PATHOS  RUNS  HIGH by C.V. Puerro

JD didn't know how long he'd been lying in the dirt. All he did know was that the sun had been higher in the sky when he'd fallen from his mount and the air had been hotter. His horse had been as thirsty as he was and had lurched off when the stream came into view. JD didn't have the strength to right himself in the saddle a second time.

He didn't know where his horse was now. He didn't know where his hat was, or his coat. Hell, he didn't even know where he was.

He'd tried to crawl to the stream, but his knee was sore and swollen, his head was throbbing, he'd banged up his shoulder in the fall, and he was too damn exhausted. So, he'd just laid there, drifting in and out of consciousness, berating himself for running off half-cocked after Vin.

If only Vin had talked to him before leaving. If only there had been someone he could have talked to about all this. He hadn't felt so alone since his mother had died.

And the worst part, he was alone. Out in the middle of nowhere. He'd never catch up to Vin now. And Vin didn't know he was being followed. Didn't know to wait for him, or to turn back and help him.

Then JD realized something. Buck knew. But what did he know? He'd seen JD ride out, but once out of sight, Buck couldn't have known what direction he'd headed. Or why.

Would anyone have noticed Vin missing? Were the fellas out looking for them both right now?

Suddenly, a shadow fell across JD's face and he was grateful for the shade. Now, if only it would rain, the kid thought, maybe I could get a drink of water.

A moment later, hands were on him, checking over his still form. "Kid, tell me what hurts."

The voice sounded so familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.

"Kid? It's Chris."

"Chris?" They had found him. But, how? Had Vin told someone before he left, despite saying he wouldn't? "Vin?" the words croaked out of his parched throat.

Chris gave him a small mouthful of water from his canteen, but not nearly as much as JD wanted. "Where's Vin?" he repeated as soon as he'd swallowed.

"Thought he'd be with you."

JD shook his head. "tagosa."

"To go where?" Chris asked, mistaking his mumbled words.

"Ta-sco-sa," the kid repeated, and then heard the gunslinger utter an oath under his breath.

Chris helped the kid sit up, and gave him another small swallow of water. Then he pressed JD's hat onto his head and helped him into his jacket.

"Where're the others?"

"We split up, looking for you and Vin."

Even in his current state, the cold tone of Chris's voice was obvious to the kid. Undoubtedly he was angry that JD had caused trouble for the group once again. And, he was probably angry Vin had left as well. But it wasn't so much anger that he heard. It was ... something else. Resentment? Hatred? But that couldn't be it. Those emotions didn't make any sense. The kid chalked it up to his mind being muddled by exhaustion.

He then realized Chris was speaking to him again: "Can you stand?"

JD didn't know if he could or not. He certainly wouldn't be able to walk very far if he did. But Chris muscled him to his feet, then supported him with an arm around his waist and helped him the few yards to the shade of tree.

A few yards. A dozen feet. And JD had been lying this whole time in the blazing sun. Now he was the one to curse under his breath.

The sun was sinking fast in the western sky and JD doubted the other fellas would make it this far before morning. By then, how far away would Vin be? How close to reaching Texas? How near to being gone from his life forever?

JD leaned against the tree and cried, though his body refused to give up the tears.

Finally, he just watched as Chris gathered wood for a small fire. "We'll camp here for the night."

JD noticed the man did not mention going after Vin in the morning. He wanted to ask if he planned to, but thought better of it before the words could leave his mouth.

"It's past sunset. We oughta be stoppin'," Nathan reminded his traveling companions.

"No. We gotta find Chris and JD," the tracker insisted.

"Mr. Tanner, I must agree with our esteemed healer. A nice, warm fire, though not preferable to a feather bed, is more desirable than stumbling around on this near-moonless night," Ezra proclaimed.

Josiah agreed, though for different reasons. "We could pass within a hundred feet of them and neither of our parties would be any the wiser."

"Fine," Vin finally gave in; despite his desperation to find the two men, he knew his friends were right. Chris and JD would just have to take their chances until morning.

Josiah and Nathan made camp while Ezra looked on. Buck and Vin went scouting for a little fresh meat for dinner while the bare tinges of sunset still clung to the scattered clouds on the western horizon. They weren't very successful, mostly because Buck couldn't keep his mind on the task.

As soon as they were out of earshot of the others, Buck started in again. "So, are ya gonna tell me what in hell is goin' on?"

Vin shrugged, but he wasn't sure the man saw his shoulders move.

"Ya know somethin' yer not tellin'."

"Let it go, Buck," was all the tracker offered.

"Ain't no way I kin do that," the older man said, grabbing Vin's arm to stop him from walking away. "Chris is my oldest friend. And JD, well, he means as much ta me as any brother would, more prob'ly."

