Series/Universe: Family Business
Disclaimers: M7 characters belong to Trilogy, et al. Original characters are all mine ... don't mind if you borrow them, just ask first, give them back intact and give credit where credit is due.
Warnings: Language, references to violence and other unpleasantness. Original characters abound (if you've read SG-7 series, the character of Dawn Jackson has been translated into Aurora Hutchins). Also, Buck and Nathan are very, very bad boys. You have been warned
Special thanks to Cin, for betaing for me and for her unflagging support.
"Easy ... easy, you're all right now," a soft voice crooned. The big man stared into the room ... stared at the back which to an enemy would have presented such a tempting target. But that was why he was here. While his companion tended the man in the bed, he watched their backs. Lord knew, his so-called friends hadn't done such a great job. Of taking care of their sick friend, or watching his back.
"He all right?" the big man asked. If Miss Victoria had heard him, she would have skinned him alive. She had taught him to talk properly. It may have amused her husband ... the idea of teaching a colored child how to read and write, how to behave like a proper Southern gentleman. Like a trained monkey. But Miss Victoria had always been deadly serious in their lessons. As if she could see into the future, into a time when slavery truly didn't exist. And she knew that what she was teaching him might save his life.
Miss Victoria had lost her life during the war. A Southern lady to the end, who had died defending her home. He had asked her once, if she hated slavery as much as she did, why she believed in the Confederacy. She had answered that the South was her home, and no one would ever take that from her. And she had never said that she hated slavery. Never said that she considered him to be a human being, rather than another piece of property.
And yet, he had always believed she did see him as a person. With a soul. With a mind, with a conscience. Perhaps that was why he had taken under his wing, the young nurse now caring for the sick man with such tenderness. In some ways, she reminded him of Miss Victoria. In the way she gazed steadily into his eyes. There had been repugnance there in the beginning, but that wasn't for him. That was for what he stood for.
As he started to repeat the question, the girl said softly, "His fever is rising again. I don't know what else to do, Laertes. We have to cool him down somehow. And we have to keep him calm. Every time he gets upset, his fever goes up again." She turned to face him, and Laertes (born Lester) was stunned to see tears on her face. And fear in her eyes. He had never known her to be afraid, had never seen her cry in the year he had known her.
But he knew better than to suggest they give up. He said softly, "I'll go into town and get some ice in some buckets. We can cool him down with whatever melts. Will you and Laura be all right alone?" She nodded, running her hand over her eyes. When was the last time she slept? Laertes couldn't remember. Ever since he returned from town, to tell her about the latest inmate in their local Bedlam, the girl he considered a surrogate daughter had been in constant motion.
She wanted to rescue him that very night, but Laertes talked her out of it. They needed a plan, not for her to go off halfcocked. He supposed he was lucky she hadn't spoken of trying to kill his six former friends in Four Corners. But he knew this girl, and knew that the thought crossed her mind, at least once. There had been a time, not so long ago, when she was a traveling companion to the sick man. A time when he was her family, and she was his. Laertes realized at the time of the rescue that for this man, his companion would walk through the very fires of hell. And she had.
"They'll come for him, you know. Whether because of what happened at that place, or because they've finally come to their senses, they'll come for him. You thought about that at all?" Laertes asked. He immediately wished he hadn't brought up the other six, as her eyes grew cold. She knew about the seven men who had been protecting the town of Four Corners ... everyone did. On more than one occasion, she spoke scathingly of the leader and his oldest friend. They betrayed her, just as they betrayed the fever-stricken young man in the bed.
"Let them come," she growled, "I'll meet them at the front door with a loaded rifle. And I'll teach Chris Larabee and his merry band of traitors the meaning of loyalty. I didn't expect much out of Larabee after his wife and son were killed, but I about puked the first time I heard someone talking about Wilmington's loyalty. He's only loyal to one person, and that's Chris Larabee. Everyone else can go to hell. And Larabee's only loyalty is to a bottle."
As she spoke, the man in the bed moaned softly and her attention was drawn back to him. She whispered something, tenderly stroking his hair back from his face, and amazingly enough, he calmed down. Laertes shook his head in amazement. This was the first time they were able to calm the young man down in the days since the rescue. Maybe he was starting to come out of the dark place he had occupied for the last few weeks.
His eyes returned to the young woman again as she continued to whisper to the young man. Most people were frightened by the two faces of this woman ... the tenderhearted young mother and the ruthless, even cold-blooded woman who swore revenge on the six remaining protectors of Four Corners. It didn't bother Laertes, because he knew that the two faces were flip sides to the same coin.
She had spent the last ten years of her life in the West, learning many hard lessons before she was sixteen. The hardest of all was, blood wasn't thicker than water. Both her father and her elder brother betrayed the trust of the young woman ... her father by selling his fifteen year old daughter to white slavers to cover his debts. Her brother by leaving her to die in Bedlam. Two betrayals that Laertes was sure she would never forgive.
The gentleness she now demonstrated was carefully hidden away, only to be revealed when she felt safe. As she always had with this man. The rest of the time, people feared her. She made no attempt to hide her true nature from them, made no attempt to be a lady. When she escaped the slavers at the age of eighteen, she swore to herself that she would live her life on her terms from that moment forward. She would never be accepted by polite society, and that was fine with her. Polite society allowed her father's abuse and betrayal. There was nothing she wanted from them.
