A/N: Sequel to Strength of Will: Bedlam of the Mind, Calm Before the Storm, and Rock Creek War. Special Thanks to Dee for putting up with how many versions of this story I sent her and then actually editing it into something readable. Jimmy paced outside the doctor's office in the waiting area. He struggled to keep from putting too much weight on his leg, which was still tender. It had been six months since the attack. Six months of healing and worry. Six months of questions and answers. He straightened when the door opened and Lou paused just inside the doorframe, whispering to the doctor. Jimmy felt all his muscles tense at once. As she glanced over at him, he saw she was a bit paler than she had been when she had gone in over half an hour ago, but the doctor was smiling, so he figured it wasn't too bad Jimmy felt his mind racing trying to figure out what couldn't be that bad but still had her shaken, as he watched her walk towards him. She paused, grabbing her coat off the rack. "I need to take a walk to clear my head." She smiled weakly at him. "I won't go far...meet me in the saloon in half an hour?" "Sure Lou." Jimmy watched her hurry out of the office and finally turned to the doctor for answers. The doctor simply smiled putting his hands up. "Don't look at me son...she wants to tell you herself." "Is it bad?" Jimmy asked, concerned. He had been waiting for the all clear on Lou and the baby for over a month now. Why did she want to tell him something? What in the world was wrong, if anything? "Not by my reckoning." The doctor smiled again and Jimmy felt a little more at ease. "Thanks, Doc," he said and grabbed his own coat off the rack before heading out the door to Teaspoon's office. He paused on the porch to see Lou walking down the right side of the street toward the schoolhouse. He wondered if she was going to tell Rachel before she told him. Shaking his head, he made his way to Teaspoon's office only to pause again when he noticed Alex's horse outside the office. Jimmy entered the office just as Alex shrugged out of his coat and set a stack of papers down in front of Teaspoon. "Here're the wanted posters." "Thank ya." Teaspoon sighed, waking from a little nap. He took the posters in hand and sifted through the first few before he saw Jimmy in the doorway. "Whatcha doing here, son? I thought Lou's appointment was today." "It is...was. She's taking a walk. I don't know how she is. No one's telling me anything right now." Jimmy sat down in frustration. "I'm sure they have their reasons, Jimmy." Teaspoon sighed wishing there was something he could say to ease the boy's angst. "What did the doctor say?" "See," Jimmy rose to his feet and began pacing, garnering a concerned look from both Teaspoon and Alex. "That's the thing. He wouldn't tell me what it was either. Said Lou wanted to tell me. Didn't even say she was alright, just that he didn't reckon it was a bad thing." "Calm down Jimmy," Teaspoon said, eyeing the young man closely. Teaspoon had to admit the fact that some sort of surprise coming seemed inevitable and, the way the last few months had been, he didn't think a surprise was the best thing for anyone. He was about to go on, when he noticed Lou standing in the doorway wringing her hands nervously. She was smiling softly and he couldn't help but let his eyes gaze down at her expanding belly that seemed huge for eight months of pregnancy. Then again Lou was tiny. "Lou, you alright, darling?" "I'm fine," she said, quickly looking to Jimmy. "I couldn't wait half an hour...can we talk?" "Yeah." Jimmy nodded and exchanged a worried glance with Teaspoon before following her out the door to the bench just outside Teaspoon's office. "There's no easy way to say this," Lou started, taking a deep breath. Jimmy prepared himself for the bad news as he watched Lou. He knew something had to be wrong. He just didn't know what it was. "We aren't having one baby..." Lou said quietly watching the worry and concern cross Jimmy's face. "NO...No, the babies are fine." She paused for just a moment, gathering her nerve before continuing. "There's just... two... instead of one." Jimmy's eyes widened in shock. "Wh...what?" he stammered. He was barely prepared to handle one baby let alone two. What were they going to do? "Jimmy, we're having twins," Lou said, biting her bottom lip nervously. "Twins?" Jimmy couldn't seem to let it sink in. He stood up his hands on his hips as he paced yet again right in front of Lou. "Are you sure?" "Doc is pretty sure...two heartbeats...two little bodies. He felt them and heard them." Lou watched him pace, her own nerves on edge. She was just now getting used to the idea that there was a baby resting in her belly at all. Now there were two. "You alright?" "Are you?" he asked, ceasing his pacing for all of two seconds to read her face. "I...I don't think it's sunk in good yet," Lou replied to a responding nod. "Me either," he agreed with her. "He's sure?" he asked again seeing Teaspoon coming towards the doorway curiously. "About as sure as he can be." Lou nodded. "Anything wrong?" Teaspoon asked quietly, watching the two of them in wonder. "Nah." Jimmy shook his head continuing his pacing. Teaspoon then turned his attention to Lou seeing the same nervous and worry resting in her features. "Lou?" "Just getting used to it, is all," Lou said barely over a whisper. "Maybe I should have waited." "Ya had to tell me sooner or later," Jimmy said not sure what else to say. He was reeling in his own thoughts, trying to come up with some sort of settling revelation in all this good news. He swallowed the lump in his throat knowing they had yet to fill the patiently waiting Teaspoon in. "What's wrong with you two?" Alex stepped out onto the porch past Teaspoon and tried to figure out what was going on. "The baby alright?" "Fine," Jimmy and Lou said in unison. Lou said it a bit too quickly and Jimmy had a hint of anger in his voice. "I'm going on back to the station. I need to think," Lou said finally getting up. "Stay here Jimmy. I want to be alone." "You sure?" He was too stunned to think straight at the moment. She just nodded kissed his cheek and then hugged Teaspoon goodbye. "You gonna tell me what this is all about?" Teaspoon asked her, as he gently turned her head up to face him once they parted. "Jimmy, can fill you in. I'll see you back at the station." Lou waved a goodbye to Alex and then headed back to the buckboard she had brought into town earlier to meet Jimmy as he had already been up all night working at the jailhouse to fill in for Barnett, who had been out on the town entertaining a lady friend. Teaspoon turned to Jimmy expectantly. "What in hell is going on with the two of you?" he asked when Lou was out of earshot. Jimmy sank back down to the bench and rested his shoulders on his knees and his head in his hands. "Lou's having twins," Jimmy said into his hands. "Good Lord," Teaspoon exclaimed. "Yeah." Jimmy just nodded. "She doesn't even look big enough to hold one baby let alone two," Alex gasped. The three of them fell silent all of them trying to take it in. ~*~*~*~*~ Lenny Ellison limped into the camp and sank to the ground beside the tree at the spot he had claimed as his own for the duration of their stay here. He was tired. He was tired and hungry and scared as hell. He had always thought that Joseph Simmons was one of the most frightening men he had ever met. He was wrong. And the depth of just how wrong had only heightened his fear. He hadn't met Joseph's brother until a month after his arrest by Sam Cain and his men. He was scheduled to hang for his involvement but what he thought was a stroke of good luck at the time turned out to be his worst nightmare. A