Fic: Mines and other things.
Author Megan
Rating FRT
Disclaimer: Mag 7 doesn't belong to me
Runaways AU
Author Note: Thanks to Enola Jones for being a great beta. I hope everyone has a great New Year's Day and Eve.
"That's them."
Looking up from his drink, the man stared at the two boys who were seated next to the gambler In the saloon. "You sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure George, it's them. They're the only two boys that fit the descriptions."
George looked at the boys, then turned back to Ted. "What does he need those two for?"
"I don't know, nor do I care. He just wants them. We're to bring them to him."
George, the younger man, frowned. "You sure they won't be missed?"
Ted smiled. "They're orphans. No one will notice them missing."
"When are we going to get them?"
"Tomorrow. They help out with the general store. We should be able to grab those two when they leave the store."
George grinned. It was going to be an easy job.
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Not realizing that there were two cowboys who were watching, Ezra laughed at the two boys. "Now that you fine gentlemen have taken all the money on the table, what are you going to do with it?"
The two boys shared a glance. Buck smiled. "Horsey?"
Ezra grinned. "I'm afraid, young Buck, that you don't have enough for a horse. Nor do I think your guardians would appreciate me letting you get one."
The two boys shared a confused look. Chris spoke up. "Da and JD wouldn't be happy about a horse?"
Ezra smiled. "Exactly. Now I think its about time that you two head home."
The two boys nodded. Giving their uncle a hug, they headed towards the house attached to the jail for dinner.
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The two cowboys left the saloon a few minutes later.
Reaching the outside of the saloon, the two cowboys watched as the two young kids walked into the the house attached to the jail.
Sharing a look, the two men smiled. It would be an easy grab.
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The next day, the two boys were leaving Mrs. Potter's store. As they passed a shadowy alley way between two of the buildings, just out of sight of the store and home, hands reached out and grabbed them.
Before the boys could utter a scream, gags were stuffed in their mouths.
The two men pulled them deeper into the alley.
The cowboys shared a glance. The older one spoke up. "Be quiet. We only need one of you."
Both boys heard the threat in the words. They stopped struggling.
When the boys finished their struggling, the two cowboys brought them to their horses and trotted out of Four Corners.
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JD stepped out of the house. The boys had been helping Mrs. Potter, though they had never stayed this late. Looking down the street, JD made up his mind to make sure that they hadn't lost track of the time.
Walking to the store, he waited while Mrs. Potter finished talking to a customer. When she was free, JD spoke up. "Have you seen the boys?"
Mrs Potter frowned. "Yes, they headed out about 15 minutes ago. You didn't see them?"
"No, they didn't make it home. You sure they didn't head anywhere else? Maybe to the saloon? Nathan's?"
Mrs. Potter shook her head. "No, they were heading home. They said that you and Vin were going to take them riding this afternoon."
JD nodded, biting his lip. He finally thanked Mrs. Potter and headed out of the store, checking each of the alleyways between the jail and the store to see if the boys had gotten distracted by something they might have seen.
At one dark alleyway, he paused when he noticed something on the ground.
Leaning down, he picked up the piece of cloth. Staring at it for a second, he realized what he was looking at. It was one of the bandannas that Buck had started to wear.
Clutching the cloth close to him, JD rushed to the saloon where he knew the rest of the guys were.
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Chris was angry. He was jammed in front of the bigger cowboy. He couldn't see Buck. He had tried to wiggle to get a view, but the minute he had tried, the cowboy had pushed him to the front and growled that if he kept moving they would tie him up.
Stilling, Chris tried to figure out where they were going.(figure out)
His ears perked up when he heard the man holding Buck speak. "We taking them all the way back to the house?"
"No, not all the way. We need to stop for supplies and stuff. I think we store these two in the old mine while we go get the supplies. I have a feeling if we ride into town with these two, someone might put two and two together."
"Good, could use a break from them. We tying them up?"
"Yep, we'll leave them with a light. We won't be gone for that long."
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A few hours later found the two cowboys, carrying the boys that were now tied up, into the mine.
Ignoring the small whimpers from both boys, they placed them each onto a cot that were shoved into a corner of the mine.
Moving away, the older cowboy spoke up. "Now, don't go anywhere. You won't be able to find your way out. We'll be back soon."
