ATF Universe
Disclaimer: I wish, but still they are not mine.
Warning: Subject matter may be disturbing.
I'm looking for a place,
searching for a face.
Is there anybody here I know?
'Cause nothing's going right and
everything's a mess and no one
wants to be alone.
Isn't anyone tryin' to find me?
Won't someone please take me home?
It's a damn cold night.
Trying to figure out this life.
Won't you take me by the hand
take me somewhere new.
I don't know who you are
but I'm...I'm with you.
Oh why is everything so confusing?
Maybe I'm just out of my mind.
It's a damn cold night..."I'm With You" - Avril Lavigne
The frigid air assaulted him the moment he walked out of the crowded, warm bar and into the night. As soon as the air hit him, Vin Tanner zipped up the heavy leather coat he was wearing, and quickly searched his pockets for the gloves he had put there. As he hunched into the coat and began to walk to his jeep, he smiled and patted himself on the back for finally buying a warm coat.
His smile grew when he thought of his friends reactions to his new prize. Even Ezra was impressed with the coat and Nathan, well, Nathan just looked at him and told him that "it's about damn time ya got a warm coat that covers your ass."
When he saw his jeep, he shook his head, disgusted with the amount of white powder that had piled up on it while he was in the bar, and he thought of how much he really hated the snow. He pushed as much of it off of his door that he could, got inside, put the key in the ignition and started the jeep. He reached in the back and pulled out the ice scraper, jumped out and started to clean off the jeep.
Vin was doing a quick job of brushing off the snow when a slight movement and the sound of someone coughing got his attention.
His breath caught in his throat when he saw what was huddled in the doorway across the street. He couldn't move as vivid images from a time and place that he had long since buried attacked him. He squeezed his eyes shut as he fought to stop the onslaught, knowing that he didn't want relive that time...didn't want to ever go back there.
He slowly let out his breath as he opened his eyes. He didn't hear the ice scraper hit the ground when it fell from his hand. Everything appeared the way it once was. The snow was falling, it was bitterly cold and huddled in the doorway was a boy, and that boy was Vin Tanner. He had just turned seventeen...+ + + + + + +
The slight boy cut a lonely figure as he fought his way through the wind. The cold January day had been bearable while the sky was light but as day turned into night the storm clouds moved in and the temperature dropped.
The streets of Purgatorio were deserted, most people having sense enough to stay home and wait out Mother Nature. For the unlucky ones that had no place to call home, there were the shelters that would take them in.
Vin Tanner had been one of those who lived on the streets. Orphaned at five, he had spent most of his childhood in foster care and state run homes. Some were decent, but most were not. He ran away from Texas, getting as far as Denver with what little money he had. He had been in Purgatorio, one of the poorest neighborhoods in Denver, since the early summer months. He was now in the midst of experiencing his first winter.
Vin struggled to catch his breath as the strong winds took the air right out of his lungs. The gray clouds that had been threatening all day had finally burst, unleashing snow and icy rain down on the lone figure walking the street. Vin shivered as his clothes became wet from the storm.
It was bitterly cold and the temperatures continued to fall as the wind sent the numbers into single digits. He had put off going to the shelter for as long as he could. He knew he never should have stayed out this long, but the thought of being cramped for so many hours with too many people and not enough space kept him from seeking the shelter from the storm that he needed.
For every step forward he took, the wind sent him back two. He was getting tired, he couldn't seem to make his legs work and he knew he wasn't going to make it to the shelter. He eyed the building across the street and made his way over. He pushed at the door, hoping to find some warmth in the hallway. He wasn't surprised to find the door locked. He couldn't walk any farther and the small alcove that covered the front door would have to do.
He slid to the ground, curling into himself as much as he possibly could, trying to get warm. The alcove gave him some relief from the wind and snow, but it couldn't protect him from the cold. Chills vibrated through his body and his wet clothes offered no comfort. Vin realized he was in serious trouble. He was cold and hungry. His thin jacket and even thinner, torn jeans were no match for the storm raging around him. A vague panic began to set in. His mind telling him he would freeze to death if he didn't move, but he was so tired and he couldn't think. He felt sleep calling to him and he willingly went to her. His heavy lids slowly closed. Somewhere in his mind, he understood that to sleep was to die, but strangely, he didn't care.
