[Mag 7 Fic] The Path Less Traveled- PG-13- 3/12
Title: The Path Less Traveled
Author: Jourdana Standish
Fandom: The Magnificent Seven- for the Mag7BigBang
Summary: A young man is desperate to uncover the mystery of his past, sometimes intruded by dreams that he thinks are memories and flashbacks, but none enough to fully remember. His quest to discover who he really is brings him to Four Corners after persuading a woman he has befriended to come with him. What he doesn’t know is that his presence, along with hers, is going to flip the lives of the Seven upside down and nothing will ever be the same again.
Author’s Note: The events in this story take place about six years after the episode “Lady Killers”. There is also a minor link to a previous story I wrote, “Lies Become Unraveled” but you do not need to read that story to read or understand this one. They are separate entities.
I’d like to think my beta reader, masteralida for her services and encouragement while I wrote this. Also thank you so much to my artist, nomooreroo, not only for the great artwork, but for showing so much enthusiasm over the story that it helped motivate me even further to make sure I got it done. It meant a lot to me.
~~
One thing that could be said about the town of Four Corners was that it was a town of changes. Over the past seven years it grew and flourished under the protection of seven men who initially were only meant to stay thirty days. They had all made roots in the town, watching it grow, growing themselves and establishing lives amongst the town’s residents. It was never more obvious as it was today as the town waited with baited breath as one of the protectors became a father for the first time.
The town had already been abuzz as the wedding plans were thriving with each passing day as the wedding date grew closer for Mary Travis and Vin Tanner, but everyone had even paused in those preparations after the official Sheriff of the group, JD Dunne, raced out of the saloon towards the Sheriff’s office.
“It’s time! Chris! Vin! Ezra!” The young man was calling so loudly that he hadn’t needed to run the length of the boardwalk towards the Sheriff’s office to alert the three men inside. Ezra Standish was the first to run out of the Sheriff’s office, quickly followed by Chris Larabee and Vin.
“JD?” Chris had questioned the man.
“Inez said it’s time, Buck’s helpin’ her over to Nath--,” JD started to say but Ezra hadn’t bothered to listen, instead racing to where he saw his wife, Inez Ashford-Standish, being assisted by Buck Wilmington and Casey Wells out of the saloon. Once she disappeared up the stairs into Nathan Jackson’s clinic, everyone began to wait.
“Why is it takin’ so long?” JD demanded, pacing in front of the saloon after a few hours.
“Considerin’ how long Emily was laborin’ with yer son, you gotta ask that?” Vin asked, amusement lacing his tone. It caused JD to blush as he remembered just how long his own wife had been in labor with their first born.
Biologically the child was not JD’s, but it didn’t matter. Emily had been a working girl when she and JD had met, but he had been smitten even then. When she left with Lydia and the other girls from Wikkes town, he never expected to see her again. Just two years ago, she had returned, expecting a baby from one of the men she had been with and no one to turn to. JD had immediately taken her in and the two soon married, JD claiming the baby as his. No one questioned, even though they all knew just by looking at the boy that he wasn’t JD’s; the difference was that JD didn’t care. He loved his wife and his son.
“Any news?” Casey asked as she came up the stairs. After helping Buck with Inez, she had gone to see to her own child. Like JD, the child that Casey now called her own was not hers biologically. Lucy Banitter had been a good friend that Casey had met when her aunt Nettie had sent her to a finishing school out East. The two returned together shortly before Emily came back to town.
JD and Casey had realized that they were nothing more than friends and that’s all they would ever be. With Lucy in town, Casey found herself corralling her best friend as she became a bit of a wild child. Immediately drawn to Buck, as most women were, she found herself pregnant. Buck hadn’t denied being the father and had been at Lucy’s side during the entire pregnancy, but the labor had been hard and Lucy died shortly after giving birth to a dark-haired blue-eyed little girl. Casey had promised Lucy that if anything ever happened to her that she would take care of the baby as if it were her own. Buck and Casey were now raising the little girl together, the man having built a small home near the Wells ranch to be close to his daughter. The other men were starting to wonder if Buck was getting closer to making an honest woman of Casey, and an honest man of himself.
“No, nothing yet,” Josiah said. “It could be--.”
The sound of a child’s cry broke off and they all grinned. They would feel better once they saw Ezra and they knew that Inez was okay as well as the baby. It didn’t take long before Mary Travis came out of the room, having helped Nathan with the delivery. She smiled brightly, letting them breathe a sigh of relief that Inez was okay, as was the baby. She moved over to her fiancé, receiving a kiss. JD was about to say something but the door opened and Ezra stepped out, all smiles and a small bundle firmly cradled in his arms.
“Gentlemen, Ladies,” Ezra said with a grin. “I’d like you to meet mine and Inez’s daughter, Katherine Rosa Ashford-Standish.” The men, along with Mary and Casey, all descended on Ezra to get their first glimpse of the new member of their family.
“She’s beautiful,” Casey said, brushing a finger along the baby’s swaddled foot.
“How’s Inez?” Chris asked, feeling a slight tightening in his chest. One he felt even when JD’s and Buck’s children were born. It made him ache and think of when his own son, Adam, had been born. He’d be close to sixteen now, he thought to himself before forcing himself to shake out of his thoughts and focus on the here and now.
“She’s tired, sore, but deliriously happy,” Ezra said. “I’ve never seen anything more harrowing and terrifying as what my wife went through.”
“Wait ‘til the day comes when Mary and Vin start having their own little ones,” Buck said, grinning. “And it’s your sister going through it.”
“I already have,” Mary reminded Buck with a light laugh.
“Yeah, but Ezra weren’t here and he knows you’re his sister now,” Buck pointed out.
