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	A Subject of Torture

by pfps

Several hours later his arms burned. Fire raced up and down his forearms and struck deep within his shoulders. He grunted with determination, and his lips rolled inward against his teeth. Buck shifted his hands, trying to find a more comfortable position for the heavy weight. There was no danger of dropping the anvil; it had been tied securely and the rope looped around his wrists. The heat from his palms bled into the iron; it felt warm against his skin. He peered between his arms at JD.

The young man's chin hung to his chest. Dark hair curtained his features from view. His chest swelled with each breath, the fine-boned rib cage showing in exaggerated form beneath fair skin. The softly curved torso tapered to narrow hips and a concave belly. His muscles quivered, the flesh was blood splattered and discolored with bruises. The gouged hole of his navel undulated with his breathing.

Buck grimaced in sympathy. The muscles that ran along the undersides of his arms ached with strain and seemed to connect all the way down to his belly, centering in his navel. He glanced to the side. Set and Loki were gathering wood, preparing to build a fire against the coming night's coolness. Apparently they were determined to stay around and watch them die. Anger kindled low and dangerous in Buck's gut. It stirred his stubborn will to live, fortified his desire to survive until either help came or he figured out a way to get himself and JD out of this mess.

In all the things he'd seen -- in war and man's madness through sickness and insanity, he'd never seen anything as vile and evil as what had been done to he and JD. Why a man would want to hurt another man just to measure their reactions, or want to see another man die just so they could study their insides went beyond anything he could hope to understand. Then again, he didn't want to understand it. If he ever got near that kind of madness he hoped someone would just take a gun to his head. To exist just to cause pain, for the pleasure of suffering, was not human.

A soft sound from JD turned his head. The young man lifted his chin and blinked his eyes owlishly as if he were trying to stay awake.

"You gettin' sleepy on me over there, kid?" The light tone he'd aimed for came out flat and strained.

The corners of JD's lips twitched in an almost smile. He turned limpid eyes to Buck. "Talk to me, Buck. I can -- hardly keep my -- eyes open and I -- I don't think now's a good time for -- for a nap."

Buck swallowed hard against the fear that rose in his throat. "Listen to me, JD. You gotta listen, now." He licked his lips, watched JD's eyes roll closed then open again with an obvious effort. "Don't go passin' out on me, okay?"

Despite his plea, JD's eyes slowly rolled back and closed. His head sagged back, the hemp tightened around his arched throat. Between one heartbeat and the next, his knees buckled. A strangled gasp squeezed out of his open mouth.

"No, dammit!" Buck pulled down desperately on the anvil, watching carefully as JD's feet nearly left the ground, then raised it quickly as far as his arms would reach. JD's heels hit the ground solidly and his head bounced on his neck. "Wake up!"

He turned pleadingly to his captors. "Help, please! He'll choke to death!" They moved maddeningly slow from the new fire.

Loki walked to stand close but didn't move to help. "That's the point of the exercise, Subject One."

Buck kicked out viciously with one foot. He nearly lost his balance and lowered his arms to regain his feet. He heard that same awful gurgling sound from JD. "Do something!" His hoarse shout echoed through the small thicket, a blast of sound that startled Loki. The man took one step back.

"No."

A huge ball of rage and fear burgeoned in his gut and rushed through his chest. He was right here, dammit! How could he be right here, less than three feet away from JD and be unable to do anything to keep him from dying? The pure insanity of it all tore through him, and if he'd been free at that moment, he'd have ripped Loki's heart from his chest. He knew beyond any question in his mind that no matter what was asked of him tonight, he'd give it to save JD.

A nearly inaudible gasp brushed against his ears. He turned to JD and his muscles locked in place. The kid's eyes were open. His mouth gaped open; his lips were slack and quivering. Tears beaded on his lashes and ran glistening down his face and neck.

Relief replaced the rage so quickly Buck almost exploded. He couldn't speak, couldn't say a word. He smiled at his friend, his face hurting from the grin he knew stretched wide enough to show every tooth in his mouth. He watched JD's eyes drift away from him to a point beyond his shoulder and knew Loki was approaching. Buck winked once, then turned to face his enemy, a deadly glare drawing his eyebrows close together.