"You get some sleep. I'll watch over Vin," Laertes said softly. She shook her head, and Laertes repeated, "Get some rest. You'll be no good to him if you collapse from exhaustion, and if those six bastards do come for him, you'll be in no shape to protect him. Adriana ... please, for Vin's sake, get some rest." The thin shoulders slumped, then she raised her head to look at him. Laertes quailed at that look. Not because she looked like she would kill him, but the defeat he saw there. She was too tired to even argue with him, and she knew it.
"Wake me if there's a change?" she asked and Laertes nodded. She leaned forward and gently kissed Vin Tanner's forehead, whispering something which Laertes didn't hear or understand, then pushed herself to her feet. Her face turned an alarming shade of white, and she tottered on her feet for a moment. But then she regained her composure, and made her way slowly from the room ... glancing back at the unconscious bounty hunter every few seconds.
When she was gone, Laertes took her place on the bed, regarding their new guest with a critical eye. His condition still deteriorated, even though the poison which had caused the hallucinations were now out of his system. He received no medical care in that hellhole, which was what the boy needed. Laertes swore under his breath and picked up the sponge which Adriana was using. Whether Chris Larabee knew it or not, he and his men were on a road to hell. And Laertes would be more than happy to get them there.
He didn't know any of the men. Only knew of them. But he knew enough about Vin Tanner. He knew he took care of Adriana, after she escaped from the white slavers. He knew that the boy actually rescued her when they first met, when some of their mercenaries tried to recapture her. That was what started it between them. He gently sponged the young man with cool water, murmuring, "You rest easy, son. You've been rescued, you're with friends now. Real friends. All you gotta do now is recover."
All he had to do was recover ... the trouble was, Laertes knew recovering would not be a simple task. His body would heal with time. But what about his soul, what about his heart? Laertes, Laura, and Adriana would do what they could ... but would it be enough? Or would a final confrontation with his former friends be necessary before he healed?
JD Dunne was in hell. He didn't know how else to describe it. One of his best friends was taken from this town, practically kidnapped and taken back to Tascosa, while he was still ill. And he was delivered into the hands of those kidnappers by his other best friend. With considerable aid from the man they all trusted to heal and take care of them. JD shook his head, trying to clear it, trying to make sense of it all. It wasn't happening. It would never happen.
The nightmare began three days earlier, when he, Josiah, and Chris returned to Four Corners from Eagle Bend. They were in that town for over a month, first to transport a prisoner, then for the trial of the man. As usual, they went 'round and 'round with Sheriff Stains, and Josiah murmured that it was a good thing Nathan wasn't with them, after the mockery of justice in Stains' town the first time they met the man.
But Nathan was back in Four Corners, and JD was looking forward to seeing him and the other three peacekeepers. Especially his big brother/mentor/pain in the ass, Buck Wilmington, and his close friend, Vin Tanner. JD was particularly anxious to make sure Vin was all right. He fell ill while they were in Eagle Bend. They hadn't heard anything about his condition during the last few days, and JD was worried about his friend.
As they rode into town, Mrs. Potter, who was among their staunchest supporters from day one, glared at all three of them and turned her back on them quite deliberately. And Billy Travis, who was always the first one to greet Chris, hid behind his mother as he caught sight of them riding into town. The only smiles on the faces of the townspeople belonged to people like Mr. Conklin, who never made his disdain for the Seven a secret. JD shuddered. This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all.
Mary Travis herself glowered at them, then ushered Billy inside the Clarion. JD had looked at Chris, whose confusion matched his own. Sure, Chris and Mary had a topsy-turvy relationship, but things were better. And for her to act as if they posed a threat to Billy ... she knew better than that! Didn't she? But after hearing from Yosemite, who was surly when they stabled their horses, the understanding which JD always had, was turned upside down.
They knew Vin had fallen ill, though they didn't know what the illness was, or how it came up. The wire sent by Buck just said, 'Vin ill, delirious with fever. Nathan worried, trying something different.' Chris said in a wire back to Four Corners, do what you have to. Yosemite didn't know about the wire. Nathan just said that Chris gave him permission to do whatever he had to. Yosemite bit out that he and others in the town were gonna have a talk with Judge Travis. They didn't need six traitors taking care of this town.
By now thoroughly confused, the men made their way back to the Clarion. Mary's greeting was quite icy, and Billy hid behind his mother's printing press. What was going on here? Mary confirmed that she wired her father-in-law, asking him to come to Four Corners to give the Seven their final payment. They were no longer needed in Four Corners. JD's heart fell at that. This was the second time someone said that.
Before JD or either of his two companions could ask why she would think such a thing, Mary continued, "I've spoke with the others in the town, and they agree. Since you men can't be trusted to take care of one of your own men ... your own best friend, Mr. Larabee ... then you obviously can't be trusted to take care of us." Take care of one of their own? For the first time, it hit JD. He hadn't seen Vin yet.
He couldn't help himself. He was thoroughly confused, especially when he remembered the way Casey turned away from him while she helped her aunt load their wagon. And Miss Nettie positively glowered at all three of them, shaking her fist at them, her mouth working as if she wanted to say something but only Casey's presence kept her silent. JD finally blurted out, "Ma'am, what are you talking about? Why do people keep talkin' about how we can't be trusted no more! And where is Vin?"
