DISCLAIMER: All the characters from the "Magnificent Seven" TV series are property of Trilogy Entertainment, The Mirisch Group, MGM Worldwide.

Hunters & Prey

Part Four

Night

Inez would have liked to stay at the dance but with the evening winding down and the couples departing the hall, she knew it was only a matter of time before the saloon's ranks started to fill again. Although she was a partner with Ezra Standish, she knew he was otherwise engaged and she had not the inconvenience of an escort to keep her from tending bar when those crowds arrived. Of course she could have had an escort if she had wished it. Buck had asked her to the danceher several times, and several times, she had refused him. No doubt, he was somewhere in bed at this moment, coupling with one the ladies she had seen him trying to charm during the course of the evening.

As long as it was not her.

Inez had no intention onof being just another notch in Buck Wilmington’s very marked belt. As much as she cared for him, which was considerably more than most people knew, she was unwilling to playthe second fiddle to anyone. She wanted someone who would love her, without having to fear whose bed she would find him in each time the wind blew a different direction. The truth was, she knew she could fall very deeply for Buck, which was half the reason she kept her distance.

The sultry Mexican woman continued up the boardwalk, smiling faintly as she observed happy couples strolling through the streets, eyes only for each other after the evening past. Most of the children were gone by now and the extinguished sparklers lying in the dirt were all that remained of their exuberant presence from earlier in the day. Most of the men on the street were on their way to the saloon and Inez sighed, thinking about the hectic evening she would soon have to face.

As she rounded the corner, she noticed JD and Casey walking hand in hand in the moonlight. The scene brought a smile to her face the way nothing else could. Inez was pleased to see that the earlier trouble had faded away. Obviously, Casey had convinced JD by now that a picnic basket won by Bart Cook would have little bearing on their relationship. While she may have been forced to endure the usurper’s attentions during the meal, she had more or less discarded him once the basket was empty. After her arrival at the dance, Casey and JD had been virtually inseparable, and poor Bart Cook was left to sulk in the corner with the rest of the wallflowers.

Inez had only wished that the evening had been similarly pleasant for Alex and Vin. She wondered where the two of them had disappeared to after the altercation at the dance. No doubt, Alex was probably hiding somewhere in mortification and Vin was probably brooding in his wagon, if he was not already getting drunk at the saloon. The awful Mr. Mason had not made his return after he was banished resoundingly by Chris Larabee. Inez felt a shudder of ice run down her spine when she saw how the man had reacted to Alex and Vin. There were too many parallels between Masons’Mason's behavior and Don Paulo for her liking.

Buck had secured her release, and almost gotten himself killed for the effort. Inez hoped it would not require Vin Tanner to make the same sacrifice. Thinking of how Buck had defended her honor, brought forward an involuntary feeling of warmth for him. If he was not so damn annoying and so forward, she might have given him a little more thought. She knew if she allowed him the chance, he might surprise her and that too frightened Inez more than she would like to have admitted. When she had been brutally assaulted some months ago, Buck had been at her side constantly, ensuring that she had a supportive shoulder at every instanceinstant of her recovery. Inez had been astonished by the intensity of his care, since he was normally irresponsible beyond human belief.

Even now, the memory of that terrible day surfaced to taunt her in the dark moments when she weakened and allowed herself to think of it. During the first few weeks, she had often woke up in the dark, her clothes plastered to her skin with the sweat of nightmares she dared not recall. It had taken a long time not to jump at every shadow or view every man as a potential monster.

She saw the saloon ahead and noted a small crowd gathering outside waiting impatiently for her arrival, or for someone to open the doors any way. Until then, there had been people walking back and forth on the street, but after turning down the corner to where the saloon was situated, she noticed that the crowds had dropped off considerably. She looked over her shoulder and noticed the fair-haired stranger who was companion to Randall Mason, walking up behind her.

"Miss Inez." HeInez" he tipped his hat at her as she met his gaze.

"Senor Rihs?" Inez replied politely, seeing no reason to be rude since he was not responsible for Randall Manson’s behaviour.Mason’s behavior.

"That is correct." He nodded. "Youcorrect," he nodded, "you remembered."

"One does not forget a meeting like that." Shethat" she pointed out.

In the moonlight, there seemed to be little expression on his face as she spoke of the day he and Mason had first walked into the saloon and made his inquiries about Alex. "That is true and it is unfortunate that circumstances have spiraled out of control so rapidly."

"If you are referring to the incident at the dance, I would agree Senor." SheSenor" she agreed, feeling for Alex because she had some personal idea of what the doctor was going through with the attentions of an unwanted suitor who was pursuing her relentlessly.

"Actually, I’m not." He smiled, pulling his lips across his white teeth with a sinister gleam. She looked down and found herself staring at his gun, discreetly hidden out of sight but with a clear line of fire into her belly if she gave him a reason to pull the trigger.

"What is this?" Inez demanded quietly, her eyes staring at the weapon for a moment before her eyes shiftedshifting to his face.

"This my dear is a small act in a larger play." Heplay" he replied. "I would ask you to accompany meto where I wish you go, quietly. It would be a shame to shoot you, but doubt it not that I will, if you refuse to cooperate." He said this all with perfect civility even though his eyes spoke volumes of what he was capable of doing should she resist.

"Maybe letting you kill me now is preferable to what you can do in the shadows." Inez said boldly as her eyes darted towards the direction of the saloon. Unfortunately, no one had noticed her presence before his arrival and they certainly did not now. If there was help to be had, it would not come from these men who were more interested in the opening of the tavern than anything else transpiring around them.

"Is that a gamble you are willing to take Senorita?" Hehe asked, cocking the gun slowly, reinforcing the threat with the click of the chamber moving into position.

Unfortunately, the courage to call his bluff did not come and Inez saw no alternative but to agree begrudgingly to his demands. However, she would die before letting anyone touch her again.

She was not enduring another nightmare.

*******

Shortly after Inez had made the same journey, Ezra, Julia, Chris and Josiah made their way to the saloon, only to find a crowd of unhappy people, awaiting the opening of the establishment with growing impatience and rowdy behavior. As Ezra fought his way through the bodies who were barking at him in colourful language to the say the least, demanding access to the bar, he wondered what had happened to Inez.

"Gentlemen please," Ezra spoke on top of his voice. "I shall open the doors soon enough, kindly let myself and my friends through."

He need not have bothered for as Chris stepped through the crowd;crowd, the more disgruntled of the group quickly stepped aside for the gunslinger. No one was foolish enough to try shoving and pushing anywhere in Chris Larabee’s direction, for the man was known for his intolerance toof the invasion of his personal space. Ezra sighed;sighed, envying what it must be to go through life with such awesome presence that it could instantly make men tremble at the sight of you.

Within minutes, Ezra unlocked the doors and the tavern was open for business once again. Without Inez, it was up to the gambler to take up the bar tending duties and the deluge of drinkers in the first ten minutes of the its opening, kept Ezra too busy to think very much about where his partner might have disappeared. With the opening of the saloon, came the inevitable arrival of the saloon girls and someone who took a seat at the piano. Although nothing like the music at the dance, very soon the air was filled with a lively and melodic tune that kept the place hoping. Ezra saw Josiah, Chris and Julia take up position at their favorite table. The gambler had an idea of what they drank and took the liberty of fulfilling their requirements once the rush of drinkers had subsided.

"I thought Inez was supposed to open up." Julia pointed out when Ezra returned to the table.

"She was." Thewas" the gambler said quizzically. "She left the dance early in anticipation of a full house by the time the event had concluded."

Chris remembered the lady leaving the dance hall because he was present at her farewells to Mary prior to her departure. The last time Inez had disappeared for a few hours, the results had the most horrific implications. Chris hoped this absence was nothing like that. He was tempted to find Mary who was at this moment conferring with other members of the anniversary committee to make some last minute arrangements about tomorrow’s activities. Perhaps Mary was aware of some meeting that Inez had left undisclosed.

"Perhaps she is with Buck?" Julia suggested.

"Only in his dreams." Josiah remarked and produced a snigger from all those around the table despite the growing urgency in her disappearance.

"It is unlike her to leave her responsibilities in this manner." Ezra said clearly unhappy that he did not know his partner’s whereabouts. The last time she had gone missing, he had left it too late and by the time she finally surfaced, Inez had suffered the worst attack imaginable to any woman. This time, he was unwilling to let it go with a simple shrug of his shoulders that she was somewhere about. While their relationship was purely platonic, Inez was his friend and confidant. It was her voice that gave his conscience a swift kick in the rear whenever it chose to lapse towards some inappropriate behavior. Rising to his feet, he turned to Julia. "My dear, I’m going to escort you home. Mr. Larabee, I do not wish to sound alarmist but I do not like the idea that Inez is not here. She is uncommonly punctual and not prone to such neglect. If she is not here, there is a reason for it."

"Are you sure?" Julia pouted, disappointed that an enjoyable evening was coming to an abrupt end. While she hoped nothing too awful had happened to the Mexican, Julia did not feel any real concern over the woman’s welfare other than what she meant to Ezra. Normally, such a relationship would have bothered her but it was Inez’s own behaviourInez’ own behavior that convinced Julia that she had nothing to fear.

"Chris, it is late." Ezra implored the gunslinger with genuine trepidation. Ezra seldom called anyone by their first name and that he had done so now went a long way to convincing Chris how serious the gambler was about his fears for the lady bartender’s welfare.

"You’re right." Heright" he nodded standing up as well. "Josiah, stay here in case she comes back." Chris ordered although the chances of that seemed unlikely. If Inez could be here, she already would be. "There’s probably a good reason for her not being here, but until we know what that is, its best not to take chances."

"And if you can see to it that my patrons do not rob me blind, I would appreciate it." Ezra added as he started to lead Julia out of the place.

"As long as your priorities are intact." Josiah said sarcastically as he went to take position behind the counter.

*********

Julia locked the door behind her after Ezra had seen her to her front porch and let out a sigh of disappointment at the evening coming to an end so abruptly. While she loved him a great deal, she wished he did not have such that annoying noble streak in him. It made for the most inconvenient interruptions at times. Still, she understood his need to belong and the camaraderie he shared with the six men he rode with was a bond she had not the courage to attempt breaking. She wondered what it was like to have such deep friendship, but the substance of it escaped her. All her life she lived believing that other women were the enemy. There were few she could remain in company with and be comfortable with an equal status quo. It was in her nature to have the upper hand.

Loving Ezra Standish had made her vulnerable, and Julia had no idea how vulnerable until the moment Mary Travis had threatened her with exposure of her unsavoury past. She knew that Ezra probably suspected most of what the venerable Mrs. Travis had dared to reveal however,reveal, however it was a risk she was unwilling to take. Finding a man who knew what she was in all her manipulative and scheming glory, and who still loved her despite it, was something Julia had never believed possible. It challenged her that she could not pull the wool over his eyes and her attempts to try had led to some very exciting love making once the game was discovered. She would not risk losing him, however remote the possibility.

She started to remove the pins from her hair, allowing the locks of red to fall around her shoulders as she made her way to the bedroom. Assuming that Inez was not in any serious danger, she expected to see Ezra back later that night to share a drink and perhaps a little more than that, she smiled with secret expectation. Instead of residing above the Emporium as Victoria Kendall had done when she owned the premises, Julia had opted to buy the house adjoining the property. It was not the most lavish of homes but fortunately,homes, but fortunately she had the money to almost completely refurbish it so that it was quite luxurious according to the standards of most people in Four Corners

Julia made her way to the bedroom with every intention of divesting herself of her confining clothes and slipping into some a little less uncomfortable when she walked past the parlor and noticed the doors leading to the patch of garden behind the home were open. For a moment, she stood in the hallway, trying to recall whether or not she had left it unlocked.

A residual effect of life in the city had taught her to always keep the doors locked. Burglaries and homicides were almost as prolific in the urban centers of 19^th century America asit was in the Wild West, except in the territory, you had some idea of who the enemy was. In a city, where faces were so abundant that it was easy to lose track of one person to the next, everyone was a potential threat. She stared at that opened door trying to decide what to do, knowing with growing certainty that she had not left it open.

The seconds seemed to slow before she reached the decision to close it and chalk the whole thing to her own absentmindedness. However, as she crossed the threshold of doorway into the parlor, her mind kept spinning the same question. When had she found reason to open the door to even forget locking it? She had crossed the rug in the parlor when the moonlight caught pieces of glass and beaming its bright reflecting in her eye. Julia froze at the realization that the she had not forgotten to unlock anything.

Someone had broken in.

She started withdrawing in rising apprehension at the discovery, swinging around to hurry out the front door in the wild need to escape. The ‘someone’ who had entered her house was standing behind her when she made her bid to flee her house. She cringed away from the smell of liquor and the stench of the man who had obviously not bathed in quite sometime before attempting to scream, however his filthy hand cupped her mouth and kept the sound from escaping her throat.

"Don’t make a fuss now, little lady." He said pulling her forward by the neck, his thick fingers squeezing her throat with enough force to drive home the point that he would hurt her if she made any trouble.

"What do you want?" She asked fearfully, staring at him with wide eyes. In the darkness, she could not see him very well but knew he dwarfed her easily and seemed to be one of those men that Ezra would normally call a denizen of ‘Purgatory’ or some similar hive of villainy. There were times, she wished he would just say outlaw.

"We’re taking a ride," the man said with a smile, teeth gleaming in the night like that of a wolf. "If you’re nice, maybe it won’t hurt as much."

Somehow, Julia doubted it.

*********

There were times when Mary really envied Chris Larabee.

She let out a sigh of weariness as she reached the back porch of her home, glad that the evening was over, although she was not really looking forward to the next day either. The anniversary celebrations were far from over, and as a member of the committee; she was required to assist in supervision of all events so that it would go smoothly, without incident. The widow’s eyes narrowed in annoyance when she remembered how fast Chris Larabee had vanished once he saw the flock of committee members coming in their direction. He could face up to killers, outlaws, bandits, armies of fanatic confederates and the occasional mechanical monster from the future. However, put him in a situation where he might be considered civilized and the man made off for the hills with a streak of yellow down his back the width of the Rio Grande.

Still it was a nice back, she smiled as she unlocked the door and stepped inside the kitchen. She was about to turn around and shut it when suddenly a heavy weight slammed against it and thew her half way across the room to the floor. Mary hit her head as she landed, feeling a wave of dizziness flare from the impact. She recovered enough to hear the footsteps running through the open door and the unfamiliar sounds that be spoke harm.

Mary viewed the shape approaching her in the dark and knew immediately that she was not about to let it reach her. Although dazed, she had enough presence of mind to kick outward forcefully;forcefully, connecting with a nub of bone she was certain to be an ankle. The intruder let out a sharp cry of pain as his foot was swept from under him. Not allowing the man time to recover, Mary rolled on to her knees and scrambled to her feet as she heard him swearing at her. She looked over her shoulder, long enough to see him doing the same and coming after her.

"Come back here you bitch!" He screamed. "I’ll cut you real bad for that!"

That was incentive enough for Mary to keep running. With adrenaline coursing through her lungs, she raced down the hallway, breathing hard as she heard his heavy footsteps fall into pursuit. She pushed a side table over as she passed it, hearing it and its contents making a tremendous crash as it impacted against the polished floor. It was just dark enough to be an obstruction to a man unaccustomed to the layout of an unfamiliar place. Predictably, she heard a loud thud followed by more cursing and knew that the ploy had worked.

It bought her enough time to reach the front entrance of the building and escaped through the doors of the Clarion office which took her out onto the main street and right into the surprised arms of Chris Larabee who was just about to enter the building.

"Mary, what’s wrong!" Hehe demanded as his arms wrapped around her.

"Oh thank godGod, Chris!" Mary said gasping in fright, never happier to see him. "There’s somebody in the house!"

His eyes hardened in that particular way she had grown accustomed to, whenever trouble was about. "Go to the saloon and wait for me." Heme" he ordered in a tone that would not accept argument. His hands had dropped from her shoulders and she could see him reaching for the pearl handled Peacemaker that remained perennially nestled in the holster at his side.

"Be careful." Shecareful" she said kissing him hastily on the mouth as he left her and went to confront the intruder who had invaded her home for some unknown but sinister purpose.

Mary turned her back reluctantly and had not taken more than a few steps when gunfire erupted behind her. She swung around, eyes wide trying to decide whether to continue as per his orders or to investigate and confirm that her fears were unfounded, that those bullets had not met their mark. Her heart pounded as she remained rooted to the spot, unable to move until she knew for certain. The minutes that followed the shooting seemed to stretch into hours as Mary waited in the middle of street, reciting all those secret prayers that kept her sane whenever he rode off to face some new danger in the protection of this town.

Please let him be all right.

A moment later, she saw him step out of the open door way, the familiar black hat raising slightly as he discovered that she was almost exactly where he had left her. Mary ran forward and embraced him hard before he even had a chance to say a word of reproach, wrapping her arms around him before covering his face in a shower of grateful kisses.

"I was so afraid that you hurt." She saidhurt" she said, relieved.

"You know me," he smiled, pleased at her reaction and always impressed that she did not need quite as much looking after as most women did. "Are you okay?" Hehe asked, having not asked earlier.

"I’m fine." Shefine" she sighed, her hand instinctively moving to her forehead that had bore the brunt of her fall. There would probably be bruising tomorrow but she did not care. He was safe and that was all that mattered. "Is he?" She asked reluctantlyshe asked reluctantly, even though she was almost certain that her intruder was dead.

"Yeah." Hehe nodded without hesitation.

"I don’t’ understand."don’t understand" Mary said in confusion as she swallowed thickly at the prospect of having a body removed from her house at this hour. Perhaps a hotel room might not be a bad idea tonight. She could not face the house tonight after such unpleasantness. "What did he want?" Sheshe asked confused.

"I don’t know." Chris shook his head. "Buthead, "but I’ve got a feeling that he wasn’t alone. I think his friends have got Inez and you were supposed to join her."

"Inez is missing?" Mary exclaimed with alarm. "When?"

"Since she left the dance." Chris replied as he led her away from the Clarion towards the saloon. Inappropriate at it was for her to be at the establishment, at least the place was full of people and Josiah could keep an eye on her until Chris could get to the bottom of what was happening tonight.

********

"What’s up Chris?" JD Dunne asked as he saw Mary and the gunslinger on their way to the saloon. Nettie and Casey had departed a short time ago for home and JD had provided escort for aunt and niece most of the way there. Despite how determined Nettie was about such things, JD knew that Vin would have a veritable fit if he knew that the old lady had attempted to make such a journey at this time of night by herself. For that matter, JD was not very impressed by Casey making the trip either. She looked so pretty tonight, he did not want to risk anything happening to her. It was bad enough that Bart Cook had stolen most of her time today, JD did not intend for some varmint to stumble across her in the night.

"Someone just tried to kidnap Mary." Chris said sharply, silently fuming that anyone would dare to make an attempt on her life. Although the man had started firing at him first, Chris made sure his bullets hit home just to vindicate the intruder’s audacity at trying to bring harm to the woman he loved.

"You alright Mrs. Travis?" JD looked at her in concern.

"I’m fine JD," she replied honestly. "I’m just a little shaken."

"Who was it?" Hehe questioned automatically.

"I don’t know," Chris retorted. "Butretorted "but I think I’ve seen him before."

This was the first that Mary had heard of it since Chris had not volunteered the information earlier. "Where?"

"In Purgatory." HePurgatory" he replied. "He’s one of the hired guns that hang out at the saloons there." Chris ventured a guess, trying to place the dead body on the floor of Mary’s hall way with the man named Digger Sweeney, a small time hired gun who mostly went in for rustling jobs and could always be counted to play gunmen in any petty theft operation.

"What would they want with me and Inez?" Mary asked becoming more bewildered by the moment.

"Inez is gone too!" JD exclaimed, feeling like he had walked into the middle of a play and was trying to follow the best he could.

"Mr. Larabee!" Ezra’s voice reached him across the street. Chris turned to see Ezra striding towards them with a grim look in his eyes. For a moment, Chris entertained the worst, that they had not intended to kidnap Inez and Mary, that murder had been the true reason for the intrusions. The gambler’s normally cool countenance was shattered and the fear in his eyes was something not even an expert poker face was capable of hiding today.

"What?" Chris demanded, not wanting Ezra to waste time with false platitudes.

"Its Julia," the gambler swallowed thickly. "She’sthickly "she’s gone."

The pattern starting to emerge was obvious. "What do you mean gone?"

"Like Inez," Ezra quickly stated. "I was unsuccessful in my quest and I thought I would stop by and let her know that our search may have to be expanded so I shall see her tomorrow. I found the front door wide open and the parlor doors had been broken into. There is no sign of violence other than that, but no Julia either."

"Well they tried for Mary," Chris growled, realizing they had a full blow situation here.

Ezra’s eyes immediately darted towards Mary’s direction. "Madam, are you hurt?"

The concern for her welfare in the light of Julia’s disappearance touched Mary to no end. "I’m fine Ezra." SheEzra" she smiled at him warmly. "And I’m sure Julia is too."

Ezra made no comment on that but he preferred to think she was right. The alternative would terrify him, and he was no good to Julia if he was less than fully in control of his faculties.

Chris thought quickly and decided they needed to get everyone together now. "Ezra," he looked up at the gambler. "Do you know where Buck is?"

Ezra gave Chris a look that said volumes. "Mr. Larabee, bed is the most obvious answer."

Somewhere behind him, Chris heard a stifled guffaw, it might have been JD. Chrisnevertheless gave the young man a stern look and then turned back to Ezra. "We need to find him."

"Chris," Mary sighed, trying to play devil’s advocate here because she knew what Ezra was so delicately trying not to say in deference to her sensibilities as a lady. "Judging by how popular Buck was tonight, he could be anywhere."

Didn’t Chris know that. Sometimes, he wondered whether a bell around Buck Wilmington’s neck might not be a feasible way of keeping track of Four Corner’s very own Casanova. "Ezra, try and find him. I’ll go get Vin."

"Where is Mr. Tanner anyway?" Ezra inquired. "I haven’t seen him since he left with Alexandra. Surely, he could not still be there?"

Chris and Mary exchanged knowing glances while it took Ezra a little longer to catch on. "Oh." He said quietly and felt a tinge of embarrassment at something so perfectly obvious.

"Well I can go get him Chris." JD offered, ever the innocent and completely oblivious to what his older companions were talking about.

"NO!" Chris, Mary and Ezra cried in unison and froze the young sheriff in his tracks.

"I’ll get him." Chris said with a perfectly straight face, betraying nothing to the bewildered Mr. Dunne. JD was staring at them as if they had gone perfectly mad or have been dipping into that loco weed that Barney Sheckley had growing behind his barn that made him run down the street with no pants.

"JD could you please take Mary to the saloon and see nothing happens to her." Chris gave her a look of warmth in his otherwise cool features.

"Sure Chris," JD said feeling his confusion at the earlier misunderstanding fading away in the light of this important task that Chris had assigned him. After all, Mary Travis was the most important thing in Chris Larabee’s existence, that he charged JD to protect her, swelled the young man’s chest with pride.

"We’ll meet up at the saloon." Chris called out as he started for Alexandra Styles' clinic.

*********

Vin Tanner was exhausted but happy.