He registered the object in the man's hand, but didn't pull his stare from Loki's face.

"Despite the fact that you could probably last most of the night without allowing the anvil to fall," Loki stepped closer warily, "it's time to draw this little experiment to an end."

Buck's eyes were unwillingly drawn to the man's hand. He held what appeared to be a knife. But instead of a blade, a thick spike protruded from the handle. It tapered to a blunt point about the size of the tip of Buck's little finger.

"Buck, behind --"

JD's warning came just before hands gripped his knees. Buck struggled and looked down. Set knelt behind him, twining rope quickly around his ankles, tying them together so he couldn't kick out. It was over quickly, his legs effectively bound. He growled and lifted his head. "Bastards! Why don't you be a real man and --"

His words cut off in his throat when Loki stepped forward and thrust the tip of the rod into his belly, straight through his navel. Agony exploded through his gut. He pulled inward, his shoulders curled closed. Loki's hand pressed against his chest, anchoring himself so he could shove the thing in harder, forcing it deeper into his gut. His jaw locked open and he instinctively tried to bring his arms down to protect himself. A choking cry from JD brought him back, and he knew they stood on the edge of JD's death.

" -- Stop --" The word strained hoarsely out of his mouth. Muscles through his body slowly turned to liquid and he felt his strength running out of him through his toes and into the ground. Loki smiled and his body heaved when he rammed his weapon harder into Buck's resisting flesh. A grunt gushed out of Buck, hot and thick as blood. Air left his lungs and emptied him dry. He couldn't breathe -- darkness swirled and eddied on the edge of his vision like leaves in a stream.

He couldn't feel his fingers any more, couldn't feel the anvil in his hands. But he stretched his arms higher, pushed the weight into the sky, elongating his torso, forcing his frame tight and arching against his attacker. He closed his eyes and felt the tip of the spike digging into his taut abdomen, felt it probe him and try to cleave him in two, felt it begin to tear through muscle and penetrate his body deeper.

The air changed. He couldn't risk drawing his concentration away to delve into the change, but he let it drift through him and felt a smile curve his lips. The sound of hope tingled against his ears. He thought he felt the spike leave his body, but the pain remained and seemed to intensify. He held on, keeping death away, refusing to let it touch JD. The rough pinch of rope around his legs and hands and wrists evaporated, but still he held death high. And then suddenly, that was gone, too. He felt his arms being lowered, felt his body cradled as gently as in a mother's arms. Something soft and warm enveloped him, protected him from cold, but he resisted the comfort and reached for something he couldn't find.

A hand touched him, brushed across his side. Words whispered warm in his ear. He didn't understand them, but he recognized the voice -- JD. Relief melted his bones and he surrendered to the warm darkness calling him down.

Part 10

Vin held his hand up. Chris dismounted, trusting the tracker had found who they were looking for. They'd backtracked JD's horse to a huge old house, its sprawling floors and spaces empty save for one room that held contraptions and things they had no idea what were used for. Bloody shackles and instruments had him fearing the worst. Someone had been tortured in that room. JD's and Buck's shirts had been found and his fear had compounded until it was nearly suffocating. Josiah had ridden back for Nathan and Ezra, and now the five of them gathered quietly in the dark, waiting for Vin's signal to move forward.

Night settled dark as pitch around them. An eerie glow from a distant fire provided the only light for miles; it pulsated and danced with flames that were hidden from their eyes by the surrounding foliage. Without warning, Vin slid through the bushes and joined them. Moonlight flashed white across his face, showing grim lines etched along either side of his mouth. He squatted low and peered up at Chris.

"There's two of 'em and they got Buck 'n JD. If we don't move now they're dead." His words bit off deadly sharp and brittle.

"Any weapons?" Chris pulled his pistol from the holster at his hip and deftly thumbed the hammer back. His gaze lifted and his eyes narrowed as he peered through the trees.