Chris tried to talk through the gag, but the man waved his hand. "We'll be gone for only a few hours. Now, relax."
As the fading sounds of the two man's footsteps faded, Chris turned to Buck and could see the reflection of his fear in the younger boy's eyes.
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The two cowboys paused at the entrance of the mine. George looked over at Ted. "You sure they'll be all right? The younger one didn't look good."
"They'll be fine. Nothing will get them in the mine. Besides, those two aren't going to go anywhere."
George looked back towards the dark mine tunnel. "All right, then. Lets get to town. I'm hungry and the boss won't like us to tarry."
Ted grinned. "Let's go."
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Vin paused and stared down at the ground. JD rode up next to him. "Found something?"
Standing up, the tracker nodded. "They're headed towards the old Bammer mine."
Ezra spoke up from his horse. "I thought that mine was sealed up. It was considered too dangerous to mine after the last cave in?"
JD sighed. "Yeah, it was. Hopefully they're just passing by."
Nathan rode up to the other three men, with Josiah following him. "You think they might try to keep the boys in the mine?"
Josiah, hearing Nathan's question, answered, "I hope you're wrong, brother. That mine isn't safe."
Vin had to nod in agreement. "I have to agree with Josiah. The mine is dangerous. If they left the boys there, they had have better hope the boys don't get hurt."
The rest of the men agreed. They took off, with Vin in the lead, following the tracks of the kidnappers.
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After struggling with the bonds that tied his hands for awhile. Chris was able to pry one hand free. Wincing at the scrapes and bruises, Chris quickly removed the gag and untied the rope on his feet.
Throwing the ropes away, he moved over to the cot that Buck was on. He removed Buck's gag and started to work on the ropes tying Buck's hand as he tried to get the boy to wake up. "Buck. Wake up. Buck!"
The younger boy blinked ans slowly opened his eyes. Seeing Chris free from his bonds, the younger boy smiled. "You're free!"
Chris smiled. "Yes, and if you give me a minute, you will be too!"
Nodding, Buck sighed. "I don't like it here. Can we go home?"
Chris stared at the tunnel they were in. "We will. We just got to get out of here first."
"How?"
"We follow the signs. 'member Uncle Nathan told us about how to find our way out of mine?"
Buck was quiet for a second, then nodded. "Yes."
Chris nodded. "All right. Let's grab the lantern."
Just as Chris spoke, there came a rumble from above their heads.
Sharing a look, Buck swallowed hard. "Chris?"
Looking over at Buck. Chris reached out one hand to grab Buck .The other grabbed the lantern. "Run!"
The two young boys darted towards the entrance of the room.
Small rocks and dirt started to rain down on them. The ceiling groaned and then shook one last time as it collapsed down into the room.
Chris and Buck lunged towards the door.
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Vin pulled up his horse. Stopping the rest of the group, Vin spoke up. "We need to stop for the night."
JD shook his head. "We can't. We need to find them."
Vin looked back at JD. "I know. But this place is littered with old mines. We can' t go searching it in the dark. We could hurt ourselves or the horses. We won't do them any good if we get hurt out here."
JD sighed. "I know, its just...."
Vin nodded in agreement.
The other three moved up to the two men. Ezra was the first to speak. "We're stopping?"
Vin nodded. "Getting dark soon. Won't be able to track."
Getting off his horse and stretching, Ezra sighed. "Will they be all right?"
JD sighed. "I don't know."
Josiah, walking up with Nathan and hearing the statement, frowned. "They will be fine. Chris won't let anything happen to Buck. And Buck won't let Chris get hurt."
"I'm sure you're right, Josiah."
"But you're worried about them JD. And that's fine. We're all worried about them," Nathan answered.
Vin called over to the group, "Guys, less chatter and more gathering wood. We're riding out at dawn."
With a groan, the group got to work, hoping that the night would go fast.
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Chris woke up to feeling someone pulling on his arm. With a groan, he struggled to get his eyes open. When he did, he panicked for a moment. Everything was dark.
Scrambling to get up, he bit his lip as his movement woke all of his bruises and cuts. d
After a second, he realized that it was dark because the lantern had gone out.
"Buck? You okay?"
"It's dark."
Chris sighed. "Do you know where the lantern is?"
"Yes, and I found a match. Can you light it?"