He tightened his hold around Alex’s naked waist, watching her sleep with her dark hair splayed against the pillow and knew that he could do this for hours. Had it been four or five hours since they left the dance? The time had slipped by so fast after their heated coupling on her kitchen table. Of course the hours tended to go by faster considering they had rutted shamelessly like animals during the last three. Vin and Alex had brought each other to such heightened states of pleasure that he could no longer remember how many times they had made love tonight. Given the opportunity with someone she cared for, Alexandra Styles had literally taken his breath away.

Vin found himself drifting away on the wings of pure contentment, his body thoroughly spent, but knew all she had to do was open her eyes and give him that suggestive gleam before he would find himself miraculously renewed for another bout of passionate love making. He could not get enough of her and she of him. The scent of their union was heavy in the air and he was more than happy to fall asleep to that intoxicating aroma. He ran his fingers against her silken lips and felt a wave of warm affection pervading his soul with an accusing finger telling him that he was unconditionally lost to her. It paled in comparison to whatWhat he felt for Charlotte paled in comparison, and for the first time,time he understood with complete awareness why Chris Larabee would die if Mary Travis were ever taken away from him.

Alex stirred at his touch and opened her eyes to find Vin Tanner staring at her, wearing the slight smile on his face that hid so much of how he felt at times.

"Aren’t you tired yet cowboy?" Sheshe asked almost purring from the satisfaction that was coursing through her veins. She felt sore and weary, but just looking at him was enough to make her ache with desire once more. "I thought you were done after the last time." She ran her finger against his chest, swirling her fingertip around his nipple with a coquettish. smile on her lips.

Vin shuddered at the rush of pleasure and leaned forward to kiss her. He rolled on top of Alex, enjoying the sensation of her soft body under him as their mouths melted against each other with intimate understanding of what it took to arouse one another. Lying skin to skin, feeling her breasts against his chest and the smooth skin of her thighs against his manhood went a long way to raising his desire once more. Vin felt her hands running up and down his back, her tongue probing the deepest recesses of his mouth and knew that he wanted her like this for as long as he could have her….

Suddenly, the door knocked.someone knocked on the door.

Alex broke away first. "God, who is that?" Sheshe said breathlessly, hating the sudden end to his kiss.

"I don’t know." Vin confessed, wondering who would be knocking on her door at this time at night and decided it could only be a doctor’s call. "I think it’s for you though."

"I don’t want to get up." Sheshe whined and let her head drop back onto the pillow. He felt so good against her, she wanted him there all night.

Vin tended to agree but as another knock was heard, he decided whomever was at the door was not going away and he met her gaze with a weary sigh. "You better go see who it is, after all, you’re the only doctor around until Nathan gets back tomorrow."

"Slave driver." Shedriver" she mumbled as Vin rolled off her and allowed her to climb out of bed reluctantly. Vin watched her pull on a robe, appreciating every curve he could see in the dim light of her room and wondered if Ezra had any idea what he had thrown away when he had gone off with Julia Pemberton. Vin decided not to ponder that point in depth, since the gambler’s foolishness had allowed him to win Alex’s heart.

"I’ll make it up to you when you get back," he said wolfishly.

"You better," she laughed, tying the cord around the robe. "You don’t want me to turn into a mean ol’ spinster now would you?"

"Its too late." Helate" he teased. "You’re already meaner than a rattlesnake."

"Oh," she laughed in mock hurt, "I’ll make you pay for that cowboy." Shecowboy" she replied before walking out of the room, the flutter of a silk robe trailing her as she padded down the hallway to the door.

Alex let out a deep longing sigh as she left Vin behind in the warm bed and went to answer the door. She did so hope it was only a minor house call but knew with a sinking feeling that no house call made at this hour of the night could possibly be trivial to rouse her from her bed. Actually, it was not really that late, she realised.realized. They had left the dance early in the evening although as far as she was concerned, they had utilisedutilized the time alone most productively.

Whoever it was had better have a damn good reason for the intrusion, like being on the verge of death or something, she grumbled when she heard another loud knock.

"Chris!" Sheshe exclaimed with surprise after swinging the door open and finding herself standing before Chris Larabee. "Is something wrong?" Alex asked, recovering enough to try and sound completely casual as if she had nothing to hide.

Chris Larabee took one look at her and knew Vin Tanner was definitely here.

"We got a situation brewing," he said trying not to notice the undergarments piled at the foot of the kitchen table or Vin’s shirt and buckskins in a messy heap on the floor. "Is Vin here?" Hehe asked with such complete innocence, Mary would have been proud of him.

"What makes you think he’s here?" Alex asked, feigning ignorance.

"Alex," Chris sighed not wishing to embarrass her but having little time for this, not when Inez and Julia were out there somewhere and he needed the best tracker in the Territory on their trail before worse happen to them than just a kidnapping. "For starters, you’re naked under there, secondly, you’ve left your clothes on the floor and thirdly, Vin only takes that damn jacket when he bathes and he’s done that at least once today."

Alex narrowed her eyes and scowled at him. "I really hate you, you know." Sheknow" she groaned before turning on her bare heels. "Come on in." Shein" she sighed.

"Sooner or later, everyone does." Chris remarked, allowing himself a little smile before following her into the kitchen and trying not to picture what went on here as he walked past the clothes on the floor and was guided into the parlor. He supposed it was no wilder than anything he and Mary had gotten up to alone. Besides, he was hardly in the position to make any kind of judgement, not when he was having himself a most improper relationship with the editor and chief of the town paper.

"I'll get him." Shehim" she said with a bashful smile, knowing that Chris could be trusted to keep her reputation intact. They were friends despite the fact that she thought him to a scary son of a bitch and he believed that she had an even worse temper than Mary Travis’ when it came to saving the lives of her patients.

Vin appeared a short time later, pulling his suspenders over his shoulders at he emerged into the room. "What’s up?" Hehe asked, making no attempt to explain himself and knowing that with Chris it was unnecessary.

"Inez and Julia are gone." Chris said automatically. It was none of his business what Vin had been doing, no matter how self-evident it was to him. Besides, the entire situation was awkward enough as it was without his exacerbating things by interrogating Vin on his whereabouts the last few hours.

"Gone?" Hehe looked at Chris. "How?"

"Digger Sweeney tried to break into Mary’s house and take her," Chris informed. "I figure the men who took Inez and Julia might have been taken by men from Purgatory as well."

"Ain’t Sweeney a hired gun?" Vin asked.

"Usually," Chris agreed. "But Sweeney ain’t smart and anyone can talk an idiot into any fool thing, if the money’s good enough."

Vin could not disagree with that assessment. "I’ll get finished up here and head out to Purgatory, try and pick up their trail if I can."

"Good idea," Chris nodded. "We’ll meet you there." Thenodded, "we’ll meet you there" the gunslinger answered. "Make sure they know if they don’t talk to you, they can talk to me and I haven’t got your finesse."

"Sure thing." Vin smiled faintly, knowing that was a valid threat. Vin had seen Chris terrify a man to pieces just by an icy glare. When he wanted to be, Chris Larabee could be an intimidating bastard.

Chris turned to leave and found himself unable to resist adding. "Hey Pard?"

"Yeah?" Vin looked up.

"You tootwo really ought to pick up in the kitchen." Chris Larabee smiled and continued walking out of the room.

*******

Ten minutes after Chris had made his departure;departure, Vin Tanner was dressed and ready to leave. He hated walking out the door but knew lives counted on his skills and he was not about to let the others down, no matter how much he wanted to stay with Alex. She understood though, appreciating that his tracking skillsskill, like her ability to heal, was subject to the demands of those who needed it. She walked him to the door, still gripped by the intensity of the emotions that had swept them away since their mutual surrender. It was foolishness, this sadness to see him go when their time apart was only temporary. Still, she discovered feelings for him the likes of which she had never known and the time, however, brief seemed far too long in her opinion.

"I shouldn’t be gone too long," he said as he stood by the door, Vin’s arms still wrapped around her waist. "Lock the doors when I leave and don’t let anyone in." He orderedin" he ordered, because he neither liked the idea that he was forced to leave her unguarded or the gnawing feeling that somehow, Randall Mason was connected to the disappearances of Inez and Julia.

"Okay." She"Okay" she nodded obediently, her mouth still kissing his neck as they spoke. Vin returned her kisses in kind. They were both alternating between hot, steamy kisses and speech. It was his turn to talk now.

"Nathan will be back tomorrow," he continued, letting his mouth travel over her cheek, while his hands ran up the curve of her back. "Stay close to him and tell him what’s happened."

"Don’t worry," she whispered as he dragged himself through the door. "I’ll keep out of trouble, cowboy." Alex smiled finally, disengaging from him or else Vin was never going to get any further than this door.

"I’ll be back as soon as I can." Hecan" he said, still yearning for her even though he was now standing outside. The cool air needed to be a great deal colder before he waswould be able to concentrate on finding his horse, let alone Inez and Julia. "Keep the bed warm." Vin returned her gaze with a glimmer of hungry suggestion in his eyes.

"Vin." Alex called out as he started down the stairs.

He looked over his shoulder at her. "Yeah?"

"Take care of yourself cowboy," she replied bravely, wondering how Mary coped with it when Chris had to ride of into the unknown, facing godGod knows what dangers. Even with Ezra, she had not known this awful fear that each time he went through her door it could be the last. Then again, her feelings for Vin were of an entirely different intensity.

"Always." "Always" Vin grinned and then kept going.

********

Inez’s head throbbed. She could hear the rumble of the track beneath the wagon, and lying on her side made her aware of every bump the wooden wheels traveled over. She did not remember much after Rihs had let her to a back alley and knocked her senseless, even though the following blackness delivered her from her terror of the moment. That period however, was all too fleeting as she now looked up and found a canopy of stars overhead. She was moving and the total darkness around her told Inez that she was no longer in town, for there were none of its light to offer illumination.

She heard a slight moan next to her and the sound allowed her the centrecenter to focus. Trying to sit up, she found her arms and legs had been bound and she could do little more than roll on to her stomach while trying to fight the jostling momentum of the wagon. She could hear at least a dozen riders from the hoof beats around the wagon, not to mention the unfamiliar voices of men making conversation.

Inez twisted herself around and saw another form trussed up in similar indignity on the buckboard beneath them. She saw the crown of red hair and knew immediately it was Julia Pemberton. How had they both come to be in the same predicament?predicament, Inez wondered.

"Julia." Inez whispered.

There was another moan as the small, petite redhead came to at the sound of her name. The amount of jostling they were being subjected to indicated that the wagon was travelling fast as it made its flight from Four Corners. Inez focused her attention on rousing Julia, hoping that the woman had not endured worse injuries than simply being knocked unconscious. Although Inez did not like Julia very much, she did know that Ezra loved her and it would devastate him if the little witch was hurt or violated.

"Julia, wake up."

"Why?" Julia asked weakly as she rolled onto her back and saw the vista of open sky above her.

"Because we are in trouble." Inez hissed in exasperation wondering how she could even ask such a question.

"And waking up will change this how?" Julia asked sarcastically. "Personally, I do not wish to know if we are going to be subjected to our captors villainous intentions."

"I don’t think this is about us." Inez confessed, now that she had a little more time to think about their situation. It was Mr. Rihs who had kidnapped her and instinct told her that even Julia’s abduction was similarly orchestrated for another purpose.

"How comforting." Julia complained, her cheek flaring from where her abductor had struck her. Why did it always have to be the face with these kindsthis kind of men?

Inez was rapidly losing patience with the woman but managed to keep her anger under control for the moment. "I think this is about Alex."

Somehow Julia was not surprised. She had been privy to the violent exchange between Vin Tanner and Randall Mason at the dance. It was too easy for the situation to be settled that simply. Randall had left the hall with an ugly hatred she understood all too well, and subconsciously knew he was not done with either the doctor or the sharpshooter just yet. However, it confused her why Mason would go to all this trouble to kidnap them. Julia had never met the man and other than possibly seeing Inez in the saloon, she could not understand the connection either.

"Why kidnap us?" Julia asked, hoping that perhaps Inez had a better idea than she did. Her head was throbbing too much for her to think clearly.

"As a distraction maybe," Inez strained her neck and saw a man at the front of the wagon. It did not appear to be either Rihs or Mason. "Perhaps he thinks that if we are kidnapped or worse, Chris and the others would turn the Territory over trying to find us and leave Alex alone and unguarded." Inez had no idea how accurate she was in regards to that plan but at the moment, it was the only theory she could formulate.

"Terrific." Julia grumbled. "So we are to play decoy for the dear doctor."

"We’ve got to escape." Inez stated firmly, even though she had no idea at all how this minor miracle was to be accomplished.

Julia tested her bonds and then looked at her skeptically. "I’d like to see you try." Shetry" she retorted. "I can’t even get free of these things." She tried looking over her shoulder to gain a better picture of where they were but could see no further than the confines of their wagon.

Inez tried a similar action but the knot tied around her wrist and feet allow no quarter for movement or any room to loosen the ropes digging into her skin. All she succeeded in doing was make thehessian fibers did into her skin. Her constant wriggling however, did bring the unwelcome attention of two of the riders, who edge along side ofedged alongside the wagon and peered at the two captives.

"They sure are pretty." Onepretty" one of them declared. He was a truly ugly specimen with rough skin and bad teeth. Inez could smell the liquor on him from where she was.

"I say we take ‘em anyway." Theanyway" the younger of the two declared, eyeing Julia with unmistakable desire. Inez saw the Easterner shudder with revulsion as the youthful blond man with unremarkable features studied her with growing interest.

"Nah," the first one replied. "Rihs says we can’t touch em. We’re only supposed to take em out of town and hide em for a few days."

His words more or less confirmed Inez’s suspicion about why they were abductedhad been abducted, and she prayed that the seven had some idea of this as well. However, she knew even as the men withdrew from the wagon, that it was likely the seven were already making the search for their recovery. After all, Ezra would be beside himself with the loss of not only Julia but her as well, not to mention Buck Wilmington’s reaction. Despite his womanizing ways, Inez knew that he cared for her deeply and supposed that if she ever granted him the affection, it was possible that he would the most devoted of lovers. However she was unprepared to take that gamble just yet.

In any case, she hoped that someone was guarding Alexandra Styles when they embarked upon this search or else, Inez was not going to be happy knowing her freedom had come at the cost of her friend.

*********

Vin was busy saddling Peso when he heard the doors to the livery building shut abruptly. For a moment, he thought it was one of the sevenothers coming to get their horses so they could make the ride out to Purgatory. However, following the closure of the doors, he heard the distinct movement and quiet footsteps common to a number of men attempting to make a stealthy approach. Vin looked around and saw no one but knew that he was not alone. His hand dropped to his gun as he emerged from Peso’s stall, a keen eye kept on everything as he made his advance.

Vin was perfectly aware of the vulnerable situation he now found himself in, and knew that while he was closed in with all these walls around him, he would continue to be at a disadvantage. He listened closely, having learnt through the years to rely more on scent and sound than he did his eyes to track buffalo, and on more recent occasions, men. There were at least five of them and although he could not tell exactly where they were, he knew there were closing in on him. Vin stepped out into the main floor of the livery and noted that the doors at the end of the straw covered corridor werewas locked. He supposed he could reach it, and in truth, he had very little choice but to try in order to make his escape.

Gingerly, he took a step forward and knew that there was every chance that he was going to be ambushed before he reached it. Vin took another slow step forward, his hand never more than an inch away from his gun when suddenly, he ran forward in an unexpected burst of speed. No soonerthan he had he taken those few steps ahead,ahead than the enemy stepped out, lead by Randall Mason. It took all of them to bring Vin down and even then, the ambush did not go smoothly. The tracker never had the chance to draw his weapon, but managed to deliver a few punches and swift kicks before he was finally brought down by a gun butt to the back of his neck. While he did not lose consciousness, Vin could feel the warmth of blood running down his neck as he felt arms holding him in place.

"Mr. Tanner," Randall smiled at him in triumph as two men held his arms, while one held a gun firmly pointed in his direction. "It looks like your evening is just beginning."

"Get it over with." Vin glared at him, perfectly aware that Randall was just itching to make Vin pay for his humiliation at the dance.

"Always glad to oblige." Heoblige" he sneered and threw a fist into Vin’s face. He followed it with another and another, until blood stained his fist.

Vin had suffered worst in his time, and felt blood running down his split cheek, however he refused to allow Randall the satisfaction of seeing him inhis pain. Rihs was keeping watch impassively, showing little interest in his employer’s enjoyment, and Vin knew that he was probably far more dangerous than Randall himself. Such men often were.

Randall slammed another fist into his stomach but Vin was ready for him, tightening his stomach muscles so that the blow would do a minimum of harm, causing pain but not injury. Randall continued like this for a few minutes, taking out Alexandra’s rejection on the man who did have her affection. By the time he was done, Vin was in serious pain but he was far from incapacitated.

"Alright," Randall stepped back, having vented his revenge on this nonentity who had somehow captured Alexandra’s heart. Not for long, he smiled to himself as he looked to Mr. Rihs. "Take him. I’ll go look in on my dear Alexandra." HeAlexandra," he gave Vin a wicked sneer as he said those words.

"You touch her and I’ll kill you." Vin said in no uncertain terms.

His remark drew a string of laughter from the men around him, Randall included. Vin knew the men assisting Randall and his companion Rihs;Rihs, he had seen them in Purgatory on occasion buthad never had any cause to learnany more than that. He felt his chest tightenedtighten, knowing that as soon as Randall had dealt with him, whatever that entailed, he would go after Alex. With Chris and the others preparing to ride out after Inez and Julia, the woman he loved would be virtually unprotected.

"I’m afraid you’ll be taking a long trip, Mr Tanner." Mr. Tanner," Randall said as Rihs produced a sheath of notes and handed it to one of the men keeping watch on Vin. They were being paid in hundred dollar bills and Vin saw their eyes widen as they took the cash from the fair-haired stranger.

"I’m sure you know the place well," Randall learning close to Vin as he spoke, wanting to enjoy every moment of his revenge in his rival’s eyes. "I’ve been told you’ll have a warm reception awaiting you when you arrive at Tascosa."

So that’s it. Vin thought to himself. They were taking him to Tascosa. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Vin was nowhere near panicking because it was a long way across the Texas PanhandlesPanhandle, and he knew time would allow him the chance to escape. The only thing that terrified him was not getting back in time to save Alex from this bastard. "Is this what it takes to get a woman in England?" He askedhe asked, with not a trace of fear in his voice.

Randall punched him again with a blow struck out of anger rather than any intention to hurt. The rage Vin saw in his eyes was unmistakable as Vin heard some of the men sniggering behind him.

"I’ll do whatever it takes to get Alexandra." Randall said icily, the pleasure of the moment having drained with that remark. "She will be mine still when you are dead."

"Maybe," Vin could not keep from adding with a little smile. "But she came to me willingly and she’ll never go to you without wanting me."

Randall’s eyes widened when he realized exactly what Vin meant by that remark. The thought that this primitive had shared his Alexandra’s bed drove him to such fury that he pulled the gun out of Rihs’ holster and pointed the barrel square at Vin’s face, with every intention of killing the tracker on the spot.

"Mr. Mason, you do that and you’ll bring him friends running."his friends running" Rihs warned as he reached for Randall’s hand and slowly lowered the gun. "He’s just trying to provoke you into doing something stupid."

Randall swallowed thickly, staring at Vin with intense hatred, trying to drive the image of Alexandra and him away from his mind, and knowing that he would only be content with such a thing when he had replaced the image with something else. Like Vin’s dead body and Alexandra’s eventual capitulation to his desires in his bed before Tanner’s body was even cold in the ground.

"He’s yours." Randall said to the men holding onto Vin. "Make sure he gets to Tascosa and hangs."

"Don’t worry." The leader, a short, stout man in dust covered clothes smiled at Randall with a gold tooth. "Five hundred dollars is a lot of money. We’ll get him there."

"See to it that you do." Rihs retorted, staring hard at the man. "If I find out otherwise, I’ll come looking for you."

For some reason, Vin’s captors did not like that idea at all, and something in Rihs’ eyes promised that would be a most unpleasant situation if it did happen. Vin’s heart was pounding at the thought of Alex in this man’s hands. Somehow, he had to think of a way to escape. However, that thought had no sooner crossed him mind whenthan someone cold cocked him from behind and Vin fell unconscious soundlessly.

"That ought to make him a little easier for travel." Thetravel" the leader grinned as VinTanner collapsed in the unyielding grip of his captors. "It’s a long way to Texas."

*********

The sudden crash she heard awoke her immediately. Alex jumped in fright as she heard the sound of wood cracking and glass shattering at the same time. Instinctively, she knew it was her door being broken in. Alex climbed out of bed and grabbed her robe, knowing that her only hope of escape lay in the stairs that led to the clinic on the lower floor of the building. Wasting no time with shoes or any other apparel, Alex sneaked out of her bedroom and found herself staring at Randall Mason and Mr. Rihs at the other end of the corridor, having just broken into her house.

She let out a small cry of fright since silence was redundantunnecessary as they had seen her and had probably expected her emergence from the bedroom, following their loud entry into her house. She turned to run, trying in desperation to reach the steps leading to her clinic below but Mr. Rihs sprung into action, crossing the floor in several long strides and tackling her in a full body tackle that dropped them both to the floor. He brought her down easily, her side slamming hard against the floor as she landed, particularly with his weight following her fall.

The violent end of her flight left her dazed as the pain ran through her body. She felt Rihs withdraw as footsteps approached her. She felt his hands pull her to her feet and Alex felt a little dazed as she was forced to stand and found herself facing Randall Mason a moment later. The hallway lamp was still burning and she could see him staring at her intently, with an expression that bordered on hate and insanity. However, it was the blood in his hands she found most disturbing.

"Randall what is this?" She tried playing it calm although it was fairly obvious what he intended, what he had almost always intended from the beginning, that she was his whether or not it was her choice.

"I said you would be my wife." Hewife" he replied simply. "I am rather surprised you doubted me Alex," he reached for her hair.

Alex backed away instinctively, as if his touch would scald her if allowed contact with her skin. "Don’t touch me." Sheme" she warned.

That resulted in Mr. Rihs locking his arms around her throat and holding her place. Alex let out a scream that was quickly silenced by the man’s hand around her mouth. Alex reacted just as swiftly, biting down on the soft flesh of his palm. Rihs uttered a short cry of pain but he did not let her go, instead, he grabbed her hair and shoved her head first into the wall. Alex felt another flare of pain as her forehead impacted with the hard surface.

"I told you she was fiery." Randall smiled as Rihs attempted to make Alex more manageable.

"Yes," Rihs responded, examining his hand while keeping Alex pinned against the wall with the other. "Are you sure, you want to waste your time on this half breed? She will give you nothing but trouble."

"You are speaking of my future wife." Randall saidwife" Randall said, completely unconcerned at what Alex was going through or the fact that he was in the process of kidnapping her. With the door closed now, there was no outward sign that that doctor was in any trouble and he had caused enough mischief in Four Corners tonight to ensure that no one would be coming for Alexandra.

"It’s your business of course." Rihs replied amiably, disliking the choice but feeling it was none of his business. As long as he was paid, he cared little. Although he would not mind teaching this firebrand a lesson in the light toof the teeth marks in his hand.