trio of bothers had broken him out. Lewis, Travis and Leroy, had taken him to the man who had arranged the whole thing. William Simmons, also known as The Undertaker. It seemed William was angry that his little brother, Joseph, had gone and got himself killed, and he wanted to know what had happened. Lenny told him everything he knew. Everything and then some. It didn't seem to matter that Lenny had been loyal to his brother. William had questioned with a fierce hand and thus had learned things that Lenny didn't even know he knew. It took William about two weeks to break him but The Undertaker was good at the breaking. Lenny huddled up next to the tree away from the rest of the men and prayed to die. That's all he really wanted now. He didn't want to be involved anymore, didn't want to do what William had planned, whatever it was. No one told him anything anyhow, but he knew it was coming and Lenny didn't really care. He just wanted it to be over. ~*~*~*~*~ "Twins?" Teaspoon sat opposite Jimmy with Alex at his left. The three of them were all trying to get used to the idea. "Twins." Jimmy couldn't believe this. He had thought his biggest problem was finding the right time to propose to Lou. He'd had to recover after the fight, and then there was the whole awkward period where everyone got used to the way things were going to be. Now, he had been carrying the ring Rachel had helped him pick out for almost a month, waiting for the perfect time to ask Lou and, then, this got dropped on him. He knew Lou was waiting for him to ask but he really wanted it to be a special moment. Something neither one of them would ever forget. "Two little boys as wild as you..." Alex paused as a goofy grin spread across his face, "or God help ya two little girls just like their mom," Alex added getting a glare from Teaspoon as Jimmy sank lower in his seat with a gasp at the thought. Alex ignored Teaspoon's glare plunging forward. "Or maybe one little one like you and one like her." "You're not helping, Deputy," Teaspoon cautioned his new deputy. "I got something to take your mind off it, Jimmy. We can go through all these wanted posters. Looks like there are a lot of wanted fellows out and about in these parts. Maybe later we can discuss me asking you and Buck to handle the Cheyenne war-band that is moving into the territory. Sam's suppose to be sending some men but they need a guide to get out there. Buck knows the place. " "I guess it's as good as anything else." Jimmy sighed needing something to take his mind off it for a little while. ~*~*~*~*~ Jimmy walked into the bunkhouse four hours later wanting to get cleaned up before he went and talked to Lou. It wasn't like they could change anything. What was one more baby? What was done was done and they would just have to get use to it. Tiredly, he pulled his coat off and hung it up. "How'd the appointment go?" Kid asked as soon as Jimmy turned his attention to the two riders at the table. Buck looked up from his plate, clearly ready to fall into a bed after coming in earlier. Cody and Ike were on a run and Kid had been doing most of the chores today. "I figured Lou would have told ya," Jimmy said with a long sigh as he sank into a seat at the table. "She hasn't come in yet...We figured the two of you would be coming in together." Kid's concern became apparent almost instantly. "She probably went for a walk. She wanted to clear her head after she found out," Jimmy said. He decided she must have detoured and gone off to the pond to think. "Found out what?" Buck asked still trying to finish the bite in his mouth. "She's having twins," Jimmy said quickly. No need to draw it all out. Everyone would know before to long anyway. "Twins?" Kid asked with a frown. He had been about to push himself up from the table but he let his arms fall to his sides as he sank into the chair in shock. "Is she okay?" "Just trying to take it all in like the rest of us." Jimmy nodded. "I'm gonna go out by the pond see if I can catch up with her." He decided to forgo the shower and try to catch her before sunset. He grabbed a lantern just incase they got stuck out in the dark and hurried down the path. ~*~*~*~*~ Jimmy came in an hour later and set the lantern down on the table. "She been in yet?" he asked clearly worried. Buck was sound asleep and Kid simply shook his head. Jimmy turned on his heels and walked out the door and across the street to Rachel's. He didn't even knock before opening the door. Rachel jumped at the table, almost piercing her finger with the needle she was stitching up pants with. "Lou here?" Jimmy asked quickly. "No. She hasn't been in all day." Rachel frowned. Jimmy walked back outside and met Kid in the middle of the yard. "Where else would she go?" Jimmy asked. "The meadow?" Kid didn't know. Jimmy knew most of the spots to check just as well as he did. "I checked there...I checked the tree. I checked the barn. She wasn't on the road either. I came in the same way. She's been gone for six hours. Nobody's seen her?" Jimmy watched Kid's face match the emotions that he felt coursing through him as they headed for the barn to saddle up. "Where do you want to start?" Kid asked as he prepared Katy for the ride into town. "Teaspoon. We can get Alex or him to help us look," Jimmy replied. ~*~*~*~*~ Jimmy and Kid lit the torches as the last light of day faded across the horizon. They held them high in their left hands holding the reigns with theirs right hands as they hurried toward town in the darkness. Jimmy tried to reassure himself that everything was alright. That somehow, somewhere Lou was warm and safe and that this was all some misunderstanding. Unfortunately he didn't feel like that was the case. He had a sickening pang in his stomach that throbbed to the quickening beat of his heart. It was too much. Things were just settling back into some semblance of normal. He wasn't about to lose her again. Watching Kid cut around a tree, Jimmy saw that his friend had strayed from the trail but was still running parallel to him. Jimmy looked back to the path. "I thought I heard something," Kid called suddenly. Jimmy nodded, watching Kid move farther away yet still stay in sight. Jimmy watched him through the trees, losing sight of him intermittently, as Kid passed by clumps of trees. Jimmy was constantly looking from the trail to Kid and back again, waiting for news when suddenly the torchlight from Kid's side went out. Jimmy didn't hear a sound save his own horse, Kid's horse and his pounding heart. He stared hard through the trees trying to find his friend and suddenly saw Katy galloping riderless along the same path where Kid had been. Jimmy felt his breath catch in his throat as he gripped the reigns tighter and felt a jagged knife of fear stab into his gut. He pulled his horse to a stop and turned, looking in every direction, making sure there was not some threat lurking in the pitch-black night. Jimmy felt like the darkness was closing in on him, as he turned to go back and see if Kid had gotten thrown. That was the only thing he could think had happened. There had been no noise, no shots, no grunts, nothing. He hadn't even heard Kid hit the ground. Jimmy felt like his nerves were raw on a razors edge as he made his way along the blackened trail, looking for any sign of Kid. He combed the area backwards and forwards and caught Katy, still without locating Kid. It was like the man had disappeared into thin air. Jimmy finally resolved himself to continue on to town and see if he could get Teaspoon and some extra men to help him find Lou. And now Kid. ~*~*~*~*~ Jimmy tethered both Katy and his horse right outside the jailhouse. He took one step away from the horses before he