Disclaimer:
I do not own or make any kind of dinero, moolah,
scratch, loot, trading stamps, beaver pelts, or even coupons off of
these characters. They -- that is, the characters, not the beaver
pelts -- belong to Trilogy, Mirisch, and MGM. (Though I suppose
Trilogy, Mirisch, and MGM could actually own some beaver
pelts...)
Rating:
PG-13
Comments:
This is a sequel to the Obsession episode. If you've read
the spoilers, or even if you haven't, you should be able to follow
the story anyway. Any medical "accuracies" herein are
purely coincidental and should not be held against the author.
by Kathy B.
Chris awoke to a pounding headache.
Slowly his eyes came into focus. He was in a strange bed. His green eyes surveyed the unfamiliar room. It was clean and sparsely furnished. Besides the bed, there was a table, a couple of chairs, a commode, a bookcase full of books, a wardrobe, and a dresser. His shirt and boots had been placed neatly on a chair nearby. Where was he? A hotel? A brothel, maybe? He reached back to rub away some of the pain in his head and felt...a bandage. Was this a hospital? Just what the hell had happened to him?
He tried to collect his thoughts to see what he could remember. He had turned down an alley as he headed to his room for the night. He remembered a flash of white light exploding in his skull, and that was all he remembered.
The afternoon sun was now casting long shadows across the spotless wooden floor. How long had he been here? And where was here?
Chris started to get out of bed, but the heaviness of one leg and the clank of metal stopped him abruptly. He yanked back the blanket and stared. An iron band was locked around his ankle. Attached to the band was a long, thick, heavy chain.
Chris stood up slowly. He swayed as the room seemed to tilt slightly. The chain was connected to a ring set in the wall near the bed. He tested the chain with all his strength, but it was secured tightly to the wall. He moved slowly around. The chain was long enough to allow him to circulate the entire room, but not quite enough to reach the door.
Chris looked around, hoping to find something he could use as a tool to escape. He opened the wardrobe and found it was full of men's clothes. He eyed them curiously. Whoever owned them was about the same size as he was, he noted.
Who had brought him here? And why?
He closed the wardrobe and headed for the dresser, dragging the chain behind him. There was something on the dresser, something metal that caught the light with a dull shine...A key?
He squinted at the small, grey object, the pain in his head almost obscuring his vision. He moved closer to the dresser and carefully picked up the metal object. His eyes were still a little unfocused so he brought it closer to his face. It wasn't a key.
It looked like...Sarah's locket.
He studied it again. How did it get here?
Ella Gaines had had it last, and it disappeared when she did. The seven hunted for it, but had finally given up. For a moment, he thought this all might be her doing, then dismissed it. She knew better. She had to know he'd kill her on sight if he ever saw her again. She had barely escaped with her life when Vin's bullet missed her.
But someone had brought him here and had caged him like an animal. He tried to pace but the weight and noise of the chain only made him angrier. He sat down and tried to collect himself. Someone was trying to scare him, he was sure.
There was nothing to do but wait.
He didn't have to wait long.
Chris heard a key turning in the lock. His lips quirked slightly at the idea of locking the door when the prisoner was already chained.
He had been wrong.
Ella Gaines stood in the doorway. She wore a long dressing gown and big smile. Her dark brown hair hung loosely around her shoulders. Beside her was a large, silent Mexican manservant with a tray in his hands.
"Awake at last," she smiled. "How do you like the room?"
Chris regarded her coolly, controlling his emotions with an effort. "It'd be more comfortable without this chain."
"I'm sure it would," she smiled. "But I can't take that chance. You might decide to leave before I can convince you to stay. I've told you we belong together. Now I have time to show you."
"Where am I?"
"My ranch. Our ranch. I bought it for us."
Chris made a lunge towards her. She took a step back, looking at him from the hallway.
"It'll do you no good. I'm not carrying the key with me and no one else knows where it is. And don't count on anyone helping you to escape." Chris sat down on the bed, watching her warily. Ella continued, "I pay generously for silence. Poor Raul here is a mute. So is his sister, Maria, who'll also be tending to your needs. Scarlet fever when they were children."