"I know." Vin twisted his arm out of the other man's grasp and started walking again.

"So, ya mind tellin' me what has got Chris all riled up?"

Vin sighed. He could guess, but guesses weren't something you shared, not about stuff like this. And what if he was wrong? He wouldn't be party to making Chris look any worse than the man could make himself.

"Well, let me just tell ya a little somethin' ya prob'ly don't know," Buck began again, like a hunting dog after some unseen scent, he wouldn't be deterred. "Chris is drinkin' again."

"Chris always drinks," Vin reminded the man.

"Not like this. Not first thing in the mornin'. Not 'til all hours of the night. Not day after day after day."

This more than anything made Vin stop and listen to Buck. He was right; he hadn't ever seen Chris drink like that.

"He's like he was right after Sarah and Adam died. Lonely, torn up inside, feelin' God-knows-what about himself and the world. But I don't think it has anythin' ta do with his family this time."

Vin waited for the man to continue, knowing he would, suddenly needing him to.

"Started just after that first telegram ya sent. He crumpled that sheet of paper and stuffed it in his pocket 'fore anyone else could read it. All he told us was ya'd been delayed and wouldn't be back fer a few more days."

Vin nodded. That hadn't been exactly what he'd sent, but close. "JD hurt knee. Can't travel for few days." Had that been it? He couldn't recall sending much else. Why would that have riled Chris?

Buck went on. "Well, after that Chris was in a foul mood. Wasn't gettin' anywhere near the man without hearin' him complain about JD. He kept blamin' the kid fer keepin' ya two away — said we needed ya back in town, even though nothin' much had been happenin'. Sayin' he'd prob'ly done somethin' foolish, or had just been showin' off, and now we were all payin' fer it."

"That don't make any sense," Vin said to himself, though Buck heard him.

"Why not?"

Vin shook his head. He'd have to tell the man his part of things, at least some of it. "JD was shot at. The bullet nicked his horse and the animal went down, with JD still in the saddle. That's how he hurt his knee. Wasn't his fault. But I guess I didn't say all that in my telegram."

"Well, whatever ya said, yer second wire only made things worse. We never got ta see that one either, but Chris got all quiet after tearin' it ta shreds. He headed straight fer the bar and spent the rest of the afternoon at a table in the corner, milkin' a bottle of whiskey until it was gone. Then he did the same with another."

Again Vin tried to remember what he had sent. What could have gotten Chris so upset? "Trial delayed. JD laid up one week. Otherwise fine."

"Well, he really lit into JD after that. Any time any of us would mention either of ya he'd just go off! He was so angry at the kid I thought fer sure he was gonna bust JD in the chops as soon as he stepped outta the stage. I was mighty surprised when Chris pulled you away instead."

"Well, the kid was my responsibility."

"So, that's it? That's yer explanation?"

"What do ya want from me, Buck? I kin't read the man's thoughts."

"Well, what did he say ta ya?"

Vin shook his head. What had been Chris's words? "Fuck me. Fuck me now." Yeah, like he could repeat that to Buck.

"He was upset. He...." Gawd, Vin thought, how the hell was he supposed to explain this? But he knew Buck wouldn't let him go until he did. "I guess he thought we'd spent more time away than we had ta. That we'd shirked our responsibilities here."

"Well, I still don't git it. I mean, the way he was actin'...." Buck began to pace back and forth, scaring away any chance they might have of snagging a hare for dinner. "...Kept goin' on and on 'bout how ya weren't the kid's damn nursemaid. How JD oughta realize ya've got other obligations—"

"Obligations. He said that?"

"He was drunk," Buck explained, obviously sensing something in the tracker's voice, something the tracker wished hadn't been there. "Just crazy talk, Vin. Said if he ever got his hands on the kid, he'd put him in his place."

"Great. Just great. And now he might be out there alone with him."

JD was feeling a lot better after resting in the shade, drinking as much water as Chris would grudgingly dole out to him, and finally eating the rabbit the gunman had managed to snare, skin, and roast. Oh, he was still tired, felt like sleeping for a week, but he'd put it off until they found Vin. They had to find Vin and convince him to come back.

The kid glanced over at his companion, sitting on a rock on the opposite side of the fire, he held a stick with a rabbit part skewered onto it, but it was near burning and the man didn't seem to notice.

"Chris, ya gonna eat that?"

The older man shook his head, and then pulled the meat out of the fire. A moment later he handed it over to the kid.

"Ya ain't sick, are ya, Chris?" JD noticed how drawn the man looked, how pale, his eyes sunken in and red-rimmed. Maybe it was just the firelight, but he got the feeling Chris had been better. "'Cuz ya don't look so good."

"Too much whiskey'll do that to you," was all Chris said in reply.

