PROCESS OF ELIMINATION

Ezra Standish FanFic

It was a cool day in Four Corners, but it as actually warn for February. Things had

been very quiet in town for the last few months. The seven men hired to protect the town, found

they needed to find "other" things to do with their time. Josiah had no problem with that, he was

continuing repairs on the church. There was plenty to be done on the church still. Quite often

Nathan would come over and help him. Nathan had been spending a lot of time out at the

reservation, the Indians had been having a lot of sickness so far this winter. Although it was

somewhat warm today, it had been a very cold winter, and the Indians didn't have much to keep

them warm. Chris had been traveling around to some of the near by towns, including Purgatory,

trying to find more about who might have killed his wife and son. He wasn't having much luck.

Vin had been doing odd jobs around town, none of which were much fun. He had helped Mary

make some improvements at the newspaper office, he also had helped Josiah on occasion at the

church. JD was still doing his Sheriff duties, but that was pretty boring too. Buck, as usual, was

spending most of his time with the saloon girls, on occasion he would ride with Chris when he

went looking for information. Ezra, well Ezra was Ezra, he had been just spending his days

playing poker, but just recently, he had learned of an abandoned gold mine up in the mountains.

It was about 2 hours away and Ezra was making plans to go investigate it's potential for profit.

He could never pass up the "opportunity" to strike gold.

Ezra had been very bored of late, his choice of poker companions was becoming quite

loathsome. That all changed when a gentleman he was playing poker with had told about the

gold mine. He had only told Ezra, because he lost at poker and had nothing else to offer, not to

mention the look on Ezra's face when he told him he had nothing to offer, really scared him.

Ezra's emerald green eyes had blazed at him when he learned he could not honor his bet. The

man, who was an offish curmudgeon, had set his trap perfectly. This fancy talkin' gambler had

no idea that it was a setup. He was thrilled that he was conning a con man. They had decided to

try getting Ezra Standish first, because he would be the hardest to trick, but so far it was very easy.

Just mentioning gold had roped him in.

The men that were setting Ezra up were hired by the local cattle ranchers, who wanted

all the settlers out. Guy Royal was the leader of this group. He decided the best way to handle

the seven men that protected Four Corners, was to eliminate them one at a time. If it was done

right, no one would suspect anything until it was too late. Guy Royal was the one who thought

up the plan to "take care of the gambler". He knew, by the fine clothes he wore and his previous

encounters with Ezra, that "the gold mine" ruse would work.

Ezra was packing his leather saddlebags with some provisions for his trek to the gold mine.

Ordinarily he would not take something like this at face value, the mine was most likely empty,

but he was bored and this gave him something to do. He liked the idea of getting out of town

for the day too. He was relatively sure he would be back by days end, unless he found something,

which he really didn't think he would. He had his red jacket on because it was the warmest one

he had. He mounted Chaucer and was off, he stopped briefly to tell JD "Mr. Dunn, I am on my

way to investigate an abandoned gold mine, I was informed about, I should be back by days end."

he said. JD just smiled and waved as Ezra rode away.

Ezra had been riding for at least a couple of hours now, he was starting to think the man

had been fabricating the entire story. He continued to ride, following the explicit directions he

had been given. Suddenly, as he came around some large rocks, he spotted the opening to the mine.

He stopped at the opening, dismounted Chaucer, and smiled a big bright smile that showed his

gold tooth, which glinted in the sunlight. He took his saddlebags off of Chaucer and flung them

over his shoulder, then he pulled his torch out from Chaucer's saddle, took a match, and lit the

torch. He turned and went into the mine. He got about twenty paces inside when he stopped

short, there was a very deep shaft right in front of him. He decided it was a very good thing that

he spotted it in time, for he would have been seriously injured, maybe even killed, if he had fallen

in it. Suddenly someone came up behind him and pushed him into the shaft, before he even knew

what was happening. He felt like he was falling forever, the thought that came into his mind was,

"this is going to be bad". He finally hit bottom, very hard, he lost consciousness instantly as his

head and right side of his body hit the ground. His right arm was broken in at least two places,

he had at least four or five broken ribs, his hip and leg were badly bruised, and his head had a

huge gash on the side and it was bleeding heavily.

Ezra finally regained consciousness, but he had no idea how long he had been there, and

was confused about what had happened and where he was. If it had not been for the fact that his

torch was still burning, it would have been pitch black. The torch still seemed so bright, but that

was because those green eyes of his were slightly dialated from the severe concussion he had

suffered. He tried to move, a big mistake, the pain that rocked his body was so excruciating, it

made him pass out again. When he woke again, the torch was out, it had burned itself out. He

knew it must have been several hours at least, since he was last conscious. This time he moved

very slowly, the pain was still tremendous, but he was ready for it this time. He managed to grab

his saddlebags with his left hand and pull them to him. He managed to get one open with his

flexible fingers. It had not been easy, his right arm was completely useless and hurting something

awful. The energy it took to open the saddlebag wiped him out. Every movement caused intense

pain, especially his ribs. He was starting to shake all over and that made things worse. He tried to

make the shaking stop, but it was no use, he could not stop it. So he went back to the saddlebags,

he was trying to get his flask out of it, he hoped a few swigs of brandy would ease the pain and

the shakes. He wanted to sleep badly, but made himself stay awake. He needed to find a way

out of this predicament. He finally found his flask and actually emptied it, he was very thirsty

and the brandy felt warm. He put his left hand to the right side of his head, it hurt so bad, he

felt a great deal of moisture. God, he was bleeding and heavily. He had to do something about

that and fast, he could not afford to lose too much blood. He went back to the saddlebags and

pulled out a spare shirt he had brought in case he was gone longer than he expected. He hated

to ruin a good shirt, but this was too important. All the shirts in the world wouldn't matter if he

was dead. It was so dark that he had to feel what he was doing, but he managed to get the shirt

and with and with his left hand and teeth managed to tear one of the sleeves off, then the other.

He balled up one sleeve and put it to his head to try and stop the bleeding, the next part was going

to be very hard with only one hand to use, he put one end of the other sleeve in his mouth, then

took the other end with his hand and wrapped it around his head. All of this movement was

hurting tremendously and he was getting extremely tired. By the time he managed to secure the

sleeve around his head, he was too weak to do anything else. He drifted off to sleep.

