Chris stoked the fire and then moved off to prepare some food. Vin would be hungry when he woke up. Vin. Larabee turned and stared. Where the hell had Vin been for the last three weeks? Sick obviously. Really sick, by the look of him. Chris waited for Vin’s chest to rise and fall. His eyes narrowed. In two steps he made it to the bed. Relieved, he noted movement. It was slow and even, though there was a wheezing sound coming from Vin’s lungs, remnants of whatever illness he had suffered.

Am I just dreaming all of this? Overcome with prickling doubt, Chris crouched down beside the bed and tentatively reached for Vin’s clenched fingers. The gunfighter’s large hand encircled the tracker’s callused fist. Tanner stirred. His eye-lids flickered and parted a quarter of an inch.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you. Go back to sleep.”

“Chris?”

“Shh.”

“I made it?”

“Yeah, you made it.”

“The boys okay?” Vin began blinking as fatigue urged him back to oblivion.

“Everyone’s fine.”

Tanner’s eyes shot open. “The little girl!”

Chris reached for his shoulder. “Settle down. She’s safe.”

“I left her.”

“Buck got her.”

“Thank, God... are you okay? You... look like... shit.”

“Look in a mirror lately?”

Vin sighed and grinned. “Ain’t slept... in ages.”

“How do you feel?”

“’Bout as... good as... you look.” He was losing the battle to stay awake.

“You hungry?”

Vin shook his head. “Could use... a drink, though.” Larabee nodded, released his best friend’s shoulder and moved off to retrieve a mug of water. By the time he returned, Vin was sound asleep. Chris placed the mug on the small table and then sat down in the chair beside the bed. He felt completely at ease. He didn’t know what had happened to Vin, but that wasn‘t important. Vin was ‘home‘. That was all that mattered.

**********

Buck and J.D. sat playing cards in the dimly lit saloon. Neither felt very comfortable. It was more than just worry over Chris though. Without Nathan and Ezra arguing and Josiah‘s boring stories... and Vin’s dry two word answers that left everyone grinning, everything seemed so meaningless.

“Maybe I should have gone out there tonight,” Buck muttered.

“He’s got to start...”

“He doesn’t know how to!” Buck paused. “Sorry, Kid.” Wilmington threw his cards down. He picked up his empty whiskey glass and stared into it. “I’m afraid for him, J.D.”

“You don’t think he’d...? Chris wouldn’t do that, would he?”

“I don’t know, anymore. He’s so lost. I ain‘t never seen him like this. When we found Sarah and Adam, it was like he exploded. There was so much anger and hate that it kept him going. This time, there‘s just... I don‘t know. He doesn‘t seem to know how to get back.” Wilmington’s voice dropped to a deathly whisper. “We‘re gonna lose him.”

“He just needs more time. Hell, Buck, if it had been you, it would have taken me ages to...” J.D. dropped his face, suddenly overcome by his own emotions.

Wilmington smiled. “Thanks, Kid.”

“I’ll go out there with you, tomorrow. Maybe it will help to see another familiar face.”

“Reckon that’s probably a good idea. You can help me try and get the stubborn bastard to eat something.”

“He still ain’t eating?”

Buck shook his head.

“Mr. Wilmington?”

Buck turned and found himself staring at two familiar faces. The men were locals. “What’s up fellas?”

“Thought we should let you know. Tanner’s horse just came into town.”

Buck’s brow creased with confusion. “Peso? You sure?”

“Yeah. We put him in his stall. He’s all saddled, but there weren’t no one riding him.”

Buck and J.D. leapt to their feet and raced for the livery. Buck entered the huge horse’s stall.

“Buck?”

“I don’t know, Kid. Maybe Chris decided to ride him and Peso threw him.” Vin’s horse was a wild one. The huge black steed had a mind of its own and a free spirit. Vin was the only one who could handle him.

“Don’t reckon any horse could throw, Chris.”

“Not usually, but at the moment, Chris ain’t himself.” Buck continued to examine the horse for signs of a fall or anything else. Sticking out of the saddle he spotted a neatly folded piece of paper.

“Shit," me murmured, reading the message.

“What?”

Buck handed the note to J.D. “Need you. Bring Vin’s things, Chris. What does he mean? Why does he need Vin’s things?”

Buck pushed passed the youth. “I don’t know, Kid, but he’s askin’ for help, whichever way you look at it. You go and collect Vin’s things. His coat, hat, gun, boots and anything else you can carry. I’ll saddle the horses.”

