« Nick, stop it! » Heath entreated in a raspy voice, his fingers clawing at Nick’s hands around his neck and his mouth wide open as he gasped for breath but no air would get through.

« Die you lousy son of a bitch! » Nick’s hands jerked at Heath’s throat crushing his airway.

Eugene tried once more to break his two brothers apart but Nick’s elbowed him in the stomach and gave one last jerk at Heath’s neck. Heath’s eyes rolled back in his head and his grip loosened on Nick’s hands. His body stiffened before it went completely listless. Satisfied that his brother had lost consciousness, Nick felt his anger assuaged. He staggered to his feet and cursed at his lifeless brother. «I don’t ever want to see you again!»

Eugene knelt beside Heath to palpate his neck. « You killed him! » he hissed as he stared saucer-eyed in terror at Heath. He then looked up and glared at Nick. « You killed him! »

Victoria and Hester rushed to Heath’s side while Audra stood frozen, her hands over her mouth as her eyes flooded with tears.

« He’s not dead! » Nick defended. He booted Heath in the leg. « Come on you bastard, get up! » When that failed to elicit a response, Nick knelt beside him and slapped him in the face. « Come on! Don’t fake it! It’s not working with me. » Nick’s expression turned aghast when Heath showed no sign of life whatsoever. He grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him repeatedly. His brother’s body felt as limp as a rag doll, his mouth still open. « No, he’s faking it! » he bawled, shaking his head in disgust as he felt his skin crawl. « Heath, come on! Wake up! I didn’t mean it. Oh, God…No! » His eyes welled up with tears as his lips trembled and his body shivered. He gently laid Heath down on the ground and teetered to his feet. He fled the scene in complete neurosis.

« Nick! » Hester shouted. She tried to follow him but he pushed her aside. He swung on Coco’s back and spured him at a full gallop into the moonlit woods.

Eugene laid his ear against Heath’s chest. « Mother, he’s alive! »

« What? »

Eugene groped Heath’s neck once more to feel a pulse. It was still hardly palpable but he could definitely feel a faint heartbeat. He bent closer to Heath’s mouth where he perceived shallow raspy breaths. « He’s barely breathing, but he’s alive. »

« Oh, thank God! » Victoria cried, putting her cheek next to Heath’s.

« Audra, bring me a blanket, will you? » Eugene asked. « Mother hold his head. »

Victoria took a gentle hold of her senseless son’s head at Eugene’s request. He placed his balled up vest in the back of Heath’s head to steady his neck and allow him to breathe easier.

Audra returned with a blanket and spread it out on Heath’s body. He looked so lifeless that it was hard to believe that he was still alive. Eugene carefully probed Heath’s neck and frowned at what he felt underneath his fingers. « His throat’s badly crushed, Mother. I can barely feel his pulse. » Eugene probed deeper to reach the carotid, clawing his fingers at Heath’s neck which caused him to gag for air.

« What’s happening? » Audra asked frantically.

« I pressed too hard against his trachea. » Eugene bent closer to Heath’s mouth. « He’s still breathing. We’ll need to settle him on a cot inside the tent and keep him as still as possible in a reclined position, making sure his neck is straight to avoid blocking his airway, » Eugene instructed.

« Audra, Hester, help me set everything up, » the half-grieving, half-raging mother requested of the two women as she hurried over to the tent.

« Come on, Heath. Don’t give up. You hear me? Keep breathing, » Eugene coaxed the brother he hardly knew. He felt his stomach coiled up in knots at the thought of Heath dying without having had a chance to know him better.

Once the cot was ready, the three women returned to Eugene. They gingerly lifted Heath off the ground, Victoria holding the legs and Hester and Audra standing on either side holding the arms and back while Eugene kept Heath’s head steady. Then they slowly carried him inside the tent and laid him on the cot. All three women wrapped him up in blankets while Eugene made sure the neck was stabilized. Heath’s breathing was extremely shallow and barely audible.

« He’s going to need a doctor, » Hester said.

« I’ll ride into town and get Doctor Bernard, » Eugene offered. « In the meantime, keep his head as straight as possible. »

« Shouldn’t we try to find Nick? »

« No! Leave him where he is. He tried to kill his own brother. I don’t want to see him near Heath, » Audra barked, her vehement outburst taking everyone by surprise. She heaved out the last of her anger and turned to her brother. She gently stroked his cheek, taking heed not to move his head.