It was noon the next day and JD was beginning to worry about Ezra, he had said he

should be back by days end yesterday. He was hesitant to say anything yet, because Ezra wasn't

that late yet. Ezra might have found something in the mine, that would have kept him longer.

He would give it a few more hours, then he would tell the others. JD knew Chris was about to

head out of town, he had gotten a tip about the man responsible for killing his family. The

strange old man had told Chris about a man, that he overheard, talking about the crime. JD

knew he should tell Chris and the others about Ezra being way overdue before Chris left. He

figured Chris wouldn't be that worried about Ezra, but he wanted to tell him anyway.

Guy Royal was quite pleased with how things were going. That Gambler, Ezra, had taken

the bait and according to his men, he was taken care of. He did send two men back to make sure,

he wasn't taking any chances. Now Chris Larabee had also taken the bait that he set out for

him. If he could get Chris Larabee out of the way, the hardest part would be over. The others

would be easier. He was anxiously awaiting a report from the two men he sent back to the mine

to make sure Standish was dead, but they were just arriving at the mine.

The two men went inside the mine to where the shaft was, the first man said "this guy

has got to be dead, that is too long a drop, no one could survive that." the other said "well, I'm

not going to disobey Mr. Royal. He wants to be sure this ones dead so he can move on to the

next one." The first man then said "yeah, Mr. Royal would be real mad if we didn't make sure,

he wants to be rid of those seven men as quick as possible." "Yep" the other said. They stepped

up to the shaft and shined the torch down into it. The light didn't really go all the way down to

the bottom. They could vaguely see the bottom and they saw no movement and heard nothing.

They were satisfied that he was dead. "lets get out of here" the first man said "I'm for that,

this place gives me the creeps." said the other. They turned and left the mine believing Ezra was

dead.

Ezra had heard the men above, the sound really carried in the mine. He stayed completely

still, so as not to make any noise. He listened to every word and he was shocked at what he heard.

He had to get out of here and warn the others, before someone else got hurt or killed. The

problem was, he had no earthy idea how he was going to get out of this deep shaft that he was in,

in the condition that he is in. His injuries were going to greatly hinder his attempts to extricate

himself from this hell hole. He was in so much pain just lying here not moving, what was it

going to be like trying to move, and how was he to get out anyway.

The two men reported back to Mr. Royal. It was most excellent news, the Standish fellow

was indeed dead. This made him very happy indeed. The plans he had for Larabee were in

motion now, so all he could do was wait for Larabee to ride into the trap. He hated waiting more

than anything else. Back in Four Corners, Chris was getting ready to leave, all the men were

together, except for Ezra, so JD decided to tell them about Ezra being so overdue. "hey guys, I'm

real worried about Ezra, he was supposed to be back by the end of the day yesterday." he said

The others expressions were ones of indifference, "he can take care of himself JD, he'll show up

sooner or later." Chris said. JD nodded, what could he do, if the others weren't concerned then

maybe he was just being overly concerned. He waved to Chris as he got on his horse and rode off.

Ezra's sharp mind was working, which wasn't easy, since his head hurt so bad and he

just wanted to sleep, boy did he want to sleep, but he knew there was no time for that now, he had to

get out and get to the others. He was trying to think of a way out . He decided to try and dig

foot and hand holds in the dirt wall of the shaft and try to climb out that way. He wasn't sure if

he could do it with only one hand to use, but he had to try. He tried to get up, but it was very

difficult, the cold was making him very stiff and that made the pain worse. He finally managed

to get to his feet, but his leg and hip hurt very bad. He forced himself to stand despite the pain.

He began to feel around on the side of the shaft for a soft place to dig a good foot hold. After

a few minutes of probing he found a good spot. He started digging with his left hand, God he

he hated digging in the dirt, it was so beneath him, but in this case it was, do it or he and possibly

the others as well, would die. He dug as far into the dirt as he could for each hole, so he would

have plenty of support. He got about five holes made, going up the side as far as he could reach,

then began to climb slowly, he had to lean against the wall and brace himself as he moved his hand

from one hole to the next. When he got to the top hole he stopped. He had to start making new

holes above him, this was a very difficult task to undertake, because he had to lean against the

side, dig with his left hand, and not lose his balance. All of this caused a great deal of pain,

but he was trying to put it out of his mind, for it was too important for him to get out of there and

warn the others. He continued his progress and it was actually going quite well. He was at least

half way up. He imagined that this was taking hours, and it was. He was determined and he knew

there was no time to spare, for he knew the others were in immediate danger. He climbed a little

higher, then disaster struck, his hand slipped out of the hole, which caused him to lose his balance,

he plummeted back to the bottom in a bone crunching thud. He was unconscious again and to

top it all off, he suffered additional injuries. On top of the injuries he already had, he added more

broken ribs, another blow to the head, which got him bleeding again, and he now had a gash on

his right leg that was quite large. He would not regain consciousness for quite some time. Meanwhile Chris was headed right into the middle of his own trap that was set for

him. He got to the ranch that the old man had told him about, but it didn't look like anyone was

around. He got off of his horse, eyeing the area very closely. He carefully went up to the house

and he knocked on the door, but no one answered. He drew his gun, flung the door open, and

looked around, no sign of anyone and it looked like no one had been there in a long time. Chris

had a very bad feeling, this was a trap, he told himself. He cautiously started back to his horse,

looking all around as he went, he made it back to his horse and got on, just then a shot rang out

and a bullet ripped through his left shoulder. He was knocked off of his horse, which made his

horse bolt. Chris lay unconscious on the ground, his horse ran off, leaving Chris alone. Chris

was bleeding heavily when the man that shot him came over, checked him out, and left. The

shooter thought, If he isn't dead now, he would be soon enough, the way he was bleeding.