Chris grinned. "Hand it over."
The lantern and match were put into Chris's hands. Fumbling for a second, Chris finally lit the lantern.
As the warm glow of light brightened the area, Chris looked over at Buck. "Are you sure you're okay?"
Moving closer to Chris, he nodded. "Just scared. I want Da and Vin and Uncles."
"I agree with you. But we have to find our way out."
Biting his lip, Buck nodded slightly. "Then we go home."
Staring at the battered and cut up boy, Chris nodded. "Yep. Let's get started. Sooner we're out of here, the better it will be."
Buck nodded.
With a deep sigh, Chris got up and started to lead Buck away from the now rubble-filled room out into the maze of tunnels.
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As the sun was just warming up the sky with its faint light, five men were already saddling their horses. Nathan looked at the group. "You think we'll find them today?"
Vin rubbed Peso's nose. "Yes, we won't let them be missing any longer. No one takes them."
The rest of the men agreed. No one took one of their own and lived.
With a last long look at the camp, Vin mounted Peso. "Everyone ready?"
With nods and grunts of agreement, the group headed out, following the tracks.
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Buck stifled a yawn. He was tired, they had been walking forever. His body hurt from the rocks that had fallen on them earlier. Keeping up with Chris made his arm and leg hurt more. With a short puff of air, he made a decision.
Buck stopped in the middle of the tunnel. Looking at Chris, he spoke up. "Can we stop? I'm tired."
Chris, who had been staring at directional marks in the tunnel wall, nodded. "We can rest. It's going to take me a little bit of time to figure this out."
Smiling, the young boy sat down, drawing his knees up to his chest. "Why did the bad men throw us down here?"
Chris moved over to Buck. "I don't know. But we'll get out of here. The marks on how to get out of here are confusing, but I'll find the right way."
As he looked around the tunnel, Buck piped up "Do you think they're looking for us?"
"Yes, they're looking for us. I bet they'll be waiting right outside the entrance for us."
"Why did the bad men take us?"
Chris moved away from the mine wall to sit by Buck. Wrapping an arm around the younger boy, hazel eyes stared into the blue. "I don't know. I think they wanted us for something. We don't need to worry about them. Da and JD and the uncles will find us first."
Dark blue eyes looked up at Chris. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure. Now, I know which way to go. It isn't too much farther."
With a soft whimper, the boys levered themselves up. Ignoring the pain from the bruises and cuts, they headed down the mine tunnel, hoping that they would be out of it soon.
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Nathan rubbed his face. He was worried. He wished there was more that he could do. He couldn't track the boys. All he could do was hope that they would find the boys before they were hurt.
Josiah moved up to ride beside the healer. "They'll be fine."
"How can you be so sure? Why would they take the boys?"
Josiah sighed. "I wish I knew. There is no reason to take them."
Ezra drifted back to the two men. "Maybe someone wanted them."
Nathan sighed. "Who? No one in town would. Even the ranchers wouldn't touch them."
Josiah was quiet for a minute. "Maybe it wasn't anyone around Four Corners. Look where we are. We're closer to Eagle bend than our town. Might be someone who just moved here. Maybe they passed through town and saw the boys."
Ezra frowned. "You don't think they saw them in the saloon?"
Nathan shook his head. "Even if they did, they could have seen them anywhere in town. They go all over the town. Whether they were at the saloon or not, they would have been seen."
Ezra sighed. Staring at JD and Vin, the gambler turned back to the other two. "You think we'll find them?"
Josiah grinned slightly. "I don't think JD or Vin would allow any other outcome."
Ezra was quiet for a long time. Then he spoke up. "Then we won't, either. We will find them."
The other three nodded in agreement.
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JD stared at Vin. "You got a lead."
Vin nodded. "The tracks are heading towards the old Bammer mine."
JD frowned. "That mine has been empty for years. It's falling down. You don't think that they would put the kids there?"
Vin sighed. "I hope not."
The two exchanged a look, and sped up their horses, heading straight to the mine.
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Chris frowned for a second. Blinking, he rubbed his eyes and smiled. "Buck, we're almost there."
Buck looked up from the floor and stared at the small prick of light. "Is that the way out."
Chris grinned. "It is. We're almost there."
