Whispers In The Dark

Part 5

By Nesciri

Chapter 9. Healing Wounds

As Lou sat there cradling Kid and tears streaming down her face, she thought she heard a call. She knew she was mistaken. There was no one else but her on this godforsaken rock. Kid hadn't moved since she had reached him and she was sure he was going to die. Then she heard it again. Somebody was calling her name. She tried to ignore it, sure that it was her mind playing tricks on her. Especially since it sounded like Jimmy. But Jimmy was dead. She had seen herself how he had fallen off the cliff. And there was no way anybody could survive a drop like that. But the voice continued to call her name, more desperately this time. Finally Lou realized that the voice was real and she carefully placed Kid back on the ground and slowly, hesitantly she moved over to the edge and peeked down.

What she saw made her gasp. Five yards below her was Jimmy, desperately hanging on to a small ledge.

"Thank God, Lou," he breathed. "I can't hold on much longer."

"But--", Lou begun, before she found herself. "I need a rope," she said.

"My horse. There's one on the saddle. Please hurry, Lou."

Lou got up and without a glance on the pale Kid she rushed over to where Jimmy's horse where standing, gazing calmly at the events before him. Lou quickly grabbed the rope and hurried back to the edge. She removed her jacket and placed it by the edge for the rope to slide easier. She wrapped one end of the rope around her waist and let the other end fall over the edge. She seated herself on the ground, finding support with her feet and called out.

"Come on Jimmy, get up!" The next moment she felt something tug at her waist and she had to dig her heels in not to being dragged towards the edge and she knew Jimmy was on his way up. Soon she could see his head above the rim and she smiled with relief. In the next minute jimmy launched himself over the edge almost ending over Lou. Lou sighed and smiled with tearstained cheeks. Jimmy panted from the shock and exhaustion.

"I sure hope that I'll never come closer to death than this," he mumbled and looked up at Lou.

"I thought you were dead," she said softly. "I thought Kid had killed you."

"Kid? He can't kill me." Jimmy tried to smile and threw a glance over to where Kid still was lying motionless. "Is he-?"

"No." Lou shook her head. "No, he's not dead." Then she hesitated and felt a lump in her throat "-not yet he ain't." She rose on unsteady legs and walked over to Kid and sank down next to him. Jimmy followed her with more care, just in case Kid would wake up and try and kill them.

"Lou," he started slowly, "what if he wakes up and - you know?"

"No." Lou shook her head. "He won't." She didn't offer any explanation and Jimmy refrained from asking for one. Instead he sat down next to her as she gently touched Kid's pale face. He handed her his water bottle and Lou gratefully accepted it, spilling some water into the pale face.

"Come on Kid, wake up," she pleaded as Kid moaned and opened his eyes.

"Lou? You're all right?"

Lou couldn't hold back a smile.

"I'm fine."

"I heard you scream - I got up her but I only saw Noah."

Jimmy looked bewildered at his friend. Had he completely forgotten what had happen?

"I'm fine now, don't worry. How are you feeling?" Lou asked worried.

"I'm Ok." Then Kid seemed to notice Jimmy for the first time. "Hey, Jimmy, what are you doing here?"

"What I'm doing here? I just saved your life! You were about to jump of this cliff."

"What?"

"I when I tried to stop you, you did your best to fight me - you even…" A hush from Lou made him stop and look at her. She softly shook her head. "Not now," she whispered, uncertain of what had happened to Kid.

"Do you remember much of what have happened here, Kid?" she asked softly.

"I'm not sure," Kid admitted. "All I remember is hearing you scream and then I got up hear but I never found you, did I?"

"Never worry 'bout that. You rest some and then we'll go home."

Jimmy nodded.

"I think that's for the best."

Kid was still resting, when Jimmy approached Lou who was taking care of Lightning.

"What happened to Noah?" he asked.

"I don't know," Lou admitted. "I think -" she bowed her head "-that we might have lost him."

"Can you tell me what happened here?"

Lou nodded and with a glance on the sleeping Kid, she dragged Jimmy away and told him everything. She had a hard time remembering every detail as if it wasn't a memory but merely a dream. When she ended Jimmy looked at her.

"So you think this, this - Barak - killed Noah?"

"What else am I to think?"

"What was he?"

"I don't know. If I didn't know better I would call him -a demon."

"A demon? You're joking me right?"

"No, Jimmy. Is no joke. I'm gonna see if Kid's fit for travelling." Lou turned and walked back. When Jimmy didn't follow her, she turned.

"Jimmy?"

"I'm just gonna have a look around Lou."

"All right. Take care though."

"In case I run into demons?"

"That's not funny."

Jimmy climbed over a few rocks and looked over the desolated surrounding. If Noah, or this Barak, was hiding out there they would never find him. He sighed and was about to turn around when something on the ground ten yards below him caught his eyes. It was a person lying there and it took him only a second to recognize him: Noah! There was no way he could get down there without a rope so he quickly strode back to Lou and Kid.

"What are you going to do?" Lou asked as he took the rope.

"Noah's lying on the ground five yards below this rock. I'm gonna see to him."

"Are you crazy?" Lou's voice rose.

"I know what you have told me Lou! But what if it really is Noah down there? Would you leave him here to die?"

"No."

"Then we'll see to him."

Lou could not tell him no, but she looked sincerely at him

"Be careful."

Later Lou stood by the unconscious Noah as Jimmy tried to splinter his leg.

"Can't believe that he survived that fall," Jimmy mumbled. Lou still kept her distance.

