’t mean it. You don’t have to answer…"

But Adam led Beauty up beside Paint, and as he checked Joe’s saddle to make sure it was secure, he said, "It’s a good question, Little Joe. Hoss asked me the same thing when he was about your age. Tell me: if you met someone who was really hungry or lost or just needed your help, what would you do?"

After a moment of thought, Joe answered, "Well, I guess I’d help them, or I’d take them to Pa."

"If Hoss or I saw someone like that, what do you think we’d do?"

"You’d help them."

"Right. Because that’s what Pa taught us. Just like we helped that horse out of the pit. We didn’t have to, but we did it because we wanted to. Now, if a man went into Jack Wolf’s hotel and asked for food but said he didn’t have any money, what do you think Jack would do?"

"He’d prob’ly throw him out."

"Exactly," replied Adam. "He doesn’t feel the same way about things as we do. Maybe his father taught him differently than ours taught us. If Jack stood on top of that mountain, he’d probably wish he could own everything he could see. When I was sitting up there, I thought it looked like there was plenty of room for lots more people to come and try to fulfill their dreams out here like we’re doing. There are lots and lots of different Indian tribes. Some of them want peace, and some of them want to kill every white man who comes over the Appalachians. Some of them, like the Washo and the tribe we met today, will help someone who is hungry or in trouble. Others will leave that person to starve. Some, like the renegades who shot Inger, will do anything they can to protect what they feel is rightfully theirs, and when feelings are running that high, sometimes innocent people get caught in the middle for no reason. That’s how it was with Inger and with Marie. Do you understand?"

Little Joe nodded. "I think so. Sometimes you’re kinda smart, Adam."

Adam made a face of mock displeasure. "Only sometimes?"

Little Joe’s devilish grin returned. "Yeah, only sometimes!" he yelled then ran to hide behind Hoss. Adam shook his head thoughtfully. How could his youngest brother be so serious one second and so animated the next? Once a mood hit Adam, he generally found it tough to get shed of, but Little Joe’s emotions were as volatile as the weather in early spring. And then there was Hoss; he complained sometimes and got confused even more, but it seemed like he was almost always in a good mood. They were quite a trio.

Adam’s eyes met Hoss’s, and with a glimmer in his eye, Adam calmly suggested, "Hoss, what do you say we pitch him in the creek?" Little Joe yelled and made an escape attempt, but Hoss quickly turned and grabbed his arms, Adam caught his feet, and together they gently set Little Joe in the creek.

The boys cleaned off in the cool, clear water then decided to camp for the night a few miles away to ensure that they were out of the grizzly bear’s territory. As they prepared their provisional beds on the ground, Hoss said, "That hike tuckered me out. Wake me up when you two are ready to go tomorrow or I might just sleep till Thursday. ‘Cept my stomach might wake me up. I hope Hop Sing’s got a bunch of grub handy, ‘cause when we get home, I might just eat the place clean through."

After smoothing out his blankets, Little Joe pulled off his boots and sprawled out on his back with his hands clasped behind his head. "I gotta get to work on a new slingshot and I’m gonna take Pa fishin’ since he didn’t get to come with us and Mrs. Orowitz said if I came and helped her in the store some days, she’d pay me real money. I’m gonna buy a whole mess of firecrackers for the Independence Day celebration."

"You sure got a lot going on, little brother," kidded Hoss. "When are you plannin’ to do your chores?"

Little Joe innocently asked, "Chores?"

A smile came to Adam’s lips as he contemplated the scene. His brothers. They were exasperating, hard-headed, and trouble-magnets, but he sure did love them. He would treasure this trip for a long time to come. Another thought hit him then: Darn it, why was Pa always right?

The boys had no trouble falling asleep that night. Late the next morning they set out for the ranch, full of stories for their father.

The End.