Heart's Desire 2 – Security
M7 ATF; Chris/Vin
This was meant to be part 2 of 8 parts. It is complete as it stands, perhaps my muse will all for the additional 6 chapters?
Originally written 10/2004
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The commercial break was about to end as Vin stretched his lithe body the length of the sofa he had planted himself on. It was a lazy kind of day and he was attempting to get some blood flowing through his numb limbs with the least amount of physical effort expended.
A slight change in the set of his blond companion's body caught his attention. Something was working on Chris's mind. Something pleasant was running around in there. Vin could tell by the smug smile of contentment that tugged at the corners of the older man's mouth.
There was no one on this earth that the Texan wanted to be happier than Chris Larabee. From the fateful moment their paths crossed when the ATF team ran into his old US Marshall's team in that dreary warehouse, Vin had been struck with feelings so foreign he had almost forgotten what it was he was experiencing. When Chris came into his line of sight it was as if someone had struck him in the gut with his fists - damn near painful and it took his breath away. Tanner found himself drawn to the imposing figure of a man like a moth to a flame.
Vin had never seen Chris before, but he knew he had to be the man in charge of the other feds busily attacking the crime scene. The ATF agent approached with confidence, introduced himself, thanking the marksman for saving Nathan's life while complimenting him for a job done damn well. It was the moment that two things happened that would change both men's lives forever. Vin's supervisor swooped down on the scene barking condemnations and threatening to fire him for his lousy work. Somehow Vin had hesitated slightly, embarrassed by the interruption in front of this man he didn't even know but had wanted to impress oh so much. Their hands already extended, they bypassed the handshake and went for the firm wrist brotherhood grasp. Tanner almost chuckled out loud when he remembered the practically feral growl his supervisor released when he took in the scene taking place. Chris Larabee was well known in regional law enforcement circles. The concept of Larabee praising Tanner was unacceptable to Capt. Jacobson, who held a grudge against the younger man simply because his skills surpassed his supervisor's, accidentally causing the captain embarrassment early in their working relationship.
Tanner didn't need the later conversations they would have to realize that Larabee didn't miss a beat. The sharpshooter was a good judge of character and recognized the same trait in the powerhouse of a man who would become his best friend. Chris had taken in and understood what was going on with Jacobson, and what it meant for Tanner's career, faster than it took most to brush their teeth.
Vin was already sure he was just a long-haired, drawling, scrawny Texan who sometimes had more tenacity than brains. What had taken some conversation was getting him to believe that Chris felt that destiny had stepped in and showed one lonely blond what his next desire was, a friend who actually held the other half of his soul. Someone from whom loyalty and respect had to be earned, but once you had them he would die for you. Someone who could read a crime scene better than most people could read a book, shoot a gun with such deadly accuracy you would get chills, someone who could fill the vacant sharpshooter position team 7 had open. ATF team 7 was about to become the Magnificent 7.
More than that he felt the almost electrical current when their hands clasped tightly on their wrists and their eyes focused on each other. Vin Tanner had done much more than save Nathan Jackson's life that day. The then-US Marshal had done more than make his captain furious with him for drawing the attention of the famous Chris Larabee on Jacobson's less than stellar career.
Vin knew that he was a damn good sharpshooter. Even if he hadn't known going into the Army, the Rangers had made sure he knew by the time he got out. The Marshals hired him on fast enough to let him know they appreciated his skills, too. Through the academy and his first assignments the rumor mill had Vin Tanner pegged as an up-and-coming rising star. Then things changed through no fault of own. Yea, I shoulda remembered all those lessons I learnt so well. Those there first git first pick 'n never count on someone else. He remembered the excitement of coming back to Denver that the news of the transfer had brought him. Even though he had mostly lived on the streets there, the city had been his home. It represented freedom from the violence and oppression of the string of too many failed foster homes. One of the first signs he'd read after disembarking the bus was covered in fluffy clouds and read Welcome to the Mile High City! That young boy had naively pinned his hopes on those clouds to give him the inspiration to climb out of the sewer of his life and become something larger than life; like the legends that surrounded Denver's past.
It had been a long hard climb but he had achieved it. Coming back only sounded right - like something definitive or a new stage in his life was about to happen. The new Marshal unit he was assigned to was supposed to be good, real good. Nick O'Brian was a good leader, a great man and Vin was surprised a man of that caliber wanted a stray like himself working for him. The first couple months were great, except for Jacobson, who took an instant dislike to the Texan. Vin tried but couldn't find a way to like, or respect O'Brian's second in command either. Regardless, his career continued its upward path. With one exception he worked well with the others on the team. His record began to bulge with commendations, and then talk of a promotion began. That talk stopped suddenly when O'Brian got killed during a bust. Soon after Jacobson brought a new team member on board; his own handpicked second in command. The mourning sharpshooter knew something wasn't right with his Captain's death and that there was something even stranger going on with Jacobson, but had no proof.
Life went on after Jacobson took over the unit, even if Vin's life became hell. A return to bounty hunting began looking better everyday. As a matter of fact he had a letter of resignation written just waiting for the right moment to turn it in. That moment came less than forty-eight hours after Team 7 whirled into his life like the hurricane-force wind they were.
Larabee wasted no time checking into the sharpshooter's history. When he called Tanner and invited, no make that ordered, him to meet them at the Saloon that evening his spidey sense went into overtime. Something was up, something good he hoped, but he knew better than to count on wishful thinking.
But for once wishes came true. Soon Jacobson no longer even worked for the federal government. When Larabee and Judge Travis put their research together with Tanner's first hand testimony it wasn't enough to indict for any crime, but it was enough to end the captain's career. Even better was that the letter of resignation never had to be turned in. Instead transfer papers were issued, ensuring that time worked, benefits and seniority stayed intact and left Vin in good stead.
The transfer left Team 7 complete with the sharpshooter of their dreams and a brother they didn't know they were missing until they met a long-haired, scruffy, cuss by the name of Vin Tanner. At least that's what they kept telling him. He trusted them; it was just his ugly past that left him insecure concerning his emotional place in the world. Even so, Vin Tanner was a happy man. Happy and secure, feeling a security he hadn't known since he last felt the embrace of his mother's arms around his undersized 5-year-old frame before she died.
Shaking himself from his thoughts before he went from happy to melancholy, Vin looked over to his soon to be housemate as he finished stretching. With a glint of mischief in his eye and a smile on his face the lazy drawl made itself heard.
"So, cowboy, you gonna feed a man dinner or you gonna leave your company to starve to death here?" as he threw the pillow at the man in black for emphasis. Yep, security was a pretty darn good thing.
THE END