The two boys started to move faster, ignoring the pain from the newly opened bleeding cuts. The boys ignored it all and headed for the glowing light.
They were so focused on the prick of light, they did not hear the rumbling from deeper in the mine.
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The five paused at the top of the hill. Staring down at the mine, they all felt their hearts turn cold. The entrance to the mine was buried under a large amount of rocks.
Taking a moment to share a look, the five men spurred their horses forward, down the hill.
The five men reached the mound of rumble. Almost tumbling off their horses, they approached the pile of rocks.
JD was the first to speak. "Do you think they're in there?"
Vin closed his eyes for a moment. "I don't know."
Before anyone could say anything, from behind them came two shouts of "DA!"
Turning, the group saw two figures run towards them. They stood, staring at shock at what they saw.
JD and Vin shook their shock off in time for each of them to catch one of the kids.
JD was the first to speak as he held Buck. "Buck! Chris! Are you two all right. Who did this? Where?"
Buck, clinging to JD, stayed quiet. Chris, though, after several minutes, spoke up. "They left us in there. We got out and hid in the bushes."
Buck nodded. "You found us. I want to go home."
Vin hugged Chris closer to him. "We will. Nathan is going to look you over first."
Buck frowned. Looking at his Uncles and Vin, the young boy grinned. "I'm fine."
Chris nodded in agreement, "I am, too."
Nathan glared at JD and Vin. "This is your two's faults."
Vin and JD grinned slightly. Ezra moved closer to the two boys. "You may be fine. But in order to make sure that you're fine, Nathan would just like to check on you. It's to soothe his fear."
JD hugged Buck closer to him for a minute. With a sigh, he looked at the boys. "Ezra is right. You need to be checked. It would put Nathan's mind at ease."
The two boys finally nodded.
Moving towards the boys, Nathan took Buck from JD first.
Looking over the younger boy first, Nathan frowned at the various cuts he saw on the young boy. After several minutes, he exchanged Buck for Chris.
Finally, finishing with Chris, Nathan looked at the rest of the group. "They should be fine long enough for us to make it back to where we camped last night. I don't want to treat them here."
The group nodded. Without a backward glance, they left the area.
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"George, he won't be happy that we lost them."
"I know, Ted. But we can't take on all five of them. He would like that less."
"So, what do we do?"
"We go back to him, and find out what we should do next. He said that this might happen."
George stared at the retreating men. With a nod, he followed Ted to their horses. They took off in an opposite direction.
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Reaching the place they had camped at the previous night, Vin sent Ezra and Josiah out to collect firewood. JD laid out the bedrolls. Looking at both of the kids. Nathan smiled. "I know you won't like it, but I need to check your ribs."
Buck frowned. "They're fine."
Nathan mumbled something under his breath. "They might be, but you might have hurt them. I want to make sure they aren't hurt worse. Besides, I need to check on your cuts a little more."
Chris and Buck shared a glance. Chris spoke up. "All right, Uncle Nathan. As long as we don't have to drink any tea."
Nathan smiled. "Deal. No tea."
With that, the boys agreed for Nathan to check them more thoroughly over.
Twenty minutes later, Nathan moved the boys closer to the fire. Making sure that the two were wrapped in blankets, he motioned for Ezra and Josiah to come over and sit with the boys.
Sharing a glance with Nathan, the two men settled next to the boys. They kept the boys entertained while Nathan talked to JD and Vin.
Nathan moved over to Vin and JD. Making sure the boys couldn't over hear him, he sighed. "They're not in too bad shape. Some food and sleep and they should be all right. They have a lot of cuts and bruising, but the worst of it seems to be a knock to Chris's head and a deep bruise on Buck's chest. They''ll be sore awhile. We'll need to keep them quiet."
JD let out a breath. "Good. Now, we just need to figure out who took them."
Vin frowned. Staring at the two tired boys, he said, "Later. We need to get them home. Make sure they heal and feel safe. Then we'll find these men. They aren't going anywhere."
JD frowned. "You think that they're coming back for them?"
Vin nodded. "We don't know why they took them. Until we do, they could still be in danger."
JD stared at the two boys for a moment. "They won't get them."
Vin nodded in agreement. "No. They won't."
With that the three joined the other four around the fire. The mystery of who took the boys would wait a few days. Right now, the boys were more important.
The End.