Victoria squatted beside Audra and put her arm around her shoulders. « Sweatheart, he didn’t mean it. He was angry and… »

« And what? » Audra interrupted curtly. « He tried to kill him, Mother! Heath begged him but he kept strangling him. » She dissolved into tears. Victoria held Audra to her chest, rocking her gently to calm her. « Why didn’t he stop? »

« I don’t know. »

Hester remained in her corner, unsure of what to do. She knew she was the catalyst of the tragedy and felt so helpless.

« Audra, you and Hester watch Heath while I go try to find Nick. »

« Mother, it’s dark out there. You won’t see your way around, » Eugene said.

« I think I know where he might be and it’s not far. Besides there’s a full moon to light my way. I’ll be alright. You’d better get a move on if you want to get the doctor up here before dawn. »

« Yeah, alright. » Eugene turned to Audra who was kneeling down at her brother’s side, holding his hand. « Audra make sure he doesn’t move or he might choke. »

« What if he does? » she asked in a panic.

« One of you will have to hold him, try to calm him down while the other keeps his head straight to open his airway. »

« I’m scared, Eugene »

Eugene squatted down beside his frightened sister. He placed a hand on her arm and gave her a reassuring smile. « It’ll be alright, sis. I’ll get the doctor.»

« Hurry! »

« I will. » He kissed her on her tear-bedewed cheeks. Then, he stood and left the tent with Victoria.

« Be careful Eugene, » Victoria cautioned as she hugged him tight.

« You too, Mother. » He mounted his horse. « When you see Nick, tell him… » he paused, unable to word what he intended to say out of spite, « never mind. » He reined his horse to the left and rode out at a full gallop.

Victoria straddled her horse and rode at a light trot. The moon beams lit her path as she made her way to a small clearing by the riverbank, Nick’s private oasis where he would often retreat to think. It was also his favorite fishing spot where he would take Heath for a friendly trout competition. They would engage in lengthy conversations regarding matters they normally never discussed.

As she trotted alongside the river, she noticed Nick’s horse, grazing. She dismounted and tethered both horses to a branch before heading down a hillock. Nick was sitting catatonic, curled up in a ball with his arms folded around his legs and his head resting upon his knees. She approached him very quietly and hunched down beside him. As she began to stroke his hair he burst into tears.

« Nicholas, don’t do this to yourself. »

« I killed him! » he bawled.

« No you didn’t. Heath’s alive. »

Nick shook his head without looking up at his mother. « I saw him. He’s dead. »

« He started breathing after you left. »

Nick lifted his head and stared at his mother’s shadowy silhouette through teary eyes.

« He’s alive, » she happily informed as she stroked his dewy cheeks. « Gene has gone fetch the doctor in town. We need you back at the camp in case Heath wakes up and we have to subdue him. His breathing is bad and we need to keep him as still as possible. »

« I can’t go back there, Mother. I can’t face the others, especially not Heath, » he said as another wave of tears gushed to his eyes. « Why didn’t I stop? Why did I keep choking him? » he berated himself.

« What happened between you two? » Victoria asked.

« Didn’t Hester tell you? »

« No, she didn’t tell me anything. »

« I think Heath tried to force her way on her. »

« Nicholas you honestly don’t believe that? »

« She came up running to me in tears, her sleeve all torn up and there was Heath. What else do you supposed that meant? »

« Why don’t you ask her? » Victoria put her arm around Nick’s shoulders. « Come on, let’s go back. »

Nick sniffed back his tears and wiped his wet cheeks with the back of his hand. Slowly he stood and straggled to his horse with Victoria holding him by the waist.

They made it back to the campsite. Nick entered the tent to find Hester and Audra kneeling on either side of the cot, tending to Heath. Audra saw Nick and jumped to her feet. She hysterically threw herself at him and began pummeling his chest « How could you do this to him? How could you? » she raved and ranted, pounding her fists into his chest as he stood, face puckered, bearing the punches without flinching as punishment of his gruesome act. « I hate you! I hate you! » she vociferated through gritted teeth before she finally melted into tears. He slowly raised his hands to her back and hugged her tight. Once Audra’s tears receded, Nick disengaged the clench and approached Heath’s cot. He stared at his senseless brother in horror, groping his wrist to feel a pulse in order to convince himself that he was still alive. He closed his eyes in relief. Heath’s lips were turning blue from the lack of oxygen. He wasn’t getting enough air into his lungs due to the crushed windpipe, and the slightest movement to his neck could cause him to choke to death.