"I’ll never marry you!" Alex cried out.

Randall nodded at Rihs and he yanked her back to allow enough space between Alex and the wall before slamming her into it again. Alex felt warm blood seeping through her hair as she became more disorientated from the abuse. She knew she would have to stop giving him a reason to hurt her and try and reason with him, if such a thing was at all possible any longer.

"Randall please," Alex spoke through the pain. "I never meant to hurt you. I’ve always thought highly of you. We have been friends for a long time."

He came towards her and grabbed her dark hair, replacing hisRihs' hand with Rihshis and yanked her head back so viciously, that she felt strands come loose as her neck was craned backwards to face him. "Is that why you played whore to that barbarian?"

She opened her mouth to deny it but Randall cut her off before she could even formulate the denial in her mind. "Don’t bother to deny it." Heit" he glared at her angrily. "Mr. Rihs took note of how long he was here and his departure after the gunslinger came to find him. What did you call their good-bye Mr. Rihs?" Hehe looked at the hired gun.

"Extremely affectionate." Rihs offered dutifully.

"Extremely affectionate," Randall pull back harder until she felt her neck strain so painfully, she could do nothing but groan in agony. "You will never have him again, do you hear me! It is over! You’ll be my wife and I will share you with no one!"

"He’ll never give up trying to find me!" Sheshe hissed in a surge of defiance. "Vin will never let you get away with this!"

"I think Mr. Tanner has problems of his own." Randall said triumphantly as he shoved her head back against the wall again, until Alex could see stars before her spinning vision. She refused to cry out, denying him the satisfaction of hearing her beg or ask for mercy. However, his words had an ominous tone that she was forced to address.

"What do you mean?" Sheshe asked, feeling dread creep into her bones even as the question pastpassed her lips.

"Your tracker is on his way to hang. I’ve paid some very nice men to take him to Tascosa, where apparently he is wanted on the charge of murder." Randall smiled at her, pulling her head back so that she could see the pleasure in his face at being able to impart such news to her. "By the time the so called law in this town is aware that he is missing, he’ll be half way to Tascosa and you and I will be returning to Europe."

Oh God. The cold fear that gripped her heart at the knowledge that Randall may have fed Vin to bounty hunters was beyond her ability to describe it. She knew he was right. With Chris and the others going to search for Inez and Julia, no one would even be aware that Vin was gone until it was too late. She knew as well as the others that as soon as Vin Tanner showed his face in Tascosa, he was done for. They would hang him just as surely as if Randall had put a bullet in his head. She had to think of something, she had to reach Vin somehow because she could not live, knowing he was dead because of her.

Alexandra Styles could not live knowing she could never be with Vin again.

"Alright Randall," she said letting out a loud sigh of defeat, letting the sound move from her lips as if it were the death knell to whatever spirit was left in her soul. "I’ll go with you. I’ll marry you, whatever you want. I can’t fight you any more, I don’t have the strength for it without Vin."

He looked at her in mild surprise but his was the kind of ego that would allow even the most obvious things slip by if one pandered to it enough. He released his grip on her and stared at her critically. "Do not play me for a fool Alexandra," he warned. "I may wish you to be my wife but I can break you a dozen times over if I wish it. Are you expecting me to believe that you are now willing to accept my offer, belated as it is?"

"Yes." She"Yes" she looked him dead in the eye and nodded. "I have no choice in the matter do I? You will take me with you whether or not I wish to go. If I do manage to escape, you will simply find me again and destroy anyone I care about. I do not wish to be Orestes with you as my personal Fury for all time. If peace means being your wife thanwife, then what can I do but agree. Perhaps compliance might make this somewhat tolerable." Shetolerable" she replied, unable to hide the distaste from her face.

"You were always sensible." Hesensible" he smiled, pleased that she had come to such a practical decision on her own. However, while Randall seemed convinced of her words, Rihs was another thing entirely. He stared at her critically, not believing anything he had heard and was more or less convinced that this was some kind of trick.

"You cannot seriously believe her…" Rihs looked at him in disbelief.

"I have no reason to lie." Alex declared, brushing the hair from her face. There was a sliver of blood escaping her matted hair but she had recovered from her ordeal enough to be in complete control of herself.

"Prove it." Rihs challenged.

"Alright," Alex nodded. "I take it you are pressed for time?" She looked at both men and could see their answer in their eyes. "If we ride out tonight," she continued when they did not answer. "We may be able to catch the stage at Bitter Creek. That will take us to Eagle Bend and anywhere else we need to go."

"Very astute." Randall responded. "I am impressed."

"Well," Alex pressed on. "I need to pack and get dressed. I gather I won’t be allowed to take much but I would like a change of clothing for the journey."

"I see no reason why that cannot be permitted." Randall met Rihs’ gaze but the gunmen did not seem eager to let Alex out of his sight since he was still convinced this was an elaborate ruse and that she was playing some game to which he had not guessed the rules.

"Thank you." Alex said meekly as she moved past the two men and slinked away to her bedroom, praying they would not change her mindtheir minds before she reached the room. She took her steps gingerly, feeling their eyes burn into her back as she made her retreat into the room, holding her breath until she disappeared inside its confines.

Alex closed the door behind her soundlessly, hoping they were secure in her inability to escape because the room was above the ground. She knew that Randall would allow her the privacy to dress herself, mostly because he was insanely jealous and would allow no other man to view her in such a vulnerable state. Thinking that, sent an instant sliver of ice down her back when she imagined what he might have done to Vin after Rihs had informed him of their intimacy.

She glanced at her bed and saw the unmade sheets. Alex felt an intense pang of longing when she realisedrealized that it was only a few short hours ago that she and Vin had engaged in the most searing love making experience she had ever known. Just being in the room, reminded her of his scent and that memory brought a heart stopping fear inside her at what he might be enduring at this moment. Alex bit her lip, trying not to worry about Vin because she needed her senses intact if she was going to be in any position to help him.

Taking a deep breath, Alex steadied herself and got to work. She did not have much time.

********

"She’s been there for some time." Rihs said uneasily. It had almost been twenty minutes since the lady had withdrawn into the bedroom to supposedly prepare for the journey away from Four Corners. He was disturbed by the amount of time taken, and by the ease in which she had managed to manipulate Randall into allowing her the privacy. If it were up to him, Rihs would have not let the woman out of his sight. Randall Mason seemed to forget that beyond the visage of the beautiful woman that was Alexandra Styles, and Rihs had to admit that much, she was an extraordinarily looking female, there was also the intelligence and acumen that had weathered six years of medical school. She was a smart woman and Rihs feared that Randall might have underestimated her.

The two men were in her parlor waiting for Alex’s arrival from the bedroom. Randall in particular was going through her things, shifting through the remnant of her life in Four Corners. None of it held any particular interest to him and Rihs could see that he viewed most of it with contempt. At Rihs’ statement, Randall glanced at the door.

"Perhaps you should check on her."

About time. Rihs snorted to himself as he strode across the room and twisted the door knob open. It turned easily enough but when he pushed against it however, it opened enough to allow a crack of space between the door and the wall before coming to a stop. Rihs’ gaze immediately snapped at Randall’s direction as his employer realisedrealized how easily he had been duped. The gunmen slammed his full weight against the door and heard an audible crack of wood before it yielded completely.

There was no signs of Alexandra Styles within the room.

What there was left in the wake of her departure, was a series of knotted sheets that led from the bedpost, out the window. Rihs swore loudly as he ran to the window and peered out to see the length of white linen extending beyond the room into the street below. Randall joined him shortly after that discovery, both their eyes scanning the darkness beyond the house, seeking any sign of the lady.

"I can’t believe it." Randall exclaimed, grinding his teeth in an attempt to conceal his bitter rage at her escape.

"I can." Rihs growled with similar irritation at the man’s stupidity. "We better find her quickly. No doubt, she’ll be attempting to reach her friends."

"It won’t matter if she find them or not." Randall responded, glaring at the room with its opened bureau drawers and clothes. It appeared as if Alex had ransacked her own room before her abrupt flight. Even her doctor’s bag was opened and was been emptied hastily on the bed. "She won’t be in time to save Tanner."

*******

By the time Randall Mason and Mr. Rihs had become aware of her escape, Alexandra Styles was already riding out of Four Corners, having stolen the first horse she came across in the desperate bid to find Vin Tanner. She had two choices and neither seemed very feasible. However, she dared not risk making the safer choice. If she went after Chris Larabee and the others who were at this moment on their way to Purgatory, she could forget about bringing them back in time to intercept Vin before he was beyond their reach. That left the only other alternative and it scared the hell out of her. Alex could go after Vin herself and help him escape before he could be delivered to Tascosa.

God, Alex hoped she did not get them both killed.

Part Five

Hunters

Nettie Wells heard the horse thundering up the path from her bedroom and wondered who could be arriving at this hour of the night. She gazed at the clock on her nightstand and knew that it was well after midnight. For a moment, she entertained the notion that it might be JD Dunne but trusted Casey enough to know that her niece would not indulge in any inappropriate behavior with the young sheriff. Besides, if it were JD, his attempts at secret nighttime rendezvous left a great deal to be desired. Rising from her bed, the old woman got dressed and went to the corner of the room, where her trusty double barrel kept permanent residence. After Royal’s attempts to oust her from her land, Nettie never kept the weapon farther away than arms reach. While she had no idea if the rider coming towards the house was a source of danger or not, with a young girl in the house, Nettie was taking no chances.

Swinging the door open, Nettie heard footsteps coming from behind Casey’s door and knew her niece had also heard the arrival of the stranger. Nettie put the gun down long enough to light a lamp when Casey emerged from her room. The teenager had wisely slipped into pants and was hastily buttoning her shirt when she appeared.

"What is it Aunt Nettie?" She asked in a hushed voice as they heard the hoof beats stopped and the animal neighed its sudden halt outside their house.

"I don’t know." Nettie replied unhappily as she handed the lamp to Casey and started towards the door, her gun raised and poised to fire in case whomever came through intended any harm to them. It was at times like this that Nettie wished they were in town or had the presence of a man about. Until Royal and his men had tried forcing her from this land, Nettie had never realised how vulnerable she and Casey were, so far away from town and help. If it were not for the seven men who taken a stand with her, Nettie knew Royal would have surely had obtained his wish of driving her away.

She heard the noise of a hasty dismount outside the door and then quick pace of steps that followed, running across the ground, crushing gravel underfoot. The steps were not loud but they were fast and very soon, Nettie heard them clatter up the stairs towards the door. Nettie kept her gun raised, aiming to fire if any violence ensued when suddenly the footsteps paused outside the door.

Her intruder knocked.

Nettie was confused and reacted by exchanging a bewildered glance with Casey, before their gazes shifted to the door again.

"Nettie, please open the door!" A familiar voice cried out. "I need your help!"

Both their eyes widened in recognition of who was behind it and Nettie lowered the gun as she hurried forward. The desperation in that voice was unmistakable and Nettie felt alarm and foolishness at the same time for her caution, even though it was utterly appropriate considering the lateness of the hour. Swinging the door open, Nettie found herself standing before the disheveled form of Alexandra Styles.

"Alex, dear what’s wrong?" Nettie demanded stepping aside as she offered Alex entry.

"I need your help," Alex cried out as she hurried into the room as Nettie closed the door behind her and chased away the cold draft that had swept in with the beautiful doctor.

Nettie was accustomed to seeing the doctor calm and collected as she had been when she had put Ezra Standish together some months ago or more recently when she had delivered Dulcie’s calf. It always surprised her how any woman that age could be so deliberate and thus viewing Alex with nothing less than fear in her eyes was a sobering experience for Nettie Wells. After closing the door, Nettie went to Alex who was pacing the floor while Casey was watching the woman in astonishment. After the other day, Casey had come to admire the woman’s poise and calm under the worst of circumstances, however, seeing Alex this way was just as shocking to the teenager.

"Alex calm down," Nettie said putting her hands on the woman’s shoulder to make her stop pacing the floor like a caged cat. "Casey go make some coffee!" The woman ordered.

Alex knew she was panicking and she could ill afford to do so. As it was, she had a big favor to ask of Nettie but she knew of no other way to help Vin. "I’m sorry Nettie." She said forcing the hysteria into the place where her feelings were dispatched whenever professionalism was required.

"Are you bleeding?" Nettie noticed the dried blood under her forehead as she made Alex sit down.

Instinctively, Alex reached for her forehead. "Its nothing." She said abruptly. "Just some scrapes and lacerations. Head wounds tend to bleed a great deal, this one is no different."

Nettie was not about to argue with her. "What’s happened? Who did this to you?"

"Were you at the dance?" Alex asked quietly, once her fear had subsided and she was in better control of her faculties.

"No," Nettie shook her head. "Although Casey did tell me that you had some trouble." Nettie did not add how pleased she was to have heard the news from Casey that Vin had escorted Alex to the dance. Vin Tanner was like the son Nettie never had and she had some idea about the deep feelings he had for the doctor for quite some time now. Seeing Alex and Vin together that day when Dulcie’s calf was born had convinced Nettie how good they could be together when Vin finally got around to making his feelings for Alex known.

"The man whom Vin fought with is an old suitor of mine and he has not taken kindly that I have refused to marry him." Alex paused remembering the vile look of hatred in Randall’s eyes when he realised her relationship with Vin was an intimate one. "He’s orchestrated some kidnappings in town I’m sure to get Chris Larabee and the others out of Four Corners. I thought Vin had gone with them but Randall came to my house and told me that he had Vin delivered to some bounty hunters, who are as we speak, taking him to Tascosa to collect the reward. I managed to escape but Chris is already on the trail of the kidnappers and there’s no time to wait until he get back to go after Vin."

Nettie’s heart felt her heard tighten at the thought of Vin Tanner in the hands of bounty hunters greedy for a reward. Knowing Vin as well as he did, he would no doubt try to effect an escape despite the odds against him. Nettie could not imagine the lean young man absent from her life. She had grown accustomed to his weekend visits where he would mend fences or tend to some chore around the place that neither she nor Casey could manage. Nettie enjoyed how he would smile bashfully when she would order him into supper, even though he claimed he was just helping out to get away from the town. Nettie knew it was more than that. She was the mother he had lost and somehow, they had filled a need in each other that she could not imagine doing without.

"I need your help Nettie." Alex said as Casey hurried out of the kitchen with a hot pot of coffee and poured her a cup. Alex took the steamy beverage and offered the young girl a smile before looking at Nettie again. "Nettie, I need either you or Casey to go to Four Corners and find Mary Travis. Mary knows where Chris is; she’ll be able to get word to him. Randall has probably got men looking out for me; I can’t do it myself. Chris needs to know about Vin."

Nettie looked in her eyes and saw the sheer desperation. Suddenly, it dawned upon Nettie just how important Vin Tanner was to Alexandra Styles. "Of course." She rose to her feet. "I’ll get dressed and go immediately. Alex, you can stay here and get some rest."

"No," Alex shook her head. "I stopped here long enough to tell you do to this." She stood up. "I’ve got to keep going."

Nettie looked at her puzzled. "Go where?"

"I have to go after Vin." Alex answering simply with little more emotion as she might announce a trip to town.

"Alone?" Casey exclaimed because Nettie was too stunned to respond.

"Yes alone." Alex said firmly, not wanting to hear any argument on the matter. She knew precisely how dangerous it was this thing she intended and the truth, the possibilities of all the things that could go wrong had plagued every leg of the journey here. However, there was no choice because the alternative would be do nothing and Alex was not prepared to do that. She was not prepared to let Vin die because of Randall’s insane jealousy.

"You can’t do this alone. These men who have Vin are dangerous! " Casey implored as Alex started towards the door.

"Alex, think about this." Nettie finally found her voice as the doctor started to leave. "You have no idea where he is at this moment."

"He’s on his way to Tascosa, which in somewhere in the back and beyond of the Texas Panhandles. They’ve only got a few hours head start. Its too far a trip without making a stop somewhere and with the possibility that Chris may come after them, its logical to assume they find someplace away the main trail to Texas. There can’t be that many places."

"Alex, I know what you’re feeling." Nettie stepped forward; trying to be the voice of reason because she had no doubt that Alex would stop at nothing to find Vin, no matter how dangerous the consequences to herself. The look in her eyes told Nettie that the intelligent doctor was no longer thinking clearly, her emotions were clouded and decisions made with the heart could be ill advised in this instance.

"No you don’t know!" Alex snapped, stepping away before anyone tried to talk her out of this. "Don’t you think I’m not scared to death of going after him? I am a doctor for god’s sake, I wouldn’t know how to track a dog across street, let alone bounty hunters across the state but if I don’t and those men get him to Tascosa, they will hang him!"

"Wait for Chris," Casey insisted, understanding how frightened Alex was for Vin Tanner’s life. However, this was madness, even she knew it. "It could not take that long to reach him."

"I can’t wait!" Alex turned around and found she could not breach the doors without offering some explanation to Nettie and Casey. They cared for Vin just as much as she did but they could not understand what it was to know that this had happened to him because of her. Randall had punished Vin simply because Alex cared for him. She turned around and Nettie saw the tears running down her face. "I can’t let him die Nettie, not now." She whispered quietly.

"You won’t be letting him die," Nettie approached and tried to offer her some comfort. The turmoil in her eyes was self-evident. "Vin would not want you to place yourself in that kind of danger."

"No he wouldn’t," she nodded, remembering his parting words to her. "But I’m still going to. I’m not ready to let him die because of me Nettie."

Nettie knew she was fighting a losing battle because the depth of Alex’s feelings were utterly clear to her now and nothing was going to stop the doctor from walking out of this house. Nettie was to the point where she had to concede defeat because she knew exactly how Alex felt and understood had it been her own husband, she would be riding after him like a bat of hell just like Alex intended doing very shortly. "Wait!" Nettie found herself crying out before Alex could twist the doorknob and leave the house.

Alex turned to meet her gaze, not wanting to depart with such ill feeling behind her but she would go if she had to. Vin’s life mattered more than anything in the world did right now. "I can’t waste any more time, Nettie."

"I’m not asking you too." Nettie replied abruptly and withdrew to where she had placed the gun. Picking it up, she strode over to a side cupboard and rummaged through one of its drawers. A moment later, the old woman found what she was looking for. "Casey get me the old map at the bottom of my trunk, would you?" She instructed.

Casey stared, unable to fathom what her Aunt Nettie intended. Her hesitation only made Nettie snap impatiently. "Get along now," the woman prompted. "Quickly!"

Casey nodded wildly and hurried into Nettie’s bedroom as Nettie continued the journey back to Alex. Handing her the gun and box of shell, Nettie looked at Alex and retorted. "Know how to use one of these?" She asked.

Alex met her eyes and managed a smile before getting to the serious business of answering her question. She took the weapon in her hands and nodded slightly. "I do." She replied, taking the box full of shell and jamming them into the pocket of her skirt. "Thank you Nettie."

"You bring my boy back to me safe, won’t you?" Nettie replied with a faint smile. "He’s still got the whole side of the barn to paint yet in exchange for some of my biscuits."

Alex felt her tough façade waver slightly as she embraced Nettie, even though she was carrying a gun in her hands. "I can’t lose him Nettie." She whispered. "Not before I have a chance to tell him."

"I know." Nettie nodded, understanding all too well what it was to love so deeply and how awful it could be to have that kind of love snatched away before it had chance to have its time. Nettie did not want to see it disappear for Alex and Vin now that their feelings for each other were finally revealed. They deserved the chance to watch it grow.

"I got it Aunt Nettie," Casey returned, shattering the tender moment apart with her youthful countenance. The crinkled old map was rolled up into a long tube and appeared crushed by the weight of whatever it shared the space in the trunk with.

"Alright," Nettie said taking the map from her and quickly unrolling it across Alex’s untouched cup of cooling coffee. "This map ain’t the greatest but you’ll have some idea of where they might be travelling." Her bony finger traveled up a dark line, flanked by notations of towns. "I don’t think they’ll take this route to Texas because it’s a heavy traffic area. Railroad runs near it now, but this here," she gestured at Alex to look at a line that appeared as faded and forgotten as it resembled on this old chart. "I don’t think it’s used any more. There are still a few small towns along the way and it takes two days off the trip to Texas. If they’re smart, this is the way they’ll go."

Alex knew nothing about tracking or dealing with bounty hunters but reading maps and cross-country travel was something she was very familiar with. She had travelled across the world with her father to some of the most isolated places in the world with nothing more than parchment to lead the way. She could do this. Alex studied Nettie’s directions and knew the old woman was worth her salt when it came to the advice she had just imparted. "Okay," Alex nodded as Nettie marked the route with a piece of drawing chalk before rolling up the map once more. Like the gun before, Nettie handed it to her once it was in its cylindrical form again.

"You better get going." Nettie smiled with a look of encouragement as Alex offered them both a silent look of thanks before turning on her heels to leave.

Casey and Nettie were still staring at the door after Alex had closed it behind her and disappeared out of the house.

"She must really love him." Casey said breaking the silence first.

Nettie smiled faintly. "That she does."

*********

"Are you sure about this?" Randall Mason asked as he and Rihs descended down the flight of stairs leading from Alexandra Style’s empty house. The foreigner looked at the henchman waiting for an answer that the latter did not feel inclined to answer. As it was, the situation that proceeded this drastic cause had taken place because Mason was foolish enough to believe that a woman held to marriage at gunpoint would simply agree to it while her lover was in danger and there was a chance to save him.

Rihs’ disgust with Mason was beyond tolerance but the nature of the game had it that the man was his employer and Rihs had agreed to a contract between gentlemen. He was a man of his word and he disliked breaking it, no matter how stupid the other party might be. "Yes Mr Mason, I am sure about this."

"She wouldn’t even know where to begin." Randall exclaimed. "I gave her no such clues as to Tanner’s whereabouts."

"Mr Mason," Rihs spun on his heels and glared at Randall so the foreigner would understand him once and for all and cease this foolish prattling. "You better starting thinking of her as more than just a beautiful woman. She is a medical doctor, a position one does not attain without some measure of intelligence. In her case, I would say that is doubly so because she is a woman. If you keep underestimating her because of her sex, we will never find her."

Randall supposed Rihs had a point in that assertion because Alexandra had indeed escaped and was nowhere to be seen. Rihs believed she was no longer in town and Randall had to concede that point as well because she had managed to escape from right under his nose with her duplicitous tongue. "But do you really think she will go after Tanner?"

"Yes I do." Rihs replied feeling it in his bones with a gut instinct reinforcing that belief that made it virtually undeniable. "She knows if she goes after Larabee and the others in Purgatory, they will never reach Tanner in time to save him. Intelligent she may be but she is also a woman in love and that does make her actions somewhat predictable. She will go after Tanner herself because the margin for her to narrow the gap between them is more tenable then it would be if Larabee attempted it."

"But she has no idea where they could be. This is a very big country." Randall pointed out and once again, called into question why Rihs was wasting time explaining.

"Unfortunately this is a very big country with very few places to water houses and get food and rest. If she’s smart, she can track them easily enough. Tascosa is a long way from here but not that many alternate routes from which to approach it." Rihs continued as they moved through the darkened streets of Four Corners, oblivious to the town in every possible way, except the livery that held their horses.