He had just drifted off when he was brought back to a drowsy awareness by someone shaking his shoulder and lightly slapping his face. He shrank back against the wall as his mind registered the stranger squatting next to him. As the man tried to grab his shoulder again, Vin managed to shrug off the unwanted touch.
"Leave me alone. I ain't got nothing for ya ta take."
The man backed off a bit, and held his hands out to his side to show Vin that he wasn't going to touch him.
"Listen, kid. I saw you falling asleep here and I just wanted to see if you were alright."
Vin looked at him with the weary, distrusting eyes that most of the street people wore.
"I'm f...fine. Leave me be."
He looked down at Vin, took in the sight of the wet clothes and shivering body. "They call me Paulie. What's your name?"
"V...Vin...I'm Vin."
"Look, Vin. I can't just leave you here. You're all wet, you're shaking like a leaf and your teeth are chattering so loud, I can hear it from here. You can't stay here like that."
"T..told ya, I'm f..fine. Just l...leave me a...alone."
"I leave you here, then you're gonna fall asleep and you're gonna die. Just let me help you."
"I ain't got no money."
Paulie held out his hand to help Vin up from the ground. "Don't worry. You just come with me. I'll help you...you help me and everyone is happy."
Every survival instinct and internal warning bell that he had counted on to keep him safe was going off loudly in his head. But he was just so exhausted and so cold. He hadn't eaten in over a day and he couldn't think straight.
Even as his own voice silently screamed at him to get away from the man in front of him, Vin slowly latched on to the offered hand and nodded his agreement.
Vin found himself having to rely on Paulie to keep from falling. His legs were like rubber, weak from the cold and lack of food. He couldn't walk much farther, even with Paulie's help and he just wanted to get out of this man's grasp and put some space between them.
Vin felt no relief when Paulie pointed to a building across the street from where they were standing. Somewhere inside, he knew he should get away while he still had the chance, but he also knew that as exhausted and weak as he was, he wouldn't get far before his body gave out and he would sleep forever.
The building was like most every other ancient building in Purgatorio. The hallways were dark and the walls painted with the dirt from years and years of neglect. The floor was littered with paper and garbage and things that Vin had no desire to know about. Just when Vin thought he would pass out from the stench, Paulie stopped and unlocked a door. He gestured for Vin to go inside and he closed the door as he followed Vin in.
The apartment was tiny and was not in much better shape than the hallway. The furniture was old and worn as was the rest of the place and the floors hadn't seen a mop in ages, but at least there was heat and to Vin that made this place tolerable.
"I bet you're hungry, Vin. Want something to eat?"
At the mention of food, the hunger pains in his stomach grew sharper. He was starving and he needed to eat.
"Yeah. I could eat. Thanks."
"Okay. Sit yourself down at the table and get comfortable. I'll get ya something."
Vin watched Paulie make him sandwich. Paulie walked over to him and stood beside him, he started to put the sandwich on the table but stopped and stared at Vin.
"You're very good looking." Paulie touched Vin's hair and ran his fingers along his face, laughing when Vin jerked his head away from the touch.
"Don't touch me," Vin said, unable to keep the panic out of his voice.
"Suit yourself. I won't touch you. I'm not gonna force you to do anything, but I ain't running a charity here. You want to eat and stay warm? You want to survive in this neighborhood and this weather? Well then, you better learn how to play the game, cause there's lots of other's out there that are just as pretty as you, just as hungry and cold. Ain't nothing for nothing in this world. So what's it gonna be? You playing or leaving?"
Vin looked at Paulie, then glanced towards the apartment window. He could hear the glass rattling against the still strong wind, and he could see that the snow was still falling briskly. He wanted out...wanted to be any place but here. But he needed to eat. He needed to have dry clothes and he needed a chance to get warm and get his thoughts straight. He bit his lip, wishing that he could find his way out of this predicament he was stuck in.
"I don't have all night, Vin. Decide."
Vin knew that if he left now, with the wind and cold and his still wet clothes, he would never make it to the shelter. It would take him too long to get there and he could still barely stand up after being outside for much too long.
Never in his life had he felt such desolation and desperation. In his heart he felt that he had only two choices...live or die. He wasn't ready to leave this world, although he wondered if he'd still feel that way when all was said and done.
Lowering his head and staring at the floor, already feeling shame, he softly said, "Stay...I'll stay."
Paulie handed Vin the sandwich. "Good. Eat this for now and I'll give you more later."