“I’ll worry,” Ezra said. “But somehow I think Vin would protest if I were in the room while his wife were giving birth, even if I am related to her.”
“You only think I would?” Vin quipped with a grin. Ezra chuckled, cradling his newborn daughter close to his chest. His gaze shifted to where he saw Chris slipping away from the group. He immediately look towards Buck, who had also noticed Chris’ motion. The gambler glanced at the former lady’s man, arching a brow. Buck inclined his head, indicating he would make sure all was well, earning a very small nod of acknowledgement from Ezra.
Buck brushed a hand against Casey’s lower back, moving past the group to follow after his longtime friend, letting his long gait eat up the distance to him. Ezra watched them go a moment before drawing himself back to the others and the newborn in his arms.
“You okay, pard?” Buck asked once he caught up to the black-clad gunslinger.
“Yeah,” Chris said, but Buck could still hear the soft longing in his voice. The taller man arched a brow and waited for his friend to speak. Chris sighed softly, a small shake of his head accompanying the spoken words.
“It’s getting harder, Buck. I thought it would get easier as time went on, but with everyone settlin’ down and havin’ their own families... it’s getting harder.”
Buck’s brow furrowed. He reached up and squeezes his friend’s shoulder. “I thought things were getting easier?” he asked, concern coating his words. “That you were movin’ on and such?”
“So did I,” Chris admitted. “But it’s been almost eight years since I lost them. In that time, have you seen me closing to settlin’ down?”
Buck knew better than to bring up Ella Gaines. It was still a sore topic for Chris, hell for all of them, especially since Ella had managed to remain hidden in whatever dank rock she was residing under. Buck also suspected that one of the reasons he hadn’t settled down wasn’t because he couldn’t let the past rest, but because he didn’t want to put another woman in the line of fire while she was still out there. Let alone to start a family with her.
“Hell, pard, you ain’t shown more than passing interest in any woman since the Stokes girls were here six years ago,” Buck said, trying to lighten the mood. Probably not the best way to do it, considering the glare Chris shot him. He put up his hands in defense.
“Just sayin’ that despite all my charms, it was you that seemed to light a fire under Miss Kate’s backside whenever the two of you crossed paths. And I know that little filly stirred something in that stone heart you claim to have,” Buck continued. “I ain’t sayin’ you should go off lookin’ for her, I’m just sayin’ you should remember that you can feel again. And I also understand why you keep yourself at a distance.”
“Regardless of who they are, I can’t put someone else in danger,” Chris said. “It was hard enough losin’ Sarah and Adam when I didn’t know the circumstances. Now... now I know she’s still out there. And the minute I let my guard down to move on, she’s going to strike.”
“Maybe it’s time we go huntin’,” Buck said. “Instead of keep talkin’ about it, we need to actually do it.”
Chris gave Buck an odd look, shaking his head. “No,” he said. Before Buck could open his mouth to protest, Chris cut him off. “Vin is getting ready to marry. Ezra’s daughter was just born. JD has his kids to think of and you’ve got your daughter. Nathan’s practically engaged and Josiah has settled in here with Gloria that I can’t even imagine askin’ any of you to go huntin’ with me. If I make that choice, I’ll go alone.”
“Chris, we’re your friends, your family--.”
“And I know that,” Chris said. “But it ain’t just us anymore, Buck. There are other kids and wives, or soon to be wives, involved now. No way in hell will I be responsible for kids losin’ their fathers or wives and fiancees losing their spouses.”
“That’s an argument for another day, pard,” Buck said. “‘Cause you know that Mary and Inez, at least, would probably disagree. I’m thinking Casey would too, and Gloria. Emily and Maria might protest, but they knew what JD and Nathan did when they met them and fell in love. All the women would worry, but they know we help our own.”
“But I can’t--,” Chris started.
“Chris, pard, stop,” Buck said. “Do you hear yourself? You tried this once before, remember? We didn’t listen then and the ladies we are blessed to have in our lives understand that. They will worry, they will fret, they’ll probably make most of us sleep on the floor the night we’re back, but in the end, they know us enough to know we are going with you. To hell and back if necessary.”
“You got reason to worry about sleepin’ on the floor?” Chris asked after a moment, taking the sudden emotional discussion in a different direction and off of him.
“You know Casey and I--.”
“Are dancin’ around one another like you ain’t interested,” Chris said. “I know I’m not good about takin’ advice, Buck, but I call things like I see them. You know that.” Buck acquiesced a nod in agreement. “Tell her how you feel. You may be surprised by the answer.”
“We’ll see,” Buck dodged, but Chris could see a slight blush on the other man’s face starting to form.
“I’m going to call it a night,” Chris said. “If I’m needed, I’ll be at my homestead. Josiah’s takin’ Nathan’s patrol tonight.”
“Don’t drown yourself, pard,” Buck warned.
“I won’t,” Chris promised. “Haven’t gone down that road in a really long time. I’d like to keep it that way.” With a wave of his hand, Chris headed to the livery to get his horse. Buck watched his friend go, sighing as he turned to rejoin the rest of the group when he saw two figures riding into town. One was much more slight of frame than the other, but the body was hidden in the folds of a duster.
*That duster looks rather fam---.* Buck’s thought was cut off as the smaller of the two turned to say something to the other and he saw two things; the smaller of the two was a woman. And she was a woman that he knew.
“Speak her name and she will appear?” Buck murmured. His feet were already moving before he even realized he was walking over to where Kate Stokes was dismounting her horse near the livery. The person with her had already dismounted and had walked into the livery, most likely to talk to Yosemite.
“Never figured on seein’ you again,” Buck said, breaking into Kate’s thoughts as she rustled through her saddle bag.
