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Strip 'n Dales |
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It was business as usual the rest of the week. Chris called in to the office everyday to get a progress report on the mission. And he called Vin every night at the apartment to check on him."Everything's fine Chris, really," Vin assured the older man when he called again on Friday night, about a half hour before Vin was due to leave for the strip club.
"Okay Vin. Just make sure you have Josiah walk you to your car after the show. Don't want to take any chances."
"Aw Chris, I can take care of myself. I've got a black belt for pete's sake," Vin protested.
"I don't care Vin!" Chris barked. "Don't fight me on this one. Have Josiah walk you to your car," he growled.
"Okay, okay," Vin relented. "I'll make sure he does. Happy now?"
"Nope, not 'til I'm home with you," Chris answered. "Guess it's time for you to get going, huh?"
Vin looked at the clock and reluctantly agreed. "Yep. Gotta go."
"I'll call you tomorrow night around this time, okay?"
"Yeah. I miss ya Chris."
"Miss you too Vin. I'll talk to you tomorrow night. Love ya."
"Me too," Vin said, and hung up the receiver with a sigh.
+ + + + + + +
Vin drove to the club feeling a little down. Chris had been only gone since Wednesday afternoon, but to Vin it felt like he'd been gone for a lot longer than that. He realized with a start just how much time he and Chris spent together. They saw each other everyday during the week, they spend the entire weekend together, and managed to see each other several times at night during the week. And now Vin wasn't with Chris at all. 'Come on Sunday,' he said to himself wistfully as he pulled into the club's parking lot. He was early, and didn't see any other cars in the lot. So far so good with his plan. He'd hoped to be able to snoop around a little bit before any of the others arrived. He slipped into the back door and headed for the dressing room on silent feet.
He looked around the quiet room quickly. No one was around. 'Good,' he smiled to himself and started prowling around the dressing tables and behind the mirrors. Jessie's area didn't have anything unusual, and he didn't bother checking Buck's or his. He could do those anytime, and was pretty sure there'd be nothing on or around them anyway. That left Adam's area. Looking around one more time, satisfied that he was still alone, he opened the middle drawer. Nothing but tubes and bottles of various lotions and make-up. 'Damn!'
He eased the top left hand drawer open. More lotions and creams. 'Jeesh, does this guy think he's a beauty queen or what?' Vin thought to himself with disgust. Then his ran his hand along the bottom of the drawer. Still nothing. He moved onto the next drawer, rifling through the papers he found in it. There were photos of Adam performing on-stage, letters from fans and several contracts, none of which were incriminating. Then he felt the bottom of the drawer. "Bingo!" Vin whispered elatedly when his fingers came in contact with the paper secured to the bottom. He started to gently peel the paper away from the wood.
"What the hell are you doing!"
'Fuck!' he screamed to himself.
"Lookin' for my brush, asshole!" he screamed back, recovering quickly and figuring the best defense was a good offense. "You took it, didn't you Adam?"
"I didn't take your God-damned brush. Get away from my stuff!" Adam yelled, charging at Vin, and shoving him hard.
Vin fell away from the desk, as Adam, who outweighed Vin by a good 50 pounds, crashed into him. Both men hit the couch several feet away. Before Vin could recover, Adam punched him in the stomach and Vin staggered back again, gasping for air.
"Gentlemen! Gentlemen!" a sharp voice sounded in the doorway. "What is the meaning of this!"
"He was going through my stuff, Frank!" Adam said angrily, pushing Vin.
"Was not!" Vin shouted back, returning the shove. "I was just lookin' for my brush!"
The two men started going at each other again, and Frank stepped forward. "Adam! Leave Vincent alone! That's enough!"
Adam put down his fists and backed away from Vin. "But Frank..." he wheedled.
"Quiet Adam!" Frank barked, cutting him off. "Sit down." He turned to Vin. "Vincent, did you find your brush with Adam's things?" he asked gently.