Vin hated the smug look on Paulie's face, like he had no doubt that he would stay. He saw Paulie's eyes walking all over his body, and the chill going through him now had nothing to do with the cold. He tried to eat slowly, hoping to delay the inevitable, but he was starving and the food was gone in an instant, never registering in his brain that he ate it. He didn't feel even a bit of an edge taken off of his hunger, the small bit of food only serving to make him want more.
The moment the last bite of the sandwich disappeared Vin was called to whatever fate awaited him.
"Come over here, Vin. Come stand right in front of me."
Vin slowly made his way over to the couch where Paulie was waiting.
His body stiffened as Paulie's hands touched him and he was overcome with fear when his shirt was tugged from his pants and pulled up over his head and off his body.
"You really have to get out of these wet clothes. Don't want to get sick now, do you?"
Vin gasped and could not stop trembling when his jeans were unsnapped and the zipper inched down. He didn't know how he stayed on his feet as his jeans were slipped off his body and he was left standing in front of this disgusting stranger, his body shaking, in shock and totally naked.
Feeling the calloused hands once again roaming his body, Vin shook his head in revulsion. He looked at Paulie, his blue eyes wet and imploring. "Please...I can't...I can't do this."
Paulie's laughter hit Vin like a punch to the gut. He drank in the site of the shivering body and couldn't resist running his fingers through the long curly hair.
"Never did anything like this before. Did you, Vin?"
Enjoying the torment so clearly evident in the blue eyes, he smiled at the bowed head and the whispered, "no."
Paulie was relishing in Vin's misery. He lived his life as a nobody. He worked a dead end job, lived in a God forsaken hell hole of a neighborhood and lived with the knowledge that no one liked or had any respect for him.
Looking at Vin, he realized that today he had the power. Vin's life was in his hands and he was enjoying every second of wielding that power over Vin and getting what he wanted from him without even the slightest twinge in his conscience.
Lifting the downcast face, he decided to make Vin's misery as humiliating as he could.
"First time is always the hardest. It'll get easier the next time, and the time after that. It's always a long and cold winter around here."
"No...No...I won't...not ever again."
"If you say so." Paulie put his hands on Vin's shoulders and pushed him down. "Now, get on your knees. I want you on your knees."
Feeling a helplessness the likes of which he had never known before, Vin was in a daze as he was guided down. The reality of his situation struck him when he hit the floor and found himself kneeling infront of Paulie.
Vin bit his lip at the sound of Paulie's zipper being undone. He was horrified when Paulie stood before him, exposing himself and leering at him as he reached for him.
"No...No...I don't want ta do this. Please...I can't do this...I can't. Please...Please...I just can't do this."
Drunk on the power that was surging through him with each panicked word that Vin uttered, Paulie grabbed Vin, holding his head still with his hands.
"Please...can't," Vin whispered brokenly.
"Sure you can, Vin. You're gonna be fucking amazed at all the things you're gonna be able to do tonight."
Vin closed his eyes as tightly as possible, trying to keep the tears from falling and he swallowed, feeling the bile coming up on him. He was trapped. There would be no way out for him. Resigned to his fate, he prayed to any God that would listen that he would be granted the mercy of being able to separate himself from what he would have to endure. He prayed that his mind would go blank, and he could escape to the blackness there and get through this.
Even as he thought it, he realized that it was hopeless. He was well aware of everything happening to him. He would get no mercy. He would suffer through every agonizing minute of what he was going to have to do and through everything that this sorry excuse for a human being was going to do to him.
As he was pulled close to Paulie's body, Vin could not hold back the tears as his decent into hell proved to be more horrific than anything he could have imagined, even in his worst nightmares.
Vin lay stunned on the dirty floor. He had passed out briefly when cold, hunger and exhaustion combined with the shock and humiliation of Paulie's use and abuse of him finally overcame him and oblivion claimed him.
He moaned as he moved his body, hurting in every inch of it. He bit back the pain, sat up and made a grab for his things. He could feel Paulie's eyes on him, and he quickly got into his still damp clothes.
Paulie went and stood by the front door, holding Vin's jacket in his hands.
"Leaving so soon?"
Vin made his way to the door. He grabbed the jacket from Paulie.
"Get outta my way. I just want ta get the hell out of here."
"I won't stop you from leaving."