Victoria could feel the palpable tension between Nick and Hester and believed it was time to clear the air. « Hester, we need to know the truth. Did Heath force himself on you? » Victoria asked bluntly, shooting straight to the heart of the matter.

Hester looked at her, shocked. « No! Absolutely not! What makes you think that? »

Nick looked up at Hester. « You were running away from him with a torn sleeve. »

« I tore my sleeve against a branch running away from my own feelings, not because Heath was attacking me. He would never do that. »

« What do you mean, your own feelings? » Nick asked suspiciously. When Hester didn’t answer, he got up and glared at her. « What feelings? »

She gulped and lowered her eyes in shame.

« You’re in love with him, aren’t you? » Nick read the thoughts she was too ashamed to express herself. « Aren’t you? » he finished in a shout to spring her to attention, startling everyone around.

« Yes! » she shouted back. « But he didn’t do anything to me. He was the perfect gentleman. He knew how much his brother loved me and he couldn’t betray his trust. »

A faint moan diverted their attention from the acrid conversation. Nick squatted down by Heath’s cot and held his hand. « Heath, take it easy. Everything’ll all right. »

Heath’s eyes flickered. The more he struggled to fully regain consciousness, the harder it was for him to breathe. « Take it easy, Little Brother. Don’t try to move, » Nick appeased, holding Heath by the shoulders to keep him steady. Heath slowly opened his eyes. His blurry vision made out the form of his attacker. He started to panic, desperate to escape the hands he felt were still stangling him. As hard as Nick tried to hold him down, the harder he pushed him back, choking and coughing with his mouth wide open as he struggled to suck in as much air as he could but his throat was too constricted. Heath raised his hand to his neck but Victoria and Audra held it down. The more Nick tried to help his brother, the more Heath fought him off.

« Nick, I think you’d better leave, » Victoria suggested out of concern for Heath’s safety as she tried to keep her thrashing son’s head steady while Audra and Hester each grabbed a hold of his flailing arms.

Nick bolted outside and felt his knees buckled. He knelt down by the fire and buried his head in his hands. He rocked back and forth as another torrent of tears threatened to squirt out.

« Oh, my God! » came the shriek as he saw Audra rushing out of the tent in hysteria.

Nick bounced to his feet and ran up to her « What is it? »

Her body was racked with shivers as her blood pounded in her throat and her breath quickened. Her mouth opened but no sound would come out. Nick rushed back inside the tent and felt the blood drain from his face when he saw Victoria and Hester in tears. « Mother? »

Victoria looked up at Nick with a mournful expression and shook her head.

« No! » Nick bawled as he sprung to his brother’s side. In a moment of fury, he slammed his fist into his brother’s chest and repeated the frantic thumps until he heard Heath let out a gasp.

« Oh thank God!» Victoria exclaimed in relief, with tears flowing freely from her eyes. She looked at Nick and held him cheek to cheek in a soul-stirring embrace.

At dawn, Eugene returned without the doctor.

« Eugene, where’s the doctor? » Victoria asked, looking in the distance, hoping to see the second rider.

Eugene dismounted. « He wasn’t there. I left a message at his office. How’s Heath doing? » he asked with a voice thick with concern as he tethered his horse on a branch.

« Same. We nearly lost him during the night but Nick was able to revive him. »

« Nick is here? » Eugene’s eyes were agleam with anger.

« Eugene, please! Control yourself. One tragedy is enough, » a careworn Victoria pleaded.

Although reluctant, Eugene complied with his mother’s plea. He entered the tent where he found a sleeping Nick, kneeling down on the ground by Heath’s cot, his head pillowed on his folded arms with one hand holding his brother’s. Eugene edged up to them and checked Heath’s respiration.

Nick awoke. « Eugene? You brought the doctor? » he asked a bit groggy.

« No, Nick. He wasn’t there. »

« Wasn’t there? » he bellowed.

« Keep your voice down, » Eugene chastised.

« Was there anyone who could take over for him? »

« No. I left a message. »

« Damn Eugene! It could be days before he gets back! »

« What do you want me to do? » Eugene rebuked. « I’m not the want who… » he cut in mid sentence, afraid to let the rough edge of his tongue slip in a fit of anger.

Nick and Eugene glared at each other. « You’re right. It’s my fault he needs a doctor. So it’s my responsability to do right by him, » Nick stated before he stormed out of the tent. Victoria hurried after him.

« Nicholas, where are you going? »

« To get a doctor for Heath, » Nick said as he mounted Eugene’s horse.

