It has fallen to us, and we must bear it.”
They had asked and he had given his advice, but nothing else was said for several minutes.
Finally, Jedidiah added, “You boys decide what you’re going to do. If you need my help with anything, let me know. But if you’re going to let them live, you’ll need to water them soon and look after the one John got a hold of. The decision is yours and it’s a serious one.”
He stood up and walked away leaving the boys staring at each other over the fire.
“What should we do?” John asked in a low voice.
“I think we both know what needs to be done, but neither one of us really feels good about doing it,” Adam replied, keeping his voice low as well.
“Maybe we should just ask Jedidiah to do it for us,” Adam added, finally saying out loud what they were both thinking.
“No… No.” Adam seemed to answer his own question. “Sometimes doing the right thing isn’t the easy thing, and we know we have to keep these men from hurting other people. Jedidiah is right. The burden of responsibility has fallen to us. It’s a heavy burden, but it’s ours.”
John knew his brother was right. Neither of them thought there was any other choice. And it wasn’t that they didn’t want the bandits stopped; they just had to work it out in their own way and in their own time.
“I think I’d feel better about the whole thing if we hung them instead of shot them,” John said.
“Yeah...,” Adam replied, “me too.”
“We’ll probably need Jedidiah’s help, Adam.”
“I know we will. Let’s go talk to him.”
They found Jedidiah on the other side of the property, squatting down to inspect a tiny flower. This man was still a mystery to them. He hadn’t seemed like the kind of man who would be interested in admiring the beauty of a flower.
He continued to examine it as they came up behind him. “They’re beautiful, aren’t they?”
Neither boy answered, but in response, knelt beside him to see for themselves.
“They’re like our lives, these flowers. Here today, in all their glory. But after a season, they wither and die. It’s important that we remember this and live accordingly. We should make our choices with purpose knowing that life is short.”
The boys didn’t know how to respond to Jedidiah’s puzzling words and waited for him to continue. “So what is your decision, my friends?” he asked, without looking up.
Adam cleared his throat and paused before answering. “We think they need to be stopped, but we’re not comfortable shooting them and think they should be hung.”
Still taking in the beauty of the flower, Jedidiah offered no response. Giving the boys ample time to communicate their thoughts, he gently caressed the tiny petals with his callused thumb, careful not to damage the fragile little life.
“And, well, Mr. Jedidiah,” John added, “we’re going to need your help.”
Without hesitation, Jedidiah looked up and said quietly, “Of course, I will help you. Have you two ever seen a man hanged?”
They both shook their heads, indicating they had not.
“It’s an ugly thing,” he said with caring eyes and a low voice. “It’s important for you two to understand that if a man is not hung properly, his death can be very slow. He’ll die of suffocation rather than a broken neck. If you want them hung, I’ll help. But it may actually be more humane to shoot them.”
The boys looked at each other with conflicting emotions.
“Mr. Jedidiah,” John finally said, “to be honest with you, the main reason we chose hanging is because we didn’t feel right about shooting them. It just feels… well, more like murder.”
With approving eyes, Jedidiah looked from one to the other. “I understand how you would think that. But if it’s done correctly, I think you might feel differently. If you would allow me the responsibility to prepare and execute them, I think you’ll have peace with it. However, if you want them hung, I will do the best I can to ensure they die quickly.”
He had said exactly what they needed to hear. He knew they didn’t want to be the ones to pull the trigger, nor did Jedidiah want them to. These boys, he knew, had experienced enough loss and tragedy for several lifetimes. He didn’t want them to live with the emotional scars that come with taking another person’s life. They would probably experience it sooner or later, but Jedidiah wanted to protect them from it if he could, at least for now.
“You boys take some more time to consider what I’ve said, if you need it. There’s no need to rush this and you want to have peace with your decision.”
The brothers looked at each other with relief.
Adam spoke after only a few seconds. “I think that would be fine, Mr. Jedidiah. If you would take charge of the execution for us, we would be fine with them being shot.”
As soon as Adam finishing speaking, Jedidiah glanced over at John for his approval.
“Yes sir, Mr. Jedidiah,” John added. “I think that would be fine.”
“I think you two have chosen wisely,” Jedidiah responded as he put his hands on their shoulders. “I will begin to make the preparations. But before I do, I think we should address the bandits.”
This was something Adam and John had not considered, and they both expressed looks of anxiety.
Jedidiah squeezed their shoulders. “I can do that for you as well if you’d like.”
“I think we’d like that, Mr. Jedidiah,” John replied.
“Very well, then,” Jedidiah said walking toward the barn. “Let’s go speak to them.”
As they rounded the corner back to the inside of the barn, Jedidiah began to speak to the raiders as they still laid face down, hog tied, and gagged.
“You all have been in this same position now for nearly thirty-six hours. I would like to put you in a more comfortable position, allow you to drink, and relieve yourselves. I encourage you to follow my instructions and not attempt escape. If you do, I will kill you.”
He said this with a calm and sure voice. They knew not to test him. He had taken initial control of them with such violence of action that first early morning that they could not doubt his resolve. Plus, they thought, maybe there was hope for their survival after all. They had assumed they would be killed, but now maybe they would be released. Why else would they begin to receive better treatment?
Jedidiah first approached the man that John had beaten with the rifle. With the man’s head and face covered in dried blood, Jedidiah pulled his knife and cut loose the cords that bound him. The man groaned with pain as his joints moved and better circulation began to flow through his limbs. Jedidiah tore both sleeves from the man’s shirt and dressed his head wound. The man was given all the water he could drink, offered to be allowed to relieve himself, and then securely retied