JD wanted to ask why he'd been drinking so much, but he didn't know if it was any of his business and he was slowly learning to keep his mouth shut when he realized thing weren't his business. The only problem was, he usually didn't realize it until he'd already stuck his foot in his mouth.

"Did somethin' happen while we were gone?"

Chris shook his head. "Because you were gone," the kid thought he heard the man mumble under his breath, but JD let it go. Chris had been acting funny since he'd found him — angry, distant, cold. Sure, Chris normally acted that way, but, still, there was something different about it this time. Like it was all directed right at JD instead of at the world in general.

The kid shivered despite the fire that warmed his face, chest, and legs. His back was damn cold — and he never thought he'd think that after suffering through the blazing heat that very afternoon. Still, he couldn't seem to get warm.

"Cold?" Chris asked, though the kid was surprised the man noticed. JD nodded. The gunman got up from the fire and walked away into the darkness.

A few moments later he returned with his bedroll and laid it down behind JD. Chris then sat down on it and pulled the kid off the flat rock he was sitting on, nearly into his lap. The man wrapped his arms around JD's chest, holding him close, sharing his body heat, as the two sat before the small fire.

"Tell me about Cutter's Creek," Chris finally said.

"Didn't Vin tell ya?" JD was confused when Chris shook his head, no. The man had stopped Vin from taking him up to his room when they'd arrived in town, pulled him aside and said they needed to talk. If they didn't talk about Cutter's Creek, then what did they talk about?

"Well, they've got the biggest, whitest courthouse ya've ever seen! And that's all it's used for, 'cept maybe town meetin's. I mean, it's not like us havin' ta use the Grain Exchange buildin'...."

"I know, kid. I've seen it. Town was founded by some rich Eastern lawyer: Horatio Cutter, I think. Built that damn courthouse before he'd raised his own barn. That's the story, anyway."

"Well, Rowlin's got tried and sentenced ta prison for robbin' that stage, though there weren't any witnesses ta prove he'd shot the drivers. Just me ta say I'd caught him tryin' ta haul away the gold. Personally, I think his mountain of a brother did it."

Chris waited patiently for JD to continue.

"He's the one tried ta shoot me on the road, that's how I hurt my knee." The kid fell silent for a moment, but then continued. "Thanks, by the way. I thought I could handle it alone, but I'd've been dead 'fore I even got ta town if Vin hadn't been there."

JD felt Chris nod his head, though he didn't turn to look at the man behind him. "Don't like sending any of you fellas off by yourselves," he finally said quietly near JD's ear.

"So, the man comes bustin' in where me and Vin are waitin' ta go into court. Smacks Vin upside the head with the butt of his rifle — that's how he got the scratch above his eye. The doc pulled the stitches out just 'fore we come home."

Chris didn't say anything, but JD felt the man tense a little behind him. Was it possible he hadn't noticed the jagged cut on Vin's forehead? Seemed odd that he wouldn't have.

"But, I shot him 'fore he finished cockin' his rifle. Soon as he's healed, he's gonna be sent away for attempted murder, even if he don't swing for shootin' the stage drivers."

JD then fell silent. That was about it.

Chris was silent, too, for a long time. Then he asked, "So, what did you two do, all cooped up, recovering from your injuries?"

JD didn't know what to say. He couldn't tell the man what he and Vin had really spent many of their waking hours doing.

"Ah. Well ... we read. I had this book in my saddlebag — Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. I'd read it already, but Vin hadn't, so we spent a lot of time doin' that."

"I've seen that book. It ain't that long."

"Well, I don't read aloud all that fast. There are still a few chapters left, so I was thinkin' of just givin' the book ta Vin for him ta finish on his own."

"Vin can't read."

"Huh?"

"Won't do no good for you to give him that book. He can't read."

"So that's why he made me do all the readin'. He just always said he was too tired, or he liked how I pronounced the words. Why wouldn't he have told me?"

"Every man has things he don't wanna share, JD. Things he'd rather keep to himself."

JD suddenly got the feeling that they weren't talking about Vin keeping his illiteracy a secret. Hell, he wasn't sure what they were talking about.

"I, ah...." but JD didn't know what to say. He suddenly felt trapped by the man's arms around his chest, no longer comforted. They both fell silent for a few moments.

"I know what you two did," Chris finally whispered into the kid's ear, and the words more than the warm breath, sent an unnerving shiver down JD's spine.

The kid waited. Fear prevented his mind or his body from functioning properly. If Chris wanted to kill him for what he'd done, he could, easily, instantly. A hand on each side of his head and a quick twist. Everyone would assume JD had broken his neck when he'd fallen from his horse.