"I was wonderin' that myself, John Dunne," Josiah murmured and JD looked up at the preacher worriedly. The big man looked just as worried. Over the last few months, he had heard people say that in Josiah's eyes, he and Vin were the preacher's sons. And true, Josiah seemed to look out for Vin after the whole thing with Poplar, even more than he had in the past. JD looked back at Mary ... who seemed confused. No, not confused. She knew exactly what she was saying, what she thought she knew. But she was definitely puzzled.
"Where is Vin? You seem ... you ... I thought you knew. Nathan told me, told all of us, that you supported what he was doing. That's when we got together, and decided we didn't need you any more. Not after betraying Vin like that," Mary said softly, frowning. JD's heart almost stopped. What exactly had Nathan done? He stole a look at Chris, and immediately wished he hadn't. The rage in the green eyes wasn't directed at Mary, but it was like staring into hell.
"Where is Vin, Mary? What did Nathan say we supported?" Chris asked hoarsely. JD could see the wheels turning in the mind of his leader. And he had a sick feeling that whatever the answer was, he wouldn't like it. A quick glance back at the preacher told him that Josiah was already several steps ahead of both him and Chris. Josiah was staring at Mary, as if she had just said Satan was God.
"They took him, Chris. And Nathan said you agreed to it. He said that you supported whatever he decided. They took Vin back to Tascosa. He was so sick, Chris, and then those men came, and ... We could have fought them off. Buck and Nathan didn't have to give Vin up to those bounty hunters. We could have fought them off," Mary answered at last. Tascosa? What in hell was she ... oh God. JD felt like he had been kicked in the chest. Bounty hunters had come to town? Tascosa? And Vin was there? He had been sick, almost deathly ill, and they just gave him up? They ... they let him go???
"Why? How could they do that?" JD blurted out once more. He couldn't wrap his mind around that. What happened? Why would Nathan have done that to Vin? It simply made no sense to the young sheriff. What could Vin have possibly done, for Nathan to even consider such a thing? For Buck and Ezra to go along with it? Well, come to think of it, there were still times when JD didn't know what to think about Ezra.
"I don't know, JD ... I'm so sorry, when I protested, Nathan told me that you agreed with him, Chris. I thought you knew," Mary said, looking genuinely shamed. Chris waved his hand, and Billy came out of his hiding place, still eyeing the gunslinger warily. Mary put her hand on her son's shoulder, explaining, "Billy saw it all, as well. He heard Nathan say that Chris agreed Vin could be sacrificed for the good of the town."
"The hell I did ... I told him that I trusted him to do right by Vin. And that ain't it! Mary, I wanna hear everything!" Chris growled. Mary sent Billy off to play (probably to tell the Potter children the truth as well), and she explained how Vin's illness progressed. He was brought back to town with a high fever, which Nathan worked 'round the clock to bring down. Mary offered several times to help him, but Nathan shut her out. It was like he regarded this as his own personal mission ... his own personal demon.
After a few days, and a new medicine, the fever finally broke. But that created new problems. He began seeing things that weren't there, even after his fever broke, and Nathan grew ever more convinced that he couldn't help the former bounty hunter. He continued to rebuff Mary's help in taking care of Vin. And she wanted to take care of Vin. After everything he had done for her and Billy, the least she could do was take care of him, regardless of the hallucinations. They scared her yes ... but Vin needed help. So did Nathan.
At this point in the narrative, Josiah interrupted the lovely widow, asking, "I apologize, ma'am ... but what were his symptoms? Was he a danger to himself? Was he a danger to others? And what do you know about this medicine? Had you come across it before, do you know where it came from?" Mary immediately shook her head, her green eyes growing hard. That was strange, right there. That Nathan would entrust Vin's life to something like that.
Still, if nothing else had worked, maybe Nathan would try something out of sheer desperation. JD made his peace with that part of the nightmare, when Mary dropped the second bombshell. That was the true beginning of JD's nightmare. It was bad enough that Nathan would turn on Vin. But JD's attempts to tell himself that Nathan overruled Buck's protests died a fiery death in those moments.
"No. He was just raving ... he was terrified, Josiah. And he kept calling out to Chris about not hanging like a mangy dog. It wasn't real, but he was terrified, nonetheless. And he was still so weak. And then the bounty hunters came. They said they would burn the town if they didn't get Vin," Mary replied. She blinked back tears, whispering, "They kept saying it was for the best, that they couldn't sacrifice the entire town for one man."
Chris heard enough at that point, and with a muttered curse, slammed out of the Clarion. Determined, no doubt, to get a few answers out of Buck and Nathan. He wasn't the only one. They found Nathan, Buck, and Ezra all waiting in the jail. Waiting for them. None of them could meet the eyes of the returning men. Buck and Nathan were sitting side by side, as if drawing comfort from the other. Ezra, as he often did, sat alone. His fingers moved through the deck of cards which were his constant companion.
All Chris said was, "What the hell happened?" It wasn't a statement, it wasn't a question. It was, for lack of a better word, a growl. It flickered across JD's mind that he was very glad he wasn't one of the other three men. He wouldn't want Chris that mad at him. Especially not when Buck and Nathan looked up, twin expressions of defiance, guilt, and fear crossing their faces.
The details of that meeting three days earlier, remained somewhat hazy. JD had been in shock. But what he did remember was that Nathan and Buck decided together that they couldn't justify sacrificing an entire town for one man. The townspeople weren't fighters! They made a hard decision, but the town had to come first. Chris, to his credit, heard out the three men. JD could see him struggling to hear them out.