Vin looked at Frank, noticing the different tone he used with him. 'Maybe I can play this to my advantage,' he thought to himself quickly. "No, Frank, I didn't," Vin said, giving the man what he hoped was a wide-eyed innocent look. "But it's not on my dressing table and I know I left it there last night. And now my hair's not gonna be right!" He said, trying to look and sound upset.
"It's all right Vincent," Frank said soothingly. "We'll get you another brush. I'll send Inez to get you one when she comes in."
"Thanks Frank," Vin said, flashing the older man his best smile, as he fumed on the inside at getting caught before he could look at the paper taped underneath the drawer.
"So is everything cooled down in here then?" Frank asked, looking at Adam and Vin.
Adam nodded moodily, glaring at Vin. "Everything's just fine Frank."
Vin also nodded and stripped off his shirt. Frank's eyes were immediately drawn to the sharpshooter's bare chest. "I'm gonna go use the tanning bed for a while, if that's okay Frank?" Vin asked.
"You go right on ahead Vincent. Gotta keep you looking good for the fans," he said in a voice dripping with honey, disappointed when Vin kept his jeans on and headed for tone of the tiny rooms where the tanning beds were kept. "Remember Vincent, we like the look of a full body tan here at Strip 'n Dales."
"Sure thing Frank," Vin said, as he shut the door and then slipping off his jeans. He turned the timer on and the bulbs glowed to life. He slid into the tanning bed naked and settled down to think about his next move. 'Should I flirt with Frank? Is that going to help us crack this thing? He's gotta know something! And what about Adam and whatever's taped under that drawer?" The timer dinged and he threw on his jeans and stepped out. Adam was sitting at his dressing table, glaring daggers at him. Smiling brightly, he grabbed the thong from his costume and headed for the shower.
"I know what you're up to, you little twerp!" Adam hissed, following Vin into the shower. He pinned Vin up against the wall.
"I don't know what you're talkin' about!" Vin spat back, trying to break the larger man's tight hold on him.
"Leave Frank alone and stop messin' with my stuff!" Adam threatened, pushing Vin back into the wall hard, then letting him go. "Don't think you're the first to try and come between me and Frank," he sneered. "You aren't. There's been other's that've tried, but...." He stopped talking and smiled at Vin smugly.
"But what Adam? What'd you do? You're such a tough guy, ain't ya?" Vin baited.
"You don't want to find out just what a tough guy I am Vincent. Might ruin that pretty face 'a yours, then you won't have Frank or anybody else after you." Then he spun on his heel and walked out, headed straight for the pay phone in the hall. He dialed a number and talked for several minutes and hung up with a satisfied smile.
+ + + + + + +
'Damn!" Vin thought silently as he soaped himself up. 'He's gotta be involved with those killings. And maybe he and Frank are working together,' he thought to himself excitedly. He showered quickly and was relieved to see Buck had arrived.
"Bucklin!" he whispered urgently as he walked by. "Gotta talk to you about something after the show tonight." He wanted to say more, but Adam walked by just then, returning from Frank's office with a scowl on his face.
"Okay," Buck replied as Vin sat down next to him and got ready for his number.
"The high school," Vin said quietly, indicating one of the pre-arranged meeting places for this assignment.
Buck looked at Vin and nodded. "The others?" he asked.
"Not yet," Vin said.
+ + + + + + +
The evening went smoothly, with Adam completely ignoring Vin and the others. He sat at his dressing table brooding, while the other three, Vin, Buck and Jessie, counted their money after the shows ended for the night.
"Wow Buck, $250!" Jessie exclaimed. "That's huge! Wonder if I'll ever make that!"
"Stick with me kid, and you will!" Buck shouted back gleefully. "What'd you make tonight Vincent?"
"Oh, 'bout $175 or so," he replied modestly.
"Little light for ya, isn't it?" Buck said with a raised eyebrow. "You've been clearin' close to $200."
"It's cause he doesn't have his manager out there paddin' his g-string! Isn't it Vincent? What's the matter, losing your touch?" Adam sneered.