Ella moved closer to him. She reached out, gently tracing her hand on the scar on his chest. He flinched at her touch. "When I saw you get shot, it nearly broke my heart to run away from you. You needed me. Do you forgive me?"
Chris caught her hands in his. "Stop it, Ella."
Ella stepped back, never losing her smile. "It's all right. You'll come around. We have forever now."
She nodded to Raul, who set the tray on the table. On it were some medical supplies and a plate of food. No knife, Chris noted wryly. The food on the plate had already been cut up for him. Raul stepped back. He pulled a small pistol from his pocket and pointed it at Chris.
"First, we're going to check your head injury," Ella continued. "I'm sorry but Raul was much too rough with you. I've spoken to him about that."
She unwrapped the bandage, checking the few neat stitches under it. She seemed satisfied, then re-wrapped a fresh, ready-cut bandage around his head. "There! Now eat your supper before it gets cold."
Chris eyed the plate warily. "Did you cook this?"
"Maria's a wonderful cook. Try it and see. You must be hungry by now."
In truth, he was, but he wouldn't let her see that.
"You should eat. And then rest. Raul did hit you awfully hard." She turned to go, taking the medical supplies with her, then paused. "Oh, if anything happens to me, there'll be no one coming here at all. Just so you know."
She closed the door and Chris heard the key turning.
He looked at the steaming food on the tray. Finally he sat down and began to eat. He was hungrier than he'd thought. It wasn't long after he'd finished, when he began to feel unusually drowsy. Chris laid down on the bed, the chain clanking heavily with his every move. 'She drugged the food', he thought as he drifted off to sleep.
It had taken more than a day and a half for Vin to fully realize the truth.
Chris was gone. Just plain gone. Not like he'd left. But like he'd evaporated. Vin had roamed all over town, hoping to find him -- or at least some trace of him. Finally, in an alley, Vin had found Chris's gun still in its holster. It was on the ground, protruding from behind a stack of boxes. Now Vin was looking for Buck and the others.
He found Buck sitting outside the jail with JD. "Found this." He showed the gun to Buck. "In an alley. No sign of Chris."
Buck took the gun and squinted up at Vin. "You think somethin's happened." It was a statement, not a question.
"Don't you?"
"Chris's gun and no Chris? I'd say so."
"You think someone took him?" JD looked from Vin to Buck to Vin again. "Who'd wanna take Chris?"
Vin and Buck looked at each other and answered simultaneously: "Ella Gaines."
"Ella Gaines?" JD was incredulous. "Can't be. She's long gone!"
"Maybe," said Vin, doubtfully.
"Let's go get the others," said Buck.
Vin, Josiah, Nathan, Buck and JD found Ezra in the saloon.
"You mean that odious woman has absconded with 'Bareback Larabee'?" Ezra smiled broadly from his chair at the poker table. "Oh, poor fellow."
"We don't know that," said Vin soberly. "But that's what we think happened."
"I take it by your faces, then, that you think some dire events have befallen him?"
Buck nodded. "Ezra, you know sure as the wind blows that that woman's crazy. She nearly got us all killed last time over Chris. Don't you think that, if she's got him, she might just kill him this time?"
"We gotta find him," added JD. "And fast."
Buck agreed. "Chris don't want nothin' to do with her now and when she figures that out, she'll make him pay."
"So where do we start?" JD looked around the table.
"We could start at Red Fork," suggested Vin. When they'd last seen Ella Gaines, she'd had a ranch not far from Red Fork.
"We won't find him there," Nathan pointed out. They all knew that after Ella had disappeared, the ranch had been sold at auction. She hadn't been seen or heard from since.
"No, but we gotta start somewhere." Vin hesitated before continuing. "You might wanna try askin' the local docs, too."
Buck's eyes narrowed. "Why?"
"I didn't find just Chris's gun in that alley. There were drops of blood."
"Well, why didn't you say so before?" Buck demanded.
"Because they might have nothing to do with whatever happened to Chris," Vin shot back.
"Or that blood might be Chris's! Or whoever took him!"
Ezra looked puzzled. "I thought we decided it was Ella Gaines."