Then Chris began reaming the three men. How could they have done such a thing? Vin was vulnerable, that was when he needed the three of them the most! Oh, don't give him that crap about doing what was best for the town! He didn't buy into that. Buck was letting his jealousy get personal again ... though, after what Buck did to his sister Adriana, Chris shouldn't have been surprised. And he had no idea what Ezra was thinking.
And as for Nathan? Vin saved his life. Even before his eyes met Larabee's that day, Vin headed into the hardware store for a rifle. Got himself fired, in order to save Nathan's life. And this was the way Nathan repaid him? With betrayal? Did none of them have any idea what they had done? They destroyed the respect and the trust of the townspeople! Mary, and the others in town, would never trust them again! For that matter, Chris would never trust them again!
And he was right. They had sent Vin to his death! He would die in Tascosa, didn't they understand that? He would die!
Once he finished his rant, Chris hissed, "In the morning, we're heading for Tascosa. And we're bringing him home. There may still be time. Do you understand me? His place is here, among the people whom he trusts. And if it takes the rest of your miserable lives, you will make it up to him! My God. Even when I was trying to get myself killed, I would have never sold out a friend! So you tell me, where's your thirty pieces of silver?"
Both Buck and Nathan flinched at that comparison to Judas Iscariot. JD remembered his mother telling him about the traitor to their Lord, Jesus Chris. Betrayed for thirty silver pieces with a kiss. It was an appropriate analogy, they later learned, because Nathan's sweetheart from the Seminole village was in town the week before Vin was taken away. Nathan had no time to spend with Rain, because Vin was so sick. Within the rational part of his brain, JD recognized he should care about that. But he didn't.
"It's too late, Chris ... they done took him weeks ago. It's over. Whatever's done is done, it cain't be undone," Nathan said, the first word he had spoken since Chris had laid into him. The gunslinger started to leave the jail. Chris spun around, his green eyes hardening with contempt as he stared at the healer. Healer. Just thinking that word right now made JD want to puke. How could he do that to Vin?
"I ain't leavin' him there. It'll take time to git to Tascosa, and I ain't givin' up on him. You got that, Nathan?" Chris growled. Nathan looked away and Chris stormed out. JD followed him, glaring at Buck as the big man tried to reach out to him. Buck dropped his hand and his eyes at the same time. JD didn't care. Didn't care about hurting Buck, didn't care about hurting Ezra or Nathan. Only cared about Vin. Please be all right, Vin. Please?
Only Vin wasn't all right. The day before, Chris received a wire. According to Mary, the bounty hunters planned to turn Vin over to a jail for the night. A jail just outside the small town of Pordios. Along the lines of the jail camp of Jericho, from what JD was told. The entire compound burned to the ground, killing everyone. Vin was gone.
Nathan was right about one thing. It really was over. The news shattered everyone who loved Vin. Chris retreated deep within himself. Mary wept, as had Inez and Mrs. Potter. Once they learned JD had nothing to do with the loss of someone they both loved, Casey and Miss Nettie began speaking to him once. It fell to JD to break the devastating news to the aunt and niece. By the time the words were out, much to his humiliation, JD was weeping as much as Casey was. Miss Nettie hadn't wept. But neither did JD, at his mother's funeral. It had hurt too much. And there was too much to do.
In the year they were together, JD thought about the day the Seven would cease to exist. He never thought it would be like this. Never thought it would be under these circumstances. The three responsible for Vin's death, if only indirectly, were ostracized by the rest of the Seven. And the three men who were out of town were still considered responsible by the town. People began going to Eagle Bend, rather than to Nathan, when they were hurt or sick. Not that JD felt sorry for him. He deserved it.
Especially after Chanu rode into town with news of his own. Three of his tribe had died. Each of the three had shown the same symptoms as Vin. When Chanu learned of this, and Nathan's decision to hand Vin over to the bounty hunters, it took Buck and Yosemite both to pull the enraged young warrior off Nathan. His father found the medicine provided by Nathan was laced with a large amount of peyote ... and each died due to their hallucinations.
It never even occurred to Nathan. He just gave up on Vin. And now Vin was dead. Never mind that the bounty hunters threatened to burn Four Corners. Because of the betrayal of Vin, Nathan Jackson's future as a healer in that town was finished. That Vin was been poisoned never even entered his mind. And JD didn't care how tired he was from taking care of Vin. He couldn't take care of any of his other patients, because he was too busy taking care of Vin? Well, he didn't have that problem any more ... he didn't have any patients now!
This morning, JD was awakened by a light rapping on his door. It was Chris, looking exhausted but sober. He and Josiah were going to retrieve Vin's body. Was JD interested in coming? Wild horses couldn't have kept him away. But somehow, the other three learned of their plans, and were waiting for them in the stables. Josiah demanded in a hoarse voice what the hell they thought they were doing.
Surprisingly, it was Ezra who answered quietly, "I believe, Mr. Sanchez, that we are seeking redemption for our part in Mr. Tanner's premature demise." Ezra, of all people. It should have been Buck. Or Nathan. Vin was the first to stand at Buck's side, during the confrontation with Don Paulo. He was the one to stand at Chris Larabee's side during the shoot out to save Nathan's life.