instinctively drew his Colts and approached more reserved. The door was still wide open as it had been earlier that day but there was no one inside save one prisoner shot dead in his cell. The wanted posters were scattered over the floor and the board they had been hanging on lay broken over the desk. Jimmy felt like he was spinning. What the hell was going on? He whirled around and hurried out the door. Most of the stores had already closed. The saloon and hotel though seemed to be in full swing. He was about to head in that direction when he noticed the glint of metal on the ground where Teaspoon's horse had been earlier. He couldn't believe he hadn't noticed that the animal hadn't been there. Teaspoon and Alex's horses were both gone. He walked over and picked up the object his hopes that Teaspoon and Alex had escaped whatever had happened waning. It was Teaspoon's badge with a lone fingerprint of blood marring its sheen. ~*~*~*~*~ Lou readjusted her position on her back in the pitch black as she awoke suddenly. She could feel the wood beneath her fingers and quickly got her hands out from behind her back aware of how loud the sound of her own labored breathing sounded in her ears. She was standing on the edge of hysteria, as she tried to calm her nerves and keep from falling over the ledge. She attempted to free herself only to find her confines seemingly inescapable and nearly let out the sob she was holding in, as she realized that the wood was completely surrounding her. She hated the dark. She hated it, loathed it, and wanted to be out of it. It was like inviting the nightmares she had been running from. She turned again fighting with everything she had to get her hands loose. She kicked at the wood above her with a cry as her own hysteria got the better of her. "Let me out!" She kicked out again as she wrestled with her arms feeling her stomach protest at the action. "Please let me out!" She continued to kick until she was so winded and exhausted that she either had to stop or get sick. She decided to stop. Lou settled back feeling the pain sweep through her arms pinned beneath her body as she cried. ~*~*~*~*~ Cody wanted a bath. That's what he really wanted, a bath and supper. It was so simple. All he had to do was ride into the station, get cleaned up, get something to eat, and then fall into bed. It was the most appetizing plan he had been able to formulate in the last four hours. He was dog-tired and he could smell himself. The combination came together to make him less than happy about the remainder of his ride, which of course was only another hour or so. This is how his mood was when the arrow sailed through the night and narrowly missed his shoulder. Cody ducked down and brought his horse into a full gallop. He looked around frantically but couldn't see anything or anyone even with the full moon looming overhead. Cody was almost to the grove of trees when another arrow hit his horse. He tried to hold on but the horse reared back and the last thing Cody remembered, before his world faded to black, was the tangled branches of the trees framing a handful of stars in the night sky. ~*~*~*~*~ Buck climbed out the back window just before the door to the bunkhouse slammed open and the three men walked inside, guns at the ready for any movement. They already had Rachel. That was how he knew they were there. If she hadn't made so much noise coming from the main house to the bunkhouse, he would still be asleep. He silently thanked her as he vowed to make sure he helped her get away from who ever these people were. "I told you there was no one in here!" Rachel shouted as they came through the door. Buck winced as he heard one of them slap her. The man then snarled at her to be quiet. Buck rounded the corner, clinging to the side of the bunkhouse as if it were a second skin, and stood rigidly still in the shadows. He waited for the group to search the bunkhouse, the main house, and the yard from top to bottom before he moved. As he was about to make his move to free Rachel, he noticed one of them hold a rag over her mouth and, though she put up one hell of a struggle, she passed out. Buck wanted to act but he wasn't sure he could get her away from the third man while trying to take out the other two. She would be at the mercy of the man holding her and Buck had a feeling these people weren't very merciful. He decided instead to follow them. ~*~*~*~*~ Jimmy walked out of the saloon and slammed his hand into the post outside. He wanted to scream. No one had seen or heard anything. How in the world was that possible? He looked at the jailhouse and shook his head. He couldn't believe this. He had four people missing. He made his way back to the jailhouse and grabbed a badge off the desk. It looked like they were in need of some law around here. He finally decided, after talking to the undertaker, who was now removing the body of the dead prisoner, that he would go get Buck and see if he could track. The two of them would swing by Barnett's on their way back into town and let him try and subdue the blind people of Rock Creek while they searched for the missing. Jimmy watched the undertaker make it down the street with his cargo and turned to mount up. He didn't even hear the man coming up behind him. He reached up to climb into the saddle and felt something connect with the back of his head so hard that his teeth painfully snapped shut. The loud screaming pain that shot through his head was followed by a deft sinking feeling that carried him all the way to the ground. He managed a glimpse of one brown-toed boot before he passed out. ~*~*~*~*~ "What's his name?" a low voice asked. It sounded a million miles away. Kid drifted in and out. "The other one called him Kid...That's the one you wanted, right?" A second voice joined the first as Kid tried to roll over in the back of the wagon. A hand steadied him as the conversation continued. "You sure that's him?" the first voice asked again. Kid groaned feeling the pain throb through his head in endless waves of torment. "Sure as I'll ever be." "Alright. Put him in with the girl." Kid thought there was some hint of amusement under the cold tone but he didn't know for sure. He was having a hard enough time just trying to focus on what was going on around him. He had taken a nasty hit to the head from a low-lying tree branch. Kid was still drifting on the tides of consciousness when he heard what sounded like a board being pried loose. "Don't get any bright ideas." Kid had a feeling they weren't talking to him. He heard a soft whimper and a hoarse muffled reply, but couldn't make out the words. It all felt like some crazy dream. Was he not supposed to be riding to town? All at once, he was pulled to his feet and standing, or more like swaying, over a large coffin. Kid looked inside and, as his gut twisted into knots, saw a familiar form there wiggling and straining. Kid felt a hard shove from behind. "Get in there." As one of the men pushed him again, Kid's vision slammed back into focus. He fell forward but caught himself on the edge of the coffin before landing on top of Lou. He managed to angle his body so that the full force of his weight didn't crush her as he was shoved again. "I said get in there!" Kid was still trying to figure out what the hell was going on as they hurriedly replaced the lid and began to nail it in place. "No..." He tried to use his elbow, his arm, his shoulder, anything and everything he could to keep from being sealed in the oversized crate smack dab on top of Lou. "Kid, stop it." Lou finally managed to get out and he paused realizing the pain in her voice "You alright?" he asked out of breath. His face rested inches above hers, the