It was early morning when Hoss noticed that the wind was finally dying down. Earlier, Adam had drifted off to sleep at the sound of Hoss's voice.

They had been through hell together during the night. In the end, Adam clutched his brothers' arm and just held on. Adam thought it was little comfort, but Hoss had needed something. It helped Hoss a great deal, even if he couldn't tell Adam in words.

Now, with the storm dying down, Hoss had a whole new set of problems to contend with. He had to get Adam down the mountain as quickly as possible. He needed his leg properly set and his ribs seen to.

He then had to handle the difficult task of finding Joe's body and telling his father of the tragedy. But first things first. He boiled some water, woke Adam and gave his brother a drink of the warming liquid.

"Boy, you sure make terrible coffee." Adam complained as he swallowed some of the hot water.

"You think that's bad, you should try my mesquite beans."

"Oh, no, I remember Joe telling me about . . ." Adam's voice trailed off as yet again their brother came to mind. Hoss seemed to ignore the comment. "Soon as it stops snowin' I'll get some wood together for a travois. We'll be home before you know it."

Adam watched his brother as he worked. Hoss was not taking this well. He might never get over it. Adam had seen situations much less serious than this affect Hoss for a long time.

If only there was any chance that Joe had survived. After all, they had both made it. Yet, Hoss had checked every inch of the cliff. Joe had nowhere else to go but down. That canyon was more than half a mile deep. Adam didn't get a good look at it, but he could tell distance pretty well.

If only there was a possibility something could have broken his fall, like a ledge. They hadn't really checked that scenario. Adam didn't want to get Hoss's hopes up if a further search proved fruitless. Still, Adam had the strangest feeling that they had to try.

"Hoss, did you have a real good look over that canyon wall?" Adam asked with hesitation.

Hoss looked up, his eyes questioning. "As good as I could in the light, why?" Softly spoken, Hoss turned back to the fading fire.

"Well, I was just thinking, maybe there was a ledge, or something. Maybe Joe was lucky, like you and me."

"There weren't no ledge. I couldn't see nothing below me, not all the way down."

Adam turned away. He shouldn't have mentioned it.

"But, I guess we should have one more look. I couldn't see well from my position. Not really."

Adam looked back, encouraged. If he had been thinking clearly, he would have remembered that Joe wouldn't have survived the night on a narrow ledge anyway. Buoyed by new hope, the two Cartwright's set about planning the search.

"Hoss, lower yourself down with the rope and take the rifle. Let off one shot every couple of minutes. If I know Joe, if he's alive, he'll find some way to signal you."

Hoss looked at his elder brother with scepticism. "You think there's a chance, Adam?"

Considering his answer, Adam had to be realistic. "No, not really, Hoss. But I believe we must try." Adam's tortured brown eyes met Hoss's jaded blue ones. Hoss answered him with a silent nod.

"Charlie, you've been up here with Hoss before, haven't you?" Ben looked over to one of his hands as they steadily climbed the lower range.

"Yes, sir. I come up here winter before last."

"Where does he usually set up camp?"

"Well, I figure about two hours north of here. Past Boson Canyon. He don't go near the canyon, though. The terrain there is too steep."

"Alright, then. We'll head along to the camp site."

"Won't be no tracks after this snow."

"I know." Ben clicked to his horse and pushed on.

Joe looked down the rock face with dread. It was perpendicular and dangerous. He had no rope to hold him. It was half a mile straight down.

Studying the decline from every angle, he finally chose what looked like the best path. He had of course climbed up and down small hills and canyons before, but always with help and a rope to hold him.

He stiffened his resolve and prepared for the descent. He had to make it on physical ability and nerves alone. No one else was going to help him now.

The rock was solid and very craggy. This assisted him with foot and hand holds. In ten minutes, he had made quite a distance, down to a wide ledge. He had chosen the southern side of the outcrop, as it seemed to fan out slightly all the way to the ground. He rested on the ledge, not daring to look down. He concentrated totally on the job, allowing no other thoughts to enter his mind.

Then, a shot rang out from the cliff above.

Joe jerked his head upwards. The ledge he was on didn't face the cliff. It was more towards the opposite side of the canyon.

Joe tried desperately to see where the shot had come from, or who had fired it. He had no weapon to return a shot, but as another one rang out, he gathered all the breath in his lungs. Joe had a voice. He was going to do his damnedest to be heard.

"Here!" He called at the top of his voice. It was loud but the space was huge. He tried again; as yet another shot rang out.

"Here!" Joe dared not to lean around the rock any further, but he yelled with renewed conviction. It had to be Hoss, just had to be. No one could have got up the mountain in that storm last night.

"Hoss" Joe screamed the name, cupping his swollen hands around his lips. An echo of his voice bounced back to him, but he had no idea if the noise had reached far enough.

Back up on top, Hoss fired the rifle a fourth time. He heard no reply, and could not see his brother anywhere below. He could not have survived more than a twenty or thirty-foot drop. Hoss hung his head as he strained to hear any reply signal.

Nothing, but then.