"Go to hell Adam!" Vin shouted.
"That the best you can do, skinny boy?" Adam taunted.
"I'll show you what I can do, ya big pig!" Vin yelled, flying out of his seat.
"Now just hold on a minute here!" Buck shouting, putting himself in between the two adversaries. "Vincent! Cool down. Why don't you just get on outta here? It's been a long night."
Vin looked at him knowingly and nodded. "Okay, I think I'll do that." He walked to the door and called out. "Jonathan?"
"Yes Vincent?"
"Can you walk me out to my car?"
"Be glad to, you ready to go now?" Josiah asked.
"Yep," Vin said. 'Night fellas," he said to Jessie and Buck, ignoring Adam, as he and Josiah went out to the parking lot.
Buck turned to Adam. "Why don't you just chill out for a while, pard? Maybe take a shower or something."
"You chill out!" Adam shouted back. "You're not the boss of me!"
"But I am!" Frank said, coming into the room. "You heard the man! Go take a shower!"
"I will, but at home. I'm outta here!" Adam bit out, perturbed. He couldn't believe Frank was taking Vincent's side in everything. He grabbed his things and turned to go.
"Adam," Josiah said, having witnessed the last part of the exchange, "I'll take you to your car, if you'll just wait until after I escort Vincent."
Adam glared at Josiah haughtily. "Outta my way, old man," he sneered. "I only go with Anthony." A brawny man, larger than even Josiah appeared from seemingly out of nowhere. "Let's go Anthony."
"Yessir, Mr. Adam," the large man said, leading the way to the parking lot.
Frank watched them leave, then turned to Buck. "May I have a word with you?"
"Sure Frank, what's up?"
"In my office please?"
"Okay," Buck said, following behind.
+ + + + + + +
Buck checked his watch. Again. He'd been sitting in Frank's office for fifteen minutes now, listening to the man drone on and on about his plans for the club, which included Buck as the new headliner. He decided to make yet another attempt to interrupt the manager.
"That sounds great Frank, and I'd really love to hear all about it, but I'm late to meet someone."
"Oh, I'm so terribly sorry," Frank apologized. "Go on and get, by all means, Buck. We can continue this at another time."
"Okay Frank," Buck said, scrambling out of the chair and heading for the dressing room. Adam and Jessie had both cleared out, and Buck grabbed his things and ran for the door, running into Josiah.
"Buck, hey, I'll walk you out."
"Thanks, Jo-Jonathan," Buck said hurriedly.
"What's up?" Josiah asked as Buck rushed them to his car.
"I'm late to meet Vin. He said he needed to meet me at the church, think he found somethin'."
"Ezra and I aren't off for another hour. What do you want us to do?"
"Just sit tight, I'll call if I need you guys," Buck said.
"Let us know," Josiah said, slamming the car door.
"Will do," Buck promised and peeled out of the parking lot heading for the school.
+ + + + + + +
"C'mon Buck," Vin fumed as he sat in his jeep. He drummed his hands on the steering wheel impatiently, "What the hell's takin' ya so long? Thought you were right behind me," he whispered as he looked through his windshield at the darkened streets
He'd been waiting over 20 minutes for his friend, hidden in a dark corner of the Rocky Mountain High School's deserted parking lot. He finally saw a flash of car lights coming into the lot. 'About damn time, Wilmington,' he said to himself, deciding to step outside for some fresh air and meet his friend at his car. He was halfway there when he realized it wasn't Buck's. By then, five men had piled out, headed for Vin. The sharpshooter took off at a run for his jeep, but was overtaken by the others. He was grabbed from behind and thrown roughly to the pavement.
"Hey pretty boy, how come you're runnin' from us? Don't you wanna have any fun?" one of the men taunted as he picked Vin up by his hair, then slammed his face back down into the pavement.
"Oh yeah, you boys seem like a real barrel of laughs," Vin ground out sarcastically through his clenched teeth. He received a sharp kick to the ribs for his smart comment.