"One of 'em has something he's usin' on Buck. He's --" Vin broke off and snapped his head to Nathan. "They're both hurt, Nathan. They got 'em tied off some way with ropes, connected in a way I couldn't get close enough to see. We need to move. Now."

He turned on his heel, obviously trusting the others to follow, and disappeared back into the bushes as easily as walking through a door. Chris and the others followed, less quietly, but equally deadly.

Chris could barely make out Vin's back, dappled with shadow and blending with the moonlight. They drew closer to the camp.

Abruptly, the underbrush thinned, revealing an open thicket with the campfire at its center. For a moment, Chris held still as disbelieve froze his bones and cemented his tongue to the roof of his mouth. Firelight illuminated the men, marbling off Buck's sweaty torso and slashing blue highlights in JD's dark hair. The two stood close, the rope around JD's neck clearly connected in some way to Buck's wrists and the anvil he held in his hands. A man about the same height as Buck stood facing him, his arm locked into pushing something into Buck's body. It looked like a knife, but no blood gushed from the wound.

It all exploded around them. Vin sprang into the open and fired his mare's leg into the air. The next moment he'd rushed across the clearing and clamped a hand on the back of Buck's attacker. He swung him around to face him and slammed the butt of his gun across the man's temple. Chris knew Nathan rushed past him, heard Ezra's normally placid voice raised in anger and saw the two converge on JD. The kid's head hung back, his arms were apparently bound behind him; bruises colored his chest and spread down onto his bloody abdomen in a way that looked far too fatal and made Chris' heart clench in his chest.

Another man tried to back away. His eyes stayed on Chris, wide and scared, and he backpedaled without looking where he was going. Chris caught up to him easily. He grabbed the front of his coat and jerked him close, then stuck the end of his gun hard into the man's chest. A painful grunt brought a brief flare of satisfaction to his hurting soul, and Chris grinned. "You gotta lot to answer for, mister." He pushed him around and slung him toward the fire, unconcerned when the stranger fell with a strangled cry and rolled to a stop next to his partner. Vin stood over them, his legs planted like roots in the ground, his gun pointed menacingly at their heads, his face infused with a dangerously calm rage.

"How're they doin'?" Without taking his eyes off the captors, Chris called over his shoulder to Nathan.

"Gettin' 'em down now."

He turned, knowing Vin wouldn't let the men get away, and watched as Josiah cut through the last strand of rope holding his friends. Buck's knees collapsed, but his arms remained straight over his head, locked into place. That reaction reached deep inside and touched something raw in Chris, whispered a message that he needed to see better to understand. He moved closer, frowning.

"Buck?" Unwilling to reholster his gun just yet, Chris rested on one knee beside his friend. He reached to touch him, then stopped when Josiah carefully lowered JD next to him on his side. The big man worked with a knife behind the young man, cutting the rope around JD's neck and the ones that bound his arms. When they snapped, he gently pulled JD's arms to his sides, and guided him to his back. JD's eyes didn't open, but he moved restlessly against the ground.

"What the hell?"

Glancing up with Nathan's question, Chris followed the healer's frown to Buck's abdomen. Crusted blood and bruises mottled the man's skin. Nathan's fingers probed gently and carefully, but Buck didn't react.

"Cut these ropes off," Chris said, then held out his hand for the knife. Josiah handed it to him, and then Chris cut the ropes that held the anvil to Buck's hands. He tried to resettle his friend, but Buck refused to let go of the heavy weight. It lay on the ground over his head, his fingers locked in place around the object.

"You can let go, Buck."

Nathan shook his head. "He's out, Chris, he don't hear 'ya." He looked at Chris, his eyes sad and haunted. "They had 'em set so if Buck lowered his arms, he'd hang JD."

Chris didn't comment but he twisted his neck to look behind him at the two men they'd caught. Vin still stood over them, his attention unwavering. Chris turned back to his friend.

He bent over Buck, intending to try and get through to him, but before he could, JD moved. The young man's arm slid just a few inches and touched Buck's side. "Buck." His eyes fluttered, but didn't open. His voice was hoarse and Chris doubted anyone heard the name but him. But abruptly, Buck let go of the anvil. His arms relaxed and slid down to his sides. His head rolled slowly to the side and a deep breath blew out of his mouth.