"I want her back." Randall said firmly. "You will get her for me and if she reaches Tanner, perhaps we will dispense with the bother of letting him hang."

"That’s your perogative." Rihs retorted. "But let’s just find her first."

*********

Mary Travis heard the pounding on the door and wondered if Digger Sweeney was making another attempt on her life. It took her a moment through the haze of diminishing slumber to remember that Sweeney and his misbegotten carcass were now languishing at the undertaker’s residence. Although the undertaker had removed the body promptly out of her house, Mary still felt uncomfortable about spending the night alone. At Chris’ behest, she had rented herself a room in the lodging house, so anyone who came looking to make another attempt at her house would have a little trouble finding her.

Mary rose out of bed when she heard the familiar voice of Nettie calling out her name with an edge of desperation in her voice that drove the widow from the comfort of the warm sheets and running to open the door. This was certainly going to be far from a quiet night, Mary sighed as she pulled her robe over her as she went to answer the door.

"I’m sorry to bother you at this hour Mary but I’ve got news." Nettie said once Mary had allowed her access into the small room. The old woman manage to say all this in one breath as she burst into the room, swinging around to face Mary after passing through the door.

"Good lord Nettie, what’s happened?" Mary asked, wondering what news could be so urgent to make Nettie ride out from her place at this time of the night to deliver it.

"Its Vin." Nettie announced feeling the same urgency now that had propelled Alexandra Styles on her reckless course. Nettie wondered if she seemed just as mad to Mary Travis as Alex had done when the doctor had first announced her intentions. "The fella who he got into a fight with tonight over Alex had him captured by bounty hunters. They’re taking him to Tascosa."

"But he was going to Purgatory…." Mary stammered, remembering what Chris had told her when they had met up in the saloon and the gunslinger had formulated his plans to retrieve Inez and Julia.

"He never made it." The old woman stated without hesitation. "Alex Styles escaped after this old beau of hers told her."

"Mason." Mary mused, understanding everything now that Randall Mason’s name came into the picture. The man had wanted his vengeance on Vin Tanner for having the audacity to win Alex’s love. What better way to get rid of his rival then by feeding him to the bounty hunters whom would no doubt take him to Tascosa to hang. "Where is Alex now?"

"She’s taken after him." Nettie said grimly, not liking to impart that information any more than Mary was going to like hearing it.

Her assessment of Mary’s reaction was not far wrong. The widow stared at her in shock. "What do you mean, she went after him?" It was too much for Mary to believe that Alex could embark on something so foolish.

"I tried to talk her out of it." The old woman implored for Mary to believe her. She had not liked allowing Alex to go but it had been like trying to halt the progress of a locomotive. "She wouldn’t listen. Had it in her mind that Chris could not get to him in time and those bounty hunters would get Vin to Tascosa first."

Mary could not disagree with that assertion. If Vin had been taken shortly after Chris had sought him out then it was likely that the men who held him captive had an extremely wide gap and by the time Chris got on the trail, it might have just been too late. Still, she hated to think what would happen to Alex or Vin for that matter, in the unlikely event that Alex did manage to catch up to such unsavory men.

"She sent me to find you," Nettie continued, unable to dismiss the dismayed look on Mary’s face and felt guilty now that she had allowed Alex to leave instead of trying harder to convince the young woman to remain. However, Nettie knew in her heart, nothing she said would have been able to accomplish that feat. Until that moment, Nettie had never realized how much Alexandra Styles truly cared for Vin Tanner and she suspected, neither did Alex. "Said you could get word to Chris."

"He’s gone to Purgatory." Mary gulped as it came upon her was now required of her. Outside her window, she could see the darkness of the night that was hours from being chased away by the dawn. The trip to Purgatory was dangerous at the best of times but a woman, alone in the night, it was asking for trouble. "He’s expecting Vin to meet him there."

"He’s liable to be in for a long wait." Nettie pointed out as Mary pondered her options in silence.

Chris was going to absolutely kill her for this but she hoped she could explain to him later how she had not much of a choice. At this moment, Alex was out there in worst trouble than Mary could possibly imagine, riding into the dark maw of danger. If it were Chris, Mary would be doing the same thing. She knew with complete certainty that she’s ride across Perdition’s fires is it meant having to save his life. Love had no boundaries when it was in the blood and burned so hot that the heart easily overcame good sense. She had been there for Chris before and she would probably be there for him again.

"I’ll have to start riding now." Mary said decisively, searching for the clothes in the dim light of her room.

"You can’t go to Purgatory at this hour!" Nettie exclaimed, wondering if there was something in the water that was making reckless behavior a staple tonight. "You should not be going alone at all."

"I’ve done the trip before," Mary said firmly, knowing all the arguments as surely as she could hear Chris’ voice pointing them out now. However, Alex was right about one thing; if Vin reached Tascosa, he was as good as dead. Mary had no wish to see Chris’ eyes when he learnt that he had been absent when his best friend needed him the most. Chris Larabee would never forgive himself if he could not stop Vin Tanner from hanging.

For the second time that night, Nettie Well was forced to sit by and let another young woman ride off into the darkness.

********

Something was wrong.

"Chris," Buck Wilmington said after making the rounds of Purgatory as they all had been shortly after their arrival in the shantytown. Ever since arriving here some hours ago, the lawmen had spread out, trying to seek out anyone who might have some idea why Digger Sweeney might have made the attempt on Mary Travis’ life. So far, their search had proved unsuccessful as no was in the mood for talking. However, it was not the silence that bothered Chris Larabee so much. The silence was incidental because until this point, the questions had been polite. It was a state of affairs that would not continue when Chris employed alternate forms of persuasion.

He stood at the counter of one of the numerous all night saloons in Purgatory, waiting for the others to arrive as they had arranged earlier. Buck entered with JD and although the tall man had been initially furious when Ezra dragged him out of some woman’s bed, he soon changed his tune when he learnt Inez was missing. Nothing made Buck Wilmington more focussed or alert, than the possibility of harm towards the sultry Mexican senorita. Chris had some idea of how Buck felt about Inez, so he knew that his old friend would leave no stone uncovered, in his search for her location.

"Vin ain’t here yet." He said unhappily.

"I know." Chris nodded because that was what bothered him so intensely. Vin should have been the first one here and yet he was not. After their initial intelligence gathering procedure had yielded little result, Chris has asked the others to look around for the tracker who might have been more successful. Unfortunately, not only was Vin nowhere to be seen it also appeared that he never arrived.

"Are you sure he said he’s meet us here?" Buck questioned. Vin was difficult to understand and Buck had never been able to get a handle on the nuances of the sharpshooters’ behavior. While Buck was open and vocal about things, Vin was shy and quiet, keeping counsel to himself. It was understandable that Buck might have cause to doubt Vin even though that doubt was very minor. "You know how he is when he picks up the scent."

"He knows better than to try and take on all of them on his own." Chris said automatically, sipping the whiskey in his glass as he turned around in his chair to face Buck and JD.

"He’s right Buck." JD admitted, knowing Vin’s habits a little better than his older companion. "Vin ain’t prone to stray when it’s something this important. Maybe he found something out."

"He would have had to arrive to have found it though." Chris frowned and let his eyes scan the room. The faces at the bar and tables were almost completely inebriated at this hour of the night and some remained standing by their bootstraps and not much else. There were drunken men lying with their faces flat on the table and the general tone in the room indicated that this was probably the slowest point in the evening patronage. "And I don’t think he did."

"I agree with Mr Larabee’s assertion." Ezra walked in, having heard the tail end of the conversation. "However, Mr Sanchez and I have not come up completely empty." The dapper gambler glanced at Josiah beside him.

"You find something?" Buck demanded, glad that at least someone was doing some good. Somehow he was not surprised that it would be Ezra who would manage to find some news. Despite Ezra’s outwardly calm manner, he was worried as all hell about Julia Pemberton and Inez. While Buck could not say that he was overly fond of Miss Pemberton, aware of what manipulations she had conducted to win Ezra from Alexandra Styles, he wished her no harm. However, if anyone were to lay a finger on Inez, he would ride into hell after them just to feed them their hearts.

"Nothing about Mr Tanner unfortunately but I did learn that a fair haired stranger was in town rounding up some men to ride."

Fair-haired. The description snapped Chris into full alertness. He met Ezra’s eyes and knew the gambler had come to the same conclusion. "Rihs." He said simply.

"Rihs." Ezra nodded in agreement. "Thanks to my entire weeks gambling earnings, I was able to coax a Mr Dandridge who is currently enjoying the company of working girl thanks to my donation, into telling me that a fair haired stranger has been spending considerable purse rounding up some men for an undisclosed purpose."

"How many men?" Buck inquired.

"About twenty." Ezra retorted. "Those men moved out early this evening and I believe Digger Sweeney was in their number."

"That’s when they grabbed Inez and Miss Pemberton." JD guessed, understanding something about the situation regarding Doctor Styles’ unwanted suitor. "But why?"

"Because it was necessary to get us out of town." Chris swore under his breath, wondering why he had not seen it sooner. "Randall took the women because he knew that we’d go after them, leaving Alex alone in Four Corners! Godammnit!"

"Oh shit!" Buck cursed. "What are we going to do? We can’t let that bastard have her but Inez needs us!"

"And Miss Pemberton." Ezra frowned, reminding Buck that it was not merely Inez that was kidnapped. He knew if the situation required it, Julia could probably find some way to keep herself alive but he shuddered at what those methods might entail. He loved her dearly but he knew she had no scruples when it came to saving her own skin.

"Stay calm for starters." Chris glared at him and silenced the tirade before it could begin. "Josiah," he looked at the preacher who had until now remained silent. "Ezra said you had something too." Right now, Chris was taking anything he could get to help him come up with a course of action that would not require sacrificing either Julia and Inez or Alex.

"It does not solve our conundrum unfortunately," Josiah responded with that heavy look of somber deliberation. "However one of the men who went with Rihs was a young man named Jeter. He apparently wishes to be an outlaw, you know the usual type, loud and arrogant, thinks he’s good with a gun cause his killed a man or two. Jeter was said to have been overheard making statements about going to hide out in Wickestown."

"Wickestown?" Buck exclaimed. "I thought that place folded when Wickes died?"

"The business remains as always Buck," Josiah retorted. "It’s only the master that changes."

"It’s a good place to hide two women for awhile." Chris pointed out. "It’s worth a look."

"That’s all well and good," JD spoke out since everyone had forgotten to mention one vital thing that he did not seem to understand and wished enlightenment. "But can someone explain to me where Vin is?"

No sooner than JD had uttered the word, Chris Larabee’s attention was captured by a series of loud whistles and wolf calls coming form outside the tent. It was far too late for Purgatory to become so excitable at this time of night and instinctively, he and the others wandered to the open part of the tent to investigate. Chris was still carrying his glass when he looked down the narrow path meandering through the collection of tents and corrugated buildings and saw Mary Travis coming in his direction. Her eyes were searching the area carefully, even though she was extremely apprehensive about her present situation. She pulled her cloak closer to her skin as if hoping the dark material would hide her from the stairs of the men who viewed her less than honorable intentions.

Chris almost choked on his drink as he slammed the glass down on the nearest table and strode out of the place in disbelief.

"Chris!" She exclaimed upon seeing, her face showing obvious relief.

"Mary!" Chris declared in a higher than normal pitch. "What the hell are you doing here? Did you ride out here all by yourself?" He demanded, allowing her no chance to answer his questions as he fired them at her.

"Now before you get mad at me, I have a perfectly good reason for being here." She spoke in between the momentary pause while he caught his breath. She recognised the thundercloud that was forming behind his eyes.

"Mrs Travis," Ezra saw her and understood why Chris had suddenly stormed out. "What on earth are you doing here? Surely you did not make the journey here alone?"

"I was doing the asking." Chris growled, glaring at Ezra over his shoulder. "What the hell are you doing here? Are you insane? Do you know what could happen to you in this place alone?"

"Trust me," she returned with just as much intensity. "I don’t like being here any more than you like seeing me here but I didn’t have much of a choice. Vin’s gone."

"I know that." Chris declared, wondering if she had risked life and limb to ride to Purgatory just to tell him this snippet of news?

"Oh really?" Mary folded her arms in seething anger at his stubbornness. Did he think she enjoyed the trip to this place, terrified of every shadow, pushing Homer so fast that the horse was almost dead from the exhaustion of trying to reach this hellhole so that she could find him? "Then you know Randall Mason had him delivered to bunch of bounty hunters who are at this moment taking Vin to Tascosa."

"What?" Buck roared before Chris could say anything. "That low down bastard!"

"What about Alex?" Ezra said knowing that Randall could not have done all this without forgetting that minor detail. Alex had been the entire reason why Mason had put this sequence of events into motion.

"He tried abducting Alex but she managed to get away from him. Chris, she’s gone after Vin. She intends to reach him before he gets to Tascosa."

Well this was just getting better by the minute, Chris Larabee thought with a slight groan and an increasing headache that he was just going to shoot someone to alleviate. What he did not voice the others did so promptly.

"Alone? She went after Vin alone!" Ezra exclaimed wondering if Alex had taken leave of her senses by such a dangerous action.

"She thought that it would take too much time to reach you," Mary explained. "She felt that if someone didn’t go after him, you would never get to Vin in time to keep him from a noose."

Chris did not like it but Alex was correct on that point. The men who had Vin had several hours start already and were no doubt anticipating trouble so they would ride hard and fast to reach the Texas border where Vin was wanted for murder. She was probably going to get herself killed if she actually found Vin with these men but for what it was worth, Chris had to admire her courage. He decided then and there he was not going to sacrifice either Vin Tanner or Alexandra Styles. He thought quickly as the question he could not answer before suddenly produced a solution in the light of this latest intelligence.

He looked at Ezra and the others. "I want you to keep going to Wickestown. I know the odds are tough but Rihs paid for men who spend most of their time liquored up. I think you guys can handle it."

In truth, he did not know that for certain. However, at this point there was little room for debate. Vin needed his help and Chris was sure as hell not going to let his best friend swing or a crime he did not commit. They could deal with Randall Mason later but for now, Chris had to get going to find Alexandra Styles before she actually found Vin and his captors.

"You’re going after Vin alone?" Buck looked at him uneasily. He did not like the idea of Vin reaching Tascosa any more than he did but Chris going off alone always made Buck nervous. In fact, any situation, which did not have all seven of them, present made him uncomfortable. There was a certain security in having them all together, something unspoken that they all knew but never spoke of a loud.

"I ain’t got no choice." Chris said abruptly. "I ain’t letting him hang."

And that was precisely what would happen if Vin Tanner arrived in Tascosa.

*******

She had not idea how long she had been riding through the darkness, only that she could not stop. Despite the fear of what might await her when she found him, Alexandra Styles kept Vin Tanner firmly in her mind, never straying for a moment from the abject belief that he was alive and awaited her rescue. As she rode through the flat plains, with the moon keeping a vigil over her, the cool air went some way to keeping her refreshed and alert.

When had it happened, she asked herself?

Probably after she had cut into Ezra and found herself standing by that creek at Nettie’s place, trying to decide whether or not the power to heal was all that it was meant to. She had stood there weeping in silence with self-pity when he had come out of nowhere. Until then, he had been more of an annoyance than he had been a friend, always questioning her medical ability even though she sensed no real malice in him towards her. Alex never understood the reason for his hostility, not at first for he seemed on first impressions a fairly shy sort of man, not prone to giving opinions.

She had expected Vin to laugh and make her feel stupid for her typical female outburst when suddenly, he had reached for her trembling hands and enclosed with his, sending a lightning bolt through her skin from his fingertips. Alex had felt it then; the powerful surge of undefined feeling that awakened every sense in her at his touch. There had never been that kind of feeling at any point with Ezra.

Alex had stood there, flinching under the gaze of his blue eyes, while she tried to shrug it off as some fluke. Unfortunately, it had never been that simple and she stayed away him, frightened by what he represented and still committed to Ezra because it was not fair to shift her affections like a wanton schoolgirl. That night in Agnes’ cabin she had as much cause as he to regret pulling away from him. When his mouth had slid over hers, it had never felt more right his being there. The suspicion that had nagged at her was more or less confirmed by the time they returned home to Four Corners.

Then fate took a hand and changed her world entirely with Julia Pemberton’s announcement that she had bedded Ezra. Alex had been furious by the betrayal but it was not that which ached so much. By his own action, Ezra had thrown her headfirst into the uncharted waters that was her relationship with Vin Tanner. With Ezra standing between them, it had been easy enough to make excuses for staying away from each other. However with the end of her relationship with the gambler, she was forced to confront her feelings for Vin and what she saw there terrified her.

Alexandra Styles knew that once she fell in love with him, there would be no turning back. This was not the mutual affection she had shared with Ezra. This was powerful, raging love that poets sang sonnets about and artists went insane trying to portray on canvas. It was all consuming and utterly draining but completely fulfilling.

And it scared the hell out of her.

But it became easier and easier to be with him and discovering who he was under that faint smile became a challenge she soon looked forward to with each encounter. When he made love to her, she knew without doubt in the aftermath that it was too late. Whatever he did, wherever he went from that day forward, she was and always would be unconditionally his.

Which is why she had ridden half the night, stopping in every little dirt town forgotten by the time and the world, searching for any signs of the men who might have taken him. She had no idea what they looked like but knew Peso would have been taken as well. Leaving the horse in town would have immediately alerted Chris and the other’s to Vin’s difficulties. It made sense to remove the animal and besides, Vin would have to need something to ride to Tascosa.

It was almost dawn she rode into the town.

It was not much of a town. Just a collection of old Spanish type buildings, dilapidated and worn by the desert sand. Texas was still some distance away from this place but she had stopped in every town before this point and knew that the men who had Vin had not rested yet. This place was large enough for a group of bounty hunters to go unnoticed with their charge but not small enough to hide them from someone that was looking. Alex knew she was playing a dangerous game and she was aware of the consequences to herself if she failed but she had a plan or something of plan anyway. It was not much of a plan and the odds of success were slim but she was a woman with few resources and she had come away from Ezra Standish learning how to gamble on the improbable.

Besides, she had no choice.

She was almost ready to rest for the night when she saw the animal. For a moment, Alex felt her heart stop as she saw the familiar black gelding with the distinct flare of white on his forehead and the one white sock, on his right hind hoof. Alex had ridden with Vin enough times to know that the animal was Peso for the saddle on its back was one she recognised just as clearly. She counted four other horses next to it and had some idea now of how many men she would actually have to deal with.

They were tethered outside what appeared to be a cantina. As it was almost dawn, there were very few people on the street and certainly no one who seemed sober enough to take any notice of her. The moon was rapidly fading away in the amber of dawn breaking in the horizon as she nudged her horse to another hitching post situated what appeared to be a general store. Alex dismounted the mare and tethered it to the rail as she rummaged through her saddlebags for what she would require for this insane plan of hers. After a moment, when she had collected everything she required, Alex took a deep breath to calm herself.

She walked along the darkened street, mindful of every shadow until she reached the cantina. To her annoyance, other than the main entrance, there was no other way to see into the saloon without passing through the doors. Alex walked around the building and saw a service entrance probably for the staff that led into the building but offered no view of the main floor. It did not matter, the alternate entry would serve her purposes for the moment.

The back entrance led into a kitchen that was far from sanitary. Inside a Mexican woman was wearily preparing a meal of tortillas and beans, if her understanding of Mexican cuisine was accurate. She looked at Alex with question when Alex held her finger to her lips and pleaded for her to remain silent, at least until she had a chance to explain. The woman was in her fifties at least, of Hispanic origin and stared at Alex with a mixture of curiosity and caution.

"Please madam," Alex said, speaking in the woman’s language. Her Spanish was extremely rusty and she hoped she was talking with enough clarity to be understood. "I need to know if the men who own those horses outside the cantina are in there." She gestured to the room outside.

"Si Senora," the woman nodded. "They are five of them, drunk and dangerous. The cantina should have closed hours ago but they will not let my husband or I go home. They want food and more drink."

"I am looking for a gringo with them." Alex explained reaching into her pocket and producing the wad of money she had ransacked her room to find prior to her departure. The woman’s eyes widened at the sight of the bills as Alex pressed a twenty-dollar note in her hand. "The gringo is young, long dark hair, wears a skin coat?"

"Si, he is there. He is the one who is tied up." The woman said eagerly, "they have beaten him."

Alex felt her stomach hollow even though she had expected that and hoped Vin was not too badly hurt to be able to make a hasty get away. As it was, she had no idea if she could even free him if let alone wrestle with the difficulty of transporting an incapacitated man all the way to Four Corners again. However, she would deal with one hurdle at a time. "Is this food for them?" She glanced at the meal of tortillas.

"Yes," the woman nodded, wondering what this beautiful young woman intended. She was obviously a lady of refinement even though her skin was a deeper bronze than most Mexicans were. She must have been from some far away place indeed.

After a moment of quick thinking, Alex looked up at her. "Call your husband in here, tell him anything but you two must leave. I will take care of these men for you."

The woman looked at her in disbelief as Alex made the announcement. "Senora, this are bad men. They will hurt someone so beautiful like you." The woman implored, trying to make this generous stranger see reason.

"They won’t hurt me," Alex said with confidence she did not feel. "They won’t have the chance to."

********

He did not know what was worse.

The fact that he was on his way to Tascosa to hang or the idea that at this moment, Randall Mason was doing god only knew what with the woman he loved. Vin Tanner found himself tied to a chair at the corner of the room under the watchful eye of the four men who were determined to collect the $500 reward on his head. His head still throbbed from when someone had knocked him out unconscious and by the time he had come to, Four Corners was already far behind.

His stomach kept knotting at the thought that Chris and the others would be in no position to help Alex because they would be on their way to Purgatory, trying to find Inez and Julia Pemberton. He had promised to protect her from Randall Mason and had failed spectacularly. He was so infuriated at himself, he was hardly aware of the cruel taunts and jibes of the men who held him captive while they waited for their food to arrive within the local cantina at this nameless town.

Vin had been watching them for some hours now, getting drunker which each fresh bottle of whiskey, believing that he was more injured than he looked and not having one iota of knowledge on what it took to be a real bounty hunter. They were descending further into their inebriated state and Vin estimated it would not be long before they would pass out completely in a drunken stupor. Of course, he was hoping that they would not decide to leave before then. The night or in this case the early dawn air might actually have a refreshing effect on them and he would be back to square one. Vin was waiting patiently for them to falter so that he could make his bid for escape.

Somehow he had to get back to Four Corners and Alex.

Suddenly, he noticed the cantina owner, a rather fat greasy looking man answer the call of his wife in the kitchen. Vin’s captors barely noticed the man moving out of the room but there was something in his eyes that made Vin pay attention. The man disappeared through the kitchen doors just as one of the would be bounty hunters started screaming for his food. The man, who Vin had to know as Blake rose shakily to his feet and started towards the kitchen, no longer content to wait for his meal’s arrival. However, before he arrived at the doorway, a slender figure emerged onto the floor.

At first, Vin could not believe it. He blinked to make sure he was not seeing this but doing so only confirmed the impossibility of what was before him. The tracker’s eyes widened in utter astonishment as he saw Alexandra Styles emerged from the kitchen, carrying tray full of food.

Jesus Christ, Vin thought, too amazed to speak.