"Ain't you the funny one!" another voice bellowed, followed by another swift kick in the ribcage.
Two of the men reached down and hauled Vin to his feet. He swayed in their grasp.
"Hold him tight fellas," a low voice boomed. "Not such a big man now, are ya?" the voice taunted.
Vin looked up, blood streaming down the left part of his face from a deep gash on his forehead. He tried to make out the man's features, but the blood and dim light hampered his eyesight.
"Why don't you let my arms go and then we'll see who's the big man!" Vin tossed back, fighting against the men that held him.
"Now where would be the fun in that?" the voice asked caustically, right before a meaty fist smashed into Vin's face. Vin sagged in the grasp of the two men, momentarily stunned, then he righted himself and using the two men holding him as leverage, swung his legs into the air, ramming his boots into the man's chest. He smiled, ignoring the pain from the bruises that were beginning to form, gratified to hear the man topple to the ground. "Bastard," he said softly.
The smile turned into a grimace of pain as another combatant joined in. The two men took turns bashing on Vin. When one punched his face, the other would punch his gut. They switched on and off for several minutes, until Vin was a bloody mass of cuts and bruises. The two men holding him suddenly released him, and Vin fell to the ground, hard. He lay still, too battered to even protect himself, should the men decide to start beating him again. He steeled himself for more punches, but instead, the men began to walk away.
One man stayed behind and knelt down next to Vin. He grabbed a fistful of Vin's bloody hair and pulled the lolling head up next to his. "Might be a good idea if you stopped snooping around where you ain't wanted," the disembodied voice warned. Vin squinted at the man, and tried to reply, but his thickened tongue and swollen lips refused to form any intelligible words. The man laughed harshly and threw Vin's head back down onto the asphalt.
He heard the squeal of the car's tires as it sped away from the school and knew he was alone. He thought it would be safe to try and make his way back to the jeep and call for help. He managed to roll over onto his back and almost blacked out from the intense pain flaring in his side as he landed. He stayed still, trying to catch his breath, which was coming out in short gasps. God, he hurt. His whole body felt like one big bruise. He tasted blood, closing his mouth hastily as he realized it was dripping down his face and flowing into his open mouth. 'C'mon Buck,' he said to himself, laying on the cold, hard ground. He looked up at the stars, twinkling in the night sky. "Wonder what the sky looks like in Dallas tonight?" he whispered brokenly, shivering as the wind picked up, whipping against his torn, bruised skin. He closed his eyes, dreaming that he was in his lover's warm embrace as he lost consciousness.
+ + + + + + +
Buck sped through the quiet streets, anxious to meet up with Vin, glad they were finally getting somewhere with the case. This stripping gig was wearing a little thin, and that punk Adam causing trouble every chance he got was only adding to the misery. Buck hadn't liked it one bit when Adam had hassled Vin earlier in the evening. He felt responsible for Vin, looked out for him just like he did with JD. And especially now that Chris was out of town, Buck felt that it was his duty to make sure Vin stayed out of trouble. He owed it to his oldest friend and to Vin. 'And because,' as he thought to himself with a smile, 'I think there's more than just brotherly affection between those two boys.' Buck was happy for the two men and hoped it was true. Chris had been alone for far too long and Vin had seen too much tragedy in his young life. If they made each other happy, that was all that mattered.
He rounded the corner and the school building loomed into view. "Great, only 30 minutes late," he muttered. He punched it and bounced into the lot, heading straight for Vin's jeep, the only other car in the lot at this hour. His headlights caught on a dark shape near the jeep and he slammed on the brakes, stopping the car a few feet from the object.
"What the hell..." he said, flying out of the car. He hurried over to what he now realized was a body, a very familiar body.
"Vin! Vin! Jesus Christ! What the hell happened!" he shouted, looking at Vin's bloodied, battered body.
"Vin! Vin! Can you hear me?"
Vin moaned softly and tried to turn his head toward the voice. "No..." he cried weakly.