And yet, it was Ezra who spoke. He looked like he hadn't slept in days. Again, it wasn't like JD actually cared. He didn't care about any of the three of them. He made that clear when Nathan wanted to take a look at a minor injury the day before. JD fired back at him, "What, you gonna sell me out, the way you did Vin? Huh? What makes you think I'm ever gonna trust you again, Nathan? You did that to a man who saved your life! You can't be trusted. With Vin's life, or with mine."
Nathan flinched as if JD physically struck him. Healing was Nathan's life. And after he turned Vin over to those kidnappers, Nathan's dreams turned to ash. No one trusted him. Not even Mary, who was his friend ever since his arrival. She took care of Billy's illnesses herself. And if it was too much for her, she would go to Eagle Bend, like everyone else. That was, in part, because Billy refused to see Nathan. In fact, he got even more upset and even more sick when someone mentioned going to see Nathan.
Buck was faring no better. JD heard that Inez dumped a scalding pot of coffee into Buck's lap after Vin was taken. Always before, she bantered with Buck, trading good natured barbs for his attempts to wheedle her into his arms. Now, those attempts were greeted with an icy silence. Although, that may have been also due to the fact that as soon as Vin was gone, Buck homed in on one of the new working girls. So much for loyalty.
JD's eyes traveled once more to Buck. He looked like hell, too. All three traitors did. Stupid! Why hadn't Buck thought about how Chris would react? Or JD? Or Josiah? He actually looked surprised when Chris attacked him, after word came about Vin's death. What did he expect? That Chris would thank him for causing the death of his best friend? Worse yet, Vin died in a fire ... just like Sarah and Adam, more than three years earlier. JD shook his head in disgust, glaring at the three men now.
"Did it ever occur to any of you three that maybe I don't give a rat's ass about your redemption? I trusted you to take care of one of us, and you fucked it up. Thanks to you, this town no longer trusts us, and I don't blame 'em! I don't trust a one of you to watch my back, since you proved you couldn't watch Vin's back without selling him out. You wanna atone? Fine. But you ain't ridin' with me. Josiah, JD, let's go," Chris growled.
As they prepared to leave, they had been stopped by Mary Travis. She wore her shawl wrapped tightly around her shoulders, and her eyes were puffy with crying. She wasn't alone. Billy was at her side, trying manfully to fight back his own tears and comfort his mother, but he was only seven years old. And he loved Vin, too. As had Mary's other companions. Gloria Potter and her two children. Nettie and Casey. Mr. Virgil Watson, Vin's first employer and the owner of the hardware store.
Had Vin known how many people loved him? Looking at the faces of everyone assembled, JD knew that each of them would have helped to take care of Vin. If they were asked. The young man fought back tears, willing himself to be strong. It became harder when Mary choked out, "Bring him back to us, Chris. Bring him back, so we can all say good-bye properly. Tell him how much ... how much he meant to us." She never even looked at Buck or Nathan as she spoke. Her attention was solely on Chris, Josiah and JD. They were being trusted with an important quest. And they would not fail this time.
That was several hours earlier. Buck, Ezra, and Nathan chose to follow them, rather than return to town. It wasn't like there was anything for them in town. Each time Buck attempted to approach Chris ... well, it was very clear that Chris had nothing further to say to him. And Buck finally gave up. Probably the first time in his life Buck truly gave up on Chris Larabee.
The only people whom Chris would allow near him now were JD and Josiah. After riding for about three hours, JD finally asked softly, "What do we do once we have Vin's body? Once we bury him?" He was, of course, assuming that there was a body left to bury. The only thing left of Sarah and Adam Larabee were charred remains. How would they know it was really Vin? Tracker, bounty hunter, buffalo hunter ... friend ... brother?
"I don't know, JD," Chris answered softly. That frightened JD. It frightened him that Chris didn't know what they would do next. It frightened him that the customary Larabee rage left his leader and hero. Chris seemed empty ... hollowed out. Like JD felt. The blond gunslinger looked at him and said softly, "I don't know what we'll do. You know the ... I can't trust the others. Not ever again. I'm sorry, JD. Sorry it had to end like this." JD bowed his head, understanding what Chris was telling him.
He didn't blame Chris. He knew this was the end of the Seven. Chris couldn't trust Buck and Nathan anymore. It wasn't real likely that he ever totally trusted Ezra. JD knew he never did. Sure, he watched his back, but that was the way things were. As he told the gambler only a few months earlier, during the whole situation with Hopewell and the money, they trusted him ... just not with money.
So why was it that Ezra was the one who apologized? Buck and Nathan still wouldn't admit they had done anything wrong, even after Chanu spat out that the 'medicine' was laced with peyote. Nathan was still saying he did what he thought was right. Buck was denying that he was jealous of Vin, for any reason. Vin was his friend, he was trying to do what was best for everyone. But neither apologized, neither admitted it wasn't the right thing for Vin. For the town. For any of them.
Ezra, on the other hand, apologized at least twice. Back at the stables, and previously in the jail, after Chris stormed out to send the wire to the town where the prison camp was located, informing them of his intention to retrieve his younger brother Vin Tanner. That was the plan, before they found out about the fire.
But Ezra apologized. Said that the wrong decision was made, and he would not ask for their forgiveness. He could not forgive himself, therefore, he couldn't expect them to forgive him. That was good. Because he was right. There was no way JD could forgive him. He could tolerate the sight of him, unlike Buck and Nathan, but he couldn't forgive him. And he would never forgive the other two, or Conklin for smugly congratulating Chris for finally having the balls to get rid of Vin. It took Josiah and JD to hold Chris back from killing him.