Vin shook his head. "Ella Gaines is too small to have done this without help."
Ezra took a breath before he spoke. "Then, Mr. Tanner, should we also inquire at the undertaker's, in case we're not looking for a live body?" They all stared back at him in silence. He looked at them calmly. "I'm not the only one who's thought of that."
"But you're the only one who's sayin' it," Buck snapped. All this standing still when something needed doing was getting to him.
Josiah spoke quietly. "I suggest we stop burnin' what's left of daylight here and ride for Red Fork."
When Chris awoke from a drugged sleep, he found himself still in the same room.
That wasn't surprising. What was surprising was that, besides the chain around his ankle, his wrists were now roped to the head of the bed. He raised his head. It was night and a few thick, white candles were lit around the room. Chris groaned softly. What did she have in store for him now?
As if on cue, Ella emerged from a shadowy corner and into the soft, flickering light. Her hair was down around her shoulders and she wore a long dressing gown that trailed to the floor.
She smiled and sat beside him on the bed. "I have so much to teach you," Ella whispered in his ear as she stroked his hair. "About pleasure. And about pain." She raked her nails across his chest, drawing a tiny, dotted line of blood.
Chris turned his head. Ella bent low and kissed his neck. His body stiffened slightly. Where once Chris would've responded with real heat, he now felt nothing but revulsion in the pit of his stomach whenever she touched him.
She straightened, seeming not to notice. "There's a fine line between pleasure...and pain. I learned all about that all these years. When we were together all those years ago, that was real pleasure. Then came all those years of wanting you, knowing your heart belonged to another. That was pain. Then when we were finally together again, and making all those plans--"
"--You made all those plans, Ella. Not me."
Her eyes grew stormy, but her smile never wavered. "And when I had to leave you like that, that was more suffering than you know. And now we're together...so you can guess what that means..." She trailed her finger down his chest.
Ella stood up and walked to the dresser. "I crave that now, being on the edge of that fine line. It's exciting, you know." She picked up a candle, and returned to her place on the bed. "And now I can share with you what I've learned. And you can learn to enjoy it, too, as I have."
She gently stroked his face, looking at him with wide, serious eyes. Then slowly, Ella tipped the candle. A hot pearl of candle wax spattered onto the smooth, bare skin of his chest. She smiled with satisfaction as Chris hissed in pain. He sucked in a breath and bit his lip, as she dripped a small line of wax across his belly. As if in a trance, Ella began to slowly dribble the hot liquid wax all over his torso in white lines and patterns. Chris bit back a cry of pain, and his back arched, the muscles in his arms straining against the ropes.
Ella laughed lightly and licked her lips. She righted the candle in her hand. "You see? That very fine line. Can you feel the pleasure, too?"
She stood up. "That's enough for a first lesson." She placed the candle back on the dresser and started to leave the room. "Raul will untie you when he brings your food." She paused in the doorway and turned to look at him. "We have all the time in the world now. And I have so much to show you."
Chris closed his eyes, drawing in slow, deep breaths against the searing needles of pain. The woman was truly insane. And he knew that, if he didn't find a way to escape, she would eventually kill him.
It was the middle of the night when the Boys arrived in Red Fork, bone-tired and saddle-weary. They hated to halt their search for even a moment, but they had ridden pretty hard. They needed rest and so did the horses. The Six paired up, sharing rooms in a small, cheap hotel at end of the main street. They would meet at the Red Fork saloon in the morning and draw up some kind of plan over breakfast.
Buck couldn't sleep. He laid on his back and stared at the ceiling. JD was curled up in a ball, sound asleep next to him. Buck hoped they were wrong about Chris being kidnapped by Ella Gaines, but something in his gut told him they weren't. He remember how happy Chris had been when Ella had come back into his life. The mourning had finally come to a close and Chris was ready to risk another chance at love and happiness. Buck didn't really know Ella Gaines, but he had seen the changes in his friend, the renewed interest in ranching and horses and raising a family. Buck hadn't been altogether convinced that Ella was the best choice, but Chris had known her and Buck trusted his judgement. Most of the time. Ella was sure a pretty little thing, too. Pretty but deadly, he thought.