A short time later, Chris woke up, he was in a lot of pain, but he knew he needed to get

into the shelter of the house and take of his wound. He slowly lifted his head and looked around

to see if the person that shot him was still around, he saw no one. He got up holding his left

shoulder and made his way to the house. As he walked he saw no sign of his horse either. Great

he thought, I'm stuck out here. He went into the house and sat in a chair, the house still had

all it's furnishings, which was strange, but that didn't matter now. He took his duster and shirt

off, got a rag from the kitchen area of the house and wet it with water from his canteen, which he

had taken off of his horse when he went to the house the first time. Then he pressed the rag to his

wound, which hurt like hell, but he had to get the bleeding stopped . He managed to get the

bleeding to stop, but not before he lost a lot of blood. He used the other rags there to make a

poor excuse for a bandage, but it was better than nothing. He put his shirt back on and lay down

on the cot, he needed rest before he attempted to get back to Four Corners without his horse. He

was also kicking himself for falling for something so obvious. His desire to find his families

killer had blinded him.

He was about to drift off to sleep, when a terrifying thought entered his mind, Ezra! Ezra

had gone off after getting a "tip"on a gold mine and now he was overdue. What if the same thing

happened to him? Lord he hoped not. Deep down though, he truly feared that Ezra was dead.

Surprisingly, that made him sad. Ezra was a con man, but he had saved the day on many occasions

and none au the others, including himself, had ever shown him any appreciation. Now that he

thought about it, that's probably what Ezra needed most, was some show of support and trust by

the others. He found himself feeling very guilty for treating Ezra the way they had all treated

him, which was, totally taking him for granted. He finally fell asleep and it was a deep sleep.

The man that Guy Royal had sent to kill Larabee returned and reported that the deed

was done. This made Guy Royal very happy"your positive that he's dead?" he asked the man.

"yes, I checked him myself." the man lied. Guy Royal smiled and thought, this means there were

two down and five to go. He was fairly certain that he would not have to deal with all seven, once

three or four of them were gone, the others would just split up and leave. He was a very happy

man right now and was starting to think about his next target, he would be easy, he thought, since

he is wanted dead or alive. Vin Tanner was his easiest target, or so he thought. Once he was taken

care of, he felt certain the others would just go their separate ways. He didn't know these men

very well.

After many hours, Ezra woke up again, he instantly experienced excruciating pain.

He slowly moved to try and get his bearings and see what new and wonderful injuries he had

sustained. A new swollen area on his head, this one wasn't split open at least, definitely more

broken ribs, and a gash on his leg. "good lord, how did I get that?" he asked himself. He looked

around slowly, because his head was swimming and hurt like hell. There was a piece of wood

sticking out of a support beam, just above his head. He could barely see it in the dark, but there

was a small piece of his pants leg on it. That was the culprit. He found that he was somewhat

delirious, but that wasn't surprising, after all, it seemed like his entire head was swollen and

bruised, and perhaps it was. He took a deep breath, which hurt his ribs something awful, and

forced himself to focus. He was more determined than ever to get out of this damn shaft. He

slowly stood up, his right leg hurt more than ever now, it was bleeding horrendously too. He

carefully made his way over to the side and started climbing again. It was easier this time,

because the holes were already there. He got back to where he was when he fell and stopped.

He was going to go very slowly and very carefully now. He was not going to fall again. He slowly

and cautiously started digging new holes and working his way up. He was getting excited, because

he could see light, from outside, only about ten to twenty feet above him, he was almost at the top.

After another half an hour of climbing he finally reached the top, but pulling himself out would

not be easy, with nothing to grab a hold of and only one arm useable, it took him some time, but

he was finally out, thank the lord. He just lay there on the ground for a time, then actually fell

asleep, all of his already limited energy completely spent.

Vin and Buck were both starting to really worry about Chris, it shouldn't have taken this

long to go out to that ranch and talk to that man. Vin was angry with himself for not getting more

information about where Chris was going. He could try looking for Chris, but with all the tracks

in and out of town it would be hard to pick Chris's out. All they could do was wait. JD joined them

and said, "hey, have either of you seen Ezra? He was due back by this time yesterday, and he

didn't take much with him, so I know he didn't intend to be gone this long." The three men all just

looked at each other and got really bad feelings in the pits of their stomach's. "No, and now Chris

is overdue too, I am really startin to get a bad feeling about this, first Ezra and now Chris." Buck

said, "does seem interestin, them both disappearin like that." Vin said. "I think we should get the

others and see if we can't figure out what is going on here." Buck suggested. The other two men

nodded and they went off to find the others.

Chris had slept for several hours, when he woke, he found he was very stiff and his shoulder

hurt like hell. He decided that he should get going, he wasn't getting any closer to town sitting

around here. He also thought, if Ezra had fallen into a similar trap, and hadn't been killed, then

time would be of the essence in trying to save him. He put his duster on, picked up his canteen,

and headed out the door. This was going to be a very long walk, he thought. His mind kept going

back to Ezra, he should have taken JD's concerns about Ezra more seriously, but he had shrugged

it off, because he was too anxious to get his answers. So he thought about poor Ezra out here

somewhere either hurt or dead. He felt incredibly guilty, he was more determined than ever to

get back, so they could start looking for him. He couldn't push himself too hard, he had lost a lot

of blood after all and he didn't want to start bleeding again.

Ezra felt something touch his face, that made him jump in surprise, the sudden movement

sent a wave of excruciating pain through his body. He opened his eyes to see Chaucer standing

over him. What a sight for these sore green eyes, his best friend in the whole world had come for

him. That thought made him smile a little, and he said to Chaucer, "I am so very glad to see you

my old friend." Chaucer whinnied a little in return. Ezra tried to slowly get up, but the time he

had been asleep had stiffened him up tremendously, so he was having great difficulty. He thought,

if I can't even stand, how am I ever going to mount Chaucer and get back to town. This was

going to be a very painful endeavor, he realized that he was going to have to proceed slowly, to

minimize the pain and any further injuries. He used the side of the mine to help pull himself up

to his feet. Thankfully he did not need his right leg to mount Chaucer, but swinging it over

Chaucer's back would be a painful endeavor. Chaucer, thankfully helped the best he could, by

standing very still and did not allow himself to be pulled over toward Ezra as he mounted him.

Ezra truly loved his horse and would show him his appreciation for his help, when he was healed.

He knew, the minute he was seated on Chaucer, that he would have to stop often, but he didn't

want to stop at all, because time was of the essence, if he was going to warn the others, he had

a bad feeling that he was probably too late already. It had been a long time since he heard those

two men talking about their plans, about Guy Royal's plans, that man was becoming a real thorn

in the side of Four Corners.