back of his head flat against the board holding them in place. "Every time you move...it hurts. Try and be still," she whispered, feeling his breath tickle across her cheek. Kid nodded but felt his nose collide with hers so he turned his head to one side and put one arm down, trying to ease as much of his weight off of her as he could. His instinct to fight being entombed in the crate was belayed by Lou's pain. He fought the urge to try and shoulder the boards loose one more time, especially when he felt Lou tense as he stretched out his body pressing his feet against the narrow boards at their feet. "Sorry." Kid didn't know where to begin. There were so many things wrong with this that he couldn't even collect his thoughts. She was squirming under him trying her best to get comfortable and he knew there couldn't possibly be a way to do so. "Likewise." Lou tried to adjust her head but found that no matter what she did she was looking up at Kid. She couldn't really see him, but she could feel him. She could feel the proximity of his skin, the warmth of his breath, his heart beating against her chest. If it had been Jimmy, Lou wouldn't have felt so awkward. She still had feelings for Kid though. Feelings that ran deeper than friendship so, though she was with Jimmy and delighted with that decision, the forced closeness that they were now sharing made her dizzy and nervous. The nervousness rivaled the fear and insecurity about who these men were and why they had done this. "We're moving." Lou felt her body shift slightly as the wagon began to move. Kid pushed up with both arms pressing his back as far against the bottom of the lid as he could. No matter how hard he pushed though his body touched Lou. "Yeah." Kid stretched his legs trying to turn to one side but his left leg collided with her right and she winced in pain. "Sorry." "Quit moving, Kid. We're in a box. I don't think we're going to be avoiding each other." She breathed. She knew what he was doing. She would have done the same thing had she not been pinned underneath him. "Where do you think they're taking us?" she asked as she felt his shifting cease as he finally let his body relax a bit over hers. "I don't know, Lou." Kid's voice betrayed the nervousness he still felt. "But Jimmy's still out there. I'm sure he made it into town. I'll bet Teaspoon and Alex are helping him look right now." "I hope your right." Lou turned her head to one side giving him as much room as she could to allow him to rest his own head. It had to be difficult to hold his head up like that. "You okay?" "Yeah. I just got a bad headache," Kid replied, allowing his head to drop to her shoulder. The release of the pressure that had been building in his neck caused a sigh to escape him. "Don't get too comfortable." Lou gasped when she heard what sounded like a sigh of contentment. "That won't be a problem." He almost laughed. There was no way he was getting anywhere close to comfort. Hell, he wasn't even getting in the vicinity of comfort. The entire situation was like a nightmare. Still, he remembered when it was more like a dream. "Good Lord, Kid." As his thoughts and the movement of the wagon lulled Kid into a false calm he accidentally grazed her breast with his chin and jumped nervously, hitting the back of his head against the boards behind him. "God, I'm sorry." Kid apologized nearing a panic as she tried to breathe easier. The pain slowly dwindled and she felt her body began to relax little by little. "Are you alright?" "Yeah." Lou didn't know how long they were going to last like this. "Look, we're stuck like this. It's awkward, it's embarrassing, it's..." Lou's voice trailed off as she refused to admit that it was arousing because of the guilt that stirred within her. "Not right," Kid agreed with her. "Right," she whispered, wishing that his face wasn't right over hers. She knew better than to try and turn away though. She couldn't escape this. So she was going to have to deal with it. There was no way to run away. "We just have to hang in here without driving each other crazy for however long they plan on holding us." "What if they aren't planning on holding us?" Kid felt a new fear enter his mind as he thought out loud. "I mean we are in a coffin...what if they mean to bury us." "What?" Lou reprimanded herself for letting her fear get her to the point of not trying to work this out in her head. Before she could talk it out further with Kid though, she felt the wagon lurch to a stop and heard horses approaching. "I got two more!" a man called in the distance. "Chain 'em up in the back. Make it so they can't move. The boss doesn't want to take any chances." Came the reply. "Got it." Came a sharp reply. "What's going on?" Lou asked listening to two thuds and then the rattling of chains, as someone seemed to be shifting dead weight around. "I don't know." Kid listened to the sounds outside just as intently as Lou did. "It doesn't sound good though." ~*~*~*~*~ Jimmy came to just as the wagon started moving again. He noticed three things immediately. One, he was draped over some box; two, he could barely move as he was chained to the side of the wagon; and three, Cody was unconscious right next to him. Jimmy eyed the two men at the front of the wagon then turned his attention to the four that were riding along side, moving towards the front. He didn't recognize any of them and he had spent all afternoon looking through wanted posters with Teaspoon. "What's going on here?" Jimmy spoke up, as Cody jumped awake at the sound of his voice. "You'll get some answers soon enough. Now be quiet," one of the men driving the wagon replied. "You alright?" Jimmy whispered to Cody as Jimmy sat up and leaned back against the side of the wagon feeling a slight bit of slack on the chains. Cody nodded as he tested the chains that bound him to the side of the wagon. "Jimmy?" a muffled cry came from the box. Jimmy exchanged a concerned look with Cody then looked down at the box his heart racing. "Lou?" Jimmy paled. She couldn't be in the box. My god, how long has she been there? Jimmy felt like he was sinking, slowly falling into his own terror at the prospects that Lou had been trapped in a coffin for the last six hours. "You alright?" "Fine," she called back. Jimmy looked frantically from the box to the men driving the wagon. Fine his ass. She was nailed into a coffin. "Hey!" Jimmy called getting an annoyed glance from the men around them. "Let her out!" A shot narrowly missed Jimmy's head causing him and Cody both to jump. One of the men driving the wagon still had his gun trained on him. "Jimmy!" Lou screamed. "You are in no position to be making demands. Keep it up and I'll deliver you dead." The one with the gun on them made it clear that he meant what he said. Jimmy looked back down at the box out of breath. He tried to still his temper long enough to think straight. "I'm alright," Jimmy finally said. "Lou, he's fine. Quit moving." Cody froze listening to the unmistakable voice of Kid come from inside the coffin. He was already reeling at the idea that Lou was trapped in there but now he was beginning to wonder if he was imagining things. He looked the box over with a frown. Surely there was no way two people could fit in there. Not unless they were right on top of each other. Cody winced at the mental picture and looked at Jimmy, who was obviously picturing the same thing. "Kid?" Jimmy asked in confusion. He couldn't believe this. This was not happening. "Yeah." Kid's voice sounded closer to the top of the box, not as muffled. "I'm here. Don't worry Lou's fine." Jimmy swallowed hard as he tried to get this through his head without the unmistakable urge to hit something. The