Buck wasn't the only one still awake.
Vin leaned against the wall, gazing out his window to the street below. He could hear Nathan snoring softly in the bed behind him. Nathan had dropped off to sleep almost immediately, having put in long hours at the clinic before they'd left for Red Fork.
Come the dawn, they would need a plan and Vin didn't really have one. Here he was, a tracker, and no clue where or how to begin to find Chris. Like Buck, he remembered Ella Gaines, too. He hadn't trusted her from almost the moment he met her-something around the eyes maybe. Or maybe just his instincts. And Vin trusted his instincts.
A few small fires still burned, but the street was mostly empty. Vin sighed in weary frustration. He raised his head and looked out towards the stars. "Where are you, Chris?" he whispered softly.
It was early the next morning when the door to Chris's room opened. Chris had remained tied to the bed all night. It was almost impossible to sleep like that, so he'd only manage to doze lightly from time to time.
Beads and lines of white wax still clung to his chest. Raul walked noiselessly into the room, quietly set down a tray, then stood, as if waiting. Moments later, Ella entered, carrying a small, white-glass jar. Chris spoke first.
"Are you going to untie me now?"
"Not yet."
Ella sat on the bed and studied him a moment. She reached out a hand and began to remove the drops of wax on his chest and torso. She looked at the tiny red marks left behind.
"Poor Chris," she cooed softly. "That had to hurt, didn't it? I wasn't going to come back tonight, but I felt so bad." She opened the jar and began to gently rub a cool salve into the red burn patches on his skin. Her tone became reproving. "It's your fault, you know. I wouldn't have had to do this if you understood how I feel." She bent down and kissed one of the burn marks. "Why do you make me hurt you?"
"I do understand, Ella," he said in a hoarse whisper. He didn't really, but she had to believe he did if he was ever going to get out of here. "Let me show you."
Her eyes glittered, and she smiled like a hungry she-wolf. It made Chris's flesh crawl.
Ella quickly untied the ropes around Chris's wrists. Ever-cautious, Raul leveled his gun at Chris. Chris sat up and started to put his arms around Ella. She pulled away.
"No" she said. "I want you to hunger for me. Like I have for you all this time. It's only fair." She traced a tiny heart on his chest with her finger. "Now eat. Before it gets cold. I'll be back later, I promise. We have plenty of time."
Not if Chris could help it.
He looked at the tray. The food was still being cut up for him. Chris knew the food and maybe even the water were drugged with something that made him sleepy. But he also knew that starving himself to death was not a preferred method of escape. He would have to keep his strength up if he ever hoped to get away.
He ate slowly, crawled back into bed, and waited for the drugs to have their effect.
The next morning, Buck and JD headed into the Red Fork saloon to meet the others. Buck and JD had been there before, when they first met the late Handsome Jack Averill. JD scanned the room as he and Buck walked in. He was relieved to see that none of the men they'd met that night were in the saloon now.
Ezra, Vin, Nathan and Josiah were already seated at a table by the far wall, having breakfast. The mood was a somber one at best.
"Now what?" JD hoped somebody had a plan.
"We start lookin'," said Buck, with a shrug.
"Well, I know that, but how?"
Josiah was cutting a particularly tough piece of ham. "Like Vin said, we pick a direction and start askin' the local citizens…and doctors."
"--And undertakers." Buck added, looking pointedly at Ezra. Ezra said nothing, studying his coffee with great interest.
"And we ask them what?" To JD this didn't sound like any kind of a plan at all.
Buck was out of patience. "If they've seen Ella Gaines! If they've seen Chris! If they've seen anything!"
Ezra looked up at last. "However we do it, gentlemen, I suggest we finish our repast and commence our search."
When Chris awoke, he was still groggy. He opened his eyes and sat up with an effort. His head felt full of lead. He went to rub the back of his neck and found that the bandage was gone. It bothered him to think that Ella was in the room with him when he was unconscious. His fingers traced four tiny stitches at the back of his head. The spot was still very tender to the touch.