"Vin! It's me, it's Buck. I'm just gonna check you over, make sure it's okay to move ya, all right?"
"Leave me.....alone........stop........" Vin moaned again and feebly lifted a hand, trying to push Buck away from him.
"Sshh, pard, it's all right, it's me, Vin. I ain't gonna let anything else happen to ya, promise," Buck said shaking with rage as took in the sight of the mottled bruising on Vin's face, the blood slipping down his forehead from the deep cut, and his ripped, bloodied lips. With gentle hands, he gauged the extent of Vin's injuries, relieved not to feel any broken bones. Vin was shivering from the cold, so Buck decided it would be safe enough to pick him up off the ground. He cradled the injured man gently in his arms, and slowly carried him to the TransAm. He set Vin into the leather bucket seat as easily as he could and strapped him in. He punched in Nathan's cell phone number as he headed for the hospital.
+ + + + + + +
"Buck?"
He looked over at Vin, hoping he had really heard the faint whisper and not just imagined it.
"Yeah Vin, hang in there, pard. I'm takin' you to the hospital. We'll get you fixed up, good as new."
"No. Buck...." Vin said painfully as he tried to reach out to grasp his friend's arm. "Gotta go.......back....to....club...." he struggled to say.
"No Vin, we aren't goin' to the club," Buck said sternly. "Only place your goin' is the hospital."
Vin laid back, gasping, exhausted from the effort of talking.
"Vin? You still with me?" Buck asked anxiously.
"Yeah, I'm here," Vin replied weakly, staring at Buck out of his one good eye, the other swollen shut and blackening rapidly.
"Good, let's keep it that way, huh?" And then sudden, sick feeling seized him. "Shit!" he cursed softly. "Chris!"
He dreaded calling Chris, hundreds of miles away, with this terrible news. He could well imagine the anguish his oldest friend would be going through, so far away from Vin, unable to help him and be with him when he needed him most. For a few seconds, he actually thought about not calling him, just waiting for him to arrive back in Denver on Sunday morning and finding out about Vin then. But then reality kicked back in and Buck knew Chris would want to know, would need to know as soon as possible, even if he couldn't do anything about it right away.
He nodded to himself, mind made up. "I gotta tell Chris!"
In his disoriented state, Vin panicked at the mention of his lover's name. "No Buck, no! Don't tell... Chris!" he begged. "He's...gonna be...mad at me! It's my... fault! It's all...my fault!" He started to choke and wheeze, fighting for air.
"Vin! Vin! Settle down, pard! Chris isn't gonna be mad at you!" Buck soothed, mentally kicking himself for alarming the younger man.
Vin was still gasping and struggling to breathe. Buck refused to panic, forcing himself to speak in a slow, easy manner, hoping it would relax Vin. "Try to slow it down, Vin. Just calm down, okay?"
"Chris......gonna be mad.............told me.....be..careful....," Vin gasped out.
"He isn't gonna be mad, Vin," Buck repeated, trying to quiet the younger man. "Just close your eyes and rest, okay. I'll take care of things. It'll be all right, I promise." He patted the injured man lightly on the leg. "Ol' Buck ever lie to you?"
"No," Vin croaked out.
"See then, there's nothin' to get all riled up about," Buck said, winking at Vin, trying to look like his usual, carefree self, when inside he felt like punching a wall. Every time he looked over at Vin's bruised face he felt his insides twist and churn from the guilt. Whoever had done this had worked the sharpshooter over good. And Buck hadn't been there to help him. 'Jesus, Jesus, Jesus!' he screamed over and over in his head. 'Why wasn't I there! Why did I have to be late!' He looked over at Vin again. The younger man seemed to be asleep or at least resting a little easier than he had been before, and for that,
Buck was grateful. He could finally see the outline of the all too familiar hospital building, lit up like a beacon. It was a beautiful sight for the worried man.
"Almost there Vin, hang on."
Not wanting to add to Vin's torment by jarring him around needlessly, he carefully pulled into the lot, and
eased his car close to the entrance. He got out and flagged down an orderly pushing an empty gurney.