She was carrying a tray full of tortillas, wearing the same dress that they had made love in only hours before. The men immediately forgot about their complaints as their eyes fixed on the beautiful woman who just walked amongst them. Vin could see the lustful intentions seeping into their drunken gazes and wondered what in god’s name Alex had been thinking. Vin could not even understand how she had come to be here let alone the game she was embarking to play.

"Who’re you?" Blake asked in a slurred voice full of lascivious intent.

Alex smiled at him. "Why I am the cook," she said in a best imitation of a Hispanic accent. For a moment, she did not seem to unlike Inez. "Your meals are ready." She said with a wide smile carefully avoiding meeting his gaze as she moved past Blake and set the tray of food down on the table.

Vin was still too astonished to react as Alex moved through the room serving them their meals. When she was done, she straightened up and let her eyes scan the room briefly. Her eyes met his for less than a second but she conveyed to him all she needed in that one look. Vin was confused but he understood that it was necessary to play along.

"You just are the prettiest little cook, I’d ever seen." The leader of the group smiled, slapping her on the rump as she turned away from the table.

Alex let out a girlish giggle that seemed completely inappropriate coming from her lips in Vin’s opinion because he was so accustomed to seeing her confident and so refined. It took every ounce of composure to keep himself seated instead of doing something stupid, like kicking the living crap out of the bastard. However, Alex merely gave the man one of those killer smiles of hers that was capable of reducing the most celibate of men to quivering wrecks. Vin ought to know she had done it to him several times tonight already.

"Now eat up Senors." She said pleasantly. "You boys look like you need your strength." There was enough suggestion in her voice and eyes to promise them all sorts of things and Vin looked quickly to the faces of the men who were utterly mesmerised by her. He had never seen her use her sexuality so blatantly before and was frankly amazed at how potent a force it could be. She was one of the most beautiful women in town but she never used her beauty to get anything because Alex relied on her skills and her intelligence. Now Vin knew why. If she were to use it as Julia Pemberton used it, he’d have to beat a path to her door.

"What about your friend in the corner?" Alex asked, "does he not need food?"

"He ain’t gonna live long enough to starve." One of the chortled loudly, while heartily consuming the cuisine she had served.

Vin noticed something else as Alex withdrew to the far end of the room. Retreating behind the bar as if she prepared to assume the bar tendering purposes, she kept her eyes trained on the bounty hunters. Vin could tell by the intent way she was watching these men that there was more going on in her performance as a cantina cook and once again, he found his gaze switching to the men. Vin knew that as soon as the food was eaten, the men were going to get a taste for something more and Alex, in any shape or form was a tasty morsel indeed. He started to panic, unable to fathom what she was planning but completely aware that if any of this varmints try to lay one hand on her, he would kill them. With their attention, solely on their meals, Vin started working the ropes around his wrist, hoping against hope that he could loosen it enough to be of some assistance to Alex when they turned their attention to her.

Suddenly, Blake tried to stand up. He rose to his feet shakily, staggering forward with such ungainly mobility that the others started laughing at him. He turned around at them and glared angrily. He tried to speak because Vin saw his mouth trying to form the words but they did not come. He took two steps back to the table before collapsing against a chair in a loud heap. The others assumed he was drunk and started chortling at their friend’s condition.

"You could never hold your liquor, Blake!" One of them laughed.

"Just like his women!" Another one cried out.

However, the leader with the gold teeth was not smiling. He was wearing a similar look on his face as he tried to take a step towards Blake’s unconscious body. His eyes shifted at Vin as some terrible realisation was made and he pulled out his gun. However, his ability to aim was severely compromised as the gun swayed, as if he was unable to make his mind where he wanted to aim. His two companions were still laughing, too stupid to realise that this was more than just a matter of alcohol.

"Pull that trigger and you’re all dead." Alex suddenly spoke.

All eyes turned to her as she emerged from behind the counter and took a few steps forward, examining them with cold detachment. "You alright cowboy?" She spoke to the tracker for the first time. Her voice was calm, like it was when she was performing surgery. However, he could see how happy she was to see him by the relief in her eyes.

"I reckon I am." Vin said with a smile as he started to understand what she had done to the four men.

"Who are you, you bitch!" The leader cried out, aiming his gun at her now but was no more capable of keeping his gun aimed at her than he had at him.

"That Doctor Alexandra Styles to you." Alex stared at the man coldly. "I’d drop the gun before you hurt yourself."

"Alexandra?" He mused recognising the name. "You the woman that Mason fella wants so badly?"

"Apparently so." She replied, with no trace of fear in her eyes that Vin felt a swell of pride at how magnificently she was conducting herself. "Now tell me?" She said with absolutely no expression in her voice. "Is it becoming harder to see? Your limbs should be getting tired by now."

Vin saw the nervousness in their eyes more or less confirm her questions. The leader in particularly was straining to focus, even though the gun was still in his hand swaying side to side as he tried to aim at her with little success. The two who had gone to see how Blake was doing was struggling to their feet but they kept buckling like newborn colts that had not quite found their legs to stand. Vin watched in a mixture of horror and fascination as they scrambled on the stone floor, their boots scrapping underfoot as they tried to stand.

"What have you done to us!" The leader cried out and squeezed the trigger. Alex ducked slightly as the bullets slammed into the wall far away enough to do little but startle as they tore into the brick harmlessly.

"The drug is called curare." She said simply. "It comes from South America actually," Alex explained into the men like she was giving a lecture on the subject. "Jungle Indians like to use it to bring down game. It’s pretty effective in the use of heart treatment. Slows things down to a stop." Alex met Vin’s gaze. "Just a little dose of it makes people sluggish because it drops their heart rate to a crawl. You’re still alive but only a doctor can tell. Everyone else who comes across you four will think you’re dead."

"You bitch! You poisoned us." He snarled.

"And you were going to deliver him to hang." Alex glanced at Vin. "I don’t see the difference."

"What do you want?" He demanded impotently.

"I don’t want anything," Alex said as she started towards Vin. She paused by Blake’s unmoving body and reached for the blade sticking out of the man’s boot. The other two were completely immobilised by now and Alex had to admire the leader’s endurance in still remaining conscious. "This is not a negotiation. I only came for the cowboy." She replied taking the knife and coming towards Vin. "If you’re lucky, everyone will think you’re having hangover and leave you alone until it wears off and if you’re not, they may just bury you alive."

She reached Vin and cut him loose. No sooner than he was free of his bonds, Alex threw her arms around him and embraced him hard. "Are you okay?" She asked, all trace of her icy demeanour disappearing from her voice as he wrapped his arms around her. Their mouths met passionately and Vin was never more grateful to be alive then at this moment when he felt her lips against his again.

"Yeah." He smiled unable to believe that she was here and that she had actually rescued him. "I’m not as pretty as I used to be but I’m okay." He reassured her as she noticed the bruises on his face incurred by the beating he had received at Randall’s hands. However, Vin also noticed the blood under her hair.

"Did he hurt you?" Vin demanded, gritting his teeth as he felt the fire of rage bubble inside him at the thought that Randall might have harmed Alex in any way. The threat he had made to the man in the livery was not an idle one. He would kill anyone who tried to harm her. As it was, he was going to ride back to Four Corners and teach the man a lesson in humility that Randall Mason was not likely to forget very soon. Not to mention the good Mr Rihs.

"Its nothing." Alex sighed, having forgotten all about the lacerations on her forehead in light of everything that had happened since her departure from Four Corners.

"Come on," Vin said taking her hand, wanting to be away from here as soon as possible. "You can fill me in when we’re ride back to Four Corners."

Alex was not about to argue with him because she was just so damn grateful that he was alive and unhurt. She had barely stop to examine her actions since she embarked on this insane venture and knew that she was lucky that her recklessness had not cost both of them their lives. Hurrying towards the door, Vin took note of the four men that had planned to deliver him to Tascosa. All were strewn across the floor, seemingly dead to the world as Alex had predicted. The tortillas that had carried the poison were almost completely consumed which explained to Vin why Alex had waited patiently for it to take effect until she made her move.

"Are they dead?" He looked at her as he retrieved his sawed-off Winchester rifle that one of the men had liberated from him and replaced it back in its holster.

"No," she shook her head. "I don’t have any curare. I just gave them enough sedatives to put down a buffalo. They’ll sleep for a month and wake up refreshed."

Vin met her gaze with a slow smile stealing across his lips. "You were bluffing?"

"Of course," she said as a matter of factly. "Did you think I learnt nothing from Ezra?"

He could only laugh as he ushered forward and they passed through the doors to emerge outside to find the pale amber light of the sunrise staring at them from the horizon. The air outside that dingy cantina felt intoxicatingly fresh as Vin strode over to Peso and untethered his horse from the hitching post.

"How did you get here?" He asked.

"I stole a horse." Alex admitted, gesturing to the mare hitched in front of the general store in the nearby distance.

"You’re doing pretty good today." Vin smiled. "We’ll leave it. We need to make time fast. Randall know you were coming after me?" He asked as her as he mounted Peso and extended his hand towards her.

"I don’t know." Alex said honestly as he lifted her into position behind him. "When he said that he had given you those men, I just didn’t know I was thinking. I convinced him that I’d go with him and that I needed to get dressed and pack. I knotted some sheets and went through the window before taking a couple things I thought might come in handy."

Vin said nothing as Alex wrapped her arms around his waist, thinking hard as to what they would do. Randall was a hotheaded bastard who was too full of jealousy to think straight but Rihs was not. Rihs may guess Alex might be determined enough to try and find him and if so, chances were good that they would run into a party of Rihs men. If it were just him alone having to face the odds, Vin might have risked it but Alex was with him and her fate if they were ambushed was not as simple matter of dying. Randall would keep Alexandra Styles alive so that he could make her pay throughout her entire existence on this earth for the sin of loving another. Vin was not condemning her to that kind of nightmare. For the first time, he understood what had driven Buck to accept Don Paulo’s challenge even though he had no reason to defend Inez.

"We may have to hold up a spell somewhere." Vin said as Peso started galloping out of the dusty town that was starting to awaken with the light of dawn. "If he guesses you’re coming to help me, we’re likely to run into him on the way back. I just as soon as not let that happen."

"Where do we go?" She asked, glad that he was here to make these kinds of decisions. Alex was still trying to cope with the knowledge that she had actually managed to save him from those bounty hunters but she was not about to test her new found limits so soon.

"There’s a little village not to far away from here in the mountains." Vin answered as they left the town behind them and crossed the flat track of land that surrounded it in all directions. "We did a favour for them some time ago and I think they’ll be willing to hide us out for a day or two."

"Okay," Alex sighed, resting her head against his shoulder because she was exhausted from riding all night. "You can lead this safari. I’ve had all the excitement I can take today, cowboy."

Vin smiled as he enjoyed the familiar softness of her hair against his back. "I don’t know." He said with some hint of teasing. "It seems you were doing alright without me. I was starting to feel a little ineffectual."

"Don’t worry," Alex laughed softly. "You can prove yourself when I get you somewhere alone."

Vin met her suggestive gaze and drawled. "You’re an animal, Miss Styles."

"I know," she returned his smile. "And I used to be such a mean ol’ spinster woman too."

Part Six

Prey

This is where it had begun really.

In this forgotten little village where an amalgamation of culture had been formed by the outcasts who fled here and the Indians who welcome them, the future lawmen of Four Corners had shared their first adventure together. Back then it had been just a job, a pittance in payment for a week of their lives. No one knew each other really and trust was ever harder to come by. Vin smiled remembering JD’s desperation to be accepted while Ezra was trying to cope with the notion that a black man could be healer or an equal and Josiah was determined to die. Even though the odds were great, the truth of it was that none of them any place to go really.

It seemed almost destiny when that old man appeared in Four Corners and offered them something far greater than five dollars a week.

Here the seven had come together for the first time in a bond none of them knew would last but each felt strongly in some inexplicable way. Vin found himself thinking that if he and Chris Larabee had not stood across the street from each other and decided without speaking a word that Nathan was to be saved, it was likely he would still be pushing a broom in that store. The idea of being a shop clerk still made him shudder even now as he moved the through the rocky path that led to Seminole village.

Alex was lying against his back, trying hard not to doze off even though she was fighting a losing battle with fatigue. She had been ridden most of the night to find him and had reached the limits of even her formidable endurance. Unfortunately, she was aware as he, how imperative it was that they get out of sight in the instance that Randall Mason had continued their pursuit. Thus, Alex remained silent about just how much she needed the rest while tolerating her exhaustion in the hope that the journey’s end was not far away.

Vin glanced over his shoulder at her when he felt Alex snuggling against his back. He could not suppress the smile that came to his lips at the feel of her silken cheek caressing him gently as she sought to be more comfortable in her reluctant slumber. He did not disturb her, realising how tired she must be after her nocturnal adventure. Apart of Vin still had difficulty believing she had gambled her life so hazardously to save his own. It felt unbelievable good to know that someone loved him that much to embark on such a quest. When he had left her home the night before after making searing love to each other, he knew what he saw in her eyes was no shadowy desire for Ezra masked in a carnal feeling for him. Vin knew then that her heart was well and truly his as his own had always been hers. However, even Vin was unprepared for the intensity of that love and what she was willing to do in her expression of it.

Vin finally understood why Chris Larabee’s dark demeanour had diminished so much since Mary Travis had come into his life.

To have someone love you that much was an experience enough to heal even the most battered heart and Chris Larabee had almost certainly qualified as being the most ravaged soul he had ever seen. While Vin could not confess to suffering so much grief that Alex’s love was salvation disguised, he did feel as if the walls that guarded his inner soul for as long as he could remember had come tumbling down in the face of her love.

When Peso was forced to climb up a particularly steep incline of rock, the unsteady actions of that ascent jostled them both as the gelding pulled itself over the uneven stone ground. Alex woke with a start and realised she had fallen a sleep. This was a rather dangerous undertaking when one was on horseback. Nevertheless she still looked at him dreamily, her fear of harm easing away when she realised that she had not dreamed his rescue but was a reality she had forgotten in her sleep.

"Are we almost there yet?" She asked, stifling a yawn as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She sat up straight and tried not to let the aching limbs or the fatigue in her bones bother her too much. Alex surveyed the landscape and found it to be a notch or two above desert. While it was not sandy and windblown, there was very little vegetation in this mountainous terrain with its dry weeds and rock outcrops protruding on every step of the journey over its peak. It was difficult to believe that this seemingly barren mountain was home to anything, let alone an entire village.

"Pretty much." Vin nodded gesturing to the winding path that led to the top of the mountain range. Once they had scaled that peak, they would then descend into the canyon in which the Seminoles had build their community of outcasts and misfits. They had picked this unforgiving place as their home because no one would want to steal it from them and its high mountain walls allowed for a formidable defensive capability. The village existed behind a fortress of stone that had only been breached once in their lifetime when the seven were called on to defend it. "We just need to get into the canyon." He explained.

"Have I been asleep long?" Alex asked again as she looked at the sky and was forced to squint when the glaring brightness of the sun assaulted her eyes after it had been deprived of sunlight while she had slept.

"Just an hour or so." He facing front again. "I ain’t seen no sign of Randall and his men yet so I’ve been taking it easy."

"Would he know to come here?" She inquired, unable to keep the fear from her voice as she asked the question. Alex could not lie. Randall Mason had frightened her badly, despite the burst of courage that had forced her out the window in her desperate need to save Vin. It frightened her that any man could be so driven to possess her like an object. She knew it was not over, not by a long shot and she sensed a showdown coming over the horizon.

"He seemed to know a lot about us." Vin confessed, refusing to discount the possibility no matter how remote. People invariably talked and JD had been very vocal about their first adventure together. It was not unreasonable to assume that the story might have been passed on to someone who was smart enough to take account of such thing. "He knew who to take so that Chris and the others would go riding out of town. If he knew that, he may know about this place."

"He is insane." She whispered as she found herself holding onto him tighter as the full potential of that statement seeped into her bones like a poison threatening to kill her. She wished that Randall would simply disappear, so that she and Vin could get back to their lives and deal with the future they would spend together. Alex knew she could bear no future that did not involve Vin Tanner. When she had ridden out of Four Corners do rescue him, she had done so because she loved him. She had loved him with an intensity she had never felt for Ezra Standish. When she was with Vin, her soul burned with the heat of a constant flame, it made her alive like nothing did.

"Did he ask for your hand before?" Vin suddenly inquired, not knowing very much about her relationship with Randall. For some reason, she did not seem to like talking about it even though Vin’s curiosity was piqued. Even after their most intimate moments together the night before, it was a subject she disliked discussing.

"Not that I am aware." Alex answered truthfully. She and Randall had run across each other numerous times over the years before her father’s death and not once was the subject approached. She recalled the last time she had seen him, they had been in Egypt, just before her father suffered his fatal heart attack. Father had always known she had not considered Mason as any more than a friend even if he was unaware of their sexual relationship. "I saw him last when my father died."

Vin did not speak but an ugly realisation came into his mind that snared it completely once there. "Just exactly how did you pa die?" He asked quietly hoping he was wrong about what he suspected, even though Vin did not believe he was mistaken. Somehow, it seemed plausible in light of what he knew regarding the lengths Mason would go to acquiring Alex for his own.

"Heart attack." She answered still gripped with the pain of his loss.

"Are you sure?" He probed, knowing with certainty even before he asked that even if she was not sure, he was. After what Vin had seen of the man, the possibility that Randall may have killed her father was more than just supposition. Vin would not be surprised to find that he had, after all Randall had proved that he was not above murder to get what he wanted. What if he had asked William Styles for Alex’s hand and had been refused? How would Randall have reacted to the rejection? If even half of what Alex told him about her father was true then he was a man who valued his daughter more than anything in the world and would not offer her to an unworthy suitor.

Vin decided he would not even think what William Styles would have made of him.

"Yes, I’m sure." Alex mused but did not sound very convincing now. The knot in her stomach would not go away now and she knew that it would remain as long as there was skerrick of doubt in her mind over her father’s death.

"We’ll get the truth from him Alex." Vin said firmly, "I promise you."

Alex smiled despite the nature of their discussion because she was touched by his sincerity. "You’re good to have around in a crisis situation."

"So are you." He pointed out. "No woman ever rode after me like that before." There was a hint of amusement in his voice as he said that. "You must have a real thing for sweet talking lawmen." Vin looked over his shoulder long enough to deliver her a thoroughly suggestive smirk on his face.

"Yeah," she replied deciding to play his game and give him more than he bargained for in return. "I just couldn’t get enough of that silver tongue." Alex knew he was being mischievous and enjoyed it when they jousted verbally. It was almost like foreplay. At that thought, she recalled their encounter on the kitchen table, the wall of her bedroom, her dressing table, not to mention the heat they generated when they finally got to bed. Alex blushed furiously as she recalled how completely uninhibited she had been with Vin and felt a rush of desire because she wanted to hear him moan her name again, when she took him into her mouth. "And everything else." She returned as her finger made slow circles on his shirt, just above his nipple.

Vin shuddered slight, leaning back into her as she teased him. "I liked you better when you were a mean old maid."

"No you don’t," she whispered in his ear, allowing her breath to breeze across the sensitive skin.

Well, he could not tell a lie, especially when he was leaning further back against her as he relished the sweet torture he was making him endure. When he felt the first twinges of arousal, Vin reminded himself that he was not about to even think about having sex on the back of a horse. As it was, the only prevailing thought in his mind at the moment was the overwhelming need to find a kitchen table.

"Woman," he grumbled as he straightened up a moment later. "You go no shame." He said trying to focus on getting to the village.

"And that’s just how you like it, cowboy." She laughed as she returned her hands to a less distracting position.

Vin joined her laughter and then added. "Maybe the Seminoles have a big kitchen table…."

*******

Wickestown had not changed since their last visit to the place. Its founder, the infamous Mister Wickes had built himself a small fortune in the lucrative trade of flesh and as a whoremaster, there were none as brutal and sadistic as the man who enjoyed making women whores as much as he enjoyed breaking them. The seven had done most of womankind a favour when they finally put an end to Wickes who would not allow his charges to leave their servitude and most of the working girls who found themselves in his employ were almost bonded slaves.

With Wickes’ demise, the denizens who counted as the refuse of humanity made their way to Wickestown to peddle in the flesh and any other villainy that pleasure could buy. Instead of Wickes running supreme as he had in life, there were now a dozen whoremasters, varying in degree of scum who now resided in the popular fleshpot.

As Ezra Standish and his companions rode into the place, the idea that Julia and Inez might be in the keeping of such men sent a shudder of horror down his spine. He knew Inez would rather die than allow herself to violated again and feared her reaction if any whoremaster got in his mind to use her for business purposes. He knew Julia would land on her feet in a place like this because the love of his life had the amazing catlike ability to never let anything get the better of her. Ezra loved Julia Pemberton but he knew her ability to survive lay in the fact that she had no morals to hold her back.

Wickestown had grown without the exclusive monopoly of its founder and Ezra saw numerous more buildings where there had only be open land. The place made Purgatory seem respectable as Ezra tipped his hat in the direction of a young working girl that offered him a seductive smile as they past the row of tents.

"Hold on a minute, Josiah." Ezra said to the group as he nudged his horse in her direction.

The young woman who clad in very little, sauntered over to him realising she had captured his interest. She was a pretty thing with blond hair and blue eyes that looked like a pale imitation of Mary Travis. "Can I do something for you honey." She smiled suggestively, switching into a voice that Ezra was certain she only used for business.

"Why thank you young lady," Ezra smiled his most charming and smiled his most charming. "Actually I am need of information."

"Oh." She said disappointed and Ezra could see she was preparing to depart when he produced a crisp note just beyond arm’s reach. She brightened at the colour of green before returning her undivided attention back to him with the promise of easy money that did not require her to be on her back for a change.

"I am wondering if a large group of men may come riding in here in the last day or so, accompanied perhaps by two women?"

"Working girls?" She looked at him, wondering what need he had of those when she was here and willing. She did so want to offer him her services because he and his companions appeared to be most handsome men, even the older one with the sombre face.

"Certainly not." Ezra returned quickly. "A Mexican and a white woman." He continued, dangling the note a little closer but still not close enough to reach.

"I seen a group of men come in late last night about ten of them," she answered after a moments thought "Didn’t see no women with them though, just a wagon."

It was better than nothing Ezra decided and certainly worth investigating. It would be far simpler to keep two female captives in a wagon that it would be forcing them to ride peacefully on the back of one’s horse. Anyone attempting that with Inez would have reason to regret it quickly. Ezra turned back and saw Josiah and Buck’s similar assessment of the situation.

"You would not have any idea where these men would be, my dear?" He asked, turning to her again.

"Well they’re up at Hills." She answered. "He runs a saloon and a couple of girls." Her eyes never moving from the fresh five-dollar note that was close enough for her to breathe its crisp scent.

"You assistance has been invaluable," Ezra smiled and handed the note towards her. Furtively she snatched it from his hand before securing it into a tight roll she slipped through the crack of her ample cleavage. Ezra estimated her master would not be made aware of this sudden boon and saw no reason to begrudge the girl the money.

"You sure I can’t help you with anything else honey?" She winked at him, running a light fingertip over his leg.

"Come on Ezra." Josiah said abruptly, cutting into the conversation with enough of an edge to indicate that they could ill afford to waste any more time here. Ezra shrugged at her as if he was powerless to the whim of his friends and continued riding past her.