A bathtub had been brought into the middle of the room and wisps of steam rose from it. Chris walked over to it and dipped a hand into the water. It was hot, but not scalding.
The door opened and Ella walked in. Raul followed closely behind her, gun in hand as always. Maria stood next to him, soap and towels in her hands.
Chris straightened and looked at her with a sardonic smile. "I can take a bath by myself."
"I've come to scrub your back, of course." Ella stood there, hands on hips, grinning at him. "Now strip," she ordered.
Chris stood there, defiance in his emerald eyes.
Ella looked amused. "Shy? Oh, come now, Chris. I've seen it all before…Remember?" She smiled lewdly.
Chris didn't move.
Ella looked at Raul. He handed the gun to her, then walked over to where Chris's chain was secured to the wall. In one quick, fluid motion, he reached down, grasped the chain with both hands and yanked it forcefully, toppling Chris to the floor. Raul took a step towards him.
The thought of this man touching him, forcibly undressing him, made Chris shudder inwardly. "I can undress myself, thanks," he said hastily to Ella.
Ella smiled broadly. Raul took the gun from Ella as he resumed his place near her.
Chris got to his feet. He unbuttoned the fly of his pants, then hesitated. "The chain?"
"You can bathe with it on. Maria!"
Maria entered the room as Raul took a step closer and pointed the gun at Chris's head. Maria unlocked the chain. She hastily locked it again as soon as Chris had removed his pants and drawers. Then she left the room.
Ella turned to Raul. "Wait outside."
Chris had bathed as quickly as possible. He hated the idea of Ella touching him, but he knew she'd have her way. Raul wouldn't hesitate to shoot him. He could see it in the Mexican's dark eyes. And Ella, twisted as she was, would let him.
Ella watched Chris as he toweled off. She reached up to touch his hair. "I love it when your hair is all damp and clean and sweet-smelling like this," she whispered.
Chris dodged her hand and reached for his pants.
"No," she said sharply. She opened the wardrobe with a bit of a flourish. "I bought you a whole new set of clothes. This is what I want to see you in."
"I told you I wasn't one for suits, Ella."
Her anger flared again. "I went to a lot of trouble to get these for you. If you can't appreciate them, then maybe you shouldn't have them until you can. Maybe you should learn to appreciate what I give you! Raul! Maria!"
They entered the room almost immediately. Ella indicated the wardrobe of clothes. "Take them out of here. Take everything out of here. Including those gunslinger clothes."
Raul handed Ella the gun, disappeared with the clothes, including Chris's own clothes - shirt, hat, pants and boots - then reappeared a moment later.
"Strip the bed," Ella ordered.
Chris watched her as the servants quickly carried out her orders, removing anything Chris might use to cover himself: clothes, bedding, towels. She held the gun barrel level with his chest. He stood there, staring back at her warily, trying to guess if she was just angry enough to gun him down right there.
Within minutes, Raul and Maria were done and left the room.
"I like you better this way anyway," she shrugged.
Then he was alone in the room.
Ella didn't return to Chris's room for the rest of the day. Raul brought in some food, then returned to collect the tray and dishes. Chris tried to read one of the many books in the bookcase to pass the time, but all he could really think about was escaping from Ella and this nightmare he found himself in.
If he could get Raul's gun, maybe he could shoot off the lock and escape. But no one got close enough for him to try to get it without getting himself shot. He was sure some kind of opportunity would come. He just had to stay alive long enough to take advantage of it.
As the unseasonably cold night came on, the room's temperature dropped. Chris was feeling every degree of it. He lay huddled on the mattress, trying to retain what warmth he could.
How could he have been so wrong about Ella? Had she always been like this? He doubted that. He was sure that she had to have become this way over time. When he last saw her, he had been ready to leave his friends for her, to finally get past his grief and maybe one day take another try at family life. Now he was trapped in this hell she'd created, and looking for a way out where he would still be alive. Because a love like hers was going to put him in a pine box.
His body shivered uncontrollably, even after he finally succumbed to an uncomfortable sleep that marked the end of another day at Ella's mercy.