"Can you help me? My friend's in the car and he's been hurt bad."
"Okay," the orderly said and Buck led him to the car.
They gently lifted Vin out of the seat and got him onto the gurney with minimal jostling.
"You're going to have to move your car, sir," the orderly said.
"But, I can't leave him," Buck protested.
"It'll take a few minutes to get him settled," the man replied. "Move your car and come in and ask for me. I'm Michael."
"Okay," Buck said, already headed for the driver's side.
+ + + + + + +
Buck teetered on the edge of the black, fake leather chair, one of seemingly hundreds, lined up against the wall in the hospital's emergency room waiting area. He rifled his hands through his hair, causing it to stand on end. His wild appearance kept people a far distance from him, which was just as well with Buck. He wasn't in the mood to make small talk.
He stared over at the bank of pay phones on the far wall. They beckoned to him, but he fought their seduction, refusing to give in just yet. There was nothing any of the other men could do right now anyhow, except worry and wait and it would be selfish of him to call anybody right now, before he had any news about Vin's condition. He was glad he hadn't been able to get through to Nathan, when he had tried to reach him on the way to the hospital. He looked to the phones again. He could just call the rest of the seven, let them share in his burden of guilt, and ease the ache in his heart. But he had caused this and he alone would sit and wait for word on Vin. Anyway, he remembered, Nathan and JD were stuck in the surveillance van, Ezra and Josiah, till working at the club and Chris was most likely asleep at his hotel in Dallas. He settled back into the uncomfortable chair to wait for word on his friend.
+ + + + + + +
'Shit,' he cursed inwardly as he scrubbed his hand across his clenched jaw. 'three a.m. I been sitting here for an hour and no word.' He stood up and reluctantly made his way to the row of phones. 'Can't put it off any longer. Better call Chris and get this over with.' Coin poised, hand on the receiver, he jumped when he heard his name being called.
"Yeah, I'm Wilmington," he boomed, striding quickly over to the swinging doors.
"I'm Doctor Kelly," a very capable looking physician stated, extending his hand for Buck to shake.
"Buck Wilmington, doc. How's my friend?"
Doctor Kelly sighed. "Well, he seems very upset for one thing. Who's Chris?"
"Someone very close to him, and he's out of town," Buck hedged.
"I see. Well he seems very agitated about Chris. Thinks he's upset with him about something. We've given him a very mild sedative, which should calm him down somewhat, but with his injuries, I'm not comfortable with anything stronger than that."
"And his injuries are?" Buck prompted.
"Nothing too serious, thankfully. A few cracked ribs, mild concussion, and very severe bruising to his face and upper torso, as you not doubt noticed from bringing him in."
Buck nodded.
"He was beaten up I understand?"
"Yep," Buck said, lowering his voice. "We're ATF agents on a case. Think it had something to do with that."
"I see," Dr. Kelly replied. "I was aware of Mr. Tanner's occupation, it was noted in his file. I'm sorry your current assignment is so dangerous for this to happen, though. He definitely shouldn't be back on duty for some time."
"What happens now, doc?"
"I want him to stay overnight for observation. With a head injury, that's always a good idea." He continued quickly at Buck's frown. "Not that I think there will be any complications, but strictly as a precautionary measure. We'll do another x-ray of his ribs tomorrow, as well, after the swelling has gone down a little. After he's released tomorrow, I'd like to see him again in a few days for a follow up. We'll be able to get a better idea of his recovery time then. But for now, I can tell you that he'll be very sore for a while and I'd recommend he take it very easy for two to three weeks."
"Can I see him?"
"Sure, I'll take you in. Not too long though. And you can pick him up in the afternoon tomorrow, unless you hear otherwise. Should be ready to go around 2 or so." He motioned for Buck to follow him, into the examination rooms.