"I don't know about you, brothers. But once we retrieve Vin's body, I plan on finding out whoever passed that so-called 'medicine' around. And then I'm gonna make him see the error of his ways ... he'll pay for his part in the loss of our late brother. I fear his plan worked better than he hoped," Josiah said. His voice cracked when he spoke Vin's name, and when he said 'late brother.' JD looked over at the big preacher, and was shaken to find tears in the man's eyes.
Chris halted his horse and asked, "Plan? You think someone did this deliberately?" Josiah nodded, his face grave ... and angry. That rage was transmitted to JD. It was bad enough that his former friends betrayed Vin ... that the betrayal resulted in his friend's death. But that this was part of a grand scheme? To destroy the Seven? It wouldn't be the first time such a thing happened, as the Seven made plenty of enemies over the last year. JD wondered if the bastards realized how well they had succeeded. Or maybe they hadn't. Chris Larabee's green eyes grew cold and he hissed, "Then somebody's gonna pay. Let's ride, boys!"
JD didn't argue with his leader. Chris had that look in his eyes, the one which said someone would pay a high price for harming Chris Larabee's best friend and second in command. JD found his own rage boiling up once more, and he welcomed the familiarity of it. Welcomed the purpose. Vin was murdered, using his own friends. JD Dunne would make sure that the murderers didn't live long enough to hurt someone else.
He couldn't wrap his mind around it. Vin was dead. Lost to him forever. Lost to JD and Josiah, to Mary and Billy. That once more, fire took someone important to him. He remembered his words to Billy, that the devil hadn't beaten him yet. As the rage rushed back into his veins, comforting and familiar, some of the numbness began to give way to purpose. If Josiah was right, if this was part of someone's plan to destroy the Seven from the inside out, then Vin was murdered. By the very people he trusted to watch his back.
In spite of his new focus, his new purpose, Chris found his mind filled with images. A slender young man holding a broom on a dusty street. Vin's face as he told Chris about the price on his head. Five hundred dollars. Hell! Chris could have told him he was worth a helluva lot more than just five hundred dollars! Vin's determination to find Chanu, even as shaky as he was. The sight of Vin lying on the ground after getting blown off the hill by Dickie O'Shea's powder man. Vin couldn't be dead, there had to be some mistake.
And if he was, then someone would pay, after he finished taking it out of the hides of the three men who betrayed him. He shook his head in disgust. He really expected better from Nathan and Buck. And yet, it wasn't either who had apologized ... it was Ezra. Nathan was still making excuses, still saying that he did what he thought was best for everyone. After hearing that, Chris almost took Nathan off his horse, screaming, "Being dead is best for Vin???"
And Buck kept denying that he ever wanted to hurt Vin. That his jealousy, which seemed to dissipate after the mess with Chanu was settled, hadn't returned. Chris didn't believe that, especially not after hearing how Vin's cries of pain and terror bothered Buck's lady of the moment while they were having their fun. He could tell that neither Josiah nor JD believed either Nathan or Buck, either. Especially not after hearing from Inez that Buck immediately taken up with a new working girl, only hours after Vin was carted off with the bounty hunters.
Larabee thought about Vin again. He encountered situations in the past where someone was thought to be dead, but really wasn't. Until he saw something on that body which convinced him that Vin was dead, Chris would believe his best friend was alive. It wasn't that Vin was too young to die. He was young, yes, only twenty-five. But Adam was only five when he died. Just a baby, really. Twenty-five was still young, but five was even younger. No, that wasn't the reason at all for Larabee's certainty that Vin was still alive.
Vin couldn't be dead, because it was simply impossible. They had been through too much together in the last year. Vin couldn't be dead, because if he was, he probably died thinking that Larabee turned on him, just like the others. And Chris couldn't bear that. The two men had their share of trouble ... mainly because of women. First Charlotte, then Ella. Chris avoided thinking about Ella Gaines, the cause of so much of his heartache.
But Vin was his best friend ... in some ways, he was like the gunfighter's little brother. Chris would have died before he admitted as much, knowing Vin as he did. And men like them, they didn't have to say the words aloud. Especially not with their relationship, with their ability to communicate with just a glance. Vin knew how much he meant to Chris. Didn't he? But that was why Vin had to be alive. Chris lost someone once before, without having the chance to say good-bye. He would not lose Vin.
"You don't think Vin's dead, do you?" Josiah asked. Chris shook his head, clenching his jaw. He prepared himself for the inevitable lecture about letting people go, that Vin earned his peace, with everything that happened to him in his short life. He didn't get it. Instead, Josiah said softly, "I don't think so, either. I didn't see no crows. That boy is still with us, brother Chris. I'd bet my life on it." Chris looked up at that. Josiah wasn't just talking. He could see that the other man truly believed what he was saying.
"If he is dead, Josiah, he died thinking we all turned against him. Don't ask me how I know that, I just do. He's not dead. Until I see something on a body that proves he's Vin, that damn tracker ain't dead. We'll find him, Josiah ... and we'll find a way to make him believe that we woulda never let that happen to him. Don't know how yet, just know we will," Chris replied. It was far more than he usually said, more than the three words a day Vin had once teased him about, but Chris said what he had to say. And he had to say that.