The day had been proving to be a long one for the remaining Six as well. They had decided they would canvas the town first before widening their search. They hadn't been hopeful that they'd find out much, but a slight chance always remained that Ella Gaines had returned to Red Fork and was holed up somewhere.
As he walked along the boardwalk, Ezra barely noticed the people around him. He was still wondering if they were anywhere near being on the right track. He wanted to find Chris Larabee as much as any of the others, but so far he'd turned up nothing. He only hoped one of the others had had more luck.
Ezra was so lost in thought he collided with a woman coming out of the grocery store. He bent to pick up her parcels. When he looked up, he found himself staring into the dark brown eyes of a pretty young Mexican. She looked flustered and embarrassed.
"Pardon me," he smiled, touching the brim of his hat. "I should have noticed so comely a lady such as yourself." As he looked at her more attentively, Ezra decided 'exotic' described her best. She had a figure like an hourglass, deep olive skin and shiny, black hair. Her large, wide-set brown eyes, though, were what truly mesmerized him.
She smiled and nodded, then started past him.
Ezra followed her. "Ezra Standish, madam. Pleased to make your acquaintance. And your name is...?"
Again she smiled, but said nothing.
Ezra persisted. "Do you understand English?"
She nodded. Ezra speculated if she didn't understand him at all and was just nodding. He tried again.
"Do you speak English?"
She shook her head. Now he was really confused. How could one understand English but not speak it? Then it dawned on him and his expression sobered.
She smiled again and set her packages in a wagon that was hitched nearby. She took a small card out of her pocket and handed it to Ezra.
"Maria Teresa Lopez," he read aloud. "How do you do, Miss Lopez?"
She pointed to the card again.
"Maria," Ezra corrected himself, and returned the card to her.
Just then a large Mexican man walked up to wagon. He gave Ezra a surly look, nodded curtly to Maria, then climbed into the wagon.
"I see your husband is ready to go," he said, a note of disappointment in his voice.
She shook her head emphatically.
"Not your husband? Your beau then?"
Again she shook her head.
"How is it a lovely creature like yourself is not spoken for? Perhaps I can call on you sometime?"
She shook her head again, and this time she looked afraid. The big Mexican in the wagon shot them both an ugly look.
"Perhaps I'll see you in town, then," said Ezra hopefully.
She smiled again, then climbed into the wagon beside the big Mexican. He snapped the reins and the wagon pulled away. Ezra watched them go before joining the others in Vin and Nathan's room.
The mood in the room was grim. No one had been able to find out anything.
"These are the most unobservant citizenry I have ever met," complained Ezra.
"We'll try again tomorrow," shrugged Vin.
"We don't even know if our hypothesis about Mr. Larabee is correct," Ezra pointed out. "Ella Gaines may have nothing at all to do with his disappearance. You don't bet on your hand before you see your cards."
Josiah agreed. "Ezra has a point. It does seem kinda like we're grasping at straws."
"Maybe," said Vin. "But I still think it's her. Call it an instinct."
Buck looked at Vin. "If you're instincts tell you that it's her, then that's good enough for me."
JD spoke up. "This could take awhile. And we can't have all of us gone from town while we look for him."
Vin nodded. "JD's right…Some of us'll have to go back to protect the town. Who wants to go?"
Silence. Vin looked around the room.
"Nathan, you'll be need at the clinic."
Nathan shook his head. "I'm as concerned about Chris as everyone else."
"Josiah?"
"Those souls'll keep a little longer. I'm always interested in returnin' a lost sheep to the fold."
"JD?"
"Oh, no you don't! If everyone else is gonna stay, I'm stayin'. I ain't gonna be sent home like some schoolboy. I can look for Chris just as well as anybody else can!"
"Gentlemen, there's only one democratic way to do this," smiled Ezra, pulling a pack of cards out of his jacket. "We draw for it."
Vin agreed. "Three highest cards stay. The rest go home."
Ezra shuffled the deck and laid it on the bed. Nathan drew first: a four. Then Josiah: a king. JD picked up a six. Vin drew a ten. Buck drew a card and scowled: a two. Finally, it was Ezra's turn. A jack.