J.D. nodded and raced off.

Buck moved swiftly. Need you. What the hell did Chris mean? Was he in trouble. Sick? Hurt? And why did he want Vin’s things right now in the middle of the night? Hang on, Pard. We’re coming.

**********

Chris dragged the blanket off the spare cot. The temperature was dropping, despite the roaring fire. Larabee turned and placed the woolen spread on top of his sleeping friend. Vin moved. Chris became still. He didn’t want to wake the younger man. While Larabee was convinced his friend wasn't ill, he knew that he would become so if he didn’t get the rest his body desperately needed. The only sound in the cabin was the haunted wheezing of Tanner's lungs.

“Gotta... keep... ,” Vin mumbled. “... Chris.” Larabee crouched beside the bed and reached for Vin’s shoulder. Tanner took a deeper breath. “Chris?”

“Rest.”

“The little girl?”

“Everything‘s okay.”

“My gun?”

“Relax, I‘m here to watch your back.”

Vin’s body shuddered as he succumbed to his need to sleep. Chris was there. He didn’t need to be concerned. He’d made it home.

“Rest, Cowboy. You haven‘t anything to worry about.” Larabee released his friend’s shoulder and once again reflected on the fact that Vin was lying there - alive. Chris couldn’t comprehend anything beyond his relief or concern. Vin’s complexion more than worried him. A sickly grey had replaced the tracker's healthy tan. The older man frowned. All Vin needed was rest and some decent food, he reminded himself, but knowing that didn't relieve his concern.

Larabee tucked the additional blanket around his best friend. You’re going to be fine, Vin. As soon as the young man awoke properly, Chris would fill him with food. Put some meat back on his bones and some decent colour back into his face.

Food. Larabee’s stomach rumbled. He felt hungry - famished, in fact. When was the last time he had eaten? Days ago. Mary had sent some apple pie, hadn’t she? Chris turned to search for the pie, the very thought of it causing his mouth to water.

**********

Buck spotted the cabin in the distance. There was a glow coming from it and smoke lifting from the chimney. Wilmington was surprised but at least it was a damn good sign. The other times he had come out, Chris had been sitting in the dark unaware of the temperature - oblivious to the fact that he was freezing.

The scoundrel and his young companion dismounted and rushed toward the cabin, neither taking the time to secure their horse. Both were plagued with fears for Larabee’s safety.

“Chris!” Buck cried as he burst through the door. Larabee was standing in the middle of the room. Instantly, he raised his finger for silence. Buck noted the smell of recently cooked beef. Chris had eaten. Thank God. His oldest friend was also rugged up with warm clothes. Wilmington’s face lit up with a smile from his soul. Somehow, Larabee had located the path back from the abyss of grief and it looked like he was starting on the return journey.

“Hell, Chris. You scared us half to...”

“Shhh!” Larabee insisted.

“Huh?” Chris stepped to the side. Buck’s gaze fell on the bed. His eyes doubled in size. His mouth opened but no words came out.

“BUCK! IT’S VIN!” J.D. shrieked, rushing forward.

“Quiet!” Chris snapped. Tanner moved. Chris stepped around Buck, forced J.D. back and then watched Vin carefully, ready to do what was necessary to ensure his best friend got the rest he needed.

“Chris?” Vin muttered, neither truly awake nor asleep.

“Shhh. Go back to sleep.”

“I ain’t tired,” Vin mumbled, a sly grin creasing his lips.

“It was an order.”

“You know what you can do with your order, Cowboy.” By the time he finished the sentence, he was dead to the world.

Buck’s mouth started opening and closing but nothing but half words, grunts and gasps emanated from him.

Chris coaxed his two astonished friends out onto the porch.

“Ahh... hea...wha...”

“He’s alive!” J.D. cried.

“J.D., keep it down or I will shoot you,” Chris snarled.

Buck blinked several times before he exploded with, “HE‘S ALIVE!”

“Quiet, both of you! He’s exhausted. He needs to rest.”

“But... what... when... how... ?“

Chris shrugged. “I don’t have a lot of answers at the moment. He walked in here late this afternoon dead on his feet. Fell asleep straight away. He’s been sick. Real bad colour. Lungs don’t sound good. What time are you expecting Nathan?”

“He’s alive! I don’t get it. We searched up and down that river bank for two days! He wasn’t there!”