Kate lifted her head, almost startled by the familiar deep voice. A part of her was a little surprised that Wilmington remembered who she was and also a little surprised that he was still in town. Though she knew that shouldn’t have surprised her. When she had been here, they had all seemed ready to settle down. Except for Standish, however she had heard he found a reason to stay so the seven men were still here.
“Never figured I’d be back here again,” Kate finally said. “Not sure if I should say it’s good to see you again or not considerin’ the last time.”
Buck crossed his arms over his chest. “You got a point,” Buck said. He gave her a small smile. “Though I do understand the situation you were in. Just tryin’ to save--.”
“Hey Kate, the livery owner said... oh sorry.” Kate couldn’t turn her head to talk to Adam. She was too fascinated by the look on Wilmington’s face as he stared at the boy. It almost scared her how pale he suddenly became as he stared at the boy.
“Kate?” Adam asked.
“Oh... sorry,” Kate said, shaking herself. “Um- this is Buck Wilmington. One of the men I told you about that protects the town.”
Adam stuck out his hand to Buck, trying to determine why he felt as if he should know this man. “Mr. Wilmington,” he said. “I’m Adam Smith.”
Buck took the boy’s hand, giving it a firm shake. He couldn’t help but stare. “It’s... nice to meet you, Adam.”
“Thanks,” Adam said. Buck hadn’t let go of his hand. “Can I have my hand back?”
“Sorry,” Buck said, releasing him. He watched the young man turn to Kate, feeling a punch to his gut. It was impossible, absolutely impossible, but if he didn’t know better he was looking at a ghost. A ghost that had grown into a young man. He shook himself as the boy’s voice penetrated the fog and swamp of memories that began assaulting him.
“--something about a place we can stay, but the price for boarding the horses is pretty reasonable,” Adam was saying.
“If I remember, there was a boarding house down the street,” Kate said in response.
“There... yeah, it’s still there,” Buck finally interjected. “Before you go, Kate, can I talk to ya?”
“Uh... I’ll go see if there are any rooms available,” Adam said. Kate nodded. He gathered their saddlebags and headed down the street. Buck waited until they saw him disappear into the boarding house before whirling on Kate.
“What the hell kind of scheme is this?” he asked hotly.
Kate blinked, taking a physical step back from the man’s ire. “What are you talking about?” she finally asked.
“Who is he, Kate? What kind of trick are you pullin’?” Buck demanded.
Kate’s face screwed up in confusion. “Trick? What? You aren’t making any sense!”
“Who. Is. He.”
“He told you!” Kate said. “His name is Adam Smith.”
“Adam Smith. Right. Then you wanna tell me why that boy is the spittin’ image of Chris Larabee?” Buck asked. “‘Cause I feel like I was just lookin’ at someone that shouldn’t be.”
“That’s what he told me,” Kate snapped. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes a moment to steady herself. “That’s all the name he knows.”
“What?” Buck asked. When Kate opened her eyes, his body was tight with tension and suppressed anger. She supposed she could understand the emotions that he was facing. Of anyone, he was the closest to Larabee.
“All I know is what he’s told me so far,” Kate said. “He said his name is Adam and he took on Smith ‘cause he has no memory of who he is.”
Buck’s shoulders shifted. “No memory?” he asked.
Kate shook her head. “He grew up in some orphanage in Red Fork. ‘Sides his first name, he can’t remember anything before endin’ up there.” She shifted, debating if she should tell him more. She suspected that if she didn’t, it would make things worse. And maybe it would help if Wilmington did know.
“He has nightmares,” Kate said. “Pretty bad ones.”
“He’s just a boy!” Buck immediately imagined the reason why she would know about his nightmares. Seeing the hurt and angry expression forming on her face, he immediately realized his mistake in allowing his mind to go that route.
“Ain’t nothin’ between him and me that’s inappropriate,” Kate growled. “He helps out on my land since I need it and in turn he gets a few coins for the work, a place to sleep in the barn and a place to board his horse. I got some pretty nasty nightmares myself, so sometimes I walk the land. Heard him havin’ one. That’s all.”
“Sorry,” Buck said, holding his hands up. “Was wrong of me to say what I did. I apologize.” He sighed, taking his hat off and running his fingers through the dark locks.
“How did you two end up here then?” Buck asked. “And if he just works for you, why go to the trouble of helpin’ him find answers?”
“That’s why we ended up here. Figured since Red Fork ain’t that far, he could be from here or Eagle Bend. Any of the neighboring towns. He’s tryin’ to find answers were he can,” Kate said. Answering the second question was going to be a bit more difficult because even she didn’t know the answer. Honesty. Was the only way to go right now.
“I don’t know,” she said. “Just feel like I need to help him. No idea why, ain’t like I have a stake in him findin’ out the truth.”
“He really has no idea who he is?” Buck asked.
“That’s what he says, and judging by the nightmares he really doesn’t. He thinks the answers are there, but all he keeps rememberin’ is heat and flames,” Kate said, looking towards the boarding house. She didn’t see Buck jerk his head to look at her with shock written all over his face.
“He was in a fire?” Buck asked.
Kate looked up, seeing the change in his face. She slowly nodded. “I think so, yeah,” she said. “He’s got some scars too. Burn scars on his legs. He just remembers screamin’ for his Ma, he said. Wonders if that’s how his parents died.”
“You know about Chris,” Buck said more than asked.
Kate slowly nodded. “When... when I left here, I found out what I could on all of you. Curiosity I guess. No idea why I really did it,” she said. “When I saw Adam... I could see Larabee in every inch of him. When he told me his story...”
“That why you brought him here?” Buck asked.
“Told you. Brought him here since it’s close to Red Fork and figured he could find answers. We’ve been to Red Fork and Eagle Bend. Shop owner in Eagle Bend suggested coming here because of Larabee,” Kate said. “Buck... Adam’s pissed. Shop owner implied that he was Larabee’s kid. Adam’s got that in his head and thinks he was abandoned now.”