"Nathan?"

The healer shook his head. "I don't know, Chris. I guess he finally just figured out he could let go." He gestured with his chin toward the fire. "We need to move 'em to the light so I can see what to do for 'em."

Chris nodded. He rose to his feet and passed his gaze from Ezra to Josiah. "You two help him. I got a few questions I want answered." Turning so quickly his coattails snapped around his legs, he walked to the fire, his eyes pointed like arrows to the two men on the ground.

+ + + + + + +

"Get under his shoulders, Josiah; Ezra, you get his legs." Nathan watched as the two men lifted Buck. The man hung loose-jointed between them, his head lolled back on his neck. They carried Buck closer to the fire. Vin had unrolled blankets and bedrolls close enough to the heat for comfort and light. Josiah and Ezra gently placed Buck on the blankets, then headed back for JD. Nathan joined them as they moved back to the fire and placed JD near Buck.

He knelt beside Buck and reached for the few instruments he'd brought with him. A pot of water sat on a large rock near the fire. Nathan acknowledged it gratefully without asking who'd filled it for him. He unrolled one of his pouches and carefully measured a generous amount of willow bark from the sack, then added it to the water. Reaching for one of the cloths he'd unpacked, he turned to look for a canteen when one was handed to him. He glanced up at Josiah and nodded his thanks. He poured water on the cloth to wet it, then gently dabbed Buck's abdomen, carefully washing away some of the blood. The only wound he could see seemed to be dead center of his navel, and he frowned with dismay.

"Josiah, can you start on JD while I'm doin' this?" He heard him move in beside him and knew he'd take care of the young man. Selecting his probe from his small pile of things, he inserted the blunt tip carefully into Buck's wound. Buck shifted on the ground with the penetration, his hips rolled from side to side, but he didn't cry out or waken. The end of the probe met resistance and Nathan breathed a sigh of relief. He withdrew the instrument and concentrated on cleaning the wound.

"How is he?"

Chris stood near, his dark form a shadow barely seen even in the firelight.

"Far as I can tell whatever they hurt him with didn't go deep enough to tear anything inside." Nathan shrugged without looking up. "He should be all right s'long as there's no infection."

He looked up in time to see Chris nod.

"And JD?"

Ezra shifted in beside him and touched Nathan's wrist, an offer to take over Buck's bandages. Nathan accepted and maneuvered on his knees to JD. The young man lay still, his features were slack with unconsciousness. Like Buck, bruises lay dark against his torso. Josiah had finished cleaning away most of the dirt and blood so that Nathan could see the wound better. He wiped the probe off with a clean cloth, then spread his fingers against JD's abdomen, gently pulling apart the lips of the wound, before slowly inserting the probe.

Tension tightened JD's frame and his head moved restlessly from side to side on the ground. Josiah moved around to JD's head and pressed both hands to his shoulders, holding JD still against the bedroll. Nathan felt the instrument go deeper before meeting resistance. He took a mental measurement of the depth, comparing it with Buck's and realized JD's wound penetrated deeper. Still, he didn't think any organs had been punctured, or at least that's what he hoped. He withdrew the probe and gently cleaned away the blood he'd smeared across JD's belly.

"I think he'll live too, Chris." He sat back on his heels and looked up at Chris. "Looks like JD might be hurt worse -- hell, they both been through some kind of torture judging by the looks 'a things -- but I think they'll make it."

Chris' chin lowered once in a quick nod. He turned silently and stalked to the two men held near the fire. Nathan saw him stop and plant both hands on his hips, the outline of his form silhouetted in yellow light from the fire. The expressions he could see on the two men they'd captured reflected fear. Revenge sat heavy in his own heart and he knew Chris felt the same. Their friends had been hurt for no reason he could see -- nothing would excuse what had been done to them. Now it was time to pay. He did nothing to hide the grim smile curving his lips. He turned to JD and gestured for Josiah to lift him, then began wrapping a bandage around his torso.