Buck's eyes lit on Vin's sleeping form immediately. He winced at Vin's face, now a menagerie of distorted, puffy features, intermingled with reddish-purple cuts and bruises. A nurse sat at his side, sponging off dried blood from his hair, patting his hand gently when he moaned and shifted restlessly in his sleep.
Buck stepped up to the bed quietly. "How's he doin'?" he whispered to the nurse.
"He's going to be just fine," she reassured with a kind smile. "Just getting him cleaned up a bit It'll make him more comfortable."
"Thank you," Buck said, grateful that Vin was receiving such good care.
He watched the somber scene for a few more minutes, wishing he could do something to help ease Vin's suffering. Lost in thought, he didn't notice that the doctor was speaking to him.
"Mr. Wilmington?" he said, tapping Buck on the shoulder.
"Huh?"
"I said I think you should go now. Go home and get some rest."
"No, I need to stay..."
"There's really no need. He'll be fine here. You can come back tomorrow, he'll be in a regular room then and you can visit with him until it's time for him to be checked out."
He led Buck to the door. "We'll see you tomorrow, Mr. Wilmington," he said firmly.
Buck stood stubbornly at the doors, peering back at Vin. Then he looked at the doctor's set face and crossed arms. He knew he had lost. "Okay doc, I'll go. But I'll be back early tomorrow," he persisted.
"That's fine, Mr. Wilmington," the doctor said. "I know how worried you must be about Mr. Tanner, but I assure you, he'll be just fine. Now get some rest and we'll take care of Mr. Tanner."
+ + + + + + +
Buck stared at the phones again as he walked out of the exam room. "Time to make the call," he mumbled to himself.
He dug the hotel's phone number out of his wallet and dialed it, noticing how sweaty his palms had become at the thought of calling Chris and delivering the news about Vin to him. But at least he would be able to tell Chris that Vin was going to be okay.
He took a deep breath as his called was transferred to Chris's room. He glanced at the clock. It was 4:30am in Dallas. Chris wasn't going to like this at all.
"H'llo?" a groggy voice answered.
"Chris..." Buck began.
"Buck!" Chris's voice instantly became alert. "What's wrong? What happened?" he fired off the questions rapidly.
"It's Vin, Chris he..."
"God no, Vin!" Chris screamed frantically into the receiver. "How is he?"
"He's going to be okay Chris, they're keeping him at the hospital overnight for observation and I...."
"Hospital!" Chris bellowed. "What the hell happened!"
"That's what I'm trying to tell ya pard!" Buck yelled back in frustration. "But you keep interrupting me!"
"Sorry Buck," Chris said, lowering his voice to a more normal tone and taking deep breaths to settle himself down.
"That's better pard, just calm down," Buck replied.
He filled Chris in on the beating and Vin's condition.
"I'm catching the first plane I can out of here," Chris stated flatly, as soon as Buck finished explaining the chain of events. "The meeting is over early tomorrow...well, today, anyway and I was planning on coming home early to surprise Vin." He paused as he realized what he had just said to Buck. "I mean..."
"It's okay, pard, I know. I've thought something's been going on with you and Vin for a while now. I'm glad for you guys, honest."
"Thanks Buck," Chris said, relieved. "But just do me a favor, huh? Don't say anything to Vin just yet. I'm not sure he's ready for all of you to know yet."
"Sure thing Chris. I'll keep it quiet."
"All right Buck. Here's the deal. I'm going to check flights, get a shower and check out of here. I'll call you back soon as I get a flight. My car's at the airport, so I'll come straight to the hospital. You have your cell phone?"
"Yeah Chris, it's recharging right now, just call me when you find out. Oh and Chris..."
"Yeah?"
"Doc kicked me out, making me go home. I wanna stay with Vin, but..."
Chris closed his eyes, picturing Vin, laying alone and injured in a hospital bed. The guilt consuming him made him feel physically ill. He swallowed the bile rising up, burning the back of his throat.
"It's okay Buck," he lied. "Just go on home." 'What the hell am I doing here? I should be there with Vin!'
he wanted to scream in frustration.