"All right," said Vin. "Nathan, JD and Buck go back. If we need ya, we'll send a wire for ya."
Buck was still scowling. "Hey, Ezra, wanna trade?"
Ezra shook his head. "Mr. Wilmington, I always abide by the luck of the draw."
"Yeah, right. That wouldn't have anything to do with that pretty Mexican filly I seen you talkin' to?"
Ezra just smiled, as he headed for his room. "Good night, gentlemen."
It was just before dawn when Chris awoke with a start. He was still laying on his side, curled up in a ball. A pair of hands was lightly stroking his back. He twisted suddenly, catching Ella's hands in his.
"Stop it," he hissed at her through clenched teeth.
Ella was alone in the room with him. For once, he saw a hint of fear in her eyes. That was all he needed to tell him that Raul was not standing guard outside.
Before Ella could say anything, Chris rolled over on the mattress. He knelt over her, his hands around her throat. "I should have killed you when I had the chance," he whispered hoarsely, "for what you did to my family." He began to squeeze. All he could see in his mind's eye were the graves of his beloved wife and son.
Ella flailed helplessly, trying to break his grip. Her legs squirmed in the swath of shift and bathrobe until a well-placed knee finally found its mark. Chris rolled off her, gasping in pain, and Ella scrambled to the door.
She stood in the doorway, gulping in huge breaths of air and rubbing her throat. Chris lunged for her in a fury, but she was just out of reach.
She looked at him for a moment. "I can see you haven't yet realized that I'm the woman that you really love," she said at last, her voice a bit raspy. "But you will."
And then the door closed.
Chris sat on the bed, cursing himself for again failing to avenge Sarah's and Adam's deaths. He never hated anyone so much in his life as Ella Gaines. And when he got out of here, he would be back to make certain she'd pay for what she'd done to Sarah and to Adam. "I promise you both," he whispered softly.
It was mid-morning when the door to Chris's room opened. There stood Maria with a tray of food, and Raul with the ever-present gun. Chris sat on the bed, watching, as Maria set down the tray. As she left, she passed Ella on her way in.
"Maria, make the bed in here," said Ella. Ella was carrying some folded black clothing. Her hands clutched his boots and hat. She set the hat and boots on a chair. She approached Chris with the clothing in her arms. She gave him a beaming smile.
"I'm so sorry about last night. I was so angry with you over those suits and then when I came to see you, you so upset. I understand if you're not ready to wear them yet. Look. I brought you your clothes. They're all cleaned and pressed, too. Maria cleaned them, but I folded them myself. See?" She held them out to him.
When Chris didn't move, Ella set them on the table. Maria returned and began making up Chris's bed. "Raul, watch Mr. Larabee. Maria, I think Mr. Larabee wants to get dressed."
Maria came over and unlocked the chain by Chris's ankle just long enough to allow him to put on his drawers and pants. She quickly locked it again as Chris finished putting on his shirt, then she finished making the bed.
Ella stood in the doorway. "We can discuss the wardrobe later. Maybe even make some plans."
Chris smiled back. Because Chris already had a plan.
Vin, Ezra and Josiah watched the others saddle up to return home.
"Now you wire us the moment you got somethin'," Buck reminded them for the third time. He looked at Ezra. "And I don't just mean that little Mexican girl."
Vin nodded to Buck. "Just be ready."
Nathan hesitated. "Maybe I should stay. If Chris is hurt, you might need me."
Josiah shook his head. "Clinic needs you more. 'Sides, they got a doc here in town."
"Hopefully, we won't need 'im," added Vin.
Nathan nodded and mounted up. He took one last look at them, then rode off with Buck and JD.
Chris hadn't seen Ella the rest of the day, but her presence had certainly been felt. When Raul brought meals to him, Ella had left little notes and flowers on the tray. She was staying away for the rest of the day to give him time to forgive her for being so mean about the clothes. She reminded him how his coldness to her made her do such cruel things to him. She hated to do it, but what choice did he give her?
Chris really wanted to see Ella now. But not for the reasons she wanted him to. His plan would have to wait a little longer.
The rest of the day had been uneventful for Vin, Ezra, and Josiah, too. Ezra and Josiah met Vin as he came out of the sheriff's office.