+ + + + + + +

Vin watched Chris turn to the men they held captive on the ground. He resettled his gun against his hip, adjusting his finger tighter on the trigger. The image of that rope around JD's neck, threaded over the branch and tied to Buck's hands with a weight between their grips heavy enough to force a healthy man to struggle to keep it overhead, flashed against his eyelids every time he blinked. He'd killed men in his life, sometimes because he didn't have a choice, sometimes because they had a price on their head and he was paid to do the job; but he never felt the need -- the compulsion -- to kill like he did now. Buck and JD weren't evil. Whatever reason these two men had for doing the things they had couldn't be enough to excuse their actions. And it could have so easily gone the other way. If JD's horse hadn't come back to town so soon after losing its rider; if their shirts hadn't been at that house; if they'd arrived just a minute later than they had -- they'd have lost their friends. Vin's hands tightened reflexively on his gun and with an effort of will, he focused on Chris. Wouldn't do to let his emotions get away with him and kill these two bastards before they got any information. Wouldn't do at all.

"Who are you?"

Chris' question snapped through the air, dry and brittle as desert wind. Neither man cringed, but sat staring up at him as if waiting for permission to leave.

Finally, one of them nodded his head toward his partner without taking his eyes off Chris. "He's Set. I'm Loki."

Josiah's head came up. Vin watched him carefully lower JD back to the blanket, then rise to his feet and join Chris. "Those names sound familiar."

"Josiah?" Chris turned to him, his eyebrows raised in question. "You know these two?"

"No, but I'm well acquainted with their name sakes." He must have sensed the impatience tightening in Chris. "Both are names for the Devil."

Chris' head swiveled back around to glare at their captives. "The Devil. Well hell, he and I are old friends." He stepped closer, pulling his gun from his holster. "And he ain't never mentioned you two."

The one named Loki raised his hands, palm out. "Now wait a minute, mister, you don't know what you're doing."

Chris moved quickly, but Vin was prepared for it. He'd seen the muscles cord in Chris' neck, knew he was about to do something. Chris sprang at Loki, shoved him hard against the ground and pinned him there with his gun barrel digging into his gut, his forearm pressed against the man's throat. Vin grabbed the other man, clamped fingers tight to his shoulder and dragged him clear, his own gun held to the man's head.

"I know exactly what I'm doin', mister," Chris' lips curled in against his teeth. "I'm makin' you pay for what you did to my friends."

Vin felt Set tremble in his hold and a groan worked out of the man's throat. Vin shook him hard and ignored the eyes that turned up to look at him.

"We did nothing wrong. We were simply scientists conducting an experiment on the subject of endurance."

"You mean on the subject of torture." Nathan stood from his position near JD. The young man groaned; his legs shifted on the ground and he brought one hand up to rest against the wrappings around his belly. Nathan's face darkened. "There are other ways to test a man's endurance -- you don't need to poke holes in their bellies and beat 'em to death." He stepped closer to the fire. "You're no more scientists than I am. You're just evil."

Abruptly, Set ripped from Vin's grasp. He surged from the ground and locked his fingers around Vin's gun and tried to twist it from his hands. Vin struggled against him, wrestling for the weapon, unaware of the desperate shouts shattering through the air. He jacked his knee into the man's gut. Set doubled over with a loud grunt of air and Vin jerked the gun from him. He swung it, but missed the man's head by inches.

A gunshot blasted through the night. Vin turned and saw Loki's body convulse, then fall against a tree, a knife slipping from his grasp before he slumped over and collapsed to the ground, his middle wet with blood. Josiah rushed by him in a whirl of color. Reflex had the gun resettled in his hands and his feet running before he even thought it. Vin crashed into the woods behind Josiah, the brief thought of how crazy these men were to make a move like this drifting through his mind before everything shut down except the need to keep Josiah in his line of sight.

A gunblast exploded in yellow light just ahead. Vin's chest constricted with terror. He saw Josiah come to an abrupt stop. Vin skidded up next to him, one hand rising to the cap of his shoulder. He glanced at the big man's face and saw resignation rather than pain on his features. In front of them Set lay crumbled against the ground, his chest bloodied. A gun lay on the ground near his curled fingers.