Vin had warned him there would be people who wouldn't understand, and he knew some men beat and kill others for such behaviors, but he just never thought that would be any of his friends. Would Chris go after Vin next, track him down and kill him, too?

Vin's hands were on his hips in exasperation. This was how it was gonna end. Some damn, twisted, lovers' triangle. Had this whole thing made Chris as crazy as Buck was saying? Didn't the man's behavior out at his shack yesterday prove it?

Would he threaten JD? Drive him away, or worse? Would he harm the kid, maybe even kill him? Had Chris's jealousy gotten that far out of hand? Damn. They'd only been gone a week. Was this hard-hearted man really as fragile as all that?

"We gotta git after 'em, Buck," Vin declared as he broke into a run back to their camp. But Buck's long strides quickly caught him up and the larger man grabbed his arm again, easily bring him to a halt.

"Yer not thinkin' he's gonna harm JD." It was more of a warning than a question. "He may yell at him. Hell, he may even slug him, but it wouldn't git no worse than that."

"And how do ya know?" Vin was angry, scared. He was sure Buck couldn't know. Sure that Buck didn't know the places these sorts of emotions could drive a man.

"I know because he's my friend," his words were a harsh whisper filled with caring and loyalty. "I know, because as much as he hated Sarah's father fer tryin' ta keep them apart, he never laid a hand on that man because of how it woulda hurt Sarah."

Vin was stunned at the man's perception. Did he know? Had he guessed? He couldn't believe Chris would have confided such a thing, even to Buck — especially to Buck.

"I trust him, Vin. With my life. With yours. With JD's. Whatever the hell is goin' on here."

"Relax, kid. I ain't gonna hurt you," Chris whispered again, but his tone was still cold and it unnerved JD. "I just wanna know some things."

"Like, ah, like what?" the kid stammered, though he tried not to. He was afraid Chris could feel him trembling, and that the man would know it wasn't from cold.

"Like what your feeling for the man."

"Huh?" This question definitely caught the kid off guard. He didn't know what he was expecting to be asked, but that certainly wasn't it. JD shrugged.

"Then what about Casey?"

"Ya know 'bout her and me, too?"

"Now I do. Damn, kid, you have been busy. Well, what of it? Doubt Casey'll cotton to you being with Vin."

There it was; it sounded odd hearing Chris say it out loud, but that was the whole of it.

"I think Casey might already know. See, Vin, I mean, I— Well, I gave Casey somethin' and she found out it used ta belong ta Vin. She wasn't happy 'bout that in the least. Doubt she'll speak ta me again."

"Serves you right, you stupid lout." Now the man was starting to sound like Buck. Was that a good thing? "What were you thinking?"

"Reckon I wasn't. But how was I supposed ta know Nettie'd recognize that damn thing."

"Nettie knows, too?" Chris let out an angry, exasperated breath. "Your just damn-well gonna get us all strung up!"

"Huh?" Now JD was really confused. What did he and Vin have to do with anyone else? No federal judge in these parts would hang a man because of guilt by association. Unless, Chris didn't mean all seven of them.

"Chris ... are ... you and Vin...."

The man nodded and JD didn't know what to think. "He never said. I— I didn't know, Chris. We were both drunk that first night.... I was upset and he was just tryin' ta help.... And, well, things went a bit far...."

"I know. He told me."

"He did?" Again he felt the gunslinger nod. In a way he wished he could see the man's face, gauge what was in the man's eyes, but in another way, he was sort of thankful for the anonymity and isolation of the dark night. He couldn't imagine having this conversation in, say, the well-lit saloon. "Ya didn't mind that he'd been with me?"

Chris thought a long moment, and then scoffed at the question. "No. I didn't." The gunslinger seemed almost surprised by his own words.

"Then that's what Vin meant. I asked him what I oughta do bout Casey. He said I wasn't a woman and I wasn't his property, so he didn't expect me ta be faithful, and that I shouldn't expect him ta be either.... He was talkin' 'bout ... you."

"Doubt that, kid. Vin was talking about himself. The man's a damn rabbit. Got more energy now than I had when I was half his age. Just try keeping up with him."

"I have." JD hadn't meant for those words to slip out. Now silence hung in the air around them and the kid waited for the ax to fall.

But Chris started to laugh. He laughed harder than JD'd ever heard the man do before. Finally, he caught his breath and said, "You're probably one of the few who could keep up with him, JD."

"Well, it'll be easier once my knee is healed. Um, I mean, ah...." Damn, the kid admonished himself. Even his banged up knee didn't prevent him from sticking his foot solidly in his mouth.

He expected Chris to yell, to fume, to get up and walk away. But he didn't expect the question the man asked, "So, is that why you went after him?"