"Yes, we will," Josiah promised. He was silent for several moments, then he said softly, "I ain't makin' excuses, but Ezra came up to me earlier. He's fixing to leave us, after we find Vin's body. Hold on, I ain't done yet, Chris. We may have misjudged Ezra this time. Seems that he was trying to convince Buck and Nathan to stand up to the bounty hunters," Josiah said quietly. Chris stared at the preacher in shock. Josiah added, "I told him to come talk to you."
"I can't promise nothing. You got any ideas, preacher? How we can convince Vin that we didn't ... that we wouldna let this happen?" he asked, turning his mind to the thing that concerned him most, after his gut feeling was confirmed. He dared not think about the possibility he was wrong, that Vin really was dead. Josiah was very quiet for several moments, then nodded to the young man riding on the other side of Chris.
"He's our best hope. He might shut the rest of us out, but Vin knows JD ... he knows how far JD would go to save him. Even if Vin lost faith in you and me, he wouldn't lose faith in JD," Josiah replied. He was silent for several moments, then asked, "Tell me, brother Chris, about this young woman Adriana? Did you know Buck's sister?" Chris turned his attention to the trail, not wanting to think about the girl. But he couldn't stop himself. He had loved her, too. There were times when he thought he had loved her more than Buck, even.
"I knew her," he said finally, the words coming out in spite of him, "it never sat right with me, Buck just believin' what those people told him when Adriana died. He never asked to see her body, to say good bye to her. Just left her there. She hadn't even been buried yet. He gave up on her. That place was near Pordios. I would have wanted to see her body. Hold her one last time. Imagine that sounds wrong to you, preacher."
However, Josiah was shaking his head, saying softly, "No, Chris, it don't. It sounds like a man who loved his little sister very much. Who didn't want to accept her death without seeing her body. Sounds like a man who ain't willin' to give up on his best friend. Those places ain't good. They may have lied to Buck and it never occurred to him to question it. Do you think she's still alive, Chris?"
"I almost hope she did die, Josiah. Because if she's alive, Buck left her there. And she will never forgive him for that," Chris replied. He gave a harsh little laugh, explaining, "She was his sister, but she behaved more like mine. She had the devil's own temper, and she could swear like a sailor, if she was mad enough." Chris shook his head and said softly, "I never saw her again after she was fifteen. She just disappeared. Even that felt wrong."
He fell silent. Vin. Adriana. Two possible tragedies, ten years apart. Two people who meant so much to him. He looked at Josiah, adding hoarsely, "She might not forgive me, either. The telegram she sent was to me or to Buck. I ... I was still ... it was before I met up with all of ya, in town. I failed her, too, Josiah. I don't care what Buck says, that girl wasn't crazy. She begged us to come get her. If she didn't die, she hates us both."
"That's the funny thing, Chris. If Vin is dead, you don't get a second chance. If he is, you do. We all do. The question becomes, how do we convince him that we deserve a second chance, or a third, or a fourth? Reckon the same is true of your young sister. If she's still alive, she's likely to either be an inmate, or in the surrounding area. If she's still alive, we will find her. Her and Vin both," Josiah replied.
Chris thought about Josiah's words. As long as there was life, there was a chance. He didn't know how he could make things right with Vin, if his friend had survived that fire. After several moments, he finally said, "How do I forgive those three? Yes, even Ezra. I told Nathan that I trusted him to take care of Vin, to look out for him. Not only did he not, he told everyone in town that I supported what he done. How can I trust him again?"
"I don't know, brother. There's a part of me which says forgive and forget. And another part which says forgiveness isn't mine to give ... that's for our young brother to do, if he's still alive. And still another part which wants to hurt Nathan, just as badly as all three of us have been hurting today. As badly as Vin had to be, when he came to his senses and realized that he was given away like a useless plaything," Josiah replied.
Chris fell silent again. It was easier that way. If he spoke, the rage would boil over, and he would be no good to Vin. JD said from his other side, "I just don't understand how they could do that to Vin, no matter what was best for the town."
"I don't believe they were really thinking at all. I don't know if the town could have fought back. But I think they should have been given that opportunity. I don't know. I wasn't there," Josiah replied. JD shook his head, and for the first time since they had left town, Ezra rode up to join all three of them.
Chris couldn't have said what kept him from lashing out at Ezra, from inflicting the sort of pain he was now feeling on the gambler. But he didn't ... he kept silent. And Ezra said quietly, "I heard Mr. Sanchez informin' you of my desire to leave, once we recover Vin's body. I should have done more to protect him, Mr. Larabee. I don't expect you to forgive me, Mr. Larabee. I don't even expect to forgive myself. But I must leave, once Vin is laid to rest. I can no longer trust Mr. Jackson with my life. If he is willing to give up the man who saved his life ... well, as Mrs. Travis and so many others put it ... what chance do the rest of us have?"
Chris Larabee just stared at the gambler in shock. He had never seen the Southerner like this, never heard him talk like this. After several moments, Chris said, "Tell me everything, Ezra. From the beginning, from the moment Vin was brought back to town, feverish." And that was exactly what Standish did. He talked about the fight to bring down Vin's fever, about sitting with Vin while Nathan was out with another patient. Listening to Vin's ravings about his past, about finally finding a family. Stories which broke Ezra's carefully guarded heart.