His chest heaved and Vin shuddered out a long breath. "You all right?"

Josiah nodded. "Yeah. He just stopped and came back at me. Didn't see the gun 'til it was nearly too late."

Unwilling to dwell on it, ignoring the questions he could see in Josiah's eyes, Vin nodded and tapped him gently on the back. "We need to get back to the others."

Josiah lifted his gun to his shoulder, the barrel pointed to the sky. "Yeah." Leaving Set where he was, they walked back to camp.

Chris met them, shadow hiding his face when he stepped in front of the fire. "You two all right?"

"Yeah." Josiah hooked a thumb back over his shoulder. "The other one's dead."

Chris nodded, his lips set in a grim line. "Vin, you and me can go take care of the body." He glanced back over his shoulder. "Ezra, you and Josiah bury this one. If we don't want any scavengers tonight around camp we need to do this now 'stead of waitin' for mornin'."

Ezra and Josiah moved to carry Loki away. Before he left, Chris glanced back at Nathan. The healer sat patiently washing Buck's face, his expression tight and dark. Knowing his friends were taken care of, Chris followed Vin into the woods.

Part 11

Buck pulled a deep breath in through his nose and held it, letting it out slow to keep from groaning. He sat propped against a tree, his back cushioned with a rolled blanket, his boots turned toward the fire. They'd stayed camped in these woods for two days now, Nathan unwilling to let them ride their horses back to town just yet. He rolled his head to the side and watched JD sleep.

The young man lay curled on his side, a position he preferred because it pulled less on his injuries. Buck splayed his hand against his own belly and rubbed lightly against the bandages. Nathan had poked and prodded until he'd nearly hit the man, but was reassured he wasn't bleeding inside. His head tried to tell him otherwise as he remembered bucking into the probe, feeling it sink deeper into his body, the warmth of his own blood sliding over his cool skin. Apparently it hadn't bitten deep enough, and he repeated that to himself over and over. JD would be all right, too, though he'd struggled with a low fever for the last two days.

JD mumbled in his sleep. Buck turned to watch him wake up. JD's lashes fluttered, then his eyes blinked open and he focused on Buck.

"Hey, kid. You gonna sleep all day?" He grinned, enjoying watching a sleepy JD try and reconnect with his surroundings.

JD's head lifted from the pallet and he pushed away his blanket. "Where're the others?"

Buck looked away, his gaze searching through the trees. "Nathan just left to get more water, Ezra and Josiah went back to town to check on things. Chris and Vin are huntin' for tonight's supper."

JD shifted to his elbow and grunted when he sat up. He held an arm around his middle and pushed himself back to lean against a tree. Letting his head fall back, he sat there with his eyes closed.

Concerned, Buck noticed the sprinkling of moisture across his forehead and cheeks. "You hurtin', JD?"

"Nah, just sore is all."

"You want some water?"

JD's eyes opened and he lifted his head away from the tree. "Actually, there's something else I need." He shifted uncomfortably against the ground and Buck smiled.

"Need some help gettin' up?"

"I can manage." A long grunt breathed out with the words as JD pushed himself to his knees. He swayed for a moment, one hand pressed to the tree, his other hand spread against his stomach. "On second thought --"

"Hang on, I'm comin'." Buck rolled to his knees then pushed himself from the ground, careful not to strain himself as he stood. He limped to JD and slid his hand under JD's arm. He felt the trembling through the young man's muscles and gently tightened his grip.

It took only a few steps to find a convenient tree far enough away from camp. Buck helped JD find his balance, then turned his back and leaned one shoulder against the tree. "Let me know if you need anything." He couldn't keep the smile out of his offer.

"I think I can handle if from here, thanks, Buck." Sarcasm twisted JD's reply and Buck's smile widened.

When JD finished he hobbled back to Buck and the two of them returned slowly to camp. Buck couldn't help thinking of their similar journey three days ago when they'd struggled through the woods, arm in arm.