urge didn't go away. He was out of luck though. There was nothing he could reach to take his anger out on. That was unless he head butted the coffin, which might actually put him out of his misery for two whole seconds. He took a deep breath and avoided meeting Cody's eyes. He didn't want to see what the man was thinking written all over his face. "How long y'all been in there?" Jimmy asked quietly. "About ten minutes," Kid said quickly. "I've been in here for a few hours I think," Lou said. Jimmy felt his breath come faster as they both spoke from the confines of the tiny box. He looked it up and down, wondering just how close Kid was to Lou and sullenly realized it had to be very close. Then he found himself wondering who was on top. Disgusted, he shook the thought away as he tried, in vain, to come to terms with this. They were both alive. Lou was alright. Jimmy tried to keep telling himself that instead of picturing the two of them in the box. They hadn't asked to be put in the box together. He just kept reminding himself of all these things. Neither one of them wanted to be there. None of them wanted to be here. Jimmy finally felt his nerves slowly taper off the edge of the razor as he calmed to the point of being able to think about how they were going to get out of this. "That sure is a little box for two people," Cody finally spoke up. "You think they've got enough air?" Jimmy was ready to tell Cody to shut up but then he understood the question. He had a new fear. Did they have enough air? "Do you have enough air?" he asked, keeping the slight panic from his voice. "We're fine. This wood isn't fit together snug at all." Kid had already felt a few cracks in the wood big enough to get one finger through. He didn't think they would be in danger of not having enough air. "Not like the two of you," Cody said under his breath. He realized he hadn't said it low enough though as Jimmy turned an angry glare on him. "Sorry," he mumbled turning away with a frown. "You two shut up and try and catch some sleep. We still got a ways to go," one of the men up front ordered. Jimmy wondered, at the pronouncement, if Lou had had anything to eat or drink since she had come back from the doctors. She had skipped lunch because of the news. Which meant chances were good that she hadn't had a drop to drink since breakfast. She had to be thirsty and starving. "Lou, you had anything to drink?" Jimmy asked in concern. "Not since this morning." Lou was slow in answering obviously trying not to worry him further. "It's okay I have my canteen on me." Kid was quick to point this out. Jimmy nodded letting out a breath at that much. At least she could get some water in her. He was just feeling relieved when he heard a scuffle inside the box. "Lou, I can't get it." There was another sound like someone trying to move against the wood. "I almost got it," Lou said so softly that Jimmy had to strain to hear her. He caught the amused look that Cody was trying desperately to hide. "Cody, I swear. One word about this And I will..." Jimmy started. "Cody's out there?" Kid and Lou asked at the same time. "I haven't said a word," Cody said quickly. "Yeah I'm here. You two alright?" There was a long pause. "Yeah," Kid finally said then screamed out as the box rocked from what sounded like some sort of attack from within. "Watch what you're doing!" Kid grunted. "Sorry." Lou really did sound sorry. "I'm fine," Lou said, answering Cody's question. "Move your knee, please," Kid pleaded. Jimmy felt a smile creeping across his face despite how totally inappropriate it may have been. Cody winced at the implication and looked away feeling even more sorry for Kid. He glanced up at the man that had told them to be quiet a moment ago and nudged Jimmy realizing just how angry they were making him by continuing on like he hadn't said a word. "Think we'd better do as the man said," Cody whispered to Jimmy. Jimmy nodded. "Lou, we got to get quiet up here. You two try and get some sleep," Jimmy said as consolatory as he could manage. Jimmy regretted the words as soon as he said them. How could they possible get to sleep like that? And then again, did he really want the two of them sleeping like that. Jimmy just shook his head in frustration. He wished he had something to pry the damn box open. Course, that wouldn't do him much good if the man with the gun in the seat above them, shot him. God, he hated feeling helpless. Here he was telling Lou and Kid to try and catch some sleep so that maybe, just maybe, the four of them would all make it out of this alive even though he didn't even know what kind of mess they were trying to make it out of. Jimmy felt like he was running hard and fast with no idea of where he was going. He leaned back against the side of the wagon and kicked at the air in frustration, feeling like he was going to explode. He hadn't even told Cody that Teaspoon and Alex were missing too. They were going to have to figure a way out of this themselves. Not that he would have asked to have it any other way. He just hoped that they all were alright when this ended. ~*~*~*~*~ Lenny walked down the well-worn path from the tree to the edge of the ledge about ten feet inside the dark cave that served as the west wall of the camp. He carried the torch as he made his way down the narrowing corridor until he reached the ledge where two guards sat playing cards. "What's wrong?" one of the men asked, looking at him like he had wandered in the wrong direction. "They got two more. Bringing them in now. Mr. Conroy wanted me to let you know. He said the quiet one needs to be watched." Lenny relayed the information as he peeked over the side of the ledge. The sound made him cringe. The wild splashing below signified just how many people were already down there all of them treading water or holding to the side of the cave wall for a brief reprieve from flailing. He counted fourteen heads bobbing in the dark water below. He heard the snicker of one of the guards. "Watched all the way to the bottom." He laughed looking over the side. "Ya hear that?" he called down to the people splashing. "Sounds like ya got more company." "Who is it?" one of the male captives called from the water. "Don't know...one of 'em is quiet," the guard yelled back. "Ike?" another prisoner asked. "I'll ask," the guard replied. He turned just in time to see a woman and a young man being escorted into the cave their arms bound behind their backs. The woman was gorgeous with blonde curls that were almost down her back. He paused almost forgetting to ask about Ike. Remembering finally, he looked to the young man figuring that the woman wouldn't be named Ike. "You Ike?" he asked quickly. When the young man nodded, the guard immediately turned back to the ledge and looked down. "Yeah it's Ike..." He paused turning to the woman. "And you are?" "It's none of your business," she replied coldly. He shook his head with a smile. Lenny took a step back. He hated this part. "Well then." The guard grabbed her by the arm and led her forward. The other guard grabbed Ike as he tried to get to her despite being tied up like he was. "Watch your step...Heads up below!" He shoved her off the ledge hard and listened to the scream that echoed through the cave and the loud splash that followed. The other guard passed the silent young man to him. "One more coming!" He shoved Ike off the ledge and watched as he sailed into the water below. He turned back to Lenny disappointed that there was no scream before the young man hit the water below. "You enjoy yourself too much, Davey." Lenny said with a frown. "Yeah well you used to know how to have fun," Davey replied. "I think 'ol Will Simmons broke something