Chris was walking as fast as he could, but was becoming weak and his canteen was almost

empty. He continued on, he had a tremendous urgency in his walk, but it wouldn't do himself or

Ezra any good if he collapsed or died. He saw a rather large cactus up ahead that was producing

a large amount of shade, he sat down in it's shade and rested. He fell asleep thinking that he should

get going again, but his igsustion got the better of him. He woke up a few hours later, the shadows

were growing long, so he knew it was getting late. He thought traveling at night might be better,

but then again there were things that you could not see in the dark that could get you injured or

worse. He decided to continue until it got dark. He took a drink from his canteen, bad news, it

only had maybe one more swallow in it. Then he started off again. It was a good thing it was cold

out or he would be in real trouble, even though, as cold as it would get tonight, he could freeze to

death too.

The remaining five men and Mary Travis, were all gathered at a table in the saloon. Right

now, none of them were saying anything. As each hour passed, they grew more and more worried,

Mary was worried the most, for she had feelings for both men that were missing. Her feelings for

Ezra were different than those for Chris. She could see herself marrying Chris, she loved the idea

of spending her life with him. Ezra on the other hand was an incredibly gorgeous man and she

loved looking at him. She often found herself wondering how it would be to kiss those soft, full

lips of his and be held in his strong, yet tender arms. She wanted to get lost in his green eyes and

his accent just made her melt. It was so sweet, the way he called her Mrs. Travis, instead of Mary,

all the time, he was such a southern gentleman. She almost couldn't believe how often, a little too

often, she had these thoughts of Ezra. She wanted to marry Chris, but she just wanted Ezra. JD

saying, "we should all go out looking for them in the morning, if we all go in different directions,

one of us is bound to find one or both of them." Brought Mary out of her lascivious thoughts of Ezra. "that's a very good idea JD, I will be here if they should return, and I think that Nathan

should remain here as well, that way he can be ready if he should be needed." Mary added. She

could not stand the thought of either of them needing Nathan, but she feared that if they were

not dead, they would most definitely need Nathan. She did not want to think about losing Chris

or Ezra, she really wanted Chris to ask her to marry him, she would be so very happy. She then

thought of Ezra again, hoping he was not physically damaged, for he was a perfect specimen,

and did not want to see him scarred. Sometimes she just ached to know what it would be like

to be "with" Ezra. He seemed like he would be a wonderful and gentle lover. She was almost

shocked that she kept having such thoughts of him, but could not help it.

While Mary was lost in her thoughts of Ezra, the other men were discussing their plans

for the morning, provided Chris and Ezra did not show up in the mean time, which they were quite

certain, now, that they would not. They all knew in their guts that something very bad had happened

to both Chris and Ezra. "Damn, we should have listened to you this morning JD, when you told

us about Ezra, Chris and maybe even Ezra would be here right now." Buck said disgustedly, "we

had no way of knowing something was up Buck." JD said. "yes, but look at the mess we're in now." Buck added. "We had all better get to bed, so we can get an early start lookin for them in the

mornin." Vin said. They all nodded and got up to go to bed. "goodnight, gentleman" Mary said as

they left, they all tipped their hats to her. They could all tell she was very worried. She got up to go

home, it was time for her to go to bed too, but she didn't know that she would sleep.

The man that Guy Royal had in town to watch what the men were doing, showed up at his

place with bad news, the men new something was up, already. "they are planning to go looking for

their two missing friends in the morning." He told Mr. Royal. "that is not good news, but if they

all go off in different directions, then they would each be alone, therefor easier to get rid of, so it

might actually work to our advantage." Mr. Royal told the man. "get four men together and have

them standing by to follow each one as they leave in the morning." he added. The other man

asked, "four, why four? there are five men left." "because I am betting that black fellow, that

calls himself a healer, will stay in town to prepare for injuries." Mr. Royal said. "there won't be

any, those two men are dead." the other said. "Yes, but they don't know that for certain." Royal

chided. "very true, I will do as you ask and put some men together." The other said as he opened

the door and left.

Ezra had been moving along at a very slow pace, every step Chaucer took produced

excruciating pain for him. He was hunched over, almost laying on Chaucer, to reduce the

bouncing as much as possible. He was becoming very tired again and wanted to stop and sleep,

but he knew he shouldn't, his head was pounding and he was becoming dizzy. He didn't want to

fall off of Chaucer, that would make things much worse. He decided that he better stop, as much

as he didn't want to, he had no choice and it was getting dark anyway. He knew it would not be

safe to travel in the dark when he could not see where he was going. He carefully dismounted

Chaucer and tried to find some firewood. He had no blanket and he knew it was going to be very

cold tonight, for it was already getting very cold. As warm as his red jacket was, it would not

keep him warm enough tonight, he had to have a fire or he would probably freeze to death. He

already felt like he would starve to death, but he had no desire or energy to eat, he was in too much

pain to care about much. He knew he would live if he didn't eat, but not if he didn't get a fire

going. He gathered up a fairly good pile of wood with his good arm, limping badly the whole time,

found the softest place he could find and settled in with a pretty good fire. It was going to be a

rough night, the hard ground was going to be horrendous on his injuries and he will be stiff in the

morning. He made himself as comfortable as possible, got the fire going hot, put the pile of wood

close by, and drifted off to sleep.

At that same time, Chris was also settling in for the night, but he had not been as lucky

with firewood. He had a small pile, but knew it would not last long. He was now worried that he

might freeze to death during the night. He pulled his duster around him as tight as he could, got

the fire going, and tried to add to it as slowly as possible, so he could make the wood last. About

an hour later he drifted off to sleep, the fire was burning very small. In another hour the fire was

out and Chris was shivering badly. He would not regain consciousness for a very long time.