"Hills, she said." Ezra announced to Josiah, Buck and JD.

"I’ll scout around." Buck said because he always seemed to be able to blend into places like this and get people talking. Buck was one of those naturally disarming personalities that put people at ease, in particular women. "Find out what I can about this Hills fella."

"I got a better idea." Josiah said coming up with a plan. "I say we go down to Mr Hill’s establishment and find us some female company." Before Buck could open his mouth to speak, Josiah turned to him sharply and added. "I mean that figuratively Buck."

JD stifled a laugh and Buck frowned at him in annoyance. "Josiah, what do you take me for? Inez is out here somewhere," his eyes surveyed the ramshackle collection of buildings and tents in the surrounding area. "I couldn’t possibly imagine being with another woman until she’s back safely among us." He paused and then added. "Besides, I don’t have to pay for it. I still got a half a dozen fillies just waiting for me to come calling tonight."

Josiah and Ezra exchanged glances before shaking their heads in disbelief. "As long as your priorities are straight." Josiah sighed.

*********

The room was hot and steamy. Although it was fall, the heat from the sun had turned the room with the steel roof into a roasting oven. Inez could feel the hot wafting air stifling her as sweat began to seep through the clothes and plastered the thin fabric to her skin. Julia who was in a formal dress was in an even worse state for the heavy silk was slowly suffocating the skin. Her mood was slightly cooler than the temperature in the room and being tied back to back with Inez for the sixth straight hour was slowly raising Julia’s ire to the point of no return.

"That is it!" She hissed. "I have had enough!"

"Be quiet!" Inez hissed, perfectly aware that they were in a brothel of some kind and that the men outside in the saloon were becoming liquored up and uncontrollable. It was best that either woman did not bring their attention when they were in such a dangerous state of inebriation. "Do you want them to come in here?"

"As opposed to what?" Julia snorted, trying to turn around in her confined position but having little room to move in the ropes that kept her bound to the chair. "Them coming in here and doing there worse?"

"I’m thinking of a plan!" Inez winced; wishing Mary Travis was here. The newspaperwoman was better in a crisis situation than she was. Mary always seemed to come up with the most radical solution to escape while Inez could do little but be swept away in the chaos.

"With all due respect," Julia growled. "I have little faith in your ability to get us out of this!"

"Well you think of something!" Inez retorted, feeling the heat snapping her temper irrevocably. If she were free right now, she would knock the snotty woman on her ass just to shut up that incessant whining. "You know Ezra has to be a saint to put up with you!"

"I should say the same!" She snapped. "If what I hear about your relationship with is anything to go by, you’re like a cross between a dog and his mother!"

"A dog!" Inez’s jaw dropped in outrage before she narrowed her eyes in anger and slammed her head back against Julia.

Julia swore as she felt the back of her skull flare in pain from where Inez had hit her. "Are you crazy!"

"After being tied up with you all night, you bet I am!" The Mexican shouted in retaliation.

"Well maybe you need to be tied up with a man to loosen up!" Julia retorted.

"As opposed to sleeping with everything that moves like you do?" Inez returned just as sharply.

"At least I admit I’m a woman with needs, the only one in town who doesn’t think you’re lusting after Buck is you! Just sleep with the man for god sakes and do yourself a favour!" She shouted, having no idea how to stop this unproductive screaming match but quite certain that she did not want to stop since screaming at something was doing wonders for her irritation.

"I do not lust after Buck!" Inez said horrified by the possibility that the whole of Four Corners believed such a thing. Just because she refused vehemently to have anything to do with him did not mean her indifference was based on some deeper feeling she did not wish to identify.

Suddenly, the door swung open and the blond man who had viewed Julia so salaciously during their journey here came staggering into the small room. As he slammed the door shut behind him, it drowned out the sudden rush of drunken voices in the adjoining room. Judging by the look in his eyes, he was not only drunk but eying the Julia like she was the main item on his next Christmas list. Inez knew that look all too well and felt her rage at the woman dissipate in the face of the danger coming at them.

"You’re mighty loud in here." He said to them both with a slurred speech indicating just how drunk he was. "You’re supposed to sit here quiet until we get the signal to let you go."

Well that was a good sign at least, Inez thought silently. Mr Rihs had promised that she would not be harmed when he had initially kidnapped her. While at the time, Inez did not give any credence to the vow however, it did appear that the man was true to his word, such at it was. Inez guessed accurately that their kidnapping was to provide Randall Mason with a decoy while he abducted Alexandra Styles. However, this did not help their present situation because the man before them was leering at Julia with lustful eyes and keeping them alive did not necessarily extend to his having whatever urges satisfied before their release, if Rihs even bothered about such things after Alex was in his hands.

Julia was sick of this whole situation and she knew the look in his eyes just as well as Inez did but while the Mexican saw the potential for disaster, Julia Pemberton saw an opportunity for escape. She raised her eyes to meet his and curled her lips into a slight pout.

"I’m sorry Mister," she said in her softest voice. "We’re just so scared."

"Well, you got reason to be." He muttered and took a swig of the bottle he had in his hand and swallowed the amber liquid thickly. "Rihs said we had to keep you two alive, didn’t say nothing about not letting us have our fun." A slight smile crossed his face and his eyes travelled up and down the length of Julia. "They’re outside right now discussing whether or not we pay for Hills’ whores or just use you."

He was trying to frighten them, Julia guessed and she offered Inez a silent look that conveyed to the Mexican not to give him a chance. Instead of begging and weeping like the man expected them to, Julia tried a different tact. "I’m in for fun." She smiled at him, injecting every ounce of suggestion in her voice that she could produce under the circumstances. His eyes widened at the possibility and he took another step towards her.

"How much fun?" He asked gingerly, preferring to have her willingly if he could. This was the kind of woman, men like him dreamed of having but knew were completely out of reach, unless taken by force, kicking and screaming.

"As much as you want to have." Julia replied as Inez watched in a mixture of horror and fascination, hoping to hell that Julia knew what she was doing.

His hand touched her cheek and immediately Julia turned her head so her lips could ensnare one finger which she sucked insistently. The man’s jaw dropped slightly as arousal began to set in and roughly, he lowered so that he was able to force Julia’s mouth to his. She felt her stomach knot in revulsion at his whisky breath but endured it nonetheless, reminding herself that this was a means to an end.

"If you let me go," she whispered as she moved her lips from his and let his hungry mouth move down her neck. "We can get to know each other really well." There could be no mistake what she was offering him.

The man looked into her eyes and whatever reason might have told him that this was a bad idea was quickly swept away in the tide of his desire for a prime piece of flesh under his ministrations. Without thinking twice, he dipped into his boot and pulled out a knife, which he quickly use to cut through the bonds that held Julia in place of the confining chair. Completely oblivious to Inez, the man grabbed Julia from the chair once she was freed from the ropes.

Julia endured the kisses and the hands roaming her body, her eyes ever trained on the knife that was still in his hand. She allowed his hands to slip past the fold of her dress, until his fingers made contact with her skin. She heard his sharp intake of breath at the feel of her flesh before her hands slid down the length of his arm while she buried his neck in tentative kisses.

He was starting to groan, becoming lost in the sensations and becoming more distracted by his fevered desire when her hands reached the hilt of blade. She started swirling her tongue in the soft skin of his neck, hoping that the action would completely destroy any thought in his mind of the knife she was attempting to reach. The groan that escaped him told Julia she had succeeded and without showing any signs of what was on her mind, she quickly snatch the knife from his grip as she brought up her knee.

He barely had time to cry out in pain as she connected with his groin, the intense pain forcing any sound from his throat. As he went down, Julia stepped back and grabbed the chair she had been sitting down and brought it down across his bent over form without wasting further time. The seat collapsed as it struck him hard, sending him crashing to the floor. For a moment, Julia was too terrified to move, in the instance that she had not incapacitated him because he was going to be plenty mad if he was still awake.

"Cut me loose!" Inez snapped her out of her reverie and Julia skirted around the edge of his unconscious form as she approached the Mexican. In a moment, the ropes keeping Inez trapped to her chair were cut and she stood up immediately, taking the chair with her as she hurried to the door.

"What are you doing?" Julia asked before Inez jammed the chair against the door, barring anyone else from making an unexpected arrival.

"Making sure no one comes looking for him." She gestured to Julia’s unconscious would be lover.

"Oh good," Julia frowned wiping her mouth with her back of her hand as if that alone could get the awful taste of that man from her lips. "I’m going to need a bath to get rid of that man’s stench."

"Well, you did it for a good cause." Inez said abruptly once she had secured the door firmly with the chair and turned her attention the unconscious man. Using remnants of the ropes that had been used to hold them captive, Inez quickly bound his arms and legs in case he decided to make a sudden recovery. "I must commend you on your ability to seduce." Inez replied.

That did not sound like a compliment to Julia. "Hey, I got us out of here!" She hissed.

"No," Inez said as a matter of factly, "you got us out of the chair. We haven’t got out of anything yet."

"Its just detail." Julia grumbled to the small window that was barely enough for them to fit let alone reach without a chair. Unfortunately, going out through the front door was not an option since the bulk of Randall’s hired guns were currently in the saloon. Drunk or not, neither Inez nor Julia had any wish to try making their way through that sea of inebriation.

"We’re going to have to go through that window." Inez pointed out the obvious.

"Really?" Julia frowned and searched around the room for something that could allow them to reach it. There was an old table languishing under years of dust in the corner of the room that did not seem very strong but at this point, there was a scant selection to be so picky.

"Just help me with this." Inez groaned as she went towards the decrepit piece of furniture and started heaving it beneath the window. She heard Julia swear slightly before coming forward to help her. Within minutes, they had manoeuvred the heavy desk beneath the crack of a window.

"You first." Inez urged Julia once they were ready to make the attempt.

"Why me?" Julia looked at her suspiciously.

"Cause you should go first since you’re the one who to kiss that thing." She gestured distastefully at the fallen kidnapper. "I never I said I wasn’t grateful.’ Inez threw her a sarcastic smile.

"You’re appreciation is overwhelming." Julia muttered as she mounted the surface of the table and reached for the window. There were cobwebs and dust all over it and she wrinkled her nose in disgust as she pulled the glass forward. It was a narrow fit but with enough manoeuvring, she could make it through with little difficulty.

Julia had pulled herself half way through the window, wriggling past the dirt and tendrils of cobwebs when suddenly; they heard the doorknob twist. Both women froze for only an instant before Inez turned her attention to Julia and ordered with a loud hiss. "MOVE IT!"

Julia needed no encouragement as the persons attempting to enter the room, realised that the door had been barricaded from the inside. She forced herself through the window, emerging into the sunlight in the back of the building where a few people were staring at her in confusion. She dropped onto the dirt at the base of the wall, swearing as she felt sand and gravel underneath her palms and knees. Immediately, she looked at the window and felt a knot of anticipation as she waited to see if Inez would make her appearance soon.

Inez jumped onto the table no sooner than Julia’s feet had slipped through the opening, pulling herself up by the ledge as the men behind the door, started slamming their considerable weight against it. The chair shook dangerously with each impact and Inez realised it would not take much before the temporary barricade gave way completely. She was half way through the window when the sound of a loud crash signal the ultimate yielding of the chair as it clattered aside. Inez forced herself through the confining passageway, ignoring the sound of the door breaking open or the feet that thundered towards her.

"She’s getting away!" She heard someone shout as she dangled precariously over the wall of the room from the outside. Deciding that she was out of time, Inez took a deep breath and let go. She tumbled to the ground as her weight yanked her through the rest of the way. She hit the ground hard and saw Julia let out a sigh of relief.

"Let’s go!" She said scrambling to her feet. "They’re right behind us!"

"No arguments from me." Julia called out as they started running down the hill into the greater municipality of Wickestown. "Where are we going?"

"I don’t know!" Inez shouted as she saw a bunch of furious men emerging from the front of the saloon with their eyes firmly rooted on them.

Julia rolled her eyes in exasperation. "I’m glad we both don’t know what we’re doing! I had to think one of us would be left out!"

***********

Josiah and the others were riding towards the yet unknown Mr Hill’s saloon when they heard a commotion in the distance. Although they could not see the source of the excitement, they did notice a group of men running after an unseen prey. The man cut a swathe through the visitors of Wickestown, shoving working girls and customers aside as they ran through the meandering lanes throughout the length of the town. Josiah tried to see what they were chasing, wondering whether it was worth the effort to investigate, except this gnawing feeling in his gut told him that nothing happening today was a coincidence.

"Did you see that?" Josiah asked Ezra as they saw the cloud of dust left in the wake of the men who had run by in the distance.

"Yes I did." Ezra frowned, thinking the same thing. "Perhaps it should be worth examination."

"What’s to bet if there’s trouble," Buck followed the dust cloud as it moved further away from them. "That our girls are right in the middle of it?" Without saying another word, he dug his heels into the side of his horse and sent the animal sprinting forward in direction of the chase.

Ezra, Josiah and JD watched Buck go and decided after a moment that it was a bet that they were willing to take.

**********

"Have you come up with an idea yet?" Inez demanded as she and Julia ducked into another side street. Working girls were looking at them in bored indifference as if scenes like this were common place in this harsh world of theirs. Inez did not know what outraged her more, that they refused to lift a finger to help or that they believed her to be a working girl.

"No!" Julia barked back, looking over her shoulder to see the man gaining. The meandering streets of Wickestown made it impossible to navigate in this labyrinthine place. With tents and corrugated metal shacks in place wherever anyone felt the need to build it, it was has virtually impossible to find their way out of this maze. The worst of it was, they did not know what they could do even if they did know the layout of the land. Wickestown had no form of law to help them.

They had not gotten very far when suddenly, a trio of men appeared from another lane. Inez and Julia froze and quickly changed their route down another lane when they saw that path similarly blocked off. With a sinking realisation, both women realised that they were surrounded and that there was no way out.

"I think we’re in trouble." Inez said in the understatement of the day.

Julia looked at her slowly as their kidnappers closed in. The men had stopped running but were fast trapping Inez and her in the enclosure of their presence. The working girls watching the drama as well as the customers had wisely chosen to disappear into their respective tents content that their witnessing of events was no longer required.

Hobbling through the group was the blond man that Julia had seduced to secure this temporary freedom. The rage in his eyes was unmistakable as he stormed towards her, his walk indicating that the he had yet to recover from the injury she had delivered to his groin. He strode right to her and without any warning, delivered a backhanded blow across the cheek. Julia fell to the ground, feeling white-hot pain as she saw stars.

"Bastard!" Inez shouted. "Leave her alone!" The Mexican took two steps forward to help Julia when an arm locked around her throat and held her in place.

"You ain’t going anywhere!" The man behind her sneered, tightening his arm around her neck with enough force to ensure she would have cause to regret it if she tried to reach Julia.

Julia’s attacker grabbed her by the hair and fairly dragged her to her feet. The small petite woman stood up painfully as he held her face close to his. "We’re going to finish what you started," he sneered, his fetid breath inches from her as he made his vicious threat. The others with him merely laughed and egged him on as he dropped a hand to Julia’s breast and squeezed roughly.

"Take your hands off me!" She shouted in defiance and sank her teeth on his fleshy lip, biting down so hard she could taste blood.

He screamed in rage and pulled her away, a rivulet of blood running down his mouth. When he saw the red on his fingertips after a quick examination, he glared at Julia in black rage and struck her again, except this time he did so with a balled fist. When Julia fell, she did not get up again.

"You animal!" Inez cried out, watching in rising fear when the woman did not stir. Without thinking, she grabbed the arm around her throat and shoved it in reach of her mouth. Following Julia’s lead, she bit down hard into the skin of his arm, tasting salt as her teeth dug in.

"Bitch!" The man cried out and released her. However, instead of making the attempt to retrieve his hold on the fiery woman, he reached for his gun and took aim to fire. Inez had little time to react when suddenly a single shot rang out. For a moment, she thought she had been hit but saw no stain on her blouse. Instead her would be killer dropped to his knees as the blood began pouring from a newly made fissure in the dead centre of his forehead.

Chaos ensued as she heard shouts and screams, followed by gunshots that tore through the place like thunder. Inez paid no attention to any of it. All she could think to do was to keep down as she scrambled towards the unconscious form of Julia Pemberton on the ground. The woman was still unconscious, red hair loose and splayed across her like a crown of blood. Inez kept her head down as she saw men falling down around her but Inez swept her fear aside and focussed her concentration on Julia. Rolling the woman over, she saw the ugly bruises that had formed on the side of Julia’s creamy skinned face.

Julia was going to love that, Inez thought sardonically.

Ignoring the pandemonium that was ensuing around her, she shook the unconscious woman. "Snap out of it!" Inez barked and drew no response. Shaking her harder, Julia started to come around at the sound of blazing gunfire around her.

"Why do they always have to hit the face?" She mumbled as her hand instinctively went to her bruised jaw.

"They must know you." Inez retorted. "Can you move?"

"Yes I’m fine thank you." Julia said sarcastically as she became aware of the gunfire around her. "Yes, I can move."

Inez and Julia quickly scrambled away from the shooting, mindful of the bullet whizzing past them and the bodies that were starting to pile up around them. Neither had any idea of what was going on but decided there was no particular necessity to satisfy their curiosity until the shooting had stopped.

"Inez!"

She and Julia were about to round the corner when Inez heard that familiar voice crying out through the gunfire. With a burst of relief that flooded her chest like nothing else, Inez turned around and took stock of what was happening when she realised who had called out to her. Amidst the gunfire and chaos, Inez caught sight of Buck Wilmington firing at her kidnappers while hiding behind the cover of some crates.

"Stay where you are!" He ordered and Inez never thought she was so happy to see him.

"That’s Buck!" She turned to Julia, unabashed relief in her face.

"Buck!" The redhead sighed in happiness. Where Buck was, Ezra could not be far either. The two of them took cover behind some empty barrels; carefully keeping an eye on what was happening while ensuring they did not become targets themselves. The firing continued for another ten minutes, with bullets leaving holes in almost every surface in the immediate area. There was so much gunfire in that the intersection of buildings and alleys that it looked like the scene of a battle, with the dead strewn about the ground like uncovered graves.

After awhile, it was simpler for Julia and Inez to sit quietly and let the gunfight run its course. The deafening roar of bullets impacting on in wood, brick and dirt soon fused into one cacophony of noise that only raised the apprehension of both women in their silence. Until the shooting was over, there was no way to no know if the men who had come to their rescue had been successful in their attempt or would they find themselves in the same dire straits.

Finally the roar of gun fire came to an end and both women held their breath as they emerged from their hiding places, scanning the grisly scene of bullet ridden corpses, hoping there were no faces that were familiar to them. Julia saw the man who had struck her among the dead and felt a thrill of satisfaction as she instinctively reached for the cheek that was still throbbing in pain.

"Son of a bitch." She muttered.

"Inez!" Buck emerged from the far corner of the street and prompted the Mexican forward with a wide smile on her face when she saw Josiah, Ezra and JD behind him. The four men seemed unhurt as they walked over the dead abductors, while at the same time reloading their weapon in case they had misjudged the situation and these men had more to their number than originally estimated.

Inez embraced Buck warmly, caring about little now that she was assured that he was safe. Buck returned her hug with a grin of his own, pleased by the passionate reception. "Am I going to have to pull your butt out of the fire every time?" He asked once she had regretfully pulled away. Despite himself, Buck was felt disappointed at her withdrawal, always relishing the scent of exotic spice she seem to wear in on her person.

"This was not our fault." She protested. "Those men kidnapped us to lead you out of town from Alexandra." She informed dutifully.

"I know." Buck replied, ever mindful of the fact that at this moment Chris Larabee was trying desperately to reach Vin before the tracker arrived in Tascosa and the good doctor before she made a foolhardy attempt to save him.

"Gracias." Inez said thanking Josiah and JD. Ezra had merely tipped his hat in her direction before going to Julia.

In a few moments, the gambler and his lady were engaged in a most passionate kiss. The others were keeping a discreet eye in another direction while Ezra greeted Julia in his own way. He noticed when he pulled away from her that she was sporting some terrible bruises. "I take it your wining personality was not quite up to deterring someone from inflicting these injuries on you?" He asked tenderly. Despite his outward calm, Ezra was furious that someone had done this to her.

"No." She fumed, wincing at the awful marks that must surely have marred her lovely features. Julia detested injuries to her face; she dealt so much in her looks that she took special pride in how she maintained herself. Although Ezra was trying to hide his concern, she could tell by the look in his eyes that the bruising was prolific. "I did manage to get us free though."

"That’s true." Inez agreed. "She had the man who did that to her eating out of her palm." The Mexican threw Julia a smile and to her surprise, Julia found that the respect she saw in Inez’s eyes touched her more than it was supposed to.

"I do not think I wish to know how well." Ezra admitted as he ran his fingers past her cheek. He leaned closer to her ear and whispered with a faint smile. "When we return to Four Corners, I will make every effort to soothe your pains."

"I do like the sound of that." She purred.

"If you two are finished." Josiah said impatiently. "We need to get the ladies back to town and track Chris down."

Ezra shrugged and offered Julia his arm as they prepared to take their leave of Wickestown. "You know something Mr Sanchez, I think you are more looking forward to making that sermon this evening."

"Of course not." Josiah grumbled, feigning mock outrage.

"Did you finish writing your sermon Josiah?" JD asked as the group fell into stride and made their way to the horses.

"I’m formulating a new and exciting approach to the format." The preacher answered.

Buck and Ezra exchanged glances and replied in unison. "Right."

*******

"You think Miss Alex and Vin are alright?" Nathan Jackson inquired as they rode into the small town in the middle of nowhere. When Chris had escorted Mary back to Four Corners, it had fortunately coincided with the arrival of the healer who was just returning from the Indian village where he had been dealing with a small epidemic of influenza. Although Chris hated to make him ride after that taxing ordeal, Chris had no idea how many men were involved in Vin’s abduction and with Alex in the mix, the whole situation was much too unpredictable for him to be caught short handed.

"Vin can take care of himself." Chris replied as he rode through the town, studying its old buildings and stagnant atmosphere. It was one of those dying towns scattered through the forgotten parts of the Territory, soon to be absorbed by the land when its people decided that there was nothing worth staying for and left. "Its Alex, I’m worried about."

"I never figured her for running after Vin like that." Nathan remarked and he could be forgiven for his ignorance because he had no idea of what had been transpiring since his departure from Four Corners. "I didn’t even think she liked him all that much."

Chris tried to stifle an involuntary smile when he thought of what he had seen when he walked into her kitchen in search of Vin. "They went to the dance together." Chris informed neutrally.

The healer’s eyes widened in surprise at the news. "I knew there was something going on there." Nathan said after a moment. "I just knew it! No two people can get that fired up at each other without there being more to it than just that."

"Well, she’s a little more than fired up about him." Chris observed as they made their way down the main street of the town.

"I guess she is to ride after him like that." Nathan said with a bittersweet smile, hoping that Alex would be in one piece to tell him all about it later. Nathan and Alex had been close friends ever since she had saved his life during her first night in Four Corners. He was aware that she was a very private woman, hiding a great deal behind her medical degree. After Ezra, she had thrown herself into the work, with scarcely a moment left to think about the pain of seeing the gambler with someone else. Nathan had never heard of her speak about Vin Tanner at all and now that he thought about it, realised the tracker was a subject she often gave a very wide berth.

