Anne hurried towards Larabee’s ICU room and was glad to see Jenny Tucker was on duty. The two nurses were friends since meeting three months ago at a seminar and she knew Jenny would understand her need to see Larabee. She’d already told her friend about her growing feelings for this man, and Jenny warned her to take things slow. She stepped through the door and smiled at Vin Tanner.
The tracker sensed this woman’s feelings for his friend and he hoped things would work out for the two of them. He stood up and stretched his left arm over his head and smiled at the newcomer.
“Hi, Anne,” he said softly.
“Hi, Vin. How is he?”
“He’s been sleeping since before I got here. Guess everything’s finally caught up to him.”
Anne nodded and walked to the bed, placing her hands on the rail and staring at the pale face turned slightly towards her. She fought the urge to run her fingers through his hair, and brush her lips across his, to feel the beat of his heart in his chest as she ran her hands...
“Anne?” Tanner called, smiling at the softness in her eyes as she stared at Chris Larabee. “Anne?”
She shook her head and turned towards the man calling her name, and felt the heat rising in her cheeks. “Oh, sorry, Vin, I was...” She stopped as she saw the knowing smile on the longhaired man’s face.
“It’s okay, Anne,” the sharpshooter whispered as he watched Larabee’s eyes move under the closed lids.
“I just stopped by to make sure he was okay.”
“He is, Anne, and I’m sure he’ll appreciate your being here.”
“Thanks, Vin, he’s been through a lot...you both have. I hope you don’t plan on staying with him all night!”
“You kidding? Nathan’ll be here with a damned leash pretty soon. That man just doesn’t let up.”
“Perhaps it’s a good thing he doesn’t,” Anne told him. “From what I’ve seen and heard you guys lead a dangerous life.”
“It has it’s ups and downs,” the sharpshooter said simply, his eyes full of sadness. “Lately we’ve...he’s had a few too many downs.”
“Yes, you have. Does he know that Patrice has been arrested?”
“No, he hasn’t been awake yet. Hate to be the one to tell him about it.”
“Why? Won’t he be glad she was caught?” the pretty nurse asked.
“Oh, he’ll be happy she was caught, but he’ll be angry about not being able to help and even angrier when he finds out what Ez and you did.”
“We did what we had to do.”
“I know that, you know that, and Chris knows that, but it won’t make a damn bit of difference. You put your life on the line for Chris and he’ll be beholdin’ to you for that, but he’ll be angry with himself that he was the cause of putting you in danger...”
“But I wasn’t in danger!”
“You don’t call a syringe full of digitalis dangerous?”
“Well, she didn’t get a chance to use it. I think we’d better be quiet or we’ll wake him up.”
Tanner leaned closer to her and smiled. “So you’re feeling a little nervous about being the one to tell him as well,” he said with a grin.
“I guess since you put it that way,” she said. “Tell Chris I’ll be back to see him tomorrow.”
“I will, Anne, and thanks for caring.” He watched the nurse touch her fingertips lightly against Larabee’s cheek before leaving. ‘Hell,Chris, you could do a hell of a lot worse,’ he thought as he settled back in the chair.
~~~~~~~~~~
Chris opened his eyes and shifted slightly on the bed. He was tired of all the wires and other attachments leading to and from his body. He frowned as he realized the Foley catheter was back in place and he watched as a nurse emptied the collection container. The door to his room was closed as were the drapes, and he wondered what he’d missed while he’d been sleeping. The clock on the wall told him he’d slept through dinner and well into the night.
Jenny noticed the green eyes were open, and her patient was frowning. She knew his friends were out in the hallway, just waiting for her to finish the more intimate duties he wasn’t able to do himself. She picked up a cloth and gently washed the sleep from his eyes. Next she picked up the glass and poured water into it before passing it to him. She waited for him to drink his fill before taking it back and placing it on the table once more.
“Thanks,” Larabee said softly.
“You’re welcome, Chris. How are you feeling?” Jenny checked the flow of the IV and the Lidocaine drip, making sure everything was running properly.
“I’m okay,” he answered, frowning again as he remembered Anne’s words just before he’d dropped off to sleep. ‘They will, Chris, as soon as this is all over.’