The hallucinations ... his terror, even as the fever started to come down. He was no danger to anyone, Ezra was very clear about that. But Nathan was running out of hope ... there was nothing more he could do for Vin. It was out of his hands. He had given up. It was like Buck and Nathan were looking for a reason to get rid of Vin. And then the bounty hunters came. They knew Tanner was in Four Corners. Everyone knew about the Magnificent Seven. Their threat to burn down the town, if they didn't get Vin. The panic among people like Conklin. Then the decision.
Vin's terror and panic when he was taken away by men he didn't know. He was still so weak from the fever. Nathan telling him that Chris knew this was best. But Chris didn't hear anything more after that. Nathan told him ... oh God. If Vin was dead, then he died hating Chris. He died believing that Chris betrayed him as well. Chris had sworn they would go to Tascosa together, that he wouldn't let Vin hang.
Chris stopped his horse and turned, heading back to Nathan. He hissed, coming abreast of the healer, "Go. Go back to the Seminole village, back to the town, I don't care, but you don't ride with us any more. Neither of you do!" He was barely aware of JD looking at him anxiously, but the dark-clad gunslinger was staring daggers first at Nathan Jackson, then Buck Wilmington. Nathan started to speak, but Chris growled, "You fucking lied to him! You lied to him! You let those goddamn bounty hunters have him, you dumped him like trash ... well, now you're being dumped. Get the hell out of my sight!"
"Chris, we thought it was for the best! We had to do what was best for the town, not just Vin, and I couldn't do anything for him!" Nathan cried out, his voice raw.
That was it. Chris snarled and dove for the healer, knocking him cleanly off his horse. His hands closed around Nathan's throat as he hissed, "Dying was what was best for Vin? Being poisoned, then abandoned by the people he trusted, was what was best for Vin! Or was it best for you? Was this your way of soothing your conscience, telling yourself that there was nothing more you could do? My God. You aren't worth his life! You never were!"
"And he's not worth hanging over, either, my friend," Josiah intoned from his horse. Chris didn't release the healer yet. Josiah continued, "You said a few minutes ago that you still believed Vin was alive, Chris. The fire was only a few days ago. If Vin escaped, he couldn't have gotten far, as weak as he was. We need to find him, Chris. He needs us. He needs to know that you never gave up on him."
He needs us. He needs to know that you never gave up on him. With a disgusted scowl, Chris released Nathan, then pushed himself to his feet. However, he didn't move past that point, glaring down at Nathan. Ezra added quietly, "I am loathe to say this, Mr. Larabee, because I feel as you do. But Mr. Sanchez mentioned your instinct, and his own, that Vin is still alive. We may find need of Mr. Jackson's services, if that is true."
"Not gonna happen. If Vin needs medical care, then Josiah can take care of it. There's no way I'm letting him near Vin again," Chris retorted. Under ordinary circumstances, Chris was far more subtle in being protective of Vin. But these weren't ordinary circumstances. Buck wasn't even looking at him. Good. Chris didn't want to look at him, either. The gunfighter was having a hard enough staying focused on Vin, he didn't need to be distracting himself by blowing up at Buck as well.
"Then I'll take care of him, but I may need some help. No, I won't let Nathan near Vin, you've got my word. But I will need some help ... and I won't get that help if Nathan's dead," Josiah said evenly. Josiah was talkin' sense. Chris didn't want to admit it, but he knew it was true. He knew he was talkin' sense. He glowered at Nathan one last time, then finally stalked back to his horse.
"You don't need his help, Josiah," JD spat from his own horse, "he'll just tell you to give up, the way he did." Chris didn't bother looking around as he swung back onto his horse. The boy continued, "You need help, then I'll help you. I took care of Mama when she was sick." Chris stared straight ahead, blinking the dust and the dirt from his eyes. JD wanted to believe that Vin was alive as well.
"Mr. Larabee, if it concerns you ... I would not bet against Mr. Tanner. As ill as he was, the man has always been highly ... obstinate. It would not surprise me in the least to discover that he was able to escape, in one form or another," Ezra said quietly. Chris looked at the gambler. Con artist? Cheater? He remembered the first meeting ... hearing the shots outside the saloon, the glance exchanged with Vin.
Why had he asked Ezra to join them? He had told Nathan, they might need a cheater. And a plan began to form in Chris Larabee's mind.
During the last year, he had learned to read Standish, or at least, learn when Standish was keeping something from him. The gambler held nothing back when he told Chris about those hellish days leading up to Vin's abandonment. Standish didn't even use his five-dollar words. He lied in the past, tried to run cons ... but this time, he wasn't running a con. Chris looked at Ezra and asked, "You said you wanted a chance to atone. That true?"
Standish nodded ... his eyes were all that betrayed his hope. Chris continued, "I can't tell you that I trust you, Ezra. It ain't right, I know ... but you were in town when Jackson and Wilmington sold out Vin. But ... if you want atonement, I'm gonna give you a chance. I want you to ride ahead of us, into town. Get a poker game, or whatever, going. And see what you can find out about that prison, and about that fire."
"Including the possibility that Mr. Tanner survived the conflagration?" Ezra asked and Chris nodded with a feral smile. An answering smile appeared on the face of the Southerner. He tipped his hat to Chris, then galloped away. Chris was left to stare at his back. His world really had been turned upside down. The man he hadn't trusted only a year earlier was now the only man he could now trust to find out if his best friend really was alive.
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