"I just figured it was 'cuz of me he was leavin'. I mean, 'cuz of Casey and Nettie maybe havin' figured it out. I couldn't let him leave 'cuz of that. When we catch up ta him, I'm gonna promise ta fix things. Tell Nettie and Casey whatever I have ta so that they'll believe Vin's the same man they had thought he was...."

"He still is the same man, JD. Even if people don't believe what you do in private is your own business. And he already knows this. He didn't leave because of you."

"He didn't? But, he got all worked up after I told him 'bout Casey."

"Well, I don't know 'bout that, but he and I had a fight — a bad one — after you two got back to town."

"What did ya fight about?"

Chris thought for a while, as if he were trying to find the right words, or maybe he was just trying to figure out if it was any of JD's damn business.

"You."

"Me? Ya mean 'cuz I got hurt up in Cutter's Creek? 'Cuz that wasn't Vin's fault."

"No. Because I got lonely, then jealous, because you and he were stuck in Cutter's Creek, alone. Together. I lost Sarah, kid — there wasn't anyone before her and there hasn't been anyone since. Not until Vin. I couldn't stand the thought of losing him. And, knowing he was with you, I couldn't help thinking I might."

"But it ain't like that, Chris. We were just ... messin' around. Like ya said, he's got so much energy. And ya can't expect him ta be faithful like Sarah was. He's not a woman."

"And he ain't my property. I just forgot all that is all. Forgot it, then drank and made it all seem worse. Think I'd know better after all these years."

JD felt a great sadness for this man. He had to be so strong for everyone around him, yet he didn't have anyone to be strong for him. JD shifted his weight around until he was turned to look at the man. He put his arms around the gunslinger's chest and hugged him.

Chris was as close to a father as he'd ever known and he put all those years of never being able to hug his own father into this one embrace. A day's worth of tears ran unbidden down the kid's cheeks.

The man idly ran his fingers through JD's hair — not like Vin did, but like his ma used to, to comfort him, to calm him into sleep when he'd been very small. Chris eased them down onto the blanket and JD was happy to curl up in the safety of this man's arms, hoping Chris knew he could have JD's strength and support should he ever want them.

It was barely light when Vin began rousing the others. Ezra protested, though it was obvious he was glad to get up off the hard ground. Nathan set about making coffee, but Vin said they didn't have time. He wanted to get back on the trail.

The others agreed, though they didn't share the same level of impatience with the tracker.

Before the sun was halfway over the Eastern horizon, the motley group of five was saddled and back on the trail. Vin took the lead and set the pace, pushing his horse into a lope, not knowing how far they had to travel and not wanting to tucker the horses by pushing them to a full gallop.

Just shy of an hour later, Vin spotted a thin tendril of gray smoke from what might be a dying fire. It was just off the main trail, and he signaled his discovery to the others who had fallen a few yards behind. He was about to push his horse onward when Buck came galloping past. Vin spurred his horse and caught the man, and the pair raced the rest of the distance side-by-side until they reached the small encampment.

They dismounted and approached quietly, but before they reached the dwindling fire, they were faced with two gun barrels — one held by JD, who was laying on the opposite side of the fire and one held by the man spooned up behind him, Chris.

"Well, ain't ya both cozier than two peas in a pod." Buck laughed at the sight of the two grown men. JD pulled a face and struggled to sit up, but Chris held him down with a hand on his arm as the gunslinger used the boy to help push himself to his feet.

"Morning to you, too, Buck," was all Chris said as he wandered away toward the far side of the tree.

Vin closed the space between him and JD, then bent down next to the kid, quietly asking, "Ya okay?"

As soon as JD nodded, Vin got up and walked after Chris. Buck then came over to help the kid to sit up just as the other three men were arriving.

The tracker rounded the thick tree trunk to find Chris taking a leak. "You mind?"

Vin turned his back, though it wasn't anything he hadn't ever seen before, repeatedly. Still, it might be easier to ask what needed asking without having to look Chris in the eyes. "So, did ya sleep with him?"

Chris let go an exasperated puff of air that sounded like a small laugh. "Yeah. But that's all we did. Sleep."

"Look, Chris...."

But the man had finished his call to nature. And he stepped over to where Vin could see him. "Come on." He then turned and headed further away from the trail, further from the small encampment, onto the plain of rich-green grasses spread out before them.

When they were a good ways out, their close band of friends just specks in the distance, Chris turned to Vin, but didn't stop walking.

"Reckon I'm the one who should be talking here. You told me about you and JD. I didn't think it would bother me. But ... once you were gone, well ... I just haven't felt that alone and empty since ... since Sarah and Adam died."

Vin put a hand on the man's shoulder. It had been what he'd thought. This man was no granite statue of a hero with a heart made of stone. He felt empty and broken like everyone else did sometimes.