Mary went to bed that night with a very heavy heart, she was afraid the two men she

cared about the most, were dead. She tried to sleep, but could not, her mind was filled with thought's

of, first Chris, who was the first man she had felt like she wanted to marry and spend her life with,

since her husband died. Then to Ezra, who she wanted only in a physical way, but it was strong

and she felt as if she would explode if she didn't confront these physical desires for him. She was

really beginning to wish she had shared these desires with Ezra, but she was terrified that he would

not feel the same way and if he didn't, her embarrassment would be overwhelming. Right now all

she wanted was for the man she loved and the man she desired to both be back in her life and none

the worse for wear. She was certain that would not happen. The thought of never seeing Chris or

Ezra, with his beautiful green eyes, again, broke her heart. She fell asleep crying.

Guy Royal had his men in place and they would follow each of the hired guns as they left

town to search for the missing members of their gang. They had been instructed to make their

move to kill each one, when they were far enough out of town and it seemed like the best chance

for success. The men were excited, it was a chance to be rid of the men that had actually become

somewhat famous in the territory. That could make them famous then too. They were all waiting

in the shadows, waiting for the sun to come up, which would be very soon now. Each one would

pick a man and follow them as they left town, they hated waiting.

Vin and Buck were the first to arrive at the saloon in the morning, "Mornin Vin" Buck

said. "that remains to be seen." Vin replied. "I hate this Vin, Chris and Ezra could be dead, and

if they aren't, well there's a hell of a lot of ground to cover out there." Buck said. "yeah Buck, we

have to just hope that we get lucky and find, one or both of them." Vin said. Then JD and Josiah

walked in, "Nathan has his place set up, in case we find them injured." Josiah said. "well, as

much as I hate to say this, I think we will either find them dead or seriously injured, if we

find then at all." Buck said with a heavy heart. He had been friends with Chris for a long time

and he had started to become close with Ezra lately too. Ezra was someone he could have fun with

and joke around with, if he were dead, he would miss him almost as much as he would miss Chris.

Vin brought him out of his thought's by tapping him on the shoulder. "Buck? you all right?" Vin

asked. "yeah, just thinkin bout Chris and Ezra, Ezra was really starting to become a good friend."

Buck replied, "Hey, Buck don't give up yet, they are both tough men and can take care of

themselves, they are still alive, I know they are." JD said. "you keep that attitude kid, we will need

it." Buck replied. They all agreed on which way they would each go. "lets ride boys, times a wastin"

Vin said. They all walked out of the saloon and headed for the livery. They ran into Mary on the

way, she brought each of them a pouch. She said "Nathan has put some basic medical supplies in

these, in case you find them and they need some immediate attention." "Thanks Mary, and don't

worry, everything wil be all right." Buck said, he could see the pain on her face. She was obviously

very worried. He assumed it was about Chris, but he had no idea about her feelings for Ezra. They

took the pouches, saddled up, and rode out of town, all going in different directions.

Mary watched as each man rode off in search of the two men she cared about the most in

her life. She had not felt this sad since her husband died, to have so few men in her life, her husband,

Chris, and Ezra, were about the only men she had really cared about. To have them all die, that

ripped at her insides. She needed Chris in her life and she wanted Ezra in the worst way, but that

was something, she was fairly certain, would never happen, even if Ezra was OK, she did not believe

he felt the same way for her, but that did not change her desires for him. She began to cry as all

these feelings for the two men came rushing up at her, she could not help how she felt, but she was

so sad at the way this was all going. She fought back the tears, got herself under control, and went

to help Nathan at the clinic.

The morning was not good for Ezra, as he feared, the ground had made him very stiff and

it felt like his broken ribs were digging into his insides. He hurt worse than he had ever hurt in his

life. The pain was so bad, especially his head, that he just wanted to curl up and die, but he knew

he couldn't, he had to get to town. He forced himself to stand up. He got to his feet and was very

unsteady, he reached out and put his left hand on Chaucer to steady himself, his right arm hurt

something awful and was looking rather abnormal. He carefully mounted Chaucer and began the

slow ride, that caused so much pain. Thankfully his friend, Chaucer, was being very careful, he

knew his master was in bad shape. Ezra was just about laying in the saddle, instead of sitting, he

would just love to go back to sleep, but he knew if he did, he would fall off of Chaucer and that

was unacceptable. He rode on in the dim morning light.

Each of the four men that were to follow the hired guns, picked their man and started

following at what they thought to be a safe distance to avoid detection. Vin went west of town,

Buck went east, JD went north, and Josiah headed south. They all prayed that they would find

some sign of Chris or Ezra, but since they didn't know what direction either of them went, it was

going to be like searching for a needle, or in this case two needles, in a haystack. Little did any

of them know, both Ezra and Chris had gone in the same direction, Ezra had just gone a little further.

None of then had gone in their direction, they had gone to the northwest, so they were between

Vin and JD. They would both miss Chris and Ezra completely. Vin was the first to figure out he

was being followed, he carefully looked to see who was behind him. He didn't recognize the man,

but thought he worked for Guy Royal. Guy Royal, he thought, he would definitely be someone

who would like the seven men out of the way. Could he be responsible for Chris and Ezra's

disappearance? he thought so. He managed to hide behind some rocks, then when the man came

by, he jumped him. Vin was quick, but the other man still got his gun out, Vin fought with him for

it and it went off, the man fell to the ground dead. "Damn" Vin said to himself, he wasn't going to

get any information out of him now. He got back on his horse and continued the search, feeling

much more worried than he had been. Buck was the next to figure out he had a tail, he circled

around and came up from behind, "why are you followin me?" he asked the man, who jumped at

the sound of his voice, then drew his gun, Buck dropped him before he could even swing around.

He was dead, but Buck didn't care, whatever reason he was following Buck, it didn't matter now,

he continued his search. JD almost didn't realize he was being followed until it was too late, the

man had his gun drawn and ready to shoot, when JD saw the gun glinting in the sun, JD ducked

and the bullet flew past, hitting a cactus. JD had his gun out and was firing immediately,

another of Guy Royal's men dead. JD took a moment to ponder why he was being followed and

shot at, couldn't come up with anything, so he continued the search. Josiah had some divine

intervention with his man. Just as he was about to shoot Josiah, his horse spotted a snake and

bolted, the man was thrown from his horse, his gun went off, which alerted Josiah to his presence,

and landed on the ground with a broken neck. The last of Guy Royal's men was now dead. Josiah

wasn't aware that the man was trying to shoot him, so he didn't think much of it. He went over

to the man , knelt down, gave him a little prayer, then got back on his horse and continued the

search.