"Maybe it isn't him?"

"Then he would have healed himself right? As you said he did when you shot him?" Jimmy still had some hard time believing in Lou's story although he had to admit that there were a lot of strange events that wasn't easy to explain.

"Don't , Jimmy," Lou said tiredly. Kid was waiting for them by the horses, almost back to his old self although he had a terrible headache. They had decided to make a travois for Noah, who had escaped the fall with a broken leg, a few broken ribs and probably a concusion. That's what they thought anyway since he hadn't waked up.

"All right," Jimmy said, eyeing the temporary bandage. "That have to do. Tell Kid to bring over the travois."

As they lifted Noah onto the travois, he opened his eyes. He looked at them unseeingly for a second then his sight cleared.

"Jimmy? Lou? Kid?" To Lou's relief there was nothing strange with Noah's voice.

"How are you?" she asked, still keeping some distance.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I - I don't know what happened but I know --"

Lou looked at him, this was their Noah and she forgot everything else.

"It's OK."

"No, it's not. I could have killed you. I knew I hurt you, I hid Buck's pouch--"

"But you didn't kill us, that's all that matters," Jimmy replied lightly. "Now let us get home."

Lou bent down over Noah and stroke his cheek. Then she stared him in the eyes.

"Where--" she asked silently.

"He's gone Lou. I don't know where, but I think I killed him," Noah replied in the same voice and Lou smiled at him.

"I hope so."

******

Rachel was sitting by Buck's bunk. She hadn't left it for many minutes and it was almost evening again after another long day. Cody had taken Jesse for some fishing trying to get their minds off Buck's likely fate. All they were doing was in fact waiting for him to die. The no longer had any hopes that he would live. He'd been unconscious for three days and although they had managed to give him water he was in a bad way. Teaspoon was sitting by the table watching the scenery before him. He hated it. Death, that he could handle, but this? No, it was unnatural and he even found himself wishing that it would be over.

Rachel tenderly took Buck's hand and held it. She didn't know what else to do as she watched his face in the soft light from the kerosene lamp. Then she saw something on his cheeks and she leaned forward. Teaspoon saw it and rose and walked over to her.

"What?" he asked softly as Rachel turned to him.

"He's crying," she replied confused.

"Crying?"

Rachel nodded and dried his cheeks with her hand.

"Buck," she said softly, "can you hear me?"

The faintly she saw his eyelids flitter and the he slowly opened his eyes. For a second he stared straight a head then he closed his eyes again.

"Free," he mumbled, "finally free."

"Buck, son?" Teaspoon said concerned, "How are you?"

Buck turned his head and looked at them with tired eyes.

"Where's Ike? He was here just a minute ago."

Rachel and Teaspoon looked sadly at each other.

"Buck," Rachel begun turning to the boy, as she desperately tried not to cry, "don't you remember? Ike isn't here anymore."

"He was here," Buck insisted weakly. "He spoke to me - I think he did---" He mumbled something neither Rachel nor Teaspoon could hear.

"Buck, please talk to us?" Rachel could no longer hold back the tears. To have Buck wake up with the idea that his best friend still was alive was not something she had wished for. Buck looked at her.

"I'm not sure, Rachel, but I think he was here."

"Buck--"

"But I'm not sure- everything so confusing." Buck closed his eyes. "I have these strange memories but I'm not sure they're real."

"You've been out for some time, Buck. Can you tell me how you feel? Are you in any pain?" Rachel feared that he would return to the same state that he'd been before he became unconscious.

"No. No, the pain is gone. He's gone."

- Epilogue -

No one could ever explain exactly what had happened up at Thunder Mesa. When Lou and the others returned they found that they only had vague memories of what had happened. It was as if the disappearance of Barak had reduced the memories into vague scenes as if from a dream, a nightmare. Soon none of them could swear that it had happened. Buck's pouch were found where Noah told them to look, but soon they couldn't remember it even being lost.

The murders in the town were never resolved and soon they were forgotten. The Greenwalds were the only once that were truly missed, but as life went on, the memory of them faded. When Teaspoon got back on his feet he made some efforts to dig deeper into the cases, but he soon gave up. The conclusion was that the murderer or murderers had left town. There was no more trouble and most people seemed happy with that.

The riders went on with their lives, waiting for the day when Kid finally would ask Lou to marry him. Lou had finally faced up to her darkest secret and lived in the comfort that Kid now knew of it and still loved her. Jimmy met Rosemary, a married woman that seemed to occupy his mind more than his friends approved of.

It was nothing that foretold of what was to come although the tension and hatred that threatened to tear apart the country soon showed it's ugly head among the riders. But they remained a family despite the pity differences and arguing. And Kid did ask Lou to marry him, before the eyes of the amused Jimmy and Teaspoon. When they married the riders still held hopes for the future and when tragedy hit them, it hit them hard.

Noah had not intended to ride out, but when he failed in stopping Rosemary from avenging her husband's death, he decided to help her. Cody came to their assistance, but Noah was a second too late to turn away from the fight. A bullet hit him fatally. He was already dead when Cody reached him. Sobbing Cody cradled him in his arms. Had he looked up across the valley he would have seen the killer watching the scene from a safe distance.

He had not intended to linger, but something made him stay. He had never thought he'd hit the black, he was not really used to the rifle and the fact that he had made him proud. He just wished that the headache could disappear. On his chest a soft red light shone with a pulsating light. A cold breeze passed through the valley carrying the sinister words through the air.

"I'm back."

-The End -