"Any luck?" asked Ezra.
Vin shook his head. "He said since we can't prove that any crime's been committed, he don't see no reason to waste any time talkin' to us."
"He's got a point," said Josiah.
Ezra looked at them both. "So what do we do? Go home?"
Vin's eyes hardened. "I say we give it another couple of days. I know it don't make much sense, but I can feel he's close by."
Josiah laid a hand on Vin's shoulder. "If that's how you feel, I'll go along with it."
"Agreed," nodded Ezra. He didn't feel the same certainty as Vin did, though.
For Chris, the next morning started the way most of them had. Raul brought food. Ella was with him, but Maria was not.
Ella rushed to where Chris stood by the table. She threw her arms around him and laid her head against his chest. "Did you miss me like I missed you? Oh, I hope you did. Did you?"
Chris slowly put his arms around her. "I did," he whispered gently in her ear. He could smelled the familiar scent of roses in her hair. He had once loved that about her. Now it made his stomach tighten. "And I have a little surprise for you."
Ella looked into his face with wide, excited eyes and grinned broadly. "What?"
"I thought it over," he said, releasing her and taking step back. "About those suits you bought for me. Why don't you pick your favorite and I'll wear it today? But you know how I feel about them, so hurry before I change my mind."
Ella beamed as she left the room. She was still smiling when she returned, a suit in hand. She crouched, her back to Raul and quickly unlocked the chain at his ankle so he could change clothes, as he hoped she would.
"Ella," he said huskily. "I haven't thanked you for buying this for me." He moved to put his arms around her, before she could lock up the chain. Instead he gave her a hard shove into Raul. They fell backward into a heap and Chris bolted for the open door.
It felt odd without the added weight on his ankle and his ankle hurt where the iron band had rubbed a raw spot, but Chris hardly noticed as he ran into the hall. He was on the second floor, he knew, from the one window in his room. That window had always been kept locked.
He could hear Ella screaming. A gunshot just missed him as he turned and started down the stairs. Raul made a grab for him and they tumbled down the stairs together. Chris landed one punch to Raul's face before slipping out of his grasp and racing down the hall. The house was big. Too damn big. Chris lost precious seconds trying to find his way out of the unfamiliar building.
He burst out the front door into the daylight, squinting against the brightness. He could hear Raul's footsteps behind him. To his left was a small corral. He was in luck. There was a horse, and it had a bridle but no saddle. Chris ran to it and threw himself onto the horse's back as Raul came out of the house. Chris kicked his bare heels into the horse's flanks and galloped past Raul, who quickly dodged out of the way.
Chris was still disoriented. Since he didn't know where he was, he didn't know which direction to go. He hesitated a moment, then headed anywhere. He could sort it out later. When he was free of the place. And Ella Gaines.
There was a long fence in various stages of disrepair around the property. Chris turned the horse and was riding toward a large gap in the fence when there was a sound almost like a small explosion. Chris felt a bolt of white pain pierce his left thigh that caused him to lose his grip on the reins. He tumbled to the ground.
Through the dull, aching roar in his ears, he could dimly hear hooves approaching. He knew who it was. He lay on his back and closed his eyes as Ella and Raul rode up.
Ella looked at him with a triumphant smile. "Tripwire," she said by way of explanation. "After that terrible ordeal with Handsome Jack, I had to protect myself from trespassers. I've got little surprises all around the place. That one had steel shot in it." She sounded proud of it, he thought.
Chris groaned and clutched his bloody thigh as shards of agony traveled the length of his leg.
Ella got off her horse. She tore off a piece of cloth and wrapped it around his thigh to staunch some of the bleeding. She looked at him and clicked her tongue. "You did it to yourself, you know." She shook her head sadly. "Why you insist on being this way when deep down you know how you really feel, I don't know. Raul, get a wagon and bring him back to the house. And send Maria for the doctor. And hurry." She gently stroked his face. "Poor Chris," she cooed softly.
Chris could barely see her face. Pinpoints of light danced in front of his eyes before the lights were obscured by oblivion.
Part 2