A Prank
It was only supposed to be a prank, something
funny to embarrass his brother, a way to get back at him for the way he had
embarrassed Joe.
Joe and Mitch had set the bucket of whitewash
on the edge of the loft and tied a rope to the handle then dropped the other
end over the side in hopes that Adam would pull the rope and tip it over on
himself. A perfect plan, or so they’d thought.
The boys had waited in the loft, barely able
to control their giggles when they heard Adam enter the barn. “What’s that rope hanging there for?” he’d
asked and then they’d heard Hoss’s voice answer, “I dunno,” and both boys had
looked at each other, hoping that Hoss didn’t pull the rope and ruin their
plans. It was Adam who Joe had wanted to get. Not Hoss.
After that, the events had happened so fast.
The bucket tipped, its contents spilling over the edge. Joe and Mitch had
covered their mouths as Hoss shouted a cuss word and the next thing they knew
the bucket had disappeared from their sight. Both boys sat frozen, unsure of
what to do then they’d heard Adam call out Hoss’s name. His voice had sounded
real worried. Joe remembered wanting to look over and see if his brother was
okay, but being too afraid to move. Then he’d heard Adam shouting for Hank to
get Pa and moments later Pa’s frantic voice ordering someone to fetch Doc
Martin.
The boys had sat silently in the loft
listening to the men scrambling around the barn until eventually they’d carried
Hoss into the house. As soon as it
became quiet below, Mitch had hurried home, leaving Joe in the loft alone to
contemplate the results of his misdeeds.
And that was where he still remained. Doc
Martin had come and gone; it was long past dark and nobody had even come
looking for Joe. Maybe they had forgotten about him, or maybe they were too mad
to care, or worse…maybe they didn’t ever want to see Joe again. Joe said a prayer for his brother to be all
right, then vowed to never do anything so stupid again. He knew he deserved any
punishment dealt him and would gladly accept it, so long as Hoss was okay and
his family would forgive him. With a sniffle, he curled up in a pile of hay and
drifted off to sleep feeling lonelier than he ever had before.
“Joe?” he heard a voice and felt someone
shaking him. He rubbed his eyes, which felt swollen and gritty, then blinked
hard until Adam came into focus. “We’ve been looking all over for you, buddy.
What are you doing out here? Pa’s worried sick.”
“But, Hoss…?”
Adam set the lantern he’d been carrying aside
and put a hand on Joe’s shoulder. “Hoss is going to be just fine.”
“Really?” Joe looked hard into his brother’s eyes, searching for and not finding any hints of insincerity.
“Really,” Adam said with a wink as he helped
Joe to his feet. As he bent down to pick up the lantern he added, “But if I
were you I’d watch my tail for a while.”
Joe had a feeling his tail would be in sorry
shape when Pa got through with him, but that was okay. He was willing to take
whatever he had it coming like a man. “He’s really okay?”
“He’s really okay, Joe. Come on,” Adam gave
Joe a quick hug then put an arm around his shoulders and led him toward the
house.
Joe smiled, feeling almost giddy with relief.
Before they made it inside, he was already thinking of a way to persuade Hoss
into helping him get back at Adam. A
prank, something harmless and of course, better planned than the last attempt.
After all, this whole mess was really Adam’s fault to begin with.