« You heard what Eugene said. He’s… »

« Out, I know, » Nick finished. « But I’ll find him and bring him here if it’s the last thing I do. If not, then I’ll ride into Stockton to get Dr. Merar. »

« Nick that’s too far. »

« You have a better idea, Mother? » He gave her a chilling stare before riding away in a cloud of bellowing dust.

Nick rode the wind, making better time than he orginally anticipated. Given his speed, he decided not to dawdle on locating Dr. Bernard and instead, rode straight to Stockton to get Dr. Merar. Eager to reach his destination before afternoon, Nick urged his horse onwards with a forceful spur that caused the animal to rear up on its hind leg, throwing Nick clear off the saddle into a small ravine, at the bottom of which his back broke his fall. He tried to move but his arched body would not budge. « Oh no, please! This can’t be happening?! » he whimpered, with each sob racking his body with pain. « I’m so sorry, Heath, » He wept as he looked skywards with teary eyes, begging the Divine Being to convey the message to his brother.

Back at the campsite, Heath reacted to Nick’s wails. « Ni…Nick, » he croaked between blue-hued lips that barely parted. Victoria, Audra, Hester and Eugene moved closer to him. « Nick. »

« Heath, Nick is gone to get the doctor. He’ll be back, » Victoria informed as she gently stroked his cheek.

Heath’s eyes fluttered as he struggled to pry open his eyelids. « He…help him. »

« What are you saying? »

« In..inj..injured, » he whispered between shallow gasps before his eyes rolled back in his head. The effort it took to utter those words sapped his energy to the point of complete exhaustion.

« I believe him, » Eugene admitted with conviction, placing reliance in his brothers’ deep psychic connection. « I’ll go look for him. »

« I’ll come with you, » Hester said. She followed him out of the tent and they saddled their horses.

After reassuring herself that her son was still breathing, Victoria walked out of the tent just as Hester and Eugene were straddling their mounts. « Careful you two. »

Eugene and Hester covered some ground before they noticed Nick’s horse, nervously stamping his hoof on the edge of the ravine where Nick had taken a bad fall. They dismounted and carefully inched towards the snorting animal. Eugene grasped the bridle.

« Oh my God! » Hester shrieked upon seeing Nick at the bottom of the ditch. « Nick! »

« Stay here, Hester. » Eugene handed her the reins and hurtled down the hill to his semi-conscious brother « Nick! »

Nick opened his eyes halfway. « I… I tried. »

« I know you did, Brother. »

« How…how? »

« Did we find you? » Eugene finished.

Nick nodded feebly.

« Heath. He told us you were hurt and we came looking for you. »

« Heath’s okay? »

« He’s hanging in there. We’ve got to get you back to camp. Can you walk? »

Nick shook his head. « It’s my back. I…I think it’s..it’s broken, » he heaved out.

Eugene poked his finger in Nick’s left leg « Can you feel that? »

Nick nodded. Eugene applied the same procedure to the right leg. Again, Nick responded affirmatively. « Nick, your back doesn’t seem to be broken. Sprained maybe, but not broken. »

« Is he all right, Eugene? » Hester shouted from above.

« Yes but we’ll need to haul him up on a travois to hold his back still. Gather as many dead branches as you can. »

Both Hester and Eugene buckled down to their tasks. They found enough wood to build the bracard in a haphazard fashion, but strong enough to withstand Nick’s dead weight. After securing Nick onto the travois, Hester climbed up to tie the rope around the saddlehorn and on Eugene’s signal, kicked the horse onwards while Eugene pushed at his end. Arduous at it was, they managed to get Nick to the top. He then fastened the two trailing poles to his horse.

« He’s so still. Are you sure he’s… »

Eugene groped his brother’s neck for a sign of life. « He’s alive, Hester. But he needs a doctor fast. I do hope Dr. Bernard got my message. »

They mounted their horses and ambled away at a steady pace to keep the journey back to the campsite a smooth as possible.

Dr. Bernard was examining Heath when Hester and Eugene arrived with Nick. Victoria and Audra hurried to prepare another cot, while the doctor gave Nick a cursory examination before all five lifted the insentient man and gingerly carried him inside the tent. They bound his wrists and ankles to the collapsible bed with gauze straps and stabilized his neck with a strap placed underneath his chin.

« It’s obvious we’re going to need a buckboard to carry them to town. »

« Eventually, but no now. It would be dangerous to try to move them, » the doctor explained.