Chris continued: "I shouldn't have gotten worked up. I shouldn't have tried to lose myself in all them bottles of whiskey. And I shouldn't have taken it out on you. I had no right, Vin. None. And if you wanna head off to Tascosa or ... wherever, because you can't stand the sight of me anymore, I'll understand. I won't like it, but I'll understand."

Vin stopped and waited for Chris to do the same. The older man turned and looked at the tracker, waiting.

"Let's just git one thing straight, Larabee," Vin finally spoke, needing to get a few things of his own off his chest. He spoke slowly, emphasizing the words, needing to make sure Chris both heard and understood them. "When I come to you, it's because I want to. Not because I have to. Not because you ask me to. Not because I feel any obligation to you. And certainly not because I feel sorry fer you."

Chris looked up at him, his brow furrowed over his green eyes, trying to comprehend what this man was telling him.

"There ain't no one — man nor woman — past nor present — kin hold a candle ta how I feel when I'm with ya. Not JD. Not anybody."

Chris nodded. "I'm s—"

But Vin placed his hand over Chris's mouth. "Don't say it. Ain't what I need ta hear. Just tell me ya won't ever act that way again and I'll believe ya."

Chris clasped the young man's hand and removed it from his mouth. "Promise."

"Well, all right then. Now ... don't ya owe me breakfast?" Vin smiled and a moment later he was caught up in Chris's arms. The hug felt so good, so warm, so ... absolute.

"So, what the hell's goin' on?" Buck asked the kid quietly before the others got within earshot.

But all JD did was shrug.

"So, let me have a look at that leg of yers, JD," Nathan said as soon as he lighted from his mount.

"It's okay, Nathan. Just sore is all." But the healer began to unwrap the bandage anyway. "Guess I over did it a bit yesterday."

Buck whacked the boy on the back of his head with his hat, and the kid swatted him away. "Over did it. That's an understatement. What the hell were ya doin' up on that horse of yers anyway??"

"Yes, I do recall you being ordered to remain in bed, young man," Ezra piped in. "I had my afternoon all planned to play cards with you and instead I ended up roaming the country side and, ugh" — he stretched out his obviously sore back — "sleeping on dirt. When next we meet, you had best be prepared to play the poker game of your life."

JD nodded and smiled at all the men, appreciating the friendships he had more than ever. How could he have thought of leaving this group, even if it was to be with Vin? Hell, how could Vin have thought to leave? Speaking of which....

"How come Vin was with ya fellas? I was trailin' him to Tascosa."

Josiah laughed, but it was Buck who explained. "He wasn't headin' fer Texas, JD. I came across him out at Mary's old place."

"What was he doin' there?"

"Well, he didn't rightly say," was all Buck offered as explanation on the matter.

"Now, ya stay here, JD. Don't move, while I git some liniment outta my saddle bag," Nathan ordered and JD didn't have any reason not to comply.

But when the healer returned, he didn't look at JD. Instead he was staring off into the distance. The others followed his gaze and saw the two specks they knew were Chris and Vin merge into one.

"Now, what do you suppose that's about?" Josiah asked.

JD smiled. He figured he was the only one of them who knew, but, for once, he kept his mouth shut, knowing it wasn't his place to say.

"That there, my friends, is the cement which holds this team together," Buck offered up.

"Can't argue with that," Nathan added.

"And thank God for it," Josiah piped in.

"Amen," was Ezra's final word on the matter.

Back in town, JD was quickly hustled off to bed — well, as quickly as Buck and Josiah could haul him up the stairs. Ezra promised to return after supper for their pre-appointed game of cards.

Chris and Vin had broken off from the group two miles outside town, where the road split off to a trail that passed by Chris's small plot of land. No one questioned their departure, though JD had to acknowledge to himself the slight feeling of emptiness which crept in around his heart as he watched them go.

He didn't suppose he'd ever get to be with the tracker again. Not that he would want to if it meant trouble between Chris and Vin. Still, selfish though it may be, he did want to.

Nathan left, assuring the young man he would stop in before bedtime to see if he needed anything. And Buck was right on his heels, promising to return with dinner for the kid in a little while.

In a way, JD was happy to be alone for a spell. He needed to sort through all the emotions he had churning inside of him. He certainly still had feelings for Vin. Though he couldn't say precisely that it was love. And he had feelings for Casey as well. Not that she was speaking to him at the moment, but maybe that was something he should try to fix sometime soon.

With this thought still roaming around his mind, a knock came through the door, followed by a voice. "JD? It's Casey. Kin I come in?"

"It's open, Casey."

He pulled the bed covers over his bare legs, knowing it was improper enough as it was for her to be in his room alone with him.