Ezra had been moving slowly, trying to stay conscious, because the ride was just so

painful, that he almost lost consciousness several times. He had been traveling for several hours

now and felt he was ready for a break. He saw a large outcropping of rocks up ahead that was

providing ample shade, as he got closer, he thought he saw a man lying in the shade. He figured

he must be Delirious. When he finally reached the rocks, he managed to carefully dismount

Chaucer and limp over to the rocks, he truly felt he would collapse at any moment. He realized

that he hadn't been delirious, there was a man lying in the shade, and to his shock, it was Mr.

Larabee. He sat down next to Chris and tried to see if he were alive, he was, but he was out cold.

He slapped Chris on the face, not hard, just enough to wake him. After about three slaps, Chris

grabbed Ezra's arm to keep him from slapping him again. Chris looked at Ezra with heavy lidded

eyes, shock and guilt growing in them at Ezra's appearance. He had never seen anyone who looked

as bad as Ezra did right now. "my god Ezra, what happened to you?" he whispered. "I was about

to inquire the same thing of you Mr. Larabee." Ezra replied weakly. They sat for a while not

speaking, just resting. Chris looked very weak and pale, "are you in any shape to travel, Mr.

Larabee." Ezra asked. 'once I'm on the horse I should be fine." he said. " good, because we have

to get back to town post haste, Guy Royal is trying to kill us all off, one at a time." Ezra said.

"Yeah, I knew something was up after you disappeared, then I walked into a trap of my own, what

in god's name happened to you Ezra? You look like your in real bad shape." Chris said sadly. "I

was pushed down a mine shaft, then had to try and climb out, which I fell back down into it again,

in my attempt. I finally managed to get out, but the pain I am in is tremendous, the ride on

Chaucer does not help, but we have no choice, we must warn the others." Ezra said. Chris nodded

and said, "I think if we help each other, we can get on Chaucer a little easier." Ezra nodded and they

helped each other mount Chaucer. Chris was in front and Ezra behind. Ezra wanted to be behind,

because Chris was barely able to stay awake, not that he was doing much better. They began

riding, moving faster than Ezra had been before, which was really hurting him.

Mary was becoming more worried, many more hours had passed and still no sign of anyone.

She would give her soul to see Chris and Ezra come riding into town. She didn't expect to see any

of the others for a while yet, there was still a few hours of daylight left. Her mind drifted to Ezra

again, his beautiful green eyes and the way they sparkled, his amazing golden brown skin, that was

so soft, for a man, his gentle, soft hands, his thick, velvety hair, oh lord she "wanted" him so badly.

Every part of his body, that she could see, was perfect, his lips just looked so kiss able. She

imagined that he was an incredible kisser and she really wanted to find out, "really" wanted to

find out. She had never had this kind au purely physical attraction before, she usually loved a man

with her heart, not that she didn't have a place there for Ezra, but she loved Ezra with her hormones.

Ezra just did that to her, but she needed to get rid au them, for she knew, deep down, that nothing,

like she wanted, was ever going to happen with him. She went back into the newspaper office and

tried to find something to distract her.

The others had gone as far as they could, with no luck, and it was getting dark, so they

had all started back to Four Corners. They were all tired, dejected, and more worried than ever.

Vin was casually riding and humming, there was no hurry to get back and perhaps if he took his

time, he would find something he missed before. It was quiet and still, there was a beautiful

sunset that evening too, but none of them could enjoy any of it. JD and Josiah were also taking

their time coming back and, like Vin, taking a slightly different way back, to cover a little more

ground. Buck was the only one that was returning quickly, he wanted to get back, in case Chris

or Ezra, had returned while they were gone. He also took a different route back, but found nothing,

just like the others.

Chris and Ezra were very close to town now, it was getting dark and both men seemed about

to pass out at any moment. They would be in town in less than twenty minutes, Ezra was so very

happy at that thought, he never thought he would be so happy to see that dusty little backwater.

Just then, Chris went limp and Ezra had to fight to keep them both from falling off of Chaucer.

Chris's limp body was heavy on Ezra and it put weight on his broken bones. He moaned in pain as

he tried to support Chris. He got Chaucer going faster, but that only served to add that much more

pain to Ezra. He struggled to stay conscious himself, as he rode as fast as he could. Fifteen minutes

later he was at the edge of town, someone started yelling that they were there. The sounds were

becoming distant, he continued to ride into town. Mary heard the yelling and ran out of the

newspaper office, she looked up the street in the direction of the yelling, saw a horse with two riders

on it, they looked half dead. Her heart leaped, she was so glad that they were back, but they looked

like they could still die. She ran up the street and was joined by Nathan, who had a medical bag

in his hand. "They look really bad, Nathan." Mary said with great concern. "Yes they do, lets hope

they are not too seriously injured. I would hate for them to make it all this way, just to die." Nathan

responded. They reached Chris and Ezra on Chaucer and Mary almost fainted at Ezra's appearance,

My god, she thought, what in god's name happened to him, she could see Chris had been shot and

was unconscious, she looked at him very worried, but Ezra was who she was really worried about,

he looked so awful, his right arm was obviously broken, his head was swollen and the bandage on

it was bloody, and his leg was bloody from a large gash on it, that looked infected. Ezra said "If

you would be so kind as to take Chris, please Mr. Jackson?" Nathan reached up and helped slide

Chris off the horse and down on the ground. He looked back to Ezra and said, "Now you Ezra, down

off of that horse, before you fall off." "I can't, I must warn the others of Guy Royal's plans to kill

all of us off, one at a time." Ezra said very weakly. Nathan looked at Mary with shock on his face,

Guy Royal, they should have know he would be up to no good, she looked at him with concern, "the

others are all out there alone, they could have already been killed. " she said, "Lets hope not, but

we can't worry about that right now, we have to take care au these two. Chris just has a bullet

wound, he lost a lot au blood is all, he will be fine with some rest, but Ezra is in bad shape." Nathan

commented with concern. Ezra started to move, to continue riding, Mary was amazed at his

determination to help the others, even in the shape he's in. It made her love him in a new way.