Chris and Nathan had stopped at almost every backwater town in this out of the way trail to Texas. So far, their search had yielded very little success and the gunslinger was starting to entertain notions that perhaps Vin’s abductors had not brought him this way at all. However, if that were the case, they would have run into Alex already because she would not have found Vin. He noticed the cantina that was in the heart of town and decided the eatery and watering hole was as good a place as any to begin their search through this principality.

The morning crowd was scant and most of the patrons were more interested in eating rather than drinking. Chris and Nathan walked into the place to be greeted by the enticing aroma of Mexican food wafting through the place. After riding most of the night, Chris was tired and hungry and the scent was terribly inviting. No one paid them much notice as they moved towards the bar. The bar tender and apparently the owner as well was a Mexican dressed in white shirt and pants that was appeared more yellow than white.

"What kind I get you Senores?"

"Whisky." Chris said simply.

He went away to fill their order and Chris looked around the place, finding no difference between this and any other establishment like this scattered across the West. They all had the dark, smoky look that cried seediness and disrespectability that only men like Chris Larabee found at home. Nathan seemed out of place here. There was no grim look in his eyes and his face clearly showed hope. Premises like this were very much for those without that precious commodity.

The bartender returned with their drinks and Chris reached into his pocket to pay the man when the gunslinger held back for an instant. "Looking for someone who might have come through here."

"Everybody’s looking today Senor." The man grumbled. "If you are after a beautiful woman with gold coloured skin then you are not the first."

Chris’ eyes showed no reaction but Nathan’s did. "Are you serious?" He demanded, taking the role of interrogator often played by Vin so that Chris could watch carefully for weakness in the answers given.

"Do not tell me that you are searching for her too?" The man sighed when he realised that his joke was indeed right on the mark.

"What do you know about her?" Nathan asked.

"Only that she came early this morning." The man answered nervously, not missing the look in Chris Larabee’s eyes. He could see that the gunslinger was not someone to be toyed with and decided not to take the gamble in offending the man. In his lifetime, he had seen fools killed for less. The other men who had made the earlier request had posed the same threat.

"These five men came in late last night and they would not leave," he explained. "They kept drinking and drinking, except for the one who was tied up."

"Vin." Nathan said automatically and Chris nodded in agreement. So Alex did actually find Vin. "Go on." The healer urged, pleased that they finally had some news.

"Well, the young lady gave us money and told us to go home and she went out to serve the men." He narrated. "When I opened up this morning, four of them were still here. They were asleep but the young Senorita and the man who was tied was gone."

"Asleep?" Chris spoke, trying to understand how Vin’s captors could simply sleep and allow them to escape, if that was what indeed happened.

However, Nathan was thinking hard. "You said she served them." The black man asked the bartender. "Drink?"

"No, tortillas." The bartender said not understanding why the menu was of such importance.

Nathan met Chris’ gaze as the gunslinger started to understand what the healer was alluding to. "She drugged their food." He found himself unable to suppress a smile.

"She must have knocked em all out." Nathan said with some measure of wonder in his voice at Alex’s ingenuity. They had underestimated the lady doctor when they assumed she had gone after Vin without a plan of how she would free him from the bounty hunters. The truth was, the doctor was simply too much a creature of habit to attempt such a foolhardy enterprise. If there was one thing Nathan had come to learn about her since her arrival in Four Corners, Alex rarely did anything without a plan first.

"You said someone else was asking for them." Chris asked the bartender this time. "Who?"

"Si, two men, one very fair haired and the other one had a strange voice. Not Americana." He replied, remembering having some difficulty trying to understand the one in the fancy clothes.

"Rihs and Mason." Chris said firmly, informing Nathan because the black man had never seen either man since he had been away. "What did you tell them?"

"The same thing I told you Senor." He replied promptly. "They left some hours ago and took the four men with them."

"That makes six men.’ Nathan said unhappily, not liking those odds if Vin had to face that number alone.

"Not six," the bartender added helpfully. "They were five with them already."

Nathan met Chris’ gaze. Six was bad enough but combined with five more that changed the face of the situation considerably. Vin Tanner was resourceful and he was good with a gun but 11 to 1 odds were too much even for his formidable skill, not to mention he would have to protect Alex as well. "We better find them quick." Nathan declared stating the obvious.

"We didn’t see them on the way here." Chris mused, all thoughts about the bartender forgotten as the man slinked away to serve other customers. The urgency of the situation was paramount now and Chris felt the pressure of time pounding in his ears.

"Maybe Vin thought that it was safer to hide out a bit, make sure no one was following Miss Alex." Nathan suggested.

"Could be." Chris nodded aware of Vin’s habits enough to know that it was possible that he might do just that if he felt that there was enough danger to warrant such an act. Particularly if Alexandra Styles was with him. Considering what was at stake if Randall Mason got his hands on Alex and how Vin felt about the doctor, it made sense to Chris that Vin would try and find some place to hide rather than a risk a direct confrontation. However, he also knew that tracker well enough to know that if did not want to be found, that was the way it was going to be. Unfortunately, with Alex in his company his options were severely limited. Vin would avoid towns because it was too easy to be discovered, however, the immediate terrain did not allow for concealment either. Most of the land up this way was flat with little or no vegetation.

"He’d avoid the towns." Chris stated firmly. "Alex ain’t that easy to hide." A beautiful woman in a place like this was noticed immediately and Vin had enough sense to know that. "Still, there ain’t a whole lot out his way," he was forced to admit.

"There is one place Chris." Nathan looked up after a flash of inspiration struck him. "We’re not that far from the Seminole village and I seem to recall they owe Vin and the rest of us a favour."

Chris drained his glass of whiskey with one swift tilt of his head before turning to Nathan. "Drink up," he said with a faint smile. "We got to go visit some old friends."

**********

There was only one thing that either Vin or Alex were interested in doing once they arrived at the village and had gone through the formalities of greeting old friends and that was to get some sleep. Between the both of them, neither had more than an hour or two sleep and it was starting to wear them down by the time they had arrived at the village. Vin explained the situation to the old chief who was more than happy to offer sanctuary for the day that they required it. Alex finally met Rain, the young woman that Nathan periodically disappeared to see, under the guise of ‘checking up on these folk’ as he often put it.

Naturally Rain had a dozen questions about how Nathan was and Alex had the impression that she was disappointed that the healer was not with them. Finally, they were shown a place to sleep and Alex never thought an uncomfortable bed made of wicker and wood could be so enticing. Both she and Vin slipped onto the mattress together, oblivious to what anyone might think about the arrangement because they were simply too exhausted to care.

Slipping his arm around her, they fell asleep in each other’s arms. Vin held her as she lapsed into a fitful sleep, wondering how he was ever going to stand not having her in his bed and almost understanding the insane passion that inspired Randall Mason to pursue her like he had. Vin knew that he could not imagine being without her now, not after those hours they had shared together the night before. How he felt about Charlotte paled in comparison to this fire burning inside him when he was with Alex. This was wild and fiery passion the likes of which he had never known and yet was capable of slipping into warm and tender at the same time.

With Charlotte, Vin had felt confusion and anguish because there was never a complete certainty that the relationship was right for him. He had more or less slammed every effort of help made by his friends, back in their faces. At the time, he felt incensed by their intrusion but now he knew his anger had been more to do with his own guilt. What he had done with Charlotte was wrong. The moment Vin had learnt she belonged to another, he should have withdrawn and left it at that. He had pursued her because she was beautiful and smart and the kind of woman who normally never gave him a second glance without any idea that what she saw in him was what she longed to see in her husband.

With Alex, it had always been different.

From the moment, she stepped off the stage Vin knew with a certainty that was astonishing even now; that she was the loveliest creature he had ever seen. Opportunity had allowed Ezra to win her affections first and Vin reacted to his own desires by staying away. That night in the cabin, she more or less confirmed what he had suspected since her arrival in Four Corners, that they were made for each other despite her commitments to Ezra. Everything about that moment seemed to scream a passion that demanded unleashing within them both and yet he admired her when she had pulled away. No matter how much she had wanted him and Vin knew she had wanted him just as much he had desired her, she would not betray Ezra. Charlotte had no difficulty abandoning her husband for him and Vin wondered if he had failed to make her happy, would Charlotte have left him in similar circumstances?

Vin drifted off to sleep on scent of their lovemaking still on her skin while savouring the warmth of her body against his. The last conscious thought as the dark overtook him was the idea that Mason would never get his hands on her, not while there was a breath left in his body…..

*******

"You better be right about this." Randall Mason grumbled as Rihs led him and the men they had hired to retrieve Alexandra up the rocky mountain path. This entire trip had left the foreigner seething with anger to make Alex pay when he finally had her in his clutches. When he and Rihs had discovered the men hired to take Vin Tanner to Tascosa, lying unconscious on the floor of a cantina in some blight of a town, Randall was beside himself with rage. Not only had she openly defied him by escaping after so carefully manipulating him into a position to allow her flight but she had now freed Tanner as well. The length of her determination to retrieve the tracker was what incensed him the most.

"It is logical." Rihs replied, oblivious to Mason’s annoyance. As far as the hired gun was concerned, he was barely remaining under Mason’s employ, remaining only because of some misguided notion of honour. "We didn’t see them when we were riding from Four Corners and Tanner knows that we could be after them."

"He might have taken an alternate route back to town." Randall pointed out.

"No, I don’t think so." Rihs retorted as the trail of horses continued up the meandering track up the side of the mountain. "I think they have taken refuge in this village mostly because it is close enough from where he was freed and also because he suspects that we may know nothing about it."

"How did you find out about it?" He asked, wiping the sweat off his brow.

"When I was making my inquiries around town, I learnt Tanner’s group originally banded together to drive some rabid confederate general from a village in this area. It did not take much of a leapt to pinpoint as that this was the village."

"They will protect him and Alexandra then." Randall stated firmly. He did not want this to take any longer than it already had. He was furious that he was being forced to such lengths to retrieve Alexandra, not to mention the jealousy was he felt at knowing that she would rather endure such pursuit because of a damn primitive! Randall would be satisfied with nothing less than Tanner’s death before this day was over for he was never going to allow Alexandra the hope of thinking she could return to him.

"It’s likely." Rihs answered but he had prepared for that contingency. Although he did not know exactly what their defensive capabilities were, he had some idea of what was required to take the village with very little force.

"I want him dead." Randall said through clenched teeth.

Rihs did not have to ask whom.

"I want him dead by the end of the day. I want her to know that she will never have him again before I’m through with her."

The hired gun merely nodded in response. In his opinion, killing Vin Tanner would only ensure on thing. If by some miracle he did take Alexandra away and did succeed in marrying her, it would be a marriage that would never allow him to close his eyes or turn his back on her. She was not a woman who would take the murder of her lover without desiring revenge. Kill Tanner and Randall Mason could be ensured that he would not live long enough to enjoy marital bliss.

A woman who was capable of drugging four men was capable of far worse and Randall Mason was on a collision course on finding out what that actually meant.

*********

Vin woke up abruptly and knew he should not have slept so long. Until he had actually closed his eyes, the tracker had not guessed how tired he was and the lapse of time left him disorientated and on edge. He sat up immediately and saw that Alex was still asleep. At the sudden disappearance of his warmth, she snuggled closelr to him but Vin knew something was wrong. He listened carefully outside and could not hear the sounds of the village. The silence made him reach for his shotgun that was never far out of reach.

"Alex." He whispered in her ear. "Wake up."

Alex woke up suddenly. "What is it?" She asked quietly, aware by the tone of his voice something was wrong.

"I don’t know." He replied as he moved soundless of the bed and went towards the door of the small hut they were currently occupying. "Stay there." He ordered as he peered outside.

Vin could see no one about and that disturbed Vin greatly for there were always children running about the town. When they had fought Anderson and his armies of renegade Confederates, Ezra had barely been able to move without tripping over them underfoot. It almost seemed like the place was deserted until his eyes shifted towards the town square and he saw a collection of men lead by Randall Mason and the steely eye Mr Rihs, who had most of the inhabitant penned under the vigil of their guns.

Vin withdrew into the hut and swore under his breath. "He’s out there." He told Alex simply.

Alex closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. "What are we going to do?"

"You’re staying here." He said firmly without any thought on that point. "I’m going out there."

Alex said nothing for a moment. "Do they have the villagers?" She asked quietly as he prepared to walk out.

"Yeah." Vin said reluctantly and knew that the problem was much larger than he was telling her. However, Alex was no fool and he was aware that she could see through his attempts to down play the urgency of the situation.

"You stay here." She said instead. Vin openned his mouth to protest when she cut him off abruptly. "I’ll got out there because maybe he’ll let them go if he has me. You stay so you can figure out how to get me back."

"No." He shook his head unwilling to consider that an option under any circumstances. "I’m not letting you go out there alone."

"If I don’t go out there, they’ll kill those people and I won’t let anyone else get hurt because of me." Alex replied softly as she crossed the floor to him. "You can get away and find the others. He won’t hurt me, he wants me alive but he’ll kill you Vin."

"Alexandra!" Randall’s voice called out. "I know you and Tanner are here! If you do not show yourselves I am going to instruct Mr Rihs to start shooting."

"I’ve got to go." She said starting towards the door, realising that their time had just run out.

"No!" Vin hissed and grabbed her arm, stopping her before she could leave. "I won’t let you."

"I’ll be okay cowboy," she tried to smile but could not quite manage it. Alexandra placed her hand on his cheek and drew him to her in a soft but lingering kiss. His mouth felt wonderful against her and still Alex marvelled at the power of his kisses. "I love you." She whispered after a moment meeting his gaze with a look in her eyes that made that truth all but irrefutable. She saw the effect of those words had upon him and knew that he felt the same way.

"Alex, I won’t let him have you." Vin replied holding her because if he let go she was going to walk out of here and sacrifice herself to Mason but she was right and he knew it. If he got away, there might be a chance for him to reach Chris and the others. They could get her back and finish Mason once and for all. However, Mason could also kill her if he could not have her and Vin was fairly certain that he was capable of doing that simply out of spite.

"He’ll never have me Vin," she removed his hand from around her arm and held his hand to her lips. "I’m yours. I always will be." She produced the smile that she had been incapable of a moment ago.

"Alex," Vin wanted to say something but she broke away from him and walked out before he could stop her, probably doing so for that very reason.

Vin hesitated for less than a second and knew he did not care what happened to him, he was not letting her face Randall Mason alone. Whatever happened would happen, Vin decided and took a deep breath before following her out.

**********

Randall Mason saw Alexandra Styles emerged from one of the huts and found himself fill with satisfaction. Rihs’ plan to sneak into the village had worked perfectly. The eleven men had managed to infiltrate the village and subdue its men while gathering any one else who might offer resistance into the square. After that it had been a simple matter of rounding up the others soundlessly. Rihs saw no need to search the individual huts when this action would draw out their quarry far easier than any prolonged search.

Alex glared at him as she walked across the square when suddenly Vin Tanner appeared behind her. She looked at him in surprise and question, wondering why he had followed her instead of escaping. Vin offered her a warm smile, conveying to her with his dark eyes that he had no intention of allowing her to endure this alone. Better or for worse, they would weather whatever calamity Mason had in store for them together.

"By the way," Vin said as they started towards Mason again. "I guess I love you too, for an old nag."

"You shouldn’t be here." Alex sighed as Vin took her hand in his. "But I’m glad that you are."

They stopped before Randall and Rihs, with this men watching on closely, guns brandished with no hesitation in their eyes about gunning down the villagers if Mason did not get what he wanted. Vin knew that if Alex were to leave her with Mason, he would never find her again and being dead was preferable to losing her forever.

"I’m here Randall." Alex spoke. "I’ll go with you, just let Vin and these people go."

"I’m afraid that’s not possible." Randall declared, his eyes fixed on Vin Tanner and could only tolerate that picture if he was dead. The idea that this primitive had the love of his precious Alexandra drove him insane with jealousy and it was a fire that would not be extinguished unless his rival was dead. "You come to me and I won’t order Mr Rihs to kill all these heathens. However, Mr Tanner’s fate is not negotiable."

Alex’s gaze hardened at that. "You bastard." She said sharply. "If you harm Vin, I will kill you Randall, make no mistake on that. You’ll never know when but I can make you hurt."

"You are a paper tiger Alexandra," Randall laughed. "You don’t have in it you to kill, Madame Healer. No, you will come with me and your lover will die today. I’ll not have you wishing for him for the rest of your life with me. Rest assured, I will keep a tight rein on you. You will be the compliant, obedient wife to me as you were dutiful daughter to your father." He paused and then added. "And there will be no more of this doctor nonsense. You will be my wife and my wife only. I’ll not share you with anyone."

Vin grit his teeth feeling powerless at the life this man had planned for Alex and came to a decision. It was wild and desperate but he was all those things right now. If he did not so something, he was sentencing Alex to a life of horror that he would not have her endure under any circumstnaces. If death was the only answer then perhaps they should give Randall Mason what he wanted. Without warning, he went for his gun.

Rihs and his man reacted just as swiftly, weapons drawn as the tracker pulled out the sawn off Winchester but he did not aim it at Randall, instead, he grabbed Alex to him and held the weapon to her head.

"I’ll kill her first before I allow you to put her through that hell." Vin warned.

"You wouldn’t dare!" Randall cried out in disbelief at the sudden turn of events.

"Yes he would." Alex said fearlessly. "And I would prefer him killing me to save me from being your pet slave!" She honestly did believe that death was preferable to what Randall in store for her and especially if he intended to kill Vin and make her suffer that torture as well. "Do it if you have to cowboy." Alex whispered softly so that he could only hear. "I don’t think I want to live if you’re dead."

"Mr Tanner, do you take us for fools." Rihs said calmly. "Do you seriously expect me to believe that this is anything but some pathetic attempt to save both your necks?"

"You ever had any feeling for a woman, Mr Rihs?" Vin asked as he held the gun in place wondering if he was truly going to have to do this and knowing if he had to pull the trigger on Alex, he would not be long after her in death. Still, that fate was preferable than knowing his death would sentence her to a live of sexual slavery as Randall Mason’s creature. Alex knew it as well.

"Can’t say that I have." Rihs said still refusing to believe that this suicide attempt was anything but a ploy.

"Then you don’t know anything for sure, do you?" Vin stared back at him with dark eyes.

"If you harm her, I’ll destroy you Tanner!" Randall screamed, possessing none of the self-restraint that Rihs had. Behind him, the hired guns seemed uncertain at what to do. The whole object of the exercise was the woman they had come to retrieve. If they attempted to shoot Vin, there was every chance she could die anyway in the crossfire. "Just like I destroyed her father."

Alex looked up at him at that and stared hard as the entire group fell silent at that statement. Even Rihs was quiet as Alex glared at Randall with nothing less than pure hatred. "You killed my father?"

"He was interfering." Randall stated, seeing no reason to hide the truth. "I wanted you Alexandra and he stood in the way, just as your Mr Tanner stands in the way. I will despatch him as easily as I had your father murdered."

"Do it Vin." She said coldly. "Pull the trigger and finish this." She said softly. "I’d like to die knowing he did not get the pleasure of what he wanted."

"Alex," he whispered painfully, not knowing he was going to find the courage to do this because it had always been a desperate bid for some poetic justice. However, the undertaking was nothing like saying the words. "I don’t know if I can."

"You have to!" She said trying not to cry. "He’ll kill us both anyway. It will just be faster for you."

Vin was at a loss over what to do because his bluff had well and truly been called. How could he kill her when he still held her like a lover? Vin looked at Rihs who knew he was faltering even though Randall still believed him capable of such an atrocity. Behind them, Vin saw the frightened faces of the villagers who would not doubt suffer the brunt of Masons’ vengeance if he did not get what he wanted. The quandary before Vin was immense even if the answer was painfully clear.

Slowly, his fingers tightened around the trigger of the Winchester.

Suddenly, out of nowhere a loud explosion rocked the air. The impact blew out a portion of the canyon wall, sending a thick wall of dry earth and rock tumbling to the ground. Vin dropped his gun to his side and turned around to see the cannon that they had liberated from Anderson peeking through the doors of its hiding place. Behind it, Vin saw Nathan Jackson preparing for another blast.

Randall screamed as the first bullet slammed into his knee and brought down the foreigner. Chris Larabee was taking cover behind a scab of rock but both of his guns were drawn. Vin needed no more than that encouragement to release Alex and aim his gun at Rihs. The fair haired hired gun saw the Winchester swing in his direction and went for his gun however, the man had neither the time or the speed to draw the weapon as Vin fired. The back of his skull exploded outwards, splattering Randall in grey matter and blood as pieces of bone dug into the man’s skin. He uttered a horrified cry as he saw Rihs go down.

Vin barely fired the first bullet when he joined the chorus of gunfire that erupted. "Alex, take cover!" He shouted at her and she nodded wildly, scrambling away to the huts behind her. Vin pulled the trigger again, cutting down two more of the men who held their guns on the villagers. Taking advantage of the pandemonium, the Seminoles affected their own escape, some scattered while the man leapt at the confused gunmen who were trying to escape the cannon fire.

Nathan was not aiming at the village but rather over it. The roar of cannon fire served its purpose as a distraction and created disarray as the men ran for cover trying to avoid being obliterated by a cannon ball. Chris Larabee was dropping them like flies before they had even taken two steps since the gunslinger was not about to give them the opportunity to take hostages or escape for that matter.

Vin paused to reload since all every bullet he discharged met their mark with ruthless efficiency. Not one had been wasted and all had met their mark. The numbers of eleven men were soon cut down to two or three under his and Chris’ shooting skills. Nathan had abandoned the cannon now that it had created enough of a diversion to allow the hostages to escape. The healer started added the gunfire from his own weapon to the fray and further decimated the would be plunderers of the village. He had not seen Rain among the hostages and was grateful that she was probably out in the fields harvesting instead of being in town when this trouble started.

Randall Mason clutched his bloodied foot and looked around to see Mr Rihs lying in a puddle of blood while he was covered in the man’s brain matter. He saw the black garbed gunslinger at a vantage point on the canyon wall, picking off the hired guns he had paid so much money for with the ease of a man accustomed to firing at targets in a shooting gallery. Vin Tanner was lying on his stomach on the ground, doing the same with his Winchester. Randall’s eyes searched for Alexandra and saw her running towards one of the huts with the rest of the villagers. He watched her run to safety and knew that she was not simply putting distance between herself and he but also slipping out of reach completely.

"Alexandra!" He screamed.

She looked over her shoulder at him at the sound of her name. Even Tanner had averted his gaze from the battle to Randall when he called for Alex. Randall drew his weapon even before he knew what he was doing and aimed carefully…

Vin heard the explosion of chemical gases as the bullet escaped the barrel of Randall’s gun. He was vaguely aware of shouting at Alex to get down but the sound never left his throat when he saw it smash into her back, halting her in mid step. He could not tell exactly where she was hit but that one bullet was enough to bring her down immediately. She fell on her side, blood spurting from the wound. Vin watched her collapse and could only utter a strangled scream as he dropped his gun and scrambled towards her frantically.