Vin started to push his way past Paulie. He was almost into the hallway, when Paulie took hold of his arm. He looked him up and down, and then took Vin's hand and pressed some money into his palm. "I could make it so that you never have to be cold or hungry again. I could hook you up with the right people. That pretty face of yours, that body, people would gladly pay for the pleasure. What do you say, Vin?"
Vin violently pulled out of Paulie's grasp. "You ever come near me again, I swear...I'll kill ya."
"That's what they all say....at first. You'll be back. The winter isn't getting any warmer, and you don't have anything else to offer. You have no choice, pretty boy. You'll see."
Vin ran out of the building, the sound of Paulie's laughter still echoing in his ears. He never felt the sting of the cold, his insides turning far colder than the air around him. He ran as fast as he could, reaching deep inside for the strength he needed to pick himself up each time he fell. His mind yelling at him, run...run fast and far...get away...
He kept running until he turned into an alley and finally stopped, his legs refusing to move another inch. He rested against an old building, his back to the wall.
He caught his breath and his mind began to clear. He slammed his eyes shut, trying to keep the night from replaying, but it was not to be.
His skin was crawling, he could still feel Paulie's hands touching him, still feel the throbbing pain where he was grabbed harshly and held down when he wouldn't cooperate.
Vin slid down the wall, holding his hands over his ears, trying to block out the sound of the voice that would haunt him for the rest of his life. But he heard it, loud and clear. Heard the man laughing at him, telling him what a good fuck he was. Laughing at him when he gasped in pain as he was brutally taken again and again.
He bowed his head. He couldn't stand another minute of that voice.
"Stop!!!...Please stop!!!! Just leave me the fuck alone!!!!"
Guilt and shame twisted in his gut. "Oh, God. What did I do? What did I do? So stupid...so fuckin' stupid."
He clutched his stomach. He couldn't get away from the smell of Paulie's body, it was all over him and in him. He was choking on the nausea consuming him and desperately tried to spit out the taste of the man who twisted his hands in his hair and held him still while he used Vin's mouth for his pleasure.
Vin went to his hands and knees when the small bit of food he had eaten, violently came spewing out of him, burning his throat. His stomach continued to spasm, and he continued to retch until nothing was left but dry heaves.
He sat back against the wall. He realized that he was clutching something in his hand. He loosened his fingers and stared at the money that Paulie had pressed into his palm. He crumbled the five dollar bill and threw it to the ground. Self-loathing filled him. He had sunk as low as he possibly could. Despair overcame him as he thought on what he had done. He sold his body for five dollars and a lousy sandwich, a bitter laugh escaping him because he couldn't even manage to hold on to the food that had cost him so dearly.
He stared at the money, tears freely falling from his eyes now.
He wrapped his arms tightly around himself, rocking back and forth, his pride, self-respect and his spirit crushed beneath the weight of his guilt, he whispered softy, "I'm sorry...I'm sorry" over and over again.
God, he was tired. Tired of being hungry and cold. Tired of being alone. Tired of people looking right at him, but not seeing him, passing him by as if he wasn't even there. He was so lost now. It had finally happened, the world had beaten him. He wanted to give up. It would be so easy. All he had to do was close his eyes and sleep. No one would even miss him or even remember that he had ever even been on this earth. Pained by the thought that there would be no one to mourn him, he gladly closed his eyes...and waited to fade away.
He tried to let the darkness take him, but the instinct in him to survive was too strong and the survivor in him would not go willingly to that place and would not go quietly without a fight.
The battle raged on. The will to live much too strong. He knew he would not sleep tonight, but he needed to find a way to live with what he had done.
He looked at the money on the street. He picked it up and held it tight.
He gazed up at the sky, thinking of heaven as being beyond the clouds.
"I'm sorry, mama...I'm so sorry." His heart broke, knowing that his mother would be so disappointed in him. God, he disgraced the Tanner name. Disgraced himself.
He found himself pleading for understanding from a mother who lived on only in his heart and in the few vague memories he had of her. Memories which were rapidly fading with the passage of time.
When he didn't feel any of the guilt lessen, he begged for forgiveness from the one person from which he would never get it. He searched his heart, looking for some compassion there, but his heart was as frozen as the ground beneath him.
He clutched the money, knowing that he would play the game to stay alive. Somehow he would make it through it all, but he would never make peace with what he had to do and he knew that forgiveness would never, ever come.+ + + + + + +
The sound of a horn blaring and a harsh voice yelling at him to get out of the street rescued Vin from his reluctant journey into his past.