Ezra had heard little of what Mary and Nathan were saying, it was all so distant and his

vision was blurry, but he knew he had to warn the others. He started to move to find the others, but

he could not stay conscious any longer. He fell off Chaucer and into Nathan and Mary's arms. They

carefully laid him on the ground and started looking him over. He was not aware of anything at

this point. After Nathan looked him over he stood and looked at Mary, " He is in incredibly bad

shape, I don't know how in god's name he made it back here, especially with an unconscious Chris

in his arms. He has at least half a dozen broken ribs, his right arm is broken in several places, not

only does he have this gash on his right leg, that looks infected, but the leg and hip are badly bruised,

and his head has taken several severe blows, one of which has bled heavily." Nathan told her.

Mary wanted to cry, she was heartbroken at the way Ezra looked, she feared he might die and she

knew she needed to find a time to tell him how she felt about him, before he died. "Is Ezra going to

die?" she asked Nathan. "I don't know yet, I hope not, but he will need a great deal of attention

and time to heal." He told her with regret. "I will help you in any way I can." She said. Nathan

looked at her a little puzzled, he knew she had feelings for Chris, they all knew that, but he got

the distinct impression that she had strong feelings for Ezra. "Are you in love with Ezra?" he asked

Mary looked at him stunned, "Is it that obvious." she said quietly. Nathan just nodded. Some men

came over and helped them get Chris and Ezra to the clinic.

Nathan was tending to Chris's bullet wound, while Mary worked, very gently, to clean up

Ezra's wounds and get all the dirt off of him. She looked at his unconscious face, which still looked

incredibly handsome, despite all his injuries. She wanted to kiss him so badly right now, but she

knew that now was not the time. About an hour later, Chris's wound was taken care of and he was

beginning to regain consciousness. Nathan had gotten Ezra's bones set as best he could, disinfected

his wounds and dressed them. There wasn't much more they could do for him, but let him heal. Mary went to Chris as he woke up, she smiled down at him and said, "Glad to have you back Chris, we were

all worried about you and Ezra." she looked at Ezra as she said it. "How is he? he looked so awful

when he found me, I guess I passed out at some point." Chris whispered. "He is not good Chris, he

rode into town with your unconscious body in his arms and collapsed just after we got you off of the

horse. He has not moved since and he has so many broken bones." she advised. Something about

the way she said all that made Chris take a close look at her, was that love he saw in her eyes, for

Ezra? he said "do you love Ezra, Mary?" she looked at him, knowing that she loved Chris as someone

she wanted to marry, but she also loved Ezra. "I care about Ezra, just as I care about all of the men"

she said, which wasn't a total lie. Chris sat up and tried to stand up, Nathan came over and told

him to lay back down, Chris was stubborn. "I want to go to my own place, I can sleep there and I

will be out of the way, to give you more room to work on Ezra, he saved my life and I owe him" Chris

admitted. Nathan agreed, but said "You can go to your place, but I am going to help you." Nathan

said, then turned to Mary and added "You can watch Ezra for a few minutes, can't you?" "of course

I can, go ahead Nathan, I will see you later Chris, get lots of rest." "goodnight Mary, I will be by

tomorrow to check on Ezra." Chris said as he and Nathan headed out the door. About five minutes

after Nathan left, Ezra woke up, but was very groggy and Mary didn't think he would be conscious

for long, she decided that this might be her only opportunity to tell him how she feels. She sat on

the edge of the bed and looked down into those beautiful green eyes, that right now were so full

of pain, and smiled. Ezra looked at her like she wasn't quite there. She could tell he was somewhat

delirious. "Ezra, can you hear me?" she asked. His eyes did focus a little and he looked at her with

relief, "I made it back to town?" he barely mumbled out. Mary's heart nearly broke watching his

confusion. "Yes Ezra, you are in town and you are safe, just rest now and I will be here if you need

me." she said with great tenderness. He closed his eyes and was unconscious again. She could not

help herself, before she got up from his bedside, she leaned over and gave Ezra a gentle and tender

kiss on the lips. He was indeed a good kisser. She smiled, at least she had gotten to do that. She

moved to a chair and just watched him sleeping there.

About two hours after Chris and Ezra had returned, the others began to arrive back in town,

each headed straight for the saloon. Buck was the first one back, because he had been moving at

a faster pace than the others. As soon as he walked into the saloon, a man came up to him and

said, "I bet your glad your friends have returned, they were in bad shape when they got here though."

Buck looked at him and said "which friends? Chris and Ezra?" "Yep" the man said. "where are

they?" Buck demanded. "At the clinic, the last I knew. Chris was unconscious when they arrived,

Ezra had him in his arms, Boy was Ezra ever beat up something awful, I don't think I've ever seen

anyone in that bad of shape, he collapsed just after getting Chris off the horse and down to Nathan."

he told Buck. Buck thanked that man and headed for the clinic. As he crossed the street, Vin rode

up and Buck looked at him with hope, but yet concern, on his face. "What is it Buck?" Vin asked

"They are back, but apparently in bad shape, especially Ezra." he told Vin. Vin dismounted and

walked with Buck to the clinic. When they walked in all they saw at first, was a man laying on the

cot with a splint on his leg and Mary was leaning over him, so they could not tell who it was. Mary

turned as they walked in and then they could see that it was Ezra. The man in the saloon had not

been exaggerating, Ezra looked incredibly bad. Nathan came over to greet them. "Glad your back

fella's, Ezra is in real bad shape. He managed to tell me what happened before he collapsed. He

saved Chris's life and it would seem that Guy Royal was behind everything, he was trying to kill

us all off, one at a time.' The two men were speechless, but Nathan could see the rage building up

in them. "Where's Chris?" Buck asked. "He wanted to go back to his place to sleep and get out

of the way, so we could work on Ezra. Chris will be fine, with some rest." Nathan told them. "What

about Ezra? he looks real bad." Buck asked. "He has at least a half dozen broken ribs, a broken

right arm, badly bruised right leg and hip, a bad gash on his right leg, that is slightly infected, and

several head wounds." Nathan recited. "God, what happened to him?" Vin asked. "according to

Chris, he was pushed down a deep mine shaft and had to really struggle to climb out." Mary said.