“Chris would never--,” Buck started.
“I know,” Kate said. “Even if I hadn’t read the articles from then, I know just from having met him that he’d never abandon his son if he knew he was alive. Or give up searching if he thought he was. Even told Adam that, but he’s not thinkin’ clearly.”
“I don’t think he’s Adam Larabee,” Buck said. “Despite how he looks.”
“Why?” Kate asked.
“Because when we got back that night, we found two bodies in the burned out ruins of the house.”
“Everything okay?” A new voice asked. Kate looked to see Vin Tanner join them. She registered the shock on his face when he saw her.
“Not sure yet,” Buck said. It caused Kate to sigh when she saw the shock on Vin’s face change to cooled speculation. “No, not necessarily with her. Not like before.”
“Gee, thanks,” Kate murmured.
“I’m confused,” Vin admitted before Buck could say something more. It would seem he was only sticking his foot in his mouth every time he spoke. Kate had to turn away, she didn’t want either man to see how hurt she was at the idea that she wasn’t trusted, berating herself for the emotion because they really had no reason to trust her. She could hear Buck explaining to Vin what he knew so far.
“He ain’t goin’ to try somethin’ stupid like confrontin’ Larabee, is he?” Vin’s voice penetrated the fog.
Kate stiffened. Her protests to Adam about Larabee seemed to go right through him. She hoped that he wasn’t intending what Vin was asking. Slowly she turned and she saw movement as Adam exited the boarding house. He started down the street back in their direction.
“How close were you to the family?” Kate asked Buck absently, watching Adam walk. Her eyes started to unfocus and she saw Chris. She couldn’t help it.
“Chris and I were like brothers. Loved that boy as if he were my nephew,” Buck said. “Why?”
“Let’s just say he is Larabee’s. I know you say he can’t be, but what if he is?” Kate said.
“I... why?” Buck asked.
“Maybe you can help. Adam’s almost within ear shot.”
Vin and Buck both turned at Kate’s statement. Vin didn’t know how Buck had kept it together. Like Kate, he saw Chris in every inch of the boy. He couldn’t even begin to imagine how Buck was feeling at the moment, when he had known Adam Larabee as a child.
It unnerved Adam to no end how the three adults watched his every step as he got closer. Especially Wilmington. He couldn’t pinpoint why, but he felt like he knew him. Like he should know him. He knew that Wilmington was Larabee’s oldest friend. He couldn’t get the words of the store owner from Eagle Bend out of his mind and wondered if that was clouding why he felt he should know Wilmington.
While riding into Four Corners, he realized that Kate was right about going off half-cocked without any information or knowing for certain that Larabee was his father. Words began penetrating his thick-headedness as they rode; Kate telling him how Larabee had come home to find the house burned. Listening to her telling him that Larabee wasn’t the type of man to abandon a son if he had an inkling he was alive. Made Adam realize that maybe, just maybe, he wasn’t Adam Larabee. Or if he was, he was believed to be just as dead as Larabee’s wife. But if *he* was in fact, Adam Larabee, why did Chris Larabee think him dead?
“You look a hundred miles away,” Kate said, breaking into his thoughts.
“Not important,” Adam said a bit too gruffly. He saw the long haired man’s eyebrow quirk towards his hairline and the corner of Wilmington’s lips twitch and wondered what both of those expressions were about.
“Vin, this here is Kate’s farmhand, Adam Smith,” Buck said. “Adam, this here is Vin Tanner.”
Adam hesitated in extending his hand. Would this one not let go like Wilmington had? He finally stuck his hand out, getting a firm handshake and release from the tracker. “Mr. Tanner.”
“Adam,” Vin said. “You can call me Vin. Short of good ole’ Ez, I rarely get called Mr. Tanner.”
“Ez?” Adam couldn’t help but ask. He felt a kinship with Tanner, like he would be a good man to have at his side in a bad situation. He couldn’t describe what he was going through right now. First Wilmington, now Tanner?
“Ezra Standish,” Buck offered. “Another of our group and the local saloon owner with his wife.”
It was Kate’s turn to arch a brow. “Guess some things have changed since I was last here,” she said.
“Quite a bit,” Vin said. “JD done got married, Ezra’s married. I’m ‘bout to be. Even ole’ Buck here has settled down some, though he’s still pussy footin’ ‘round askin’ for the lady’s hand so they can settle down like a proper family.”
Buck shifted his feet uncomfortably. “You been talkin’ to Chris again, ain’t ya?”
Adam couldn’t help the grin that had formed as Vin and Buck spoke, obviously familial affection in their tones from those closest in their lives. The grin faded, however, at the mention of the name Chris. Where anger once settled in the pit of his belly while riding here, now fear took its place. What if the man was his father? How did he deal with it? How did he convince the man himself?
“A--,” Kate started.
“I got us two rooms at the boarding house,” Adam interrupted, pressing a key into Kate’s hand. “Reckon I’m a bit more tired than I thought. Gonna turn in.” Not giving any of them a chance to comment, he turned and quickly made his way back towards the boarding house.
“I... should go rest up too,” Kate said, suddenly uncomfortable standing there with Vin and Buck. “I’m sure I’ll see you both around.” She tipped her hat to them and quickly followed Adam’s path to the boarding house. Not even in town an hour and she felt drained and off kilter.
“Hey Buck,” Vin said, watching the two retreating backs.
“Yeah?” Buck asked, also watching.
“If that boy ain’t Adam Larabee, then I ain’t a Tanner.”
Buck let out a breath, his head slowly bobbing in agreement.