He opened the door to the jeep and sat inside. He let out the breath he was holding and wiped the tears that were falling down his face. His body was shaking, unable to deal with the memories that he had so masterfully kept from surfacing his whole adult life.
Old feelings of disgust and self hatred were churning in his gut. He couldn't understand why the past came screaming at him the way it did tonight. He glanced over at the boy still huddled in the doorway, and then he knew.
Vin pulled the jeep into the traffic and made a U turn. He stopped and jumped out. He walked to the doorway and approached the boy. A sharp pain lanced his heart as he looked at the small, skinny figure before him.
"Oh, God. This could be me," he whispered. "Hell...A lifetime ago, this was me."
Vin gently shook the boy's shoulder. "Kid...Ya gotta wake up... Come on, wake up."
The boy opened his eyes. He pushed himself until his back hit the door. He tried to sound calm, but the fear was obvious in his voice.
"Leave me alone. I don't have anything for you to take."
Vin shook his head. Would his nightmare ever end? He remembered uttering those same words on a night just like this...a night that changed him forever.
"Look. It's freezing out here, and it's gonna get colder. Ya can't stay here. You fall asleep, you're gonna die."
The boy looked at Vin, then lowered his eyes to the ground. "I don't have anywhere to go. Just leave me be...I'll be fine."
"Sorry, kid. Can't do that. Let me help ya."
Vin recognized the look in the boy's eyes. Distrust, resignation, defeat all rolled into one. It was a look that he wore himself when he walked in this boy's shoes.
"I don't have any money."
Vin held out his arm. "Come on. I ain't gonna hurt ya. Just come with me and maybe we can help each other."
The boy was too cold and too tired to care what this stranger had in mind. He latched on to Vin's arm and let Vin help him get into the jeep.
Vin eased the jeep into the traffic and turned his thoughts on what he should do now.
"I'm Vin. Ya got a name, kid?"
"Jeff."
"You live in Denver very long?"
"No...I...I've only been here a couple of weeks."
"Ya plan on stayin'? Cause, I gotta tell ya, it gets mighty cold in the winter."
"I don't know. Haven't thought that far ahead. Besides, what's with all the questions? What's it to you? Like you care what I do."
"I just want you to know what you'll be up against. It ain't easy to live in this neighborhood. Ya gotta know how ta take care of yourself."
"I can take care of myself just fine. Don't need no one, and I sure as hell don't need you."
A small smile made its way to Vin's lips. He might as well have been talking to the kid that he used to be. Time had marched on, and the boy was different, but it was still the same questions and the same answers.
"How old are ya, Jeff?"
All the questions were making Jeff nervous. He still wasn't sure what Vin wanted from him and he didn't want to show any weakness.
"I'm eighteen." The answer came out sounding more like a question, and even if Vin didn't hear the lie in the voice, he would have to be blind not to see that Jeff was much younger.
Vin quickly glanced at Jeff, his eyebrow raised in amusement. "Eighteen, huh?"
Jeff knew that Vin knew that he was lying, and he was grateful that he seemed to be willing to let it go and not call him on it. He sank deeper into the seat and tried to hold on to the heat coming from the vents. He was hungry and tired and he just could not stop shivering.
Vin heard his passenger's teeth chattering. He notched up the heat, then reached into the back seat, grabbing the sweat shirt that he always left there.
"Here, put this on. It'll help ya warm up."
Jeff took the shirt. He didn't know why, but something in him trusted Vin. He felt safe and didn't sense any danger with this man.
"I'm sixteen. I just turned sixteen."
Sadness engulfed Vin. He knew the streets of Purgatorio and the predators that thrived there would eat this kid up and spit him out. He'd never make it. Vin was a product of those streets, he learned the hard way what it took to survive them. He shuddered thinking of the things he did to make it day to day back then. He glanced at Jeff. It was like seeing himself when he first came to Purgatorio. He was looking at a babe in the woods and it broke his heart.
Just like me...God...I did what I had to. With that thought, for the first time since that fateful winter, that frozen part of his heart began to warm.
Jeff was staring at the sweatshirt, focusing in on the yellow "ATF" letters written across the front of it.
He nervously asked, "You a cop?"
"Yep...Vin Tanner, ATF agent."