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” he assured the older woman. “Where is everyone?”
“Two of your friends are right outside the door. Do you feel up to seeing them?”
“Yeah...” the blond said and pressed the button that would raise his head a little more.
Jenny finished covering him to the waist and turned to the door. She opened it and gestured to the two men standing there. She waited for them to step inside before turning back to her patient.
“Chris, if there’s anything you need just press the button. I’m going on break, but Natasha is covering for me.”
“Thanks, Jenny, I will,” Larabee assured her and studied the faces of the two men entering his room.
The first red flag went up when, Ezra Standish, a man who prided himself on his poker face, stood to the side and wouldn’t quite meet Chris’ eyes. The second one went up when Buck Wilmington strode to the bed, a cheerful smile on his face, appearing for all the world like nothing was wrong. Two red flags added up to a whole slew of problems to Chris and he waited patiently for one of his men to explain what was going on.
“Hey, Stud, must say you’re looking a damn sight better than you were earlier.”
“Yes, Mr. Larabee, you do seem to have a little more color...”
“Hold it right there!” Larabee hissed.
“What’s wrong Chris?” Wilmington asked. “Are you in pain? I know they’re giving you medica...”
“What’s going on?” Larabee interrupted.
“What makes you think something is going on?” Standish asked.
“Buck’s too cheerful and you can’t look me in the eye.”
“Of course I can, Mr. Larabee,” Standish said and lifted hazel eyes to meet sea green ones.
“Hell, I’m always cheerful, Stud...”
“I repeat...what’s going on?”
“Chris,” Wilmington started, but knew Larabee could see right through him. “We found out who was doing this to you.”
Larabee closed his eyes, snatches of the conversation he had with Buck earlier in the day coming back to him. He opened them again and met the concerned blue eyes of the ladies man.
“The Pariah?” he asked simply.
“Yeah,” the scoundrel answered.
“Is there any evidence?” he asked, watching the two men look at each other and again not meet his eyes. “What the hell’s going on?”
“Mr. Larabee, you need to calm down,” Standish warned as the monitors over the patient’s bed began to beep loudly.
“Calm down? I don’t think so. You two are kee...ping...”
“Hang on, Chris,” Wilmington warned as he too looked at the monitors. “We’ll tell you everything, but it’s a long story.”
“What’s going on in here?” Natasha asked as she hurried into the room. She began checking Larabee’s vitals and glared at the two men beside the bed.
Ezra tried to explain. “We were just...”
“Going to tell me what the hell is going on!” Larabee snapped, pushing the nurse’s hands away as he glared at his two friends.
“Mr. Larabee,” the nurse tried, but a glare was swiftly turned in her direction. “That doesn’t intimidate me in the least,” Natasha told him as she continued to check the monitors and IV lines.
“Dammit, just leave me the hell alone. I’m sick and tired of people...”
“Chris, calm down!” Wilmington warned as his friend’s breathing grew labored.
“I’ll calm down when you tell m...ne what you guys...h... have d...done...” He tried to control his breathing, but the familiar tightness around his chest warned him he’d overdone it. He saw the nurse hurry to ready the mask, but his eyes caught and held those of Buck Wilmington.
“T...tell...m...me!” he ordered impatiently.
“We set up a little sting operation,” the ladies man explained as the nurse quickly replaced the nasal canulas with the full face mask. “Now if you’ll calm down we’ll tell you about it, otherwise this pretty young lady is going to kick us out and you’ll just have to wait until tomorrow...”
“B....Buck!” The injured man stammered as the word was muffled by the oxygen mask.
“Mr. Larabee, I will make them leave,” Natasha warned and received a second glare.
“You wouldn’t...”
She folded her arms across her chest, glared back at the stubborn patient and smiled.
“Try me!”
“Shit!”
“She’s got your number, Stud...”
“Don’t s...stud me, Buck. What the h...hell d...did...y...you guys...do?”
Natasha watched the monitors, waiting to see if Larabee would calm down, but it didn’t seem to be going that way. She also realized that kicking his friends out before he got the information he wanted would only make matters worse. She stood by, hoping she wouldn’t have to intervene and listened as the two men explained to the injured man just how they’d caught Patrice Milliard. She lost track of time as their story unfolded and looked up as Larabee’s regular nurse returned. She wanted to stick around to hear the rest, but knew she had her own patients to check on.