"JD, I just wanna say I was sorry. I ain't sorry that we ... I mean, that we slept together. But...." her voice trailed off and JD waited while she gathered her thoughts. He watched patiently as she uncharacteristically fidgeted a bit. "Why'd ya gimme Vin's bandanna?"

JD smiled from the awkwardness that question brought. The fact that she was asking it meant that, indeed, she had no idea what had happened between the two men, which was all the more reason not to burden her with the knowledge. But he had to tell her something.

"Vin's my friend. I gave ya that bandanna 'cuz it meant somethin' ta me." She nodded her head and looked a little bit like she was going to cry. He wouldn't part with the brown kerchief again, especially knowing he'd probably never be with Vin again, but he did offer her something in its place.

He held out his hand and she took it.

She came closer to him, bending down and kissing him, very lightly, with lips pliant but closed. Then she stood up straight again, smiling through the tears which now clouded her eyes.

"Maybe — when yer knee's better — we kin go ridin' again," she offered, her smile suddenly fading as she waited for his answer.

"Just ridin'?" he asked.

She nodded, hesitantly. "Fer now."

JD smiled at her, but did not release her hand.

The pair dismounted, and then led their horses to the corral before unsaddling them. They brushed the animals down before heading inside the small cabin.

"You hungry?" Chris asked as he removed his duster and hung it on a peg just inside the door. Vin shook his head, no.

The tracker pulled his own coat off, and then sat down on the edge of the bed. Chris leaned against the table where they had often shared a meal, and sometimes more. He undid his gun belt and hooked it over the back of one of the chairs.

Vin undid his own gun belt and looped it over the bottom post of the bed. Then he undid the top two buttons of his shirt.

Chris removed his hat and left it on the table. Then undid the buttons on his cuffs.

Vin tossed his hat to the gunslinger who dropped it beside his own on the table, then the tracker slipped out of his suspenders.

Chris undid his belt.

More buttons were undone until, finally, two shirts fluttered to the ground — one black, one dark blue.

Vin was the first to reach for the top button of his trousers while Chris yanked off his boots. Then he bent down in front of Vin and pulled off the tracker's boots.

Vin continued to work on the buttons of his fly, until the fabric hung loose. Chris sat up between Vin's legs, and then reached inside the man's pants to remove his already hardening cock. He lowered his head down, taking the hot tip into his mouth. Vin leaned back, reveling in the experience.

JD was fun, Vin thought, but this man before him sure as hell knew what he was doing.

Chris stroked the lower half of Vin's shaft with his hand as he continued to cater to the top with his tongue and lips. His other hand slipped deep into Vin's pants, capturing his balls, then gently kneading them with his callused hands.

Vin brought his hands up and stroked Chris's dark blond hair. It was so much finer than JD's, shorter, and softer. Finally, he could restrain himself no longer. Vin moved his hands down to Chris's chin and encouraged him to release his cock. Chris looked up at him with eyes like the lush grasses that covered the plain they had stood on that very morning.

Vin gently pulled him forward and Chris raised himself up until their lips met. Vin could taste the essence of his cock on the man's lips. He pulled him closer, down on top of himself, running his fingers over the coarse fabric of Chris's undershirt, finally taking hold of the lower edge and pulling it up, breaking their kiss for only a moment as he cleared the man's head. The muslin knit landed on top of the blue and black fabrics already adorning the floor.

Vin's undershirt was next — its removal a bit less graceful with him lying on his back, but none-the-less swift. With bare chests now exposed, the two men scooted themselves up giving both partners plenty of room on the mattress.

Chris began kissing Vin's neck, shoulders, and chest. Vin continued to run his hands over the older man's back, tracing the sinewy muscles there. Beneath, Vin could feel the ribs as they fanned out on each side of his back, circling around to the front. Vin slipped his hands between them, comparing the feeling of his own muscles against the back of his hands to those of Chris with his palms. Chris was slightly broader through the chest, but Vin's stomach muscles were tauter, more defined.

The tracker felt the scar on the side of his chest and noted a comparable one across his companion's stomach.

Chris moved down now, leaving only his shoulders for Vin to explore. The gunman took the man inside his mouth again, but deep this time. The hot moisture drove Vin to distraction and he forgot all about the broad shoulders beneath his fingers as the muscles throughout his body contracted from the sudden pleasure.

The tracker could feel Chris's tongue slip just inside his sheath, circling around the very sensitive glans. Then he felt a small amount of pressure, building, as the man began to suck. It increased until Vin's toes began to curl and he thought he might cry out from the intensity. Then the pressure ebbed and he felt the man's tongue again.

All the while, Chris kept his one hand on Vin's sac. He moved the tissue gently in his hand, as if he held two eggs he was trying not to break. His other hand continued along Vin's shaft, moving up and down the short distance that wasn't already contained. But then he removed that hand and reached up to Vin's mouth.