“Come on,” he finally said. “I think we best tell the others before ole’ Chris is back so we can prepare for the fireworks.”
Author: Jourdana Standish
Fandom: The Magnificent Seven- for the Mag7BigBang
Summary: A young man is desperate to uncover the mystery of his past, sometimes intruded by dreams that he thinks are memories and flashbacks, but none enough to fully remember. His quest to discover who he really is brings him to Four Corners after persuading a woman he has befriended to come with him. What he doesn’t know is that his presence, along with hers, is going to flip the lives of the Seven upside down and nothing will ever be the same again.
Author’s Note: The events in this story take place about six years after the episode “Lady Killers”. There is also a minor link to a previous story I wrote, “Lies Become Unraveled” but you do not need to read that story to read or understand this one. They are separate entities.
I’d like to think my beta reader, masteralida for her services and encouragement while I wrote this. Also thank you so much to my artist, nomooreroo, not only for the great artwork, but for showing so much enthusiasm over the story that it helped motivate me even further to make sure I got it done. It meant a lot to me.
~~
One thing that could be said about the town of Four Corners was that it was a town of changes. Over the past seven years it grew and flourished under the protection of seven men who initially were only meant to stay thirty days. They had all made roots in the town, watching it grow, growing themselves and establishing lives amongst the town’s residents. It was never more obvious as it was today as the town waited with baited breath as one of the protectors became a father for the first time.
The town had already been abuzz as the wedding plans were thriving with each passing day as the wedding date grew closer for Mary Travis and Vin Tanner, but everyone had even paused in those preparations after the official Sheriff of the group, JD Dunne, raced out of the saloon towards the Sheriff’s office.
“It’s time! Chris! Vin! Ezra!” The young man was calling so loudly that he hadn’t needed to run the length of the boardwalk towards the Sheriff’s office to alert the three men inside. Ezra Standish was the first to run out of the Sheriff’s office, quickly followed by Chris Larabee and Vin.
“JD?” Chris had questioned the man.
“Inez said it’s time, Buck’s helpin’ her over to Nath--,” JD started to say but Ezra hadn’t bothered to listen, instead racing to where he saw his wife, Inez Ashford-Standish, being assisted by Buck Wilmington and Casey Wells out of the saloon. Once she disappeared up the stairs into Nathan Jackson’s clinic, everyone began to wait.
“Why is it takin’ so long?” JD demanded, pacing in front of the saloon after a few hours.
“Considerin’ how long Emily was laborin’ with yer son, you gotta ask that?” Vin asked, amusement lacing his tone. It caused JD to blush as he remembered just how long his own wife had been in labor with their first born.
Biologically the child was not JD’s, but it didn’t matter. Emily had been a working girl when she and JD had met, but he had been smitten even then. When she left with Lydia and the other girls from Wikkes town, he never expected to see her again. Just two years ago, she had returned, expecting a baby from one of the men she had been with and no one to turn to. JD had immediately taken her in and the two soon married, JD claiming the baby as his. No one questioned, even though they all knew just by looking at the boy that he wasn’t JD’s; the difference was that JD didn’t care. He loved his wife and his son.
“Any news?” Casey asked as she came up the stairs. After helping Buck with Inez, she had gone to see to her own child. Like JD, the child that Casey now called her own was not hers biologically. Lucy Banitter had been a good friend that Casey had met when her aunt Nettie had sent her to a finishing school out East. The two returned together shortly before Emily came back to town.
JD and Casey had realized that they were nothing more than friends and that’s all they would ever be. With Lucy in town, Casey found herself corralling her best friend as she became a bit of a wild child. Immediately drawn to Buck, as most women were, she found herself pregnant. Buck hadn’t denied being the father and had been at Lucy’s side during the entire pregnancy, but the labor had been hard and Lucy died shortly after giving birth to a dark-haired blue-eyed little girl. Casey had promised Lucy that if anything ever happened to her that she would take care of the baby as if it were her own. Buck and Casey were now raising the little girl together, the man having built a small home near the Wells ranch to be close to his daughter. The other men were starting to wonder if Buck was getting closer to making an honest woman of Casey, and an honest man of himself.
“No, nothing yet,” Josiah said. “It could be--.”
The sound of a child’s cry broke off and they all grinned. They would feel better once they saw Ezra and they knew that Inez was okay as well as the baby. It didn’t take long before Mary Travis came out of the room, having helped Nathan with the delivery. She smiled brightly, letting them breathe a sigh of relief that Inez was okay, as was the baby. She moved over to her fiancé, receiving a kiss. JD was about to say something but the door opened and Ezra stepped out, all smiles and a small bundle firmly cradled in his arms.
“Gentlemen, Ladies,” Ezra said with a grin. “I’d like you to meet mine and Inez’s daughter, Katherine Rosa Ashford-Standish.” The men, along with Mary and Casey, all descended on Ezra to get their first glimpse of the new member of their family.
“She’s beautiful,” Casey said, brushing a finger along the baby’s swaddled foot.
“How’s Inez?” Chris asked, feeling a slight tightening in his chest. One he felt even when JD’s and Buck’s children were born. It made him ache and think of when his own son, Adam, had been born. He’d be close to sixteen now, he thought to himself before forcing himself to shake out of his thoughts and focus on the here and now.
“She’s tired, sore, but deliriously happy,” Ezra said. “I’ve never seen anything more harrowing and terrifying as what my wife went through.”
“Wait ‘til the day comes when Mary and Vin start having their own little ones,” Buck said, grinning. “And it’s your sister going through it.”
“I already have,” Mary reminded Buck with a light laugh.
“Yeah, but Ezra weren’t here and he knows you’re his sister now,” Buck pointed out.
“I’ll worry,” Ezra said. “But somehow I think Vin would protest if I were in the room while his wife were giving birth, even if I am related to her.”