when he was asking you those questions." He took an intimidating step forward and laughed as Lenny backed up apprehensively. "I heard you use to do all of Joe's killin' for him. Some how I can't imagine that." "It was another life ago." Lenny breathed looking away in shame. Davey nodded. He slowly lost his smile realizing that he could be Lenny in a few years. ~*~*~*~*~ "I got 'em...Teaspoon!" Alex pushed off the cave wall, where he had gone to avoid being hit by whoever was tossed off the ledge, and swam as fast as he could for the area he heard the first splash. He knew that if Ike's hands were tied behind his back that it was hard to resurface. If it hadn't been for Sam and his men, Teaspoon and he would have drowned when they were tossed over the edge. He dove under and searched blindly for whom he thought was the silent Pony Express rider. When he felt long strands of hair meet his fingers, he almost recoiled wondering if he had found something that had been down here much longer then any of them. He heard a second splash and then felt the head that the hair belonged to raise up a bit. He realized that the person he was trying to get out had kicked off the bottom of the pool. He grabbed the person's arm and swam as fast as he could for the surface. The two of them came out of the water with a simultaneous gasp as they inhaled. Alex tried to figure out who the person could be. He couldn't see a hand in front of him though because the cave was so dark. They hadn't been able to see anything since the sun had gone down. It made swimming and talking more a necessity then he would have imagined. They swam to hear the movement as well as try and keep above water and warm. They swam to keep going. They talked about this and that to keep each other sane. They had already run out of reasons for why they were here in this cave and who these men were. Sam seemed to know the most. He was tracking a band of Cheyenne after all the trails had run cold from Lenny, Joseph Simmons' second in command, having escaped from Fort Laramie. The death toll from the breakout was almost too much to believe. No one had lost his or her lives save the other two prisoners. Sam had explained that if this guy was smart enough to keep the soldiers off his back by making sure that there was no casualties than they had one hell of a fight on their hands. They had collectively decided since then that this had to be some sort of retribution for Joseph Simmons death. So far the people present were all there when he had died. Alex held the woman before him as he tried to get her wrists untied. He slowly realized who it was. "Rachel?" he gasped. The bastards. She wasn't even really involved. She had been in the house the whole time. She hadn't even fired a shot. "Alex?" she gasped coughing up some of the water. "Where's Ike?" "I got him, Darling," Teaspoon said quickly. "You alright?" "Yeah." Rachel panted. How could he even ask that? Who could possibly be alright after being kidnapped and thrown into a pitch-black water, filled cave. "Can you swim?" Alex asked as he finally got the ropes free. Rachel pulled her hands around and rubbed her wrists letting him hold her up a moment longer. Finally she whispered, "Yes." "Good. Come this way I'll show you where the wall is." ~*~*~*~*~ Kid finally let is arm go lax as he angled his body in the least imposing vantage over Lou's. She lay there unmoving allowing his head to rest against her shoulder as the two of them tried to relax. "And I thought the bunks were uncomfortable," Kid finally whispered trying futilely to ease the tension. He felt Lou's cheek tighten against his forehead as she smiled and felt his own smile cross his face. "I can't sleep like this," Lou whispered back in agreement about the comfort level. Kid simply sighed. There was a time when the two of them could have slept all night like this. That time was not so far gone and for once Kid wished it had been a lifetime ago so that the memories of it didn't plague him. His hand accidentally brushed against her expanded belly and he paused unintentionally. He let his fingers feel the reason he wasn't putting up a fight for her. He felt Lou tense under his touch and pulled his hand away with a sharp breath. "Did Jimmy tell you?" she whispered into his hair. She pushed her hold off his back and stretched her arm out along the boards of the left side of the box trying to feel like she wasn't holding him. Kid nodded into her shoulder. "That there are two in there?" Kid asked if that's what she meant as she let his hand rest on her stomach gently. Lou nodded her cheek intermittently brushing against his hair, and as she performed such a simple action, Kid didn't know how much more of this he could take. Before he had the freedom of movement to run, to get as far away as he needed to be. Now he couldn't. He had strong desires to do something that he didn't think, before now, that he still had in him. He just kept his hand on Lou's belly to remind him why he couldn't. Somewhere on the other side of the boards was the twins' father. That is what kept Kid in check, albeit barely. It took everything that was in him to fight the battle going on inside him. Lou felt dizzy. She was hot and spinning and she had the infinite frustration of Kid's body on top of hers. She couldn't possibly go to sleep and she hadn't eaten or had more than a gulp or two from Kid's canteen in almost a day. She felt his hand resting on her stomach and felt a bit of the tension ease off as they both let that simple action be the lifeline that kept them at bay. Lou hadn't thought about Kid like this in a while but the old feelings had come spiraling back without a hint of waning as the minutes had passed into an hour and longer still. She didn't know how long they would be stuck this way. She didn't know how long they could be stuck this way. The one thing she did know was that she didn't want this. She wanted the man resting a few feet from her on the other side of the wood. She wanted him, she loved him, and she...Lou felt Kid stir against her as he shifted and he let his hand make a circle over her expanded belly. She pulled her free hand out from behind him and placed it on his hand to stop the movement. "Don't," she breathed. "Sorry." It was as if they couldn't say it enough right now. "It's alright." She felt her breath come faster as she said it. Kid knew it wasn't. It was as if that one simple movement had crossed the line. It struck him as he felt her breath, warm against the top of his head, coming quicker, that it wasn't that he had crossed a line. It was that his action had let her realize that the line could be crossed. He wouldn't let that happen, though. "Lou..." he started and then felt her hand over his. She gripped his roughly. "Lou?" he asked in concern. "I don't feel so good." Lou tried to shift again feeling as if she were trapped as she felt the world closing in on her. Kid raised his head up as she suddenly went limp. He couldn't see her but he could still feel her breath against his face. He moved his hand trying the best he could to prop himself up as he felt for her cheek. When his hand finally touched it he felt her head roll to the side and knew for sure that she had passed out. "Lou?" He shook her in a panic. ~*~*~*~*~ Jimmy was staring up at the sky, silently; as he listened to Cody pretend to be asleep. He knew that even Cody couldn't force himself to get to sleep under the circumstances. He didn't know how long he lay there telling himself the same things over and over to help him ease his own mind about the box that lay at his side. He closed his eyes, listening to all the whispering that came from the box. He couldn't make out