“So Ezra pretended to be you in the bed and Anne...”
“Anne! W...what the hell d...does she h...have to do w...with this?”
“Ah, hell, Chris, it was her idea...”
“Buck, I don’t cc...care whose i...idea it w...was...she sh...shouldn’t have b...been in...volved,” Larabee insisted.
“Mr. Larabee, Anne Sheridan can be a very formidable woman when she wants to be...”
Larabee turned an icy glare at the gambler.
“I don’t g...give a d...damn how...”
“Chris,” Jenny said and waited for the blond to look her way.
“Believe me if Anne insisted on being part of the ‘sting’ there was no way anyone could have stopped her,” the nurse explained.
“Damn, Chris, she’s a real hell cat and has an uppercut that would make yours look like a love tap,” Wilmington said and the look on Larabee’s face told him he’d said too much. “I...I mean...”
“Take your foot out of your rather large orifice, Mr. Wilmington,” Standish said.
“What did she do?” Jenny asked with a grin.
“She delivered a devastating uppercut to Miss Milliard’s chin and deposited said pariah on her derriere,” Standish explained and smiled as the blond’s eyes twinkled. “Mr. Larabee, if I might be so bold,” he said and leaned close to his friend’s ear. “Don’t make her angry.”
Chris wanted to hear more, but the events of the last few days weighed heavily on his healing body and he closed his eyes. He tried to speak, but was soon drifting on a soft cloud, where nothing hurt, and a pair of soft brown eyes looked at him from a wondrously beautiful face.
“That was close,” the ladies man said, sitting in the chair by the bed.
“I thought he was going to throttle you, Buck,” Standish said and watched the nurse straighten the blankets over the now sleeping patient.
Jenny smiled with pride at the thought of the heroic young nurse who’d helped take down Patrice Milliard. She hoped Anne Sheridan and Chris Larabee would get the chance to see if anything would develop between them. She took one last look at the monitors and left her patient in the hands of his friends, knowing he’d get the best possible care.
“Well, Buck, if you’re staying here I shall see how our prophetic comrade is doing,” Standish said.
“Alright, Ez,” Wilmington agreed and settled down to watch over his long time friend.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Josiah sat in the chair by the window, a spot he’d been in since the others left. Sleep had been impossible for him as he thought about the events of the last few weeks. Strange things began happening as soon as Chris Larabee mentioned exploring the ghost towns in New Mexico. From the beginning they’d all felt something beyond the norm and not one of them had questioned the arrival of their ancestors, or why they’d chosen this particular time to show up. Josiah knew why they’d come forward now, but at the time he hadn’t, yet the faith sustained his belief in what was happening. The paranormal was something he delved into during his missionary days in third world countries, but he hadn’t thought much about it since.
Robert Maguire was a man destined to meet up with not only Chris, but the seven of them. The two worlds somehow crossed paths and Larabee had become a victim of not one, but two twisted minds, bent on his death by torture. He remembered the marks on Chris’ body when they’d first found him, the pain evident on the face, and yet, Chris had a confidence about him that shone through his eyes. Josiah remembered how Chris and Vin held the gun, then their ancestors closed rank until the seven were fourteen and dealt with the madman, both past and present.
The ex-preacher rubbed his eyes and looked out over the empty parking lot. His stomach had finally calmed down and his heart rate was back to normal in spite of the toxin from the lily of the valley. His friend had not been so lucky. Chris ingested far more of the water than he had, and in Larabee’s condition the toxin quickly worked to make his life a misery once more. The blond was back in ICU, not because of Maguire, but because a woman blamed him for her own shortcomings. Patrice Milliard was in jail now, awaiting arraignment on charges of attempted murder and Josiah hoped she’d be spending a long time in jail. He also knew that would probably be a long shot as the prison system and courts were so backed up that it could take months, maybe years for her to come to trial. Again he rubbed his eyes, realizing his body knew what his mind wanted to fight. He looked up as the door was softly opened and smiled as the gambler stuck his head through the door.