“You only think I would?” Vin quipped with a grin. Ezra chuckled, cradling his newborn daughter close to his chest. His gaze shifted to where he saw Chris slipping away from the group. He immediately look towards Buck, who had also noticed Chris’ motion. The gambler glanced at the former lady’s man, arching a brow. Buck inclined his head, indicating he would make sure all was well, earning a very small nod of acknowledgement from Ezra.
Buck brushed a hand against Casey’s lower back, moving past the group to follow after his longtime friend, letting his long gait eat up the distance to him. Ezra watched them go a moment before drawing himself back to the others and the newborn in his arms.
“You okay, pard?” Buck asked once he caught up to the black-clad gunslinger.
“Yeah,” Chris said, but Buck could still hear the soft longing in his voice. The taller man arched a brow and waited for his friend to speak. Chris sighed softly, a small shake of his head accompanying the spoken words.
“It’s getting harder, Buck. I thought it would get easier as time went on, but with everyone settlin’ down and havin’ their own families... it’s getting harder.”
Buck’s brow furrowed. He reached up and squeezes his friend’s shoulder. “I thought things were getting easier?” he asked, concern coating his words. “That you were movin’ on and such?”
“So did I,” Chris admitted. “But it’s been almost eight years since I lost them. In that time, have you seen me closing to settlin’ down?”
Buck knew better than to bring up Ella Gaines. It was still a sore topic for Chris, hell for all of them, especially since Ella had managed to remain hidden in whatever dank rock she was residing under. Buck also suspected that one of the reasons he hadn’t settled down wasn’t because he couldn’t let the past rest, but because he didn’t want to put another woman in the line of fire while she was still out there. Let alone to start a family with her.
“Hell, pard, you ain’t shown more than passing interest in any woman since the Stokes girls were here six years ago,” Buck said, trying to lighten the mood. Probably not the best way to do it, considering the glare Chris shot him. He put up his hands in defense.
“Just sayin’ that despite all my charms, it was you that seemed to light a fire under Miss Kate’s backside whenever the two of you crossed paths. And I know that little filly stirred something in that stone heart you claim to have,” Buck continued. “I ain’t sayin’ you should go off lookin’ for her, I’m just sayin’ you should remember that you can feel again. And I also understand why you keep yourself at a distance.”
“Regardless of who they are, I can’t put someone else in danger,” Chris said. “It was hard enough losin’ Sarah and Adam when I didn’t know the circumstances. Now... now I know she’s still out there. And the minute I let my guard down to move on, she’s going to strike.”
“Maybe it’s time we go huntin’,” Buck said. “Instead of keep talkin’ about it, we need to actually do it.”
Chris gave Buck an odd look, shaking his head. “No,” he said. Before Buck could open his mouth to protest, Chris cut him off. “Vin is getting ready to marry. Ezra’s daughter was just born. JD has his kids to think of and you’ve got your daughter. Nathan’s practically engaged and Josiah has settled in here with Gloria that I can’t even imagine askin’ any of you to go huntin’ with me. If I make that choice, I’ll go alone.”
“Chris, we’re your friends, your family--.”
“And I know that,” Chris said. “But it ain’t just us anymore, Buck. There are other kids and wives, or soon to be wives, involved now. No way in hell will I be responsible for kids losin’ their fathers or wives and fiancees losing their spouses.”
“That’s an argument for another day, pard,” Buck said. “‘Cause you know that Mary and Inez, at least, would probably disagree. I’m thinking Casey would too, and Gloria. Emily and Maria might protest, but they knew what JD and Nathan did when they met them and fell in love. All the women would worry, but they know we help our own.”
“But I can’t--,” Chris started.
“Chris, pard, stop,” Buck said. “Do you hear yourself? You tried this once before, remember? We didn’t listen then and the ladies we are blessed to have in our lives understand that. They will worry, they will fret, they’ll probably make most of us sleep on the floor the night we’re back, but in the end, they know us enough to know we are going with you. To hell and back if necessary.”
“You got reason to worry about sleepin’ on the floor?” Chris asked after a moment, taking the sudden emotional discussion in a different direction and off of him.
“You know Casey and I--.”
“Are dancin’ around one another like you ain’t interested,” Chris said. “I know I’m not good about takin’ advice, Buck, but I call things like I see them. You know that.” Buck acquiesced a nod in agreement. “Tell her how you feel. You may be surprised by the answer.”
“We’ll see,” Buck dodged, but Chris could see a slight blush on the other man’s face starting to form.
“I’m going to call it a night,” Chris said. “If I’m needed, I’ll be at my homestead. Josiah’s takin’ Nathan’s patrol tonight.”
“Don’t drown yourself, pard,” Buck warned.
“I won’t,” Chris promised. “Haven’t gone down that road in a really long time. I’d like to keep it that way.” With a wave of his hand, Chris headed to the livery to get his horse. Buck watched his friend go, sighing as he turned to rejoin the rest of the group when he saw two figures riding into town. One was much more slight of frame than the other, but the body was hidden in the folds of a duster.
*That duster looks rather fam---.* Buck’s thought was cut off as the smaller of the two turned to say something to the other and he saw two things; the smaller of the two was a woman. And she was a woman that he knew.
“Speak her name and she will appear?” Buck murmured. His feet were already moving before he even realized he was walking over to where Kate Stokes was dismounting her horse near the livery. The person with her had already dismounted and had walked into the livery, most likely to talk to Yosemite.
“Never figured on seein’ you again,” Buck said, breaking into Kate’s thoughts as she rustled through her saddle bag.