The tracker could smell his own scent on the man's fingers. He kissed the palm, and then sucked one of those fingers into his mouth, mimicking the ministrations he was still feeling on his cock. Sucking and licking. Finally, he released the digit and ran his wet tongue over Chris's palm.

The gunman then returned his hand to Vin's shaft, the added moisture allowing a smoother stroke over the solid rod. Vin kept one hand on Chris — caressing his shoulder and neck, rubbing behind the man's ear, running his fingers through his hair — but the other hand he moved to his own chest, finding, then teasing, a nipple until the little area of flesh was a hard nub. He then moved his hand over and did the same to the other.

He felt Chris's mouth leave the tip and move down his shaft, licking and nibbling at the entire length, until he reached Vin's balls, which he took into his mouth. He moved the sacs back and forth with his hot tongue, and then, as his hand moved up and down his cock, he began to hum softly.

Vin tensed, then almost bucked as a spasm flashed through his loins. Chris then moved his mouth back to Vin's cock and began licking and sucking again, finally reaching the tip, which he swirled his tongue over before taking back into his mouth.

Moving his head slowly up and down, taking Vin far into his mouth, then out again, Chris continued his attentions until Vin felt the inevitable tensing, like a sudden fire inside of him. He could feel the small tingles which quickly turned into spasms until, finally, he couldn't help but thrust his hips up until the entire length of his cock was inside the other man's mouth.

Chris didn't mind, somehow managing to contract the muscles of his throat around the head of the penis, then allowing Vin to pull out and thrust again. Vin finally shot his creamy jism into the other man's mouth who swallowed, suckling at the cock for more, until Vin was dry and the wave after wave of incredible sensations stretching out over his entire body seemed to melt slowly away.

Chris then scooted up the bed to lie next to his partner. He gently brushed his fingers over Vin's fine chest hairs, seemingly pleased to have completely tuckered out the younger man, at least for the moment.

The pair lay in the privacy of the small cabin for a long while, neither moving much except to run an idle hand over some body part belonging to the other, nor speaking until Chris let out a little sigh.

"Vin?" he breathed.

"Yeah, pard?"

"What about JD?"

Silence hung between them. They hadn't talked about the kid since their conversation on the plain and even then they hadn't discussed what the future would hold, for any of them. "What're ya askin' me?"

"You wanna be with him again?"

Vin thought on this for a long while. The answer had to be no, if Chris couldn't handle it. Though knowing he couldn't do it just because it might make this man jealous irritated the tracker some. Chris was an adult and he knew how men thought, acted, felt. He should know that sometimes it's just sex and other times it's ... everything.

So, what did that mean?

It meant yes, Vin decided. He wanted to be with JD again. He wanted to be that kid he got to be up in Cutter's Creek — the one with no chores, no job, no responsibilities, and nothing on his mind but sex. Not all the time, mind you, because that would take the fun out of it, but every once and a while, just to be able to run off and spend the day with JD, just being kids again.

Then he wanted to come home to this, this incredible man lying right now in his arms. To feel that strength, that security, that incredible desire and passion, with hands that knew every inch of his body and all the ways to fill him with longing and pleasure.

But how could he tell his partner any of this, after what happened yesterday? Chris said he'd never act jealous again, nor let that emotion get the better of him, but could Vin truly believe the man?

The tracker leaned over and kissed Chris, running his fingers up and down the other man's bare arm. Then he looked into those intensely green eyes, the ones that were waiting for his answer.

Then Vin smiled.

There was a knock on the door, and the occupant of the bed stirred slowly awake. He knew it was damn late for anyone to be coming around. "Who's there?" he slurred through sleep-laden lips.

But no one answered. Slowly, however, the knob turned and the door slid open accompanied by a small whisper of a creak on the floorboards as a dark figure occupied the now open doorway. A moment later the door shut and the lock was thrown home before boots clicked firmly against the floor as the intruder crossed the small room to the bed.

He felt a warm, familiar mouth press against his lips, soon parting them with a moist, eager tongue. He felt hands running over his nightshirt-clad chest and tangling in his hair. He then felt the weight of the visitor on the bed, lying down beside him.

As lips moved down from his mouth to his jaw and, finally, to his neck — as a warm hand slipped beneath the bed covers — he felt compelled to speak.

"Vin?"

"Yeah, kid?"

"What about Chris?"

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Special thanks to my beta readers for all of their wonderful help and encouragement!

Characters from "The Magnificent Seven," were used without permission and this story in no way signifies support of or affiliation with The Mirisch Group, MGM, Trilogy Entertainment, or CBS Worldwide, Inc. The story itself and any non-Magnificent Seven characters belong to the author. This story will not be sold for any reason.