“Good morning, Ez,” Sanchez said softly.
Standish turned towards the voice and smiled as he let the door close behind him. “Well, Mr. Sanchez, I must say it’s good to see you’re feeling better, but shouldn’t you be taking advantage of the bed?”
“Had a lot on my mind, Son,” the ex-preacher muttered.
“I believe we are all suffering from that malady,” the gambler said as he joined the other man by the window.
“How is Chris doing?”
“He’s still the same, but he was a little, shall we say vocal with Buck and I.”
Sanchez smiled. “Did you two tell him about the sting operation and Anne’s involvement?”
“We didn’t have a choice in the matter. You know how Chris feels about not being in the middle of things, but he was worse knowing his lady friend was involved.”
“I bet he was,” the ex-preacher could easily picture the blond’s face when he was told about the plan to catch Patrice Milliard in the act.
“Well, we both know Mr. Larabee can make a cyclone seem tame when angered...” he stopped as he watched the older man yawn. “I do believe it is time for you to get into bed, Mr. Sanchez. We can talk about all this tomorrow when you’ve had some sleep.”
“Guess you’re right, Ez, that bed looks mighty inviting right now.”
The young gambler helped the older man stand up, careful of the leads still attached to his body. He knew they were still monitoring his heart, but it would all be taken away in the morning as long as Sanchez continued to show improvements. He released his hold on the ex-preacher’s arm, but walked beside the older man, lightning sharp reflexes ready if he was needed.
Josiah felt the younger man beside him as he eased down on the bed, lifted his legs, and lay back against the pillow. He shook his head and sighed as Standish pulled the blankets over him and sat in the chair next to the bed.
“You should go back to the hotel and get some sleep, Son,” Sanchez said, knowing it was a lost cause.
“I assure you I am perfectly fine,” Standish said. He listened as the older man’s breathing seemed to even out, before settling back against the chair. His head snapped towards the bed as the ex-preacher spoke softly.
“You know, Ezra, your mother would be proud of you.”
“My mother is only proud if it involves a deck of cards and someone else’s money,” Standish said, memories of his mother’s disappointment running through his mind.
“She told me once that she was very proud of you and your accomplishments, but didn’t know how to tell you.”
“She and I have always had a strange relationship. More like teacher-student than mother-son, Josiah. I remember bringing home a picture I drew of her and I. She looked at it as if it was something beneath her, something hideous and vile and she tore it up. She said I had no talent for drawing and that I needed to concentrate on where my God given talents were most apparent and likely to make me rich. I think Mother gave me a deck of cards before I could hold a spoon,” Standish muttered, his voice laced with pain at the thought of the woman who raised him.
“Maude didn’t seem able to show love in normal ways, Ezra, but I believe she really does love you.”
Ezra nodded slowly and met the blue eyes of the older man, gratitude shining in his gaze. “I have no doubt that she does...lo...love me, Josiah, I just wish she could be proud of me for who I am sometimes, not who she wants me to be.”
“Some people can’t see the treasure set before them, Son.” Sanchez said simply, his eyes closing as a small smile formed on the gambler’s tired face.
“Thank you, Josiah,” Standish said simply as he stood up and walked to the window, knowing these men truly believed in him and that he would not run out on them. ‘You can count on me!’ he thought as silent tears ran down his cheeks.
Josiah watched the young man through slitted eyes. He knew Ezra’s childhood was not a normal one and that he’d hardly known his mother until after he’d joined Larabee’s team at The Firm. As a member of the team he’d found out what it meant to have family who cared for you and this seemed to make Maude see the true worth of her son. She returned several times and tried to get him to tour the world with her, but Ezra Standish was a changed man. He still loved gambling, and a good con, but it was not his focal point in life anymore.
Josiah smiled as he remembered the argument between Chris and Maude over her blackmailing her son into joining her. Chris sat back through the whole episode until Maude started in with guilt tactics, telling Ezra she needed him to be with her. Larabee stood up and went face to face with the woman, telling her if Ezra was so important to her then she would let him choose where he wanted to be and who he wanted to be with. The scene played out in his tired mind and he smiled in spite of his own exhaustion.
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