Kate lifted her head, almost startled by the familiar deep voice. A part of her was a little surprised that Wilmington remembered who she was and also a little surprised that he was still in town. Though she knew that shouldn’t have surprised her. When she had been here, they had all seemed ready to settle down. Except for Standish, however she had heard he found a reason to stay so the seven men were still here.
“Never figured I’d be back here again,” Kate finally said. “Not sure if I should say it’s good to see you again or not considerin’ the last time.”
Buck crossed his arms over his chest. “You got a point,” Buck said. He gave her a small smile. “Though I do understand the situation you were in. Just tryin’ to save--.”
“Hey Kate, the livery owner said... oh sorry.” Kate couldn’t turn her head to talk to Adam. She was too fascinated by the look on Wilmington’s face as he stared at the boy. It almost scared her how pale he suddenly became as he stared at the boy.
“Kate?” Adam asked.
“Oh... sorry,” Kate said, shaking herself. “Um- this is Buck Wilmington. One of the men I told you about that protects the town.”
Adam stuck out his hand to Buck, trying to determine why he felt as if he should know this man. “Mr. Wilmington,” he said. “I’m Adam Smith.”
Buck took the boy’s hand, giving it a firm shake. He couldn’t help but stare. “It’s... nice to meet you, Adam.”
“Thanks,” Adam said. Buck hadn’t let go of his hand. “Can I have my hand back?”
“Sorry,” Buck said, releasing him. He watched the young man turn to Kate, feeling a punch to his gut. It was impossible, absolutely impossible, but if he didn’t know better he was looking at a ghost. A ghost that had grown into a young man. He shook himself as the boy’s voice penetrated the fog and swamp of memories that began assaulting him.
“--something about a place we can stay, but the price for boarding the horses is pretty reasonable,” Adam was saying.
“If I remember, there was a boarding house down the street,” Kate said in response.
“There... yeah, it’s still there,” Buck finally interjected. “Before you go, Kate, can I talk to ya?”
“Uh... I’ll go see if there are any rooms available,” Adam said. Kate nodded. He gathered their saddlebags and headed down the street. Buck waited until they saw him disappear into the boarding house before whirling on Kate.
“What the hell kind of scheme is this?” he asked hotly.
Kate blinked, taking a physical step back from the man’s ire. “What are you talking about?” she finally asked.
“Who is he, Kate? What kind of trick are you pullin’?” Buck demanded.
Kate’s face screwed up in confusion. “Trick? What? You aren’t making any sense!”
“Who. Is. He.”
“He told you!” Kate said. “His name is Adam Smith.”
“Adam Smith. Right. Then you wanna tell me why that boy is the spittin’ image of Chris Larabee?” Buck asked. “‘Cause I feel like I was just lookin’ at someone that shouldn’t be.”
“That’s what he told me,” Kate snapped. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes a moment to steady herself. “That’s all the name he knows.”
“What?” Buck asked. When Kate opened her eyes, his body was tight with tension and suppressed anger. She supposed she could understand the emotions that he was facing. Of anyone, he was the closest to Larabee.
“All I know is what he’s told me so far,” Kate said. “He said his name is Adam and he took on Smith ‘cause he has no memory of who he is.”
Buck’s shoulders shifted. “No memory?” he asked.
Kate shook her head. “He grew up in some orphanage in Red Fork. ‘Sides his first name, he can’t remember anything before endin’ up there.” She shifted, debating if she should tell him more. She suspected that if she didn’t, it would make things worse. And maybe it would help if Wilmington did know.
“He has nightmares,” Kate said. “Pretty bad ones.”
“He’s just a boy!” Buck immediately imagined the reason why she would know about his nightmares. Seeing the hurt and angry expression forming on her face, he immediately realized his mistake in allowing his mind to go that route.
“Ain’t nothin’ between him and me that’s inappropriate,” Kate growled. “He helps out on my land since I need it and in turn he gets a few coins for the work, a place to sleep in the barn and a place to board his horse. I got some pretty nasty nightmares myself, so sometimes I walk the land. Heard him havin’ one. That’s all.”
“Sorry,” Buck said, holding his hands up. “Was wrong of me to say what I did. I apologize.” He sighed, taking his hat off and running his fingers through the dark locks.
“How did you two end up here then?” Buck asked. “And if he just works for you, why go to the trouble of helpin’ him find answers?”
“That’s why we ended up here. Figured since Red Fork ain’t that far, he could be from here or Eagle Bend. Any of the neighboring towns. He’s tryin’ to find answers were he can,” Kate said. Answering the second question was going to be a bit more difficult because even she didn’t know the answer. Honesty. Was the only way to go right now.
“I don’t know,” she said. “Just feel like I need to help him. No idea why, ain’t like I have a stake in him findin’ out the truth.”
“He really has no idea who he is?” Buck asked.
“That’s what he says, and judging by the nightmares he really doesn’t. He thinks the answers are there, but all he keeps rememberin’ is heat and flames,” Kate said, looking towards the boarding house. She didn’t see Buck jerk his head to look at her with shock written all over his face.
“He was in a fire?” Buck asked.
Kate looked up, seeing the change in his face. She slowly nodded. “I think so, yeah,” she said. “He’s got some scars too. Burn scars on his legs. He just remembers screamin’ for his Ma, he said. Wonders if that’s how his parents died.”
“You know about Chris,” Buck said more than asked.
Kate slowly nodded. “When... when I left here, I found out what I could on all of you. Curiosity I guess. No idea why I really did it,” she said. “When I saw Adam... I could see Larabee in every inch of him. When he told me his story...”
“That why you brought him here?” Buck asked.
“Told you. Brought him here since it’s close to Red Fork and figured he could find answers. We’ve been to Red Fork and Eagle Bend. Shop owner in Eagle Bend suggested coming here because of Larabee,” Kate said. “Buck... Adam’s pissed. Shop owner implied that he was Larabee’s kid. Adam’s got that in his head and thinks he was abandoned now.”