"You're sure?"
"Yeah Buck, thanks for finding him."
"Chris, I should have been there with him. Hell, if I'd been there, this never woulda happened."
Chris felt his whole body begin to shake. 'What had Buck just said? He'd left Vin alone, to fend for himself?' He clenched the phone in a death grip. "Buck, we'll talk about this later. Right now, I've got to find a flight home."
+ + + + + + +
"Dammit!" Chris shouted in helpless rage as he hung up the phone. "What the hell am I doin' stuck in Dallas and Vin's hurt! Why? Why? Why?" He tore open his carryon bag, rifling through the contents until he found his airline ticket. He yanked the phone over and dialed the number for the airline.
"Need to change my flight," he demanded gruffly of the airline employee, rattling off his flight information.
"That will be a $50 charge, sir, your ticket is non-refundable, with no changes to be made without penalty.
"I don't care about the charge, I just need the first available flight back to Denver, please," he said tersely.
"The earliest I have available is departing at 11:10am, arriving in Denver at 12:08pm."
"No earlier flights I can get on?"
"I'm sorry sir, the others flights are sold out. That's the earliest."
"I'll take it."
+ + + + + + +
He hung up and looked at the clock, mocking him from its position on the bedside stand, its red, digital numbers showing the time. 4:45am. Which meant it was 3:45am in Denver. 'What's Vin doing right now?' he asked himself. 'Is he sleepin'? Lyin' there wondering where the hell I am and why I'm not there with him? Is he hurting?' He tortured himself with those thoughts for several more minutes as he walked in tight circles around the hotel room. Finally he stopped and looked at the bed. 'What the hell am I gonna do for six hours? Sleep?' He laughed bitterly. "Yeah, right," he muttered sarcastically. "Vin's hurt, in the hospital, and I'm gonna take a nap? Sure Larabee."
He walked over to the mirror, hanging above the dresser and stared at himself, watching as his hands clenched and unclenched unconsciously as he thought about what had happened to Vin. He replayed the scene over and over in his head, as he imagined it had happened, based on Buck's description.
"It was that God damned bastard Adam! Had to be!" he spat out at his reflection. "I'm gonna fuckin' kill that son-of-a-bitch!"
He began to pace the room once again. 'What the hell am I gonna do 'til I can get outta here?' he shouted over and over in his head, wanting nothing more than to fly home and rip Adam and his accomplices from limb to limb for hurting Vin.
And then it came to him.
Vin.
He knew how he could help Vin, right now, until he could be with him back home.
Vin lived in Dallas before he came to Denver.
He worked on the Dallas police force before he had moved to Denver. And Chris remembered the terrible story Vin had told him a few months ago, that his former lover, friend and former employer had been killed and Vin had discovered the bodies. The case was still unsolved. He'd go down to the police station, try to get a look at the old information on the unsolved murders. Chris knew the district Vin had worked for, they had discussed his time with the Dallas police department at great length.
Maybe he could shed some light on the investigation. At the very least, it would make him feel close to Vin, at a time when he wanted so badly to be near him, but couldn't. "At least not until that damned 11:10 flight," he thought to himself moodily. And, as he remembered from his own days on the Denver police force, this time of night, Dallas's finest were either busy as hell or dead as a doornail. Either way, he figured they'd welcome the company and the distraction. He headed for the bathroom to take a long, hot, shower. Then he'd find Vin's old precinct house.
+ + + + + + +
He whipped through the mostly empty streets on south Dallas, heading toward District 11, where Vin had worked. He'd checked out of the hotel and carried his baggage with him, thinking to head straight for the airport from the police station.
He pulled up to the station house. It was as he suspected, looked like a typical early morning scene. He reached for his wallet, readying his ATF badge for display and exited the car.
He trotted up the walkway to the steps and looked around. 'Vin worked here, walked up these same steps,' he told himself. It comforted him to be walking in his lover's footsteps, gave him a connection to Vin that he needed right now. He shook himself and hurried to go inside.
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