what they were saying but he really didn't want to know. He didn't want to even hear that they were talking. All at once though he heard one of them move so fast that they hit the side of the box. The thud made Jimmy jump and he saw Cody do the same out of the corner of his eyes. Then he heard Kid's startled voice calling Lou's name. Jimmy felt his heart sink into the pit of his stomach. "What's wrong?" Jimmy asked in horror. "I don't know," Kid called back. "She passed out." "Didn't she say she hadn't eaten since breakfast?" Cody asked, trying to give them both the simplest explanations. "She probably just needs something to eat, I'm sure she'll be fine." Jimmy nodded needing to hear what Cody was saying mostly because there wasn't a damn thing he could do about any of it. He couldn't hold Lou. He couldn't try to wake her. He couldn't do anything. Kid could. Jimmy clenched his jaw together as he sucked in a deep breath through his clenched teeth. "She breathing steady?" Jimmy asked unable to even look at the offending object that the two of them were trapped in. "Yeah," Kid called back. "I think Cody's right. I think she'll be okay." That wasn't good enough for Jimmy. Jimmy let his fist hit the wall of the wagon, behind his back. It was the only thing he could reach besides the box. It got the attention of the fellows up top. "You have to let her out...She's sick!" Jimmy yelled at them. "No one's getting out of there till the boss says so." The man was steadfast in his assurance and Jimmy felt like no amount of pleading with him was going to change his mind. "Who's your boss?!" Jimmy screamed. Someone was going to pay for this. "William Simmons." Jimmy felt the color drain from his face as the man went on. "I believe you knew his brother, Joe." ~*~*~*~*~ Buck crawled over the ledge and froze as he took in the sight before him. He had followed Rachel's captors to where they had met up with another group of men that had Ike. Buck wanted to go back and get Teaspoon, Alex, Kid and Jimmy but he was scared he would lose their tracks. He had followed with the hope of finding the place then going back for help. Now that he looked down at the camp, he felt that hope draining from him, leeched from his bones by the sight that met him. "No." He heard himself say it as if his voice had a will of its own. There were fifteen tents peaking up in the valley below shielded on two sides by high rocky hills, a perfectly defensible position. He started to count, the men, the horses, everything. He knew though at first glance that it was more than Teaspoon, Sam, and all of their men could handle. They would just have to get more. Buck knew Sam was coming. Teaspoon had already told him about the Cheyenne war band that was headed this way. Buck was supposed to lead Sam and his men out to where Teaspoon was sure they had to be. He just had to get back to town and let Teaspoon know about this. He was about to push himself off the ground having counted well over fifty men when he noticed that a wagon was coming into the camp. Buck froze when he realized who the two figures tied to the side of the wagon were. He cursed under his breath. Jimmy and Cody were tied up in the wagon next to a coffin. Buck felt his blood running cold at the thought that someone he knew could be in that coffin. If so, who? He inched back knowing he had to hurry. He had to get to Teaspoon. ~*~*~*~*~ Lou fell to the ground again feeling the wood from the shovel handle hit her square in the ribs as she tried to force herself to her feet. Lenny though jumped into the hole with her and she froze knowing his intentions. She was still in the grave, her grave. She backed up until her back was against the wall of the hole and tried in vane to get the shovel between her and Lenny. When he grabbed her arms, she felt her feet give way beneath her and the shovel was torn from her grasp. "Please don't," she pleaded. There was no feeling in his eyes though, no sympathy for her situation. She was just a thing to him. Lou gasped as she was thrown to the ground pinned beneath Lenny. She immediately started fighting. ~*~*~*~*~ Kid felt Lou's leg come up between his legs and nearly busted through the lid of the coffin as he recoiled from the agony that spread from his injury. He cursed trying to get a hand to her legs to hold her down. It wasn't working. He was still trying to support himself on one hand. "Lou!" he finally screamed when his voice returned. She didn't seem to recognize him. Her eyes weren't even opened. She was giving him a fight though. He felt her nails tear into his shoulder and screamed again as he felt the blood soak into his shirt. "Lou...God." He didn't know which one he was pleading with but he would take whoever listened at the moment. Her leg came up again and he immediately closed his legs around it to keep her from hitting him again. "Lou, wake up!" Her head shot up hitting him square in the eye and he reared back hitting the back of his head on the lid of the coffin. He cursed again, seeing faint white spots dance in and out of the darkness before his eyes. "Lou! It's me! Come on!" "What the hell is going on in there?" Kid really didn't know if he could take the time away from defending himself to let Jimmy know that Lou was doing her best to kill him. Especially when he felt her other leg manage to get locked around his. She turned him into the side of the coffin with enough force to knock the air from his lungs. She twisted and got her arm out from behind his back before that little move. "Kid! Lou!" "Hold ON!" Kid screamed. Lou's hand made it to his face and he cringed as she managed to scratch the hell out of his cheek. "LOU!" he screamed and slapped her. She gasped and opened her eyes. He froze waiting to see if she was going to attack him again. She didn't. She panted from the exertion as she stared at where she could only guess Kid's face was. "Kid?" she asked shakily. "What's wrong?" Jimmy's voice reached them again. Lou could barely hear him over the heavy breathing inside the box. She could still feel Lenny's hands all over her. God, she must have had another nightmare. She reached for Kid to make sure she wasn't still dreaming and felt the blood trickling down his face. She paled at the thought that she must have been fighting with Kid this entire time. "I'm sorry," she said as tears flooded to her eyes. She fought them back as Kid's arm that wasn't tied to hers wrapped around her. "It's okay." He panted into her hair. Their legs were still tangled around each other as he held her close trying to ease the shaking that had taken a hold of both of them. Lou pulled back feeling Kid's lips against her forehead. This was wrong. She needed the comfort, but this was wrong. They couldn't move though. They were stuck tangled up in the position she had thrown them into when she had used her legs to leverage Kid on his side. "I hope you guys are okay...we're in the camp," Jimmy said. Neither one of them heard him over their own breathing and the noise from the men swarming the wagon. Jimmy and Cody were forced to their feet, as the chains were undone. A multitude of guns was trained on them. "This ain't good." Cody breathed at the sheer number of men that approached the wagon. "Nah it's not." Jimmy looked up as several men climbed into the back of the wagon. He could only guess that one of them was Simmons' brother. "This them?" The one who Jimmy assumed was William asked the wagon drivers as he motioned to the box. "That's them," one of the drivers replied while the other simply nodded. "Lenny, get up here!" William screamed and he waited for the man to comply. Jimmy watched as William was handed a pry bar. Jimmy tensed as Lenny climbed