"Hard to believe we were doing nearly the same thing just a few days ago, huh?" He felt JD tense against him. He kept his eyes forward, giving his friend a chance to get his emotions under control as he dealt with his memories. "I'm proud of the way you didn't quit, JD." They reached camp. Buck gripped JD's arm and helped him sink to his knees on the blanket. An involuntary gasp opened JD's mouth; his eyebrows pulled together across his forehead in an unmistakable expression of pain.

"I wanted to."

The confession confused him at first. Instead of moving to his bed, Buck carefully knelt beside JD. "Wanted to what?"

"Wanted to quit." Dark lashes hid his eyes from view. JD settled back against the tree, but kept his eyes on the ground. "I've never hurt so bad in my life and it seemed easier to just quit than to keep goin' and livin' with that pain."

"But you didn't."

JD's eyes finally opened and lifted to Buck. "Because of you."

But Buck shook his head, refusing the credit for JD's courage. "No, JD. That was all you, kid." He smiled when JD opened his mouth to protest and leaned over to pat him gently on the cheek. "I'll tell you a little secret, though." He moved his hand to JD's neck and squeezed affectionately, lightly with his fingers. "You're the reason I didn't quit, too."

Eyelashes fluttered and hid hazel from view again, but couldn't hide the gentle smile that twitched at the corners of JD's lips.

"You two all right?"

Buck turned his head to answer Nathan. "Yeah. Just had to go find a tree is all." He withdrew his hand and watched the healer pile the newly filled canteens near the other supplies. Nathan finished, then grabbed his supplies and turned to them, kneeling on the edge of the blanket.

"Time to change those bandages."

JD's head thumped back with a hollow sound against the tree. His throat moved as he swallowed and he closed his eyes, but he didn't protest when Nathan reached for him first.

Buck didn't move, deciding Nathan could tend to them both here. He watched Nathan cut the long strips of cloth away. Darkening bruises covered JD's torso beneath the bandages. A small square of material lay over his navel. Nathan peeled it away and made a satisfied sound with the small discoloration on the pad. "You're not bleedin' no more, JD. Looks like the infection's goin' away, too."

"Does that mean -- you can stop wrapping me up like a present now?" His breath hitched painfully when Nathan pressed carefully into his abdomen, the healer's face tight with study.

"No. It means I don't hafta do nothin' more drastic than use a poultice on you and pour more willow bark tea down your throat."

JD groaned.

Buck laughed. "Damn, kid, you oughta be grateful when considering the alternatives."

"Yeah." The word pulled out, slow and soft. JD's head turned on the tree and he slid his eyes to Buck. "Like bein' in a grave instead, huh?"

Nathan's hands stilled for an instant. Buck saw him glance up, his mouth open in question. Buck flickered his eyes to him, lifted his chin in a request to give them a minute, and then returned his stare to JD. The healer patted JD gently on the chest, then rose to his feet and walked back to the fire.

Buck shifted closer. "JD."

JD turned his head aside and twisted his shoulders away from the tree. He gasped softly and held a hand to his stomach. "That's not what I meant, Buck."

"Look at me."

"I'm not scared of dyin'." JD didn't look at him. Buck watched his eyes blink, saw him use his other hand to wipe under his nose and sniff loudly. "That's not what I meant."

"JD."

JD shook his head.

"Look at me." He reached and touched JD lightly on the shoulder. JD seemed startled with his touch; he felt the slight flinch under his hand.

Finally, JD turned his head without moving the rest of his body. "I'm all right, Buck."

Buck smiled, slow and gentle. "You're not all right. But you will be." He moved slowly, hitching himself closer, then carefully slid his arm around JD's shoulders and pulled him close. JD stiffened at first, pressed against him awkwardly. After a moment Buck felt JD lift trembling arms and circle them tentatively around him. He smiled against the dark head pressed to his shoulder. "We both will."

A soft grunt opened JD's ribs against Buck's chest. "Thanks, Buck."

"Anytime, kid." He blinked back the moisture gathering in his eyes and grinned. It was time to go home.

The End

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