« What do you suggest, Doctor? » Victoria queried.

« For Nick, wait until the swelling subsides. He’ll be in less pain and might even be able to move around on his own. »

Victoria looked over the doctor’s shoulder at her blond son and asked with dread in her voice, » What about Heath? »

The doctor turned to the ashen-faced, blue-lipped man. He signed ruefully and turned back to Victoria with a doleful expression. « I’m sorry Mrs. Barkley, but it’s unlikely this young man will survive the next twelve hours. »

Victoria winced in pain as her eyes suffused with tears. Audra began to sob uncontrollably, while Eugene just froze and Hester dashed out of the tent.

Victoria regained her composure and wiped her face dry before she staggered to her wobbly legs and joined Hester by the riverbank. The young distraught woman stood with her arms clutching her shivering body. Victoria wrapped a comforting hand around her shoulders and before she could utter a word, Hester informed her that she was leaving. She turned to the Barkley matriarch and asked, «Will you tell Nick for me? »

Victoria shook her head and blinked a tear. « You will tell him yourself when he comes around. Don’t abandon him now. »

« I’m the cause of this tragedy. He’ll be glad to get rid of me. »

« Don’t believe that. »

« But I do. I realize now that I’m not made for this kind of life. I could never amount to Nick’s expectations of a rancher’s wife. Besides I’ll always be a constant reminder of his brother’s death. »

« Heath is not dead. »

« But the doctor said… »

« The doctor doesn’t know my son. Heath’s a fighter. He’s been through worse before. »

« Still, I can’t stay. » Hester hung her head to conceal a second wave of tears rushing to her eyes.

Victoria cupped her chin and raised her head at eye level. « At least wait until Nick regains consciousness. »

« No. It’s better I leave now. Please don’t try to stop me. » She hugged Victoria before she ran back to the camp and mounted her horse. « You can tell Nick I really loved him and that I always will. He’s a fine man who deserves better. »

Victoria nodded with a chagrined smile. « I tell him, Dear. »

Hester smiled back. She kicked her horse into a light galop and rode away, not looking back.

Audra remained inside the tent while Dr. Bernard and Eugene each went to get a cup of coffee.

« Hey, Nick! Come on, wake up! » a familiar voice spoke, urging him away from the abyss he was dangerously comtemplating. « Nick! »

Nick let out a groan as he struggled to open his eyes. They lit up with ecstasy when he saw Heath, hunched down by his cot. « Heath! You’re alright? »

Heath’s beaming smile turned gloomy as he motioned toward his body lying on the next cot with Audra sponging his brow. « I came to say goodbye. »

« No! You can’t! I won’t let you! » Nick bawled.

« It’s not your choice to make, Nick. It’s time for me to meet my maker. »

« No, no, no! If he takes you he’ll have to take me too. You tell him, you explain that it was an accident.»

« I reckon He already knows that. »

« It’s not your time, Heath. You have so much more to do. I couldn’t bear to lose you and knowing that I was the cause of your death, cuttin’ you down in the prime of your life…please Heath you can’t do this to me! » he begged with eyes goggling his terror.

The haloed figure of Tom Barkley materialized behind Heath and placed a hand on his son’s shoulder. «Son.»

Heath lowered his eyes to ponder. Then he craned his neck back to look up at his father and said firmly. « I want to stay. »

« Are you sure? »

Heath turned back to Nick and smiled. « Yeah. I’m sure. »

« Okay. »

Stunned at the lack of insistance on his father’s part, Heath stared at him with questioning eyes. «Okay? He’s not objecting?»

Tom chuckled. « You chose to leave this earth without first consulting with Him. Let us not forget that He has absolute power of decision. I came to tell you that He’s not ready to accept your residence just yet. You still have several good years ahead of you, son. » Tom smiled at Nick. « Both of you. »

« Thank you, Father. »

« You take care of each other. » Tom’s uncorporeal body slowly evanesced before their eyes.

At that moment, Nick startled out of sleep. «Heath!»

Audra got up and walked over to Nick’s cot where she squatted down and held her brother’s hand. «Nick.»

Nick’s eyes raked the tent, his movements still limited by the straps. « Where’s Heath? »

« Next to you, » she said with a motion of the head.

Nick turned his head slowly toward Heath, sleeping on the cot, and smiled. « He’s going to be alright. »

« The doctor said he wasn’t going to make it. »

« Forget what the doctor said. I know for a fact that Heaven can wait. »