into the back of the wagon. The last time Jimmy had seen the man was as Lenny was falling flat on his back after Lou had shot him in the leg, the second after Jimmy had stabbed Simmons in the foot. He felt Cody reaching for him placing a steady hand on his back. William pried the boards loose and two more men removed the lid quickly as several more guns were trained on the figures inside the box. Jimmy felt Cody's hand grab a hold of the back of his shirt to keep him from moving as he saw the sight inside the box. Jimmy would later thank the man because, for a split second, he forgot about every gun that was trained on them and felt his body move in that direction. Kid and Lou lay side by side their bodies pressed against each other. Jimmy had expected that much but what he hadn't expected was their legs to be so tangled up that you could hardly tell whose belonged to whom. Lou's dress was hiked up so high that you could see her thigh peeking out from under the skirt under one of Kid's legs. Kid had his arms wrapped around her and her face was resting just below his chin in the crook of his neck. Jimmy was pulled back to the severity of their reality when he heard William break into a fit of laughter. "You have got to be kidding me?!" William turned to Lenny in disbelief. "These two killed Joseph?" He motioned to Kid and Lou. "I don't know what you're talking about." Confused, Lenny looked in the box and then up at Jimmy. He made sure to keep his distance. "That's the girl but you got the wrong man in there. He's Kid." He pointed to Jimmy. Jimmy realized that Lenny must have not heard what he had said to Simmons just before he had stabbed him in the foot. "You sure?" William asked Lenny looking Jimmy over. Lenny nodded vigorously. "Alright then. Take the two of them to the cave and bring Kid and Louise to the tents." William motioned to Kid and Cody to be taken to the caves as he then pointed out Jimmy and Lou to be brought to his tent. Jimmy watched as one of the men grabbed Lou and pulled her out of the box. He felt his anger at the scene instantly dissipate as he realized from the scratches all over Kid what had happened. Jimmy knew all to well how bad Lou's nightmares could get. If she had awoken from one trapped under Kid in that box. Dear God, no wonder at all the noise they were making. Jimmy felt Cody's grip on his back yanked away as he was pulled along with Lou into the crowd and ushered toward a row of tents. "You alright?" he asked quietly reaching for her hand. She let him take it, wrapping her fingers around his with a sigh of relief. "Yeah," she whispered still shaky from what she had just remembered and now having to deal with a whole new nightmare. "I don't think it matters though." Her wisdom was simple. They were in a huge camp full of men loyal to Simmons' brother, William, and she and Jimmy were the guests of honor. Anyway you looked at it, it couldn't go well. ~*~*~*~*~ Buck sat down on the boardwalk feeling the last hope wane into desperation as he listened to Barnett's recount of what had been told to him by someone at the saloon. Teaspoon and Alex had evidently disappeared. Jimmy had been looking for them, and Dawson had seen someone hit Jimmy in the back of the head and haul him off. Barnett had been reached shortly after by a few concerned patrons. First Lou, then Teaspoon, Alex, Kid, Jimmy, and Rachel, the list of missing was a personal list. Whoever was doing this was very selective. Buck let his head fall into his hands as the thought finally struck him. "Did Sam come in this afternoon?" He knew Sam was supposed to have been in this afternoon. If they had been taken too then it only stood to reason that this had something to do with all of them. The most recent thing that had involved all of them was the big fight at the station a few months back when Simmons had come for Lou. "Not that I know of," Barnett replied. "What are we going to do?" "I don't know." Buck knew how he felt. There was no clear answer to the problem. Buck knew where they were being held but he needed men, lots of men to go and get them. How were they going to do this? ~*~*~*~*~ Kid and Cody walked beside Jimmy and Lou until the destination was set and the two groups parted both turning to look after the other as they went in separate directions. Kid limped beside Cody into the cave turning back and forth until Jimmy and Lou were out of his sight. "We got more guests!" Davey beamed. "Someone got the drop on you aye boy?" he asked looking Kid's bloodied body over. "You can go first then." The sound of splashing and low conversations echoed off the cavern walls as Kid was elbowed around until he stood on the edge of the ledge looking down into blackness. He could tell by the noise that there was enough water for him to land in and he could also tell that the man at his back was about to shove him. Kid looked back at Cody and then stepped off the ledge. The thought that maybe that wasn't the brightest move left him as he finally struck the cold water and fought his way to the surface. He immediately felt hands grabbing for him. "He isn't tied." Teaspoon's voice greeted him and Kid sighed in relief. "You alright?" "Yeah," Kid breathed just as Cody sailed over the edge. "Get out of the way!" Cody screamed clearly not sure what was at the bottom. Kid and Teaspoon dived out of the way as Cody landed feet first into the water and came back up gasping for breath. "Now that's refreshing." Cody at least got one of his wishes from earlier. He was going to get the chance to get clean and apparently stay that way until they got out of here. "Where is everyone? And who all's down here?" He only wished he could see. "We're over here. Swim to my voice," Teaspoon called. "There are eighteen people down here Cody. Sam, Seth and the rest of his men..." "Hey Cody," Sam spoke up softly. "Rachel, Ike, me and Alex," Teaspoon continued. "Whose up there is the more important question." "About sixty or more men with a lot of fire power and a hell of a score to settle," Cody replied evenly as he swam to where Teaspoon was. "Jimmy and Lou are up there talking to Simmons' brother." "You can't be serious," Sam piped in. They had been thrown in here with out so much as an explanation for what was happening. Now it was becoming painfully clear that vengeance was in the mix. "They have everyone then." There was a thump against the wall and Cody felt someone grab him. He was about to fight who ever it was off when he realized by the frantic symbols being signed into his hand that it was Ike. Cody laughed at what he was getting from Ike. "They don't have everyone," he finally said. "Who's missing?" Seth, Sam's deputy, asked quickly. "Buck's still free," Rachel said before Cody could get it out as soon as she realized what was going on. "I tried to make enough noise to wake him before they got to the bunkhouse." "Still what can one man do to get us all out?" Seth asked softly. "Hey it's the only man that knows where we all are," Cody retorted in Buck's defense. "How do you know he knows where we are...you said you left him at the station," Seth called back this time angling the comment at Rachel. "Ah trust me Buck's followed them. He knows where we are. He just has to get enough people to come back and get us out. Either that or we have to scale these walls." Cody looked up the sixty-foot drop with a nervous laugh. "Arm ourselves," he continued, "rescue Jimmy and Lou, and somehow ride out of here all on our lonesome." He leaned back against the wall as the graveness of the situation sank in. "I'm liking either plan at the moment but anyone with a better one might want to speak up." Silence reigned. To Be Continued... Email Amara HOME