“Where’s he been? It’s been three weeks!”

“I don’t know, and I don’t care. He’s alive,” Larabee snapped. Those two sentences summed up Chris Larabee’s emotions. He didn’t know what had happened and he certainly couldn’t give a damn. His best friend was alive. “When are you expecting Nathan back?

“Some time late tomorrow afternoon. Maybe early evening.”

Chris nodded. “As soon as he rides in, I want you to bring him out here. I think Vin’s okay. Just tired as far as I can tell. Said he hasn’t slept in three days. But he’s been ill, and I don‘t want to take any chances. I don‘t like the sound of his lungs.”

“Did he tell you anything about where he’s been or what the hell happened?”

Chris glanced back through the open doorway. “He can barely think straight. Once he’s slept, he’ll tell us.”

J.D. was beaming. “He’s alive! Whooh!”

“J.D.,” Chris warned, pulling the door to.

The youth covered his mouth but that didn’t stop his legs from jumping about like they had minds of their own.

Buck was staring at Chris. There was passion and fire in those eyes of green. Passion, fire, relief, unstrained happiness, concern and life. Buck clapped Larabee on the back. “It’s good to have both of you back, pard.”

Chris snorted and then grinned and nodded. “Thanks, Buck. Have you two eaten? I cooked some beef. There’s still some left, if you want it.”

“We ate before we came,” J.D. chirped, still dancing from one foot to the other.

“Speak for yourself, son. Any of that pie left?”

“Nope.”

Buck’s heart began to dance. “You ate all the pie?”

Chris winked at the other man and then turned and went back inside. Buck and J.D. started to follow. “You wake him, and I swear, I will shoot you.”

“Might be better if you wait out here, J.D. You know how much noise you make.”

“Me? Hell, Buck. You‘re the one...”

“Quiet,” came a restrained snarl from indoors.

Buck pointed to J.D. “He meant you.”

“He meant both of us.”

“Did not!”

“Did too!”

A low rumble. Both Buck and J.D. clamped their mouth’s closed.

‘Did not’, Buck mouthed.

‘Did too.’

**********

It was around four a.m. when Vin rolled over and gradually returned to his senses. He was in a bed, not on a horse or on the ground or in his wagon. He tried to open his eyes, but his eye-lids were so heavy that he found it a real effort to get them to co-operate. His mind moved in a vacuum and then cleared.

“Chris!”

Larabee awoke with a start and instantly reached for Vin. “It’s okay,” he assured the confused tracker.

“Chris? Your cabin?”

The gunfighter pulled himself up straighter in the chair, nodded and smiled. “Welcome back.” Tanner’s and Larabee’s eyes connected in a way that was theirs alone. Their arms snapped together in one fluid motion. Everything they felt was communicated through that single action.

“VIN!” Tanner glanced to his left and saw J.D. and Buck. Buck rose from the cot grinning like a Cheshire cat and J.D. leapt from a bedroll on the floor with a youthful exuberance that Vin could honestly say he'd missed.

“Howdy, boys.” Tanner turned back to Chris. “How you doin’, Cowboy?”

“Better than I was this time yesterday.”

The grin left Vin’s face and he dropped his best friend’s arm. “I... as soon as I could ride I...”

Chris squeezed the young man’s shoulder. “Relax. Take your time.”

“Could use a drink.”

“I’ll get it!” J.D. cried, rushing off to do so.

Vin attempted to pull himself up, but found two sets of hands grab and assist him. “I’m okay. Just... “

“You look like shit,“ Buck stated seriously as he crouched beside the bed and watched Vin settle against the wall.

“Reckon I feel like it too, Bucklin.”

J.D. handed Vin the glass of water. “Ya look dreadful, Vin.”

Tanner glanced at Chris. “You got somethin’ to add?” he demanded, an annoyed twang permeating his voice.

Larabee couldn’t stop the smile dancing onto his lips. “How do you feel?”

Vin sighed and sipped the water. “To be honest, everythin’ hurts. My head. My feet. My arms. My legs. Hell, even my damn ass.”

“Buck and J.D. will ride into town and bring Nathan here as soon as he gets back.” Chris stated, noting that Vin’s hand was trembling slightly. The gunfighter took the empty mug from his friend and watched with concern as Vin allowed his head to rest back against the wall. “Nathan will know what to do.”