She was unconscious and judging by the blood pouring from the wound in the left side of her back, she was hurt badly. Just rolling her over had soaked his buckskins in blood and he could see the life draining from her body fast. Vin was beyond emotion. He felt cold and numb as the terror of her loss gripped him with such force that it drove all the sense from his mind. Covered in her blood, he glared at Mason and went completely mad with fury.

"You fucking animal!" Vin was on top of the man before he was even aware of crossing the space. Pummelling him with savage blows, Vin was conscious of nothing as his fists flew in rage. The red haze over his mind drowned out all sounds from his mind and the world became the colour of Alex’s blood. He was aware of nothing as his fists did their worst until Randall was no longer fighting him but taking the blows in incoherent agony.

"VIN!" Chris grabbed him and shook him back to reality. "He’s done, Vin!"

"He shot her in the back!" Vin fairly screamed, his fist still pounding against the unconscious man. "What kind of coward shoots a woman in the back?"

Chris had to physically pull Vin off Randall Mason. He had seen Randall drop Alex and by this time most of Randall’s men were dead or ready to cry surrender. Chris had descended from his hiding place when he saw Vin going after Mason and was perfectly aware that the tracker was going to kill him. He was not far wrong. By the time that Chris had reached Vin, Randall was no longer capable of fending off the relentless blow crushing his face into pulp.

"Enough!" Chris ordered, knowing how Vin felt but unwilling to let him go any further. Vin was many things but he was not a murderer and allowing him to beat on Randall Mason into a mess of blood and bone would make him one, no matter what the justification.

Vin glared at him Chris wrenched him away from the man. He let out an anguished sob as he tried to force away the rage tearing his soul asunder.

"I need help here!" Nathan’s voice entered the mix. The healer had also seen Alex gone down and once Randall’s men were taken care of, hurried quickly to the doctor who was very much in need of her own skills.

Nathan was kneeling over her when Vin ran back to her. "Can you help her?" He asked, now that his senses returned to him. How could he have left her to bleed while he was vented his rage on Randall Mason? Vin was mortified by his behaviour.

"She’s hurt bad." Nathan answered tautly before looking up at them both. "I don’t know whether I can save her or not."

"You gotta do it Nathan." Vin said desperately, almost hysterical from the fear of losing her. "You can’t let her die!"

Nathan met Chris’ gaze helplessly because he could not make that promise, no matter how much Vin might want it to be so. Chris who was standing next to Vin, place a hand on the younger man’s shoulder and responded. "Nathan will do what he can."

Nathan wished Chris had not said that because the healer was not sure whether what he could do was going to be enough.

Epilogue:

Retribution

Alexandra Styles lived.

She remembered running away at Vin’s orders as gunfire erupted around her and everything descended into anarchy. She had sought shelter to allow him to do what necessary without having to worry about her welfare. She crossed the dirt square, her intention to reach one of the homes like the other women and children were doing. Then she recalled her name tearing through the noise of bullets, singing its siren song above the chaos. She had paused long enough to look over her shoulder when the pain had come. She could hear with absolute clarity, the escaping bullet from his gun moved through the air with quiet whoosh.

Then there was the agony of penetration followed by the terrible darkness that swallowed her whole. In the depths of the black hell that enveloped her, she could voices. She heard his anguished voice and was vaguely aware of his warmth on her hand, his distant touch anchored her to life when the haunting melody of the drowning pool wanted her to slip away for good. Alex was aware of other things, Nathan’s voice speaking in grim tones while Chris Larabee was strong as always, offering comfort in his brooding voice.

Yet it was still Vin Tanner that kept her alive.

When she woke up two days later, Alex was surprised to find herself in her own bed in her house. She was lying on her stomach in a fresh night gown with no idea at how she had come to be there. Outside her window, the moon shone brightly against the indigo sky of twinkling stars. It would have almost felt like a dream had not the pain made itself known approximately two seconds after her awakening. She moved slightly and felt a rush of agony descend upon her so swiftly that it forced a soft cry from her lips until she bit down to stifle it. It travelled quickly along the length of her body until every nerve she possessed was aware of the agony.

She dug her nail into the sheets, trying to control it and felt tears run down her cheeks when she could not. Moments slipped past as she wrestled to overcome it, until they became minutes which stretched in tens of minutes. Alex was in no mind to calculate how much time had passed when she finally felt it subsiding. Swallowing hard, she turned her head painfully at a sound that became clear only when her sense had returned to her. She saw him snoring gently as he slept on a wing chair in the corner of the room. His slouch had covered most of his face but she knew it was him. Even in the moonlight, she recognised his silhouette and the buckskin jacket that hung on the corner of her bed post.

Vin slept and Alex watched him wondering how long he had been there. He did not stir as she watched him, allowing several minutes to tumble by as she basked in the sight of him, feeling herself fill with love when a flash of insight came upon her that he had probably held a vigil by her bedside all day and night. Alex allowed him the slumber with no wish to interrupt such a peaceful sojourn.

However, she had things to do.

As silently as a person in her condition was capable, Alex pulled the covers off herself and gritted her teeth as the pain descended upon her in agonising waves. How she managed to slip out of bed and leave the room in her injured state was testament to how exhausted he must have been. She left Vin in her room and struggled slowly towards the stairs that led down to her clinic. Painfully slipping her thick cloak around her body, she felt the tension in the skin of her back that could only be the result of sutures that held her wounds close. She moved gingerly, more aware than anyone else what splitting any of those delicate stitching of catgut could do.

Her journey to the lower floor of the building was punctuated by pauses as she recouped her strength with any supportive wall or banister she came across. Her progress into her clinic was slow but she was determined and more importantly, her pace allowed her to continue in silence because if Vin knew she was awake and attempting this, he would carry her back to bed without a moments thought.

The pain was unbelievable but Alex knew she had to do this.

She entered the familiar surroundings of her clinic, feeling some measure of comfort in sight of her instruments, the pull down desk and the examination table. In this room, she was in control of all things and never uncertain about anything. Alex knew what was required of her and wondered how conscience would survive after this day.

However, she thought of her father and how he once said to her that he would show her the world and invariably did. She remembered how he once brought an injured lion cub to her and let her delight in running her small hands through its soft fur. Alex was given a life most women dreamed of because of the man her father was. She loved him because he was a wanderer at heart who felt trapped by walls and people. The book he had sought to write was always an excuse, even she knew that but Alex loved that he dreamed so vividly of open spaces while gazing at the stars above.

With a sudden start, she realised that Vin was not so different from William Styles in that he was a spirit that could not be confined in much the same way. There was nothing more wonderful than riding with Vin across the open plains, holding him close while they roamed the sparse landscape together. She could think of nothing more awful than trying to rein him to something so mundane as farming the land. Alex loved him because he was what he was, free. She would never want him to be anything else.

She needed no light as she moved through the clinic, gathering what she needed in her momentous decision before slipping out of the building into the night.

*********

The jail house was empty and she could not say how she knew he was here. Perhaps in her slumber she might have heard Chris giving Vin a report on the man’s welfare or maybe she even heard Nathan speak of him when the healer had reluctantly been forced to tend the man’s injuries. Alex did not know and she did not care. As she made her way across town, allowing the night to hide her journey while fighting the pain that was becoming almost unbearable, she had only one thing in mind. It burned through her mind and gave her drive when the agony of her injury threatened to overwhelm her.

The door was unlocked into the building, there was no reason for it to be when the one person inside was locked behind bars. She entered the dimly room and noted that Chris had not posted any guards. On reflection, she guessed there would be little need for it. Alex had seen what Chris’ bullet had done to his knee. That kind of injury did not allow for any mobility unless Randall found himself a crutch and even then, he would not be able to make use of the leg for some time yet. A gush of warmth ran down her back, plastering the sheer material of her nightgown to her skin. Alex knew one of the sutures had split and hoped Nathan would not be too angry with her.

Randall Mason was lying on the bunk inside the cell when Alex pulled up a chair against the bars. She made enough sound so that he stirred and sat up quickly, wincing in pain at the exertion to his knee. She watched him become aware of her with little or no emotion whatsoever. His face was covered in a multitude of bruises and wondered who had inflicted them. Whoever it was deserved a medal.

"Alexandra?" He said in surprise. He had not expected to see her again for no one would tell him if he had killed her or not. Judging by the quality of care he had received from his jailers since he had been returned to Four Corners, Randall assumed she had died for he had not seen Tanner since the brutal assault inflicted upon him by the primitive.

"Yes Randall." She replied coolly, forcing the pain away because she would not give him the satisfaction of knowing that he had hurt her.

"I thought you were dead." He said moving gingerly towards the bar by sliding across the bed.

"I almost was." Alex answered. "You don’t look much better, yourself." She indicated the bruises on his face which was almost contorted out of shape from the intense swelling.

"You can blame this on your tracker." Randall sneered. "Such a charming man you chose to bestow your affections. A true gentlemen who attacked an injured man."

"Is this before or after you put a bullet in my back?" She retorted in disgust.

"You are mine, you always will be." He said with a smile. "This temporary setback changes nothing. My family will extricate me from this current predicament and I will come back for you. I apologise for the injury but you were running from me and you are to never to do that."

"Of course." She nodded, not surprised by his answer. "I forgive you Randall." She said after a moment. "What you did is unforgivable but I can forgive you because I know you did it because you loved me."

"I have always loved you Alexandra," Randall said quickly, somewhat taken back by her forgiveness. He had expected this audience to be laced with angry barbs but instead she was strangely accommodating. "I loved you from the moment I saw you. I always knew that you would be mine. That is why I can never give you up. I will chase you forever Alexandra, from this barren hole to the gates of heaven itself if need be but I will have you in the end and not even Tanner can stop me."

Alex saw his hands around the bars, peering at her like an animal in a cage. He was not an animal but he was rabid and such a condition needed to be ended out of sheer mercy for everyone involved. "You may try Randall," she said reaching for his hand through the bar. She saw his eyes widen as her fingers gently took hold of his. There was confusion in his face as he tried to decipher the meaning of this gesture. There was a moment of resistance when their skin made contact but the possibilities that he saw in her eyes left uncertainty in its wake.

"You always my friend, Randall." She intertwined her fingers in between his own. "I chose you as my first lover because you meant a great deal to me. I am sorry I could not love the way you wished but I always felt a great deal for you which is why it pains me to do this."

Before he could understand what she meant, Alex yanked his arm through the bar with lightening reflexes she did not know she possessed. The needle in her other hand sank deep into his wrist all the way to the hilt as she forced the clear liquid into his body. Randall cried out in pain and tried to pull back but Alex had saved her reserve strength for this particular purpose. She held fast and ensured that every drop of fluid was injected inside his skin. When the syringe was empty, she pulled it away and released him.

"What have you done to me?" He growled as he clutched his hand and stared at the pinprick of blood that oozed from the tiny fissure left by the needle.

"I forgive you for everything," she said as she leaned against the wall, waiting for the inevitable to follow. "But I don’t forgive you for my father."

His eyes widened in realisation. Suddenly, he started to feel sluggish and had difficulty focussing. She watched his reactions impassively, as his head lopped against the bars while all the strength rapidly oozed out of his body. "What have you given me?" He demanded but his speech was starting to slur and his tongue felt useless inside his mouth.

With the men in the cantina, the drug she had administered in their food took time to react but anything injected would take far less time than that to work. "When I drug those men, I told them that it was curare. Of course I had none on me at the time so all they had been given was a strong dose of sedative. However, I keep a good supply in my clinic so what you have squirreling away in your blood stream is the genuine product."

"You can’t do this…"he struggled to speak. "You’re not a killer."

"I am not killing you Randall, I am dispensing justice." Alex replied. "It’s probably a lame excuse that will not stand up against scrutiny but I will have the next forty or fifty years to debate the question. Everything that I am Randall, my father made me. He gave me a dream of being more than what this face could give me. You will never understand how much he meant to me or how much I want you dead because you took him from me." She glared at him as she watched his eyes starting to glaze over. She had pumped enough curare into him to kill a dozen men because she was taking no chances. "Do you honestly think I was going to let you leave here knowing that you would hunt me down for the rest of my life? It just shows how little you really know me Randall. How little you ever knew about me."

She stood up to leave as he fought the effects of the drug in futile desperation. Within minutes he could barely move and the only thing she could see in his eyes was the intense fear of the dying to come. Well, she had little surprise for him there too. "By the way, I do not know how long it takes to die from the dose I gave you. Rest assured, you will be completely immobilised and you won’t even register a heartbeat. I wish you a speedy end Randall because I would not want to be you if you’re still alive when they choose to do an autopsy. Trust me, you will not enjoy the Y incision."

Alex saw the horror of understanding in his eyes and allowed herself a smile before she walked out and left him to die.

********

Vin woke up and found Alex gone. At first, he was struck with the impossibility that Mason might have escaped the jail and come after her. However, he could not see how Mason could even walk upright let alone have broken into the house without his hearing. Vin noticed that her robe was gone and there appeared to be no signs of forced entry through the front door. Where was she? He wondered as he started searching the house. He supposed she could have left on her own steam even though she was badly injured.

Nathan had worked hours on Alex at the Seminole village, frantically stemming the flow of blood while at the same time removing the bullet that had almost ended her life. She was in and out of consciousness the whole time and Vin was at her side through most of her delirium. Yesterday, she was in stable enough condition for Nathan to agree that she be transported back to Four Corners in a wagon. Rain had accompanied them back on that trip assisting Nathan as he kept a close eye on Alex’s condition all the way back. All that stood between Vin killing Randall Mason during that same journey was Chris Larabee. Chris had kept them apart because he understood all too well how it felt to lose someone that way.

Vin walked into the clinic on the off chance that she might be there when he saw the open door leading to her back porch. He found Alex curled up on the wooden bench, fast asleep. Her dark hair cascaded over the edge of the seat, while her arms were folded under her head. For a moment, she looked almost childlike and utterly breathtaking. Vin knelt down and slipped his arms under her, preparing to carry her back to bed when Alex stirred and looked up at him in a sleepy daze.

"Hey cowboy." She smiled seeing his face above hers.

"Now what are you doing out here?" Vin asked tenderly, leaning down to plant a soft kiss against her forehead.

"I thought I’d take a walk." She sighed. "It felt like I’d been asleep forever."

"Just two days." He replied carrying her back into the clinic. "You were hurt bad."

"It feels it." She allowed her head to rest against his chest, savouring the comfort his presence afforded. "Have you been here all that time?"

"I couldn’t leave you alone. No telling what kind of trouble you could get yourself into." Vin said with a hint of teasing as he ascended the stairs. Vin never knew how happy he could be just to be speaking to her like this. He doubted he would ever forget the cold terror in his heart when he thought he might have lost Alex for good.

"Well you know us mean ol’ spinster women." She chuckled slightly as she allowed herself to drift away.

"Yeah." He said shortly. "Ain’t never a dull moment with you around."

As she finally slipped back to sleep she could only mutter in response. "You’re such a sweet talker cowboy."

*********

They found Randall Mason the next morning.

Chris Larabee who had arrived to check on the prisoner as they prepared him for transport to Eagle Bend, discovered the man slumped against the bars of his cell, his eyes wide open in terror during his final moments on this earth. The gunslinger could not say that he was terribly sorry to see Mason dead although it did surprise him that the man had died without a mark of him other than a tiny spot of blood on his wrist. For a moment, Chris was struck with a dark possibility that the death may have been assisted but brushed away the idea as quickly as he cleaned the trace of blood from the man’s skin Other than that, there was no sign of any violence visited upon the body.

Upon examination by Nathan a short time later, the healer deduced that the man had died of a heart attack. He was certainly the age to warrant such a diagnosis and no one cared enough for the man to raise any further questions. Chris turned the body over to the undertaker and the solution of formaldehyde and embalming fluids soon destroyed any evidence that might allude to the possibility of foul play.

Neither Nathan nor Chris made any mention of the small pinprick on the man’s wrist.

********

It was almost two weeks after the tumultuous events left in the wake of Randall Mason’s arrival that Alex finally saw the light of day outside her house. It felt like everyone was present in Mary Travis’ back porch as the widow held court over a small gathering for her closest friends. She had even relented and allowed Julia Pemberton to attend although the woman was given strict instructions to keep her distance between herself and Alexandra Styles. Rain, who had been helping Alex during those periods when Vin was unavailable had been staying with Mary during this period, since Mary knew how Alex guarded her privacy.

It was one of those lazy afternoons where there was just enough heat left over from the summer to make this autumn day warm as opposed to the cold that would soon set in when winter made its arrival. The delicious heat had made them all drowsy after the picnic meal that Mary had laid out was consumed. The group was laid out in the garden on top of blankets and chairs, relaxing away in the afternoon sun while Four Corners was enjoying a quiet spell of trouble free days for a change.

"Josiah did you ever get to give that sermon?" Alex asked the preacher as she and Vin lay nestled against each other on the picnic blanket. They were all stretched out across the garden in similar positions of carefree intimacy. Ezra and Julia were sitting on Mary’s comfortable garden furniture, looking more like a couple who should have been in a boat somewhere on the Charleston River. Meanwhile Mary was sitting upright on her own blanket with Chris resting his head on her lap as he chewed on a blade of grass, enjoying the sunshine on his face.

"Unfortunately no." Josiah replied as he looked up at the pretty doctor from the food he was picking at on his plate. "By the time we got back from Wickestown, it was too late for me to hold the service. The reverend from Sweet Water was kind enough to do the honours." The preacher said sounding a little disappointed even though he was secretly relieved that he had been delivered from the ordeal of a public oratory.

"Well you did give it up for a good cause." Julia said throwing the man a look of appreciation. She shuddered to think what would have happened to her and Inez if Josiah, Ezra, Buck and JD had not found them in Wickestown.

"That’s a matter of opinion." Alex added unable to resist the opportunity while giving the woman a sarcastic smirk. She found that she was better able tolerate Julia Pemberton’s presence now, even though theirs would never really be a warm relationship. However for the sake of Vin’s friendship with Ezra and the bond shared by the seven, Alex was prepared to let bygones be bygones. Besides, she had enough on her conscience without adding her prolonged enmity towards Julia to the list.

"You are so kind." Julia returned the look and frowned at Ezra when she heard him stifling a laugh.

"Ladies," Ezra interrupted, unable to deny that he was enjoying the caustic remarks being traded between the two women all day. "Do I have to separate you?"

"I’d like to see you try." Buck Wilmington added with a grin wondering if Ezra was actually stupid enough to get entangle in that particular quarrel since he was already the cause of it. "Ezra, you have so little experience with fiery women." The man sighed as he stretched out languidly on the steps of the porch, with a bottle of whisky in his hand. Buck was enjoying this gathering immensely and wondered why they had not indulged in this before. He marvelled at how relaxed Chris looked and was secretly reminded of the summers he used to share with Chris when Sarah and Adam was alive.

"As opposed to what?" Inez looked over her shoulder as she put another serving of food on JD’s plate. Like all young men, his appetite was made him perenially ravenous. Of them all, it was JD who was enjoying this afternoon together most of all. It reminded him of the family atmosphere he longed for since his mother had passed away.

"Why darling," he said looking at her with those eyes filled of mischief. "I have you to draw from experience."

"Well that is all the experience you’re going to get from me Senor Wilmington." She said sweetly.

"I live in hope." He grinned, holding his hand to his chest and Inez could only shake her head and laugh in a gaze that said she could do nothing with him.

"Speaking of sermons," Mary chuckled, moving the conversation past Inez and Buck’s latest attempts to get at each other. "Josiah, I arranged it so that you can do the Christmas sermon this year. Normally we have to get the reverend but it would be so nice if we could have someone locally."

"Christmas?" The preacher looked at the pretty widow blankly.

"Yeah Josiah," Nathan sniggered, knowing that Josiah was not as comfortable about delivering a speech to so many as the others were led to believe. "It will be you in front of all those people. I think the entire town turns up for that, don’t they Miss Travis?" He looked to Mary.

"Just about Nathan." Mary replied, not understanding the grin the healer was wearing on his face or for that matter, why the others were trying to hide their own amusement. Even Chris seemed unable to keep a faint smile from crossing his lips. "People just seemed to come out of nowhere."

"Think of it Josiah," Nathan was laughing now, taking note of the ashen look on Josiah’s face. "You’ll be standing there in front of the entire congregation."

"I shall forward to hearing that sermon, " Ezra chuckled, joining in this playful torture of the preacher. "Perhaps you could favour us with an excerpt since you were unable to deliver it because of our excursion to Wickestown."

"May you need last rites some day." Josiah grumbled elicited a louder series of laugher.

"I’m sure Josiah wrote a nice sermon." JD spoke up in the preacher’s defence. "I’ll bet he’d be happy to recite it for you."

Josiah stared at JD in a mixture of astonishment and horror. "JD, that’s not necessary." He said hastily.

"Sure it is, Josiah." JD said enthusiastically unable to understand why his older companions were laughing harder. "We’d all love to hear it."

"Yeah Josiah," Buck prompted. "We’d be hanging on every word."

"Leave the preacher alone." Chris finally spoke up, feeling some measure of pity for Josiah at this point.

"Thank you." Josiah said with a loud exhale, not wishing to explain to those who had no idea that he had not even penned the first word of the alleged document.

"When do you and Rain head back., Nathan?" Vin asked taking Chris’ lead, deciding that a change of subject was definitely in order since it appeared that Josiah was already having enough anxieties with his future performance before the Christian flock of Four Corners.

"Tomorrow." Nathan said offering a smile at the tawny haired young woman with the wild, dark hair. "Rain’s gotta get back to the village."

"The harvest is almost here." She replied. "Nathan is staying with us for a few days to help out."

"You be up to it on your own Miss Alex?" Nathan asked, knowing that she would be the sole medical authority in Four Corners once he departed. He felt a responsibility to her as her physician but Nathan also had obligations to Rain and she was needed back with her people.

"I should be all right." Alex said not wanting him to cancel any plans because of her. He so rarely got to spend any time with Rain and Alex knew he wanted very much to accompany her back to the Seminole village. Although, Alex was still sore from her injuries, she was capable of moving around and taking on some light cases. "Mind you I’m still going to take it easy."

"I’ll just have to keep her in line if she misbehaves." Vin drawled and received a sharp jab in the ribs from her.

"Like you can, cowboy." She laughed.

"Just as long it ain’t in the kitchen." Chris replied enigmatically and drew a furious blush from Alex and a slight chuckle from Vin. The others merely looked confused but did not press, deciding something were better left unknown

"Yeah pard," Vin muttered just loud enough so Chris and Mary could hear. "Or anywhere on the way to Sweet Water."

"Touche." Mary giggled, knowing precisely what Vin was alluding to and it was something even Buck was well aware of because the big man almost choked on his whisky, when he started to guffaw.

"I have no idea what you people are talking about." JD confessed looking at them in confusion.

"Nevermind kid," Chris laughed himself, conceding defeat in Vin’s direction. "It ain’t that important."

Chris Larabee lay his head back on Mary’s lap, suddenly deciding that it was not so bad being considered almost respectable these days. There was plenty of bad in him still and heaven help the man who forgot that but when he was surrounded like this with the friends he rode with and the women they loved, it almost felt like he was apart of a family again.

A strange family, but nevertheless family.

THE END

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