A small echo of noise seemed to float from far below. Hoss pricked his ears. Could it have been a voice?

He fired again, this time twice. Hoping that the same faint noise would come back to him.

He waited, still and pensive. There it was again. Hardly audible, but distinctly human. It sounded like, like Hoss!

The big man could hardly stand. A wave of relief and jubilation overtook his body. Retreating carefully from the edge, he fired three shots in succession and hobbled swiftly back to the cave.

"He's alive, Adam. He's alive!" Hoss shouted the words over and over, startling his injured brother. Adam heard the words, but couldn't believe them.

"Did you see him? Where is he?"

"No, I didn't see him. I heard him. He's out there somewhere, and he's alive Adam." Hoss's eyes were huge and streaming with tears.

"You sure, what did you hear?" Adam tried to remain calm.

"I heard my name bein' called, Adam. It was so faint, almost lost in the echo of the rocks, but I made it out. It was my name. I know it was Little Joe. He's down there, somewhere."

"But where. You said there's no ledges." Adam tried to figure out a sensible solution.

"I don't know. But I didn't imagine it. I know I didn't."

"Alright, go back to the ledge, and look down into the canyon real good. Then come back and tell me what you see, exactly."

Hoss did just that and was back in ten minutes.

"All I saw was the canyon, narrow and long. The cliff on our side, smooth, and the cliff on the other side, also smooth. At least for half of the way."

"And the rest of the other side?"

"I couldn't tell. One of those large canyon rocks comes all the way up to the . . ." Hoss suddenly realized what he was saying. "The rock, it's got a large, flat surface. Lots of snow on it, he must have landed there."

"He couldn't have lived." Adam was sceptical.

"He could if he'd landed with all that snow. Adam, our little brother's alive. YeeHaa!"

"Now Hoss, you could be wrong."

"I ain't wrong about this. Come on. Let's get going."

Joe continued his descent with a renewed spirit. He felt it was Hoss. He would make it down to the bottom and live. So would his brothers. Carefully, inch by inch, he crawled his way down. His agile body never faltering.

Ben thought he heard a faint shot in the distance, and halted the party. It had come from the direction of the canyon. Charlie had ruled that out but Ben wasn't so sure. Perhaps there had been shelter there. He made a decision, and turned the men towards the chasm.

Hoss and Adam made slow progress down the mountain. Every bump seemed to bring a renewed agony to Adam's body. Hoss feared his brother was loosing stamina, but Adam wanted to see Joe with his own eyes. Their encouraged spirits spurred them on.

Joe was two thirds of the way down. His fingers bled. His legs wobbled like jelly. Still he pressed on. If he could push his body and mind on he would be rewarded with the sight of his brothers. He knew that in his heart.

Charlie called from the rear of the pack.

"Mr. Cartwright. Horses, over to the left."

Ben turned in the saddle and recognized Joe's paint pony and Adams chestnut, quietly grazing in a gully. His heart filled with apprehension.

"Hoss, you hear voices?" Adam called to his brother as strongly as he could.

"Yeah, yeah, it's Pa. I can tell his voice anywhere."

Joe could see the end coming. Only feet away now, he was exhausted and fatigued. The last section, he slid down, unable to stop his legs from buckling. His energy totally consumed Joe lay at the bottom of the canyon, waiting for his brothers to come rescue him like they always did.

"But, Joe, where is he?" Ben looked at his two boys, his face white after having listened to their tale. Adam looked in a bad way, but Hoss appeared exhilarated.

"Pa, we gotta go get our little brother. Let us past."

"What, where is he? You said it was an Avalanche. What happened to Joe?"

"Pa" Adams voice was weak, but forceful. "You've got to let us go get him. We have to do this alone."

Adam had fears that Joe might have fallen, either last night, or climbing down this morning. It was his job to shelter his father from that gruesome sight if the worst had happened.

"I don't understand." Ben was in semi shock.

"He's fine, Pa. Adam's right. We gotta go fetch him. Stay right here."

Ben watched in bewilderment as his two injured sons dragged themselves down towards the canyon floor. He didn't know why, but he stayed his ground.

Hoss saw the still form long before they reached the outcrop. Adam, dragging along behind Chubb, strained to see what was happening.

"Can you see him, Hoss?"

" Yeah, I think so. He's lyin' on the ground." The words came softly and Adam feared the worst.

"Joe?" Hoss called the word with hesitation, and then with force.

"Joe." Adam backed up his brother's call with dread.

They waited for the body to move. Then just as it seemed all was lost, Joe lifted his head and answered the call.

"About time you two got here. A fella could starve out here." Joe grinned at them.

That night, late, after Dr Martin had seen to all three patients and their father had been convinced to go to bed, the brothers gathered in Adams room.

They all sat, silently, not knowing how to start to say the things they had churning in their minds. Maybe they all knew what each other were thinking, because simultaneously and instinctively, they all held out their hands.

Gripping each other's fingers, they felt the strongest bond of their lives. The bond of a brothers' love. A connection that would stay with each of them, no matter where in the world they might end up.

A bond that would last for as long as they all would live, and beyond.