“Chris would never--,” Buck started.
“I know,” Kate said. “Even if I hadn’t read the articles from then, I know just from having met him that he’d never abandon his son if he knew he was alive. Or give up searching if he thought he was. Even told Adam that, but he’s not thinkin’ clearly.”
“I don’t think he’s Adam Larabee,” Buck said. “Despite how he looks.”
“Why?” Kate asked.
“Because when we got back that night, we found two bodies in the burned out ruins of the house.”
“Everything okay?” A new voice asked. Kate looked to see Vin Tanner join them. She registered the shock on his face when he saw her.
“Not sure yet,” Buck said. It caused Kate to sigh when she saw the shock on Vin’s face change to cooled speculation. “No, not necessarily with her. Not like before.”
“Gee, thanks,” Kate murmured.
“I’m confused,” Vin admitted before Buck could say something more. It would seem he was only sticking his foot in his mouth every time he spoke. Kate had to turn away, she didn’t want either man to see how hurt she was at the idea that she wasn’t trusted, berating herself for the emotion because they really had no reason to trust her. She could hear Buck explaining to Vin what he knew so far.
“He ain’t goin’ to try somethin’ stupid like confrontin’ Larabee, is he?” Vin’s voice penetrated the fog.
Kate stiffened. Her protests to Adam about Larabee seemed to go right through him. She hoped that he wasn’t intending what Vin was asking. Slowly she turned and she saw movement as Adam exited the boarding house. He started down the street back in their direction.
“How close were you to the family?” Kate asked Buck absently, watching Adam walk. Her eyes started to unfocus and she saw Chris. She couldn’t help it.
“Chris and I were like brothers. Loved that boy as if he were my nephew,” Buck said. “Why?”
“Let’s just say he is Larabee’s. I know you say he can’t be, but what if he is?” Kate said.
“I... why?” Buck asked.
“Maybe you can help. Adam’s almost within ear shot.”
Vin and Buck both turned at Kate’s statement. Vin didn’t know how Buck had kept it together. Like Kate, he saw Chris in every inch of the boy. He couldn’t even begin to imagine how Buck was feeling at the moment, when he had known Adam Larabee as a child.
It unnerved Adam to no end how the three adults watched his every step as he got closer. Especially Wilmington. He couldn’t pinpoint why, but he felt like he knew him. Like he should know him. He knew that Wilmington was Larabee’s oldest friend. He couldn’t get the words of the store owner from Eagle Bend out of his mind and wondered if that was clouding why he felt he should know Wilmington.
While riding into Four Corners, he realized that Kate was right about going off half-cocked without any information or knowing for certain that Larabee was his father. Words began penetrating his thick-headedness as they rode; Kate telling him how Larabee had come home to find the house burned. Listening to her telling him that Larabee wasn’t the type of man to abandon a son if he had an inkling he was alive. Made Adam realize that maybe, just maybe, he wasn’t Adam Larabee. Or if he was, he was believed to be just as dead as Larabee’s wife. But if *he* was in fact, Adam Larabee, why did Chris Larabee think him dead?
“You look a hundred miles away,” Kate said, breaking into his thoughts.
“Not important,” Adam said a bit too gruffly. He saw the long haired man’s eyebrow quirk towards his hairline and the corner of Wilmington’s lips twitch and wondered what both of those expressions were about.
“Vin, this here is Kate’s farmhand, Adam Smith,” Buck said. “Adam, this here is Vin Tanner.”
Adam hesitated in extending his hand. Would this one not let go like Wilmington had? He finally stuck his hand out, getting a firm handshake and release from the tracker. “Mr. Tanner.”
“Adam,” Vin said. “You can call me Vin. Short of good ole’ Ez, I rarely get called Mr. Tanner.”
“Ez?” Adam couldn’t help but ask. He felt a kinship with Tanner, like he would be a good man to have at his side in a bad situation. He couldn’t describe what he was going through right now. First Wilmington, now Tanner?
“Ezra Standish,” Buck offered. “Another of our group and the local saloon owner with his wife.”
It was Kate’s turn to arch a brow. “Guess some things have changed since I was last here,” she said.
“Quite a bit,” Vin said. “JD done got married, Ezra’s married. I’m ‘bout to be. Even ole’ Buck here has settled down some, though he’s still pussy footin’ ‘round askin’ for the lady’s hand so they can settle down like a proper family.”
Buck shifted his feet uncomfortably. “You been talkin’ to Chris again, ain’t ya?”
Adam couldn’t help the grin that had formed as Vin and Buck spoke, obviously familial affection in their tones from those closest in their lives. The grin faded, however, at the mention of the name Chris. Where anger once settled in the pit of his belly while riding here, now fear took its place. What if the man was his father? How did he deal with it? How did he convince the man himself?
“A--,” Kate started.
“I got us two rooms at the boarding house,” Adam interrupted, pressing a key into Kate’s hand. “Reckon I’m a bit more tired than I thought. Gonna turn in.” Not giving any of them a chance to comment, he turned and quickly made his way back towards the boarding house.
“I... should go rest up too,” Kate said, suddenly uncomfortable standing there with Vin and Buck. “I’m sure I’ll see you both around.” She tipped her hat to them and quickly followed Adam’s path to the boarding house. Not even in town an hour and she felt drained and off kilter.
“Hey Buck,” Vin said, watching the two retreating backs.
“Yeah?” Buck asked, also watching.
“If that boy ain’t Adam Larabee, then I ain’t a Tanner.”
Buck let out a breath, his head slowly bobbing in agreement.
“Come on,” he finally said. “I think we best tell the others before ole’ Chris is back so we can prepare for the fireworks.”