The two men looked at her in shock, "That bastard, Guy Royal is going to pay for this." Buck said

A short time later JD and Josiah, showed up at the clinic, when they saw Ezra they both

were completely shocked and saddened, "My god, Guy Royal is responsible for this, I will kill

him with my bare hands," Josiah said, "and I will help you Josiah." JD said, Buck and Vin were

still there. "We are going to head out to his place in the morning, then he will be dead." Buck stated

matter of factly. "we will make him die slowly and painfully for this." Vin said. They all stayed at

the clinic, waiting for Ezra to wake up again so they could get some details from him. Mary told them "He is a hero you know, he saved Chris's life, at great pain to himself, and he dragged himself back

here, so he could warn you about Mr. Royal." Buck had a tear in his eye as he said, "I will make sure

he knows how very grateful we are, we don't tell him that enough." "you are right, Buck, I don't

think we have ever told him that." JD said. They all nodded their agreement. A couple hours later

Ezra did wake again, he was a little more alert this time. "Hey, Pard, how are ya feelin?" Buck asked

with tremendous concern. "I think I will live Mr. Wilmington, thank you." he mumbled. He was

conscious long enough to tell them what happened, but the energy that it took, caused him to drift

off again. Nathan said, "OK guys, he needs all the rest he can get so how about going to bed

yourselves, if we are going after Guy Royal in the morning, then we will all need our rest." The others

nodded their agreement and left Nathan and Mary alone with Ezra. "Nathan, why don't you go get

some rest as well, if there is going to be a fight tomorrow, you may be needed again, I can stay with

Ezra." Mary said. "if your sure you don't mind, I will do that." Nathan replied. Mary nodded for him

to go. He checked Ezra once more, then left to get some sleep.

Mary sat next to Ezra, she carefully took his right hand, being careful not to move his

broken arm, she gently stroked his cheek, which was stubbly, since he had not been able to shave

in several days, but it was still very soft, she definitely preferred him clean shaven. She then

stroked his hair gently, which she had managed to wash carefully, to get the dirt and blood out. He

was so incredibly handsome, she just wanted to "be" with him, but she knew it would not happen.

Suddenly she felt him squeeze her had tightly, she looked at his face and he was looking at her, he

had a very tender look on his face, "I know how you feel about me Mary, I'm sorry that I can't return

those feelings." He said, then put his left hand behind her neck and pulled her in and gave her a

deep kiss that shook her to her soul. She was momentarily speechless. "How did you know?" she

asked. He said softly in a weak voice, "It is written all over your face, my dear, and I am truly sorry

that I do not feel the same way. I do care very much for you, but that is all, you may kiss me again

though if you like. Consider it my way of thanking you for helping me." he said this very softly and

was about to drift off again. Before he could, Mary bent down and kissed him the way she always

wanted to, deeply and passionately. Ezra was asleep again by the time she finished kissing him,

his kiss had not disappointed her, it was even better than she had imagined.

The next morning the men were all together including Chris, but not Ezra, he was still

sleeping deeply at the clinic, with Mary watching over him. Vin and Buck had both tried to get

Chris to stay behind, but he was stubborn, and wanted revenge for himself and Ezra. "I want that

man myself." Chris said, "after what he's done to me and especially to Ezra, I want to kill him

myself." The others all agreed, they had seen Chris that angry before and knew better than to

argue with him. They headed out of town towards Guy Royal's place. When they arrived, Royal's

men were not ready, they had no idea that the hired gunmen were on to Mr. Royal's plans. They

tried to fight but the six men had a jump on them and they dropped like flies. Guy Royal was hiding

in his house, waiting for an opportunity to escape. He would not get one. Chris busted the door

down and grabbed Royal, he took him outside, "Your supposed to be dead." Royal said. "Your men

aren't very good at their jobs, Ezra is not dead either, but you are going to pay for every injury that

Ezra has, and that's a lot." Chris spit out. He decided that, before he kills Royal , he would give him

all the same injuries that Ezra had. He got a large piece of wood and started hitting Royal in the

head, ribs, arm, and leg until he was in as bad of shape as Ezra. He let Royal suffer like that for

a while. The other men were burning his ranch to the ground. Once everything was burned up and

Chris felt Royal had suffered enough to satisfy him, he shot him dead. He couldn't really say he

felt a whole lot better, but Royal would never hurt any of them or the townspeople again.

It was three weeks before Ezra could really be up and around, and another month and a

half before his bones were completely healed. The whole thing was an experience that he would not

forget, no matter how badly he wanted to. The others had been showing him their gratitude, for what

he had done for the last couple of months. He was overwhelmed to say the least, and he felt good,

not just physically but mentally as well. Chris had told Ezra how they had taken care of Guy Royal,

all he could think was, I wouldn't want to get on Chris's bad side. He had to laugh at that. He was

happy now that he could play poker again. He had, had a long conversation with Mary a few days

after they had kissed in the clinic, when he knew a little more of what was going on. She had told

him everything, how she loved and wanted to marry Chris, but had an overwhelming physical desire

for him. He had taken her hand and said "Chris would be better for you anyway, Mary. I am a no

good con man and gambler." She had said, "that's not true Ezra, you are hardly no good, you saved

Chris's life and probably everyone in this town, and you almost died doing it." She had tears in her

eyes. Ezra reached over and wiped one off of her cheek. Then took her face in his hand and gave

her a deep and tender kiss, then said "forget about me Mary, you will only be hurt if you don't, since

I can not return your feelings." She sighed and said " I suppose you are right, but kissing you just

feels so good. I want to remember your kiss for the rest of my life." she said crying again. Ezra felt

bad that she was crying over him, but there was nothing he could do about it. He took her in his

arms, being careful of his broken arm and ribs, and held her tight. That felt wonderful to Mary too.

He was so strong, yet so tender , He kissed her once more, deeply and passionately. He then said

"go now Mary, before we are both sorry." She smiled softly and said "Thank you Ezra, for not

making me feel like a fool." Ezra said " I would never do that to you Mary." She smiled again

then turned and left him. The kisses she had shared with him had helped her to put the thought's

she had for him to rest. That had been a very difficult and tiring day for Ezra, now things were

back to normal and he was happy.

The End

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