“Ain’t no need for worryin'. I’m just dog tired. Rode for three days straight. Had to leave my horse yesterday mornin‘. He couldn‘t go on. Pushed him pretty hard. Made the last part on foot. Wasn’t sure if I was gonna make it.” Vin’s eyes closed momentarily.

“Vin, what happened?” J.D. whispered. “We looked and looked for you.”

A long, tired sigh echoed out of the young man in the bed.

Chris squeezed his shoulder. “If you aren’t up to this...”

“No, I’m okay. Really. Just feel whacked.” Vin collected his thoughts. “I don’t know how I got to the bank, but I did.” He remembered thinking that Chris had probably dived in after him and that he had to get ashore so he could help his friend. “I think I was awake for a while, but... I can’t really remember. When I woke up, I was in a wagon.”

“A wagon?”

“Yeah. That wagon train that the Judge wired us about. They found me. I musta got sick. Was out of it for almost two weeks. When I started thinkin’ straight, I tried to make ’em understand that I had to get a wire to you boys, but they couldn’t understand me.”

“Quakers,” Buck reasoned. “They speak German.”

“Yeah, and I don’t. Soon as I was strong enough, I got them to understand that I needed to go. They gave me a horse, some clothes, some food and I left. Didn’t stop until... “ Tanner swallowed. He’d lost his train of thought. He was starting to find it difficult to concentrate again. His need to close his eyes was becoming more insistent.

“You must have been powerful sick, Vin.”

“Don’t remember a lot of it, Kid Just knew I had to get back because you probably all thought I... “ The young man’s sentence faded out.

Buck nodded. “We thought you’d drowned.

“Sorry.” The message was for all, but Vin was staring into the face of his best friend.

“None of it matters,” Larabee stated simply. You’re back.

Tanner nodded. “You look like you’ve been ill.”

“He got hypothermia after spending all night looking for...” Buck jabbed J.D. in the ribs.

“You crazy bastard,” Vin growled.

This coming from a man who had been ill for two weeks, got on a horse and rode for three days straight. Larabee just smiled and shook his head with very real amusement. “You hungry?”

“Don’t know. I guess. Haven’t eaten for a while. Peso okay?”

“He’s fine. I sent him for Buck and J.D. yesterday.”

“He’s a damn good horse.”

“That he is,” Chris agreed. The animal had headed straight for Four Corners, just as Chris had known he would.

Larabee turned to the other two men. “I need you boys to go back into town and wait for Nathan. Soon as he gets in, bring him out here.”

“I promised Nettie I’d go out and help with her roof. She lost some shingles the other night so I said I’d fix them for her. I can‘t let her down, Chris. What if it rains?”

“Fine. Buck, you wait for Nathan.”

“Sure.”

“And boys, let’s just keep Vin’s return to ourselves until he’s ready to...” Chris glanced down at the topic of conversation. Vin’s eyes were closed again and deep breathy breathing was echoing out of him. “until he’s strong enough to take the attention.”

“Hell, he must have been sick,” Buck muttered. The scoundrel reached for the sleeping man’s brow. “Hasn’t got a fever, but just lookin’ at him you’d think he does.”

“He just needs to rest,” Chris stated, more for his own benefit than anything else.

“Ya mean I can’t tell Nettie or Casey he’s alive?”

Chris thought about it and then shook his head. “Don’t know how long he’s going to need to rest. May be a while. The last thing he needs is a whole lot of people coming out here to wish him well.”

“You may have a point, Pard,” Buck agreed, rising to his feet.

“Help me get him back down,” Chris requested. Buck eased his hands under Vin’s left shoulder, Chris his right. Together the two men slid Vin back down into the bed. Tanner awoke startled.

“Go to sleep,” Larabee ordered gently.

“Sorry, didn’t meant to drop off. Can’t keep... my eyes... open.”

“You’ve got a lot of sleep to catch up on. The boys are leaving. You take as long as you need.”

Larabee smiled, patted Vin’s arm and then indicated for Buck and J.D. to follow him.

“Nathan’ll be back today, but what about Ezra and Josiah?”

“We could wire Ezra,” J.D. suggested.

“You do that and old man Fenton will have the word spread all over Four Corners in ten minutes,” Buck argued.

“We gotta let them know!”

Chris pursed his lips thoughtfully. “Josiah’s a morning's ride and Ezra is at least eight hours. We’ll wait until Nathan gets back. You bring him here and then we’ll ride and get them.”