"You arresting me? You gonna make me go home?"
Vin took his time answering. He wrestled with the fact that maybe he should send the kid home, but he wouldn't force him to go back to a situation that may be worse than what he was in now. Besides, even if he sent him home, there was no way of making him stay there.
"I ain't arresting you. I ain't gonna force ya to go home either...Unless ya want to?"
Jeff didn't answer, his attention focused on the building that Vin pulled in front of.
"What's this place?"
"It's a shelter. I got a good friend that volunteers here, so I know I can get ya in. Come on, let's go."
The two made their way down to the basement of the old building. When Vin walked into the cramped room, he fought to keep more unwanted memories from overtaking him. The walls began closing in on him as he sought out the man he knew would be helping there.
He caught the look of shock in Josiah's eyes when the big man saw him. Although Vin was generous with donating his money, or giving food or clothes, he very rarely ever set foot in this place. Even after all these years, he hated it here. He couldn't stand the smell, the crowds or the memories and feelings the shelter evoked. Josiah understood and never pressured Vin into coming here.
Josiah walked over, concern in his eyes. Vin seemed to be a million miles away. The emotions playing in the blue eyes and the tense posture told him that Vin was drowning, and needed a lifeline. "What brings you here tonight, Vin?"
Grateful to have something to focus on, other than the past, Vin nodded his thanks to Josiah.
"Josiah, this here is Jeff. He needs a place ta stay and some food ta eat."
Josiah held his hand out. "Glad to meet you, son."
"Glad to meet you, too." Jeff said shyly.
"Josiah is a good friend. We work together at the ATF."
Jeff smiled at the two men, then he realized that he still had Vin's sweatshirt.
"I'm much warmer now. You can take this back." Jeff began to pull the sweatshirt off, when Vin stopped him.
"Nah, you keep it, I got plenty of em."
"Thanks."
"No problem."
"I'm going to get something for Jeff to eat, just call me when you're all set, Vin."
"Kay, Josiah. Thanks."
Vin took his wallet out of his pants pocket. He took out his last twenty, folded it around one of his cards, then he handed them to Jeff. "If there's anything I can do to help ya, if ya want to go home and need help with getting there or smoothing the way over, you call me and I'll do all I can."
Jeff took the card, blinking back the tears from his eyes. "Thanks...I...just, thanks."
Vin motioned for Josiah to come back over. "I don't know what your life was like back home, but if it was even a little better than the way yer livin' here...if ya can, please, call home. Josiah will let ya call from here if ya want."
"I'll think about it, Vin. I promise."
"Okay. That's all I can ask." Vin couldn't help himself, he wrapped his arms around Jeff and hugged him. "You take care of yourself and stay safe."
They said their good-byes, and Vin headed for the door. He took one look back, and shivered a bit himself when he took in Jeff's threadbare clothes. He ran his hand along the warm leather he wore, and turned around.
He walked back over to Jeff and took off his coat and gloves, handing them over to the surprised boy.
"Stay warm, kid."
He quickly walked away and stopped when Jeff called his name and came after him.
"You said that we could maybe help each other. Well, you've been helping me all night, so, how can I help you?"
Vin flashed a smile that lit up his whole face.
"You already did."
Seeing the confusion on Jeff's face, Vin tried to explain. "You helped me to forgive someone for doing the unforgivable...for doing the only thing he thought he could at the time. I'm free of it. You'll never know how much that means to me."
Jeff still didn't understand, but it didn't matter.
"Good-bye, Vin."
"So long, Jeff."
He watched as the boy went back into the shelter. He got back into his jeep, and started it up. He picked up his cell phone and dialed.
"Larabee."
"Hey, cowboy. Ya busy."
"Vin? No. What's wrong?"
"Ah, nothing. I know it's late but I was wondering if it would be okay for me ta come out to the ranch?"
"It's never too late for you to come out here. Are you sure you're alright?"
"I'm fine, Chris. I just want to tell ya a story."
"Okay, cowboy. Whiskey or coffee?"
Vin laughed. "Whiskey, pard...definitely whiskey."
"I'll be waiting, take your time, Vin."
"Be there in a while, Chris. Bye."
Vin hung up the phone, and pulled into the traffic. The snow was falling lightly now, blanketing the streets in pure white.
As he headed for the ranch, he looked around and thought for the first time how beautiful the snow was....
The End
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